Yeah it's been pretty tame for the two for the past couple of months now it the time fore some new shenanigans to get into. we get to find out al ittle more about Peak Media and Also a little more about JD.. named after (VANCE) because his stupid attitude reminded me of him. So yeah you called it new Villain this story... of course we get some old ones, but this one... sheesh. ~Enjoy! S.K.
Two
Tori sighed gently as the first light trickled into her window. She hadn't slept much, her thoughts keeping her tossing and turning until she'd finally dropped off well after midnight. Now here she was awake before dawn.
Oh well. She sat up and dangled her feet over the bed, rubbing her bare arms and yawning. It would give her a chance to get a run in, at any rate, something she'd had only sporadic success at while she was out on the road. At least it would be pretty scenery.
Tori stood and trudged into the rustic bathroom, turning on the water and splashing a handful of it on her face before she realized the temperature difference between Vermont and San Francisco even with the similar placement in latitude. "Yow!" Her brown eyes popped wide open, and she hastily adjusted the warm water faucet a little to cut the chill. "That's one way to wake up."
She investigated the little courtesy refrigerator in the room, finding tiny crocks of cold apple cider and some little coffee cakes. "Mm." She took one of each and dropped into the curved wooden desk chair, hitting the key to retrieve her mail while she nibbled on her breakfast.
The laptop connected, and she logged in with two fingers, then sat back as her mail downloaded. "Oo." She clicked on one mail, and smiled, as a small, dancing raccoon shimmied it's way across the screen, singing "Dixie". Tori muffled a laugh, almost sending a spray of crumbs all over her keyboard. "Where in the hell did she find that?" She watched the cartoon for a moment more, then shook her head, and checked the rest of the mails, leaving the three urgent ones open and waiting for attention.
Her juice finished, she got into a pair of shorts and a t-shirt, tying her hair back into a tail and putting on her running shoes before slipping out the door to the cabin and into the early morning air. It was cool and a little dewy, very different from the late June haze she'd have been facing in San Francisco, and Tori drew in an appreciative breath as she chose a path and started up it at a walk.
She let her leg muscles stretch out a little, before she broke into a jog, not wanting to push herself too hard after being relatively inactive for a few weeks. Between flights, and hotels, and the four accounts she'd consolidated on her trip, she'd hardly had time to figure out what state she was in, much less where the nearest gym was.
So, she asked herself, why drag yourself out here today, hmm? Tori picked up her pace a little, feeling her body settle into the activity. Couldn't possibly be because you're going home in two days, could it? Hmm? And you're going to have to keep up with Jade, or risk a first class teasing? She laughed at herself, acknowledging the eager thrill that danced over her skin at the thought of seeing her wife again.
The little path meandered upward, and she welcomed the effort, enjoying the pretty trees as she lengthened her stride. It had been an interesting couple of months, really. Both she and Jade had settled down, and gotten used to being with each other, and now that they'd worked out timing, and schedules… it was really becoming a lot of fun. She'd half expected there to be large areas of contention between them, since they were so different, but the house allowed them both their space, and they'd started off by setting a few ground rules.
Like, no talking work at home. That was a biggie, since they were both so involved with the same subjects, it was hard not to. After a while, though, Tori had noticed a distinct change in Jade's attitude when she was home – the other woman seemed to shed her tough and often impatient shell when she walked through the door, displaying a warmer and gentler side that Tori found herself becoming very addicted to.
What a sweetie she was. Not that she'd ever admit to it, though. As they'd grown closer, she'd been able to get Jade to open up a little, and share some of her inner demons, just as Tori had slowly started to unburden herself from her own.
Tori's path took her up and over a small ridge, and down parallel to a stream that trickled through the wooded area. She slowed her steps as she reached a wooden bridge crossing it, and ambled to a halt, finding a log nearby and sitting down on it, just to watch the water go by her.
Ducks floated past, nibbling at the reeds, and making the occasional foray under the water. Tori looked up from watching them as soft footsteps approached her. From the path opposite the way she'd come, a tall, burly man in corduroy pants and a flannel shirt came into view, with a carved walking stick he was using to disguise a faint limp.
Seeing her, he stopped in surprise, and paused. "Why, hello there."
Tori smiled in reflex, finding nothing to dislike in his broad, open face with it's light covering of beard. "Hello."
"You're a strange bit of a thing to be sitting out here on a log, now, aren't you?" The man ambled closer and cocked his head, studying her. "Without your clothes on and all."
Tori stood up. "I was just out for a run." She pointed towards the bridge. "Where does that go?"
"Just down by the old mill." The man answered. "You don't want to go down there…the ground's very rocky, and there's snakes."
"Ah." Tori glanced around her. "You're right… that wouldn't be a good idea… oh well." She circled him and regained the path. "Time to get to work anyway."
He moved suddenly and blocked her. "Hey.. hey.. so..what kind of work do you do?" His hands stroked his cane. "Pretty little thing like you?"
