Tropical Storm

Chapter Seven

THE ALARM WAS buzzing, an annoying sound in any event, and more so because it was a Saturday morning and she’d forgotten to turn it off. In the dim light, one blue eye appeared, glared at the device, then a hand shot out from the covers and clobbered the clock, sending it flying from the bedside table and unplugging it.

“Yeow.” Dar cursed and grabbed her hand, rolling up onto her other elbow and wincing as she examined her knuckles. The entire back of her hand was swollen and discolored, and she dropped back down onto the pillows as she recalled how it got that way. “Forgot about that,” she mumbled, closing her eyes again.

She’d forgotten how hard the human skull was, and how much it hurt if a fist without any protection hit it head on. Not, she reflected, that I would have chosen any differently even if I had remembered. She didn’t regret the damage she’d done to that one of Kerry’s attackers, or the rest of them, for that matter.

She’d used kicks for the rest, though. Infinitely easier on the body. But for now she could barely close her fist, and she knew it was going to be a couple of days before that improved. “Hey, look, Dad,” she whispered to the ceiling, holding her hand up. “I’m a half-assed hero again. Imagine that.”

It was damn lucky for Kerry that she’d been so close. She’d driven out to Haulover Park to the north and spent a half hour just roaming aimlessly up and down the boardwalk, watching the young kids in their puppy loves go past. She’d actually been getting off on the 2nd street exit when Kerry had called, intent on stopping at Bayside for some ice cream before she headed back to the office to finish up. Instead of ice cream she’d gotten trouble, a sore hand, a last-minute financial brainstorm, and… Her mind conjured up a picture of Kerry’s slim form, swaddled in a too-large sweatshirt, standing at her car window as she dropped the younger woman off. She’d put a hand on Dar’s arm, and squeezed it.

“I’ll bring the shirt back to you on Monday, thanks for letting me borrow it.”

Dar had waved her off, a little embarrassed. “Keep it. I’ve got dozens and dozens of them…believe me.” She’d glanced around, seeing the Mustang parked nearby, its window neatly taped. “You going to be all right with that?”

The green eyes had followed hers, and Kerry had sighed. “Yeah, one of the guys here works in an auto body shop. He’s a pretty good friend of mine.”

Then she’d looked up and taken a breath. “Thanks for coming to my rescue, and I’m glad the whole thing worked out okay.”

Tropical Storm 63

Dar had smiled. “Me too.” She’d patted Kerry’s arm. “Get some rest, I’ll talk to you on Monday.”

And that had been that. She’d driven away, checking her rear view mirror a few times just to make sure Kerry had gotten inside okay, and put herself on auto-pilot for the long, rainy drive home .

Now she listened, and heard the patter of rain outside still, and tucked her arm under her pillow with a satisfied grunt . No running today. Today was just time to snuggle into the warmth of the waterbed, pull the covers up, and catch up on some much-needed sleep. She was just drifting off again when the phone rang again.

Dar sighed. “No one’s home.” It continued ringing, and she finally reached over, and hit the speakerphone button. “Yeah?”

“Good morning, Dar.” The voice sounded complacently pleased.

“What do you want at six AM Dukky?” Dar muttered. “I sent the updates last night.”

“Oh, I know.” The smile was audible. “I just wanted to compliment you on some really brilliant financial footwork there.”

“At six AM?” Dar sighed. “You could have sent me an e-mail.”

“Actually, that’s why I’m calling. The word’s out you’ve asked for an assistant for yourself.” Duks said. “Mariana has gotten four inquiries already.

When you do, um, wake up, would you please send her over exactly what you’re looking for before the poor lady gets swamped?”

Dar let her eyes open sleepily. “Duks, it’s only been posted for six goddamn hours,” she protested. “I didn’t think I was that popular.”

The VP chuckled wryly. “I hate to break this to you, my friend, but you’re not. Everyone’s convinced this means you’re vacating that corner office, and they want a shot at it.” He cleared his throat. “Especially since the posting came from Alastair’s personal logon.”

“That’s not what it means, for crying…” Dar groaned. “Jesus, Duks, I just asked for a little help, that’s all. I wanted an assistant, not a replacement.”

