Find Me a Find, Catch Me a Catch

Chapter 8 - They Call Me Bell, They Call Me Stacey

Lena nodded. "So, it celebrates the victory of regaining the temple?" Lena asked.

Kate shook her head. "No, we don't celebrate military victory. It celebrates the miracle of the oil. To rededicate the temple, they needed oil for the menorah, but very little oil was left that hadn't been defiled by the Greeks. They only had enough oil for one day, but it burned for eight days which was enough time to prepare a fresh supply of oil. That's what the holiday commemorates. Jews don't glorify war."

"Ah." Lena nodded sagely. "I wish the same could be said of my religion. I wish the same could be said of my family. Luthors glorify every victory no matter the cost to others. We've certainly done much harm to others through violence."

"You do realize my father is a colonel, and my stepmother owns Hamilton Arms. Which one of our families do you think has led to more of the physical violence of others?"

With one eyebrow quirked up, Lena replied, "If you were to take a poll as to whose family had led to the harm of more people, the Kanes or the Luthors, Who do you think more than 99% of the people would say if not 100%?"

Smiling, Kate replied, "Hey, the one thing you can always count on people to be is ignorant."

Kate and Lena joined in the ceremony, Lena quietly while Kate took part in the blessings. When they were done, the couple joined people in conversations and then began to mingle about the room. It was early in the evening, and the meet and greet had just started.

Kara stood by the buffet table feeding her mouth and her nerves. As always, the food was spectacular. There was a selection of potstickers which had been ordered before she and Lena had their not so little falling out. The Kryptonian was making a decent dent in them and putting the servers through their paces as the crew tried to keep up with one woman's appetite. There were also several fried foods all labeled. Of course, there were latkes, pancakes made of grated potato. Near them were a similar dish called laviva which were slices of fried potato. The bimuelos, a deep fried fritter sprinkled in powdered sugar, were piled high on a platter. There were also sfenj, a non-perfectly shaped yeast doughnut dipped in honey. Last, but certainly not least, were the sufganiyot. These cream filled doughnuts were soft and fluffy, and several lined the edges of Kara's plate and were all going quickly from table to plate through mouth, and into stomach.

Plate in hand, Kara stood watching the crowd. She lowered her glasses and looked out and about the surrounding area for anyone or anything suspicious or untoward. She watched the woman she was guarding work the room, talking to investors and potential investors brought as plus ones with an easy grace gained from a lifetime of training and perhaps a genetic trait that was indeed her 'Luthor genes'. Then Kara watched the redhead. Not quite as masterful in the investor crowd but still comfortable and charming, Kate Kane had an easy smile and ready wit that charmed all with whom she came into contact...all but one alien who seemed to have an easily forgettable name.

The two women stood talking to two older gentlemen. They were bankers, and they were discussing loans and the like, and Kate said, "Oh, I know what you mean. I went to the bank last month for a loan. It wasn't a lot. I just needed $4,000. You know how that is." There was a bit of an awkward silence in the group at that, but Kate continued on unfazed. "The loan officer there knows me well, knows my family, and agreed readily enough, but said they'd still need some collateral before they could just hand over money like that. Well, I pulled out the keys for my car, it's a 2017 Porsche 911 Carrera, and handed them over. I told her it was parked in the lot, and they were welcome to keep it as collateral until I returned. Really it was only a short loan, a few weeks while I did some traveling and until my money was freed up again. It's a bit of an embarrassing subject, but anyway, they had no problem writing the loan. When I came back and paid off the loan and the $11 in interest, the manager sat down with me. Apparently, they had looked at my finances in my absences and noted that there was no way I needed a loan for $4,000. He's a business friend of my mother's, so he just asked me why I borrowed the money." Kate paused, smiling a bit as she sipped at her drink, her eyes sparkling as she watched her audience. Then she shrugged. "It was really quite simple, so I explained it to him. My family didn't get rich by being wasteful. Where else can you park your car in National City for three weeks for $11?" She cocked her head to the side and grinned.