The phone calls the twins made that morning, and Angel’s revelation about Jade’s lack of background material, had filled in a few of the puzzle pieces, but also presented more questions. One thing was certain—the enigma surrounding Jade Moon made Sly Cunning’s claims sound more convincing. The Silver sisters sat at the kitchen table nibbling on sandwiches of rare roast piled high on toasted sourdough bread. When Godiva squinted at the notes Angel printed out, she realized she left her reading glasses in the family room.
She let out a disgusted little “Humph!” and placed her napkin on the table. “I’ll be back in a minute, Sis. Can’t read a darn thing without my glasses.”
Goldie smiled, pointed to her own reading glasses, and said, “News flash. Neither can I.”
A few minutes later Godiva came back into the kitchen, eyeglasses in one hand and a cell phone in the other. “Wouldn’t you know it? Dexter left his phone in the family room and I know he’ll be lost without it.”
She dialed the number of Dexter’s shop but only got a recording of Roxy Rhinestone’s mellow voice. “Thanks for calling The World of Fire and Ice. Our business hours are ten to five. If you are calling during this time, we’re busy helping customers. Please leave a message and we will return your call.”
She let a few minutes pass and tried two more times but got the same recording. “Darn. I can’t get through. Maybe I’ll just have Angel run it over to him.” She checked her watch. “It’s close to noon. Angel can take her lunch break afterward.”
Godiva buzzed Angel on the intercom. “Hey Kiddo, can you come into the kitchen? I have an errand for you to run.”
Five minutes later Angel burst into the room. “Sorry it took a few minutes, Boss. I just polished off the latest stack of letters. Wait ‘til you read the one from the guy who stands at the window with binoculars and watches his neighbor undress every night. She finally closed the curtains and now he’s reporting her to the neighborhood association for being unfriendly.”
“All she did was end the peep show? That guy’s lucky he didn’t get arrested. If she had written to me for advice, I’d have told her to bust him in the chops.”
“I’m surprised she didn’t call the cops. Anyway, what’s my assignment?”
“Dexter left this here this morning.” She handed the cell phone to Angel. “I tried to call the shop, but there’s no answer. I’ve noticed how frantic he gets if he isn’t connected, so maybe you can take this to The World of Fire and Ice on Rodeo Drive and drop it off for him. You can have lunch afterward at any restaurant you like. My treat, put it on the expense account.”
Angel left and the twins got busy planning their next moves.
***
As her red Honda zipped along Santa Monica Boulevard toward Rodeo Drive, Angel thought about how her life had changed since leaving her research job at the Los Angeles Times. Working for Godiva was great, the money was better, and she was even able to pick out her own company car.
Working on the Ask G.O.D. column was so much more interesting than searching through dull articles online to find background information for reporters. Many of the letters addressed to Ask G.O.D. were so funny or bizarre that people often asked her if Godiva made them up. Having handled them personally, she assured the skeptics that they were real. What Angel enjoyed the most, however, was when Godiva and her family got involved in solving a crime. From her desk in her boss’ Beverly Hills mansion she felt like a real crime-solving detective.
At Rodeo Drive, Angel turned left onto one of the world’s most elegant shopping streets lined with stores like Gucci, Hermes, and Georgio Armani. Dexter’s shop was right next to Chanel. She had never been there before and was truly impressed by the black granite façade highlighted by raised silver letters. Black and silver half-round canopies topped two display windows filled with beautiful jewelry.
Her plan was to pull into the parking lot down the street, hustle over to the shop to drop off the phone, then take a nice long lunch at Urth Caffé on South Beverly Drive. As she headed toward the parking lot, fate intervened and a Rolls Royce pulled out of a space directly in front Dexter’s jewelry salon. As Angel maneuvered into the space, she blessed the parking gods. The meter even had some time left on it.
She jumped out of the car, checked to make sure Dexter’s cell phone was in her jacket pocket, and made ready to enter Dexter’s shop when the impressive glass door opened and a beautiful, well-dressed woman walked out. Angel had seen her face before. It took only a split second to recall Flossie’s photo of Jade Moon and Ali Kazaam aboard the Aurora Borealis.
This can’t be, she thought, it’s the woman everyone’s looking for. And I found her! Angel slid back behind the wheel and closed her car door.
The stunning Eurasian woman walked a short distance to a white Cadillac parked halfway up the block, and a moment later pulled out of the space. Angel didn’t hesitate for one moment. This woman was Jade Moon and she was not going to lose sight of her.
Her first instinct was to call Godiva and tell her to warn Dexter that his classy customer was a dangerous jewel thief who was probably casing his shop. Thinking back, Angel remembered seeing Dexter a few days earlier, having a very cozy lunch with an attractive woman. She hadn’t gotten a good look at her, but now she realized there was an eerie resemblance to Jade. Angel reasoned that the pretty thief was probably setting him up for the kill.
She navigated in and out of traffic, keeping her eyes on the white Cadillac, acutely aware that if Jade spotted her red car she might realize she was being followed. She let a few cars get between them and at one point actually passed Jade by a car length. She waited a moment, then fell right behind her again. That was the way they did it on TV shows.
Angel finally found a moment at a stoplight to call Godiva. The first thing she said was, “I can’t talk long. This is really important. I just saw Jade Moon coming out of Dexter’s shop. I didn’t take the time to give him his cell phone. I’m following her and we’re heading west on Wilshire Boulevard. Oh, wait, the light just changed and she’s turning onto Beverly Glen. I don’t know where she’s going, but I’ll keep on her tail and report to you when she stops. Meanwhile, call Dexter and warn him that she could be getting ready to rob him.”
Stunned, Godiva said, “Wait, Angel, that could be dangerous. You—”
Angel interrupted her. “Listen, Boss, traffic is bad. I’ll call back when I can,” and she hung up.
Jade headed north on Beverly Glen. When they came to a slight fork at Sunset she stayed to the right and continued on as Beverly Glen wound up into the canyon. She avoided the left fork that led into one of the most expensive Los Angeles neighborhoods.
Traffic was very light on Beverly Glen and Angel was even more worried her red car might stand out. She rationalized that if Jade spotted her, she might think Angel was someone who lived in the canyon, so she kept on going. They passed a little park on the right and not long afterward a school.
Jade kept driving. Just as Angel thought she might wind up following Jade all the way over the hill into Van Nuys, the right rear tail light on the Cadillac began to flash. It took her by surprise. Jade turned into a tiny street with no sign, and Angel couldn’t react quickly enough. She had to go past the street, turn into another short street on the left, then circle back.
By the time she backtracked several minutes had passed. The short, narrow street seemed more like a very long driveway. The pavement was cracked and uneven. Several large trees along the right edge almost formed a canopy over the street. On the other side, near the weed-covered mountainside where the street ended, a dilapidated house stood all by itself. The white Cadillac was parked in the driveway and Jade appeared to be carrying a briefcase or some sort of suitcase into the house.
Meanwhile, Godiva had tried to call back a few times, but Angel let the phone ring, afraid if she answered she might lose Jade in traffic. Now she was faced with a dilemma. Should she call Godiva to let her know where she was? Should she ask Godiva to call Agent Del Toro so he could arrest Jade? There was nowhere for her red car to stay hidden on the little street. What should she do next?
Figuring it was important to call Godiva, she pulled over at the end of the road and punched in Godiva’s number. While the phone was still ringing, Angel’s car door was yanked open and she was dragged out of the car. Her phone fell out of her hand and was crushed beneath a black stiletto heel.
Jade’s face contorted in rage. “Who are you and why are you following me?”