Oh boy. Tori drew in a breath, then expelled it. "I'm a network analyst." She gave a general answer with a forced a smile. "But thanks for the compliment…. Now. I do have to be going." The cane snaked out and caught her upper arm and her heart started pounding. "Sir, you don't want to do that."
"Now… I just want to talk.. take it easy, little girl." The man laughed. "Not often I get to see someone as nice looking as you up here.. surely not half naked." He tugged her closer.
Tori almost panicked, but just as she was about to scream, she could almost hear Jade's calm words in the back of her mind. Don't lose your mind. Stay calm. Hit hard. She grabbed the stick with one hand and jerked hard, then spun and swept a leg out, pulling his feet from under him and dumping him on the ground.
The stick came free into her hands and she backed off, spreading her grip across the length of it with a feeling of weird familiarity.
It was strange. Her body shifted, coming over her center of balance as her knees unlocked, and her shoulders tensed in readiness. "Like I said, you really don't want to do that." She spoke quietly.
"Son of a bitch." Oddly, the man didn't seem upset. He started laughing. "Jokes on me, then, I guess… Sorry about that, young lady.. I really did think you were just out to tease an old goat like me."
Tori eyed him incredulously, but she relaxed a little, and stepped back, but kept the cane between herself and the prone man. Her thumbs slid out to balance her grip, and she was aware of how comforting it felt to have the thing in her hands. "That's a pretty disgusting thing to think."
"Well." He got to his knees, then heaved himself up onto his feet. "If I'd known you were some kind of a ninja, I surely would have kept my thoughts a deal more pure." He held up his hands. "I am sorry, ma'am."
Slowly, she let the stick's end drop, then extended it towards him. " sorry I threw you that hard." She felt a faint pang of regret in releasing the cane, but she put that down to her natural caution, and focused on keeping her knees from shaking in pure reaction. "Are you all right?"
"Surely." The man brushed his pants off, then wrapped his hands around the walking stick. "I am sorry, Ms…"
"Vega." Tori offered her hand. "Tori Vega.. and you are..?"
"Jess Walters." He gingerly returned her grip. "You new around here, Ms. Vega?" He gestured towards the path. "I don't' want to keep you."
Tori started walking back the way she'd come, and he fell into step next to her, his limp hardly keeping him from matching her stride. "No.. I'm just visiting. My company sent me here for a few days."
"Ah." Jess nodded. "I live up past the hilltop there.. I'm a web designer."
Tori gave him a startled look. "Really?"
"Ayup." He nodded. "Last job was with Tungsten Aerospace… just finished their website last week."
"I work for WesTrek."
Now it was his turn to stare. "No.. really?"
"Mm.. they just bought Peak Media… that's what I'm here for." Tori felt the shakiness fade, as she continued walking, and decided Mr. Walters was probably harmless for now.
"Ah." The tall, burly man chewed his lower lip. "Well, since I put a scare in you, let me try and make amends.. you be careful of those people, Ms. Vega.. they're not nice folks."
Tori turned her head. "Really? They seemed all right…what do you mean?"
"I can't really say." His jaw firmed and he looked off into the distance. "Just be careful, all right? Nice talking to you, Ms. Vega.. and sorry about the misunderstanding." Abruptly, he chose an offshoot of the path, and was gone before Tori could answer, his tall form disappearing into the brush with startling speed.
Tori put her hands on her hips and stared at the spot for a moment in deep puzzlement. "What in the heck was that?" She shook her head, then resumed her jogging towards the cabin, now wondering what in the world she'd gotten into.
She was still wondering after a hot shower had removed the sweat from her body, and she was standing in the middle of her room, deciding what to wear. "Hmm." She eyed her possible choices. The staff at Peakhad been wearing business dress, so her maroon suit wouldn't be out of place, however…
Jade had this theory about power trips, and it went something like.. "Find out what they think is important, then turn it around and show them how unimportant you think it is." So. They thought appearances were important.
Tori smiled, and tugged her oldest, most comfortable jeans out of her bag, and added a brightly colored shirt to it, along with her hiking boots. "Let's shake 'em up a little."
A cold, wet nose poked her in the eyeball. Jade jerked her head back in startlement, then blinked and looked around dazedly. "What th…" Chino was curled up against her chest, the puppy's tail thumping against Jade's leg. The house was lit warmly with dawn light, and the TV was displaying an infomercial for a revolutionary new pooper scooper.
"Damn it." Jade hitched herself up on one elbow and rubbed her face. "Gotta stop doing that." She muttered to Chino, who was apparently getting used to her falling asleep on the couch. Not that the leather surface was uncomfortable, but it threw off her internal alarm clock, and made her have to scramble in the mornings.
Like now, for instance, especially since she had a damn plane to catch. Groggily, she sat up, then got to her feet, eyeing the cute lidded rowhouse clock Tori had insisted on getting, deciding they didn't have one piece of tacky San Francisco stuff in their living room. "Oh… hell." the flight crew was waiting for her at eight, and here it was almost seven. "Chino, I'll tell ya.. they're not getting a suit."
"Woof."
