Dear Guest Reviewer, maybe this chapter will answer some questions.
Trixie's Apartment, Harlem, New York
1819hrs Friday 18th February 2005
Knock-knock.
'Just a minute!' Trixie yelled from her bedroom as she hunted in the bottom of her closet for a pair of dressy shoes. I know they're in here somewhere, she reasoned. Finding them, Trix shoved her stockinged feet into a pair of black, slightly elevated boots. Fur lined they'd keep the biting New York chill from turning her toes to frost bite once she stepped outside her heated building. During her run when a weak sun shone, the weather could only be described as brisk. Now, Trixie shuddered at the thought and grabbed at the cashmere coat Honey had given her for her birthday the year she had started college.
How I needed this coat my first winter in Washington DC! A memory flittered across Trixie's conscious in an attempt to ignore the person at her door. Honey attempted to teach me to be fashionable and more ladylike. Between Di and Honey, I think they provided my entire wardrobe from their hand-me-downs in college. I didn't care about fashion or looking a year out of date. Well I hope I live up to their expectations tonight by looking half-way decent.
Trixie rolled her eyes at the reflection in her mirror. She didn't think her appearance had changed since the day she met Honey twelve years ago. Blue eyes stared out at her from under a mop of sandy. As usual they refused to be tamed. Honey, the epitome of fashion and good taste, remained taller and slimmer, and Di's looks had improved with age. Diana Lynch had long been considered a great beauty by everyone who knew her.
The emerald and black dress, a spur of the moment purchase, encouraged by Honey and Diana the last time the girls had managed to drag Trixie shopping. A delighted smile creased the corners of Trixie's mouth as she remembered the shopping spree. Last year's winter clearance sale, is that really the most recent time I went shopping with my girlfriends? Racking her brain, Trix's thoughts became interrupted by an impatient sound.
Knock, Knock.
'Trix, its Jim,' a disembowelled voice issued from the other side of the heavy wooden door. 'Are you home?'
'Hold your horses, Mr. Frayne,' Trixie yelled back, turning to the mirror for one last look. She deliberately took several seconds to scrutinise her appearance.
I actually look as though I might belong in the exalted company of the Wheelers and Lynches tonight, Trixie realised with surprise. The colour of her gown enhanced her pale complexion. She'd augmented her features with delicately diffused makeup as Honey taught her. The thought brought a bright smile to her coffee-coloured lips. The expression reached her blue eyes and made the orbs sparkle with suppressed mischief for the first time in almost a year. Although there's still nothing I can do with my hair, no matter how much "product" I apply to it!
Giggling to herself, Trixie closed the bedroom door behind her so her guests wouldn't see the week's accumulated mess she hadn't gotten around to cleaning up yet. Some things never change, she mused internally.
Glancing around her small living room, Trixie felt relieved. She deliberately kept this area sparsely furnished. It remained uncontaminated by clothing and work-related apparel, unlike her bedroom. Slowing as she reached the door, her hand hovered in mid air. Trix took a deep breath. Pausing, her fingers rested on the knob.
Give me the strength to open it, Trixie silently prayed.
Closing her eyes, Trixie imagined herself in a happier place. Suddenly fourteen again, surrounded by Bob Whites at the Wheeler's lake, they didn't have a care in the world. They laughed and joked and played around in the sunshine and cool water. This reality, devoid of adult responsibilities, reminded Trixie of the hidden half-truths within her current existence. Life hadn't yet gotten in the way of love and romance and living. Uncomplicated reams still existed. They held hope for a bright and brilliant future. Innocence and naivety ruled in her moment of memory, as did the bonds of friendship she once shared with her closest friends.
Breathe out, Trixie's mind insisted as her lungs began to protest. The here and now crashed into her conscious with that breath. Those long ago days became even more precious. You can do this Trixie Belden. You can open this door. You can plaster a happy smile on your face. You can even greet Jim and his girlfriend in a normal tone before going on to the restaurant. You can have a good time with your friends even if you are the only single at the table. You can even survive an evening at Diana's gallery in her arty, sophisticated crowd.
