***Hart Industries***
A person is sitting in their car, across the street from Hart Industries. They've sat here every day for two weeks, and observed the patterns, and written them down. They were almost confident enough to put their plan into motion.
***Willow Pond***
Jennifer Hart was at home, working on a story. She was in the final stretches-all that was left was typing and editing and submitting. There was one cardinal rule that she tried to follow, and that was that she didn't work when her husband was home. Their time together was very important to her, and she didn't want to spend it with her nose buried in a typewriter.
It had been a week since she had seen him-he had been away on a business trip in Chicago, and due to her demanding story and the research needed, she wasn't able to go with him this time. She was counting down the minutes till he got home. Today, was their 8th anniversary. She had an incredibly romantic evening planned for them, that would hopefully go off without a hitch.
Max, their houseman, popped his head in.
"I'm headed to the market, Mrs. H. Anything special you want me to pick up?"
"I made you a list, Max. It's on the fridge. And when you get the potatoes, can you get the red ones and the jumbo baking ones? Jonathan likes the jumbo baking ones. And if they have any of his cereal, can you pick that up as well?"
"Sure thing, Mrs. H. You going to be ok while I'm gone?"
"I'll be fine, Max. I'll turn on the tv for company".
It was no secret that Jennifer's anxiety always seemed to flare up when Jonathan was away.
"I promise, I'll be back as soon as I can. What time is Mr. H. coming in?"
"He had a very important meeting at the office today, so he should be there now and then he'll be home as soon as it's over".
"Great. Well, I'll be back soon".
"Thanks, Max".
As Max headed to the market, he thought about the day Jonathan had introduced Jennifer to him. After just a few minutes, it was clear that Jonathan was crazy about her and she about him. After just a day, it was clear that they were meant for each other.
It had only been 8 years since they had married, and as far as Max could see, nothing had changed. They were still perfect for each other, and as still in love as they had always been. In the very beginning of their marriage, it was rare to find one without the other. Nothing had changed really, except that Mrs. H. had taken a few trips to see her dad without Mr. H., when her dad had gotten sick, and he had started taking a few business trips without her. Max knew that it just made the time they spent together even more special, and he was great about trying not to disturb them when they finally did get some alone time.
He pulled onto Pacific Coast Blvd, and was immediately stuck in traffic.
"Geez, what is going on?"
He couldn't see anything going on up ahead. However, living in Los Angeles usually meant being stuck in traffic due to accidents or issues that were never seen by the drivers on the road, and he knew that. He had no choice but to just sit back and wait.
***Hart Industries***
It was business as usual, and everyone was toiling away, working hard. They were all on a deadline, and they knew it. Final day of the quarter was next week, so they were all trying to make sure there wasn't any outstanding business that might affect the quarter numbers. Mr. Hart ran a tight ship. Tight, but fair. He was also very generous with the bonuses when everything was done, and they knew that as well.
***Gas station parking lot***
Across the street, the person who had been watching was putting the final pieces of their plan into place. They had obtained an ID in the name of Clarke Fontaine. They had purchased the vehicle they were in from a police auction in another state, and paid cash for it, using the fake id. By the time this was all over, nobody would know what hit them, and there would be zero evidence of who had really done this.
Two weeks' worth of observation revealed that the guard who came on shift in the guard shack at 1 was very lax, and just waved anyone through. That was key. This plan didn't have any room for questions.
The person started their car, and drove out of the parking lot. They drove into the parking lot at Hart Industries, and just like clockwork, the guard waved them through without any questions.
Relaxing just a little, they headed into the parking garage and found the perfect spot, and pulled into it.
They quickly grabbed what they needed out of the backseat, and then headed to the stairs.
They took the stairs up and down a few times, putting the physical parts of their plan into place, before disappearing out a side door and walking to another parking lot where they had another vehicle stashed.
As they drove out of town, they removed their disguise, piece by piece. Within 30 minutes, the person who got into the car had vanished and the person who was now in the car looked more than 10 years younger, with completely different coloring, shading, and features.
The person drove for 2 hours, and then checked into a hotel under yet another assumed identity.
Now was the time to order pizza, sit back and relax, and wait for the news that was sure to be a national news story.
***Hart Industries***
Around 3, just down the street from the office, there was a car accident. Someone hit an electric pole, and a transformer blew, causing the office to lose all power.
Everyone packed up their belongings, and called it a day, despite the fact that backup generators had come on.
Stanley Friesen, Jonathan's right hand, was in charge. He called each floor and told them they were free to stay or free to leave, whichever they chose.