Jade ambled over and opened the back door for the puppy, then she ducked into the kitchen and grabbed a container of grape juice, which she popped open and sucked at as she headed for the shower.
Ten minutes later she was toweling off and rummaging through her clean clothes, wondering if her presence was worth the scandal she'd cause by showing up in cut offs. Then Alastair's comments of the previous night poked her, and she grinned. "Guess we'll find out." She tugged out a pair of faded cut off jeans and frilly lace top she'd found online.
She pulled the shirt on, and brushed a few errant Chino hairs off the sleeves, then slid into the shorts, eyeing the mirror to check the results. A tanned, no longer pale and lean figure was reflected back, showing the effect of three hard months of martial arts training and a multitude of weekends spent diving in the sunny waters offshore. "Oh yeah." A twinkle entered the pale blue eyes gazing back at her as she added a belt. "Nice, huh? I'll give you nice." She pulled a jacket from the closet and slung it over her arm, then shouldered her briefcase and headed for the door. "Think you've forgotten just how much trouble I can be when I put my mind to it, Alastair."
Then she stopped. "Whoa." She put her things down and jogged to the back door, whistling for Chino, who came bounding up the steps. "C'mon, girl… I gotta go." The puppy put paws up on her leg and whined, and she gave her a quick hug. "Don't worry.. I'll be back tonight." She glanced around, then gave the dog a kiss on the head. "And don't you tell anyone I did that, okay?"
"Grrrr." Chino chewed on her belt loop.
"Okay… be good." Jade stood up and checked to make sure the puppy had water and biscuits, then she grabbed her case and headed out the door.
It was close. Fortunately, it was her plane, and she paid dearly for that hangar. Moments later, she was sprawled in a comfortable leather seat on the plane, a little guilty feeling for using the plane alone, she usually had more people with her. But if she was going to get to New York in the early afternoon, she couldn't wait for a commercial flight. "Chocolate milk." She responded, sending the attendant from the crew off to rummage. They knew her likes by now. It shouldn't be hard.
It was a pretty day, Jade reflected, as she gazed out her window and watched the ground crew finish their routine. The sun was coming in the small portal, and she closed her eyes against its brightness, finding a comfortable spot to rest her head as she let the world fade out a little.
Tori was aware of the eyes fastening on her as she entered Allison's offices, and she returned the looks with pleasant smiles as she made her way to the conference room. She walked by the startled occupants and put her briefcase down, then unzipped it and pulled out a thick manila envelope. "Alright. This is what the plan is."
She took out several packets and passed them around. "We have certain criteria your systems need to meet before we permit the connection up to the intranet... I'll need your server specifications before the end of today."
"That's a lot of machines." Ann objected coolly. "We'd have to pull resources for that." She ran her pencil over her lips in thought. "Our clients are already calling, asking what the impact of the merger is going to be on their services."
"Well." Tori leaned on the table, meeting her eyes. "Once their traffic is on our backbone, it'll double their throughput… I bet they can't wait." She smiled. "Isn't it nice to have great news for them?"
An awkward silence fell. "Ann, that's a minor detail, just put some people on it." Sam drawled. "What else?"
Tori lifted a sheet of paper. "It's mostly procedural at this point. Our personnel people will be in contact with you to transition staff.. but I want you to know in advance everyone will be subject to background checks and screening."
A low murmur rose. Ann leaned close to Sam, as she watched the slim brunette woman review her papers. "That could be an issue."
The comptroller grunted.
"Is that really necessary? We've had most of these people on board for years." Charlie objected. "I'd hate to have them think we think they're criminals, or something."
The cool brown eyes fastened on him. "Nothing personal." Tori replied, smiling for no apparent reason. "It really isn't. Everyone has to go through it, because of all of our government contracts, and the fact that you all will have access to our intranet." She paused. "Is there a problem with that? Sometimes it's easier if we know in advance."
They exchanged glances. "Oh..no..no.. no problem." Charlie waved a hand at her. "I was just asking… seemed like a waste of money to me, and we all know how important that is."
"Mm." Tori put her paper down, and slid her hands into her jeans pockets. "Well, we've found that in the long run, it's worth it. One security breach can cost us a lot." Her fingers touched a small, unfamiliar object, and her brow creased, but she merely closed her hand around it inside her pocket. "Okay…I'll need a current print of your payables and receivables, preferably in soft copy, then we can get started."
Sam stood up and stretched. "All right.. I'll get that going…Charlie? Want to coordinate these things with me.. we don't want to keep Ms. Vega waiting." The two men left, closing the conference room door behind them.
Ann remained, leaning back in her chair and sliding her pencil between her fingers. "Anything else I can do?" She asked, politely.
Tori picked up her paper. "My boss had some questions."
The petite woman smiled. "Would that be the infamous Jade West?" She inquired. "I've heard some very impressive things about her.. in fact, it's one of the things I was most intrigued about after I heard we were being bought out."
"Yes, it would be." Tori sat down and folded her hands. "She definitely lives up to her reputation… and as a matter of fact, one of her questions was regarding the bidding process.. she found it really.. interesting.. that your company always got the bid on the day of last refusal."
