“I absolutely did not hear you say you were going to call Abner Tookus to crack into the bank’s accounts. Absolutely I did not hear that.”

“If Harry doesn’t kill you, I will. Night, Jack. See you tomorrow.”

“Yeah, tomorrow,” Jack said, his eyes on the huge cardboard carton.

Chapter 5

Myra stopped watering the potted plants on the porch to watch Yoko, who was across the compound sitting on a bench under a fragrant pine tree. Something was wrong, she could tell by the set of Yoko’s shoulders, the way she was clenching the cell phone to her ear. She looked behind her to see if the others were anywhere near, but she had the porch to herself.

Myra dropped to her knees and started plucking the yellow leaves from a vibrant scarlet geranium, but her eyes never left the little Asian girl sitting on the bench. Myra stood up when she saw Yoko get up and run to the bell. Yoko reached for the round ball, pulled back, and gave it a resounding smack against the side of the huge bell. As the sound reverberated over the mountain, she stepped back and threw her arms wide. Myra had seen Yoko do that on other occasions, and when asked what she was doing, she’d calmly said, “I’m throwing my concerns out to the universe.”

The Sisters came from all directions, with Murphy and Grady leading the way.

Breathless from their sprint to the compound, Kathryn bellowed the loudest. “What’s wrong?”

The dogs barked, then howled to show they wanted to know what was wrong, too. Their afternoon swim had just been interrupted. Both dogs shook their shaggy bodies to get rid of the excess water dripping from their coats.

The drumming hum of the sound from the bell could still be heard.

“Harry’s in trouble!” Yoko shouted.

The Sisters clustered around Yoko.

Myra looked at Annie, and whispered, “It must be serious for Yoko to ring the bell.”

Annie nodded as she led the way to the war room. They were all surprised to see Charles at his usual position behind the bank of computers. It looked like old times.

The women all rushed to their respective chairs and waited for Charles to join them. When he did, he simply asked, “What happened?”

Yoko stood up, her slim body quivering. Kathryn reached out and placed a steady hand on her arm.

“I called Harry a little while ago. Jack told him to call me, but Harry didn’t want to because of the shame involved. He needs our help. Someone stole his identity. He was evicted from his dojo. He is with Jack right now. He is homeless and destitute. We have to help him. Like right now. Immediately. If you all won’t help, then I am leaving.”

“Darling girl, no one said we won’t help,” Myra told her. “Relax, tell us everything you know. Give us something to go on, and we will act at the speed of light. Isn’t that right, Charles?” she asked briskly.