Sirenz - By Charlotte Bennardo Page 0,58

and now this.

“Let’s hope that today turns out to be successful. Think positive,” she said. “Isn’t that what you’ve been studying with your magic and feng shui and all that stuff? That it’s, like, 98 percent intention or something like that?”

“Sorry, my power of positive thinking is running a little low today,” I said. “Let’s just go over the plan.”

“Right,” Shar said, strutting up and down the living room, from the glass wall to the door and back again. “Arkady’s appointment is at two p.m. We go into the office and tell Jeremy, Reynaldo, and whoever else will listen that I have a checkup appointment for my eyes and that we have to leave at noon. You’re coming with me, because I won’t be able to see once they poke me, put drops in, blah, blah, blah.”

I gave her a thumbs-up.

“Before we leave, we double check that the appointment is still on, and then go to the clinic and find the portal.”

“Check,” I said.

“Then I go into the hospital and charm someone into giving me a wheelchair if I can’t steal one first. We bring said chair to the portal and we wait.”

“And when Arkady shows up, we entrance whoever’s in the car with him—”

“Even if it’s Jeremy,” Shar reminded me.

“—even if it’s Jeremy,” I stated firmly. “Then we put Arkady into his wheelchair …”

“… we bring him to the brink of the portal,” continued Shar.

“… and in he goes, dosvedanya,” I concluded.

Shar’s hazel eyes sparkled. “Sounds like a plan coming together. I can’t wait to do this!”

Everything was going according to schedule. We got to the office and Demeter was absent. Hopefully talking to squirrels, spring cleaning, getting ready for Persephone’s arrival. We didn’t run into Jeremy as we went about our usual duties cleaning up old paper coffee cups, putting files away, and sorting copy jobs, all while waiting to tell someone about Shar’s fictitious eye appointment so we could escape. When the clock passed eleven, I started to worry.

Shar nudged me out of the way to dump a load of copy mistakes into the recycle bucket.

“I say if we don’t see anyone in the next five minutes, we leave a note and go. We can always come back when we’re done,” I offered.

Before she could agree, Jeremy’s voice echoed in the hallway. “Meg? Shar?”

“Finally!” Shar poked her head out of the copy room door. “In here!” She waved.

Jeremy came in, looking harried.

“I hope nothing’s wrong,” Shar said, adjusting her sunglasses.

He looked at me. “Demi’s out, and Reynaldo’s been on the phone all morning with the buyers for orders. I’m totally on my own, and I have so much to do. And when we get back from Mr. Romanov’s appointment, he immediately needs to have his wheatgrass tea infusion, and I don’t have time to get it beforehand. It’s not pretty when he gets thrown off schedule.”

I wondered what Arkady thought taking wheat grass would accomplish. At least we knew the appointment hadn’t been changed.

“Anyway, I need you two to run some errands so that Mr. Romanov will have what he needs when he gets back.”

Shar looked at me, and I could almost read her thoughts. We’ll go wherever you want. After we go to the clinic. Your boss has a date with destiny.

“You have go to Chinatown, to these pharmacies,” Jeremy continued, handing me a paper with five or six addresses on it. “At each one, give them this list.” He took another paper from his clipboard and handed it to me. It was covered in Chinese characters. I looked up at him and curled my lip—I had no idea what they meant.

He must have figured out what I was thinking. “Don’t worry,” he said quickly. “They’ll know what to give you. Just go, and get back here fast.” He turned to go, but suddenly swore, threw his head back, and closed his eyes. “We have models coming in today! I forgot to order food—Reynaldo is going to freak!”

“We’ll do it,” I whispered. Shar’s boot hit my ankle. It hurt, but I forgot it as Jeremy’s smile lingered on me.

He looked relieved. “You guys are the best! I’m taking you both out to dinner this weekend.”

I watched him hurry back down the hall, enjoying the view. When he was out of earshot, Shar turned on me.

“Are you crazy? We can’t do a tour of Chinatown and go to the deli to get lunch, then come back here and then go to that clinic. And as for dinner,