A small silence. “You don’t do that often,” Duks replied slowly. “You have anyone in particular in mind, Dar?”

Now it was Dar’s turn to be silent. “I don’t know,” she finally said.

“Maybe.”

“Mmm.” The accountant acknowledged the unspoken information. “Be careful, Dar, that could be a dangerous position for you. Pick someone who’s not going to immediately stab you in the back.” He cleared his throat. “It doesn’t pay to let people get on the inside, you know?”

Dar gazed at the dresser, shadowy in the pre-dawn gloom. “I know,” she replied softly. “Thanks for the warning, Dukky.” There was a click as he hung up. She rolled over and regarded the ceiling soberly. Complications already.

She’d used her momentary leverage to get the position approved, not really thinking about the consequences, or how it would look.

She hadn’t really even considered it. No, that was a lie. She’d been thinking exactly of Kerry when she’d asked for it, and it had seemed like such an ingenious solution at the time. The woman had talent and potential, she was sharp—she’d be a good addition to the team.

But what about Kerry? She’s been hurt by the entire situation with her 64 Melissa Good company. Do I want to expose her to the many times more vicious environment inside the upper levels of the corporation? Is that fair to the kid? Was she even really interested? She seemed like she was last night, but…that could have been overtiredness, and a reaction to the day.

The morning surely would bring a more sensible attitude, and Dar quietly hoped the young woman would at least reconsider, and remain with the Associated account. She didn’t like to see talent leave the company. Right?

Dar pulled the covers up over her head and sighed. Oh Dar, lie to everyone but yourself, remember? You like the little imp.

There was something about Kerry she found very appealing. Maybe some of the friendly innocence she could remember in herself, a very long time ago.

No. She’d never been that innocent. Dar closed her eyes, picturing Kerry’s face.

Now look. Is that what you want for her, too? Leave her where she is, or let her go and find something else—a small place where she doesn’t have to be exposed to the way you have to do business. Last thing she needs is to move into a nest of vipers.

Inhabited by the queen asp.

Dar swallowed the slight lump in her throat, as the blue walls faded to a somber gray in tune with her mood. It was a quiet depression that she’d been experiencing more and more often lately, making her question what the point was in doing what she did, in going the places she went. A feeling of hopelessness that made her want to just curl up in a ball here in the dark and never leave.

Her solution so far was to throw herself into yet more work, which usually distracted her enough to make the feeling go away.

With a sigh, she pulled the covers back and slid out of bed, trudging across to the bathroom and flipping on the light. She used the facilities, then splashed a few handfuls of water over her face, stopping to regard her reflection wearily. Bloodshot blue eyes looked back at her, accented by dark shadows which added years to her age.

Hell with it. Might as well get some work done.

She turned and flipped off the light, moving out into the living room to where her briefcase rested on the coffee table. She unzipped it and pulled her laptop out, plugging in the custom cord built specifically for that purpose, and booting it up. Then she went into the kitchen and looked at the coffee machine, bypassing it and going to the refrigerator instead.

She poured a glass of milk from the dispenser, then added three squirts of chocolate syrup and mixed it. She sipped at the beverage as she seated herself on the long, leather couch and punched the buttons that would start a connection to the office.

A flick of the control turned on the large screen TV while she was waiting, and she surfed through the cable channels, bypassing CNN and MSNBC and settling on the Cartoon Network, which was showing Space Ghost Coast to Coast.

“Better commentary than Dan Rather,” she muttered, as she glanced down, watching her e-mail download. She leaned back against the cushions, then decided to lie down full length and balance the laptop on her stomach.

She let her eyes scan down the listings, and her eyes brightened a little when Tropical Storm 65

she saw Kerry’s name listed.

“Probably wants to say no thanks,” Dar murmured after a moment’s reflection. “After she slept on it.” For a moment, her mouse hovered over the entry, then finally she clicked on the mail, feeling an odd dryness in her mouth as she waited for the contents to appear in her preview pane.

Sent by: Kerry Stuart

Subject: Assistant’s Job

Time: 1:01 AM

Hi.

I know you’re thinking “what is this crazy woman

doing, sending mail at one AM after a day like today?”

