The Millionaire Bachelor

by Susan Mallery

  When she settled back in her seat and slid her headset into place, she glanced at the clock. Less than twenty-four hours until she talked to him again.

  *

  Stone stared at the printout in front of him, but he didn’t actually see the figures there. He, who normally had a nearly supernatural ability to focus on what he was doing, was distracted. It was the time of day. Make that time of night, he amended to himself. Nearly midnight. Nearly time to call Cathy.

  Odd how a disembodied voice on the phone had come to be such a large part of his life. For the past two years, she had been his lifeline and his only companion. She often accused him of being a recluse, but she had no idea of the reality of his situation or the fact that he never left his self-made prison. She didn’t know that her laughter, the sound of her smoky voice, her impossible tales of a world filled with sunshine and joy were images he clung to. They were the only fantasies he allowed himself.

  He wasn’t even sure how their relationship had started. He’d always called in late in the evening for messages. One day he’d realized the same young woman answered the phone. He didn’t know who had first started talking about something other than business or why. Without him noticing when it had happened, he had begun to anticipate their time together.

  He wondered about Cathy. She was obviously bright and funny. She had a great life. So why did she work the graveyard shift at an answering service? Who was she really? Was she hiding out from something or someone? Had she been on the run and settled here? He sensed secrets in her voice. At times he suspected her stories were just that—entertainment. But he didn’t mind. He liked listening to her. She made him laugh; she fussed over him. With her, he could be himself and not worry.

  Because he didn’t want her learning the truth about him, he never pressed her for personal information. It would be easy to have her investigated; after all, he had the staff and the technical resources, but that wouldn’t be playing fair. So instead, he took whatever she told him and let it be enough.

  He put away the report and glanced at the clock. Only a few more minutes. It had been almost two weeks since her weekend trip to Mexico, and he wondered if she had any other travel planned. Cathy generally went away for the weekend once or twice a month. He dreaded her yearly vacations. Time seemed to drag when she was gone.

  He stood up and crossed to the credenza by the window. A carafe of coffee sat on a tray with his untouched dinner. He stared out the glass at the large backyard illuminated by floodlights. Beyond that was empty darkness and in the distance, the lights of the small community of Redondo Beach. During the day, this room had an impressive view of the Pacific Ocean and the beaches just north of the peninsula. At night, water was dark and featureless, although when it was quiet outside, he could hear the pounding of the surf on the cliffs below.

  He poured himself a cup of coffee, then returned to his desk. It was time. He dialed the familiar number.

  “A to Z Answering Service,” she answered.

  “Hi, Cathy.”

  “Stone!” The obvious pleasure in her voice made him smile. “How are you?”

  “Great.”

  “Make a million today?” she asked.

  “Just about.”

  They didn’t often talk about his business. She knew that he dealt with investments and real estate, but that was all. He didn’t want her having details that might make her too curious about him. It would be far too easy for her to start checking into his past. Once she knew the truth about him, everything would be over.

  “How about in your neck of the woods?” he asked.

  “The usual. Mrs. Morrison went to the doctor today, so she has a list of new medicines. Do you remember who she is?”

  He leaned back in his leather chair. “Yes, the eccentric older lady who likes to be called with a reminder to take her medication.”

  “Exactly. One of the operators here spent a couple of hours on the phone with her and then her doctor. I’m still not sure we have everything sorted out, but we’re trying. Fortunately I only have the late-night call, which I made about a half hour ago.”

  “Any interesting people calling to get bailed out of prison?”

  She laughed. The sound was low and husky and made his gut clench. “Not so far, but that side of the business doesn’t usually pick up for a couple of hours.”

  She talked about her day, about walking her dog, Muffin, in the park, about a movie she’d seen. They argued over the next book they were going to read together. He wanted to choose a spy thriller, while she was interested in a biography about a famous scientist.

  “Boring,” he insisted.

  “How can you know that if you haven’t read the book?”

  “You think nerds with pocket protectors lead interesting lives?”

  “Oh, so we’re generalizing, are we? This might be a good time to say something about business tycoons who rape and pillage the economy.”

  She was so easy, he thought with a grin. Cathy had a temper, and he enjoyed pricking it from time to time. She always responded to the bait.

  “I have never raped or pillaged in my life,” he said.

  “I don’t doubt that. I’m just pointing out that generalizations can be limiting.”

  “Sort of like saying all blondes are bimbos.”

  “Exactly.”

  He closed his eyes and wondered what she looked like. “You’re a blonde and you’re definitely not a bimbo.”

  “I don’t think that’s a compliment, so I’m not going to say thank you.”

  He chuckled. “All right. You win. We’ll read the biography. But it had better be interesting.”

  “You’ll love it,” she promised. “I’ll go to the bookstore—”

  A sudden, loud shrieking sound cut through her sentence.

  Stone straightened and clutched the receiver. “Cathy? What’s that noise?”

  “I don’t know.” He could barely make out her words over the noise. “I think it’s the fire alarm. Hold on.”

