FIRE ON HIGH
“Fire On High” is a work of fiction, and any resemblance to any person living or dead is purely coincidental. All characters and settings copyright Tigermark 2003-2004 unless otherwise noted. Request permission before using them, please.
The character Anatol Altaisokova is my name for a character copyright Max Blackrabbit, and appears in this story with his permission.
Matt Barstock and Intermountain Charter © Silver Coyote. See their story HERE.
chapter 7
JUST ANOTHER DAY
Alex sat at his desk, doing planning paperwork for a 4-ship air-to-air gunnery practice mission scheduled for the week after next. He was a little worried that this mission might conflict with the Board of Inquiry’s findings presentation. It would be very soon, and he didn’t plan to miss it. He wanted to be there when the board’s conclusions were announced, but of course as always duty came first.
He put his pen down and stretched, working the kinks out of his back and tail. The information someone had given him about the cause of his brother’s crash crossed his mind. Alex wondered for the hundredth time whether he should contact the board and let them know what he had. Bart Higgins had told him to play it cool and see what the board determined first, but Alex didn’t want to have to battle an entrenched wrong conclusion.
Just then there was a knock at the door and Alex, grateful for a break, said, “Come.”
His CO, Col. Bart Higgins, opened the door and walked in, closing it behind himself. Alex rose to attention, and the lion let him stay that way until he reached Alex’s desk.
“As you were, Alex,” Col. Higgins said, “I have some news for you.”
Alex sat back down as Col. Higgins pulled a chair around and sat beside the desk, facing him squarely.
“The date’s been set for the crash investigation board’s presentation of findings,” Col. Higgins said without preamble, “Friday of next week at Shaw.”
Alex did a quick mental check, and found he would be able to go. Col. Higgins was looking steadily at him, gauging his reaction.
Finally, he said, “I’ll approve your leave as soon as the paperwork’s done. I just wanted to be sure in my mind that you wouldn’t react badly to any of the findings and embarrass yourself. I’ve known you for a long time, but I wasn’t sure until now that you’d be able to handle being there, especially if the board finds pilot error as the cause.”
Alex knew that his friend was still watching his reaction closely. He returned the lion’s calm, steady gaze.
“If that happens,” Alex said evenly, “I’ll file an appeal to the AF Flight Safety Office at the Pentagon, or with the IG. No, don’t worry; I won’t make a fuss over anything that happens while I’m there.”
Col. Higgins watched him a moment longer, and then relaxed out of official mode and said, “Good. Okay, Ice, you can leave anytime next week. The gunnery mission’s the following Wednesday. How’s the Test Pilot School prep going?”
“Great! I should be as ready as I can be when I leave in, ah, 8 weeks,” Alex replied. Time seemed to be moving very quickly and in slow motion at the same time. He’d committed to another 4 years to get the school, but he’d be over 20 years time-in-service in a few months, making him eligible to retire. “Like that’d be happening anytime soon, with test piloting and then hopefully NASA to look forward to,” he thought to himself.
“Think our two rookies will do all right on the gunnery mission?” Scatcat asked, breaking Alex out of his reverie.
“I think so. I flew with Nines Richards a few days ago, and he did quite well. I’ll not be calling him rookie anymore. Tags has been flying with Scoot Atkins, and he said a couple of days ago that the young Lab was coming along nicely,” Alex replied. He was looking forward to this mission, as gunnery ACM missions always promised a lot of good, high-G aerobatics.
“Good,” said Scatcat, and then he winked at Alex and said, “Make it a 6 ship and I’ll take Nines as my wingfur. You can take Rings as yours and that’ll leave Tags and Scoot together. You two can be OPFOR.”
Alex grinned and said, “Okay Boss, if you think you’re up to it.”
“Hah!” Scatcat replied, fully out of official mode and into the fighter pilot mindset, “You just watch your six, Ice. I’ll smoke your stripy tail faster than you can blink!” His words were aggressive, but his eyes twinkled with merriment, glad for the chance to tease with his old friend. It was good to see Ice back to normal, and Scatcat didn’t give Alex’s reactions at the board findings presentation any more thought at that moment.
“Well, I’ll leave you to the paperwork. You might get it done by the time the mission gets here, if they don’t come down with another form that needs filled out before then,” Scatcat said with a rueful smile.
“Yep, if it keeps up this way, we’ll all soon be up to our tails in paper,” Alex agreed.
