Sarah rode in with Noah the next morning, while Neil followed. Noah had been surprised at Neil’s car when he had first seen it, because most young guys didn’t go for big cars, but Neil was driving a Hummer. Noah had thought they would die off quickly, when gas prices got high enough to actually put the Hummer company out of business, but there were still an amazing number of them on the road. Neil’s was fire engine red, and Noah was pretty sure it was the only red one he’d ever seen.
They parked at the restaurant, and had just gotten inside when Moose pulled in. Allison hadn’t given them a specific time to be there, so they had agreed to meet early for breakfast. The hostess showed them all to a table, and a waitress arrived a moment later to start pouring coffee.
Neil slumped in his chair. “Why is it,” he asked, “that people in our line of work don’t get to sleep in like normal human beings?”
“Because we’re not normal human beings,” Moose said. “If we were, we wouldn’t be in our line of work, now would we?”
Neil opened one eye and focused it on Moose’s face. “You have a disgustingly valid point, and I now officially hate your guts.”
“Oh, good, does that mean I can kick your ass, now?” Moose looked at Noah. “He hates me, that means I can kick his ass, right?”
Noah shook his head. “Not until after we’re done with him, and that might be a while.”
Neil stuck his tongue out at Moose, and Sarah suddenly burst out laughing. “Oh, my God, will you please grow up?”
Neil turned his eyes to her. “And just where exactly would be the fun in that?” He sat up again and reached for his coffee, added several packets of sugar and creamer, then stirred it up and took a sip. “I think they have the best coffee on the compound right here,” he said. “Remind me to find out what brand they use.”
“I already asked,” Noah said, “it’s called Falco, and you have to buy it a hundred cases at a time. I thought about it, but even I don’t drink enough coffee to justify that. I’d still be drinking it twenty years from now, and I’m not even sure I’ll be alive that long.”
Sarah shrugged. “Too bad, it’s really good. Maybe we should all go in together and buy a case, split it between the four of us. With that make it a better deal?”
They debated the merits of making such a large purchase, but never came to a conclusion. The waitress took their orders, and the food was back surprisingly quickly. They dug in and ate, and were just sitting there, having another cup of the wonderful coffee, when Mr. Jefferson walked in and took a chair at their table.
“Hello, Noah,” he said. “It seems that all those good reports I’ve been getting must be true. We’ll be getting you ready for your first mission, now, and I must say I’m looking forward to watching you work.” He turned his eyes toward Moose, who suddenly looked like he wanted to be somewhere else. “And you would be Moose Conway, am I right? My daughter has told me a lot about you, and I want to tell you how much I appreciate the fact that she says you’ve been a perfect gentleman.”
Moose looked confused for a split second, and then his face cleared and he smiled. “No problem, Sir,” he said. “She’s a wonderful girl.”
Jefferson smiled back. “Yes, she is, and I’m glad you see it that way.” He turned back to Noah. “So, it looks like you’ve already finished your breakfast?”
“Yes, Sir,” Noah said. “We’re ready whenever you are.”
“Good, good,” Jefferson said. “Let me grab a cup of coffee to go, and we can get started.”
Jefferson went to the hostess station to order his coffee, while Noah and the others went to pay their tabs at the register. They all met outside a few minutes later.
“I’m in the Chrysler,” Jefferson said, pointing at a new sedan. “Just follow me, and have your ID ready when we get to the checkpoint.” He walked over and got into the car, while the others got into their own. A moment later, they were in a convoy following Jefferson.
The trip to the area known as Hollywood took almost half an hour, weaving through back roads and passing through several different gates. Each of them looked like it had seen better days, but when Jefferson’s car approached them, they opened as if by magic. The last one, however, had a guard shack and two armed guards in what appeared to be black uniforms. Jefferson stopped, and Noah could see him showing ID to the guard.
The guard waved Jefferson through, and Noah pulled up to where he stood. He showed his own ID, while Sarah passed hers across, and the guard inspected both of them carefully, then looked closely at their faces. After a moment, he handed them back and told them to go on through, but cautioned them to stay close to Mr. Jefferson.