“I appreciate that, but Rebekkah knows. Anya phoned her to talk.”
Rebekkah nodded. “Anya called me today, too. It’s kind of cool that we’re so close. Anya seems to think of me as an older sister. In fact, she said as much. I’m one sister and Laurel is the other.”
With all those cheery notes, we shifted into high gear, getting the place ready for the crop. As predicted, the Chicken Cacciatore was a huge hit. Clancy had also gotten muffins, donuts, and cookies from the Muffin Man, a bakery she passes on her way to work.
“I have a check here for almost three hundred bucks.” Clancy handed me the piece of paper made out to Zoo Keepers. “I wish we could give them a million, but this is all our profit from the two crops we’ve held on their behalf.”
“I’m sure they’ll be glad to have it.”
~*~
The crop was fun, but taxing. This group of croppers was not as skilled as those who had signed up the night before. That shouldn’t have surprised me. After all, last night’s group was primarily composed of our long-time customers. This group came directly from our email to the people on the Zoo Keepers’ list.
I’m happy to teach people new skills, but wowzer, it sure can wear you out to say, “A little glue is better than a lot” twenty times to the same person. Rook Smith was demanding but she wasn’t a good listener, and she took directions as suggestions to be cheerfully ignored. She seemed to think I should stand over her and be her personal assistant. A couple of times, I caught Lee covering her mouth rather than burst out laughing at Rook’s ongoing complaints, such as, “How on earth am I going to get all this glue out of my clothes? I think you should have provided us with protective garments.” I thought about going into the back room, grabbing a black garbage bag, cutting a hole for her head, and handing it to Rook. I mentioned as much to Clancy who said, “Don’t you dare!”
We’d told participants to bring their own short-bladed scissors. Rook brought a pair of sewing sheers with blades nearly a foot long. Totally useless for “fussy cutting,” which is the industry term for small, intricate cutting.
By the end of the evening, I had to restrain myself lest I snatch the project out of Rook’s hands and scream, “This is obviously too complicated for you, you ninny!”
Rook’s incessant demands meant I didn’t get the chance to talk much to Lee Alderton. As the crop wound down, I seized the opportunity to squat next to Lee’s chair and hand her the envelope. “This is for Zoo Keepers. There’s a check for a little less than three hundred dollars inside.”
“Kiki, you are so kind. Thank you very, very much.”
“I’m glad we could help. How’s everything going?”
Lee scanned the area and made sure that no one was paying attention to us. We could talk privately because everyone was crowded around the other worktable, admiring each other’s zoo critters.
“Still no word on the missing cashier’s check,” Lee said. “Fareed has contacted a private investigator. The police have alerted all the local banks to be on the lookout for someone trying to cash it. We filled out the paperwork for the indemnity bond.”
“I’m so sorry, Lee.”
“I am, too. But I also have a bit of good news to report. Someone heard about our problem and contacted Fareed. This anonymous person has offered to give us fifty thousand dollars in exchange for the honor of personally handing a check over to the prince when he arrives at the zoo. Fareed talked to Prescott Gallaway, and Prescott is having the person vetted. It’s not the large amount we hoped to give Prince William, but it’s more than we had. I’ve been told he’s been incredibly gracious about the fact we’ll be giving him a fake check while we go through the process of replacing the original cashier’s check. Maybe our patrons won’t need to know what a mess this was.”
“Keep the faith,” I said, as I gave her a hug.
“Before you go,” she said, grabbing my elbow, “I want you to know that your crops have been a lot of fun. People have mentioned they’ve learned a lot about Zoo Keepers from them. I also learned a thing or two about Hungary. Who would have guessed that the first rhino born by artificial insemination happened there?”
Tiring or not, the evening proved to be a smashing success.
CHAPTER 28
I expected the house to be quiet when I got home. However, when I turned onto our street, I realized two extra cars were parked in our circular drive, and all the lights were on in the house. As I walked through the hall that leads from our garage to the kitchen, I recognized familiar voices. Agents Sanders and Montana were sitting at our kitchen table across from Hadcho and Detweiler with Gracie at his feet. Brawny stood at the sink, rinsing out dishes and listening in.