Scatcat snorted, saying, “Paper, paper, and more paper! When I signed on to fly, I didn’t know I’d spend half my time filling out da—.”
Scatcat was interrupted by a knock on Alex’s door. Alex looked at Scatcat, who shrugged with his paws held out in the universal “I-don’t-know” sign.
“Come,” Alex said, curious to see who needed what now. The door opened and a grayish brown vulpine face peered tentatively into the office.
“Colonel Higgins?” the fox asked.
“I’m Col. Higgins, What can I do for you?” Scatcat asked as he turned in his chair to look at the newcomer.
The fox stepped fully into the office, revealing Air Force dress blues with Major’s gold oak leaves on the shoulders. He proceeded up to Scatcat, stood at attention and saluted.
“Sir, Major George Forrest, reporting for duty,” the fox said.
Scatcat eyed the serious-faced fur before him, then returned the salute and said, “Very good, Major. Relax, I don’t bite, but the stripy guy beside me here that you’re replacing has been known to chew on things a bit.”
The fox looked confused for a second as Alex snorted and laughed.
“Don’t listen to him, Major. The ol’ lion’s a bit senile. Besides, you’ll only have to put up with him for a few months. He’s going Stateside, too,” Alex said, grinning.
The fox relaxed out of attention, but still looked uncertainly at his new commander.
“Oh, don’t mind us too much, Major Forrest, you just walked into the middle of two old friends teasing with each other. Are you just arriving? Have you done any of your in-processing yet?” Scatcat said, trying to put the Major more at ease. Major Forrest smiled a little now, feeling a little less tense about his new CO and the tiger he’d be replacing.
“No sir, I came straight here after I cleared Customs and Immigration.” The fox said.
Alex stood now to shake paws, and quickly realized why the Major might have been a bit nervous. While both he and Scatcat stood well over 6 feet tall, the fox would’ve done well to reach 5’9”.
“Relax Major, we’re all on the same team,” Alex said with a not-to-toothy smile, also trying to put his replacement at ease as they shook paws.
“Let’s see, you’ll need some in processing time,” Scatcat said, his tail idly twitching as he thought, trying to get in a more serious tone, “Go down the hall to the Admin section, 2nd door on the left, and see the badger at the counter. Her name is Mrs. Steiner, and she runs the Administrative end of the unit for us. She’s a really great admin fur. Tell her I sent you and she’ll work her tail off to get you set up and scheduled.”
“Yes sir,” Major Forrest replied, and then asked, “How soon can I start flying, and learning the ropes with Col. O’Whitt?” Alex and Scatcat both smiled. It was good to see that eagerness to get started. It was one of the earmarks of a good officer and pilot.
“In-processing the base usually takes four or five days, the paperwork here at the squadron another day or two, and a couple of days to get your gear assigned and issued. Say, two weeks tops until you go up for AO (Area of Operations) Familiarization,” Scatcat answered.
“Good, I’ll be ready to go, sir,” Major Forrest said with a smile.
Alex had been thinking, and took the break in the exchange between his CO and the Major to ask a question.
“Major, are you planning to buy a car to use while you’re here?”
“I’d planned on it, sir. Are you planning to sell one when you leave?” the fox replied, a slight smile on his muzzle.
“Yes, I have an old Beamer sedan that I bought when I got here two years ago. I’ll still need her for a couple of months, but if you can wait . . ,” Alex stated.
The fox grinned in earnest for the first time since his arrival, saying, “Let me guess. Slate gray, with a dent in the left rear quarter panel, 3rd gear sticks a bit.”
Alex arched an eyebrow and said, “That’s the car. How’d you know?”
Major Forrest gave a short, yipping laugh and said, “Colonel Barry, my last CO, said to get the Ol’ Gray Ghost if I could. He owned the car four years ago when he was XO here.”
Alex now laughed, too. It was common practice on overseas assignments to buy an old, used car when you arrived and sell it again when you left. Cars like “The Ol’ Gray Ghost” went through owner after owner, and sometimes took on legendary status with the stories they could tell on their various drivers.
“Then we’ll have to make sure you get her,” Alex said as Col. Higgins shook his head and laughed.
The lion finally said, “Leave it to you, Ice. Only you would end up with a car that’s a legend and not a lemon.”
Alex shrugged and said, “Luck-o-the-Irish, Boss,” causing both the Colonel and the Major to laugh.
Scatcat finally managed to say, “Okay Major, I’d better let you go before Ice here tries to sell you his F-15!”