A guarded look slipped over Ann's face. "Oh.. really? Well.. that's a coincidence.. I don't think I ever noticed that."
Tori watched her expression and body language, something Jade had been coaching her in. Ms. Ann was nervous, all right, and hiding something. "Yeah… she was going to give the account reps at those companies a call.. just to check out how the deals went through." The pencil started moving faster, and she could almost sense the other woman's tension rising.
"Well, I'm sure she'll find out it was just a coincidence.. and some sharp bidding." Ann stood up abruptly. "Excuse me.. I need to use the restroom… ah.. there's coffee down the hall if you're interested." She took her papers and left quickly, her heels making a staccato tattoo on the tile floor.
"Hmmm.." Tori pulled a mug from her briefcase and retrieved a teabag from a side pocket, then she strolled to the door and slipped through it, her curiosity fully aroused.
JFK airport was busy, and Jade had to dodge around a multitude of moving bodies on her way to the car rental desks. She managed to arrive there just after a handful of business men in suits, and took her place in line with a feeling of mild irritation. The single clerk made her wonder if it was early lunchtime, then she noticed two others in a small office in the back, apparently working on a problem.
Jade turned her attention to watching people go by, playing her usual mental game of trying to guess the person's occupation. She'd picked out three geeks, two accountants, and a tv star before a loud voice drew her eyes back to the desk.
One of the businessmen was at the counter, and was arguing, slapping his hand down on the Formica countertop. The clerk behind the desk simply shrugged, and held her hands out and pointed at the clock. The man grabbed his briefcase and stormed off, towards an airport limo desk.
"What's up?" Jade asked her neighbor in line.
"They're out of cars." The man grunted. "Figures… they got some damn convention up here going on.. and they're all empty, even the luxury models."
"Convention?" Jade mused.
"Yeah… some bible thumping revival, or something like that." The man pointed at a group of travelers heading towards a large tour bus.
Jade followed them with her eyes, then considered her options. She could, of course, take a cab to the office, but she hated cabs. Her eyes went to the limo desk. There was that possibility... but she wasn't sure she wanted to send that kind of message.
Then her eyes drifted back over to a small kiosk near the door, where a young man in jeans and a Yankees hat was sitting, evidently bored.
Fun Rentals. Jade studied the pictures of recreational vehicles fit for the city…
Slowly, a smile appeared on her face. "Excuse me." She stepped past the men in line and ambled over to the kiosk, leaning on its desk and waiting for the cowboy to look up. "Hi."
His eyes widened and he sat up, blinking at her. "Um.. sorry, ma'am… can I help you?"
Jade pointed. "One of those, please."
He looked. "Uh.. sure." He scrambled around his desk for paperwork. "Um..sorry.. not many...ah, we usually have many women… uh… and I… oh, here we go." He retrieved two forms, and slid one across the desk to Jade. "Could you fill that out for me? And I'll need to see your driver's license."
"Uh huh." Jade pulled her wallet out and removed the license, handing it over as she took a pen out and started writing. "Here." She also handed over her credit card.
"Okay.. um.. I have to call in your license… Do you have any outstanding tickets, ma'am?"
"No." Jade continued writing. She ignored his low voice as he called in the license, then straightened as he hung up. "Got what you need?"
"Yes, ma'am." The boy scribbled something on her form, then pulled a set of keys from a small board near his left hip. "Would you come with me, please?"
Jade followed him out the door into a blast of bright sunlight. She pulled her sunglasses out of her jacket pocket and shoved them into place, then stood back as the boy opened a door to one side of the parking area.
"Gotcha a nice one.. have you ever driven one of these, ma'am?" The boy looked up, tipping his hat back a little. "They can be a little tricky."
"I've ridden one." Jade took the helmet off the handlebars and removed the keys from the attendant's hand. "Thanks." She checked the motorcycle over, biting off a grin. "Harley, eh? Nice."
"Yeah." The boy backed off, then waved. "Have a great day."
"Oh.. I will." Jade seated herself, and started the motorcycle up, adjusting the throttle and sliding the helmet over her head. "I definitely will."
Tori entered the break room, winding her way through several employees seated at the small tables, most of whom ignored her. She went to the hot water dispenser and allowed the steaming liquid to run over her teabag, focusing her ears on the conversations behind her.
"Think they'll fire us?"
"Nah.. they can't…Sam'll get them locked up.. just give it a chance."
"I dunno, Rex.. this ain't no little two bit graphics company coming in here."
"I heard they just got rid of the last three companies they bought out… you came in, and they handed you a box with your stuff in it."
Tori rolled her eyes, and dunked her teabag. Not quite, though she had needed to make some hard decisions on the first of them, where the departments pretty much mirrored the business unit that was acquiring them.
It had been a very lonely moment, that night in a strange hotel room, in a tiny corner of North Carolina, and she'd sat up for hours, locked in a fierce debate with herself as she tried to come up with some way, any way to justify not screwing up these people's lives.
And she couldn't.