“What’s up?” I tried to sound cheery, but I was tired and not particularly happy to see that an impromptu meeting of law enforcement officials had taken over my home.
The men all stood to acknowledge me. Before they had the chance to say anything, I asked, “How are my kids?”
Brawny dried her hands on a towel. “Anya is upstairs in her bedroom working on her penguin report. Erik is in bed. Ty should sleep for another hour or so. I gave him a bottle.”
I immediately turned to Detweiler. “All right. To what do I owe this dubious pleasure?” I admit I sounded a bit angry, because at that moment I resented that when I’d had a long day, I had to deal with more problems. Problems right here in my kitchen! Argh. Since when do problems follow people home like stray dogs?
“There’s been a development,” Detweiler said, getting up to yield his chair to me. “Have a seat, honey. Are you hungry?”
“Do we have any brownies?” Okay, I’d already eaten cookies and other junk at the store, but faced with these gun-toting home invaders, I needed a treat.
“Coming right up.” Brawny scurried around. By now she knew that I consider brownies inedible without a big glass of milk. As she set the plate down in front of me, the two federal agents tried not to look interested, but they failed, and soon all of us were tucking into a plate of fudge brownies. Boy, do I love chocolate.
“There’s been a development,” Detweiler repeated himself. He’d grabbed a stool from under our kitchen counter and perched on it. “That tummy bug that our kids had last week has infected five of the eight children who were supposed to greet Prince George and Princess Charlotte. The three children that are healthy are all girls. That’s not going to look good when they all get together to play. From what we’ve been told, George is a sweet little guy, but like most boys his age, he’s into trucks and cars and…” Detweiler gave up. “Can you see where this is heading?”
“Sort of. You need to find another boy or two close to Prince George’s age, right?”
“Exactly.” Sanders jumped in. “That’s why we came to you. Agent Montana remembered that your son looked to be around five.”
“He is.”
“Then we’d like to enlist his help.” Agent Montana had the gall to look very proud of himself.
Fortified with the brownie, I was one tough cookie. “Since Erik is only five, you can’t possibly enlist his help. Certainly legally you can’t. You can only ask sweetly if we’ll help out. I assume you came here to beg?”
Both agents turned deep crimson.
“I guess you better fill me in on the details.”
Agent Montana sat up in his chair. If there ever was a man with a corncob stuck up his butt, it had to be Montana. In his haughty voice, he said, “This is highly classified information that we only distribute on a need-to-know basis, and you haven’t been cleared to hear this portion of our plan.”
“Guess what? You haven’t been cleared to borrow my son. How do you like them apples? You and all the other little girls will have so much fun tomorrow. Enjoy!” And I jumped to my feet.
“Please!” Sanders almost shouted. “Please wait, Mrs. Detweiler. I think what Agent Montana means is that we’re worried about your welfare. If we share too much information with you, you could become a target. If we te
ll you absolutely everything, in a moment of stress you might look over at someone for help and blow his or her cover. That would be dangerous for everyone. Of course you need to know more about our strategy. It’s only fair.”
Okay, that explanation made a bit more sense to me. I sank back down in my chair. “I’m not saying yes, but I’m willing to listen.”
“We’re only asking that your child be involved at the point that the young prince and princess are brought into the party room.” Sanders was smart enough to look sheepish at this point.
“I need you to be honest with me. What sort of danger are you anticipating?”
“We have credible information that animal activists plan to make a statement. They’ll be carrying signage. They want to block the entrance to the zoo, and maybe even disrupt the royals’ visit. Our worst fear is that they’ll incite violence. For that reason, we’re using metal detectors and sniffer dogs. No one with any sort of baton or rod can enter the zoo. We’ll be searching every backpack and handbag. We’ve even gone so far as issuing tickets for guests.”