  There was a click, followed by silence. Even as tension filled him, he reminded himself that she was on the seventh floor of a locked building. There was a security team on duty. She was perfectly safe. But the tightness in his gut changed from pleasure to uneasiness.

  Less than a minute later, she returned to the line. “I’m not sure what it is,” she said, obviously worried. He could still hear the alarm in the background, but it wasn’t as loud.

  “I can’t get the security people on the phone,” she continued, “But according to the system panel, the smoke detectors have been triggered.”

  “Did you call 911?”

  “No. It’s probably nothing.”

  “Call them right now. Better that they come out on a false alarm than something happens and they’re not there. Put me on hold again—I’ll wait.”

  “I don’t think—”

  “Cathy! Do it.”

  “All right. Just a sec.”

  This time she was gone longer. When she returned, her voice was thick with panic. “Stone, there’s smoke in the hallway. I went and checked before I called the fire department, and it’s creeping up from the elevator shafts. I don’t know what to do.”

  He cursed under his breath. “How far are you from the emergency stairs?”

  “They’re at the other end of the hall, but they’re locked. I don’t have a key.”

  “What? They’re supposed to be open at all times, aren’t they?”

  “Yes. But there were a few break-ins over the past couple of months, so they started locking the stairs at night. Someone from security rides up with me in the elevator when I come on my shift and they check on me several times in the night. When my shift is over, I’m escorted back downstairs. It’s never been a problem before.”

  She’d never been trapped in a burning building before, either.

  “It’s going to be fine,” he told her with a confidence he wasn’t sure he believed. “The fire department will be there shortly.”
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  “Stone, I’m scared.”

  He leaned forward as if he could somehow get physically closer to her. “I know, but I’m right here with you. I won’t go away until you’re safe.”

  “Thanks. I know this is silly, but—” She sucked in a breath. “Oh, God, I can smell smoke. It’s coming under the door. Something’s burning. The odor is funny. I have to get out of here.”

  Fear tightened his throat. Fear for her and frustration that there was nothing he could do. “Listen to me, Cathy. You told the dispatch person where you were, right?”

  “Yes.”

  “Then they know to come get you.”

  “Maybe I should go out in the hall. Oh, Stone, there’s more smoke. It’s filling the room!”

  “Stay calm. Put me on hold and call the fire department again. Tell them you’re trapped. Put me on hold. I’ll wait.”

  “Okay.”

  He listened to the silence for what felt like a lifetime. When she returned to the line, she was crying.

  “They’re nearly here,” she said. “But the fire is all over the building. It’s going to t-take them a while to get to me. I’m so scared, Stone.”

  “I know, honey. But I’m still right here.”

  “They said—” She choked, then recovered. “They said to wet a towel and wrap it around my face.”

  “You go do that. I’ll wait for you.”

  “All right.”

  He heard the headset clatter against the desk. He’d never felt so helpless in his life. Stone shook his head. That wasn’t true. He’d felt exactly this helpless about three years ago. There’d been nothing he could do then, either, and because of that—and him—Evelyn had died.

  He shook off those thoughts and concentrated on Cathy, willing her to be all right. He listened intently and finally heard her rapid footsteps as she returned to pick up the headset.

  “There’s fire,” she screamed. “I can see it. Oh, Stone, what now? I don’t—”

  A loud explosion cut her off. Involuntarily Stone held the receiver away from his ear. Then he pressed it back in place. “Cathy? Cathy, can you hear me?”

  He heard a shriek and a crash, then silence.

  “Cathy? Cathy!”

  Nothing. There was a click followed by a low, steady dial tone.

  Chapter Two

  It took Stone several seconds to realize what was going on. He’d been disconnected and had no way of finding out what had happened to Cathy.

  The knot in his gut tightened, as did his feeling of panic. Dammit all to hell, he thought grimly as he hit the buttons that would connect him with her office again. Even as he listened to the ringing, he told himself he was wasting time. Something had happened to Cathy. He could feel it as surely as he could feel the rapid pounding of his heart. Even if she was still all right, she wasn’t going to waste time or breath answering the phone.

  He dropped the receiver into the cradle, then headed out of his office. There was only one thing for him to do, and that was to check on her personally. He would drive to the answering service and make sure that she was all right.

  He left his office at the rear of the second story and headed toward the stairs. From there he made his way to the kitchen. Ula, his fifty-something housekeeper, glanced up as he entered. Although it was late, she looked as fresh and relaxed as she had early that morning.

  “Mr. Ward, this is a surprise.” Her small dark eyes crinkled at the comers, but she didn’t smile. “Don’t tell me you’re actually hungry. It’s only been a couple of days since I bullied you into eating something. Usually you make me wait longer before I can force you to look at another meal.”

  Normally her teasing brightened his spirits, and he would point out that while he didn’t eat much food, she rarely slept. But tonight their banter was beyond him.

  “I’m going out,” he said.

  “Now? By yourself?”

  He understood her concern. He usually took the limo and used one of the company’s drivers. But he didn’t have time to wait. “I’ll take the BMW,” he said. “Don’t worry. I’ll be fine.”

