apple and walked to the counter. She cut the apple into eight pieces on the cutting board in the middle of the counter and handed Kate and Peter a slice.
“Well, not entirely cool, actually. I may have to go there for a while to help get them up and running.”
“China? Can I come? I’d love to see the place.”
“I don’t think you want to live in Shouzhou for over a year, Sarah. For one thing, you don’t speak Chinese. For another, it’s closer to Inner Mongolia than to civilization.”
“A year? You’ll be gone for more than a year? Oh, Dad.” She put her arms around Peter’s neck. He used to carry her around like that when she was tiny. He raised his right hand and touched her fingers with his. Kate saw that Sarah’s eyes were wet.
“I don’t want you to go away for a whole year, Dad. It’s bad enough that Mom spends half her time somewhere else.”
Kate began scratching Sarah’s back. She didn’t want Sarah to break down because she wasn’t certain how she’d react herself. This was all too new; the idea of a separation from Peter suddenly all too real. And Sarah’s comment about Kate seemed like a criticism of the choices she’d made about her life.
Peter rotated in his chair and took Sarah in his lap. Not quite a little girl, not quite a woman, she folded herself into her father’s arms. “We’ll all be fine, Sarah. A lot of things have to fall into place before we’ll know for certain.” He brushed a stray hair away from her cheek. “And if I do have to go, think of what fabulous vacations you’ll have. You can fly all the way to Beijing. Or we can meet somewhere in the middle. Maybe Paris. And then before you know it I’ll be back and you’ll be complaining our vacations aren’t as much fun as they were when I was over there.”
Kate was buoyed enough by Peter that she jumped in. “And what about when we’re old and retired and you’re bouncing around from concert hall to concert hall on your world tour? We’re all going to have some very busy passports.”
Peter hugged Sarah. “Go tell your brother to wash his hands. All this talk about Shouzhou has made me hungry for dim sum tonight.” Sarah kissed Peter the way she did when she was a little princess and he was her king and then bounced away.
Peter swiveled his chair back and began shutting down the computer.
“You made it sound so easy, Peter. I’m grateful for that, at least, because the last thing I can deal with right now is to have the kids out of sorts.”
Kate sipped a bit more of her wine. She waited for Peter to say something supportive. How much he’d miss her. How he was certain she’d be running Drake when he got back. Silence equaled disappointment. “But I have to confess. The idea of your being halfway around the world is going to take some getting used to.”
SEVENTEEN
Kate was in Linz the following Monday. The air was slightly green and smelled of sulfur.
MK arranged for an interpreter to meet Kate on the top steps of the Old City Hall, a massive stone building with a huge turret and imposing clock. The girl was tall—all angles and legs and arms—with dark blonde hair, dressed properly for business in a plaid skirt and white blouse. She was holding a sign with the words Kate Brewster on it, as if she were Kate’s driver picking her up at the airport. In passable English, the girl introduced herself as Nina. She said immediately her fee was two hundred Euros for the day, cash. Kate hadn’t bothered to open the envelope MK gave her as she was leaving the office. She merely handed it over.
The city hall was quiet. The women didn’t know quite where to begin or whether the records they were after even existed. Nina asked a few questions of two or three people walking in the lobby. Nina would be a credible enough witness if ever asked under oath how diligently Kate sought out the truth, although Kate had long ago stopped believing this enterprise had either any truth or integrity to it.
“Well, not entirely cool, actually. I may have to go there for a while to help get them up and running.”
“China? Can I come? I’d love to see the place.”
“I don’t think you want to live in Shouzhou for over a year, Sarah. For one thing, you don’t speak Chinese. For another, it’s closer to Inner Mongolia than to civilization.”
“A year? You’ll be gone for more than a year? Oh, Dad.” She put her arms around Peter’s neck. He used to carry her around like that when she was tiny. He raised his right hand and touched her fingers with his. Kate saw that Sarah’s eyes were wet.
“I don’t want you to go away for a whole year, Dad. It’s bad enough that Mom spends half her time somewhere else.”
Kate began scratching Sarah’s back. She didn’t want Sarah to break down because she wasn’t certain how she’d react herself. This was all too new; the idea of a separation from Peter suddenly all too real. And Sarah’s comment about Kate seemed like a criticism of the choices she’d made about her life.
Peter rotated in his chair and took Sarah in his lap. Not quite a little girl, not quite a woman, she folded herself into her father’s arms. “We’ll all be fine, Sarah. A lot of things have to fall into place before we’ll know for certain.” He brushed a stray hair away from her cheek. “And if I do have to go, think of what fabulous vacations you’ll have. You can fly all the way to Beijing. Or we can meet somewhere in the middle. Maybe Paris. And then before you know it I’ll be back and you’ll be complaining our vacations aren’t as much fun as they were when I was over there.”
Kate was buoyed enough by Peter that she jumped in. “And what about when we’re old and retired and you’re bouncing around from concert hall to concert hall on your world tour? We’re all going to have some very busy passports.”
Peter hugged Sarah. “Go tell your brother to wash his hands. All this talk about Shouzhou has made me hungry for dim sum tonight.” Sarah kissed Peter the way she did when she was a little princess and he was her king and then bounced away.
Peter swiveled his chair back and began shutting down the computer.
“You made it sound so easy, Peter. I’m grateful for that, at least, because the last thing I can deal with right now is to have the kids out of sorts.”
Kate sipped a bit more of her wine. She waited for Peter to say something supportive. How much he’d miss her. How he was certain she’d be running Drake when he got back. Silence equaled disappointment. “But I have to confess. The idea of your being halfway around the world is going to take some getting used to.”
SEVENTEEN
Kate was in Linz the following Monday. The air was slightly green and smelled of sulfur.
MK arranged for an interpreter to meet Kate on the top steps of the Old City Hall, a massive stone building with a huge turret and imposing clock. The girl was tall—all angles and legs and arms—with dark blonde hair, dressed properly for business in a plaid skirt and white blouse. She was holding a sign with the words Kate Brewster on it, as if she were Kate’s driver picking her up at the airport. In passable English, the girl introduced herself as Nina. She said immediately her fee was two hundred Euros for the day, cash. Kate hadn’t bothered to open the envelope MK gave her as she was leaving the office. She merely handed it over.
The city hall was quiet. The women didn’t know quite where to begin or whether the records they were after even existed. Nina asked a few questions of two or three people walking in the lobby. Nina would be a credible enough witness if ever asked under oath how diligently Kate sought out the truth, although Kate had long ago stopped believing this enterprise had either any truth or integrity to it.
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