CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Stella parked the unmarked in a small strip mall a block away from the street corner. She didn’t want the dealer to see it, as its police car type might ring alarm bells. A woman buying cocaine would be more likely to arrive in a fancier vehicle, she thought, as she climbed out and walked swiftly along the sidewalk. Nerves fizzed inside her. Maxwell had said he would wait nearby and out of sight, but she felt very alone as she headed to the rendezvous point.
She’d changed her top and was wearing a down jacket with a fake-fur collar that she hoped would look less like law enforcement than the navy coat she’d had on earlier.
Before they left the New Haven FBI headquarters, she’d removed her firearm and locked it away in Roth’s safe. She didn’t want the dealer to spot a g
