“We have a two o’clock to Thunder Bay,” he announced.
“We have a
what
?” I hissed.
“A flight. We found something that I think you’ll want to be present for.”
A chill spread through me, centered in my gut. “A flight to Thunder Bay?”
“A flight. You and me, in a plane. It’s a commercial airliner, so don’t worry.”
“Easy for you to say. Am I even allowed to fly yet?”
“I cleared it with your doctors.”
I wondered what Gerald had found, and knew with sinking certainty that it dealt with Jacqueline’s disappearance and death. For that reason alone, I’d go, but I couldn’t abandon Evelyn. “I’m not leaving Evelyn.”
“How convenient, seeing that I have a ticket for her as well.”
“You found something out about Jacqueline.”
“One of my boys did some digging and got in touch with Jacqueline’s daycare. There’s a woman who works there that might know something about what happened. I took the liberty of ordering you an official copy of her birth certificate; I thought you’d appreciate it. I don’t know how long it’ll take to process it, but the process is started. So, we have a two o’clock; we’re meeting the daycare owner after we land a bit before six. We’ll be meeting the woman, Melanie, at eight. We’ll be catching the eleven o’clock home. We should be able to go and come back without anyone being the wiser for our little trip,” he whispered.
“Why are we disguising this as an errand?”
“Simple. It’s because of Richard. If he found out I was trying to take you on a plane, he’d flip his top.”
“You’re going to get me killed. Did the thought cross your mind that this might not settle well with Evelyn? We crashed on her first flight ever.”
“Maggie’s talking to her. I don’t think it’ll take much to convince her to go to Thunder Bay.”
“I’m only going if Evelyn is as well,” I warned him.
“I thought you’d feel that way. We’re flying First Class, because Economy is too damned uncomfortable.”
“That’s something at least.”
“It’s settled, then. It’ll be a long errand, but worthwhile.”
I sighed. “Do you think this woman might really know something?”
Gerald set about making a batch of pancakes, huffing at me. “I wouldn’t have booked a flight for three if I thought it wasn’t going to pay off.”
“Planes,” I snarled.
“Pancakes,” he countered, watching the batter for bubbles. “Painkillers are optional today, but you’re to keep taking the rest of the medications.”
“Do they have to come with us?”
“Yes. I’ll be packing a carry on with everything you’ll need. There’s no way I’m giving Richard extra reasons to want to rip my head off. At least we won’t have to take any luggage.”
“That’s a blessing. Any other news on the wire I should know about?”
“Nothing yet. There’s not a whole lot we can do while we’re waiting for the ops to be ready to come north. Once we have the list in hand, it won’t take long to get IDs and covers established.” Gerald flipped the pancakes, shaking his head. “Maybe I should be grateful you don’t want bacon. The Fenerec are going to single handedly cause a bacon shortage, and we’ve only fed two of them so far this morning. Pork prices are going to skyrocket.”
“You should have seen them at the buffet. It was both horrifying and amazing. I think they forgot I’m not a raging carnivore. I ate twice what I normally would, and that didn’t satisfy them.”
“That’s because you eat like a bird,” Richard said, coming up behind me. “Did someone say bacon?”
I spun, coming nose to nose with Richard, who grinned at me. “Are you trying to scare me to death?”
Gerald chuckled. “Maggie will dazzle you with her bacon-making skills shortly. Jackson has donated his share to his lady.”
After frowning at me, Richard turned his full attention to Gerald. “What’s he eating, then?”
“Pancakes.”
“Acceptable, I suppose. I hear you have errands?”
I sighed. I still hadn’t figured out how a Fenerec could tell if someone was lying, so I tried to think of what I could say that was the complete truth without betraying the fact I was scheduled to take a flight to Thunder Bay. “A tedious and necessary errand, alas. There is something I need to attend to in person.”
“Work?” he replied, wrinkling his nose. “I’ll pass, if Gerald will be with you.”
Gerald snorted. “Thanks, Richard. I had to watch him work last night. It was fascinating for the first thirty minutes.”
I kept my mouth shut so I wouldn’t betray that I had only worked for thirty minutes.
“When you’re out, call me if you need anything at all.”
“You’re actually going to let him out of your sight?” Nicole asked, circling the island to head for the coffee maker. “I’ll believe that when I see it.”
