Hearts' Desires (30 page)

             
Her mood dropped with lightning speed. Suppressing a sigh, she accompanied the nurse.

             
A police van was parked in front of the building; an officer was leaning against the fender, smoking a cigarette. The side door was open, so Alison could inspect the items inside. Yes, no doubt, this was her team’s stuff! She recognized the ca
m
era, she and Jake had tried to save in the last minute. She gave it a quick once over; the device seemed to be in perfect condition except some scratches, and the tape was still inside. Good! She signed some papers to leave everything in police custody until they returned to the States. The process seemed to take forever.

             
When she turned back to the entrance, she found a member of the medical staff waiting for her. “Mrs. Cartwright, our senior ph
y
sician has given green light for a short visit with Mr. Van Sorel. But first you need to put on some protective gear, because of the co
n
tamination risk.”

             
Alison nodded.

             
In front of the glass door to the intensive care unit, Alison di
s
covered Lauren. She froze for an instant. Before she could find any words, Lauren started on her own:

             
“I wanted to pay our hero a little visit and remind him that he shouldn’t wait getting that Oscar until I’m old and grey! But they told me that you had been given permission for a visit, and two people at a time would be too tiring for Vance right
now.”

             
Alison was not sure how to react.

             
“I’m leaving the hospital this afternoon and moving into the hotel across the street,” continued Lauren. “Maybe … you could just… give him my best wishes.
And…
I mean…” She stopped and sighed and bit her lip. She felt just as awkward and uncomfortable as Allison did. Both could just have turned and parted ways, but none of them did. An uneasy silence settled over them.

             
“You know,” Lauren started again, “I learned one thing: I was a selfish little girl…”
Another sigh.
“I was an idiot. A big idiot, thinking life is all about getting everything you want.
But…
I want Vance to be happy. And he … well … he won’t be with me!”

             
It took Allison a moment to digest this.

             
“I guess, we’ve both been idiots,” she finally said with low voice.
“In one
way
or the other.”
Then she reached out to e
m
brace the younger woman.

Clad in hospital shrubs and mask, the protective gear me
n
tioned earlier, Alison entered Vance’s room. Thank God, it was a private one! She had been so eager to see him as soon as possible – but now she was shocked, as he lay in front of her, very pale and co
n
nected to an ECG analysis device and an IV. The surveillance equipment made low beeping sounds. At least the respirator wasn’t necessary anymore, but she n
o
ticed it still sitting next to his bed, as if he had been disco
n
nected from it only moments ago. Only now she realized how close to death he had come. More than likely had he been left unattended for only a couple of minutes longer, Vance would‘ve died out there.

             
Alison stepped closer and sat down on the little chair next to the bed. Gently, she closed her fingers around his left hand.
It seemed a bit cold to her, and somehow very fragile. She wished she didn’t have to wear those anti-contamination gloves!

             
“Vance?” she whispered.

             
His head turned slowly towards her and his eyes opened. Al
i
son saw his lips curl in a very faint smile.

             
“Wonderful to wake up … and see your face.”

             
“I’m so glad you’re alive!” She couldn’t hold back her tears, despite her firm resolve not to cry. “That was a crazy thing to do, Vance; what the hell were you thinking??”

             
She stroke
d
his head and cheek and again cursed the gloves. She wanted to feel him, hug him and hold him – and never let him go!

             
“Do you regret it already… having said yes?” he asked.

             
“No.”

             
Their eyes met in a soft kiss that their lips were denied, and they fell silent for a long moment.

             
“Just promise me you won’t ever pull a crazy stunt like that again!”

             
His smile grew stronger.
“Only in the movies.”

…

The house lay in one of the quieter areas of Los Angeles. The last sunrays of the day coloured the roof. The huge trees in front of the building provided a natural shield from noise and curiosity. It was almost as if a noble lady hid herself behind an umbrella, well aware of her beauty and charm, but too modest to show off. The house was a jewel. Just the right spot to feel at home in this bustling, roaring city. Vance and Alison had bought it six months ago, shortly after their marriage. Some cardboard boxes and stacked items reminded that the new owners had moved in only a short time ago
, after the renov
a
tion and refurnishing had been co
m
pleted.