Alex smirked and tried to do his best used-car-salesfur impression, saying, “Yep! Ah’ll cut ya a re-al gooood deal!”
Scatcat laughed as the Major looked at Alex and shook his head, his tail wagging behind him. He came to attention, still grinning, and raised his paw to salute. Scatcat returned it and, still grinning himself, said, “Dismissed, Major. Run while you can.”
“Thank you, sir. I’ll check back in after I get settled,” the fox said as he turned to leave, “Colonel O’Whitt, I’ll get with you about the Ghost in a few days. I think she’ll suit our needs just fine.”
Major Forrest walked out and shut the door behind him.
Scatcat turned back to Alex, still smiling, and said, “Glad to see he loosened up, I was starting to worry I’d be leaving the squadron with a brick for an XO.”
“He’ll be fine, I think. Just a bit nervous in a new place. I take it he has a family?” Alex said in reply.
“Yep, a wife and three pups. They’re supposed to join him in a couple of months, according to the paperwork.”
“That’s nice. I think a family fur will be a good influence on the junior officers,” Alex said with a half-smile on his muzzle.
“Oh, like you were a bad influence on them?” Scatcat said with a teasing expression on his face.
“Yep,” Alex said without missing a beat, “It’s a good thing I’m leaving before I totally corrupt them with my wild bachelor ways.”
The lion laughed long and loud at Alex’s statement as Alex grinned in shared camaraderie.
Scatcat stood up, wiping his eyes with a paw as Alex stood also.
“Well, if I don’t let you get back to work, we’ll never get that mission set up,” he said as he turned toward the door.
“It’ll come together, don’t worry,” Alex stated.
The Colonel suddenly stopped and turned back to face Alex, his tail curling around his legs.
“Alex, I just thought of something. We have two birds due at Langley for an electronics suite and software upgrade, don’t we?”
Alex thought a second and then said, “Yes sir, 85-0110 and 85-0133, I think.”
Scatcat looked at Alex thoughtfully a few more seconds, and then said, “What say you and I take them over, oh, say, Thursday of next week. We’ll lay over on the weekend and then fly them back Monday. We can rent a car and drive down to Shaw for the Board findings, and then kick back over the weekend. We might be cutting it close for the mission back here, but I think we can do it.”
Alex said, “Going to cubsit me, Scatcat?” and then eyed him suspiciously.
Scatcat looked Alex level in the eyes and said, “No, I trust you to be an officer and control yourself, you’ve already assured me of that. I don’t trust Mastifson not to make an idiot of himself, and a bit of rank in your corner might dissuade him from mouthing off.”
Alex shrugged and said, “I’m not concerned about what he might have to say.”
“You would if he called your brother sloppy or incompetent!” Scatcat said quickly. He noted the flash of anger in Alex’s blue eyes, gone as quickly as it had appeared.
“Colonel Higgins, sir, that was a bit out of line,” Alex said coolly, his tail swishing back and forth. He didn’t care for being pushed into showing the anger he was holding in check.
The lion looked at Alex with a very keen eye for a moment, but then said sincerely, “I’m sorry, Ice. I wanted you to think about what could happen, and you handled it very well. Forgive a friend for being concerned?”
Alex relaxed, a measure of warmth returning to the ice blue of his eyes.
“If looks could take action,” Scatcat thought, “Mastifson would probably end up frozen to his chair if he gets out of line.”
With a resigned sigh, Alex said, “All right, I understand, I guess. I still don’t need a cubsitter, but I guess I could use some moral support. Your plan sounds good, although I don’t relish spending that long strapped in. That’ll be hard on the tail!”
“You could fly it inverted, to take the stress off,” Scatcat said.
Alex looked at his CO. The lion’s face was absolutely straight serious, but a twinkle was dancing in his eyes, giving away his humorous intent.
“Hmmm, and if I fly it backwards, the mileage won’t count on the airframe, right?” Alex replied, his eyebrow arched and the tip of his tail slowly waving.
Scatcat broke out laughing, and then turned away, saying, “Get back to work. Sheesh, always has a comeback. I’ll call Langley and schedule the work.”
“Yes sir,” Alex said, suppressing a laugh himself. Scatcat waved and walked out the door, leaving Alex to his work.
Alex sat down and began to clear his mind so he could concentrate on the task at paw. He would have to be extra on-guard at the presentation, he now realized. His emotions about his brother made him easier than normal to anger, and anger would only bring trouble if he expressed it at the wrong time or in the wrong way. Steeling himself to it, he put the thoughts away and returned to his work.
