by Melissa Good
"Ker, relax."
"Teach you to leave me here alone." Kerry stood and headed for the bathroom. "I've got to splash some cold water on my face. Hang on."
"Kerrison!"
Kerry paused. "Yes?"
"Would you chill, please? Take your time. There isn't jack squat going on here yet." Dar laughed. "If you fell asleep, you probably needed it. Stop freaking out."
"I'm not freaking out." Kerry trudged into the bathroom and glared at her rumpled reflection. "I just hate being a dumb ass!"
"You're not a dumb ass."
Kerry sighed. "Okay. Let me get my act together and get out of here. I'll see you in a little while." She hung up and turned, tossing the cell phone onto the water bed before she filled the sink with water and cupped her hands in it, splashing a large quantity onto her face. "Jesus." She pulled a soft, fluffy blue towel from the bar and patted herself dry.
She felt a little dazed, and she realized she'd been in a deep sleep when Dar had called. At the edges of her memory, she thought she detected hints of a bizarre dream, but nothing concrete popped into her mind.
Okay. She ran her fingers through her hair that was slightly damp from the water. Dar said nothing was going on, so she had time to get down a cup of coffee, and maybe not feel like such a space case. Accordingly, she headed for the kitchen, pausing to let Chino out as she went to the coffee maker.
While she waited for the water to drip, she pulled down the flat screen and keyed up her mailbox, reviewing the new items in silence as the kitchen filled with the scent of freshly brewed coffee. Dar liked to listen to her mail read by the device, but Kerry preferred to review it visually, even though the small keyboard was awkward to use.
She just didn't like ordering around a machine. It felt weird.
She opened the first mail, stifling a yawn with the back of her hand, then cursed as she heard her cell phone go off again. "Son of a biscuit." She bolted for the bedroom, racing around the couch and diving into the waterbed as she scrambled to grab the phone. "Hello?"
"Hey, sis," Said her sister Angie.
"Hey." Kerry rolled over onto her side. "What's up? You okay?"
"Not really. Me and Andrew are outta here." Angie told her. "Got anything you think we could move into fast down there? I thought about Virginia, with those college friends of mine, but it's just too weird."
Kerry scratched her ear, thinking hard. "I talked to my old apartment complex. They've got a two bedroom. Is Brian coming too?'
Silence. "I don't know," Angie answered unhappily.
Jesus. "Okay, well, it's a nice complex, and the manager said he's got two units he can rent on short notice. You could use that until you guys...until you figure out what you want to do," Kerry said. "I can set it all up for you if you want me to."
"Is it a nice place?"
Kerry pondered. "I lived there," she said. "Yeah, it's upscale, a lot of professionals live there. It's gated, and there are a lot of child development places around." She wondered, suddenly, if Angie expected her to invite them to live with her and Dar.
God. She hoped not, for a number of very selfish reasons.
"That sounds okay." Angie responded, after a long sigh. "I don't know if I can do this."
"I did." Kerry reminded her.
"You're you." Her sister shot back. "And you don't have a baby."
Kerry caught the omission. "Is he keeping Susie?"
"Yes." Angie said. "He... well, Andrew isn't his son, you know?"
"Bastard."
"Well, yeah." A faint attempt at wan humor came across. "That's the problem," she said. "And maybe I'm being gloomy or... Bri may surprise me and come too. He didn't say no, just that he had to work some stuff out."
"Jesus."
"Yeah." Angie murmured. "Sorry, didn't mean to land this on you, Ker. I know you must be busy."
Kerry smoothed her hand over the rumpled bed linen. "Actually, I'm at home at the moment. I...well, anyway, whatever I can do to help, Ang. Just let me know, and I'll make arrangements. You driving down?"
"I don't know yet," she said. "I'd hate to make that drive with the baby. I'm going to wait a day or two and see what's up with Brian. Maybe we'll fly down and get a car somewhere when we're there. Are you sick or something?"
"No...I just had...um...something to take care of. I'm leaving for work in a little while, but listen, keep me in the loop, okay?"
