“Reg, Frances: if you are bringing more people into the house, shouldn’t you consult your cook and housekeeper?”Frances lifted her eyebrows in s...rprise.“Jemima? Is this you expressing concern for other people?”Jemima blushed. “Yes, I am, Frances. Carol and Holly are nice girls, and don’t need to have extra work thrown at them without warning.”“That is a valid comment, Jemima. Thank you. We will work out what might happen, and consult Carol and Holly before we proceed. Can I ask if you and. You may not feel like you belong, but the rest of us feel you do."We spent a good while convincing them, but in the end, they decided that going with us into the unknown was better than staying here and not knowing.We shared hugs all around, and to the shouted cheers and well-wishing of the spectators, I stood at the edge of the sea, and I became its cold, hard heart. The water in front of me turned dark and steely gray. I stepped out on it and began to walk towards the Anvil. I turned after a. "I nodded with a full mouth. Joe and Ella were a married couple of Stanford Seniors whom I'd met once while school was still in session. But they'd moved out after the school year ended, and the apartment had yet to be filled. I assumed residency rates were down in the summer, and the place would be occupied again in the fall.Kady though, wasn't buying my innocent act. Arching an eyebrow, she gave me a look and then grinned. "You ran into Amber, didn't you?"My blush was all it took. I really. Eventually, she turned to the office's com screen and called the CID of the hostage contact. In due course, the screen lit with a Voice Only display."What do you want? Are you willing to agree to our terms?" The man spoke in Mandarin.Pru listened to the voice as it spoke, thinking 'Neo-Tantra sensitivity doesn't work very well on the com'. She had set her com for Voice Only as well."Hello, I am called Kanar." She, too, spoke in Mandarin, but the name was Uighur. It was just a hunch. "I speak.