It had to have been fate when Cecily found a file on the coffee table that contained her mother’s location in it. At first, after accidently knocking the file onto the floor and the contents spilled out, the news clippings of businessmen who’d died didn’t catch her attention. But, the picture of Nina had. The file contained few other details aside from her location. Cecily knew good and well that Gina was going to put her on the first thing smoking out of Guilin tomorrow. She had to take her chances since it might be her last opportunity.
A taxi dropped her off right out front of the Shangri-La Hotel. She stood for a moment just staring at it. What if her mother didn’t want to meet her? What if she did? Her palms were more than a little sweaty.
There was no point in standing outside daydreaming. She’d hoped and prayed for this moment. It was here and the time was now.
Cecily took a deep breath and walked inside. She strode right up to the front desk. Her Mandarin came in handy.
The front desk clerk smiled. “May I help you?”
Her voice didn’t want to work, but she managed it. “Yes. I’d like to see Nina Lee-Xiou.”
The clerk’s face froze. “I’m sorry. We don’t have a guest here by that name.”
“Umm . . . maybe it’s under Nina Manchetti? She’s here under one of those names. Please check your computer again.” Cecily hadn’t seen her look the first time. But, it was obvious she knew who Nina was. Her reaction gave it away. “Please ring her, and tell her it’s Cecily Manchetti.”
While the clerk checked her computer, Cecily’s cell phone rang. She’d only turned it back on to call her Uncle Alex but forgot to turn it off. When she glanced at the caller ID, it was Gina. Instead of answering the call, Cecily switched it off.
The hotel clerk fumbled around as she pressed a few buttons on her computer. Then, she turned anxious eyes back to Cecily. She blinked rapidly. “Sorry. We don’t have a guest here by that name.”
Cecily hadn’t come this far and got this close to give up. If she had to sit in the lobby all day and night waiting for Nina to come through, she would. Fortunately, that wasn’t necessary. Two big hulking men appeared out of nowhere on each side of her.
One of them spoke to the clerk. “Ms. Lee-Xiou will deal with this situation.” The woman nodded and gave them a tight smile and quickly walked away.
Cecily knew it was incredibly stupid to follow two strange men around in a foreign country; she’d seen all the Taken movies, but since she had already made her fair share of dumb mistakes for a lifetime, surely, one more wouldn’t kill her . . . she hoped.
Words hadn’t been invented to describe what she felt when she stepped away from the front desk and spun around, only to come face-to-face with her mother.
*****
Nina Lee-Xiou Manchetti was standing just a mere few feet away. At the sight of her, Cecily’s eyes widened to the size of a half dollar. She didn’t, wouldn’t even blink for fear that if she did, her mother would disappear. She stood as still as a statue. No one would have even been able to see the rise and fall of her chest because she wasn’t breathing.
How long had Cecily dreamed about this very moment? Utter disbelief, being suspended in air, floating on a cloud all wrapped into one still couldn’t describe it. She couldn’t help but wonder if this moment was real?
Cecily studied every bit of Nina’s features; the dark hair that was a little shorter than Gina’s, brown eyes, and caramel skin. The resemblance to Gina was truly uncanny, but the likeness to herself was indescribable. The final piece of the puzzle of her life finally fell into place.
Nina’s face was motionless too; like a toffee-colored, porcelain doll. It lacked any expression. There was no hint of a smile at the edges of her lips or warmth in her eyes. Dread filled Cecily as she thought maybe her mother wasn’t ready for a reunion. If that were the case, Cecily would work really hard to change her mind—if Nina gave her half a chance.
“Cecily, I think we should probably go upstairs to my suite.” Nina’s lips moved, but Cecily barely heard. Her voice had completely disappeared. All she could do was nod and follow everyone to the elevator.
*****
Gina Lee-Xiou
My home and mind were in chaos. Hahn was barking and shouting orders to the rest of my security team as if they were planning a military operation.
Brody was getting dressed as if he were about to come with me. “Calm down, Gina. You don’t know if Cecily is on her way to see Nina.”
I was panicked and needed to calm down but hadn’t been able to get a grip yet. I’d never been scared for myself, but I was terrified that Cecily was going to get hurt. I snapped at Brody out of pure frustration. “Where the hell else would she be going? If it were you or me, what would you do?”
“True. Okay, if that was her plan all along, how would she even know where to find Nina? You don’t even know where she is. How could a fifteen-year-old kid have better information than you or me and all of our resources?”
Guilt. I felt it. There were too many new and warring emotions fighting within me. I knew Brody had his own plans of trying
