"Can't she just--" Kerry let the thought trail off. "No, I guess she can't just FedEx everything to you. Damn. You don't realize how dependent you are on some things until they don't exist."

"She offered to fly with it," Dar said.

Kerry studied her face. "She hates flying."

"I know." Her partner smiled briefly. "I told her I'd wait. You're here. It's not like I'm out wandering the streets sleeping under a bench."

"That's true." Kerry covered Dar's free hand with her own and squeezed her fingers. "I'll definitely take care of you."

"Miami exec, this is Houston logistics," the gruff voice came back. "We just got notified we can't move tapes to storage. Facilities been ordered closed by the Feds."

"Oh god." Kerry covered her eyes. "Thanks, Houston. For how long?"

"No idea."

Dar shook her head. "Everyone's running scared now," she said. "I'll order up some storage containers for them and us. Keep working it." She got up and headed back to the room phone, the early rays of sun splashing over her bare legs.

"Okay, Houston. We got that. We'll see what we can do to help," Kerry said. "Newark, have you had any indication on an ETA for your city power? I have a feeling we're going to need those trucks in Manhattan."

"Wish I could say yes, Miami exec." The Earthstation sounded apologetic. "My boss called this morning, and ConEd had a message on saying to try calling in a couple days."

"Nice." Kerry took another bite of her croissant. "Well, I'm sure they've got a ton of other issues. Doesn't help us much though."

"Miami exec, this is the Air Hub," a woman's voice broke in. "Air traffic control is back online." Her voice held a note of excitement. "We just got a request to host a big share for them for repositioning."

"Go ahead," Kerry said. "Houston ops watch the links and make sure they get space."

"On it," a male voice answered. "We are running a little hot across the board."

Kerry glanced over at Dar, who was on the phone, cupping one hand over her free ear. "I'll get the pipe meister to look at it in a minute. She's on another call."

Kerry?

Kerry looked at the popup then clicked on it. Go

ahead Mar.

I heard from our office in Springfield. They had a big riot up there last night, apparently people protesting against people from the Middle East.

Oh great. Kerry remembered what her mother had said, and exhaled. Knee jerk.

Agreed. Should I send an alert out though? People don't stop to think sometimes.

"Hey Dar?" Kerry turned her head as she heard her partner hang up. "Mari said they had some anti-Arab ugliness in Illinois last night. She's asking if she should send out a bulletin."

Dar came over and sat back down, taking a sip of Kerry's coffee. "To do what? Tell our employees who happen to be Middle Eastern they should hide in the office?" she asked, practically. "I'm sure CNN is covering it, and I'm sure they're watching CNN. "

Kerry studied her face. "What pissed you off?"

Dar put the cup down. "Did I say I was pissed off?" she asked, arching her brow as Kerry continued to look at her. Her lips twitched. "I just got yelled at by Gerry for ten minutes for being the forgetful nitwit I know I was yesterday."

"Well, sweetie--"

"I know." Dar set the cup down. "Yes, she should send out a note. I think people are just starting to be stupid and I don't know where it's going to end."

Kerry turned back to her keyboard. Dar says yes. Everyone should be very aware of what is going on around them.

"We have to go to the White House."

Kerry stopped typing in mid word, going very still, before she turned her head and looked at her partner. "Excuse me?"

"Hope you brought your rainbow nerd T-shirt." Dar got up. "I'm going to take a shower. Let's hope they don't want to see my driver's license before they let us in."

Kerry stared at the retreating figure in somewhat stunned silence for a long moment before she wrenched her attention back to the laptop. "Ah--I'm going to have to go offline for a few minutes," she managed to get out. "Everyone just hang tight."

"Will do." "Sure." "No problem Miami exec."

Kerry got up and headed for the bathroom, hoping Dar hadn't really said what she thought she'd heard her say. She ducked inside the door, already hearing the water running, to find Dar in the middle of taking her shirt off. "The White House?"

"They're sending a car." Dar tossed her shirt on the counter. "C'mon. We don't have a lot of time. Apparently we've pissed a lot of people off and we've got a lot of explaining to do." She opened the shower door, allowing a healthy blast of steam to enter the room. "Dad's already down at the Pentagon helping."

