the meantime, Cline kicked off his shoes and loosened his tie.
Sally brought out the meal and sat at the table with Cline as he slowly chewed his food.
“Is there something going on with work—some project?” she asked. “It’s not like you to stay there so late all the time.”
“Yes—sort of. Remember how I pushed for the company to build Serenity, our second hospice? Well, so far it hasn’t been profitable, and I’m working on a way to fix that.”
“Surely it’s not up to you alone, is it? Wouldn’t there be lots of people working on that problem with you?”
“Yes, but to move up in the company, you’ve got to take chances, be willing to stick your neck out. Building Serenity was my pet project. If I can’t figure out a way to make it turn a profit soon, I’ll be moving out instead of up.”
Sally appeared startled at this revelation but retained her composure. “I understand your reasons for staying late, especially if your job in on the line. I’ve just never seen you so obsessed with work. It worries me.”
Cline managed a wan smile. “I’ll be okay. Anyway, you don’t need to be too concerned. I think the plans I’ve set in motion over the last couple of months will turn things around pretty quickly.”
Sally looked up expectantly. Cline smiled and took another bite of the fish. He did not, however, choose to elaborate on his plans.
FRIDAY, JULY 20
CHAPTER 29
The next morning, Alton rang Jake Hines, his boss and company President, for the second time in a week.
“Hi, Mr. Hines. It’s Alton Blackwell.”
“Alton! How are you, my man?”
“Fine, sir.” Although Alton stayed on a first-name basis with his peers and staff at Kruptos, his years in the Army had ingrained a more formal method of addressing his commander, whether he be military or civilian.
“And…how is your friend, David Dunlow?”
“As good as can be expected—thanks. I think he’s benefiting from having his friends near him.”
“I’m sure you’re right,” said Hines. His tone softened. “I almost lost my father to cancer a few years ago. I can only imagine what David is going through. However, I’m sure you called for some other reason, not discussing this painful topic. How can I help you, Alton?”
“Mr. Hines, I’d like to request permission to work from the DC area a bit longer. I have two reasons: one personal and the other professional. If it’s all right with you, I’d like to cover the personal one first.”
“All right—shoot.”
Alton explained his offer to investigate Nancy Goins’ concerns over the spate of unexplained deaths. He knew Jake Hines was aware of his successful resolution of two previous investigations. As such, Alton hoped his boss would view the request with a friendly eye.
“Alton, I understand your desire to help your girlfriend solve a case, and I do believe you could help, but we still have project deadlines staring us in the face. How will this investigatory work impact your Kruptos commitments?”
“I understand your concern, sir. Let me state for the record that I wouldn’t make this request if I didn’t feel comfortable I could deliver a quality, on-time product. Your question does, however, lead to the professional reason for my request to remain in this area a while longer.”
“Go ahead,” prompted Hines.
“Thank you, sir. As you know, I’m managing the Zeus project, which kicked off just last month when we signed a contract with the FCC. Since Zeus is all about providing encryption and protection for federal communication networks, I’ve been in contact with a lot of IT folks in Washington, both in the FCC as well as other federal departments. When we started Zeus, my original hope was that once we had our foot in the door with the FCC, we’d be able to branch out into other federal agencies and expand the scope—and profitability—of the project.
“Before this trip, though, I had been on the horn with a lot of other federal agencies,
Sally brought out the meal and sat at the table with Cline as he slowly chewed his food.
“Is there something going on with work—some project?” she asked. “It’s not like you to stay there so late all the time.”
“Yes—sort of. Remember how I pushed for the company to build Serenity, our second hospice? Well, so far it hasn’t been profitable, and I’m working on a way to fix that.”
“Surely it’s not up to you alone, is it? Wouldn’t there be lots of people working on that problem with you?”
“Yes, but to move up in the company, you’ve got to take chances, be willing to stick your neck out. Building Serenity was my pet project. If I can’t figure out a way to make it turn a profit soon, I’ll be moving out instead of up.”
Sally appeared startled at this revelation but retained her composure. “I understand your reasons for staying late, especially if your job in on the line. I’ve just never seen you so obsessed with work. It worries me.”
Cline managed a wan smile. “I’ll be okay. Anyway, you don’t need to be too concerned. I think the plans I’ve set in motion over the last couple of months will turn things around pretty quickly.”
Sally looked up expectantly. Cline smiled and took another bite of the fish. He did not, however, choose to elaborate on his plans.
FRIDAY, JULY 20
CHAPTER 29
The next morning, Alton rang Jake Hines, his boss and company President, for the second time in a week.
“Hi, Mr. Hines. It’s Alton Blackwell.”
“Alton! How are you, my man?”
“Fine, sir.” Although Alton stayed on a first-name basis with his peers and staff at Kruptos, his years in the Army had ingrained a more formal method of addressing his commander, whether he be military or civilian.
“And…how is your friend, David Dunlow?”
“As good as can be expected—thanks. I think he’s benefiting from having his friends near him.”
“I’m sure you’re right,” said Hines. His tone softened. “I almost lost my father to cancer a few years ago. I can only imagine what David is going through. However, I’m sure you called for some other reason, not discussing this painful topic. How can I help you, Alton?”
“Mr. Hines, I’d like to request permission to work from the DC area a bit longer. I have two reasons: one personal and the other professional. If it’s all right with you, I’d like to cover the personal one first.”
“All right—shoot.”
Alton explained his offer to investigate Nancy Goins’ concerns over the spate of unexplained deaths. He knew Jake Hines was aware of his successful resolution of two previous investigations. As such, Alton hoped his boss would view the request with a friendly eye.
“Alton, I understand your desire to help your girlfriend solve a case, and I do believe you could help, but we still have project deadlines staring us in the face. How will this investigatory work impact your Kruptos commitments?”
“I understand your concern, sir. Let me state for the record that I wouldn’t make this request if I didn’t feel comfortable I could deliver a quality, on-time product. Your question does, however, lead to the professional reason for my request to remain in this area a while longer.”
“Go ahead,” prompted Hines.
“Thank you, sir. As you know, I’m managing the Zeus project, which kicked off just last month when we signed a contract with the FCC. Since Zeus is all about providing encryption and protection for federal communication networks, I’ve been in contact with a lot of IT folks in Washington, both in the FCC as well as other federal departments. When we started Zeus, my original hope was that once we had our foot in the door with the FCC, we’d be able to branch out into other federal agencies and expand the scope—and profitability—of the project.
“Before this trip, though, I had been on the horn with a lot of other federal agencies,
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