Trapped in the Mayan Tattoo (37 page)

“We suspected
something was up. That’s why HT wanted Calista here. She knew Calista was
trying to get into NM2. She was also way too curious about Miss Shoe’s daughter,”
Lowell said.

“How’d she know?”
Abbi asked.

“Beats me. That
woman has some special receiver or something. She’s out there.”

“Not Mrs.
Hightower. How did Calista know that much about me?”

Lowell moved out
to the hallway.

“Lowell!” Abbi called
as she followed.

When Calista was
led away in handcuffs, she passed Abbi and Lowell who stood in the hallway,
Lowell looking down at his feet and still not answering.

“I jus think
you’re sexy, Abbi. Is that so wrong?” Calista said. “You, too, Lowell. I was
jus playin’. Didn’t you know that?”

Calista turned to
Big Sam, struggling to get out of the handcuffs.

“Nothin’ happened
in there. I asked her out. She thought I was comin’ onto her too strong. Then
she slapped me. The bitch tried to kill me! She pulled a knife! What’s that all
about?” Calista ranted all the way down the stairs.

Big Sam yelled
back to Abbi that the guys next door needed Abbi’s statement. As Calista left
the building, Abbi and Lowell walked to the conference room where Abbi related
the incidents as they actually occurred, facts that were corroborated by recorded
sound and video—from both inside the apartment and from the conference room
through the two-way mirror.

Abbi was so angry
with Lowell that her teeth were clinched and she was seething. There were
things he wasn’t telling.

By this time, Abbi
was convinced that Calista had probably committed newsworthy acts before. After
her statement, Abbi asked permission to use a computer to search for an archived
news report. Her first search was for information on a stabbing of a teenager in
the Killing Forest. Mr. Pelletier came over to see. After she found the story,
she asked him to look closely at a video of a suspicious person.

Mr. Pelletier replayed
that part and called over some of the staff members who were already familiar
with Calista. They knew her as a volunteer interpreter with non-profit service
providers. The video helped confirm her identity as the murder suspect who had
evaded the law. Information, including a tattoo on the victim, helped establish
Calista’s involvement with NM2.

“And now she
sports that forearm tattoo,” Mr. Pelletier said. “She has to be the one.”

Analysts for the Bureau
were apparently going to work all night. They seemed particularly happy to be
able to connect Calista’s involvement in the unsolved case with the Missing
Shoe case. The news video mentioned a man named Fernando who seemed to be a
decision-maker for NM2. They were anxious to question Calista further to see if
he had been the one who sent her this time. If so, it seemed likely that Ramon
also worked for him.

“Calista was out
for herself, fame and fortune,” Abbi said when Big Sam returned.

“You are exactly
on track, little lady,” Big Sam said. “Your ability to pick up little details
of significance means that, if you ever want to consider this line of work, the
Bureau could use you. By the way, you passed the test. You’ll be on the drop
mission we’re putting together. The agents here think you have a sixth sense or
some kind of special magic. With luck, the result will be your mother’s release.”

“Funny, I’ve heard
the same thing said about Mrs. Hightower!”

Big Sam smiled.
“So have I.”

Lowell moved
closer to Abbi and wanted to explain his actions privately, out in the hallway.

“Abbi, about
Calista. The bureau couldn’t go on a feeling. HT had a hunch. Calista was too
persistent about this case. Calista called HT over and over, and said she works
as an interpreter for some service providers. HT had bought the ticket and had seen
this movie before. She thought she had the right person, but she needed proof. Having
you here as bait helped them catch her. Calista already has quite a history of
attacking girls using a knife.”

“She wants to get
to the top of NM2. Imagine! She’s strictly playing her own game,” Abbi said. 
“A game that might have been the end of me! I was BAIT!!!” She cast Lowell a
sideways accusation.

“Sorry I wasn’t
there sooner. But the video of the attack is fabulous! It will play out well in
court. Great action shots! You made an upper jab with your left hand that was a
little sloppy, though.”

Abbi quickly put
Lowell in a headlock. Then she smiled and said, “I have to admit, your lessons
came in handy. You have things you’re not telling, don’t you?”

