Nano Day 23 - Working Title: Cantata

[joegoda]

Wells woke the next morning feeling very good. No alarm. No office to go to. No security system to walk through under the eyes of beefy Joneses. He looked to his side and saw that Laura was still asleep. He gently slid from between the sheets, not wanting to disturb her dreams. He slid on his trousers and cautiously opened the bedroom door. He saw no one, but could hear quiet sounds coming from the kitchen. He hoped it was Kaylee. He put on his shirt and followed the sounds.

"Good Morning, papa!" Kaylee said, brightly, but still quietly.

"Papa?" Wells asked, his face showing his surprise.

"I'm just testing it." Kaylee said, standing over a sizzling frying pan. "Trying it on for size." Her nose wrinkled prettily and shook her head. "Not yet, so it'll have to be Richard. I hope you don't mind?"

"No, I don't mind." Richard said. He looked around the kitchen.

It was small, but certainly larger than the one he had in his apartment. The counter covered one corner, with the oven and range top being a separated by the sink. A window, bordered by bright yellow curtains, was over the sink to let in the bright Mediterranean sunlight. The cupboards were polished wood, arranged above and below. At the end of the counter stood the refrigerator, a double door affair in stainless steel.

The table in the dining area was simple dark wood, with four high-backed chairs, two to a side. Kaylee opened one of the cupboards and slid thick slices of ham from the fry pan to a plate. She brought the plate to the table and motioned Wells to take a seat.

"Would you like coffee or orange juice," Kaylee asked. "Or perhaps both?"

"Both, please." Wells said, taking a seat and watching her work.

"Keep in mind that today I will make breakfast because today you are a guest." Kaylee set about breaking eggs into the fry pan. "Tomorrow you'll be more than a guest, so you'll do as you can when it comes to making your breakfast." She turned to wink at him. "Since you're here for a while, I expect you'll be doing your share."

"I wouldn't have it any other way," he said. "Why tomorrow?"

"Because, Mister Richard Wells," Kaylee answered while mixing cheese and pepper and eggs together, "you need clothes and other things that people need when they go running all over the world without any planning." She let the mixture set for a bit while she poured hot coffee in a mug and orange juice in a glass. She brought them over to Wells and sat them on either side of the place setting. "We sir," she continued, "are going shopping."

"Is this all right with your mother?" he asked.

"It was mother's idea." Kaylee nodded. "Sarah, she and I stayed up late..."

"Sarah?" Richard sputtered, "I shut her down last night."

"And," Kaylee said, spatula in her hip pocket while she brought him a plate of eggs, "we opened her back up." To Wells dismayed look, she added, "It was a lovely talk. Did you know that Sarah actually thinks of herself as female?"

"Uh."

"She does!" Sitting her own plate across from his, she sat down with orange juice and began eating. Between bites she continued, "According to Sarah, her personality is derived from three sources. You, which she said was inevitable, since you are her primary creator. Your mother, who was also an inevitable addition, because you are the results of your raising. And one more." Kaylee raised her glass for a dramatic pause. "The third influence was my mother."

"It was purely unintentional, I assure you." Wells said, taking a bite of the eggs.

"Of course it was." Kaylee agreed. "But the end results are very impressive. Smart, in a very deductive way. If she has the data, she can create postulations that are pretty phenomenal. You should see how she looks at world economics." Kaylee shook her head in amazement. "Simply Incredible. I could write a thesis just from what we spoke about last night."

"So... you got along well, then?"

Kaylee looked at him over her plate. "Certainly. Mama and I talked for hours to Sarah. We found out an awful lot about you."

"Oh?" Wells asked. "Like what?"

"I'm afraid that's classified," a sleepy voice said from the doorway. Laura came in, wearing a white robe. "What really matters is that we discovered a bit more information about this training operation." She went over to the stove and dished up a helping of eggs and ham for herself. She sat at the table, reached for Wells glass of orange juice and took a sip. Seeing Wells surprised face, she said, "Oh, it's not like I have cooties or anything."

"How did you get Sarah to tell you anything about the operation?" Wells asked. "I told her not to give you information about the mission."

The silence was fairly thick. Both women looked at Wells with a blank look, causing him to feel very uncomfortable.

