When his father tried to get into his own office, he found that he was barred from the building. And, remember, Harry was only in his thirties then. His nickname around the company was the Iceman. But credit where credit is due, Steve. He single-handedly built. Stanford Enterprises into one of the biggest privately held conglomerates in the world. He expanded the company to include timber, chemicals, communications, electronics, and a staggering amount of real estate. And he wound up with. all the stock." must have been an incredible man,' Steve said.
"He was. To men - and to wornen." he marriedt Simon Fitzgerald sat there for a long time, remembering. When he finally spoke he said, "Harry Stanford 48 married to one of the most beautiful women I've ,',,4ver seen. Emily Temple. They had three children, two boys and a girl. Emily came from a very social family ""In Hobe Sound, Florida. She adored Harry, and she to close her eyes to his cheating, but one day it C. tot to be too much for her. She had a governess for 4he children, a woman named Rosemary Nelson. Young and attractive. What made her even more 4ttractive to Harry Stanford was the fact that she refused to go to bed with him. It drove him crazy. He wasn't used to rejection. Well, when Harry Stanford turned on the charm, he was irresistible. He finally got Rosemary into bed. He got her pregnant, and she went to see a doctor. Unfortunately, the doctor's son-in-law @was a columnist, and he got hold of the story and printed it. There was one hell of a scandal.
You know Boston. It, was all over the newspapers. I still have clippings about it somewhere." she get an abortiont Fitzgerald shook his head. '. Harry wanted her to have one, but she refused. They had a terrible scene. He told her he loved her and wanted to marry her. Of course, he had told that to dozens ofwomen. But Emily overheard their conversation, and in the middle of that same night she committed suicide."'s awful. What happened to the governess?" Nelson disappeared. We know that she had a daughter she named Julia, at St. Joseph's Hospital in Milwaukee. She sent a note to Stanford, but, I 49 don't believe he even bothered to reply. By then, he was involved with someone new. He wasn't interested in Rosemary anymore." ... "
"The real tragedy is what happened later. The children rightfully blamed their father for their mother's suicide. They were ten, twelve, and fourteen at the time. Old enough to feel the pain, but too young to fight their father. They hated him. And Harry's greatest fear was that one day they would do to him what he had done to his own father. So he did everything he could to make sure that never happened. He sent them away to different boarding schools and summer camps, and arranged for his children to see as little of one another as possible. They received no money from him. They lived on the small trust that their mother had left them. All their lives he used the carrot-and stick approach with them. He held out his fortune as the caffot, then withdrew it if they displeased him."'s happened to the children?" is a judge in the circuit court in Chicago. Woodrow doesn't do anything. He's a playboy. He lives in Hobe Sound and gambles on golf and polo. A few years ago, he picked up a waitress in a diner, got her pregnant, and to everyone's surprise, married her. Kendall is a successful fashion designer, married to a Frenchman. They live in New York.' He stood up.
"Steve, have you ever been to Corsica?' 50 No.' Stan- ''d like you to fly there. They're holding Harry 0is body, and the police refuse to release it. I want u to straighten out the matter." right.' If there's a chance of your leaving today ... '. I'll work it out." fthank s. I appreciate ' the Air France commuter flight from Paris to COr- a travel book about Corsica. st Sloane read eve ,".,He learned that the island was largely mountainous, that its principal port city was Ajaccio, and that it was te. The book was the birthplace of Napoleon Bonapar filled With interesting statistics, but Steve was totally As.
the plane unprepared for the beauty Of the island approached Corsica, far below he saw a high solid wall te Cliffs of Dover. of white rock that resembled the Whi It was breathtaking- and a taxi took The plane landed at Ajaccio airport the Cours Napol6on, the main street that Steve down stretched from place General de Gaulle northward to the train station. He had made arrangements for a plane to stand by to fly Harry Stanford's body back to Paris, where the coffin would be transferred to a plane to Boston. All he needed was to get a release for the body. Ste had the taxi drop him off at the Pruccturc building on Cours Napol6on.
He went up One flight 51 of stairs and walked into the reception office.
A uniformed sergeant was seated at the desk. '. Puisje vous aider?" is in charge heret ' Durer." would like to see him, please." what is it of concern in relationship tot The sergeant was proud of his English. Steve took out his business card.
"I'm the attorney for Harry Stanford. I've come to taike his body back to the States.' The sergeant frowned. ', please.' He disappeared into Capitaine Durer's office, carefully closing the door behind him.
The office was crowded, filled with reporters from television and news services from all over the globe. Everyone seemed to be speaking at the same time. ', why was he out in a storm when ... ?" could he fall off a yacht in the middle of ... T ' there any sign of foul playt ' you done an autopsy?, ' else was an the ship with ... ', gentlemen.' Capitaine Durer held up his hand. ', gentlemen. Please.' He looked around the room at all the reporters hanging on his every word, and he was ecstatic. He had dreamed of moments like this. If I handle this properly, it will mean a big promotion and - The sergeant interrupted his thoughts. '.' 52 ,,He whispered in Durer's ear and handed him Steve Sloane's card.
Capitaine Durer studied it and frowned. ' can't see him now,' he snapped. ' him to come back tomorrow at ten o'clock.", sir." Capitaine Durer watched thoughtfully as the sergeant left the room. He had no intention of -letting anyone take away his moment of glory. He turned back to the reporters and smiled. ', what were you asking ... T I In the outer office, the sergeant was saying to Sloane, ' am sorry, but Capitaine Durer is very busy immediately. He would like you to expose yourself here tomorrow morning at ten o'clock. Steve Sloane looked at him in dismay. ' morning? That's ridiculous - I don't want to-wait that long.' The sergeant shrugged. ' is of your chosen, monsieur.' Steve frowned. ' well. I don't have a hotel reservation. Can you recommend a hotelt 16mais oui. I am pleased to have recommended the Colomba, eight Avenue de Paris.' T Steve hesitated.