Page 130

"He broke into the house, too," Misty blurted. "He broke in through the back door."

"What? When? Why?"

"A few days ago. We think he was after money that was in a safe in her sister's closet?'

"Among other things," Star muttered, glancing at me. "He took the safe, but we'd already taken the money out of it," Jade told him

"So that's why that back door looks like it does," he said, more to himself than to us, and nodded. "What are you going to do when he finds out about...I don't know whether to call her your mother or your sister?'

"That's been her problem, too," Star muttered.

"I just call her Geraldine now," I said. "We're hoping that he'll stay away because he'll think she'll call the police. At least he's afraid of her."

"But you told him she was in the hospital. What's to stop him from just coming over here, even right now?" Stuart asked.

`We're going to pretend she came home. Misty is going to dress like her. Cat says they're about the same size," Jade told him.

"You mean she's going to impersonate her?"

"Exactly," Jade said. "It will be dark so we think she can do it."

Stuart shook his head, glanced at me and then at them. "This is nuts."

"It's what we have to do to protect her. Are you going to help us?"

"What do you want me to do?" he asked.

"Keep your mouth shut about it for starters," Star said. "Think you can do that?" she added. "Cat does. Cat's the one who has all the faith in you," she told him.

He looked at me.

"If it's for her and it's what she wants, of course," he said. I smiled

"Actually," Jade said, thinking aloud, "it's good that you're in on this with us. It will give Cat more security to have you around."

"In on this?" He paused. "Doesn't anyone call for her sister? Doesn't anyone come visiting?" he asked me.

"No. She didn't have any friends and conducted almost all her business over the phone. She hated going out of the house."

"And no family?"

"Just cousins who never call, never write," I said. "She never called or wrote them either."

"But there's your father out there," he reminded us.

"As we told you, he's supposed to stay away. If he comes around, you can chase him off," Jade said. "Threaten to call the police."

"Sure," Stuart said skeptically. "I'll scare the hell out of him. What does he do? Doesn't he have a job?"

"He's an executive in a stock brokerage firm and he can do almost anything he wants," I said. "He's often away from his office, visiting with clients."

Stuart smirked. "This isn't going to be easy."

"It has been up to now," Star said dryly.

We heard a car horn sound in the driveway. Stuart's head snapped around, his eyes wide.

"That's only my limousine," Jade said. "We've all got some things to do today, but Misty is coming back here tonight for a little while. By herself," she added. "You see, Cat is going to bring her mother home from the hospital tonight?'