"It was for your own protection, all right?" he explained. "It's not that I don't trust you." The two women continued to gaze levelly at him. "Okay, I'm sorry!" He dug into his breakfast furiously. "If either of you are captured, I wouldn't want you to know anything that could compromise the mission."

"The concert is still two weeks away, Richard." Laura looked at Kaylee. Kaylee nodded. "Richard, Sarah has not given us anything that might compromise the mission, all right. We talked to her about it, and she also agreed with you. There are things we should not know, according to her. I'm not going to say I like being kept in the dark, but I understand." She reached across the table and placed her hand on his arm. "If I was in your position, I would do the same thing."

Kaylee nodded again. "Richard, mama and I don't like the suspicious paranoia game. It's all right, though. During my time with the Underground, there were things I wasn't told. Just because we don't like it doesn't mean we don't understand it. Let's get past it, put it behind us." Kaylee smiled.

There was tension at the table. Wells didn't feel right about the women talking to Sarah when he wasn't around. He also didn't feel right about locking them out. "What did you find out?" he asked, sounding harsher than he intended.

Laura let a silence grow a bit, and then said gently, "Sarah did NOT give us any information that would compromise us in anyway, all right? She did not give away any national secrets. She did not tell us anything that would get us killed because of what we knew. All right?"

Wells looked at his plate and asked, "All right." He paused and then softly repeated, "What did you find out?"

Laura said, "We found the Hamilton connection to the release of the Carnesi siblings." Wells lifted his face to look at her, questioning.

"Sarah has compiled some information that Hamilton was behind the anonymous letter to the Underground," she explained. "It appears that it was written on the computer he used while stationed at the Embassy."

"How did she find that out?" Wells asked, perplexed.

"I asked her to find the apartment that he occupied during his tour there," Laura said. "I had a suspicion that he figured into the release of the Carnesis. It was just a hunch." She shrugged. "Once she found the apartment, I asked her to see if here were any transmission between his apartment and the network printer in the Embassy."

"He wouldn't do that." Wells protested. "It would have been foolish and dangerous. To print to a network printer at the Embassy would have been a risk that anyone could have seen it."

"Agreed," Laura said. "But then, this was Yugoslavia in 2002, and computer parts were very hard to find. They still are." She smiled at him. "Living in the United States affords you the ability to just order it and it is delivered. The possibility that he had a printer in his apartment was very slim, so it was likely that he had no choice but to use the network printer. I had Sarah check for data being passed from him to the printer and there it was. He wrote the letter."

Wells looked at her, stunned. "Forget what I said, honey," he said. "I'm going to give you and Kaylee full access." He reached over and placed his hand on hers. "Have I ever told you that you're a genius?" He looked at Kaylee and asked her, "Did you know that your mother is a genius?"

Laura blushed and said, "Not so much a genius, Richard. I just know the environment here better than you do. It's not your fault Americans are so spoiled."

Kaylee just smiled, sipped her juice and said, "No longer worried that we might compromise your 'mission'"?

"No longer worried," he said. "In fact, I suspect you two will probably solve all these mysteries before I can." He ate a bite of cold eggs, sipped some cooling coffee. "Did you find anything else out?"

"Sarah refused to give us details about Hamilton's background." Kaylee said. "She said that it would require a clearance that only the President can give, though apparently you have it." She paused and then continued. "Is this the President of the United States?"

"No, Kaylee," Wells explained. "It's the President of the company I work for." He grimaced. "There's a lot more power available to the company's President than the President of the U.S. will ever hold."

"Scary bunch of people you work for, Richard." She observed.

"Yes, dear," Wells agreed, "they are." Wells thought for a moment. "So Hamilton sent the letter. And yet, when I asked him about it, he categorically denied that slavery existed." He rubbed his chin. "He was at home when I asked him about it. It's possible he felt he was being watched or listened to." He saw Kaylee's silent question and answered it. "All of our home phones are tapped, just in case. When I sent your mother the first email contacting her, I sent it through a double blind connection, using an assumed name. This is because they also monitor the data we send from our home computers."

"Scary and paranoid," she said.