Well, I didn’t start out to do that. I took a shower, and got changed, and fluffed up my pillows, and answered the two frantic messages on my machine because people saw my car towed back here, and then I was laying there figuring this sleep thing wasn’t going to be a problem.

But I kind of got to thinking, that there was

something I hadn’t done, and it kept bugging me and bugging me until I just gave up and figured out what it was.

It was deciding what I wanted to do, as in, with my life at this point, and I know you’re probably sitting there reading this thinking I’ve flipped my lid, but…I haven’t.

I decided if you were serious about that assistant job of yours, then I was going to apply for it. I know there are probably ten thousand other people more

qualified, but I have this crazy idea that maybe I can find better ways for people to do things, so that it’s not so brutal, and it doesn’t hurt people inside just to do business.

That’s pretty naïve sounding. I sound like some

Midwestern rube just out of certification school, don’t I? Yikes.

So anyway, what I did was logon, and I found that

posting of yours, and I submitted a formal request for consideration. I also attached my résumé, like it said.

Though figuring out where to click in that CAS

application is a real pain in the neck, you know? I feel better now, and I think I’ll be able to sleep.

I know I don’t have much of a chance at it. It’s so weird to think that I was cursing your name before dinner time, and hoping I get to work for you at midnight.

If you can squeeze me back into my old job, though, that would be fantastic. Monday is going to be really crazy, and there’s one thing I forgot to thank you for—

and that was the severance packages. It changes firing someone from a hateful sentence, to what I can present as a good chance for change, so that these people can find something else, without having the pressure of bills 66 Melissa Good hanging over their heads. You don’t know now much that means, especially since four of the people have school age children who were covered under the insurance.

Thank you, Dar. I really mean that.

Have a great weekend.

Kerry

Dar felt a grin coming on, and she let it, as she read the mail twice over.

Then she very deliberately logged into her CAS session and reviewed her work list. An eyebrow went up when she saw the thirty or so responses, and she scanned the names. All qualified, pretty much. Most junior, but a few senior account managers, with lots of experience in what she did. Several candidates, in fact, were already assistants to other VPs. Good, solid employees, with stable backgrounds and excellent references.

She clicked on Kerry’s submission and reviewed it. Absolutely no experience in any facet of what she did. Absolutely no experience in multiple markets, no experience overseas, no experience in corporate takeovers. She had absolutely nothing in her favor, in fact, except for guts, and brains, and a beautiful smile.

A reckless, piratical gleam entered Dar’s blue eyes. It was so easy. Two clicks and an F3 submit key. “Oh look.” Dar did it before she could stop and think better of anything. “I just hired an assistant.” She took a deep breath.

“Isn’t technology wonderful?”

She almost felt lightheaded. Making decisions was second nature to her, but she knew this one was different. Mariana was going to kill her. Company regulations stipulated that she had to interview and evaluate each candidate, and produce written documentation to back up her choice. Hell with it. She clicked over to mail.

Sent by: Dar Roberts

Subject: New Assistant

Mari—

Just hired Kerry Stuart from the Associated

Synergenics account as my assistant. Please process her paperwork. I figured it would be easier on you since she’s technically an outside candidate—you can hire and transition her all at once.

Bring her in as a 10, standard package, the works.

I’ll send her over to fill out forms some time next week.

I know everyone will bitch. Just tell them manager’s discretion, and they can see me personally if they have a problem.

Dar

A loophole. Dar loved loopholes. Bringing in Kerry as an outside posting would circumvent most of the hysteria, and she could just ignore the rest.

Mariana was used to that anyway, manager’s discretion was a watchword in the company. A lot of the rules were left deliberately vague, and you had to take responsibility for what you decided.

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Dar always had. Even when the decisions had turned out wrong, she still refused to hide behind anyone, and took the brunt of the blame on her own shoulders. It was the one thing that kept everyone at bay, even those people who hated her…and there were a lot of those. She’d made a lot of enemies and few friends in her years at the company, but it was the one thing that everyone respected her for. When Dar Roberts made a decision, she stood behind it, one hundred percent.

With a grin, she rubbed her hands together, then took a long drink of her chocolate milk before she started typing.

Sent by: Dar Roberts

Subject: re: Assistant’s Job

Kerry,

Got your note.

Attached to this e-mail you’ll find corporate

policies and procedures, including the dress code. You might want to take a look at that. Jeans are not allowed during normal business hours.

I estimate it should take about a week to get the

paperwork completed, and that will give you a chance to settle your current assignment. Call me if you have any questions.

Dar

With a sense of inevitability, she hit Send. She still had some doubts, still had some questions as to whether she was doing the right thing for Kerry, but it was done. Time would tell if this was a good decision, or one of the ones she lived to regret.

With a sigh, she wriggled into a more comfortable position and allowed her attention to be distracted by Space Ghost strangling something with tentacles on the screen. “I love a good violent cartoon,” she commented to the empty condo.

The words echoed off the walls, and she turned the sound up a little, a faint grin twitching at her lips as her thoughts drifted, the fingers of her right hand flexing slowly against the couch’s soft leather.

“SO, WHAT HAPPENED?” the tall, dark-skinned man asked, his eyes on the broken window.

“Um, a rock,” Kerry muttered. “Must have…fallen off the highway overpass, or something.”

Brown eyes gave her a disbelieving stare. “C’mon, honey, you got to give me something better than that.” Jerry wagged a finger at her. “You have a new boyfriend, maybe? You get in a, how you call, a fight?”

Kerry laughed softly. “Uh, no. No, no new boyfriend. I…” She glanced around. “Jerry, I was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Some guys just decided to take a crack at the car. I got away.” She made a face. “I don’t want to make a big deal about it. I didn’t see them, so…”

“Ah hah.” Jerry waggled his fingers at her. “I got you. No problem.” He 68 Melissa Good studied the car. “Sixty dollars.”

“Great.” Kerry smiled and handed over the keys. “You’re a lifesaver.”

“Cherry, I hope.” The man laughed. “My favorite flavor.” He patted her on the shoulder. “Hey, did you get cut?” He lifted her hand and studied it.

“Looks like you hit something.”

“Um…” Kerry ran her fingers through her hair. “An accident.”

Jerry looked at her, serious now. He tipped her chin up so she had to look him in the eye. “Girlfriend, are you in trouble?”

“No.” She shook her head positively. “I almost was, last night…but someone showed up, and chased the guys off, and I was fine, really. They even gave me a ride back here.”

“Mmm-hmm…was he nice? Was he a gentleman?” Jerry inquired.

Kerry bit off a grin. “He was a she.” Her eyes twinkled a little. “And she…was wonderful.”

“Ahhh…okay.” The mechanic chuckled. “I’ll finish this probably tonight, maybe tomorrow, okay?”

She nodded. “Great.”

Colleen came up behind her and put a hand on her shoulder. “Hey, girl.”

Kerry turned and smiled. “Hey, listen, thanks for calling to check on me last night. Sorry I gave you a scare yesterday.” She motioned towards the door to her apartment. “Come on inside, it’s wet out here.”

The redhead followed her, closing the door behind them, and moving quickly across to where Kerry was stacking printouts she no longer needed on her desk. “So, now tell me everything.” Her voice was eager. “I could have killed you last night. Five words and you’re gone.”

Kerry finished her task, then grinned and pulled her friend over to the couch. “Sit, it’s a long story.” She waited for Colleen to sit down, then she tucked her legs up under her and leaned an arm on the back of the couch.

“Well, where do I start?” She told Colleen the whole story, watching Colleen’s jaw drop in amazement.

“Whoa. Whoa, whoa... Hold on just a Jesus, Mary and Joseph minute.”

She held up her hand. “Let me get this tale straight: you found out you all were gonna be fired; so you drove out to the Key; then you run out of gas on the way back; get stuck near the tracks in downtown; get carjacked; then you get rescued, like a full-blown-caped-crusader-flying-to-the-rescue kind of thing, by Dar Roberts. Am I clear on this so far?” Her voice was incredulous.

“The same Dar Roberts that just fired you? That one?”

“Um…essentially, yes.” Kerry grinned. “Only she made like it was nothing—like she just sort of happened by, and the guys ran off or something.

But I know she had to have done something to them, because her hands were all banged up, and I heard at least one of the guys scream.”

“Wow.” Colleen squealed. “Is she, like, into karate or something?”

“Mmm.” Kerry thought about that. “I don’t know, but I think she’s into something. She’s got all these muscles all up and down her arms…like here.”

She patted her shoulders. “And when she walks, she kinda…well, you can tell she doesn’t just sit around her office all day.”

“Ooo…” Colleen giggled. “So, what was she doing, wandering the streets looking for damsels in distress to save?”

Tropical Storm 69

“Tch.” Kerry slapped her leg. “No, actually. I, um…I called her. No, don’t look at me like that, okay? I had this number she told me to use if I had any problems with her goon squad. I figured it was some flunky of hers, so I called it. I thought I could get him to call Triple A for me or something.”

“But it wasn’t, huh?” Colleen looked fascinated. “This is more and more intriguing.”

“No. No, it was her,” Kerry admitted. “So I hung up, but she called back.

And she asked me where I was. I felt like such an idiot telling her I ran out of gas, but…” She sighed. “Anyway, these guys came at me, and I told her to call the police. Then they hit the car, and it got really scary. Then the next thing I knew, they were gone, and she was there.” The blonde woman chuckled a little. “Boy, for someone I was hating a half hour before, I sure was glad to see her.”“So…you’re fired, though?” Colleen said, concerned. “What are you going to do?”

“Well, I’m not, actually. See, we went back to her office after the whole thing, and she went over the numbers again, and she finally had a brainstorm or something…and she worked it out so we were okay.” Kerry took a breath.

“It was pretty amazing. She told some big boss of hers she’d been working on whatever this thing was for forty-eight hours without sleep.”

“Jesus!” The redhead snorted. “So, you’re not fired.”

“No,” her friend agreed.

“And your guys are okay?”

Kerry lifted a hand and let it drop to her knee. “As okay as I could work out,” she admitted. “Some of them are going to be let go.”

“Figures.” Colleen now looked skeptical. “That leopard isn’t changing its spots any time soon, I think.”

“No. No, it’s…” Kerry shook her head. “She made it okay, Col. She’s letting me give them six months’ severance.”

The redhead’s jaw dropped wide open, and she goggled at Kerry. “Six?”

“And six months’ benefits,” Kerry concluded. “I couldn’t believe it.

That’s the part that was so hard, Col. I knew even if I worked it out, I’d still have to face those people.”

“Six?” Colleen repeated, seemingly in a daze. “Kerry, nobody does that.”

“She did.” The blonde woman leaned back. “What a weight off my shoulders. I could have ki…” She fell silent. “Anyway, it’ll be a little tough, but we’re in.”

“Unbelievable,” her friend said. “But can you trust her? You sound like you’re thinking she’s not so bad after all.”

“No.” Kerry shook her head and smiled. “She’s really not. I mean, she’s all business, right? And I think she’d fire someone like most other people would just blow their nose or whatever. But towards the end of the night, she was kind of just okay. And, I got the feeling we could actually…sort of get along, if we really wanted to.”

Colleen whistled. “My boss wouldn’t believe it. You should hear how he talks about her. You’d think she was the daughter of the devil himself.”

Kerry looked up as her PC chimed. “Whoops.” She got up and checked the screen. “Mail, on Saturday?” But a thrill of anticipation ran up her back as 70 Melissa Good she opened the program, scanning the inbox and letting out a soft breath as she saw the first name on the list. “Well, speaking of Dar Roberts.” She clicked on the message, and read it, then read it again. “What in…”

Colleen had stepped up behind her, and peered over her shoulder. “What does that mean?” She puzzled at it. “Why do you need to worry about their dress code? You don’t work in that building.”

“Uh.” Kerry closed the message, then opened a terminal session and thumbed through her notes as she requested a logon to the mainframe. “Okay, I press this, then go here…login, password… Oh, hell! Okay, try it again. Ah.”

She accessed her own employee files, then stared at the main screen in disbelief. “Oh…sugarbaker.”

“What?” Colleen peered at the screen. “What’s an ORGID?” she asked. “It sounds disgusting.”

“She did it.” Kerry breathed, her fingertip tracing the change in her department, location, and her supervisor.

Roberts, D

“She did what?” The redhead poked her. “C’mon, Ker, spill it. What’s going on here?”

“She hired me,” Kerry mumbled.

“I thought you were already hired?” came the puzzled response. “Did I miss something here?”

“Well, yeah, but she had this…I mean, she hired me to work for her,”

Kerry responded, dazed. “She was looking for an assistant.”

“Jesus Mary mother of God.” Colleen squeaked. “You are going to be Dar Roberts’ assistant?” She pounded on Kerry’s back. “You? Oh my god!”

“Ow!” Kerry ducked out of the way. “Cut that out! I’ve got scratches from that stupid glass.” But she felt exhilarated. “And…yeah. I guess I’m going to work for her. I didn’t expect her to make a decision so fast, but now that I think about it, it doesn’t surprise me. I don’t think she likes to dawdle around stuff.” Whoo-ooo! Inside, she was jumping up and down. “Wow.”

“Okay, girl, tonight we party,” Colleen decided. “You need to go out and celebrate. Because let me tell you, from what I hear? You won’t get a chance to breathe once you start working for her.” She tugged Kerry’s sleeve. “Let’s do Cocowalk, and hit the Improv, then have a late dinner at Monte’s. I’ll get Pete and Reggie, and a few other people around here, okay?”

Kerry grinned. “Sure, that sounds fun. I can do that,” she agreed.

“Tomorrow… Ye gods! I’ll have to go clothes shopping. I don’t have anything good enough for that mausoleum, it’s humongous.”

“Ooo…ooo…ooo…” Colleen waved her hands. “I’ll go shopping too, I’d love to see you in some fancy power suits for a change. This is gonna be great.” She stood up. “I’ll be back. You stay right here, Ms. High and Mighty corporate executive.”

Kerry rolled her eyes. “Okay, I’ve got to find out what the rest of this mail is, anyway. It’s after two, you want to meet in front of here at five?”

“You betcha,” Colleen agreed, then bustled off. “Hey, I’ll invite Gary. He really likes you.”

The blonde woman waved a hand at her. “Fine, fine. Just tell him not to talk about his job all the time, okay?”

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“Kerry, he can’t help working at the Water and Sewer plant,” the redhead chided her. “He’s very excited about it.” Green eyes peered over the monitor at her. “Okay, okay. I’m outta here.” Colleen laughed. “I’ll tell him.”

As the door closed, Kerry sat back and re-read her mail for the third time.

“Man, oh man, I can’t believe it.” She eyed the phone. “Guess I’d better let the folks in on this.” She picked up the receiver and dialed a number, waiting until she heard a voice answer. “Hi, Mom.”

“Oh, hello, Kerrison,” her mother’s flat, even tone replied. “I wasn’t expecting you until tonight. Is there a problem?”

“No, no. I got some good news. I thought I’d pass it along,” Kerry answered quietly. “I was promoted.”

“That’s nice, dear. I thought perhaps you were going to say you’d given up that strange city and were coming home. What kind of promotion was it?”

“Well, we were bought out. I think I told you that was happening last week.”

“Oh? Oh yes, you mentioned it,” Cynthia Stuart recalled. “Your father was saying he’s had dealings with that new company.”

“Mmm, yes, they’re pretty big. There was an opening there, on the operations team. I applied for it, and they took me,” Kerry told her carefully.

“I’m…well, I’ve got to go shopping for some new clothes tomorrow.”

A note of concern entered her mother’s voice. “You haven’t been putting on weight again, have you, dear?”

“Oh, no. No,” Kerry reassured her. “No, in fact, I lost a few pounds over the last few days. Um…no, it’s…well, I’m going to be the assistant to one of their Vice Presidents, so I have to dress up.”

“Oh?” Now her mother sounded more interested. “Really? That sounds more…well, you have to make sure you make a good impression. You have a Macy’s down there, isn’t that right?”

