Gentles all:   The following story contains reference to a form of Japanese street fashion, the adherents to which refer to as Elegant Gothic Lolita. Note, that the term “Lolita” refers to this style of clothing. This, with Gabi's kind help, is a revised and illustrated version of the story that originally appeared on Crystal’s Storysite.

Hansel and Gretel: A Fairytale. Act 1. By Sarah Lynn Morgan

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 
 
 

Act I

 
 

     Margaret looked at herself thoughtfully for a moment, and then decided that perhaps she should be even more subtle with her eyes. After all, it would not do to have one of the Sisters from ‘The Holy Order of the Blessed Pain in her Ass’, to write home again about her “extravagant use of cosmetics, and her unconventional sense of style.” The way that her stepmother Joan had carried on the last time such a note came home, you would have thought she had been caught trading drugs for sex to devil worshipers during Friday morning chapel.

     Looking at herself again in the mirror, she adjusted the lacings and the bow on the front of her blouse. She did not want to change her look; it was the perfect choice for how she felt this Friday - but it was a risk. One more letter from ‘The Sisters of Morality in Fashion’, and she might well blow the cosplay convention this weekend.

     The sound of her brother John’s alarm clock made up her mind. She could face another tirade from her stepmother about her “complete lack of awareness of their social position, and her constant attempts to embarrass her parents with her outlandish getups.” In the end, Margaret knew that there was no way to avoid an argument anyway. She might as well feel good until it started; or until it continued, as the case may be. She gently smoothed down the lace of her blouse, and checked to make sure her hairpiece was on tightly, before padding down the hall to John’s room.

     Margaret had always been an “early-riser,” as her dad called it. He said that she got that from her mother. Poor John, on the other hand, would never make it to school without her help. It was not that he was lazy or anything; he just did not wake up before about nine o’clock no matter what the circumstances. Margaret had found him many times with is feet on the floor, sitting on the edge of his bed, still sound asleep.

     Margaret had never really mind taking care of John, because she knew he was a great kid. She also knew that like her, he had no one else. When it came right down to it, they were the only family each other really had.

     Margaret and John’s Mother had died while having him. Since she was three years older, she wound up taking care of John. As soon as she learned how to do something for herself, she would naturally start doing it for John as well. Her dad said that she had done that right from the start. It was good that she had, because the never-ending parade of nurses, nannies, and governesses that her father had hired were a poor substitute for their mother.

     To John, no matter who might be the flavor of the week, Margaret was always there. It made them very close, but Margaret reflected every day that this was a very poor substitute for a dead mother, and a father who was seldom able to show any warmth to his son.

     At ten, and wise beyond her few years, Margaret completely understood that her father’s distance from John was the result of loosing his wife and a mother to his children so tragically, and unexpectedly. She knew that it was the pain of his loosing the only woman he would probably ever truly love, and not that he really disliked her brother. However, she had expected him to get over it. At seventeen, Margaret understood it a whole lot less than she had when she was younger. Seeing the distant way he still treated his own son had put a distance between them as well. She knew now, that would probably never change. It did not even bother her that much any more. Deep down she admitted to herself that she wanted the distance there now. It just made it easier to deal with the fact that she had lost both her parents on that terrible day.

     When she was eleven, her father had married Joan. The woman was not exactly a bad person. She did not try to poison them or anything, but if there was such a thing as a woman completely lacking in maternal instinct, Joan was it. She had no talent for human interaction, which meant that on those rare occasions she tried to act motherly, she only made things much worse. She was never able to deal with any of their problems.

      When Margaret was 13, John had gone to Joan because a teacher had been giving him a really hard time in front of the other kids. He needed help, and Margaret knew that it was the teacher’s fault, and not John’s. Well Joan, true to form began yelling at John for all of the problems that she had to put up with from him, etc. It had been so much worse than no help at all.

      Later, Margaret, had pulled John aside, when he was almost ten, and told him that he should have come to her instead. She told him that if he needed help, he should always come to her from then on. If she could not help, she could get Dad’s help for him. She also told him that the next time he needed some humanity, to go down to the market and buy one of those big dead fish for ten bucks; unlike Joan, at least that would have some human warmth left in it.

      As she padded into John’s room to turn off the clock, he was sitting up in his bed, his blurry sightless eyes staring at the mirror across from him. “Good Morning, Little brother, you were sleeping in your pants again?”

      Rubbing his hands on his jeans, “Yeah, Maggie, I did — Sorry.”

      “It doesn’t bother me, just don’t let Joan see you; we could both use a better start to the day.”

      “Is she up?” John asked, surprised in spite of being barely conscious.

      “I thought I heard her in the kitchen a little while ago, so yes. You get to the bathroom and into the shower, and I’ll go down and get us some breakfast!”

      “Maggie, don’t bother making anything for me, I can’t eat food before the pigeons have had a chance for breakfast. It just seems…, so unfair.”

      Margaret almost smiled, as she firmly pulled him off the bed. “You need a good breakfast if you are going to keep up that GPA; and, I do it because I love you, you little squid! Now get up, and get in the shower!” Margaret put her hands on John’s shoulders, and made sure he was moving in the right direction, before she headed down stairs.

      Joan was sitting in the kitchen smoking when she got in there. It was one of the things that Margaret liked least about her, but since she usually kept to her side of the house, at least Margaret did not have to put up with her clothes smelling like cigarettes. “Morning,” Margaret said, as she walked to the sink to run some hot water in one side and add some dish detergent.

      “Is that what you plan on wearing to school?” Joan asked in a voice that held more disinterest than sarcasm as she flicked an ash away

      “Yes, but I ‘m going to make breakfast in it first” Margaret said evenly, in a voice that held about the same amount of affection. “Do you want some eggs?” Maggie tried at least to make the question seem more friendly, succeeding to some degree.

      “No. You just make sure you get out to school on time.” With that Joan got up and shambled to the master wing, while Maggie tried hard not to shiver, and let Joan see how the hairs on the back of her neck were standing up. She went to the fridge to start breakfast.

      “Morning!” Maggie muttered acidly under her breath.

 
 
      She called John down twice to breakfast before he finally did the zombie walk to the table. Eggs, waffles and bacon, would at least make sure that when he did wake up, he would be able to sit still in class.

      “Come on, John, we have to leave in twenty minutes, get over here, and eat.” She said this while checking to see that his socks matched

      “Oh Yeah? Well what about you?” John asked defensively.

      “I had mine between the first and second call, John, just before I washed the dishes, and put them in the dishwasher. Did you finish that paper for English?”

      “Yes, Maggie, yesterday.”

      “You want me to look it over?” she asked.

      “No, it came out fine. It will be an A, I’m sure.”

      “OK, well don’t forget it upstairs. Put your dish in the sink when you are done.”

      “Yes, sister Margaret,” John said with a gentle sarcasm, as Maggie headed back upstairs to collect her own things without really hearing him.

      A short time later, as they went out the door, she slipped a few dollars into John’s pack for lunch, and they began to walk to the buss stop three blocks away. Looking ahead, she could see the small dark head of an Asian girl, Miyu, who she knew John really adored.

      “So, John, have you asked anyone out to the dance next Friday?”

      “Oh god, Maggie, not again! Isn’t it a little early in the morning, even for you?”

      Maggie responded softly, “Well, you know, John, most girls appreciate a little warning when a boy asks them out. Not only do they need time to get something together, but asking a girl at the last minute makes them feel like they were a second choice or something. You need to ask today, you know.”

      “Maggie,” John replied, “I'm pretty sure what girls really like are to not have geeks like me bothering them!”

      “John, you are a great guy, don’t say things like that, OK. I promise you, it won’t be much longer before all of the girls in your class realize just how great you are Trust me, and give them a chance.”

      “Yes, Maggie. I’m sorry. I’m sure you are right. When the girls in my class get sick of the jocks, the really rich guys, the good looking guys, and all those losers in the cool kids cliques, then I will be there - ready to take up all that slack!”

      “Well, you listen to me, and you ask someone. I think that girl Miyu would be an excellent choice, but you need to ask someone today, OK?”

      “Humph.” John said.

      “Listen, I want to stop by Noriko’s place on the way, so you go to the stop and get on the bus. I’ll catch the 7:40, OK?”

      “Gee whiz, Sis, are you sure you don’t want to hold my hand all the way down the block to the bus stop?”

      Laughing and patting John on the shoulder, Maggie said, “Yes, on second thought you are probably right! Take my hand, squirt, and I’ll make sure you get there!”

      With an almost dirty look, John continued down to the stop, while Maggie turned toward Noriko’s apartment.

 
 

o O o
 
 

      Noriko was dressmaker and a very good one. When it came to costumes and period clothing, she was about the best there was. The majority of her work went to the large theater companies in the area. Noriko could take one look at a garment, and reproduce it almost exactly, except hers were often prettier than the original. Most of the people Maggie knew who were into cosplay liked to make costumes on their own, but a few people who could afford it bought them from Noriko. For a few years, Noriko had also made custom clothing for wealthy clients, but she had hated that so much, she had given it up.

      Noriko made most of Maggie’s Loli clothes, and had arranged to buy others for her through family she had back in Japan. She had made the blouse Maggie was wearing, and even made all her school uniform skirts for her. Maggie knew that the only reason that Noriko did the work for her was that they had been friends for so many years.

      Maggie always tried to help Noriko in return, by running errands, and sewing on beads and things, but she knew that she would always feel that she could never do enough. Besides, she loved being with Noriko so much, that helping her seemed more like fun, than any form of repayment.

      Noriko was about ten years older than Maggie was. They had met at the park years before, while Maggie was there with John. Because she was such a beautiful women, many of the children were drawn to her, and spoke to her easily. It was not too long before Noriko came to understand why the little girl and her brother were always at the park alone. From that time on, she always made a point to speak to Maggie and John when she saw them. From there, as Maggie grew a little older, she was often invited over to tea at Noriko’s apartment, where of course she became fascinated by the beautiful costumes and dresses she saw there. Now, even thought there were many years between them, she was the closest friend Maggie had. More like a big sister than anything else, and her apartment was a sanctuary away from the travail that was home.

      At the door to the apartment building, Maggie glanced one more time down to the stop, hoping that John would have caught up with Miyu. She did not see him though, so she shrugged her shoulders, and pulled the door open. In the foyer, she reached for the bell to Noriko’s intercom, but the door buzzed before she touched the button. Noriko was at her door when Maggie got off the elevator.

      “Maggie-chan, I saw you coming up the stairs. You look very pretty today!” she greeted Maggie in just the same way she had when she was a little girl. It was a joke between them.

      “Thanks to you, Noriko!” Margaret answered. In the apartment, half of which was a studio, Noriko quickly invited Maggie to shed her outer clothing and come over to her by the window where she waited with a measuring tape.

      Maggie stood patiently while Noriko measured her upper body several times. As usual, she never needed to write any of the measurements down, and always seemed to remember them.

      “Your blouses are getting tight across the front?” Noriko asked quietly.

      “Yes. Everything is. I guess I need not have worried so much about the Titty-fairy after all, Noriko.”

      Noriko blushed a little at her young friends impertinence, but she also laughed. “I tried to tell you, Maggie, that time is the master of many such worries. You just had to wait for it to catch up with you. Fortunately, I had faith, so I left some extra cloth in the seams of several of your dresses. I can fix them in a day, when you are ready.

      “Noriko, thank you. I am so sorry to bother you, but I adore the clothes you make, it always makes me so sad when I outgrow them.” Maggie said to Noriko sincerely, as Noriko poured the girl a quick cup of tea, while Maggie tidied herself.

      “I don’t think that you will need to worry about that too much longer. I think you will soon be fully grown, and will no longer have to leave your pretty things in the closet, unless of course your teachers make you!” Noriko replied with a slightly mischievous grin.

      Maggie rolled her eyes. “You know last week we had another casual day on Friday, so I wore that black dress and head-piece you made for me last month. You know that I got sent to Father Bernard who questioned me about witchcraft and devil worship!”

      Noriko chuckled openly, “You know Maggie, and perhaps you should consider wearing a simple school uniform once in a while.”

      “Noriko, the clothes you make for me are so beautiful, why on earth would I want to wear ugly clothes for the ‘Sisters without Mercy.’ No way!”

      “Well,” Noriko sighed, “I make you clothes that you will love, but you need to be careful not to get yourself in trouble.”

      “I am, Noriko, I am. Well, thank you again, but I have to run, it is seven thirty, and I have ten minutes before the buss comes.”

      Noriko watched Margaret for a moment, and then very uncharacteristically made up her mind to be the first one to speak. “Maggie-chan, did you fight with Joan this morning?”

      Margaret sighed, and looked down at her feet. “Not this morning but last night was more than enough.”

      “What happened this time?” Noriko asked gently.

      When Margaret looked up, she had tears in her eyes. She began to speak slowly enough, but soon was spilling out everything very quickly. “I overheard Joan talking to my father last night. It seems that the poetry contest that John entered was the last straw for her. It seems that she has my dad convinced to send John to some military school next year, when I go to college. I couldn’t help myself, I had to say something: John is smaller than the other kids his age, and on top of that, I can’t imagine what would happen to him if they put him in one of those schools now. Would everyone outrank him, or something? It is such a stupid idea, and it’s only because Joan does not want to have to take care of him. Just wait till they find out that he won the contest! That bitch will probably sign him up for the French Foreign Legion.”

      Noriko, tended to agree with Margaret, but as always, she felt compelled to try and guide Margaret. “Please, don’t think that I agree, but you know John might just be better off in military school, than staying home alone. Besides, John doesn’t have problems now does he? He can probably take care of himself better than you think, Maggie.”

      “Don’t get me wrong, he can take care of himself, he’s smaller than most of the kids, but the only one who holds that against him is my father. It’s just that it is so unnecessary to put him through all of that just to make her life easier. If that bastard would stand up to her for anything, even he would admit it is a stupid idea. The kids at a school like that train to give people like John a hard time. They’ll kill him!”

      Noriko thought for a moment, and decided to speak her mind. “You are right, John is a good boy, but they will kill him. It is a stupid idea.” Noriko reached out, and put her hand on Maggie’s shoulder. “What can you do?” she asked.

      “I don’t know, but I need to try and do something. I don’t think I can do anything. I was planning to talk to the guidance councilor at school. He had suggested that perhaps he might get John into a student exchange program, and there may be something he can do!”

      Noriko’s eyes widened, “Maggie-sama, that is a wonderful idea! That may just work. John is very luck to have you for a sister. Don’t be too sad, you will find some way to help. You always do, don’t you?” Noriko lifted Maggie’s chin to smile at her, and gently wiped a little tear from the corner of her eye, being careful not to smudge her makeup.

      Maggie smiled back, and said, “I really have to run. Thank you, Noriko, I’m sorry to bleed all over you again.”

      “That is what I’m here for, alterations and mending of skirts, slacks, dresses, and human hearts!” Noriko said with a smile, and in a display of affection she reserved for Maggie alone, she held out her arms. Maggie hugged her back tightly if very briefly.

      As always Noriko walked her to the door, “Remember your strengths,” she said holding the door open, “patience with those who are cross, and a kindness for all who would be friends.” Noriko watched Maggie walk to the elevator, which had just opened. She shook her head a little as the elevator doors closed behind Maggie, before again turning back to the work waiting on her table…

 
 

o O o
 
 

      John followed Miyu down to the buss stop. Maggie did not know that John had tried to speak to her several times, but could just not seem to get the words out. He thought that she was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen, but she was so quiet. She had a frustrating habit of not responding when people she did not know well spoke to her, which was just about everyone. To those questions, she would often smile politely and bow slightly, before walking away in silence. Some thought her stuck up, but John could see that she was just a shy girl in a new school.

      Miyu had come to the city with her father and mother straight from Tokyo at the first of the year. John thought she was lonely, because she never spoke to anyone unless she was spoken to first by one of a small group of friends. Then some of the bigger kids seemed to frighten her a little. They did not tease her much, but it was pretty clear that she was on her way to another private school north of the city at the end of this year. That was if she stayed in America at all.

      John was not paying much attention. The truth was that Maggie was right. He would find Miyu at lunch, and find some way to ask her to the dance. He hoped that she would say yes, but even if she did not, he knew he would keep asking until she went with him. Now at the stop, he looked up to see the bus coming up the street, and Miyu as usual, standing a little apart from the crowd at the stop, near the corner with her back to a signal pole. She looked like she might have recognized him, when he was distracted by the sight of a black BMW making a Bat-Turn into traffic, and accelerating violently up the street toward them.

      No sooner had the BMW begun racing in their direction, than a hand with a gun came out of the rear window, and began firing back in the direction from which they had come. John began to move toward the corner behind some newspaper racks near where Miyu stood, when a second car, a light blue American car came sliding around the corner.

      The hand sticking out of this car had a machine pistol, and it cut loose in their direction as soon as they came crashing around the corner. As bullets began to pepper the BMW, the driver panicked, and jerked the wheel over to turn down the side street beside John and Miyu. He might have made the turn if he had not bounced off another car, but John could see that he would never make it now. He was coming onto the sidewalk where they stood.

      By instinct alone, John grabbed Miyu by the shoulder and tried to run down the side street. He heard the crash behind him as the BMW took the pole, and felt the wind of the car pass his right shoulder as it flipped past him onto the curb. He lost his grip on Miyu as something hit him in the back, and knocked him to the ground beside the building on the side street. The Blue car made the turn, and raced past. The sound of the machine pistol again rang out, but this time it was all but drowned out by the screaming of running people on the sidewalk, and the sound of a pileup going on in the intersection.

      When John dared to look up he could see the BMW on its roof thirty or forty feet further down the side street. Near the car was an Asian man lying on the ground. In the car was an Asian woman, lying on the roof liner, and staring at him. John tried to move, and it was then that he realized his legs were pinned by a weight that had fallen on them. Miyu! He thought, but as he spun around, Miyu was nowhere to be seen. The weight on his legs was his pack that had somehow wound up there.

      John was startled by the sounds of shots coming from the BMW. Whipping around, he could see the woman firing down the street at the fleeing blue car, but it was too far out of range. The woman then turned back, and began to crawl out of the car toward him. Frightened, he began to stand up to get away. Seeing this, the woman began to yell at him, and waive the gun in his direction. When the woman pointed the gun straight at him, he grabbed the pack strap, and started to run around the corner, and back up the street. As soon as he began to move he heard the sound of the last few shots from the pistol being emptied into the side of the building next to his head. John ran hard...

      Walking down the now crowded street to the bus stop, Maggie did not see the start of the race between the two cars, nor the first part of the gunfight; but, she did see the BMW go flipping across the sidewalk, and the people going down, and fleeing in every direction in an effort to get out of harm’s way. She could also see and hear people running away from the gunfire. She began to run, and pray at the same time. Fortunately, she had only run half the length of the block, when she made out John running back toward her.

      Maggie began to slow to a stop, shaking with relief and waiting for John, when people started passing her. John reached her a few moments later, and grabbing her violently, he began to drag her further up the street. “What are you doing?” she screamed, as he literally dragged her over a filthy trashcan that fell over the curb, in an effort to get her moving.

      “She’s shooting at me!” he screamed back, the strength of his panic now dragging them both up the street. At the sound of even more shots, Maggie too began to panic, but her instinct was to pull her brother into a narrow alleyway between two buildings, to get them out of the line of fire.

      Once she had gotten him out of harm’s way, she asked him breathlessly, “What do you mean shooting at you?”

      “I don’t know, Maggie, but there was a crazy woman in the car that crashed, and she started yelling at me and shooting at the same time. I had to run for it, Maggie!”

      “Calm down, John! Why in the name of god would she shoot at you? You just got caught in the crossfire.”

      “No, Maggie. She first shot at the other car, and then she looked right at me, started yelling in Chinese or something, and started shooting right at me. There was no crossfire!”

      John was bleeding from the side of his head. Maggie grabbed his head, and could see that he had small pieces of brick sticking into him. She gently told him to hold still, and even more gently began to knock the pieces of brick out of his scalp. She also found a piece of what looked like a bullet that had shattered the bricks right beside John’s head. By now, she realized just how close a call John had had. “We have to get out of here, come on.” Margaret said, and she moved to the corner to peer cautiously down the street. By now, there were cops coming out of the woodwork, and they were all that was moving in the intersection.

      Grabbing John’s arm, she began to run up the street, intending to go home, when she noticed Noriko standing at the front door of her apartment. Instinctively, she pulled in that direction, and was soon in the front foyer with Noriko. She knew that both she and John had tried to tell Noriko what had happened, but nether teenager was making much sense as Noriko bundled them into the elevator.

      In the apartment, Noriko took John to the kitchen and began carefully to check the side of his head. The bleeding had just about stopped, and she only found small cuts and gouges from the brick shards. She also found a bullet hole in his collar, which she silent showed to Maggie behind his back, by putting her finger through the hole, even as Noriko continued to clean the boy’s wounds. Maggie sat down heavily behind him, as if her legs had been chopped from under her, and buried her face in her hands.

      Still in shock but feeling better, John began to shake. He also began to feel Noriko picking brick out of his head. Seeking to distract him from the pain, Noriko said “You are very lucky, John. It looks like you just got hit by some pieces of brick, and none of it needs anything more than a little cleaning.”

      John snorted, and said, “Well, I guess since Maggie always said that my head was as hard as a brick, I guess she was right, huh?”

      The joke took both women completely by surprise, and after a moment of dead silence, all three began to laugh a little too hard.

Later, Noriko was able to get a coherent story out of the two, and had pieced together what had happened. Now, all three sat at the table, sipping tea, and collecting their thoughts.

      “Are you sure you saw Miyu run past, was she Ok?”

      “Hi.” Noriko said with a slight bow of acknowledgement, “I am sure John. She is one of my customers, and I know her well. She was one of the first to come by, and she looked frightened, but unharmed.”

      John felt better, even though it was the third time Noriko had told him the same thing.

      Then Maggie chimed in, “It is almost eight-thirty, and we really should be getting to school.”

      Noriko reached out to place her hand on Margaret’s arm. “I do not think that would be wise.” She said flatly.

      After a moment she continued, “I am still not sure what happened, but I do believe John when he said that they were shooting at him. You two should stay right here for now. You should also call your parents and let them know you are OK. You also need to call the school, and tell them that you and your brother are out sick. Don’t tell them where you are, or that you were involved in the shooting, just that you are not feeling well.” Margaret looked at her friend, and seeing the concern on her face, began to worry that the horrible incident was not over as she had been thinking.

      John asked, “Noriko, what are you talking about?”

      Noriko spoke slowly, “John, listen to me. I have heard of the people you were describing, and I know that they run the collections around Chinatown for a local Gang. Many of the people I used to sew for were wealthy, and owned businesses. They call them the Tong. Now, I don’t how big they are, or even if they are part of some Chinese Mafia, but I do know that they are very bad people. If the woman was looking at you and shooting at you, then there was some reason, and it is not safe for you to go out on the street right now.” She sat back and waited for him to digest what she said.

      “Wait a minute,” Margaret said getting really upset, “Why would they want to hurt John? That’s nuts.”

      “It’s nuts or it’s not Margaret,” Noriko said with her inexhaustible patience, and her tone never changing from one of careful explanation, “we only know that they tried to kill John and that these people do not have a reputation of stopping once they start.”

      Margaret sat for a long while quietly. It made sense. She had no idea what had happened, perhaps John had seen something he was not supposed to, but it was not worth the risk. “I’ll call dad,” she said finally “Do you have his new cell number?” she asked John.

      “It’s written on the front of my assignment book in my bag, Maggie.”

      Margaret got up to retrieve the bag, and stooping to lift it from the floor, she noticed it was very heavy, weighing in at what must have been twenty pounds. “Hey, John, when did you get this bag, and what do you have in it? Bricks?”

      Looking at his sister in confusion, “I’ve had it for two years, sis. Are you loosing…” John caught sight of the bag in his sister’s hand, which was all black. His bag was red, with black straps.

      Before he could say anything, Margaret opened the bag, and began to stare open mouthed into it. The expression on her face brought both John and Noriko to their feet, and to her side. They also stared in the bag, which they could clearly see was packed full of neat packets of very large bills. The bag was full of money — a lot of money.

      “That’s not my bag, sis.” John said almost absentmindedly.

      “I know that, you little doofus, unless you’ve been counterfeiting in your room late at night.” Maggie snapped.

      Maggie reached into the bag and checked several packets of notes, most of which were made up of hundred’s and fifty dollar bills. There were packets of larger bills also, some of which Margaret had never seen before. “Jesus, there must be hundreds of thousands of dollars in here!” she said finally.

      Noriko reached past her to pull a small leather notebook out of the stack of money. She opened it just briefly enough to see it was a long list of names, and addresses, with amounts of money written beside each.

      Noriko threw the notebook back into the bag, and taking it from Margaret, she jerked the zipper closed. “No, Margaret, if all the bills are as large as the ones on the top, there are Millions of dollars in the bag, and that along with that notebook are enough to get us, and all our families killed.”

      “What was that book?” John chimed in. “Nothing you need ever know about, and you don’t touch it for any reason, is that clear?” Noriko said in a very uncharacteristic voice. In eight years, it was the first time Margaret had heard that tone from her. Noriko, put the bag behind the chair in the corner, and moved to the window to peer out a small crack in the curtains.

      Finally, she came back to the table and said, “We’re in trouble, and I need to think. Maggie, you call the school, and John you call your dad’s work to get his number. Let him know you are ok, but don’t tell him where you are.”

      “Ok,” they both said in unison.

      “I must think,” Noriko said, as she went to the corner to sit in the same chair she had used to hide the money. I frightened Maggie to see her simply sitting with her hands folded in her lap, staring at the floor in front of her feet.

      Maggie called the school first. The secretary seemed relieved to hear from her, as they had just found that they were missing, and had been in the process of putting two and two together with the stories from students from the area. All in all, it was easy, because everyone at the school knew that Margaret had a parental role with her younger brother.

      Then John called his dad’s office, and left a message to the effect that he and Margaret were going to the movies after school with some friends, and they would call to let them know when they would be home. He began to call his home to leave the same message, when, Noriko jumped from the chair to push down the switch on the phone. “Caller Id, John, you can’t call your home from here. It will leave a number with the message, and they can find us!” John began to turn pale.

“Can’t we just give the money back?” John asked.

      “John,” Noriko answered, “that would do no good. They would assume that you knew about the money, and the book. They would just kill you.”

      “Then what are we supposed to do now?” John said.

      Margaret answered, “We stay alive. We may be able to just pickup where we left off, and act like nothing has happened, that way no one will know!”

      “Maggie-sama,” Noriko said quietly, “That may have been the best way to handle this if they had not seen John run off with the pack. They know where you were, and they only have to talk to that woman to know where to start looking. If you stay around here, they will find you.”

      “I can’t believe this!” John said, and started to walk toward the bathroom.

      “John, we will figure this out, you know.” Margaret said. Stopping to look at his sister, John could only stare at her in wonder.

      “Maggie, you have a knack for fixing things, and god knows I love you for it, but this one is a little beyond even you. Don’t you go to the movies? If these guys want to kill us, then we are dead.”

      “Don’t say that, John!” Margaret yelled at him, letting both of them know just how thin and fragile her calm actually was.

      “Calm, both of you,” Noriko said stepping between them, “this will not help.”

      Margaret, the full realization of what was going to happen, turned to Noriko. “Can’t we go to the Police, and tell them what happened? I mean once we get rid of the money, and they know we don’t have it, we should be OK! Right?”

      Noriko looked at her, and was about to answer her, when John answered from across the room.

      “Sis if it were just the money, that might work, but whatever is in that book probably sealed it for us.”

      Maggie was almost sobbing, when she asked, ‘But there are witness protection programs or something, Right? I mean they must have some way…”

      Noriko sat down in the chair by the window, and shook her head. “Maggie, I don’t think that those things work. I have a friend who is a lawyer, and he said something once. They only put people into those programs when they know something, and they need them to testify. Sure if you give them the money, they will give you some cops to watch you for a few days, or a week, but after that you would be on your own. I don’t think these people would even wait that long before they came for you.”

