The Return of the Stone
Part 3
Higher for Hire
Saturday Morning
Rebecca poured herself a second cup of coffee and added a spoonful of sugar to it. Stirring her coffee absently, she gazed out the window over the sink at the dewy freshness of the young day. When she heard a 'clink' against the cup's handle, she awoke from her pleasant reverie to smile down at her engagement ring; the diamond sparkled almost as brightly as her eyes. She thought to herself, Baloo and Kit have nice weather for their delivery of Yippee-Skippee Peanut Butter and Schmucker's Jelly. As she headed for her office, she found herself impatient for her flight crew's return although they had been gone only an hour.
Just as the door swung shut behind her, a middle-aged, svelte lion in a three-piece navy suit cautiously peeked in the kitchen window. His shrewd brown eyes took in the small room in a discerning glance. He pushed the sash up and vaulted over the sill with practiced ease, landing lightly on his expensively shod feet. This was going to be the simplest assignment that he, Leo Stedman, had ever been on.
Leo Stedman was Shere Khan's super-secret secret agent. The best in his business. The créme de la créme. He was a master of disguise. Stealth incarnate. He could blend in anywhere, impersonate anyone. He spoke forty-seven languages fluently, knew the customs of every culture, worked with the cunningness of a fox and the swiftness of an eagle. He was as the wind - able to appear and vanish in the blink of an eye.
And he had an ego large enough to encompass all that greatness.
He flashed a toothy grin at his reflection in the bottom of a copper pot and smoothed down a few loose wisps of his thick, tawny mane. Satisfied with his handsome, almost dandified, appearance, he slunk to the door leading to the office, pushed it open silently, and put his eye to the crack. He smiled patronizingly to himself when he saw the bearess take the stone - his objective - from the jewelry box and lock it in a wall safe. No mere safe could keep him from completing his mission.
Rebecca shut the safe door and turned the knob. "There," she said, dusting her hands off. "Now I feel safer." The telephone rang and she answered it. "Good morning. This is Higher for Hire..."
Stedman, staring at the bearess's back, believed that this was going to be so pitifully easy that he could have pulled the job off in his sleep. All he had to do was get the stone without being seen.
He pushed the door open just enough to admit his wiry body and crouched behind a large potted palm. The safe was a few feet to his right, a little above his head. He would have to bide his time until he was alone - all day, if necessary.
His attention was arrested by Rebecca exclaiming, "Oh, Baloo!" From the bottom desk drawer, she removed the half-eaten remains of a sandwich. The bread was green and fuzzy, the lettuce was brown, and the ham was speckled with black mold. Holding the rancid sandwich at arm's length, she rushed to the kitchen, muttering, "That bear has to learn that my desk is not a refrigerator! We're going to have a long talk when he gets home!"
It was the chance Leo Stedman had been waiting for. He sprang to the safe and fiddled with the knob, ear to the door. The first number clicked. The second. He rotated the knob slowly to the left, listening intently.
"Hello," said a little voice.
Stedman spun around. Reflexively, his right hand flew inside his suit jacket to grasp his handgun. Every muscle in his body was tense, ready to fight or flee from his adversary. His eyes panned around the room, but he saw no one.
"Hi," said the little voice again.
He looked down. His adversary turned out to be a little yellow bearess carrying a doll. He relaxed, but not much. Donning a facade of sweetness and decency as another would don a suit of clothes, he affixed a convincing charming smile on his handsome face. "Hello, little girl," he crooned in a cultured voice that made most women forget their names.
However, neither the voice nor the smile worked their magic on this little girl.
"Are you one of my mommy's customers?" Molly asked, wondering why he had been messing with the safe.
The agent nodded, still smiling. He had no problem staring down other spies, but, for some unexplained reason, he quailed under the candid innocence of this child's brown eyes. Of course, with all of his expensive, extensive training, his expression didn't betray it.
"What do you make?"
Leo Stedman blurted out the first thing he saw. "Paperclips."
