[Chapter 6 epilogue]

Jonah gets up before anyone else the next morning, goes down to the boat-dock and sits on the end of it. He takes the little, gold cylinder he found in the fish's mouth out of his pocket and takes the tiny top off of it. He then pulls out a tiny, rolled up piece of tan papyrus and unrolls it. It measures about one inch by one inch. On it are tiny hand-written words, scratched in ink, in an Old-English-styled font. Jonah is surprised to find it's a poem. He reads it to himself:

The Panda's Song

The panda's song is oh so sad

Why this soulful dirge

At her feet lies dead her dad

She misses her mom

Someone took her

Up in a mountain fortress

Within a gilded cage she sits

She eats her bamboo all day long

Nothing can console the panda

Singing her woeful song

"Okay..." he says to himself, "A poem about a sad, singing panda. What does that have to do with the 'Seek Ye First' clues or any other mission I've worked on?" he says, shaking his head.

[St. Holly's Prep School, Shark River, NJ year: 2010]

Chris's sophomore year at St. Holly's starts quietly. But, then, one morning in the third week of September, while she's sitting in geometry, she receives a text from Jonah:

Jonah: Do u still want to find yr mom?

Chris: Yes!!

Jonah: Be in the lobby tomorrow @ 8:15

Chris: OK

The next morning Chris has been sitting in the school's lobby since 8:10. Principal Packer has seen her several times sitting on the wooden bench as he goes in and out of his office several times. The school's bell rings at exactly 8:15 to signal the start of the first period. Mr. Packer exits his office to "shoo" her off to class. "Ms. Cap....," he begins "Huh? she's gone... Oh well..." as he goes about his duties.

About four hours later Mr. and Mrs. Cappelletti are being ushered into the principal's office by Mr. Packer and the vice-principal Mr. Jones.

He is saying, "Thank you both for coming in so quickly."

Ginny thinks back to her conversation with Chris just nine months ago.

[begin flashback]

Chris bounds down the stairs of their house and into the kitchen where her mom is preparing dinner. "So, can you tell me something about my other mom?"

"Your other what?"

"Other mom - my birth mom," Chris explains.

"No, not really, there's nothing to tell really."

"Why not...?" Chris asks.

"Because I don't know that much."

"Well, what do you know?" Chris asks.

"Hmm, that she showed up at a children's hospital in Pennsylvania, sick, and with a newborn. She told the staff she couldn't possibly care for a baby. A kindly, old doctor treated her, and then contacted the adoption agency that your father and I had just contracted with because we wanted a baby and they matched us up with you."

"Do you know her name?" Chris inquires.

"No, I never met her."

"Well, how do I find this stuff out?" asks Chris.

"You don't, really... It's all kept in a file that only the judge who signed the adoption decree can read."

"Why?" she inquires.

"To protect everyone involved - us, you, and her."

"Why would she want...?" Chris begins.

"Because she may not want to know what her child does or doesn't do. It effectively closes the door on that part of her life."

"Ohh..." Chris says, disappointed.

"Look, honey, what's behind all these questions?"

"I-I don't know... Ever since I turned fifteen I started having all these thoughts and questions coming into my head and I just need to know!" Chris exclaims.

[awkward pause]

"I know you teens go through all sort of changes - do you feel like you're being neglected or not loved enough?"

"Nooo! Nothing like that...," Chris says.

"...because your father and I love you soo much, and you know that we'd do almost anything to help and protect you...?"

"...like help me find my birth mom?" Chris asks.

"Chris!!" Ginny sniffles and fights to start crying. "I just told you we can't find her!"

"I'm sorry mommy," Chris steps forward and hugs her mom.

A little later as she goes back upstairs to finish her homework Chris thinks, "There's got to be some way to find her."

[end flashback]

"But, what's this all about? Did Chris do something wrong?" Bill Cappelletti inquires.

"Yes, please tell us!" intones Ginny Cappelletti.

As they sit down around the conference table, are already seated is a New Jersey state police detective and a plain-clothed F.B.I. special agent.

"Oh my God!" Ginny Cappelletti exclaims.

"What's going on...?!" Bill Cappelletti demands.

