"Hey, Pops, what do you need?"
Black answered the phone without hesitation.
"Pops? Oh, no, no, no, I'm not Pops, Sheriff Black."
The voice coming through the receiver was not Pops' hoarse, weathered voice, but the voice of an energetic little girl.
Well, the sort who sounded like a real handful just from her voice.
"Oh, it's O-Tama. Didn't you go back to Hong Kong to visit your mom? Why are you back so soon?"
Black clearly knew something about O-Tama's recent "disappearance."
"I wanted to ask about Uncle Jackie. I've got a bad feeling this time." O-Tama's expression was unusually grave as she stood by the phone.
She didn't know why, but this time, her sixth sense told her things were very bad!
"Uh, I've still got something to deal with here. I haven't seen Jackie Chan today. Isn't he helping out at Pops' antique shop?" Black asked O-Tama, somewhat puzzled.
"Uncle Jackie went out really early, and he still hasn't come back. Usually, when this happens, he's either with you, or you know where he is." O-Tama frowned.
"Oh, sorry, O-Tama, I really haven't seen Jackie Chan today. Jackie Chan... my God, what is that?! I have to go, O-Tama. I've got something urgent to deal with here."
O-Tama listened to Black. One moment, he had sounded perfectly fine; the next, he was crying out in alarm. Then he hurriedly hung up.
"What's going on?" O-Tama's heart tightened. She felt things might be more serious than she had imagined. She quickly dialed another number.
"Hello, Pops? Uncle Jackie isn't at the shop, and he didn't take his phone. Sheriff Black said he hasn't seen him either," O-Tama said anxiously.
"What? Jackie Chan is missing? Black hasn't seen him either? That can't be right. Maybe he just went out