Chapter 20: Moving On

After Murdock left for the airfield, Nancy headed into the office.  She decided to leave the LaSalle case aside for the morning, and concentrated instead on reviewing the resumes Riley had for the new operative position as well as working on the month-end financials, to make sure they really had the work load to justify the new position.  She was working on this, when her Uncle called.

"Adams Investigations, Nancy Murdock speaking," she answered automatically.

"You're a hard person to track down," her Uncle said quietly, "Decided not to go into the office today, I see."

Nancy sighed, he made it sound like she was slacking, she felt like a kid caught playing hooky, "I often work here at home, where it's quiet and there aren't so many interruptions," she said evenly, "What do you want, Uncle?"

"I called to tell you that I have decided to keep you on the LaSalle case," he said calmly.

"Don't do me any favors, Uncle," she said irritably, "I have plenty of work to do without your charity."

"This is not a charity case," he said in a pacifying tone, "I want to maintain continuity, so that the investigation is wrapped up expeditiously.  That's why I came to you in the first place."

"At least have the courtesy to be honest with me," she said, still angry, "you hired me because LaSalle said you should hire a woman, and you don't know any other female investigators."

There was a lengthy silence at the other end of the phone, before her Uncle finally said repentantly, "Nancy, I am truly sorry if I made it sound as if I believe you to be a failure, that is far from the truth.  You have an excellent reputation throughout the greater DC area, and I am proud that you are my niece."

Nancy was looking studiously at a pencil, turning it over and over, as she listened to her Uncle's apology. The truth was that she had been stinging from her Uncle's apparent dismissal of her accomplishments for years.  His statements the night before had made it patently obvious why he had never seen fit to hire her himself - she didn't measure up to his standard of excellence. His words seemed empty of meaning, and she couldn't bring herself to accept his apology.

"I will continue with the investigation," she said quietly, "I have a few loose ends to wrap up to complete my line of inquiry. I do hate leaving loose ends," she added pointedly, "After that, I will return all related materials to you with a bill for my services.  If you care to pursue the matter further at that point, you'll have to find someone else to do it.  Goodbye, Uncle." She hung up the phone before he could reply.

As the General turned from ending his connection on the speaker phone on his credenza, Hannibal stood from where he had been leaning against the bulk head, "You've got a real way with people," he said glibly.

The General glanced up from his desk, "You're early, Smith," he said curtly.

Hannibal sat down in one of the chairs facing the desk, sitting back and crossing his arms, "Actually, I'd say I was late . . .," he said ruefully, "I was hoping to get here before you called Nancy, and try to keep you from making an ass of yourself again, and hurting her further in the process"

Stockwell peered at Hannibal through narrowed eyes, "My relationship with my Niece is none of your concern, Colonel," he said flatly.

"It is when it puts the entire organization at risk," Hannibal said seriously, "and believe it or not, General, I'm committed to the success of Stockwell Enterprises.  Quite honestly, I'm getting too damn old to find another career."

"I fail to see what my argument with Nancy has to do with the health of the organization . . .," Stockwell said, sitting back with his arms crossed.

"You know, General, you are one of the most intelligent men I've ever met," Hannibal said, "So why are you such an idiot when it comes to dealing with Nancy?  Every time you open your mouth around her, you criticize.  I'd understand if she was a total screw-up, but from what I know of her, she's got a good head on her shoulders.  Can you explain to me what your problem with her is?"

Stockwell's eyes were blazing, "You're treading on thin ice, Smith," he said quietly.

Hannibal pushed, "Just tell me, what has Nancy done that makes you so certain she isn't the person to run Stockwell Enterprises?"

The General's jaw was set firmly, "I have no problem with Nancy," he said evenly, "I just think that she could have made better career choices . . ."

Hannibal interrupted impatiently, "Why don't you try taking a look at what she has done instead of lamenting what she hasn't? You know, I think if you took a good hard look, you might find a person who would be able to maintain, and I'd wager improve on what you've done with this company. If you're too bull headed to realize that, then the whole organization is going to lose."

Stockwell's gaze was impassive, "If you are quite through lecturing me about how to run my personal affairs, and my company, Colonel, perhaps we could get to the reason for this little meeting - you are behind schedule."

"Actually, construction is on schedule," Hannibal corrected smoothly, "and we do have an internal team identified . . . finally.  Carla should have given you the final roster."

Stockwell pulled out a piece of paper, "I have it here, these are all good men, though I do notice there isn't a pilot among them," his tone was questioning.

"I'm afraid you only have two qualified pilots on staff, General," Hannibal said, "And neither one of them was interested in the team."

"Surely Jeff Kent would make a good team member . . ."

"I talked to Jeff personally," Hannibal said, "On more than one occasion, as did Murdock.  He simply wasn't interested.  He said he likes the variety available with his current assignment."

Stockwell nodded, "I'll talk to him - I think he could be a great asset to the new team."

Hannibal sat forward, "I don't want you bullying him into joining," he said pointedly, "That just isn't going to work.  We have to have people committed to making the team work.  It's about setting aside individual goals and working for the team."

Stockwell was quiet for a few minutes, then said, "I get the impression you have reservations about this, Colonel?"

Hannibal nodded, "I question whether the men that I currently have are really committed to this idea.  They've been independent field operatives for too long to set aside their personal goals for the team. I'm afraid with the current path forward, we're going to be doomed to failure . . ."

"And your recommendation would be?" Stockwell looked at Hannibal cynically.

Hannibal considered whether he should tell the General that it was actually Nancy's recommendation, but decided against it, now didn't seem to be the time, "I'd like to begin an external recruitment of candidates that are not quite so set in their ways."

"You mean younger," Stockwell said, sounding very skeptical.

"Not necessarily younger, but definitely less experienced," Hannibal said, "I know it seems counterintuitive, but I have to unlearn the experienced operatives, before I can teach them anything. If I start with a clean slate, so to speak, the learning process should actually be shortened."

The General considered this for a few seconds, before conceding, "Very well, you may begin an external recruitment campaign. I don't want the schedule on this project to run out any further," he added shrewdly, "If it does, I may be forced to resurrect the original A-team, which I know is something you and your men don't want."

"However," he continued, "You are to continue on a parallel path with the internal team. When will their training begin?"

"A parallel path was always my intention," Hannibal said, "I don't want to lose the momentum we've gained.  If nothing else, it will give us a chance to try out the training programs we've developed.  I figure the Abels will have some constructive criticism to provide. We will start their training on Monday."

The General nodded, "Keep me posted on progress, on both fronts," he said, "Good luck, Colonel, and good day."