Explosive Harts
***Willow Pond***
It's the middle of the night. Jonathan and Jennifer are sleeping. Jonathan's phone rings.
He sleepily answers it. "Hello?"
"There is a bomb in the building at Hart Industries. You have one hour to meet my demands or I will blow up the company at some point during the business day today".
"What do you want?"
"I want you to cancel the deal to merge Servpro and Chemocal. I want you to restore the 300 jobs that were lost when you closed the factory in Florida last year. And I want a date-dinner, dancing, the whole works, with your wife".
"My wife is not part of the deal, and never will be. And I won't allow you or anyone else to use her to intimidate me. We can sit down and have a meeting about the first two demands, but threatening to blow up my office, isn't the way to get me to do that".
"There will be no meeting. You know what my demands are. Choice is yours".
The line went dead.
Jennifer was sitting up, waiting for him to explain it to her.
He filled her in while he got dressed.
"Where are you going?"
"I am calling the police, and having them find the bomb so they can get rid of it. If they cannot, I will close the building until it's found".
"I'm coming with you."
"No, you need to stay here. This person wants you as part of the demands, you will be safer here".
"Jonathan, I will be worried sick here without you".
"I know. But I will be back home as soon as I can. I will call you when I leave, and I will have the police with me. They are searching I am just unlocking the building for them".
"I don't like it."
"I know. I love you, darling".
She kissed him.
"Please be careful".
He nodded and kissed her again.
She laid back down on the bed, sick with worry.
Jonathan found Max in the kitchen, and filled him in.
"Keep her safe, Max. Nobody in or out, unless you hear it from me".
"Got it, Mr. H".
Jonathan climbed in the car and headed to the office.
***Hart Industries***
Jonathan had called the police and told them about the threats that he had received. They agreed to send the bomb squad and some officers to meet him in the parking lot.
He pulled up and parked and when the police got there, he unlocked the building.
The bomb squad did a sweep, and found 3 suspicious packages. None of them were actual bombs, but had been designed to look like bombs.
The police finally cleared the building at 6:30. Jonathan sent out phone tree that let everyone know that Hart Industries was going to be closed for the day.
The police agreed to follow Jonathan back to Willow Pond, to take his statement.
He called her as soon as he got in the car.
She answered on the first ring.
"I love you".
"I love you too, and I am on my way home. Tell Max that the police are coming to take my statement, so he can let them in".
She walked into the kitchen and told Max what he said.
"What did you find?"
"Nobody was out of place, like waiting on me or anything. But they found three suspicious packages which turned out to be fake bombs. I went ahead and closed the building for the day and gave everyone a day off".
"Good."
"Did anyone call while I was gone?"
"No."
"Did you sleep?" He already knew the answer to that one.
"Not a wink. I got on the couch, and I haven't moved".
"I will be home soon".
"I am watching for you".
Max brought her some coffee, and she drank a sip, but she couldn't concentrate. Nothing else mattered until he was home.
"Are you sure you're ok?"
"Yes, I opened the door for the police, and then I was surrounded by police the entire time. Nobody else was in the building."
"How could someone get in the building if they aren't an employee to plant the fake bombs?"
"The cleaning crew comes at night, it's possible that they snuck in while the cleaning crew was there and did it. It's possible that the cleaning crew left a door open, and it happened that way. I am going to have to watch the video from the surveillance system to see how they did it".
"So, what next?"
"Well, the police are coming to the house to take my statement. And the bomb squad is going to do an in-depth sweep of the building again, now that I closed it for the day, and they are going to report back to me if they find anything. And the most important part is, I am opening the gate right now".
She got up and ran to the door.
She stayed inside, but she was standing right there when he walked in.
She flew into his arms, and he just held her for a minute.
"I'm ok, darling. I am".
They walked into the kitchen, and Max made them some breakfast.
He put some coffee on for the police when they got there.
They had just finished eating when the police buzzed the intercom.
Max let them up, and Jonathan met them at the door.
Jennifer and Jonathan sat in the den while the police asked Jonathan questions. The lieutenant thought that maybe the phone call was really a smoke screen, so he had two bomb squad members sweep the house and grounds just to be sure.
"How do you think he got your cell phone number?"
