Pirate's Gold (24 page)

“What about Holly?”

“She's staying the weekend with Sara. We'd be alone until Monday.”

“It sounds like heaven,” Maren murmured, closing her eyes. She didn't realize how tired she was. The last six weeks had been frantic and she couldn't think of anything more perfect than spending a quiet weekend alone with Kyle.

“Consider it,” Kyle suggested, just as Grace, his secretary, approached them and offered her congratulations. The plump woman seemed genuinely pleased. “This one,” she pointed accusingly at Kyle, “needs a woman looking after him.”

Maren laughed aloud. “I'd say you've done a pretty good job of that.”

“At the office, yes. But he needs more than that. Good luck to the both of you,” Grace said with a satisfied smile as she turned back toward the refreshment table.

“You've been spreading rumors about us,” Maren accused with a merry laugh. “And I love you for it.”

“Guilty as charged,” Kyle replied, finishing his glass of champagne. “But the only people I told our little secret to were Grace, Lydia and Holly.”

‘So she did know about it! That little stinker. When Holly boarded the yacht, I thought she looked like the cat who ate the canary, feathers and all!” Maren looked deeply into Kyle's amused gray eyes. “So tell me, how did your daughter take the news?”

“Very well. As a matter of fact, I think that she and Lydia had a little wager about it.”

Maren's dark brows arched elegantly. “Is that so. Did Lydia give up on Spanish and start teaching Holly the techniques of gambling?”

“Why don't you ask Holly,” Kyle said with a laugh. The sound of his laughter was rich and managed to touch the darkest corners of Maren's heart. When he tightened his arms around her waist, Maren imagined she could die in the warmth of his gentle embrace. How was it possible to love one man so desperately?

Holly strode up to Maren and her father. “So when are you going to make the official announcement?” she asked.

“Any day now,” Kyle replied.

“I'm so happy for you,” Holly said, looking at Maren. “This old guy needs someone to keep him in line.”

“Old?” Kyle repeated with a vexed look crossing his face.

Holly ignored his mock anger. She threw her small arms around Maren's neck and hugged her. “It's wonderful,” the girl whispered to Maren, and Maren had difficulty holding back her tears. She felt as if her heart would burst with happiness.

The white vessel rounded Santa Catalina Island just as the sun sank into the horizon. By the time the yacht was docked back at Long Beach, it was dark and all of the guests had wandered into the main salon. The room was thick with cigarette smoke as everyone waited to witness the first showing of “Yesterday's Heart.” A crowd huddled around the screen in a tight semicircle. All five members of Mirage had their eyes riveted on the screen.

Maren slipped the tape into the recorder. In a flood of sound and visual effects, the throbbing music of Mirage dominated the room and the screen offered an image of a spurned lover singing angry lyrics while walking down an empty street during the Depression. The editing was perfect, and J.D.'s charisma blended with the pouty disdain in Janie Krypton's intriguing eyes.

When the tape had ended, there were roars of approval from the crowd: “Let's see it again!” “That was great!” “What an inspired idea!” All of the comments were enthusiastic, and Maren felt as if a great weight had been lifted from her shoulders. The room was filled with smiles and the popping of champagne bottles being uncorked until Holly Sterling turned her confused eyes on her father.

“What's the big deal?” she asked, aware that members of Mirage were eyeing her warily.

“What do you mean?”

“I've already seen that video,” Holly stated weakly.

Kyle's smile fell from his face. The clatter of voices hushed. “I don't understand.”

“I saw that video yesterday at Jill's house,” she said, her round eyes searching for Maren.

“Are you sure?” Kyle asked as the cold hand of suspicion climbed up his spine.

“Daddy, I told you. I saw ‘Yesterday's Heart'!” Holly repeated.

“What's going on here?” J. D. Price thundered. “You told me you wouldn't release the video until I approved!”

“And I meant it,” Kyle said evenly.

Price stopped dead in his tracks, his thick brown brows pulled into an angry frown. “What are you trying to tell me, Sterling. If you haven't released it, how did she see the video?” Price's brilliant blue eyes sparked with vengeful fire. “What the hell are you saying—that the tape's been
pirated?
”

“I don't know,” Kyle replied, his gray eyes searching the crowd for Maren.

“I'll sue!” Price roared. “Goddamn you, Sterling, I'll sue you for every cent you've got!”

Maren's knees sagged and she had to lean against the wall for support. What was happening? Dear God, had Kyle been right all along? Was someone really stealing her tapes and duplicating them for the black market?

Angry members of Mirage separated Kyle from Maren, but when his wrathful gray eyes found hers, she felt as if a dull knife had been thrust into her heart and slowly turned, to let her bleed slowly in an agonizing death. Without completely understanding her motives, Maren ran from the room and out onto the deck. She took deep gulps of sea air before she managed to get hold of herself. A nauseous feeling rose in her throat and her hands were shaking, but she was able to make it down the walkway to the dock. She raced to her car and roared out of the parking lot.

She couldn't remember the drive to the office. She had driven mechanically, her head pounding with questions she couldn't answer.
Who
would steal the tapes?
Why? How?
Her hands were still shaking when she unlocked the door of Festival Productions, raced up the stairs and switched on the lights. All she could think about was the unspoken accusation in Kyle's dark eyes as he had stared at her across the crowded salon.
It was as if he thought she were the culprit.

Tears began to stream down her face as she realized that everything was lost to her. Her business was sold and the love she had basked in was gone. A raw ache took hold of her, tearing her apart from the inside out. Opening the file drawer, she counted the copies of “Yesterday's Heart.” None of the cassettes was missing. Slowly she placed each cassette in the recorder, watching to see that it hadn't been mismarked. Everything seemed in order. “Get hold of yourself,” she whispered.

