Chapter 28

After they had a proper breakfast---and by the way the two girls polished off the fare Yuri had laid out that morning, them must have been famished!---Yuri drove both Maria and Svetlana to her chic shop on the outskirts of Paris proper. "Ah, now," Yuri said as she glided her Ferrari smoothly to the carport behind her shop, "we are here, ladies."

Svetlana pressed her nose to the small side window of the Italian sports car, eagerly looking at her new workplace. Her new workplace! she grinned mentally, excited and just a bit nervously. It did not look like much from here, Svetlana told herself…but, she reminded herself, most loading docks and back doors are not necessarily designed for curb appeal.

Yuri smiled as she led both Svetlana and Maria into her shop. "I know it may not appear much from here, cheris," Yuri observed, startling poor Svetlana…who briefly wondered if Yuri could read minds! "But, she is my pride and joy…the fruits of all my blood, sweat, and tears. Come, come, inside with you both!" Yuri laughed softly as she gently pushed the two girls inside the heavy metal back door.

Maria, who had never seen the inside of a clothier before, gazed about in abundant surprise, and not a little awe. "Bozhe moi," she gasped, seeing the stacked bolts of fabric, the many machines that nowadays went into the manufacturing of garments. "It will take us weeks---no, months!---to learn what is needed, Madame Sing…" She blinked, her ears swiveling back against her head, her big sky blue eyes reflecting her trepidation.

Yuri paused, then laughed, taking first Maria's arm in her own, then Svetlana's. "No, no…you needn't worry yourselves about all this, cheris!" she said loudly over the din of the machines. "This is not where I have need of your particular skills."

Svetlana gulped, glad to hear that! It was not to say that she couldn't figure out what to do---given time!---but, she dearly did want to be of help to her most charitable benefactor. "What might those skills be then, Madame?" she asked, remembering to lower her voice when they moved into the front of C'est Sing.

Yuri didn't answer her, but continued to lead the pretty twosome forward into her exclusive shop. Svetlana---and Maria too, of course!---stared in awe and envy at the displays of Yuri's creations as they moved ever forward. "Ah, there is my Naomi!" Yuri cooed a moment later.

Svetlana blinked, looking away from a dreamy purple gown she thought was simply the most magnificent thing she'd ever seen. She looked over to see Yuri embrace a tall, elegant cheetah woman with long, straight nearly platinum blond hair.

"Girls," Yuri began as she stepped away from the cheetah girl. "This is Mademoiselle Naomi Rousseau."

Svetlana smiled hesitantly Naomi's way, her big brown eyes warm, but wary. "A pleasure to meet you, Mademoiselle Rousseau," she stated most politely. Maria made her introduction a moment behind the curious Svetlana.

"Bon jour, amis," Naomi replied, giving them both warm, welcome smiles.

"I could not hope to run this place without my Naomi," Yuri told them both, flicking her green-gold eyes fondly Naomi's way as she did so. "Even though she will deny this truth with her last breath." Yuri grinned impishly at Naomi.

"Madame---as always---is far too kind," Naomi replied with a fond smile. "Ah, so these two…have they come to work for C'est Sing, Madame?" She paused after asking that question, then gasped, turning to Yuri in excitement. "Oh, Madame! Did you see the news last night?"

"Oui, I did, cheri," Yuri answered with a nod. "Monsieur Sly and our Carmelita were tres manufique, no?"

"Oui, they were, Madame," Naomi replied…just a bit enviously. "The word on the street is that in addition to bringing that horrible man down…they managed to somehow rescue a pair of poor waifs from out of that tyrant's grasp. Bien."

"Indeed they did," Yuri replied with a smile, her eyes twinkling. "Perhaps, cheri…you'd care to meet those 'waifs' you spoke of, hmm?" Yuri waggled one blond eyebrow the two Russian girls way.

"Mon Dieu!" Naomi exclaimed softly, her amber eyes huge now. "You are---I mean, that they are you?" Naomi nervously ran her slender hand through her shining platinum locks.