'Jim!' Overcompensating for her earlier thoughts, Trixie voice sounded husky when the tall redhead filled her open doorway. Leaning forward, Trixie kissed his cheek quickly. Surprised by the affectionate greeting, Jim didn't have time to show it. For her part Trixie remained embroiled in her own insecurities.
'Where's Sabina?' she enquired, looking past him for the buxom, graceful blond. Much to her surprise, the hallway was completely empty.
'I guess Brian didn't tell you?' Jim looked slightly embarrassed as he realised one hand rested on Trixie's waist yet he became loathe to break the contact. Both Honey and Di have been complaining about how distant Trixie is becoming with them. I wonder why? She doesn't seem any different to me. Then I've been so wrapped up in my own problems this last year, I don't know if I would've noticed. 'It's just going to be you and I tonight, Trix,' he informed her with a raised eyebrow. When she looked at him with that slightly mystified expression, Jim chuckled.
'What's so funny?' Trixie demanded, punching Jim in the arm when she realised he laughed at her. The sudden thought occurred, how easily we fall back into old habits, as though we'd never been apart.
'Remember when you and Honey were on the trail of some crook or a mystery?' he waited for her nod of assent. 'Well, the expression on your face reminded me of your sleuthing days. You looked as though you were trying to fit all the pieces of the puzzle together, but you didn't quite have enough of the image to make out the picture clearly.'
How close you are to the truth. I need to remember how well you read me, Jim Frayne. Tonight I have to stay on my toes and make sure you don't discover the secrets I've kept, from all the bob-whites but most especially from you. Plastering a good-natured grin on her face, Trixie's mind raced.
In a teasing voice, she maintained the verbal banter Jim started. 'So are you going to keep me in suspense all night about Sabina? You know how much I love a mystery.'
'I'll never hear the end of it until I tell you!' Jim returned with a good natured smile. 'Well Shamus, if you must know, early Tuesday morning, Sabina got an urgent call from London. Some college kid decided to hack into one of her major client's data storage facilities, just for fun. This computer system is supposed to be state of the art, yet this whiz kid seemingly managed the impossible. Lennard International is furious and demanding something be done immediately to secure their system. Industrial espionage is becoming a major problem for multinationals. Dad's had his fair share of problems with hackers over the years, but not on this scale. Being one of the original system programmers, Sabina's been recalled to London for the duration. When I spoke to her Wednesday night, she believes she'll be stationed there for a few months at least.'
'Jim, I'm sorry,' Trixie muttered, lowering her head so Jim couldn't see her complete reaction to this startling news. I don't quite know how I feel about this, Trix pondered, even though this particular piece of information affects both my personal emotions and my professional judgment. I can't allow Jim to sense my reactions. He might realise how important that piece of information is to my puzzle.
Her mind working furiously, Trixie became aware of the lengthening silence. Quickly regaining her self-control, Trix turned a grim face towards one of her oldest friends with a half frown. 'What will you do?'
Ring-ring, ring-ring, ring-ring, ring-ring.
'Are you going to get that?' Jim enquired.
Relieved by the phone interrupting their conversation, he watched Trixie's reactions. I hope the distraction curbs Trixie's inquisition, because I'm not sure how I feel about the end of this so called "relationship" with Sabina. Nor am I ready to inform Trixie of the fact, especially with the bombshell Dad dropped on me the Christmas before last, Jim mentally recounted.
'No,' she answered, watching the changing expressions on his face closely and wondered what it signified. 'I think I'll let the machine pick it up.'
'Your mission should you choose to accept it, is to leave a detailed message. If you don't, this machine will self-destruct in 10 seconds,' the familiar voice from Mission Impossible told the caller.
'Only you, Trix,' Jim smiled down at her, realising the appropriateness of the greeting.
About to reach out a hand to touch the curl dangling in the middle of her forehead, his smile faded when a deep voice started talking intimately into Trixie's machine. At that moment, Jim remembered Trixie's latest boyfriend, Jacob or Joshua or something similar. Turning towards the sound, her facial expressions became lost to him. Jim felt bereft while Trixie appeared to go into a trance as she listened intently to the message, her hand hovering above the receiver.