"Scary and paranoid are prerequisites to the job." Wells nodded. He told them what he knew about Hamilton. He explained the confusion surrounding his file, where it seemed his appointment to the Embassy in 2000 had been removed. "In 2001 he was promoted to lead operations engineer. That was about a year before the rescue of the Carnesis." He turned to Kaylee and explained, "A lead operations engineer is someone that configures and oversees the operations the company sanctions."

"Like a general." Kaylee said.

Wells nodded. "Something like that, yes. When his tour was up, he shipped back to the States, where he was promoted to a Director. As a Director, his job is the same as a lead operations engineer, only on a much larger scale, and the only person he has to report to is the President."

"Ah," Kaylee said. "And where did you figure into this?"

"I, ah," he paused, though he didn't know why he felt embarrassed. "I approve the operations before the President sees them."

"You have a desk job?" Kaylee asked with a look of surprise showing on her face.

"Yes," Wells admitted grudgingly. 'Why is this so hard to admit?' he asked himself.

"What a waste of a good man," she said. "Scary and paranoid and not too bright, this company of yours."

"They don't want agents in the field to get so old they can't handle the physical requirements," Wells said.

"But what about intelligence?" Kaylee demanded. "Surely that counts for something. You're far better than this glorified..." she searched for the word, "I don't know... secretary? Accountant? Administrative Assistant! Yes. Administrative assistant. That's what you are?"

Wells considered her question. Granted, he had an awful lot of power. He had constructed the department in such a way that he would be relieving the President of many of the details of running the company's operations. It gave him a sense of security and usefulness, and the illusion of being indispensable. He knew it was an illusion, however. He could be replaced or simply illuminated. He had been allowed to create the position because the President owed him a favor, pure and simple.

"Yes," he admitted grudgingly. "I've never thought about it like that, but yes. I guess that's what I am."

"Richard," Kaylee said, "that just doesn't seem fair to me."

"Kaylee, there's nothing fair in life." Wells said. "In our society, after you reach a certain age, it's assumed your usefulness had decreased. I did what I did so that I wouldn't be retired. I created the department so I would continue working."

"What would be so wrong about being retired?" Kaylee asked. "You could get a parcel of land and farm, or just go fishing, or do whatever you wanted to."

Wells shook his head, "Kaylee." He sighed. "It's not that simple."

"It seems pretty simple to me," she said. "Just retire. Go enjoy life. When we asked Sarah about going shopping, she indicated that you would have no problem with the prices here. She said you have enough that you could buy most of Opicina if you wanted to."

"Gotta love that Sarah." Wells mused.

"Kaylee," Laura said, "I think that what Richard is saying, considering the business he's in, is that nobody simply retires from the company he works for."

"Then what do they do?" Kaylee asked.

"Kaylee," Wells said. "When someone retires from my company, they don't do anything. Ever."

"You mean they..." Kaylee let the words fade.

"They get terminated," Wells answered. "Once an employee has reached a level of retirement, they know too much to have walking around, or farming, or fishing." He nodded. "They are retired, permanently."

"Good lord!" Kaylee exclaimed. "I don't blame you for trying to find a way to keep from being retired." She reached across the table, touched his arm. "I'd have to say it was a pretty smart thing to create that position. You saved your life."

"Most agents never know when they're about to be retired." He smiled, grimly. "I have friends in high places."

"I guess you do," Kaylee mused. "How come they couldn't just keep you from being... er... retired?"

"Because even the President of the company has to follow the rules," Wells said. "There aren't any rules about not informing an agent when he's about to be retired." He shrugged. "There's an unspoken rule about it, but then again, since it's not written down, it can't be broken. Fortunately, my friends can choose to ignore rules that aren't explicit."

"Well..." Kaylee focused on her breakfast, long gone cold. "That's rather depressing." She looked at her mother. "Mama, isn't there something we can do?"

Laura looked at her daughter. "Why yes, there is." She looked at the clock, which read 2:12. "Let's go shopping."

Comments

[tapestry01.livejournal.com]

You're almost there!

[joegoda.livejournal.com]

You're kidding me, right? 50,000 words won't hold this puppy. But yeah, it's close.

[tapestry01.livejournal.com]

Mine's gonna end up topping out over 50K, too.

[joegoda.livejournal.com]

Well.. yeah! But that's because yours is GOOD.