"Helping to do what?" Kerry hurriedly got out of her shirt and joined her partner in the shower. "Dar, what the hell--the White House? What did we do? Who did we piss off?"

"Wish I knew." Dar squirted gel on a scrubby and started indiscriminately washing both herself and Kerry. "But I'm guessing we'll soon find out."

"Ugh."

Chapter Twenty-One

DAR FOLDED HER arms and glanced out the tinted window as the car sped through the streets. Kerry was sitting next to her, ear buds planted firmly in her ears as she directed the conference call in muted tones.

"Dar?" Kerry looked up. "Hamilton Baird just dropped into the call, said he'd meet us."

Dar nodded. "Good," she said. "Never thought I'd be glad to see his puss, but annoying as he is he's a first rate lawyer."

"Your father is listening from the RV," Kerry said. "What's a coon ass?"

Dar snorted in laughter, covering her mouth and then her eyes with one hand. "He didn't say that on the call, did he?"

"Um. Well, actually--"

"It's slang for someone from Cajun Louisiana. It's not really a compliment." Dar peered through her fingers. "Sort of like being called a hillbilly. Only worse."

"He laughed."

"My father?"

"Hamilton," Kerry said. "Then he called your Dad a redneck. I think the entire company's stunned to complete silence."

"Mari must be on the floor behind her desk out cold," Dar sighed. "Round out the electroshock therapy by calling Dad and telling them to behave."

"Whatever you say, boss." Kerry went back to her headset with a grin on her face.

Dar returned her gaze to the streets of Washington, working to ignore the twisting in her guts and faintly envying Kerry the distraction of her current task. She'd been in many high profile situations for the company and certainly she had a lot of confidence both in herself and her organization, but being called to the carpet at the White House was both a new and very nerve wracking experience for her.

She didn't like politics. Based on her previous experience, she didn't much like politicians. Dar felt that in order to be elected by a majority, politicians had to become the lowest common denominator and promise everything to everyone, delivering not much to anyone in the end.

Except in South Florida, to their relatives. Dar unfolded her arms and let her hands rest on her denim covered knees. Corruption wasn't viewed so much as a scandal in Miami but, as a bit of entertainment for the residents to discuss over café along with the latest news of Castro, the traffic, and whether or not hurricanes would be heavy or light this season.

Expected. Politicians were wheelers and dealers where she lived, and while it did earn Miami the banana republic reputation it had, Dar also found the up front acknowledgement quite a bit more refreshing. Straightforward, and local. The county and city leaders didn't much give a rat's ass about the rest of the state, or in fact, the rest of the country. Their focus was on drawing people and businesses in, pushing development to its limits, scooping in as much in taxes as they could, and spending money on whoever's pet project they got the most kickbacks for.

No euphemisms about bettering humanity. No long harangues about family values. Very commercial, very crass, very ethnic. Dar liked that. She remembered hearing one local politico talking to some moral values types at a fundraiser she'd been roped into attending, and they'd asked him about the dangers of a gay neighborhood springing up in a certain area.

"Let them come," the politico had said. "They improve any area they live in. Property value goes up, taxes go up. Show me that around a soup kitchen."

Blunt. Shocking. Very Miami. Dar remembered after Hurricane Andrew, when there had been hundreds of thousands of tons of debris to get rid of, and the state and federal government citing pollution regulations, had forbid burning to get rid of it.

They'd burned it anyway. The county manager had told the regulators to come arrest him if they didn't like it.

Dar felt a certain sympathy with the attitude.

The car turned into a long driveway, and pulled to a halt at a large iron guarded gate. "Ma'am, I'll need to show them your identification." Their driver half turned to look at her. "Can you pass it up please?"

"No." Dar laced her fingers. "Actually, I can give you Kerry's. Not mine."

The driver looked at her.

"I'm not deliberately being an asshole." Dar correctly interpreted his expression. "I just don't have it. My wallet and ID is back in Miami."

The driver continued to stare at her. "Ma'am, they won't let you in there without ID."

"Well," his passenger cleared her throat. "That could be true. But the government paid a lot of money to bring me up here from Florida on a military airplane and then send you to fetch me to the White House. Chances are someone in there knows who I am or at least will trust that I am who they think I am."