'Hey beautiful, you're a hard woman to get a hold of these days. I tried the office, but you'd already left for the evening and your cell wasn't answering. I hope you're not out with someone else.' A self assured laugh followed as though the man didn't think this a remote possibility. 'Sorry, I can't meet you at the gallery as planned. Nothing to worry about, Gemma's caught a virus and her mom's out of the county. Let me know how it went in the morning. Keep safe, I worry about you when you're out alone.'
'Thank you for calling.' The machine's pre-recorded feminine voice told no one in particular as the caller hung up. A soft click ensued and a frown creased Trixie's features.
'Trix?' Jim questioned, unsure why she flinched at the sound of his voice. Did she forget I was here? he wondered silently, and only realised when I spoke to her?
Jim didn't think he'd ever seen Trix listen that intently before. Nor did he like the familiar way this guy addressed his girl. Jim knew had every right to choose whom she liked for a boyfriend. Trixie, he noticed, reacted to the message as though it held a secret meaning.
'Trix,' Jim wanted to shout at her, 'what have you gone and gotten yourself involved in this time? Even this boyfriend of yours seems worried about you. Does it have anything to do with your estrangement from the Bob Whites? Why haven't you come to us for help if you're in trouble?'
Turning to face him, Trixie covered her lips with a finger, imploring him to maintain his silence. Stunned, Jim watched as she rewound the tape and began the message from the start. Trixie didn't appear to be listening to the words but she was concentrating on the sounds. Then Jim heard it, too. Ever so faint, a click sounded as the male caller started to talk. Often the same noise gave away another person picking up one of the Manor House phone's many extensions, allowing them to listen in on a private conversation.
Unaware of Jim's close scrutiny, Trixie angled her body so she shielded the telephone from the living room window. With a flick of her wrist she had the electronic receiver in two pieces. Looking up Trixie motioned for Jim to approach her. Nestled within the hand piece a tiny electronic device stood out by virtue of its newness. Leaving the bug in situ, Trixie clicked the two halves of the receiver together and replaced the phone in its cradle.
'I'll just be a minute.' Tight lipped, Trixie's eyes captured Jim's in warning. Perceiving his unasked questions, Trix implored him to maintain his silence until they left her apartment. Brushing past her astounded friend, Trixie wondered how she might explain her way out of this situation. Making the most of his determined silence, she raced into her bedroom, informing him over her retreating shoulder, 'I left my lipstick in the bathroom. I'll just go and slip it into my bag before we go.'
Only Jim didn't trust Trixie out of his sight after the events of the last few minutes. His intuition worked overtime. James Frayne's instinct saw trouble in the horizon. This is not a new feeling, but it's a feeling I haven't experienced for a very long time. Once I may have ignored my intuition, but not tonight. I won't allow another Bob White to be hurt pursuing one of Trixie's mysteries. Following her into the cramped bathroom, he caught a flash of grey metal as she transferred something from the top draw of her bureau to her purse.
'A girl can't be too careful.' Trixie commented airily, aware of the horrified look on Jim's face when he worked out what she'd transferred to her purse.
I have to be strong now. I cannot cave in to emotion. Especially after Jake's warning to stay alert, Trixie told herself, her subconscious still decoding the obscure message her partner of two years left on her answering machine. I'm not going to take a chance with the lives of any of the Bob Whites tonight, with or without James Frayne's permission.
'I may need my lipstick at a moments notice if things get out of hand,' she stated easily with a shrug of her shoulders.
'I sure hope everything goes to plan tonight, Trix,' Jim commented, placing a hand in the middle of her back and guiding her towards the entrance to her apartment. 'I never liked the way I felt when you delved into the unknown. It seemed to have consequences for some or all of the Bob Whites.'
'Times have changed Jim,' Trixie told him levelly, wondering how truthful her comments would turn out to be. 'We've all grown up. Now things only have consequences for me.'
'I guess only time will be the judge of that,' he commented quietly, not surprised by Trixie's back muscles flinching under his palm as she preceded him down the stairs and out of her building.
He still doesn't trust me! Trixie's mind remembered the only real argument they had ever had. After all this time, Jim still doesn't trust my judgement. One over zealous assumption when I was fifteen, Honey gets little more than a scratch and I am forever to pay for it! I promised Jim I would never again lead the Bob Whites into a mystery and I have kept my word. I don't know why I feel so disappointed. I never expected Jim to understand my choice of career or support it. Not that he or any of the Bob Whites know what I do for a living. They think I'm still a student finishing up my Master's in clinical psychology.