"Paperclips? That sounds neat." Molly climbed into her mother's chair, then onto the desktop. She picked up a paperclip. Trying to trip this so-called customer up, she said, "I got a question. How do you fold 'em like this?"
"We have machines to do that," he replied, warily watching the kitchen door in his peripheral vision. He couldn't afford to be caught. His reputation would be wasted, and after Shere Khan dealt with him, his entire body would be wasted. Quickly, he thought up a scheme to escape from the building. He would get the stone later. "Where's your bathroom, little girl?"
"Upstairs. I'll show you." As they both ascended the stairs, Molly prattled on. "It's the first room. The one next to it is Baloo and Kit's bedroom."
"That's nice."
"They'll fly your...what did you say you made again?" Molly fixed her shrewd, suspicious gaze on him.
Almost imperceptibly, he fiddled with the handle of the switchblade in his pocket, but he said confidently, "Paperclips."
Molly was disappointed. He really was a customer. There went her plan to lock him in the bathroom. "Yeah, they'll fly your paperclips wherever you want."
Maintaining his fake smile despite a deep desire to dispose of the chattering child who had put a wrench in his pitifully simple mission, he said coolly, "That's good."
"Baloo's the best pilot in the world," Molly stated proudly. "Did you know he's gonna be my daddy?"
"Sounds cozy." He bit the inside of his cheek to keep from screaming, "Go away!" and jammed his hands in his pants pockets to keep from pushing her over the banister.
"And Kit's gonna be my brother."
"That's nice." Averting his face from the girl, he rolled his eyes. Family, schmamily, he thought irately.
"Yeah, Kit is nice. He likes to play Danger Woman with me."
"Danger Woman?" Stedman echoed with a blank stare.
"You don't know who Danger Woman is? She's only the fastest, strongest, bestest superhero in the entire universe! I'll show you what she wears." Molly sped off to get her Danger Woman costume.
Leo Stedman shut the bathroom door with a sigh of relief. I thought I'd never get away from that brat. He wrenched open the window and looked down. It was a straight shot to the paving stones below. That didn't faze him. It would be a walk in the park compared to scaling Mt. Neverrest single-handedly without ropes in a blizzard. He swung one leg over the sill, then the other. He lowered himself, finding handholds and toeholds in the crevices between boards. Halfway down the 'lighthouse', he stopped. Two big burly goon-types accompanied by a short alligator were directly beneath him; he recognized them as the people he had trailed the day before.
Hearing a high-pitched beeping, the agent looked at the ring on his left pinky. The large, square ruby was flashing. Peeking over his shoulder at the trio, he thought irately, What a horrible time for a phone call from the big boss!
Rhino Goon peered into the elm tree as they skirted the building. "Weird birds dey got here."
"Yeah, weird," agreed Ape Goon; he didn't have a clue what his counterpart was talking about.
"Will you two weirdos stop yappin' about da birds?" Trader Moe peeked into the office window. Rebecca was seated behind her desk and the jewelry box was right in front of her. "Whattaya know? Dere's da box. For once you twos did somethin' right."
At the rare praise from their boss, Ape Goon chuckled sheepishly while Rhino Goon, blushing, said, "Gee, dat's real nice of ya, boss."
"Real nice," Ape Goon parroted, grinning.
"Enough with da nice!" Trader Moe whispered loudly, 'wiping' the stupid grins from the goons' faces with his floppy, brown hat. "We ain't here fer nice! We're here fer da stone! Break down da door."
The goons broke down the door - literally. One punch from both of the goons' beefy fists and the bottom hinge busted, leaving the door to swing wildly inward at an odd angle. Startled at the loud cracking noise, Rebecca quickly looked up from her work.
"Hand over da box, lady," Trader Moe snarled with a sneer.
Rebecca grabbed the jewelry box and hugged it to her chest. She backed towards the kitchen door. "Give me one good reason!"
"I'll give ya's two good reasons." With a snap of his fingers, two semi-automatic rifles were pointed directly at her courtesy of the goons.