"As they would say, 'da'!" Yuri cleverly responded, chuckling. "Naomi, allow me to introduce to you the charming Maria Foloreva, and the enchanting Svetlana Umanova. Girls, this is Naomi."

"It is so good to meet you both," Naomi said, shaking both girls' hands in turn. "I am so pleased that you are finally free of that horrid man."

"Da!" Maria opined with a small laugh. "That makes two of us, Ms. Rousseau…er, make that three!" She indicated Svetlana with a jerk of her chin, grinning.

"Both Maria and Svetlana," Yuri began a moment later, "have accepted my offer to work for us at C'est Sing. Both are computer savvy, know their way around numbers and budgets, and are looking forward to working real jobs."

Naomi laughed, and clapped her hands together in glee. "You have found replacements for Renee and Antoinette then? Oh, Madame…you are far too kind!"

Yuri nodded, then explained to the two new girls. "Renee and Antoinette used to help my poor Naomi with our books, budgets, and schedules. However," Yuri then added, making a face a moment later, "they were---shall we say?---enticed over to work for an unscrupulous competitor of mine…one Gaston Ripperoux."

Naomi made an indelicate sound of disgust at the mention of that hated name. She shocked Yuri when she swore nastily in French under her breath. "That bastard! Luring those poor girls away with his lies and flattery." The usually urbane Naomi grumbled more imprecations under her breath.

"Naomi, please!" Yuri chided her, but understood. "I understand your anger, cheri," she added, patting Naomi's hand. She turned to Svetlana and Maria. "I suppose I should explain, eh cheris?" She nodded in agreement, then continued. "As I told you before…I am sporting a new fall line at the upcoming Paris shows. Naomi and I---until recently---had everything well in line. However, Monsieur Ripperoux---though he denies it!---managed to lure away a number of my girls…including Renee and Antoinette. Their loss has set us back and we are in danger of not meeting our deadlines for our Fall Preview. That would be most disasterous, cheris. Precisely what Monsieur Ripperoux is hoping for, you see…"

Maria frowned, not liking what she was hearing. "Perhaps, Madame," she ventured, her blue eyes icy with her displeasure, "you would like Svetlana and I to pay this Monsieur Ripperoux a call, da? In our previous line of work, we both learned to be…shall we say, most persuasive at times."

Yuri blinked as she realized what pretty Russian was offering her. "Non! I do appreciate your offering, cheri. However, I refuse to stoop to his level. No, we shall have our proper revenge on Monsieur le Weasel when our Fall line is the hit I expect it to be. I shall hold my head high as I watch that wretch wring his hands in envy."

Svetlana liked how Yuri thought…a far cry from how she once worked for Raikon Polarsky. "I agree, Maria," she told her friend. "Never again shall I stoop to mindless violence and intimidation."

"You are right, Svetlana," Maria agreed, sighing at the injustice. "But, it still irks me to see poor Madame left in a lurch."

Svetlana grinned then unexpectantly. "Do not worry, Maria dear," she observed. She then turned to Naomi. "Put we two to work, Mademoiselle Rousseau…we shall see if C'est Sing does not still best Monsieur Ripperoux!"

"Merci, cheris," Yuri said thankfully, smiling. "You know, it is really not my business that Monsieur Ripperoux truly wants…"

"No?" Svetlana asked, frowning.

"Non," Yuri replied, shaking her head, making her golden waterfall of hair shimmy. "He is after me," she answered, "well, more accurately, he wishes to win his way with me."

"Madame!" Naomi exclaimed in shock, then growled. "It is a good thing he shall never be able to win something like that."

"Ah," Yuri then replied, most hesitantly, her cheeks going red. "In the heat of a moment, cheri…I lost my head and made what might be called a bet with the devil."

Naomi frowned, then gasped in dismay. "Non! Madame. Yuri…please tell me you did not!" Her eyes appeared stricken, and her cheeks paled.

