Couples

Chapter 73

"What are you looking at?" Kate asks as Rick scans his phone while Lily runs around on the grass at a rest stop. "I thought we agreed not to check on news from the city."

"I'm not," Rick assures her. "I'm just double-checking that Alexis has complete access to the account I set up for the wedding. I put down the large deposits, but she still has last-minute expenses. Some of the vendors in the Hamptons prefer to be completely paid in advance. They've been burned by clients declaring corporate bankruptcies. That used to be one of Barron's tricks to avoid paying his contractors, and some of his pals followed suit. Oh, this looks good. She arranged two payouts this morning, but there's still a sizable balance. She should be set."

"In that case, put that thing away. I think Lily's burned off enough energy. We can change her and get on the road again."

Rick checks his watch. "All right, but we're making excellent time. We should be able to stop for a leisurely lunch in an hour or two."

"Not so leisurely if we have to clean up the debris field around Lily's high chair. I'm not sure if she actually eats all the crackers we give her or uses them to create crumb art on the floor."

"You can't blame her for being creative," Rick responds. "It runs in the family. And if we eat somewhere with outside tables, the birds can clean up. They'll be grateful for the feast. But you're right. We should hit the road." The screech of brakes and grate of crumpling metal reach them from the freeway. "That doesn't sound good."

"No, it doesn't." Kate agrees. "I hope no one's been hurt." She points to a hill overlooking the road. "I'm going to see what happened."

After making a short climb, Kate surveys the wreckage below. As far as she can tell, the primary collision was a fully loaded truck versus an SUV. The SUV didn't come out of it well. The truck spilled part of its load, and several cars piled up behind it. Pulling out her own cell phone, she reports the accident, giving as many details as she can. No one exited the SUV. That's not a good sign. From the look of things, it will take the jaws of life to get the occupants out. Even if she tried to get to the crash, there wouldn't be much she could do. Hopefully, the necessary help will arrive quickly.

Rick raises an eyebrow as Kate returns to him and Lily. "Bad?"

"It looks that way, but it shouldn't take too long for the first responders to get here. The 911 dispatcher sounded on top of it. Still, we won't be going anywhere for a while. The road going north is completely blocked."

Sirens sound in the distance. "They should arrive any minute," Rick notes. "Thank God for that. But obviously, our plan A is a no-go. However, we have plenty of toddler meals for Lily, and I noticed that the bank of vending machines here is fully stocked. The sandwiches didn't look too ancient, and they have those ice cream bars covered with dark chocolate that you love."

Kate gazes back toward her observation perch. "I want to check on how things are going at the accident again, first. Then we can talk about food."

"Sure, you go ahead," Rick agrees. "I'll take changing duty."

Kate stretches up for a quick kiss. "Thanks, Babe."

"What's wrong?" Dana asks as Alexis tosses her phone on the bed.

"That was Barton. She gave me a heads up that she and Zev will be able to make it into the new married student housing ahead of schedule. That means the house parents' spot will be opening up before we thought it would. If we're going to get it, we'll have to be ready to move into the apartment in Colbert Hall sooner than we planned."

"How much sooner?" Dana asks.

"The day after our wedding."

Dana pulls his bride-to-be down to sit next to him on the bed. "Well, we knew we weren't going to get a honeymoon anytime soon. You need to finish the summer at CSU before classes start, and I have to work on my project to keep my stipend."

" I know," Alexis acknowledges. "I was just hoping that we'd have a little time to just absorb being married."

Dana slips his index finger under her chin. "What could be more married than being house parents?"

"You have a point," Alexis admits. "But that means we'll have to add packing to everything else we do before the wedding. And we'll need to line up a moving service."

"We can get Two Hungry Students With a Truck," Dana suggests. "Those guys helped move some equipment into my lab. They did a great job."

Alexis grabs him for a relieved kiss. "Book them."

Lana checks out the metro section of The Ledger's competitor, The Morning Post. Printed in tabloid format, it's not her favorite newspaper. But she likes it today. It has a great story about the women of the N.Y.P.D. keeping the streets safe. And it features a picture of six female patrol officers. Lana isn't one of them, but that's fine with her. She asked the P.R. expert that Rick sent her way to pump up her sisters in blue more than herself, and that's what he did. She's just a member of a sorority, but one that, for once, is getting the respect it deserves.

Pitney Stason tried going after Eli as a black predator targeting a helpless white woman, but his tweets were deluged with replies pointing out that an N.Y.P.D. cop is anything but helpless. The crew from one of the local noon talk shows came to interview her while she was on the job, too. By serendipity, a pickpocket tried to take advantage of the gathered crowd. Lana caught him and arrested him – all on video. She giggles as she pictures the expression on Stason's face when he sees it. He might have to change his pants.

The Morning Post hasn't said anything about planned demonstrations. That's a plus. If the women of the N.Y.P.D. take Stason by surprise the next time he decides to sling mud on Eli, and by implication on Lana, they'll make an even stronger impact. She hopes she can capture his gape-jawed expression for the lock screen on her phone. It will give her a laugh for a long time to come.

"We should find a motel for the night," Rick suggests as Lily increasingly fusses in her safety seat. At least the firefighters got everyone out of the SUV, but with waiting for that accident to clear, we're hours behind schedule. We're going to get there way after Lily's bedtime. If she's cranky tomorrow, it's going to be hard taking her anywhere. Our reservation is guaranteed. It won't hurt if we show up a day late. And I, or rather my titanium credit card concierge, can arrange for early check-in or whatever else we need tomorrow."

Kate taps her fingers on the luxury-appointed dash. "Sometimes I forget how handy it is that you're rich."

"It certainly has its perks," Rick agrees. "But then I still have moments when I don't know whether someone actually wants to be my friend or just thinks they can get something out of me. Sometimes I think Ryan and Esposito only like me for my Knicks' floor seats."

"They do," Kate teases. "No, actually, it's the espresso machine."

"Thanks."

"No, really, Babe. I think, if anything, they used to resent you as some rich asshole. But you grew on them. You grew on me too."

"Asshole," Lily echoes.

Kate slaps a hand to her mouth. "Uh-oh. Maybe she won't repeat it."

Rick shakes his head. "Don't count on it."