Weekend Warriors (Sisterhood #1)(41)

She carried his stunned expression with her all the way down in the elevator and out to the car. Now what the hell am I supposed to do? Which disguise do I get into now? She drove slowly, her heart slamming back and forth inside her chest. What were they going to do at the Beverly Hills Hotel? Charles said everyone would be there. Did that include Charles, too? Who was going to register?

The first glitch.

They were waiting for her when she knocked on the door. Her feet literally left the ground as Julia pulled her inside. In a million years she never would have recognized any of them, especially Charles.

“Time is your enemy, ladies. Alexis is going to be your business partner, Shelia Star. Julia and Yoko will wait in the bedroom until he’s under the drug. I can’t stay here with you. You’re on your own.”

“He’s going to remember me, Charles. I sat across from him. If he goes to the police, he can describe —”

“— a bad Tina Turner wannabe. This is not a catastrophe. It’s a little glitch and we’ve taken care of it. Admirably, if I do say so,” Charles preened. “I’ll see you in Lone Pine in, let’s say seven hours or so, depending on traffic.

“Julia, slip this into his drink,” Charles said, handing over a small vial he extracted from his leather jacket. “This will knock him out for eight to twelve hours. You only need one to two drops.”

“This is Rohypnol! It’s illegal to use this in the United States. Where did you get this, Charles?” Julia demanded.

“The black market is a wonderful thing. You’re worried about illegalities! Get over it. Good luck.” Charles walked out through the door onto the patio.

The women looked at one another just as a knock sounded on the door. Julia and Yoko ran to the bedroom and closed the door. Kathryn opened the door and ushered in the insurance man.

“I suggest we get right to it, Mr. Lee. You don’t have to explain the policies, we’re both familiar with them. Our accountants explained them to us in great detail. We’ll just sign the forms and write you out a check. Here, have a nice cold bottle of iced tea,” Kathryn said, holding out a bottle of Snapple.

“I don’t like tea,” Lee said, rummaging in his briefcase for the forms he wanted.

“Coke or Pepsi?” Kathryn asked.

“I don’t like sweet drinks.”

Alexis sucked on her bottom lip. “Are you saying you don’t want to…to toast us for buying all this insurance with you? That’s not very businesslike. How often does this kind of deal fall into your lap? I like to socialize with the people I do business with. I was really looking forward to drinks and a nice leisurely lunch. I know this is a rush for you, but time is money in our business.”

“By the way, what is your business? I’m sorry. It’s just that I promised my fiancée I would take her to a polo match. She’s never been to one. I’m running late as it is. I’ll have some bottled water if you feel a toast is in order. This is where you sign off on each of these forms. You know at some point you’ll both have to take a physical, but don’t worry about that. I know a doctor who will make sure you both pass.”

“I don’t know why, but I thought you were a married man with a bunch of kids. Most insurance men are married. At least the ones I know,” Kathryn said, reaching inside the mini-bar for a bottle of Evian water. She turned around and opened the bottle of Rohypnol and added four drops before she put the cap back on the bottle. She was unscrewing it for his benefit when she handed the bottle to Lee. She handed Alexis a Coke and she kept the Snapple. “I thought I told you what our business was back in the office. We make tea bags. You know, those little paper things that have tea in them. We make the paper and the tag that hangs out of your tea cup.”

“I thought Lipton made those.”

“See, that’s what everyone thinks. We’re the brains and they get all the credit. Where should I sign? Oh, I see, right under Shelia’s name. Shelia, honey, write this nice man a check so he can go on to his polo match. You didn’t say, do you have children, Mr. Lee?”

“Four. Two boys and two girls. They live with their mother.” Lee reached for the check, looked at it and almost swooned. He slipped it into a zippered compartment in his briefcase.

“Drink up,” Alexis said.

Both women watched as Lee took a healthy swallow of the water in the bottle.

“Shoot!” Alexis said. “We didn’t make a toast. Let’s see, I think we should make a toast to Mr. Lee and a long profitable business association.” She brought the Coke bottle to her lips and watched as Lee tried to bring the bottle to his own lips. He took a long gulp before he slid to the floor.

“Okay, we’re in business!” Kathryn shouted. “Batten down. Close the drapes and slide those dead bolts home, but make sure you hang out the Do Not Disturb sign. Julia, he didn’t drink all the water. What if he doesn’t have enough in him? I put in four drops, thinking we’d be lucky if he drank a quarter of it.”

“I’ll put a little on his tongue. Get the shower curtain and all the towels you can find. Strip him down, girls, while I get ready.”

This was her moment. The day she’d waited for for seven long years. Kathryn stood on the sidelines as Alexis and Yoko hustled. She saw them spread the shower curtain and a thick, white towel on the coffee table. She watched as they pulled off his shoes, his trousers and his boxer shorts and then hefted him onto the coffee table.