Point Blank

by Fern Michaels

  “He wants something on the vanity. What?” Yoko wailed.

  Harry scooped everything off the vanity and laid it on the floor. He and Yoko watched as Cooper pawed through everything until he came to several tubes of lipstick.

  “Oh, God, I bet he wants a special color. Open them up, Harry, and tell him what each one is. What does this mean? Why does this dog want my lipstick?”

  Harry’s tone was sharper than he meant it to be. “Like I know, Yoko! This says Sunset Pink.” He showed it to Cooper, who looked away. “Okay, wrong color. Let’s try this one, Coral Reef.” Cooper again looked away. “Third time is the charm. We have here . . . Cherry Orchard.” Cooper barked. Harry capped the tube and placed it on the bathroom carpet. Cooper had it between his teeth in a nanosecond. He trotted to the door and dropped it in the basket with the hair clip. Then he sat back on his haunches and barked.

  “Okay, he’s ready to go,” Harry said, relief ringing in his voice.

  “What does all of this mean, Harry?” Yoko whispered.

  “Yoko, my dear, sweet wife, I do not have a clue. If you want a guess off the top of my head, then I would have to say he was somehow, some way in touch with our daughter, and she requested these things. Why is a whole other story. If you don’t like my version, make up one that makes you happy. Let’s not talk about this anymore.”

  “We need to talk about it, Harry. I’m taking this all as a positive sign that Lily is okay, and Cooper has . . . um . . . been in touch with her. For whatever reason, she wants my lipstick and her butterfly hair clip. Lily and Cooper have always had a special bond that none of us understood, yet we accepted it. This is Cooper letting us know that our daughter is all right in the only way he knows how. We need to be grateful for this strange dog, Harry. I will never understand how it all came to be, but I will be forever grateful to this four-legged creature. I know you feel the same way, but for some odd reason, you find it hard to talk about. Give it up, Harry. Join us and believe in this mystical dog and his powers.”

  “I do believe, Yoko. I just feel like I need to know the how and the why of it. Why us?”

  “I don’t think we’re ever going to know. And, Harry, I’m okay with that as long as Cooper is in our lives, especially Lily’s. I feel so much better now. I really do. Cooper is telling us our daughter is safe, and that’s all that matters.

  “One last thing, Harry.” In a voice ringing with pure steel, Yoko said, “And when I wrap my arms around my daughter, I am never letting go until we are back here in this dojo. Make sure you understand that. Lily is coming home.”

  Cooper barked, a joyous sound.

  Harry Wong was a wise man. He knew when he was beaten even before he stepped on the high road, knowing all along that this was going to be Yoko’s position. He nodded.

  And that was the end of that.

  Jack was on his third cup of coffee, his nerves twanging all over the place, when he finally heard the UPS driver sound off on his horn. He reached up and released the gate to allow the big brown truck to roll through. He watched in amazement as the driver and his helper hopped out to unload box after box onto the dolly that would transport it all to the kitchen. Lady and her pups stood in the kitchen, eyeballing all that was going on. Finally, satisfied that her help wasn’t needed, she herded her brood back to the family room and the warmth of the fireplace.

  What did those women order, Alexis in particular, Jack wondered as the driver neatly stacked the boxes at the far end of the kitchen. “Eighteen boxes. Sign here, sir.” Jack scribbled his signature and tipped the driver. Okay, one delivery down, one to go, plus Harry’s arrival, and Jack’s world would be right side up.

  The Federal Express driver sounded his horn fifteen minutes later and offered up an apology, saying he’d gotten a flat tire along the way. Compensation would be shown on the next bill. Jack nodded as he, like the UPS driver, dollied in eleven boxes and stacked them next to those left by the UPS driver.

  Thirteen minutes after the gate closed behind the Federal Express truck, Harry Wong tapped his horn, pressed in the code, and roared through the gate.

  Jack’s sigh and moan of relief were so loud that Lady appeared in the doorway to check things out. Satisfied that all was right in the kitchen, she returned to the family room to munch on her chew bone.

