"I’m going to go outside and have a smoke," A.J. told Kara as she changed, "Randy is here and it looks like he’s working up a stroke again."
"Your brother always looks that way," Kara chuckled while changing, "I’ll try this on and go through the checkout."
"Pick me up a couple of black shirts will you?" Durell asked her, "You know my size."
"I swear," Kara said, "You never change."
"I do so," Durell protested, "I no longer shoot people. That’s change enough in itself."
"I guess you’re right there," Kara said, "Go tend to your brother before he has that stroke."
"All right," Durell agreed and headed out to find his brother outside, "What is going on, Randy?
"What are you doing here?" Randy demanded, "You are supposed to be watching that meeting…"
"Whoa," A.J. said, stopping his brother, "Hold your horses. Since when are you giving me orders?"
"Someone has to!" Randy said, "I mean this is a very important meeting…"
"That I have little to do with," A.J. told him, "I told you a week ago that I was going to take a day off. I have people sitting at the meeting taking notes, which is all that I need. I have nothing to add, I leave the business end of it to you and dad."
"You never change," Randy grunted, "This is only the biggest deal we’ve ever attempted…"
"I told you and mom when I came back," A.J. said, interrupting his brother yet again, "I will run the security force for the company, something that I am good at. I am not a businessman and do not intend to become one. I will not wear a suit. I will not listen to your lawyers spread their manure all over the place. Is that clear, Randy?"
"You don’t care about this company one bit!" Randy protested.
"That is not true," A.J. smiled, "I care about the paycheck I receive from it. I care about keeping it secure. I do not care about the business ins and outs. Dad still wants me to become a little clone of him. That is your job, Randy, and you are more than welcome to it."
"If only he’d just begin to trust me," Randy said wistfully, "He still thinks I can do nothing right."
"I don’t get that thinking either," A.J. agreed, "That’s part of why I left. If you think it will help I’ll go talk to him today. Maybe I can get it through our father’s thick skull that I have all the business acumen of the average rock."
"I’d appreciate it," Randy nodded, "I’ve got to get back. Those negotiations are going to be a pain in the ass."
"Right," A.J. nodded, "Enjoy, Randy."
A.J. shook his head as his brother walked away. He never understood the business first mindset that had taken most of the members of his family.
He lit his cigarette and sat outside as he waited for Kara to finish inside the store. She came out of the store carrying three moderate sized packages, looking as happy as most women do when finishing a shopping run.
"What did Randy want?" Kara asked him, "Must not have been too important."
"Same shit, different day," A.J. shrugged, "He doesn’t quite realize yet that I could care less about the business aspects of it. Dad keeps pushing him to get me in for some reason."
"Your father doesn’t want to leave the business in the hands of that idiot," Kara said, "Randy and that vapid witch he married are going to run it into the ground."
"And he thinks I could do better?" A.J. boggled, "I mean really, the only things I have experience with are shooting, security and radio repair. I flunked out of business school because I thoroughly hated it."
"You have a shred of common sense," Kara reminded him, "That is one thing that Randy is sadly lacking."
"True," A.J. sighed, "Have you gotten you fill of shopping or shall we hit another place?"
"Home sounds good," Kara said, "I’ve got a headache again and it is getting worse."
"I have to stop by the house," A.J. reminded her, using their usual understated euphemism for his parents mansion, "Dad wanted to see me today. Probably to make his usual plea for me to do something other than just security."
"I’ll try to keep your mother out of it," Kara nodded, "I tell her I’m having a headache again and she’ll go motherly on me, leaving you to deal with your father alone."
"She does like you," Durell admitted, "Probably because she thinks you settled me down enough to come home."
"I still think that O’Sullivan’s bullets did more for that than anything else," Kara said, "But I’ll take what I can get."
"That pretty English accent doesn’t hurt either," A.J. chuckled, "Come on, let’s go."