             
At the moment, Vance stood in front of the mirror in the sp
a
cious bed room and struggled with his tie. He hated having to dress up like that. But for some occasions, it was just inev
i
table. And a movie premiere was one of these occasions!

             
“I still think,” he commented his efforts, “
the
invention of things like ties hastens the fall of mankind!
”

             
“That’
s probably the reason, women were created,
”
Al
i
son
’
s voice answered.
“
To help men in their distress!
Come on
…”

             
Vance turned around and saw her enter, clad in a shi
m
mering blue gown. The colour was perfect for her skin tone and hair. His face lit up like the sun as he watched her.

             
“
You look absolutely stunning! I
’
m glad you skipped the advice of your so-called stylist and followed mine instead!
”

             
“Yes…” Alison smiled the same. “But if we don’
t hurry, we
’
ll
have to skip this whole evening
…”

             
“Are you
mad at me?
”

Even if she had been, the way he looked at her made it i
m
possible to feel anything but happiness and love.

             
She finished the tie with quick and skilled moves, and then put her arms around his hips. Vance bent down until his lips almost touched hers.

             
“We’
re definitely going to be late, Mrs. Van Sorel!
”

             
“Well, the premiere is behind schedule anyway.”

             
They indulged in a long, gentle kiss that was interrupted by the sound of the door bell.

             
“That’
s the cab. Much as I hate to, we really have to break things up and get going.
”
Alison grabbed her shawl and hu
r
ried to the intercom near the door to acknowledge the taxi driver.

             
“We could continue in the theatre. It’
s dark, after all,
”
Vance answered grinning, snatching his jacket.

             
Alison shot him a glance full of
pretend outrage
and shook her head.

When they arrived, the reporters, a lot of colleagues and a huge mass of fans and spectators were already in attendance. A young stylish reporter from Vogue put herself forward and approached the new arrivals. She talked at top speed, hardly giving them a chance to respond.

             
“Welcome! –
May I congratulate to your marriage?
–
What a wonderful romantic story, you fell in love on the set of this great new movie! That
’
s almost like a movie script itself, don
’
t you think? Is there anything you want to share with our vie
w
ers?
”

She held the microphone in Alison
’
s direction.

             
“Only one thing!
I want to thank all the people who have worked on this production and made this movie possible d
e
spite the all the difficulties we encountered! And I want to r
e
member
my old, trusted colleague Max Dumont, who gave his life in an attempt to save all of us and sadly is not here tonight to celebrate this achievement!
–
Max, I hope you have found the peace you were always striving for
–
no one deserves it more than you!
”

             
The reporter blinked and was momentarily taken aback. She was here to get a sweet inside story of Hollywood
’
s latest dream couple, and did not know how to respond to this
so
m
ber
stat
e
ment. And her colleagues from another paper already interviewed producer
Yerikov
!

             
“Misses and Mister Van Sorel, can we look forward se
e
ing you work together on a project any time soon?” she tried to get the interview on track again. At least, her camera assi
s
tant got some nice close-ups, when Vance smiled radiantly into the camera.

             
“At the moment,” he said, looking as if he could just e
m
brace the whole world, “we are working on a little project of our own, yes!”

             
With that he turned, gently leading Alison away from the pushy reporter, who hurried after them, now inquiring what project he was talking about. Alison was still laughing when they finally arrived inside the luxurious lobby of the old movie
theater
. Now the gossip mongers had something to chew on! In the past, that would have really annoyed here. But tonight, she was simply too happy.

             
“Hello, Alison! Vance!”
The unmistakable timbre of Jake
Be
r
toni
.
“I can‘t believe I haven’
t seen you since the wrapping party! Oh, you both look great!
”

             
He hugged them both, and then took a step back, still grinning.
“
And what did I hear, you
’
re working on a little
pr
o
ject?
!
”

             
Vance bent
down,
making sure his words
weren
’
t ove
r
heard by the other guests or the reporters.
“
We
’
re having a baby. We just found out yesterday!
”

             
Now Jake beamed the same, and again took Alison
’
s hands.
“
That
’
s amazing news! I wish you all the best!
”

             
Steps behind him made him turn around. A dark haired woman in black dress had just entered and now looked around searching.

             
“Heather, I’
m over here!
”
called Jake and turned back to Vance and Alison.
“
My new fiancée!
Does she not look
ma
r
velous
?!
”

             
“Jake, be careful…”