# # #
Anton and Jenna sat together in the waiting room of Dr. Sologen’s office. The phone call summoning them had come in the day before, but the nurse had refused to give any details. Jenna was fidgeting, nervous and concerned about what the doctor would say. She looked at Anton, who had his usual calm, matter-of-fact expression on his face. She took a deep breath to calm herself, not wanting her father-in-law to think she was being silly. Then she noticed the older tiger’s tail. It was twitching sporadically as it curled under his chair. This caused her to be even more on edge, as it showed that Anton was nervous, too.
Presently, the nurse opened the door leading back to the exam rooms and said, “Mr. O’Whitt? The doctor will see you now.”
As Anton stood up to go, Jenna got up also. He started to protest, but the expression on her face told him he’s have a major confrontation on his paws if he didn’t allow her to come along. Rather than fight about it, he simply nodded his assent and followed the nurse. Jenna took only a couple of steps to catch up, and the two followed the nurse back toward the exam rooms.
Instead of stopping there, the nurse showed them to a set of office doors, each with the name of a doctor in the practice on it. She pointed to the second one on the right and said, “Go right in, he’s expecting you.”
Anton and Jenna looked at each other, Jenna nervously biting her lip. Anton gave her a reassuring wink, though his paw was tentative as he tapped on the door.
“Come in, please,” called a voice from behind the door.
Anton opened the door and they went in. Dr. Sologen was sitting behind a plain, unornate desk piled up with files and medical references. He stood and motioned them to the cushioned chairs along the wall.
“Please sit down, I’ll join you in a second,” the meerkat said as he gathered the file that had been spread in front of him.
Anton and Jenna sat down, and Dr. Sologen pulled a chair up so he could face both of them.
“Mr. O’Whitt,” he said without preamble, “May I speak freely today in front of your daughter-in-law?”
Anton simply nodded yes, and Dr. Sologen continued in his clipped British accent.
“Mr. O’Whitt, I have reviewed the results of the blood work, and the results from the MRI and GI scope. I have ruled out an ulcer, as the symptomology is wrong. The blood work indicates anemia, and some atypical cell structures. The GI scope shows a thickening in the stomach wall around a tumor roughly the size of a baseball. Indications are that it has spread through the stomach wall into the surrounding tissues. The MRI indicates it has spread also into the liver and is just getting into the edge of the gall bladder, and possibly the tip of the pancreas.”
Jenna had gripped onto Anton’s arm, and now she fought to keep the tears she felt welling up at bay. Anton had tensed noticeably. She could feel the muscles in his forearm flex as he processed the doctor’s words. After a few seconds of silence, He managed to speak.
“All right, it’s cancer. What can be done?” he said quietly.
Dr. Sologen took a deep breath, and then answered, “Surgery is out. It appears too much of the stomach and other organs are involved. We can try chemotherapy, but I must tell you that with this type of cancer, this much involved the outlook is not promising. I would call the cancer Stage III, and the survival rate is only about 20 percent.
Jenna looked at her father-in-law. His head was bowed, and his eyes closed, but his jaw had taken on a determined set. Shortly he looked up, his eyes boring into the doctor’s.
“I want to fight this, but I want to do it on my own home ground. How can I find a good doctor for this in Charleston, West Virginia?”
Dr. Sologen began to give Anton details about finding an oncologist in his hometown. Jenna was only half listening. Her mind was screaming at her as she sat there in shock. How could this be? How could Anton be so calm? How could she cope with this on top of the loss of her husband? It all seemed too much, and her mind was reeling. Then suddenly, the thought came through loud and clear.
“Pull yourself together, tigress! Anton is going to need you!”
Jenna blinked, sure that Anton and the doctor would have heard the loud voice that had sounded in her ear, but they continued as though they hadn’t heard anything.
“Dad, you don’t have to go back. You can stay down here with us while you go through the treatments,” Jenna found herself saying.
Anton smiled at her and said, “Thank you, but no. I’ll fight this battle in familiar territory. It’s not that long of a drive or flight, and you and the cubs are welcome anytime.” The older tiger was speaking as casually as if he were inviting them up for a weekend visit.
Jenna smiled back, still pushing the tears down, and nodded, but she was thinking, “We’ll see, you stubborn old tiger. Somebody’s going to be there for you while you go through this, whether you like it or not.”
“Mr. O’Whitt,” Dr. Sologen continued, “Once you have located the doctor you wish to use, contact me at the address on my card and I’ll send the records of what I’ve found to them.”