Chapter 2
A.J. and Kara piled into the truck that he had purchased when he had returned to the US. After several years of tiny English automobiles, Durell was thrilled to be driving a vehicle that he could get in and out of without his rapidly deteriorating knees yelling at him for. They pulled up in the large drive area at his parents' house where one of his security people was milling around.
"Chucky," A.J. said, "How is it around here today?"
"Slow," Chucky said, "I like it that way though. We ran off a couple drifters, pretty much the highlight of the day."
"Enjoy the quiet ones," A.J. reminded him, "The really bad ones in this business are when it gets exciting."
"No doubt," Chucky nodded, "Have fun in there, A.J."
"Trust me," A.J. said as he headed for the house, "I’d rather be out here with you."
Chucky had a good laugh at that as A.J. and Kara headed into the house. Kara had little trouble seeing why the security staff liked their new boss, despite the fact that he was young and the son of the company head. A.J. was one of them, despite his father’s attempts to pull him into the social stratosphere of the company.
A.J. put his cigarette out in a potted plant outside the back door like he usually did when entering his parents’ house. His mother abhorred the habit, which was probably one of the reasons he picked it up in Europe. There was also the fact that he did not expect to live to see his thirtieth birthday back then, so he did not mind being hooked on them.
"I see you decided to come in today," Durell’s mother said, "Your father has wanted to see you all day."
"I told him I would be here," A.J. said, kissing his mother’s cheek lightly, "I’ve been working all week. This is the first day off I’ve taken in about ten."
"You know," his mother said, "You could join Randy in the front office and not have to work so much."
"I like the end of it I do," A.J. said, trying hard to keep himself calm, "Let’s not discuss this now, ok?"
"I could use some headache medicine if you have some," Kara said, "If you don’t mind, Mrs. Durell?"
"Of course not," A.J.’s mother said, a smile returning, "Come now, we’ll get you some tea and a couple of Tylenol pills."
"Thanks doll," A.J. said quietly in Kara’s ear as he planted a kiss on her cheek, "I owe you."
"You usually do," Kara winked, "Go deal with your father so we can go skating tonight, ok?"
"You’ve got it," A.J. nodded, "See you in a few."
"Come now, Kara," Mrs. Durell said, "I think we have some in here…"
Chapter 3
A.J. watched Kara and his mother walk into the other room. He sighed a little and seriously wished for a cigarette before he had to go see his father. Even in his chemotherapy weakened state Robert Lee Durell was a brash personality to deal with, especially for his eldest son.
A.J. grabbed a couple of pretzels to chew on during the conversation and walked up the stairs to his father’s room. He nodded at a nurse and got the silent go ahead to walk in.
Robert Durell was reading a whole pile of papers and looking angry about what he was seeing when he finally noticed his son walk into the room.
"Nice to see you finally decided to show up, Andy Jack," the elder Durell said, using an abbreviated form of A.J.’s given name, Andrew Jackson, "Wallowing down with the low levels again, I bet."
"That’s my job," A.J. shrugged, "I told you when
I came back that I’d get the security mess cleaned up, and I’ve done that I think."
"I can’t fault your job on internal security," the elder Durell nodded, "I just want you to take more of an interest in the actual running of the company."
"Randy enjoys that crap more than I do," A.J. said, knowing it sounded lame, "He’s always done what you wanted in that regard and usually done it better than I could have. I don’t have any real business acumen, that’s why I left in the first place."
"But you’ve got such a head on your shoulders," Robert said, "I mean… You could so far outclass that dunderhead of a brother of yours."
"Randy may not be the sharpest tack in the pile," A.J. admitted, being charitable, "But I hate business. I refuse to wear a suit, dad. I started being a soldier type because I would rather have a good workout than I would sit in a meeting. I think tactical, not economical."
"Your brother is an idiot," Robert said, pushing a pile of papers, "This deal that he’s putting together is something that anyone should know better than to do. My company! The one that I’ve built since I was 18! And he’s going to destroy it within months."
"You aren’t dead yet," A.J. said, "You can put a stop to it if you want to."
"I’d rather you do it," Robert said, "You need to get into this."
