Red Sky At Morning - DK4 (10 page)

“Our systems work just fine.” Albert’s jaw twitched.

Dar sat back. “Then it’ll be a very short project, won’t it?” She felt almost a sense of amusement as she studied the sharp profile. “Listen, Commander, you’re making three assumptions that are going to get you into trouble, so you might want to just reverse your course right now.”

“Excuse me, ma’am?” he replied stiffly.

“One, you’re assuming I don’t know an obstructionist when I meet one. Two, you’re assuming I need your cooperation to do this little job; and three, you’re assuming I’m a stranger to the Navy.” Dar stood up. “I’ll meet you out at the base Friday morning. I think we’ve wasted enough of each other’s time today.”

Commander Albert stood and gave her a short nod. “Ma’am.” He turned and walked to the door, opening it and slipping through without ever looking back at her.

Dar sat back down and shook her head. “Gerry, I’m going to get you for this.” She pulled out her Palm Pilot and scribbled a few notes on it, adding her new contact’s name. She looked up as her intercom buzzed again. “Yes?”

“Dar.” Kerry’s voice, though calm, held a distinct edge to it. “I think we need some high-level situational administration here.”

Ah. My ass-kicking skills are in demand
. “Be right there,” she told Kerry. “Take five.” She released the intercom and stood, circling her desk and heading for the door. “Definitely not a good day.”

KERRY RESTED HER weight on her elbows and cradled the mug in her hands, slowly sipping from it. Across the table, Clarice Keown, a strikingly attractive black woman, was arguing with Mitchell Grafberg, a member of the Midwest team that had been responsible for administering the account over which they were currently fighting.

God
. Kerry counted the seconds. She hadn’t seen this much finger-pointing since the last time someone had knocked over the water cooler and shorted out the Xerox machine. It wasn’t that she didn’t know what the problem was—she did. In fact, all of them knew it. The account had been botched from day one, and the bandwidth designed for it was simply not enough. Adding to it would be at ILS’s expense and would take far too much time, and no one wanted to be responsible for making that decision.

Well, actually, Kerry had already made it. The point was, no one wanted to be the reason she’d had to. She’d been a little surprised at Clarice, who was sharp, and funny, and whom she liked, because the regional director was the main roadblock. She flatly refused to accept that her team had goofed and was simply going around in circles with
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arguments, trying to justify the bill Dar was surely going to slap right onto her desk.

The outer door opened and closed, and the room was suddenly full of Dar Roberts, who swooped down on the table and circled it like a huge hunting hawk before settling neatly at Kerry’s side. Her entrance stopped the argument in its tracks, and now everyone’s attention was focused on Dar’s sleek form.

Dar gave them all a level, serious glare before turning and cocking her head at Kerry. “Well?”

“There was a significant underbudgeting of resources for the account,” Kerry stated. “That miscalculation allowed the bid to undercut the other offers, and it was awarded based on false data.”

The bridge of Dar’s nose wrinkled expressively.

“I’ve just had to order two additional T3 pipes and six new routers to make up the shortfall,” Kerry went on. “Which we won’t be able to bill back for. I’m looking at additional leveraging with other accounts in the area.”

Dar grunted.

Kerry correctly interpreted this to mean she’d done the right thing, but the cost was giving Dar a hive.

“So you needed me here to do what?” Dar asked. “Seems like you’ve got a handle on the disaster without me sticking my nose in.”

“There was a breakdown in processes,” Kerry reminded her. “And, unfortunately, I can’t fix the breakdown because we can’t seem to come to an agreement over where, exactly, the gap is.”

“Oh.” Dar nodded, then reviewed the table. “I get it. No one wants the blame, is that it?”

Clarice leaned forward. “Dar, it’s not anything to do with blame, okay? I still think it was a valid bid. The customer didn’t tell us enough for us to know different.”

“Bullshit,” Dar snapped back. “The customer doesn’t know his ass from a hole in the wall. That’s why they hired us. It’s our job to make sure we know what their business is, Clarice, and if we don’t know enough to ask the right questions, then we end up in situations like this.” She slammed her hand on the table, and everyone jumped.

Except Kerry. She’d felt the shift in the body next to her, and figured it would either be a table slap or a jump to the feet. Since Dar’s thigh didn’t move, she chose the slap and was expecting it.

