Stormy Waters: Book 10 in The Dar & Kerry Series (43 page)

"So." Kerry leaned on the counter and watched the water start to percolate through the grinds. "We've got an executive meeting at nine. What's the angle you're going to put on that, Dar?"

"Shh." Dar circled her and kissed her on the back of the neck. "I don't want to talk about angles until we're in the car on the way there."

Kerry turned her head and peered up at her partner. "Just trying to mentally prepare," she protested mildly. "It's going to be a free for all, y'know."

"I know." Dar rested her chin on Kerry's shoulder. "Don't worry about it. We'll just take it as it comes. Now," she bumped her lightly, "what was that about sunrise and a cookie?"

"A biscuit." Kerry bumped her back with a tolerant grin. "I think I have some whole wheat crackers we could try."

Dar snorted.

"Yeah, okay. Grab the banana nut cakes from the fridge and I'll get the coffee." Kerry acknowledged. "And I'll figure out something safe to talk to you about."

Dar paused in the middle of removing a package of muffins, and looked at her. "That's not what I--"

Kerry raised her eyebrows.

"Ker, it's going to be an entire day of that crap. Any reason to start it early?" Dar asked plaintively.

"Yes." Kerry looked back at her seriously. "I want to be ready for it, and I want a comfort level with how you feel about all this stuff before we go in there. It would make me feel a lot better."

Dar blinked. "Oh."

"You asked." She shrugged slightly, a faint twitch starting at the corners of her mouth. "But I like being able to answer you honestly, and not have either of us freak out, you know that?"

On the verge of slightly freaking out, Dar relaxed instead. "Yeah," she agreed. "Sorry, I wasn't thinking." She put the muffins down and removed a package of whipped cream cheese, setting it down as well. "Story of my life lately."

"That's the second time you said that recently." Kerry poured the now finished coffee into a carafe and snagged two cups. "C'mon." She led the way to the sliding glass doors to their porch and paused, as Dar reached past her to unlock them and push them open.

They walked outside and settled down at the table, the sound of the surf now more audible as a fairly strong breeze fluttered their shirts against their bodies. "Oo." Kerry set her burden down and walked to the balcony, enjoying the fresh air.

Dar took a seat at the table and poured two cups of coffee, fixing Kerry's and setting it next to the other chair. She removed a muffin from the container and cut it in half, studiously covering both the flat surfaces with cream cheese.

Kerry came over and sat down, taking her cup and sipping at it. "Thank you."

Pale blue eyes flicked up and regarded her. "You're welcome." She handed Kerry half the muffin and took the other half for herself. "You know something?"

Kerry nibbled at her muffin. "You have no clue what you're going to do in that meeting," she stated, eyes twinkling very gently. "I figured that out while we were walking out here because if you did know what you were going to do, you'd have said it already instead of pushing me off since yesterday."

Dar took a bite of her muffin, more than a little disconcerted. "Um..."

"Am I wrong? It's okay if I am. I was just--" Kerry half shrugged. "You know." She slid one foot under the table and rubbed Dar's with it. "I don't want to rattle you, hon. I just feel rattled myself, and I hate that."

Dar, of course, hated it also. She wasn't really feeling rattled as much as she was feeling like she was not in control of whatever was going on and she hated that even more. Things were happening that surprised her, and knocked her off guard, and it was difficult to keep having to adjust her inner plans to account for totally bizarre?

Off balance. It struck a chord somewhere, and suddenly Dar remembered exactly why she hated feeling that way, and exactly when she'd been taunted about her reaction to it. "Huh."

"Dar?"

Everything had conspired lately against her, but was it just the vagaries of fate, or did she detect a subtle, long finger nailed hand behind it?

"Hello, Dar?" Kerry reached over and curled her fingers around Dar's wrist. "Earth calling?"

Dar cocked her head to one side. "I was just remembering something," she murmured. "Anyway, yeah, I think you're right, Ker. I mean...I know basically what we're gonna do." She leaned her elbows on the table and nibbled her way around the edge of her muffin. "We're gonna cancel that meeting."

"Uh?" Kerry got caught in mid-sip. "What?"

"You and I are just going to concentrate on the ship," Dar said firmly. "We've got a project to complete, and the rest of the stuff going on can wait. Duks can handle his security breach, and our security department can handle the cleaning staff."

Kerry rested her chin on her fist. "Um...okay."

"It's a distraction." Dar looked her right in the eye. "Someone's trying very hard to keep you, and I, off balance and not concentrating on this project." She bit her muffin in half, and watched crumbs litter the table. "We're not going to let them do that anymore."

