The Stars Shine Down

"I married you because I was wildly head over heels in love with you. I still am. If we never make love again, it will be fine with me. All I want is for you to hold me and love me..." And she had meant it.

And then the last scene in the apartment. "I had nothing to do with what happened to you. I wouldn't hurt you for anything in the world..."

"Mr. Adler..."

The police must have made a mistake, Philip thought. By God, I believe her. She couldn't have done it!

Mancini was speaking again. "Which one is he?"

And Philip turned to him and said, "I don't know."

"What?"

"I don't see him."

"You told us you got a good look at him."

"That's right."

"Then tell me which one he is."

"I can't," Philip said. "He's not up there."

Lieutenant Mancini's face was grim. "You're sure about that?"

Philip stood up. "I'm positive."

"Then I guess that's all, Mr. Adler. Thanks a lot for your cooperation."

I've got to find Lara, Philip thought. I've got to find Lara.

She was seated at her desk, staring out the window. Philip had not believed her. That was what hurt so terribly. And Paul Martin. Of course, he was behind it. But why did he do it? "Do you remember what I said about your husband taking care of you? He doesn't seem to be doing a very good job. Someone should have a talk with him!" Was it because he loved her? Or was it an act of vengeance because he hated her?

Howard Keller walked in. His face looked white and drawn. "I just got off the phone. We lost Cameron Towers, Lara. Both Southern Insurance and Mutual Overseas Investment are pulling out because we can't meet our completion date. There's no way we can handle our mortgage payments. We almost made it, didn't we? The biggest skyscraper in the world. I'm...I'm sorry. I know how much it meant to you."

Lara turned to face him, and Keller was shocked by her appearance. Her face was pale, and there were black circles under her eyes. She seemed dazed, as though the energy had been drained from her.

"Lara...did you hear what I said? We've lost Cameron Towers."

When she spoke, her voice was unnaturally calm. "I heard you. Don't worry, Howard. We'll borrow on some of the other buildings and pay everything off."

She was frightening him. "Lara, there's nothing more to borrow on. You're going to have to file for bankruptcy and..."

"Howard...?"

"Yes?'

"Can a woman love a man too much?"

"What?"

Her voice was dead. "Philip has left me."

It suddenly explained a lot. "I...I'm sorry, Lara."

She had a strange smile on her face. "It's funny, isn't it? I'm losing everything at once. First Philip, now my buildings. Do you know what it is, Howard? It's the Fates. They're against me. You can't fight the Fates, can you?"

He had never seen her in such pain. It tore at him. "Lara..."

"They're not through with me yet. I have to fly to Reno this afternoon. There's a grand jury hearing. If..."

The intercom buzzed. "There's a Lieutenant Mancini here."

"Send him in."

Howard Keller looked at Lara quizzically. "Mancini? What does he want?"

Lara took a deep breath. "He's here to arrest me, Howard."

"Arrest you? What are you talking about?"

Her voice was very quiet. "They think I arranged the attack on Philip."

"That's ridiculous! They can't..."

The door opened, and Lieutenant Mancini walked in. He stood there, looking at the two of them for a moment, then moved forward.

"I have a warrant here for your arrest."

Howard Keller's face was pale. He moved in front of Lara protectively and said hoarsely, "You can't do that. She hasn't done anything."

"You're right, Mr. Keller. I'm not arresting her. The warrant is for you."

Chapter Thirty-five

Transcript of Interrogation of Howard Keller by Detective Lieutenant Sal Mancini.

M: You have been read your rights, Mr. Keller?

K: Yes.

M: And you have waived the right to have an attorney present?

K: I don't need an attorney. I was going to come in anyway. I couldn't let anything happen to Lara.

M: You paid Jesse Shaw $50,000 to attack Philip Adler?

K: Yes.

M: Why?

K: He was making her miserable. She begged him to stay home with her, but he kept leaving her.

M: So you arranged to have him crippled.

K: It wasn't like that. I never meant for Jesse to go so far. He got carried away.

M: Tell me about Bill Whitman.

K: He was a bastard. He was trying to blackmail Lara. I couldn't let him do that. He could have ruined her.

M: So you had him killed?

K: For Lara's sake, yes.

M: Was she aware of what you were doing?

K: Of course not. She never would have allowed it. No. I was there to protect her, you see. Anything I did, I did for her. I would die for her.

M: Or kill for her.

K: Can I ask you a question? How did you know I was involved in this?

End of Interrogation.

At 1 Police Plaza, Captain Bronson said to Mancini, "How did you know he was behind it?"

"He left a loose thread, and I unraveled it. I almost missed it. In Jesse Shaw's rap sheet, it mentioned that he took a fall when he was seventeen for stealing some baseball equipment from a Chicago Cubs minor league team. I checked it out, and sure enough, they were teammates. That's where Keller slipped up. When I asked him, he told me he had never heard of Jesse Shaw. I called a friend of mine who used to be a sports editor for the Chicago Sun Times. He remembered them both. They were buddies. I figured it was Keller who got Shaw the job with Cameron Enterprises. Lara Cameron hired Jesse Shaw because Howard Keller asked her to. She probably never even saw Shaw."