Michael shook his head.  He looked at Melissa and slid the phone towards her. He pointed a finger at her briefly.

"You're on."

Melissa took the phone and spoke into it.

"Robert, is it?" she said with her posh British accent, "My name is Melissa and I'm working with a company called Lindgren. You may have heard of us. Can I have your surname please?"

She reached for a hotel branded pad of paper, grabbed off a pen and tore off a page (so not to leave traces on the next sheet), ready to write.

A few hours later and all five of you were sitting around a table together. Robert had his bags beside him ready to go wherever the job required. Karl had regained consciousness, but was nursing a bit of a hang over - unusual for the veteran Norwegian. It seemed McClan like his bourbon a touch stronger than most.

Karl threw a few painkillers down his throat and washed them down with a large amount of bottled water.
"So, now you're on board, tell us more about yourself Robert."
"While we're talking, we also need to discuss where we go next. I'm thinking Maine to chase down Smith."

Was it Maine or Seattle? Maybe I had more to drink than I thought. Where are you currently Robert?

"I'm stateside currently...New York to be precise."

Good to know so we can coordinate travel. I'm Eric Davis by the way.

"Pleased to make your acquaintance sir.  Might I inquire as to your specialties?"

I make things not go boom.

"Ahhh...I have worked with several technicians, such as yourself.  Nasty line of work, if I do say."

"Especially when things go wrong", Melissa said, "That can result in quite a mess. I understand you're a bit of a lab geek. May I ask what you specialise in".

She took a sip of her fancy umbrella drink through the straw and wiped a bit of sweat from her brow. It was far too humid for her tastes.

"Much of my work has been 'classified', to say the least, but I'm rather familiar with Level 5 BioRad suits, if that helps to answer your question.  I've also spent time in several remote medic stations in the middle east studying the effects from chemical attacks."

"I make things blow up, kill them dead, and do it all just as well in the water."
"Anyway, lets get moving and talk more on the way. Melissa, where are we going and how long to get there?"

"I think we need to see this Smith guy in Portland", Melissa said, reaching into her handbag and pulling out her smart phone. The place had WiFi, although it wasn't brilliant and the government may well be monitoring the use of it.

No change there,then

After four slow minutes of running the flight application, she found it.

"Got it. There's a flight leaving at 11am tomorrow from here to San Francisco. Six hours on Cubana, getting in at two o'clock local time... then we'll need to get an internal flight or something to Portland from there".

After a couple of minutes trying to book them online, she put her phone done on a table rather heavily.

"One of us will need to go to the airport to buy the tickets though. Stupid thing won't work properly. This country is still stuck in the 1950s".

And I don't know that I'd trust the front desk here. I'm willing to take a ride.

"When you've figured out your travel arrangements, let me know.  I can meet you there."

"Well, Eric", Melissa said, "You've just volunteered to go to the airport. See what you can get us and please get us something better than 'cattle class' if possible, OK?"

I'll see what I can do, the job does only pay so much though. Grabing his hat and heading for the door.

"San Francisco? Isn't that on the west coast?"

In reply to Karl Braende (msg # 126):

"Yes", Melissa replied, "Is that an issue at all?"

"Are you sure that's where we need to go?  McClan said Smith was in Maine. East coast, near Canada.  San Francisco is out of our way.  Unless you just want to change planes to shake off any tails.", Palmer said.

"There's a Portland in Maine? I though Portland was in Oregon. You know, where Portlandia was set?" Melissa said, now looking very confused, "Seriously, can't you Americans coordinate your town names?"

So, what do flights look like into Maine or should we go into Boston?

Melissa started tapping her smart phone and waited for the results to come through.

"I'm guessing that going to Boston might be best... but I'll see what comes up on this phone. Stupid wi-fi... What's our plan when we get to Maine?"

While I'm going to or coming back from the airport I'll check for an internet cafe and reserve us a car.