  Harry, Yoko, and the mystical dog blew in with the wind, Cooper racing to where his basket of treasures rested. He dropped his two new treasures into the basket and ran off to find Lady and her pups.

  “In a million years, you are never going to believe what I am about to tell you,” Harry said in the strangest voice Jack had ever heard. Yoko’s bobbing head scared him.

  “If I’m not going to believe it, then don’t waste your time telling me,” Jack said, hedging as he tried to figure out Harry’s strange tone and the blank look on Yoko’s face. “Okay, okay, tell me before you explode.”

  They told him, their words tripping over each other. “Go ahead, Jack, check Cooper’s basket, and you’ll find one butterfly hair clip and a tube of, what was the color of that lipstick, Yoko?”

  “Cherry Orchard. He didn’t want the pink or the coral, he wanted the Cherry Orchard. It was like he knew the color he was looking for. Stop looking at me like that, Jack. It’s all true.”

  Jack’s head reeled at Yoko’s fretful tone, which sounded as if she was on the verge of tears.

  “Uh-huh. Okay.” He wondered if Harry and Yoko thought he was as stupid as he felt. He shrugged. In the end, it was what it was, and nothing was going to change. A tube of Cherry Orchard lipstick and a butterfly hair clip were not going to change the world as he knew it. He shrugged again.

  “Guess we should go down to the war room and let them know that all of Alexis’s and Charles’s purchases arrived.”

  The war room was quiet, with Lady Justice holding court on the wide screen that hung suspended from a giant rafter. Jack looked around at the thick files covering the special table Isabelle had designed to accommodate everyone. The only sounds to be heard were pages being turned, the soft hum of the heating unit, and the constant pinging of the fax machine. In spite of himself, Jack grinned at the show of reading glasses in colorful designs that everyone was wearing. He particularly liked Nikki’s purple polka-dotted ones. He had a pair of black polka-dot glasses, a gift from Nikki. She said no one would laugh at him because they were manly. All the guys laughed.

  He waved and took his seat at the table, as did Harry and Yoko. Jack tried not to see the way Harry’s eyes bugged out at the thickness of the report at his seat. Like Harry was really going to plow through all those pages. Not.

  The silence came to a screeching halt when Charles blew the whistle hanging around his neck. The whistle was proof that he was in charge. The moment he had everyone’s attention, Charles honed in on Jack. “Did everything arrive?”

  “It did, and it’s all stacked up in the kitchen.” Hoping to ease Harry’s misery, Jack looked up at Charles, and said, “Do we really need to read all of this right now?”

  “No, of course not. You’ll have ample time to read all of it on the plane to Hong Kong. Just a few minutes ago I received confirmation from Annie’s and Dennis’s pilots that the planes are being readied. Our ETD is tomorrow at nine in the morning. Just to make sure everyone is clear here, Avery Snowden and his people will be flying on the Welmed Gulfstream, courtesy of our young friend Dennis. The rest of us will be on Annie’s plane. Look at the screen, ladies and gentlemen!”

  The wide screen showed two magnificent planes back to back. Charles clicked the button on his remote. Annie laughed when she saw the bright red-and-gold lettering that said CRESCENT CHINA TOURS and underneath the blocked Chinese letters that said the same thing. The Welmed plane had the same identical lettering, but there was a bright sky-blue number two next to the letters. “It was Lizzie’s idea to make Crescent China Tours look solvent should anyone inquire. She backstopped everything beautifully, as she always does. I will be the one carrying all t
he legal papers, just so you know.”

  Charles looked down at Myra. “All physicals are done, passports in order. Are we a go?”

  “We are good to go, dear.”

  “Do any of you have any questions?”

  Dennis’s hand shot in the air. “Who is staying behind?”

  “Just me,” Abner said. “You guys are going to need me here. I’ll just be a click away, as will Lizzie just in case things turn sticky.”

  Dennis had another question. It was the reporter in him. “Are you staying here at the farm or going back to your loft?”

  “I’m camping out here and will be in charge of all of the dogs except for Cooper, who is going with you. I don’t know how Lizzie did it, but she got clearance to take Cooper into the country. I’ve got it buttoned down here, so relax.” Isabelle winked at him, then smiled. Abner turned bright pink as Dennis sighed with relief.

