The wake up call roused Georgina from a fitful night’s sleep. She slowly came to full awareness. Sometimes, when she awakened in an unfamiliar hotel room, she became disoriented; it could take a minute or two for her to remember what had brought her to that place. But this morning, in spite of her grogginess, Georgina had no trouble remembering where she was, or why she was there. She immediately recalled presenting the offer letter to Nate and witnessing his pained reaction. And she remembered Nick’s support for her when she told him what she had done.
Georgina went out onto the balcony to see what the day was like. The sky was cloudless and, like the day before, the air was dry and hot. Georgina detected some haze and a faint smoky smell. She watched as hotel guests and staff passed beneath her balcony, going about their business and showing no signs of alarm. But Georgina was troubled by the hint of smoke. She called the front desk to inquire. “There’s a small brushfire nearby, but the firemen are on the scene,” the woman who answered the telephone told her. “By the way, Ms. Graham, a messenger service left a package for you a few minutes ago. Would you like me to have someone bring it up to you?” Knowing that the package contained the sale documents, Georgina said yes. She turned on the television and found a local channel that was covering the brushfire. A reporter pointed to a charred area along a riverbed; he said that the fire was almost completely contained. In the background there were several fire trucks lined up along a dirt road. The reporter urged the viewing audience to remain vigilant because the fire danger would remain high until the Santa Ana was over.
A bellman delivered the sale documents. Georgina debated whether to look them over while having breakfast in the dining room, or to order room service and do this chore in the company of her unmade bed. Knowing that Mark would have examined every word in the documents as they were faxed to him in batches during the night, and that he would have threatened the worthless—his words—lives of the lawyers who had prepared them if there were any mistakes, Georgina did not feel the need to put her full effort into the task of document review. She went down to the dining room.
Seated by the window, Georgina watched two men, their loose work shirts rippling in the wind, as they took the market-style umbrellas from the patio area and stored them on the side of the hotel. She could hear the flapping of the umbrellas that still remained on the patio. When a waiter came to pour coffee Georgina asked him how close the brushfire was to the hotel. He told her that it was five or six miles to the east. Georgina found this information reassuring. After breakfast she returned to her room and called Pearl and Millie. They were already at work. “Lots of news,” Georgina told her friends. “Nick got the job in D.C. and I’m closing the ZIFIX deal this morning.”
“Wow, a double-header,” Pearl said. “I guess it’s condolences on the former and congrats on the latter.”
“Not exactly,” Georgina said. “Nick hasn’t decided whether he’s going to take the offer, so I still have hope on that one. And as far as the deal goes, I may have done too well for my client.”
“You can’t be serious,” Millie said incredulously. “There’s no such thing as doing too well for your client.”
Katy Carmichael looked up at the kitchen clock. “Gordon, hurry up. We’re leaving for school in five minutes,” she called out to her son, who had disappeared into his bedroom after breakfast. She added, “Don’t make me have to come get you."
Katy could not get Nate’s late-night call out of her mind. He had carried on about how Rios Capital had double-crossed him and forced him to sell ZIFIX outright. Annoyed at being called when she was already in bed, Katy had offered some generic expressions of concern while she listened to Nate’s rant. But as soon as the call was over, long-suppressed emotions erupted inside of her like lava surging from a volcano. How did Nate dare turn to her for support, when he knew that ZIFIX had been the last straw in their marriage? Here she was, struggling every day to make it as a single parent, and why was she in this position? Because he had been too preoccupied with his success, that’s why. And now that his own stupidity was about to cost him the startup, he had the gall to expect her to console him! Katy had spent a restless night rehashing the thousand little murders of her marriage.
Gordon came into the kitchen. He picked up his lunch from the counter, put it into his backpack and headed out the side door to the attached garage. Katy pressed the button to the garage door opener and followed Gordon to the car. She was about to strap him into his booster seat when she smelled smoke. She stepped away from the car and looked about for the source. There was nothing inside the garage that appeared other than normal. Realizing that the smell was coming into the garage from its open door, Katy walked a short way along her driveway and peered up into the sky. She saw some haze overhead, but no dark plume that would indicate something burning nearby. She returned to the garage, strapped Gordon into his seat and set out for Rancho Elementary.
The siren’s piercing wail drew Georgina’s attention to the rear view mirror. A fire truck was fast closing in behind her. She steered her car to the side of the road and stopped. Three fire trucks and a paramedic van passed by in quick succession. Georgina waited until all the emergency vehicles were gone before getting back on the road. The wind had picked up considerably since she had left the Inn. Leaves blown from the trees lining the road skittered in front of her car and bounced off the windshield. Georgina turned up the air conditioning to counter the smoky odor that was seeping into the car.
No one was at work at Wahl’s construction site. Too hot and windy for them today, Georgina thought. At the gates to Casa Feliz she looked for a buzzer or an intercom. Locating a grate on one side of the gate, she pressed the button below it. The wind was howling so loudly that she had trouble hearing the voice that answered. “I’m Georgina Graham,” she shouted into the intercom. “I have an appointment with Mr. Rios.”
