what I got out of it. NORAD is in Colorado.â
âLiving on top of mysterious mountains must be the in thing this year,â Kathryn grumbled. âI donât know if I want to go back or not. Charles didnât say anything about coming back here after we deal with Justice Barnes and her problem. I want some kind of guarantee.â
âGuarantee of what?â Yoko asked.
Kathryn shrugged. She bent down to pick up a stick and threw it for Murphy. The big shepherd bounded off, Alexisâs dog, Grady, hot on his heels. âLike how long are we going to stay in North Carolina? This,â she said, waving her arms about, âis home. Weâre safe here. We are not going to be safe back in the States. I think we all know that. I suspect there was something else Charles didnât tell us. Itâs just a feeling. I think something happened back home, something that will probably make the situation even more dangerous. I could be wrong but I donât think so.
âAnd, another thing. Why didnât Justice Barnes get in touch with Nellie in the beginning instead of paying off that crud her daughter was married to? She bought him off. Right off the bat, that alone spells trouble. Is the woman stupid? The timing on this isnât good. Charles hasnât had time to do all the things he usually does to make sure weâre as safe as can be. The window of time is way too short in my opinion. Whereâs our backup? Yeah, right, Jack and the others, but what can they do if we get caught this time? So, Iâm voting no.â
Murphy bounded back with his stick for Kathryn to throw again. She did and then sat down on a rotted log. The others stopped and looked at her. This was one of those rare times since forming the Sisterhood that they were out of sync.
Alexis sat down next to Kathryn and put her arm around her shoulder. âHaving been in prison myself, I have to agree with Kathryn. I do not ever want to go back there. Going Stateside is like weâre taunting them, offering ourselves up to get caught. I donât think Justice Barnes will blow the whistle on us. To do so means sheâd be blowing it on herself and I donât see someone of her stature doing that. I vote no.â
Myra stepped forward. âIâm not trying to change your mind, girls, but I would like you to ask yourselves what we would have done without Nellie, Jack, Harry and Lizzieâs help. Even Maggie Spritzer when we were caught. They all stepped up to the plate, as you would say, Kathryn. Weâre safe because of them.â
Annie looked overhead as the sky turned darker. The first fat rain drops fell through the dense foliage overhead. âPearl doesnât have the kind of backup we have. What sheâs done, sheâs pretty much done on her own. I donât think I would have the guts to do what sheâs been doing, considering who she is. Theyâll crucify her.â
Kathryn jumped to her feet. âAnd what in the hell do you think theyâll do to us if we get caught? AGAIN! â she screamed at the top of her lungs, the sound ricocheting off the mountain.
Murphy growled deep in his throat, the hair on the back of his neck standing on end. Grady followed suit.
Isabelle started to wring her hands. âI donât like where this is going. We need to sit down and talk it all out. We all have our opinions and deserve to be heard. Right now, right this moment, Iâm inclined to go along with Kathryn and Alexis, but Iâm open to listening to reason. We all understand Justice Barnes is a friend of Myra and Annie and of course they want to help her. We all understand that Yoko and Nikki want to see their lovers, but all of that canât be at our risk. The reason weâve been successful in our missions is because we were always on the same page. Right now we arenât even in the same book, never mind the same page. Thatâs all I have to
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