  “Anything else?” Charles asked.

  All eyes turned to Harry and Yoko. Yoko shook her head to indicate she was okay with everything. Harry simply waved his hand in the air, indicating the same thing. As one, the room relaxed.

  “Okay then, let’s go topside and start opening those boxes. We have a lot of packing to do and quite a bit of preparing.” Espinosa was on his feet in a nanosecond to escort his ladylove topside. There was a brief scramble as everyone gathered up their papers and files and jammed them into their respective folders.

  “It’s happening, isn’t it?” Myra whispered to Annie.

  “It is, Myra, it truly is. Are you having second thoughts?” Annie whispered in return.

  “Good Lord, no. I am heartsick over that little girl, and I want Harry and Yoko to have her in their arms again. It’s just been a long few days with so much preparation. I worry that maybe one of us missed something crucial along the way that might come back to bite us at some point.”

  Annie watched as Myra fingered the pearls around her neck. “You have to leave those behind, you know. I’m referring to the pearls, Myra.”

  “I know what you meant. I will be sure to leave them in my jewelry box. By the way, Annie, I made an important decision last evening.”

  “Oh. Care to share that important decision?”

  “I’m leaving my pearls to Lily in my will.”

  Whatever Annie was expecting to hear, that wasn’t it. Suddenly, she was at a loss for words. Next to Nikki, Myra’s adopted daughter, and Charles, the most important thing in the world to Myra was her pearls. All she could think to do was bob her head.

  “It was a big decision, and I didn’t make it lightly, Annie.”

  “Hmmnnn. Why are we having this discussion, Myra?”

  “I was trying to get you to relax. You’re strung too tight, Annie. Not only can I see it, but I can feel it. Things will be okay.”

  “China is a scary place these days,” Annie said.

  “I have an idea, Annie. While we’re over there, why don’t you see if you can go straight to the horse’s mouth and find out why all those Chinese stocks you talked me into buying are falling so rapidly.”

  “No one likes a smart-ass, Myra,” Annie snapped.

  “Takes one to know one, but I would like an answer on those stocks.”

  “I’ll see what I can do,” Annie snapped again.

  Myra giggled all the way up the moss-covered stone steps that would take them to the chaos that was going on in the kitchen.

  Chapter 8

  The morning was exceptionally cool, with a brisk wind ripping across the tarmac. The caravan of cars came to an organized stop at the private airfield where Annie’s private plane and Dennis’s corporate plane were housed. They were out on the runway, the Welmed plane behind Annie’s Gulfstream, poised for takeoff.

  Nikki was first out of the car. She stared at the weak winter sun shining on the skin of the sleek jets, making them look like sheets of glistening silver. She smiled when she saw the logo on both: CRESCENT CHINA TOURS. She almost believed it for a minute.

  She felt rather than saw Kathryn Lucas step up behind her. “What do you think, Nikki?”

  “What I think is, we’re all going to China to rescue a little girl. What are you thinking? Is something wrong, Kathryn? You don’t seem like yourself. Are you worried about us, Lily, or Bert?”

  Kathryn raised her hand to shield her eyes from the sun that was getting brighter by the moment. She tensed as she struggled to find the words she wanted. “It’s Bert. We had an understanding, but he’s stepped off the grid and is pressuring me. He does this every so often—we fight, we make up, then it happens all over again. I can’t take it anymore.”

  Alarm registered on Nikki’s face. “And yet, here you are. You should have recused yourself this time around. Your thought processes are not one hundred percent on the mission. One little slip and you could put us all in jeopardy. You realize that, don’t you?”

  “Of course I do, and it’s not true, Nikki. I can do my job. You don’t have to worry about me. Bert didn’t have to go to Macau. The person who should have gone is Dixson Kelly. Bert chose to go because of me. I resent it. I really do.”

  “That’s what I’m talking about, Kathryn. You’re dealing with emotion here. This is not good. I’m going to have to tell the others. Sometimes I simply don’t understand you, Kathryn. What is it you really want? What can’t you come to terms with? We’ve gone over this so many times that I’ve lost count.”