“Well, yes, but…”

“Excellent. Take my card, dear, and you go pick out some nice new outfits. Something in green, I think, would look good with your hair. Has it gotten lighter? It did last summer. And make sure you get nice shoes, not those awful pumps you usually wear.” There was a pause. “Roger? Roger, is that you? It’s Kerry on the phone. Dear, she’s going to be working for one of their Vice Presidents. Isn’t that wonderful?”

A rustle, then her father’s deep voice rumbled down the line. “Kerrison?”

“Yes, Father,” Kerry answered quietly. “It’s true, I got promoted.”

“Well, well, that’s nice. Glad to see they recognize quality when they see it, not like that little pissant company you worked for. This is good news. “ He cleared his throat. “Who will you be working for? I know a bunch of their upper echelon people, naturally, since we do bidding for the state, and they’re a major contractor.”

“Dar Roberts.” Kerry tasted the name, rolling it around in her mouth with a kind of pleasure.

A moments’ silence and then her father barked, “Jesus. That’s not just one of their VPs, Kerrison, that’s… Well, my god, we’ve been trying to get a bead on her for…” His voice trailed off. “Well, well, never mind that. This could be of great value to me, though. Good work, Kerrison, very good. I’m very proud 72 Melissa Good of you.”

Kerry felt a tense smile edge her lips. “Thank you.” She heard her mother’s voice in the background.

“I’ve told her to take my Macy’s card, Roger, and get herself dressed to impress these people.”

“Good idea, honey,” her father’s voice returned. “You listen to your mother, you hear? You go out to the store, and you buy stuff that’s gonna knock their socks off, all right?”

“I’ll…do my best, Father,” Kerry replied.

“I want you to send pictures, all right?” came the gruff demand. “I want to make sure you’re giving the right impression. This could be very valuable to me.” He paused. “I was going to bring you home. We were thinking of having the wedding in the spring, but this…this could be worth the wait.”

“I’ll send pictures, I promise.” Kerry silently blessed Dar, who had provided her, all unknowing, a reprieve from almost unrelenting parental pressure. “I’m really excited. I think I’m really going to like this new job.”

“Good. Here, talk to your mother.”

“Your father is very excited too, dear.” Her mother’s voice sounded smug. “I haven’t seen him this enthusiastic since that Tripp woman surfaced.”

She drew a breath. “Your sister’s pregnant again, bye the bye. Be sure to congratulate her when you talk to her later.”

“I will, thanks. When did she find out?”

“Last week, but we suspected for a while now,” her mother responded.

“Of course, Richard has such an ugly face. I’m waiting for you and Brian to give me beautiful grandchildren.” A rustle. “Well, I have to go, dear. You run along to the store and have a good time.”

“Thanks, mother. I’ll try.” Kerry sighed as she hung up, and stared at the receiver in mild disgust. “Glad that’s over.” She turned her attention back to her mail and sat down, cracking her knuckles as she started a reply to Dar’s message.

Sent by: Kerry Stuart

Subject: re: Assistant’s Job

Dar,

“Wow!” She thought, “I like that name. I wonder what it’s short for?”

You move really fast, did anyone ever tell you that?

You nearly gave me a heart attack when I checked my status in CAS.

Okay—I got the attachment. I’m kind of lost, though.

Can you give me some tips on what is appropriate to wear at the office? I guess a trip to Macy’s is in order, but I’d love it if you’d give me a hint, since I know you have no problem in that area.

Well, it’s been quite a week, my friends are all

taking me out tonight to the Improv, and then Monte’s, because they tell me I won’t have a chance to breathe once I start working for you.

Tropical Storm 73

I hope that’s true. I’m really excited. I hope I

don’t disappoint anyone.

Kerry

She hesitated, struck by the informality of the language. Just when did I get so comfortable with this woman? I told her to go to hell yesterday, didn’t I? She sat back and pondered the thought. And now I’m working for her. Is this weird, or what?

Across the room, the panda smiled at her. Kerry looked down at her bruised knuckles and the cuts on her palms, and acknowledged that life was shifting around her, changes happening almost faster than she knew how to adjust to them.

“Dar,” she murmured, tasting the name. “Yeah, I like that.” She clicked Send on the mail and sat back, feeling a sense of rare, reckless happiness.

“This is going to be amazing. I just know it.”