Chapter 13

"Just set it down there, Ella!" Sylvie was still in bed, having canceled all her appointments for that day. It was the third day now since her surprise encounter with Frank, the former valet, that she had remained confined to her room with a mysterious illness.

The family doctor, Dr. Darling, had suggested she get a complete rest, and she was happy to follow doctor's orders since her terrible lewd experience with the former valet had left her feeling despondent and weak. She had done her best to hide her state of mind from her husband, and fortunately Tim's busy schedule had taken him out of town for a few days so that he was not there to ascertain the full depth of her depression. When he returned, they were scheduled to weekend in Grandville.

Tim had left feeling certain that the reliable Dr. Darling would "fix Sylvie up." The family doctor had a wide array of shots and pills that Tim was certain would work wonders with his ailing blonde wife. He knew for a fact that his mother had extracted from the dear doctor a veritable youth formula, much in use by movie stars and other prominent people who depended upon their appearance for their livelihood. She did not have to fly to Switzerland or Czechoslovakia for such treatments, for somehow the family doctor managed to have all the latest necessities. And it was true that Thelma Cassidy, now a graceful-looking widow in her seventies and a demanding matriarch who still kept more active than a woman half her age, seemed ageless. Tim was certain that she would go on forever, and he hoped that Dr. Darling would do the same for an of them when the time came.

The good doctor had left only moments before, and Sylvie's tender left buttock felt a tingling soreness where he had stuck the hypodermic needle in. Yet, she felt relieved that within minutes she would have a complete change of mood. Shortly, she would be feeling happy again, and cheerful. She would be able to work out a solution to the obscene secret that lurked inside her. A combination of tranquilizing drugs and amphetamines was already surging through her system to enable her to cope with it all.

The young Irish maid walked carefully into the bedroom, carrying her tray before her. She had been with the Cassidys for a while now, having stayed on as Sylvie's personal maid after the tumultuous events at the Family Meeting Place in Grandville. She was happy living in Washington with the Senator and his wife, and she was pleased that Mrs. Cassidy seemed to actually like her now... whereas in the beginning she had never wanted her about, even though her puzzling young mistress never went so far as to fire her.

All that was in the past now, and Ella's main preoccupation at the moment was to hope that the fine chicken broth and hot buttered toast she had brought up for the Senator's wife would please her and make her feel better.

Sylvie smiled wanly at the girl, who to please Sylvie's mother-in-law was clad in a smart gray and white uniform. Sylvie hated uniforms, but Tim's mother had persuaded him that any senator worth his salt had a uniformed household staff. And when Tim agreed with his mother, there was nothing for Sylvie to do but acquiesce.

"Would you open the curtains just a bit, Ella?" she asked with a soft wave of her beautifully-manicured fingers. "I think it is going to be a nice day after all."

It was mid-morning, and the clouds that had enveloped Washington for several days appeared to be lifting. Sylvie took it as a good sign, and sighed, settling back on her fluffy white pillows, as the sun streamed in through the window malting a striated pattern upon the thick oriental carpet. Just then the telephone chimed, and Sylvie gave a little start at its melodious notes. Nevertheless she was feeling quite a bit better already, and she picked up the receiver with confidence.

The familiar voice of her secretary came across the wire, and Sylvie realized that she hadn't spoken to her in quite a while. It was usually her custom to stop by the small office that she maintained on "K" Street to read her mail and to help her secretary answer it. But she hadn't even called in since her meeting with Frank the other day. She felt a pang of guilt, since she was usually very good about answering the many letters that she received every week. Sylvie knew that her name was on the lips of every teen-age girl in the country since she had initiated her "Youth Campaign." Using the family money to begin a non- profit foundation, Sylvie had set up youth hostels all across the country where certain numbers of teen-agers could live in the less-populated areas and eventually become self-sustaining by living off the land. There were young instructors on hand to help and the projects were carried out as informally as possible with an eye toward offering the most freedom possible.

Sylvie was very proud that she herself had thought of the idea, even though it was Ron, her husband's younger brother, who had suggested that she get involved in something undeniably good for the country now..." and by the time election time comes your name will be a household word! Maybe it should be something with kids..."

