“Worse?” she asked, incredulous.
“That’s a standard con; you get caught in a lie, so you make up something so much worse that the mark figures it must be true.”
She looked defeated. “Are you going to tell Terrence Prince about this?” she asked.
“I doubt if the occasion will arise for me to speak to him again.”
“Aren’t you going to close the Centurion deal?”
“If I do, it won’t require a personal visit from Mr. Prince; I’ll just vote the Calder shares at the stockholders’ meeting.”
“What does the Virginia Champion Farms deal have to do with your position on Centurion?” she asked.
“Is that what Prince sent you here to find out? All right, I’ll tell you: it has nothing whatever to do with Centurion.” That wasn’t a lie, but it wasn’t entirely the truth, either.
“I’m confused,” she replied.
“It’s not my job to start you thinking clearly,” Stone said. “But when you do, give me a call, and maybe we can do some business. In the meantime, it would behoove you not to speak to Prince about this house and property. There will come a time when it will be more to your advantage.” He took a sip of his brandy, then stood up. “Good night,” he said.
She stood up, flustered. “Thank you for dinner.” She got out as fast as she could.
Stone was very satisfied with the way that went. Of course, he still didn’t know who she was, but her fingerprints on her brandy glass might help with that.
Stone sat sipping his brandy for a few quiet moments. Then his cell phone went off. “Hello?”
“It’s Mike Freeman.”
“Good evening, Mike; you’re up late.”
“I got a call from my operative who’s tracking Carolyn Blaine; he’s having trouble getting her fingerprints.”
“I have them,” Stone said. “Tell him to drive to the house and ring the bell.”
“Perfect,” Mike replied. “I’m coming out there tomorrow. Perhaps we can get together?”
“I’d like that. Where will you stay?”
“At the Bel-Air Hotel.”
“Has it reopened?” The Bel-Air had been closed for more than a year, undergoing a complete renovation.
“The Grand Reopening is tomorrow night; would you like to go?”
“Sure. Come here for a drink first; we’re just around the corner.”
“Six o’clock all right?”
“That’s fine.” They both hung up.
18
The following morning Stone joined Dino at poolside for breakfast. “Where’s Hetty?” he asked.
“She had an early call at the studio,” Dino replied. “How did you and Carolyn get on?”
“Not very well,” Stone replied. “She left early.”
“It’s unlike you to send a lady home early, Stone.”
“She’s no lady,” Stone replied. “Mike Freeman is coming out here today. He’s invited us to a reopening party at the Bel-Air Hotel.”
“Sounds like fun,” Dino said. “Should I ask Hetty?”
“If you like. You might do better at the party, though.”
“That’s a thought.”
Manolo brought them breakfast. “Will you be wanting lunch, Mr. Stone?”
“Probably so, Manolo; I have no plans until six, when a friend is coming for drinks. We’ll be out for dinner. How about you, Dino?”
“I may wander the town for a while,” Dino replied. “No lunch for me, Manolo.”
The man returned to the house.
Stone spent the morning reading the newspapers and doing the crossword; then he swam for a while. He had just finished lunch when his cell rang. “Hello?”
“It’s Eggers.”
“Good afternoon, Bill.”
“I’ve obtained a one-hundred-million-dollar line of credit for Arrington,” he said. “At prime.”
“Well done.”
“I’m faxing you the paperwork to look over. If you think it’s okay, I’ll messenger it to Arrington for her signature.”
“Thanks, Bill.”
“I have other news,” Eggers said. “The board of management met this morning and unanimously elected you partner.”
“That’s very good news indeed, Bill,” Stone said with feeling. “Thank you for your support with the board.”
“I’ll fax you the partnership agreement in a few minutes. Everybody signs the basic agreement; then we can talk about compensation and other things.”
“All right.”
“I’ll find you some decent office space on our floors in the building.”
Stone thought fast; for some reason it hadn’t occurred to him that he would be expected to move into the Seagram Building offices of the firm. “Bill, if it’s all the same to you, I’d prefer to continue working out of my office in Turtle Bay.”
“I guess that would be all right. What about your secretary?”
“I’ll stick with Joan. If I need more help, I’ll let you know.”
“We’ll give you an allowance for office space and staff, then, just to even things out with the other partners. I’ll base it on the square foot cost for the average partner’s space.”
“That will be fine.”
“There’ll be a generous expense account, of course, and I propose a draw against earnings of a hundred thousand a month, adjusted annually.”
“That will be satisfactory.”
“You can use your own airplane for travel whenever you wish. Let me know what the hourly operating costs are. For other travel, we have an in-house department that will make any necessary arrangements for you.”
“What other perks should I be asking for?” Stone asked.
Eggers chuckled. “Well, you already have a car.”
“Not really,” Stone replied. “I totaled it a month ago, remember?”
“I had forgotten. What would you like to drive?”
“Let me get back to you on that,” Stone said. He was currently driving an armored Bentley Flying Spur that Strategic Services had lent him.
“How about club memberships?”
“I don’t belong to a club.”
“Is there one you’d like? The Metropolitan? The Century? The Racquet Club? We have partners who could propose you for almost anything.”
“Let me think about that.” Stone had never thought of himself as a clubman.
“We can help with most of the golf clubs in the area, too.”
“That’s a thought.”
“You really ought to get yourself a place in the Hamptons, Stone. The firm has a very favorable mortgage program.”
“Thanks, but I’m all right with my place in Connecticut. Maybe at some later time.”