"Chuck, start the video," Mr. Packer tells Chuck Reidy, the school's security officer, who has been scurrying around connecting his laptop to a projector and setting everything up. He switches off the overhead lights and starts the video clip. He begins narrating, "Okay, here's the lobby security camera feed from this morning at 8:05. There's Chris sitting in the bench. [fast forwards] Now 8:10 she gets up and looks in the trophy case. [fast forwards] Now 8:14 she's back on the bench. Now I'm leaving it on 'real time' watch carefully. There! At exactly 8:15..."

Ginny Cappelletti calls out, "She's gone!" Everyone in the room gasps.

"Yes, she's gone," Chuck continues. "I've watched it a dozen times and there are no gaps in the video, and the cameras record down to the millisecond. The school also contracts with a private security firm and our video feeds go directly to them as a backup. I had them email me the backup file and it's the same! We also have sensors on all the doors and windows in the building and none of the sensors were tripped between 8:00 and 8:305 I checked all the logs myself."

"So what we saw was...," Mr. Packer starts.

Chuck interrupts, "What we saw was impossible. No one just disappears like that."

Vice-principal Jones adds, "We then instituted a standard building and grounds search, but turned up no sign of Chris."

The state police detective now stands up and introduces himself. "I'm New Jersey state police detective Charles Blake from the Southern New Jersey office. That's when the school contacted the New Jersey State Police who, in turned, called the F.B.I."

The FBI special agent doesn't bother to stand, but introduces himself, "I'm Special Agent Mitch Candle from the New York City office".

Detective Blake begins "Mr. and Mrs. Cappelletti, I need to ask you the standard questions for any type of disappearance."

"O-Of course," Bill Cappelletti agrees.

"Does your daughter have any enemies in school?" Detective Blake asks.

"No, she's one of the most well-liked and popular students here," Ginny Cappelletti states.

"I see --- maybe a student or another girl who's jealous of her?" Detective Blake asks.

"I-I don't think so. She never mentioned anything like that," Ginny Cappelletti says.

"I'll have to talk to some of her friends then. Who's her best friend?" Detective Blake asks.

"Umm, Sharon... Sharon Song," Ginny Cappelletti states.

"I see. How about boyfriends...?" Detective Blake asks.

"No, none..," Bill Cappelletti states.

"Okay. How about older men in her life? You know, maybe one that took too much of an interest in her?" Detective Blake asks.

"No... no...," Bill Cappelletti says, thinking, his voice trailing off.

"Friends of the family...?" Detective Blake asks.

"No, the only other man is her life is our niece's friend. Well, he's like her surrogate father since her father passed away," Bill Cappelletti explains.

"I see...," Detective Blake says, thinking, his voice trailing off.

"She just spent a week this summer with his family and she talks about him a lot," Ginny Cappelletti explains.

"I see... And his name is...?" Detective Blake asks.

"Jonah...," begins Bill Cappelletti.

"Jonah Fortress," finishes Ginny Cappelletti.

Special Agent Candle suddenly snaps to attention and demands, "Wait! What was his name?"

"Jonah Fortress," Bill Cappelletti states.

"From Red Oak, Pennsylvania?" Special Agent Candle inquires.

"Yes, why does that...?" begins Bill Cappelletti.

Special Agent Candle closes up his laptop and briefcase and says to Detective Blake, "Okay, we're done here."

"W-what's going on?" Ginny Cappelletti asks, incredulously.

"Jonah Fortress does contract work for our field office. The hardest and weirdest cases go to him. And he always finds the person," Special Agent Candle explains.

"But our daughter is still missing, you can't...," Ginny Cappelletti begins.

Special Agent Candle whirls around and looks straight at Ginny and points at her, "If my daughter was missing, I would pray to God that she was with Jonah Fortress."

Detective Blake says to the Cappellettis, "Folks, in light of this new information, I think you should just go home and wait to hear from her."

"Wait!" Bill Cappelletti exclaims, looking at Principal Packer and Detective Blake. "Our daughter is missing from your school, has run off with a man, and you want us to go home?"

"Folks," Detective Blake begins. "I know Jonah Fortress too. I've worked with him many times and he's one of the most moral and upright men I've ever met. It sounds like a big misunderstanding to me..."

"But...." begins Ginny Cappelletti.

Special Agent Candle interrupts her. "If Jonah took her - it was for a damn good reason - I know that much. Just go home, keep texting her, and I'm sure you'll hear from her in no time."

Bill and Ginny Cappelletti exit the school and as they reach their car. Ginny feels her phone vibrate in her pocket. "My phone... a text...!" She cries as she digs into her pocket. "It's got to be from Chris!"