She gulped as she held out the box with shaking hands.
Trader Moe snatched it up. "Tie her up, boys."
Rebecca's hands and heels were swiftly bound together. She was set roughly on the floor in front of her desk.
Hearing the ruckus, Molly, clad as Danger Woman in her red blanket cape and colander hat, shouted as she clattered down the stairs, "Leave my mommy alone or else!"
Trader Moe laughed scornfully. "Or else what, pipsqueak?"
"This!" Molly kicked the alligator's shins, causing him to drop the box.
He hopped around the room, yelping in pain. "Grab her!"
Molly scooped up the box. Holding it under her arm like a football, she ran for the door; but was stopped when Ape Goon picked her up by the scruff of the neck; she kicked her legs in an attempt to escape from her captor.
Rhino Goon wrenched the box away from her vise-like grip. "Strong kid, but not strong enough." Flicking her colander hat from her head, he laughed in her face.
Scowling, Molly bit Rhino Goon's nose.
"Ouch!"
Ape Goon wrapped the red blanket securely around Molly's wriggling form and stuck the hem of it in her mouth.
"Ah, da sounds of silence," Trader Moe chuckled evilly. "Load 'em in da car, boys. We're takin' dese hostages for a ride."
Rebecca and Molly exchanged frightened glances.
Outside
Leo Stedman, who had been casing Higher for Hire from the luxurious accommodations of the interior of the trash can, witnessed the mass exodus of two goons carrying two bearesses. Behind them was a short alligator, barking out orders and toting a box. It was the moment he had been waiting for - again. He could almost hear the well-deserved praise from Shere Khan for the successful completion of another mission, not to mention the pile of cash that he would receive. But first he had to return a phone call.
On his ring, he pushed the tiny gold star inset in the center of the large, square ruby. A small antenna unfurled from the ruby. Quick beeping indicated that the number was being dialed.
Without a preliminary greeting, Shere Khan asked languidly, "Do you have it?"
"Not yet, Mr. Khan, but it is within reach."
"Good. Call me when you get it."
"Yes, sir." Stedman once again pushed the gold star, causing the antenna to retract.
However, before he could climb out of the trash can, the lid opened and an extremely oily oil filter dropped on top of him.
"Oh, my hair!" wailed Stedman very unprofessionally.
Hearing the noise, Wildcat peeked into the trash can and saw the oil-covered spy. "Sorry. Didn't know that this was your trash can." He put the lid down and walked off.
Grumbling, Leo Stedman emerged from the trash, trying to brush sludge off of his expensive suit. He only managed to smear it around worse. Streaks of oil streamed down his hair and over his face. Walking into the office through the sagging door, he faced a dilemma - wash his hair or get the stone. There was no question in his mind. The stone wasn't going anywhere. He ran upstairs to the bathroom to wash up.
A few minutes later, Stedman pulled his dripping head out of the sink when he heard the Sea Duck's engines. He brushed his sopping wet hair from his eyes and listened intently. A door slammed. Two male voices - a deep, gruff voice and a higher boyish voice - grew closer. Drat! This place is busier than Grande Central Station, he thought angrily.
Naturally calm Leo Stedman was becoming really steamed. This mission was supposed to be simple - grab the stone without being seen. How could he prevent being seen when there were always people around? He rued the fact that his boss had explicitly told him not to kill anyone on this mission. Bumping off a few people would have made it so much easier. He snatched a can of hairspray and a comb from a shelf. For the second time that day, the agent went to the window, shoved the hair care items in his pocket, and climbed out.
As the lion exited by the bathroom window, two bears entered by the office door.
"Hey, Becky, we're home on time! Ain't ya proud of me?" Baloo stubbed his toe on the colander. "Yeowch! Man, Molly's gotta learn ta pick up her toys!"
"Maybe Miz Cunningham's over at Wildcat's to get him to fix the door," Kit suggested, prodding at the sagging door with one finger, a questioning expression on his face.
