when he—or she—wants something more?”
“You’re making my skin crawl, Auntie Pearl,” Brenda said.
“Mine, too,” Gaheris said, “but I don’t disagree. That’s why I’m willing to go to Denver to try and find the Dog, and then take on the nearly impossible task of convincing him he’s in danger of losing something he doesn’t remember ever having.”
“For my part,” Pearl said, “I am going to Santa Fe to brief Des Lee—that is, the Rooster. There are things that should not be discussed over the phone. Denver and Santa Fe are an easy day’s drive from each other. We five should be able to meet up and share counsel after that.”
Appetizers arrived, and with them a waiter hoping to take their entree orders. Pearl discovered she had far more appetite than she had imagined. She decided she could handle a rare filet mignon, and noted that Brenda, who had ordered something to do with scallops and mushrooms, seemed impressed. Gaheris ordered lobster, something he did every time they dined together. He always said that this way, between them, they managed surf and turf.
“Does this ‘Des Lee’ know about all of this?” Brenda asked.
“Des knows,” Pearl said, “and believes. Unlike many of the Orphans, his grandmother married a Chinese. So did his mother. He was raised within the culture, and is inclined to take all the talk of Orphans and zodiac signs as a sort of special family fairy tale. He knows a considerable amount, both theory and practice, but has never really had to utilize all that knowledge for anything serious.”
“How old is he?” Brenda asked.
“A bit younger than your father and Albert … Somewhere in his thirties. I have trouble remembering. Years go by so quickly.”
Gaheris had been methodically sopping a bit of toasted bread with a large spoonful of buttered crab. Now he stopped, the dainty half raised to his lips.
“I’ve been thinking about that divinitory reading we did. Of the unaffected signs, most were yang: Rat, Tiger, and Dog. Rooster is yin, true. Hare is yin, Tiger’s partner. I wonder if there is any significance in that?”
“Possibly,” Pearl said. “It also might be a matter of ease of access. If you look at a map, you will see that the unaffected signs also live farther west. Albert is the first of the victims to be touched in this part of the world.”
“But the Hare lives in Virginia,” Gaheris protested.
“But Nissa is a very social person. She lives with her sisters in an extended family arrangement. Unless she is working, she has her small daughter with her. Nissa would not be one to be conveniently approached by a stranger.”
“Dad,” Brenda said, “you’d better eat that before it disintegrates.”
“Oops!”
Gaheris gulped down the sodden bit of bread, and Brenda looked at Pearl.
“Nissa … That doesn’t sound Chinese. Who is she?”
“Nissa Nita,” Pearl said. “She is the great-granddaughter of the original Hare. She is about your age, a little older, I think.”
“But she has a daughter?”
Pearl couldn’t decide whether Brenda sounded impressed or appalled.
“A very rabbitlike accident,” Gaheris said, trying not to laugh. “The story I heard was that Nissa was on the pill and still managed to get pregnant. She won’t tell anyone who the father of her daughter might be, and her entire family is so in love with the little girl that no one cares.”
“Noelani,” Pearl said, dredging the name from her memory. “That’s the baby’s name. Every indication is that she will be the next Hare.”
“Noelani really doesn’t sound Chinese,” Brenda said. “I’ve been wondering. Except for Des Lee’s family and maybe that Shen Kung, it sounds like most of the Orphans didn’t marry Chinese. How come? And weren’t cross-cultural marriages, well, frowned on, back then?”
“You have a Rat’s nose for detail,” Pearl said, and was glad to see that the young woman took this as a
“You’re making my skin crawl, Auntie Pearl,” Brenda said.
“Mine, too,” Gaheris said, “but I don’t disagree. That’s why I’m willing to go to Denver to try and find the Dog, and then take on the nearly impossible task of convincing him he’s in danger of losing something he doesn’t remember ever having.”
“For my part,” Pearl said, “I am going to Santa Fe to brief Des Lee—that is, the Rooster. There are things that should not be discussed over the phone. Denver and Santa Fe are an easy day’s drive from each other. We five should be able to meet up and share counsel after that.”
Appetizers arrived, and with them a waiter hoping to take their entree orders. Pearl discovered she had far more appetite than she had imagined. She decided she could handle a rare filet mignon, and noted that Brenda, who had ordered something to do with scallops and mushrooms, seemed impressed. Gaheris ordered lobster, something he did every time they dined together. He always said that this way, between them, they managed surf and turf.
“Does this ‘Des Lee’ know about all of this?” Brenda asked.
“Des knows,” Pearl said, “and believes. Unlike many of the Orphans, his grandmother married a Chinese. So did his mother. He was raised within the culture, and is inclined to take all the talk of Orphans and zodiac signs as a sort of special family fairy tale. He knows a considerable amount, both theory and practice, but has never really had to utilize all that knowledge for anything serious.”
“How old is he?” Brenda asked.
“A bit younger than your father and Albert … Somewhere in his thirties. I have trouble remembering. Years go by so quickly.”
Gaheris had been methodically sopping a bit of toasted bread with a large spoonful of buttered crab. Now he stopped, the dainty half raised to his lips.
“I’ve been thinking about that divinitory reading we did. Of the unaffected signs, most were yang: Rat, Tiger, and Dog. Rooster is yin, true. Hare is yin, Tiger’s partner. I wonder if there is any significance in that?”
“Possibly,” Pearl said. “It also might be a matter of ease of access. If you look at a map, you will see that the unaffected signs also live farther west. Albert is the first of the victims to be touched in this part of the world.”
“But the Hare lives in Virginia,” Gaheris protested.
“But Nissa is a very social person. She lives with her sisters in an extended family arrangement. Unless she is working, she has her small daughter with her. Nissa would not be one to be conveniently approached by a stranger.”
“Dad,” Brenda said, “you’d better eat that before it disintegrates.”
“Oops!”
Gaheris gulped down the sodden bit of bread, and Brenda looked at Pearl.
“Nissa … That doesn’t sound Chinese. Who is she?”
“Nissa Nita,” Pearl said. “She is the great-granddaughter of the original Hare. She is about your age, a little older, I think.”
“But she has a daughter?”
Pearl couldn’t decide whether Brenda sounded impressed or appalled.
“A very rabbitlike accident,” Gaheris said, trying not to laugh. “The story I heard was that Nissa was on the pill and still managed to get pregnant. She won’t tell anyone who the father of her daughter might be, and her entire family is so in love with the little girl that no one cares.”
“Noelani,” Pearl said, dredging the name from her memory. “That’s the baby’s name. Every indication is that she will be the next Hare.”
“Noelani really doesn’t sound Chinese,” Brenda said. “I’ve been wondering. Except for Des Lee’s family and maybe that Shen Kung, it sounds like most of the Orphans didn’t marry Chinese. How come? And weren’t cross-cultural marriages, well, frowned on, back then?”
“You have a Rat’s nose for detail,” Pearl said, and was glad to see that the young woman took this as a
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