Billionaire and the Sisters Ch. 96

Gil looked at me in awe. After we got through the introductions, some small talk, and a project update, he said, "You got Miles Stone moved, didn't you?"

I shrugged. "My understanding is that he moved of his own accord."

"But you made it happen. You talked to him ... said something to him. I knew about this project, and he could have done it blindfolded and been great at it. Now, he's out in the desert on a sanitation depot rebuild."

I shrugged again, "Sounds interesting. Are the inspectors all male?"

Gil blanched, "Errr, yeah. Why?"

"Who's the lead inspector on this condo project? The inspector of all inspectors?"

"Her name is Valerie Manby. She's sharp; knows her stuff."

I continued to look at Gil with a smirk on my face. Sixty seconds passed.

Finally, he got it. "Oh, shit. He didn't, did he?"

I shrugged, "I'm only a consultant who flies in now and then. I don't see all the problems and issues. I have to rely on people to do the right things to make things happen in the right way. Sometimes they let other motivations or perversions drive their behavior, and that's bad."

"Did you find out what he'd done to her and then get him booted?"

I feigned shock, "I don't have that kind of power; at least I don't think I do. Miles and I did have some frank discussions about the interpersonal relations between a leader, the real estate developers, his construction team, and the symbiotic relationship that also must be achieved with the city inspectors, who must be kept happy at all times."

Gil was nodding his head. He'd figured it out, and that was one purpose of my visit to see what the project atmosphere was.

I saw Valerie Manby the next morning at her office in the city hall annex. She greeted me warmly and with a huge grin.

I explained that I wanted to be sure that'everything' pertaining to our project was to her liking. She understood immediately and smiled.

"Elsa, things have never been better. Gil Fearn is a nice man. He is a fast learner. He's got all the theoretical project management skills and is now getting the real world thrust down his throat. Lots of people are working to make him a success on this job ... and I'm one of them. He is so grateful for suggestions. He writes everything down or dictates it into his cell phone. When we see something that needs attention and mention it, he's on it instantly, and I know without even checking that it'll be fixed within a couple of days."

"So, the list that existed about a month or two ago ...?"

"It's all water under the bridge. Things got fixed, issues resolved, and reworks were completed in a timely way. I've got a short list of about a dozen things I'll check on come Friday when I'm next on site. Our HVAC, plumbing, and electrical inspectors tell me they're on top of things and have no issues with any of the work. The structural stuff is pretty well complete until the drywall starts, and that part has been signed off until the materials arrive on the job site. This is one of the best-run projects in the city. You can be proud of your team."

"It's not really 'my' team, but we're part of trying to make it a success. So, I shouldn't worry aboutanything?" I smiled as I put emphasis on my last word.

"Not as far as the city is concerned. This is a smooth running project with at worst a few minor issues that I know Gil Fearn will have fixed by the end of the week."

"And what about as far as Valerie is concerned?"

She smiled. "Thank you for asking. That's a solid 'No,' unlike the last time we talked. Not a single issue or concern. In fact, I like going out to the site and interacting with the men and women there. We have a lot of respect for each other."

We stood and gave each other a polite handshake and then to my surprise, a hug. I made some noises about letting me know ifanything started to head in an undesirable direction. I made sure she got another one of my business cards. The things I'd hoped for about the project had taken place, and it only took a few tasteful comments and suggestions, a few months earlier.

I was in the left seat in the Cessna Citation two hours later at eleven a.m. local time, glad the two meetings in Las Vegas had gone so well and so quickly. I could be home in the city for dinner. I called in on the McCarran Clearance Delivery frequency and picked up my IFR clearance from Las Vegas through to The Meadows airport. I'd already checked the weather and I expected plenty of room for the GPS approach to The Meadows under a broken cloud layer and scattered showers. The spring rains had arrived at the city.

Ground Control brought me to the takeoff end of the runway, and after a quick call to the tower after going through my checklists I was off into the wild blue yonder heading directly home on a GPS route direct to The Meadows airport and home.

I went through my approach and landing checklists one more time Just under three hours later as I lined up for landing about eight miles from The Meadows. I could see the runway, even through a gray haze and a light shower knowing the terrain as well as I did. I blinked on the runway lights since the day was gray and the lights aided my depth perception.

As I crossed my final approach fix, which at some airports would be the five-mile-from-runway-threshold fix or the outer marker, I set the flaps and lowered the landing gear and ran through my entire checklist again saying everything out loud.

I saw that I had a problem when I got to the checklist item requiring me to validate three green lights for the landing gear. I had a red light - a warning light - on my landing gear deployment. The right main gear indicator was showing that the wheel hadn't deployed.

Aloud, I sharply cursed. "Shit. Now what?"