"Swell," Baloo murmured, hobbling across the room. He sank into his easy chair and propped his feet up on a crate. "It figures that when I'm on time, she ain't even here."
Kit picked up the Cape Suzette Tribune from Rebecca's desk. A piece of paper fluttered to the floor. Snatching it up, he read it twice before exclaiming, "You have got to be kidding me!"
"What? Did the Sox lose?"
"Baseball in January? No, Rebecca and Molly have been kidnapped."
At the word 'kidnapped', Baloo sat straight up in his chair. He crossed the room in a few strides. "Karny again? Didn't we just go through that rigmarole last week?"
Kit shook his head. "This time it's Trader Moe, Papa Bear."
He snatched the paper from Kit and squinted at the cramped writing. "Man, he spells worse'n me!"
We's got da ladee and kid. If yas want 'em back alive, bring a tousand bucks to da werehouse on da corner of Crawford and River Streets. No coppers or dey die.
Veree serously yers,
Trader Moe
"All right, Li'l Britches. Looks like we gotta save the gals again. Man, kidnapped twice in two weeks? That's gotta be a record or somethin'."
"It's getting so old," Kit sighed wearily as they hurried out to Rebecca's grey car.
Salazar's Seafood Warehouse
Down by the wharves, across from the cannery, was the warehouse district. A sign creaked above the door of one particular warehouse. On the sign was a peeling picture of a mackerel sandwiched between faded letters that spelled out 'Salazar's Seafood'. A stale odor of fish, brine, and dust emanated from the weathered boards of the old wooden building. At first glance it appeared abandoned, but, from the scuffling and shrieking inside, one could tell that it was inhabited - at least for the day.
Rebecca's indignant shout of "Don't you dare hurt her, you big bullies!" came from within.
"Ya got dat backwards, lady! Dat spitfire's da one dat's hurtin' us!" Big bruises and a few bleeding wounds on the kidnappers attested to where Molly had bit, scratched, pinched, and pulled their fur when they attempted to bind her with ropes.
Once subdued and tied up, Molly was shoved into a small closet beside her mother.
Pointing a gun at the hostages, Trader Moe threatened, "I don't wanna hear one peep outta youse two."
"Peep," Molly murmured derisively and stuck out her tongue.
"Do ya want dat tongue blown off?" Trader Moe snarled.
With wide eyes, the girl quickly shook her head and withdrew her tongue.
"Dat's better." He slammed the door shut, leaving the bearesses in darkness. Only a few slivers of pale light glimmered through the chinks in the walls.
"Mommy, I don't like this place," Molly said softly, scooting over to lean against her mother.
"I know, sweetie. Be brave like Danger Woman," Rebecca cooed, working with cramped fingers at the knots that bound her daughter's wrists.
"Shaddup in dere!" Trader Moe yelled, pounding on the door. He didn't like to be interrupted when he was gloating over his latest 'acquisition'. "Gimmee da stone."
Ape Goon opened the jewelry box, but it was empty. He stared down at it stupidly. "Oops."
"Whattaya mean 'oops'?" Trader Moe seized the box from Ape Goon's hands. Seeing that it was empty, his face turned a brilliant shade of purple. "Where's dat stone!" he roared. He tore the lining out and shook it upside down. Infuriated, he beat the goons across the noses with the box before hurling it across the room. "Youse blockheads! Can't do nuthin' right!" He flung the closet door open, demanding, "Where's da stone, lady?"
"What stone?" Rebecca said innocently. "The only stone I know about is my engagement ring, and you'll take it over my dead body!"
"Which can be arranged," Trader Moe said darkly. He slammed the door shut. "I'm goin' back to dat office. I bet she hid it somewheres. Youse two stay here and watch dose two."
"Okey-dokey," both goons said, grinning stupidly.
Rhino Goon opened the closet door. Both goons stared at the bearesses, who stared back.
"What are ya doin', ya chuckle heads?" Trader Moe spat.
"Watchin' da two bears like ya told us to," the big rhino answered.
"Yeah, watchin' good."