"The office will be open tomorrow for those who want to come play catch-up".
He decided to stay, in case the power came back on, so he wouldn't have to come in the next day.
Deanne popped her head into his office.
"I'm heading home, Stanley. Are you staying?"
"Yeah, I have some pretty important plans tomorrow and I don't want to mess those up. My sister is getting married Sunday, so we are having a rehearsal and rehearsal dinner and my whole family is in town. It'd be best if I stayed late tonight to get it all done".
"Very well. Have a nice weekend, Stanley, see you Monday".
"No, I'll be on vacation. As soon as the wedding is over, I'm catching a flight to Alaska and taking an Alaskan cruise."
"How fun! I've always wanted to do that".
"Yeah, me too. Bit the bullet, guess you could say. I mean, I'm clearly not getting any younger".
"Wish I was as brave as you".
"Deanne, when I get back from my cruise, would you…would you want to maybe grab dinner with me?"
"Sure, I'd like that".
"Great. It's a date. I just got a new car, I can't wait to show it to you".
"Oh? What did you get?"
"I decided to treat myself. I got a yellow Mercedes, just like Mr. Hart".
"Have fun on your cruise, Stanley".
She leaned over and kissed him on the cheek, and then headed out.
As she stepped onto the elevator, she thought about how she had always had a thing for Stanley. They had known each other for 10 years now, but to date, they had always only been friends. She hadn't ever told anyone that she liked him, because she knew nobody would believe her. She and Stanley had shared a meal a few times with others from the office, and she had found him to be polite, charming, engaging, and extremely intelligent. The dating scene in Los Angeles made it hard to find anyone with even one of those qualities.
As she made her way to her car, she couldn't believe things were finally going to happen between them.
Deanne was surprised that she was the last to leave. She recognized Stanley's car, and saw another one, a blue Chevelle. Except for those two, the parking garage was empty.
She drove out of the parking garage, through the exit and turned right onto Wilshire.
Just like clockwork, it all started. The mysterious stranger had placed several bombs in the stairwells of Hart Industries, and they were all set to go off 20 seconds after each other. They had been placed a few stairwells from each other, so that one blast wouldn't trigger another. There were two in the parking garage as well, just for good measure.
Once the physical damage was done, the electronic damage would then begin.
It took about 2 minutes for all of the stairwell explosives to detonate. By the time they were all done, the building that held the name Hart Industries was nothing but a smoldering pile of rubble.
***Max***
Traffic started moving again, and Max made it to the market. Seemed like everyone and their brother decided to go grocery shopping today. He had to wait at every counter, he had to fight his way down each aisle. By the time he got to the checkout, he was agitated and upset.
***Willow Pond***
Jennifer turned on the tv, and then headed to get some water from the kitchen.
She decided to make herself some avocado toast, and was coming back into the living room when she heard it.
Breaking news-the Hart Industries building in downtown Los Angeles has exploded and collapsed. Firefighters and rescue EMTs are headed to the scene. The LAPD is requesting that everyone avoid the area. Wilshire boulevard has been shut down in the area around the building as a result.
Jennifer sat down slowly, trying to absorb what she had just heard.
No, this can't be right. They can't be talking about my husband's building. They have to be talking about a different building down the street. That's it…they got the building wrong. They couldn't be talking about Hart Industries. Surely, they were talking about the apartment building across the street that Hart Industries owns, right? She picked up the phone to call Jonathan. Deanne would tell her that it was all a mistake.
She dialed the number she knew by heart, and got a recorded operator's message. We're sorry, your call cannot go through as this line is experiencing trouble. Please try your call again later.
The tears burned her face before she realized she was crying. Powerless to stop them, she just let them fall. She couldn't stop watching the coverage, hoping for a glimpse of her husband. She knew, better than anyone though, that if her husband was still alive, he would be helping with the rescue efforts. Based on what she was seeing on tv, she couldn't imagine anyone making it out of that alive.
She sat there, tears streaming down her face, staring at the tv.
She didn't hear Max come in.
As soon as he saw her, he put the groceries down, and then came over to her.
"Mrs. H., what is it?"
She pointed at the tv.
"Oh man…"
He gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder.
"Mrs. H., Mr. H. is strong. Ain't no way he's going to let this stop him".
"No survivors, Max".
Jennifer reached over and picked up a picture of the two of them. Max had taken the picture a few years back, and it was one of Jennifer's favorites. It showed Jonathan, sitting in the oversized chair, with Jennifer sitting in his lap, with her forehead resting against his. They were both smiling and happy and in love, with life and each other.