“All right, I’ll do that,” Anton replied as he stood to leave.
“And I’ll see that he does,” said Jenna, also standing. Anton glanced sharply at her, but he realized she was only watching out for him, so he didn’t protest.
They shook paws and thanked the meerkat for his help, and then turned and walked out of the office. Neither spoke for a long time as they left the building and drove toward home.
At last Anton broke the silence, saying, “Jenna, not a word of this to anyone, especially Alex. I’ll tell anyone I want to know in my own time. Promise me?”
The earnest look in his eyes convinced Jenna not to protest, so she answered, “Okay Dad, in your own time.”
They drove on in silence, each struggling to deal with their thoughts and emotions.
# # #
Billy Panelli sat at his desk at Kentiger Executive Air Service’s office at Bluegrass Field. He’d been reviewing fuel usage and costs for the business, which provided charter flights for businesses and individuals who didn’t have their own aircraft, as well as light cargo transportation. He was now crunching numbers to see if buying fuel in bulk allotments would work better than their current as-used purchasing. The suggestion had come from their business manager, and Billy wanted to be sure before sending the idea on to Alex for his approval.
He paused to rub the bridge of his nose and readjust the reading glasses he used. Billy’s distance vision was as sharp as ever, but he was at the time in his life where he couldn’t hold reading material to see it, as his arms weren’t long enough. The glasses were a fairly recent addition, and he wasn’t used to them yet.
Presently, a knock on his door raised Billy from his concentration.
“Come,” he said, glad for the break.
The door opened and Duncan Jetter, the business manager and chief pilot for Kentiger, stepped in.
“Hello Billy, got a few minutes?” the leopard said.
“Sure Duncan, have a seat. I was just going over your figures for the bulk lot fuel purchasing proposal. D’you really think it’ll save that much?” Billy said, steepling his fingers in front of him. Duncan was, for the most part, serious and professional. Billy didn’t joke around too much with him, although he had a feeling there was a lighter side to the fur that most at work didn’t get to see.
“Yes sir, I do, especially if we watch the market fluctuations and catch the price right. It’ll help smooth our cash flow, and offset some of the higher prices we’re paying when we refuel at destination,” Duncan replied as he sat down across the desk from Billy.
“I’ve gone over the proposal, and it looks good to me,” Billy said as he moved to close the folder in front of him, “I’ll fax it to Alex, and if he has no problems with it, we’ll plan on starting the process the beginning of the month. Have you got a supplier in mind, or do you want to bid it out?”
“Bluegrass distributing will probably get it, but I think I’ll shop it around and see how low we can get it without losing good service. Now that you’ve given the okay, I’ll start right away,” Duncan said with a slight smile on his muzzle as he anticipated the boost to the company.
Billy blinked and said, “Whoa up a minute. I said Alex had to approve this, too.”
Duncan shrugged, his tail slowly doing a relaxed curl behind his chair, “I thought that would just be a technicality. Maj—, ah, no, it’s Lieutenant Colonel now, right?”
Billy nodded, a slight frown crossing his face.
“Lt. Col. O’Whitt has been mostly a silent partner, from what I’ve seen. You always make the decisions,” the leopard said. He had the feeling he had just blundered, and his tail now held rigid behind him. He wanted to hear what Billy had to say before he started on any kind of apology, though.
Billy looked thoughtful for a few seconds, his ear flicking idly as his tail slowly waved.
Deciding on a way to proceed, Billy said, “Duncan, I’m sorry. It appears I’ve kept you out of the loop. Alex has had input into and signed off on every major thing that’s happened here at Kentiger ever since we bought out Jackie Lupus and Thomas Bruinetti. He is co-owner and far from a silent partner. I haven’t filled you in on all that because you always seemed fine with the final decisions we’ve made.”
Duncan took this in, and then said, “I hadn’t realized. I guess it only makes sense that he’d want strategic input. Since he’s never here in person, I assumed that he was just a silent partner who let you run things.”
Billy smiled and said, “Well, you’ll be seeing more of him soon. He has orders to Test Pilot School at Edwards AFB in California. Once he’s settled in back here in the States, I’m sure he’ll be in here on his way through to see his family in West Virginia. It’s good we talked about it. It’ll save you misjudging him when you meet him. Alex is as easygoing as they come, but no use getting off on the wrong foot.”
