Vanishing Act by Fern Michaels Read Free Book Online Page A

of discussion. I have to be in the office at six, and you’re eating into my sleep time. Quadruple my fee? What kind of smashing wedding present?”
    “How about I pay for your honeymoon to Hawaii, or maybe Paris?”
    “Plus quadrupling my fee?”
    Maggie sighed, and she was getting hungrier by the moment. She sighed again. “Yeah. That’s how special you are to me.”
    “That’s bullshit. You’re desperate. I want it in writing, and I want the check in my hands before I do whatever it is you want me to do. And I want to see those airline tickets, too.”
    “It’s four o’clock in the morning, Abner. At nine o’clock I will have it going. That’s when the business day starts. Stop by the office later in the morning, and I will have everything ready to put into your hot little hand.”
    “No can do, Maggie. I’m working, remember. Now, if you want to hand-deliver it to me, that’s okay, too. And just for the record, this whole conversation might very well be moot since you haven’t told me what the job is.”
    “Okay, here it is. Listen up. A friend of mine had his identity stolen, and he is now homeless and penniless. I want you to hack into East Coast Savings. Whoever it was that stole his ID took out an equity loan on his property as well as a second mortgage. I want to see the bank records. I also want you to find out if any of the bank’s other customers had their identities stolen. In other words, I want it all, Abner. C’mon, you and I both know you’re the best in the business. Are you telling me this is above your pay grade? For shame, Abner. I really looked up to you. Don’t tell me you’re
wussing
out.”
    “And if I get caught?”
    “I’ll get you the best lawyer in town: Lizzie Fox. For free.
Free,
Abner!”
    “If, and I’m saying
IF,
I agree to this, when do you need it?”
    “Like yesterday.”
    “Ha-ha! Even though it’s Saturday, I have to go to work, and when I get there, I actually have to work. W-O-R-K!”
    “Call in sick.”
    “I just started last week; I can’t call in sick.”
    “Sure you can. Say you have the crud. Guys get the crud all the time. You said they recruited you, not the other way around. That means they’ll cut you some slack. I need this ASAP , Abby.”
    “Ten grand bonus on top of the quadruple, and we have a deal.”
    Maggie pretended to think about it. She was a hundred percent sure Annie would approve this outlandish expenditure. “When can you have it for me?”
    Instead of answering the question, Abner asked another one. “How many days in Hawaii? And don’t count the two travel days. And an extra day for jet lag. Vouchers for the local airlines to visit the other islands. The only hotel I’ll consider is the Fairmont Orchid.”
    Maggie’s antenna went up. “You skunk, that’s where you were going all along on your honeymoon, and you just want me to pay for it.”
    “Hey, you called me, I didn’t call you. So, what’s it going to be, Miz Spritzer? I’ll even bring you back a souvenir.”
    “Okay, okay! Three full weeks, and that’s my last offer. Agree to that, and we have a deal. And you better get me what I need.”
    “If it’s there, I’ll get it. See you at nine o’clock. Don’t make me wait.”
    “Screw you, Abner. What’s her name?”
    Maggie could hear Abner’s laughter as he hung up. She looked around to see if anyone had magically appeared with food while she was talking to Abner. She was as alone as before she made the call. She thought about taking a nap but knew she would never be able to sleep if she was hungry. With nothing else to occupy her time, she meandered out of the office, down the hall to the kitchen, where she made the first pot of coffee of the day. While she waited for the coffee to drip into the pot she daydreamed about Eggs Benedict, waffles with cream and blueberries, eggs and bacon, cinnamon applesauce on the side, buttery toast, fresh melon, a stack of pancakes with warm butter and syrup. “Oh,