At 4am, she'd given up, and, feeling small and foolish, called Jade. "How can I make decisions like this?" She'd asked her wife.
"Don't." Jade had answered, apparently wide awake. "I'll do it."
It had been so tempting, Tori sighed. She'd been exhausted, and emotionally drained, and every instinct she had was begging her to give in and let Jade take the weight off her shoulders.
But she'd said no. And she'd collected herself, gotten a few hours sleep, and went into the place the next morning, to give them their limited options.
"Well." The company's director had said. "We thought we were all out.. that's good news." And he'd smiled at her. "Thanks, Ms. Vega.. it's sure been a pleasure working with you."
Tori put some sweetner in her cup and stirred it.
"Yeah, well they'd better take care of us.. or I'll have something to say about it." A tall, younger man in the corner spoke up irritatedly. "We held up our end of things."
"You'd better shut up, Alvin." A woman answered. "Or you'll end up like Mary."
An odd silence fell, and Tori experienced a sudden prickly feeling up and down her spine. Casually, she turned, to find everyone looking at her. She took a sip of her tea. "I didn't bring any boxes with me, so you can relax."
It got ten degrees cooler immediately. "You're from the new company?" A muttered question came from the back of the room.
Tori nodded. "Yep." She took another sip, feeling the waves of hostility beating against her. "It's really not that bad."
"Not from your perspective." The woman who had last spoken retorted.
"Well.. I was in your shoes a some months ago." Tori answered evenly. "So you never know.. I got a promotion out of it." She made her way out the door and down the hall, but not fast enough to escape the comment that floated after her.
"Yeah? Wonder who she slept with."
Tori sighed. "And you know, I can't even really get mad at that." She remarked, to the empty hallway. "I hate living a cliché sometimes."
She slipped back into the conference room and stopped, finding Sam's tall figure waiting for her. "Oh.. I took you up on the offer of coffee." She lifted her cup and circled the table on the opposite side.
"Great." The comptroller replied, with a friendly smile. "We've got the reports you asked for running, but it'll take a couple of hours… listen, you up for an early lunch? There's a nice spot near here we all go to."
A tiny, faint warning bell rang in Tori's mind's ear. "Sure." She pulled out her cell phone. "Let me just check in with the office." She dialed a number, then waited. "Hey, Mari."
"Vitoria!" Mariela's warm tones came through the phone at her. "I am glad to hear your voice."
"Thanks." Tori smiled in reflex. "Listen, did the boss call in yet?"
"No.. she is in a meeting in New York." Mariela told her. "Beatrice tells me it is not a good one."
"Mm." Tori sighed. "She was afraid of that.. yeah… well, things are in process here.. but I'm going to step out for lunch so if anyone's looking for me, have them text me."
There was a little silence, then Mariela cleared her throat. "Sim, I will do that, Vitoria."
"I shouldn't be more than an hour or two."
"Sim."
"Thanks, Mari." Tori hung up and slipped her phone into her back pocket. "Okay. Let's go." She glanced up at the tall accountant, and found his interesting hazel eyes gazing back at her. His face was nicely proportioned, and he had a straight nose and thin, but well formed lips. Not a bad face to have to sit across a lunch table at, she decided
"Right this way." Sam gestured towards the door and followed her out, making small talk as they exited the building, and he guided her towards a four door sedan parked nearby. "So.. have you been to Vermont before, Ms. Vega?"
Tori settled into the passenger seat, and buckled the seat belt around her body. "No… but I'm from Darien, originally… so I grew up in New England."
"Really?" Sam got behind the wheel and started the car, locking the doors as he pulled out of the parking lot. "Darien hm…I had a friend that went to school in New Haven… don't' think I've ever deliberately stopped in Connecticut, though. I'm from Oregon, but I moved here when I was just a kid."
"Do you like it here?" Tori gazed out the window at the beautiful, stately trees. "It's lovely country.. must be nice when the leaves change."
"It's gorgeous." Sam told her, with an easy smile. "Do you miss that in San Francisco?"
"Nah… San Francisco in the fall has its own beauty."
Tori watched the road idly, marking the streets until the car turned into a driveway, continuing down a crunching gravel path and through a line of neatly trimmed hedges before it pulled up next to a small inn. She released the safety belt and waited until the doors unlocked, then got out of the car.
She was fairly sure there was more to this than lunch, and as she felt Sam's speculative eyes examining her as they walked towards the inn, she found herself wondering just exactly what that something more was.
The company headquarters was, in a word, huge. Jade found herself in Midtown under a hot sun, but the wind provided by her nice shiny Harley more than compensated. She accelerated, enjoying the feel of the large engine under her, and the sensation of being exposed to the elements, in a way she never got while driving in her Volvo.
Maybe she'd get a cycle back home… Jade waggled an eyebrow, glancing aside to watch a herd of tourists make their way to the more populated area in Times square, raising mirage from the heat of the pavement Made the City feel even hotter than it rally was. Wonder if Tori would like this? She imagined her wife behind her, holding on as they raced around, and a grin split her face. I bet she would.
