“Listen carefully, Carmen. The Feds believe Alvarez is about to disappear. If he means to do you harm, it will probably happen tonight. Right now you have two choices—run or stay. If you want to leave before the dinner, I’ll drive out now and pick you up. If you want to stay, I’ll bring some reinforcements with me and we’ll watch what happens. Maybe we can catch Juan in something that justifies an arrest. But if you stay, you’ll be putting yourself in danger.”

“I’m not afraid.” There was a pause. “Well, not much, anyway. I want to bring Juan to justice. My only concern right now is Slide. He’s in Boston, at Street Business. I’ll call Jackie and have him stay there tonight. If Slide’s safe, I will stay.”

I heard a low moan from the corridor. I looked up and saw a shadow pass in front of the frosted window on my office door. There was a loud thud against the door, and the shadow disappeared.

“Carmen,” I said, “I’ve got to go. I’ll be out to Weston in about an hour. Call me if anything happens before then.”

I put down the phone, slid open the desk drawer, and pulled out my gun. Then I walked over to the door, stood to the side, and listened. I heard what sounded like hoarse breathing in the corridor. I turned the knob, pulled open the door, and swung into the doorway in a modified Weaver stance.

Slide was sitting in a crumpled heap at my door. There was a deep cut on his forehead, starting just above his left eye. The eye was starting to swell, and the flesh around it already was starting to bruise. His nose was bloodied. By the way he was curled and holding his stomach, I could tell his ribs were bruised, if not broken.

I checked the corridor, then I squatted down next to him.

“Spenser,” he said, his right eye open just a slit.

“It’s okay, Slide. Don’t try to move.” I got down closer to his face. “You’re going to be okay.” He had been beaten, but nothing appeared to be broken. I scooped him up and carried him into the office and put him down on the sofa. Beneath the bulky peacoat, he was lighter than he should have been.

He shivered. I eased him out of the peacoat, then filled a basin with warm water. Using a clean cloth, I washed his face and hands as gently as I could, wiping away as much blood as possible. Other than the cut and the bloody nose, his head was fine, though the gash to the forehead caused a lot of bleeding. He’d have some bruises, and his body would be sore. I opened the first-aid kit I kept in my file cabinet and used gauze and tape to bandage his head. I thought he’d do okay without stitches.

I wrapped him in a blanket, and soon his shivering stopped. I made some hot tea at the boiling tap by my coffeepot and added four packets of sugar. I put a pillow behind his head and sat down next to him on the sofa, holding the mug out to him. “Come on, pal. This is good. Give it a try.”

He did tentative sips at first, then drained the mug. Color returned to his cheeks. “Spenser,” he said. “Jackie needs help.”

“Easy, Slide,” I said. “You all right to talk?”

He nodded.

“Tell me.”

Slide tried to shift toward me and winced slightly. I moved off the sofa and squatted directly in front of him.

“They came for Jackie and beat him up.” Very quietly, tears streaming down his face. “I think they may have killed him.”

“Okay, little man, hang on. Tell me what happened. From the beginning.”

“I go over to Street Business after I left you,” he said. “When I get there, I see Joe and Frankie talking to two guys out on the street in front of the house. Then the two guys go inside, and Joe and Frankie walk away.” He stopped and winced again. I filled the mug with water and helped him take a sip.

“Then what?”

“When I get inside, I see these guys yelling at Jackie. They’re kicking and punching him, and one of them has got the iron poker thing from the fireplace, and he’s whaling on Jackie. Jackie’s trying to fight back, but he can’t handle both of them.”

“So what did you do?”

“I ran in and tried to help him. But one of the guys starts kicking and hitting me. When I break free, Jackie says, ‘Get Spenser!’ Even though they punched me in the face, I got away. I ran right here.”

“What happened to Joe and Frankie?”

“They were there at first, but when the guys went into Street Business, they just disappeared.”

“Was anyone else around? Any of the other kids? Any of the other staff?”

“Not that I could see. It was just these two guys and Jackie.”

“Did you recognize the two guys? Had you seen them before?”

“No. Never.”

“Think hard, Slide. Maybe at Street Business? Maybe at the farm?”

Slide shook his head. “No, I never seen them before. They were both big, with lots of muscle. Hispanic guys.”

“Did you catch anything they said to Jackie?”

“No. They were shouting at him, but it wasn’t in English. I didn’t understand it.”

“Okay, good job,” I said. “You rest a minute. I need to make a phone call.”

Slide’s right eye grew wide, and he tried to stand up. “Please, Spenser, you’ve got to help Jackie. They hurt him bad.”

“I will,” I said. “Let’s get you taken care of first.”

I called Susan.

“Are you free right now?” I said. “I need your help.” I filled her in on Slide and Jackie.

“Are you calling the police?” she said.

“No. I want to get over to Street Business first. Right now I need to make sure Slide gets checked out. Then I need to find Jackie.” I looked at my watch. It was five past one. “And then I’ve got to get out to Weston. Alvarez may be on the move, and Carmen may be in danger.” I looked over at Slide. He was staring at me intently, but he was quiet. “All that paperwork can wait.”

“I’ll meet you at Mass General,” Susan said. “I’ll take care of Slide. Just tell me Hawk will be with you.”

“My next call,” I said.

HAWK WAS AT THE Harbor Health Club. I updated him on developments. “Meet me at Mass General emergency,” I said. “I think I want Vinnie in on this, too.”

“I’ll find him. Be there in fifteen minutes.”

I bundled up Slide in the blanket and headed out the door.

“Okay, little man. Let’s go get you fixed up. Then I’ll find Jackie.”

Susan, Hawk, and Vinnie Morris were waiting for me at the emergency entrance to Mass General. Hawk spoke with the triage nurse, who either knew him or wanted to know him, and she wheeled Slide inside, Susan at his side.

Hawk, Vinnie, and I drove over to Street Business in my car. On the way, I called Healy.

“The game’s afoot,” I said. I filled him in on the beatings. “If your sources are correct, and Alvarez is about to fly, tonight may be his opportunity to dispatch Carmen. Time for plan B.”

“Which is?”

“Hawk, Vinnie Morris, and I scope out the dinner party. If something happens, we move in and stave off disaster until you and your guys can come in. Can you meet me in Weston at six?”

“Not much of a plan,” Healy said.

“It’s all in the execution. And it’s all I got at the moment.” I hung up.

All was quiet at Street Business when we pulled up. We walked up the front steps and banged our way through the front door.