“There ya go.” Kerry started to pull her head in.
“Hey, chick!”
Kerry debated on responding. Then she leaned against the door frame. “Hey, jackass.” She called back.
But Wheels held up a hand. “I'm not trying to be an ass that's what we call women.”
“I”m not trying to be an ass either That's what I call men who call women chicks.” Kerry responded promptly. “So now if we've got that clear, I've got work to do.”
Carlos chuckled, and started to follow her inside.
“Hey wait.” Wheels yelled after them. “I just want to ask you a question.”
Kerry paused just inside the door, exchanging a look with Carlos who was filling the opening. “I”m going to regret going back out there, aren't I?”
“Not with me around.” He responded, with a faint grin. “G'wan if you want to. I was trying to get him to talk before you came out but I think maybe he's just a jerk.”
Kerry sighed and eased around him and out the opening, emerging back on the loading dock with Carlos at her heels. She walked over to the edge of the concrete and sat down, dangling her legs and leaning her elbows on her thighs. “Yes?” Her eyebrows lifted in question.
Carlos leaned against the building wall, watching them closely.
The disabled man stared at her for a minute, apparently surprised that she'd come back. “Okay, yeah so.” He now looked embarrassed, and he checked around him carefully before he looked back at her. “I seen new people around here all week.”
“Yes. We're growing.” She studied his face, which had scars on it that she could see now, this close. They reminded her a little of the ones Andrew had. “Why do you ask?”
He looked away furtively. “Just wondered.” He muttered. “Stupid queer that owns the place said you were hiring. Just wondered why we never get a piece of that.”
Kerry felt a warmth between her shoulder blades and she somehow knew if she looked behind her, she'd find Dar there watching them. Either from the dock door or the windows above, but she knew it as surely as she knew going down the road this disabled vet was heading on was likely going to bring them nothing but trouble.
But that had never stopped either of them. “Piece of that.” She repeated slowly “As in, why we wouldn't consider hiring you?”
“Us. Any of us.” He waved a hand in a vague circle. “All I heard was crap about bringing jobs in here. But not for us.” He repeated, refusing to look at her.
Ah. Kerry regarded him in silence for a moment, until he looked up, and she had just that long to decide what she was going to do. “Well, the jobs are open for anyone who's qualified for them.” She said. “We didn't tell the agency to not look around the neighborhood.”
He stared truculently at her.
“We're an information technology company.” Kerry went on, in the same mild tone. “So if anyone around here is interested in that kind of job, they're free to apply. I can give you a list of the openings we have, and you can show people.”
“You're just saying that.” He accused.
Kerry sighed. “You want to see them or not? Honestly, I wouldn't bother just saying that. I've got enough to do as it is, but we're expanding and we need people, and if there's someone around here who is qualified and wants a job, better for me.”
There was a long silence in which they just looked at each other. Then Wheels finally lifted his hands off the arms of his wheelchair and put them back down. “Yeah okay. I'll look at them. You're probably way to snooty for the likes of anyone here but what the hell.”
Kerry started to get up, but she heard steps behind her and looked over her shoulder to see Mayte trotting out, with a folder in her hands. She took the time to top her head up, finding the windows overhead empty but the swinging plastic curtain of the main entry swayed enough to give her a glimpse of a tall figure just inside.
“Thanks Mayte.” She took the folder and then hopped off the dock, landing and walking over to offer the disabled man the papers. “There you go.”
He grabbed them from her and shoved the folder between his body and the side of his chair. “Yeah, okay thanks.” He muttered, turning the chair around and starting off. Just past the garbage dumpster he stopped and turned, looking back at her. “Sorry about the mess. We didn't think anyone cared.”
Kerry crossed her arms over her chest and leaned back against the dock wall, watching him go, and as he turned the corner at the end of the alleyway she heard the scuff of footsteps behind her and a moment later Dar was landing next to her, coming to stand at her side with her hands planted firmly on her hips. “Hey sweetie.”
“Hey.” Dar responded. “Was that a good idea?”
Kerry shrugged. “We do need people, and you never know, hon. You manage to find skills in the weirdest places. Maybe one of those guys has tech experience.”
“Maybe.” Dar said. “But do they have a bank account we can drop an ACH into, and will they pass the security review?” She took the cup Kerry still had on one hand and drank a sip of her tea. “At any rate, that was a lot better outcome than last time, and we don't need to call the cops.”
“True.”
Dar handed her the cup back. “Think I'll go get some java and apologize to my coders. I hauled ass out of their crib like the schizoid overprotective nut case I am and knocked some sodas over.”
Kerry eyed her. “You didn't really.”
Dar made a face. “Maria came hauling past me saying you were out here and she was going to get the security.” She explained. “I didn't really have super secret psychic powers this time.”
“Ah.” Kerry smiled. “I think that was a good choice, Dar.” She said, in a sober tone. “Halfway through escalating a bitch fest with him, it occurred to me that we weren't going anywhere with that attitude. Then he took a step in. I took one too.”
“Trust your judgment one hundred percent.” Dar offered her hand. “Let's go back to work.”
“You got it.”
**
Kerry whistled softly under her breath as she folded another pair of underwear, bopping gently to the song playing in her ear buds as she worked. Chino and Mocha were sleeping in Chino's bed nearby, after being run to exhaustion by Dar earlier in the evening.
Now her partner was diligently upgrading the wireless in the condo while she got two washes done, just a typical weeknight at the condo taking care of chores.
Dar poked her head in the bedroom a few minutes later. “Hey.” She entered, removing one of the ear buds. “Dinner's ready.”
Kerry finished folding the pair of fire engine red panties in her hands and removed the other bud. “What are we having?” She asked, turning off the digital player clipped to the waistband of her shorts. Dar had offered to cook, or actually, had offered to obtain a meal from them and that pretty much could end up anything from corn dogs to filet mignon from the island's restaurant.
Never was the same thing twice.
“Chicken and rice.”
Kerry removed the ear buds and put them down on the dresser. “Well, you haven't had time to cook that so did it come from the Italian place?”
Dar smiled. “Haven't had time, and have no idea how to.” She agreed. “Would you believe the Cuban place across the channel delivers here by boat?”
“I do now.” Kerry followed her back out of the bedroom and over to the kitchen, where there were carefully aluminum foil wrapped packages on the counter top. “I don't even want to know what the delivery charge is.” She unwrapped the items as the clatter of toenails sounded on the tile. “Ah, our children heard the crinkling.”
They retreated to the living room with plates of fragrant chicken and rice, and sprawled on the couch next to each other as Dar flipped on the television.
“This is good.” Kerry forked up a bit of the tender chicken. “You get the wifi all worked out?”