Hidden Secrets

As the families grew, their children also were groomed to become part of the company. Miguel's oldest nephew, upon his discharge from the Marines after obtaining the rank of Master Sargent, obtained a master's degree from his Uncle Miguel's school of real estate management and was placed in charge of the now flourishing rental operations of the company.

Miguel sat back and reviewed what he had built. The profits from all of his companies were being shared within the family; there was only one area, which was not being held within the company. He was still using outside law firms to provide legal services for his businesses; and their fees were taking big chunks out of his operating profits. He made plans for his only child, Enrique, to enter the Juris Doctor program at James E. Rogers College of Law after his graduation from the University of Arizona.

When Rick found out about his father's plans for his future, he was not happy; but as the only son of Miguel Hernandez, he had no say in the matter. During the six years of his schooling, on his breaks he would work for his uncles in either the construction company or the building services company. He was truly his mother's son. Her middle-class work ethic and the family's tradecraft skills were a part of his DNA. After passing his BAR exams, he was certified by the State of Arizona and soon occupied the office next to his father's.

Rick's mood suddenly darkened as his thoughts drifted to the next major event in his life. For Rick, the next two years would be a period of unimaginable sorrow, but also, a period of emancipating freedom. It started shortly before Christmas; one morning before his workday began, his father entered his office and announced.

"We are going to be spending the Christmas and New Year's weeks at the house in Flagstaff. They are predicting a white Christmas this year. Your mother would really like it if you could join us. We are going to fly up there on the 22^nd."

It was not asked as a question; it was more like an order.

"Dad, I've got a lot of work on my desk. I have a bunch of lease renewals that I have to review, and we just received the contract on that parcel of land in Surprise that you want to buy. We are in the middle of preparing our application for a variance for the new shopping center on the Happy Valley Highway in Peoria. I can't spend two weeks away from the office."

After a few minutes thinking about his dilemma, Rick responded.

"I'll work this weekend and long days next week; I should be able to drive up on Christmas Eve morning, spend Christmas and New Year's Eve with you and mom and drive back New Year's Day."

"Good, your mother will be pleased."

Miguel turned and returned to his office.

For the next seven days, Rick put in long hours at the office. On the morning of the 22^nd, his father stuck his head into Rick's doorway.

"Well, I'm off. I'm going home to pick up your mother and head out to the Scottsdale Airport. A storm front is approaching from California, and I want to get to Flagstaff before the first snowflakes start falling. How is everything going?"

Without waiting for a reply, he picked up his briefcase and vanished down the hall. Rick worked late that night and came in early the next morning. By noon time that day, he surveyed the desktop; everything that needed to be done was complete. He got up from his desk, visited all of the vice presidents and informed them that the company was closing promptly at two o'clock, wished all of his employees a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, and returned to his desk, packed his briefcase, and was about to leave, when his phone rang.

"Hello, this is Rick Hernandez."

"Mr. Hernandez, this is Captain John Winthers of the Flagstaff Police Department. I'm sorry to have to tell you this over the phone. Your company's plane has crashed on its approach to the Flagstaff Airport.

"Oh my god! My mother and father were on that plane."

"Mr. Hernandez, you have my sincerest condolences. I received a call at about 4:00 yesterday afternoon from the regional director of the FAA; he told me that a plane with call numbers matching those of the company's plane, disappeared from radar on its approach to the airport. We were experiencing near blizzard conditions around that time. The storm seemed to come out of nowhere. No one was predicting such extreme weather for yesterday. We received over a foot of snow last night. We were finally able to get a helicopter up this morning. After a two-hour search of the area, they found the point of impact. The pilot told us that not much was left of the plane; it appears that the plane crashed at high speed, nose first into the side of the mountain. It's in a very remote area; it's going to take us awhile to get to the crash site."

"Is there a possibility that they survived the crash?"

