The Reunion (2 page)

Emily Patricia Connally was a hard worker.  She had the good references, had a stellar track record and knew "HER" computers better than most engineers.  She was magic with a network, fanatic about security and had worked her ass off to get where she was today. 

Today she was falling into a stupor and in her irritation tapped a pencil on a blank tablet that sat in front of her.  The “presentation” had been four hours so far.  The network security consultants from headquarters back east, were displaying the same PowerPoint slide with different combination of pop-ups.  Not the least bit imaginative or original.

“Em?”

“Huh?”

“The reconfiguration of the local servers…  Didn’t you submit that proposal?”

“The last several slides
were
from
the proposal I submitted with a standard PowerPoint template background instead of my custom one.  The handout had pages from the scope for updating the network security.”  The contractor at the head of the table went slightly pale.  He’d heard about her.  The Queen (Bee), some called her, others said she was a prima donna or a bitch.

“I think we need a break."  Ham said something to Connally.  "Cummins, Marshall would you like some coffee or something?”

“Excuse me.”  Em got to her feet and stretched her arms over her head and yawned.  “I’m going to see what else may be missing from my files.”  She took her coffee and tablet with her.

“I’ve heard about her, Mr. Hamilton.”  Shaw Cummins went to the coffee tray at the side and refilled his and Marshall's cups.  Mark Marshall had been watching the room while Cummins did the presentation.  This was the sixth site and it was very dry material.  They had one more stop before they’d return to headquarters and start the implementation according to the schedule they were distributing.

“She looked like she was asleep to me.”  Marshall observed.  “She hardly looked at the projection and the folder she glanced at in the first five minutes but hadn’t looked at since.

“She didn’t need to.  Even I recognized some of the materials from her proposals.”  Hamilton didn’t have the same opinion of Ivy League up and comers, that Connally had; but she was working on her vernacular not being so blue, as it were.  And KNEW she'd have something unkind to say regarding their parentage and an anatomically impossible sexual position, to say to these two. “I’m sure the board understands that pulling the project from in-house and having an outside firm come in and implement; was a slap in the face to the systems staff.  Especially since it appears they’re implementing the upgrade exactly as we had proposed.”  Cummins was new to this contract and had no idea of the politics. Marshall and him had been working with what they were handed six weeks ago and had no idea that the upgrade and implementation had come from someone in-house.  That wasn’t very professional, good business or ethical.  “I’m sure there are more materials and memos that you have that identify the specific problems Connally identified and her various proposals and recommendations.  She’s had the full support of this office and Austin office; and you might meet with some hostility, shall we say, when you stop there next.  Her former supervisor is also familiar with the materials she had proposed.  It was
my
idea to submit her
local
proposal for the full network some time ago.”

“She’s been with the company for 13 years.”  Marshall observed.

“Yes and she’s been in the data systems division for the last eight years.”  He laughed to himself.   “Of course the five years prior to that she was working on the implementation of small peer networks utilizing PCs in several divisions.”

“But she was a data entry operator.”

“Don’t sound like a snob, son.”  Hamilton glared at the man; he was getting his Texan up.  “She’s better than you realize and as loyal as they come.  She’ll let you go ahead with your little project, just for the satisfaction that it will finally get implemented and will have resolved some of her concerns.”

“She could sue?”

“No.
That
definitely won’t happen.”  He made a signal and the others returned to the boardroom, with the exception of Connally.

“No fucking way!”  Em exploded at her Boss.  "You must have heard wrong!"

“Em, please watch your language.”  Hamilton rubbed his forehead, something he was prone to do when he was worried or upset.  But he was laughing at her too.  Em sat back down.

“Sorry Ham.”  She immediately was concerned. Ham had been terrific to her and was always open to new ideas.  “I know you’re stuck in the middle.  I didn’t mean I won’t cooperate it’s that I’ve got Mike to think about.  I can’t do seven sites in seven weeks.  I'd have to pull him out of school.”

“They were very specific, they won't need you at all the sites.  They want you at headquarters for consultation and possibly for the beginning of the implementations.  Travel would be as needed while the reconfiguration and upgrades are taking place.”

“I know how that goes Ham.  I’ve been down that road before.  I’ve probably done more upgrades, implementations and overhauls than those two
cum lattes
[she mispronounced intentionally, with a twang] put together.  I can’t do it.  I’ll go back to the pool before I’ll pull my kid out of school in the middle of term.”

“Can’t someone help you out?  Bea?  Josh?  He could stay with his cousins and go to their school for a few weeks.”

“He started this new program this year and he’s doing
much
better.  I don’t want to mess things up.  Ham you know I’d do it if I could.  I
want
the project to succeed.  It
needs
to be implemented.  I just can’t do it if it entails travel.”

“I’ll send it up the chain.”  He sighed.  This could be the career crusher.  He hated putting the screws to her.  It stuck in his gut that they might be screwing her over.  The buzzer went off on his phone.  “Janice, I said hold… No, no that’s ok.  I’ll take it.”  He signed for her to stay seated and suddenly turned and saw the PC behind him and the conference web camera were on.  She followed his gaze, saw the webcam light and went white.  “Yes sir.”  He pinched his nose on either side closing his eyes while trying to head off a headache before it got started.  “Yes, I’m sure there is...  No there wasn’t anything…  I could… Yes, I understand.”  He swung his chair around and kicked the master power switch to the surge protector shutting down the webcam, PC, printer, hub and monitor, in a single act of temper.

“Ham you lost that last e-mail.”  Em’s fingers were locked so tightly together that they were turning white.  “That’s it.  I’m done.”  She started to stand up.  He shook his head and pointed back to the chair.

