Read Online Memories of Midnight by Sidney Sheldon - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Sidney Sheldon
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hall. Evelyn opened the door without knocking.
'Wim, this is my new assistant.'
Catherine stepped into the office and stood there, riveted Wim Vandeen appeared to be in his early thirties, a thin man with a slack-jawed mouth, and a dull, vacant expression. He was staring out the window.
'Wim. Wim! This is Catherine Alexander.'
He turned around. 'Catherine the First's real name was Marta Skowronka she was a servant girl born in 1684 who was captured by the Russians she married Peter the First and was empress of Russia from 1725 to 1727, Catherine the Great was the daughter of a German prince she was born in 1729 and she married Peter, who became Emperor Peter the Third in 1762, and she succeeded to his throne that same year after she had him murdered. Under her reign there were three divisions of Poland and two wars against Turkey . . .'The information poured out like a fountain, in a monotone.
Catherine was listening, stunned. 'That's . . . that's very interesting,' she managed Wim Vandeen looked away Evelyn said, 'Wim is shy when he meets people.' Shy? Catherine*thought. The man is weird. And he's a genius What kind of job is this going to be?
In Athens, in his offices on Aghiou Geronda Street, Constantin Demiris was listening to a telephone report from Alfred in London 'I drove Miss Alexander directly from the airport to the flat, Mr Demiris. I asked her if she wished me to take her anywhere else, as you suggested, and she said no.' 'She's had no outside contacts at all?' 'No, sir. Not unless she made some telephone calls from the flat, sir.' Constantin Demiris was not worried about that. Anna, the housekeeper, would report to him. He replaced the receiver, satisfied. She presented no immediate danger to him and he would see that she was watched. She was alone in the world She had no one to turn to except her benefactor, Constantin Demiris. / must make arrangements to go to London soon, Demiris thought happily. Very soon.
Catherine Alexander found her new job interesting. Daily reports came in from Constantin Demiris' far-flung empire. There were bills of lading from a steel mill in Indiana, audits from an automobile factory in Italy, invoices from a newspaper chain in Australia, a gold mine, an insurance company. Catherine collated the reports and saw to it that the information went directly to Wim Vandeen. Win glanced at the reports once, put them through the incredible computer that was his brain, and almost instantly calculated the percentages of profit or loss to the company Catherine enjoyed getting to know her new colleagues and she was awed by the beauty of the old building she worked in.
She mentioned it to Evelyn Kaye once in front of Wim and Wim said, 'This was a government custom house designed by Sir Christopher Wren in seventeen twenty-one. After the great fire of London, Christopher Wren redesigned fifty churches including St Paul's, St Michael's, and St Bride's He designed the Royal Exchange and Buckingham House He died in seventeen twenty-three and is buried in St Paul's This house was converted to an office building in nineteen seven, and in the Second World War during the Blitz, the government declared it an official air-raid shelter.' The air-raid shelter was a large, bomb-proof room located through a heavy iron door adjoining the basement. Catherine looked into the heavily fortified room, and thought about the brave British men and women and children who had found shelter here during the terrible bombing by Hitler's Luftwaffe The basement itself was huge, running the entire length of the building. It had a large boiler for heating the building, and was filled with electronic and telephone equipment. The boiler was a problem. Several times, Catherine had escorted a repairman down to the basement to take a look at it. Each one would tinker with it, pronounce it cured of whatever had ailed it, and leave 'It looks so dangerous,' Catherine said. 'Is there any chance that it might explode?' 'Bless your
'Wim, this is my new assistant.'
Catherine stepped into the office and stood there, riveted Wim Vandeen appeared to be in his early thirties, a thin man with a slack-jawed mouth, and a dull, vacant expression. He was staring out the window.
'Wim. Wim! This is Catherine Alexander.'
He turned around. 'Catherine the First's real name was Marta Skowronka she was a servant girl born in 1684 who was captured by the Russians she married Peter the First and was empress of Russia from 1725 to 1727, Catherine the Great was the daughter of a German prince she was born in 1729 and she married Peter, who became Emperor Peter the Third in 1762, and she succeeded to his throne that same year after she had him murdered. Under her reign there were three divisions of Poland and two wars against Turkey . . .'The information poured out like a fountain, in a monotone.
Catherine was listening, stunned. 'That's . . . that's very interesting,' she managed Wim Vandeen looked away Evelyn said, 'Wim is shy when he meets people.' Shy? Catherine*thought. The man is weird. And he's a genius What kind of job is this going to be?
In Athens, in his offices on Aghiou Geronda Street, Constantin Demiris was listening to a telephone report from Alfred in London 'I drove Miss Alexander directly from the airport to the flat, Mr Demiris. I asked her if she wished me to take her anywhere else, as you suggested, and she said no.' 'She's had no outside contacts at all?' 'No, sir. Not unless she made some telephone calls from the flat, sir.' Constantin Demiris was not worried about that. Anna, the housekeeper, would report to him. He replaced the receiver, satisfied. She presented no immediate danger to him and he would see that she was watched. She was alone in the world She had no one to turn to except her benefactor, Constantin Demiris. / must make arrangements to go to London soon, Demiris thought happily. Very soon.
Catherine Alexander found her new job interesting. Daily reports came in from Constantin Demiris' far-flung empire. There were bills of lading from a steel mill in Indiana, audits from an automobile factory in Italy, invoices from a newspaper chain in Australia, a gold mine, an insurance company. Catherine collated the reports and saw to it that the information went directly to Wim Vandeen. Win glanced at the reports once, put them through the incredible computer that was his brain, and almost instantly calculated the percentages of profit or loss to the company Catherine enjoyed getting to know her new colleagues and she was awed by the beauty of the old building she worked in.
She mentioned it to Evelyn Kaye once in front of Wim and Wim said, 'This was a government custom house designed by Sir Christopher Wren in seventeen twenty-one. After the great fire of London, Christopher Wren redesigned fifty churches including St Paul's, St Michael's, and St Bride's He designed the Royal Exchange and Buckingham House He died in seventeen twenty-three and is buried in St Paul's This house was converted to an office building in nineteen seven, and in the Second World War during the Blitz, the government declared it an official air-raid shelter.' The air-raid shelter was a large, bomb-proof room located through a heavy iron door adjoining the basement. Catherine looked into the heavily fortified room, and thought about the brave British men and women and children who had found shelter here during the terrible bombing by Hitler's Luftwaffe The basement itself was huge, running the entire length of the building. It had a large boiler for heating the building, and was filled with electronic and telephone equipment. The boiler was a problem. Several times, Catherine had escorted a repairman down to the basement to take a look at it. Each one would tinker with it, pronounce it cured of whatever had ailed it, and leave 'It looks so dangerous,' Catherine said. 'Is there any chance that it might explode?' 'Bless your
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