outside the door. But she had left him without a good reason. Could Satoshi be the babies' father?"
A memory jumped into his mind. That smile at the hospital when she woke up. Him, hiring an investigator to find her.
Her stroking his brow tenderly while he lay next to her in bed.
Her crying herself to sleep the last time he tried to get romantic with her. He sighed. He would strangle them both it this turned out to be the truth.
What a horrible flight, Cristal thought as she unbuckled her seatbelt and got out of her seat. For the first time she could appreciate Shaundra's fear. For a moment there she didn't think they would make it over the sea for all the turbulence.
Add a less than pleasant visit with Yi-jun who most of the time was too busy to spend time with her and she could rate this vacation two out of a possible ten. Getting to see her parents made up the two points.
Cristal grabbed her bag and moved into the aisle to disembark with the rest of the passengers. A quick stop at customs and then to the baggage pickup area to claim her luggage. She saw crowds gathering near door. Shit. She slipped on her sunglasses. Fans. They were carrying signs with her name on it like she was a celebrity.
"How is Yi-jun?" one asked.
"Fine," Cristal replied.
"How was your trip to the United States?"
"Did you and Yi-jun elope?"
"No," Cristal answered. They didn't whatever either.
A tall pony-tailed Asian guy in a business suit and dark glasses approached. "Welcome home, Cristal."
Another man, a tad taller and more muscular and clothed in black leather and sunglasses, sauntered over. "Welcome home, princess." He bowed and kissed her hand. The crowd went wild instantly recognizing them.
"It's Satoshi and Takumijo of Aomori," someone shouted.
"I think that is our cue to leave," Satoshi said, taking her hand while Takumijo grabbed her luggage.
"Where's the security?" Cristal asked as Satoshi hurried her through the terminal and outside into the limousine where Kenshin waited.
"Home guarding precious cargo," Satoshi replied as he and Takumijo climbed in. "Let's get out of here, Kenny."
Kenshin maneuvered the black limousine from the curve and headed toward Osaka.
"What precious cargo?" Cristal asked as soon as she got her seatbelt secured.
"Shaundra," Satoshi replied.
"What? You've found her?"
Satoshi nodded. "She was in a hospital in Tokyo."
"Is she okay? How badly is she injured?"
"She's more than okay," Satoshi said. "She was rescued and flown to a hospital where she lay in a coma until a couple of weeks ago."
"How's Ichiro? I bet he's excited?"
Takumijo chuckled.
"Why is he laughing?" Cristal asked.
"It's a secret. One you will find out when we arrive at the farmhouse. Now tell us about your trip to the United States."
"Horrible. Seeing mom and dad was great even though they tried to talk me into returning home permanently. It was hot and I had to use sunscreen lotion every time I went out."
"Noticed the tan," Satoshi replied. "Very becoming. How was Yi-jun and don't spare any of the juicy details."
"No juicy details," Cristal said with a sigh. "I barely saw him. I don't think he realized how busy he was going to be when he invited me to join him in California. We had lunch once and I talked with him on the phone twice for about ten minutes."
"Poor princess," Takumijo replied. "Not exactly what you were expecting when you left us a month ago?"
"No," Cristal replied. "And the flight back home was horrible. We hit so much turbulence. Now I understand what Shaundra went through. I thought I was going to die several times along the way."
"Well I'm glad you didn't die. We've missed you," Satoshi said squeezing her hand gently.
"Really?" Cristal asked. With Satoshi she could never be sure if he was serious or not.
"Yes, very much so. I'm sorry I was so busy before you left but I was preoccupied with finding Shaundra. None of us could go on until we had closure."
"Why was she in a coma?" Cristal asked noticing that he still held her hand.
"I haven't told anyone yet so the four of you are sworn to secrecy. It was from the earthquake and tsunami. Apparently she saw some pretty horrific stuff so the doctor thinks she just shut her body down because she wasn't able to digest what she saw. So try not to ask her about it. She's still very delicate."
"So there's not physiological damage?" Cristal asked.
"Not as far as I can tell," Takumijo replied. "She's as feisty