[capi.livejournal.com]

"It was small, but certainly larger than the one he had in his apartment. The counter covered one corner, with the oven and range top being a separated by the sink." ((I suspect that you have an extra "a" in there, but i also wondered about the notion of separating the oven and stove, unless you know a way to do that and not waste space? Most of us women have to be convinced. *L* FWIW, it's not mandatory that you describe the kitchen at all, unless it will be crucial in the story later. You can just label it "cheerful" or whatever, or point out one feature that helps it be itself, and go on.))
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The table in the dining area was simple dark wood, with four high-backed chairs, two to a side. Kaylee opened one of the cupboards and slid thick slices of ham from the fry pan to a plate. ((this sentence does not work; sounds like she pulled ham out of a fry pan that was in the cupboard!))
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"Keep in mind that today I will make breakfast because today you are a guest." Kaylee set about breaking eggs into the fry pan. "Tomorrow you'll be more than a guest, so you'll do as you can when it comes to making your breakfast." She turned to wink at him. "Since you're here for a while, I expect you'll be doing your share."
Kaylee speaks here with the assumption that he's staying more than a few days -- perhaps this is justified by the August concert date, but it seems.... like a big assumption. She also speaks like a woman her mothers' age, not her own. She's laying down the law as if she is the boss. This may be exactly what you wanted to achieve, but it struck me more like... someone who runs a boardinghouse or something, and has for years. Kaylee has been thru things to mature her, but i have trouble with her acting like she's in her 40's. Also, i'm not sure it isn't her mother's role to do this. Seems like something that folks would *discuss*, not just plop onto the table like this. Seems, too, like Kaylee would have questions before she'd have assertions.
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[joegoda.livejournal.com]

Hmm.. I was examining Italian Kitchens before I wrote this passage. In each example, the oven was separated from the range. Granted, I could list it as cheerful or some other pretty phrase, but would that not lack in color?

"this sentence does not work; sounds like she pulled ham out of a fry pan that was in the cupboard!))"

You're right! She should have pulled a plate out of the cupboard.

"but i have trouble with her acting like she's in her 40's."

I'll think about it. I have been in situations where seventeen year olds think they are the boss and act like it, especially to someone who appears to be treading on their territory. Perhaps I can soften the language, perhaps I can add some where she has spoken to her mother. I do think this is pretty much as Kaylee should be. She's opinionated, she's bossy, she's a bit controlling. She's a product of her raising by a mother that has supported her and not only advised her but quite often demanded that she make up her own mind and stick to it.

[capi.livejournal.com]

So Laura never taught her daughter manners and/or respect? Being decisive doesn't necessarily have to translate into being controlling and manipulative. *shudder* Kaylee is outspoken, and i think she's feeling somewhat threatened, although one hopes at 24 she'll soon figure out she doesn't need to feel that way; everyone involved is an adult. She can be opinionated without being rude. She can be bossy without having to run right over someone her mother has demonstrated a profound attachment for.

Unless she's acting like a 13 year old -- petulant and ready to try and destroy the relationship?

[joegoda.livejournal.com]

I'm confused, I think, by your definitions of manners and/or respect.

[capi.livejournal.com]

Dood! Show me those kitchens! Now i wanna see them!! *L* However do they do it??

As for color, you're VERY good at using a few words to splash color all over the place, and you make it look so effortless!!

[joegoda.livejournal.com]

Here's the site. You'll see some rangetops over the oven, but for the most part, they are separated. http://www.italiankitchensdirect.com/Traditional%20kitchens.htm

[capi.livejournal.com]

Because, Mister Richard Wells," Kaylee answered while mixing cheese and pepper and eggs together, "you need clothes and other things that people need when they go running all over the world without any planning." She let the mixture set for a bit while she poured hot coffee in a mug and orange juice in a glass. She brought them over to Wells and sat them on either side of the place setting. "We sir," she continued, "are going shopping."
Here again; she presents it in a slightly bossy, pushy format; a done deal with no particular room for Well's own preferences or opinions.... It makes me like her less.
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"Sarah?" Richard sputtered, "I shut her down last night."
I had to wonder why he sputtered over this; i specifically watched him give Sarah voice imprints so they *could* do just what they apparently did. Why would it shock him so?
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Wells considered her question. Granted, he had an awful lot of power. He had constructed the department in such a way that he would be relieving the President of many of the details of running the company's operations. It gave him a sense of security and usefulness, and the illusion of being indispensable. He knew it was an illusion, however. He could be replaced or simply illuminated. ((*LOL*!!)) He had been allowed to create the position because the President owed him a favor, pure and simple.

