Ah. Some of the pieces clicked together. Kerry felt a slow burn of anger start. “You mean Clarice?”

“If that’s what her name is, sure,” Brent said. “She heard me telling one of the techs, and then she was off and yabbling to everyone.

Thought it was one big joke.”

Kerry walked to her side table and poured herself a glass of water, more to give herself a chance to think than because she was thirsty.

“Okay.” She turned, leaning against the table as she sipped from the glass. “But that doesn’t answer the question. Can you do your job here or not?” One problem at a time, Kerry. One problem at a time.

Brent slid a bit lower in the chair. “I don’t want no trouble.” He averted his eyes again. “I do a good job here.”

Kerry returned to her desk and seated herself facing him. “That’s right, you really do, Brent,” she agreed. “You’re one of the best techs we have, and that’s why I was so disappointed about what happened. I like you.”Very slowly, his eyes lifted to meet hers.

“I don’t want you to leave. But I also don’t want you to be so uncomfortable around me, or around Dar, that it makes you crazy,”

Kerry continued, in a gentler voice. “So you think about it, and you let me know, okay?”

Brent was silent for a moment, then he finally nodded. “All right.”

He got up and scuttled around the chair. “I got stuff to take care of.”

“Thanks for coming by, Brent.” Kerry dismissed him. She waited for the door to close behind his stocky form, before she let her eyes Red Sky At Morning 345

narrow and her fingertips drum on her desk. “That,” she spoke aloud,

“was the easy one.” With deliberation, she got up and headed for the door.

DAR STOOD WITH her arms folded, looking out the window of Gerald’s office. Behind her, the general was hashing over her data with a tall, constipated-appearing major from the military legal office. The major wasn’t happy. Gerald wasn’t happy.

Hell, I’m not happy. Dar observed a black and yellow bird settle onto a branch outside, its mouth opening in song she hadn’t a chance of hearing.

“Ms., ah, Roberts.”

Dar turned to face the major. “Yes?”

“The security group that reviewed the base reported back to us a very different story than what you present here,” the major stated. “We found some small infractions, yes, and my office was preparing administrative sanctions against the base commander, but nothing close to what you are alleging.”

“I,” Dar stated flatly, “am not alleging anything. I’m just an information services professional who is tendering information to you.

If that information looks bad, that’s not my fault.”

The major watched her warily. “We found no indication of major offenses at that base,” he repeated. “There was no hint in any of their systems of any of this.”

“Exactly why I asked Paladar to retrieve the records,” Gerald interrupted him. “Figured if there was anything dicey, butts would be covered post-haste.” He tapped the report. “Now, Ted, let’s call spades spades. We got a problem here.”

The major looked even more constipated. “General, I’m sorry, but I have to call these ‘facts’ into question. I refuse to believe an entire intelligence team could have failed to find even a hint of this.” He threw his hands up. “This could all be fabricated!”

Both of Dar’s eyebrows shot up and she started forward, pausing when Gerry put a calming hand on her arm. “What would be the point in that?” Dar demanded.

“Well, Ms. Roberts, your company has a certain reputation to maintain.” The major gave her a smug look. “Busting the Navy would certainly put a shine on your cap, wouldn’t it?”

“Easy, Dar.” Gerry put his arm over Dar’s shoulders. “This nitwit in a starched suit has no idea who he’s talking to.”

“Sir!” the major protested.

“You listen here, youngster.” Gerald rode over him. “Dar and her people didn’t risk their hides to get this stuff out for the likes of you to pooh-pooh it. Now, this’s the real stuff. I don’t like it, you don’t like it, and believe me if you don’t believe her, Dar doesn’t like it. But there it 346 Melissa Good is, and now you, sir, have to deal with it. Go kick some kiester and stop wasting my time.”

“Sir,” the man rested his hands on the table, “let’s just think about this for a minute.”

Dar straightened and circled around to the other side of the table.

“If I didn’t know better, I’d say you just didn’t want to blow their little scam. You in on it?”

The major stood up dead straight, his jaw clenching. “How dare you.”

Dar lifted her hands and spread them out to either side of her.

“Government has a certain reputation to maintain, doesn’t it?

Appropriations? Budgets? Scandal’s always bad for the expense account, isn’t it?”