Richard scowled at his wife. “Be nice. When are you two headed out?”
“We’ll head out around noon or so.”
“And when will you return?”
“One or two… in the morning,” Gerald replied with a nonchalant shrug. “Whenever we’re finished. Maybe a bit later. Unlikely any earlier than that. I caught a glimpse of his to-do list last night; it’s insane. We’ll be at this all day and then some.”
I sighed, heading back to the island to sit down. “Dying twice tends to cause work problems.”
Nicole poured two cups of coffee and handed one to Richard. “Is there anything we can do to help?”
“If you want, you could make a few calls for me. I’d appreciate it. I can write down the names, numbers, and instructions. It’ll be the same call over and over again,” I warned.
“We’re happy to help,” Richard said, hopping up on one of the stools. “Nicole has her cell. If Gerald doesn’t mind, I’ll use his home phone. Mine’s ruined. Alex has his cell, and I could ask him to pitch in. How many contacts?”
“More than three of you can handle in a day, but it’ll be a good start.”
“How many?” he pressed.
“A couple hundred, give or take a hundred.”
“What about Evelyn? She’s not going to like being left behind.”
A warm pair of arms slipped over my shoulders to wrap around me. I drew in a deep breath and savored Evelyn’s cinnamon scent. “What about me?” she murmured.
“What about you?” I asked, tilting my head back to look up at her.
“He has a full day of work errands to run,” Richard chided.
“And I’ll be going with him when he does it.” Her grip on me tightened. “Live with it.”
There was nothing gentle about the way she bit my ear. I yelped, and before I could break away from her, she latched onto my throat, growling in her throat.
I deserved it for worrying her, but her teeth hurt. I blurted, “Ouch, ouch, ouch. I’m sorry Evelyn. I—”
Turning my head with her hands, she silenced me by pressing her lips to mine. I forgot about everything except the feel of her against me.
“I’d say get a room, except you probably would, and if you did, you’d never leave the house to go on your errands,” Richard said before sighing. “Newly mated.”
Evelyn pulled away from me and kissed where she had bit me. “You scared me.”
“I’m sorry.”
Sniffling and rubbing her eyes, she nodded. “I know, but I’m still mad.”
I kissed the tip of her nose. “I’m angry, too. I had to see my father.”
With raised brows, Richard stared at me. “That must have been something.”
“Quiet, Richard.” Nicole pinched Richard in the arm before turning her glare on me. “Have you opened the box?”
“I totally forgot about it,” I admitted.
“Where is it?”
Gerald chuckled, piling pancakes on a plate before handing it to me, along with a bottle of maple syrup. “I’ll go get it. It’s on top of a shelf so the girls wouldn’t get into it.”
“Later,” I replied, waving Gerald off.
“Nonsense.” It didn’t take long for him to return with the box.
I glared at it. “Do you think he meant peace offering as a way to end a war or as a way of saying that it’s full of poison and that I’m to rest in peace?” Drowning my pancakes in maple syrup, I stabbed at the stack.
“The first,” Nicole replied, grabbing a fork. When she eased her way near my plate, I held my fork at the ready. I batted away her first jab at my food. She managed to stab a chunk off my pancakes, dripping maple syrup all over the counter. “I know what’s in it because I wasn’t letting the asshole into my car until he told me.”
“Nicole,” Richard chided.
“What? It’s okay for you to call him an asshole but I can’t? Bullshit.”
Watching them with wide eyes, I went to work on my pancakes before Nicole tried to steal more of my food. The pair settled into calling each other names. Evelyn leaned against my back, resting her chin on my shoulder.
“I think they’re scoring for points,” she said.
“I wonder who is winning.”
Nicole’s cheek flushed when Richard complimented her on her feminine assets, and for a long moment, she stood speechless.
“Richard,” Evelyn replied, hugging me tightly. “I’m sorry I bit you.”
“Nibble on me later to make up for your crimes,” I told her in a stern voice.
“I really thought you had died. I didn’t believe it until I came in here and smelled you all over the house.”
I poked her nose. “Yet you ran all this way, got hit by a car, and made Richard flash all of the ladies in Ottawa. I’m mad at you, Miss Evelyn. You should know better than to run out in traffic like that. You also sacrificed what little dignity Richard had,” I teased.
