by Maggie Thom
****
"Bailey! Bailey! Wake up."
She jerked upright, her head snapping around, her eyes quickly scanning the area. She was alert and ready to run. The lady in front of them twisted around and peeked over her seat. The couple across the way had owl eyes which they quickly turned away when Bailey caught them looking at her.
"Are you all right, Ma'am?"
Her eyes peeled wide open, Bailey looked up at the flight attendant before turning to Guy.
"It's okay. It was just a dream." He reached for her hand.
She pulled back. Taking a deep breath she pasted a smile on. "I'm fine, thanks. It was nothing. Really. Sorry for any disturbance I caused. I'm just a little overtired."
"That's okay. Is there anything I can get you?"
Besides a strait jacket you mean? Bailey shook her head.
She waited until the stewardess moved away before asking, "Uh, what exactly did I say? Do?"
"You cried out a couple of times. Want to talk about it?"
"I'm not sure." Brushing her hand back through her hair, she grimaced at the ratty, tangled mess. It reminded her how grubby she was feeling. Not even twenty-four hours of running around the streets of her old neighborhood and she felt like she needed to be hosed down. She barely controlled the shudder that threatened.
I wonder if I chase down the stewardess and tell her I'd like a bath what she'd say. That might have been what she wanted to suggest.
"Guy. We need to talk. There's something I'm missing in all that's happened. There's some clue somewhere. I?" She reached down, opened her backpack and pulled out Miss Piggy. He gasped. Frowning, she looked at him.
"I swear I forgot. It's been a crazy day. That nut that seemed to want us dead took me for a crazy ride, I crashed the SUV getting away from him. And I swear it just slipped my mind."
"Want to share what you're trying to tell me?"
A light flush crept over his face as he slipped his hand into his leather jacket and pulled out a cassette. Laughing, she reached for it.
"This is what you forgot to tell me about. Oh my God, I haven't seen one in years. I'm not even sure they make cassette players anymore. Do they?"
He shrugged. "I don't know. Graham told me to go to a garage sale or find a second hand store to get one."
"What's on it?" She flipped it over but it was just black, with no identifying information on it.
"I was hoping you'd know."
"How?"
Pointing at the stuffed animal, he said, "It came from her."
"Really? That's why you tore her apart. I thought you were just mad."
Tugging on his ear, he replied, "this morning after I discovered you gone, I picked up the Pig, not sure why and I felt this funny hard shape. So I kind of pulled her apart to find it."
Flipping over the toy, she showed him the ripped head. "I was sure you'd done this to her but I couldn't figure out why." Staring hard at the two things she held, the cassette and the toy, she tried to make a connection.
"I had Miss Piggy until I was six or so. Then she disappeared." Holding up the cassette she said, "I'm not sure I've ever seen this. I think Mom was the one who hid it here. But why?"
"Did she ever send you secret messages? Or did you ever have a code or something?"
Bailey snorted, thinking about the two letters her mom had left her to decipher which reminded her that she hadn't figured out the second one. "She was the master of codes. Of espionage. She used to write me nursery rhymes but she'd change the characters, or the story and I'd have to figure out what she meant. She made up her own language using the alphabet and numbers to make words. She drew pictures. She'd have made a good code writer for countries who wanted their secrets kept."
So what haven't I figured out Mom? The first letter led her to Mr. Lund and the hidden jump drive. She flipped the cassette over and over in her hand, distracted by what her mom might have put on it. "What did you find on that USB keychain?"
"Uuhh." Grimacing, he replied, "I didn't find much. I sent it to Graham to decode. Sorry."
"We're approaching Toronto Pearson International Airport. Arrival time twenty-two minutes. Please put your seats back in upright position?"
Bailey only half listened to the captain as he went through the routine of preparing for landing. She glanced out the window but immediately pulled back.
"Don't be scared. It's safe."
Averting her face, she replied, "don't know what you're talking about." She stuffed Miss Piggy back in to her backpack and shoved it under the seat. She looked at the cassette in her hand, reluctant to let it go but knowing it would be a while before she could listen to it.
"So what happens when we get off?"
"A friend is meeting us. We'll go to my place."
She cocked her head as she looked at him.
His hands flew up. "It's just the closest and easiest and hopefully the safest place to take you for now. If you don't like that I'll book us into a hotel."
She frowned.
"I'm not letting you out of my sight. I might not be the best at protecting you but whoever wants you will have to go through me."
A thrill of excitement ran through her. Annoyed because she liked the strange feeling, she turned away from him.
Silence ensued between them. The plane landed. Bailey and Guy waited patiently while everyone stood up and grabbed their bags from the overhead bins. Guy stepped back so that Bailey could get in line in front of him. Walking into the airport they followed the long confusing miles of hallway, escalators and finally out to baggage claim area.
Guy started doing his owl imitation, scanning the crowded area. Bailey couldn't muster more energy than it took to give more than a cursory glance around. People of all shapes and sizes were anxiously looking through the stream of passengers for their loved ones. A blonde disheveled haired guy, who reminded her of Scooby Doo's sidekick, Shaggy, waved. Since Guy smiled and waved back, she had to assume that was his buddy, who'd gotten them all the deals.
The two men clasped hands like they were going to arm wrestle and slammed their shoulders together. Bailey stood back and let them do their male bonding thing. Looking around, she noticed all the hugs and tears that were being shared, the genuine missed you looks, glad you're here. It was such a foreign sight to her that she couldn't help but stare. It was while she was watching a couple race into each other's arms and practically start making out that she noticed a man with an old detective type hat pulled low over his face, staring at her. Something didn't feel right. He had a hard look in his eye, like he hated her. She glanced back over her shoulder to see if anyone was standing beside her. No one was really close and no one was really looking in his direction. Turning to look at him again, she was surprised that he was gone. Her stomach, her radar system, was clenching but she wasn't sure why. Confused, she looked around.
"Bailey, come here. I'd like you to meet my friend and partner, Graham. The man who can get anything."
He bowed very formally, before reaching for her hand. Not sure what to make of him but feeling like he was harmless she let him hold her fingers in his palm. "Enchant?, my dear. You are much more beautiful than my esteemed friend would have had me believe."
Bailey looked past him to catch Guy's, only to see his smile and his eye roll. Not sure what to do or to think, she stood there stunned as Graham planted a kiss on the back of her hand, then tucked her fingers in the crook of his elbow and proceeded to walk with her out of the terminal.
"Oh no, you don't." Guy slipped between them, easily extricating her from him. "Okay, where's the car?"
Graham made a woebegone face, sniffed a few times before bowing regally and stepping back. Bailey giggled. He winked at her. His face turned serious as he turned to Guy again.
"Parkade. I need to talk to you first." All joking was gone.
Guy turned to Bailey. "We'll be right out this window. Stay right here. Okay?"
She nodded, pretty sure they'd be safe. Who could possibly know tha
t they'd flown to Toronto? It wasn't like they'd given a whole lot of notice. The two men stepped outside of the building, still sheltered by the cement overhang that protected them from the pouring rain and moved off to the right, still within sight of Bailey. Guy kept glancing at her every five seconds.
She thought about following but decided to stay inside and watch them. Guy was really getting into their conversation. He'd finally stopped looking her way. She would love to know what it was they were discussing. Something jabbed into her side. Due to the overcrowded area, she assumed it was someone not paying attention to where they were going. About to turn and give them a piece of her mind, she was jerked from behind.
"Keep your mouth shut and step behind this column."
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX