Storm Surge - Part 2 (20 page)

"Anytime, honey." Kerry leaned her head against Dar's hip."Though I have to admit I'm not crazy about going ten stories underground right now either."

"That was rough, today," Scuzzy commented. "I thought I seen some bad stuff before but that was bad. Real bad."

"I've asked our real estate branch to find a different location for the technical office there." Dar said, after a brief silence, "I don't know how long it's going to take them to get things going again."

"I feel bad for all the people who live down there," Shaun said. "Like the office folks. They can't go home. That must be terrible on top of everything else."

"Living down there right now would be a lot worse," Scuzzy said. "They're better off staying uptown. I got a cousin who's right on the edge of where they don't let you go no more, and she's thinking of staying with my uncle in Jersey for a while."

"I'm sure most of the people here would rather go somewhere else for a while," Nan said, in a quiet voice. "I know I would. It was horrible in DC, but nothing like this."

Kerry listened to the voices around her, and found a kinship in the mental exhaustion she heard in them. She felt Dar's fingers close on her shoulder and figured they needed a change of scene. "How about we all go find some dinner now. You guys up for that?"

"Hell yes." Mark put his glass down hastily. "I'm starving."

"That sounds damn good to me too." Andrew had been sprawled in a nearby chair. Now he straightened up and studied his neatly laced military boots. "Find us some place we can get some steak and taters."

"Let's go." Dar slipped off the chair arm and offered Kerry a hand up. "Alastair and Hamilton are meeting with some board members, so they'll just have to miss out." She waited for the group to rise and start to file out the door. "With any luck, wherever we find will have ice cream sundaes."

"There's a Ben and Jerry's around the corner," Kerry answered instantly. "Caught my eye on the way in."

Dar chuckled.

"Hey, gotta find the essentials."

"WE'RE GOING TO regret staying out this late." Kerry trailed after Dar down the hallway to their hotel room. "Tomorrow is going to really suck."

"It is," Dar agreed, keying the door open and shoving it inward. "But I don't care. I needed a mindless night out." She trudged inside passing the bathroom and moving further into the space. "We'll survive. Mark has two cases of Bawls in the truck."

"Good point." Kerry closed the door behind them, sat down in the nearest chair and unlaced her boots. "A lot of people were out tonight. I was sort of surprised."

"Hysterical relief." Dar dropped down onto the bed and laid down flat on her back. "Felt a little desperate."

Kerry finished with her other boot, then got up and went over to the bed, sitting down and picking up one of Dar's legs to get at her laces. "I feel a little desperate," she said. "Christ, I want to go home."She pulled a lace loose.

Dar rolled her head to one side and gazed at her. "We will soon."

"Not soon enough," Kerry replied. "I feel so damned overwhelmed here, Dar. I'm not sure why." She pulled off one shoe, then the sock beneath it, pausing to tweak her partner's toe before she got up and went around to the other side of the long legs, and sat down to pick up the other foot.

Dar's eyes followed her. "You don't know why you feel overwhelmed? Ker, you're in the middle of a disaster zone in an unprecedented act of terrorism against our country. How are you supposed to not feel overwhelmed? I was watching those guys out there today. They're just digging, digging, and they had no real idea of what they were digging for. You don't think they're overwhelmed?"

Kerry removed Dar's other boot, and then set her foot down, leaning back along her side on the bed. "I know they are. That's what makes me feel so crazy. I should be able to do my job here because I wasn't a part of all that, but it's just making my brain go in circles." She propped her head up on one hand. "Why can't I be more like you?"

"A single minded idiot?"

Kerry smiled wryly. "Focused," she corrected her partner, "with an infinite capacity for innovation."

Dar turned on her side so they were facing each other. She lifted a hand and stroked Kerry's face with the backs of her knuckles. "You can only focus so long," she said. "That's why I stopped looking for holes in the wall today and took tonight off. Yes, I'll pay for it tomorrow, but I've finally learned the value of chilling out."

"You didn't chill with those darts." Kerry enjoyed the touch, savoring the look of gentle affection gazing back at her. "I can't believe you beat your Dad."

Dar grinned "Neither could he." She gently traced one of Kerry's pale eyebrows. "You weren't so bad yourself."

"It was fun," Kerry admitted, "but I'm glad we skipped the karaoke bar." She clasped Dar's hand with her own, and studied her face, half hidden in the shadows of the dimly lit room. There was a furrow over her brow and she looked tired.

"Hehe, me too," Dar said. "I guess we should get undressed and get some sleep, huh?"

"We should." Kerry agreed. "Especially if we're going to spend tomorrow digging around in office basements." She levered herself up and stood, unbuckling her belt and getting out of her cargo pants, hopping over to one side as Dar did the same.

"Careful." Dar reached over to steady her, as she draped her pants over her suitcase and stripped off her shirt one handed over her head. "Last thing you need is rug burns."

"Thanks, sweetie," Kerry said. "I know I can always depend on you to keep me from falling on my butt."

Dar chuckled, then she moved over a few steps to put her shirt away.

Kerry folded up her clothing and put it to one side of her suitcase, rummaging inside it to remove her sleep shirt. She had it in one fist, when a long arm snaked around her and removed it from her grasp."Hey."

"Hey." Dar dropped the shirt back on the bag and took her hand instead, drawing her toward the bed. "C'mon. There are plenty of sheets on the bed. You won't be cold."

Kerry felt the faint thrill of unexpected raciness. "I'm not cold already."

Dar glanced over her bare shoulder at her, a faint grin twitching at her lips, as she waggled an eyebrow. "Oh really?"

"Really." Kerry planted a kiss between Dar's shoulder blades, then bumped her gently forward. "Lead on, hot stuff."

"Remind me of that again tomorrow after we're both conscious again," Dar responded, in a wry tone. She continued moving forward,towing Kerry along behind her.

Kerry smiled and followed willingly. "Bet your booty I will." In a moment the room was in darkness and she was under a set of cool sheets rapidly warming her and Dar's bare bodies. And the comfort of the skin on skin touch pushed the day's anxieties aside.

Animal comfort. She wrapped her arm around Dar's waist and felt her exhale. "Dar?"

"Yes?"

"Why do you really think they made that announcement today?About the systems working? Do you think they were playing with us?"

"No." Dar said, after a pause, "I'm not sure why they did it." She added, "maybe so people--so investors wouldn't panic."

"Hm." Kerry nibbled a bit of the skin on Dar's shoulder. "I think they're going to anyway. I bet when that market does open it drops like a rock."

"Nah." Dar shook her head. "People had time to stop and think. Having it closed wasn't a bad idea regardless of what the technical situation was. No knee jerking if you've had almost a week to react."

"But what if we can't actually bring everything back up by Monday? Won't that--" Kerry paused. "Maybe that's why they made that announcement. To put pressure on us."

Dar snorted softly.

"It bothers me. I don't like people playing games when we're going crazy trying to get things done here." Kerry grumbled.

"Yeah, I know." Dar rubbed Kerry's back with her fingertips.

"Sorry I'm whining."

"You're allowed." Dar looked up at the dimly seen ceiling. "Seems like this has been going on forever, huh? It's hard to remember I was in London a few days ago," she said. "Working with those guys--I feel like it's been a year since then."

"I was giving a speech just a few days ago," Kerry replied. "You know, I can't even remember what the hell I said," she admitted. "But I wish that reunion was the worst of my worries right now."

"Yeah." Dar let her eyes drift shut, glad of the thick glass windows that blocked most of the city noise. "I wish the worst thing I had to worry about was playing in that damned softball league and hitting myself in the head."

"Y'know though," Kerry mused, "before this all happened, that visit was turning out better than I expected. I think my mother caught a clue."

Dar gave her a squeeze. "I think your mother values family," she said, "and she wants you to be a part of that." She kissed Kerry on the top of her head. "I don't blame her a bit."

Kerry smiled. "I love you."

Dar's eyes opened again. "Back atcha, but what brought that on?"

Kerry snuggled a little closer. "Because I'm sitting here at three in the morning bitching and you're not telling me to shut up and go to sleep." She could feel Dar's body shudder with silent laughter. "You're so sweet to me."

Dar hugged her a little tighter, still chuckling.

"When we were down at the park today, I was looking out the front window at all those rescue workers sitting there, and it kind of brought home to me just how many blessings I have in my life." Kerry said, after a pause, "the primary one being you, of course."

"Likewise." Dar exhaled. "I'm one of the luckiest people on earth."

"We're both soppy mushballs."

"Guilty."

Finally, Kerry found herself smiling and letting it go, unable to resist the love she could feel wrapped all around her. She closed her eyes and listened to Dar's breathing for a few minutes until the dim shadows faded out and she drifted off to sleep.

Dar stayed awake a few minutes more, enjoying the sensation of Kerry's breath warming her shoulder. They would try and accomplish the task they'd started on, she decided, and then, once that was either finished or failed, they would go home.

They were too close to the center of this. Dar could envision an unraveling ball of requests if they kept going, the pressure to succeed growing greater and greater, as the shadow threat of what might happen if they didn't hung over them.

Too much risk for too little return. Tomorrow she'd corner Alastair, call Maria, make arrangements for them to get transport out and, by the end of the day Monday, she decided, she'd be sitting on her patio playing ball with Chino and listening to Kerry rustling up coffee in the kitchen.

She closed her eyes, and exhaled, nodding her head in confirmation.

Chapter Nine

KERRY BREATHED IN the scent of fresh coffee as she entered the hotel café, pausing in the doorway and lifting a hand to wave hello to Hamilton who was already seated inside.

"Good morning, Ms. Stuart." Hamilton waved back, then waved her over. "Come on over and sit your self down here so I don't have to be talking to the maple syrup will you please?"

Having very little choice, unless she wanted to start the day off profoundly rude, Kerry crossed the parquet floor and joined their corporate lawyer at his table. "Careful what you ask for." She sat down and accepted the menu from young male server as she opened her napkin and put it on her lap at the same time. "Dar's on her way down."

"Honey, even that thought can't stir my grits this morning," Hamilton told her. "You all do know what grits are, right?"

"I know what grits are." Kerry assured him. "I can even cook them."

"Shocked. I'm shocked," Hamilton said. "A Midwesterner cooking grits. What is the world coming to?" He picked up a piece of rye toast and methodically buttered it. "I had the honor of attending a shindig at the governor's place with Al last night."

"He had a party?" Kerry's voice dropped.

"He called it a strategy and planning meeting," Ham told her. "But I will say that was the first planning and strategy meeting I ever have been to that had salmon canapés and whisky highballs." He took a sip of his coffee. "Ah am guessing all those federal people in town needed some catering to."

"Well, we went out ourselves last night." Kerry half shrugged. "I guess salmon and whiskey are about equal to beer and cheesburgers and a good game of darts."

Hamilton looked up at her over cup. "Now doesn't that sound down home."

"Home would have included my motorcycle and my dog." Kerry glanced up as the server reappeared, hovering politely at her elbow. "Can I have two orders of eggs over easy with crisp bacon, white toast,and one side of blueberry pancakes, please?"

The waiter blinked, then he scribbled it down.

"And coffee." Kerry handed him the menu. "My father used to have meetings like those. The only bright part of them for me were the chocolate mousse cups they always left close enough to the door for me to steal."

Hamilton sipped his coffee again. "Somehow I can easily picture that," he remarked dryly. "We apparently got our selves onto the good boy list in all that hullaballo yesterday. Given my preference, I'd have rather stayed bad."

"Did you get an idea last night of what their motives were? What they really want?" Kerry asked. "Some of the things they were saying and doing were really very intimidating."

"What do they want." The lawyer sighed, and leaned back in his chair. "That's a damn fine question. I do think first of all those men are scared half to death."

"I thought they were acting as though they were embarrassed," Kerry responded. "That this happened. That it was allowed to happen."

Hamilton regarded her. "There is that there piece too," he acknowledged. "I heard a lot about getting back to normal, putting on a tough face, that sorta thing, but you know, honey, there ain't no getting back to normal in a thing like this. It changes people."

"It changes everything," Kerry said.

'Yes, it does." Hamilton nodded. "It will change a lot of things for us. No matter what the outcome is in this thing we're doing, people now understand what we do in a very different aspect. That could end up good, and it can end up bad."