"There's always a chance, but I would not want to give you a false sense of hope. The pilot said there was no indication that anyone got out alive. In his opinion we were already out of the rescue stage and that we should assume this is a recovery operation. I'm sorry, when we know more, we will contact you. I'm sorry."

Rick was still holding the phone to his ear, when his assistant walked into his office to wish him a Merry Christmas. Hanging up the phone, his face ashen, he said, "Debbie, get everyone who is still here into the large conference room on the second floor; I'll be down in a few minutes. Call an emergency meeting of the executive committee in my office, now!"

In less than three minutes all the Vice Presidents were gathered in Rick's office. "I'm sorry; there is no other way to do this. I just received a call from the Flagstaff Police Department. Mom and Dad's plane crashed yesterday on its approach to the airport. As far as they can determine there were no survivors."

When they could finally get control of their emotions, he continued.

"I've had Debbie gather as many of our employees as she could find. They are waiting for me in the second-floor conference room. I want to tell them what we know and reassure them that the company will continue operations no matter what the final outcome of this tragedy. I suggest we shut down operations with pay for the rest of year; we will reopen January 2^nd. Any comments or suggestions?"

"Rick, I'm so sorry for your loss. I think we should come in next week just to handle unexpected emergencies."

You could have heard a pin drop when the five of them entered the conference room.

Rick greeted those employees huddled in the room.

"I didn't want you to hear this on the news later. Our company plane crashed yesterday on its approach to the Flagstaff Airport; my parents were on that plane. At this time there is no indication that they survived the crash." There was a collective gasp, and tears began to flow. "I want to assure you that the company will survive this. We will be shutting down for the rest of the year. You will all be paid your normal salaries for the time we are closed. We will reopen on January 2^nd. The executive committee will be here next week to handle any emergencies. If you feel the need to come in, please feel free to do so, but I assure you that either way the decision is yours and no one will judge you in any way. Now, go home and be with your families."

________________________

Three weeks later, Rick was in his new office, when the phone rang.

"This is Rick Hernandez."

"Hello, Mr. Hernandez, this is Inspector Paul Manning from the FAA. I wanted to personally give you the results of our investigation of the crash.

The probable cause of the crash was "the pilot's failure to maintain control of the airplane during a descent over the mountains during an extremely bad weather event, which was a result of spatial disorientation." Your father was not qualified to fly his plane by "instruments only." From interviews of various personnel at the airport we have determined that for whatever reason your father was over an hour behind his anticipated takeoff time. He was using a report of the anticipated weather conditions in the Flagstaff area that was not current. The mechanics report showed that the plane was fully fueled and in good shape prior to takeoff. We will never be able to determine if the crash was due to a mechanical problem, there was just not enough left."

"Thank you, Mr. Manning, for all your help; it was the result of a lack of proper judgement by my father. He was a very stubborn man once he set his mind on a course of action."

Rick walked over to the wall of windows that faced the back of one of the company's shopping centers and Bell Road.

'If only you had not come to work that morning, you and mom would still be with us.'

He was just about to turn away from the window, when movement in the far end of the office building's parking lot caught his attention. He watched as the attractive, athletically built blonde closed her VW Beetle's door and walked swiftly towards the back of the shopping center. Even before she arrived at the back door of her studio, he knew who she was and where she was going. The only question in his mind was why she chose to park so far away from her back door.

Chapter 3

Two years seemed to fly by. For Sasha, they had been very good years. Not only had she settled comfortably into her new lifestyle, but her client base had continued to grow steadily as well. Best of all, her income had continued to grow to the point that she felt comfortable enough to take The Studio to the next level. There was only one thing stopping her, her lease.

Her ex-boyfriend, Matt, had cautioned her when she made the decision to open her own studio, to opt for a single five-year lease, thus limiting her potential exposure if the business failed. Her lease was due to expire in three months. She dreaded what she was sure to be a large increase in her rent. Before she could commit to a substantial investment in her business, she had to know if she could afford it.

