Page 23 of Her Loving Hero

“What do you have figured out?” Emily asked patiently.

“Miss Bannister is an interpreter, besides being a school counselor. She moved back to America two days ago, even though the school year wasn’t finished.”

“And how is that relevant?” Emily asked.

“It’s because of the phone call the twins and I overheard. We just know it. Chris explained to us what we heard. So now we know,” Carly said triumphantly.

Emily felt her head begin to pound.

“What do you know?” she asked again.

“A reporter she knew, and did interpreting for, died. Chris is positive he was killed.”

“Bloody hell Carly, start from the damned beginning. Use small words and tell me every tiny little thing this Miss Bannister said.” Emily heard her voice rising, but she couldn’t seem to care. A reporter was dead?

“Okay, okay, okay. Miss Bannister was talking on the phone. She said, ‘I’m quitting this job. People are dying, and I’m out.’ Then she paused.”

“Do you think she was talking to her employer?” Emily asked.

“Chris doesn’t think so, because of the next thing she said.”

“Wait a minute, who’s Chris?” Emily asked. She was having trouble keeping up.

“Chris Lancaster. He’s Petra and Mercedes’s older brother. Anyway, the next thing Miss Bannister said was that the reporter had stolen a propaganda video from one of the men she normally does interpreting for. He was having trouble understanding everything, so he gave her an audio section, and asked her to translate. She was able to make out that it was a man named Hamza al Libi taking credit for an orphanage being bombed, and she told him that when she gave it back to him and the next thing she knew he was dead.”

“So, Miss Bannister does jobs for an Omani? Do you know who?”

“Chris found out that she usually works for the Omani and Yemini Economic Ministers. It’s on her Facebook profile.”

Emily took in everything her sister had said. “Have you talked to Dad about this? If a reporter was killed, he needs to be made aware.”

“I tried to, he blanked me. Wouldn’t give me the time of day. Same thing happened when the twins and Chris went to their father. But their parents are going through a vicious divorce, so they’re not listening to anything the three of them say.”

“Let me call Dad and try talking to him,” Emily suggested.

“It’s okay, we have a plan. Well, actually it’s Chris’s plan. He’s really smart. Chris had me apply to be the translator in Miss Bannister’s place. He said since I had the language skills and was the Ambassador’s daughter, they would take me in a heartbeat. Well sort of.” Her voice trailed off.

Bloody Hell!

“What do you mean sort of.” Emily asked calmly.

“Well, Chris said that I would be too young.”

“He’s right. And you’d need Dad’s recommendation and approval.”

Thank the Lord.

“I gave them Chris’s phone number, and said it was Dad’s private cell phone number. They believed him, so that part went well.”

“Are you telling me that they are going for a high school student to be an interpreter?”

Carly didn’t answer.

“Answer me.”

“I told them I was you. They were really excited. We look alike, so it won’t be a problem.”

“Except everyone knows I’m living in America,” Emily practically shouted.