Suddenly, she broke down.
"Oh Max….what are we going to do without him? I never got to say goodbye…8 years just isn't long enough…"
He tried to console her, but he had no answers. Jonathan Hart left behind shoes that nobody could fill.
Jennifer, somehow, found enough strength to call her dad's house.
Walter, his houseman, picked up the phone.
"Hi, Walter, it's Jennifer. Listen, something has happened and Jonathan's building is all over the news. We aren't sure what happened yet, so for the time being, can you try and shield my dad from seeing it?"
"I'll try my best, Ms. Jennifer."
"How is he doing?"
"Today's a good day. He seems to be feeling good. I think this last surgery really zapped his energy though. He seems to have less energy now than he did when he had the tumor".
"Well, I'll take a tired Stephen Edwards over a cancerous one".
"Me too, Ms. Jennifer. Me too".
"I'm in no position to talk to him and I don't want him to know I'm upset. So, please don't tell him I called. I'll call and talk to him once we know something for sure".
"Got it, Ms. Jennifer. Take care of yourself".
"I will. Thank you for taking care of my dad".
"My pleasure, Ms. Jennifer".
They hung up and she turned up the volume on the coverage.
Rescuers have pulled a body out of the rubble at Hart Industries. The body is of a white male, and was located in what they believe to be an office that was in the western part of the building. Rescuers have also found that the parking garage was mostly empty. We go now to footage of the parking garage, as they are pulling pieces of the garage off a car they've found, that will be inspected for clues…
Jennifer let out a wail, as the image of a yellow Mercedes came into view. It was official, her husband was gone.
For the next hour, she and Max sat there watching the coverage, trying to process their feelings. The man they both loved and admired the most, was gone.
"He was my everything", Jennifer whispered.
"He was my hero. Sure wish I had told him".
"I'm pretty sure you were his hero too, Max. You saw something in him that was worth redeeming, at a time when nobody else was looking. That always meant a lot to him".
Just then, the door opened. Jonathan Hart came walking inside and set his bags down. He had a large bouquet of red American Beauty roses in his hand.
"Damn, it's great to be home. Happy anniversary, darling!"
"Oh, darling".
Jennifer took off running towards him, jumping into his arms.
As soon as she clung to him, she collapsed into more tears than she thought possible. He held her as the sobs wracked her body.
"Darling…what is it?"
"I thought…." She started to cry harder and couldn't finish telling him.
Max came over to him.
"Mr. H, I'm so glad to see you. If I may, we thought you was….well it's just…"
"What is it, Max?"
"Something happened at the office today, Mr. H. The building, it's…well, it's gone. And we thought you was gone too".
"I wasn't even at the office. My meeting this afternoon got moved to San Francisco. I would have been home an hour ago, if it wasn't for the traffic on the road."
Jennifer stopped crying long enough to let him kiss her and smooth her hair back from her face.
"I was so scared…"
"I'm fine, darling, honest."
They walked to the couch as Max turned up the volume.
Jennifer snuggled up to him as they listened to the coverage and then he asked Max to turn it down.
"Ok, let me think this through. They said the parking garage was mostly empty. So, that means most of my employees had probably left before this happened. But why? Today wasn't scheduled to be an early-leave day."
"Mr. H., they said earlier that a yellow Mercedes was found parked in the garage. I saw it, when they showed it. And they said a white male was pulled from the wreckage".
"I don't know anyone who has a yellow Mercedes, other than us".
Jennifer was still upset, so Max went and got her some tea.
Jonathan leaned over and got the phone.
He called Deanne, his secretary.
"Hello?"
"Deanne, hi. It's Mr. Hart. How are you?"
"Hello. I'm fine. I'm just so devastated about the building though".
"That's what I was calling you about. Did everyone leave early today?"
"Yes, they did. There was a traffic accident that took out a transformer and we lost power. So, when the generators kicked on, Stanley told everyone that if they wanted to go home, they could. If they wanted to stay, they could do that too. He also said he would open the office tomorrow for anyone wanting to play catch-up".
"So, Stanley was still there when you left?"
"Yes. We had a nice conversation, and this might seem weird, but he was in the best mood I've ever seen him in."
"He wasn't his usual anxious self?"
"Not at all. He was so excited about his vacation he was taking starting Monday, and then he asked me to dinner for when he got back, and told me he couldn't wait to show me his car. He just bought a yellow Mercedes like you".
For the first time in their marriage, Jennifer saw Jonathan tear up and begin to cry.