Her new lease came in a certified letter three weeks later. As she compared the new lease to her old one, Sasha determined that nothing had changed except the amount of her rent and the insertion of a clause which gave her the right to renew her lease term for an additional five years at same rate, only her common area charges and real estate tax escalator amount would be re-determined at the time of renewal. What pleased her most was the amount of her monthly rent had only increased by one hundred dollars; an amount her monthly budget could easily handle.

Sasha placed an order for nine of the latest models of the Pilates Reformer machines. When they arrived, the driver would only deliver the boxes as far as her back door. It was up her to bring them into the building. They were heavy, but nothing that she could not handle by herself. After stacking eight of the boxes in one corner of the room, she opened the last one and found the assembly instructions. Overwhelmed at what, to her, seemed like a something written in a foreign language and not having any of the necessary tools, she just sat on the floor.

'How am I going to get this done? I haven't a clue where to begin.'

That's when a thought popped into her head.

'Maybe I can pay that cute maintenance guy to put these together. I'll ask him tomorrow morning when he is collecting the garbage.'

Sasha got up earlier than normal the next morning, dressed in her best, and most flattering workout clothes. She placed two of the chairs from her waiting area, outside, prepared a cup of coffee for herself, and was outside relaxing in the refreshingly cool early morning air when she saw his truck enter the parking lot.

She waited until he had replaced the garbage bag before she stood and approached him.

"Hi, my name is Sasha; would you like to join me for a quick cup of coffee? I have something I'd like to talk to you about."

"Well, it's a little early for my coffee break, but sure, why not. My name is Rick."

"How do you take your coffee?"

"Black, no sugar."

"That's easy; I'll be back in two minutes." She turned, walked back to the doorway, and disappeared from view. However, not before Rick had taken in and thoroughly appreciated the view of her shapely bottom and her long, well-formed legs.

When Sasha returned, she handed Rick his container of coffee and asked,

"Can you join me for a few minutes?"

"Of course I can, it will be a pleasure. I don't often meet the owners of the companies that rent these places. I'm normally dealing with the store managers or sometimes just the owners' reps."

He sat across from her admiring her beauty. The Valley had no shortage of good-looking blue-eyed blondes. As far as he was concerned, Sasha was a step above any that he had met before.

"So, Rick, I see you work for the Landlord's building maintenance company," she said pointing to the writing on the door of his truck. "You must be very handy with tools and experienced at putting things together."

"I've been known to handle myself fairly well around hand and power tools."

"That's wonderful. Can I hire you to do a job for me? I ordered some equipment for my studio. I had no idea that they would have to be assembled. The driver left the boxes at my back door; after I carried them inside, I opened one and discovered that there was no way I could put them together."

"Well, normally, I wouldn't be able to help you. We have strict rules against working on any of the tenant's equipment or furniture and fixtures. However, if I do it on my own time; I don't think I'll be breaking any of the company rules. Let's go inside and I'll check out your equipment and see if I have the right tools for the job."

His unintended sexual innuendo was not lost on Sasha; she just chose to ignore it for now.

They entered the building, walked through the waiting room, and crossed the large room to the far corner. As he walked, Rick could not help looking at the large, mirrored wall. He recalled that a dance studio had previously rented this space and that Sasha had elected to keep the two walls of mirrors. It made the space appear to be a whole lot bigger than it actually was. He especially liked the fact that he could watch Sasha from two different angles as she glided across the floor.

After studying the instruction manual, Rick looked up at Sasha saying, "You see this KD at the end of the item number on the packing slip. That stands for Knocked Down, meaning the unit comes in pieces and requires assembly. That being said, I don't think this should be too difficult as long as they have given you all the pieces. What are they for? I thought Pilates was just a form of yoga type moves, done on a mat?"