"Well, I put it as my main contact number for the office. And it's on all the deals and mergers paperwork. And my secretary has it programmed in on speed dial on her desk phone".
"So, we suspect that he called in the middle of the night thinking that you would be sleepy and confused and would just give in. What got your attention that made you say no?"
"His third demand, that he wanted a date, dinner and dancing with my wife."
Jennifer laced her fingers through his, and kissed his shoulder.
The police really didn't have anything to go on, since the caller had blocked his number, so they just made a report of it, and told Jonathan to watch himself. The bomb squad technicians had found nothing on the house or the grounds.
Everyone left, and Jennifer went upstairs to take a shower and get dressed. Jonathan followed her and tried to reassure her that everything was ok.
She was in a towel, picking out her clothes.
"Darling, I don't know what I would do, if something happened to you. I am not prepared for that, nor will I ever be".
"I know. But I had to check it out, I couldn't put my employees at risk, or you. And they wanted a date with you, so in my mind if I took you to the office this morning, I could just see me going in there to check it out with you, and they could blow the building up then. If I left you in the car, you could have been hurt, or kidnapped while I was in the building. You staying home was the only way, darling".
"I know. But in my head, all I could see was you walking into the building and it blowing up".
He tried to comfort her, but it was hard. If anything ever happened to her, he would feel the same way. The two of them were true soulmates in every sense of the word.
***Later that night***
They had stayed in the house for the rest of the day. Not because they were scared, but because they didn't really have anywhere to go. Jennifer had suggested going to the beach house, or the ranch, but Jonathan didn't want to, not while this was happening. His employees lives were at stake.
Jennifer was in the bathroom putting on lotion and baby oil. She came to bed, and found Jonathan sitting there waiting on her.
He had her sit in front of him and she leaned back against him.
"You know darling, we have 3 dinner parties this week. One at the Simpson's, one at the Mortimer's and one at the Brennan's."
"Jay Brennan?"
"Jay and Melanie Brennan, that's the one".
"He owns a lot of stock in Servpro. I wonder if he can shed any light on why the deal is taking so long and is so arduous."
"This time last year, we were in Buenos Aires. Now, we are living in fear from a mad bomber".
He rolled her over and they embraced.
"Just like I told you when you married me, babe. Always an adventure".
He kissed her and reached up and turned out the light.
***A few hours later***
It was 4:12 a.m. Jonathan's cell phone started ringing. He and Jennifer both sat up, and Jonathan turned the light on.
"Darling, grab your phone and start recording".
He grabbed his phone, and put it on speaker.
"Hello?"
"You thought you were so smart last night bringing in the bomb squad. Well, there is another bomb in Hart Industries now, and if you don't want it to go off, you will have to agree to my demands".
"What demands?"
"Same as last night. Reopen the factory, restore the jobs that were lost when it closed. Stop the merger, and a date with your wife. But now, the date with your wife has gone from just dinner and dancing to an overnight date."
"As I told you last night, leave my wife out of it. And if you want to talk about the first two demands, we can do that. I am willing to discuss my business decisions."
"Reopening the factory is the only way that your employees will not be killed".
"We had to close the factory because it's no longer a structurally safe building. I personally told everyone all they had to do if they wanted a job with Hart Industries was to apply. It doesn't make sense to me to put employee's lives in danger by having them work in a building that can't be repaired safely."
"Because of the merger, a lot of people are losing their jobs and their stock benefits. You weren't going to close the factory before the merger talks took place".
"I didn't know about the state the factory was in until the merger talks took place."
"Well, you have a decision to make. Reopen the factory, and let folks go back to work, or lose the building you work in and all those people who work with you will lose their lives too".
"I answered your questions. Will you answer one of mine?"
"Go ahead".
"Why do you want a date with my wife in exchange for people's lives?"
"A few reasons. Your wife is a stone-cold fox who really turns heads. Also, I know that you will protect your wife from anything. She could be the motivation behind you making sure the deal doesn't go through. That's all I got tonight. You have 1 hour, or you know what will happen".
The line went dead.
Jennifer stopped recording. She sent the audio file to him.
She was upset.
"Darling, I don't want you to put your employee's lives at risk, but I have no intentions of spending the night with anyone else".
"I am not going to let anything happen to you or them, darling. But he did get one thing right, you are a stone-cold fox".