Mental whiplash was no kinder than the physical kind Kerry discovered. She studied her partner for a minute then merely shook her head. "Whatever you say, boss," she replied. "So, you want me to send a note to..."

"The battling burritos, yes." Dar sounded much more decisive now. "Tell them we'll be at the ship all day and nothing short of a hurricane better interrupt us." She sliced the other muffin in half and adorned it, then nudged Kerry's hand. "C'mon, we've got crunches to do, treadmills to pound...start chewing."

Obediently, Kerry did, glad at least that some sort of direction seemed to be coming back into her partner's attitude. Whether that direction was going to take them both off the road into the water, she didn't know, but heck.

Life was short. Enjoy the cream cheese while you could.

KERRY CROSSED THE baked, white concrete between the terminal and the ship, glad she'd put her sunglasses on as the sun reflected unmercifully off the pale surface. She was dressed in a pair of well broken in jeans, work boots, and a plain red pocketed t-shirt, and she blended in with the thick crowd of workers clustering around the ship entry in a state of controlled panic.

She had left Dar in the terminal, her partner intent on taking control of their office and everything that was processing through it. Unable to put on her own boots because of the swelling of her injured foot, Dar had reluctantly agreed to let Kerry take charge onboard and work with the install team.

Kerry knew, of course, that beach sandals or no, Dar would eventually break the rules and ramble after her, but for now she proceeded on the assumption that everything would be up to her to coordinate. They had a lot to do, and she felt relatively focused and ready for it. "Morning, guys."

Two of her IT techs turned, hearing her voice. "Morning, ma'am!" They both chorused. "Wow, what a mess, huh?"

"You got it." Kerry paused, seeing what appeared to be a logjam at the top of the gangway. "What's going on in there?"

"Oh." The taller of the two, a slim dark haired man named Carlos, grinned. "There's this guy up there who's yelling because we keep getting our stuff before he gets his. I think the man in charge inside likes us."

"The big guy?" Kerry hazarded a guess, holding a hand up over her own head.

"Si." Carlos nodded. "He sent up all the cabling patches to the main floor just now, and this other guy was waiting for some plugs and he had a fit."

"You know who that big guy is, don't you?" Green eyes twinkled.

"No." Carlos shook his head, and his companion did also. They were both fairly new hires, juniors in Mark's expansive department.

"C'mon." Kerry led the way up the gangway, nudging past a few construction workers. At the top she managed to squeeze past a man in a hard hat with a bristling red beard, ignoring his glare as she hopped onto the deck to see what was going on.

Carlos and his friend followed her, standing cautiously behind her as they got clear of the hatch.

"Ah do not care." Andy was standing, with his arms crossed over his broad chest, legs spread in front of a stack of boxes. "These here boxes go in whatever the hell order ah want them to."

Facing him was a lean man in an electrician's union t-shirt with a tool belt and a bad attitude. "Listen buddy, I'm gonna kick your ass if you don't cough up my stuff, unnerstand?"

Andy just looked at him and smiled. "We ain't got no time here for fun."

"You think it's funny?" The man advanced aggressively.

"Ah think you're an ass." Andy pointed at the narrow stairwell with one thumb. "So get your silly ass up them stairs fore I toss it overboard. Your damn stuff went up half an hour ago."

The man glared at him, but headed for the door. "You aint' seen the last of me. That's for sure."

The logjam broke and men started across the deck again, milling around and heading for various boxes and crates. Kerry scooted through them and headed for Andrew instead, cautiously followed by her techs. "Hey! Morning!"

Andy turned at the familiar voice. "Wall! Morning there, kumquat." He produced a grin for her. "You're an early bird."

Without hesitation, and despite all the commotion, Kerry walked up and gave him a big hug. "Boy, I'm glad you're here," she remarked. "Are you causing trouble taking care of us?"

Her father-in-law chuckled, a low, rumbling sound.

Kerry turned to the wide eyed techs. "Guys, this is Andrew Roberts," she explained. "Dar's daddy." she clarified, after a second. "Dad, this is Carlos and Jason, who work for us."

"Howdy." Andrew greeted them amiably.

"Hi," Carlos responded.

"Hello," Jason added, from his safe position behind Kerry. "Nice to meet you."

Kerry couldn't decide if the two were more intimidated by Andrew's size, or the fact that he was Dar's father. She gave them a tolerant grin, and pointed. "Go on upstairs. I'll meet you up there." She waited for them to retreat then turned back to Andy. "Having fun?"