Trader Moe slammed the closet door shut, causing the goons to jump in startled surprise. "Not like dat! Keep da door shut!"
Perplexed, Rhino Goon said, "But how are we s'posed ta watch 'em with da door shut? We can't see 'em."
"Da door's in da way," added Ape Goon.
Trader Moe ground his teeth together. "AGH! Make sure dey don't escape from dat room. Got it?"
"Got it," answered Rhino Goon.
"Yeah, we's gots it."
"An' keep dat closet door shut! Remember dat!"
Both goons nodded like bobbing-head dolls. "We'll remember, boss."
Outside the Warehouse
A grey sedan pulled up beside the warehouse. Baloo and Kit got out and warily walked around to the front of the building.
"What's our plan, Papa Bear?"
"I'm thinkin', kiddo. What we need is a dumb plan ta outsmart those dummies."
"Outsmart," Kit scoffed. "That's an oxymoron."
"Moron's right," mumbled Baloo.
They ducked behind a pile of crates when Trader Moe exited the building.
"Remember, youse two keep an eye on da hostages."
"Which eye? Right or left?" Rhino Goon wondered.
"What do we do wid da other eye?" Ape Goon asked.
"Just...agh!" Trader Moe gnashed his teeth. "I need new goons! Wonder if Goons R We's have any available." He stomped to his car, got in, slammed the door angrily, and sped away.
"Now's our chance," murmured Kit.
"I got me a brainstorm. What we do is..." Baloo whispered his plan into the boy's ear.
A few minutes later...
"Open up!" shouted Baloo authoritatively, pounding on the door with his fist. "Warehouse inspectors."
Rhino Goon opened the door a crack and peered out at the two bears. He pointed an accusing finger at them. "Hey, youse don't look like inspectors."
"Who don't look like inspectors?" Ape Goon asked, throwing open the door. He also glared down at the two bears. "Yeah, youse don't look like inspectors!"
"We're undercover inspectors," Kit supplied confidently in an affected deep voice. "We handle surprise inspections. If we looked like inspectors, it wouldn't be a surprise, would it?"
"Hey," Rhino Goon said slowly. "Don't we's know yas from someplace? Ya's look familiar."
"Dey do?" asked Ape Goon.
"Yeah, dey's do."
"Do you know any warehouse inspectors?" said Baloo.
"No." Rhino Goon shook his head.
"Well, then, ya don't know us," Kit said.
While the goons were puzzling this out, Baloo said, "Let us in, or we'll report you to the uh...Bureau of Better Warehouses."
"Yeah, and they'll confiscate your warehouse," added Kit with a covert wink at Baloo.
"Confiscate?" Both goons looked at the bears blankly. They weren't familiar with that word. In fact, they weren't familiar with any word containing more than two syllables.
"We'll take it away. Warehouse goes bye-bye," Kit clarified.
"Don't take our warehouse!" Rhino Goon exclaimed.
Ape Goon added, "Da boss wouldn't like dat!"
Once inside the warehouse, Baloo bellowed, "Becky!"
"Baloo?" came Rebecca's muffled, relieved reply.
"Whatcha doin'?" inquired Rhino Goon.
"Checkin' the warehouse acoustics," Baloo averred, nervously eyeing the handles of guns protruding from the goons' pockets. "Can't have a warehouse without proper acoustics, ya know. Violation of the warehouse code."
"Yeah, it's got a real good echo. It passes." Kit, making a checkmark on his left hand with his right forefinger, cleared his throat to hide a laugh. "Show us around."
Baloo and Kit pretended to note the solidness of the structural beams and the soundness of the floorboards. What they were really interested in, however, was a door in the corner.
Deducing that the two bearesses must be in there, Baloo ordered, "Open it up."
"Da boss told us not to open da door," Rhino Goon said stubbornly, blocking the door with his stocky form.
"Yeah, what he said." Ape Goon also stood in front of the door.
Baloo shook his head sadly. "That's too bad, because if you don't open that door and let us inspectors see what's inside, your warehouse will be automatically confiscated."