The road curved around towards the entrance, and Jade throttled down the cycle, slowing the machine to a rumbling crawl as she came up to the valet. The attendant darted out, and a guard joined him as she pulled to a halt, fishing in her jacket pocket for her ID badge.
"Hold on…." The man held a hand up warningly. His partner stood off, and put a hand on his holstered gun.
Jade almost laughed, as she unhooked her helmet and pulled it off, shaking her hair loose. "Here." She handed him the badge. "I'm not a terrorist."
The man came forward and took the card, giving her a suspicious look before he glanced down at it. Then his attitude changed so fast it was a wonder, Jade thought, that his tie didn't spin around his head and choke him. He stiffened up and ducked his head at her. "Ma'am." A hand waved off his partner urgently. "I think they're expecting you."
Jade gave him a whole hearted, sexy grin. "I bet they're not." She took her badge back, and hopped off the Hog, handing the valet the helmet as she grabbed her ticket and swept on by, thoroughly enjoying herself.
Four steps up, then a small waterfall filled pool, then another six steps, then a weird sculpture, another four steps, and she was at the front doors, massive glass portals so perfectly balanced they opened at a touch of her fingertips. She walked in, her boots sounding loud on the marble tile, and let the door whisper shut behind her. The lobby was very quiet, only a small fountain in the corner breaking the stillness, and Jade spent a moment merely standing, and absorbing it all.
"Hasn't changed a bit." Jade shook her head in mild disgust, and headed for the elevators, perched behind an imposing guard desk. "Pretentious as hell…"
"Can I help you, ma'am'." The guard's voice stopped her. "Are you looking for someone?"
Jade walked over and leaned on the counter. "Yeah. " She pulled off her sunglasses and chewed on an earpiece. "Alastair Rosenthal."
The cool hazel eyes studied her, as the guard scanned a list behind the desk. "Is he expecting you, ma'am?" His voice was pointed at the title.
"Yep." Jade flipped her badge onto the counter.
Reluctantly, the man took it, and put it on the desk, then started typing in something, glancing at the badge as he did so.
His hands stopped, and he leaned closer, then looked up at her in evident shock.
Jade smiled. "Not what you expected?" She hazarded.
He slowly handed her the badge back. "No, ma'am, Ms. West, not exactly." Now the voice was respectful. "You can go on up..you know the way, I guess."
The dark haired woman smiled, then moved past him to the bank of glass and marble lined elevators, one of which was resting on ground level in all its brassy splendor. Jade entered it and punched the twenty third floor, then leaned against the wall as the doors slid shut and the car started moving upward.
It stopped on fifteen, and two men got on, arguing over a code upgrade on a legacy program Jade remembered writing seven or eight years prior. She listened in amusement as they debated, ignoring the glances they kept giving her.
"If they'd have left that original code in place, Dave, we'd be fine."
"You tell them that. I tried to tell them that two years ago, but no.. no.. they had their heads stuck too far up their butts to go and ask the original coder." The shorter man shook his head in disgust. "Pansy asses."
"Well.." The taller man chuckled, as they got out on the twentieth floor. "I don't know.. I'm not sure I'd have the balls to go tell Jade Robert's I'd messed up her code either."
The doors slid shut, and Jade snickered, then eyed her reflection, flicking her dark hair into a semblance of order as the elevator reached it's destination, and the doors opened.
It was, if anything, even quieter up here than in the lobby. There was soundproofing weave on all the walls, and the floors had plush, padded carpeting on them. Jade walked silently through the entryway, lit by sunlight that poured in through the vaulted glass ceilings, and turned down the largest corridor, which had plaques all down its length.
The soft sounds of business could be heard through the wooden doors she passed, and she exchanged nods with two other women who passed her. Finally she was at the last set of doors, and she reached out, grabbing the ornate brass handle and pulling them open.
Inside was a large, airy antechamber, roughly circular, with three doors leading off it. In the center was a small fountain, and to one side, a huge, laminated wood circular desk presided, with a tall, austere woman seated precisely in the center, her attention focused on a paper.
"Hello, Beatrice." Jade's voice broke the quiet.
Startled, the woman glanced up. "Oh I… " Then she turned her head fully. "Well, my god, Jade Giana West. It's been forever." Beatrice laughed, and stood up. "Or at least, what.. five years?"
"At least." Jade allowed, walking over and folding her arms over her chest. "You know I hate this place."
Alastair's longtime assistant cocked her head, and smiled, pulling down her half glasses a little. "You show up like that just to tweak him?" She asked gently. "Bad timing, if it was.. Ankow's really giving it to him in there."
"I know.. that's why he asked me to show up." Jade replied. "They still in session?"
"Mm." Beatrice nodded her neatly coiffed gray head. "He's trouble, Jade... he wants to get Alastair out." The older woman folded her hands, and sighed. "Have you met him?"
"No."
"Well, I can't say I like him much. He's in his early forties, good looking, sporty type." Beatrice told her. "Thinks anyone who can remember World War II should be gone and buried... he doesn't have much patience with what he regards as the old ways."