Sylvie had taken it from there, and of course had had the help of an extensive staff of Cassidy family lawyers to assist her.

"Oh, I'm sorry Jennie. I just haven't been felling well..."

"I know, Senator Cassidy told me; and I wouldn't have bothered you if it weren't for this man who's been calling."

"Man? Calling... who... what did he say?" Sylvie could feel her heart pounding harder.

"Well, he's on the wire right now... says he's got to speak with you! He says his name is Mr. Franks, but he wants tell me what it's about. He's been calling now for a couple of days, and finally I thought I'd ask you about it!" Jennie's voice sounded concerned, and Sylvie realized that she must say nothing that would alarm her secretary.

You must remain calm, she told herself. You can handle the situation... You are stronger than he is... ! Once more, Sylvie tried the power of positive suggestion. She remembered the helpful shot that Dr. Darling had just given to her. Certainly the situation wasn't nearly as bad as she had made it out to be to herself! Even though she had submitted to that lewd oral act with the elderly valet, there were worse things in life than that... certainly she could rise above that awful memory if she had risen above so many other things in the pasty

"Oh, Mr. Franks!" Sylvie heard her own voice saying into the phone. "You say he's on the wire now? Yes, I'll speak with him. Connect us, Jenny!" "Okay... I'll speak to you later... you get better now!" Jennie's voice clicked off, and then established the special telephone connection that would enable Frank's call to be transferred to the Cassidy home phone. Sylvie was grateful that their private number was so secret that not even the servants knew it. To safeguard against intruders the number was also changed as a matter of course every few months.

But Sylvie felt something within her fade just ever so slightly as she heard Frank's familiar voice on the telephone. She could not suppress a shudder, and she drew her cream-colored silk robe up around her neck as she listened to his unctuous words.

"Oh, Mrs. Cassidy, I'm so glad I've gotten through to you at last! I just had to reach you... I was wondering if we could change that appointment we made? You see, I'd rather not wait until next week because that columnist fellow's been calling me. He's terribly persuasive, you know. I'd like to make the final agreement with you, though, Mrs. Cassidy... about the contents of the book, that is... before I let any of it go!"

In spite of her resolve to remain calm, Sylvie screamed into the phone.

"All I want is both of those tapes, Frank!"

Her face was pale and her lips tense as the fingers of one hand clenched into a fist and the others clutched at the receiver.

The maid, Ella, was making herself small in a corner of the room. She had originally been waiting to be dismissed, and then she was afraid of signaling her presence in the room, since she knew that Mrs. Cassidy usually liked to be alone when she was speaking on the phone. Now she did not know what to do. She hoped that Mrs. Cassidy would not be angry with her for having overheard such a heated discussion. Yet, she was listening with all her ears now, curious about the conversation.

To her consternation, she heard Mrs. Cassidy scream again.

"DON'T TRY TO PRESSURE ME, YOU BASTARD. I'LL BE THERE NEXT MONDAY AS I SAID--AND YOU'D BETTER HAVE THEM FOR ME OR ELSE! I WILL BE THERE PRECISELY AT 3:00 p.m.!"

Sylvie flung the receiver back onto the cradle of the phone and sank back into her pillows with her eyes closed. Ella started to tip-toe from the room, but when she had traversed half the floor, Sylvie suddenly opened her eyes and glared at her.

"Ella!" she cried, and the young girl remained frozen to the spot. The sound of her employer's voice was frightening.

"Yes... yes... Ma'am!" she replied.

"What you heard just now is between the two of us. Do you understand what I mean? What takes place in this room must not go beyond these walls!"

More frightened than ever at the seriousness of the situation, Ella stammered out her assent. Then as soon as she could, she scurried from the room.

There was a low drone of the jet engines inside the passenger's cabin as the small private plane carried Sylvie and her husband toward Grandville. It was the weekend, and Sylvie was glad that she had not given in to Frank's request to meet her earlier than prearranged. She had hoped that this would put her in a position of greater power over him, but in the back of her mind there also lurked the fear that he would meet with that columnist the way he had threatened to do.

