Chapter 155

As Jeremy's pickup had turned into the driveway, Diana had gotten up for a moment so Jeff could bring the back of the recliner forward. Resettling in his lap, she snuggled with her husband as the couple watched when the computer locked the camera onto the vehicle. The AI zoomed in and the windshield of the pickup seemed to disappear as it was filtered out by the system.

Diana, a look of concern on her face, turned back from the big screen. "They look worried. Baby, I really enjoyed talking to those three when we were helping with the silos. Do you suppose they have a thing going between them now? I mean, the way they looked at each other last night..." Her voice changed, "Jeff, look. Isn't there something wrong with Connie's right eye?"

Before Jeff could answer, "Computer! Zoom in on the woman in the middle," Diana instructed.

Jeff wondered if the computer would figure out what she meant. He need not have worried. By the time the thought had formed, the AI had already zoomed in on Connie. That thing is getting smarter — way smarter.

"Her eye is blood red," Diana said, her voice becoming hard, "and the whole side of her face looks swollen. That better not have been Jeremy who caused that."

Jeff looked at his Queen. "Come on, Di. She might have gotten that at work." But the Prime realized that the injury was fresh. "Then again, that wasn't there last night. You can bet her face will look interesting by tomorrow, but unless I've totally misjudged Jeremy, there's no way he has done that to her. He just isn't the kind to hit a female. I'd stake a lot on that."

"Well, it better not be him. But you're right, that eye wasn't like that when we talked to them at the haunted house last night."

As they were talking, Jeff almost absently brushed a fingertip lightly over a nipple until he realized what he was doing and how her aroused nipples tented her blouse. "Uh, Baby, maybe you should put on a bra before they get here, otherwise, Jeremy won't be able to talk with his tongue getting hard," he chuckled.

Diana glanced down at herself, her swollen nipples poking against her top. "Oops. I was enjoying our just sitting here and didn't even think about a bra." Jeff's eyes followed the sway of her breasts as she stood. "Meet you by the back door," she said as she hurried out of the room.

The Prime reached over for the phone. A moment later when Evie answered from her apartment, "They're coming up the drive." He had already told Dave and Evie he wanted them to sit in on the meeting.

"Be right there," Dave's little Queen replied.

Jeff met a hurrying Diana in the hallway, and they walked to the back door just as the three construction workers parked. After greetings where the Matthews appeared to not notice Connie's eye, Diana invited Jeremy, Denise and Connie to hang their coats in the hall closet, then escorted the three visitors toward the living room. Diana caught Jeff's eye for an instant and shook her head slightly as if telling him to hold off asking about Connie's eye.

As the group stepped into the big room, there was a faint, but audible gasp from Denise and a quiet, "Oh, my. How beautiful," from Connie.

"Once we were able to see your, uh, home as we drove closer, we couldn't seem to take our eyes off of it. It's truly beautiful," Denise said.

"Thank you," The Queen responded as she ushered them to seats grouped near the big fireplace. "It took a while for us to get used to it, but we feel at home now."

Dave and Evie came in, and after refreshing acquaintances with the construction workers, everyone sat. Before anything much could be said, Jennie came in with a serving cart bearing coffee and soft drinks. Jeremy, Denise and Connie, uncomfortable in the rich surroundings, accepted coffee, but it was obvious they felt awkward submerged in the elegance of the room, particularly considering their mission.

Connie had pulled her hair forward on the right side, but with her fair skin and the bloodshot eye, her attempts at covering her injury did little good. Dave and Evie noticed immediately, but like Jeff and Diana, not wanting to embarrass Connie, did not mention the injury.

Jeff sat back and took a sip of his black brew, noting that the three were obviously ill at ease. To start the conversation and perhaps make them feel less stressed, Jeff said, "The place was built as a convention center and retreat for Wainwright, Inc. I sold a patent to them, and the Retreat, as we call our home here, came as part of the deal. Trust me, most of our lives, we've been working people. Diana worked to support us and put me through college..."

