Chapter 169

It was later than normal for us when we got home because of the traffic. The girls asked me call before we got on the bridge. There were signs over at the gym congratulating both Jason on his retirement and Jenny on the promotion.

The trees and bushes leading to the house all had ribbons on them. In front of the garage on the concrete pad there were several grills going. An old fashioned cook out was in the process. Burgers, dogs, sweet corn, and just about every summer food were being cooked. Several baskets of steamed crabs suddenly appeared. Several coolers of drinks and several coolers with brands of beer were on hand. You cannot have steamed crabs without beer.

Most of the office employees and some of their families were there. Jenna and her gang, the remainder of the North six and their parents and some of the task force people had made it over. Jenny had quietly invited them while everything else was going on.

All the vehicles had been moved out and the garage had been set up in tables and chairs. I recognized the tables and chairs they had come from the closed restaurant in the shopping center. I decide right then that we would keep them and stack them against the wall for events like this. The 4 car garage would make an all weather party place.

It was nearly 8 when I finally made my way over to my new office. When Bob had the construction finished Marcy insisted that I take the office closest to the front to be with the rest of the management team.

Cindy had half a dozen folders arranged on my desk. She was very precise; each folder had sticky notes with explanations. Some had a log sheet on them with the time of call, who made it and what actions were required and the steps to completion. If there were signatures or other actions needed, there were sticky arrows with what I needed to do.

The first folder included a FedEx return envelope. It contained East Coast Security invoices and authorizations for them to begin installation of the security system on Monday. They were going to install 50% of the server farm and 50% of the wireless cameras on Monday in the temporary trailers. They would wait until July 1st to install all the locks and the rest of the cameras and system.

They wanted 30% now, 30% July 1, and the rest at completion and final testing. The folder had a check made out to them on the security division. It required two signatures. Marcy had already signed; all that was lacking was mine. Jenny had initialed that all the legal stuff was in order, Marcy on the financial terms and included the loan agreement for financing of the equipment with Midwest. I signed on all the arrows and check marks.

The next folder was informational. Courtney had authorized a change in the start date for part of the new hires. She had called all of them and found enough of them willing to start early to have a token security force at Frost Borough. I suggested that she try this before we were forced to go a different route. We had to with Maryland West banned from the property. The board had found two offices in the admin building we could use until the trailers were usable.

Marcy had sent a dozen company cell phones and six of the officer's weapons kits that I had put together by the King Air at noon with the necessary paper work. The King Air was going on to Chicago after that. I made a notation on the folder that we needed to bill Frost Borough for the extra week of JBG security and approved the changes. Sandy and Marcy needed to come up with the charges.

The next folder had the paperwork to transfer the six MAAR rentals to the security division. Three were at the decal and emergency light shop and had been completed today. They would be picked up tomorrow morning. Marcy was going to have 3 of the North girls drive them to Frost Borough tomorrow and catch the afternoon commuter flight back to BWI. The other three cars were at the BWI rental site. They would drive them to the island and repeat the process in a couple days.

I left a sticky on the folder for Cindy to tell the three drivers that the lights on top the car were not a "Get out of jail card" and that they needed to watch what they did. I knew they would be pumped up, driving them with all the logos and lights: every girls thrill drive. They had been told that they were going to do admin functions tomorrow and to dress appropriately.

Cindy had printed out the route they were to follow, 50 to 197 to 32 to 70 to bypass the Baltimore traffic. Then follow US 70 to Frost Borough. The route had been programmed into the portable GPS.