Stefanie waved away his words with an easy laugh. “You don’t have to butter me up – I’m not even paying you. Come with me. I’ll put you to work and see if you still like me.”
As they walked away, Peggy called after Stefanie, “Be nice to the new guy!”
Once they were alone in the hallway, Joey said quietly, “Nice work. She’s on our list.”
“Yeah. I saw that.” Stefanie stopped at a door with a scanner and ran her badge over it. “She also has a heart of gold – volunteers with local at-risk youth.”
Joey bit back his retort. She didn’t need to suspect everyone. That was his job. “Good to know. Does anyone else work in this lab?”
The door swung open and a younger man, maybe twenty-five years old, wearing a hoodie, stood up from a large lab table, screwdriver still in hand. This would be Nash. On paper, he was an engineer who’d participated in intramural athletics and math club. While he wasn’t on the list of new hires, he had both opportunity and skillset. Now, Joey just had to watch for a motive. Nash gave Stefanie a wave. “Morning, boss.”
“Morning, Nash. Meet our new intern.” Stefanie swept out a hand towards Joey.
Joey looked towards Stefanie and she returned his look with the polite aloofness she’d adopted when he’d been rude the night prior. Hm. Maybe she defaulted to professionalism when she was annoyed at him. Good to know. Joey stuck out a hand. “Joey Trenton. It’s great to be here.”
“Fresh meat.” The kid rubbed his hands together. “I mean, it’s nice to have you here, Joey. Welcome to the marine corps.”
Stefanie put a hand to her forehead. “I’ve told you to stop saying that, Nash. You’re going to offend a veteran at some point who doesn’t get the pun.”
Joey waved it away. “Trust me, we’re a lot tougher than one bad pun.” He winked. “I was in the Army.” Nash looked Joey up and down, clearly trying to fit him into some kind of box. He could practically hear the gears turning. Joey chuckled. “Don’t hurt yourself.”
“I like this one, Stef. I assumed that I’d be older than the intern, but he’s a lot more fun than a nervous college student.” Nash gave him a fist bump.
“Technically, I’m still a college student, but this isn’t my first job. I’m just new to this industry.” Joey put his hands in his pockets. “Maybe you could teach me a few things?”
Nash nodded. “Sure. I’ve been here since I graduated, about three years.”
Stefanie’s phone buzzed. “One second.”
Nash tilted his head towards Joey. “I can give him the tour while you handle your call. It’s no problem.”
“That works for me.” Joey looked around the lab. “Maybe you can tell me more about the history of the company since you’ve been here a little while. It’s always fun to mix history with the science.” He leaned towards Nash. “And I have to write a report when I get back.”
Nash puffed up a little under the importance. “Glad to help. We could probably even find a brochure or two for you to put into your report.”
Once Stefanie left the lab, Nash began his tour. The lab was filled to the brim with interesting equipment. It was extremely organized, and Nash knew where everything was. His prototypes were made from quality materials and seemed well-built, which was probably a requirement for any work being done in a marine environment. Nash confirmed Joey’s assumption when he explained the material requirements for their protective cases and the amount of battery life required to run the equipment and send data to the transmission buoys. There were a few research platforms scattered around the large room, including one currently in pieces filling the work table in the center of the lab space.
“How many platforms do you have out there now?” Joey leaned in to study the parts on the table a little closer.
Nash looked into the air while he counted silently. “Probably twenty worldwide, currently collecting data.”
“All prototypes?”
Nash shook his head. “Oh no. Prototypes don’t pay the bills – we just do those when we can. The ones you see here are a mix of prototypes we use for demonstrations and platforms that will be ultimately used by paying customers. We have a lot of customization options, but you’re looking at the guy in charge of customization. That one is currently set up to measure potential seismic activity, acidity, ocean temperature, and even collect water samples. And the one over there, almost fully assembled, will be used for customers interested in offshore mining. They are looking in areas with less potential wildlife impact and boat traffic.”
“Wouldn’t it be easier to just drill on dry land? Or in shallower waters?” Joey scratched the back of his neck.
“Not for precious metals. With the right equipment, the material value more than offsets the expense.” Nash pointed to two black X’s on a printed, topographical map of the ocean. “Our geology consultant recommended that we search these areas. But the environmental impact has to be measured, defended, and approved by the proper authorities before they ever start digging.”
Joey lifted an eyebrow. “Where did you find a geology consultant?”
Nash shrugged. “I didn’t. I just make the platforms. You’d want to talk to Cole for that. He manages our consultants.”
“I might. That’s so fascinating.” Joey rubbed at his chin. “Thanks, Nash.”
Nash smiled. “Now, do you want to build some stuff?”
“I thought you’d never ask.”
12
Ree Ryland placed her heavy purse in her desk drawer, slid it shut, and locked it. While she didn’t love bringing a weapon in the building, she liked having it a lot better than leaving it at home. Particularly since her side job volunteering for the FBI had gotten a little more dicey recently. Locking the weapon in a drawer in her office at Indiana Polytechnic was a good