"You are partially right, the main difference between Yoga and Pilates is that Yoga uses movement for improving the flexibility of the body and gradually increases the flexibility of your joints. Pilates, on the other hand, focuses on trying to relax the muscles of the body's core and provide strengthening of the numerous muscles of the body. The equipment in these boxes is known as a reformer. Basically, it is used to intensify the movements that we do in our floor classes by adding resistance to the exercise. Pilates exercises builds strength into the muscles of the body's core. Flat abs, strong backs, toned butts and firm thighs are all the results of our workout. By using the Reformer, we accelerate the process, encourage the lengthening of the body, and train the body to sustain that length."

"Listen to me, I sound like a commercial."

"No, you sound passionate about what you do; there is nothing wrong with that."

Both of their faces turned a slightly darker shade as a small emotional bond seemed to be growing between them.

"Based upon what I'm seeing I think this project is going to take some time, more time than one evening after your last class. Why don't I do this on Saturday? What time is your last class?"

"My last class on Saturday ends at three."

"Great. Where are you going to want these set up? I can move them into position now; that will save a little time on Saturday."

"I want eight of them spaced out evenly across the long wall opposite the long-mirrored wall. The ninth one will be mine; that will go on the opposite wall. This way I can demonstrate each move and watch my students as they do their work."

"That's good," he said, picking up the first box. "Geeze, these are heavier than they look."

As he carried the first box across the room, he felt, more than heard, footsteps behind him. Glancing sideways, he spotted Sasha following him with the second box.

"I think we should place them against the wall for now, we wouldn't want any of your students tripping over them."

It took three trips to place six of the heavy boxes into position, the last two Rick moved the short distance to their proper places, while Sasha cradled the opened box in her arms and walked to the front of the room.

With that task complete, Rick followed Sasha outside, just as several women were crossing the parking lot heading towards them.

"Rick, thank you for doing this for me, how much do you think it will cost?"

"Don't you worry about the cost, I normally get paid by the hour, but I work a very long hour. See you on Saturday at three."

With that, he grabbed his coffee cup, climbed into his truck, and drove off with a friendly toot of his horn.

"Sasha, who was that, a boyfriend perhaps?" "He's yummy."

"No, he's the maintenance man for the shopping center."

"Well, if he's not already taken, maybe you could introduce me to him some time."

"You never mind about him, just get your butts in there, we have work to do."

Rick almost forgot to do the rest of his morning work. All he could think about was Sasha. It had been a long time since he had seen her up close. She was even more beautiful than he had remembered. Her blonde hair was cut short, had just a hint of a curl, revealing a long, sensuous neck. She was taller than he expected, probably an inch shorter than his six-foot frame. When she walked, she seemed to almost glide effortlessly across the room, her back straight as an arrow and her head held high. In short, she was long, lean, and lovely.

What surprised him the most was her apparent strength. Those boxes each must have weighed at least seventy pounds, yet, she seemed to lift them almost effortlessly. The image of her bending over to pick up one of the boxes dressed in her sleek stretch pants, which clung to her like a second layer of skin and accented her sculpted legs and firm butt was burned into his mind forever. That, combined with her ever so slight Russian accent and her hypnotic blue eyes, the color of the Arizona sky on a clear crisp winter day. He knew he was already falling under her spell. He would have to be very careful.

_____________________

For the next four days he could never quite get her off his mind. Finally Saturday came. In the morning, after he took a shower and dressed in a clean pair of jeans and a company golf shirt, he planned out how he wanted to handle this. He would get to her studio about ten minutes after three o'clock; that would assure that she would be alone. He didn't want to arrive too early: he didn't want to appear overanxious to see her.

He would also bring an extra set of the tools he would need, just in case she wanted to help him. Hopefully, the whole job would only take two or three hours to complete. At that point, he would invite her to have dinner with him. If she agreed, they would have a pleasant casual dinner, and he would allow her to pay the bill; if not, he would charge her about forty dollars for his labor, either way he thought she was getting a fair price.