"Warehouse go bye-bye," Kit clarified.
A look of fear crossed Ape Goon's face. "Warehouse go bye-bye?"
"And, boy, would your boss be sore at you," Kit added.
"All right, but da boss won't like it." Reluctantly, Rhino Goon opened the door. Inside were Rebecca and Molly, whose faces broke into big smiles at the sight of their rescuers.
Kit put a finger to his lips to warn the Cunninghams to be quiet.
"Do you have a permit for storin' people?" Baloo asked sternly.
"P...permit?" stuttered Ape Goon, throwing a confused and guilty glance at his counterpart.
"Da boss didn't say nothin' about no permit," added Rhino Goon.
Baloo solemnly shook his head. "No permit, huh? Tsk, tsk, tsk. I'll have to report that to the Bureau of Better Warehouses."
"No permit, no people," Kit said.
Molly stifled a giggle at Kit's unnaturally deep voice. The boy winked at her, shaking his head.
"Accordin' ta section ABD123 of the official warehouse manual, ya hafta let those people go," Baloo stated.
Kit nodded seriously. "Or we'll take your warehouse."
"An' yer boss will be sore at you," Baloo reminded.
Both goons were frightened. Trader Moe's anger was a terrible sight to behold.
"Go! Go! We gotta save da warehouse for da boss," said Rhino Goon, untying the hostages and escorted them out of the warehouse.
"You did the right thing," Baloo said. With difficulty, he repressed a smile of relief.
"We'll give the Bureau of Better Warehouses a good report about this warehouse. Thank you for your time," Kit said, heading for the exit.
Both of the 'inspectors' gravely shook hands with the goons before leaving.
"Dat was close!" Ape Goon sighed with relief when the door closed behind the two bears.
"Almost lost da warehouse. Da boss wouldn't like dat," said Rhino Goon, leaning heavily against the door.
"He wouldn't like dat at all," added Ape Goon solemnly.
Outside...
"I can't believe that worked!" Kit exclaimed with a grin as wide as the ocean on his face.
"Race you to the car, Kit!" Molly shouted. She was glad to be able to move around freely again. Both cubs ran as fast as they could to the grey automobile.
"If those goons get any dumber, they won't remember how to breathe," muttered Baloo. He wrapped an arm around Rebecca's waist. "You gals okay?"
"We are now, Baloo," Rebecca said softly with a grateful smile up at him. She wrapped her arm around his waist as best as she could and rested her head against him.
After they had gotten in the car, Baloo brushed the hair back from Rebecca's forehead.
Perplexed by his actions, the bearess asked, "What are you doing, Baloo?"
"Seein' if ya have 'kidnap me' tattooed on yer face. I swear, Becky, ya get kidnapped, 'cause you like bein' rescued by me."
"I do not!" Rebecca retorted, crossing her arms across her chest.
Baloo started the car and made a U-turn back towards town. Shooting an infuriating smirk in her direction, he rejoined, "You do, too."
"I do not!"
"You do, too!"
In the backseat, Kit rolled his eyes and Molly giggled at the adults' petty bickering.
Higher for Hire
"Last stop. Everybody out," Baloo said, turning off the car's ignition. Getting out, he asked, "By the way, Beckers, what happened to the door anyhoo? Was Wildcat foolin' around with the motor-trike again?"
"Those stupid goons tore it off its hinges," Rebecca muttered sullenly, "when they broke in."
"Yeah, it's broken all right," Baloo chuckled.
"Papa Bear, wasn't Trader Moe coming here to look for the stone?" Kit remembered, tugging on the hem of the big bear's shirt.
"You're right, Li'l Britches. I better check it out. You guys stay out here," Baloo told Rebecca and the cubs.
He peeked around the sagging door. The office seemed empty. There wasn't a sound except his own breathing and the ticking of the grandfather clock. Baloo exhaled a sigh of relief and motioned to Rebecca. "All clear."
When all four bears were in the office, Trader Moe snarled, "Think again."
End of part 3