He got out of bed, and she got up too.
"Coffee, darling?"
"Yes, please. I'll be in the study".
She went and made him some coffee, and brought it to him in the study.
He was sitting at the desk, looking at video footage of the office building.
She sat in his lap and wrapped her arms around his neck.
"Find anything?'
"Not yet. The building was closed all day yesterday, though, so all we need to see is if anyone went inside".
He set the video to fast forward, and they were able to watch all 24 hours in about 20 minutes.
They didn't see anyone at all.
"I think he's lying about the bomb, in order to intimidate me to stop the deal".
"Maybe you're right, darling".
He grabbed the phone, did another phone tree just to be safe, and then called Lt. Gray, and reported the second phone call.
He filled them in on the video footage showing nobody, and they agreed that it was probably a hoax.
He hung up the phone.
Jennifer was still sitting in his lap.
"What are you going to do, darling?"
"Well, I can call of the deal, that's not a problem. But I don't think that's really what he wants. I think he wants that factory reopened, even though it's not safe for people to be in the factory. So there must be some reason why he wants to go back in there. I am thinking, that I should tell him I am going to reopen it, and then go there and be present when it opens".
"Good idea, darling".
He wrapped his arms around her waist.
"You know something?"
"What?"
"I always have my best ideas when you are sitting in my lap".
He started to nuzzle her neck.
"Happy to help, darling".
***Later that day***
Jennifer was upstairs getting ready for the dinner party at the Simpson's. She had bought a new dress a few weeks ago, and was going to wear it tonight. It was a beautiful purple silk halter dress, and she had the most gorgeous black tanzanite necklace and earrings that would look amazing with it. She put on some black crusted peep toe stilettos, and started on her makeup.
Jonathan was getting ready too.
"There is one thing I hope that happens at the dinner party tonight, darling".
"What's that?"
"That I get to dance with you".
He kissed the side of her face.
"I would love nothing more than to dance with you all night, darling".
As soon as they were ready, they headed out.
***Simpson's dinner party***
Jennifer and Jonathan came inside. The dinner party was just getting underway. They got some drinks, and started to mingle.
The music started playing, so they went to dance. They danced 3 dances, and melted together. Then, just as they were going to go grab some food, one of the executives at Hart Industries came up.
"Hi Mark. Darling, this is Mark Watson. Mark, my wife Jennifer".
"Hi. Nice to meet you".
"Lovely to meet you, Mrs. Hart".
"Darling, Mark is one of the big wigs when it comes to analyzing cost effectiveness."
"That's a great skill to have".
The band started to play another song.
"Darling, would you like to dance again?"
"Actually, I am hungry".
"Mrs. Hart, I would be happy to dance with you, while your husband hits the food table. Would you care to dance?"
"Sure, thank you".
She kissed Jonathan and then she and Mark headed to the dance floor. He was the perfect gentleman, and a very good dancer.
"It's nice to see you two out on the town. With the craziness of the mergers and dealings, I'm sure a night away is just what you guys needed".
"Yes, it is nice to relax a little, and dance some nice dances".
"Few people know how hard it is to run a company. You have to look at so many things when you buy another business or merge with another company. Things like whether or not the building is structurally sound, and cost effective, and built to last. I imagine Mr. Hart thinks about that kind of stuff all the time".
"Yes, I imagine he does. So, how long have you been working for my husband?"
"Well, I just moved here 6 months ago from Georgia. He hired me right after I moved here, and I have worked my way up".
"That's great."
The song ended.
"Well, it was lovely to dance with you, Mark. Thanks for asking. I am going to go find my husband".
She patted his arm, and went to find Jonathan.
After they ate and mingled a bit, they danced several more dances. They only had eyes for each other the whole time.
"Darling, my feet are killing me. Are you ready to go yet?"
"Sure".
They thanked the hosts and headed home.
***In the car***
Jennifer had definitely had way too much champagne. She had drank at least 5 glasses, throughout the course of the evening. It was starting to hit her.
She laced her fingers through his, and leaned back in the seat.
"How was your dance with Mark Watson?"
"He was a perfect gentleman, but not as good a dancer as you are".
"Really?"
