فصل 63

Chapter 63

AT THE moment Dr Lecter raised his wine to the candle, A. Benning, staying late at the DNA lab, raised her latest gel to the light and looked at the electrophoresis lines dotted with red, blue, and yellow. The sample was epithelial cells from the toothbrush brought over from the Palazzo Capponi in the Italian diplomatic pouch.

“Ummmm umm umm umm,” she said and called Starling’s number at Quantico.

Eric Pickford answered.

“Hi, may I speak to Clarice Starling please?”

“She’s gone for the day and I’m in charge, how can I help you?”

“Do you have a beeper number for her?”

“She’s on the other phone. What have you got?”

“Would you please tell her it’s Benning from the DNA lab. Please tell her the toothbrush and the eyelash off the arrow are a match. It’s Dr Lecter. And ask her to call me.”

“Give me your extension number. Sure, I’ll tell her right now. Thanks.”

Starling was not on the other line. Pickford called Paul Krendler at home.

When Starling did not call A. Benning at the lab, the technician was a little disappointed. A. Benning had put in a lot of extra time. She went home long before Pickford ever called Starling at home.

Mason knew an hour before Starling.

He talked briefly to Paul Krendler, taking his tine, letting the breaths come. His mind was very clear.

“It’s time to get Starling out, before they start thinking proactive and put her out for bait. It’s Friday, you’ve got the weekend. Get things started, Krendler. Tip the Wops about the ad and get her out of there, it’s time for her to go. And Krendler?”

“I wish we could just-“

“Just do it, and when you get that next picture postcard from the Caymans, it’ll have a whole new number written under the stamp.”

“All right, I’ll-“

Krendler said, and heard the dial tone.

The short talk was uncommonly tiring for Mason.

Last, before sinking into a broken sleep, he summoned Cordell and said to him, “Send for the pigs.”