EPISODE 21: Whiskey And Warm Memories
It was mid-morning and memories of the start to her day had Olivia still smiling as she walked into OPA's conference room.
Tea in hand, perfectly coiffed and suited as usual, she paused just inside the doorway; something was out of place - but Olivia couldn't put her finger on what that something was - at least not right away.
Looking for an answer, she let her eyes travel around the room, marking everyone present. Only Abby was missing, although the one chair that was empty but twisted slightly away from the table told Olivia that she'd already come and gone this morning.
That left Harrison, Quinn and Huck, with empty seats and deliberate spaces between them. Harrison and Quinn were seated on one side of the table, she in front of her laptop, while Harrison was studying his phone. Huck was on the opposite side of the table and seated more to the far end of it. All of them appeared very studious - far too studious for this early in the day - and there it was. It was the quality of the silence between them that had caught her attention.
Olivia's gaze zeroed in on Huck first. There was little doubt that he felt her eyes come to rest on him. His own gaze flicked up to meet hers for a moment but just as quickly it returned to his laptop screen without saying a word, leaving Olivia to try and puzzle out his response. Was that smugness she'd seen in his eyes? - but since when did Huck do smug?
"Good morning…?" she left the question in her voice as she looked to Quinn and then Harrison. "Or should I ask how did last night go first?"
Still buoyed up by her own good mood, Olivia couldn't resist the urge to add. "Were there any survivors?"
It was Quinn who answered; her words were first preceded by a yawn - one that she tried to fight off, but didn't quite succeed. "Trust me when I tell you that the night went just fine - and a good time was had by all."
That remark was book-ended by a second yawn and an unapologetic grin at the end of it.
"Some more than others." Huck announced, speaking to no one in particular but raising his voice just enough so that there was no mistaking his intent to be heard by everyone in the room. Heard loudly.
Okay, that was definitely smugness Olivia was hearing, she decided. With no small sense of rising mingled amusement and sympathy, Olivia watched as both Quinn and Harrison winced just a little.
"Some of us put themselves on the clock." Quinn shot back.
"And some of us weren't the only ones on their j-o-b." Harrison added. He turned to Olivia. "And good morning to you, too."
"I hope last night was worth it." Olivia grinned at them as she turned towards her office. "Harrison, do you have the time to catch me up on the evening's festivities?"
"Not a problem." He stood up. "Just let me top off my morning sustenance and I'll be right behind you."
Olivia nodded and went into her office and had just settled down behind her desk when Harrison knocked and joined her, mug in hand.
"Hibiscus tea." Her eyebrows lifted slightly as she caught a whiff of the herbal blend. "That bad?"
"Not even close." Harrison scoffed at her as he took a seat opposite her. "There's nothing 'bad' about this at all. I am simply - and smartly, I might add - re-hydrating after an evening of extensive whiskey tasting - and there were several very, very good whiskeys involved."
"Well, that explains the whole good time was had by all part - was there anything else?"
"In general, or were you looking for something specific?"
"We can start with general and go from there - you did say that you were working last night, didn't you?"
Harrison put on an expression of mock outrage. "Among other things - I am able to multi-task, you know."
"I do know." Olivia said. "Very capably, I might add."
"Thank you." Harrison raised his mug to her in thanks to the compliment. "Before we begin, in case you were wondering - Abby was planning to drop in on Susan this morning."
"Oh? I wondered why she hadn't joined you all last night - is everything okay with her?"
"Everything is fine." Harrison said. "And I did invite her but she said she'd already made plans."
Olivia nodded. "All right - did she say why she was going to see Susan?"
"She didn't give me any specifics." Harrison shrugged. "Abby likes Susan."
"Everybody likes Susan." Olivia pointed out.
"What's not to like?" Harrison said. He focused his thoughts. "In general - you might be interested in knowing that there's a more than a little bit of buzz happening among the worker bees of the senior aides attached to her name lately."
"Well, that's just as we intended it." Olivia said. "I think that in time, Susan has the potential to become a real asset to the not only her state, but to the president."
"Speaking of which - I could say the same about you - and about us. What with you being so openly in the president's good graces these days -"
Harrison couldn't resist the grin that spread across his face with his next words. "So large and in charge - well, naturally there are going to be a few very focused inquiries sent in out in our direction - in a general sort of way."
"Naturally." Olivia's grin matched his. "It was bound to begin at some point."
"I was wondering when it would, myself - so I've been making myself available." Harrison joked. "Where to start, where to start?"
"At the beginning?" Olivia suggested, prompting a laugh from him, even as his mind reset its thoughts to the night before.
For a Sunday night, the club was unusually full. Not only that, the atmosphere had been sharp enough that one could cut it with a knife; that phrase being a cliché didn't make it any less true. At least it was true enough to put Harrison on his brightest edge - all quicksilver talk, eyes everywhere, ears everywhere, every sense tuned into the ebb and flow of the many, many conversations happening around him.