Ignorant of the blackmail threat that hung over them, her handsome senator husband sat across a custom-built desk that covered his knees.

Sylvie knew that her two brothers-in-law would be waiting to meet them in Grandville, that they too would be spending the weekend at the family place. Their presence was necessary because several events had taken place that indicated Tim's push for the party nomination would have to be speeded up. Senator Grotter had agreed to lend him his support, but only if he announced his intentions within the next few days, and Ron and Tim had a lot of planning to do and several important people to contact if this was going to happen. Tim had not been an open candidate, and therefore had not entered any primaries. It was his contention that they only confused the issue, and Ron felt that his brother's strength lay in his seeming reluctance to run. They would be facing the top contender, Scottson, directly once they announced Tim's candidacy, and Ron wanted to go over the showing that the popular party member had made in the Mid-west.

Sylvie tried to keep from biting her nails as she sat nervously watching her husband at work. Seated in one of the back seats, Ella watched Sylvie, wondering just what she ought to do about what she had overheard in her mistress's room. There was no doubt in her mind that it was Frank, the valet, who had been calling Mrs. Cassidy, and she surmised that he was trying to blackmail her with the strange tapes she had heard him listening to that night so long ago. Ella felt a terrible recurrence of the remorse she had felt then, and her guilt made her want to run up and beg Sylvie's forgiveness. She had unknowingly carried that powerful aphrodisiac up to Mrs. Cassidy, thinking it was medicine. Anyway, that's what young Mr. Erick had told her. Even though she knew it was really Erick's fault, it had still been Ella who'd taken it to Mrs. Cassidy's bedroom... and after her mistress had warned her not to have anything to do with Erick, too!

As the plane dipped and began its descent to the airfield in Grandville, Ella crossed herself and prayed for some guidance. She had to help Mrs. Cassidy to get rid of Frank! None of the Cassidys had known about the aging valet's growing eccentricities, but the household staff had been fully aware that Frank was no longer the willing, silent servant he had been for all those years. Not all of them knew that he had been called up to Mrs. Cassidy's room to assist her in her terrible need when she was consumed by the fiery lusts of the sex drug, but Ella knew, and she could see the ravages the experience was making upon Frank as the days had passed before his retirement.

Ella trembled for Mrs. Cassidy now as the plane glided to a halt. Frank could be nasty when he wanted to be, she recalled, and she hoped that her mistress wasn't in any kind of physical danger. She remembered what Frank had said to her once, shortly after they had moved to Washington after the Senator's election.

"Come into my room tonight and I'll give you a taste of something good!"

"Don't be silly, Frank," she replied huffily.

"I've got the same thing between my legs that Erick Cassidy has!" he'd declared, and for the first time Ella had known that the staff knew of her crush on young Mr. Erick. They all knew that she could not resist when he touched her with his hot, impudent hands!

Ella had never known Frank to speak this way to anyone, and when she appeared shocked and backed away from him, he'd chuckled lewdly, and added, "And you've got the same thing down there that Mrs. Cassidy has. She asked me to do it, you know... she wanted it... and I gave it to her!"

Ella had gotten away from him as quickly as possible, but now she knew that Mrs. Cassidy was not so lucky. He Cassidy's old valet had come back to haunt her!

The plane came to a complete halt, and Sylvie smiled as her husband finally looked up from his papers.

"Feeling any better, my love?" he inquired.

"Yes, it will be good to be away from town for the weekend!" she replied. Tim's hand reached out for hers and he clasped it gently.

"Yes... it's a working vacation for me, but I want you to get some rest!"

Arlene stood on the airfield, flanked by the two brothers, Ron and Erick. She felt proud to be standing between them, and watched carefully for the small plane as it taxied to a stop near them. They were at the portion of the airport designated for private planes, and it had been Ron's idea for them all to meet the arriving couple. Ron had also insisted upon Erick's presence in Grandville that weekend, since he wanted to brief the young lawyer on the state of affairs. He wanted Erick to be ready to leave on a moment's notice to champion their cause and represent the family in Tim's behalf. Ron knew the kind of things he could trust his devil-may-care brother with, and he was careful not to entrust anything too sensitive to him.