"I’d rather go back to Czechoslovakia," A.J. frowned, "I came back because mom practically begged me to. I didn’t come back to become a corporate magnate. It’s not me, never was. Randy is the one who wants that. I don’t."
"Bah!" Robert exclaimed, "I don’t know how the hell you came out of my genes, Andy Jack!"
"Sure you do," A.J. smiled, "I’m a stubborn mule just like you are, dad. I work security because I like it and I’m good at it. But I don’t have to stay here. I’ve had offers from a half a dozen training companies because of my experiences overseas. I’m not going to give up what I’m good at just because it doesn’t suit what you think I should do."
"Some living," Robert said, "One that’s already cost you your knees."
"That was a mistake," A.J. told him, "Besides, I got the son of a bitch back. Those two bullets in his gut probably hurt Timonchenko more than his hitting my knee has hurt me."
"Very well," Robert sighed, "Do what you will. Just keep an eye on your brother, will you?"
"I’ll do the best I can," A.J. said lamely, "The sad fact is, dad. I may know security, but I can’t read the numbers like you and he can. That’s why I flunked out. I don’t have the knack for numbers that you do."
"That is what we have accountants for," Robert grunted, "Anyway, I’m sure that pretty girl you brought back from England with you is waiting. Better go save her from your mother."
A.J. took that as a dismissal and quickly left the room. He was pushing thirty years old and he still felt like a child when he was in the presence of that man. He shook his head as he walked down the hallway, not even taking the time to grunt as his right knee buckled, sending his balance off a bit.
Kara and his mother were finishing their tea when A.J. came into the room. He pulled up a chair and sat down as his mother poured him a bit. A.J. drank a little, but didn’t particularly like tea all that much so it was more a show than anything else.
"He seems to be rather anxious about what my brother is doing," A.J. said, "I can’t say that I blame him, but pushing me like he did when I was a kid is going to get him nowhere."
"He always had high hopes for you, Andy," his mother said, making him cringe a little as he always did when called Andy, "You broke his heart when you left school to go running around Europe like you did."
"He had hopes to turn me into a little clone of him you mean," A.J. reminded her, "I enjoy what I do in life now. I don’t wear a suit, I don’t deal with numbers. I deal with people and real situations. I’m good at it. We haven’t had a major leak since I took over the security section. I’d make a lousy CEO, but I’m a dynamite security man."
"I think you would be better at it than you think," his mother said, "But you would be miserable."
"And there lies the rub," Kara said, "The happiest I ever saw you was working on the radio equipment for the BBC, though when you don’t have to deal with the higher ups you seem fine doing this too."
"I don’t like suits, I don’t like authority," A.J. said, "I had enough of it as a child."
"We’re due to skate in an hour," Kara said, looking at her watch, "We should probably to head out."
"Have fun," A.J.’s mother told them, "See you both tomorrow for dinner?"
"We’ll be here," A.J. said, though he wished he could decline, "See you then."
Chapter 4
A.J. and Kara walked out of the house and climbed into A.J.’s truck with him kissing her quickly as he turned on the ignition. She smiled a little and leaned back in the plush seat, rubbing her temples as A.J. pulled the truck out of the driveway. She pushed her blonde hair back and smiled at him a little.
"You hate going back," Kara chuckled, "I still find it amusing that there are still people out there that refer to you as Andy."
"Just so long as you don’t start all will be well," A.J. chuckled, "My family is just about the only group on the planet that I still get flustered by. I swear the KGB was a cakewalk in comparison."
Kara was only able to chuckle a little bit. She stretched a little, but A.J. was able to tell that she wasn’t feeling very well. He had noticed the other day that she had taken quite a dent out of their bottle of Tylenol, but didn’t think anything of it at the time. He wondered if something else was wrong.
"You don’t look so hot, Kara," A.J. said, "You feeling ok?"
"I’m all right," Kara said, though her eyes didn’t look it, "Nasty headache still. I refuse to give in to it. I’ve always wanted to skate in Central Park in the winter and I’m going to do it."
