The Stars Shine Down

Lara turned to Terry Hill. "I've got to get back to New York tonight. There's a big party for me. Will they let me go?"

"Just a minute," Terry Hill said. He disappeared inside the hearing room, and when he came out five minutes later, he said, "You can go to New York. The grand jury will give its verdict in the morning, but it's just a formality now. You can return here tonight. By the way, your friend told you the truth. He didn't talk in there."

Thirty minutes later Lara was headed for New York.

"Are you going to be all right?" Terry Hill asked.

She looked at him and said, "Of course I am." There would be hundreds of important people at the party to honor her that night. She would hold her head high. She was Lara Cameron...

She stood in the center of the deserted Grand Ballroom and looked around. I created this. I created monuments that towered into the sky, that changed the lives of thousands of people all over America. And now it's all going to belong to the faceless bankers. She could hear her father's voice so clearly. "The Fates. They've always been agin me." She thought of Glace Bay and the little boardinghouse where she had grown up. She remembered how terrified she had been on her first day at school: "Can anyone think of a word beginning with f?" She remembered the boarders. Bill Rogers..."The first rule in real estate is OPM. Never forget that." And Charles Cohn: "I eat only kosher food, and I'm afraid Glace Bay doesn't have any."...

"If I could acquire this land...would you give me a five-year lease?"...

"No, Lara. It would have to be a ten-year lease."...

And Sean MacAllister..."I would need a very special reason to make this loan to you!...have you ever had a lover?"...

And Howard Keller: "...you're going about this all wrong."...

"I want you to come to work for me."...

And then the successes. The wonderful, brilliant successes. And Philip. Her Lochinvar. The man she adored. That was the greatest loss of all.

A voice called, "Lara..."

She turned.

It was Jerry Townsend. "Carlos told me you were here." He walked up to her. "I'm sorry about the birthday party."

She looked at him. "What...what happened?"

He was staring at her. "Didn't Howard tell you?"

"Tell me what?"

"There were so many cancellations because of the bad publicity that we decided it would be best to call it off. I asked Howard to tell you."

"To tell you the truth, I've been having some problems with my memory."

Lara said softly, "It doesn't matter." She took one last look at the beautiful room. "I had my fifteen minutes, didn't I?"

"What?"

"Nothing." She started to walk toward the door.

"Lara, let's go up to the office. There are some things that have to be wound up."

"All right." I'll probably never be in this building again, Lara thought.

In the elevator on the way up to the executive offices, Jerry said, "I heard about Keller. It's hard to believe he was responsible for what happened."

Lara shook her head. "I was responsible, Jerry. I'll never forgive myself."

"It's not your fault."

She felt a sudden wave of loneliness. "Jerry, if you haven't had your dinner yet..."

"I'm sorry, Lara. I'm busy tonight."

"Oh. That's all right."

The elevator door opened, and the two of them stepped out.

"The papers that you have to sign are on the conference room table," Jerry said.

"Fine."

The door to the conference room was closed. He let Lara open the door and as she did, forty voices started to sing out, "Happy birthday to you, Happy birthday to you..."

Lara stood there, stunned. The room was filled with people she had worked with over the years - the architects and contractors and construction managers. Charles Cohn was there, and Professor Meyers. Horace Guttman and Kathy and Jerry Townsend's father. But the only one that Lara saw was Philip. He was moving toward her, his arms outstretched, and she suddenly found it difficult to breathe.

"Lara..." It was a caress.

And she was in his arms, fighting to hold back the tears, and she thought, I'm home. This is where I belong, and it was a healing, a blessed feeling of peace. Lara felt a warm glow as she held him. This is all that matters, Lara thought.

People were crowding around her, and everyone seemed to be talking at once.

"Happy birthday, Lara..."

"You look wonderful..."

"Were you surprised...?"

Lara turned to Jerry Townsend. "Jerry, how did you...?"

He shook his head. "Philip arranged it."

"Oh, darling!"

Waiters were coming in now with hors d'oeuvres and drinks.

Charles Cohn said, "No matter what happens, I'm proud of you, Lara. You said you wanted to make a difference, and you did."

Jerry Townsend's father was saying, "I owe my life to this woman."

"So do I." Kathy smiled.

"Let's drink a toast," Jerry Townsend said, "to the best boss I ever had, or ever will have!"

Charles Cohn raised his glass. "To a wonderful little girl who became a wonderful woman!"

The toasts went on, and finally, it was Philip's turn. There was too much to say, and he put it in five words: "To the woman I love."

Lara's eyes were brimming with tears. She found it difficult to speak. "I...I owe so much to all of you," Lara said. "There's no way I can ever repay you. I just want to say" - she choked up, unable to go on - "thank you."