Chapter 2

The next few days found Darren wrapping up things. Arranging to rent out his place (he expected that housing prices have no place to go but up in the next few years, energy crisis or no energy crisis), packing up his personal belongings, finishing up current engagements--all the pre-move stuff one needs to do. Aside from the Porsche (which he will have shipped over), he was taking very little in the way of actual belongings with him; most of it was going into storage. Kilmeny had made that quite clear during a subsequent conversation.

"All of your expenses will be paid by us--that is, all reasonable expenses. Custom-ordering a suit from Savile Row, for example, would not qualify. You will be staying with us, so furniture is also unnecessary."

"So, is the family just your parents, you, and your baby sister?"

"Baby sister? Oh, I guess I never told you. My sister Alana is older than me."

Now that was a shock. If Alana was older, then why wasn't she making the arrangements? However, he had been surprised so many times in the past few days that it didn't faze him anymore. "And your parents... they aren't around much?"

"That's right. Your flight to Boston is on the twenty-third, and there'll be a driver waiting for you there." She rattled off a number. "You can reach me at this number on the East Coast; I'm flying out tomorrow, right after the signing."

"I'll see you tomorrow, then."

The contract signing the next day was more complicated than anything Darren had ever done before. But then, he thought wryly, I'd never had to swear an oath to abide by said contract before. Kilmeny had managed to net a circuit court judge to administer the oath, along with a few high-profile players in the entertainment industry acting as witnesses. Even if I were the type to skip out on my word, he reflected, I'd be signing my death warrant for any kind of work in the entertainment industry. Half those people would be sufficient to see him permanently blackballed in Hollywood. Guess that slip of a girl knew what she was doing, he concluded half-grudgingly, half-admiringly.

After he took the oath, the actual signing was rather anti-climatic. Kilmeny disappeared immediately afterwards with a copy of the contract, but not before handing him another envelope. "Background," she said, before a car whisked her off.

When he got home that night, he poured himself a glass of Alsacian Pinot Gris he'd been saving for a while. Might as well drink up his poor excuse of a wine cellar, he thought to himself; aside for a bottle he might stick in his carry-on luggage, most of it wasn't worth the price of shipping. He took a sip of the pale liquid, savoring the plethora of flavors bursting on his tongue, then opened the envelope.

The cover page was a short note to him. It went as follows:

"Darren, you're probably surprised at how thin this file is. Well, that's intentional. You'll have to pick up all the personal info from Alana herself, same way she'll be doing for you. This is just to level the playing field a bit--after all, you're a public figure, and she's not."

See you in a few days.

Kilmeny"

She wasn't kidding. There were all of three pages in the envelope, and that was including the cover page. Darren scanned the sheets quickly; it read more like a dossier than anything else:

Alana Morgan Carstairs
DOB: 05/03/84

Immediate family

Father: Steven Carstairs, chairman and CEO of Sylvan Enterprises. DOB: 07/12/48

Mother (divorced): Callista Reilly, appellate court judge, U.S. Court of Appeals, Federal Circuit. DOB: 10/05/49

Sister: Kilmeny Rhiannon Carstairs. DOB: 09/24/86

Mr. Carstairs and Ms. Reilly divorced in 1988 (Ms. Reilly having retained her maiden name throughout the marriage), shortly before Ms. Reilly accepted an appointment to the U.S. Federal District Court bench in the District of Columbia. Mr. Carstairs retained custody of Alana and Kilmeny, with Ms. Reilly retaining full visitation rights.

Sylvan Enterprises is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, though most of its operational facilities are located overseas. Mr. Carstairs spends most of his time away from his Hartford home, leaving his daughters in the care of a succession of governesses.

Alana has just finished her junior year at Pinehurst Academy, and has been accepted to the Accelerated Program at the University of Connecticut. She will be taking a light college workload in addition to her senior classes. Her sister will be starting her sophomore year at Sacred Heart Academy in the fall.