"I am afraid that I did, mon ami," Yuri said ruefully. "At the time, you understand, I had seen his line and ours. I grew tired of his boasts, his flattery, his oily lines, Naomi. So…I bet him that if our line prevailed, he would sell his entire line to me."

"Or?" Svetlana asked, trembling.

"If he should win, however," Yuri said as she turned away from them all in her shame. "I agreed to allow him a night with me."

"Non, Madame!" Naomi replied, rushing over to wrap her arms about Yuri, tears already streaming down her cheeks. "You must not! What about your Bentley?"

Yuri suddenly broke down, turning to lay her proud head upon Naomi's shoulder and wept bitter tears. "I know. Oh, I know, my Naomi," she stammered between bouts of soft weeping.

Maria was having none of it! "Then, it is imperative that Madame not lose her wager, nyet?" she stated adamantly. "It is our job---all of us at C'est Sing---to make sure that does not happen. No matter what it may take!"

Naomi nodded, and smiled. "You are right, Maria," she said, gently rocking Yuri in her arms. "Fear not, Madame…we will not let you down!"

Svetlana shivered as she felt a sense of determination and energy flow through her petite frame. "Come, Naomi…show us what is needed," she demanded. "We have no time to spare."

Maria then snapped her fingers, an idea suddenly appearing in her head. "Ah, I am such a dolt!" she observed with a smile. "Madame, did you not say that you and Monsieur Cooper are friends now?"

Yuri untangled herself from Naomi, then eyed the determined Arctic vixen a moment. She nodded. "Oui. My Bentley is part of his team, and both Naomi and I are friends with Carmelita. And, of course, Murray is my Naomi's beau…"

Svetlana blinked. "Your boyfriend is that hippo?" she asked in obvious surprise.

"Oui, he is," Naomi replied with a nod. "Yes, he does look intimidating…but, he is sweet and kind, and I love him very much."

"Well," Svetlana mused aloud, nodding. "Why not see if we can get their help too, da?"

Yuri blinked then, then slowly smiled. "Oui. Oui! Naomi, please call our friends, would you?" Yuri said. "I agree we can use the Cooper Gang's help. But, all of you…not a word of my bet to Bentley. Do you hear?"

"Agreed, Madame!" they all answered.

"Well, Monsieur Ripperoux," Yuri mused aloud, rubbing her chin as she put her creativity to work. "We shall see who is the winner of our wager, nes pas?"

Meanwhile, Kitty and Carmelita had been tooling around Paris in Carmelita's bright red Peugeot convertible. They had gone and seen a new animated feature at Le Cinema, then had a very nice lunch. As Carmelita drove, wending her way through Paris' busy streets, a thought occurred to her. "Say, Kitty?" she asked, peering at the vixen through her dark, mirrored sunglasses.

"Yeah, Carmelita?" Kitty answered, raising her voice over the wind noise. She raked a hand through her wind-tousled blond locks.

"What do you say we pay our pal Yuri a call?" Carmelita suggested.

Kitty grinned almost immediately. "Yeah! Let's do it!" she crowed.

It was only ten minutes before she pulled her car to a stop in front of Cest Sing. "I'm glad you agreed to stop and say hello to Yuri and Naomi," Carmelita said as she exited her car. "It has been a while since we talked with them."

"Yeah, I hear that," Kitty agreed wholeheartedly. The moved forward and inside the swank establishment. Once inside, it didn't take them long to spot the bright blond hair of Naomi, who sat typing furiously on her computer.

"Hey there, Naomi," Kitty said by way of greeting.

Naomi turned, blinked a bit owlishly, then smiled. "Ah! Bon jour, cheris," she said. "I cannot believe my luck. I was just looking up your number to call you."

"You were?" Carmelita asked as she folded and put away her dark sunglasses. "Why?"

"A moment, no?" Naomi replied, then keyed her intercom. "Madame? Kitty and Carmelita are here. Shall I escort them back…or would you prefer to come out?"

