Free A Bridge to Love by Nancy Herkness Page A

her favorite. She traced its soaring piers and
curving cables with familiar affection and admiration. She could still think
like an engineer.
    Clay
and Patrick came home to find their mother engrossed by the computer. “What are
you designing, Mom?” Clay wanted to know, looking over her shoulder.
    “A
new tunnel under the Hudson River,” Kate said, as she clicked away with the
mouse. “I'm tired of sitting in traffic when I go into New York City.”
    “Cool.”
The two boys settled down on either side of her, asking questions and offering
suggestions. They would have worked right through dinner if Patrick's stomach
hadn't rumbled. Kate wondered why she had never shared this part of her life
with her sons before.
    She
was loading the dishwasher with dinner plates when Clay suddenly called her
from the family room. “Mom, Mr. Johnson's company is on the news. His storage
tanks are burning.”
    Kate
dashed in to see a dramatic aerial view of flames shooting up against the night
sky. The television screen was captioned TexOil
storage tanks, Elizabeth, NJ . The camera cut to a reporter standing in
front of an array of fire trucks. “Eyewitnesses say that the tanks seemed to
literally explode into flames about a half an hour ago. Fire-fighting equipment
is on the scene but a spokesperson states that all they can do is try to keep
the nearby tanks from catching fire as well.”
    There
was the unmistakable racket of a helicopter overwhelming the reporter's
commentary. He stopped to watch it land behind the fire trucks and the view
shifted back to the aerial shot.
    “Do
you think that was Mr. Johnson's helicopter?” Patrick asked without taking his
eyes off the television.
    Before
Kate could answer, the screen shifted back to the reporter. “The helicopter you
saw landing belongs to RJ Enterprises, the corporation which owns TexOil. It
has been confirmed that CEO Randall Johnson was on board. Sources say that
employees working in the control center of the storage facility are still
unaccounted for. Although the fire does not threaten that area, there is a
danger of smoke inhalation. Firefighters are mounting a rescue expedition.”
    Suddenly,
Kate spotted him. “There he is, in the dark suit, talking with the fireman and
another man in a suit. See him? By the ladder truck?”

    “How
many men did you get out of the control room?” Randall barked at the fire
chief.
    “Two.
That's all that were in there.”
    “There
should be four. Tom, was one of the two they found the foreman?” Randall asked,
turning to Tom Rogan, who had arrived on the scene first.
    “I
don't know. They took them straight to the hospital.”
    “Damn!
The other two must have gone for the manual shut-off valves behind Tank C.”
Randall turned back to the fire chief. “Give me a coat and five of your
strongest men.”
    The
fire chief didn't like taking orders, especially from a civilian. “You can't go
in there.”
    “The
hell I can't. Those are my people and my oil tanks.” Randall grabbed a
fireman's coat off the nearest fire truck and shrugged into it. “I know where
the valves are and you don't. Get your men or I'm going in alone.”
    The
chief cursed but called out several names. “Mr. CEO thinks he knows where the
missing men are. Take care of him.”
    Randall
addressed the firefighters, yelling over the noise of the blaze, “We're heading
behind Tank C over there. We're going to close the valves feeding all the tanks
and bring back my men. Let's go.”

    “Mom,
I think that Mr. Johnson's going after the missing guys!” Patrick exclaimed in
disbelief.
    “The
firemen are trained to rescue people. He should let them do their job,” Kate
said tartly . What was he thinking? Those
oil tanks could explode at any minute!
    “He'll
be okay. He knows what he's doing,” Clay said in a clear attempt to comfort
her.
    Kate
gave him a strained smile and then exclaimed “Oh, for Pete's sake!” as the news
program cut to a different