A PALE HORSE

The plane streaked, figuratively, toward America, and it wasn’t lost on those aboard that it almost took a full day to go through the endless three- hours- then- fuel routine. From Russia to Ukraine, to Denmark, to Norway, to Greenland, to Boston, to Nashville, and, finally to New Orleans. They landed shortly after five o’clock in the morning. They had just taxied up the runway and were heading towards Abe’s hangar when his phone rang.

He answered on the second ring, “Hey, sugar!” he said then his tone changed abruptly. “Wait, what? Slow down, Naomi! What about Sarah?”, he asked, his unease evident, causing Sam to take notice of the conversation as he awaited clearance to approach the far side of the airfield. His demeanor changed. Sam watched as the color drained from Abe’s face. “We’re here now, Naomi. We will see what we can find out. Call Joshua. We’ll be in there as soon as we can get this bird put to bed.” He disconnected his cell and looked at Sam, “Sarah is missing,” he told him. “Naomi said that she put her to bed last night and when she got up this morning… gone. She said that she has torn the hangar apart. Maybe she just decided to mess around or snoop and got lost, but she found one of the windows had been broken and a piece of Sarah’s hoodie was hanging from a broken piece of glass.” He went on, “There was blood on the window sill. She thinks that she may have been hurt when she was taken.”, he finished. Abe watched as Sam processed the information that he had been given, his face awash with surprise and anguish at the girl’s disappearance. Abe knew that she had wormed her way into Sam’s heart in the short time that they had had with her. He couldn’t help but think that maybe she reminded him of someone.

“You go. I’ll handle this. I’ll get the plane settled- your mission is to find her.”

“Sam, we need to follow protocol and secure the plane- it will be much faster with both of us. I want to find her, too, but this is no time to lose your head.” Abe put a hand on the big man’s shoulder, and grabbed his logs and flight bag, headed out to the cargo area. Sam called after him, willing the plane to taxi faster.

“Do you think that the grunch came for her?... or do you think that Olivier has her?”

Abe thought about the question and said, “Either way, I think that creep has her again, and if those things were working for him then he still ended up with what he wanted.” Abe said, “She won’t survive what they plan for her. I can’t stand to think of that little girl going through something like that.” Abe slammed his fist into the open palm of his other hand. “Naomi is blaming herself, Sam. She could have been hurt and there is nothing I could have done. I hate feeling helpless!” Peter poked his head into the cockpit and noticed the charge in the air and dark looks the other two had on their faces.

“What is it?” he asked them. Sam pulled up to the hangar and was powering down the plane by the time Abe had finished telling him about Sarah. He saw Naomi step out of the hangar with Joshua in tow. Peter could tell that she had been crying. They quickly made their way to the door of the plane, the two men following a frantic and fatherly Abe who scooped Naomi into his arms as soon as he reached her. Peter noticed that Max and Maggie were helping Tammy and Margueritte down out of the plane when he heard a gasp from Joshua.

“It can’t be! Margueritte!?” he heard him say before he took off across the tarmac to the plane, running. Peter turned to the others, offering a thumb over his left shoulder to follow Joshua’s run to meet up with the rest of the deplaning group, “Does he know EVERYBODY?” They watched as Joshua reached the others and saw Max step in front of his mother. Joshua stopped and he saw Margueritte place a frail hand on Max’s shoulder. The big man looked down at his mother and stepped aside. He was close enough to protect her if needed and looked like he wanted to pounce on Joshua, but he allowed the two to face each other. They were not close enough to hear the exchange but saw Max relax as Margueritte hugged the agent.

“We need to get after Olivier! I don’t like that so much time has passed and that creep has Sarah,” Sam said. “It doesn’t look like we will have a hard time enlisting help in this. It looks like that just worked itself out. Now, if only we can find Sarah as easy.” They heard a stifled sob and turned to see Naomi bury her head in Abe’s shoulder once again. Abe scowled at Sam and stroked Naomi’s hair. He whispered softly what sounded like a prayer as he rested his bowed head on top of hers, their hands interlocked.

When they finished and Abe offered her an encouraging smile, saying, “We’re going to find her, baby girl. Don’t you doubt that for a second.”, Peter thought it may be okay to approach.

He walked gingerly up to the two, knowing that they were sharing a meaningful moment together, and offered, “Naomi, please don’t blame yourself.” Peter said gently, “We will get her back. Have faith.” Naomi gave him a small smile in return for his kindness. She is breathtaking, he thought. For that smile, for any smile from her, I would charge hell with a SuperSoaker! Peter found himself taken in by the young woman; it wasn’t so much that she was the untouchable type of beautiful that gave him that unsettled feeling in his stomach. No, she was the type of beautiful that had substance, the kind that Peter had always valued in women, especially his mom and Rose and Tammy. The aura of confidence that glowed around them was like a beacon to him. The smile that told the world of a generosity of spirit and kindness and care that lived within. He knew that he could grasp and hold the hand of a woman like that and see the gentle elegance and fierce strength together. Naomi felt like a weight had been lifted from her, but her uncle had always been able to make her feel better. Uncle Abe had always been able to help her pull her worth back to herself when it seemed to have left her, and she had just had the distinct displeasure of being about as low as she can ever remember.

Sarah was my responsibility and I let her get taken.