“I guess that’s also why I thought he was a silent partner,” Duncan stated, “I’ve worked for you for nearly 6 years, and I’ve yet to meet him.”
“Alex has been in and out several times, but he’s been on overseas assignments so much, it’s never been for very long. I guess you just never crossed paths,” Billy said, looking thoughtful, “I guess I should have made sure, but I thought you and he had met. Hmm, I don’t think he’s met Loni yet, either. We just hired her in the last expansion, and I don’t think Alex has been in since then.”
“Well then, I’ll look forward to meeting him,” Duncan said, and then he looked at Billy with a very earnest expression. Billy had always said to state your mind, but he hoped what he was about to say wouldn’t cause too much of a stir with his boss.
“I don’t expect he’ll get much involved in the day-to-day ops,” the leopard said.
“Probably not,” Billy said, meeting the fur’s gaze to insure he was understood, “but Duncan, don’t forget, he is half-owner. When he’s here, he’s to get the same respect and courtesy you’d give me.”
Duncan nodded, his tail relaxing again. He was, above all, a professional. He managed the day-to-day operations at Kentiger, and Billy gave no indication of any change to that with the other partner’s greater presence. He hoped that Lt. Col. O’Whitt wouldn’t be too much of a disruption whenever he came by. He’d worked hard to get and keep Kentiger operating like a well-oiled machine, and he didn’t want anything getting stirred up too much.
Billy was looking at Duncan expectantly, awaiting him to continue what he came into the office for.
Duncan now smiled and handed Billy a set of fax sheets. Billy held the papers out to look at them through his reading glasses. After several seconds, the tiger broke into a broad grin.
Duncan smiled wider and said, “Looks like your toys will be ready for you and Col. O’Whitt shortly after he comes back.”
“Yep,” Billy agreed, satisfied with what he read, “the work on the flaps, gear doors, speed brakes, and slats is almost done. The new engines arrived there yesterday. That’ll be a pretty penny out of the account. They anticipate being able to start the paint job on both aircraft in about 3 months. They contacted Alex two weeks ago to double check the specs with him. I can’t wait!”
Duncan continued to smile at the tiger’s enthusiasm, saying, “You really think these will be a good marketing tool, or are they just an excuse to go out on the airshow circuit?”
“Marketing tool, absolutely,” Billy sad with a wink.
Duncan snorted and actually laughed, shaking his head.
“Billy, you are certainly entertaining to work for,” He said.
Still smiling, Billy replied, “let’s see, entertainment value, have to factor that into the benefits package.”
Duncan snorted again, and then continued.
“Are you still planning a sales trip tomorrow through the weekend?”
“Yep, got the flight plan ready and the Aerostar is rarin’ to go,” Billy replied.
“I still think you should check Columbus for leads. Intermountain doesn’t market or advertise, so there’s bound to be some open business,” Duncan said. They had been over that idea before, but he thought it worthwhile to remind his boss about the opportunity.
Billy sighed, and then said, “Matt Barstock has Columbus all tied up. He’s friends with all the money furs up there, so he doesn’t need to do much marketing. Everybody who’d need an executive charter up there would just call the one they’d heard the big kalis talk about. He’s even been pulling some government contracts with an old C-130 he keeps in the air. No, Columbus will have to wait until we can get some word of mouth going there. We’re just starting to compete with them a bit in Cincinnati, and I’ve got three calls in Dayton this trip, so let’s just give that market some time.”
Duncan, a rueful look on his face, said, “Ah, Boss, you’re just being soft on your old classmate.”
Billy’s smile sharpened and his eyes took on a competitive gleam as he said, “Not on your life! It’d be a disservice to Matt. If he beats me in a market, or I beat him, it’s got to be done fairly. I might enjoy tweaking his tail by getting some of his business, but I’d never insult him by not treating him as an equal. He may not be so aggressive in his marketing, but he’s still a good fur.”
Duncan just nodded, knowing that market would have to wait.
Billy looked pensive for a few seconds, and then said absently, “I should give him a call sometime, haven’t talked to him in years.”
Duncan shifted in his chair, clearing his tail from it in anticipation of their meeting ending.
“Well, if I don’t see you later, have a safe and productive trip. I’ll be waiting for your word to start the bulk fuel purchase,” the leopard said as he stood to leave.
“Sure thing, Duncan, keep ‘em up and safe,” Billy replied, breaking from his reverie.
As Duncan left the office, Billy grabbed the next folder in his Inbox, his mind back on the business at paw.
END OF CHAPTER 7