Mick took the last message and sat at his desk. He dialed Parker's number, not even knowing what he was supposed to say to the guy.
"Parker, this is Mick. Emily just left for the day. We've been very busy at the clinic. You said it was urgent. Is anything wrong?"
"Everything's wrong!" Parker sat in the motel, not even having any thoughts about returning to that land that nearly consumed him. "I have to talk with Emily."
"Look, I don't know what's happened today, but if Emily wanted to talk to you she would have called you back. By the way, I'm glad you're feeling better since your horrible ordeal."
"Give me her address." Parker was getting pissed. He was tired of roadblocks from this guy.
"You know I can't do that. Have a nice evening, Parker. Stop hounding her." Mick hung up the phone, hoping that would be the last of it. But he knew better than to believe that Parker Davis would give up so easily.
Parker stared at his phone. He was determined to keep trying. When you love someone you do whatever it takes.
Chapter 18
Russell ran out of his room at the same motel where his brother was staying. He knocked loudly on the door until Parker flung it open with an irritated look on his face.
"The jet's here, Parker. There's been a fire and your penthouse is up in smoke. Let's go..."
"What the hell?"
"Come on, I'll explain on the way. Get your things together." Russell was already inside the room, not waiting for any wasted time. He began helping Parker gather his belongings.
"How did it start?"
"They're still putting the fire out. Four people can't be accounted for. Let's go!"
Rhonda kept Russell informed on the flight back to New York. "I think they found the four missing people. I don't believe anyone was hurt, but three floors are pretty much destroyed and everyone has been evacuated. They were able to get all the animals out. Some are pretty sick from the smoke. It's really bad, Russell."
"Hang in there, babe, we'll land in another hour."
Russell and Parker stood amongst the chaos in front of their sky rise. Reporters wanted answers right along with the tenants. Parker found the fire chief and hurried over to him.
"I'm Parker Davis, is anyone hurt?"
"We don't think so. Most of the people who live here were gone. We obtained a tenant list from a Rhonda Davis. You resided here as well, correct?"
"Yes, I live in the penthouse on the top floor."
"I'm afraid that's been destroyed. So far it looks like the fire started two floors below yours. We won't know the exact cause until it's safe for our guys to walk through. The fire alarms and sprinkler systems worked, or the fire would have been much worse. The building will be closed until we can secure the structure. We have an animal shelter here trying to take care of the sick pets, but we need more hands."
"Thank you, and please keep me posted. I'll call my secretary and see if we can find temporary shelters." Parker felt horrible inside. Seeing the devastated tenants and the destruction was making him feel sick. Animals covered in black soot were in cages and on leashes. If I had the shepherd here, he would have been killed.
Parker reached in his pocket for his phone, which sat ringing on the bed in Colorado.
Emily had stopped by the grocery store on the way and picked up a few things before heading home. Mick was right; she had to take better care of herself. The garlic roasted chicken breast with russet potatoes, green beans with almonds, and a small garden salad filled her stomach. She even forced herself to drink a glass of milk, something she'd never liked. Now it was time to face the inevitable. Emily dialed Parker Davis. It went to voicemail.
"Hi, Parker, I hope you're feeling well. I'm just returning your call." Parker didn't return the message. Emily tried two more times that evening, and her messages went unanswered. He's just doing what I did to him. But another thought hit her. What if something's wrong? What if he got sick again? What if he left the hospital too soon? Emily put on her shoes and drove to the motel. She was hoping he was still staying there. But as she pulled up, the housekeeper was leaving and closing his door.
"Excuse me. Is the man who was staying here still renting this room?"
"No he left some hours ago and forgot his phone." The housekeeper laughed.
"I can send it to him. He's a friend."
"Well, I'm not supposed to do this, but I don't feel like making out a form. Here you go. Just make sure he gets it."
"I will. Thank you." Emily was relieved that he hadn't been ignoring her. After the housekeeper went into a different room, she called Davis Enterprises.
