Abandoned

Su-Chen walked thru the hotel, humming gaily, a few bags in either hand swinging. She smiled and greeted the hotel staff merrily. They greated her in kind return. She strode across the lobby and stopped before the elevetors. She pushed the button lightly, still humming to herself. America was such a wonderful place. Every time she came with Liza, it was like a brand new beginning.

She'd never regretted the choice she'd made, and Liza had made sure Su-Chen knew how to make a living for herself without leaving much trace as to where it came from. Oh, taxes were paid and filed, the IRS didn't look so close at the names so long as the social security numbers matched with any data on the person, and so long as the numbers worked out right.

The elevator door slid open with a sigh, and Su-Chen stepped in and hit the button for the top floor. Liza had rented them a lovely penthouse.. not as lovely as the entire country home they had rented in their little trip to France, although they called it something else.... she couldn't remember what. Her French only extended so far as to "Where's the nearest telephone?" and "Do you speak English?" France was such a lovely place.

The soft "ping" and the sigh of the opening doors told her that she had reached her floor. She stepped of with a light skip to her step and dug her keycard, a piece of plastic, much like a credit card but with only the hotels name on it in gold lettering, from her bag and sliped it into the slot. When the light turned green, she opened the door.

"I'm back!" she called. "You won't believe what I found. There's this little shop a few blocks from here that sells those little orange things that are smothered in chocolate that we like so much." She entered the room that was Liza's and stoped.

"Liza?" She looked around dumbly. Liza's things were gone and a card lay on the pillow at the head of the bed. Su-Chen walked from room to room of the suite, which was only a bathroom between the two bedrooms, another bedroom, a large sitting room and a small kitchen with a dinning table seperating it from the sitting room.

"Liza!!" she shouted as she opened the hotel room door. Of course the other woman wasn't there. Tears now running down her face, she remembered the envelope on the bed. She rushed back and plucked it up and quickly opened it.

Insidie was a sheet of the hotel stationary with Liza's perfect handwriting on the face.

[INDENT]My dearest Liu,

I am sorry I left without a proper fairwell, but my leaving without you was not an easy thing for me, so I had to go while you were out. Forgive me. I will return for you one day. For now, know that I love you, and do not worry. You shall be taken care of. Wait for someone claiming to be of my house. The on I have told you about. I do not mention it here for you never know who may read another's letters uninvited.

[/INDENT]