Andy looked around, then back at her. "Little bit," he acknowledged. "My kid here?"

"Yep, in the building." Kerry pointed over her shoulder. "We've got a lot of work to do today."

"You get all that stuff settled up last night?" Andrew asked curiously. "Sounded like a rat in a teakettle all what was going on."

How would a rat get into a teakettle? Kerry wondered. "More or less," she said. "What's going on in here today? Seems like a lot of people are pissed off."

"Wall." Her father in law folded his arms again. "Folks don't like to naturally take turns, see, and in this here little box, ain't no way anything gets done unless folks do." He walked over and kicked a pallet. "Problem was, feller who was in here 'fore I was just let all this stuff show up any the hell way, and it was a big old mess."

Kerry looked around, realizing the cargo space was far more organized than it had been the last time she'd seen it. Pallets were lined up against the walls in orderly rows, each with a label on them, and men with pallet jacks were moving them out in a regular sequence. "Ah!"

"Folks don't like waiting." Andy shrugged.

"Especially when you put all our stuff first?" Kerry elbowed him gently in the side.

Blue eyes blinked innocently at her. "Ain't mah fault all them gizmos of yours come in labeled and regular when the rest of this here gunk we got to rip open to see what it is," he protested mildly. "I just get that there easy stuff out mah way first, that's all."

"Ahh!" Kerry put a hand over her chest. "My anally retentive labeling system. At last, someone appreciates it!" She smiled broadly. "I'm vindicated!"

Andrew chuckled. "Ah do like it," he agreed. "'Bout good enough for the Navy."

Kerry took that as the compliment it obviously was and grinned. "Thanks," she said. "Okay, I'm going to get working. If you need anything, I'll be upstairs and Dar's over there terrorizing everyone in case you hear yelling coming from the shore side area."

Andrew patted her on the back and sent her on her way. He waited for her to disappear up the stairs, before he returned his attention to the loading dock, observing the orderly movement with a judicious eye. "Hey, you all," he called over to two men standing near the far wall. "Watch this here thing. I'll be right back."

He walked across the gangway and down to the dock, ambling across the open space with a deceptive stride. Two forklifts dodged him, and he sped up a little as he made his way up the walk to the back of the terminal.

Ducking inside the door, he looked quickly around. It was almost as full of frenetic, yet purposeful motion as the ship hold, only here the bodies rushing around were covered in polo shirts and pressed chinos and the smell was of copper and new plastic rather than sump oil.

It was cool in here, too. Andrew appreciated that. He'd spent enough time in his life in places where air conditioning was unheard of to appreciate it now that he could pretty much have it at will. After a career spent in the military, he'd discovered that directing his own life and his own comfort was actually a pretty damn nice thing.

Ah. His eyes found what they were looking for. On the far side of the large room there was a large desk like area, raised up a foot or so, giving it a commanding view of the entire space.

Dar had taken it over, and was perched on a stool behind the counter, her laptop on one side of her and a pad of paper in front, her head bent over it as she wrote. Andrew found himself smiling at the sight, gazing at his daughter fondly as the head propped on one fist echoed a much earlier mental image he had of her.

He remembered watching her sit at the counter in their tiny kitchen down south in just such a pose, pouring over a comic book or a new magazine as she waited for them to have dinner. The look of absorption hadn't changed, or the rapid flicking as her eyes scanned across her subject with an intense focus he'd recognized as something he'd seen in himself on occasion.

It had always made him feel good...that echo. Andy knew he wasn't a stupid man, but he knew as well he wasn't no scientist and he'd taken a lot of pride in his daughter's accomplishments specially knowing he'd contributed to a bit of it in his own way.

Mah kid. He smiled, watching Dar shift restlessly as she wrote, recognizing the fidgets as well.

"All right." Dar finished writing and straightened, ripping the top sheet off the pad of paper and handing it to a waiting tech. "Get these units together, and get 'em on a flatbed. We'll start at the top of the ship and work down."

"Not from the bottom first, ma'am?" the tech queried. "Wouldn't it be easier?"

Dar leaned on her arms and pinned him with a cool, blue stare. "You think it's gonna be easier to carry those things up eleven flights of metal stairs now, or this afternoon?"

The tech looked at the list, then at Dar. "Oh." He scratched his jaw sheepishly. "Sorry, yeah. You're right. No elevators in there, huh?"

"No."