"Rhonda, this is Emily. Parker left his phone at the motel. I'll mail it back to him. Could you let him know?"
"He's right here, Emily. Hang on a second."
She didn't expect to talk to him this suddenly and felt herself getting nervous.
"Emily, thank you for picking my phone up. It's crazy here right now." Parker's voice wasn't calm at all.
"Parker, is everything okay?"
"No, not at all. My apartment building caught fire today. I have sick animals, misplaced tenants...This is horrible."
"Parker, can I help with anything?"
"Just come here, Emily. Please."
Rhonda met Emily at the airport at four in the morning when her plane landed. Rhonda greeted her with a hug,
"Parker and Russell have to stay where they are. None of us have ever gone through a fire before. This is so horrible. No one was killed, thank God, and some of the tenants were on vacation. They aren't aware that they have no home to come back to yet."
"Where are the tenants staying?" Emily didn't want to openly ask if Parker's apartment was destroyed.
"Parker's staying with us. The top three floors burned. I feel so awful." Rhonda dabbed at her eyes.
"I'll get a room and stay to help for as long as I can."
"You can stay with us. You're not going to find a room in this area. The entire building was evacuated and remains closed. You'll be a wonderful sight for Parker. Both men have stayed at the office. They walk back and forth from the apartment building to the office. Some of our employees lived in that building as well. Everything's really bad right now. I'll take you to my house so you can get some rest. I need to go back to the office."
"No, take me with you. I'm not going to be any good to anyone if I don't go with you."
Parker stood outside, across the street from the place he called home for a few years. The fire chief shook his hand and gave him a tired smile.
"The good news is, we can confirm that no one is missing and there were no fatalities. There were several treated for smoke inhalation and most of those have been released. It's looking like the fire was deliberate. The police are questioning a suspect who lit all his wife's clothes on fire. We believe gasoline was the accelerant. He ran from the scene using the stairwell."
"Thank you. Let me know if you find out anything else."
Parker rubbed his face with his hands. The odor of smoke still filled the air, and sounds of crying, praying, and disbelief were around him.
People scrambled around calling for their animals that were scattered in temporary cages and in need of medical care. Emily walked over to the makeshift area created for them. She saw Parker out of the corner of her eye as he stood there staring at the animals.
"Parker!" Emily called as she made her way through the people.
"Emily!" He threw his arms around her and seemed to hold on for dear life. "Thank you for coming out here. I feel so lost."
"It's okay. I found you once, I'll find you again." Emily let out a soft chuckle, but the comment went right over Parker's head. "Let's go someplace and get a plan together so I can find out the best way to help." Emily kissed his tired face and let him guide her by the hand.
Rhonda had gotten three of her staff to man the phones which were ringing off the hooks. She made Parker shower, eat some food, shave his scruffy face, and take a two hour nap. He refused to leave the area. Emily curled up beside him on the couch in his office, and that's the only way he was able to let himself relax enough to sleep.
After a couple hours, Emily unpacked her scrubs and then went with Parker to where the animals were being cared for. The amount of people who opened their homes to provide temporary shelter for the pets amazed her. She helped wash and examine the animals and met with several of their owners. Camille Johnson, a local veterinarian, was overly grateful for Emily's help. This experience was definitely changing her opinion of Manhattan.
Parker and Russell had worked closely with the tenants and offered motel rooms for them to stay in until the insurance companies were able to do their part. Most went with relatives. Parker didn't miss anything that got destroyed at his penthouse. He learned there was more to life than money and possessions. Being lost in the woods, and his close call with death, changed his perspective on life.
"Why don't you two come on back to the house and rest up?" Rhonda had tried many times to get them to do that, but they wouldn't budge.
"I'm going to have to find a new place to live." Parker laughed, but he was reminded of their early childhood and not having a steady home.
"You need to show him, Russell." Rhonda smiled and nodded at her husband.