“Twelve minutes,” I said.
“Ten would be better.”
“Twelve.”
He didn’t argue. He moved to the foot of the stairs, where he could see both Reed at the front door and Cabot in the parlor.
Outside, the air was raw. November was bleeding into December. The sidewalk was damp under the soles of my boots. The wrought-iron railings sweated faintly. A gull was working a paper bag in the gutter a block ahead of us.
Dane would have checked the curb through his phone. I moved out ahead of Wiley, sweeping the block. It was clear.
We turned onto the sidewalk. Wiley fell in slightly off my left shoulder. He was learning. The principal who walks at your shoulder is the principal who will change direction when you move; the principal who walks half a step ahead is the principal you have to stop.
Wiley started talking within the first half-block.
“The mystery guy from the Harcourt event sounds too much like Köhler. It can’t be a coincidence.”
“Unlikely.”
“Did you store any images of the guy watching outside? I would probably recognize him.”
I sighed. “Dane didn’t have the camera from Eamon yet. If he comes back, we’ll find you immediately.”
He nodded, working through all the information. He shoved his hands deep into his coat pockets, and his breath made short, even pulses in front of him.
We hit Mount Vernon and turned. The hill ran down toward Charles.
“Corner of Walnut. Clear so far,” I said, low.
“Copy,” Dane said in my ear.
Wiley walked at my shoulder for another half block before he spoke again.
“Did you know him before this?”
I didn’t have to ask who. “No.”
“Could’ve fooled me.”
“Why?”
“You work well together. That kind of well usually takes a couple of years.”
I kept my pace even. “We’ve worked the same circuit, Dane for The Guardians and me on my own. The circle isn’t large. You hear about people.”
“That’s not the same as working with them.”
“No, it isn’t.”
He let it ride for a few steps. I watched the second-floor windows on our left without turning my head.
“He doesn’t talk much,” Wiley said.
“He talks when it matters.”
“That’s a generous read.”
“It’s an accurate one.”