“You’re expected,” a woman answered in a voice that was barely audible over the roar of the wind. The gates swung open. The sycamore trees that lined the driveway were moving in several directions at once; Georgina turned on the wipers to clear the leaves that had begun to pile up on the windshield. She parked her car in the courtyard next to Wahl’s Maserati. Leaning into the wind, she crossed to the portico, where she retrieved a tissue from her purse and wiped her irritated, watery eyes.
Lupe let her in. Wahl was waiting in the foyer. Nate arrived moments later, looking tired. They engaged in awkward small talk about the Santa Ana winds until Lupe announced that Rios was ready to see them in his upstairs office. Georgina introduced Nate to Rios; without further conversation Rios directed his guests to a conference table near the window. He explained that Lupe was a notary public and would be notarizing the sale documents as they signed them. Georgina pulled the documents from her tote and placed them on the table. She began to describe the first document for signature.
Suddenly, an urgent voice rose up from the courtyard below, calling out “Mr. Rios, Mr. Rios.” Rios got up abruptly from the conference table and rushed to the window. Jose Ramirez was standing below, his hands cupped to his mouth. “Fire’s coming from the canyon,” he shouted up at Rios. “It’s half way to the barn already. You need to get out right away.”
Rios flung the window open. “Can you save the horses?” he shouted at Jose.
“The grooms are already loading them up,” Jose shouted back. “We’re taking them to the Fairgrounds.”
“Philip and I will help you,” Rios said, motioning at Wahl to join him. “We’ll be right there.” His face red, Rios barked at Lupe to get the servants evacuated from the house immediately. Then he ordered Georgina and Nate to go to their cars and leave. “Do you know the Horseman’s Club at the racetrack?” Rios asked Nate. When Nate said that he did, Rios said, “After I get the horses moved, I’ll meet you there to finish this.” Rios headed swiftly out the door. Wahl followed a step behind him.
Georgina stuffed the sale documents into her tote. “Where’s the Horseman’s Club?” s
he asked Nate as they hastened down the stairs. “I’ll need directions.”
“You’re coming with me in my car,” Nate told her. “It’s too dangerous for you to be driving alone in an area you don’t know.” Georgina offered no dissent. Smoke now filled the foyer. Lupe was standing at the entrance, ringing a hand bell to alert others in the house to the emergency. When Nate asked her if she had a way to get out, Lupe replied that the staff had an evacuation plan and had even rehearsed it. She said that she would be leaving as soon as she had accounted for everyone.
As they headed across the courtyard to Nate’s car, Georgina looked towards the barn, now a scene of frantic activity as men hastily loaded horses into trailers. Through the thickening smoke Georgina could just make out the figures of Rios and Wahl among the people running in and out of the barn. Georgina also saw a girl leading a horse; she recognized Sonia Rousseau. Suddenly, brilliant orange flames engulfed a eucalyptus tree less than forty feet from Sonia.
“There’s a girl at the barn and the fire is almost there,” Georgina told Nate. “We need to take her with us.” Nate started to object but Georgina took off, running as fast as she could in high-heeled shoes. Shaking his head in disbelief, Nate ran after her. By the time they reached Sonia she had already loaded the horse and was closing the trailer door. “The fire’s too close,” Georgina cried out to Sonia. “We have a car. You had better come with us.”
Sonia pulled down the latch on the trailer door and fastened it shut. “I’ve driven this rig before. I’ll be safe,” she told them. She climbed up into the cab.
“Where’s your father? Shouldn’t he go with you?” Georgina asked, terrified to see Sonia alone in the truck. She could feel the heat of the approaching fire and hear the crackle of brush burning nearby.
“He went back into the barn for another horse,” Sonia said as she put the truck into gear. “He’ll be right behind me. Don’t worry about us.” She eased the truck forward and joined the line of trailers that were heading off the property by the back road.
“We need to get out of here, right now,” Nate said. Fiery embers began to rain down on them. Georgina could no longer see more than a few dozen yards in front of her. They hurried back along the walkway towards the courtyard. As Georgina got into Nate’s car she looked again towards the barn. The eucalyptus trees behind the barn were now fully engulfed by fire; flames reached fifty feet up into the blackened sky. At ground level the smoke was too opaque for her to see either the barn or the road behind it.
Nate drove quickly towards the entrance gates. Brightly burning ashes swirled in a dizzying array around the car, creating the only light in an otherwise night-like landscape. The gates failed to open automatically. Seeing the way forward blocked, and with no prospect of using the back road as a way out, Georgina started to panic. Involuntarily, she took several deep breaths; her lungs filled with smoke, provoking a coughing fit.
“Are you all right?” Nate asked.
“How are we going to get out of here?” Georgina croaked between coughs.
Chapter Eight