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 Is he conscious? What happened? What did the doctor say? Kate fired away.
 No, he s not conscious, and none of us are quite sure what happened, Pattie
replied.  The doctor says the fall could have caused additional pressure on the
optic nerve, and then he went into a spate of technical jargon about exactly what he
planned to do, and lost me completely. All I got out of it is that Mr. Cambridge will
live.
 Oh, thank God, Kate whispered. Her eyes closed and she smiled through a mist
of tears.  Oh, thank God. I ve been so worried!
 Yama told me to call you the instant I knew something, the secretary told her
gently.  He was pretty upset when he found Anna Sutton in the boss s apartment
here. Of course, she made a beeline for the hospital.
It was like the end of the world. Kate felt suddenly empty and alone.  Oh, she
murmured.
 I hear she bombed in on you at St. Martin, too, Pattie probed.  And that the boss
threw her out. She never gives up.
 So I noticed. Kate stared at the floor.  She only likes the size of his wallet, she
muttered.
 I know, came the reply.  And so does he, Kate. Don t think she ll fool him a
second time. He isn t stupid although he does occasionally give that impression.
Kate laughed in spite of herself.  I noticed that, she said.  Is& is there anything I
can do?
 Yes. Sit right there and wait for him to come home, Pattie told her with a smile in
her tone.  The doctor says if he does okay, he may be out of here in a couple of
weeks.
 Two weeks, Kate murmured. She sighed. She wouldn t be here then. She had
enough sense of self-preservation left in her to run, before that private detective
made the final connection for her sightless boss, before he threw her out into the
street. She thanked Pattie again for calling, and put the receiver gently back in its
cradle. Then she sat down, buried her face in Hunter s silky fur, and cried like a
baby.
The next morning, she took Hunter and walked down the beach toward Maude s
cabin. How long ago it had been since she walked this beach and saw the big,
solitary man standing on the beach and was ordered off in no uncertain terms.
She d never have dreamed that she d go to work for him, that she d fall in love
with him. Fate, she thought, was unpredictable.
The cabin still looked empty, but two of the windows were open, and Kate caught
Hunter by the collar and started toward the front porch, almost running in her haste
to find out if Maude was really home.
She ran up onto the porch.  Maude! she called excitedly.
The thin little figure who came running out onto the porch was a welcome sight.
Without thinking, Kate went straight into her arms and wept as if she were a hurt
child.
 Are you really that glad to see me? Maude asked, rocking the younger woman in
her arms.
 I really am, Kate sniffed, stifling the sobs that rose to her throat.  Did you get
my telegram? I sent you one& .
 It didn t catch up to me, baby, Maude said apologetically.  Dad and I left Paris
and I dropped him off at my aunt s on the way back here. He wasn t able to stay
alone, although he s much improved& anyway, when I got here and there was no
sign of you, I called your father. He told me where you were. She drew back and
looked straight into Kate s misty eyes.  What happened?
Kate moved away, wiping her eyes.  I hit Garet Cambridge with the boat and hurt
him& blinded him, she said painfully, closing her eyes on the memory of that
horrible accident.
 I thought you were working for him! Maude exclaimed.  Why would he hire you
when& ?
 You d better sit down, Kate told her.
 All right, so sit down and I ll bring some coffee. Then you can explain it to me.
Ten minutes later, sipping coffee in the living room, Kate told Maude what had
happened in the last few weeks. When she was through, Maude just sat there
shaking her head.
 You mean, he hired you, knowing what you d done to him? Maude exclaimed.
 No, Kate replied miserably, wrapping her slender fingers around her coffee cup.
 He doesn t know I was responsible. Once or twice, I was tempted to tell him, but
at the last minute& .
 Oh, Kate, I warned you, Maude groaned.  If only you d listened to me. Do you
have any idea what that man will do to you when he finds out?
 A pretty good one. Kate looked at her old employer wearily.  He s hired a
private detective, and they ve traced me to you.
Maude seemed to go white.  A detective? Oh, Kate!
 That s right. Has anyone talked to you at all about me?
 No, Maude sighed.  But it s only a question of time. What are you going to do?
 Well, he won t be back for a couple of weeks. I ve got that long to make a
decision. She left her coffee sitting and got up to pace the floor.  I guess I ll go
home to Austin for a while. I hate to just walk out on you like this& .
 Don t worry about me, Maude said firmly,  I ll manage. It s you I m concerned
about.
 I just hope he doesn t decide to take out his hatred for me on my poor dad. I ve
been a constant headache to him lately.
 Poor dad, my foot, Maude said.  Poor you, Kate, I m so sorry.
 Why? I brought it on myself. If I hadn t tried to take out my temper in the
boat& .
 That isn t what I meant, Maude said kindly. Her pale blue eyes were
compassionate.  You love him very much, don t you?
Kate met that level look and sighed achingly.  Oh, Maude, I love him more than
life, she admitted quietly.  I d gladly give him my own eyes if I could! At first, he
could see blurs and shadows a little, and they thought his sight might come back.
But now, even that little glimmer of hope is gone. He s permanently blind, and it s
my fault, and when he finds out, he ll hate me. I can t even blame him for it, but
I m so afraid of what he ll do.
Maude went over to put her thin arm around the younger woman.  That fact that
you stayed with him all this time, and looked after him might carry some weight. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]