"Yeah. I got the sense that he doesn't have much of a social life. He kept talking about how we needed this night out and how hard it must be for you to run the business. Just seemed like all he thinks about is business".
"He was probably trying to impress you so that you would tell me".
"Maybe.." She started to giggle. The champagne was getting to her.
***Willow Pond***
Jennifer and Jonathan came inside, and headed for the bar. She took her jacket off, and he took his tuxedo jacket off and untied his tie. She was still giggling.
"The party was wonderful, darling. Absolutely wonderful".
She wrapped her arms around his neck, and he embraced her.
She kept laughing, but couldn't say why. He knew that she had been overcome by the champagne.
"Darling, how about a snack?"
"Sure…" They headed to the kitchen.
They decided on sliced cheese and toast, and some fresh juice.
He picked her up and sat her on the counter, and fed her some toast.
He nuzzled on her neck some, and she scratched his back a little.
"I loved dancing with you tonight, darling".
"Me too. We should do it more often".
"I can think of something else we should do more often".
"Oh, good idea". She kissed him, and they took their snack upstairs.
***Middle of the night***
Jonathan and Jennifer were sleeping. It's 3:47. Their bedroom phone rings. He grabs his cell phone, starts a recording, and answers the other one.
"Hello?"
"You know the drill…kill the deal or everyone at the office dies...what's it going to be?"
"How about a face to face meeting so we can discuss this?"
"No. You had your chance to talk to me about it last night and didn't take it. I gotta say, your wife was gorgeous last night at the dinner party."
"I am willing to reopen the factory, but it's going to take some time. I will release a press statement later today, if you promise me that you won't do anything to my employees".
"Fine. You release the statement and I will push the explosion back by a week, to see if you follow through with the deal".
"Thank you".
They hung up.
Jennifer had her hand on his back.
He laid back down on the bed and wrapped his arms around her.
"You going to the office today?"
"Yes, but not at this ungodly hour".
"Good.
She fell back asleep with her head on his shoulder.
He tried to sleep but couldn't. He felt like he was missing a big piece, but couldn't figure out what it was.
He finally got up for the day around 6. He called Lt. Gray and filled him in, and he asked for the bomb squad to sweep the building again, just in case. They agreed.
He left at 7, and kissed Jennifer goodbye.
"I love you darling".
"Love you too".
"I'll call you when I am in the office. Lunch today?"
She nodded.
"I'll make us some reservations".
He kissed her again and then left.
She got up and showered and went and had breakfast.
He called her when he got to the office, just like he promised.
"Bomb squad found nothing, babe. I'm safely inside, and employees are starting to show up. Can you be here at 10? I want you next to me when I do the press release".
"Absolutely".
"I called for extra security. So when you get here, one of them will walk you in".
"Ok, darling. I love you. I will be there at 10".
She went and changed clothes and did her hair. She decided to wear a light tan blouse, black pants, and black heels. It was one of Jonathan's favorite outfits of hers.
She told Max she was heading out, and would be back later.
"See ya later, Mrs. H."
She hopped in the Porsche and took off.
***Hart Industries***
She told the security guard that she was Mrs. Jonathan Hart. He asked for ID anyways, and she gave it to him. She facetimed him, and he told the security guard that she was allowed in.
"Please make sure she has an escort".
"Will do, sir".
They had her park right next to Jonathan's car, and walked her inside.
The building was covered in security and police.
Every phone call was being recorded. Members of the press were being ushered into the media room.
Jennifer walked into Jonathan's office.
"Hi darling".
"Hi".
He kissed her and held her for a minute.
"Ok, darling. The press statement is going to say that I am reopening the factory in Florida, after some much needed repairs are made. I am also going to address the fact that anyone who was displaced can contact Hart Industries and we will place them in a job somewhere. And then, I am going to talk about how difficult these negotiations and merger talks have been, and thank you for standing by my side. So, you will need to say something like "I would never be anywhere else". I am confident that Mr. Bomb threat is going to be watching, so I want him to know that I am serious about you not being used to intimidate me, and you not being part of any deal".
"Whatever you need, darling".
Jonathan looked at his watch. It was 9:50.
"This weekend, on Sunday, let's fly down to Florida and take a look at the factory".
"Ok".
"What are we looking for?"
