"Hi!" he said.
"What are you doing here, Remo?"
"Investigating. Nice job of humoring the old dingbat."
"Please do not call her that. She is Adji. I call her that because she is like a grandmother to me since I come to this country."
"Sorry," said Remo.
"And what you call crazy, is a form of signing."
"Signing?"
"You have heard of sign language? The deaf use it.
"She's deaf too?"
Nalini shook her covered head. "No. But she cannot speak and so must communicate some of her thoughts with her fingers."
"Right," said Remo. "Listen, I've been looking for you."
"And I, you."
"Want to have dinner later?"
"That would be nice."
"Good. Because after today, I have a feeling I'm going to need some R&R."
Nalini looked blank, then confused. Her face actually darkened in what Remo took for a blush.
"That means rest and recreation," he said quickly.
"Oh."
"Where can I meet you?" Remo asked.
Nalini reached up and drew him off to one side, her fruity perfume filling Remo's nostrils pleasantly.
"We are staying at Ukiah, but it would be better that I meet you at your motel. Are you staying at the little place of bungalows as I suggested?"
"Yeah. Unit sixteen. How's eight sound?"
"Eight o'clock will be fine. Now I must go. Adji does not enjoy being left alone."
"Catch you later," said Remo, fading back into the trees. He paused, took a look at Nalini as she slipped into the back of the limousine, and closed the door shut. Remo moved on.
He spotted Chiun floating away, a wraith of sky blue silk.
When Remo caught up, Chiun spat, "You smell worse than before."
Remo smiled. "Oh, I kinda disagree."
"You allowed her to touch you?"
"Don't sweat it. She used her right hand."
"You are a fool that goes wherever his aroused manhood points. It is a wonder you have not walked off a cliff to your doom before this."
"Aw, come off it. I just put up with your mooning over Cheeta Ching for what seemed like forever, and here I meet someone nice and you act like I caught leprosy."
"It is too early to tell if you have caught leprosy or not. The fingers do not fall off right away."
"You should have seen her, Chiun. That old bat Pearl Clancy was acting like a lunatic and Nalini settled her right down. You know how?"
"By acting like another lunatic," spat Chiun.
"Yeah-no. I mean, she tried to talk back in her own language. Some kinda sign language. It seemed to work."
"Lunatics understand one another and you are impressed."
"We got a date tonight."
"Wear a condom. If you can find one that fits over your empty head."
They walked along. Remo kept his eyes peeled for more of the flealike ants.
He spotted one on a branch, seemingly staring at him with two eyes like black spots set in front of its ramlike head.
It jumped. Remo faded back and the ant went sailing by. It landed on a leaf with a dry skittering sound.
Moving on, Remo brushed away a single strand of spiderweb draped between two trees and encountered no more of the ants.
They came upon a group of print journalists and Remo asked one of them, "I'm looking for Thrush Limburger's people."
"The Tell the Truth RV is around here somewhere. It's the red, white, and blue one."
"Thanks," said Remo.
Rejoining the Master of Sinanju, he said, "Limburger's van is red, white, and blue. It shouldn't be hard to find."
It wasn't. They found it parked at the north entrance to Nirvana West, a young man sitting on the rear bumper, looking miserable.
Remo stepped up to him.
"You belong to Thrush Limburger?"