Simone Russell is dragging down the last of her luggage.

" Sugarbear, we’re not going for months, only a couple of weeks."

" Daddy, I have to be prepared."

" Yeah, Ok."

Charity, Miguel and Kay, who have come to wish them a good trip, come out from the kitchen with a snack for them to eat on the plane, with Miguel eating one of them, of course.

The doorbell rings, and Simone chirps up, " I’ll get it." She opens the door to " Chad! "

" Hey Simone. Your parents said I could come."

Simone drags Chad into the house. " I know they did, and I think it’s exciting. You possiby getting some information about your parents. You’re going to love New Orleans. It’s a terrific city, and my Grandmere is a wonderful hostess. "

Simone doesn’t get a chance to continue, because Chad sees Whitney struggling with her luggage and goes over to help her with it.

" I can handle my own luggage.", Whitney snaps.

" Fine! I was just trying to help."

" Can you tell me once again, WHY you’re going on this trip. It was supposed to be for family."

" And, that’s what it IS about, Whitney. This is about Chad trying to find his FAMILY! If you took your head out of a tennis magazine sometimes, you’d see that this is a terrific thing Mom and Daddy are doing.", Simone snaps back with attitude.

" Simone, it’s ok. I guess I can see Whitney’s point. You all are a busy family. Must not have a lot of time for yourselves. I can see why ‘Her Highness’, would have a problem with it."

" Just stay out of my way, Chad."

" Fine, Whitney."

" Whitney? Is there something wrong between you and Chad?", Eve asks as she descends the stairs. " Is there some reason why Chad shouldn’t be coming with us?"

" No, Mom. It’s nothing. I have no problem with it."

" Do YOU have a problem with it, Dr. Russell?", Chad asks.

" As a matter of fact, I DO, Chad. But, that’s between my husband and myself. This is important to him, so, it’s fine with me. But, I won’t allow you to hurt my family, Chad."

" Mom, Chad wouldn’t hurt anyone.", Simone protests.

" I’m not talking about anyone, Simone. I’m talking about you, Whitney and your father. You and your father seem to have blinders on where Chad is concerned."

" But, you’ve got my number, right, Dr. Russell?"

" Let’s just say, I’m a bit more skeptical. " Eve smiles at Chad.

" You look like the cat who swallowed the canary, Dr. Russell."

" Nothing that difficult, Chad. I just imagined you meeting Mother Russell.", Eve practically sang, and walked away, into the kitchen.

" Man, your Moms does NOT like me.", Chad lamented.

" Chad, she’s just as protective of us as Daddy, but, in her own way. They balance one another out that way. But, once she gets to know you, she’ll come around."

" Simone, I wouldn’t hold my breath, if I were you. "

" Chad, I couldn’t believe what my Aunt Grace told you about the Medallion. It was a very interesting story.", Charity said.

" Interesting is a world, alright. "

" Would you mind  it, if I looked at the Medallion?", Charity asked.

" Oh no..here she comes..our psychic loon.", Kay whispers to Simone.

" Sshh!", Simone responds.

Charity holds the Medallion in her hand for a few minutes and  gives it back to Chad.

" Charity, did you see somethin’?", Chad asks.

" I don’t know. When I held it in my hand, I got a vision of two of them, side by side."

" That’s it?", says Chad.

Charity nods yes, and Chad comes over to her. " Look, that’s cool. It’s ok, Charity."

" You aren’t disappointed?"

" No. You have a ‘gift’. It’s what it is….nothing wrong with it. "

Charity smiles at Chad. " Thanks."

" No problem."

Whitney was observing this exchange, when the doorbell rang again, and she opened the door.

" Mr. Alexopoulos. Hi."

" Hey, Whitney. Is Chad here?"

" Hey, Mr. A. I’m right here. "

" Chad, good, I’m glad I caught you before you left. I’ve done some preliminary work on your case, and I thought that you would like to know what I’ve found."

" Sure. Would you mind if Coach Russell heard?"

" No problem."

" Daddy!", Simone yelled up the stairs. " Mr. Alexopoulos is here to see you."

They all moved into the living room, and by that time, Eve had left the kitchen.

" George."

" Hey Eve. I stopped  by to tell Chad about his case."

" Yes. TC had told me that he asked you to look into Chad’s case. I would have thought that it would be too small for someone of your caliber. "

" As your husband reminded me, there are no small cases, only small investigators."

By that time, TC had come down. " Hey George. You found something?"

" Possibly."

They all sat down in the living room.

" I called a contact of mine from the French National Police and asked her to begin a check on Crystal Harris."

Eve nearly choked. " Crystal Harris?"

" Yes. Chad insisted that she said she had papers for him, and could tell him about his family. So, I thought investigating her would be a good place to start. To see what if it was possible that she could have the information."

" What did you find?", Eve said, her nerves becoming more jittery with each passing second.

" From what my friend uncovered, Crystal Harris led a clean life in France. There were no arrests. No incidents with the law. "

" So, she’s clean.", TC said.

" I didn’t say that.", George responded.

" Then what, Mr. A?"

" There was something interesting about Crystal. She had lived in the same apartment for 20 years."

TC laughed. " That’s not a crime, George. I spent a semester in Paris, and when someone finds a good place, they keep it."

" Ok, I’m not explaining this right. She’s had the same apartment for 20 years. It’s not the fact that she kept the apartment, it’s the APARTMENT itself."

" Come again?", Chad asked.

" In the United States, New York City, Crystal Harris has lived in an apartment that geographically comparing, would be on the low end of Park Avenue."

"  And?", Simone asks.

" Where does a working singer get the money for an apartment like that?", TC asks, nodding with George.

" Exactly, TC." George takes some papers out of his pocket. " I had my friend check the paperwork. The French are very particular, and there would be only a handful of realty agencies that would even deal in that kind of real estate. Fortunately for us, they are very old, and keep meticulous records. "

" So, you know how Crystal got the apartment?", Eve asks.

" Didn’t get a name, but, it was paid for with cash, 20 years ago. "

" What are you thinking, George?", TC asked.

George turns to Chad. "  What I’m thinking, Chad Harris, that your case is a lot more interesting than I initially believed. I’ve done my preliminary research, and if you’ll have me, I want on this case. I can promise you one thing: I won’t give up, until the truth is revealed."

George extends his hand out to Chad, who accepts the handshake, while TC smiles, and a shiver goes down Eve’s spine.