Chapter 4: The Ambassador’s Girl - Charles Fornau

I showed her around, then since it was getting late and she was hungry, I made her some frozen Salisbury steaks, instant potatoes, and canned green beans, and we talked a little more about the future.

We then got really domestic, doing dishes together, laundry together, bathing together, then falling asleep together. The next day would be a bit busy. She needed everything, and I needed to get everything for her. In addition, she wanted to do all that and meet with Roger for dinner the next evening. She explained her desire to be open with at least a few people we trusted so that she would have someone to talk to if I wasn’t around and things went south. Novel approach to life. Mature and responsible.

She bought a small wardrobe of clothes, dressy, casual, sleepwear, lingerie, sportswear, a pair of jeans that looked like they were painted onto her, shoes to go with most, if not all of it, and enough things to ‘hold her a while’ she said. I saw some of the brand names on the goods she piled in the basket at Target and knew only one person in the house would be using them. Except for one little box. That one I recognized as a little box for both of us. I hadn’t used one in well over a decade, but until she felt good about it and had talked to a gynecologist, I wasn’t disapproving. Not at all. Only an idiot would, and I didn’t consider myself one.

As far as the clothes go, I had to push her into that. She wanted to make sure I was OK with almost everything, but I turned it around on her and asked her, ‘Would you wear it for me?’ or ‘Is that something that would help at school?’, or the one that really got her, ‘That would look marvelous if you wore it dancing with me at the governor’s inaugural ball, wouldn’t it?’. Yep, that one got her. I think it was around then that she understood I wanted her to look good, feel good, and stop worrying about money and the small, replaceable things in life.

“Inaugural ball? You have to be shitting me.”

“Nope. Regardless of which one wins, we’ll be there. One is a friend’s father, and the other is a mentor. And, yes, dear, I want the mentor to win. The friend’s father is nothing more than a greedy, self-espousing power broker, not a man who wants to serve his state and make things better for everyone here.”

“Looks like I’m not the only one who’s been exposed to too many politicians, then.”

“No, Amanda, I’ve met my share of them. That’s for certain. Hey, baby doll, we need to get ready to meet Roger at that new Anthony’s Place. It’s getting on in the day.”

“Do I need to speak Bimbo, or just keep up with the conversation and nod?”

“The latter. If she sees you as a sister, we’ll never get rid of her. Act dumb, well, less intelligent than her, when I’m not there. That will confuse the shit out of her, then when we get back to the table, you can let Roger know you’re smarter than me and we’ll be all set.”

“I doubt that, Charlie. I’m not a genius.”

“You don’t have to be a genius to be smarter than me, gorgeous. I’m not one either. I’m just lucky, have been in the right place at the right time and place, and think fast. I’ll share the wild and wonderful details of my success someday over breakfast in bed. I’ll bring it to you, as well. The breakfast. How does that sound?”

I was dressed and waiting for her when she came out of the room, ready to go out on the town. Wow, was she ready, too. The weather was beautiful out, and we weren’t exactly going formal or anything, so she chose a hot pants and blouse set, with hose and high heeled sandals that got me drooling before I could even say, “Jeez, Mandy, you look amazing in that outfit. So cute. So pretty. Sorry, but so sexy, too. You look like a million bucks, as the adage goes.”

“Thank you. This is my bimbo outfit. Not just for Roger and his chippie, either. Any time you want to be out and about with a ... One of these, Charlie, just ask. I feel good dressed like this. I’ll feel better with a bit of my weight back. I checked on your bathroom scale, and I need about ten pounds back, I think. I need to see a doctor, though. Soon. I hope you can help with that.”

“Absolutely. Am I feeding you enough, honey?”

“Oh, yes, you’re doing fine. All is well, my love. I need to say that you are looking good, too. I like that jacket. Come on, boyfriend, take me to this Anthony guy and let me eat all his offerings. My appetite has not let off at all. I’m hoping it does, ‘cause I really DON’T want to wind up as ‘Fat Mandy’.”

