A String of Beads (Jane Whitefield, #8)(90)

“And they worked with Nick. In other words they work for Dan Crane.”

“Yes.” Chelsea moved her eyes to the stream of people coming past, as though talking about them might make them come.

“I guess the others must have called them, and said you were probably running.”

“Couldn’t it just be a coincidence? There’s only one airport, and one of them might be flying somewhere today, not looking for me at all.”

“I’m not a big believer in coincidences. Either way, we don’t want them to see you, even by accident. What I want you to do is go into the ladies’ room down there by gate six. Wait until I get there or you hear the second announcement that your flight to New York is boarding.”

“All right.” Chelsea got up and walked off toward the ladies’ room.

Jane watched the people coming out of the security area for a few minutes. Then she got up and went to gate six to wait. Most of the waiting areas were nearly empty, but gate six was full of people. There were going to be a lot of Buffalo people in New York City this morning. She kept her eyes on the concourse most of the time to be sure Thompson and Harriman didn’t show up.

After about ten minutes she saw the two men come around the corner onto the concourse. She stood up and walked to the ladies’ room. She had almost convinced herself that they had been fooled or given up, but they hadn’t. They must have bought tickets to get this far, and in a moment they would notice that gate six was the only waiting area that was full. The New York flight was going to be the first flight out, and it was the one to watch.

Jane found Chelsea waiting for her and told her what she’d seen. “We can’t let those men follow you onto a plane or even see which one you take.” She took off her scarf and set it on the shelf below the mirror.

“What are we going to do?”

“First we change clothes. I saw a pair of gray pants and a blouse in your bag. Put them on, and give me what you’re wearing now.”

They changed clothes quickly, and then Jane retied the two hijabs, with Chelsea wearing Jane’s. She put her own clothes in the trash. Next she opened her purse and took out a stack of hundred dollar bills, held it up, and put it into Chelsea’s bag. She took out a credit card and handed it to Chelsea.

She looked at it. “You’re Gail Stein?”

“Sometimes.” She held out her boarding pass and plucked the other from Chelsea’s hand. “We need a change of plans. You’re going to fly to Albany. They’ve already checked our IDs for the last time, so you can use my boarding pass. When you get there, use some of the cash to buy your ticket to Manchester.”

“What’s the credit card for?”

“The unexpected. The card’s limit is twelve thousand and Gail Stein pays her bills, so don’t be afraid to use it if you need to.”

The loudspeaker in the ceiling blared, “United flight twenty-four thirty to JFK New York City is ready for boarding at gate six.” As the female voice launched into its repetition Jane said, “That’s it. We’ll stay here until they call for the Albany flight.”

The flight to New York was announced again and again, and Jane could tell they were trying to get the missing woman passenger to show up. Finally there was a “last call” message. Jane and Chelsea waited. Now other women were coming in and out, so they pretended to be freshening their makeup. After a few minutes Jane put their scarves on again, arranging them carefully to cover their hair.

At last, they heard the call. “Flight fifty-seven eighty-two to Albany is boarding at gate number three. Flight five seven eight two is ready for boarding at gate three.”

Jane took Chelsea aside. “That’s your flight. Wait for them to give the final call for boarding, and then come out of here fast and straight into the line. Keep your eyes down and get into the boarding tunnel as soon as possible.” She hugged her, then released her. “I’ll see you soon.”

“Good-bye.”

Jane stepped out of the ladies’ room, kept her head down, and walked quickly past gate 6. There were two airline employees stationed at the desk, and one of them typed something into her computer to make the display change to show a flight leaving for Chicago. She heard a male voice far behind her say the word “Chelsea,” but the other man said something that silenced him.

Jane increased her speed, moving quickly back toward the security area. She turned the corner, stepped into the space beside the security area into the clear corridor for arriving passengers to leave the secure area, and kept going. She edged into a group who seemed to be just off one of the first flights to land, and kept with them. She knew the two men were following her at a distance, thinking she was Chelsea. They probably couldn’t believe their luck. As soon as she was alone, they would move in and try to take her.

Jane reached the open part of the terminal and kept going. She stepped into another ladies’ room. As soon as she was inside, she took off Chelsea’s scarf and put it into her purse. She tied back her hair, retied her running shoes, and slung her purse across her chest.

She waited until she heard the announcement for the flight to Albany, and then heard it again a few minutes later. She heard the voice warn that this was the final call. After ten more minutes, she was sure the flight had left. She took two deep breaths, and then stepped out of the ladies’ room.