Chapter 6 - 1
The Virginia Highland Games are always in July in Alexandria. This year was really special. Some friends came to join me who live in Seattle. They came all the way across the country just for the Highland Games.
"Emma, this is Rosalie. Can you give me a call at home? We are planning on coming out to Virginia for the Highland Games at the end of July and we would really like to see you. Call me when you get a chance."
Frohike had never heard Emma mention this woman so he was a little apprehensive about giving her the message. She was outside setting up the sprinkler to water the plants in the front yard. It had been nearly a week since they had come back to the house and the garden was bone dry. While Frohike waited for Emma to come inside he dug out Michelle's old address book and flipped through it looking for the name 'Rosalie' but with no last name the search was futile. He decided to just ask Emma.
When she came into the kitchen later, he told her that he had saved a message for her on their voice mail. Emma dialed the number to hear it and got more and more excited as she listened. "I can't believe it! They're going to come all the way out here. They never do the Highland Games out here. My mom tried for years to get them to come for the Virginia Games or even Grandfather Mountain. I wonder what made them change their minds? Can I call them right now?"
Frohike tried to get a word in edgewise. "Whoa, slow down! Let's start at the beginning. Who are you talking about?"
"Rosalie and Pat. They sell Scottish swords and stuff at Highland Games in Washington and California and around there. They have a website. Do you want to see it?"
"Maybe later. How do you know them?"
"Mom and I met them when we went to a Scottish Highland Games in Seattle. Actually, it was in a town close to Seattle. What was the name?" Her brows knitted together in concentration. "It's got a funny name. Pat always calls it 'Enum-scratch'." Emma thought for a few seconds. "Enumclaw, that's it! It's like right at the bottom of Mt. Rainier. That mountain is HUGE and has snow on it all year. You can even drive up there and slide on the snow in the middle of the summer! "
Emma shook her head to get herself back on track. "Anyway, I bought my sword from them. They have two granddaughters who do Highland Dancing. I competed against them." Emma started getting hyper again. "Oh, wow, I wonder if they'll come, too. I haven't seen them in a long time. Can I call now?"
"Just calm down a minute. How well do you know them?"
"We stayed at their house a couple of times. You would like it there. They have swords all over the walls, antique ones, too. Some of them are really old! Every time we went to Seattle we would go visit them. Well, almost every time. Sometimes they weren't home. If I call now it won't be too late. There's a three hour difference you know."
"Yes, I know." Frohike considered everything she had said. She obviously liked this couple and had some history with them. "All right, let's call but I'll be on the other phone."
"Dad! They're really nice people. You don't need to worry about them."
"I believe you but if they want to spend any time with you I'd like to get to know them. This is as good a time as any."
Emma picked up the address book and flipped to the 'T' page. She ran her finger down the listings and stopped at Patrick Tougher. She dialed the number and waited for a response. Frohike left her and went into the other room and picked up the receiver just as he heard a woman's voice say, "Scottish Sword and Shield."
"Hi, Rosalie. This is Emma."
"Emma! How are you?"
"I'm all right. How is everyone out there?"
"We're doing very well. I wish we could have made it out there to see you at the funeral. How are you getting along with your father?"
"Dad, say hi. He's on the phone in the living room." Emma explained.
Frohike introduced himself to Rosalie. He was a little embarrassed that he had not said anything before. Rosalie assured him that she understood his caution. They exchanged the usual pleasantries and Rosalie asked Frohike about himself and how Emma was doing. They talked for a few minutes until Emma reminded them that she was still on the line and wanted to talk about the upcoming Highland Games. "What made you decide to come out here this year?"
"Pat wants to try to sell some of his antique swords on the east coast and we really wanted to see you, dear. We're also taking Bruce, Becky and the kids to Scotland in August so we figured we might as well leave from there and break up the long flight from the west coast." Bruce was Pat and Rosalie's youngest son. The granddaughters that Emma had competed against were Bruce's daughters.
"So, Megan and Rachel will be coming to the games, too?" Emma asked hopefully.
Rosalie knew that Emma enjoyed her granddaughters' company. "That's the plan."
