AS THE MOUSE

OVES©

Soap Opera "As The Mouse Moves" - Friday May 11^th 2001
"Just let me out here at the end of the block and I'll walk," Tiffany told Amir's limo driver as the long white car pulled to the curb.  She and Amir had overslept this morning at his Sutton Place mansion causing her to run late for work. They had celebrated his plans to run for mayor of New York until late into the evening.  The driver opened the car door and she quickly slid out at the curb near Washington Square Park.
She glanced down at her watch and picked up her pace walking towards the gate to Clark's townhouse on MacDougal Alley.  She hoped he wasn't looking out of the window and saw her get out of the back of Amir's limousine. Work was finally getting more pleasant now that she had finally soothed his suspicions and deceived him into believing she wasn't seeing his most influential client, Amir. She quickly walked down the cobblestone alley to the townhouse door and opened it expecting Clark to be upstairs in his office as usual.
"You'll have to do something!" she heard Jan scream as she walked into the living room.  She quickly saw Jan standing near the sofa with her hands on her hips. Clark was standing in front of the fireplace with his hands in his pockets.
"Morning," Tiffany said gently closing the door and walking towards her desk uncertain of what she should do.
"Tiffany could you get us some coffee?" Clark asked with the most serious expression she had ever seen on his face.
"Sure," she said happy to be out of the line of fire.  She quickly walked towards the kitchen as the sound of her high heels echoed on the hardwood floor.  She pushed open the swinging door to kitchen and walked to the cabinet taking out the filters and the can of coffee.  She quickly set up the coffee as quietly as possible trying to hear the conversation from the living room.
"Not her fault, what do you mean?" she overheard Jan say.
Tiffany slipped off her shoes and tip-toed to the kitchen door and put her ear to the door straining to hear over the brewing of the coffeepot nearby.
"It'll be all over every newspaper and network now," Jan said.
"What do you want me to do?" Clark asked.
"Fire her. Get rid of her once and for all.  She's been nothing but trouble."
"How's that going to help anything?"
"Didn't you say the newspapers and reporters have been calling here already this morning?" Jan asked.
"Yeah."
"Well, if this gets any worse it will ruin a lot of people," Jan said.
"Your Father's use to this," Clark said.
"What about Amir?  He's ruined." Jan said.
"Alright," Clark said. 
Tiffany's heart raced when she heard the sounds of Clark's footsteps coming towards the kitchen door.  She quickly ran in her stocking feet on the slippery linoleum floor towards the kitchen sink where she had left her shoes.
Clark pushed the swinging door open far enough the latch caught and the door stayed open as he walked into the kitchen. "Could you bring the coffee up to my office when it's ready?" he asked looking down at her bare feet as she stood in front of the sink.
"Sure Clark," she said.
"Why did you take off your shoes Tiffany," he asked.
"My feet are killing me," she lied as her face reddened.
She watched as Clark walked back towards Jan who was standing in the living room staring at Tiffany's bare feet.  She saw Jan shake her head in disgust as the two started towards the stairs. Tiffany could feel her heart pounding as she listened to the sounds of Jan and Clark's footsteps going up the stairs to his office.  She picked up her shoes and quickly walked back to her desk in the living room and took a seat. 
"She was eavesdropping," Jan said as the door to Clark's upstairs office slammed.
Tiffany took a deep breath trying to compose herself wondering what all of the sudden anger and secrecy was about.  She didn't have to wonder long as she glanced down at her desk.  Today's newspaper was opened to the front page with a picture of her younger sister Starlene in a short skirt, fishnet stockings and a low cut blouse as she was getting into the back of a limo with Jan's Father in Times Square.  Tiffany's heart stopped when she read the headlines.
"Can Amir Hada be elected mayor depending on wealthy Playboys like Stanley Morgan for support? See page two for details of the wealthy elder Stanley Morgan's night on the town with a 19 year old actress and model from Lillard Georgia."
CONTINUED MONDAY. MORE PHOTOS BELOW.