Jade Cabral strides into the 21st century as a golden guy. Brilliant and beautiful, with a California cool and a Harvard education, he is poised for wealth and success in New York’s Financial District.<br><br>But Jade harbors a secret flaw, a thirst for revenge against Se?or Rodriguez, the California landowner who deprived his father – Se?or’s out-of-wedlock son, John Virgil -- of his family’s rightful inheritance and place in the world. Jade thinks if he succeeds in New York, he can make up for every loss and humiliation his family has endured at the hands of Se?or. That searing quest leads him into the arms of Nan Spencer, a lovely, fragile socialite, and to the top of the financial world, the Twin Towers, on September 11, 2001.

Seamless Sky

Toward the end of that summer, when Nan announced that she was going to Palm Beach to visit an aunt who had retired there and who had been like a mother to her, Jade found himself in the curious position of being both hurt and relieved. What would he do without her? On the other hand, the intensity of their relationship coupled with work was such that it wasn’t until he dropped her off at JFK Airport that he realized how tired he was. Still, he decided the cure for his fatigue was a visit from his family. He wangled a week off and invited the whole gang to come to New York, at his expense.


He was disappointed when his mother called to say she and his father could not spare the time—disappointed and yet not surprised. His mother would be busy preparing for another school year, and Se?or would no doubt require some Herculean task of his father. It was amazing how fast his newfound compassion could dissipate at the sound of Se?or’s name


Chapter 17