      Noriko began to shake her head, while examining the street through the curtains again. “I don’t think the police are the answer…, or the only answer.” She continued again as if telling of something she had only dreamed. “When people are being fitted, it can take a long time. At first they make little conversations, about little things. Then they are quiet. Sooner or later, they talk. The one thing the ones had in common, other than money, was that they knew that you couldn’t get help from the police, and anyone who informed, was found out by the gang.”

      The apartment was silent for a long time, because no one wanted to speak further. Finally, John moved to the bathroom, and closed the door behind him.

      Maggie, turned to Noriko once more, and pleaded with her eyes for her to come up with something, but no answer came in reply. Maggie heard the sound of the toilet flush, and turned her eyes to the door, expecting John to come out, but he did not appear. Then she heard the distinct sound of John throwing up. She moved to the door, and knocked, but John just told her to go away. On trying the knob she found that he had locked the door. Not wishing to disturb him needlessly, she simple waited at the door for him to appear, which he did about five minutes later. When he came out, she put her arms around his neck, and hugged him close to her.

      “Listen to me,” John finally said, “they don’t know about you. They only saw me, and there is no reason why they should go after you if they get me. I’ll go to the cops and turn myself in. If you two say that you never saw me, then you should be ok. They want me.”

Maggie recoiled with horror, and said “No fucking way, John! No way!”

      “Sis, it’s the only way, it’s either that or try to find them down in Chinatown, and turn the money back to them.”

      “That would not work,” Noriko said quickly, “the fact that you brought it back to them would prove you knew too much, and they would kill you, and probably come for your sister anyway!”

      “But why? If I tell them that I did not see anyone…” John argued, but Noriko cut him off.

      “First of all, John, they would not hesitate to come after your family. Why not, they would be safer if they killed both you and your sister, because they will assume she was there too. In addition, not only will they not believe you, but also they have plenty of drugs and sick people who would enjoy working anything they wanted out of you. You are very brave, John, but it just won’t work. It will only make it easier for them to kill you.”

      “Ok, then what do I do? Huh?” John asked. “If you have an idea, I’d sure like to hear it, because you make it sound like we should just off ourselves, so as not to inconvenience the poor Chinese mafia! Well that kind of thing comes from your, background, not mine!” he finished loudly.

      The air was electric, when John seeing the look on Noriko’s face, realized that he was shouting at the wrong people. “Noriko, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to… You took us in, and got yourself involved to help us. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean…”

      “It is all right, John,” Noriko said rubbing her face with her hand. “I understand you are frightened, but we need to think clearly now. I will do everything I can to help you. If they find you, they will find me now too. We can’t do anything foolish, ok?”

      “So what do we do?” Maggie said softly. “Wait here, and let them get you too? Perhaps John and I should just go.”

Noriko looked over to her. “I can only suggest one thing.” Noriko said slowly. “You have to get away. You have to go where they can’t find you until we can figure out some better solution, but that may never come. We have to get you out of here, and far away. I don’t see any other way”

      Ok, then we go,” Maggie, said after a few moments. “Let’s go now.”

      “It’s not that easy,” Noriko said. “While I have watched at the window, I’ve seen several cars cruising around the streets with what may be people looking for that bag. I don’t know, but just getting you out of here may be the hard part. After that, I have friends at home, and all around. I can find a place.”

      “You mean Japan,” John said, “How are we supposed to get there?”

      Noriko looked at him, and said “First class air, John. You have the money if you need it, and we surely can’t give it back anyway. There is no reason why we can’t use the money for something like that, as long as you don’t go to the mall and start buying everything in sight, you should be ok.”

      “When you say run away, you aren’t kidding, are you? Japan?” John said to Noriko, but Maggie spoke also.

      “Or someplace equally far away,” Margaret said. “The west coast, or Florida, if we can keep a low profile. I’d say Vancouver, where Noriko’s cousins live, but anyplace she has friends, they may have contacts. We have to be careful.”

      Noriko answered her with an almost laugh, “Fortunately, Maggie, they are probably Chinese, and may not know as much about the Japanese community as you suppose, but you are right, we must be careful.” John sat down on the couch and began to hold his head.

      “Are you not well, John,” Noriko asked. “Are you going to be ill again?”

      “No.” he said, “but my head is splitting from where the brick hit me. That is why I threw up, because my head hurts. I need to lie down, I think.”

      They did just that, when they helped him to Noriko’s room. Noriko gave him some pain medicine, and put him to bed, all they while praying that he did not have a concussion, and was in need medical attention. Noriko was convinced, however, that despite his brave front John was just a very frightened child.

      Back in the living room, Noriko and Maggie sat at the table across from one another, and silently began sipping tea that neither wanted. The shrill of the phone startled them both rather badly. Noriko, shaking her head at the silliness of their fright, picked up the phone, “Hi, Noriko?” Her eyes became large and she said “Miyu,” which was the only thing that Maggie understood. She had a conversation for about five minutes, and then hung up.

      “Was that the little girl that John likes?” Margaret asked as soon as she had.

      “Yes, she just told me that she was down at the corner, and she said someone pulled her, but she did not see who because she had looked back at the noise of the car, when someone grabbed her shoulder and pulled her out of the way. She fell on the sidewalk, on top of another woman, and when she looked up she did not see who it was that helped her. She was apparently around the corner from John, but when she heard the shots, she ran like everyone else!”

      “Wow, so she does not know anything then?”

“No, she does not, which is a blessing. To tell the truth, she had me a little worried.” Noriko finished. “The only problem,” Noriko continued again, “I made a Dark Chii costume for her for the CosCon, and she wants to pick it up in two hours. Apparently, a lot of the people are going tonight after the set up, and then the convention starts tomorrow in earnest. I need you to hide in the bedroom with John when she comes.

      “NO problem.” Margaret said.

      Then Margaret, like Noriko sat looking at the half dozen costumes she had ready on dummies and hangers at the far end of the workspace. Sheets covered many, and it was only the stress of their current situation that had kept her from inspecting them. She had seem most of them in various stages of completion, but now that they were finished, she was sure they must have been something. Margaret also knew that Noriko’s own costume was around here somewhere, a copy of Toshiya’s blue Gauze outfit, complete with spiked collar and boots. Margaret looked around, and did not see it, and looked back at Noriko.

      Noriko was still looking at the costumes, deep in thought.

      “Margaret, how tall is John?” she asked. “I don’t know. I can give you his sizes; I buy most of his clothes, but I’m guessing he is right at five-five, or five-six. Why?”

      “I don’t…” Noriko started to say, “I’m going to check on him, I’ll be right back.”

      “I’ll do it,” Margaret said, and began to rise, but Noriko waived her back to her seat as she headed to the bedroom. She came out a few minutes later, and opened one of the closet doors that lined one side of the workspace. She pulled out another dummy with a partially completed white costume, and began to look it over. It was a short white mini dress, with the skirt even shorter in the front, and a back that was mostly comprised of blue crisscross ribbon laces. Noriko began to look over the dress, unaware that Margaret had walked up behind her amazed by her sudden concentration.

      “Noriko?” Margaret regretting her interruption as soon as she uttered a word, because Noriko visibly jumped when she said he name.

      “Oh, Maggie! Hand me that black box on that shelf by your head, will you?” Margaret could see it was marked “Star Quality,” in blue on the top, but just handed it to Noriko. When Noriko opened the box, she could see that it was a wig, that was about three feet long and looked to be a mixture of very light blond, to almost white and even grayish hair. Noriko lifted it out to the box, and examined the hair for a moment, before turning back to the costume to take a couple of measurements. Suddenly she turned to Margaret, and said, “I have an idea.”

      “What?” Maggie asked, the stress of the day making it hard for her to concentrate.

      “I have an idea how to get John out of the neighborhood. We can take him to the convention with us, and once we get there, there will be two or three thousand people there in costume. We can get just walk away whenever we want.”

      Still confused a little by the bizarre nature of the plan, Margaret asked again “But how do we get him there. We can’t just waltz down the street together with you and me in costume. Besides, I already have something to wear. What do you propose we do with John?”

      Noriko, surprised Maggie was so slow on the uptake, simply smiled and pointed at the white dress. Maggie’s eyes slowly expanded to the size of dinner plates as they now accessed the white mini dress in a whole new light.

      “You have got to be kidding! He will never go for that, and you must be out of your mind.”

 
 

o O o
 
 

      “Maggie, we don’t have a choice. First of all, I can’t think of any way out of this. Second, I can pull it off. John is the perfect size for this, with a few quick changes, and he is just young enough that if we work on him, no one will be able to tell who he is. It will work.”

      “You must be nuts, Noriko, he will never go for this!” Maggie said and stabbed her finger at the dress. “I would be embarrassed to wear that in public, how could he pull it off?”

      Noriko sighed, and taking Maggie by the hand, lead her to the couch. Once seated there, she turned to her and said. “Maggie-chan, we have no time. If the woman who saw John is in the hospital, we may have till this evening, or tomorrow. If the police took her to jail, she has probably already gotten to talk to her lawyer. Her lawyer will surely bring a description of John back to her gang. They will be looking for the bag already, and for John within a few hours. If they get the woman out tonight, then she will be able to identify him. We need to get him out now, before she can help them find him. Maggie-sama, they will kill your brother the first chance they get. They will kill him.” Noriko paused to stare at Maggie. “If he has to go naked, in a hotdog bun, it’s to save his life. I know I can do this so that his own mother would not recog….”

      Noriko paused at her gaff, and then continued. “Maggie-sama, no one will be looking for a pretty young girl in a costume, and I can do that — you know I can.”

      Margaret sat still, but Noriko could see a whole parade of emotions crossing her face. She new Margaret better than Margaret knew herself. Margaret would make the right decision as always; Noriko had seen her taking care of her brother to many times to doubt it. In the end, a look of calm came over her face, a calm of finally having some kind of plan to help pull them out of this mess. When she once again focused her gaze on Noriko, she only said “How?”

      “Well, most of the dresses have people coming for them this afternoon, or tomorrow. I think with a few calls, I can get all of these picked up today. I can finish this costume, in a couple of hours. I was going to make it with a slightly longer skirt at first, and then changed to the shorter one. I can finish the change it two hours. Everything else is almost ready now, and since it laces on, the size will be perfect.” Noriko then pulled a clear storage box from the shelf over where the dummy had been, and pulled out the other parts of the costume. There was a matching choker and hairpiece for a Chii, and some shoes, etc. She quickly took an inventory, and passed the box to Maggie, and continued.

      “This costume is ready. We simply need to work on John. We need to get him ready, so that he looks like he belongs in the costume. I expect that will be easier than you would imagine now, but you have to remember that he has to be as perfect as we can manage. In a few years it would take some work, but now that he is still fourteen, we simply need to do to him what you or I do to ourselves. The only real change will be his hair and eyebrows.”

      Maggie’s own eyebrows began a slow climb to the top of her head at the mention of eyebrows. Noriko simply said, “He has to look right, Maggie. No girl in this dress would have an Eskimo fisherman’s eyebrows, would they?”

      Maggie looked at her for another moment and got up to get John.

      When they got back to the living room, John still sleepy from the painkiller, Maggie sat him down beside Noriko, and sat on the other side of him. “John, Noriko has an idea. We think that we can get you out to the cosplay convention, and then to a hotel and or the airport?”

      “What about you?” he asked. “I’m going with you, John.”

      “What about Dad and Joan?” he asked.

      “What about them? Do you want to go home and try to get them to help? Do you think that Dad calling his lawyer, and Joan having another bout of hysteria, will help?” she asked.

      “No, but we should let them know we are OK, before we start leaving the country, Maggie.”

      “We can’t, but I can live with that.” She finished.

      Noriko broke in. “John, are you worried about your parents?”

      John thought for a moment, and then replied, “No, I guess not. It’s just that it’s a big step, you know?”

      “Yes I do, know.” Noriko answered.

      “Well what is this plan?” John asked.

      “Maggie and I were going to the cosplay convention this weekend. We were planning to go tomorrow, but now we think we can get ready and leave at six or seven this evening. We plan to get you a costume, and take you with us.”

      “Why the convention?” John asked, even though he liked this idea already.

      “The costume would give us our best chance to hide you, better than anything else I can think of, first of all.” Noriko explained. “Second, they are expecting thousands of people, most of them near your ages. I think that once we get there, we can blend right in. We can call a hotel, and we can stay in one of those without arousing any suspicion. Lastly, we can head out as soon as possible to the airport, just like we could only be at the convention for one day... We should be able to blend in, and get away, John.”

      Yes, it sounded good, better in fact than he had imagined. “So, ah, what do I wear?” Noriko nodded toward the dummy with the Chii costume, and he followed her gaze to the other side of the room.

      “Where is one I can wear?” he asked. “The white one in the middle.” She replied.

      “The Dress?” he gasped out loudly, “No frigging way! I’m not gonn’a...”

      He was half way up, when Maggie pulled him back down. “John, listen to me, a lot of guys wear female costumes of characters that they like, and there will be hundreds of them there.” Maggie tried to explain.

      “Dressed like that? That thing might as well be a negligee or something. No hooker would wear that thing. She’d never get away with it. I’ll take my chances with a bunch of killer chinamen before I wear a dress!”

      Noriko got up to look out the window, while Maggie tried to reason with John. They argued for perhaps five minutes more, when Noriko called to John.

      “John, come over here for a minute, will you?”

      “I’m not doing it…”

      “John, just come to the window for a minute, you can keep your pants for now.” Noriko said, clearly starting to loose even her almost fathomless patience. At the window, Noriko pointed to a van that was cruising up and down the street. At one point the van stopped, and two guys jumped out to stop two young boys who were walking down the street. One of the men held a bag like the one that contained the money. After a short conversation, which included pointing at the bag, the men moved back to the van.

      Noriko resealed the crack, and turned to John. “John, I’ve always helped you in any way that I could. If you want my help now, you have it. But we don’t have much time. What will it be? Do you want to try it my way, or would you like to try and get out of here on your own?” The implied threat shocked him. Well that, and the fact that Noriko was a very beautiful woman may have had as much effect on John as what he had seen.

      “This is no game, John. You may detest the idea of being dressed like a girl, but believe me, that is nothing compared to what those people will do to you if they get their hands on you.” Noriko said, once again her voice returning to its normal softer tones.

      It took about ten seconds for John’s mind to unintentionally dredge up what some of those things might be. “Ok, what do I have to do?”

      Five minutes later, John was back from the bedroom in a big pink robe, after having removed all of his clothes. The robe had been a problem, but when Noriko had offered to help him, he had come out quickly. “Here, put these on.” Maggie handed him a pair of white briefs, which looked like panties. “You must be kidding? Panties?” he asked her accusingly.

      “Quickly, John, we have no time.” Maggie said. John turned his back, and dropping is own pants, he started to slip them on.

      “Wait, John, do you wear briefs?” Noriko asked. “Yeah, I do.”

      “Keep them on then, and slip the white ones over them.”

      Once John had done that, it became obvious why. The material in the front could not hide his true gender, and he could only imagine how much worse it would have been with just the thin white satin like material.

      “Ok, now let’s fit you.” Noriko said as she whipped off the robe and turned to pick up the dress and slip it over his head.

      “Lift your arms, John… Jane?” she finished with a smile.

      “Christ, you guys got problems” he said as he lifted his arms.

      For the next fifteen minutes, Noriko tried the pieces of the outfit on him, to make sure that everything fit. He asked to see it in the mirror, but Noriko would not let him move. She whispered to Maggie that she did not want him to be worried by seeing himself before they got him ready. Noriko had to change the laces in the dress, but all in all, everything fit better than she had hoped. The dress looked made for him. With the new laces, she was even able to pull the dress in at the waste, which with the pronounced flair at the skirt gave him a waist that would look in place for any woman. The wig was a good length for his height, and covered his hair well, even without the extensions that came with it.

      “OK, John, lets find shoes.” Well they were a problem, but by rummaging through the closets, they found a white pair that would match the dress, and would fit him. Unfortunately, they were high heels. “John, I want you to keep those on, when you are not in the bath, wear them all the time, OK?” Noriko told him. “You will have to walk in them, if I can’t find something. Better when I go out. Then Noriko pulled out the cloth that had been cut for the longer length skirt. Although it did hide John’s briefs a little better, both Noriko and Maggie thought that the longer skirt just did not look right.

      With Noriko on one side, and Maggie on the other, they helped John walk to the bathroom. Once there, Noriko pulled a bottle and a box out of the closet, and handed them to Maggie. “You know how these are used?” she said as Maggie took the bottle and smiled at the label.

      “Yup!” she answered.

      “All over him, OK? You will have to check, but given how the dress is cut, he has to do a good job.” Noriko finished as she headed to the other room for her purse.

      “I understand. I’ll deal with it…” Noriko was motioning for her to come to the door. After a quickly whispered conversation there, Maggie handed Noriko her keys, and headed back to John. It was just half past ten.

      “John,” Maggie said handing him the pink robe, “Let me get your laces for you. I need you to strip down... “

      “Get out, and I’ll…”

      Maggie stomped her foot which was a thing that she could only ever remember doing with John once. “Right now, damn it! I don’t have time, and neither do you! I’ll turn my back, believe me!” Maggie said as she untied the back lacing on the dress.

      Once John was naked in his robe, she handed him the bottle. “John, listen carefully, you have to get in the shower, and spread this all over yourself. Don’t get it on your… Well, you know, but get it all around you. On your legs, tops of feet, arms and backs of hands. I’ll put it on your back for you, but you don’t really need it there. Don’t get it near your face, and don’t get it near your eyes or hair.”

      “Maggie no. please?”

      “Now John!” she said. Then sitting him on a stool, she applied a light blond dye to his hair, and putting a shower cap on his head, sent him into the shower.

      While John stood in the shower for twice the time the material said it needed, she rummaged through the cosmetics in Noriko’s room. For someone who seldom wore much makeup, she had a collection that looked like it should belong to a film studio. Maggie guessed it went with the theater costume side of the business, but much of the makeup was this year’s glamour selection, which Maggie did not expect. Thus, in between frequent checks on John, she was able to pull together everything she would need. At last, Maggie went in, and had John stick his arm out of the shower. She rubbed a part of John’s arm with a washcloth, and pronounced him well done.

      “I’m starting to feel it a little.”

      “Ok, John, shower off now. Use the washcloth, and make sure you rub everywhere. When you get out, I have some lotion for you….

 
 

o O o
 
 

      Noriko got back just after noon. She had just walked over to the couch to put some packages there, when Maggie walked into the room.

      “How is it going?” she asked as she put her bags on the couch.

      “That was fast.” Maggie replied.

      “Years of practice putting together costumes for people has taught me just where to look for what I need -” Noriko explained.

      Noriko then wordlessly handed Maggie back her keys and two passports she had retrieved from their condo. “So how is he doing?” she continued.

      “Fine. He’s just getting out of the shower. I had him keep the depilatory on for twice as long as the box said to. I’m betting that you can’t find a hair on him anywhere.

      “Very good, Maggie-sama. At lease we won’t have to deal with ‘Hairy Chii’, she actually giggled. Let’s go check him.”

      In the bathroom, Noriko embarrassed John by insisting on taking a few quick Peeks at the critical parts of his body. When she ran a quick hand over the backs of his thighs, he jumped a foot.

      “Very good, John! It is better than I dared hope.” Then she finished by checking his arms, hands, and even his back and rear end, after she first turned him so that his robe would offer him as much privacy as possible. “John, I have to say that I would kill for your skin. I can’t believe how smooth and clear it is!” Noriko was starting to get excited about how well it was going, and it showed.

      Margaret, who was still a little embarrassed by the inspection Noriko had given her brother said, “so what’s next?”

      Noriko smiled again, and said directly to John, “Brows, I’m afraid. John, I’m sorry, but there is not way to do this without it hurting a little, so just try to be patient with me, OK?”

      For his part, John just shook his head slightly. He was clearly resigned to whatever fate the girls had planned for him. This was in part the result of watching what little body hair he had grown to that point washing down the drain; hair which he knew had grown only through constant prayer that he would soon grow more masculine to avoid embarrassment in the boys shower. If that had not been enough, the first sight of his now blond hair certainly did not help his remaining resolve.

      Noriko sat John on a chair in the bathroom, and then proceeded to mark his brows with a black pencil to define the best shape for him. Maggie, who was watching over her shoulder, tried to get her to moderate her reshaping a little, to leave John with at least something that might later pass as male. Noriko was brutal, however. When at last she cleaned off the brow pencil, and stepped back, John’s brows would never pass for male. The transformation was dramatic, to say the least.

      Maggie found herself thinking that John looked like her little sister. Not only that, but she thought that he was prettier than she was to boot! Maggie lightly popped him on the back of his head for it, and went to the kitchen to make them some lunch.

      “What was that for?” he called, but she did not bother to respond.

      Noriko made no attempt to hide her grin as John frowned at her; she knew just what Maggie had been thinking.

      Noriko then picked up some scissors, and quickly cut his longish hair into a distinctly feminine style. Despite her worry, she even smiled a little bit remembering the time she’d given a stage actress a haircut, in full costume, six minutes before the curtain went up.

      “What are you doing now?” John asked Curiously, watching her smile at him. “Just a little trim, John. Don’t worry, years of cosplay, and you too could be your own beauty salon. I know what I’m doing. Now, hold still, little one.”

      Keeping still as he could, he said, “I’m not worried.”

      “Good John, because this is going to work fine.” Stepping back, Noriko surveyed her work. She was clearly happy with the result.

      Noriko then moved to the vanity, to find a small pile of cosmetics already set aside in one corner by Margaret in preparation. Noriko agreed with almost all of it, but did change to slightly brighter colors for lipstick and blush.

v Coming back to John, she told him, “Now we will have to redo your makeup for later, but I want you to get used to it for now, OK?”

      John slightly nodded his head, and closed his eyes. He didn’t like the feeling of the makeup, and Noriko was tickling him, but she was at least fast. He just put up with it.

      She was talking to him as she worked. “I want you remember, John, that all you need to do to make this work is to not act frightened. I know this feels strange, but I promise you that it is the best way.”

      He was afraid to nod, but in the end he did a little.

      Noriko quickly applied the foundation they had chosen, and blended out using her bare fingers first, then a sponge. Then she dusted his face with what she told him was a clear powder, even thought it looked pink to him. Then to his surprise, before she picked up a large brush to dust off the excess powder, she also began to tutor him on how the makeup was applied. She explained that there would be times over the next few days when he would surely have to fix his makeup, so he listened very carefully.

      He knew she was finished when she brought in the bags from the front room, and handed him some clothes from her own closet.

      “Here, put these on first.” John could see that they were a pair of skin colored briefs, made of some elastic material, with thick padding in the front. He started to ask, but then realized that he knew what they were for already. When he got them on, and he situated himself, he turned, and Noriko handed him a bra and panties. “Gee! Nor, what do I have to wear your underwear for? Do you think I’m going to have some Chinese hit man trying to get into my pants?” John was reaching his limit.

      “To be honest, John, given how you look, you might have to be careful of boys trying to do just that. You need them John, Underwear does show through most of the time.” He snatched them out of her hand, and then quickly apologized that he did know that she was trying to help.

      “It’s OK, John. We will get through this if we stay calm.”

      She finished him off by giving him a white blouse, and a black mini skirt. John did not say anything out loud, but she started to laugh a little when on seeing the skirt, he muttered “pervert” under his breath. He had a little trouble with the buttons on the blouse, which were on the wrong side or something, but handled panty hose well enough. After that the skirt was no problem at all. She finally placed the high heels on the floor in front of him, and he slipped them on. She held his arm as they walked to the living room.

      When Maggie saw him, she dropped a dish in the sink, which by some stroke of luck did not break. “Oh my god, John!” she exclaimed. “Oh, my God!”

      “Is it that bad?” he asked feeling very humiliated, and unbalanced.

      “Bad? No way, John! You are beautiful! You are absolutely gorgeous!”

      “Awe come on Maggie. I already feel like a complete ass, don’t make it worse!”

      Noriko chuckled, and gently steered him over the large wall mirrors in the work area.

      She left John to stare at himself in disbelief. Noriko caught hold of Margaret’s arm, where she also was staring open-mouthed at John’s reflection, and quickly dragged her away.

      Back in the kitchen, she gasped out to Noriko, “My god, you are good. I mean I know you’ve been doing this for people for a long time, but that is so completely amazing that I don’t even believe it!”

      Noriko actually giggled just a tiny bit. “I told you it would work. John looks a lot like you, Maggie-chan. I just need to bring it out a little. You need to be careful about how you talk to him though, Maggie. He feels bad enough already. I think he may feel just about ready to turn himself in to anyone who will get him away from me, and face the consequences.” The reminder of the danger was not the joke that Noriko had intended it to be.

      Maggie swallowed her own giggles, and nodded her head, saying, “Who are you kidding? I’d never look that good in a million years. Him turning himself in is not your biggest problem, Nor’. If I’d have known the little bitch would look that good, I’d have turned him in myself!” They both laughed then, while trying not to be heard out in the work area lest John misinterpret their excitement, which helped to ease Noriko’s sense of fear for them all.

      “Well, what now?” Maggie finally finished. “I have to start on the costume. Thank god everything is ready. I need you to do John’s Nails, hands and toes, with this.” She handed her a French-nail kit. Then you need to work with him, and get him to walk and sit and move like a girl. Do the best you can. Just be sure not to egg him on about how beautiful he turned out, or he might not be able to go through with this!”

      “Ok, Noriko, but he did turn out gorgeous, huh?”

      Noriko smiled a little again, in spite of herself. “Yes.”

      When Margaret went in to get John for lunch, he was trying to see his butt in the mirror. She knew she should not, but she could not help herself “My my, but isn’t our princess a vain little thing. Don’t worry; your ass looks great in that skirt. If we get out of this alive, remind me to kill you!”

      “Jesus Christ, Sis. This is not funny. I can change back, right?”

      From the work area, Noriko said brightly, “Time is the master of many such problems.”

      “Great, I’m stuck” John said with what little humor he had left in him, and sat down heavily.

      “Why do I need to wear this mini skirt, for god’s sake?”

      Noriko, who had come over to head off the crisis, took John by the chin, and gently said, “John, you have to get used to moving in a short skirt. If you get in a crowd of people, and try to throw one leg on a table or something, people will notice. Don’t worry; I’m not doing this to you because I am a pervert! Well, not that much of one, anyway, but you need the practice. Now sit up, and hold your knees together.”

      Even John chuckled this time, saying, “Yes you are! You’re loving this, aren’t you?”

      Noriko smiled fully for the first time since before their little problem, and nodded. She then made John get back up, and showed him how to sit down more like a young woman would.

      They had a quick lunch, mostly to settle their stomachs, and then Noriko made John stand against the wall while she took some pictures of him with a small digital camera. Then Maggie began to work on John’s nails all the while drilling him on tips on manners and behavior. The both agreed that the more he kept silent, the better off they would be. For her part Noriko was lost in her work. They only pause once, to watch a replay of the report on the local news. The woman had been taken to the hospital, but she was treated and released in police custody. “Shit!” Noriko said very softly, and very uncharacteristically. It was the first time Margaret had ever heard her swear.

      Once the skirt was sewn on properly, Noriko made John try it on, after first slipping off the bra, because Noriko had added padding to the front of the dress. She had also changed the lavender/blue ribbons for pink. The dress was, as expected, completely amazing. Even Noriko could not believe how good it worked out. However, she quickly had it back off of John, and proceeded to make a few final touches to the dress, and to some of the accessories, as well. By two, when the phone rang, she was finished, and ready to try it on him again, when the buzzer rang. It was Miyu, coming to pick up her costume. John and Maggie quickly hid in the bedroom.

      For the next two hours, Noriko had a constant stream of visitors. All but two of the clients just picked up their dresses. One twenty-something guy had tried on the frocked coat and pants that he ordered, but was quickly gone also. Miyu was the only girl who had tried on her outfit, to check the length with her shoes that had just come in the day before. John wanted to peak, but Margaret quickly squashed that idea. The last customer came just after five, and it was done.