"That's great!" Emma was already looking forward to the Virginia Highland Games but now…
The phone conversation lasted for another few minutes while dates and arrival times were discussed. It was decided that the family would come to visit Emma the day after they arrived. Emma wanted it to be sooner but Frohike insisted that they would be tired and would need time to get settled in before running off to see her and that she could wait a few more hours. Promises were extracted for future phone calls to give and receive directions to the house and to plan for the visit. Frohike gave Rosalie the phone number at the warehouse and his cell phone number.
Later that evening, Frohike was sitting in the living room reviewing some research he had gathered for an article on truckers illegally hauling dangerous chemicals in milk tankers. The smugglers had cleverly rigged the trucks so that if the authorities checked they would only find milk in the tankers.
After a while, Frohike realized that Emma was 'hovering'. She kept pacing back and forth behind his chair, pausing as she approached him then moving on. He figured there was something on her mind and she was trying to find a way to ask him about it. It was very distracting so he decided to put an end to it.
"Emma, what are you doing?"
"Nothing." She was still behind him.
"Would you please come and sit down?"
"Why?" she asked but sat on the couch near him anyway.
"Because you're driving me nuts. What is it you want?"
"I didn't say I wanted anything."
"Emma, you only skulk around like that when you are trying to get up your nerve to ask me something."
"No, I don't." She frowned. She didn't think she was that obvious.
"Is there something you want to talk to me about?"
"Kind of, but…" She hesitated.
"But what?" Frohike figured he'd get it out of her eventually.
"It's more like I had an idea and I want to see what you think of it."
"And you're afraid of what I'll say."
"I suppose."
"So tell me what your idea is and we'll find out."
Emma started chewing on her thumbnail. Frohike leaned forward and pulled her hand away from her face. Whatever it was, she wanted it badly. "I was just thinking about what a big house we have." He didn't agree or disagree. He waited for her to continue. "There are two guest rooms and my room is really big, too. We have 3 bathrooms and lots of people can fit around the table in the dining room." She stopped and waited for him to respond. He just nodded.
"So, I was thinking. They're coming so far and I've stayed at their house a bunch of times. It would only be polite to ask them if they wanted to stay with us." There. She had said it. Now she waited.
Frohike considered all the ramifications of this scheme. The biggest problem would be lost time for him at work but Emma had spent many boring hours at the warehouse while he worked so it only seemed fair to spend some time doing what she wanted. He decided not to give her a bad time for once. "I agree. It would be the polite thing to do."
Emma couldn't believe it! Just like that and he had said, "Yes" or had he? She decided to check. "So, you're saying that they can all stay here?"
All? Now it was his turn to check. "How many people are we talking about?"
"Four adults and three kids." She kept talking before he could say that was too many.
"Pat and Rosalie can stay in the room next to yours. Bruce and Becky can stay in the other room and the girls can sleep in my room."
"That makes six. You've missing a child."
"Oh, Ian can stay with his mom and dad." At 8 years old, Ian was the youngest child.
It would work but there was one small problem. "We're going to need to go shopping," Frohike told Emma.
"It's a little early to go grocery shopping. They won't be here for almost 2 weeks." Emma observed.
"That's good because we are going to need the time to replace the furniture we moved to the warehouse."
"Oh, that's right! Do you think we can get it all in time?"
"We'll start tomorrow but you should call Rosalie again and make sure they want to stay here. They might've made other arrangements."
Emma placed the phone call and the invitation was whole-heartedly accepted after Rosalie received assurances from Frohike that he agreed with the plan.
The next day, father and daughter visited several furniture stores. Frohike figured they needed two new beds. One of the guest rooms originally held two twin beds. It was one of these that had been moved to the warehouse for Emma. After careful measuring and rearranging the remaining furniture in that room, Frohike decided that they could fit a queen size bed in there and still have space for the other twin. The little boy would have his own bed.
Emma had a full size mattress in her room so one of the girls could share with her.
Frohike suggested a pop-up trundle bed for the other girl. Emma had no idea what that was. Frohike explained that it was a mattress on a collapsible frame that was stored under the bed. When you needed it, you rolled it out and pulled it up to the height of the other bed. Emma liked this idea; it meant that all three girls could, in essence, sleep in one bed and no one would have to sleep on the floor or on a cot or something. Emma would have to clear a lot of junk out from under her bed though.