"No, please…bring them back, Naomi," Yuri's voice ordered via the intercom.

Naomi then smiled, got gracefully to her feet, and led the two vixens back to Yuri's private office. As they walked, Naomi looked around and when she was certain no one was listening, she turned to Kitty and Carmelita. "Oh, I saw both of you on the TV yesterday. That was very nice work."

"Thanks," Carmelita said carefully with a tight grin. "It wasn't easy, but it certainly helped that we had some inside help."

"Ah, I know that as well," Naomi said, grinning. "Perhaps from the two of them, oui?" she added, pointing over to Maria and Svetlana who were currently pouring through ledgers as well as what appeared to be Yuri's sketchbooks.

"So, Yuri offered them a job, huh?" Carmelita observed with a companionable smile.

"Oh, oui. Yuri often does that," Naomi explained smiling. "As you know, she is a kindly soul, and delights in taking in girls from the streets to work for her in the shop. They are paid well, and they work very hard for the most part."

"That's Yuri, all right," Carmelita replied, nodding her head in approval.

Naomi then slipped between the two startled vixens, looping her arms through theirs. In a whisper, she continued, "Madame is in need of your help…all of you, Monsieur Sly, and my Murray."

"Whoa, hold on a minute," Carmelita protested softly, carefully to use her 'indoor' voice. "Naomi…is there something wrong with Yuri?"

Naomi bit her lower lip in anxiety. "With Madame herself? Non. However, she has done an unwise thing. But, that is for Madame to explain, not I."

A perplexed Carmelita and Kitty followed Naomi into Yuri´s office. "Hey, Yuri! What's up?" Kitty crowed cleverly.

Yuri, who was currently scowling at the paper in front of her, looked up in surprise. She smiled upon seeing her friends once more. "Ah, mon amis! It is so good to see you both again," she said.

"What's the matter, Yuri? Your muse left you?" Kitty wanted to know.

"Of course. And now at such a time," Yuri said, then blinked, realizing perhaps she may of said too much.

Carmelita pounced on that. "Why is now such a bad time, Yuri?" she demanded. "Naomi was giving us a batch of 'doom-and-gloom' on the way in. What's going on?"

Yuri sighed heavily, then rested her head in her hands a moment. "Sit, please," she pleaded, indicating all three girls should sit. Once they did, she lifted her proud head again. "I find myself in need of your help, cheris," she explained.

"Oh?" Carmelita asked, intrigued.

"Indeed," Yuri reluctantly agreed. "I have done a very foolish thing, Carmelita. My competitor---as he usually does---wore down my defenses, and I unfortunately lost my wits." Yuri steepled her fingers a moment, thinking. "Perhaps I should explain, no? My competitor is one Messr. Gaston Ripperoux, an unscrupulous and devious weasel if ever there were one. But, that does not matter. I…well, let us say, that Messr. Ripperoux finds me attractive…very attractive, nes pas?"

Carmelita frowned, not liking what she was hearing. "All right. I can understand that, Yuri…I mean, after all…look at you," she observed. "You're beautiful, you know."

Yuri smiled her thanks. "That is sweet of you to say, cheri." Yuri then squeezed her eyes shut a moment, then continued. "Perhaps I was unclear. Ripperoux wants two things from me: my business, and---"

Kitty frowned. "Wait a minute," she growled. "Hold on…you mean this skanky weasel wants his way with you. Is that it?"

"Oui," Yuri said woodenly, nodding her head. "And I, in my foolish pride and anger, bet this wretch my line would trounce his…putting myself up as the prize should he win."

"Yuri!" Carmelita yelped, amazed. "What were you thinking?"

"I know, cheri," Yuri said, miserable. "I figured I had a sure thing, no?" She shook her head ruefully. "However, I had not factored in how resourceful my competitor could be. He somehow succeeded in wooing away two of my brightest and best designers…which unfortunately leaves me in a most precarious position right about now, I'm afraid."