“You won’t, baby cakes. We are NOT going to be lethargic, or sedentary. Trust me. I don’t stop often, and when I do, it’s to sleep and reload. You’ll see. Come on. You asked for food. Let’s go.”

We had returned from the airport to the house in my truck, just a pickup with a towing capability as far as I was concerned, but she liked it. The car we left in was an Audi SQ8, my ‘SUV’. It was a great vehicle, and I planned on teaching her how to drive in it. The vehicle was known for its safety, but it was quite a snappy little thing, too. She mentioned driving again.

“I’m going to read the book this week, babe, and then see if you can take me for my permit. I read a little about it, and it seems pretty easy, if I can just spend some time on it. The truck seems a bit big, so do you think I can try this thing out?”

“Absolutely. The other car wouldn’t be the right answer, and the scooter wouldn’t be at all the right answer. Yes, this is the car in which you’ll practice driving.” We pulled out of the garage and headed up the lane to the road when she acknowledged.

“Thank you. What do you think we should do about the mailbox, Charlie? I sent that form in today, like you said I should, so what’s next?”

“I plan to go out there once a month and check it. I think that’s the best we can do, unless you want friends and the like to check it if anyone goes that direction.”

“No, Charlie, I think your idea is best. Once a month and see what happens. I dread the thought of going over and over and never seeing anything, but if he’s alive, we should know within a couple of months, don’t you think?”

“Yes, honey, I do. I’m pretty sure if he thinks you’re alive, and he’s capable, the plan you all had would be the way to go. Just send something to the mailbox and get in touch. He’d be hoping you’d answer and send something back to whatever address and name he used, but between the two of you, I’ll bet you’ll know the other’s identity and intentions.”

“I think you’re right. I hope it works. I hope it happens. I know he’s in trouble, and may never come home, but at least I’ll know, one way or the other.” Her look was somber.

“Stop fretting over it for now. Nothing we can do about it until later. Please, just hang in there and cheer up. You are so very beautiful when you smile.”

“Thank you. I’ll try. I will.”

We arrived at the new restaurant, which was more of a club with an eating sideline. The food, however, was excellent, according to reviews, so I was looking forward to it. Could Mandy dance? We’d find out pretty soon.

I met up with Roger in the lobby, we shook and he introduced us to Tabby, Tabitha, his date for the evening. Tabitha giggled and held out her hand to Alina who took it as they traded pleasantries.

We entered the bar area where I ordered drinks for all of us, Roger and I had a Crown rocks, Tabby asked for a frozen strawberry margarita, and Alina asked for ‘coke’ in a bit of a Slavic slanted accent.

Once we had our drinks, the puck Roger had flashed and buzzed, so we took the girls out to the desk and let the hostess seat the girls, telling them we’d follow along in a minute. Mandy was down with the plan, so she played along and made it a seamless affair.

Once they were out of earshot and Roger and I were back in the bar, I just came out and told him. “That’s Amanda Birdweiler. I found her a little less than half dead a few days ago in Paris.”

“I figured it was something earth-shattering, but, Jesus, Charlie, could you have gotten into anything any deeper? What about her dad?”

“She says she doesn’t know. She may have an inkling but doesn’t want to pursue it. Any highlighting of him endangers his life. She’s afraid if anyone knows she’s around, they’ll kidnap her and use her to get to him, too. It’s a mess.”

“With a capital M. I guess as long as she doesn’t know where he is, she’s not aiding and abetting, or harboring, so that’s a plus, but this could get hinky, especially with the people that are in office right now. What is your plan?”

“Alina goes to school, a sophomore at Wash or MoBap, and we just sort of work through things. I was looking at her doing online courses as much as possible and working with me to keep her busy and around me for safety, if nothing else. I can keep an eye on her and her surroundings that way.”

“That sounds like a better idea than marching into the FBI offices and saying, ‘I’m not dead’. Does she have any idea who the dead girl was?”

“What dead girl?”

“The one that the Polish police thought might be her. Blonde teenager with a striking resemblance. DNA came back negative, but still, they decided to declare the Birdweiler girl deceased after 90 days. There was the whole thing with her stepmother and stepbrother. That sounded like it might have been a bit gruesome.”