“Oops.”
“Oops, indeed,” I murmured. “Please look both ways before crossing the street.”
Richard snorted. “It was a highway, not a street.”
I pointed my fork at him. “I am giving her the benefit of the doubt. Be quiet.”
“I’m sorry,” she whispered.
“Are you okay now?” I asked, spearing a piece of pancake. When she opened her mouth to reply, I fed it to her. Her eyes widened, and she nodded while chewing.
Nicole stole another piece of my pancakes. “Gross. You two are sweeter than the syrup.”
“Deal with it,” I replied. Everyone stared at me while Evelyn laughed.
~~*~~
With a little help from Zachary, I left Richard with a list of three hundred names and phone numbers along with time zone notations. Leaving them to reassure my contacts I was among the living and was in process of replacing my phone, I left with Gerald and Evelyn. The first ten names on the list would keep them busy for hours; Zachary had called in a few favors to keep the Fenerec distracted while we left town.
With a little luck, we’d be back long before they noticed something was amiss.
I don’t know how Gerald had done it, but Evelyn and I were traveling under Canadian passports. We breezed through security, leaving us with an hour to waste before the flight. We spent it wandering the terminal. By having skipped my dose of painkillers, I talked Gerald into a trip to the bar, where I enjoyed a double of whiskey at his expense.
It took the edge off of my nervousness at the idea of boarding a plane.
I wasn’t the only one breathing a sigh of relief when we arrived in Thunder Bay without incident. We headed out of the terminal to the car rental kiosk, trying to ignore how many people were staring at me. While there had been some businessmen on board, I was one of the only people dressed in a full suit with tie. Next to Evelyn and Gerald, both of whom were dressed in jeans, I stood out.
It annoyed me when they stopped staring at me to gawk at Evelyn, who was wearing a pink sundress over her tight jeans.
I was so distracted glaring at those who were admiring my Fenerec that she startled me when she prodded me in the ribs with her elbow. “When are you going to open the box?”
“The box?”
“From your father.”
“Ah. Eventually.”
“Open it,” she demanded, grabbing the carry on from Gerald to thrust it at me.
I shook my head, shrugged the strap into place on my shoulder, and nudged her back. “I can’t believe you brought it.”
“Live with it. Gerald, where are we meeting these people?”
“Melanie is at a lodge about an hour outside of the city. The daycare is about a twenty-minute drive from here—maybe a bit longer than that. We’ll grab something to eat after we’re done at the daycare,” he replied, increasing his pace when we came into view of the rental car counter. “She said to expect about an hour for her to explain everything, which should give us barely enough time to catch our flight back.”
I grimaced at the thought of rushing through airport security to head back to Ottawa. “Wonderful.”
“I’m still amazed you’re not wearing your brace,” he said.
“Richard mauled it. It doesn’t hurt, so leave it alone, Gerald.”
“Richard mauled your brace?”
“A part of last night’s adventure. He was a bit enthusiastic getting it off, as he wanted a look himself.”
“I’d say you’re not feeling any pain because you’re hopped up on painkillers, but you skipped them so you could have whiskey.” Wrinkling his nose in his disgust, Gerald stood in line for a rental.
“Behave,” Evelyn ordered.
“So, what about this Melanie woman? Anything I should know before going into this meeting?”
“I think it’s best for you to hear it from the source,” he replied.
I tensed. “That doesn’t sound promising.”
“There’s a reason for that.”
Gerald let me stew on it, ignoring my questions so he could fill out the paperwork for the car. Once we had the keys, Gerald evicted me to the back seat with Evelyn. While he drove, I fought the urge to curse at him.
“Why don’t you open the box?” Evelyn asked, leaning against me, trailing her fingers across the back of my hand.
I scowled at her, pointing at her seat belt. “Maybe if you buckle up.”
Pouting at me, she obeyed. “The box, Jackson.”
“If you want to know what is inside so badly, you can open it,” I replied, digging through the carry on to pull out the black shoebox. It had been taped closed with packaging tape by Gerald to keep it from spilling on the flight.
“No. He gave it to you. Be nice and see what he gave you.”
Gerald angled the rear-view mirror to look at us. “No fighting or kissing and making up back there. If you’re that desperate, I’ll get you a hotel room on the way back to the house when we’re in Ottawa.”