      Sitting down with a glass of soda, Noriko motioned them over to rest with her for a minute. “Now what?” John and Maggie asked together.

      “We pack a few things for all of us, and we get ready for the convention. Maggie, take my credit card, and get us a room at the Hilton near the convention center. I need to finish this drink, first.”

      Again, Noriko’s ability to visualize entire clothing ensembles at once, and her unfailing sense of size and fit paid off in a big way. It took her less than twenty minutes to throw a couple of complete outfits for each of them into suitcases with everything they would need for a few days. She sorted out the outfits, and Maggie folded and packed the cases.

      Noriko hesitated, and moving to the top of her closet, pulled out a package that contained a black jumper dress, blouse, and shoes from Moi-Meme-Moitie.

      “Maggie-sama, I bought this for your graduation, but I think we need it for John. I’m sorry.”

      Maggie was a little stunned. The dress was one that she wanted, but she had seen that it had been quickly sold out. She had no idea Noriko had picked it out for her as well.

      “If he wrecks this on me, I’ll kill him!” Maggie sounded far too serious, but she quickly folded the dress very carefully into the case along with all the others.

      There was also a third small case packed full of makeup, and other beauty products.

      John took the two with clothing in them to the living room, and after placing them beside a fourth small case Noriko had placed there, sat to watch the news, while Maggie and Noriko got ready.

      When they came out of the bedroom forty-five minutes later, John got a whole new appreciation for Noriko’s talents. Noriko looked just like the picture of Toshiya on the Dir en Gray poster. Her natural beauty was even more pronounced.

      Maggie was a work of art. She had on a copy of the dress that Mana wore in Malice Mizer’s Shiroi videos. Her bangs were now blond with the blue-gray wigs sausage curls covering most of the rest of her hair. John had not realized that Manna was a guy, until Maggie had proven it to him, but she had the look down pat.

      “Are you ready?” Maggie asked.

      “Let’s get this over with.” John said resolutely. The hair and makeup took the longest. When Noriko had finished tying and pinning on the wig and hairpieces, John had full white/blond hair below his waste. Then Noriko and Maggie both took a long time getting his makeup just right this time, with Maggie being very careful not to get anything on the lace sleeves of her dress. The rest of the outfit got laced on to him, with lacings on the dress, stockings, and in his hairpiece. Lastly, they laced on short granny boots, which fortunately had a heel that was lower than the shoes he had been in all day, so walking on them was easy. Then, the girls stepped back to look.

      “Wow,” Maggie said, “I still don’t believe it, and I’m looking right at you. You look… well both of you look fantastic. If I had not seen you get ready, John, I would not have recognized you.”

      “You are right, Maggie”, Noriko continued for her, “no one will recognize him. And, Maggie-sama, you are very beautiful too. I wish you could enter the costume contests, but now that might not be such a good idea.”

      “I will enter, but it will have to be in the Boston convention in a couple of months. I’m sure you will win, Noriko.”

      John was silent, lost in his own thoughts until Noriko spoke to him. “John, would you like to look in the mirror?”

      “No.”

      Maggie put her arm around her brother, and would have hugged him more fiercely, if she had not had to worry about their makeup. The thought almost made her giggle again. “John, it’s just for a little while, until we can get you out of here. Don’t worry; you look stunning. I think you will be the cutest girl there!” she ended brightly and hopefully.

      “That’s what I’m afraid of, Maggie. Look at me,” He said while lifting his short skirt, and letting it fall.

      Noriko, once more moved to take his arm, and walk him to the living room. “John, a lot of men cosplay J-rockers and anime characters in dresses. There will be hundreds of them at the convention. Even if you tell someone you are a boy, they will not think anything of it. Except of course that they might not believe you.” She finished with a warm smile.

      Maggie then chimed in, “She’s right John, a lot of guys do this, and not all of them just like to wear dresses if you know what I mean?”

      “Yeah, sure!”

      Noriko began to steer him to the mirrors, saying, “Now, John, you must smile for me, ok.” Dress or no dress, there was no way that any fourteen-year-old boy could resist a beautiful woman like Noriko, so he was almost smiling, that is until he saw himself.

      “Ohhh, No!” he groaned, and would have clapped his hand over his eyes if Maggie had not grabbed his hand first. She gave him another terse lecture on not touching his face, and messing up his makeup, while Noriko adjusted the lace on his choker.

      “Maggie, Noriko, I can’t do this. I can’t go out in public like this. I know you worked hard, and it was a good idea, but I can’t do this!”

      Maggie cut Noriko off, “Just cut the shit, John. I have not been taking all that crap from Joan and Dad over you just to see you murdered by some crazed Chinese drug-running bitch. Now you plant a smile on that pretty face, and shutta’ you mouth, or so help me I’ll kill you myself!”

      “Calm, Maggie! Calmly John.” Noriko tired to calm them down, but it was the look of genuine terror on Maggie’s face that did the trick for John. He could tell that she was really scared. He was too, if he did not forget it in his embarrassment.

      “Sorry, Sis. You are right. Let’s do this.” After that, John had calmed down enough to really look in the mirror. “Holy Cow. I look…” Lost in the vision that Noriko and his sister had created, he began to turn himself slowly to look at himself from as many directions as he could see. Then as he once more stood still to stare, a smile began to grow on his face. “…I look…”

 
 

 
 

      Noriko and Maggie were watching this performance quietly, and he did not even have to complete the thought before both girls agreed with him.

      Noriko said, “I’ve got to run an errand, so please, wait here. Calm down now, if you start to sweat, you’ll mess up the makeup.”

      “Sweat! I’m going to freeze to death in this damned thing!” John said, but he was still wearing a look of amazement.

      Noriko threw him a heavy emerald green cape with gold trim, and told him that he would use that to keep warm outside. She then took the empty red and black backpack that had contained the money, and tossed that at Maggie. “Cut this up while I’m gone. Get it into four or five small pieces. We might as well get rid of it now, in the incinerator chute”

      “Why cut it up, so someone does not take it out of the trash?”

      “Yes,” and with that she was gone.

      “Maggie?”

      “Yeah, John?”

      He did not speak for a long time, which caused her to turn toward him, trying to judge his emotions.

      “I just wanted to tell you that no matter what happens, I love you, you know.”

      Maggie did hug him this time. “It’s going to be ok, John. We will make it through this, even if it does not seem like it right now, we are going to make it.”

      “I hope you are right, Maggie, but even if we don’t, I wanted to tell you that I love you. I really appreciate what you guys are doing. If I seem ungrateful, well I just don’t like the dress, but I am grateful for all that you are trying to do.”

      “I love you too, John. Just remember to smile, and act as if you are having a good time. If you walk around with a sad look on your face, we will have to swap dresses — and I won’t look as good in that thing as you do!”

      “Yeah, right!” John snorted in denial, but Maggie just smiled knowingly.

      They were sitting together on the couch, holding hands and talking when Noriko came in. She paused at the table by the door, and picked something up, before walking over to sit on the coffee table facing them. She handed John a little white Purse, with a long white strap. Maggie quickly slipped it over his head, hanging the bag at his hip.

      “OK, we are ready. Do you have the reservation at the Hilton?”

      “Yes,” Maggie said, “Under Noriko Yokoshira. I paid for three days in advance, just like you said.”

      “Good, Maggie-sama. I only wish I could have figured out how to use another name, but we had to use my credit card. Oh, well!”

      “Now I want you to listen to me carefully.” She continued. “This phone is for you, John. Keep it with you at all times. If anything bad happens, you hit star 1 to dial 911. Not only will it get you to the police, but also it will flash a message to my phone letting me know that you are in trouble. If something happens, you dial that number first, you understand?”

      “Yea, I do,” he said solemnly.

      “Ok, Maggie, you have your phone too?”

      “Yes, and I can speed dial you, and call 911 too.”

      “Exactly.” Noriko smiled. “Now John, this may be the hardest thing you ever hear, but if something happens to Maggie, or me you just run. Don’t try to help us. If they either of us, they may kill us, but not before they try to find the money. If they have us all, then they have time to do whatever they want. If they get the others, the one left has to go to the police, do you understand?” Maggie and John just Nodded.

      Maggie felt like she was in imminent danger of loosing her mind, to hear her soft-spoken friend calmly saying such things.

      “Ok,” she then handed over some cosmetics to put in his bag, which Maggie had taught him how to use to freshen up his makeup at need, as long as he stayed between the lines. Then she opened a small wallet, and showed him that it contained three hundred dollars in cash, and one of Noriko’s credit cards. Lastly she handed John a picture ID, with his picture, and the name Aya Yokoshira on it.

      John and Maggie were amazed. “I made this a little while ago with a program on the internet. I printed it and had the lady downstairs, who also does a lot of sewing and crafting, laminate it for me. I already called the credit card company, and told them that you were traveling with me, Aya, so you should be able to use my card if anything goes wrong.” Maggie and John were very impressed at the quality of the ID, and were still staring at it a full minute later, when she gave an ID for “Mia Yokoshira” and another credit card to Maggie.

      “Ok, now one last thing. I was not going to tell you this, but now I think I should. John in the bust pads in your costume I’ve sewn in ten thousand dollars.”

      “What!” Maggie gasped.

      “That’s not all, Maggie-sama. You have the same amount in your headpiece. Now listen closely. If something really goes wrong, use the money to get away, but don’t use it for anything else!”

      “We are not that new, you know.” John said bitingly.

      “I know, but I had to say it. Just remember, that if anyone finds out you have that much on you, not only will the Tong find out very quickly, but everyone else will be looking for you too, so be careful.”

      She looked them each in the eyes, and waited for them to nod before continuing. “Remember this too. If all else fails, Get to the airport tomorrow night by nine p.m. Go to the Pan Am terminal Show your ID, and tell them you have a prepaid ticket, and you should be ok. The tickets are first class, so they should get you right on the plane, and out of sight immediately. That’s a little more than one day away, and you should be able to hide out for that long, and then take a cab to the airport. Do not go home.”

      Noriko stood up “Remember to be calm, and act like a couple of kids having a good time, and everything will work. Let’s go.”

      Margaret stopped Noriko with a hand on her arm. “Wait a minute, where are the tickets to?”

      “Will you not find that out soon enough?” Noriko said, raising her eyebrows at Maggie.

      “Oh! I get it.” John said, “We can’t tell anyone where the others have gone, right?” Noriko smiled. “They will be able to trace us John, but with any luck, they won’t be able to find us before the plane gets to where it’s going. It’s just a little insurance.”

      John was clearly bothered by something, so he then asked; “You’re not sending us to Tokyo, are you?”

      “John, where is your passport?”

      “Umm. In the lockbox in dad’s office at home.”

      “Well I don’t think it will get you on the plane to another country then, will it?”

      Maggie looked confused, but said nothing about the passports in her purse.

      “Well,” John asked, “why don’t we just go home and get them.”

      Still with a warm smile on her face, Noriko said slowly. “And how will a passport for John Holman get Aya Yokoshira on a plane to Tokyo, John?”

      “Oh, yah. Sorry Noriko.”

      “That’s Ok, John. Believe me, if I could have figured that one out, I would have had you on a plane to Nagoya! That is where my family is from, and I’m sure I could keep you safe there.” It was Maggie’s turn to giggle a little, even as she stared at Noriko.

      “John? Anything Else?” Noriko asked, almost smiling at the expression on John’s face.

      “Uh, yea. Were you ever a spy, or an international hit woman, or something, Noriko.”

      “Yes….”

      “Never Mind.” John said, holding his hands up in front of him, and shaking his head ‘no’ emphatically.

      Noriko’s expression did not change as she said very softly, “Don’t worry about it, that was before the war, and we don’t talk about it because I worked for the other side.”

      They dumped the trash into the chute, and walked down the stairs with John in the middle, to wait in the lobby, where Noriko dropped a letter in the mailbox. Then they stood and waited for the cab Noriko had called. In the foyer, John tried to cover his head with the hood of the cape, but Noriko gently lifted it off of his head, and whispered for him not to use it again. Both Noriko and Maggie spent the time waiting for the cab trying to make casual conversation for John, and they did get a little thrill out of calling him by the name Aya. To tell the truth, it was annoying, but help him ignore the people who stared openly at the trio as they passed…

      Noriko had done very well by them, but like most people she had the wrong impression of how the incinerator chute worked….

 
 

End of Act I

 
 

By

Sarah Lynn Morgan

[email protected]

 
 

Thank you for reading! If you like this story, Please take a moment to click on the vote
box at the top of the page. Comments are most gratefully welcome, and appreciated!

          Gentles all:   The following story contains reference to a form of Japanese street fashion, the adherents to which refer to as Elegant Gothic Lolita. Note, that the term “Lolita” refers to this style of clothing. This, with Gabi's kind help, is a revised and illustrated version of the story that originally appeared on Crystal’s Storysite.

Hansel and Gretel: A Fairytale. Act 2. By Sarah Lynn Morgan

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 
 
 

Act II

 
 

     The cab deposited them at the Hilton, where Noriko quickly checked into their room and arranged to put the fourth small case into the Hotel safe. The man at the desk seemed a little put out by its size, but somehow ‘managed’ to accommodate her.

      John paid little attention to any of this, because, walking into the hotel lobby had been just about the hardest thing he had ever done. If it had not been for the other cosplayers in the lobby, he was not sure if he could have done it at all.

      As it was, the fact that several of the other convention goers actually called out how great they looked, distracted him from his fears more than a little. The positive attention was even more strange than the costume. One girl on seeing him exclaimed “Oh look at the beautiful Chii!”, as she clapped and bounced up and down. For reasons John could not understand it made him feel much better. He just smiled back at the girl, very beautiful herself in a sailor moon costume, and waived. Many of the pretty girls there, waved at him or each other and said hello. A few more just smiled; but, quite a few came right up, asking if he were planning be at the convention center that night, to which ‘Aya’ nodded often..

      It was a new and powerful experience for someone who was usually ignored by all such beautiful young women, and it clearly showed on John’s face.

      At the counter, a driver asked them if they were ready to go to the convention center, because his mini-bus was getting ready to leave. Noriko shook her head saying they’d not checked in yet, at which the friendly man smiled, and told him he would meet them at the front door in about forty minutes. He then made a point of winking at John in a fatherly way, he walked quickly off toward the front.

      The bellhop was not as good. He took the luggage from several people on the floor up to their rooms, but it was obvious that he was trying to watch ‘Aya’ out of the corner of his eye. It made John’s skin crawl, and he spent most of the time in the elevator staring at the most amazing pattern he found on the carpet.

      “So, you off to the convention.” He asked John, ignoring the other two who’d been separated from John when the hop pushed his cart into the car.

      John instantly wanted to tell him no, that his dentist only worked on weekends, and for some reason insisted he dress up like Chobits before every visit, but on seeing his sister grinning at him behind the guy’s back, he only smiled slightly at the man and nodded.

      Elevator control panels, John found, can be quite fascinating also. It was funny how the little lights move quickly up the numbers, even as he could feel the heat rising in his face.

      “Will you be staying on after the convention, or are you just here for the CosCon?” The man continued to try and draw John out. “Great costume, by the way.” He finished, as he reached out to touch the sleeve of the dress slightly.

      John wanted to throw himself bodily back to the wall of the car, but somehow managed to shy away just enough to give the man a clear message; thankfully, causing him to drop his hand. Feeling faint, John could only smile at him weakly, and shook his head, never saying a word before he turned to inspect the seam between the doors, searching intently for any flaw in their perfectly parallel lines.

      “Well if…”

      The tone sounded for their floor, causing John to jump and heave an involuntary sigh, which thankfully went unnoticed as the bag man looked up at the panel to confirm his floor. Never had the term ‘saved by the bell’ meant so much to John.

 
 

      In the room, Noriko and Maggie watched him freshen his makeup by himself. When he turned to see them smiling at him, he just said “What?” accusingly.

      “Well! Aya.” Noriko said with a little humor in her tone, “ to tell you the truth, I was considering the wisdom of just holding up here till tomorrow, and getting you go out to the airport from here. After that…, performance, and the way you handled the bellboy, I don’t see any reason why we might be just as safe going to the convention after all. I’m not sure what would be best, but I think it would look unusual for us to arrive in costume, and not go to the convention center with the other cosplayers.”

      John was floored. He had not even considered the option of staying in the room; probably because he was so nervous about how he was dressed. His slowly expanding eyes showed the girls how deeply he was shocked. “Now hold on just one minute you two! You mean that I …”

 
 

      A half hour later, at seven-thirty, they were on their way to the convention center in a small bus full of people who were almost all dressed more strangely than was typical, even for a Friday night in New York.

      Noriko, who was just then looking out the windows across the street from the convention, had begun to show a little excitement along with Maggie at being on their way to the center. Since they were sitting behind the driver, she leaned up and asked “Excuse me, but if we buy a few things, can we send it back to our room at the hotel with you?”

      “Yes, you can. People do that all the time.” The driver said this while weaving his way through the cars leading in, and while quickly pointing out a marker he had on the dashboard. “You just mark your name and room number on the bags with that, and I hand them over the concierge when I get back. People do it all the time, and we never lost one yet.”

      “Thank you,” Noriko said, “and how often are you back here?”

      “We should be here every twenty minutes or half hour. Tomorrow, at noon, we will start running to the airport as well, but we will have six busses in the loop by then, so it should still be about a half hour.” With that Noriko thanked the man, who smiled in a friendly way as they got off.

      Once off, Noriko gently took John by the elbow, and steered him to a quiet corner of the sidewalk. To an outsider, it looked like an adult giving last minute instructions to a younger sister. In fact that was what it was.

      “Are you Ok, John?” Noriko asked quietly.

      John’s answer was very breathy and soft: “No.”

      Smiling Noriko continued, “Listen John, this will be just like the lobby only more so, so just remember to smile and do the best you can to have a good time. If you completely forget about why you are here, you will be all that much safer from standing out, do you understand?”

      John nodded. He knew that hiding in corners and watching the exits like some spy in a cheap novel would be his worse mistake.

      “Ok, then lets, go. Just stick close to Maggie and I…, and John?”

      “Yeah?” His breath wheezed softly.

      “I don’t want to make you nervous, but I just have to say this. You are the most beautiful little Chii I’ve ever seen and I’ve been doing this for many years. Try not to get pregnant!”

      Aya was moaning piteously, as they both steered him into the convention center, and helped him off with his cape.

 
 

      John was in for quite a shock. Somehow he’d expected to be in a large room with some flimsy white handmade posters, and a lot of people dressed up in silly costumes. His vision had been one of the only Halloween party he’d ever been to when he was eight. He was right. The room was large…

      John stopped, overwhelmed by a thousand people talking in excited voices under huge lighted posters and displays. Several displays were twenty feet high, while others floated over the heads of the people below. All looked like they came out of Tokyo or Hollywood. In several places about the hall, large screens were showing clips of animated features, none of which could be heard over the excited murmur of the cloud of voices. Everywhere there were flashes.

      He just stood there, at the top of the stair, until they were all startled when an excited girl grabbed his arm, causing him to start violently.

      “Amy! you did co…,” the girl had spun him, to see his face, instantly in shock. “Sorry.” She smiled. “You look just like my best friend. Great costume though, Everyone’s going to want to take you home to be their own persacomp!” She smiled weakly in apology, even as she giggled softly at him.

      She was gone as quickly as she’d arrived, but not so the flushed look he saw on his companion’s faces. They had been badly startled too.

      The convention hall was packed. Even though they expected the majority of the crowd there on Saturday, when all of the contest events were planned, it looked like many of the people had shown up on Friday anyway. It was John’s worst fear, but then again, it was not.

      Just as he had feared, John felt more like the center of attention that he would have cared to, and this was fortunate; as at first his fear kept his throat so tight that he was unable to say much of anything at all. Then, something happened that would have thought impossible; if he had been able to clear his mind long enough to consider just what was happening as he moved out onto the floor.

      Many pretty girls had quickly surrounded him, all complementing him on how beautiful he looked, and on how wonderful his costume had turned out. Before he realized it, he was so taken up in genuine gratitude that he almost forgot everything else, except to say that his big sister had made it for him, and that he had only helped a little by standing still under the threat of death. It always brought a knowing giggle from the other cosplay girls. For over an hour, he found himself posing for one picture after another, during which time he thought more about the enchanting scene about him, than himself.

      To Maggie’s horror, she found herself being pulled away by her own throng of Visual Kei admirers. She had intended to stay right beside ‘Aya’, but that proved impossible. Now she was surrounded in her own right by admirers, and by the other vintage Malice Mizer Cosplayers. They wanted to have her pose with all the Kozi’s, Gackt’s, Klaha’s, and Yuki’s, which given how many there were, took quite some time. Since she was closer to Noriko she could see that she was attracting a lot of attention as well, but to her dismay, it was nothing like the furor her little brother had started. All she could do was to hope he stayed calm.

      A little later, when Noriko finally came close enough to her to talk. She grabbed Maggie to whispered into her ear that she’d just lost sight of Aya. Maggie could only grimace weakly, and point behind her across the hall. It took very little time to spot ‘Aya’, and see her smiling little brother was having the time of his life. ‘She’ was surrounded by all manner of Chobits, sailor solders, and cute anime and Manga characters of every sort. It was over ten minutes before they could get over to him. Where as they drew close, they could hear an excited girl holding his arm and saying, “Really! You live in the city! That’s great! My friends and I…”

      Taking him by the hand, Maggie pulled him toward Noriko. Seeing how flushed, he was she held up her hand to two more girls who were trying to get closer to John. “Are you, Ok?” she asked.

      On seeing an older girl and woman leaning over Aya, the girls turned their attention away for a few moments.

      “Yeah, I think so. Wow, that was something, Huh?”

      Maggie wanted to hit him, but did not dare. Smiling weakly, Maggie said, “You scared me, Aya.”

      “I did!” John gasped, “It wasn’t me. I thought I was about to finally either loose my virginity, or give a couple of those girls the surprise of their lives! Did you see that pretty girl in the Sailor Uranus costume, she was kissing my cheek while her friends took pictures!” he finished in a low but earnest voice.

      Noriko stepped in, “You look like you need a rest, little one. Are you feeling, Ok?”

      “I could use a drink and a bathroom break.”

      Noriko steered them both to the concession area.

      Once there, only Noriko’s strong grip kept him from blowing it as he was steered firmly away from the men’s room door. His nervousness fortunately fit right in with the general level of excitement, so the only attention he gained was the same well-intended admiration.

      When he finally got to a stall, Noriko bent to whisper in his ear to remember to sit down, and then darted into one just opened up of her own. John had a difficult moment keeping his clothes in good order while using the necessary, but the short skirt helped a lot, as he realized he needed very little undressing to be able to pee. The seat was still warm.

      Later, his confidence having grown exponentially with the complements, he moved to the mirror to quickly freshen his makeup, much to Noriko’s, and Maggie’s amazement. If any of his motions looked a little unnatural, then the other girls in the bathroom still complementing and joking around with him masked them.

      At the concession stand, John ordered iced water, because he was afraid to eat with the makeup on, and sat for a while making small talk. Noriko and Maggie were as excited as he was at their reception, and were all also busy watching the other cosplayers as much as talking amongst themselves. When they were finished he began to feel a little ill at what he had to tell them.

      “Err, Noriko?”

      Looking at him, He could see that she wasn’t enjoying herself as much as he had been She was also watching, but more often over the heads of the conventioneers. She tried to smile, but her face darkened with concerned at his expression. “Problem?” she asked.

      “I think so. I think I made a mistake.” He had the complete attention of both women.

      “Did someone figure out you are a boy?” Maggie asked earnestly.

      “What? No. Not that.” John said softly, managing to sound both pleased and hurt by that realization. He showed a small smile in spite of himself as he thought that one over He had not even been worried about that for the past hour. He continued “while I was having my picture taken with everyone, a lady came by with some forms, and kind’ a signed me up for the costume contest.” Biting his lower lip, (rather prettily Noriko thought), he waited for the blast.

      Both girls were silent for a moment when Noriko asked “The pretty dark haired girl with the glasses and red sweater?”

      John’s eyes opened a little wider as he said laughing out loud, “Yeah, that’s the one”

      Noriko continued to nod, “Well don’t worry about it, she got me too. She was very persistent.”

      Surprised, he looked at Maggie, and her expression left little doubt that she had her appointment on stage tomorrow morning as well. “That’s the way to fit in Aya.” His sister, was shaking her head at him too. “I’m, so proud of you.”

      They all were tired, and decided it would be best to just go.

      On the way to the sidewalk they were wished a friendly goodnight by dozens of people, with many looking forward to seeing them tomorrow. Unfortunately, they arrived on the sidewalk just in time to see the buss to their hotel pull away, so Noriko remembering an intention, took them to visit the shops across the street, quickly steered them to a walkway designed for the purpose.

      There were girls in almost every shop, pressed against the large glass windows. Once inside it was the same story, the shop-girls were almost as bad as the people in the convention itself had been. They were very interested in the costumes they could see across the way, and since they were stuck working, they had had little opportunity to see them up close.

      Two of them quickly surrounded Aya and began asking questions about his costume. Fortunately, he’d seen Chobits a couple of times, which he’d never before admitted, believing it to be intended only for girls.

      With a lot of help from Noriko and Maggie, he finally pulled away, only to be more worried as they quickly picked out a pair of nice black jeans, and a pink knit top for their little sister, Aya. Given their state of dress, they thankfully did not make her try it on, but John was still left with the impression that shopping for clothes with them would be an experience in itself.

      The shop-girls promised that if they found it did not fit, they would quickly exchange it for them tomorrow, but both of them quickly confirmed that the outfit looked like it should be a perfect fit on their ‘adorable little sister.’ They were all back out a half hour later, waiting for the minibus as it pulled up.

      None of them talked, other than to smile and wave at a few of the other conventioneers around them, until they were finally in the room. John felt himself relaxing a little after a very long and emotional day, and went to flop on the small couch, causing Noriko to hurry over and grab him before he could wrinkle the dress.

      Still excited, he began to babble about how well it had worked, about how great the conventions were, and how wonderful it had all been. Maggie was amazed at the change in him, but Noriko was more ready for it. She just smiled at her young friend’s excitement, as she handed him a set of pink girl’s pajamas, before she ordered some late dinner, and some snacks from the menu on the table.

      They all began to get comfortable as the tension of the day drained from them, in their room that seemed so remote from the troubles in their own neighborhood, and told of what they had seen as they avoided completely the subject of gangsters.

      Later, comfortable in hotel robes over their pajamas, they ate the excellent dinner and watched a little of an old movie before each began falling asleep. All except for Noriko.

      Noriko noted, that John seemed to be smiling to himself as he slept soundly in the other bed. As she looked at him, her stomach turned. Had she done the right thing? Poor Maggie-chan, she thought, and was surprised by the tear that formed in her eye. If anything were to happen to John, her young friend would never survive. Noriko had watched them grow; done what she could; and now had to face the nagging doubts.

      It was the end of a very long day, but sleep would not come for Noriko. For two years she had let out the seems on the suits and dresses of her successful clients, and listened to them complain about what they were forced to pay the tong, and how the police were impotent. The children were afraid to be sure, but it was nothing like her fear for the young ones she had tried so hard to help raise. She lay quietly on the bed she shared with Maggie for some time before her parade of worried thoughts drifted unnoticeably into a broken sleep.

 
 

o O o
 
 

     Saturday morning, the building super in Noriko’s apartment walked through the service area in the basement as he’d done on every Saturday for the past seventeen years. He was a widower.

      His two boys did not start till nine on Saturday, and he would not be there that late, except that he had a plumber coming in on a repair in 206. As he walked to his office to wait, he noticed that the trash bin was over-filled again, but that was normal. The boys would take care of it. He didn’t actually think very much of them, but that wasn’t unusual. What was, was the fact that they usually showed up.