The silence between them stretched as Jim handed Trixie into his late model sedan. Turning the key, the engine purred into life immediately. Checking his mirrors, he pulled the car smoothly into a stream of heavy traffic. Grim determination obscured Jim's expression as he focused on moving the big vehicle among Friday night commuters, deliberately choosing to continue the awkward silence as he concentrated on the road. Trixie began to squirm in her luxurious leather seat as the minutes passed with increasing slowness.
'Are you upset with me?' Trix asked, at a loss to explain her friend's continuing calm. I expected to get a lecture from Jim, not the silent treatment. I thought he would lose his temper with me in the privacy of his car. I know he saw me put my handgun into my purse. Jim has to be wondering if I have a licence to carry a concealed weapon and why I would need it tonight.
After several seconds, Jim took his eyes off the road for a split second and shook his head.
'Are you disappointed in me then?' Trixie questioned, at a loss to explain his cool exterior and controlled behaviour.
Once again it took the tall redhead a moment to respond in the negative.
'Then what? For goodness sake, talk to me Jim,' Trixie pleaded, beginning to realise something very wrong in her friend's reactions.
'Look in the mirror Trix,' Jim told her in a tightly controlled voice. 'Do you see that dark Ford Taurus three cars behind us on your side?'
Waiting until Trixie located the car he described, she asked, 'has it been following us since you pulled out from my building?'
'Yes,' he responded, still watching the vehicle closely. Jim memorised the licence plate when he explained to Trix. 'I'm going to try and lose him at the next set of traffic lights by pretending I've missed my corner and making the turn late. I want to see what he's going to do.'
Nodding, Trixie already had her cell out. After carefully taking the device apart to look inside, Trix lowered the window and threw it out.
'Give me your phone please, Jim?' she requested in a tight-lipped voice. A silent terror griped the interior of the car, causing both occupants to retreat into their private reflections.
'Not if you're going to treat it the same way you did yours.' A frown didn't disguise his frustration at her actions. 'And that car nearly wiped out several others trying to make the turn with us.'
'Now why doesn't that surprise me?' Trixie muttered under her breath.
Jim took the time to look at Trix out of the corner of his eye. Not sure if she was referring to the comment about his cell or the car trailing them, Jim reached into his pocket and handed over his phone, reluctantly. Once again Trixie pulled the device apart before sighing and quickly reassembling it.
'At least yours is clean,' she commented before dialling. 'Anne, Trixie Belden… 7218A… can you run a New York plate for me… I've got the number… who ordered it?… thanks, Anne…Oh can you keep this between you and me?'
Hanging up, Trixie immediately redialled another number from memory.
'Jake, Belden here. Did you order surveillance on me?… Why?… Do you think you should've informed me of that fact before I left the office tonight... Jake, I could have blown the op wide open. Both my landline and cell are currently being tapped. I only discovered it when you called… I'm calling from Jim's cell… Yes, that Jim… No, Jake I won't take any chances tonight with my life or anybody else's. I'll call for back up from this phone if I need assistance. My plans for tonight have not changed so call that car off… No, I won't go back to my place until you can find the source. I'm not a rank amateur at this, you know… Jake, I'm terminating this call,' Trixie informed her listener in a frustrated tone.
'Trix?' Allowing several minutes to pass, in which the tension between them increased astronomically, Jim finally found the courage to enquire into Trixie's past and present with a single word.
'Yes, Jim,' she sighed. I know what was coming and wish I didn't.
'Do you want to tell me what that's all about?' he inquired, keeping his eyes firmly on the road.
'I would love to tell you, Jim, but it's in your best interests if you know as little as possible. Try to forget what you've seen and heard tonight.' A tear slipped down Trixie's carefully applied make up. The tone of her voice was deadly serious. 'It's a mater of national security.'
'Do you work with the FBI?' he asked in a strangled tone. I'm not sure I want an answer to that question. I'm not sure I want to know.
'CIA,' Trixie informed him flatly.