Silken Threads Read Free Page A

father?”
    “ Yes,” Cassandra had said in a sad voice.
    “ He loves you very much, dear; he wants you to have a good life,” Eleanor had begun but was interrupted by the chauffeur.
    “ It’s five o’clock, Mrs. Leeds.”
    “ So it is,” Eleanor had said with a nod. “We’ll talk tomorrow, dear. I have a benefit that will last very late.”
    “ Is Father going?” she’d asked.
    “ For a little while. He has some people in from Europe. You know how he is.…”
    When her mother had fairly flown out of the house in a whoosh of silk, Cassandra had gone to her bedroom, undressed, and taken a shower. Afterwards, she’d eaten, gone into the library and chosen a book at random. By ten o’clock, she couldn’t keep her eyes open and realized she’d been up almost twenty-four hours. Yet, as soon as she lay down, her mind sped up.
    Realizing what was bothering her was the uncertainty of her future, Cassandra’s low laughter echoed in the silent bedroom. It was the same uncertainty that had been a constant part of her for the past year.
    No more, she told herself, hoping that tomorrow would bring the change she so badly wanted. Tomorrow would be the beginning of her future, and she was ready.
    With that thought, Cassandra finally fell into a deep dreamless sleep.
    ~~~~
    Gregory Leeds sat behind his desk, absently going over the day’s accumulation of memos. It was two o’clock in the morning, and after leaving his European associates at the Pierre, he had returned to his office to solve yet another problem—Cassandra.
    He had spent several hours looking over his companies, trying to decide which one to place her in. He could not afford to have her hurt any important deals, yet he wanted her to see what the business world was like.
    He believed, after a month or two of facing the real world, Cassandra would call him and concede. Then she would marry Somner Barwell, as he had planned for her to do. The marriage would benefit him because it would mean Jonathan Barwell, Somner’s father, and he would become business associates rather than competitors. Presently, the two corporations were in a fearsome battle.
    Gregory knew he, Barwell, and several others of their level were like the old royalty. And when royalty married, it was a merging of power and wealth for their mutual benefit. Although the names and titles had changed over the centuries, the basic concepts were the same.
    Gregory glanced at a memo from Murray Charter about Twin Rivers. Something clicked in his mind, and he picked it up. It was short and simple.
    Twelve-percent loss over last year. North’s figures were tentative but seem to match our own projections. Should we try to give him a raise this year?
    As soon as Gregory read the last line, he remembered what had happened. Kirk North was the GM of the ranch, and had been so when they’d bought the property three years ago. He had shown himself to be a sharp man, with good managing abilities and a quick mind. He was a college graduate and a good worker. When he’d turned down the raise last year, Gregory had been surprised and asked Murray about it.
    “ He takes his job seriously. He said he hadn’t made a profit, so he didn’t earn the raise.”
    “ Give it to him anyway,” Gregory had ordered. It was not North’s fault the ranch had not shown a profit. The Leeds Corporation had bought the ranch for two reasons: for neither of those reasons were there supposed to be any profits—yet.
    A month after he and Murray had discussed Kirk North, Murray had reported that North had again requested his raise to be withdrawn and had sent a check to the comptroller for the exact amount of the raise.
    “ It’s his choice,” Gregory had finally told Murray, but his respect for the GM. had increased, and the memory of the incident never forgotten.
    Then a smile formed on Gregory Leeds’ face. He knew exactly which company to turn over to his daughter...if she would take it in the first place.
    No, he