"I'm not exactly sure. There was an employee who was killed at the factory several years ago, but it was ruled an accident. He fell from an exposed beam while repairing something. Some of the other employees think he was killed. The main issues with the factory are the electrical and the roof, beams. So, I am going to have someone rewire all of that before we can reopen, and check out the beams to see if they can be replaced or repaired".
"And what if they cannot?"
"I will issue another statement with the report that shows why it has to be closed".
She nodded.
They held hands as they walked to the media room, and as they stood by the microphone.
Jonathan stepped up to the mic.
"For the past three months, Hart Industries has been working on buying a company, Servpro, and merging it with Chemo-o-Cal. This merger would not only add more jobs to the industry, but would also allow for new developments in the advancement of products and technology. Adding Servpro to the Hart Industries family also adds more labs for research, more room for expansion of ideas and new growth, and more employees to help carry out the mission and goals of Hart Industries. Along with that merger, unfortunately, we had to close a factory in Florida. We did not make this decision lightly; we closed the factory because the structure of the building wasn't safe for the employees. We value and care about the lives and safety and health and well-being of anyone who is on a Hart Industries property, regardless of whether they are an employee or a customer or just an ordinary citizen. It is with the upmost regard for the safety of our employees that we decided to close the factory. However, we assured all employees that they were able to apply for a job with Hart Industries at another location. Nobody was going to be cut off. The deal was almost complete and finished, when my wife and I received the first of two phone calls at our home, informing us that there was a bomb in this building. The caller stated that if I didn't call off the deal, they would blow the building up at some point in the day. I immediately called the police, and asked them to come check it out. I met them here, along with the members of the bomb squad, and they did a very thorough search of the building. No bombs were found. Just to be safe, I closed the building for the day, in order to protect my employees. I gave a statement to the police, detailing what was said and all the information that I had. Then, the second call came in. Again, they wanted me to drop the deal, reopen the factory in Florida, and one other demand. I told them to drop the bottom demand again, and that we could talk about the first two face to face. We had a longer conversation about the first two demands. I again had the bomb squad come check things out here to be safe. Again, they found no bombs. I once again closed the building for the day to be sure that our employees remained safe and unharmed. And early this morning, I received another phone call from the same individual. So, in the interest of preserving the health of our employees and the safety and well being of those employees, I am canceling the merger between Servpro, and Chem-o-cal. I am also going to personally visit the Factory in Florida that was closed, and get estimates to repair the major structural damage that caused it to be closed. Upon completion of the repairs, we will reopen the factory, and it will be business as usual. The final thing that I would like to address is something behind the scenes. The talks about the merger, and the acquisition of the company and the deals, has all been very arduous and time-consuming, and throughout all of it, there is one person who has never complained, never questioned and never put any demands on me or this company, and that person, is my lovely wife, Jennifer. Jennifer, I want to thank you for standing by my side, and always being so understanding."
Jennifer stepped forward. "There isn't anywhere else I would ever be than right by your side, darling. No business deal or merger is ever going to change that".
He kissed her and then turned back to the media.
"Having said that, I will now take questions, if anyone has any to ask".
Jonathan fielded questions for about 20 minutes, and then he and Jennifer grasped hands and walked back to his office.
He leaned up against his desk and pulled her into an embrace.
"Thanks for doing that with me, darling".
"Happy to help, darling".
She kissed him.
"Do we have time for lunch together?"
"How does La Scala at 12 sound, Mrs. H?"
"It sounds wonderful, Mr. H".
She kissed him again.
Stanley and Avery, Jonathan's secretary came in then.
"Great press conference, Mr. Hart."
"Thanks, Stanley".
Jonathan looked at Avery.
"Avery, we are going to Florida this weekend to check out the factory, so any appointments I have for Monday and Tuesday will have to be rescheduled".
Jennifer looked at him.
"Monday and Tuesday?"
"Yes, you and I are going to spend two nights at a little bed and breakfast".
"You are so good to me". She kissed him again.
She sat down on his couch and waited while he and Stanley did a conference call on the phone, and then they headed to lunch.
After a nice lunch, she headed home, and he headed back to the office.
***Willow Pond***
Jennifer came inside the house, and went and sat on the patio. It was such a nice day.
Max came outside and brought Freeway.