Lowell returned
Abbi’s aggression with a move of his own, studied her eyes and nodded. Then he
hugged her. Abbi started to pull away.

“Wait!” Lowell
said, not letting her go. “First, I need to check you for bumps and bruises!”

Abbi felt amazing
and fell back into his hug.

Thoughts of Lowell
occupied Abbi’s mind as she finally got into bed and hummed a little tune. Lying
down, she felt the feng shui of the room. Maybe she learned its secret—that it
comes from inside the person. Rooms don’t feel. People do. Or maybe the secret
was in the way Lowell looked at her or maybe it the embrace they shared.

All of Abbi’s bad
feelings—the anger, resentment, confusion, sadness, and jealousy—had gone away.
 Abbi had entered a state of equilibrium. For whatever reason, Abbi felt
balanced, the feeling that it might all work out.

She looked at Louise
in the dim light. Louise had been restless earlier, right before Calista came.
Abbi knew now that it was an act. Louise wasn’t asleep then. But now she snored
deeply.      

Abbi fell into a
sleep that ended much too soon, before dawn, interrupted when she heard someone
in the hall. After two short knocks, Abbi rose to find Lowell waiting patiently
on the other side of the door.

“Searching for the
missing shoe,” he said.     

“Some Gate Keeper,”
Abbi said with a sleepy smile.

            “I do my job.”

            “Really?” asked Abbi,
half-teasing as she threw him a punch. “Was it fun?”

            “We were right there.”

            “Watching! Yeah, I’d
say you had your fun,” Abbi said with a twisted smile.

            Lowell looked down at
his feet.

            “You handled it well,”
he said.

            “And what if I hadn’t?”

            “I have very strong
faith in you,” Lowell said. He handed her some bags. “A gift from Miss Sobori,
well the Bureau, actually. Miss Sobori will be involved somewhere else for
awhile. Hurry and dress.”

            “Why? It’s early and I’m
tired!” Abbi said, protesting, feeling exhausted.

            “Get Weezy.”

Abbi went to Louise.
If Louise had ever had a sense of adventure, it went missing a long time ago.

“Why do they need
me?” she asked.

“Not them. I need
you. Moral support,” Abbi said.

“You’re moral
enough,” Louise said. “Any more moral and you’d be a nun.”

“Not true,” Abbi
said firmly. “You keep me out of trouble. Wait a minute. Do you have any clue
how much trouble we were in last night when Calista came? Did you know about
her?”

“Calista came?”

“You’re
unbelievable,” Abbi said with a laugh.

“Come on, Weezie.
Today’s the day!” Lowell said.

Louise reluctantly
crawled out of bed and yawned. Abbi played around with her wig. Louise did her
makeup. Then the two girls tried on their new matching clothes, except for the
fact the Abbi wore a leotard under hers.

“Twins!” Abbi
said.

“You got the
muscles, I got the flab,” Louise said. “And then there’s the fact of your
permanent tan! No, not twins.”

Abbi grinned. It
was great to finally know where her “perma-tan” came from!

They could hear
murmurings and the shuffling of feet in the hallway. People were coming for the
early-morning briefing to hear all about the most recent events and the rescue
plan.

They walked over
to the adjoining apartment, the temporary headquarters for Operation Missing
Shoe.

Big Sam related the
highlights of the analysts’ report. He said Calista was holding to her story
that Abbi thought she was coming onto her because she asked her out and that,
offended, Abbi became angry and attacked her.

Everyone laughed,
especially when they were shown the evidence.

“There is no doubt
in my mind that last night’s video shows Calista in a murder attempt. That
knife at the door is a clincher. We’ll get our confession eventually, probably
when we question her about her connection to Fernando and the brutal killing of
a young pregnant girl who testified against NM2. We think that was very likely
the same knife.”

Abbi shuddered.
Louise reached over to her and gave her a hug.

Mr. Pelletier
walked in and announced that the Smart Shoes were, indeed, in Virginia now.

“That’s very good
news!” Big Sam said. “We need everyone alert and in their places today. Help
yourself to a doughnut. Maybe two. There’s plenty of coffee. Drink up. It could
be another long day.”

