They walked into the building, which was filled with a low buzz of activity that surrounded them as they walked up the steps to Kerry's office. She spotted Mark and Carlos talking in the hall, and waved at them, then crossed through Mayte's office into her own.
Chino trotted obediently after her, going over to the dog bowls in their raised platform and drinking from one.
Kerry put her messenger bag down and took her seat.
“Kerry, would you like some coffee?” Mayte poked her head in. “I am going to take the little one down the stairs, and I could bring some back for you.”
“Sure, thanks.” Kerry sat down and started up her desktop. A soft knock at the door and she looked up to find Mayte and Maria's new assistant peeking in. “Hi. Good morning.”
“Pardon, ma'am, but you have a delivery. Is it okay?” The girl said, in a soft voice.
“Sure.” Kerry folded her arms as the woman backed up and allowed a man to enter, carrying a basket. “Ah.”
He came over and put it down on her desk. “Here you go, ma'am. First delivery of my day.” He handed her an envelope. “Enjoy.”
Kerry regarded the basket after he left. It was completely covered in multicolor cellophane and she decided to open the envelope before she risked unwrapping it.
There was a very good chance it was from Dar. But there was always a possibility it was from a prospective vendor, or even from her friend from the previous morning, in which case there could be anything including road kill inside. She'd gotten something like that more than once from business rivals, mostly full of vinegar and sour grapes.
She opened the envelope and took out the card inside, opening it to find a simple message, that put a smile on her face. Thought you could use breakfast. C ya. DD “Aww.” She put the card down and got up, taking a pair of scissors from her drawer and slicing through the cellophane.
Mayte entered with coffee. “Oh, that is so nice.”
“Yeah.” Kerry was folding back the wrapping, exposing a big package of pastelitos. “Lets pass them around. I can't eat all these.” She chuckled. “Dar decided to send breakfast in.” She selected two of the treats and handed off the rest of them to Mayte.
“Dar is very sweet.” Mayte ventured. “So thoughtful of you.”
Kerry smiled in acknowledgment as she sat back down. “She is. I am a very very lucky woman, and believe me, Mayte, I know it.”
Mayte grinned, but just waved as she took the tray of pastelitos out.
“I sure as hell know it.” Kerry took a contented bite of her pastry and turned to her computer, only to be interrupted again by a knock. “Yes?”
“Miss Kerry?” The new girl was back. “There is a policeman to see you.”
Oh well. Couldn't expect pastelitos baskets every time. “Send him in, thanks, Ana.” Kerry took a sip of her coffee as the policeman entered, and she recognized one of the officers she'd spoken to the day before. “Good morning.” She gestured to one of her visitor chairs. “Officer...?”
“Rudolfo Sanchez.” The officer sat down and pulled out a notepad. “Good morning, Ms. Roberts.” He said. “I just wanted to circle back with you on the situation we had here yesterday.” He cleared his throat. “Was going to drop by here late yesterday, but I had a call I was on.”
“Sure, no problem.” Kerry leaned back in her chair and took a sip of coffee. “It's been quiet so far this morning, my staff said.”
Sanchez nodded. “Yeah, we kept Patterson.. that's the guy, overnight in the holding station. Figured he could use a night under a roof anyway.” He glanced at Kerry. “Joe, by the way. Joe Patterson.”
“Good to have a name to put to the face.” Kerry replied, in a mild tone. “Roof or not, I”m sure he probably didn't appreciate the hospitality.”
The officer half shrugged. He was a man of medium height, and curly black hair, going gray at the temples. “He's been in before. You know these guys? They come back and they think the rules are like over there. That they can do what they want, because they've got guns, and a cause.”
Kerry leaned on her elbows. “That's kind of what's bothering me, because since my father in law's a retired SEAL, I'm sort of predisposed to be sympathetic to veterans. I don't want to mess with them or give them a hard time.”
Sanchez scratched his chin with his pen top. “Yeah, none of us do.” He admitted. “I tried talking to that guy, but it's all like a permanent road rage, you know?”
Kerry studied him. “So, what do you think we should do?” She asked. “I don't want to escalate this, and I can see where it could get like that.”
The policeman looked relieved. “Glad you see it that way.” He said. “Cause I was thinking sort of the same thing. With these guys, you push them, they push back, you push harder, they push harder. Know what I'm talking about?”
Possibly better than he imagined. “My partner's very much like that too.” She responded. “She absolutely does not, and will not back down, and I think that's going to end up a bad combination if we keep this up. So – what do you think we should do?”
He regarded her seriously. “You really want to press charges?” He asked. “You seem like a really bright lady. I think you kinda know he wasn't going to really touch you.”
Kerry thought about that in silence for a few minutes. He let her, merely sitting there across from her with his pad, waiting. “Can we use it as a bargaining chip?” She countered. “They leave us alone, I don't press charges? Or are they going to think I chickened out if I say yes.”
Sanchez was thoughtful. “How about this.” He returned the counter. “What if I put it like, you agree to hold off for a while, and we see what happens? I don't know if they'll deal.”
Kerry didn't know if they'd deal either. “What actually do they want?” She changed the direction of the questioning. “You said they were working at some half way house.. these guys don't have a place to live, or a place to go. In the best possible case, what happens to them?”
He shook his head. “Now that, I don't know. You heard about that one guy's family moving out? These guys feel abandoned. By their family, and by the service too. It's a hard thing.”
“That doesn't seem right.” Kerry said. “Can you get me their names? I'd like to find out why they ended up the way they did.” She saw his wary look. “Don't worry. I'm not going to publicize them on the Internet or anything like that. We do work for the Department of Defense.”
“Oh.” Sanchez said. “I didn't know that. What is it you people do?”
“We work with computers. But Dar was just up having a meeting at the Pentagon, so at least we know the right people to ask the questions of.” Kerry explained, in a mild tone. “If we could help these guys out, I'd like to, even after the trouble we've had.”
The officer closed his pad. “I heard from those guys, that some military cars were here the other day.” He said. “Maybe that's why they were sniffing around?” He suggested. “They're always looking for an angle.”
“Military cars... oh, right.” She nodded. “General Gerald Easton, from the Joint Chiefs, and then Michael Bridges, the president's advisor.” Kerry responded, with a brief smile. “They're clients.”
The police man stared at her.
“So, really, we'd rather not get into a tussle with some veterans.” She continued. “Makes it kind of awkward, you know?”
Sanchez tapped his pen on his knee. “Okay.” He regrouped. “Let me see what that tack gets me. I'll tell them I talked you into holding off, and that they'd better steer clear if they don't want their benefits chopped.”
“We wouldn't do that.” Kerry objected. “That wasn't my point.”
“No, but they don't know that.” The officer stood up. “Brass? That they get.” He said. “Who knows? Maybe they'll be offering to carry your briefcase to the car.” He winked at her. “Don't worry, ma'am. It'll be fine.” He lifted a hand. “Have a good day.”