A.J. nodded, though he still felt something was wrong. It was a gut instinct, one that had served him well when running from the KGB forces in Czechoslovakia. He just was not able to adapt it to the current situation or environment. A.J. shrugged it off as he pulled into the parking lot.
"Am I going to get you into skates?" Kara asked him, grinning as they walked up to the stand, "Or are you going to be a wuss?"
"You know," A.J. chuckled, "You’re the only person I know who has ever called me that."
"I think I’m entitled," Kara grinned, "And you’re skirting the question. You going to skate?"
"I’m lucky if I can stand up most of the time, remember?" A.J. reminded her, "My doctor would have a fit if I got on skates. I’ll come out on the ice with you, but I’ll let you have the skates to yourself."
"Chicken," Kara chuckled, "At least you’re willing to come out on the ice."
"I wouldn’t miss it," A.J. said, "There’s an opening, go get your skates."
Kara went over to the skate rental booth and got a pair in her size. A.J. shuffled his way over to the bench and wrapped his right knee with an ace bandage to give himself a bit more durability. By the time Kara got her skates on he was up and reacquainting himself with walking on ice.
"You’d probably be safer on skates," Kara said as she watched him balance, "Be a bit more fun too."
"You know me," A.J. chuckled, "I prefer my exercise to be horizontal in nature."
Kara stood up on her skates and got out onto the ice. She stayed with A.J. for a minute as she got her bearings, but once she did that she got up and actually skated around. A.J. smiled and watched his girl skate around beautifully. She was not as good as a figure skater, but A.J. figured that she was just good enough for him.
A.J. did the best he could to stay out of the way of skaters, and soon they were just whipping around him. He shook his head and tried to catch up to Kara, only to have her start skating circles around him. She laughed and smiled, but she still stopped to rub her head every once in a while.
"Kara," A.J. said, "You ok? You still look like you are in pain."
> "My head is still hurting," Kara said, "No big deal. I’m still skating circles around you."
Kara grinned a little, pushing the pain out of mind as she did a few whirls around A.J. He slipped around a little bit, enjoying the ice much like anyone would in that situation. He did a decent job of standing up until a couple of kids came too close to him, sending him wobbling.
Kara tried to get there to help stop him from falling, but she just exacerbated the issue, helping him fall down into the snow beside the ice. He pulled himself upright and just shook his head. Kara brought herself to a stop and grinned sheepishly at him.
"Sorry about that," Kara chimed in, "Watch this though!"
A.J. sat up straight and watched Kara pull a few more rather complicated moves and do a triple flip. A.J. thought for a moment that she was going to fall, but she recovered at the end and skated full speed towards him.
"Bravo!" A.J. yelled.
Kara didn’t appear to hear him, however. Something changed in her face. Before A.J. or anyone else had a chance to realize something was wrong her body had slackened up and her momentum carried her body off the ice and flipping over A.J.
"Shit!" A.J. exclaimed, missing getting a sharp skate in the face by mere inches, "Kara!"
Despite the bad knees A.J. was up in seconds and scrambling over to where Kara had fallen. A crowd came up as well, mainly because Kara’s departure from the ice had been so uncontrolled and dramatic. When A.J. got to her he had to push back a couple people and start a basic medical check.
"Is there a doctor around?" A.J. yelled as he checked her out, "I need a physician here now!"
A middle-aged man that was being followed by two small children rushed off the ice and came up to where Kara was lying. Durell had checked vitals, which were still going, but getting weaker. He kneeled on the ground and made some of the same checks that Durell had just done.
"Has she had any problems today?" the doctor asked her as he checked her out, "Taken any drugs or done any drinking?"
"Nothing more than a nasty headache," A.J. told him, "No alcohol this week that I know of, definitely no drugs stronger than Tylenol."
The doctor nodded and opened her eyes, looking at her eyes and putting his finger against the side of her head. Concern was what A.J. saw in his eyes when he looked up at him.
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