Chapter Eight #2
“Maybe.” What can I tell him? The cabal leadership would unequivocally say, “NOTHING!” And they would likely spell it out in capital letters and shout the word at her repeatedly.
“I’m happy to listen if you just want to talk out loud. And I know you have secrets, Madelaine, but I promise not to tell anyone anything that you say. You can trust me.”
Madelaine almost teared up at his offer.
She knew she could trust him. Some of the secrets she kept were partly to keep him safe.
But she didn’t see the harm in sharing her next step.
At least partly. He couldn’t know what the contents of the box were once she opened it, but maybe it would help to voice her thoughts aloud for clarification in her own mind.
“For the record, I know that I can trust you, Jack, but thank you for offering to be a sounding board.” She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Okay.” She glanced his way, but he was focused on the road. Good.
“I received a small metal box from the Secret Keeper. It has a keyhole on top. The Secret Keeper also gave me a safety deposit box key.”
“Let me guess,” Jack said. “You have to take the safety deposit box key to a bank and open a special safety deposit box in order to retrieve a different key to open the secret box you got from the Secret Keeper. Am I right?”
Madelaine smiled. “Yes. You’re absolutely right.”
“Okay. Which bank? Where is it?” Jack asked.
“It’s the Tractor Beam Credit Union in Alienn.” The bank had not escaped the fun naming process in town right down to its slogan: “Where your money doesn’t just get deposited, it gets securely pulled in.”
Jack shrugged. “Well, the credit union will be open when we roll into town, so we won’t have to wait around.”
Madelaine nodded, more to herself. “As it stands, the problem is that I don’t want anyone in Alienn to know I’m in town.
” Jack straightened up as if he were about to volunteer.
“And before you offer—which I do appreciate, by the way—the Paladin Courier is the only one who can access the safety deposit box to retrieve what’s inside. ”
He settled back into his seat, eyes straight ahead. “So, you’re looking at a disguise?”
“Yes. I’m arguing with myself about how elaborate it should be to keep my identity secret. I suspect there are lots of people in Alienn who would remember me.”
“Are you sure I can’t do this for you?”
“I’m sure. I have to do it, but I’d love for you to accompany me into the bank while I’m in disguise. I think it could lend more authenticity when I sell it.”
Jack glanced at her and grinned. “Everyone would likely think you’re my bachelor auction date and, with a disguise, your identity would remain secret.”
“Yes. That would work. But I’m already well past your twenty-four-hour date obligation.”
He shrugged. “We can extend our date for as long as you need to, okay?”
“Thanks, Jack.” Madelaine was grateful that he seemed to be less suspicious of her and more willing to help without demanding answers. His overall attitude seemed to have relaxed after he’d gotten some sleep. Maybe her attitude had relaxed as well, though she hadn’t slept well.
Had the Secret Keeper said something to him? That was unclear, but she was glad that they were getting along on their trip back to Alienn.
It was one less stress on her for this already demanding journey.
“Sure thing. Why don’t you sleep for a bit. My power nap in the Secret Keeper’s temporary quarters made me feel better. You, on the other hand, still look bone-deep tired.”
He’d always been good at assessing her moods, especially when she was fatigued…just like she was now. She felt beat down to a nubbin.
“Yes. I am still a little tired. Thank you. Wake me when we get to Liberty, if I sleep that long.” She didn’t think she’d be able to get a single wink.
“I will. Don’t worry.”
Madelaine bunched up her jacket for a pillow and closed her eyes, not expecting to drift off the way her mind was racing.
Instead, she fell instantly asleep and then slept hard.
She had very vivid dreams about not only the past five years, but the life she’d led before she left Alienn, and Earth.
The lovely life she’d led with Jack at her side.
They’d been practically inseparable. Since the day they met, one rarely could be found without the other close by. She missed that life so dearly.
Madelaine slept so hard that she didn’t stir when the car stopped, Jack got out to fill the gas tank and settled back behind the wheel.
He put a hand on her shoulder and squeezed gently to wake her. She barely stopped herself from putting him in a stranglehold before she realized he wasn’t the enemy. He said, “Hey. Do you want to eat, drink or use the facilities before we take off again?”
Madelaine looked out the window, breathing deeply, trying to wake up from her lovely memories and dreams. They were at the gas station in Liberty, parked in front of the building.
“Yes,” she said, sounding half asleep to her own ears. “All of the above.”
“I filled the tank up and pulled the car away from the pumps. Let’s go inside and grab some things for the road, okay?”
Madelaine smiled. “Yes. Okay.” It was like old times when they did road trips between Dorado and Alienn while they were in college.
Another thing she’d missed.
She hadn’t finished college in favor of the stupid duty she’d been forced to accept. Stop it.
Once they had cold drinks and a bag of unhealthy snacks for the road, they resumed their journey to Alienn, stopping only once more, at a questionable gas station three hours out of town because they had to use the less-than-optimal bathroom facilities.
They got five gallons of gas, even though they didn’t really need it, so the early morning clerk would stop giving them the stink eye. All part of the joys of traveling.
Jack drove straight to the house Madelaine had rented.
Seraphina was still in residence. After listening to a short explanation of the next step of Madelaine’s errand, Seraphina helped her with a quick and easy disguise.
She was turned into a hopefully unrecognizable woman with long dark hair, a wide-brimmed, slightly floppy straw hat and large dark sunglasses.
She wore what she considered a hideous shade of bold red lipstick to complete her transformation.
Madelaine didn’t have time for prosthetics or a detailed backstory, and hoped she wouldn’t need either.
Jack had said he’d accompany her and she was going to take him up on his generous offer. If anyone asked, she’d pretend to be Jack’s bachelor auction date that had turned into a long weekend.
She didn’t want anyone, especially the manager of the bank, to think she was a female all alone while retrieving this very important key from the safety deposit box. The phrase “strength in numbers” was valid in operational terms and definitely worked for her purposes in this case.
“How do I look?” Madelaine asked Jack when Seraphina was finished.
He grinned. “Like a self-important rich chick who doesn’t have the time of day for any of the little unimportant people around her.”
“Perfect. I just can’t be recognized, and that’s as good of a backstory as any. No one will expect a long-lost reunion if I’m a mean girl, right?”
“Yep. Just act like those clicky rich girls we knew back in college and you’ll be fine.”
“Right. I’m glad you’re coming with me.” She added in an imperious tone, “You will accompany me as my long-suffering manservant as I portray Penelope Snotty-Pants, the pampered rich girl with no patience for anyone around her.”
“And the exact opposite of Madelaine Archer,” he said. “Can’t wait.”
Madelaine shrugged. She was not the same girl who’d left Alienn five years ago, but she usually tried not to be angry or bitter about the life course change she was obligated to follow. Usually.
Madelaine outlined her simplistic plan for their visit to the bank, opting for basic and easy along with getting in and out as quickly as possible. The less they had to interact with others in the bank, the better.
She glanced at Jack. “Thanks for coming in with me.”
“No worries. Ready?”
“As I’ll ever be.”
They headed for her rental car, parked back under the carport, as Madelaine took a couple of seconds to think about her role. She considered her attitude and how she needed to behave while inside the bank, setting her mind to act like someone completely different.
Haughty and snotty, here I come.