      He neither knew, nor cared, that both of them had already been approached, and offered a reward for the red and black bag. They were thus far more likely to notice the pieces of it that had spilled out of the bag as it had fallen on the floor beside the dumpster…

 
 

o O o
 
 

     John awoke to the feel of his sister’s hand on his shoulder as usual. Sitting up, he pulled his robe about him before the silky fabric of the pajama’s he was wearing caught his attention. Noriko pretended not to notice John running his hand over them as he struggled to wake up.

      “How do you feel this morning, Princess?” Maggie asked. “Did you sleep well?” she asked brightly while she watched him in the mirror. He smiled warmly back at her, and said “Great, really great. I had a really good dream even…” then what she called him had dawned on him.

      “Hay! Who are you calling princess?”

Noriko just smiled and said, “Who else, dear Aya-chin!” as she passed Maggie in the doorway to the bathroom.

      John signed for their breakfast, and almost signed his own last name after having remembered to sign Aya. He had time for a muffin and Juice before it was his turn for the shower. He walked past Noriko into the shower area, as she stood at the sink brushing her teeth. His skin heated profoundly when he looked up from Noriko’s body to see her watching him in the mirror. “Sorry.” He muttered, but Noriko just laughed.

      “You know John, when I was a little girl, it was still common for whole families to go down to the public baths and to bathe there in full view of other families from our neighborhood. We even had complete strangers there sometimes.”

      “Oh?” John even impressed himself with the insight and brilliance of the remark.

      As he quickly entered the stall, softly he heard from the door of the shower area. “Thank you, Aya, I think you are very pretty too.” John had begun to realize then that Noriko was very special, and in fact was just about the coolest adult he had ever met.

      Instead of getting ready faster, as John had expected, this time it took much longer. Noriko, after first calling the airline to find that there were no earlier flights to be had, she broke down, and began fussing over them all. To keep her mind clear of fear, she had to be sure that every aspect of their costumes and makeup were just so.

      Less than half way through, put off by her attention, he suggested that they could just go to the airport and try.

      Noriko did not pick up on the joke. She simply said, “The standby flights are all being filled. We’d just stand at the airport, and never get on a quicker flight. The convention, with all the people, is our best choice.”

      To John’s amazement, the extra effort showed. He thought that the girls were just beautiful. Words like gorgeous, and breathtaking, words he never had felt the need to use before, came to mind. He told them so, only to be assured by both of them, that they thought he was the most beautiful of all. Looking in the mirror, his mind was just beginning to grasp what he saw, and accept that for the first time in his life he felt that he looked very good, really weird, but very good. It gave him a funny calm, and a confidence that he could not begin to describe, especially since was still so nervous to be standing in a dress and makeup.

      At Nine, Noriko and his sister ushered him out as if he was some kind of royal. At first he just accepted it, and then asked them to knock it off. Noriko and Maggie, just looked at each other, and broke out laughing, again.

      “Come on guys, enough is enough, OK. I’m already feeling really scared.”

      Noriko then cleared her throat softly, and said into his ear. “Ahm, Aya? Don’t lean on the door, dear. Aya, I think you need to prepare yourself a little.”

      “I can handle the people I think, as long as we don’t have to stay all day.”

      “That is not quite what I mean, John.” She answered, saying ‘John’ very softly. “We spoke to a lot of the folks last night, and a lot of them think that you may just win a prize in the costume contests.”

      “What?” he asked, and looked to Maggie, who was solemnly nodding her head in agreement at him.

      “Oh, no way…” he said and began to back away.

      “Your sister and I believe that you have a really good shot at it too.”

      John was silent for the ride down. “Then why go through this? We should just go!” “I thought about it,” Noriko answered thoughtfully, “ but it is too late for that. You see, Aya, we just wanted to make sure you fit it. We had no real idea of just how well you would turn out. By the time we realized what was happening in the convention hall, well it was too late. Too many people had seen you. Now, you have to go. If we hide out here, too many people will miss us, and no one would believe we would not show up.”

      “After thinking about it a little, it was good that you signed up. No one would expect you to do anything else, and if you had not you would have looked very out of place. Since you did, I have to believe that no one would ever think to look for you up on the stage with the other top cosplayers.”

      John had a moment to think about it. He could see the logic. He could also figure out for himself that to get an earlier flight, they would have to go to the airport and hang around trying to get a flight. That would be the last place they could go, since both the good and bad guys were surely watching it. Chances are they could not get another flight together, and he dared not be separated from them. If they went in looking for a flight to anywhere else, they would stick out like a sore thumb. No, she was right, and he was stuck.

      Resigned, he looked at Noriko and said, “We can’t get out before tonight right?”

      “That’s Right Aya.” She reassured him softly. “I realized last night that I could have just rented a car and gotten you both out that way. I’ve just lived in the city for so long without one, that I never thought of it.”

      Maggie had turned from a hallway mirror, where she was working on her hair. “Well we could do that now, then?

      Noriko shook her head sadly. “No. Last night we may have been able to get away, but now, I’m not so sure. These gangs…,” She struggled for the right words so as not to pass along the terror she herself felt. “they know how to look for people. They could see us on the way out of town. They have no way of knowing who I am, but they surely have many places being watched. Probably more than the police.”

      They were quiet for a while. They only began to move again after Maggie turned back toward the mirror.

      John spoke first. “Well in that case, do you really think I have a chance to win one of the prizes?”

      Noriko just stared into his wide brown eyes, floored by the question.

      Margaret coming to stand beside Noriko broke the silence by muttering to Noriko, “My god, do you realize what you have done? You’ve created a monster!” Then looking at John, she smiled and said even more softly, in the sweetest voice he’d ever heard from her, “Bitch!”

      By then, both she and Noriko were laughing, at which John was beginning to get a little annoyed. After all, no one was laughing at them.

      When the doors opened to the lobby, Noriko continued, “You are right Aya, we have to wait, but I intend to get us out of there as soon as possible. OK?”

      John nodded.

      “And in answer to your question, I think that both Maggie-chan and I have a fair chance to win prizes, but I think you will win one for sure.”

      John’s knees were shaking, this time with a little excitement as well as fear.

      He almost fainted when a man standing behind them called Noriko to a halt.

      It was the hotel concierge. He had a photographer there, and wanted to take some pictures of the guests in their costumes in the lobby for their future brochure aimed at future Cosplay conventioneers. He confided that he had been waiting for them in particular, because several other patrons had tipped him off that Aya would probably walk away with one of the top honors. He ended by telling them that if the would agree, that not only would he make sure that they got to the convention on time in a hotel limousine, but that they would be the guests of the hotel for a fine dinner that evening.

      Noriko had no need to speak. One glance was enough to tell either of the
Children that she believed that they had drawn far too much attention to just slip away.

      Genuinely flattered however, and seeing no rational way out, they agreed, and it was all over very quickly.

      The photographer and another guy were discussing shots and poses, along with possible captions for the photos. In several shots of ‘Aya’ alone, taken on the presumption that she might win, they even had a fully uniformed hotel maid in black dress and white apron, fussing over his costume. After about fifteen minutes, he found himself escorted by the concierge to the limousine while people standing watching ooh’d and awe’d. The concierge even kissed his hand before ushering Aya Yokoshira into the rear seat, much to the older girls’ amusement.

      Their constant amusement at his plight, was definitely getting on his nerves.

      As the driver made his way through traffic to the convention center, John looked at them and said, “I know you guys think this is some kind of fairytale, but the swear the first one who calls me Cinderella is going to get it.”

      It worked just so well. They were laughing again.

 
 

o O o
 
 

     On the sidewalk, the limousine caused a little stir, and gained them all a couple of notches in social status as the bystanders all wondered who they might be. Many who might not have noticed them at all did.

      Inside, the buzz was much like it was before, only louder, as the girls were all pulled away for the judging. Being on stage was not as frightening as he thought it would be. Some of the judges made him nervous at first, but several of them, on making a close inspection said things like “Lovely” to him. In the end, he was deeply shocked to realize that he was mostly nervous about not falling apart if he won, rather than being afraid for being in public in the very sexy dress.

      After the judging, he was standing beside Noriko, when to his surprise he realized that the pretty girl dressed as Dark Chii walking up to him was none other than Miyu. She greeted Noriko warmly, and then began to stare at John.

      Noriko began to speak after a pause. “Miyu-sama, I would like you to meet my cousin, Aya Yokoshira.” Noriko said with audible nervousness in her voice. Clearly, she had not anticipated the obvious attraction that the two characters would have for each other, and in retrospect, the certainty that they would be thrown together at some point. She had just completely missed it.

      Miyu just stood very still and stared directly at John without saying a word. To their frightened dismay, they could almost see the realization dawn on her face. She was visibly vacillating between uncertainty and realization when finally she asked very softly “John?”

      Not knowing what else to do, John could only nod his head ever so slightly, and ever so helplessly.

      His eyes had already dropped to the floor in humiliation, so he like everyone else nearby were taken in complete surprise at the loud squeal that escaped Miyu as she plunged herself onto him. If Noriko had not instinctively moved in behind him when she’d seen Miyu, they would have both ended up on the floor. He unconsciously held on to her as the nearly hysterical girl bounced up and down, babbling rapidly in excited Japanese and English for a full minute.

      It took him that long to find out to his relief, that Miyu was hysterically happy, which she told John after she had calmed down.

      All of this excitement from the two little Chii characters greatly amusing all present.

      For several long minutes all she could do was complement him on how beautiful he looked, and tell him over an over how much she loved his costume. She thought he was so brave, and how most of all, how he made such a pretty Chii.

      She was so excited that John was hardly able to understand that she was excited to find out that he also loved doing cosplay, and she had no idea that one of the shy American boys in her class would not only be a kindred, but brave enough to take it to such amazing limits.

      If Noriko had not whispered in his ear when she’d said things like “Haru!” (“beautiful”), and “Hime!” (“Princess”), and “Kwaii!” (“cute”). He’d never have been able to fully understand her. It was amazing. She was nothing like she was at his school, where she seldom even smiled. Now, they could hardly calm her down.

      Of course, she was also attracting a significant amount of attention from a crowd of amused bystanders.

      Noriko was finally able to pull her aside for a moment, and explain that John was to be called Aya, and that no one had as yet figured out he was male. Miyu loved it, and went along beautifully, calling John her little Aya-chan, and her little Chii. For the rest of the morning, she and Aya were inseparable, much to the delight of the crowd, who delighted even more in taking pictures of them together.

      Aya and Miyu won the two top prizes for anime. Maggie got fourth in the visual Kei category, one of only two Malice Mizer cosplayers to win, and Noriko won third; both loosing to another girl called Princess in a Gardenia Mana costume, who took second place.

      It was mostly a blur, in which John found himself holding on to Miyu as much for attachment, as for support. It was almost as much as much as she held on to him.

      In the end, they were finally allowed off stage, where for a time pictures and questions came even more rapidly than before. Fortunately most of the questions were answered with just a nod and a smile. The best news may have been that the one person who was curious to know if John was Miyu’s boyfriend, was only overheard talking to another girl, who thought she was crazy.

      Noriko was asked for her card by so many people, that the contest organizer who signed them up the night before put Noriko’s email address on a poster by the awards with pictures of all four winning costumes…

 
 

o O o
 
 

     Across town, Noriko’s building super was long gone for the day. He was not there to see his two workers on the phone in the office, trying to get tickets to the concert in Jersey that night. It seemed that they had unexpectedly come into some money. He was also long gone by the time several strangers, mostly Asian men, made their way up and down the halls of the building knocking on doors and disturbing tenants by asking questions nobody wanted to answer. That was, undoubtedly why someone else made an anonymous call to complain to the police.

 
 

o O o
 
 

     John was tired, and although he was still genuinely excited by the time Maggie came for him. He was more than ready to leave. Miyu, calling her parents on her cell, got permission to go back to the hotel for dinner with Noriko and her cousins, while Noriko had gone to pick up their trophies and have them brought out to the front. She Might have been able to make some excuse to gently shuffle Miyu off, had she been there, but her excitement was irrepressible.

      Noriko couldn’t risk telling her more, and putting her at danger too.

      Just then, in another big surprise of the day, a hotel limousine met them at the front entrance, where a small crowd applauded for all four as they were ushered in. The only thing that they could figure out was that the concierge had contacts with the convention center, and he had been tipped off. Still, although it was the type of thing a good concierge does, it took them all by surprise.

      It whisked them back to the hotel, just about the time several men entered the hall from the other side, and began moving about the hall, and occasionally asking questions.

 
 

o O o
 
 

     Of course, when they got to the hotel, the concierge also wanted a couple more pictures with the trophies. I took only a minute, fortunately, because Noriko only allowed them two.

      Back at the room, John was very glad to get out of the Chii costume. With Miyu there, he desperately wished for a comfortable boy’s shirt and a pair of jeans so that he could face her, but they had none. In the end, he had tried for the jeans that Noriko had bought for him, but Miyu and Noriko both insisted he wear a black jumper with a white blouse for dinner. So with only a hot shower, and a half hour in the robe, he was forced to go through having his own hair styled in a short but cute and feminine style, and then put up with Maggie and Noriko redoing his makeup for the trip out.

      Everyone loved the new outfit, and the black jumper over the ornate blouse looked very stylish on him. He thought it was because it looked so…, elegant and serine. Standing in front of the mirror, he stopped himself from smoothing down the jumper with his hands for the forth time, when he realized that three very amused girls were watching him intently.

      It was Miyu who got to wear his new Jeans and top, when she and Maggie began to talk about popping down stairs to the boutique to buy a dress for Miyu to change into. It was soon decided however, that Miyu and she would just pick up a few other things they needed. Their departure gave Noriko a chance to talk to John, as she got ready.

      John had once again drifted unconsciously over to the Mirror to smooth his jumper, not wanting to get it wrinkled before dinner. Noriko, smiling to herself, asked in a level voice, “Do you like the dress?”

      John jumped like he had been kicked. “Hum, Yeah, I guess so.” He said looking at the floor. Taking pity on him, Noriko came over and put her hand on his shoulder saying, “John, don’t worry about it. It doesn’t mean anything.

      She wished he’d look at her, so that she could see his eyes.

      She sighed, and tried further to assuage his worry. “Everyone likes to think that they look nice, and they like it even more if other people think they look nice too! You don’t have to worry about that. You’ll be ok!”

      After a moment, he said, “Noriko, I’m beginning to think that something may be wrong with me.” He said it far too sadly. Noriko just smiled compassionately. She pulled him over to the table, and they sat down for a talk.

      They didn’t have long, but spoke mostly about how uncomfortable John was feeling; the situation he was in, and about Miyu too. She explained him that his dress was very beautiful, that it had come from Mana’s own shop, and that many Lolita’s would jump at the chance to wear it. Well, Kill to get the chance, actually. She even told him that girls in Japan, who could not get the dresses they wanted because they were so limited, would buy smaller or larger sizes, just to hand on the wall, and to dress their boyfriends and little brothers.

      “Really?” he asked openly surprised.

      Noriko just nodded her head.

      By the time Maggie and Miyu had returned from their quick trip down stairs, John’s spirits had been lifted a little, even if his confusion had not. Noriko’s reassurance that he was doing well enough to fool his own family did much to ease his mind. But then, it also worried him in other ways. Her assurance that it was doing no permanent damage helped even more.

      Maggie surprised them both with a pair of black patent Mary Jane’s in his size, which also turned out to be Maggie’s size for now.

Miyu came over and gave him a hug, and again whispered to him that she loved how beautiful he looked. Noriko asked Maggie to help her get into her skirt, and the girls disappeared into the dressing room. Now much of Johns, nervousness came back for a short time, but he was finding that he simply could not maintain a high level of fear with everything else that was going on. More and more he was feeling very resigned, and tired…, and a little hungry.

Miyu and John sat together on the sofa.

“I’m glad you came to dinner.” He almost whispered.

“OH, me too, Aya.” She said in a tone that caused him to look at her.

She was just looking at him, and smiling. All he could think was that she looked so adorable in his pink top and jeans. It looked very dressy on her, especially now that she’d taken a moment or two to make herself look more mature with some of the makeup she borrowed from the girls.

“You seem different than you do at school.” He said, instantly surprised, because he’d not actually meant to say that at all.

For the first time a pained expression crossed her face. When she did speak, she knew she was upset, because her English, which was usually fine, if very sparse, was more broken than usual.

“I’m sorry, Aya-chan. I know the others…” She struggled for the words. “don’t understand me.” She was looking at her hands now. “I miss my home. My father, he’s in London, or Paris. Last year, we live Berlin.”
John began to understand. It had been so obvious.

“I miss my friends. I try to talk here, but girls think I’m cute or silly. I did not know anyone who liked what I do. I thought you were nice, but you don’t speak. Next term, I will go to Northwood School. There are girls there like me, who travel from Japan. None here…”

Then to his surprise she smiled at him.

“…until I find you. You like what I do.”

He felt Miyu’s hand slip tentatively into his, and hold on while Maggie and Noriko got ready.

John asked Miyu if she might like him dressed in boy’s clothes, and Miyu shyly called him silly, and told him of course she would, acting as if it were the silliest question she’d ever heard.

      John asked her to the dance, and she gave him an enthusiastic yes. Then she told him that she had been hoping he would ask, and had almost asked him.

      John could hardly pay attention as Miyu was explaining that many of her old and new friends would just be green with envy when they got sight of John in his beautiful Lolita dress. She wanted to take him out with them.

      John was surprised to learn that she was already spending much of her time with the students of the private school north of the city. She told him that many of the children there were children of Japanese businessmen, in this country for their jobs. It seemed, that she had even been signed up for classes and activities them.

      John was doing a fair job of trying to convince her that this was a once in a lifetime thing. The fact that she did not seem to fully understand that it was not his idea, and that he couldn’t exactly tell her that it was not didn’t help at all; but then, nor did she accept that he could get out of going out with her friends.

      They were still talking when Noriko and Maggie came out of the dressing area. Noriko had changed into a long gray skirt, and Jacket, under which she wore a high necked, black lace blouse. It looked elegant and very aristocratic. At her chest was a large cross, which matched a pair of earrings she had put on.

      When John told her how beautiful and elegant she looked, she told him that it to was once again outfit patterned after one worn by Mana, and she promised to show him pictures at a later time.

      After they were all ready, Noriko took them down stairs to the dining room. At Noriko’s request, they were seated in an out of the way corner, as far away from the door as they could find.

 
 

      To John’s continued surprise, both he and Maggie received many appreciative looks, and not a few compliments on their dresses. Many people from the convention were having dinner before evening flights, and recognized their beautiful Lolita dresses for what they were.

      Where John’s dress was fairly plain in a more aristocratic style, Maggie had worn one comprised mostly of lace, a favorite that Noriko had brought along for her. It was white lace, with just a touch of lavender ribbon at her throat, and on her headpiece. Two people had even asked to take their picture again before they got seated, which they of course agreed to.

      Soon however, they were allowed to eat the wonderful meal in quiet, all of the girls enjoying the attentiveness that the wait staff had for the quartet of pretty and elegant young ladies. Three of them were starved from missing meals over the last days.

      The staff were so attentive, and the meal so delicious, that they were all soon lost in the stories told by Noriko. She told them of how her father had been a landscape artist, and how she used to go with him to visit many of the most beautiful gardens in Japan. It had been as if she had grown up in a city of gardens. Except for the occasional tear in Noriko’s eye, it was a perfect and idyllic picture. They could even smell the blossoms, for a time…

 
 

o O o
 
 

     A t about that time, in the front lobby, the concierge noted two Asian men, and an Asian woman standing together by the front entry. Being very good at his job, there was very little that escaped his notice. What he noticed now were the eyes of the larger of the Asian man…, Chinese he would say.

      His eyes move constantly around the lobby, as if he had every reason to suspect that a tiger would jump out of the potted plants. The concierge had seen too much in his years to be overly worried, but he continued to watch the trio surreptitiously out of the corner of his eye. He had just made up his mind to call for security to help him keep an eye on the trio, when the woman moved to the reservation counter.

      He smiled slightly to himself, assuming he had finally diagnosed the cause of their suspicious behavior. Two of them, and the only one man enough to get the room was the woman. Well he hoped she found it worth it.

      That the trio had begun to exhibit more normal “hotel” behavior helped to ease his mind; but to be honest, the fact that there were severe thunderstorms moving across the South from Savannah to Dallas did far more to allay his suspicions.

      Within ten minutes of the U.S. Meteorological services revised forecasts, every major carrier had called trying to secure space for passengers who as yet had no idea that they were about to spend one more night in New York. The Concierge like, many of the senior staff was just too busy calling in any staff member who could be reached to start turning rooms as fast as possible. He did not notice that the trio took three separate routes upstairs. If he had…

 
 

o O o
 
 

      After dinner, Noriko said she was going to wait with Miyu in the lobby for Miyu’s father who was due to arrive to pick her up at any minute. John wanted to stay with Miyu as well, but Noriko thought it would be best for him to go back to the room, and get ready for the flight out.

     John and Maggie were beginning to look as tired as Noriko felt. Miyu gave him a warm hug, and then to his extreme surprise, a warm and gentle kiss on his lips. He knew from Noriko, that many traditional Japanese girls never do this in public. It was surely because Miyu had lived all over, the world, and had picked up a few new habits, which they had all found out as she came out of her shell. Her father was in charge if investment relations for his company, and thus spend his time in many large western cities in America and in Europe.

      “Call me tomorrow, Aya-chan,” she whispered to him just before she broke the hug. John even like the startled looks on the faces of the diners nearby who had seen her kissing ‘Aya.’ In fact the only downside was the smirk on Maggie and Noriko’s faces. Noriko pressed her card key into Maggie’s hand, and Miyu and Noriko then excused themselves to the ladies room.

      John and Margaret walked slowly to the elevator. It was a chance for them to talk alone for the first time since they had been in Noriko’s apartment.

      “Do you think we should call the folks?” John asked carefully.

      He had not realized that it had been bothering Maggie too, until she told him, “To be completely honest, I don’t know.” She continued, “I mean, at first I thought to hell with them. As time goes by, though, I realize that no matter what they’ve been like, just up and disappearing is cruel. It’s just that I don’t even know if calling then would just be putting them at higher risk.” She looked worried.

      John was silent for a few moments, and then said, “Mags, I honestly thought the fact that we had just disappeared on them would be the best protection for everyone. Now, I think that having them going nuts looking for us will just lead anyone else to us that much quicker. When Noriko comes up we need to talk about it. I think we should use your cell to call them.”

      Maggie said to him softly. “Have you noticed that neither of them have called me?” Neither spoke after that.

      When the Elevator opened to let them in there were two older women, obviously sisters, and obviously way over the far side retired, who were waiting to get off. On catching site of ‘Aya and Mia’, one sister grabbed the other by the arm and said “Oh my!, Erin dear, look at the pretty girls. Aren’t they just lovely!” Then turning to face John and Margaret, the elderly woman asked, “Are you girls going to a party?”

      At this point Margaret was about to answer, when the one called Erin actually reached out, and began to fondle the lace at her collar, which both surprise and distracted Maggie to say the least.

      The woman who first spoke turned to John and asked, “I’m Sephrena girls, and what is your name, dear?”

     John almost told her before he caught himself. Then, in a soft voice, which was genuinely soft because he was speaking from shock, “I’m Aya, and this is my sister, Mia, Ma’am.”

      “Oh, aren’t those pretty names for two pretty young ladies. Are you girls on your way to a party?”

      Shocked at the attention that the two elderly ladies were giving them, John felt like telling them it was none of their business, but it was obvious that Maggie was taking it much better.

      John had seen it before; older women seemed to be attracted to her in direct proportion to the amount of lace she was wearing. “No, Ma’am. Our parents are strict, and we just dress like this every day.” He said.

      Beside him, Maggie made a soft choking sound, that may have been a stifled giggle, but John was not sure. Either way, the mild sarcasm went right past the two women, and the other sister answered. “Well isn’t that wonderful, Sephrena. More people should be that way. I hope you young ladies realize what wonderful parents you have. My, my, you both look so lovely, I wish I had my camera.” With that, Erin began to dig in her purse, which due to the fact that it was the size of a suitcase and was packed with enough supplies for a UN peacekeeping mission, guaranteed that she would find nothing fast.

      At this point, Maggie began to speak, as fast she took ‘Aya’ by the arm, and began to steer him into the now empty car. She said loudly, “Come along, little sister, we had better get back upstairs before Mommy and Daddy send the National Guard after us…

      Thank you ladies, we appreciate the complements, and I’ll be sure to tell Momma what nice things you said about her…, she sews all our dresses… Bye now”, she had him in the car, and the door just would not close on the two women, who were still standing and grinning at them.

      Then the ladies began to wave good-by, like they were getting on a damned ocean liner headed to Europe, instead of an elevator. Not knowing what else to do, John took the hem of his jumper in each hand, and curtsied quickly. Maggie was so shocked by the move, that she just stared at him open mouthed and wide-eyed until the doors closed

 
 

      Once the doors closed, John made every attempt to stand primly, not looking at his sister, but the fierce blush in his cheeks was a dead give away. Maggie fell apart, which was the end for John as well. They were both laughing so hard that they were crying. Again, only the fact that Maggie grabbed his hands prevented him from rubbing his eyes by reflex.

      “Don’t rub you little doofus. That stuff is waterproof, but if you smear it your goanna look like a freak.”

      “Oh yeah,” he answered while laughing and flipping the hem of his jumper up, “lets not do anything to make me look like a freak, by all means.”

      They were just gaining control again, when the car stopped at a floor several levels below theirs. A younger couple got on the car, and punched the button for the next floor up. John leaned closer to Maggie and asked, “So is it always like that?”

      “Ah Hum,” Maggie answered, “It is. No matter what, when I’m dressed Lolita, the old ladies are always like that. It happens all the time. Sometimes they have kids our age; dressed in some grunge shit, and the kids will be looking at you like you are some kind of dangerous bug. Meanwhile, the whole time the grandmother is having a hissy-fit over how pretty you are, and about how much she wishes her grandchildren could dress properly… yada, yada, yada. Its hysterical. If they had a clue, they might know that I’m a three times the freak than their own grandkids are any day of the week.”

      Needless to say, the conversation got some funny looks from the twenties something couple in the car, but they quickly got off the elevator with just one ‘look at the weirdo’s’ glare that the woman gave them over her shoulder.

      “See what I mean,” Maggie said, as she dropped a short curtsy to the departing female, which, of course, lead Aya to immediately followed suit. Her look had John and Maggie falling apart all over again.

      The doors opened at their floor, and John started to step out, only to bump strait into a large man getting into the car. He looked up to say excuse me, just as Maggie grabbed his arm and squeezed it hard enough hurt. John did not mind though, as he was busy looking at the face of a largest Chinese man he’d ever seen.

      For a second or two, John thought he would pee himself. For several seconds after that, he thought that he had.

      After a moment of staring back and forth, John tried to recover by taking Maggie’s hand and saying “Come on sis, Mom is waiting for us,” before starting out the door.

      Somehow he made his legs move, but they felt so much like rubber, that he actually stumbled into the man as he brushed past him. He made it to the hallway, where he came face to face with the woman who had shot at him.

      He tried to say, “Excuse us”; thinking that if he could just get a step past the woman he could run. No noise would come. Nothing at all.

      The woman was not looking at him at all thought. She was staring straight at Maggie. “That’s her,” she said calmly. When John glanced back the man had his hand on his sister’s shoulder.

      The woman asked Maggie, “Where is your brother, Margaret, we found his school bag, and we want to give it back to him.”

      It was the same voice that John remember shrieking behind him, and even in the close to normal tones, it made the hairs on his neck stand taught.

      When she spoke, Maggie looked with a start from where she had been staring at the man’s face to the woman’s face. “My, My…” she stuttered unable to get anything out.

      John could not take his eyes off of the woman from the car now. He saw her eyes narrow as she continued to stare at Maggie. She never even looked at him once.

      After what seemed like an eternity, “Take her,” was all she said.

      At that point, John was almost lifted off of the floor as the man grabbed his arm at the shoulder. “What about this one,” he asked.

