The Stars Shine Down

"I haven't been sleeping very well lately. To tell you the truth, I...I'm scared."

"Scared of what?" Lara asked impatiently.

"I...I have a lump."

"Oh." Lara was silent for a moment. "Well, what did the doctor say?"

Kathy swallowed. "I haven't seen a doctor."

"Not seen one!" Lara exploded. "For God's sakes, do you come from a family of ostriches? Of course you've got to see a doctor."

Lara picked up the phone. "Get me Dr. Peters."

She replaced the receiver. "It's probably nothing, but you can't let it go."

"I have a mother and brother who died of cancer," Kathy said miserably. "I don't want a doctor to tell me I have it."

The telephone rang. Lara picked it up. "Hello? he what?...I don't care if he is. You tell him I want to talk to him now."

She replaced the receiver.

A few moments later the phone rang again. Lara picked it up. "Hello, Alan...no, I'm fine. I'm sending my secretary over to see you. Her name is Kathy Turner. She'll be there in half an hour. I want her examined this morning, and I want you to stay on top of it...I know you are...I appreciate it...thanks."

She replaced the receiver. "Get over to Sloan-Kettering Hospital. Dr. Peters will be waiting for you."

"I don't know what to say, Miss Cameron."

"Say that you'll be on time tomorrow."

Howard Keller came into the office. "We have a problem, boss."

"Go."

"It's the property on Fourteenth Street. We've cleared the tenants out of the whole block except for one apartment house. The Dorchester Apartments. Six of the tenants refuse to leave, and the city won't let us force them out."

"Offer them more money."

"It's not a question of money. Those people have lived there a long time. They don't want to leave. They're comfortable there."

"Then let's make them uncomfortable."

"What do you mean?"

Lara got up. "Let's go take a look at the building."

On the drive down, they passed bag ladies and homeless people roaming the streets, asking for handouts.

"In a country as wealthy as this," Lara said, "that's a disgrace."

The Dorchester Apartments was a six-story brick building in the middle of a block filled with old structures waiting for the bulldozers.

Lara stood in front of it, examining it. "How many tenants are in there?"

"We got sixteen out of the apartment. Six are still hanging on."

"That means we have sixteen apartments available."

He looked at her, puzzled. "That's right. Why?"

"Let's fill those apartments."

"You mean, lease them? What's the point..."

"We're not going to lease them. We're going to donate them to the homeless. There are thousands of homeless people in New York. We're going to take care of some of them. Crowd in as many as you can. See that they're given some food."

Keller frowned. "What makes me think this isn't one of your better ideas?"

"Howard, we're going to become benefactors. We're going to do something the city can't do - shelter the homeless."

Lara was studying the building more closely, looking at the windows. "And I want those windows boarded up."

"What?"

"We're going to make the building look like an old derelict. Is the top floor apartment still occupied, the one with the roof garden?"

"Yes."

"Put up a big billboard on the roof to block the view."

"But..."

"Get to work on it."

When Lara returned to the office, there was a message for her. "Dr. Peters would like you to call him," Tricia said.

"Get him for me."

He came on the phone almost immediately.

"Lara, I examined your secretary."

"Yes?"

"She has a tumor. I'm afraid it's malignant. I recommend an immediate mastectomy."

"I want a second opinion," Lara said.

"Of course, if you wish, but I am head of the department and..."

"I still want a second opinion. Have someone else examine her. Get back to me as soon as possible. Where is Kathy now?"

"She's on her way back to your office."

"Thanks, Alan."

Lara replaced the receiver. She pressed down the intercom button. "When Kathy returns, send her in to me."

Lara studied the calendar on her desk. She had only thirty days left to clear out the Dorchester Apartments before construction was scheduled to start.

Six stubborn tenants. All right, Lara thought, let's see how long they can hold out.

Kathy walked into Lara's office. Her face was puffy and her eyes were red.

"I heard the news," Lara told her. "I'm so sorry, Kathy."

"I'm going to die," Kathy said.

Lara rose and put her arms around her, holding her close. "You're not going to do anything of the kind. They've made a lot of progress with cancer. You're going to have the operation, and you're going to be all right."

"Miss Cameron, I can't afford..."

"Everything will be taken care of. Dr. Peters is going to see that you have one more examination. If it verifies his diagnosis, you should have the operation right away. Now go home and get some rest."

Kathy's eyes filled with tears again. "I...thank you."

As Kathy walked out of the office, she thought, No one really knows that lady.

Chapter Sixteen

The following Monday Lara had a visitor.

"There's a Mr. O'Brian here to see you from the city planning commissioner's office, Miss Cameron."