The more Emma talked about Megan and Rachel, the more Frohike realized that these two girls were real friends with Emma. He had seen her interact with the girls at dance class and at the competitions but she only seemed to have a teammate type relationship with them.
He often worried that she did not have any close friends. Emma needed some and he didn't understand why, when she seemed like such a delightful person to him, she had no little girls friends to call and talk with for hours on the phone or just to sit around with giggling over all the things young girls find so entertaining.
Frohike was pleased that Emma enjoyed his company and that of his closest friends but it just wasn't normal. The child needed friends her own age. She needed to form relationships that would become lifelong connections, people she could depend on when she no longer needed or wanted his guidance and protection. For these reasons he was now looking forward to this large set of visitors. He wanted to see Emma interact with two girls who she seemed to consider such close friends.
Emma excitedly told the other Gunmen about her friends coming to visit. Byers was pleased to see that Emma had relationships outside their circle. Jimmy was always willing to meet and like new people but Langly was unimpressed with the news. Emma was confused by his reaction.
"Langly, what's the matter?" He had gone off by himself to work at his computer while she shared the particulars of the impending visit with the others.
"Nothing." He tried not to sound pensive but he didn't look at her when he answered her question.
"I don't believe you." He had never lied to her before so she figured something wasn't right.
"Really, Emma, nothing's wrong." Okay, that guaranteed it. He hardly ever called her by her name. He usually employed a less than complimentary nickname.
Emma moved closer to him and touched his arm. He finally looked up at her from his computer screen. "Please, tell me," Emma insisted.
"Seriously, I'm fine." She didn't know what to say. How could she convince him to tell her what was bothering him when he probably wouldn't even admit it to himself?
He turned his attention back to his computer. They'd had arguments before but he'd never just shut her out. Tears filled her eyes as she watched him and he continued to ignore her.
Desperately wanting to get through to him, Emma decided to say what was in her heart. "Langly, you know that I love you, don't you?" She didn't even try to keep the sound of her tears out of her voice. She wanted him to know just how much he meant to her.
Langly was surprised by the depth of her emotions and instantly felt guilty for the fit of jealousy he experienced when she told them that dear friends were coming to visit. Of course, other people would love her the way he did. It was unfair of him to expect her to spend all her time with just the four of them.
Now he saw that he was just hurting Emma by acting this way. He put his arm around her drawing her closer to him, then rubbed her back as she tried to pull herself together.
Frohike heard Emma crying and came over to see what was wrong. "What the hell did you do to her?" he yelled at Langly.
"Just calm down, Frohike. I'll take care of it," Langly assured him. "We just had a little misunderstanding."
Frohike wasn't satisfied, "You okay, Emma?"
Emma felt silly for getting so upset. "I'm fine," she said. Taking off her glasses, she quickly wiped the tears off her cheeks.
Frohike frowned at Langly and pointed a threatening finger at him. "I'm watching you, punk." And he left them to work it out.
"I'm sorry, squirt. I'm just used to having you to myself. You know me; I don't like to share."
Emma gave a little laugh and wrapped her arms around his neck. "No one could take your place, Langly. You're the best." Langly held her, reassured by her words. "And besides, you'll like these people. Really, you will."
Langly decided to adopt a wait and see attitude but he didn't tell Emma that.
Emma had been trying for weeks to get the Gunmen to agree to wear kilts at the Highland Games. She was met with resistance from all the guys. She thought she had Jimmy talked into it at one point but when he found out that none of the others were willing to give it a shot, he chickened out. At least she had gotten them all to agree to go to the games.
As the event grew closer, Emma talked more and more about what they would see there: sheep dog trials like in the movie Babe, a British car show, fiddle and harp concerts and competitions, and all the clan tents where you could find out which Scottish clan you belong to. The Highland Dance competitions they were familiar with but Emma wanted them, especially Jimmy, to see the athletic events.
There was Tossing the Caber, which requires the athlete to pitch an eighteen-foot pole end over end. The caber could weigh as much as 150 pounds. A perfect throw is one that goes straight over and lands facing away from the athlete at 12 o'clock. Jimmy wanted to know how they decided who got to take their turn at exactly noon. Emma explained that 12 o'clock meant the position of the pole on the ground when it landed. Jimmy still didn't get it.
