Instead of calling up a makeup artist, she dabbed a sponge into a small compact, added some blush, and mascaraed her eyelashes. She examined the results, liking the face in the mirror. After so many years with this face, she couldn’t imagine what she would have looked like now had she been unwilling to fashion a new face out of the homely raw material she had once been. She wouldn’t be here now, of that she was certain.

Packaging. That was how celebrities were created, Wade had explained. Anyone who failed to understand it had no business being in show business. She regretted none of it.

In the wardrobe room she passed on the buckskin pants and knit shirts she liked and selected instead a chartreuse Calvin Klein mini skirt suit, not too short for her meeting with Ambassador Ashford. If only she had the knowledge to make things happen. Damn Wade for making her fend for herself at such a crucial moment.

She picked up the phone again and asked for Mr. Chen at the American embassy. In her mind’s eye she saw him standing by the gurgling pond, his gaze soft, his magnificent body full of secret, ancient knowledge she craved to explore. For now, he had given her the gift of understanding her new song. And then there was the way he had held Lulu. Nola had seen love, but also ache.

“Daniel,” she said when he came on the line. “Can you find out what I must do to kick the adoption process into gear?”

“You’re in for a lot of paperwork. The Chinese government requires more than a dozen documents, and each of those requires authentication beyond anything you can imagine.”

“Such as?”

“Take your birth certificate. It was probably issued by a hospital in a certain county—”

“Suffolk, New York.”

“Well, then. A top administrator at the hospital must confirm, in front of a notary, that they were the ones to issue this birth certificate thirty-some years ago. Then Suffolk County’s notarization is needed to confirm not only that such a hospital existed at the time, but also that the notary’s seal is authentic and such a professional is certified to practice in the county. This is followed by a New York state government document, obtained in Albany, which confirms—in another notarized, red-sealed document—that the certification issued by Suffolk County is an official Suffolk County document. Then, the state department in Washington, D.C., must confirm that this is indeed New York state’s authentic document. That document is taken to the Chinese consulate in New York, which issues a final document stating that indeed, the U.S. State Department document is an authentic one. It takes weeks and months.”

“Lulu will be ready for college!”