"You do, hon. You're forgetting the Intrepid Air Space Museum you managed to wheedle a contract out of after you visited the last time," Kerry reminded her.
"Mm. Not a big pipe." Dar groused.
The train hummed along, and a service person appeared with a tray. She started down the aisle, smiling at the travelers and offering them champagne flutes filled with orange juice. A few people took them, but most seemed glum and withdrawn huddled near the windows or with radio headsets covering their ears.
Kerry wondered if it was always like that or a reaction to what was going on. She accepted the glass from the server with a smile, and waited for her to pass by before she took a sip of it. "Oh. Hello." She blinked. "Mimosa. Wasn't expecting that."
Dar set her own down on the table between them and cleared her throat. "Fizzy."
"Miami exec, this is the New York office," a male voice quietly said. "Mr. McLean is asking your ETA."
Kerry checked her watch. "New York, we're looking at two hours to Penn Station," she said. "Is there anything we can do from here?"
"No ma'am," the man said. "There are a lot of people here from the city and state and he was asking."
"Well, we're moving as fast as the train lets us," Kerry said.
"I'll let him know, thanks," the man said.
"God we do need someone on the ground there," Kerry muttered. "Let me check who we've got accounted for." She typed into her keyboard and sighed. "Someone with some initiative."
"Send an email to Hermana Jones," Dar said. "Tell her to meet us at the Rock." She continued scribbling on her pad.
Kerry paused, and looked at her. "Hermana Jones? Who is that? Name is not familiar to me."
"My friend who now runs the Queens data center?"
Kerry blinked. "Oh. You mean--um-- What was that funny name that sounded like a part from Intel?"
"Scuzzy."
"Scuzzy." Kerry opened her mail. "That's right. You met her in Manhattan, didn't you?" She typed the message, trying to remember if she'd ever had occasion to talk to the woman. The data entry side of the house really wasn't her area, and she decided she probably hadn't.
She remembered Mariana having a heart attack about Scuzzy though and Dar's mischievous laughter when Hermana had turned out to not only be a worthwhile addition to the company, but was promoted to center manager to boot. "Why did you do that?"
"Huh?" Dar looked up but was distracted as the forward door to the train opened and Andrew sauntered back in after being absent for a good part of the journey. "Hey Dad."
"Hey, rugrat." Andrew sat down in his seat across from the two of them. There was a line of single seats along one set of windows, and double seats along the other, and there was ample room for Dar's father to stretch out his long legs in front of him. "This here is a nice train. I like it."
He was dressed in a company logo sweatshirt, the arms pushed up past his elbows and a pair of carpenter's pants. His scarred face took in reflections of the passing sunlight from the window, as he watched the countryside go by.
"I like it too," Dar agreed. "Thanks for coming with us, Dad. I thought maybe you'd want to stay back in DC with the guys."
"Them people pissed me off," Andrew told her.
"Our people?" Kerry leaned forward a little. "What did they do?"
Andrew glanced up as the server came by and offered him the tray. He took a glass and sipped it. "Jesus P Fish there's alcohol in that." He set the glass down. "No, kumquat, not your fellas. Those are good folks there. Ah was just getting ticked off because everybody's runnin' round in circles and nobody wants to own up to how bad things got screwed."
"Dar, Hermana just answered. She said 'Hell yeah!'" Kerry seemed bemused. "This should be interesting."
"You'll like her." Dar made another note on her pad. "Dad, it's only going to get worse where we're going. That's all civ."
"Wall, somebody's got to keep you kids out of trouble."
Kerry almost laughed, caught between answering a question posed to her on the bridge and processing what was going on around her in that slightly disjointed way she'd had to develop over the past few days.
What was it she'd called it? Acquired Attention Deficit Disorder? "Okay, that's good news guys. Go on into the city, and get down to the office. We'll meet you there, and set up a command center." She released a breath. "Newark Earth, any luck with your power? We could use those trucks in the city."
"Ms. Stuart, this is the New York office again. Mr. McLean would like Ms. Roberts to call him, please."
"Dar, Alastair wants you to call him." Kerry muted her cell. "Okay,New York, message passed. Can you clear some space for us when we get there? Is there a big room we can take over for logistics?"
"Should have brought some of them fellers with us," Andrew commented.
Dar stopped writing and looked at Kerry. "Okay. Give me a second to draw a cell phone." She remarked dryly. "What in the hell does he want that can't wait an hour and forty five minutes?" Dar turned her head toward her father. "Mark will bring the RV with him after they finish up the install at the Pentagon."
"I have no idea, sweetheart. I'm just the messenger," Kerry said. "Borrow Dad's phone."
The attendant came back through. "Sir, can I offer you some breakfast?" She addressed Andrew. "We have cheese omelets, waffles, or cold cereal."
"You all got any hot dogs? Ah already had my egg things at o'dark hundred"
Dar chuckled, and shook her head. "Better have something. We're going to get swept up in a pile of crap as soon as we get there," she warned her companions, giving the server a glance as the now harried woman turned to her. "Omelet for us." She indicated Kerry and herself.
The server moved on, and Andrew handed his cell phone across the aisle to her. Dar took it and flipped it open, frowning a little before she punched in Alastair's number.
"Miami exec, this is Newark Earth." Kerry's ear bud crackled."Good news. We just heard from Con Ed, they're expecting to finish re-tying us in around lunchtime."
"Great." Kerry smiled.
"Course that means we know it's really probably sometime tonight," the Earthstation acknowledged. "But soon as we're back, we'll send the trucks to the office with you."
"Alastair, we're on the way. What the hell more do you want me to do?" Dar was saying. Then she paused. Then her free hand hit the arm of her chair in muted frustration. "Because I don't have a goddamned driver's license! You want them to put me in as cargo? For Christ's sake, Alastair it would have taken us three hours to get on a damn plane this morning anyway!"
"Easy honey." Kerry patted her arm.
Dar abruptly cut the call off and closed the phone, tossing it over to her father. "If he calls me back tell him to kiss my ass."
Andrew caught the phone in one big hand and eyed his daughter dubiously. "What's that feller's problem? Thought you two got on?"
"He's losing his mind." Dar folded her arms over her chest. "I think the pressure there is getting to him. Goddamned politicians." She glanced at Kerry. "No offense to your mother."
"Who tried to hijack me into a senate investigation? No offense taken, sweetie," Kerry responded in a mild tone. "But he is our boss. You sure you should be hanging up on him?"
Dar reclined her chair and put her pen and pad away. "What's he going to do, fire me? He'll be lucky I don't belt him one when I see him."
Kerry patted her arm again, and went back to her conference call. After a moment, she found her hand captured, and her fingers interlaced with Dar's. It was inconvenient for typing, but she made no move to disengage, pecking at the keys with one hand as she studied her screen and faintly shook her head.
Crazy day.
THE THREE OF them stopped short after exiting the train platform, finding themselves in a circular lobby with people moving around the min pretty much all directions.