Not for the first time, Harrison had used this venue to do some of his better work. As he'd told Olivia previously, this was a favorite gathering place of the mid and upper level staff that served the movers and shakers on the Hill, the well-paid, smoothly oiled cogs that kept it all running using this as a neutral no man's land spot to let off steam and speak on matters between both allies and possibly rivals that couldn't be said elsewhere.
Over the space of several months, he'd watched as slowly but steadily more and more staffers had come to the same conclusion. What had followed was a slow influx of democrats on the same level as their counterparts and it hadn't taken long for him to realize that they were forming their own information pool, taking part in an official - at the same time unofficial - conduit between several factions on both sides, with the majority claiming to be serving the President - their unofficially official client.
That all by itself was a message worth noting, if one were paying attention - and Harrison was definitely someone who was. Even as he enjoyed the coolly lit atmosphere and the wicked laid-back musical groove, it was the talk swirling around him that kept things interesting.
He lays out a few of them for Olivia now, hints of whose boss or what committees were currently in favor - or not - and whose political stock was rising or falling just before the real re-election campaign was set to begin.
"As we've already agreed on, the talk about Susan is very positive - mostly everybody does like Susan. And at the same time, everybody is trying to figure out how to use that fact to their own benefit."
"Of course they are."
Harrison watched as Olivia took this information in - he could almost see the wheels in her mind spinning - before he continued. "Something else that was the subject of many a conversation was a lot of guess-work on the status of the Caldwells - it seems that plenty of power brokers on the Hill are wondering about their political aspirations - whether they are rising or falling and whose side are they really on. I've had more than one query about our relationship with them."
"I'm sure the Caldwells will be pleased to learn that little fact." Olivia said. "That level of ambiguity is right up Peter and Nathaniel's alley. I'd planned on having a little chat with Peter before the holiday break - that should be a fun conversation."
"I'm sure you're looking forward to it - they are a devious little bunch, aren't they?"
"Yes, they are - and I'm glad that they're on our side - at least for now." Olivia said.
"For now - point taken." Harrison said. "I'll remember to keep closer eyes and ears on that and them."
Before they could continue, Huck came knocking on the door, Quinn hovering just behind him. Olivia waved them in.
"I'm guessing that you two are talking about last night?" Huck stayed standing by the door, while Quinn slipped past him to take a seat.
He didn't wait for an answer. "I don't know what else was going on -" that was a nod to Harrison "- but I can tell you that there was at least one agent there last night."
"Really?" That caught Olivia's attention. "Whose, I wonder."
"I didn't recognize him. I tracked his movements though, and I think that they were probably there to gather information, just like Harrison does." Huck paused. "But I can find out more - if you want."
There was a tone to that question that made Harrison think twice -just exactly was Huck asking permission for? A heartbeat later, he decided that he didn't want to know about that, not right now. Not ever, if he were being honest about it.
"I think that we can all agree that we can wait on that." Olivia said, to Harrison's great relief. He watched as Olivia turned to Quinn.
"Is there anything you'd like to add?" she asked.
After her own dose of caffeine, Quinn appeared mostly recovered. "Meaning that you want the four one one on Annarosa's well-being?"
"Her well-being is just as important as anything else - beyond the political necessity of her presence. None of this can be easy for her." Olivia said. "So, yes I do."
"Like I told Harrison last night, Annarosa seems to be settling into DC nicely." Quinn said. "I can tell you that she definitely had a good time last night."
Harrison was glad of the opportunity to smile again. "I saw your little 'girls night out' moment."
Quinn grinned back at him. "We had several of them, in case you missed them."
"I might have, since I was hard at work."
"I just bet you were. I saw how hard you were working…" the way she said that made Harrison wonder at her choice of words. Just what was it that she'd thought she'd seen?
Mercifully, Olivia rescued him from Quinn's suddenly Baby Huck I-know-something-you-don't-know look. "Glad to hear it - has she said anything about how she's handling everything?"
Harrison had a moment to wonder briefly at the sense of relief that the change of subject brought to him before Quinn continued.
"We didn't talk work much, but she did say that with her living with Jocelyn and working as Susan's intern, she's coming to appreciate her uncle's vision more and more - and that she's coming to a better understanding of American politics."
They all laughed at that - and even Huck cracked a hint of a smile. If their work had taught them nothing else, they'd all learned that the intricacies of American politics was an endless maze.
"That's better than my understanding." Harrison pointed out.
"Better than most of us." Olivia agreed. "But I'm glad to hear that - and I'm sure that the President will be happy to hear it too."
She changed the subject slightly. "On that same note, how's Shireen? And tell me more about this girls' night out thing; I think I might almost be sorry that I missed it."