"Huh," Kitty grumped, crossing her arms. "That rat! He's stacking the deck in his favor!"

"Indeed he has," Naomi opined just then. "But, he is no rat…he is a weasel, Kitty."

"I was talking figuratively, Naomi," Kitty pointed out, frowning still.

"So…what can we do to help?" Carmelita asked, resting her arm upon Yuri's desk.

Yuri exhaled expansively, much relieved. "I was hoping you'd ask me that, cheris," she confided to them both. "I have already won Maria and Svetlana's help…and now with the Cooper Gang, I feel we now stand a chance."

"That's great," Carmelita said with a smile. "But…that still doesn't answer my question, Yuri."

Yuri then did something that surprised Carmeltia. The tall, statuesque snow leopard woman got to her feet, came around her desk, and knelt down beside Carmelita. She took her hands in hers, and looked up imploringly. "Carmelita, mon cheri…could I ask a favor of you? A most trying and much needed one?"

Carmelita blinked, then slowly nodded. "I owe you, Yuri," she reminded her. "What do you want me to do?"

"Could you…would you, please be one of my models for my Fall line?" Yuri suddenly pleaded, her glorious green-gold eyes glistening.

"Yuri, I'm no model," Carmelita protested immediately. "I was a cop, not a socialite. I'd make a fool out of myself up there."

"Nonsense!" Yuri protested in reply, her eyes hardening. "Carmelita, you are a gorgeous woman. With a bit of training, you will be the sensation of the runway. But…please, dear…you won't be alone up there. I shall be a model too, as shall my Naomi, and Maria and Svetlana." Yuri then paused a most poignant moment, then added, "As shall our Kitty."

"What?" Kitty exclaimed, her face going pale.

"Come, cheri," Yuri pleaded, then softly took her chin in her hand as she did so many days before. "You have the face of an angel, cheri. Plus, I need both you and Svetlana for my petite line. Could you please do this for me? For Yuri?" She looked up at Kitty with a look of such need and innocence.

Kitty blinked under her telling green-gold gaze. Yuri's eyes were huge, and she felt she was slowly being sucked into those green orbs. Kitty struggled, her face contorting as she warred with herself. Finally, Yuri's pleading gaze was too much for her. "Gah! I probably should have my head examined," Kitty growled. "But…I'll do it!"

"Madame," Naomi said with a grin. "You win. I owe you lunch…of your choosing at Le Bistro Bourgeot."

Kitty frowned, baring her teeth at Yuri. "You bet I'd do this?" she demanded.

Yuri then adopted a look Kitty was intimately familiar with. "Does this look the least bit familiar, cheri?" she asked.

Kitty looked away, grumbling. Of course she'd seen that look…she was the one who mastered it!

"But, Kitty," Yuri added a moment later, softly taking the irritable vixen's hand in her own and squeezing it thankfully. "I did bet. But, not on my persuasive abilities, cheri. I bet on the fact that you were my friend…and that you have---as I've said many times before----a heart of gold, Kitty."

Kitty was mollified, but still didn't like what had just transpired. "Okay, I told you I'd do it, so I will," she declared. "But, if either of you put me in some girlie dress full of froo-froo and poufs and lace…I'll be so out of there! Do we have an understanding?"

"Oui!" Yuri said, then got to her feet, and gathered Kitty in her arms to hug her to herself. "Merci, my Kitty. Merci beaucoup." She then softly kissed Kitty upon her cheeks, one at a time. She then grinned. "I will tell you what, Kitty."

"What?" Kitty groused, feeling better.

"If you would do this favor for me," Yuri proclaimed. "I shall loan you my Lamborghini for an entire week." Yuri then thrust out her hand. "Do we have a deal, cheri?"

Kitty's face lit up with pleasure. "Oh, yeah! Hell, yeah!" she crowed. "Woo Hoo! Hot diggity damn!"