  He would be. On more nights than Ula knew about, he took the car and drove until nearly dawn. But he was always careful to be back home before sunrise. It was an odd life. While he didn’t have the supernatural powers, he understood the vampire’s fear of daylight. The difference was he wouldn’t turn to dust. He would merely horrify those who had the misfortune to see him.

  “Don’t wait up,” he said, and grabbed the keys dangling from the hook by the back door. He walked into the garage and moved to the large dark sedan. In a matter of minutes, he was heading east down the winding road. Twenty minutes later, he was on the freeway, driving north toward the valley.

  It was well after midnight and there weren’t many cars on the road. The BMW ate up miles, the quiet power of the vehicle reassuring him that he would soon be there. Questions raced through his mind. What had happened? Was Cathy all right?

  Even as that worry formed, he pushed it away. She had to be okay.

  The answering service was on Ventura Boulevard, just east of the 405 freeway. He exited and turned onto the street. Up ahead fire trucks filled the two right lanes. Red lights flashed in the darkness. He saw several emergency vehicles, including police cars and ambulances. Despite the late hour, a crowd had collected. Stone parked as close as he could, then got out and started to walk.

  The building stood tall but damaged in the illumination of streetlights. White smoke drifted out of broken windows. Hoses ran across the sidewalk, and water spilled out the front door, then flowed to the gutters. Several police officers held back the spectators.

  Stone forced himself to move through the people. He was grateful for the night and for the fact that everyone was staring up at the building. He inhaled the smell of smoke, charred wood, plastic and other materials he couldn’t identify. The fear was still there, and with it concern. He had to find out about Cathy.

  He made his way to the front of the crowd. A young police officer stood facing the building. Stone tapped him lightly.

  “Excuse me,” he said. “I’m trying to find out about a friend of mine.”

  “If you’re not a relative, we can’t give out any information,” the officer said without looking at him.

  “I understand. I don’t need details, I’m just concerned. I was on the phone with a woman. Cathy Eldridge. She works for an answering service in that building. We were talking when the alarm went off. I stayed on the line with her while she called 911, and then we were cut off. I want to make sure they got her out safely.”

  The policeman turned toward him. He was young, not yet thirty. His gaze swept over Stone’s face, lingering for a moment before moving on. “Two security guards and a woman were taken to a local hospital. That’s all I can say.”

  “No one died?”

  “Not that I know of.”

  Some of Stone’s tension eased. She wasn’t dead, but she was injured. He considered asking more questions, but didn’t think he would get any additional information from the cop. He turned his back on the man. It didn’t matter. He could still learn what he needed to know. His hope had been to save time.

  He’d nearly made his way out of the crowd when someone touched him on the sleeve. He glanced to his right and saw a young woman staring at him. She was barely out of her teens and judging by her tousled brown hair and mismatched clothing, she’d been awakened by the disturbance.

  “I heard you talking to that cop,” she said. “They took your friend to the hospital up on Van Nuys Boulevard. The EMT guys were yelling that as they loaded her in the ambulance.”

  “Thank you,” he said, and gave her a quick smile. “You’re very kind.” He turned toward his car.

  “No problem. I hope your friend is—”

  When he’d turned, he’d shifted to the left, exposing that side of his face to the streetlight The young woman gasped and stepped back involuntarily. Stone kept on going as if he hadn’t noticed.
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br />   It took him less than ten minutes to find the hospital and park in the nearly empty lot. The night staff was slightly more cooperative than the police officer had been and allowed him to wait while Cathy was examined. He settled in a shadowed corner of the emergency-room waiting area. There were plenty of magazines, along with a television. He ignored both and concentrated on Cathy, willing her to be all right. People arrived with friends and relatives as the results of other disasters filtered in. He watched, wondering when her friends would start to arrive. A young couple showed up, and he thought they might know her, but they were there to visit the woman’s grandmother.

  Time crept along. Stone wanted to pace to ease his restlessness, but he didn’t dare. Instead, he sat quietly and wondered about the quirks of fate that had brought him to this place. He hadn’t been in a hospital in a couple of years. He didn’t like the memories the smell evoked.

  Three hours later, a pretty nurse with curly dark hair and eyes the color of chocolate collapsed next to him. “I’m working a double shift,” she said, and sighed. “So forgive me if I don’t speak in complete sentences.”

  “You have news for me?”

  She nodded and rotated her shoulders. “Cathy Eldridge is one lucky girl. Right now she’s being moved up to a room. I have the number.” She dug around in the pocket of her blue scrub pants, then handed him a slip of paper. “They’re only going to allow family in for a couple of minutes tonight.”

  He met her steady gaze. “Did I mention we were cousins?”

  “I figured it was something like that.”

  “So she’s okay?”

  “Like I said, she’s lucky. She didn’t breathe in too much smoke. She’s got a bump on her head that we’re hoping is going to turn out to be an inconvenience, but nothing serious. But we’re waiting for her to regain consciousness. She wrenched her knee. That’s a problem. The ER doctor thinks she’s going to have to have surgery and some rehabilitation. However, the prognosis is good.”

  He’d been hoping for something better. “She’s unconscious?”