      The woman glanced at his face for only the second time, but then looked quickly back to Maggie. “Yah, take her too. She’s a witness. We’ll figure out what to do with her later.”

      “What about the one on the board, the woman who makes the costumes” One of the thugs asked in a thick voice.

      “I don’t know.” Ling said, obviously annoyed at the question. “If it hadn’t taken hours for you to see it there, we might have gotten her too. These are the two we want, now hurry.”

      John started to turn and pull away but it was no use. It was like trying to wrestle with a fireplug. They were pushed back into the car roughly, making Maggie stumble backwards and hit her head on the back wall. John began to fight, trying to hit the man, but he was shoved into the side of the car violently. He could see Maggie holding the back of her head, with a stunned look on her face.

      John thought that Maggie was about to scream, and obviously the thug thought so too, because he brutally clamped his massive hand on her mouth with a meaty thump. John once again started toward the men, when a cloth was clamped over his face that burned his lips and eyes. He tried to struggle as he heard the woman say “parking level,” but he couldn’t seem to get his feet under him well enough to pull away from the woman’s grip on his face.

      All he could think of was the terror in Maggie’s eyes, and how much he wanted to tell her not to be afraid.
 

End of Act II

 
 

By

Sarah Lynn Morgan

[email protected]

 
 

Thank you for reading! If you like this story, Please take a moment to click on the vote
box at the top of the page. Comments are most gratefully welcome, and appreciated!

          Gentles all:   The following story contains reference to a form of Japanese street fashion, the adherents to which refer to as Elegant Gothic Lolita. Note, that the term “Lolita” refers to this style of clothing. This, with Gabi's kind help, is a revised and illustrated version of the story that originally appeared on Crystal’s Storysite.

Hansel and Gretel: A Fairytale. Act 3. By Sarah Lynn Morgan

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 
 
 

Act III

 
 

The following act contains scenes of violence, and
vulgar colloquialisms, that might be offensive to some’
Please be advised: mature content follows.

 
 
 

      He was cold.

     He was laying on something damp, and not too clean judging by the strong sour odor of mildew His head hurt bad, and even moving it slightly caused sharp pains to ricochet from one side of his skull to the other. Even so, he was determined to push his face away from the smell, but for some reason he could not get his arms under him to push himself up. It was hard to think, but he realized the reason was that his arms were pinned behind him.

      He tried to free them for several moments, but he couldn’t. He was tied at the wrists.

      The kidnappers.

      It was painful trying to think, but he was afraid to fall back to sleep.

      Slowly he tried to opened his eyes, but had to immediately clamp them shut, because the spinning of the room was going to make him throw up. He did not want to do that before he could get his head up…

      “Maggie” he croaked very softly, but there was no reply. He wanted to say it again, but he knew he would never be able to speak and fight the nausea at the same time. Therefore, he lay there, as quietly as he could, and just tried not to do anything to make it worse. If he could just lie very still for a few moments, just long enough to get his breath…

 
 

o O o
 
 

     Noriko walked onto the elevator, and pushed for her floor. She was tired. Miyu’s father had taken a wrong turn, and had wound up at the airport somehow, so she'd had to talk him back to the hotel on the girl’s cell phone. It was now almost seven o’clock, and she needed to get them ready for the trip to the airport, before she could decide what to do next. She had half a mind to rent a car so they could just leave.

      If she weren’t so tired, she might just do that, but she knew that she could never drive tonight. Not after lying awake most of the last night. She knew, in fact, that is what she should have done yesterday within minutes of John telling his story; but, at the time the fiction of attending CosCon had been such a good cover for leaving the city, and it it had almost certainly gotten them out of their neighborhood, but she had gotten too attached to the plan. She could see that now.

      She got off of the elevator, and walked to their door, and knocked softly. She waited for at least a minute, and knocked a little louder. “John? Maggie?” She called out, half to herself, and half in the hopes that they would hear her and open the door. Noriko leaned her head on the door to listen, and just as she was about to knock louder, when the elevator chimed behind her and opened. Out walked a waiter with a cart from room service.

      He began to push his cart down the hallway in the opposite direction, when he turned to look at Noriko. “Excuse me Miss, but is everything all right? Can I help you?” The waiter was young, and she could see that most of his interest was in just talking to her, but that did not matter.

      “Yes, you can.” She answered, "I feel like an idiot, but I’ve left my key in the room, and my girlfriend is such a sound sleeper I can’t wake her up. Do you have a key that you could let me in with?” She finished with a smile, willing him to pull out a key.

      He hesitated for a moment, only to say, “I’m sorry, Miss but I can’t do that. You can go down to the front desk, and they can make you another key. It only costs about five dollars, but if the key that I have even works, and I let you in, I could get fired. Sorry, I wish I could help.” He finished with a shrug, and turned to push the cart down the hall as he occasionally glanced back at her.

      Noriko did understand, but even thought she smiled and said thank you anyway, she still had a fleeting hoped he fell down some stairs. It was a measure of how very tired she felt.

      Noriko sighed resignedly, and stepped back into the elevator, and pushed the button marked “L.”

 
 

o O o
 
 

     John was having a bad dream. He could hear Maggie, talking in a high and frightened voice, but he could not hear what she was saying. He only knew that he needed to get to her somehow, but that he couldn’t move. He was sobbing in frustration and fear when he finally awoke again.

      He stopped sobbing as soon as he was awake, but as he quickly realized where he was, and why his shoulders hurt. He moved slowly, the memory of what happened the last time he tried to move his head made him very cautious. John lifted his head and opened his eyes a little. It was dark, but not pitch black. He could see that he was in a basement, or a factory or something. As he rolled over, he could feel that he was against a wall, with the other side of the room, which was filled with concrete pillars, was lost in gloom and distance.

      John felt much better this time. He shifted a little more, and tried to look around. The door was toward his feet. The exit sign was dark over the door. He could not see anything else, except for pillars and a rat that was watching him from beside one. He shifted a little more, trying to take the weight off of his shoulders. They did not hurt too badly, so he could not have been left there very long.

      Unable to see anything worthwhile, John lay his head back down, and tried to listen. For a long time, he heard nothing. The very silence around him seemed to buzz, and he realized that by listening so hard, he was only limiting his chance to hear, so he lay there and worried about Maggie.

      A short time later, the sound of a door closing came clearly from behind his head. Looking, he could see a small vent near the floor, covered by a metal grill so rusty it was hardly there at all. He shimmied his way over to put his head up against it.

      He clearly heard the door close a second time, and then voices. It was a man and a woman, who sounded like the ones in the elevator. He could hear each one of them speak, but he could not hear clearly enough to make out any of the words. Slowly, some of the words came through more clearly, and they were speaking Chinese. He tired to listen to the tone of the voices, but he could not hear much — that is until he heard the woman say clearly “So, are you ready to tell us where your brother is, now.”

      The image of them holding Maggie race through his mind, and he thought he missed hearing her reply in his sudden sense of panic. He fought to slow his breathing, so that the pounding of his own heart, would slow enough so that he could hear. After a moment, he heard the woman again.

      “I told you, little girl, that you will talk to us. Just tell us where your brother went, and we’ll let you go. All we want is what he took from us.” There was silence for a moment, and then he heard her. “I told you, John went to school, I was behind him when the accident happened at the bus stop. I thought he had already gone to school, and haven’t seen the little squirt since I left for school yesterday morning.”

      “So,” the dragon lady continued, “ You did not see him at School?”

      “I told you, I cut school to get ready for the convention.” Maggie said, obviously showing her frustration after answering these questions many times.

      There was another brief conversation amongst the Chinese again. John could hear two male voices now, each distinct, talking with the woman. Then he heard: “We know that you and your brother were not in school. All the kids we asked said that you were not there. Look, you may want to play games all night, but I just don’t have the patience or the time. We found this in the apartment building where the costume lady lives.”

      There was silence for several moments. Followed by a slap, and a grunt from Maggie.

      John’s eyes were tearing fiercely now, but he had to keep listening. It was no problem, because the dragon lady was yelling now. “You know what it is, you little bitch. Now you are going to tell me where your bother is, and your going to do it soon. The only thing that I don’t know is how many fingers you will have left when you finally decide to talk!”

      John was sobbing louder. ‘Tell them Maggie. Please tell them.’ But he didn’t have long to wait to find out how it would go.

      Maggie shrieked back at the woman at the top of her lungs, “Fuck you, you fucking slimy cunt!”

      This time the blow wasn’t the sharp crack of a slap, it was the heavy thud of someone being punched, and the sound of a chair and furniture, and a body hitting the floor. Dragon lady yelled again “Get the other one in here! Maybe we can use her, but if we can’t we can at least get this over with.”

 
 

o O o
 
 

     Back at the hotel, some hours before, Noriko was sitting on the end of the bed, looking at the cell phone in her hand. A strange voice had answered Maggie’s phone, before she heard a crunching sound, and no more. She had to call the police, but she did not know what to tell them. She did now that she had to get out of the room, because they knew where it was, and even thought they had already torn it apart, they could come back at any time.

      Quickly she grabbed her purse, and headed down to the bar on the first floor. She ordered a glass of wine, was just about to dial 911, when the concierge approached her.

      “Is everything all right, Miss Yokoshira?” He asked, with a look of genuine concern.

      She looked at him, and calmly said “No. My room has been ransacked, and I think my Nieces have been kidnapped. I’m about to call the police.”

      The concierge was one of the most unflappable men you could ever wish to meet, but given that expostulation, he could only stare at Noriko, his mouth moving up and down like a guppy’s.

      Noriko pushed the send button to dial 911. The Concierge quickly suggested that she could come with him to his office, but Noriko just refused with a shake of the head. He leaned over the bar, and picked up the hotel phone, and punched in the number for security.

      Meanwhile, in a quit voice, unnoticed by any of the other patrons, Noriko told the 911 operators that she believed that her two young friends were about to be murdered. After the usual interminable questions, she hung up the phone. She refused again to accompany the concierge to the private offices. She just took a sip of her wine, and silently began to cry, while she waited for the detectives to arrive.

 
 

o O o
 
 

     John could hear them coming up the hall before they arrived at his door. He heard them just outside, and then the sound of keys in the door. When the door opened, even thought it was not that much brighter in the hall outside, the light blinded him. As he squinted from the brighter light, he could barely see the hulking form that quickly moved to the mattress he lay on, and effortlessly hauled him to his feet.

      John bit his tongue at the pain in his shoulders, as he was propelled out into the hall. Still blinded by the light, he could not see much, but He did quickly pick up that where the large room he had been in looked abandoned, he could see what looked like a working factory floor a level below him through the glass windows in two sets of doors to his right. No one was there, though, the factory having been shut down for the night.

      Even if there was someone there, not only could he not have gotten away from the man who was propelling him rapidly down the hall, but most of the doors had all been chained shut.

      As they entered the still brighter room, John was once again barely able to see. His first view was of the Dragon Lady staring down at the floor. His second was of his sister struggling to push herself up into a sitting position using the wall for leverage. He could see by the way her head hung down that she was hurt, and struggling for the little bit of balance she had managed to hang on to. John’s voice caught in his throat, as Maggie slowly lifted her eyes up to stare defiantly at the Dragon Lady.

      There was blood at the side of her mouth and nose to go along with a fiery red handprint on the side of her face. John could see that there was dullness to her eyes, as if she was dazed and not completely aware of what was going on. He could also tell that she was in pain by the way she was fighting for a normal breath. He could not see too much more, because the tears in his eyes blurred his vision.

      The gorilla who had him by the shoulders practically threw him into a folding metal chair on the opposite side o the room from Maggie. He could see that there was a much smaller, and younger man standing bye the door. This one wore a sneer of sadistic enjoyment as he watched Maggie quietly suffer on the floor.

      The dragon Lady just laughed at Maggie’s defiance openly, and turned away to look at John, and said, “So Margaret, who is your little friend?” She looked at John closely for the first time, and again he felt himself unable to turn away from her, even as he felt a thrill of icy fear racing from his spine to his stomach and then his knees.

      “What’s your name, honey?” she asked with a sickening smile on her lips.

      John did not answer, not because he was defying her, but rather because he could not get his voice to work. The woman’s smile twisted a little, and then looking between his face and clothes, she tried again in both Chinese and Japanese. Now John could only stare in complete confusion. The Dragon lady then turned to her companions, and said something to them that made the younger one chuckle evilly.

      She now stood directly in front of John, and took his chin in her hand, and forced his head back to look up at her. “Another spoiled little rich girl, I see. Well princess, let me tell you a little something. Your friend over there on the floor is going to die tonight if she does not start talking soon, and you are going to go right along with her.” She paused to look at John’s face, and waited for the terror of what she just said to sink in.

      She sensed something wrong in his reaction though, because her smile slowly turned to a frown, as she puzzled over his failure to show the expected reaction.

      She leaned closeer, and gently rearranged the hair on his forehead, before saying, “Start by telling me your name, little one and you’ll see how easy it is. My name is Ling Lau, and I don’t want to hurt you, so why don’t you tell me your name?” The way the woman had smiled when she said that she did not want to hurt him, almost made him throw up. There was no doubt that she would thoroughly enjoy doing the most horrible things to him.

      “Leave… Leave her alone you bitch, she doesn’t know anything.” Maggie said softly from the floor, but John could see that her eyes were on him now, and they were huge with fear. The small shake of her head was all that stopped him from telling the truth to end this.

      Ling Lau just nodded at the young punk by the door, and he walked over Maggie, and kicked her in her side. Maggie went down to the floor like a rag doll, at the sight of which John screamed for Maggie, and threw himself blindly in her direction. He did not get very far, but he did manage to accidentally plunge his shoulder into the dragon lady’s stomach before the gorilla behind him, yanked him off of his feet, and back into the chair by his hair.

      Ling was on him in a moment, and had already drawn her arm high to strike as he looked up at her. The slap sent a brilliant cascade of stars blazing in front of his eyes, so he had no warning at all before her second blow caught him in the side of his head. The floor was almost welcomingly soft in comparison, as his body fell onto the concrete.

      “Now I kill you first, you little cunt, right after my friends have a little fun with you! You like anal sex, Princess, you like to give good blow-job after, huh.” She screamed, her English broken by her anger, and then she drew back to kick John...

      “Ling.”

      The quiet voice came from the door, but soft as it was, it instantly stopped all motion in the room as effectively as if it had been a booming cannon shot. An old Asian man stood in the door, with another even larger goon behind him. Ling stopped, slowly walked over to him, where they had a very soft conversation. It was the reactions of the two goons already in the room that impressed John the most. They had both gone from outright sadistic glee to visible nervousness in the space of a heartbeat.

      John felt himself picked up and put back in the chair, while the punk did the same to his sister putting her on a small couch in the corner of the room. The ringing in his ear had started to subside only a little, when he asked hoarsely, “Maggie, are you ok?” It got him a cuff on the back of the head, but he hardly felt it after the blow landed by Ling. Maggie, still unable to speak, only grunted, and tried to nod her head, but she did not look up at him. So, they sat in silence for a little while longer.

      Then the man told Ling to close the door, which she did, locking it with a flip of the bolt high on the door. John’s confusion quickly turned to a moment of stark terror, when at a soft order from the old man, the young punk flipped open a butterfly knife, and reached for Maggie. John tried to lunge again, but his legs did not move. He only had time to say “Stop” softly, before the punk had reached down and cut the plastic tie from his sister’s wrists.

      John saw Maggie reach for her left arm with her right hand, and then gently lift it to cradle both at her abdomen. The punk was then at John’s side, and roughly pulled him forward to cut his bonds as well. John’s only thought was to reach Maggie, so he began to stagger up to reach her. The punk pushed him back, but at another word from the old man, stepped back, and watched as John moved to his sister, and cradled her in his lap as she slowly started to cry silently under the gaze of the fierce woman, and the quiet old man.

 
 

o O o
 
 

     "What you have not told us, Miss Yokoshira is why?” the detective said tersely. He was a large black man, and it was obvious that he viewed her Asian ancestry with a great deal of suspicion. He had practically told her that he thought she was involved with the Tong.

      “I told you already, Lieutenant, there was money in the bag, and a book. What don’t you understand? That little girl and boy are out there in the hands of killers who think they have something that they don’t. Why don’t you get off your callused overpaid ass, and go and look for them!”

      Noriko had not actually raised her voice, but for the look on the detective’s face, she might have screamed it. After a full minute of silence, the detective asked again. “How much Money was in the bag?”

      “I didn’t stop to count it.” She said softly.

      “What was in the book?”

      “Names, and numbers. I don’t remember what they were.” She stared at him with an unnatural calm.

      “So you don’t remember even one name?”

      “I’ve told you,” she said, again loosing patience, “go and get the book, and you can read it all you want.”

      “We are getting a court order for that now, Miss Yokoshira, and I have to tell you that if you don’t start cooperating, you will be charged with the theft of the money, and kidnapping of two minors.” He was rising now, leaning across the table toward her. “Now how about something that resembles the God Damned TRUTH!” The detective ended by yelling into her face.

      Noriko could only stare in horror. Then her mouth formed a straight line, and then her anger was let loose on the detective, and at the mirror on the side of the room.

      “OK, Here is your cooperation. You charge me and give me my phone call. I’ve already told you, that I sent a letter from the Hotel to the police commissioner’s office telling him where the money was. If you can make that charge, you’ll be one lucky Sonofabitch. You can also charge the woman who tried to get those two kids away from cold-blooded killers with kidnapping. You can also explain that you wanted to interrogate me while they are probably being murdered; but, I’ll tell you this, detective, in two hours, no matter what you do, I’m going to walk into the offices of the New York Times. In six hours everyone in the country is going to know just how large and incompetent an asshole you and every other asshole detective in this department really are. And, if those children are harmed while you sit here on your incompetent stupid ass,” She yelled as loudly as he had, “one week from today, you will be filling out applications to pick up dog shit in central park, and praying that you get the job. But you had better charge fast, you dumb Son-of-a-bitch, because that’s the only way you are going to keep me in this room even one minute more...”

      Noriko had risen to her feet, and was even debating taking a swing at the dumbfounded detective, when she heard the click of the doorknob being turned behind her.

      The older man, who walked in, just looked at the dumfounded detective and said, “Get out, Jackson.”

 
 

o O o
 
 

     John flinched as the dragon lady took his chin, and lifted his face from the back of Maggie’s head. She was being gentle, this time, but John could still see the hatred in her eyes.

     John was pulled to his feet, to stand before the old man. For his part, the old man just looked him up and down for a moment, before he moved toward Maggie, who was now sitting up on the couch, but leaning heavily on the arm for support. The old man turned and took a cloth from the gorilla, and then gently reached out to wipe Maggie’s face with it. Maggie closed her eyes, in spite of herself, as the cool cloth brought her first relief in hours.

      “It is such a shame that you are going to force us to kill you,” the old man said in one of the kindest voices she had ever heard. Maggie, reacted like she had been slapped again, and recoiled from the gently smiling old man in front of her. “This could have been so much easier, and you are such a pretty little girl. Oh we won’t kill you tonight, don’t worry about that. We will find out where your brother is, and then we will send you off to some friends of mine. They will arrange for you to be sold to a rich client, and you may even be treated well for a few months, - well most of the time anyway.” The old man smiled at her like someone’s grandfather talking about a trip to the zoo.

      “After that though…” the old man continued as Ling beamed over her brother’s head at her, “when he or she tires of playing games with you, and if there is anything left, we put you in a place where you can work to make some of our money back. After two or three years, when you are no longer a cute little girl, you have to work very hard to pay us. If you not work hard, we put you in a film for other special clients. Do you know what a snuff film is? NO? Well let’s just say that it’s a film for people of a certain rare taste. They like to watch some whore get gang raped, and then slowly strangled or suffocated. I’ll even make sure your Father gets a copy. Now, if you had been alone, we could never make back all of our money. Most of it, though, probably.

      Now, since you have thoughtfully brought your pretty little friend along, we can certainly make back more than your brother took from us. So you see, when we do find him, and we have our money, it will be simply a matter of honor for us to make an example of you both; and…, we will find him.”

      The horror of what he was saying, combined with his saintly smile, and his gentle voice and ministrations were more that Maggie could endure. She felt as if she was going to loose her mind. She was so filled with horror at the evil man’s pronouncement that she could only stare mutely at him, frozen in place, as he gently finished wiping her face lovingly with the damp cloth.

      The old man then walked over to a small table, and picked up a pair of tin snips and examined them for a moment. He then placed them back on the table, and instead chose a large pair of pliers. He walked over to the young thug, and handed the pliers to him. Turning to the gorilla, he nodded, and Maggie felt her arms once again pinned behind her, as she could only stare in horror at the old man. He stared back at her for an eternity.

      Then the old man turned to Ling, and indicating John said, “Take off her shoe and pull her toes off, start with the little toe on each foot.” John tried to push back against Ling, and Margaret thought he had fainted, but then she heard him whimper as Ling put him in a headlock.

      It was too much for Maggie. She had tried so hard, but just could not think any more. She knew that they were both dead either way, but that did not matter. All she new in her tortured mind was that she had to stop them from hurting John even if she die. She did not even realize that the animal shriek had come from her. She flailed and twisted from the large man’s grip, heedless of the tearing sound coming from her shoulder.

      “No!” she shrieked again. “Don’t hurt him, he didn’t do anything. Leave him alone, please. Please don’t hurt him, it was me! I took the money. It was me. He doesn’t know where it is…” The gorilla had finally worked loose one hand, and slapped her on the back of the head, which made her vision go black, but still Maggie pleaded, weakly. “Run, John. Don’t hurt him, please…. it was me…” Her sobs became continuous.

      John watched the old man quickly step across to Ling’s gorilla and with a full swing of his arm, slap the gorilla right across his face. The gorilla didn’t move, either from the heavy blow, or in an effort to shield himself. John could see his eyes though, and he knew that he would probably be the one to kill both he and his sister that night.

      The old man barked an order, biggest goon moved behind John to lock his arms, and hoist him fully up on his feet. The dragon lady came around to look at his face with an expression of awe. She slowly looked more closely at him, and shook her head chuckling. The old man just watched as if he had no particular interest in any of this.

      Then the Dragon lady slowly walked right in front of John, and lifted the hem of his dress. John felt her fingers on his belly, as they slipped beneath the waistband of his panties.

      John turned his head away, and began to whimper, “No…, please…” as he began to cry.

     Ling just smiled and pushed her hand down into Johns Panties, and examine what she found there. Her eyes were wide, with wonder as she squeezed, and then pulled the panties out further so that she could see. John continued to whimper, and dance on his toes in an effort to escape, but it was no use. With his shoulders pinned back by the Ancient’s goon, he couldn’t even turn himself away.

      Then to John’s horror, the old man walked over beside Ling, and also looked.

     For one horrible instant, as Ling finally removed her hand and pulled his panties out even further forcing his hips forward, John was sure the old man would give him the same examination. In the end, though, he only looked down the panties that Ling held open for his inspection. John tried to sidle away, but the punk wrenched his arms viciously.

      “Carefully, Mister Le. Don’t hurt him.” and the old man took John’s chin in his hand and gave him a most minute inspection. “This little one is probably worth many times what his sister is to our friends in Singapore. No marks. Let him go.”

      Once again released, John stumbled over to Maggie to again cradle her in his lap. She was still chanting softly for him to run, while at the same time clutching fiercely to him. He tried to comfort her, oblivious to a brief conversation between Ling and the old man.

      It surprised him when he realized that Ling was once more standing over him, and he flinched out of instinct, but she did not strike this time. “Where is the money?” Ling asked him as she grabbed Maggie’s hair and slowly entwined it about her fingers as she braced to pull her brutally away from him.

      “It’s in the hotel safe.” he heard himself say in a whimper, as he reached out his shaking hands and began with exquisite care, to gently untangle Maggie’s hair from their tormentor’s fingers.

      “And the Book?” Ling asked sharply “It’s in the safe?”

      He nodded as he cradled Maggie once more with both arms.

      Ling was laughing at him as she picked up the tools on the little table and left with the old man and both goons.

      The sound of the door slamming still echoed when the sound of a chain being pulled through the door came loudly from the other side.

      John did not know how long he cradled Maggie, it could have been hours, or it could have been days. He only knew that no matter what he whispered to her, she continued to plead softly for him to run, as if she didn’t realize he was there, for as long as he could remain conscious…

 
 

o O o
 
 

     Noriko walked out of the offices of the New York Times, and paused on the sidewalk in the early morning gloom. It was never quiet in the city, but this was the quietest part of the day. She took a deep breath, amazed at how calm she felt. She knew that it was only temporary. The weak feeling in her stomach was still there, still threatening to overwhelm her at any moment. She may only have minutes left before she’d crash. So with one more look at the lighter sky in the east, she walked over to the unmarked car that waited for her at the curb, and slid in.

      Mason, Chief of detectives in the 53 Precinct, and the man who’d thrown Jackson out of the interrogation room, sat sideways in the seat beside her. He said nothing for perhaps a full minute, and then in a quiet voice asked, “How did it go?”

      Noriko did not look at him, and did not answer. She simply nodded her head. Mason continued to stare for a moment or two more.

      “Did you tell them what I told you?” He asked.

      “Yes,” Noriko said calmly. “I told them the story just as we agreed. They just loved it. An exclusive interview, two kidnapped children, and police incompetence…”

      Mason completed the thought for her. “The night editor looked like he needed a smoke, I bet. It’ll be on the eight a.m. news.”

      They were both silent for several minutes.

      Mason laughed bitterly, “Yeah, Old Charlie has been doing this job for ten years, and will probably be doing it until his ulcer explodes, or someone steps up and kills him. You are sure you did not give them any information that would allow them to identify the kidnappers right away?” He asked with genuine concern.

      Noriko once again, just nodded her head mutely.

      “Good,” the detective continued, “we want to put some pressure on so that they will be afraid to move the kids, but not too much. If they think we have them, we’ll never find the small pieces…”

      Even in the pale light, the detective could see he had made a mistake, and felt sorry for his choice of words, but he had a job to do. It was bad enough to risk the chief ever finding out that it was his idea for Noriko to expose the incompetence of the detectives who would replace him when he retired. If he did find out, then Mason would be out with no hope of parole as they say, less than two weeks before he was to trade his gold shield for his pension. Either way, though, it would be a gift for the citizens of New York if he succeeded in burning this bunch of thugs. They were almost the worst he’d seen.

      Even more than his own personal worries, though, he wanted those kids back. If anything happened to them, he’d live with it for the few years he had left. These two he needed to find almost as much as the woman sitting beside him. Their pictures were still warm in his pocket, where he had been examining them while Miss Yokoshira had been interviewed. Given what he had seen when he interviewed the parents, he was sure how badly they needed him, because they had no one else. He felt himself realize sadly, that he needed to be the best, just one last time. At least that’s what he had prayed for. The prayer was because he only hoped he had one more in him.

      “Miss, Yokoshira, we still have a chance, but I will need your help. Okay?” He said, hoping they had had enough time.

      “Anything. Just get them back.” was all she said.

      The detective slid back straight in the seat behind the wheel, and started the car. “If the children are killed, there could still be trouble for you, if the father wants to make it.” He said as he looked in his mirror, waiting for several cars to pass.

      “That doesn’t matter,” Noriko said quietly and after a pause continued, “Is there anything else we can do?”

      The detective slipped the car into gear, but did not look at her as he answered, “Well we have photos out to every patrolman in the city. Our detectives are at the hotel, and in your neighborhood. We know where some of the lesser members of the gang can be found so we are watching them to see where they may lead us. If they make a mistake we have a good chance to…”

      Her voice was so soft, that were it not for the frightening dead flat tone, he might not have heard her at all. “Isn’t there anything more we can do?” She asked.

      Even with all his years, her tone made the hairs on his neck stand up. Still not looking at her, the detective shook his head slightly. “No. Not a God-Damned thing.”

      He pressed the gas pedal, and the car slowly moved out into the light traffic.