"Really." Jade considered the door to the conference room. "Change for the sake of change gets no one anything but trouble, Beatrice... you know that."
"Mm.. well, he's on a campaign to get the board restructured, and remove Alastair… he thinks he has the leverage. You know last quarter's results weren't that great."
"We're trying to fix that." Jade replied quietly. "You can't sell facilities you don't have."
"I know that, and you know that… maybe you should tell Mr. Ankow that." Beatrice's dark eyes twinkled. "He took one look at your eleven year tenure.. and he wants you out, too. At least out of the board. He knows he can't verywell remove you from the company you built." She gazed at Jade. "You look great for such an old-timer, Jade."
A look of wry amusement crossed Jade's tanned features. "Thanks. " She walked over and put her hands on the door latches into the conference room. "See ya."
"Good luck." Beatrice waved.
Jade paused, hearing the raised voices inside, and took a breath, rousting her more aggressive, darker side up before she worked the handles, and pulled the doors open.
"Hope you like, stick-to-your-ribs type foods, Ms. Vega.. that's their specialty here." Sam remarked, as he opened the menu. "We're not big on salads."
Tori eyed the selections and bit back a wry grin, deciding Jade would be in heaven here. "I'll be fine, thanks." She answered politely, making her choices and putting the folded linen panel down. Though, she reflected, while Sam examined his options, Jade had been getting better about that lately, and she'd done her darndest to nudge her wife toward a healthier diet.
Of course, during these two weeks, the woman was probably living on cheeseburgers and fries, but… Tori sighed, and folded her arms, looking around. The restaurant was a cozy one, with about two dozen tables, and a wooden interior liberally sprinkled with gingham and craftworks. Roughly half the tables were filled, despite the early hour, and that at least boded well for the quality of the food.
A waitress came over, taking a pencil from behind one ear. She was an older woman, with a cheerful face and a sturdy body. "Hello there, Sam… how are you doing today?"
The accountant looked up and smiled. "Hi, Sadie…I'm doing fine, thanks… How's the husband?"
"Cantankerous as always." The woman laughed. "What'll you have, the usual?"
"That'll be fine.. and a mug of coffee." Sam glanced across the table. "Ms. Vega?"
The waitress blinked, then turned her head. "Sorry, hon…you're so quiet there. What can I get for you?" She paused, evaluating her subject. "We've got some poached fish for the special."
"No..I'll take the pot roast, thanks." Tori replied mildly.
The waitress looked surprised. "Alrighty… that comes with mashed potatoes.. but we can put steamed vegetables on if you like."
"Nope… potatoes are just fine." The brunette reassured her. "And a chocolate milkshake, please."
The writing stopped, then started again. "Coming right up." Sadie took both menus and trundled off, after a long look at Tori.
Keep them off balance. Jade had told her. Figure out what they expect you to do, then do something else. Don't let them get comfortable thinking they know you. "So." Tori leaned back in her chair and regarded her tablemate. "What is it you want to talk about, Mr. Gershwin?"
The dark haired man looked honestly nonplussed for a long moment. Finally, he leaned on his elbows and laced his fingers together as he studied her face. "You do keep surprising me, Ms. Vega. I'll give you that." A faint smile flickered on and off his face. 'I'm not sure what to think about you."
Tori merely waited.
"Ann tells me you were interested in our bidding methods." Sam finally drawled. "She seemed to think you wanted more information."
Hmm. Tori's nostrils flared a little, smelling trouble. She carefully considered her answer. "On reviewing them… we just thought it was interesting. that you won the bid on the last call." She remarked casually. "After not really being a contender in the preliminary stages."
'We?"
"My boss, and I, yes."
"Ah." Sam pressed his fingers against his lips. "That would be Ms. West, correct?"
Tori nodded. "Yes."
"I hadn't thought Jade West would argue with success… and certainly not that she'd quibble with tactics to get there." Sam tilted his head. "Not with her reputation."
"I didn't say she was arguing." Tori replied mildly. "Just that she was interested.. and curious. Jade's like that.. she likes to know what the real story is." A pause. "So.. are you going to tell me the real story, Mr. Gershwin? Because sooner or later, she'll find out anyway."
The waitress came, breaking the tension and delivering their food. They were both quiet for a few minutes, and Tori took the opportunity to concentrate on eating, finding the pot roast delicious. "This is very good." She commented, putting her fork down and taking a sip of her milkshake.
"Glad you approve." Sam replied. "And as for our bidding strategy..well, I'm afraid your boss is going to be disappointed. It just comes down to... really getting to know your customer, shall we say." He smiled at Tori. "And being local… let's just say we had a definite advantage in that."
"Really?" Tori digested the information. "Well, that's great… she'll be glad to hear it." brown eyes flicked up and caught him staring at her. "We're hoping to continue your streak.. this is a new market for us."
He settled back in his chair and laced his hands over his stomach. "I bet you are." He picked up his coffee cup and took a sip. "We've put a lot of effort into building a team here.. that's part of our success. You come in and break it up... well…. I can't guarantee anything."
