Echoes of Titanic by Mindy Starns Clark Read Free Book Online Page A

more than twenty years. Whether this guy’s telling the truth or not, it’s practically ancient history by now.”
    The PR lady turned and addressed Lou and Kelsey as well. “I’ll tell you why it’s a big deal,” she hissed softly. “For starters, we’re not just talking about Adele Brennan Tate, well-known Wall Street icon. We’re talking about a woman who also happened to be a survivor of Titanic . This man just served up the juiciest Titanic- related scandal anyone’s heard about in years. To make matters worse, the world’s already in a Titanic frenzy right now because of the anniversary.”
    â€œAnniversary?” Lou asked.
    â€œYes,” Kelsey told him. “We’re coming up on one hundred years since the ship sank.”
    â€œIn about a week and a half,” Carole said, “April fifteenth. I have you booked solid for that whole weekend, the fourteenth and fifteenth.”
    Kelsey nodded, resisting the urge to groan, as Carole continued.
    â€œAnyway, with this big hundred-year anniversary coming up, there’s not a media outlet in existence that wouldn’t kill for some huge story they could tie in with it—and the more outrageous that story, the better.”
    Lou sucked in a breath through clenched teeth. “Got it. Wow. Talk about bad timing.”
    Walter, who had been studying the screen, interrupted their conversation. “Carole, why don’t you go out there and spread the word to all B & T employees that they should get their things and go on home? I don’t want anyone hanging around tonight. Have them leave the building as quickly as possible. I know they are curious about what’s happening, but we need to clear out the lobby as much as we can—plus I don’t want any of them getting questioned by reporters.”
    â€œAgreed.”
    â€œThen see if your people need help schmoozing our special guests out the door. I know the reporters and photographers aren’t going anywhere, but if we can at least get everybody else out, it’ll help.”
    â€œWill do.”
    As she headed for the same door Ephraim had used, Walter added, “After you’ve done that, Carole, you and your people are free to go too. We’ll deal with all of this tomorrow.”
    â€œGood idea,” she replied, “though I’ll wait to take off until after the caterers have all their stuff out.”
    With that she was gone, and Kelsey was glad. More than anything, she wanted to talk with the man who had ruined her speech with his insane accusations about her great-grandmother, but there was no reason for the PR woman to hear all the gritty details, whatever they might be.
    â€œWhere’s Gloria in all of this?” Lou asked Kelsey softly. “I didn’t even see her at the ceremony.”
    Kelsey was trying to decide how to reply when Walter answered for her.
    â€œShe’s up in her office. I just talked to her. I told her what happened and that we needed her down here ASAP to help with damage control, but she said she wasn’t coming. She’s not feeling well.”
    Kelsey could feel heat rising in her cheeks. Though she was as put out with Gloria as it sounded like Walter was, she felt the urge to defend the woman. She was obviously dealing with something difficult. If she wasn’t up to attending the ceremony, it stood to reason that she wouldn’t be coming down to help out in its aftermath, either.
    â€œYou know she would be here if she could,” Kelsey replied, but as soon as she said it, she remembered the woman’s odd behavior before the ceremony and wondered if that were really true. Something weird had been going on with Gloria today.
    â€œAll I know is that she’s been extremely unhelpful in all of this,” Walter snapped. “If she’s so sick that she can’t get herself down here, then she needs to go home.”
    â€œI’ll talk to her