“Maybe the old man is dead. Maybe Elizabeth gave him up, if she knew. Who knows? In any case, I want to keep her alive until we find out what to do for the long term. You don’t have any friends on the inside anymore, do you?”

“I do know a guy, come to think of it, and I can ask some questions. I’ll leave you out of it, naturally, since if you’re involved, your life is at risk as well. Let’s go eat and see how things are going at the table. What do you think of Tabby, Charlie? She’s a firecracker, I’ll tell you. The one place she doesn’t like is on her back, but she’s an animal in every other position. No downside, if you know what I mean.”

I had to laugh. Roger, although a very competent and trustworthy lawyer and counsel, was a pussy hound. He had more girlfriends at any one time than I had vehicles, and that’s counting my lawnmower and my boat. True, my lawnmower and my boat were smarter than some of his ... Liaisons ... But he sure knew how to get the pretty ones, no doubt.

As we approached the table, Alina was nodding and saying ‘Da’ now and again, just mesmerized with Tabby’s conversation. She looked so relieved as Roger and I approached the table.

“Charlie,” she said in her accented voice, “I missed you. We are not apart that long too much.”

Tabby was a bit taken aback, thinking it had only been a few minutes. “Alina, you must really like him.”

“Yes, Miss Tabby, I do. He is my sunshine. Miss Tabby, will you go with me to the restroom. I will follow you in one minute.” Tabby nodded and moved for the restroom, walking between the tables and as soon as she was out of earshot, Amanda said, “Jeez, Roger, she’s a high school graduate. Good going. Charlie can tell you more if you like, but yes, I’m Amanda. If you have questions, it would be best if you two did all the talking. I need to stay as deep as I can as long as I can. Cool?” Roger nodded. “Good,” she switched back to the accent, “I must go catch up to Miss Tabby. For real.” She giggled and left the table.

“What a doll? Charlie, are you and she ... Have you ... Are you going to...”

“Roger, shut up and turn off your prurient interests. It has no bearing on anything whatsoever. Nada. Nothing. Not a bit.”

“I’ll take that as a yes. You go, dog. In any case, let’s see what we can do for you. Enough about that. I want one of these steaks everyone has been talking about.”

We ordered, ate, and conversed a bit afterwards, but most of the talking was done by Tabby. Roger and I got in a couple of words edgewise about the meal, with Alina agreeing with us that it was excellent and needed to be done again, but as soon as that conversation was concluded, the sale at Macy’s came up and Kohl’s new line of fall clothing wasn’t far behind. Roger and I just sipped our drinks and listened. I’m pretty sure that’s all Alina, or I should say Mandy, was doing at the time as well. Mandy had been shopping at both of those stores the day before, as a matter of fact, the painted-on jeans were from Kohl’s, but she never let on. Not even a little.

The evening out ended, and Roger smiled as we stood. I knew why, Mandy knew why, Roger knew why, but Tabby didn’t have a clue. She was about to get her brains removed, sexually, and wasn’t even aware of it yet. Maybe she was, who am I to say, but it didn’t sound like it. I think she was oblivious to anything, but three blouses for the price of two at that point. She was cute, though. Roger doesn’t date ugly women, truly.

We bid each other farewell, then I got to listen to my heartthrob laugh all the way home telling stories of just how well the conversation went in our absence. Tabby was ignorant on all subjects, save shopping for clothing. Cooking, politics, and geography all came up, and none of their conversations along those lines were based on anything near reality. Tabby was a salesclerk at Epiphany Boutique, a high-end dress shop closer to downtown, and while she knew what the store had, Amanda figured she didn’t know why. She didn’t know fashion so much as she knew shopping. The evening was over, so we let it go and once at home, climbed into our hot tub to relax together.

