you.â
Wade, looking nervous, remained seated. Once everyone was out of the room, Wade said, âYes, Mr. King?â
âIâve decided who I want to go to Afghanistan.â
âDo you want me to make the call, or do you want to?â
âTell me what you think. I think Simon is the best for the job. However, he shouldnât go alone. Inform Simon that I want him to head the satellite office, but I want Uriah to go with him to assist. Those two together will have the office up and running in no time.â
âBut what about the Shreveport office? Who should we get to run it in Uriahâs absence?â
âUriah can do both. The bulk of the responsibility in the Afghanistan office will be Simonâs, so I donât see why Uriah canât run the show remotely. Do you?â David leaned back in his chair while waiting on Wadeâs response.
Wade appeared to be in deep thought. âI guess it can work.â
âGuess? I didnât get this far by guessing. I want you to be sure.â
âYes, Mr. King. Itâll work. Weâll make it work.â Wade sounded much more certain this time.
âGood. Now, make those phone calls. When you get Uriah on the phone, transfer the call to my office phone. Iâll be in there.â
David got up and left Wade alone to make the phone calls.
âMr. King, you have a visitor,â Trisha, his secretary, said as he walked past her desk.
âIn my office? You know I donât like people in my office when Iâm not there.â
Trisha opened her mouth to speak, but David had left her desk and was inside his office before she could say anything. Davidâs blood pressure lowered when he saw his good friend Nathan McDaniel turn around.
âWhatâs up, my man?â Nathan asked.
David gave Nathan one of their fraternity handshakes. Nathan and David had met in college and had been best friends ever since. Nathan was one of the few people David knew who would keep it real with him. Most people were too busy trying to kiss up to him to tell him the truth.
Trishaâs voice came over the intercom. âUriah Richards is on the phone for you.â
âPut him through,â David responded, then said to Nathan, âMan, give me a minute.â
David took a seat and swiveled his chair around. âUriah, how are things with your lovely wife?â He paused and listened to Uriah. âYes, I heard the good news.â Apparently, Sheba hadnât told Uriah that he was there when Delilah opened her eyes. He shifted the conversation to the job. âI wanted to tell you congratulations on your new position.â
After a few minutes, David ended the call. He turned his chair around, and Nathan was looking at him suspiciously.
âMan, what are you up to?â Nathan knew David better than anyone, and David knew it was hard to hide something from him. He wasnât surprised that Nathan had picked up on Davidâs ulterior motives.
âNothing. Iâm innocent,â David said.
Nathan shook his head. âThou protests too much.â
Chapter 9
âYouâre going where?â Sheba shouted.
Uriah reached for her, but Sheba jerked her body away from his embrace. âItâs only for a few months. Iâll be going back and forth between here and Afghanistan.â
âWhat am I supposed to do in the meantime? You have a wife. You have responsibilities here.â She folded her arms. How could Uriah abandon her when she needed him the most?
âBaby, with the Internet, we can Skype. Iâll be gone for maybe six months at first.â
âSix months? Thatâs like a lifetime. The longest weâve ever been apart is three days. Count them.â Sheba used her fingers to illustrate her point. âOne.â One finger popped up. âTwo.â She held up a second finger. âThree.â She now held up three fingers in total.
âItâs not as bad as