Slick, hands on her hips, surveyed the group. “Hold it! Just hold it a minute! We aren’t taking any of this stuff. Think about it, do you really want to wear long underwear, sports bras, fleece-lined sweat suits, and combat boots? Or do you want to shop? We can hit the ground running the minute the helicopter lands. Our mission will be to shop till we drop. I don’t know about you, Hawkins, but I’d love to see you in a tux.” Hawkins grinned.

“Slick’s right,” Sam said, as she dumped everything but her makeup kit back into her footlocker. The others followed suit, even Hawkins. “I wonder where we’re going,” Kayla said. “And if we plan to shop till we drop, where are we getting the money? Lordy, Lordy, I can hardly wait to have my own bedroom with my very own bath with plush towels, room service, and a minibar. There is a God!”

“I can’t believe we’re having a New Year’s Eve party! That means glitter and glitz! Do you think everything in the stores will be picked over by now?” Olivia asked, a worried look on her face.

“Listen, I have contacts,” Slick said. “My home base was Manhattan for many years. I can get us anything we want within”—she snapped her fingers—“minutes. You know, samples, one of a kinds. Designer duds. We might have to return them after the party but, what the heck, where would we wear them a second time anyway? As soon as we get to where we’re going, I’ll call my friends and have them FedEx the outfits to wherever we end up. That will free us up to just shop. I can’t wait to go to Victoria’s Secret. They have this feather and lace…”

Hawkins just listened. He couldn’t wait either.

“Oooh, I love the way that sounds. I’m not going to be able to sleep tonight,” Zoe said.

Sam, for the most part, had been quiet in the dining hall and even here in their quarters as she tried to make sense out of this little gift from Pappy. A whole week of free time with a shopping trip thrown in. Not to mention Christmas and a New Year’s Eve party. What’s wrong with this picture, she wondered. She finally decided to blame it on the weather and let it go at that. She did wonder, though, if the hotel they would be staying at would have a gym. Well, she would demand one.

“Shouldn’t you be going over to Pappy’s for the details? Do it quick, Sam, just in case he changes his mind,” Slick said.

Sam looked at her little group. “Will you all please stop and think about this for a moment? Don’t you think it’s a little odd how this just came out of the blue?”

“No,” they chorused as one.