"And..." Diana broke in, "Jeff also worked part-time jobs, even in high school, existing on far less sleep than he should have had."

"Anyway," Jeff continued, "we're very grateful for the things that have happened to us, not to mention being very fortunate, and we're well aware of that. Please, just relax and feel at home here. Now what can we do for you?"

The women turned to Jeremy, and Diana noted the looks and grinned at Jeff as if to say, "I told you so," meaning she had thought there was a relationship between the three. She had evidentlly seen something that eased her mind about the possibility of Jeremy having hit Connie.

As Jeff focused his attention totally on Jeremy only a few feet away, the Prime unconsciously tensed, but his Queen, always attuned to her Prime, noticed and looked a question at him. He raised an eyebrow slightly, but she couldn't quite interpret the look.

Just as Jeremy gathered his courage to speak, Selina walked a few steps into the living room and stopped, her kitten riding her shoulder with the seemingly ever-present ball clutched to the side of his mouth.

"Come on in," Jeff encouraged, realizing that Selina might well provide a needed moment of distraction to help the three people in front of him to relax a bit. "You know you're always welcome."

Selina walked over to Jeff, but turned to the construction workers. "Please pardon the interruption. I shall endeavor to insure that the disruption is as brief as possible." Then turning to Jeff and climbing onto his knee, "Might I ask your indulgence to oversee Billy for a short period of time? Doctor Boswell has requested my participation in an experiment. It would be counterproductive for him to accompany me."

"Sure, Baby. I'll try to keep him out of trouble for a while."

"I shall return as soon as the experiment has concluded."

Billy, almost as if he understood, jumped to Jeff's lap as Selina slid to the floor and walked out, her posture erect and her carriage and bearing more representative of a distinguished adult than that of a child of six. The three construction workers stared after her. There was total silence for a few seconds before Jeff's chuckle caused them all to smile, but he made no comment about Selina.

Billy chose that moment to drop his little web ball in Jeff's lap. "Mmeeow," he said, looking up at Jeff's face. The Prime grinned and tossed the ball hard in the direction of the big window. The kitten spun one hundred and eighty degrees and jumped from Jeff's lap, bounding after the jingling ball. The ball bounced on the floor near the window, then hit the glass and ricocheted off to hit a table, changing course yet again, the kitten right behind it. On its last bounce, Billy's claws caught the plastic mesh, the kitten crying out a triumphant, "Mmmeeoowwwww," as he bit down and started back toward Jeff.

Billy jumped, snagging a leg of Jeff's pants and scrambled to his lap. The Prime held out his cupped hand and Billy dropped the ball into it. Turning, his purr easily audible, he crouched on Jeff's knee, looked once over his shoulder before tensing, the tip of his tail swishing, the kitten obviously ready to go. Jeff turned a little to fling the ball farther down the living room. Billy dashed madly behind it. The ball hit the big window on the second bounce, but Billy's jump was short. Missing his target, he flipped in the air to land on his feet, charging off after the ball.

Jeremy's glance went to Jeff for a second, then back to Billy. "I've never seen a cat that would play fetch."

"I've never seen a kitten that would play fetch," Connie expounded.

"Me either," from Denise.

"Billy's a bit, uh, different," Diana offered.

"Now that's an understatement," Evie said with a chuckle.

The kitten ran back with the ball, jumped up and rapidly climbed the rest of the way to Jeff's lap.

"Ouch, Little Dude. Watch those claws."

"Mmeeow," Billy said, dropping the ball in Jeff's lap, then sat back to preen himself.

Diana let out a quiet laugh, "He's showing off for our company. His full name is Billy Bad Ass. We found him high in a bush and half frozen. He threatened to tear us limb from limb when Jeff reached up and caught him; thus the name. But he didn't scratch or bite, despite his threats. It didn't take him long to become a member of the family, either. He tends to somehow escape from Selina's suite, so we take turns keeping an eye on him when she's busy with something. We're afraid he might get hurt in this big building. A door could close on him, or his curiosity could get him into trouble. Should anything happen to him, it would be a tremendous blow to all of us."