Emma drew him a picture of a little man in a kilt standing on a field with the caber lying on the ground. She drew a clock face on the picture, adding all the numbers with 12 at the top where the end of the pole was. Jimmy wanted to know how they drew the clock face on the field. Emma gave up and decided he would need to see it for himself. Weight for Distance, Putting the Stone and the Hammer Throw he had less trouble understanding. Emma knew Jimmy wasn't stupid. He just took things too literally.
Yves dropped by the warehouse early one evening about a week before the Highland Games bringing dinner with her. Emma was always pleased to see Yves, almost as much as Jimmy, and the Gunmen were famous for never turning down a free meal.
While Emma was setting the table for dinner, Yves took Frohike aside and asked him in a low voice, "Are you planning on staying here tonight?"
Frohike was surprised by the question and the fact that Yves obviously did not want Emma to hear. "Yes, we are. Why do you ask?"
"There is something I need to discuss with you, all of you, but it would be better if Emma did not know about it."
"After she goes to bed would work if you want to hang around that long."
"That's what I hoped," Yves told him.
Emma talked nearly nonstop to Yves about the Games and guests coming from Seattle and the fact that these people were going to stay at her house and that Yves would really like them and would she like to come and meet them while they were there and how about coming to the Games herself because Emma would really like Yves to see her dance and on and on and on.
Frohike had to continually remind her to eat or not to talk with her mouth full. Yves attended to every word Emma said but Emma's enthusiasm did not enable her to see that there was something else on Yves's mind, something that was keeping her from fully sharing Emma's gleeful anticipation of the event.
Emma was reluctant to go to bed with Yves still there. Frohike had to insist at which point she grudgingly said goodnight to everyone. They waited about a half hour before Yves asked them all to come downstairs so they could be certain to have privacy.
Frohike flipped on the cameras in the living area to make sure that Emma did not get up and come to find them. She still hadn't caught on that there were tiny surveillance cameras all over the warehouse.
"I came to ask your help with something I've been working on." Yves began.
Langly snorted, "That's a change. Usually you trick us into doing your dirty work for you."
Jimmy started to come to Yves's defense but she had no trouble silencing Langly with a glare. "I could probably handle this alone but it could indirectly involve Emma. So I am coming to you with it."
Frohike didn't like what he was hearing. "What are you talking about? How could she be involved in anyway in something you're working on?"
"Let me start at the beginning. I have been tracking a professional art thief, a man named Colin Harris. He has a reputation for acquiring the unacquirable. He is so good that, often, it takes years for owners to realize that their works of art have been replaced with forgeries. A painting titled 'The Thin Red Line' is being shipped here to DC from Scotland. It will be displayed at the Smithsonian to whom it is being loaned for three years. I feel certain that he is coming to steal the painting."
"I thought 'The Thin Red Line' was a war movie," Jimmy commented.
"They did make a movie using the same title but it has nothing to do with the painting," Yves explained. "It depicts the battle at Balaclava between the Argyle and Sutherland Highlanders and the Russians during the Crimean War. The Scots were vastly out numbered and believed they would all die so they decided to wear their dress uniform kilts and go out in style. Only one highlander died during the fighting and they won the battle."
"Why is it called 'The Thin Red Line'?" Jimmy asked.
"There were so few of them that they stood in their red coats only two deep, all in a line facing the advancing horsemen."
Jimmy was impressed, "Wow, that's a great story! How come they didn't make that into a movie?"
Langly wanted to get back to the business at hand so he cut Jimmy off. "Why didn't this guy just steal it from Scotland?"
"It's usually on display in Edinburgh castle. Getting it out of the castle wouldn't be that difficult for Harris but I believe his buyer is here in the states. It will be much less complicated to steal it here than to try to bring across the Atlantic. It is a rather large painting and old enough that cutting it out of the frame and rolling or folding it could damage it."
Jimmy was having trouble understanding it all. "Why would you want to own a painting that you couldn't show to anyone?"
Byers explained, "Some collectors will keep famous paintings such as this to themselves or will only show them to other collectors of stolen art. They usually keep their art work in secret rooms or vaults."
"But then hardly anyone would get to enjoy them. Why do that when the painting is on display for everyone to see?"
"Some people are just greedy. It also gives them bragging rights. They have something that no one else in the world does," Frohike pointed out.
