My phone vibrated. Taking it out, I saw a text from Coop. Any more people and I’ll feel like a sardine. I looked down from the mezzanine, spotted him across the ballroom, and nodded in agreement.
It wasn’t actually that bad. There were lots of people, the men in tuxes, the women decked out in their Christmas finery. A band was on the stage at the far end of the room. Along one wall were two long tables filled all kinds of fancy finger-foods. Young men and women, wearing red jackets, circulated, carrying trays of wine. For those who wanted something stronger, there was an open bar. It was doing land office business, keeping the five bartenders hopping.
I saw our target and his wife arrive, a few minutes after I’d made it to the mezzanine. She was a pretty woman, but shy, if the way she ac