Jeff smiled at the three. "So tell us; what can we do for you, Jeremy?"

Jeremy put his cup down, careful to use a coaster on the small table near his seat. Nervously, he glanced at Connie and Denise for an instant before turning fully to Jeff. "I, uh, don't know any other way to put this, so I'll just say it like it is. As I said last night, Mr. Jackson, the owner of our company, has had a major heart attack, but he did make it to the hospital. He had some sort of operation and he's home now. He's supposed to recover, but the doctor told his wife he was going to have to make some major changes in his life. Medication, weight control, exercise and less stress. According to Lee, a lot less stress.

"Apparently Mr. Jackson's wife took the doctor's lecture to heart, because she has convinced Mr. Jackson to sell the company and retire. We had hoped that Lee could come up with the money, somehow, to buy the company, but he says there just isn't any way. From what Lee says, there has only been one company that has shown interest in buying our company and it's our biggest competitor. One of our office people has a cousin who works for the competitor. Word of mouth is they're interested in buying us to eliminate the competition. They would just take over our equipment and resources for their own use and let all the employees go.

"From what Lee says, they're only offering half what the company is worth, but with the way the economy is now, Mr. Jackson doesn't really have any choice. We're all going to be out of work. With all the employees of the company looking for jobs at the same time, no telling how long it will be until Denise, Connie and I can find work. We don't know what to do.

"I don't have any marketable job skills other than what we've been doing, and there are just the two companies in the area that put up tanks, silos, and things of that nature. Construction companies aren't hiring this time of year, and who knows what will happen come spring. It's not as if we have enough money saved up to last that long, anyway. Denise will lose her house. I guess I could move back in with my parents, but Denise's parents are both deceased and Connie's parents are old, not well off, and live in Florida, anyway."

Dave's, Evie's and Jeff's eyes met for the briefest of moments, something so quick that the three construction workers never noticed. Dave sat a little straighter to call their attention to him. "Let's relieve a little of your tension. Worst case is that you lose your jobs. We've seen the three of you work. If you lose your jobs, Evie and I will hire all three of you the next day. It will be entry level to begin with, but as you learn, your pay will increase accordingly. And ... our company pays well above comparable jobs with other companies."

"You mean that?" Jeremy let out before he could stop himself.

"You have my word on it. And..." Dave continued, "as I said, that's just the worst case scenario. There might well be other options. Do you have a number where I can reach Mr. Jackson?"

"Uh, no, but I have Lee's number."

"Is Lee a first or last name?"

"It's his last name, but he just tells everyone to call him Lee."

Dave took a small pad out of his pocket, handed it and a pen to Jeremy, who jotted the number down and gave it back to Dave.

Dave and Evie stood, and Dave turned to Jeff. "We'll make some phone calls and get back to you."

Jeff nodded and Dave and Evie left. Jeremy, Denise and Connie had come prepared to argue the merits of the Matthews or the Hensons purchasing Jackson's company, but expected an uphill battle at the very least. Now, they didn't know what to say. The three looked at each other, not daring to even hope. Denise turned back to Jeff, "What's going to happen..." she started, but wound down.

Jeff stood. "If you don't mind, I need to speak to my wife for a moment, then I'll answer your questions." Diana came to her feet and followed her husband into the hall. Out of earshot, he turned to his Queen. "Something has happened, and I'm not talking about Connie's eye. As best I can understand from Little One, I've gained, or regained as the case may be, the ability to detect some other aspects of an Alpha. I thought that the block had done something to Jesse that allowed me to tell he's an Alpha, and that may well be the case, but it may also have something to do with me. Little One keeps telling me my abilities as a Prime will continue to evolve as atrophied abilities of our species are — brought back on line, so to speak."