Joshua and the rest walked up as Peter finished speaking and he said, “Naomi, it wasn’t your fault that Sarah was taken. If I had to guess, I would say that Olivier has known where to find her and, for that matter, you, all along. These creatures!” The agent temporarily lost his cool, slamming his hand on his thigh in frustration. “They are smart, and they don’t lack for resources. They also don’t fear getting caught. They sold their souls a long time ago, and that makes them more dangerous than you can imagine.”he told her.

Max and Margueritte stopped next to Joshua and Max told her, “It is true. They will do anything to fulfill a contract, but I do not think this is just about selling girls to the highest bidder anymore. Maggie found some documents that prove that there is a connection between the stolen children and Lev Avatov.” Max turned to look at Naomi squarely and let the weight of his next words wash over both of them. “My father.” Naomi bristled and let the anger flood from the place where guilty pooled just moments earlier.

“Your father?? Are you telling me that you had something to do with this-“ She lurched towards Max, and Abe caught her quickly and spun her to face him.

“Hey! Get a hold of yourself, girl! Max is here to help! He wants nothing more than to take his father down and see that he pays for his crimes, right, Max?”

Abe turned to see Max nodding his ascent and Max added, “Naomi, my father has made a mistake this day. Let us go somewhere and we can all discuss what Maggie and I have found.” He turned to Joshua and said, “I will help you take down Lev if you can find someone to help my mother and Maggie. Lev will be after them both. Maggie, for what she did and mother for what she means to his organization and what she knows. Does your agency have anywhere we can take them?” he asked.

Joshua smiled and said, “I know just the person who can help, but it may be bit of a shock...” he said only to Margueritte and Max.

“Good.” Max said, “We go- the sooner we get there, the sooner we can plan.”

Joshua turned to the others and said, “You guys go. I will meet you there, but I need to look at that window and see if I can find any other clues that might be helpful. I will get my people scouring this place like a bunch of dirty dishes.” He fished keys out of his pocket and tossed them to Peter, “You can take my Suburban and I will meet you later with Abe’s truck.” Peter looked down at the keys in his hand and out across the sea of faces, all anxious and determined. Then a thought occurred to him,

“Uh, Joshua? Where am I going, exactly?” Joshua smiled, sort of an impish grin Peter recognized by now as the man’s way of keeping a juicy secret that only he knows.

“I thought you would have guessed by now, kid. Home, Peter. You’re going home.” The weary travelers turned to trudge across the tarmac, making their way into the large hangar and out the other side to reach Joshua’s Suburban. The large vehicle had enough room for all the travelers to pile inside. Peter was chosen to drive since this was his hometown and he was able to sleep on the plane ride over. Peter grinned as he thought of home.

Of course, I should have known! He grinned as he thought to himself. It was starting to make sense to him now, and he knew for sure that he and Momma would have a long conversation at some point in the near future.

“And Peter…” Joshua shouted, “save some of the beignets for me!” Peter laughed and started the big truck. The drive didn’t take as long as Peter remembered, and he figured that was because he missed being home so badly. He parked the truck in a lot down the street and the troupe walked the remaining distance into the Quarter. He had missed it, but couldn’t recall when he had ever missed the smell and the din before. Tonight, the noise and the bustle was like air to him. At this time of the morning, however, shopkeepers were busily cleaning up from the night before. The nightlife of the quarter was boisterous, but left a big mess that had to be addressed on a daily basis. Shopkeepers actually used fire hoses to blast away the mess from the sidewalks in front of their shops and clean up the broken glass and pick up the trash that is strewn about by the drunk revelers of the previous night. In some instances, the owners of the shops and bars have to wake up a patron that is found sleeping it off in a doorway. As they walked, Cuisine de Ouverte came into view. It was like a beacon to Peter. The pretty flower pots on their wrought iron stands were a bright spot of color showing off red geraniums against a black and white store front. Momma Rose was out in front as all the other shopkeepers were, with her broom sweeping the area around her little café’s tables and chairs. She looked over and saw Peter walking toward her and let out a little chirp. She dropped the broom and rushed forward and into his arms. He laughed and kissed her on the head. She laughed, too, and admonished him sweetly.

“Mon chou! I will take you over my knee the next time you leave for days on end and come back to me looking like a bedraggled, starving moose!” She grabbed his face in her plump little hands, looked for a moment, then hugged him tighter to her bosom, all while Peter wore quite the embarrassed look, especially when he noticed Maggie stifling a giggle. Rose released him and looked around at the other people present. When her gaze came to Margueritte, the smile slipped from her face and she whispered, “Mon Dieu!”, staggering backwards and holding her hands up to heaven. Peter reached out to steady her.

“Momma Rose, are you okay?” Rose waved him away, clutching her hand to her heart, tears flooding her eyes. “Naomi, can you run inside and get a glass of water for her?” Peter said, turning to Naomi. The girl took off like a shot and disappeared inside the small restaurant.

“That’s because she has seen a ghost,” came the soft reply from Margueritte. “Bonjour mon petit bouton de rose…”, she said softly. “I am late.” Rose brought her hands up to her face and shook her head in disbelief.

“Margueritte, is that really you?” Tears made silent tracks down here face. “How is this possible?” Momma Rose walked forward until she stood right in front of Margueritte. “You are dead! I’ve been to your graveside!” She reached out and touched the cheek of the other woman. Peter was confused.

“You know her, Momma Rose?” he asked.

Momma Rose turned to Peter, face flushed yet spectre- white at the same time and said through her tears, “Yes, I know her… she is my sister.”