"I will." Angie sounded relieved. "It's a good feeling to know we've got a place to go to when we get there. Do you think Brian will have a problem getting a job? He's doing really well with the law firm. I figure I can find something to do part time."
Brian had made junior partner, and Kerry felt pretty sure he'd be all right, if he decided to join Angie, of course. She found it hard to believe he'd just abandon her. It wasn't the Brian she remembered from her years growing up with him.
He'd lived in his older brother's shadow, but he'd retained a core of decency that she didn't think, or didn't want to think, had disappeared. "I think you'll be fine." She reassured her sister. "Don't worry, sis. It'll work out."
Angie sighed again. "My other choice is moving home."
Absolutely a zero choice. "Hm." Kerry murmured. "Well, it's a big house, Ang, and it's just mom in it now."
"I know." Angie said quietly. "She wants me to go live there, but Ker I can't. I can't take those oh, so Christian pitying eyes on me twenty four seven."
"Yeah." Kerry nodded. "I hear you."
"I knew you would understand."
Kerry did with an internal sympathy that hit right in her guts. "I do. So relax, talk to Bri, and make the best decision you can, Ang. We'll work things out if and when you get here."
"Thanks, Kerry." Angie replied warmly. "I love you."
"Love you too, sis. Talk to you later." Kerry hung up, then quickly rolled off the waterbed just in case her body got any ideas of repeating its earlier trick. She juggled the cell phone in her hand as she went back to the kitchen, deep in thought.
Sometimes, she reflected soberly, it took someone else's misfortune to jog you to the reality of your own lack of it.
KERRY SHOULDERED HER briefcase and picked up the bag from Atlanta Bread Factory as she hopped out of her car. The sky had gotten cloudy overhead, and there was a bit of a rumble far off, but the breeze had picked up and its coolness was welcome.
She felt a bit conspicuous, to be honest, crossing the parking lot at nearly eleven instead of nine. However, the men working around the front of the terminal merely looked up at her, then went back to what they were doing, and the light stream of people coming down the steps from the terminal didn't give her a second glance.
Okay, so it was conspicuous mostly in her mind. After all, even her own staff would probably assume she'd come from the office and no one would question her anyway.
Definitely not with Dar there. She remembered once in a staff meeting when someone--had it been Jose? Yeah. Jose had questioned her being ten minutes late and Dar had turned to him and said... Well, it hadn't been nice, and it had been typical Dar, and Jose had gotten mad. But he'd never asked her about being late ever again. She'd felt a little awkward about it then, and she told Dar that.
Dar had told her to get over it. So she had, but she was still aware of how people felt.
Kerry pushed her sunglasses up on the bridge of her nose and mounted the two steps up to the entranceway, slowing a little as the door opened and the security guard stood back to allow her inside. "Morning." She murmured.
"Morning, ma'am," the guard replied. "Ms. Roberts asked me to tell you when you came in that she was in the back," he informed her promptly. "And that she's looking for you."
"Thanks." Kerry removed her glasses and stuck them into the pocket of the light cotton blouse she was wearing unbuttoned over a plain, green t-shirt. Inside most of the techs were waiting around, relaxing and sitting on top of the switches they had yet to install. "Hey guys."
Several of the techs turned, and waved. "Mo
rning, ma'am!" One called out. "Just got here in time, beat the rain, huh?"
"Looks like it." Kerry kept moving, crossing the front part of the terminal and heading for the office.
Near one wall stacks of new boxes were being opened, revealing servers and rack mount kits that would be their next task once the infrastructure was in place. Kerry was, frankly, more worried about that than the network gear since they would be installing new systems almost everywhere on the ship.
"Hey," Mark intercepted her. "We're still on track for after lunch. They figure at 1:00 p.m. they'll let us start going back on board. I was going to have my guys take in the gear, then Randy's team was gonna haul up the new boxes. Do you know if they got the racks put in?"
Kerry paused. "Hang on, let me get my file." She led him to the back office. Inside, several of their administrative people were busy at work, and at the back spare desk, Dar was huddled over her laptop pecking away furiously. "Hey boss."