“Yes, I know.” I crossed my arms over my chest. “I’ve already passed your security screening. So, the animal activists are your biggest concern? You don’t think they’ll try to kidnap Prince George or Princess Charlotte?”
“That’s always a concern when we’re guarding high-value individuals. We haven’t heard any suggestions anyone is planning a kidnapping, but we have to cover all our bases. The royals will be protected by bodyguards, by security en route and onsite, misdirection, and by decoys. Detective Detweiler and Corporal Macavity will be two of our ad hoc bodyguards. Once the royals arrive, they will be escorted through the North Entrance gate of the zoological park and get immediately on the train. You’re familiar with the small train that circles the zoo, correct?”
Of course, I was. For years, I rode that train around and around the zoo with Anya. We never, ever saw a single animal, because she was so enthralled by the train that she wouldn’t get off long enough to walk over to an exhibit.
“Good. We have surveilled the route. We will secure it, make it hard to target, and protect our visitors. They’ll make two stops, one at the rhino exhibit and the other at the gatehouse.”
“What happened to the party room?”
“We’ve decided that’s too vulnerable. The zoo president and the on-site coordinator will be notified of the change later tonight. Once the children are inside the gatehouse, they’ll all be presented with stuffed animals and have a moment to interact with local children. That’s where we’d like to include your son.”
“Whoa.” I held up a hand. “Our son? You mean Erik?”
“That’s right.”
“Not just our son. Erik and our daughter Anya will be there to greet the royals or neither of our children will be in attendance. Anya is not going to be left out. That would cause all sorts of hard feelings.”
“We thought you’d be happy to keep her home. That’s one fewer child in a hazardous position!” Montana threw up his hands with the sort of exasperation that generally happens with toddlers.
Sanders cleared his throat. “I’m terribly sorry, Mrs. Detweiler, but we can’t adjust our plans just because of a little sibling rivalry.”
I smiled at him. “Then you can adjust your plans to exclude the Detweiler family in total.”
“Mrs. Detweiler, you are being unreasonable.” Montana glared at me. His eyes were small and bright, like those of a fox, and his pointed chin added to the illusion that he was more feral than human.
“You’re asking me to sacrifice my family’s safety, to put my young son in danger, to loan you our nanny, to give up my free time, to provide you with hospitality while you hatch plots in my home, and I’m being unreasonable? Hmmm. Perhaps you should take a minute and think over my request. Detweiler? Brawny? Meeting in the Detweiler’s office.”
Gracie hoisted herself to a standing position right alongside of me as I took two steps away from my chair. Bless their hearts, both Detweiler and Brawny stood up, too. I felt like a drum major at the head of a very solemn parade as I marched out of my kitchen. We made it as far as the hallway when Sanders said, “Wait. Please wait.”
He walked over and stared down at me. I expected to see an angry look on his face. Instead, I saw a smile that included a twinkle in his eyes. “I have four kids of my own. I can see where you’re going with this. Believe me, being a parent is every bit as hard or harder than working as an FBI agent. If you’re positive that you are willing to expose another one of your children to this situation, then we’ll find a way. Anya is thirteen, right?”
Just then we heard a soft cry come through the baby monitor. “I’ll go get young sir,” Brawny volunteered.
“Yes, she is thirteen, and she’s been working on a school project that involves penguins, so there’s a logical way to get her involved. Anya has wanted to learn more by helping out a zookeeper. She knows that zoo like she knows her way around her school, and she’s terrific with younger kids.”
“We might need the help,” Sanders admitted. “Prince George is quite the character. Adventurous. Curious. He’ll have been cooped up most of the day. I remember my son’s first birthday party. My wife invited twenty kids. Twenty toddlers cruising around, pulling on furniture, dropping food, falling, crying, fighting over toys, and terrorizing the dog. What a mess.”
I was beginning to like this guy. “Yup. I don’t know how many adults you planned for, but for six kids, I’d count on at least three grownup handlers.”