Big Sam pulled Abbi
and Louise aside and told them the details of an important meeting of
dignitaries from Latin American countries to take place a few minutes. After
that, Abbi would meet with the ambassador. From there, the girls would be led
covertly to another building as yet undisclosed. The success of the private
meeting with the ambassador would determine the next step and could actually
result in successfully freeing her mother from the hostage situation.

Abbi’s role in
meeting with the ambassador would be to provide a few more key pieces of
information related to her findings about NM2, since his information seemed
lacking, and to show the connection between them and her mother’s kidnapping.
Diplomacy was key and the ambassador could be a huge help if the FBI could
re-establish negotiations.

“We’ll take rappelling
gear and hope that today’s the day,” Big Sam said. “I got them to see the light
on fixing the drop problem, at your request, little lady. We figured, if you
knew your mother was in Virginia, we’d better listen to you! By the way, the
GPS device in the Smart Shoes still works, and we now know her exact location.”

The girls put on
their badges and left the museum. Big Sam threw her rappelling gear into the
trunk. Scott drove. They headed immediately to The House of the Americas by car.

This time, when Louise
pointed to landmarks, they were in the privacy of the car under Big Sam’s
watchful eye. Abbi no longer had the paranoid sense of being followed.

The Organization
of American States looked relatively unchanged on the outside, remaining white,
ornate and beautiful with its marble steps that led up to the portico. The colorful
flags of Central American countries continued to sway majestically in the
breeze and made shadows in the sunlight, as if nothing bad had happened there.
But the large entrance doors were closed now and heavily guarded, allowing
limited access.

Abbi walked into
the building without delay with Louise and Big Sam close behind. The same
security guard, the woman who had been annoyed with Abbi previously, walked
over and gave Abbi the eerie feeling of déjà vu.  Abbi smiled and successfully passed
the security wand without incident. Abbi and Louise walked over to the marble
staircase, looking professional in their matching suits.

They were to wait
in the lobby until a break in the session. Big Sam, finally through security,
stayed a distance away from them. The girls were to go upstairs and approach
the ambassador with a secret message from HT. While she watched and waited
patiently, Abbi pieced together more of the puzzle.

            Eventually, the upstairs
meeting room door opened and people began to mingle and pour out into the
balcony area. Abbi saw this as her cue to walk up the stairs. She noticed that
the damaged railing had been replaced. She passed by the room where she had met
Mrs. Hightower.  She would have just ten minutes to make her impression and to
request help for the rescue efforts.

Abbi approached
the doorway as the ambassador shook hands with members of his audience who were
exiting. When he saw her before, she wasn’t wearing a wig of a different cut
and color.

“I’m Miss Kowalski
and I’m looking for the missing shoe,” Abbi said.

“Pleased to meet
you!” the white-haired ambassador said, shaking Abbi’s hand. He gave no sign of
recognition. “I’m Ambassador Marquez.”

His English was
quite good, with a delightful hint of one of the Hispanic dialects but he
barely looked at Abbi.

 “Yes, I know,”
she said. “We met before, in Virginia, at the law complex. I’m Miss Kowalski. And
this is my assistant, Miss Soufflé.”

“Oh!” he said. He
raised one eyebrow slightly and looked cautiously down at the conservatory and
toward the gathering of people near the door in the lobby. People seemed in a
hurry to leave.

“I am very proud
of you, very proud indeed! You don’t even know it, Miss Kowalski, but you
probably saved several lives earlier this week! Thank you also for the
additional information I received this morning. It’s always good to know who
your enemies are as well as who they are not.”

His eyes were not
focused on either of the girls but he continued softly, “Then you have a
message for me.”

Abbi said, “Yes. Operation
Shoe Drop will be carried out today.”

The ambassador
immediately stood rigid and looked down over the banister to the conservatory. He
spotted Big Sam and nodded his recognition.

“Very good! Miss
Kowalski, I’m afraid this is not a good place for us to talk, but I am so glad
to see you and wish to take you to another location for your safety. We have
abruptly adjourned our meeting due to recent terrorist activity, so if both of
you young ladies will follow me…”