“Dar.” Gerald gave her a warning look. “Now, I know Ted here just wants to cover our butts. Don’t blame him. Once he gets a look-see at all this, I know he’ll do the right thing.” He turned and stared directly at the major. “Isn’t that right, Ted?”

The major glared at Dar.

“Ted?” The general stepped between them. “You know as well as I do, it’s no good trying to stuff this bilge under the bunk. Didn’t work last time, won’t work this time. Just bite the bullet and get moving on it.” After a moment, the major nodded. “You’re right, sir,” he answered quietly. “I just hate to see it. We’ve come so far since...”

“I know.” Gerry sighed. “Always an ass dropping crap when you least expect it.” He half turned his head. “Pardon me, Dar.”

The major picked up the stack of paper and the box next to it and tucked it all under his arm. “I’ll get to work on it right away, General.

Don’t you worry.” He ignored Dar, turning his back on her and walking directly to the door, opening it, stepping through, and closing it with sharp precision.

Gerry sighed, and sat down on the edge of the table. He glanced at Dar, who was still visibly steaming. “Can’t really blame him, munchkin.

He’s third-generation Navy, and you know how we get.”

“He’s a first-generation jackass,” Dar replied. “Can he even read?”

“Now, Dar,” the general chided. “He’s a good legal guy. Give him a chance. Once he goes through all that, he’ll step up to the plate, don’t you worry.” He added, “He didn’t know you were one of us.”

The room went still for a moment, and Dar heard those words as though they were crystal shards falling on the tile floor. She drew in a breath, and when she exhaled, she knew herself for a different person.

Her voice, however, remained casual. “I’m not.”

“Eh?”

“One of you,” Dar said, looking him in the eye.

Gerry didn’t know what to answer to that. He blinked for a minute, then he shook his head. “Well, like I said, don’t you worry, Dar. We’ll Red Sky At Morning 347

take care of it.”

Was she worried? Dar considered. She’d turned over what she’d found to the proper authorities. Was it her problem what they did with it? She sat down in one of the leather chairs and exhaled. “Sorry.”

Her old friend got up and walked over, sitting down in the seat next to her. He patted her knee. “No, it’s me who should be sorry, Dar. I owe you a big apology.”

Dar gazed at him from under dark lashes. “For what?”

“Asking you to go out there,” General Easton replied in a quiet voice. “Contract’s one thing. I should have known this was more than it seemed. Risking you wasn’t on my battle plan, Dar.” He shook a finger at her. “Especially if you were hurt, you little polliwog. You should have told me that.”

“It turned out all right.” Dar stretched carefully, avoiding stress on her shoulder. “Guess I’m done here, eh?”

Gerry studied her for a long moment, then nodded. “Just leave it in our hands,” he assured her. “You go on back home and take some rec, hear?”

Dar got up and brushed her jacket off. She extended a hand to him.

“I will,” she said. “Let me know when you’ll be in my neck of the woods, Gerry.”

“Certainly will, Dar.” The general took her hand and clasped it.

“I’ve got a handful of other bases I’d like you to check out, but let’s wait for the feathers to fall on this one for a month or so, eh?”

“Yeah,” Dar agreed. “Be in touch.”

She picked up her briefcase and shouldered it, then made her way out of the office, turning and giving Gerry a half wave before she left.

He smiled and waved back. Dar closed the door with a sense of guilty relief and headed out to the outer corridor.

There. Glad that’s over. Dar walked through the busy halls, her progress noted only by a few quick glances, most of them merely interested in the tall, dark stranger in their midst. Dar granted her ego the right to preen for a moment, then she turned and headed out the door to the street.

It was cold, and she paused to zip her jacket up before she made the trip out to the parking lot and got into her rental car. She set her briefcase on the seat next to her and closed the door, starting up the engine before she exhaled, gazing back the way she had come, at the massive building.

It seemed to her, as it always did, a bland facade full of dusty secrets.

Dar sat back and thought about that. She’d never been a conspiracy theorist, truthfully. She accepted that sometimes the government didn’t tell what they knew, and she accepted that sometimes the government didn’t know its ass from a hole in the wall. It was made up of people.

Having a treasury seal on your paycheck didn’t make you any smarter 348 Melissa Good or more capable than anyone else, and Dar reckoned that in a general sense she hired more capable people than the establishment did—and paid them better to boot.