Jimmy shook his head. "That's just stupid."
"It is to you," Byers observed, "but you're not a selfish person."
Frohike returned to the original subject. "How does this involve Emma?"
"The painting will be unveiled in a special ceremony at the Scottish Highland Games in Alexandria, Virginia. I have reason to believe it will be there that Harris will make his move. My goal is to catch him trying to steal the painting and put him out of business but this is a well-attended event. Thousands of people will pass through there, some just to view the painting. I could use your assistance with catching this thief," she looked at the faces around her and saw a willingness to help. "But, Frohike, it would be better if Emma wasn't there in case something goes wrong."
Frohike shook his head. He knew this would crush Emma and he really didn't see that she would be in any danger. He could appreciate Yves's caution but he truly didn't believe that there would be a problem.
"I don't know, Yves. She's been talking about this almost from the first day I bought her home. You heard her. She has friends coming from the west coast to join her for this event. She would be in hell if she couldn't go and she'd drag the rest of us along with her."
Langly heartily agreed, "She's really looking forward to this. Man, I would not want to be the one to tell her!" Langly shivered at the thought.
Byers thought that Frohike was right but he was better at seeing things that could go wrong than his friend. "Do you think she could be in any danger from this guy Harris?" Byers wanted to know.
"No, in all the jobs he's pulled, no one has ever been hurt or threatened," Yves reassured him. "He fancies himself to be a gentleman thief like Cary Grant in It Takes a Thief."
Frohike looked at Byers who shrugged. "I gotta agree with Frohike, Yves. She's been looking forward to this for a long time. Telling her she can't go at this point because there's an outside chance that something could go wrong… It just won't fly."
"You're willing to take another chance with her safety after what happened in Richmond?" Yves was incredulous.
"This is completely different," Frohike insisted. "She will not be participating in any way. She probably won't even care what we're doing. She'll be too involved with everything else that's going on."
Yves considered this point. Maybe Frohike was right. Emma would be busy competing and enjoying the games and Yves's activities with the Gunmen's could easily go on around Emma without involving the girl.
"You're probably right," Yves conceded, "but we should still take some precautions."
"Like what?" Frohike asked. He had a few ideas but he was interested in what Yves thought should be done.
"You…or I am going to need to talk to her. She should stay away from the painting and the building in which it will be on display. And it would be best if she pretended not to know me. I will be wearing a disguise but she knows me well enough that she might see through it and draw attention to me."
"Why don't you wear one of your latex masks?" Langly wanted to know. "Then you wouldn't need to worry about her at all."
Yves shook her head. "They are not as effective in the summer heat. Sweating underneath them loosens the glue rendering them nearly useless. If I was going to be inside most of the time it would be different but this is an outdoor event."
"Anything else?" Frohike asked.
"Not at the present time. If I think of anything else, I'll let you know."
Frohike had another idea but he figured he could handle that himself. "Do you want me to talk to her, Yves, or would you like to do it?"
"I'll do it, it's my project, but if you could be nearby I would appreciate it."
"No problem."
Byers changed the focus of the conversation. "All right, now how are we going to catch this guy?"
Yves turned to a nearby computer and connected to the internet. After a few quick maneuvers, she was into the plans for the security layout at the Highland Games. "I need to find all their weaknesses. That's what Harris will look for."
Frohike sat down at the computer and started studying the system the Smithsonian had set up for the weekend to protect the painting. "They don't seem to think there'll be much of a problem. Their security equipment is out dated. A six year old could steal this painting." Frohike continued to check out the general security measures that would be in effect for the rest of the event. Byers watched over his shoulder making suggestions and observations.
Yves turned to Langly. "I need you to see if you can locate Harris." She handed him a piece of paper. "Here are all the aliases he uses of which I am aware. I need to know if he has left England and if so where he is or where he is headed." Langly had chosen another computer and was already typing. "If he's in the U.S., find out where he's staying and try to track any phone calls he's making. It may be easier to monitor the buyer than to try to spot Harris at the games or around the grounds."
"I'm on it." Langly's hands flew across the keys as he checked all modes of transportation leaving the U.K. for the names on Yves's list.
Jimmy went to go put on a pot of coffee. He could tell it was going to be a long night.
