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EPISODE 6, SCENE
2 Jordan Thorne emerged from the gondola car at the halfway station on top of Coonskin. With him were Anthony Aldente and Richard Starbuck. The trio trekked through the snow past skiers coming off Lift 3 and arrived at the Clifftop construction site. The bulldozers and earth movers had excavated the hotel's basement. Cement mixers had poured the foundation. Workmen were busy framing. Thorne surveyed the site like a general inspecting his troops. "It's coming along great," he enthused. Aldente nodded, resisting the developer's hype. Starbuck stood by, not saying much. His role in the deal was done. He'd brought Thorne and Aldente together. He was here today to insure his finder's fee wouldn't be forgotten. "Amazing view, huh Anthony?" Thorne said. "Nothing like it." Aldente looked down at the town two thousand feet below, a colorful patchwork of toy-sized buildings. "Yeah," he shrugged, "it's nice if you don't have vertigo." Thorne laughed easily. He showed none of the anxiety that had kept him from sleep the past weeks. With the Denver bank pulling out, Aldente and his Kansas City investors were Thorne's last best hope of keeping Clifftop from collapsing. "You'll have thirty percent equity for your investment," Thorne said, "plus two deluxe three-bedroom units on the upper floor with a view of town or the Mountain Village, whichever you choose." "We ain't gonna have to share them, are we?" Aldente asked. Thorne laughed again. It was a joke, right? "No you won't, Anthony." Thorne replied. "The timeshares are for the civilians." "Okay," Aldente said finally, "you've got a deal. Now get me back down to earth before I lose my lunch." Thorne shook Aldente's hand and led them back to the gondola station. He felt fantastic. He'd given away a chunk of the hotel, but at least it would be completed as he'd envisioned it. As for his rough-edged new partner, Thorne was confident he could work with anyone. Even a swarthy mole like Anthony Aldente. |
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