Thank goodness Leon was there because if Theo had been in London... well, I don’t even want to think about him lying in a flat, feverish, alone, and only half-conscious, with nobody to take care of him. I mean, I’m sure his grandmother would’ve made the trip to London, but the point is, he couldn’t count on anyone in the Excelsior office. He doesn’t have a work family here like he does in Orlando. As Leon has said, we take care of our own. Or rather, they do. I’ve forgotten I don’t have a job anymore. But that’s a problem for later.
“Mm-hmm... thanks for letting me know, Margaret. I’ll be in touch with you again once we have our game plan.” He hangs up. “She thinks I'm right on the money and Theo is headed to Devon.”
“There’s a lot riding on this. What if we’re wrong?”
“We aren’t. There is nowhere else the boss would go. Trust me,” he says.
“Okay,” I say slowly. “Then there’s where I need to be. Except my security team isn’t going to let me just wander out the front door.”
“I’ve been thinking about that.” Leon stands, crossing the room with a calm, deliberate gait. “Just take them with you. The cat’s out of the bag, Kaori. You have nothing leftto hide. Make it easy on yourself and just tell them where we’re going. At the end of the day, they work for you.”
I open my mouth to argue, but the logic is sound. Yamada-san and Sato-san will likely be horrified by the idea of me venturing into the countryside in the middle of a scandal, but they won’t disobey a direct order. “I guess you’re right,” I murmur.
“I usually am.” Leon meets my eyes, his expression turning sharp. “Now, Theo’s got a three-hour head start, but he’s driving. If you go by air, you can catch him before he even pulls into the driveway.”
“Um . . . air?”
“Uh-huh. I was thinking helicopter. A plane seems a bit over the top, but hey, you do you, Kaori.”
I stare at him. Does he hear how insane that sounds? “Leon, I can’t just rent a helicopter. That will cost thousands.”
“Mm-hm. Probably deep into five figures.”
I keep staring at him. I have the funds, but it’s not something my parents would ever approve of. They’d call it a reckless waste of resources. But then I picture Theo’s heartbroken face in that lobby. I hear his father’s voice telling him he was a mistake, a disappointment, ausefulscandal. Theo is currently driving toward the coast believing he is alone. That I abandoned him in his hour of need.
For twenty-two years, I’ve always done what was expected of me, and conformed to the image of the “perfect” Japanese princess. For once, it’s time I listened to my heart. To hell with the rules. Five figures is a small price to pay for the man you love. In fact, it’s the best investment I’ve ever made.
As it turns out,even when you have the funds and the Japanese Embassy’s security team actively helping to make it happen, chartering a helicopter on a whimis not simple. At all.
Leon and I are hunched over the small table in my suite, phones on speaker. Between us, a notepad is covered in crossed-out company names, flight times, and a few increasingly aggressive doodles Leon has added in the margins.
After we hang up on the sixth call, I press my palms to my temples. “We’re wasting time. By now we could’ve been a third of the way there. Admit it, Leon, we’re out of luck.” I slump back in my chair. Desperate measures apparently require advance booking, rigorous safety checks, flight plans, and twelve thousand pounds.
He winces. “You’re right. I didn’t realize helicopters came with this much red tape.”
“We found a helicopter,” I say, frustration tightening my chest. “But what use is it if we don’t have a pilot available until tomorrow morning?”
My phone buzzes with a text from Alice.
Alice
What’s the latest? Any luck?
Kaori
Still grounded.
Alice
Well, luckily for you, I have a solution.
The dots dance on the screen as she types.
Alice
One word. Angela.
I slap a hand over my forehead. How did I forget? Alice’s lead protection officer is a former RAF pilot.