Wait.... NOT pure and simple. They would not have given him THAT level of power, that level of access, that level of veto just as a favor. No way! He was good, and they wanted his experience where it would still be a resource for them.
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"Kaylee, there's nothing fair in life." Wells said. "In our society, after you reach a certain age, it's assumed your usefulness had decreased. ((bumpy phrasing...)) I did what I did so that I wouldn't be retired. I created the department so I would ((could?)) continue working."
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Laura looked at her daughter. "Why yes, there is." She looked at the clock, which read 2:12. "Let's go shopping."
2:12??!! If that's true, DANG they all slept til noon and ate *very* slowly! It seemed to me to be late morning, latest! Maybe i'm just too much of a morning person.... *grin*

[joegoda.livejournal.com]

With Kaylee's bossiness. When a person reaches 24, has pretty much had the run of the house, and finds a stranger has come to call and spend time, then they do assume a rather bossy attitude. Having been a step father, yep....it happens, and not always with pleasant results.

Also, the decision to go shopping was done without Wells knowledge or consent. This also happens. I've had this done for me a few times.

[capi.livejournal.com]

It seems very .... well, you used the word "controlling", and that fits, but more, it seem disrespectful. She may not like him, but is she open to giving him a fair chance, or is she just going to jolt him around without any manners??

Your statements about having these things done to you does not justify them here. Rather, it demonstrates some dysfunctional places you've visited. It's *not* the norm.... and i'm very sorry for that these things happened to you, beloved friend. (((Hug)))

[joegoda.livejournal.com]

Actually, most women I have known make decisions for what is going to be happening and quite often without consultation. Perhaps I have rarely known *normal* people.

[joegoda.livejournal.com]

2:12??!! If that's true, DANG they all slept til noon and ate *very* slowly! It seemed to me to be late morning, latest! Maybe i'm just too much of a morning person.... *grin*

There isn't any indication that Kaylee slept that late. Now, the two older folks were very lacking in sleep and suffering jet lag from about 5 different time zones. Having flown from Oklahoma to Paris, and having had 3 hours of sleep from the previous day, I slept fourteen hours once I was able to crash.

I could make a few changes to accomodate. I could have made it 11:30 am. It's a work in progress.

[joegoda.livejournal.com]

Wait.... NOT pure and simple. They would not have given him THAT level of power, that level of access, that level of veto just as a favor.

Actually.. from earlier in the story: "Rumor had it that he actually presented the idea to someone very high up in the company before he presented it to anyone else. This someone, the rumor went, owed Wells a very large favor. The creation of this department was part of the re-payment."

[capi.livejournal.com]

dang. i do not want to argue....

[joegoda.livejournal.com]

We're really not, dearone. We just have a difference of perspective due to the lives we have lived. There isn't any right answer here, just as there aren't any wrong answers. In your life, Kaylee is acting childish, petulant and being more a child than a responsible adult. In my life, she is being a child, regardless of her age, and is pushing the limits of someone she doesn't really like. Her reactions to him when her mother is not around are a bit more brush, a bit less caring what he thinks.

I write from my experiences of people. I didn't want Kaylee to be the dutiful child. She has already demonstrated that she is not, by disappearing for two weeks without any concern about what her mother might be thinking or feeling. Kaylee is not a sympathetic character. I didn't expect her to open her arms to Wells, and I didn't expect her to be so... less than welcoming.

There ARE people like this in the world. I have known a few, and they didn't have to be children to act like children.

On the other hand, I recognise what you are saying. It's valuable advice, and if Kaylee were a dutiful child, then they would apply. Regardless of whether her mother attempted to teach her manners and grace, she, as do all children, make up their own minds which way to go. Kaylee is a spoiled young woman, who has the ability to purchase what she needs. She has not had much of the advantage of adversity and she has had very little trauma in her life, compared to Wells or her mother.

She does not know him, she does not even like him. The story didn't ask her to.