 
 

o O o
 
 

     The night man on the desk at the Hilton had been busy for several hours. Unlike most of the city, who wouldn’t even be awake yet, he had guests who were racing to fill planes to all points. The kitchen was running close to full staff already, to meet the needs of their overnight guests, most of whom had been too tired from long stays in terminals to eat when they arrived. They were also there to prepare for another full day of banquets and receptions.

      He, on the other hand had only two clerks with which to get the people out and on their way. To make it worse, he was still trying to confirm that housekeeping would have the staff to re-clean fifty more rooms by ten, so that he could meet his reservations for the coming morning. If they could not, he would have to upgrade some of the reservations to better rooms, by noon. It would start a cascade of room shifting, which would go on for days in this busy season, and worse it would cost the hotel a lot of money. He would certainly get a good part of the blame. In short, while most people in the city still slept, he had already had a long bad ‘day.’

      He looked up for the minibus driver, hoping to direct his attention to some luggage behind a post on the other side of the lobby, but saw one of his junior clerks already caught the man with a sharp snap of her fingers, while somehow holding two phones to her ears. Ordinarily, it would have merited a quick talking-to in the back office, or at least a dirty look from the driver, but this morning it only got a nod. He noticed too, that there were two more people approaching his counter.

      He looked them over, and seeing how young they were, and their manner of dress, he looked behind them for older adults in the party. In this day and age, he knew that people seldom dressed very well to travel, but they usually dressed better than this. Even though he was tired, his curiosity was piqued. At certain times of the day, all kinds of people wandered into lobbies of hotels. Most of the worst sort knew instinctively that they would not be tolerated, but there were always a few. Those few seldom showed up at six-thirty a.m., however.

      The manager took a call, but continued to watch the two young men talking quietly to each other. He might not have the instincts of someone like their concierge, but even he could not miss this. He finished the call, without even remembering what it had been about, just as the two young men finally walked to the reservations counter.

      “Good Morning,” he greeted them with the same level of cheerfulness he would have used for a movie star, the automation of too many years of practice.

      “Ahm, yah, excuse me,” the one he looked at began to speak, “but I was wondering. We were in the other day, and put something in the safe, and we would like to get it back. Are you the one we talk too?”

      Now of course the desk manager had some idea of what had gone on in the hotel the night before, everyone did, but he had almost no details. Even though he did not immediately connect the strange request to those events, he knew these two did not have anything worth putting in a safe. He had learned, like anyone who had long been in the hotel business, that when someone had money, but they still ‘dressed down’, there were clues. Five-dollar shoes - but a two hundred dollar hair cut. Perhaps it might be ten-year-old blue jeans, and a ten thousand dollar watch. It was something you had to be able to spot, or you could piss off the son of the guy who would buy the hotel just to put you out on the street.

      He was fairly good at knowing who was who, from who was Who’s Who — as the old hotel joke went, which is why he’d lasted so long.

      He looked at them for almost a moment too long, and the young man spoke again under the pressure.

      “We have our room number.” The young man ventured hopefully as he slid a room key across the counter, but his nervousness showed. He was wishing very hard that he had turned down the offer of a hundred bucks for each of them to ‘run a little errand’; but he was still determined to brazen it out, unlike his speechless friend. After all he would have to slave for the super for two weeks to clear that much. He was, however, beginning to loose his nerve.

      The desk manager responded, without ever loosing his smile. “Of course, Sir. I am the person you need. If you will just give me the room number and guest name, I’ll check the inventory. I’ll also need a picture ID on you, to verify our records.”

      The desk manager even put his hand on the counter, in the impossible chance that the young man actually produced ID. For just a moment the silent one beside the speaker actually twitched as if he was ready to reach for his pocket, but he too stopped short.

      “Ahm, I’m not sure if I have my ID, I might have left it in the car. Can’t you give us a break?” the speaking partner almost squeaked.

      The Desk manager almost called the bluff, but something he could not quite put his finger on held him back. “Well I’ll see what I can do, Guest name, and room number?”
“Room seven-eighteen, under Noriko Yokoshira, she’s my friend… My girlfriend. She’s my girlfriend!”

      It clicked at the mention of the name. Even the deskman was nervous now, but sought to cover it up by typing in the room.

      Of course, it came up as out of service, police permission required for entry, “report all contacts.” However, the manager had not read a word on the screen but simply stared. It gave him the chance to click the mouse button four times on an icon at the top of the screen. If they were awake back in the security office, it should call his station to their attention, and enable them to even pull up the same screen he was viewing.

      They were awake. Out of the corner of his eye, the deskman saw at least two different cameras swing toward him. He could not see four other hidden cameras that had already snapped toward his position.

      “And your name sir?” he asked as casually as he knew how.

      “Aaah…, Brad.”

“Your last name, sir.” Knowing that the first name was fake, he hoped to take one last chance to rattle him.

      “Ahm… Williams. Hey look, if I need to I can get my girl to pick this thing up later today. Will you be here?”

      The deskman was about to try to keep the young man talking, but he saw at that moment, a house detective step through a door into the lobby with another man he didn’t know, and give him a sight nod. “No, Sir, but anyone can help you, I’m sure. Just come to the desk.” he smiled, a little sickly this time, but still nothing to tip the two.

      The two boys were already headed to the door at an admirable speed, so they did not even have the chance to wonder at the out of place nature of his smile. That was ok. They now had a corporate house detective, and two NYC detectives in tow…

 
 

o O o
 
 

     John awoke, with not so much of a start, as with overwhelming confusion. Margaret, who was lying against him, had moaned in her sleep. For a moment or two he could not understand why his sister was curled up against him, and clutching him so tightly in her sleep that he could not move. He wanted to do so badly, because something was digging into his hip. Then it came back to him. He quickly looked about the room, like a trapped animal, fearing that there may be some other physical danger about to fall upon them.

      John began to shift as carefully as he could, so that he did not hurt Maggie. He had not been able to get her to respond to any questions last night, but he was pretty sure that she had been hurt inside. All he had been able to do was to hold her while she kept calling for him. He did know that when he touched her left arm, or her left side, she flinched and silently tired to turn that side away from him to protect it.

      Never the less, John was finally able to lift himself without waking, Maggie. Reaching down between the cushions, he was surprised to find that he had slept on the large pair of toenail clippers. Carefully, he slipped the clippers back under the cushion, and ran his hand along the crack as far as he could reach, to see if there was anything else useful. There was nothing else of value but an old book of a few matches, and a plastic fork in napkin packet from some fast food restaurant. Mostly it was just some candy wrappers, and a few small coins. John placed some of the items on the arm of the couch for the time being. After searching one more time, he slipped what he had retrieved into a small pocket in his jumper.

      John then began to examine Maggie. She had a black eye, and her face was bruised on both sides, but her left cheek was the worst. She had dried blood on her dress, and in her nose. Looking at her head, he could see where she had some blood in her hair, but as he carefully moved the hair, he could tell that the cut he found there was not very deep. He prayed that she did not have a concussion, because he did not really even know what one was, let alone how to help if she did. He only knew that it was bad

      Then, most carefully of all, he began to run his hand down Maggie’s left arm. He could feel that her elbow was swollen, and her wrist looked swollen too. He moved her wrist and hand, which caused her to moan.

      John began to cry softly over his sister. He knew that it was a stupid thing to do, but he could not help it. The fact that he knew that he should be trying to find a way to get help, or at least think of a way to keep them from killing them outright, made him feel even worse. He had always known that he owed Maggie more than he could ever repay for all that she had done for his whole life; and, now that she needed him so badly, he had no idea what to do. What she had done last night had stunned him almost as much as it had broken his heart. All he could seem to think about, was how she had been willing to let them beat her to death — to protect him.

      In the end, all he could do was to pray that she was OK. Not knowing what to do for her was almost worse than when they had come at him last night. So he cried silently, so as not to wake his sister to the horror of where they were.

&Nbsp;
 

      Some time later, when his head began to clear, he managed to get up, and move around. He looked around the room for any sign of escape, but found nothing. He also tried to call out softly at the door to see if there was anyone on the other side. If there was, he did not hear any response. It was while checking the door that Maggie began to shift, and trying to sit up.

      John rushed back over to his sister, and helped her up gently. She was sitting up, before her eyes rose to see his face. She did not say a word, but simply slipped her right arm around his neck, and pulled his head tightly to her shoulder. He felt silly that he was crying again, but not that much. This time it was relief.

      “Are you Ok, Maggie?” He whispered softly.

      Maggie groaned, and released him slowly. She tried to say something, but could not until she cleared her throat, an action that clearly hurt her, judging by the face that she made the first few times she tried.

      “I’m… I’m OK.” she managed.

      “Can I look at your side?” John asked.

      Maggie tried to raise her blouse up on the left side, but she could not make it. John helped her, seeing more bruises on her legs, and then on her side, just at the bottom of her ribs.

      “God, Maggie,” he said as he looked at her side, “That looks bad. I’m so sorry.”

      “Not you, John.” The effort of talking clearly cost her.

      John asked if there was anything he could do

      “I hurt, John, but I’ll be ok, I think.” Maggie said probing her own side gently.

      “What did they hit you with?” John said, looking for the cloth they had used last night, and gratefully finding it, along with some napkins, on the side of the couch. Of course, by now only very slightly damp, so he licked the corner, as he gently tried to clean his sister’s face.

      “Didn’t.” Maggie began. “Bitch knocked me off the chair. Big one, picked me up, and threw me back, but the chair fell over, and I fell over the side of it.” Maggie finished panting for breath. “Hurts. Hands tied, I fell over side of chair. Think I passed out, because I woke up on the couch.”

      “I’m so sorry, Maggie. You should have told them sooner.” John began…

      For the first time, Maggie moved quickly, as she looked up, and looked at his face, but clearly she was not focused on him. She was remembering what had happened last night.

      “Oh god, John. I’m sorry. I told them it was you…” She began to sob freely.

      “It’s OK, Maggie. You had to. If you hadn’t we would both be dead. It’s ok You saved us.” John said to her as convincingly as he possibly could. Maggie just nodded her head.

      “I have to Pee.” She said softly, looking about the room. “Bad” And then she tried to smile at him

      He almost laughed, because it had come out of nowhere, but the humor only lasted for moments — as he realized that he did too.

 
 

o O o
 
 

     Detective Alan Baxter had only been on the job for two weeks. He had spent most of his career in uniform for the 53rd. He loved the people he worked with, or most of them. He loved the job — usually. Not today. Detective Jackson had transferred in from another precinct four months before. He was supposed to be training Baxter, as the newest detective in the unit, but Baxter had forgotten more about police work than this Jackson guy ever knew. His mother had forgotten more about police work than this guy ever new. He had almost blown the tail two separate times.

      It was good though. Mason had pulled him aside, and talked to him before they left the station. “I know you’ve been here since you were born; but, just keep your eyes open. You are a detective now, Baxter. I recommended you, so I want you to do well, but more than that, I want you to get those kids back. You watch yourself out there. If you find them, don’t do anything, unless they try to move them. These are bad people; as bad as any you will ever meet. If they do try to move them, and you have to move in, shoot first, and don’t stop until they are down. We’ll do what we have to afterwards. Understood?”

      Baxter had been a little shocked, but he knew the score. This was one of those jobs where cops would die the moment they screwed up. These Asian hoods were always having their wars, like in the old west. They would not hesitate to pop anyone who got in their way, cops included. The few guys in the Tong, whom he had met personally, would have gladly come at him the first chance they got, and he knew it. So be it. It would be no quarter if it came to it. If only Jackson could keep from blowing the fucking tail…

      Baxter squeezed the microphone. “Jackson!… Unit C is in place, and we should turn off now. I think we should ease back a little, and take the next left, and follow on 83rd.” He said as casually as possible, when Jackson had missed his turn off...

 
 

o O o
 
 

     John was looking around for something for them to use, but all he found was a small office type plastic trash can under the table with the lamp that had been placed just beside the door. So first he dumped a couple of pieces of paper out of it, he didn’t know why really, and then he helped Maggie over to where he put the bucket behind the upholstered chair in the corner. After her, he used it too.

      Maggie was still in pain, but she was moving much better now as she carefully flexed to find the extent of her mobility. John took the opportunity to search the rest of the couch, and then the chair. The only other things he found were some comic books on the floor under the chair, and a dime. Maggie looked over what he had, then she looked around the room, and then moved to look at the door herself.

      There were no windows, and just a ventilator pipe on the ceiling, which she could never reach. John picked up the toenail clippers, and walked over to the door behind Maggie. Again, he called softly, which startled her, but when he received no answer again, he tried the knob. To his complete amazement, the knob turned, and the door opened four inches. Unfortunately, that was all it would move before a chain finally stopped it.

      Maggie quickly pushed him aside, and moved to listen at the crack, before she reached out to feel the chain for as far as she could reach. However, Maggie could not stand the pain it caused for her to reach out and around the doorframe, so she motioned John back over.

      “Just look for a hook or a lock.” She said softly.

      John got his arm out, and began to feel the chain, but he could not do it either. Then he got an idea, and began to slide the chain through the hasp as quietly as possible. He wend as softly as he could, but in the empty hallway, it sounded like an ongoing freeway pileup. Soon enough, however, a padlock came into view, and they knew that the chain was there to stay.

      In a moment of inspiration, John sat on the floor, and taking hold of the edge of the door near the bottom, and bracing his feet on the wall, he tried to pull the door to enlarge the gap, hoping they could slide through - but it was no use. It was metal, and very solid.

      Looking at the door again, Maggie moved to the other side where the hinges were.

      “Close the door, and bring the clippers here, John.” she whispered.

      They began to examine the hinges. If they could pull out the pins, they could get the door open. They might just get out of there yet. John began to work on the pins by pushing the clippers under the head of the pin, and pushing up, while Maggie looked at the rest of the furnishings in the room.

      John quickly got the middle pin out of the door, but the top and the bottom had some kind of ring on the bottom of the pin. He did not try to force it, because he felt that to damage the door, and not get out would only ruin their last chance. He wanted to check it out a little more before he began to hack at the pins. Maggie agreed, and they both looked around again.

      “Any Ideas?” Maggie asked.

“Yes, I’m pretty sure that the thing on the bottom of the pins unscrews. I can probably pull the pins out, but I’m not going to be able to get them back in, and the door looks pretty heavy. It may fall, if we move it…”

      John looked around the room for a moment or two.

      “Also, we have the lamp, but It’s too light to do much damage, even if I could get behind one of them.” John paused in thought for just a moment, and then continued “…But, we could take the cord off, but I’m not sure what good it would do, because even if I could get it around one of their necks, I’m not sure if I’d be strong enough….” He finished, shaking his head with worry, and disgust.

      “What do you mean about the cord?” She asked. “It’s an electrical cord.” She finished to herself, softly.

      John tried to follow her idea. “Well, we could pull the cord out of the lamp, and then plug it in to give them a shock…” He started to explain, but she interrupted him as she began to get excited.

      “That’s right, we could electrocute the bitch…” She began, but stopped when John put the tips of his fingers on her lips.

      “Maggie, I don’t think that will work. I mean did you ever get a shock from an outlet?”

      “Yes, you know I have?” she said wondering what he was getting at.

      “Well, so have I, and Neither of us are dead, are we.” He asked.

      “Right.” She said as she thought little more. “When people get in water or something, and get really grounded, then they fry. If not, then you just get a jolt.”

      “That’s what I’m afraid of. We don’t have any water, and without it, I think it would just piss them off.” He finished, as he looked back at the door. When he looked back at Maggie, she had this really funny look on her face.

      “What is it, do you hear them?” he asked while trying to listen harder.

      “No, it’s just something that you said. It made me think that we do have something. It’s in the trash can.” She said this while looking at the lamp. Then Maggie took two steps over to retrieve the trash bucket, and placed it on the floor in front of the little table with the lamp.

      John had a dubious, and distasteful look on his face as he spoke “I suppose you’re right, but I don’t think that we should try anything cute. I say we just pull the pins out of the door, and get the heck out of here. Can you Move, Maggie? I don’t want to be here when they get back.” he was really terrified, and it showed.

      “You’re damned right I’ll move; but John, even if I can’t, you have to keep going. You have to get away.” He began to argue, but she stopped him with her tone. “John, I’m sorry, but you know what Nor said. As long as one of us is loose, the others are better off. If you have to go, you go; and please, we don’t have time to argue.

      “What about Noriko?” He asked.

      “I don’t know, John. I think that if they found her, that they would have brought her in here too. If they found her, and killed her, then they would have said something I think, but they haven’t. I just don’t know. All I know is that we can’t wait for her to find us. I don’t think that we have that much time. Even if she is still alive.”

      John could see that just saying that had cost his sister dearly. Tears were sliding down her face, and she made no effort to wipe them away. “Hurry, John.”

      It was clear that Maggie thought they should not have wasted even the few minutes they had taken to look for other ways out. John had seen it in the eyes of their captors too. If they could not get away before the bad guys came back, then they were dead.

      John did not say any more. He simply turned back to the door, and began to work on the bottom hinge pin. It took him longer than he thought, but he finally figured out how he had to unscrew the bottom, which was hard since he only had one pair of toenail clippers that he’d had to bend open to grab hold of the bottom of the pin. He got it out finally, though, and then pulled one of the metal chairs over to begin working on the top hinge, while Maggie unplugged the lamp on the table beside him…

 
 

o O o
 
 

     Noriko, and Mason were sitting in his small office at the station, listening to reports from the units in the field. The detectives had been following the pair from the hotel for over an hour, but for the last thirty minutes, they seemed to be taking their time. They had been in the same small area for a good fifteen minutes, and except for a couple of phone calls, they showed no sign of moving on, or doing much of anything. This told the officers that the meeting must be soon, but even though the cops seemed pleased by this, it was little consolation for Noriko.

      She was in her own private hell, not knowing how she had screwed up, except for the fact that they must have been seen. She also knew that that the thing that was eating at her the most was that she had already done all that she could. There was nothing more that she could do, and she had never felt so helpless, and hopeless in her life.

      For Detective Captain Mason, it was a hard wait also. He knew that there were actually two possibilities for why the two suspects had stopped where they were. They could have made the tail, which given what he thought of Jackson, seemed the most likely reason to his mind. His only consolation was that punks this young would usually run. To stop and stay put was the mark of a much older and much more experienced criminal.

      Baxter had not said anything specifically on the air, but several of his calls had left little doubt that Jackson had not turned particularly competent at any time this particular morning.

      It was about that time, that the Precinct Commander walked into his office, and slammed the door so hard behind him that at first Mason thought he had broken the glass. It was obvious that the Chief had just gotten in, and that he was as angry as Mason had ever seen him.

      “Detective, would you mind telling me just what the fuck has been going on here this morning?”

      Precinct Chief Webber looked for all the world like a man who was fighting to get the words out without biting his own tongue off. He finished by slamming a fax that had come in from The Times on Mason’s desk.

      “You just take a look at that god damned story that The Times is asking me to comment on before they send it to print by ten this morning! On top of that, my wife just called me, and told me that the news is running a story about how we’ve completely fucked up the Chin Lau investigation so bad that we not only let the top members of the gang probably walk Scot-free; but now we may be responsible for two child witnesses being murdered. I’d kind of like to know if it’s true before I talk to these jokers, so you damned well better start telling me what’s going on, and damned fast; because, in three minutes or less, you had better be telling me what the fuck have you been doing about it!”

      Weber stopped, glairing at Mason, his breathing so heavy that he looked now like a bull in a ring, who was just making up his mind when to charge.

      Mason picked up the fax, mostly to cover the fact that he already knew what was written there, and scanned it, before he looked back at his boss.

      “It’s very simple Al. The two kids took the bag money that we thought walked away, and it looks like the Tong got to them first. In part, it was because this woman tried to get the kids out of town. In part because, thanks to that Fuck-up that they sent down here to take over for me, we lost about three hours with the boy wonder doing an impression of a detective with his head up his ass. I got here about a half hour after I got the call from the desk sergeant and one of my men, telling me that Jackson had made a possible collar in the Lau case.”

      Webber looked back at Noriko, and asked “Then, why isn’t she in a cell, Captain?”

      “Because she hasn’t been charged. She is assisting us in this investigation.” Mason said calmly.

      “Well at the very least, Mason, she’s a material witness in a capitol kidnapping case, and is guilty of obstruction. Would you like to explain what the fuck she is doing giving interviews to the press in the middle of the night? And while you are at it, perhaps you can give me a reason why I don’t lock you both up in the same cell right now, so that I can get to the bottom of this whorehouse you call an investigative unit?”

     If Jackson had not held her, and read her rights to her before he had any idea exactly what was going on, I probably would have been able to stop this. But since she was demanding that she be released already, I knew that if we did, that it would look like we were just stalling around like a second rate bunch of fools. The second she got her lawyer in here, it would take him about five minutes on the phone with judge Hanes, who was on the bench last night by the way, to secure an order for her release.

      You see, Al. Not only would that set us up for false arrest, but also it would have possibly prevented us from securing help from Miss Yokoshira. I thought it would be better to get her on our side quickly. At least, I thought it would be a lot better than just locking up someone who’s told us everything already, and perhaps it would even allow us to focus on the kids. I need her help if I’m to get those kids back.”

      “What about the Kids?” Webber asked. This time, the sound of his voice, and even his facial expression looked completely different.

      “We have two of the bagman under tail right now, and we are hoping they will contact one of the top tong members shortly. Hopefully, it will be one who will lead us to them. It sucks, but right now, it’s the best we have. We know who has them, but we don’t know where they are.” Mason wanted to yell too, but knew that it would do no good. “Wherever they are, I hope the news story will keep them put long enough, because those S.O.B’s will be afraid to move them.”

      “Jesus H. Christ!, so that was your idea? Well tell me, Captain, what if they are in a secure place, what do you think Lau will do to them?”

      Mason took another breath, as his eyes flickered in Noriko’s direction. “Since they obviously know where the money is, then they could have killed the kids already. If they were going to do that, then it’s too late. The story is the best hope, if they are not already dead. If they are, then it doesn’t matter, because we are already looking for them with as many men as we could pull in from other duties. Either way, if it makes them nervous enough to make a mistake, so much the better.”

      Noriko was now sobbed almost silently, but although both men heard her, neither turned away from the battle of wills that was taking place. Perhaps it was what made them such good friends. It definitely made them both better cops.

      Al’s shoulders slumped only slightly. “Jesus. If those kids are already dead, then the press and the Mayor will have my ass on the flagpole down at the City Hall. They’ll have a field day.” He shook his head. “I hope you realize that the field we are talking about will be both our asses! You had better not fuck this up, Mason, because if you do we are all out of a job, and before I turn in my gun and shield, I will, by god, shoot you and that stupid bastard Jackson myself. But for now, I want her locked up.”

      “On what Charge, Al?” Mason asked far more calmly than he felt.

      “Grand theft for the money, and Obstruction.” He snapped.

      “It won’t wash, Al. She sent a letter to the Commissioner detailing where the money could be found. If that letter shows up, which I’m sure it will, we have no grounds. The obstruction would be pretty hard to push too, considering I wanted her to talk to the press. That, and the fact that she gave a statement that she had intended to contact the police or the FBI once the children were safely out of town, because she had reason to believe from local contacts that the tong had infiltrated this unit…”

     The chief’s eyes snapped to Noriko, but his mouth only tightened, and he said nothing.

      “…The best we can nail her for is being scared and stupid. Unfortunately, it’s not only you and I who will know that what she did wasn’t all that stupid. If we bust her now, it’s going to look like retaliation to every two-bit stringer with a course in journalism.”

      “Well was it your fucking brainstorm to tell them that we were the most incompetent bunch of imbeciles since the porcupine tried to fuck on an electrically heated waterbed?”

      “No. I think you can thank Jackson for that idea, Al. He came up with that all on his own. I only let the story out to try and save two little kids. He was the one with the liquored up porcupine in his bed.” Mason said flatly, his calm about to slip finally.

      Frustrated, but knowing his friend better than he did his own wife, the chief of detectives turned on Noriko. “You want to tell me why you went tried to make us look like fools. Did you think that part would help? Why didn’t you come to us, before you tired to stick a knife in our backs?”

      Noriko just looked back at him for a moment or two. She was too tired to care any more. She spoke her mind: “Come to you?” she gave an excellent impression of incredulity; which just may have come from hanging around with all those theater companies for so long. “And just where were you all this time, captain? I didn’t see you when that ass had me in an interrogation room half the night. How many people have you gone down to see in an interrogating room, while your god-damned detectives were acting like a bunch of apes having a shit fight at the zoo? I suspect we both know the answer.

      It wasn’t your back I stabbed. If you look carefully, the bruise where I kicked you is a little lower than that. I just want those children found, and I don’t care what happens to you, or to me, or most especially not some idiot detective lieutenant who is so obviously unfit to pick up after a dog.” Even Noriko was amazed at how calm and normal her voice sounded.

      The Chief knew that his only chance was for the children to be found safe, and that those odds were very long indeed. He looked back at Mason, who just returned his stare, while he tried to assess his odds. Even if he threw his friend down the chute right here and now, and tried to save what he could, it would not be enough. Nothing he did now would matter. If this went south, then they were both screwed. He could see in Mason’s eyes that he knew all this too. Well, at least if he had to risk his pension at this late date, it was on the one man who had never failed him… Yet.

      The chief motioned his Detective Captain to follow him, and both men walked out of the room. All personality was forgotten, as both tried to see what they could do to improve the odds.

      When they had left, Noriko physically slumped in the chair. If there had been any other person in the room to hear, they would have noticed how loud the ticking of the clock sounded at that moment, and perhaps if they listened closely enough, a very small sad voice that said: “Where are you?”

 
 

o O o
 
 

     It was impossible with one set of stupid clippers, but he could not give up now. He was almost frantic trying to get the last pin out. So much so that Maggie had even stopped urging him on. He didn’t respond to her anymore anyway. She worked on the lamp, trying to pull the cord off, intending to use it to strangle the first person through the door. Perhaps in that way, John at least could get away.

      She had no success, until John threw the pair of nail clippers on the table in disgust. He had been using them to jam into the gap between that ring at the bottom of the pin, and the door, trying to hold it as he turned the pin to loosen. He found, however, that by jamming in pieces of the plastic fork instead, that the last pin was starting to turn finally. Feeling like an idiot, Maggie picked up the clippers, and quickly snipped off the cord at the base.

 
 

o O o
 
 

     The radio call came in while Mason and Al were still outside. “This is Baxter, we have them.” he said, and then as if he was talking to someone else away from the microphone. “No! Don’t move. Lets see what happens.”

      Another voice came through “Let go of my arm, Baxter. Who the fuck you think you are…” before the click of the mic button cut off the tirade.

      “Christ.” Mason Whispered to himself, and walked over to the encrypted radio set that they were using to monitor from the squad room. The detective who was monitoring the set did not even look over his shoulder at Mason, as his boss reached past his shoulder for the microphone. “Baxter, this is Mason. What do you have?”

      “We got two of them, Captain. The big scary looking one who runs around with the woman Ling, and the other big fellow who we thought worked directly for Lau himself. It looks like they are moving in to talk with the kids now. It looks like we have some the tong’s top people on this one, so we may be lucky.” Then, they heard the mike button snap again, followed by a short burst of static.

      “Baxter, listen,” looking at the Map that was spread on the desk, the one that the detective sitting at the desk was holding a sharpened pencil point on, “can you make it over to unit C on foot?”

      “I think so, but if you’ll forgive me, Sir, that’s not a very good idea. It may attract their attention to us. These guys are not like trailing a bunch of kids. These are the bodyguards for the top members of the Tong. We’ll be lucky to even track of them without giving it all away.”

      “I know that, Baxter, but I need Jackson here, and I need him now. We have another lead, and I want my most experienced man to coordinate with the Chief Inspector on it.” He hoped the lie sounded better on the other end.

      The station chief just nodded at Mason. He had been around a long time, and knew that he had been coldly had when one of the “top candidates” from another precinct had been rammed down his throat. He knew that he was probably going to get a fuck-up of some type. He just never envisioned it would be this bad. This guy surpassed all their expectations. In a weak moment, the desk sergeant had said that he must have been fucking the Mayor’s dog for years, with full motion video, to still carry a shield. Being the mayor’s nephew couldn’t possibly be enough.