“True.” Sanders laughed out loud this time. “You’ve made your point, Mrs. Detweiler. Anya might be a helpful addition. Consider it done.”
His partner sulked, but that didn’t matter. I’d gotten what I wanted. Anya would be included. I led the way as we paraded back to the kitchen. That gave me an idea.
“It’s a tradition at the St. Louis Zoo and others around the country to lead the penguins in a parade. That gives the animals exercise, and it stimulates their minds. Most children love penguins. Why not schedule a penguin parade for when the royals stand at the North Entrance?”
Sanders stroked his chin. “That would provide an interesting distraction. I’ll look into whether that’s feasible or not.”
Brawny was carrying Ty, cradling him against one shoulder when she rejoined us. Her face was suffused with a soft radiance that was rare for her. “Anya and Erik fell asleep on her bed. Seymour is lying right next to them with his head on Erik’s shoulder, and he’s purring like a car motor. The three of them are a jumble. I think it’s best to let them be.”
She hesitated. “By the way, I talked with your sister Catherine last night. She’s home from her visit with your Aunt Penny. I warned her that we might need her help babysitting with Ty tomorrow. She assured me that she would keep her calendar clear.”
I mentally shook my head. I’d forgotten my sister would be back from her travels. Trust Brawny to know where my family was even though I’d totally forgotten.
Detweiler stepped between Brawny and me and lifted our son from the nanny’s arms. When he settled back on the stool, he angled himself slightly away from me. It wasn’t much, not to the casual observer, but I saw it. With a jolt, I realized my husband had subtly moved away from me. Usually Detweiler sits with one knee touching mine. Or he takes my hand when we’re seated. Then it came to me that ever since I demanded that Anya be included, Detweiler had been silent. Right now, he was holding Ty as though the baby was a wall, separating me from my husband.
A little pang stabbed me in the heart. I adjusted my position in my chair, hoping to catch his eye, but Detweiler didn’t look my way. My hand reached for his knee, but he didn’t acknowledge the caress. One of the many things I loved about Detweiler was the way he showed his affection. Not in big showy ways, but with warm glances and gentle touches that said, “I love you.” Where was that affection now?
Something was wrong. Really wrong. But what?
Then it hit me: I had acted
like Anya was my daughter, not our daughter. To add insult to injury, I’d made decisions about Erik and his involvement without consulting Detweiler. Was my husband in favor of involving Anya? Did Detweiler want Erik to be involved? I hadn’t given him the chance to voice his concerns. I had shut him out.
CHAPTER 29
The rest of the meeting went by quickly, for me at least. Sanders explained that there wasn’t much for me to know. “We’ll guide you from place to place. Tomorrow morning, I’ll supply you with a ‘tick-tock,’ an overview that’s heavy on chronology. You’ll have a schedule and a list of the moving parts.”
He unfolded a map with a highlighted route that ran around the perimeter of the zoo. “I’ll review our protective detail placement with you two later,” he said with a nod to Detweiler and Brawny.
“We’ll need somebody to drive you to the zoo. Preferably somebody with a panel van so you can slip out the side door. We want limited visibility of your arrival.” Sanders was thinking out loud.
“Maybe Curtis Priva could help. He’s the owner of Speedy Service Cleaners, and I know he’s been vetted to attend. He told me he has a ticket.”
“Look him up,” Sanders told Montana.
While Montana did exactly that, Sanders continued, “The zoo has given us access to all their floorplans and resources. Local law enforcement will be on hand in various capacities, undercover and in uniform. Federal agents will be there as well. Of course, the Secret Service will be involved because the Hungarian ambassador will be on hand to represent Budapest, which is a sister city to St. Louis.”
“That’s a lot of agencies,” Brawny said with a solemn nod of her head.
“Priva’s a go,” Montana interrupted. “In fact, he’s a great choice. Naturalized citizen. Came here from Hungary as a young teen. He has a distinguished military service record. Former Marine. I’ll send an agent to talk with him.”
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