"Robert?" Joanna poked her head around the doorframe. "How are you feeling now, dear?"
"Like I've been run down by a steam-roller, I'm afraid," Robert said wearily, "but thank-you very much for asking, all the same."
"Actually, my motives were somewhat selfish," Joanna admitted. "Peggy and I hoped to surprise you- we bought tickets to the production of The Pirates of Penzance that is being put on downtown, at the theatre. They're only good for tonight, I'm afraid- do you feel up to coming with us?"
Robert hesitate only for a fraction of a second before smiling wanly, and saying, with an attempt at gusto,
"Of course, Love! I'll just nip up and change. Why don't you tell the girls?"
Joanna's face broke into a smile, and she gave her husband a fond kiss on his bald spot before heading up to do so.
* * *
'Mail' read the flashing icon on the screen. Maybe Matt? Shirley thought, and quickly called up her account. It wasn't Matt. It was something far more intriguing.
She read the glowing screen with an ever-pounding heart. It was an invitation of sorts- and a challenge.
If you want the bird to continue to sing, meet me tonight with the Pirate King.
Bird- that was easy. Maya. If, Shirley figured, she wanted Maya to stay alive, she'd have to- what? Meet him with the Pirate King? What did that mean?
"Shirley?" It was Joanna, at the door. "I've got something to ask you. Would you like to come with your dad, Gran, Maya and I to see The Pirates of Penzance? It's playing downtown, at the theatre I am told you turned out a very successful performance in a couple years ago."
Shirley's mind flew faster than she herself could ever have believed was possible. Pirates of Penzance- the Pirate King! That must be what the message meant- but how on earth could she meet its writer if she were with her family? She made up her mind.
"Oh, Mum, I still feel awful," she moaned, clutching her stomach. "I'm so sorry- I'd have loved to."
Joanna nodded, disappointed but sympathetic, and kissed her daughter on the forehead.
"Alright, then- don't spend too long on that machine, do you hear? Get some sleep. I'm really sorry about this whole fish thing, but there's really too much to freeze."
Shirley's stomach lurched for real now.
"How much did you actually-" she cut herself off. "You know what? I don't wanna know. I might still be awake when you get home, but in case I'm not, good-night."
"Night, Mouse. I love you. Joanna smiled, and left the room.
Shirley waited until she was positive her mother had gone before turning around, and clicking the 'reply' button.
Then she began to type away furiously. At last, message completed, she sat back, satisfied.
"Well, Mr.Mystery," she smiled, "you aren't the only bad poet in the world. Let's see if this flushes you out, shall we?" Her message read:
Alright, it's a date. I'll meet you at eight. Come alone, and don't be late.
After she had sent it, she called up a fresh page, and typed up a quick e-mail to Matt. She'd gotten almost the whole way through, when Maya poked her head into the room.
Her hair was curled and pinned up; she wore a red silk 'party' dress with a knee length, ruffling skirt, and she had a thin strand of milky-white pearls around her neck, and a matching pair of pearl studs in her ear lobes.
"Shirley," she smiled, "Not coming? I'm sorry."
"Oh, don't be." Shirley gave a strange little smile of her own. "Don't worry- I won't be missing out on any fun."
"Really?" Maya asked. "Is it such a bad play?" she glanced at the computer screen. "An e-mail?" she inquired, before Shirley could answer her first question. "To whom?"
"Matt."
"Ah, the infamous Matthew Harris." Maya grinned. "Do say hi to him for me, won't you, pet, and thank him, too?"
"Sure," Shirley smiled. Maya gave her a curious glance.
"I say, Shirley. Are you-" she paused. "Oh, forget it. See you later?"
"Yup. Bye."
Shirley watched Maya leave, and then hastily finished up her e-mail to Matt. She quickly proofread it, and was thoroughly satisfied.
Hey there, Cowboy- I miss you. Thanks for the information- it could definitely come in useful. Maya thanks you, too, and says to say 'hi'.
Good luck with your case- it sounds fun. If you need somebody top talk it over with, I'm always here. I'll tell you how this case turns out- I just got a lead that I'm going to follow up on.
Don't worry- I'll be careful.
Love you.
City Girl.
After sending the mail, Shirley checked the clock. It was half-past seven- more than ample time to get to the theatre.
