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The Tessarae Inn |
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Poseidon Rising CHAPTER 2 Blair glanced around her office and tried to remember why she couldn’t just take the afternoon off. Starr would be home from school soon and Jack was taking a nap after a busy morning. Everything was on schedule. Her life was running like a well-oiled machine--gears perfectly pitched. She loved the house although it was modest in comparison to Dorian’s or the penthouse or Llanfair or Asa’s but it was what she could afford comfortably. The step down had been a shock for Starr but even she seemed to settle in after a month or so. Jack was happy anywhere as long as she and Starr were around. Shining Starr, her new company, was wildly successful. Plus her investments were paying off to a degree that she never expected especially given the down turn in the market but she was a careful and shrewd investor. Financially, things were going well. She was actually now trying to decide whether to build a real store instead of the catalog and online store. She was going to give it a few more months then she would decide how or if to expand. That was the project she was working on for the graduate class she was auditing at Llanview U’s business school. Her instructor had been really helpful but she still couldn’t believe she was taking a college class or how much she was enjoying it. Whether or not she chose to expand into a real retail presence, she could afford a bigger house and a luxury car but what was the point? She was happy with her life—she once lived at the peak of the mountain and she once lived in the deepest mud hole of the valley, life in the middle was not so bad. It was calm and predictable. When the phone rang she debated whether to answer it or not. It was on her general business line but customer calls to Shining Starr were channeled through a separate service and important clients, associates, and contacts used a different line. If she decided she was off the clock she could refuse to answer it without much guilt. Still there was always that off chance that the call could be important. She picked up the phone. “Shining Starr, Incorporated. How may I help you?” “Blair, it’s Viki.” “Hi!” It had been weeks and weeks since Viki called. Not that they were suddenly good friends or anything but she and Ben kept pretty close tabs on Jack and Starr—playing the role of good godparents to the hilt. “I’m surprised you're calling on this line.” “I’m sorry but my phone’s memory was erased and I couldn’t find your private number. I had your business card so I tried this number.” “No problem, Viki.” Blair found something about Viki’s voice slightly unsettling. “You sound upset though. Is everything all right?” There was a pause that was a beat too long. Blair felt her muscles tense. A sense of foreboding seemed to spring from nowhere. "I have something to tell you and this is not the way I wanted to do it but the situation has taken a turn for the worse. I need to talk to you about it now.” Blair steadied her breathing. “It’s not Starr, is it?” “No, Dear…” Dear? When had Viki ever called her ‘Dear’? “Are you sitting down?” “Viki, you’re scaring me now.” Viki exhaled loudly. “I have some news.” Blair waited but she was aware that her breathing was shallow, her heart was racing and her head was caught in a vice. Was Viki splitting again? Was this even Viki? Finally, she couldn’t wait any longer. “Is Ben there?” “No. This isn’t about Ben.” Okay, well what was it about then? Blair tapped her fingers on her desk pad and repeated the phrase that had become her life motto: No more drama. No more drama in my life. Viki and Ben had been great godparents to Jack…and Starr for that matter since Todd died but she really didn’t want to get dragged into a Nikki Smith charade or…. “Blair.” “Yes?” “Blair, Todd is alive.” Her mind went blank. The air around her suddenly seemed to move violently in swoops of twirling currents. She couldn’t quite figure out what was going on but she knew that she had not heard Viki clearly. “Are you sure Ben isn’t there, Viki? Are you okay? Do you want me to locate him?” “I know how this sounds, Blair, but it’s true. I’m sorry to break it to you this way.” “Viki, Todd drowned in Hawaii. I know how painful it was for you…” “I’m not crazy if that’s what you think. I’ve seen him and talked to him.” Blair felt the air rush out of her lungs. She couldn’t think of what to say. Was Viki losing her mind? Or, was this some kind of cruel joke? Or, was…was there any possibility in hell that she was telling the truth? The truth? Could it be the truth? A deadly sense of calm filled her consciousness. “How long have you known?” “Almost eight weeks. He was found off the coast of one of the smaller islands in Hawaii. He’s been there the whole time. But he…” “He what?” Forgot how to use a phone? So Hawaii and Ireland occupy the same space in the Twilight Zone where there was no way to make a call to Llanview, Pennsylvania. “He was sick. He lost his memory. I flew out when I first heard and spent a month with him.” So that’s where she was? Or was she? This was crazy. It was best to just go with the flow here and see where Viki ended up. “Okay,” Blair said slowly. “We came back about three and half weeks ago because the doctors thought that familiar surroundings would help facilitate a full recovery.” “Did it?” “His memory is still very fuzzy. He knows about you and the children but he doesn’t remember any of you. I was hoping he would recover somewhat more before I sprang this on you.” “Why are you telling me now then?” “Well, he wants to see you and the children. He’s insisting…He’s been really agitated since last night. I have no idea what happened but he is…” Insisting? Agitated? “Is he standing there with you now?” “Yes. Do you want to speak to him? Maybe your voice….” “No.” Viki inhaled loudly. “Okay, maybe you can come to Llanfair. Or, maybe we could come over there. I’ve never been to your new house. Give me your address and…” “Tell him I will meet him at the penthouse tomorrow morning at 9:30. I’ll messenger the keys to you this afternoon, unless he somehow miraculously has his keys.” There was a pause. “He says not to bother. He’ll wait for you in the lobby.” “Fine. Viki, don’t say anything about this to Starr, please. I would like to have time to prepare her for this shocking news.” “Are you all right, Blair?” “I’m fine. I’ll see him tomorrow. Goodbye.” Blair placed the phone firmly back into the receiver base. It was a while before she realized that tears were streaming down her cheeks. For a long time she sat perfectly still and stared out into space. Finally, she used her hands to wipe her face, stood up, walked to the bar at the far end of the office and poured herself a small glass of Scotch. This was one of those occasions where she would allow herself to break her own rule. She sipped the drink slowly then she unlocked the top drawer of the file cabinet and pulled out the bright blue folder. Back at her desk she went through the file systematically then drained her glass. She had a phone call to make. It was a miracle. Yet again.
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