      Again they heard an argument going on. “I don’t care what he fu…” The line went dead again with a loud snap.

      It was almost a full minute later when Baxter called in again. “Captain, when they move, Jackson, and I will sit tight, and I’ll let unit bravo tail them. He is in front of them anyway. Then I’ll jump out, and duck through the store on the corner, and Jackson will be on the way back. What the…”

      Then Jackson’s voice came on. “Sir I protest this order. It could ruin my investigation when we are very close here. Is this really necessary?”

      “It’s necessary, Jackson. Just get yourself back here. We don’t need you for this, and I’m calling in other units to join the parade. We need more men on this one, and I need you here to coordinate the larger op.”

      He snapped his fingers at the detective at the desk, and held up two fingers to the man. This was unnecessary, thought, since the detective was already on the phone with dispatch, ordering in two more teams of detectives and passing the word to the uniformed units in the area that they were in play. Mason continued as if none of that were going on: “Besides you’ve been on them all morning. It’s better for you to pull back, and let someone else take over. Out.”

      Mason killed the mike in disgust. “His investigation! Slimy little bastard.” He whispered just loud enough that no one outside of the building could possibly have heard him.

 
 

o O o
 
 

     The bottom of the door pin turned freely now. Two of John’s fingers were bleeding, because he had only gotten it to turn by getting his finger stuck between the pin and the door; but, the pin was slowly moving, held now only by the weight of the door.

      “Maggie!” he called urgently, “I think I’ve got it.” As he began twist and pull the pin as hard as he could, grunting freely with the effort. She came over, still holding the shade-less lamp and a cord in her hands.

      “Good, John. Hurry!”

      “I am.” She heard.

 
 

o O o
 
 

     Noriko looked at the clock. It was ten, a.m. She must have dozed. While she was sleeping, her mind had not stopped, though. In her unconscious state, her Id had played the cruelest of games with her by summoning up all manor of horrible ends for friends. The most common of which was the thought that when the thugs had seen the news, that they had slaughtered the children right in front of the TV as it blared out their peril. Noriko thought she would be physically ill many minutes after she awoke.

 
 

o O o
 
 

     The news story had sent the ‘thugs’ into consternation. Noriko could not know that it had in fact bought time for several hours while they decided what to do. Had it not been for that, the children would have been in a van on the way west, and well out of town at that hour. Unfortunately, now it looked like they would be headed east, later tonight, instead: toward the river

 
 

      Ling knew that she had to recover that money, if she were ever to save face, but her uncle was already telling her to cut their losses. She had no doubts of her tenuous standing with him, family or no. When their two bodyguards got back, she was to start cleaning up. She was already on the way back to the factory to check on the little shit she had left there to watch them. She had half a mind to get rid of him as well, but did not know how to do it, without freaking out her own bodyguard.

      Perhaps she would tell him to stay and clean up the factory before the workers came back on Monday. The factory was just coming in sight, and she smiled in spite of herself. At least she was free to pay the little bitch, and her darling little brother back for the trouble they had caused her. Her stomach began to flutter with the excitement she always felt at such times. Soon, now. Very soon…

 
 

      On impulse, Maggie knelt down, and plugged in the cord. She tentatively touched it to the metal of the table leg, causing an unimpressive electrical arc. She laid it carefully on the wooden tabletop. John was grunting with effort, and bending over as she was, she could clearly see that the thin metal of the chair he was standing on was beginning to buckle. “Hold it John!” she hissed. “The chair is breaking. Here, try this,” she said, as she handed him the lamp. It was too much for him to do at one time, however, and finally they wound up with him holding the clippers on the pin as tightly as he could, while she hit them from the bottom with the lamp. Suddenly, without warning the pin slipped free.

      For full second or two, both John and Maggie watched the door as if they expected it to pop open by itself. The door did not move however, which confused both children.

      “Now what?” John asked to himself, as he stepped off the chair, and reached over to pull the door open by the knob. For the first inch of travel, the door swung out just as it normally would.

      Maggie whispered, “John, be…”

      He never heard the rest. The door, which was much heavier than either of them suspected, slipped off of the hinges, and swing by the chain down onto metal chair, creating a series of loud metallic bangs and booms that seemed to shake the floor itself. It was the door itself, which even as it swung around, that fortunately knocked John away, and onto his rear.

      It seemed that the door had only just come to rest, laying sideways, but still partially blocking the door where it was held up at an angle by the chain; when they could hear the sound of a door slamming down the hall, and running feet.

      In panic, Maggie rushed to see if John was Ok. He was, and he was almost back up on his feet before she could reach him. The running feet were closer now, their loud sound punctuated with swearing. Maggie unconsciously held the lamp in front of her as she stepped between John and the door.

      The punk that had been there last night suddenly slid to a halt in the doorway. Clearly, he had been asleep, as he looked from the door to the two children. “What the fuck…” he started to climb into the room over the door, over anxious to get at the still trapped children, when finally he took notice of the lamp that Maggie held before her. He stopped, balancing precariously on the door as it shifted on the chain; and, with his eyes never leaving the children he began to reach to the small of his back in an effort to draw his gun.

      John and Maggie had been in this position once before, trapped in the elevator, and had tried the calm approach. Not this time. John began to push past her, but it was Maggie who sprang forward with a loud shriek, and slammed the lamp into the thugs shoulder. She had aimed at his head, but he had put his right hand up to protect himself.

      The force of the blow was not great enough to put him out of commission, but it did cause him to loose his balance, and he began to scramble for footing. “Fuck!” he shouted, as he finally lost his balance, and fell very heavily to the door, and slid into the table and the wastebasket sitting there.

      Both Maggie and John were frozen in place for a moment, as they watched the spectacle of the young hood crashing to the floor. Unfortunately, it was just enough time to allow him to bring the gun back up, and point it at Maggie’s face. “Drop it, or I blow your frigging brains out, you little pain in the ass.” Maggie was ready strike out, but John, seeing the impossible odds clearly, reached over and pushed the lamp down until Maggie released it.

      At the sound of the lamp thudding on the floor, the hood reached down without looking away from the children, and pushed the wastebasket away from his feet. Feeling that he was soaked, his eyes snapped involuntarily to look at his feet as they slipped on the wet floor, and door.

      The hood put his hand down to the bottoms of his jeans, and touched the wetness he felt there. “What the fuck did you do?” he asked, as he brought the tips of his fingers to his nose…

      His eyes flashed around to blaze at the two children. “You fucking little bitch. I’m going to kill you myself,” he screamed at them. Then in anger, he turned to untangle his feet, as he tried to pull himself out of the offal liquid he was sitting in. In his murderous rage, kicked the table away from him, causing the cord to fall onto his legs.

      The reaction was instant. The thug tried to scream but the sound that came out was more like a prolonged grunt, as his spine arched, slamming his head back into the door. He continued to spasm, as the light in the ceiling began to dim, and the buzz of live electrical circuits began to grow louder. Again the hood tried to scream. His hand still convulsively gripped the steel doorframe, and his eyes rolled back in his head, as smoke began to rise from his lower legs.

      Then the lights went out.

      Maggie and John just stood there for moments, neither moving, until the lights flickered once more, as the automatic breakers tried to reset. This causing the thug’s body to lurch upward again, but this time much less so than he had done when he was still alive.

      That was enough. Maggie reached for John’s arm, and began to move to the door. John started to reach for the gun in the punk’s hand, but Maggie pulled him frantically back. “No, John! You’ll be electrocuted” and just then the lights flickered again, showing that Maggie was probably right.

      Looking at the door, both children were afraid to try and cross it with the electricity going on and off at random. Suddenly, John, then got an idea, and ran back to the couch, and pulling the cushions off. Once he got back over beside Maggie, he put them on top of the door so that they could get out. In moments they were outside, and their footsteps echoing down the corridor as they ran…

 
 

o O o
 
 

      "Unit B! Move! Move! I think they are looking at you, I want you to pull up and pass them on the left. You are out of it, so just keep going.” Once again there was the low mummer of the open channel. Baxter swore before it went dead.

      It was the second unit that the young detective had pulled out of the tail. He was running out of units fast at this rate, but Mason knew he was right. Mason did not even consider reaching for the handset. These two were the bodyguards, and were used to looking for set ups, and traps at all times. He knew that one mistake, and if the kids were still alive, a cell call would be made…

      Thank god he pulled Jackson out. The kid was doing well, bringing a twinge of personal vindication to Mason’s gut for recommending him, but the odds were still foul. It was the thugs second trip through the two same neighborhoods, obviously checking for surveillance. Watching Baxter try to keep the situation alive was like seeing a kitten thrown into a pit with two bulldogs. The kitten was keeping away, but how long could it last. All Mason could do was to silently cheer him on for each new minute he lasted.

      Mason looked back at the door to his office, wherein the woman waited. He had no real intention of telling her but he badly wanted to.

      It would do no good, and he knew that desire came mostly from his feeling so helpless. Well, there was one thing he could do. He picked up the phone, and hit the four-digit code that would connect him to the 42nd precinct’s dispatcher. It was just a few seconds when he started to speak “This is Mason at the 53rd. I have a tail moving into your zone, and I need at least two plain-clothes backup units to assist. Subject is moving down Watson Boulevard, between Geary and Hospital Square. Subjects are armed and extremely dangerous. I also need you to get Detective Captain Benson on the phone, right now…” He did not think they would get there in time, but it was something.

      Out on Watson Blvd., Baxter was reaching over the back seat into a bag to pull out a baseball cap, and some sunglasses. It was rapidly reaching the point that they may have to peal off for good too, but his instinct alone was telling him he still had one more shot in there with the hat trick. He wished it were a pair of pants. Detective Baxter was sweating so bad that he felt like he had pissed his seat.

      Best not to think of that though…, he thought uncomfortably.

      No one had designated him in command. In fact, any one of the detectives on the detail outranked him, and at least two should have taken over. They were all listening to the same channel however, and the calls to the Captain had seemingly designated him. Besides, everyone was just too damned busy trying not to bee seen. At least two realized that it was a no-win, that they really didn’t want any part of. Baxter had almost expected a call ordering him back to the precinct house too, but mostly he was just too busy and too scared to think about it.

      “Baxter, this is Mason, come in!” For just a moment, he felt like he might just piss himself after all- or at the very least throw up. Slipping the hat on his head, he picked up the microphone and almost choked, “Go, sir!”

      “Easy Baxter! You are doing fine. Now listen. There is a green mustang up ahead of you, do you see it.”

      Baxter looked, and quickly spotted the car about two blocks up, being driven by an older woman. “I have it sir. Why?” he asked more abruptly than he had wanted to speak to the man who was to all extents his mentor.

      Mason, came right back: “Now listen son. That’s an unmarked pursuit car from the 42nd. On the next turn by the suspects, the officer will pull to the side, and take you in the car. I have three more cars lined up, and two more units of detectives from the 42nd joining you on this TAC channel right now. They will be unit E in a gray Taurus, and F in a black Volvo wagon, and a black and white. Copy?”

      “Copy Sir.” Baxter said, more grateful for the sanction from Mason, than he was for the actual cars.

      “Now be careful. The officer in the Mustang has been instructed to watch to make sure that the suspect vehicle is out of sight first, but when she’s sure, she will stop wherever she is. You have to move fast, so that you don’t cause a traffic snarl, and attract too much attention. For god’s sake, don’t get in an accident, because that will tip off the goons. Leave detective Burk in your unit, and get ahead of them as fast as you can. Copy?” Mason had said it all with one breath.

      It was a few seconds more than he expected, before Baxter came on the line. So long in fact that Mason was just about to call him back. Finally, when the speaker once again carried Baxter’s voice, he was speaking to the team. “All Units. This is Baxter. We just got some help. I’m going to execute a car swap into a green Two-thousand-seven Mustang, plate number Alpha-Lima-Echo-one-five-three. I want unit Bravo to move forward to take position behind unit Delta. Unit Echo will move into position, and get ready to take over after Unit Bravo. Unit Charlie, will drop out, and contact base on another channel, and follow at a distance. Unit A, the green mustang, will continue down Weston, and move to do a cross over. Units, Echo, and Fox, acknowledge.”

      Mason sighed, and looked at the Precinct Captain. He too had once aspired to be an Assistant Chief of the whole force, and had even once, for two horrible years, been a precinct commander. He had found, however, as he grew older, that he preferred police work. His friend had those now, and he was glad that they were his babies. To his great surprise, his boss just nodded at him, and picking up the fax, turned and walked out of the room.

      It was unwritten, but clearly understood between them both, that once he was out of the picture, that someone would look after young detective, Baxter. The boy was very good, and deserved that much at least.

 
 

      From somewhere behind him, he could hear a loud arrogant, and grating voice demanding his whereabouts. Mason smiled. It did not matter any more that Jackson had the same last name as the Mayor. This was one thing that he could do, and was damned well going to enjoy it.

      With the Newspapers hitting the streets in a few hours, he had a free hand to deal with this particular asshole. With his retirement papers in hand, there was no way for the bastards pushing him along to retaliate either. Yes, this was going to be a small pay back that he should have been able to give for a half a dozen assholes over the past thirty-six years, and he was going to make it count. That had been understood, but unspoken between he and his boss as well.

      Mason turned back to another detective. “Cassandra, would you go and get Miss Yokoshira out of my office for a few minutes. Take her down to get some food into her. I don’t want her here right now, and I’m going to need my office?”

      “Yes Captain.” The woman who was almost as young as Baxter was, answered with only a slight smile. Something in her voice however, caught the attention of everyone in the room. Clearly the joy and relief at what was about to happen to her nominated boss had reached the far corners of the room. All she had said was Yes, but she might as well have called him “darling.” He treasured the relief in her eyes even more than his own anticipation.

 
 

End of Act III

 
 

By

Sarah Lynn Morgan

[email protected]

 
 

Thank you for reading! If you like this story, Please take a moment to click on the vote
box at the top of the page. Comments are most gratefully welcome, and appreciated!

          Gentles all:   The following story contains reference to a form of Japanese street fashion, the adherents to which refer to as Elegant Gothic Lolita. Note, that the term “Lolita” refers to this style of clothing. This, with Gabi's kind help, is a revised and illustrated version of the story that originally appeared on Crystal’s Storysite.

Hansel and Gretel: A Fairytale. Finale. By Sarah Lynn Morgan

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 
 
 

Finale

 
 

     John slammed the side of his fist into the third door, because it too was locked.

      Margaret had to stop for a breath. Her hand went reflexively to her side.

      “At least the inside doors are mostly unlocked, but we need to find a way out!” John was panting too.

      “I know that, come on, and lets try this way.” Maggie said, as she pulled him toward a room full of trash bins. She froze for a moment as several very large rats sprang for any hiding place.

      Most of the bins were empty, but several full ones stood by a large square door in the wall that obviously lead to a dumpster. John lifted a bar, and swung it aside to see if they could get out that way. It only led to the inside of a compactor. They could not get out that way either. In disgust, John pushed the door closed, and had begun to run toward the hall once more, frantically looking for a way out. When the metal door hit, and the handle flipped down, it caused a loud metallic boom.

      "Shit!” Maggie gasped over the pain, and panting in her side.

 
 

      Behind them, Ling Lau was creeping quickly but quietly toward the room where the children were supposed to be with her gun already in her hand. She could see the door on its side, and knew something had gone badly wrong. Her gun was drawn, not from fear of the two children, but because she was going to shoot the first person she saw, especially that asshole she left here to make sure that nothing went wrong. Thank god that the double outside door she had chained when she left the building had still been locked. She was almost at the small room...

 
 

o O o
 
 

     “All units, all units, subject vehicle has just pulled over! Christ, it’s the old man!”

      There was a pause of about a half a second, then came “No, don’t slow down! Keep moving. All units! Suspect vehicle has just pulled over, and the Old Man, believed to be Chin Lau is getting in the car. Unit A, alpha will move to Sixteenth Street. Unit Echo, move south two blocks, and hold. Unit Foxtrot move four blocks north and hold. Unit Bravo will pull into the Texaco Station across the street. They must not have seen us yet, so everyone just watch it. Don’t blow it now, for god’s sake… Everyone stay calm… Out.”

      Mason smiled at that one. They might just bag the old man too. If they could link him to a capitol kidnap of two minors, along with all the other stuff they had, they would be able to throw him in a hole so deep, he’d run out of air. Good.

      The slamming of the door behind him, as Jackson stormed out on indefinite administrative leave, made him smile even more broadly…

 
 

o O o
 
 

     John and Maggie had moved up the stairs, and were trying windows, but most of those had been screwed shut. The only one that that both opened, and that they might be able to climb through, was over a small alley filled with jagged metal. No way could they use it.

      John had fallen on the stairs, and had gotten a cruel bruise on the front of his shin. Now they were both limping, as they frantically searched for a way out. Behind them, they heard the sound of a shot, and then the same loud bang from the trash compactor. Maggie and John both froze, just as the blood in their vanes did.

      Even as the shot still echoed along the long corridors, there came the whine of the compactor’s powerful motors..

      Quickly, Maggie pulled John over to a corner, and pushed him down behind a desk. They had gone through a bunch of rooms that had not been used for a while, and were now back in an area was being used for some kind of storage. It was full of paper drums, and the walls were newly painted, and the lights were brightly lit.

      “Shit, Maggie” John sobbed. Maggie grabbed her brother, ignoring the pain in her side, and hugged him too her as he began to loose it.

      “Shhhhh, John. It’s Ok. This Place is huge, she can’t find us very quickly. We’ll get out before she does.” John nodded his head, but he also let loose another involuntarily whimper. “Be quiet, Hon. Please. Let Maggie think.” Margaret said gently, slipping into a tone that she had not used with John for many years. Neither, Noticed. Maggie was looking around the room, when she noticed some red boxes hanging down from the ceiling over the drums.

      “John, listen.” Maggie said quietly. “We can’t get out.”

      John started to speak, but Maggie stopped him.

      “Shhhh! We can’t get out, John! All the doors are locked. I think I have a way to get help. Do you still have the matches?”

      John hardly remembered, but instinctively shoved his hand into the little pocket, and pulled the matches out.

      “Stay here, John. When I come back, we need to go back down stairs, Ok?”

      John, just nodded again, but did not ask anything more.

      Maggie moved to the drums, and looked up at the sensor. Sure enough, it was a fire detector. She looked down hall quickly, and then bent to read the label on the drums, which read. ‘Hazardous Waste. State Regulated material. Oily solids.’

      Maggie looked at the top for a moment, and quickly figured out how to open the ring. Slipping the ring off, she lifted the drum top to find it filled with oily kitty litter, mixed with metal shavings. The second drum was the same. In the next row, she found what she needed. Rags and paper, all soaked with oil. When this drum moved easily, she quickly realized that she could find these drums just by trying to move them. Moving up and down, shaking the drums, she found that most of them were light, and quickly opened five drums of rags and paper. “Get ready John.” She said, and then looking through the window in the door leading down the hall, she quickly struck a match and lit the waste in the barrel.

      She only got to the third drum, before the whoosh of the flame in the first drum startled her, causing her to drop the matches.

      Looking back in fear, she reached for the matches, and lit the whole pack, and threw them into a bin on the other side of the room. Then taking John’s hand, she quickly made her way out in the direction she and John had been going, looking for more stairs to get down, and head as far away from the fire as they could get. All the while, she was praying that help would come in time.

 
 

o O o
 
 

     “All Units! This is Bravo. Subject turned north. Unit Foxtrot should have them in sight in sight any moment.”

      Unit F was just as fast on the microphone. “We have them. Subject, is moving to the left hand lane, and it looks like they are going to head onto the expressway north. Can anyone else pick them up?”

      Six blocks west, Unit A responded as Officer Janet Smith, who looked old enough to be detective Baxter’s mother, spun the wheel, and gunned through a yellow light as she raced for the next exit north. Baxter dropped the microphone, as he scrambled for his seatbelt. The mustang had been purchased from the state police, who had used it to chase down cars on highways that were faster than the standard police cars could catch.

      Baxter could see why, as officer smith saw an opening, the acceleration pulled Baxter’s head back against the rest. Officer Smith did not even smile at him as he looked over at the speedometer, and watched it jump from forty, and past sixty to seventy in an eye blink; or, as she straddled the white line, and flashed between two vehicles with inches to spare. Officer Smith had three children of her own…, after she had given up driving limited stock cars on dirt tracks down south. The second she hit the ramp, and saw it was clear, the needle shot past ninety-five in the space to two heartbeats…
He didn't look again.

 
 

o O o
 
 

     Margaret and John were on the stairs headed down into a particularly dark area, when the alarms went off. They were startled so much by the loud Siren, and by a flashing yellow light, that they jumped the last three steps to the floor. It was stupid, but it was lucky too. It had also startled Ling, which is why the bullet she had aimed at Maggie’s head smashed the glass of one of the doors that blocked the lower hall behind them. The Report of the gun in the closed hall was also much louder than she was used as well, and that along with the flashing amber light just above the children’s heads distracted her for a scant few moments. That was why her second and third shots also missed.

      “Run!” Maggie screamed, as she began to follow John back up the stairs. Ahead of them she could already hear the sound of the fire, and could feel the heat that followed the smoke flowing down the hall toward them. Even with several rats racing past her in the opposite direction, the curses coming from Ling as she reached the bottom of the stairs frightened her more. She had to get away, so she grabbed John, and pulled him around the corner, and onto the stairs leading to the third floor.

      Ling had just reached the second floor landing, when the drum of flammable liquid that Maggie had not seen nearby, burst. It was not a loud explosion, more like very loud whoosh, and a hiss, and the drum sprayed a mixture of alcohol, and oils all over the room. Ling hesitated, to look down the hall, even as Maggie and John reached the top of the third set of stairs, and raced down yet another long hall, seeking the opposite side of the building. Already the smoke seared their lungs as they ran.

 
 

o O o
 
 

     “Alpha, this is unit Foxtrot. They are taking exit thirty-one. It looks like they are heading west to the industrial park.”

      Captain Mason snatched up the microphone. “Unit Foxtrot, Keep going on to exit Thirty Three, or Thirty four. I know that Park. There are two gates on the main road right through the middle of it. There won’t be very much traffic, and you can see down that road from end to end. All units. Let them go. I’m going to send a Marked Unit down from the opposite end, just like a normal patrol. Wait where you are, and get ready to move in. This may be it.”

      Mason wanted to tell them to make sure to shoot that evil bastard Chin Lau, but he knew if he did, he just might have to share a cell with him. He also knew that at least two of the older men, who had been pulling sixteen-year-old hookers out of dumpsters in Chinatown for far too many years would not miss the opportunity -- if it should legitimately present itself.

      The detective on the desk with the tactical radio was already on the phone to the 42nd’s Lieutenant Benson, who they knew was standing by in his own command center to assist. One of the shadowing marked cars from several blocks to the west was already moving to the north gate to the industrial park, even as the Lau was being driven in the south.

 
 

o O o
 
 

     Maggie and John raced along the hall, until they came to another set of doors. Maggie thought for one horrific moment that they would be locked, and they would be trapped on the third floor with Ling. However, John hit the door ahead of her, and it flew open easily, showing another set stairs just beyond. Ling screamed behind them, having just reached the top of the stairs, but coughing choked off the scream. The coughing once again fouled Ling’s aim, as she loosed another couple of shots at the fleeing children. This time, her shots were quite high, hitting the door as it closed behind them.

 
 

      Chin Lau softly said, “Be calm.” to the bodyguards in the front as the police cruiser turned onto the industrial park road, and began coming toward them from the opposite end.

      The sergeant in the car was a good man, and knew the job. As he cruised toward the suspect vehicle, he purposely turned his head left and right as if he was taking stock of the facilities, while keeping his eyes on the car coming toward him. As he got closer, he shifted to face the oncoming car, and obviously gave them the once-over, just long enough, because to ignore them may have been a giveaway also.

      Even the seasoned Tong enforcers were a little unnerved by this. Lau himself was uncomfortable, but he purposely looked toward his bodyguard in the front passenger seat, to turn his face away from the cruiser, and said, “Just continue to the other end, and let’s see what happens.”

      The driver nodded slightly, and continued slowly on.

      In the police car, now well past the Lau’s vehicle, the officer picked up the microphone, making sure it was behind his body, and called his watch commander. It was an open channel, so he simply informed the commander that he had completed the pass, and was going to stop at the fast food place just outside of the south gate of the industrial park. At the stop sign, the officer veered to the right, and then crossed the street diagonally, to pull into the parking lot of the McDonalds.

      Quickly he hopped out of the car, and was inside the restaurant before he pulled out his radio, and switching to the secure tactical channel, informed all that he was in position. He also informed all listening, that the suspect vehicle had turned around, and had headed back into the parking lot of the old Goodyear tire plant. The plant, a huge complex that had been built in World War II, was now used by literally dozens of businesses.

      The officer knew it would be of the highest interest. He also knew that there was no way the suspects could tell that he had left his car running, with the door on his side left open.

      Mason felt the hand on his shoulder, which startled him, because he had been so focused on the radio speaker...

      Nothing strange there. The radio was holding the same level of attention for everyone in the room. Unlike everyone else, however, Mason was trying to make the decision of a lifetime. He believed he had a shot at Chin Lau, two of his top killers, and probably several others as well. If he moved in, he could link them to whatever was going on. If the kids were there, no matter what, it was better for them to move in soon. On the other hand, years of work could be lost in an instant, if they were not there. If he were wrong…. If he were wrong, without a capitol case against Lau, they would get him on taxes, rackets, and perhaps keep him off the street for a while, whilst the old man lived in country club splendor in some state prison, buying anything, or anyone he needed.

      Then there were the two kids? Even the interview he had taken with the stepmother, for some reason even now prayed on his mind that he might be the children’s only hope. To his credit, Mason was fully ready to pull the trigger the moment he had any indication the children were there, regardless of the consequences to the case; but, there was a very real possibility that Lau could still be leading them away from them.
It might be the only reason they could see him at all.

      Thus occupied, he jumped rather high at the feeling of a hand on his shoulder, before he turned to find the sergeant in charge of dispatch standing beside him. He was another friend, and had been the voice on the radio for more years, and more tough spots, than Mason would care to count. Oddly, the sergeant just handed him a call slip, and said nothing. It was for an NYFD three station call, for the complex they had staked out. Mason’s eyes snapped to the sergeant, but before he could even ask, the man simply nodded in the affirmative. He was quite sure that there had been no mistake.

      At least the doubts and the waiting were over, because there was no decision left to make. It had been made for him. His voice was calm and deliberate: “All units. This is Mason. We have a Fire Department call to the stakeout location. ETA on the first engine company is approximately six minutes. All units start to move in. The uniform on site will call it. If Lau steps out of the car, all units will move in on his call. If they don’t get out, we move in two minutes, Unit Alpha copy.”

      Mason looked over to the detective sitting beside him at the radio. He was on a talkie with the uniform, using a 42nd assigned tactical channel listening to a blow by blow. He was also pleased to note that his detective was ordering the uniform not to move until the other units where there to move with him. He did not know who the man in the uniform unit from the 42nd was, but he was going to buy him a steak dinner, and a bottle of whatever poison he cared to name.

      Mason clicked off the acknowledgements in his head, without thinking as they came over his own precinct’s radio net. If they weren’t awake now, they never would be.

      It was only the longest forty-five seconds of his life.

      Then came an open call over the main net that everyone on this side of the city heard: “All units from Car 114, the suspects have exited their vehicle, and are approaching a door on the southern side of the building right now! One of the Big guys is carrying either a rifle or a shotgun, I can’t tell which.” The microphone clicked off with a snap.

      “This is Mason. Move, now! I say again, Move in! All units are advised, we strongly suspect there is a hostage situation at the scene.”