"Gotcha, on the way, ma'am." The tech trotted off with his list.

Dar shook her head and went back to her pad, then paused and turned her head, as though sensing her father's eyes on her. "Hey." She put her pencil down as she spotted him.

"Hey there, Dardar." Andrew came over and rested his forearms on the desk. "How are ya?"

Dar drummed her thumbs on the bad faux wood Formica. "Wanting this damn circus to be over. How's it going in there?"

"Not bad," her father said. "Saw Kerry go on up in there. She all right with them guys?" He expressed a little doubt. "Got some roughneck types up in them spaces up a ways."

Dar frowned. "My guys?" she asked incredulously. "Dad, most of them won't even cough hard in her presence."

"Naw, them contractors." Andrew shook his head. "'Lectricans and what all." He glanced around. "Not these here fellers. I figure they ain't most of 'em dangerous as bugs."

No, probably not. Dar glanced at the back door. "Well." She drummed the table again. "There's always a chance, I guess, but she's got some of the techs with her, and I'm not gonna be the one to tell her she can't be in there."

"Heh." Andrew chuckled shortly. "Well, I'll keep an earbug out."

He turned and looked around. "How's your laig?"

"Ick." Dar answered honestly. "Thanks for asking."

Andrew gave her arm a pat. "We'll get this thing done, Dardar. Don't you worry." He turned and headed for the back door, threading his way through the techs that all turned and looked after him.

Dar exhaled. She pulled her PDA out and tapped out a message, then unclipped her cell phone as it rang and checked the caller ID.

Duks.

With a sigh, she answered it.

"OKAY, LET'S START with the number one room." Kerry threaded her way through the hall, dodging rolls of carpet and stacks of steel supports. The two techs followed obediently after her, carrying the first of their heavy pieces of gear between them.

The hallways flickered with intermittent power, and they were full of workers all trying to get their part of the job done at the same time and mostly in the same space. Tempers were hot, the air was hotter, and Kerry already felt sweat making her t-shirt cling to her torso.

Not a nice feeling. Kerry had never enjoyed sweating though she didn't mind it in small doses, as when she was in the gym or if they were outside on the beach. But she liked the opportunity to limit it and have copious amounts of some kind of water at close hand.

At first, she'd thought she was being just too preppy about it, and for a while after they'd moved in together, she hadn't said anything about it one way or another to Dar, until she realized one morning that it was so muggy outside the windows in the town house were completely fogged over...

"Ugh." Kerry pressed her hands against the sliding glass doors, feeling the chill of them against her skin. "I'm sweating already."

Dar walked up behind her and looked over her shoulder at the misty scene. "Ah. Summer."

Well, Kerry told herself, buck up. It's only an hour, and you can't show your northern stripes yet. She straightened up a little and pushed off from the window. "Time's a wasting." She started for the door, only to be brought up short as Dar caught her around the waist with one long arm. "Urf?"

"You want to go running in that?" Dar queried.

Kerry peeked up at her. "Um...there's a choice?"

Dar leaned her arms on Kerry's shoulders and gazed into her eyes. "Sure," she said. "There's no rule that says we have to do anything we don't want to do, Ker."

"I thought you liked running."

"I like fitting into my clothes," Dar replied frankly. "Only idiots like spending the morning in air thick enough to make soup from, running in circles."

"Ah." Kerry felt better. "So you don't like sweating that much?"

"I don't like sweating at all." Dar grinned. "Or didn't the 65 degree constant AC in here tip you off to that?" She indicated the windows. "How about we go swimming instead?"

"Swimming?"

Dar nodded. "The big pool's great for laps."

Cool water and Dar in a bathing suit. Hmm. "You don't think I'm a wuss? Or a pathetic snowbird?"

Dar snickered. "We could start the morning off right and skinny dip."

"C'mon." Kerry turned her back on the fogged window feeling much friendlier to the humidity all of a sudden. "Race you to the pool."

"Ma'am?"

Kerry looked up and wiped the smile off her face, along with a healthy dose of perspiration from her forehead. "Sorry. What?"

"We have to take this upstairs, right?" the man asked. "Like, by walking?"

Kerry gave him a sympathetic look, as they edged past stacks of metal poles. "Unfortunately, yeah," she said. "I'll give you guys a hand going up with it," she offered. "I know it's heavy."

The closest tech released one hand off the switch and waved it at her. "Oh, no, no, that's okay, ma'am. We're fine! Honest."

"Yeah." The other tech grunted. "We can handle this."