“I was on with management before you came in and I forgot to kill the connection.”  Hamilton apologized.  “It’s not as bad as it sounded.”  His eyes suddenly locked on hers.  The tiredness and the stress were there, as was concern and pride.  Pride?  “They’re going to implement
your
proposal.  Offering you lead.”

“JESUS, MARY AND JOSEPH!”  If she hadn’t been seated she would have fallen over.  “What the hell was that about?”

“The proposals.  They were submitted without your name.”  Hamilton shook his head.  “They had no idea.  I had no idea, I swear.”  She waived off his concern.  “The consultants, Marshall and Cummins, they did some research and brought some interesting information to the chairman’s attention a couple of days ago apparently.”  He was shaking his head and looked back at the PC.  He kicked the switch back on and listened to the machine powering up.  “Not the best thing to do.”  He said more to himself than to her.  “The proposal was submitted so close to what your original wording had been they started checking and found that one of the east coast hot shots had submitted it as his proposal and recommended the outside firm.”

“Like that hasn’t happened before.”  She said cynically.  “I…”  She froze and put her hand up.  “Hold it.  You’re saying the idiot still had copies of my original proposal?”  Ham nodded his head.  “You had copies too?”

“And I had provided Marshall and Cummins copies when they were here a few weeks back.  I guess they're pretty stand up.  They were upset that the proposal, including the PowerPoint, were yours.”

“I’m a prima donna as far as corporate is concerned.  Lead?”  She went pale.  “Ham, it’s a 10 person team and seven sites.  I can’t lead!  I’m a fucking data entry operator!”

“EM!”  He shook his head and laughed.  “Hell of a time for your insecurities to pop up.  You’ve never been
just
a data entry operator.  There
are
a few people that know how hard you work and what you’re capable of, even if you have doubts sometimes.  The chairman is coming to meet you.”  He added softly.  “He’ll be here tomorrow.”

“WHAT?!”  She jumped up and started pacing.  “NO!  NO WAY!”  She was shaking her head.  “I’m calling in sick.  I won’t be here.”

“Em.”  He said with a warning.  “I’ll personally come to your house, drag you out of bed, and into the office if I have to.”

“No you wouldn’t Ham.  I sleep naked.”  She teased him.  Ham covered his face with both hands and shook his head.  She sat down picturing Ham dragging her naked into the office to meet the chairman of Brockton International and laughed.

Mike was jumping up and down.  He couldn’t wait.  He could see how upset, excited and confused she was and his enthusiasm was making her more confused.

“Let me pick it.  You should wear the yellow top with the gray suit.”  He pulled the clothes out of her closet.  He was so smart and so creative.  She could just gobble him up.  “Put your hair up in that bun thing.  And wear the gray shoes.  They make your legs look good and you walk all model-like.”

“That’s because they’re three-inch heels.”

“Yeah that will make you as tall as me.”

“Shut up short shit.”

“I’m taller than you now!”

“I’m still bigger.”  She pulled him on the bed and wrestled him, tickling him. 

“I thought Uncle Ham was an uncle?”  He said confused. 

“No he’s an honorary uncle.  Uncle Ham and Aunt Sarah are family friends and have known me since I was born.  Uncle Ham went to school with grandma and auntie Lavender.”

“Is his name really Alistair?”

“Yes, that’s why he goes by a short version of his last name.”

“They call you by your last name at work.”

“Sometimes.  It’s kind of a boys’ club thing.  When they accept you, they call you by your last name.  Kind of like you do with Corrine.  You call her Washburn, you’ve never called her Corrine or Cori.”

“Yeah, but she’s one of us.  She plays soccer, basketball and baseball with us.”

“That’s what I mean.  I hung out with the guys and they started calling me Connally instead of Em.  No one calls me Emily?”

“Grandma does when she’s really mad at you.”

“She uses all my names, plus some, doesn’t she?”  She hung the suit on the back of the bathroom door and cleaned up her shoes while Mike returned to working on his math homework. 

“She hasn’t done that in a long time.  Not since you and Uncle Josh caught the clothes line on fire with the barbecue.”

“That was funny.”  She smiled and then straightened her face, “But very dangerous.”

“Sure mom.”  He rolled his eyes.  “Like you didn’t know that the lighter fluid would do that.”

“It wasn’t a practical experiment but I learned a lesson.”  She paused for effect. “Don’t try lighting grandma’s clothes line on fire with the hose on the other side of the house.”  She tossed her shoes under her dressing table and started peeling off her clothes and changing into her grubbies.  “How many do you have left?”

“Last one.”  He grinned.  “Then garlic cheese-bread and spaghetti, right?”

“Perfect choice.  Something nice and messy.”  She ruffled his hair and went downstairs to the kitchen.  This was her ideal kitchen, small, convenient and lots of natural light.  She set out her ingredients and pans then when Mike came down.  She had everything started and he was in his "play" clothes. “Whose turn is it Garcia or Monkey?”

“Chunky Monkey!”

“How many?”

“Five.”

“Three.”

“Rock, Paper, Scissors?”

“Sure.”  He won with paper over rock.  “HA!  Five, I get to start.”   She took out the container and put it on the counter between them.  He took a spoon full and she took a spoon full, each in turn to five spoons full each.  Then he put the carton away and she put the bread under the broiler.  Mike punched up the inbox to the project's e-mail account.  “What are the messages like?”

“We have over two hundred confirmations, some are up to six to a room.  That’s not including the motor homes from Texas, Arizona and here.”

“What’s on the itinerary?”

“Friday they'll have the Blue Man Group, Mamma Mia and Stomp tickets reserved.  They have several vans and limousines and almost every car Avis, Enterprise and Budget have [rented]; and, they have just about every seat on every airline known to man booked. Friday arrivals, informal mixer at the open bar area of the Lexor.  Saturday morning brunch, Saturday night formal dinner/dance in the ballroom.   I think its green lights all the way.”