Two Peasants and a President by Frederick Aldrich Page B

Then she rolled it up and put it in her bra.  There was a song in her heart, but the accompaniment was in a minor key, menacing.  Her mind struggled to understand what was happe n ing.  She sensed that the cleaning lady was not a plant, something about the way her spirit shined through that smile.  And her fear was obviously real, you can’t fake that.  That meant that the little Chinese cleaning lady could be risking her life to help.  But why?

 
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    “That cruise outfit in Hong Kong didn‘t sound like it was trying very hard to be helpful,” said Sally.  “The guy sounded friendly at first, but when I mentioned Mr. & Mrs. Walker, he sounded evasive.  I managed to pry out of him that they were on the cruise, were dropped off at the dock afterward and headed back to their hotel.  When I tried to ask him if there were any susp i cious people at the dock or anything unusual about the cruise, he clammed up.”  
    “I called their hotel again,” Maggie chimed in.  “Spoke to the manager this time.  He said they never came back, suggested I call the Consulate; we don’t have an embassy there.  They passed me off to American Citizens Services who say there are no reports of arrests, hospitalizations, deaths or anything else for Ray and Holly.  Oh, and I called Brett; he’ s on his way back from San Diego.”
    “The travel agency says they’ve used this cruise company for several years, but their name was changed a few months ago,” said Jim.  “I asked them if the people they’ve been dealing with changed too.  He said yes.”
    “A s I suspected,” said Richard, “t he State Department didn’t exactly go into emergency mode when I told them that we have family missing in Hong Kong.  They pointed me to a site online where I can make a report, but they admitted it doesn’t really get revved up until someone’s been missing for two weeks.  While I was on the site, I checked on visas for Hong Kong and China.   You don’ t need a visa for Hong Kong, but you do for mainland China.  Their application process takes 4 days.”
    “Based on what we’ve uncovered so far, it’s obvious I need to go to Hong Kong and check out the cruise company,” said Richard.
    “Why you?” asked Maggie.
    “Because I’m retired and not needed at home; I’m the logical one to go.”
    “Richard,” interjected Jim, “I don’t think you should do this alone.  If you go missi ng, then we’ll really be looking for a paddle.  I can get time off and let’s face it, you’re gonna be in hostile territory and you’ll need backup.  Besides, the love of my life is out there somewhere. I can‘t sit around back here doing nothing.”
    “Brett’s on his way back,” interjected Maggie.  “He says to count him in on whatever we’re doing.”
    “Sounds like I’ve been out voted,” said Richard.  Let’s start working up a list for what we’ll need in Hong Kong.  I think we should start the appl i cation process for visas to China too, in case this thing leads us across the border.  What concerns me is our military background.  That could be a red flag.  If I were the guy who approves these things, I might wonder what three guys like us find so interesting in China.”
    “Not if we’re traveling as three separate families,” said Sally.  “Two separate couples and a retiree wouldn’t seem suspicious.  Jim and Sally P e tersen.  Brett and Maggie Walker.  Richard Davis.  Different names, di f ferent towns, no obvious connection.  Ray and Holly didn’t need visas for Hong Kong, so China probably doesn’t have much on them.  If we’re careful about the way we fill out the apps, I don’t think anybody will be the wiser.”
    “Don’ t even go there,” Richard and Jim looked at Sally as they waded in at the same time. “There’s no way we’re going to put you two in danger.  We don’t know where this is going to lead; it could be dangerous and last time I checked, you