Charles shook his head to clear his thoughts when two different phones shrilled to life, the fax machine went off, and he heard the pinging from the computer announcing new e-mails coming through.

On legs that had gone rubbery, Charles got up and made his way to the platform, where he worked literally nonstop. He closed his eyes for a moment, but all he could see was his name on Myra’s buttock. Maybe if it was just blue ink, it would have been different, but the confetti colors that made up his name were so eyeball-popping obvious he was still thunderstruck. He finally admitted to himself that he couldn’t wait to see the rainbow of colors again.

Charles gave his head another shake and got down to business, but the wicked smile stayed on his face as he tried to make sense of all the reports coming through faster than he could staple them together.

Dinner that evening on Big Pine Mountain was a festive affair. The dinner plates were a fiesta of colors, the enameled handles of the silverware matched, a veritable rainbow. The food was superb, with vegetables picked that day from the garden that Yoko had tended so lovingly. A luscious Pecan-Crusted Salmon, fresh garden peas, baby carrots, and new potatoes the size of a quarter, drenched in butter and savory herbs. The salad was new Bibb lettuce with fresh chives, the first tiny red garden tomatoes, and thin slivers of cucumbers. But it was the white layer cake with confetti frosting that sent the women off into gales of laughter.

Myra found herself laughing along with the girls, then winked at Charles as she dipped her fork into the cake on her plate.

Tonight, she thought, might be interesting.

Chapter 12

With twilight settling over Big Pine Mountain, Charles Martin set aside his personal desires and turned inward to the matter at hand. At first he thought the Sisters would be smirking and itching to make snide comments, but they proved him wrong. If any of them, Myra included, were thinking even remotely about Myra’s tattoo, you couldn’t prove it by him. The women were in work mode, chomping at the bit to get this new mission under way, especially Yoko, who was taking the whole affair personally.

The Sisters looked upward to where Charles was standing on the platform, their gazes expectant. Charles waved a stack of printed e-mails and began. “Reports from my operatives. I’ll give you the short version, ladies. In the four days my men and women have been tailing the suspects they’ve garnered a wealth of information. I have here eight different aliases that the subjects go by. I want to thank Kathryn for naming them Bonnie and Clyde because it makes it so much easier when we refer to them that way.

“I also want to point out that we have not been able to find any records of a marriage taking place under any of the names we have discovered. Even though Bonnie and Clyde live together and say they’re married, there is absolutely no evidence that they are. And at this time we have not been successful in determining Bonnie’s or Clyde’s real identity.