“Great.” Kerry sighed. “This needed to get more complicated.”
Bridges peered at her. “You should be used to this, Stuart.”
“I’m not. I went into high tech for a reason.” Kerry told him. “I’d rather be home installing servers for the Dade County school system.”
“What?”
“I want to go home.” Kerry rephrased her speech. “You can keep Congress.”
“Thanks for nothing.” Bridges turned back to Dar. “How close is this thing to being able to do something useful?”
Dar folded her arms. “Six months.” She said. “We could start a limited deployment in probably four.”
“Not fast enough.”
“Do you want it to work?” Dar said. “I think I asked you that in our last meeting. If you want it to be this, a canned demo, you can take this and use it. Wont’ do anything useful though.”
Bridges looked around. “We need this thing. Situation just came up, just after you left off talking to POTUS.” He said. “I can’t give any details, but let me tell you after that piece aired on Turner’s butthole I got a call from some people who want to see this, as in, now.”
Dar shrugged. “I’d be glad to show whoever wants to see it this demo. But the real thing’s just not ready. Writing code takes time.”
“Not only that, its going to take time to get all the taps into all the ISPs for the collecting to start.” Kerry added. “This can’t happen overnight.”
Bridges pinched his lips with his fingertips. “Will throwing money at it help?” He asked. “Buy a bunch of bodies for you to use?”
“To an extent, sure.” Dar said. “More people can code segments. But it’s still not going to be overnight.”
“I could find some other bunch of idiots to do this.”
“You could.” Dar’s voice remained mild. “That’s capitalism. There’s always competition.”
“Smart ass.” Bridges said. “Tell you what, I’ll quadruple the contract price. You get me something in four weeks.”
Four weeks. Kerry looked at her partner, mentally doing the math and feeling a touch lightheaded at the amount they’d clear from it. She saw the thoughtful look in Dar’s eyes, and remembered their upcoming vacation, feeling a pang of regret.
Regret which lasted barely more than a microsecond.
“No.” Dar said. “I’ve got something scheduled the next couple weeks I’m not going to back out of. I”ll have my team work on it, but they’ll finish it when they do.” She got up off the car hood and unlocked the doors. “If that’s not good enough let me know. We’ll move on.”
Bridges studied her. “You actually mean that.” He seemed slightly amazed.
“I do.” Dar said. “I don’t want to put my life on hold right now. Kerry and I are going to the Grand Canyon.”
Bridges stared at her. “You are shitting me.” He said. “You’re going to blow me off for that?”
“Yes.”
‘What in the hell is wrong with you?”
“Excuse me, we’ve got an appointment with Congress.” She opened the car door and slid behind the driver’s seat as Kerry scooted around and got in on the other side. “Do me a favor, and let us do this right. It’s going to be damned embarrassing if you don’t.”
“Huh.” He put his hand on the door. “Roberts, if something happens that this thing could have prevented and didn’t, it’s on your head.”
Dar met his eyes without flinching. “It is.” She said. “Which is why I’m going to deliver it to you when it’s ready. It’s my reputation on the line.”
For a moment she was sure he was going to slam the door on her. She made sure her body parts were inside, in fact, but he merely shut the door gently and patted it. Then he lifted a hand and walked off, heading back towards the gate with its stern guardians.
“I have no idea how that ended.” Kerry admitted.
Dar started the car “I think we’re okay.” She said. “And if not, screw it.”
“Well, I don’t know, hon.” Kerry settled back in her seat. “This is pretty deep.”
“Honestly I don’t care.” Dar backed up and started out of the lot. “I’m going on my god damned vacation and I don’t care of the whole Western world falls on it’s ass while we’re gone.”
Kerry started to make a comment, then she saw the line of Dar’s jaw tighten and she merely reached over and tucked her hand around her partner’s arm. “Can we stop and grab a snack?” She said, instead. “I’d like to get something in my stomach first before I start returning these calls or talking to Congress.”
“Sure.”
Kerry leaned over and let her head rest against Dar’s shoulder. “What a weird day”
It had been. Dar was diligently searching the passing buildings for something edible, wishing the demo for the Senate was behind them and more than that wishing they were on the way home. The events had left her more than a little unsettled. “Tacos okay?”
“Mm.”
“How about fried chicken?”
“Mm.”
“Jamba Juice?”
“That’s the ticket.” Kerry said. “My guts not really willing to deal with that other stuff right now.” She kept her head where it was, as Dar pulled off into a small strip mall and into a parking spot. “Thanks.”
“Anything for you.” Dar patted her cheek. “And there’s a chicken wing place next door. Meet you back here?”
Kerry gave her arm a squeeze and released her. “You bet.”
They got out of the car and split up, Kerry ducking into the smoothie shop and Dar making her way into the wing joint. It was moderately busy in both, and Dar got in line and waited, thumbing through her messages.
One from Maria, hoping things were all right. Another from Colleen, congratulating her on the interview.
Dar smiled a little, at both of them. She opened a third, that had an attachment and she opened that to find a set of code snippets for her to review.
“Ma’am?”
Dar looked up to find the cashier waiting for her. “Sorry.” She put the Handspring away. “Dozen wings hot and a large coke.”
“Sure.” The woman said. “Naked?”
“Yes.” Dar responded, ignoring the sniggering of the two teen boys behind her. She paid the woman and moved down the counter, hearing the door open. Without turning, she felt a sense of warmth on the side of her body facing the entrance, and she knew without looking that Kerry would be there.
“Hey.” Kerry bumped her with an elbow. “I got you one too. I thought it might counteract the wings.”
Dar collected her wings and they went to a back table, sitting down together on the bench seats. Dar pushed the basket of wings in the center of the table, and Kerry handed over a tall, blended smoothie. “Is there peaches in that?”
“Of course.”
Dar pulled the cup over and contentedly sucked on the straw. “Thanks.”
“Anytime” Kerry had picked up a wing and was nibbling on it. “I called Richard while I was waiting. I thought he’d have stacks of subpoenas for us so I figured I might as well find out the worst before we fly home.”
“And?” Dar was divesting a wing of it’s meat, sucking at the bone with single minded intensity.
“And nothing.” Kerry said. “He called the lawyer that was in that press release and the guy hung up on him.”
Dar looked up and frowned.
“He thought it was pretty weird too.”
Dar’s phone rang and she sighed, putting down her wing and fishing the gizmo out. “Dar Roberts.” She said. “Who’s this? What? Oh.” She cleared her throat. “I’ve said everything I’ve got to say already about that.”