She huddled on a corner of the couch, wrapping hr arms around her legs and resting her forehead on her knees. “There has to be an answer,” she told herself. Something didn't add up. Ted had just finished editing the Mirage tape yesterday and yet, Holly insisted that she had seen that very tape the same day. How could it happen? Carefully examining the past two weeks, Maren slowly found a possible answer. It occurred to her that on Wednesday, Ted had mentioned that he had an edited version of the Mirage tape but wasn't happy with it. The tape was too rough and needed the final editing for polish. He had left the tape in the offices overnight and reworked it later in the week. The editing changes had been minor and only a professional would have noticed the slight variations in the scene sequences. That rough version
had
to be the copy Holly had viewed.

But who?
Who would do this to her?

Lost in her confused thoughts, Maren didn't hear the intruder until the sound of heavy steps racing up the stairs caught her attention. Maren lifted her head, and her heart leapt to her throat as she rose to face whoever was entering her domain. The tears she attempted to keep at bay fell from her eyes as she recognized Kyle. She wanted to run to him, to let her head fall against his chest, but the wariness in his eyes forced her to remain still.

“I figured you'd come here,” he stated. A pain, as raw and naked as the night itself, lingered in the silvery depths of his gaze.

“I had no idea…” she whispered, but the hard jut of his jaw cut off the rest of her plea.

“Let's go,” he ordered, the strain around his eyes overshadowing his rough command. “One of your employees…I think her name is Jan, is in the hospital.”

“But she was on the yacht,” Maren objected, concern for her friend evidenced in her words.

“I know.” Kyle's voice was gentler. “She collapsed on the floor just after you left the salon.”

“Dear God,” Maren cried. “The baby.”

Most of the drive was spent in silence. Maren was numb from the agonizing events of the evening. When Kyle finally parked his car in the hospital parking lot, Maren spoke.

“Do you know…did she lose the baby?” she asked.

“I didn't know there was a baby involved,” Kyle replied. He placed a comforting arm on her shoulder. “But she was hemorrhaging pretty badly.”

Maren closed her eyes and took in a long breath. “Let's go.”

Kyle's grip on her arm tightened. “The reporters have already gotten wind of all this,” he warned.

“Great,” Maren replied. “Wouldn't you know?”

There was pandemonium at the hospital, and when Kyle and Maren entered the lobby, several reporters shoved microphones in Kyle's face. The questions all had to do with the rumored pirating of several Sterling releases, to which Kyle replied a stern, “No comment.” Flashbulbs popped until a security guard for the hospital hustled the reporters out of the building and Maren and Kyle were led to a waiting room.

“Where's Holly?” Maren asked, concerned for Kyle's child. How was the young girl reacting to all the commotion over the tape?

“She's at Sara's house. Lydia is going to pick her up in the morning.”

Maren's pained blue eyes searched his. “God, Kyle, I'm so sorry about all of this…”

“It's all right,” he whispered, clutching her hand. “You didn't know.” His gaze was filled with the conviction of the trust he felt for her.

“You're incredible,” she whispered. “How did you know that I wasn't involved?”

“Oh, Maren,” he sighed. “Don't you realize how much I love you, how much I trust you? I've known all along that you couldn't be a part of this.” Relief took hold of Maren.

“Are you Maren McClure?” a young intern asked Maren as he strode purposefully into the waiting room.

“Yes.”

He looked at the chart he was carrying. “Jan Sommers wants to see you.” The young man observed Maren through thick glasses. “I advised her against seeing anyone, but she's absolutely insistent about talking to you.” His myopic gaze was severe. “Please make it brief.”

Maren asked the question uppermost in her mind. “What about the baby?”

The doctor shook his head and frowned. “We couldn't save it,” he said wearily. “As for Ms. Sommers, I've given her a sedative that will begin to put her to sleep very shortly.”

“I won't stay long,” Maren whispered, understanding the intern's concern.

Kyle took Maren's arm and led her to Jan's room. The lump forming in Maren's throat refused to dissolve as she saw Jan's thin form lying on the hospital bed. “Hello, Jan,” she whispered, reaching for her friend's hand.

Jan turned her head to face Maren. Black smudges darkened the skin around her eyes. “Maren,” she whispered, her eyes filling with lonely tears, “I lost the baby.”

“I know,” Maren replied in a throaty whisper.

“I wanted that baby,” Jan said, taking her eyes away from Maren's comforting gaze. “I really wanted him.”

The words of reassurance stuck in Maren's throat. “You should rest,” Maren stated. “I'll stay with you.”

“You shouldn't,” Jan sobbed.

“Of course I should; you're my friend…” Jan held up her palm to cut off the rest of Maren's explanation.

“No…no, I'm not. Just listen to me a minute. There's something I want to tell you, something I've tried, but couldn't.” Maren's eyes widened with the realization of what was to come. She had to fight to keep the nausea at bay. “I was the one who took the tapes,” Jan admitted with a ragged sigh.

“I don't think you should be talking about this right now,” Maren interjected, looking down at the wan form on the bed. “You're tired.”

Jan impaled Maren with her tortured gaze. “No, Maren, this is something I've got to say. Right now, while I have the courage. I took those tapes. Last month it was ‘Going for Broke' and last Wednesday I stole ‘Yesterday's Heart.'”

“But, Jan,
why?
” Maren asked, shocked and unaccepting of Jan's tearful admission.

“For Jake.”

“Oh, Jan, no.”

“Look, Maren, you know that I would never have done anything of the sort. It was Jake's idea and I refused. Even though I was pregnant with his child, I wouldn't stoop to theft. Then…well, then he threatened me. He said that if I didn't help him he would beat me.”