"I saw the press conference, you two did a great job Mrs. H."
"Thank you".
"Any idea who the person is making the bomb threat?"
"Not yet. But twice he asked for a date with me, which is why I was up there with Jonathan and made the statement with him. And this weekend, we are flying down to Florida to check out the factory".
"Perfect. Should be nice weather".
"How were the horses today, Max?"
"My horse came in second. It wasn't a bad day at all".
She sat out there a little longer and then walked down and got the mail.
She brought it back inside and found a card from the Brennan's.
"Our dinner party has been moved to next week. Save the date. It's a Masquerade dinner party".
She made a note to tell Jonathan.
She made a grocery list and decided to go to the store, but Max insisted that he would go and she could stay home.
"Ok, but I am cooking dinner tonight".
"Deal".
Max headed to the store, and Jennifer headed for a bubble bath.
After a nice, hot soak, she put on a black lace dress that Jonathan loved, and headed downstairs. Max had arrived just then, and she helped him put away the groceries.
She sliced sweet potatoes for sweet potato fries, and then she cut up zucchini for easy cheesy zucchini bake, and then she prepared the marinade for the steaks.
She called Jonathan.
"Darling, I am making dinner tonight. What time will you be home?"
"Around 5:30. Can I help you cook?"
"You can help me grill, if you'd like".
"You got it. See you later, darling".
"I love you"
"I love you too".
***Later***
Jennifer had everything ready for Jonathan, and was just waiting on him to get home.
5:30 came and went with no sign on Jonathan, no answer on the car phone or at the office.
Finally around 6:30, she grilled the steaks herself, and made her a plate and ate alone.
Meanwhile, Jonathan had been all set to leave work and come home. When he got to the parking garage, he was grabbed and placed in a van, and blindfolded.
He was driven around town.
Finally the kidnappers agreed to release him on one condition: that he reopen the factory Monday morning, and not wait on the repairs.
"I cannot and will not put my employees lives and safety at risk".
"Nothing is going to happen to them, but something is going to happen to you if you don't open it Monday".
"The roof could fall in at any moment. The beams need replacing".
"They can be replaced later, if you value your life, you will open on Monday".
Jonathan was trying to figure out who this person was, but couldn't. He was blindfolded and they were using voice altering software through a computer to talk to him, so the voice sounded robotic.
He finally agreed to their demands, and was dropped off on an alley road about 40 minutes from the house.
By the time he walked home and got inside, Jennifer was asleep and Jonathan's dinner was cold on the table.
***The next morning***
Jennifer hadn't noticed when Jonathan came to bed. Max hadn't even noticed he was back yet either. He had showered and changed and then went downstairs to the study and filed a police report about what happened to him. And then, he had gone to bed.
He slipped in beside Jennifer and put his arms around her and kissed her cheek.
"I'm sorry, babe".
He fell asleep.
***the next morning***
Jennifer woke up and realized that Jonathan was in bed next to her.
She stirred a little, got up and went and brushed her teeth.
She was just about to get in the shower, when he came in and put his arms around her.
"Morning, darling".
She turned and looked at him.
"I know, we had dinner plans. I was kidnapped, and as a result, we have to amend our weekend plans. When I got home, you were asleep and I was exhausted, so I chose not to wake you".
She swallowed hard.
"Are you alright?"
"I'm fine. They didn't hurt me, they just blindfolded me and made demands of me".
"Like what kind of demands?"
"That I open the factory Monday, and not wait for the repairs."
"Are you going to do that?"
"Yes, but we are going to go to fly to Florida Saturday, and take a look around Saturday night and Sunday. I am thinking that there must be something in that factory that this person wants to get out of it."
"Like they left something behind?"
"Possibly".
"What do you think it might be?"
"I am not sure. I am going to do some checking today into what has gone on at the factory and see if I can figure it out. I'm sorry about dinner, I'll make it up to you".
She shook her head. "It's alright".
"Darling, we are going to miss the Brennan's dinner party Saturday".
"No, we aren't, they moved it to next week".
"Ahh. Well, then we can head to Florida Friday if you'd like. I can book us extra nights at the bed and breakfast".
"Perfect".
She hopped in the shower and he went to get some coffee.
He was determined to get to the bottom of this factory mess today.