Ah. Now that motive, Tori understood only too well. "We're running everyone through the checks, Mr. Gershwin.. I don't see any reason to make wholesale changes." She put a reassuring tone in her voice. "That's not part of the current plan."
He started to answer, then stopped as Tori's cell phone rang. "Ever in demand, eh?"
Tori unhooked it and opened the phone. "Hello?"
"Hi."
It took a lot of effort to not smile. "How are things going?"
"We're on a break. It's not pretty." Jade's voice sounded slightly hoarse. "How about you?"
"Same." Tori replied.
"You all right? Mariela said you sounded upset." The concern almost leaked through the phone at her, giving Tori a warm feeling.
"Yeah.. I'm just clarifying some of the plans here… I should have something for you later this afternoon."
"Caught you in front of them, huh?"
"Yes, ma'am"
A soft, gentle chuckle traveled over the connection. "All right. Call me later."
"I will." Tori promised, as the line disconnected. She folded the phone back up and tucked it into her pocket. "Sorry." She directed that at Sam. "What were you saying?"
"Just was going to say I'm glad to hear that." Sam replied, a smile lurking around his lips. "Though some of our people found your…security… very intrusive." He paused. "Almost.. communistic." He bit down on a French fry. "They were very upset."
Tori considered that. "I'm sorry if they were." She told him, sincerely. "If it's any consolation, everyone goes through it. " A shrug. "I did… we just hate surprises."
"Mm." A pause. "I suppose it comes down to privacy…everyone's got something in their life they'd like to keep secret, don't you agree?'
Tori felt a chill. "I never thought about it."
He smiled. "C'mon, Ms. Vega… you're telling me you've got no closed doors in your life?"
A tiny, wry smile tugged at Tori's lips. "Mr. Gershwin, you'd be surprised at just how open a book my life really is."
He studied her intently, then laughed. "Maybe I would be."
Tori sucked on her milkshake, unsure of what, exactly, to answer to that.
"This isn't a debate, Alastair." The tall, dark haired man leaned back in his chair and threw his arms up. "You can't argue with numbers, and that's what the shareholders are concerned with. "
Alastair folded his hands on the table and kept a patient smile on his face. "Now, J.D.… you've seen the plans for next quarter.. I agree the last one wasn't what we'd want, but projections toward the end of the year are excellent."
"That's right." Hank Kissington, the chief financial officer agreed, his low, gruff voice a counterpoint to Alastair's polished tones. Kissington had been on the board of directors for as many years as Alastair, and was a formidable bulwark to the Chairman's left, a burly, bearded man with white hair and a grizzled beard. "Damn shame we had to take that charge last quarter, but it couldn't be helped. Weather."
"Not good enough." Ankow shook his head. "Gentlemen, it's the 21st century.. and frankly, this company's not hardly growing as fast as it could." He stood up and started pacing, an annoying habit of his. "Our shareholders expect us to be cutting edge, and that's not just on technology. We have to be ready to provide all the services our clients need into the next century!" He turned and spread his arms. "We can't be stuck in the past.. and I think that's exactly where we are right now. I don't see any indication that this company is up to the challenge."
Alastair propped his chin up on one hand. "J.D., I don't get why you're so against the new network, then. That's all the new technology you've been bab… I mean, referring to in the last five minutes."
He ticked off his fingers. "It's overpriced. It's under designed… I can't think of one reason why this company should invest in a lot of wires and cables that won't get us squat in the marketplace."
"I can."
J.D.'s voice had covered the sound of doors opening, and now a low, vibrant drawl overrode his speech, and echoed across the conference room.
Ankow turned, startled, to see a tall, dark haired young woman in jeans and a faded crimson shirt standing in the doorway, sunglasses perched on her nose, and both hands planted firmly on her hips.
One hand lifted and a long, narrow finger raised. "It's teh new access to the fiber technology. It's state of the art. It triples our available public bandwidth" The tall form stalked towards him. "The one problem this company has is our lack of infrastructure. You can't goddamn well sell what you don't have. And if… Mr. Ankow.. if, you can't see that…"
Jade pulled off her sunglasses and treated him to an ice blue stare. "Get some glasses, because you don't have the vision I need on my board.." She held her ground for a moment as he stared at her in shock, then she turned and walked to the conference table, picking a chair and stripping her leather jacket off as she dropped down into it. She tossed her sunglasses on the polished wood surface and glanced down it's length. "Hello, Alastair."
Her Chairman beamed at her. "Hi, Jade… nice to see you." He turned the beatific smile on the now furious J.D Ankow. "J.D.? I don't think you've ever met Jade, have you? Sorry.. this is Jade West, our owner and CIO."
Jade rolled her head around and peered at her target. "Hi."
Alastair cleared his throat and stood up. "Well, now that we're all here… J.D., why don't you sit down.. I believe Jade is prepared to give us a briefing on the new network."
Ankow visibly wrestled with his temper, then allowed a smile to cross his face. "I'd like that." He took a seat opposite where Jade was. "Go ahead…I've got lots of questions."