She glanced outside, and saw that it had started to rain gently, so she grabbed her slicker from the hall cupboard and pulled it on. Watson whined apathetically, but she merely smiled pityingly down at him.
"Sorry Watson- no can do. This is strictly between the criminal and me. I'll tell you how it went when I get back, 'kay?"
Watson was unconvinced, and when she shut him up in the house, and trotted nimbly down the steps, his howls followed her into the night.
She decided against taking her bike- somebody might see it parked where it shouldn't be. The last thing she needed was to have somebody come bursting in on her conference with T.R.A.C.E.'s spokesman.
She found herself wondering who it would it be- Corelli, or Grey? Matt had a suspicious mind- naturally he would suspect Grey, too.
She smiled to herself- Matt. When would she get to see him again? The last time she'd seen him, he'd told her that if she wanted to see him again, she would. And what had he said in his last e-mail?
See you soon.
Had he meant it? Her heart began to beat a bit faster. Stupid heart, she thought absently. It would give her away every time. But what if he had meant it? Was he planning on coming back to Redington? Even for a little while? And if he was, maybe they could find something to poke their noses into. Almost as soon as she had the thought, she felt like laughing. Was that her idea of a date? Solving a mystery? But, come to think of it, it did have a certain charm to it. And one always seemed to be able to find the nicest times to kiss, too, when was on a case. As she headed towards the theatre, she hoped against hope that she'd be able to get this thing over with as soon as possible, get home, and see if she had any reply to her e-mail. Reaching the building, she found a side door open, and slipped inside. It was dark backstage, but she could clearly hear the music- it was about an hour into the show. She started to take a few steps around and look for her summoner, but a heavy weight slammed down on the back of her neck. Stars exploded inside her head, and as the floor came rushing up to meet her, everything went black. Back in her room, the 'mail' icon began flashing on and off, but there was nobody there to see it . . .
* * *
"Well, that was a lovely evening, Joanna; Mum;" Robert, looking much more relaxed, said. "I can't thank you enough for talking me into it, dear."
"You're quite welcome," Joanna smiled, kissing her husband. They made quite a pair, he in his tuxedo, she in a velvet, forest green dress.
Gran wore a sleek, Parisian-cut navy blue blazer and skirt, with elaborately designed gold earrings and matching necklace. Her snowy white hair framed her face as she watched her son and daughter-in-law, blue eyes twinkling. Maya, face more happy and carefree than it had been since her arrival, at once headed into the living room for the bookcase.
"I'm going to see if Shirley's still awake," she called back over her shoulder. "I hope she didn't wait up for us."
She reached Shirley's room in seconds, and looked in. Shirley wasn't there- probably in the bathroom, Maya thought. She turned to leave, but as she did, she noticed the patiently flashing monitor.
She didn't know why it caught her attention- the message could have come anytime that Shirley was in the bathroom. But it froze her in her tracks. Running over to the keyboard, she typed in the commands she had seen Shirley use earlier in the day.
'One new message' lit up the screen, and she clicked on 'Read'. The e-mail materialized, and she read it with a growing sense of dread. City girl- are you nuts?! Follow up on a lead at this time of night?! (Okay, it's a lot later here, but even allowing for the time difference, that's pretty late for sleuthing) Look; wait a while. Get some reinforcements; and I don't just mean Bo (No offense, Bo). Just, don't go into this half-cocked, Shirley, please. He's really dangerous, whichever one 'he' is. If anything happened to you, before I saw you again, I'd go mad. I need to talk to you, and I want to you to live long enough to do that. Be careful, City Girl- I love you.
Cowboy
It was all the confirmation Maya needed- Shirley was in trouble. Big trouble.
With shaking hands she shut off the computer, and stood still for just the barest of seconds. Then she was downstairs, running, running. Aunt Joanna and Uncle Robert were staring; Gran looked worried. She was shouting. Shouting:
"Shirley's missing!"
The shock, the bewilderment- she saw it, even though they were behind her, all over their faces.
Then she shoved the door open, ran down the steps, out into the rain. They were calling to her now, but she didn't - couldn't - look back. It was her fault Shirley was missing, she was sure. T.R.A.C.E. had gotten a hold of her, somehow- a clue? A taunt? A threat? It didn't matter. All that mattered was that they had Shirley, and they were going to try and fulfill the promise they'd made in the note.
She needed help. But who would help?
Bo. Bo would help. She altered her course, and kept running.