Dar looked up. "Hey." She leaned back and waited for Kerry to come over. "Good morning." Her eyes twinkled, as Kerry stuck her tongue out. "Raining outside yet?"
"Not yet." Kerry sat on the edge of the desk and put her lunch bag down. "Did you bring my folio? I need to check something for Mark."
Dar produced the folio and handed it over. "What's this?" She tapped the bag with one finger, sniffing delicately at the brown surface and waggling her eyebrows.
"Lunch." Kerry opened her folder and checked the schedule, running her finger along one line on the topmost document. "According to this, Mark, we got the server racks in Monday." She announced. "So we're set to go."
"Great." Mark nodded. "You know what the worst part is going to be?"
"Which one?" Dar and Kerry answered at the same time. They exchanged glances and grins.
"Getting the user stuff out." Mark proceeded on gamely. "I don't think most of those places are ready for it; the offices and the bars and stuff."
Kerry sighed. "Probably not. We'd better stage everything in here, like we're doing with the infrastructure, and wait for each space to be finished."
"Man." Mark shook his head.
"I know." Kerry acknowledged the impossibility of it all. "We have three days. Assuming we get the network in today and the servers mounted that only leaves two days to get all the end units in, programmed and running."
Dar whistled softly under her breath as she typed.
"Do you know something we don't?" Kerry closed her folio and eyed her partner. "Or are you being cheerful for some other reason?"
"Hm." Dar stopped whistling. "Maybe I just like a challenge?" She looked up.
"Dar, this isn't a challenge, it's a nightmare." Kerry chuckled. "C'mon now."
Dar leaned back, lacing her fingers behind her head. "Depends on how you look at it." She disagreed. "Sure, there's a lot of work involved, and sure, we have a ridiculous amount of time to do it in." She shrugged. "That's all we have, so we just have to turn it around and look at it in a positive light."
Kerry blinked at her. "Huh?"
"If we do this, no matter if we get the bid or not, we win." Dar told her. "Because we'll have done something everyone here thinks can't be done."
Mark nodded. "Yeah. But on the other hand, boss, everyone expects the impossible because you're here, and you always get whatever it is we need to do done."
Kerry crossed her arms and also nodded. "He's right."
Dar looked from one to the other. "He is?"
"Of course," Kerry said. "There's not one person in this building who thinks you're not going to make this happen, Dar."
"Okay." Dar rocked back a little. "So why are the two of you so gloomy then?"
Kerry and Mark exchanged looks. "Did we just talk ourselves into a corner?" Kerry asked, with a slightly incredulous tone.
"Um yeah." Mark agreed sheepishly. "I think we did."
Dar spread her arms out to either side. "Pick one, folks. Either you believe this non-existent mojo I have to create miracles, or you don't."
Mark started backpedaling out of the office. "I'd never dis Dar's mojo," he said, just before disappearing out the door. "Never!"
Dar looked at Kerry, one eyebrow lifting.
"Honey, I'd never dis your mojo either, but that has nothing to do with this project." Kerry smiled charmingly at her, her grin broadening as she watched the visible blush rise up Dar's neck. "Anyway, I guess we'll just go like heck, and let the chips fall where they may. I'm a little more concerned about all that gear in the open with no one to watch it.
"They've got security." Dar commented. "Once that stuff's down, they'll be responsible for it."
"Doesn't help us if it gets stolen and we don't have it to demo."
"Hm. Good point."
"We'll think of something." Kerry opened her portfolio again and studied the contents.
"Mm." Dar turned her attention to the paper bag, now that the other people in the office had stopped peeking at her and grinning. She removed the contents, flattening the bag and setting the wrapped sandwiches on top of it.
"Okay, I'll be back." Kerry hopped off the desk and headed for the door. "Watch my sandwich for me, will you?" She vanished into the hallway, bouncing a little to the music trickling in from the setup area.
"Sure." Dar sat back and observed the wrapped item. "Does it do tricks?" She called after her partner, ignoring the muffled snickers from the other workers in the room.