“Kerry’s going to save your ass, and I agree with her decision, but somewhere down the line, she’s got to stand up and explain why Ops’s budget is in a deficit because we had to take on the expense of your screw-up,” Dar went on. “So you’d better figure out where your hole is and close it, or I will.”

Everyone was quiet for a minute. Clarice finally exhaled. “All right.

We’ll take care of it.”

“Good. Because if it happens again, I’m not going to worry about 52
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whose fault it was, I’ll just fire all of you,” Dar snapped back, her voice low and electric, then building to an impressive volume that almost made Kerry wince. “Is that clearly understood?”

In the silence that followed, Kerry could clearly hear the air conditioner cycling on and off.

Clarice broke the stillness. “Understood.”

“Good.” Dar’s manner shifted abruptly to calm cordiality. “There’s a Midwest regional sales meeting going on down on ten. You might want to stop in there. I know Jose wanted to talk to you.” She cleared her throat, then absently picked up Kerry’s cup and took a sip of her tea.

Kerry was careful not to react. She kept a bland, interested look on her face and studied her pen. “I think we might even be able to push up the due date on those extra T3s. The local up there owes me a favor.”

“Good,” Dar said again, putting the cup down and standing up.

“Ladies and gentlemen.” She gave them a nod and strode out, leaving a Dar-sized awkwardness behind her.

“All right. Now that we’ve got that cleared up,” Kerry pushed back from the table and stood, “anything else we need to clarify?” She was met with silence. “Great. I’ve got a conference call I’m due on in ten minutes. I’ll keep you advised on the status of those circuits.” She gathered up her papers and tucked them under an arm, then picked up her cup and made her way to the door, pushing her way through it and letting it close behind her.

DAR HEARD THE steps catching up to her in the hallway, and she debated making a sharp right turn into the restroom. Then Clarice called her name and she regretfully abandoned the thought and stopped, turning and giving the black woman an inquiring look.

“Got a few minutes?”

Patience, Dar. Take a deep breath and imagine Kerry teaching you to
crochet
. “Sure,” Dar replied, then fell silent, putting the burden of the conversation back on Clarice.

“Somewhere more private than the central lobby?” There was a note of nervous amusement in Clarice’s voice. “Your office, maybe?”

“C’mon.” Dar turned and led the way along the hall, pulling the door to her outer office open and holding it as Clarice passed in front of her. María looked up as they entered, and her gaze slipped past Clarice’s shoulder and met Dar’s in wry amusement. The poor secretary had found herself in a most awkward position, having had to field the love-struck woman’s inquires into Dar’s personal tastes and preferences, and had retreated into a bland, Cuban incomprehension on many occasions.

“That is how I knew about you and Kerrisita,” María had told her once. “I
did not have to tell her anything, Dar. When I saw her first time fixing you the
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coffee, the right way? I knew.”

Dar considered that as she followed Clarice into her inner office, realizing that should have signaled to her the difference between Kerry and all her former interests. Kerry alone hadn’t fenced around with her, done the dance, played the game. She’d walked in and simply claimed Dar, lock, stock and barrel, as though she’d had some inalienable right to do so.

Hmm
. Dar set her interesting revelation aside as she sat down behind her desk and crossed her arms on it. “All right, what can I do for you?”

“So, how are you, Dar?” Clarice asked, seating herself cautiously.

“Never been better,” Dar replied with complete honestly. “What do you want?”

“Haven’t changed, huh? Straight to the point.” Clarice cleared her throat. “Well, you remember my mom?”

“Mm.” Dar nodded. Clarice’s mother lived in Coral Gables, and she’d always thought the two were close.

“She’s getting on, and the doctor doesn’t want her living alone anymore. She wants me to come back here and live with her. So I was wondering if there was anything in the company available for me.” She paused. “Here.”

Oh. Something simple for a change
. Dar sat back and propped a knee up against the edge of her desk, looking up at the ceiling as she brought to mind a list of openings in operations in the area. Her peripheral vision told her Clarice was watching her with a look that mixed curiosity and something else. “There might be one or two things, but I’ll have to check with Kerry,” Dar replied. “It’s her ballpark, unless you want to change divisions. When are you looking at making the move?”

