It was 7 am when the police called the Hire for Higher crew to fill in the details on Eliza's case. The questions were standard. When did they last see Eliza? Where did she say she was going? They could only report what they had already told Khan, leaving the police at a dead end.
When they rendezvoused at the office for breakfast, one plate remained untouched.
"Come on, Lil Britches," Baloo coaxed. "Ya gotta eat something."
"I'm not hungry," Kit murmured.
"I know it's hard, but you need to keep your strength up for- "
"Baloo," Rebecca interrupted, gently but firmly. She gave her pilot a look that seemed to say, "Let him be."
Baloo sighed, but didn't push any further. He too had been broken enough to lose motivation for anything.
A knock on the door broke the silence. Rebecca opened to find a slim tiger in a green chauffer's uniform. "Mr. Khan requests the presence of Higher for Hire when convenient."
Rebecca put a hand on her hip and gave a suspicious look. "He said that?"
"Well, he did say, 'If inconvenient, come anyway.'"
"I figured."
Kit sprang to the door. "Is it about Eliza?"
"I don't ask questions, son," said the chauffer. "I just follow orders."
The bears exchanged looks. Few people refused Khan's requests, lest they invoke the wrath of Khan. This time, it wasn't Khan they were afraid of. It was the news he might carry. Rebecca and Baloo nodded in unison.
"We'll be right with you," said Rebecca. "I just need to call a babysitter for my daughter."
"I'm afraid she must come too," said the chauffer. "Mr. Khan was very specific. All of you are to be present."
"Hold on! I'm her mother. That's not for him to decide."
"I want to come too, mommy!" Molly chirped.
"Absolutely not!"
"Becky," Baloo put a hand on her shoulder. "You know how attached she is."
Rebecca's face fell. As much as she hated to admit it, there was only so much she could protect her daughter from.
"Besides," Baloo smiled, "we'll be there together."
"All right," Rebecca sighed. "We're coming."
Walking into the office was like walking through the depths of a real jungle. And they had seen real jungles. The back of Khan's chair faced them. His yes-man John stood by with a notebook and pencil. He didn't even have to alert his boss as Khan's ears could pick up an ant on a leaf.
The chair swiveled. "How nice of you to drop by," said Khan.
Molly clung to her mother's leg. This was the second time she had seen the tycoon in person and he still scared her.
Rebecca stroked her daughter's hair, watching Khan. "Care to explain what this is about?"
"I think you already know." He motioned to the four seats in front of his desk.
"Look, Khanny," said Baloo as they took their seats, except Molly who climbed into her mother's lap. "We talked to the police already."
"I'm aware of that. Am I correct to assume they asked you standard questions?"
Rebecca and Baloo nodded.
"There's only so much they can do under the same guidelines," said Khan. "But in my experience," he gestured toward his man-made jungle, "there's always more hiding in plain sight."
The bears squinted at the dark greenery until they could make out a spider drifting between the leaves. If they angled their heads right, they could see the web catching the light. Molly shuddered at the eight-legged creeper, but the others got the point. What were they not seeing in this case?
"So," Khan finished, "Don't tell me what you told the police, but what you didn't tell them."
"Well," said Rebecca. "I don't what else to tell you. Eliza left at 6 pm I offered to drive her back but she insisted on taking the bus."
"And she hadn't called me or Kit," added Baloo. Kit clasped his hands together and shut his eyes. There must have been something he could put in. Anything that could help. But what?
"That's a start," said Khan. "But I want to hear from the one spent the day with her." He lowered his eyes to Rebecca's lap.
Once those amber eyes met hers, Molly buried her face into her mother's chest.
Before Khan could say anything, Rebecca held up a hand. "You know what, let me handle this." To both mother and daughter's relief, Khan agreed. "Molly," said Rebecca softly. "Can you tell me about yesterday?"
The child found it easier to relay the events by pretending the scary man wasn't present. When she spoke of her distrust of Covington, Rebecca tried to intervene, but Baloo stopped her with a hand on her shoulder. Meanwhile, John scribbled the details in his notebook.
"You say she borrowed your doll?" asked Khan. He furrowed his brows and steepled fingers. "That's curious?"
"What do you mean?" asked Baloo. "She's a girl, isn't she?"
"She's twelve, Baloo," said Rebecca. "A lot of girls outgrow dolls by then."
"And I don't recall her showing interest," said Khan. "She prefers books for company."
"Books?" Asked Kit, opening his eyes. He closed them for another minute before they shot open with an excited "Oh!" earning some stares. "There was something familiar about that doll, but now I remember. There was a picture like it in our schoolbooks." He rubbed his forehead. "Ugh, what was it called? An Usha…ushi…"
Baloo stared at his ward. "Uh, gesundheit?"
"No, it was a little statue ancient Egyptians buried with their dead."
"Ah," Khan nodded. "You are referring to Ushabtis."
"That's it!" said Kit. "We learned about them last week."
"In which case," said Khan, "It's likely Eliza had the same theory." He rested his chin onto his hands. "My guess, she was bringing it to me for analysis."
Although Molly didn't know what they were calling Kara, she did understand that the doll was a bigger deal than she thought. "Mommy, did I get Eliza in trouble?"
Rebecca squeezed her daughter. "No, honey." She kissed the blond locks. "It's just a coincidence." She turned to Khan. "We don't even know if this doll really is a...whatchamacallit. It's just a theory."
"Perhaps," Khan replied. "But a theory is something. Who is this Covington?"
Rebecca blushed. "A friend."
"Oh, brother," Baloo mumbled, rolling his eyes.
"Where is he from?" asked Khan, not caring about their personal lives.
"He's a traveler," Rebecca sighed. "A real man of culture."
Kit and Molly traded frowns. Kit made a gagging motion with his finger in his mouth.
"And you say he was interested in this doll?" Khan asked Molly.
The girl nodded quickly.
Khan addressed his company "Anything to add?"
Nothing crossed their minds.
"Very well," Khan waved his hand. "You're all dismissed."
"Wait!" Kit protested.
"You have more information?" asked Khan.
"No, but- "
"Good day then."
Before Kit could say anything else, Baloo gently squeezed his shoulder. Kit looked at his guardian, recognizing the look he gave him to mean 'Let it go.' He kept his frustration bottled inside until they were out of the office. "That's it? We just leave?"
"Kit," Baloo put his hands on Kit's shoulders. "We've done all we could. But now we're at a dead-end."
Kit swallowed the lump in his throat and looked at his feet.
"All we can do now," said Baloo, "is hope for the best."
"I never thought I'd say this," said Rebecca, "but I almost feel sorry for Shere Khan." She hugged the crying Molly. "I think we should just leave him alone for now."
Baloo nodded. Kit finally relented.
"Yes," said Khan into the phone. "I want a thorough background check on the name 'Covington,' and that's not excluding the prison records. Yes, and a search on Ushabtis. I suggest you start with the Cape Museum of Natural History. Ask about any recent thefts or discoveries. Can I expect sufficient results as soon as possible?" From the way he said it, any other result wasn't an option. "Good." He hung up and began clawing at the arm of his chair.
John tried not to quiver. The office always got uncomfortable when his boss was this quiet. But he couldn't leave if he wanted to be the next scratching post.
When the tension became suffocating, John dared to ask, "Uh, anything else, sir."
"Yes." Khan stopped scratching. "Deliver a telegram to my brother."