We spent the next week with me working and her studying for her driver’s test, among normal living activities. And a lot of love making. She also spent some time out back in the pool while I was out, tanning, relaxing, and putting together her version of the future. When the weekend was over, Monday morning, I took her into the license bureau for her test, which of course, she aced. I then took her to an empty warehouse parking lot where I showed her the intricacies of Park, Reverse, and Drive. We didn’t get into the other ones, for now, but I’m sure we would before winter hit. We also discussed the go pedal and the stop pedal. She laughed. Once we had her running around the lot, turning around things and basically driving like she would in town, I added turn signals. She was a champ.

Luckily, very luckily, I might add, it started to rain just a few drops and I was able to show her the operation of the lights and the wipers. Again, she caught on and did perfectly fine.

“It’s noon. You hungry, girlfriend?”

“I could eat. You know, I’m doing better. I could eat a sandwich and a salad or something. I don’t feel like eating an entire pig or anything anymore.”

“Good.” I pointed over to a little place known for their lunch fare. “Drive over to that diner, and we’ll have us a little lunch. It’s on a real road, so act accordingly.”

She giggled, then took off like a normal driver in a normal car and did everything fine, looking for traffic, using the signals and all. It had stopped raining, so the wipers went off by themselves. She asked about that and was impressed. She’d not been exposed to a car with completely automatic wipers yet. That, to me was surprising, but then, she was chauffeured and just may not have noticed. They’ve been around for a long time.

“You feel like driving home?” I asked her after we ate and chatted about the car a little.

“Yes. I’d like to. I’d like to drive as much as you can stand so that I can get this taken care of.”

“Deal. Take me home.” It was several miles home, through the city traffic. I’d take her out on the highway after work the next day, which she agreed to.

Lying in bed that night, just relaxing on me after we made love, she asked about cars. “Charlie, how do we do this? Someday, I’ll be able to drive alone.”

“You can use the one you drove today, for now. If the truck is too big, as you said, we’ll get you another. I think you might be a bit small for the R8, my other car, or should I say, toy. It’s worthless for anything other than getting from point A to point B. It gets there really fast, and it’s a lot of fun doing it, but I wouldn’t want to take it across country, I don’t think, and it only seats two, so...”

“Sounds fun.”

“Wait a while. At least until you get the hang of the whole driving thing. OK?” She nodded and laughed. “It’s a little much for anyone, let alone a rookie driver. You’ll drive it, it just won’t be this month.” A kiss sealed the deal and ended the evening.

Her doctor’s appointment was the next day and went like it should. No issues other than the doctor mentioned she might be a bit thin, asking about other issues. They chatted and decided some vitamins and a good diet should fix the issue, then when Alina mentioned she had a gym at home now and intended to use it more, the doctor agreed with her plan. She opted for the IUD versus the pills or implants. She had mentioned to me before, she should have done that in the first place. Now she had the chance. She drove to the appointment, as well, then she took us home and I went to work that afternoon. When I came home, she was a happy camper and ready to hit the highways. We drove quite a ways up Highway 61, stopping for gas once, dinner once, then just as it was getting dark, we got home. Over a dessert snack of some ice cream and cookies I told her what I thought of her driving skills, even though it was only the second day.

“If you drive like that, Mandy, and pay attention, you aren’t going to have any problems. I think I’m going to buy you your own car as soon as you get your license. It will be like this one, but smaller. I think that’s the right answer. Also, it’s been three weeks now, and I’d like to fly out and check the mailbox this weekend. What do you think about that?”

“Sounds like a good idea. I hope I’m not too much, Charlie. Too much trouble, I mean. I also hope I remember the combination to the post office box. It was Dad’s idea to get a combination lock so we wouldn’t have to have a key. I never in my wildest dreams thought it would come in handy. Never.”

“Someone may be watching, so I’ll check the mail, if you don’t mind.” She shook her head. “What’s the combination?”

“A M A N. First four letters of my name.” She giggled.

“You’re playing, right?”

“Nope. Hard to forget. My name was the only one that would fit. The letters only go up to P. Thomas, Elizabeth, and Robert all went beyond that. Hence, my name was used.”

This should be easy. I said to myself as wondered how closely anyone would be watching that box after what, four or five months? How long had it been? They were abducted in December. Damn, it’s been six months now.