Clarice exhaled, obviously relieved. “As soon as I can. Listen, I’m sorry about this whole mess-up, Dar.” She got the words out in a rush.

“Paul’s new, and he’s young, but he really did sound like he knew what he was doing, and I—”

“Don’t apologize to me,” Dar cut her off. “Do yourself a favor and don’t cover up for him. Everyone takes the heat for their own mistakes, remember?”

Clarice pursed her lips and exhaled. “You sure haven’t changed much at all.”

That got an amused quirk of Dar’s lips. “You expected me to? Hope you weren’t holding your breath,” she remarked. “There’s a reason everyone would rather deal with Kerry.”

A shift. “Yeah, she’s pretty sharp,” Clarice said. “Where’d she come from?”

Dar sensed a ruffle in the waters. “She was part of an account we consolidated down here,” she said. “I’ll send her a note, tell her you’re looking to relocate.”

“Thanks.” Clarice stood up. “I’ll go talk to her myself. I just wanted 54
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to make sure you didn’t have a problem with it. Maybe she’ll have a minute now.”

“I’m sure she’ll find time,” Dar answered.

“Hmm...she’s really efficient, that’s true,” Clarice said. “I can see I have a lot to learn from her.” She turned and walked out, closing the door behind her with a distinct snick.

Dar gazed plaintively at her ceiling. She was reaching over to hit her intercom button when her inner door cracked itself open and a blonde head poked inside. “Ah. I was just about to call you.”

Kerry entered and closed the door behind her, running the fingers of her right hand through her hair as she made her way across the office. “We got the overseas links to the UK straightened out,” she announced. “And they were able to get permission for that new link station in India.”

“Good.” Dar laced her fingers together behind her head and leaned back. “Clarice was on her way to see you. She wants to move back here.” Dar considered. “And I think she’s heard about us.”

“Sweetie, you drinking my tea in a meeting doesn’t really help hide that.” Kerry perched on the edge of Dar’s desk and let her hands rest on her knee. “Not that you weren’t welcome to it.”

“Damn.” Dar exhaled. “I did do that, didn’t I? Oh well.” She laughed softly. “Have you had lunch yet? Want to go downstairs?”

“Is that an invitation from my boss?” Kerry answered playfully.

“No, I haven’t; and I’d love to, since all I’ve had so far today is a handful of chocolate kisses.”

“Good.” Dar stood up. “I’ll be down at the base Friday and all next week, eating God only knows what.” She slipped on her jacket and straightened it, smoothing the line of the crisply tailored skirt in the same motion. “C’mon. I think they have pot roast today.”

“Is that going to be a little weird for you?” Kerry asked, as they walked out the door and through the outer office. María was already at lunch, and the room was, for once, quiet. “Going back there, I mean, not the pot roast.”

“A little,” Dar admitted. “I’ve got a lot of memories invested in that place, both good and bad.”

Kerry waited until they were on the elevator before she spoke again. “Can I come down there with you one of the days, just to see it?

I’m curious.”

“Hgrm.” Dar held the door open for her. “It wasn’t exactly the nicest place in the world to grow up, Ker. Mostly sand, palmetto scrub, and mosquitoes.”

They strolled across the lobby, passing several people headed in the same direction who called out greetings. “Is that a no, then?” Kerry asked. “I mean, if you’d rather I didn’t, that’s okay, Dar. I think you know enough of how I feel about your upbringing to know you’ve got nothing to be embarrassed about.”

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The noise in the lunchroom stalled further conversation, and they got in line after exchanging hellos with Mark and Duks, who had snuck in just ahead of them. Dar took the opportunity to capture a chocolate mousse hiding behind two pieces of fruitcake and listen to the chatter.

She’d been frequenting the lunchroom more often the last few months—

not as regularly as every day, but at least once a week, so her presence no longer drew outright stares and whispers.

She still found it easy to imagine the covert attention, though. But she’d been dealing with that since her first overall promotion to regional manager, and by now, it was more an amusing way to pass the minutes than anything else. Or play with their minds. Dar reached out an idle hand and arranged a lock of Kerry’s blonde hair, getting a raised eyebrow from her lover. She tweaked the hair, and Kerry turned her head, a smile pulling at the corners of her mouth. “I’d love you to come on down to the base with me.”