      “Baxter Here, Units Foxtrot, and Charlie, divert to the northern end of the building, and try to gain entry.” That was all he could get out. The Mustang was once again accelerating under the heavy foot of officer Smith, but this time Baxter didn’t even look at her. He was focused on the buildings that were just coming into sight, and the sound of sirens coming rapidly toward him from at least two other directions.

 
 

o O o
 
 

     The fire was bad. Maggie and John had made it down to the second floor, but they couldn’t stay there very long. The smoke and the heat were incredible. The choking fumes --even with the fact that she knew that Ling had to be nearby groping in the smoke like they were, her soul intent on killing them -- forced the children to retreat. They had to resort to crawling along the floor, along with the rats, before they found the stairs down to the first floor, farther down the hall behind them.

      A barrier that felt like a wall, only a few steps down from the second floor, blocked the stairs.

      In a panic, Maggie realized that she would have to retrace her steps back to the third floor, and try making it past Ling, to get down the other stairs. She tugged John back, and began crawling rapidly back the way they came.

      Once she reached the path up to the third floor, she hesitated trying to listen, but the alarms, and the fire, and the hot air rushing up the stairwell were too loud.

 
 

      It was getting too hot. They had to move. Slowly, she forced herself up to her feet - to take a step. She could barely make them move. Every muscle in them was burning, not from the fire, but from the fear-induced adrenaline that she had been lashing her system for what seemed like ages. She sobbed with the effort to make herself climb, knowing for the first time that they were probably not going to make it. Ling was somewhere up those stairs. The fire was on them from behind. They were completely trapped. If Ling didn’t get them, then the fire surely would.

 
 

      Maggie climbed though. Slowly at first, and without determination. When she reached the top of the stairs she knew that she had better not stop again. She was not sure if she would be able to force her body to move if she stopped again.

      Now she knew what they meant when they said ‘Paralyzed by fear’. She was almost there, and her side hurt. Her hand hurt where she clutched Johns arm. Her lungs burned from the fumes. Her heart ached with the thought that John would not survive either.

      Somehow, she was able to pull John back down, to crawl back to the doors in the corridor on the third floor.

      The fumes were still bad, but the heat was a lot better. The floor was hot though; hot enough to burn their hands, due to the fierceness of the fire below them. Maggie pulled John up and dragged him toward the door. On the other side, she could see the flicker of fire coming from a room off the corridor to the left. The fire had already reached the third floor. Their only hope was to run for it, hoping Ling had done the same.

      “John we have to run.” she gasped.

      “I know!” He snapped.

      “Then move!” she said as she pushed the door open, and jerked John into motion, as they both ran down the right side of the hall, in a desperate effort to gain their lives.

      They did not see Ling.

      Ling, squatting near the chained exit doors at the far end of the hall could hear the sirens approaching outside. She knew that she had moments only. She also knew that the doors on this floor were all chained for the weekend, and that the majority of these upper floors were unused, and they had been securely blocked off by the owners, to separate the various rental spaces.

      She was only a little worried about getting out, but she was very worried about being seen. She knew she probably could not avoid that, but to make the cover story work along her family’s small interest in the company that operated in this part of the factory, they could not find the children alive and able to talk. Thus, she waited. She waited until she could both hear, and see them coming.

      Baxter grabbed the door, as his car was forced to swerve toward the far right shoulder of the access road that ran through the industrial park. The marked unit 114, that had been waiting nearby had shot across the street right beside them, and continued down the left side of the road, keeping pace in the intersection only until officer smith was once again clear to accelerate while Baxter drew his gun.

      Baxter looked up to see smoke beginning to boil out of upper floors of the factory. When he looked back down at the ground floors, although still several hundred yards away, he could distinctly make out one of the goons lift the old man bodily up, and sprint with him for the car. Baxter reached down, and toggled the siren and lights. “All units, Lau is making for the car. Move! Move! Move!” However, even as he made the frantic call, he knew he had them… He could see cars were coming from all directions, sirens and lights coming on as they saw all the others go code three.

      None as yet heard the more distant sirens of the now six engine companies that were responding as every fire sensor in the eastern half of the complex first triggered, then failed.

 
 

      Ling stepped out right in front of Maggie, and Putting the gun to her face, grabbed her shoulder, and threw her to the floor away from the stairs, and into the wall. Maggie tried to scream but John had run into her side, on his way to sprawl on the floor, and all that came out was a horrible grunt of pain as she suddenly saw only a brilliant flash of light, as her mind exploded in pain. For a moment she could not see or breath, as she herself fall next to John.

      Finally looking up, she could see Ling standing over them, her gun pointed unwaveringly right at Maggie’s face. Ling, outlined by the ever-brighter flicker of the fire behind her, was smiling. Her black eyes were catching the reflection of the fire from Maggie knew not where, but they also burned with the fire of hell itself. For those moments, Maggie’s mind lost track of everything except for the darkness in Ling’s eyes that burned directly down from above her. Her face didn’t even look human.

      Then Maggie was perversely preoccupied with the question of what it would be like. Would she hear the shot? Would there be a white hot flash of pain? It seemed so important, that she even forgot to be afraid. It seemed so important, that it was her body’s instincts alone that slowly pulled it backwards, to place herself over John’s unmoving form, and to placing herself between her little brother and Ling.

      On seeing the futile gesture of her prey, Ling laughed at her. “The doors were locked?” Ling said waving a key that she pulled out on a chain around her neck. Ling laughed again.

      The horror hit her. Ling had known all along that there was no way out. She was playing with them.

      On hearing the Evil in that laugh, Maggie whimpered ever so softly. She didn’t want to, but she couldn’t help it. Desperately, she tried to pull John further behind her, even as she closed her eyes.

      However, the shot did not come, Ling wanted just a little more, while she could walk them to the other end away from her family’s rental.

      Maggie felt Ling’s hand on her head, pulling her roughly up by her hair, and back down the hall away from the stairs, and away from their only hope for life. When she was released, she stumbled, but turned back to see Ling do the same to John, who was looking just dazed before he stumbled into Maggie’s arms.

      The fumes were making it impossible to see.

      “Move!” Ling screamed, and motioned down the hall with her gun. The sheer volume of the shouted order caused Maggie to take an involuntary step backwards. Once ling had her backing slowly down the hall, with the gun barely a foot from her face, it was inconceivable that she might stop. She continued until she could feel the heat of the fire actually burning her back. John was once again pressed behind her, silently trying to twist his body away from the heat of the fire, even as he stared in horror at the smile on Ling’s face.

      Maggie could go no further. The heat felt like it was sucking the air out of her lungs as it was. “Just shoot!” Maggie screamed.

     It was an honest to god giggle. Only Ling knew that she had no intention of shooting them. Bullets leave evidence. The fire would do the trick. Then, even if the children were ever found, there would be almost nothing substantial linking the causes of death to her. It would be circumstantial. She wished she had thought of the fire herself.

      Ling, glanced past the girl toward the door. They were almost there: at the door of the room where the fire had broken through the floor. Ling knew that it had been unused for many years because it had been deemed unsafe, which was why she had unlocked that door while she waited for the children to come back down the hall.

      Suddenly, with a loud snapping and popping sound, the floor shook, and a rumble sounded from inside the room. One of the heavy machines had crashed through the ever-weakening flooring, and into the inferno below. A puff of sooty smoke billowed around the doors, but they held firm, because they were designed to swing in. The heat coming from the room was instantly increased many fold.

      Ling knew that as much as she enjoyed the looks on their faces, it was time to get this over with.

      They were all startled by the sound; only Ling was much less so because she had been half expecting it. She never allowed the gun to waiver from Maggie’s face, as she held it in her outstretched hand.

      Maggie saw Ling’s expression suddenly changed. She had been enjoying their terror. She had been excited, yes, like a cat with a trapped mouse. Now she was more like a shark. The humor in her eyes died, even as they still blazed with the very same fire that would take their lives. Maggie could hear a loud groan from the thick glass in the doors, as the temperature in the room behind them shot up hundreds of degrees in just those moments; and yet, she could not tear her eyes away from Lings face.

      “You’ve cause me a lot of trouble, little girl,” Ling said, in a voice as devoid of emotion as her face. “So I give you a little payback, before I kill you. I let you watch your ‘little sister’ here die when I kill him first!”

      With the last word, Ling reached out with the speed of a rattlesnake, seizing John by the hair, and began to brutally try to throw him through the doors into the inferno beyond; but, it was not like in the elevator, where she had grabbed John from behind. This time, with a howl of pure terror, John began to thrash with all of his strength, as he attempted to fight his way past Ling, and away from the fire.

      It was Maggie, however, who finally stopped Ling; as with an inhuman shriek she launched herself bodily at her, and attempted to actually claw her eyes out. Ling tried to shoot her, but Maggie was already inside of her reach, and was unhampered by any thought of survival, she only thought to kill Ling with her bare hands in a desperate attempt to save John.

      Ling was forced to let go of John, as she instinctively tried to shield her face from Maggie’s gouging fingers, even as she struggled to turn the muzzle of the gun to Maggie’s shrieking face. John, who stumbled because of the sudden relaxation of the grip that he had been struggling against with all of his might, went down against both Ling’s and Maggie’s legs, striking his face cruelly against someone’s knee.

      Ling was forced to try and step over John in a futile attempt to regain her balance, even as Maggie was stumbling over him too. With animal instincts she had never felt before, Maggie sensed she had Ling now, and she pushed with all of her might against the woman’s chest trying to knock her off her feet. Ling heard her own flesh sear, even before she felt the pain of the hot door, but it was too late. She grabbed for Maggie in a futile attempt to save herself, and almost succeeded in dragging Maggie to her death also.

      It was John, who blinded by the pain of smashing his face, had grabbed Maggie’s legs and tripped her to the floor, thinking they were Ling’s. A piece of the lace on Maggie’s dress tore away in his hand, even as the door opened, and a gout of flame shot above Maggie’s head. It barely missed her immolating her, sparing her life, even as it engulfed Ling’s upper body.

      Though Ling’s scream only lasted until she fell through the floor beyond, it was a sound of inhuman torment, a foretaste of a hell that few humans ever see, and that would haunt both children’s memories for all of their days.

      Maggie could no longer breath, but she could feel John frantically trying to drag her across the floor, and away from the fire that was not burning then on every side as the glass in the doors finally exploded out from the flame.
Sending pure deadly fumes billowing into the third floor hallway with the children.

 
 

o O o
 
 

     Baxter stood in front of Lau, as the company commander of the lead engine company yelled at him. “God Damn it! Is there anyone inside the building?”

      The old man continued to just barely shake his head no, and shrug, after first flicking his eyes to Baxter. Baxter wanted to spit in his face.

      Behind them, one of the bodyguards was face down on the old, and broken pavement, a puddle of blood beginning to spread from a half a dozen bullet wounds.

      The other thug was face down over the back of the mustang, the unformed officer from unit 114 holding him there with his gun pressing harshly into the thugs ear, even as the officer wiped the blood away from this own pulped lower lip.

      Four other officers stood within two feet of them, guns drawn, but not one moved to interfere.

      “You have the right for me to blow your worthless brains right out of your fucking head if you move a single finger! You have the right to keep your fucking mouth shut! If you waive the right to keep your fucking mouth shut, nothing you say is going to fucking matter, because even if they don’t fry you, you’ll never see daylight again. If you live long enough to make it to the station, and you desire to have and attorney present, but have not made enough money by beating little girls to death to be able to afford one, I’ll make sure that the court appoints the most incompetent fucking asshole in this city to represent you. Free of charge!”

      “Do you understand these rights as I’ve explained them to you? Shit Bag!” the officer hissed through his teeth, as a small trickle of blood began to well below the muzzle of his gun. The thug just nodded. Behind them, a detective the uniformed officer didn’t know, lay slumped behind the steering wheel of unit C. The poor bastard had never even made it out of the car, and his killer had never taken another breath after he had opened fire.

 
 

      Maggie was barely moving, but she was chanting just as she had the night before, “Run, John. Run.”

     John moaned, and then began to scream at Maggie to move. He struggled to half drag her down the stairs, even while he tried to get her up to her feet, but she seemed to be mostly unconscious. John could not give up however, and continued to scream at her, until her eyes flickered open, and glanced dully at him…

 
 

      Baxter was oblivious to what was happening to the thug behind them. He was painfully aware of the fallen detective, but he could not bring himself to look at, or think of the man right now. His eyes were on the Fire Department Captain on front of him. “Can you get us in?” He asked him.

      Even as he did, he could see two firefighters running from their Engine to the door, carrying a metal cutting saw. Detectives and firefighters both began to gather near the door, as the fire fighters started the saw, and quickly cut into the chain sealing the door, and then the door itself. One uniformed officer, lifted his sidearm and stood over them to aim it at the door, hoping to protect the firefighters working below him. He was quickly followed in kind by several of the detectives who waited frantically to move in, even though the NYFD company commander was yelling for them to get back.

      Baxter himself had just walked up to the door, when suddenly a window fifty feet to their left shattered, and a small office table clattered to the ground. Everyone was startled, as the firefighter closest to the window, rushed over, and began to break the rest of the glass out of the frame, and frantically began to pry the protective grill off the window with the head of his entry tool. Within a second, a police officer had picked up some piece of metal and was trying to help, even as a small hand reached from the inside for the grill.

      By the time the fireman had dropped his ax, and reached into the window to pull out a young woman, aided by a smaller girl inside; several other fireman, and a paramedic had rushed to the window as well. Baxter ran for it too.

      As he arrived, the fireman reached in and pulled out a younger girl, and quickly thrust her into the waiting arms of the paramedic, before pulling himself up to the window to yell for anyone else who might be there. One fireman dived to his knees, heedless of the glass that covered the ground, to allow the man to stand on his back in an effort to make sure no one else lay trapped or unconscious just inside.

      The other firefighters, those with the children behind him, were urgently hustling the children away from danger, and toward the ambulance. The fastest, gently lowering his charge down onto a stretcher.

      The older girl was just lying there in the arms of the fireman, who was petting her hair, and telling her gently that she was safe now; but, her eyes were unblinking and stared straight ahead, even as she still held her arms rigidly above her chest in a pugilistic pose.

      Baxter turned to the other girl, who was sitting on a blanket that had been thrown hastily on the ground to receive her. As his shadow fell on her, she looked up at him, her eyes squinting from the tears that ran down her swollen eyes, and across her soot covered face.

      Without any warning, it dawned on the detective. “John?” Baxter asked softly.

      The girl nodded her head.

      “Shit.” Baxter said, even more softly, making the swear sound more like a fervent prayer.

      The boy dropped his head as the paramedic prepared to wash his eyes. “John is there anyone else inside.” The boy coughed again, unable to speak as the paramedic slipped an oxygen mask on him, but clearly shook his head in the negative. Baxter nodded silently, even though the child was no longer looking at him. Baxter did not know what else to say, but tried to muster at least a sense of conviction as he told the boy “You are safe now, son. Everything will be OK.”

      The paramedic just looked at him like he was insane, but continued to work as fast as he could to begin treatment, while another firefighter held the little girl upright to keep her breathing.

      Baxter then looked at the older girl once more, and knew then that it would never be completely Ok again, for either of them. He just did not know what else to say. As he walked back to the officers waiting to enter the building by both the door and broken window, one of them called out urgently: “What about the boy? Wasn’t there supposed to be a young boy too?”

      Baxter understood the confusion. “That’s him on the ground. We have them both. You men get back out of the way, and get these cars back.”

      The Incident commander from the fire department nodded at Baxter began to give orders to have two teams sweep the lower floor as far as they safely could, and to give orders to set up to fight the fire from outside. He was not about to loose a man to save a building owned by some damned hoodlums.

      Baxter turned away to see the old man, in one of his precinct’s unmarked cars. For the first time, he showed real emotion, as his suddenly very old, and very pale face stared at the children. Baxter’s eyes were then drawn back to the car with the dead detective, to see the second paramedic straighten up slightly shake his head at Baxter, while stripping off his rubber gloves. Baxter just acknowledged with a slight nod.

      Finally he looked back at Lau. Softly he said to himself, “You may have survived today, but you’ll burn too, you bastard. You’ll burn too.”

      The last team of firefighter to exit carried the body of the younger hood with them. The body of Ling was tentatively identified some weeks later by accident, but she had been in the hottest part of the fire, which had burned for the longest time, and no one was looking for her. Officially, the identification had hinged on the testimony of the two eyewitnesses. The seven companies that eventually responded to the blaze were able to contain the fire well enough, but were unable to save the old mill. Officially, the cause of the fire was never discovered.

 
 

o O o
 
 

     At the hospital, John tried to sit up as the paramedics lifted him out of the back of the ambulance. He wanted to see Maggie, but the female doctor who stood over him stopped him with a gentle but firm hand on his shoulder. “No, Sweetheart. You be a good girl and lie still for me. I have to take care of you now. Your sister is just fine. She has her own doctors.”

      John asked to see Maggie, but the doctor shook her head. “Your big sister is Ok, Honey. She’s inside. We’ll take you to the room beside hers, but I need to check you first, to make sure there are no surprises. OK?” She looked at his face quickly, worried by everything from the soot he’d certainly inhaled to the redness around his eyes, nose, and mouth from the fumes.

      She also looked to see that he was listening. “I’m sorry I’m going to have to cut your beautiful dress off, but it’s already ruined. I’m sure your Mom and Dad will get you another one when they hear what a brave little girl you’ve been.”

      The doctor gave a very startled looked at him, as he began to chuckle. When she looked like she was going to ask, he just shook his head, and chuckled again as he gave up and relaxed back onto the stretcher. She was in for a surprise, all right.

 
 

      Thirty minutes later, John was sitting up in the same bed as Maggie, when his Father and Joan walked in. Maggie still had an oxygen mask on, and her eyes were closed, but she was awake. She periodically squeezed her brother’s hand in hers, as if to make sure he was really there beside her.

      “John, is she OK?” His father asked.

      Maggie’s eyes opened, and her head turned toward her parent.

      “Oh, thank god,” her father said, but only slowly began to ease around the bed “Are you Ok, too, John?” He asked seemingly as an afterthought, and John nodded that he was.

      John’s eyes slid to Joan, who did not move any closer, but on seeing him looking at her, asked him in an unsympathetic tone: “What were you two thinking running away like that!”

      So much for absence making the heart grow fonder, John thought. Even his father turned to stare at Joan.

      It was Maggie, however, who answered her weakly from behind the oxygen mask.

      “I was thinking…, that if I let that Chinese Bitch blow my little brother’s brains out all over the sidewalk…, that I might not get to go to the convention this weekend…. Not to mention the embarrassment and trouble it might have caused you, …”

      Only John was close enough to hear the soft “you bitch” that had completed the sentence.

      Joan looked like she was ready to reply, when their father said, “For god’s sake, Joan!” Thankfully, she just shut her mouth, and looking angry. She could do that well enough they supposed, as she turned to move over to the side of the room that was farthest from the children.

      Baxter, who had been waiting nearby, walked through the curtain, as soon as he heard the voices. The look on his face as he made eye contact with both parents left little doubt as to why he was there. Then to John’s great surprise, his father quickly bent down to kiss Maggie’s forehead, before walking around to his side of the bed pulled him into a hug.

      John did not resist, but then neither did he move. His arms did rise slightly out of reflex, but that was all. His expression barely changed. It was Margaret’s face that changed the most, as the look she gave her father became a mixture of surprise and poison.

      “You gave us a scare.” He told the children.

      The situation might have gone down hill from there, but it was just then a young nurse walked in chuckling. “Well, that’s one resident who won’t think she knows everything for a while,” she said smiling at John as she admiringly brushed his hair on the side of his head to a neater position back behind his ear.

      John smiled weakly back. Perhaps it had been mean, but he could still hear the tray of instruments hitting the floor, as the doctor who’d come in to do the vaginal smear cried “Oh, Jesus!” As the nurse had whipped his Panties and what was left of his tights off of him.

      John smiled back at her as she gently placed her palm on his right cheek.

      “Is that nurse OK?” he asked.

      “Oh she’s Ok, except for the fact that I think she just took up smoking again. She even asked for a picture of you, which is when your doctor, Dr. Helene lost it.” The young nurse chuckled once more. “Well, do you two need anything? Would you like another drink?” she asked. “You can have anything you want…, except Scotch, which the OBGYN resident just finished off.”

      Both children shook their heads, and murmured “No thank, you,” at which the nurse reached across John to slip the oxygen mask off of Maggie to watch her breathing, before reseating the mask more comfortably.

      “Well, I think we can get rid of this soon, but you tell me if you feel short of breath, or if you feel light headed or any headache. Ok?” She said brightly.

      Maggie sat up, beside John, and nodded at her, while she rubbed her nose and eyes with both hands.

      The nurse, reached over, and pulled up the rail on the opposite side, and with a pat on Maggie’s thigh she headed toward the curtains.

      The wicked stepmother, Joan, chose the lull to chime in again. “Well if she can talk, perhaps she would like to explain why she felt it necessary to make him look like that?” The disgusted gesture she directed at John made it obvious to which she referred. “Or perhaps John could explain the message he got from a girl calling herself, Me-You, or some such silly thing, and saying that she had gotten permission from her father to go out to the movies with him this week, and for his sister Aya to come over next Friday for a sleepover?” She finished in a huff, and then just stared accusingly at the children.

      No one else said a thing, much to Baxter’s surprise, but he had had enough. He caught the eye of the detective standing at the door, and nodded at Joan across the room. Quickly the detective moved over to Joan saying, “Ma’am, I’m sorry to intrude, but we still have a few questions we need to resolve, and we need your help.”

      Joan looked at him as if he were a bug, and turned away saying “I’m not going…”

      However, the detective had slipped his hand under her arm, and hauled her to her feet “Oh, don’t worry, Ma’am. It’ll only take a few minutes.” Joan never had more than one foot in contact with the floor, as he practically hauled the dumfounded woman from the room.

      Their father, looked shocked to, but said nothing. The Children just looked at the doorway with expressionless faces, before they both looked down toward the floor.

      The silence in the room had grown almost unbearable, when it was shattered a few moments later by a very soft voice from the door. “Maggie-sama?” a badly trembling, but still unmistakably voice asked, just loud enough to hear from across the room. Both children looked up to see Noriko standing, with her hands clasped tightly together in front of her mouth, her brown eyes a universe of fear and uncertainty in a drawn colorless face.

      An older man was smiling behind her, and holding her with both his hands on her shoulders, to steady her as tears ran down her face.

      “Noriko?” Maggie began to cry all at once as well, and fought weakly to get up, but Noriko was at the bed before she had moved very far. Noriko paused only for a moment to look at Maggie’s and John’s faces, before fiercely hugging the girl to her breast.

      Maggie could no longer speak, but clutched at Noriko with all the desperation of twelve years of loneliness and of yearning. Noriko, in between sobs of her own, whispered “Kimi wo Usinatta to Omotta.” She repeated this softly several times, before more firmly finishing with, “I thought I’d lost you.”

      After a few moments, Noriko opened her eyes, to see John sitting close beside them. Without lifting her cheek from the top of Maggie’s head, she reached out to slip her hand behind John’s head, and pulled him into the embrace as well. “I’m so glad you are safe. I don’t know what I would have, if…” but she said no more. She didn’t need to.

      The three men watched in silence as the woman lovingly rocked the weeping children in her arms. It was doctor Helene, now standing at the door, who looked the most pleased to see the children finally letting go, and who motioned the two police officers out of the room. Their father just stood there looking uncomfortable.

      The doctor asked Mason, as he passed, if Noriko were the children’s real mother, but he just shook his head before he left.

      Their father did not look pleased, but to whom could turn, he had no idea. No one in the room would look at him. There was always Joan, he thought, as he walked out of the room to look for her.

      After the others had left, the doctor just stood there, silently watching. The girl would need some serious support counseling to get through this, but this was a good start, and she was very strong. They were both very strong.

     Doctor Nancy Helene had spoken at length to the young detective who had brought them in, and had witnessed some of the interaction with the father and stepmother. She was relieved to find that there was at least one source of comfort and love outside of the love the children obviously had for each other - no matter who she was. She listened a little longer to the girl, weeping out all the tortures that she had been through; tortures that she was far too young to have been forced to bear.

      The doctor heard John say softly to the woman. “You saved our lives, Noriko.”

      “I cold have gotten you killed, John.” The woman sobbed softly while trying to wipe her eyes without letting go of either child.

      “Yeah, but you didn’t.” John sighed, “and, at least now I have a real date next Friday for Aya.” Noriko pulled back just enough to shift her other cheek to the top of his head, “So after next Friday, I’m really going to have to leave town…”

      All three laughed through the tears, along with the doctor herself. The doctor appreciated the joke, even though she didn’t fully understand everything that was said. She did believe how John had completely fooled everyone.

      Noriko just shook her head, and pulled the children close once again, and held them as they should have been held, since that awful day, so long ago.

 
 
      As Dr. Helene walked silently past the two detectives, and back down the hall, her thoughts turned more serious. The case appalled her. No matter how many times she saw this kind of thing, it still shocked her. The children were, smart, polite, well spoken, and even pretty. Any sane person would be thrilled to have children as nice as these; and the parents acted as if they were a plague. She saw it often enough, but she never got used to it. Well, she thought bitterly, thank god that most children were so much stronger than most adults gave them credit. She could only assume that God had planned it that way for this reason.

Of one thing was certain. If and when she finally had children of her own, and they somehow and for inexplicable reasons burned down the house, she would remember these two, and she would remember to love her own all the more.

 
 

      Mason and Baxter watched the doctor walk down the hall before Mason turned to put his hand on the younger man’s shoulder.

      Baxter had not had time to think about the day’s events, so he was actually shocked to see the look of pride in the older man’s eyes. When Mason started to speak, Baxter thought he was going to say something about his loosing a man the way he did. He was only a little right.

      Mason looked down at the leather case in his hand, and rubbing his thumb across the top of it, before again looking Baxter in the eye. “I want to give you something. It’s been pretty important to me for quite a long time now, but I guess I don’t really need it any more. I think that you just might be able to put it to good use some day. I only ask for one thing in return, that when that day comes, you make damned sure you still remember what it’s used for.”

      With that, Mason pressed the leather case into the younger man’s hand, and without another word turned to walk out of the ER. He would have to make a call on another man’s widow tonight. He would tell her just what he would tell Baxter in a day or so, when he knew the man was thinking clearly again. He would say that when you go after bad people with guns, that sometimes the bad guys shoot first. There is nothing anyone can do about it. What mattered was that if you had to go, that it was worth the sacrifice.

      To do so saving the lives of two good children was at least a small compensation. He knew that the dead detective would have thought so. He only hoped, that in time, the man’s widow would come to understand that it had been worth it as well.

      “Sir!” Baxter yelled, causing the older man to turn and look back at him from the door.

      “Sir, was it worth it?”

      The captain knew what he meant, but how could he answer the questions in the younger man’s eyes that he would surely have to face on his own. It was worth it to save a friend who watched his back from my first day in uniform. It was it worth it to know that his friends would still be ok, and able to look out for each other when he was gone. It certainly was worth the lives of those too little ones. He grinned weakly then. It might even have been worth it that he got just one guy who might have messed that all up.

      Perhaps, he thought finally as he looked into the younger man’s eyes, it’s worth knowing, that if you ever face the same choices, you’ll now know just how it’s done.

      “Yes, son. It was.”

      It was only after Mason was out of sight that Baxter looked down at the case in his hand. Today he understood why it had always felt so heavy. Tentatively, he flipped it open and ran his fingers across the gold Captain’s shield that lay there shining up at him. Looking back up where his boss had gone, Baxter slipped it reverently into his pocket, before he took one last looked back through the curtain, toward the three still sitting on the bed together.

      Baxter did not know if he would ever get the chance that Mason alluded to. He couldn’t see himself ever wanting it. All he knew for sure was, that if it were ever offered - he would take the job.

 
 

Fin.     By Sarah Lynn Morgan [email protected]

 
 

Thank you for reading! If you like this story, Please take a moment to click on the vote
box at the top of the page. Comments are most gratefully welcome, and appreciated!