After a second, Kerry's head popped back around the doorframe. "I've got a trick I'd love to show you. It involves a water balloon and an underwear waistband. Want to see it?"
Dar scratched her nose, and made a face.
"Didn't think so." Kerry disappeared again.
Dar chuckled and went back to her laptop, nudging aside the lunch bag for the time being. She lifted her head as she heard muffled giggles, and gave them all a droll look. "Something wrong?"
"No, ma'am." The closest of the workers shook her head. "Not a darn thing."
"Good." Dar leaned back and propped her knee up against the desk edge, pulling the laptop onto her lap.
"Ms. Roberts?"
Dar looked up. "Yes, Edith?"
"I heard yesterday that you wrestled a shark in the ocean, and saved Kerry from being eaten by it." Edith turned around in her chair.
"Is that true?"
Dar found herself the center of attention. "Um..."
"And that's how you hurt your foot, right?" One of the other women chimed in. "I heard you kicked it right in the teeth!"
Dar looked at her foot and then back up at the room. "Well, um..."
"Man that must have been scary." Edith shook her head. "Now I know why I don't go in the ocean!" She turned back to her desk.
"You can say that again." The woman next to her tsked.
"Well, now, hold on." Dar rallied to the defense of her favorite environment. "The ocean's a wonderful place to go. I've been diving in it since I was four, and I hardly ever get as much as a nick."
Everyone looked at her foot, then up at her face.
"This was at the shore!" Dar protested. "We were twenty feet from the beach! Last time I saw a shark when I was underwater was, um..." She considered. "Last month."
"Brr!" Edith went back to her PC. "All I can say is, Kerry's one lucky woman."
Dar focused her attention back on her screen, the last few words ringing in her ears. They made her smile.
"OKAY." KERRY CROUCHED down in front of the row of boxes. Balanced on the tops of them were six large rack mount servers, their LED's flickering promisingly. "So, we've got the two main servers up, the accounting system and the point of sale system. Right?"
"Right." Randy Escobar squatted down next to her. "I hooked 'em up on that switch there, and tried them out, but I think some of them need to be on different networks."
Kerry got up and looked behind the servers. "You plugged in all the network cards?"
"Yeah. Wanted to make sure all of them worked."
"Okay." Kerry nodded.
"We can deal with the nitty details later. Long as the hardware is up--are those thirty six gig drives?"
"Raid five, yeah." Randy agreed. "And the backup device will hook up to this server here." He patted the first large machine. "Decent system."
Kerry examined the back of the machines, then walked around and examined the front of them. "Okay, so here's the plan," she said. "Mark's group is going to get the backbone in, then patch everything."
"What a mess."
"Yeah, a lot of cable." Kerry agreed. "While they're patching, I want you to get these mounted and plugged into everything."
"Do they have AC in there?" Barry asked. "Cause if they don't, Kerry, you know these suckers will be up for about ten minutes and then they'll shut down."
Oh, crap. Kerry rested her arm on the server. "You know, I didn't know." She had to admit. "Let me think about this a minute." She consulted her schedule. The air conditioning was in process along with their cabling and the electricity. Did the ducting get finished before they all got kicked off? "Well, plan on installing them at any rate. Let me find out what's going on with the AC vendor."
"Sorry, Kerry." Barry looked apologetic.
"Not your fault. I should have remembered that." Kerry got up and headed toward the backdoor. She could see several vendor crew chiefs assembled outside, and she headed toward them. Halfway there, she stopped and stood, as another idea occurred to her. "I bet the air conditioning is the last thing we're gonna get." She mused. "So..."
"Hey, Ker?" Mark came up behind her with a sheaf of paperwork.
"Mark, how many spare portable AC units do we have?" Kerry turned and faced him.
"Huh?"
"Portable AC units. I know we got them for the communications center as Dar bought them after the last AC outage in the building."
Mark thought a moment. "Um...six, I think."
"Great." Kerry nodded. "Send someone with a truck to the office. Get all six, and have them back here asap." She directed. "Make sure they remember the drain hoses. I remember us having to use that one in accounting and it costing me a replacement carpet in Duks' office."