minutes early.
It was said to be the most expensive hotel in the city, a soaring, very modern skyscraper set on the broad, crosstown street between Madison and Park. A gust of wind propelled him into the lobby, and he was immediately too warm. He found a checkroom and unburdened himself of his outer clothing, and shortly, the elevator deposited him on a high floor. He rang the bell beside the double doors and, immediately, a uniformed butler opened the door.
“Yes, sir?”
“My name is Barrington. I’m expected.”
“Of course, sir, please come in.”
Stone was ushered through a foyer into a huge living room with a spectacular view of the city looking south, or what would have been a spectacular view if not for the clouds enveloping the tops of the taller buildings.
Bill Eggers came off a sofa by the windows and shook his hand. “Sit down,” he said, “and let me brief you.”
Stone sat down, and immediately he heard another man’s voice coming from an adjoining room through an open door. “Bill?” the voice said. “Come on in.”
Eggers stood up. “I’m sorry,” he said to Stone, “but there’s no time. Just listen a lot and follow my lead. Say yes to anything he says.”
“Not if he propositions me,” Stone said, but Eggers was already leading the way into the next room. Stone followed, and a very tall, very slender man in his mid-thirties came around a desk and shook Eggers’s hand. “How are you, Bill?”
“Very well, Thad,” Eggers replied. “Let me introduce a colleague of mine. This is Stone Barrington. Stone, this is Thad Shames.”
“How do you do?” Stone said, shaking the man’s hand. He knew just enough about him to know who he was, but no more than that. Software came into the equation and multimillions. Stone didn’t follow finance or business very closely.
“Good to meet you, Stone,” Shames said. “Bill says you can solve my problem?”
Stone glanced at Eggers. “Yes,” he said, more confidently than he felt. Shames was dressed in a nicely cut dark suit, but his shirt seemed to have been laundered but not pressed. His tie was loose, and the button-down collar’s tips were not buttoned. Shames waved them both to a pair of facing sofas and, as he sat down and crossed his legs, revealed that he was also wearing a battered pair of suede Mephisto’s, a French athletic shoe. His blond, nearly pink hair was curly and tousled and had not been cut for months. He was clean-shaven, but Stone doubted that he could raise a beard.
“I’ve got a press conference at the Waldorf in an hour,” Shames said, “so I’ll make this as quick as I can.”
Stone and Eggers nodded automatically, like mechanical birds.
“I’ve met this spectacular woman,” Shames said, then waited for a reaction.
“Good,” Eggers replied.
“Yes,” Stone said.
“I think I’m in love.”
The two lawyers nodded gravely.
“Congratulations,” Eggers said.
“Yes,” Stone echoed.
“This is a lot more important than I’m making it sound,” Shames said, grinning. “I’ve never been married, and, well…”
“Anyway, she’s just spectacular. I feel so lucky.”
“What’s her name?” Eggers asked.
“That’s just the thing,” Shames said, blushing. “I’m not sure I know.”
“When did you meet her?” Eggers asked.
“Last weekend.”
“Where?”
“In the Hamptons.”
“At this time of the year?”
“Oh, it’s getting awfully chic out there in winter, now,” Shames replied. “All the most interesting people go out there on winter weekends. You don’t have to put up with the summer tourists and all their traffic.”
“Sounds great,” Eggers said. “Who introduced you to, ah, her.”
“Nobody, actually. We met at this big party at some movie guy’s house-I get those guys mixed up-and after talking for a few minutes, we got the hell out of there and went to Jerry Delia Femina’s for dinner. We had a great time.”
“Good,” Eggers replied.
“Yes,” Stone said.
“She said her name was Liz,” Shames said.
“Maybe that’s her name,” Stone chanced, but shut up at a glare from Eggers.
“I’m not sure,” Shames said.
“Do you have some reason to think her name might not be Liz?” Eggers asked.
“Not really, just a feeling. She wouldn’t give me a last name or even tell me where she lives.”
“How can Stone and I help, Thad?”
“I want you to find her for me.”
This time, Stone glared at Eggers, but Eggers avoided the look.
The butler appeared at the door. “Excuse me, Mr. Shames, but your office is on line one.”
Shames stood up. “I’d better take this in the other room,” he said. “Please excuse me for a moment.” He left, closing the door behind him.
“I know you have some questions,” Eggers said.
“Just one,” Stone replied. “Are you out of your fucking mind?”
“Now, Stone…”
“What am I, some seedy shamus, tracking down women for rich men?”
“Stone…”
Stone stood up. “Call me when you’ve got something of substance, Bill.”
Eggers didn’t move. “The press conference he’s holding is to announce an initial public offering of stock in a new company he’s started. Shames has taken two other companies public in the past eight years, and they’re both multibillion-dollar, worldwide corporations now. How would you like to have ten thousand shares of the new company at the opening price?”
Stone looked at him warily. “Tell me about it.”
“I don’t know all that much, except that it’s supposed to be an astonishing new technology for the Internet, and that Thaddeus Shames is doing it.”
Stone knew enough to know how spectacular a lot of Internet stocks had been in the market. “What’s it going to open at?”
“The price hasn’t been set yet; probably around twenty dollars a share. Last week an Internet IPO happened, and the stock went up eight hundred percent the first day.”
Stone sat down.
Shames returned to the room, and Eggers stood up.
“Thad, Stone is going to take this on. I’ve got a meeting back at the office, so I’ll leave the two of you to continue.” He shook hands with Shames and Stone and left.
“Bill told you about my new IPO?” Shames asked.
“Yes,” Stone said. You bet he did. Stone had already calculated how much of his portfolio he’d have to liquidate to buy the new stock.
“This girl is really wonderful,” Shames said.
“I’ll help you in any way I can,” Stone said.
