of them – Sandra's as it turned out. As the flight attendant ran through the 'oh, SHIT' checklist (anything that happens that you'd need that information, most folks will go 'Oh, SHIT – I should have paid attention!'), the girls were careful to listen to her – even taking notice of where the emergency doors were. I listened, too, but had been on that model aircraft enough times that*I* probably could have given the spiel.
That done, it wasn't long before they backed the plane up, and we made our way to the taxiway. A few more minutes, and we were in position for takeoff – and Robyn and Sandra were as nervous as I'd ever seen anyone. Robyn visibly paled when the pilot finally hit the gas, and we started down the runway; I could only guess that Sandra wasn't in much better shape. Still, once we were airborne, and the plane leveled off, both of them seemed to calm down considerably – though they still took an extreme interest in anything outside the airplane. Normal enough for a first flight, particularly at their age, but still amusing.
When the flight attendants drifted through with what they claimed was food, both girls were too engrossed in what they were doing to express any interest in something as mundane as food. I took their share, and a cup of what turned out to be reasonably close to coffee.
After a while the newness of the situation wore off – after all, it wasn't like they could go outside to look; and when you get right down to it, there isn't a lot of statistical variation among clouds.
Particularly when you're looking at them for the side or top.
By that time, we only had an hour or so of flight left, so the girls were able to pass the time with their magazines. Me, I spent most of the flight thinking about what Lucy might be facing, and how to deal with it. I'd pretty much gotten it all worked out when I heard the landing gear come down. I noticed Robyn and Sandra both watching me, and smiled at them to let them know that everything was fine.
Reassured, they went back to looking out the windows. From the corner of my eye, I could see that Robyn would glance at me at each noise the plane made as we got ready to land, but when I didn't react, she played it cool, as well. She even reached forward to touch Sandra, in reassurance.
Soon enough, the plane touched down – both girls gave a start – and ultimately made it's way to the jetway where I knew Lucy would be waiting for us. Of course, the Herd were already standing, ready to bolt out the door the moment it opened; Robyn and Sandra took their cue from me, and waited patiently in their seats until the door opened. Only then did I stand up, and pull my bag out from under the seat in front of me. One of the Herd thought to run me over, but I kind of accidentally put an elbow in his stomach, giving Robyn and Sandra time to get into the aisle ahead of me. He gave me a dirty look that I pretended not to see. When we cleared the gate, Lucy was there waiting for us – far enough back to let people get by, but positioned so that we couldn't miss her. Both girls ran to her, and the three of them were still hugging when I got close enough to be included.
After the standard Question and Answer period (So, how was your flight? What did they serve? Anything interesting happen?), we made our way to the baggage claim area to see if our suitcases had taken the same plane. We didn't hurry, and only had to stand around a couple of minutes before the machinery kicked on. I eased us over to where the bags disappeared into the wall; it's usually one of the few places where you don't have to fight anyone off to reclaim your stuff.
It was at this point that the added tip I'd given the skycap paid off: by loading our suitcases last, they were the first UNloaded.
That meant that they were on the first cart of baggage delivered to the claim area. So by the time the first suitcase was ready to disappear behind the wall, our three were appearing at the other end.
Lucy saw them, and commented on the good luck we were having; I almost hated telling her what I'd done, and why. She gave me a wicked grin, and said 'I'll have to remember that, next plane I take!'
Suitcases in hand, we headed for the exit, after getting the tags on our bags compared to those we held in our hands. When we got outside, I wasn't surprised to see the courtesy van for the hotel we'd be staying in.
On the way to the hotel, Lucy informed me that she'd gotten her room changed, so that it was next to the two she'd reserved for us – one for me, one for the girls. She also whispered in my ear that the center room had doors leading to the other two, so whoever was in it could visit privately with whoever was in the other rooms. She went on to tell me to take the center room, so that I could spend time with her, or the girls, without making it obvious to anyone in the hallway. I whispered back that I thought it was time to knock off the pretending, and for all of us to just fess up to what was going on.
She looked startled, and said she'd think about it. While she and I were talking, Sandra and Robyn had been looking at the various sights, and asking the poor driver too many questions too fast. He was visibly relieved when we pulled up to the front door of the hotel. Lucy had already checked us in, so the only thing to be dealt with was our luggage – something the bellhop was quick to do. I discretely pulled Robyn aside, and slipped her a couple of dollars, saying 'for the bellhop'. She looked confused, but took the money – only to understand later when she saw me tip him after he deposited my suitcase in my room.
When we'd had a chance to look over the rooms, and even check out the plumbing, Lucy asked if anyone was hungry. The girls were still too excited, but I figured a little something wouldn't hurt – besides, it was a little after lunch, local time, and I wanted to get matched up with the local clock. The girls went with us as we made our way to the small caf in the hotel; once there, and looking at menus, the girls realized that they'd had too little for breakfast, and opted to make up for the loss. As we waited, Lucy filled me in on what had gone on so far that morning – and it didn't sound good. I told her some of what I'd thought about on the plane, and together we planned on what we'd talk about to her boss – who wanted to have a conference call with me, Lucy, and their client, so that we were all starting from the same point.
About then, lunch arrived, and Lucy sat back, thinking, while the three of us ate. When we were done, she gave them her company credit card, added a tip to the bill, and signed it. That done, we headed back up to the rooms, opening the doors between them. Lucy explained to the girls that she and I had to talk with her boss and their client, but that she didn't think that it would take too long. She wanted them to stay in their room until we were done, but then we'd all go out and have a look around the town. The girls readily agreed, and Lucy and I headed for her room, closing the door between the girls room, and mine.
The hotel had provided her with a speakerphone, and she used it to call her boss, who quickly took her call. She introduced us, and I filled him in on what I would be doing, how I'd be doing it, and why.
He understood it easily enough, and told me that I sounded like just the person they needed for the job. We chatted a couple more minutes before their client joined in; another round of introductions, and things got going.
I asked the client to tell me what had prompted their request for Lucy's presence. They filled me in on the history of how the company had operated, and how things had started changing after their client hired a new executive. Essentially, profits were down, expenses were up, and they weren't making the money they expected, or should have been making.
That done, Lucy filled them in on what she and her accountants had found – and not found – and let them know about some of the informal feedback the accountants had given her the first day. Then she told them what she'd done, and gone through, the second day. Finally, she told them what she'd told me (I noted that she was careful to make it sound like all of our conversations had happened AFTER she'd gotten approval for a consultant). She finished by telling them what her suspicions had been, and how – after talking to me – she'd narrowed down where the problem might be. Then it was my turn again, as I explained to them in a little greater detail than I'd given her boss initially what it was that I would be doing, and how I would be doing it. A few times, Lucy spoke up to fill in some of the details that she knew her boss, or their client, would want – the role I'd play, and so on. When I was done, the client and her boss were both silent for a little bit before they started discussing what Lucy had told them, and what I'd proposed. It didn't take them long to reach agreement, and we were given permission to go ahead. The client asked if I needed to know how much money was involved, and I politely told them that at that point, it didn't matter to me – all that interested me was finding out if there was any chicanery going on with the computer files. I went on to let them know that I was perfectly willing to consider our deal complete at the point that I got the answer to that question – that at that point, my sole concern was the facts of what was happening in the computer system, nothing more.
Lucy smiled at the surprise her boss and the client expressed, finally telling them that I was telling them that I wasn't going in with any preconceived notions of guilt or innocence – that I would follow the facts, and nothing else. It seemed to be a novel concept to them, but they accepted what she told them. That settled, they wished us well, and ended the conversation.
The next thing for us to do was go and check on the girls – and finding them exploring their room, and