  Kathryn’s facial features went taut. “Let me assure you that the one thing you do not have to worry about is me. Listen to me. I’m going to tell you something in confidence, friend to friend, girl to girl. Bert and I parted company. We’re done. We’ve had a very long, contentious relationship, but it no longer works for me. I’m not sure why he was so insistent on doing this China thing, which, as I said, in my opinion is a mistake. And before you can ask, Nikki, all I feel is a sense of relief. Like a thousand pounds have been taken off my shoulders. I’m good here, I really am. Just so you know, I moved all my stuff out of Bert’s place. I’m back at my home space in Virginia with Murphy, who, by the way, is at doggie camp until I get back. If you want me to sum this up, it’s that I need to be free to be me. Right now I actually feel as if I could fly to China with my own wings. Look, Bert wants to get married and have a family. That’s not in the cards for me. I care about him enough to want him to have those things. Just not with me.”

  Nikki stared into Kathryn’s eyes, and whatever she saw there satisfied her. She smiled. “I think you are good. I understand. Your word is good enough for me. I do have a question, though. What happens if you come face-to-face with Bert in Macau?”

  “Two old friends meeting up on the other side of the world. Nothing more, Nikki. Please, you need to believe me.”

  And, Nikki realized, she did believe the long, lanky truck driver. Kathryn might be many things—outspoken, bombastic at times—but she never lied. The two women eyeballed each other one last time. Kathryn spoke first: “I know, I know, if I screw up I go to the sidelines. It ain’t gonna happen, Nikki. For the first time in a good many years, I finally feel as if I’m my own person again. I like the feeling, and I intend to keep it that way.”

  “Okay. Come on, we have a plane to catch.”

  “Ah . . . Nikki . . .”

  “This conversation never happened. You’re back in your own ballpark again.”

  Kathryn laughed, a sound of pure mirth. Nikki felt stunned for just a bare moment as she tried to remember the last time that she’d heard Kathryn laugh like that. Probably never, was her best guess. She ran then to keep up with Kathryn’s long-legged stride.

  Ten minutes later, the two private planes were airborne and climbing steadily to their cruising altitude of thirty thousand feet. The occupants settled back for the long, twenty-hour and thirty-minute flight that would bring them to their destination.

  “First,” Annie said, “we’re going to have some breakfast. Eggs Benedict. Mimosas. Fresh Hawaiian coffee from Kona. Then we can get down to bus
iness and work on our plans.” The announcement was met with hoots of approval. They laughed outright when Annie said lunch would be shrimp scampi and beef medallions in a red wine sauce, basil risotto, and a fresh garden salad. Dinner, she went on to say, was going to be a surprise because the caterer had not told her what it was before boarding. “I’m sure it will meet with our approval. In the meantime, the coffee and wine are at your disposal.” More hoots of pleasure.

  The group paired off. Alexis and Isabelle went to the back of the plane to start separating the outfits they would all don before disembarking in Hong Kong. Maggie and Ted had their heads together as Crescent China Tours tour leaders. Dennis settled himself next to Espinosa to talk about what he called the snatch and grab. “I hope those guys over there buy our cover that we’re doing a pictorial for the paper,” he fretted. Espinosa assured him they were pros, and neither one had a thing to worry about. “Listen, kid, everyone likes to have their picture taken and nice things written about them. That’s what we’re going to do. But first we’re going to have breakfast. And then we’ll map out our strategy.”

  Harry and Yoko were huddled together whispering to each other. Cooper snoozed at their feet, happy and content.

  Nikki and Kathryn sat side by side, speaking softly about the upcoming Christmas season, shopping, and decorating, while Myra, Annie, Charles, Fergus, and Jack shared what each knew about Buddhism and the monks at the monastery at Song Mountain in China—which wasn’t all that much, and more than anything was just a bunch of words to pass the time.

  “I’m tired of talking about monks. Let’s decide what we’re going to buy when we get to Hong Kong. I think we girls should have some gowns made for our New Year’s Eve party,” Myra said.

  “What party?” Charles and Fergus asked in unison.