Adolph Meyer

It had been 10 days since they had instituted the smoking ban. One last bit of freedom, one last moment of calm. Geneva inhaled the last tobacco smoke tinged with filter; she realized the inmates were dealing better with it than she was. But they had quit cold turkey and she was only quitting for 10 hours at a time. Stubbing out the butt she gathered the utility belt from the passengers seat of the car. Lock and double-check the car. Buckle on the belt and pin on the ID card. Straighten: pants, shirt, belt, collar. She walked up the long walk way that lead to the wide cement stairs up either side. For a single story concrete and brick building it looked strangely antebellum. All it was missing was the gabled roof and the balconies, but the front was so tall it could have been designed for balconies. The walk way followed half way around the pillared front to a door on either side. The one story building was actually laid out like a series of cubes but Geneva had always thought it was laid out like a maze. You entered either side through one set of huge glass doors and then another. In between there was a few frightening seconds where one had to close before the other opened. In-between you knew what it was like to be a window display or an oddity on exhibit. Geneva always stood perfectly still for the 10 second count before the next door made a subtle click and allowed her to step into the lobby. Inside the building had changed a lot but this was still a lobby. The architect’s model was no longer there on display under glass. That would be silly, providing the inmates and guests with a visual layout of the complex.
She walked over to dispatch. "Hey Joey"
He looked up from the monitors crammed into a tiny room. His bulky frame barely able to turn without bouncing a shoulder off one of the unit lock down switches on the wall. "Checking in Geneva?" She nodded while swiping her card and signing in. Joey turned again slamming his shoulder into the key box "Damn! Why did they have it cram all the equipment into here?" Geneva looked up without a smile "The biggest switchboard in town lived in that room" Joey stopped rubbing his shoulder and looked around the room "I guess there was all kinds of wiring leading into here then" a door banged in the distance echoing down the wide empty hall. Joey looked thoughtful. “So what happened to the switchboard?" Geneva shrugged. "I don't know what happened to the physical thing, but the network became the first Internet dial up for the city." the echo bounced around the polished floor, down off the high ceiling seeming to settle near Geneva's feet. She stepped on the spot like she was pinning a loose leaf or runaway paper. JoAnn walked up, following the echo. "Giving Joey a history lesson?" She said smiling. JoAnn was more often than not the cause of the echo. She was loud and liked to stir the emptiness with noise, usually her loud voice. "Yeah, she's giving me a reason why this damn tiny room has all the controls and electronics"
“It's not that tiny Joey. You’re just huge.”
Joey squared his shoulders with pride taking up even more space "How does she know so much anyway?"
Geneva interrupted before JoAnn could answer, “I’m a local, not a transplant.”
“Right. I keep forgetting you didn’t come with the job like most of us…the job came to you.” Joey smiled at her.
Geneva smiled a half embarrassed smile at Joey as the words she said so often came from his mouth. “Sometimes I wonder if they hired me because I'm a woman or because I already knew the building"
"Both" JoAnn’s casual voice bellowed "You are in unit D today.”
Geneva walked down the echoing hall that JoAnn had just come from. Geneva didn’t find it odd that the echo was not from the last words. She followed the echo of “Unit D” around the corner as if it were to escort her there.
Joey squinted into the sunlight and called down the hall after her. “See ya for dinner?” Her figure seemed to wave an affirmative back towards him.
She walked away making less noise than a slight breeze rubbing up against a decorative wind chime. The walls and floors seemed to absorb her voice, her footsteps never seemed to reverberate or carry. Only a tiny jingle of keys or loose change and the occasional radio call betrayed her presence.

The hall leads her through the unlocked double doors and around the corner. Geneva followed it thru' the secure door into the cubes. Hallways crossing hallways like graph paper. Tiny courtyards enclosed by hallways and old offices. More secure double doors with single hallways wide enough to have 3 gurneys side by side. Then another door to another secure unit. The inmates and guards of Unit D would be waiting for her, Geneva looked at her watch. It used to be smoke break now it was just time in the yard. Geneva didn’t know why they still did it. It wasn’t like the exercise time when they were allowed out to the back (what used to be a pasture) or the side field. There was no space for games in the space where they were allowed in the early evening. It was just one of the larger courtyards created by all the squares on the graph paper. Just windows facing a bit of green below and blue above between other windows. Geneva opened the unit door and went straight to the heavy steel courtyard door to unlock it. There was only an anxious guard and one inmate by the door. In the past everyone would be waiting, anxious and ready, already having bartered and paid for the cigarettes to smoke outside. Stella, the guard. Nodded to Geneva as she swung the steel door open. The fresh air stirred the scent of jailhouse humanity. Stella turned her head as if the smell had taken a swing at her. She looked at Geneva and when she quietly spoke she looked past her “I’m gonna slip off …” Stella added the international sign for lifting a cigarette to her lips. Geneva nodded and looked outside. It was a one person job anyway. The walls were so high it would take more than 3 inmates cooperating to even get up to the roof. The chance of 2 inmates working together was improbable and besides after that there was the guard station set up on top perched like a cupola, the security cameras, the sensors, and the razor wire at the perimeter.
Very few went outside, most stayed in the day room watching TV. Geneva turned her attention to the outside. She watched the hardest core smokers walking the perimeter of the yard. Everyone had walked it and counted it. Most had walked it so much it was habit. Geneva could tell from where someone was how many more steps they would take before they would make a right angle to their path. Jo had 20 more steps to go when she sat down. Right there in the foot worn path. 40 steps and Linda would be on top of Jo. Linda frowned at the interruption of her circuit. She hesitated, looking back over her shoulder, missing a beat. One by one their pace slowed. Why Linda didn’t just cross the yard Geneva didn’t know. There was no one in the middle sunning or reading or whatever they had once done while they smoked. There was no one there anymore but just like the habit that kept these few women walking around the edge, even without smoking, kept them from deviating from their routine. Geneva lifted Jo up by her elbow and moved her out of the way before there was a pile up.
She looked at Jo, she seemed out of it, “Do you need to go to the infirmary?”
Jo came back a little and focused on Geneva “No” she sighed looking at the slightly confused women trying to regain their pace and spacing “I just got tired of it. Nothing else will change anything here. We are a hermetically sealed device of perpetual motion”
Geneva walked her back inside “There’s no such thing”
Oh sure there is, here there is. In the rest of the world maybe not, but here, here there are no sources but ourselves.
Every order has with in it the germ of destruction. Instruments strive to become out of tune. The pressed and dressed yearn to be folded and crumpled. Schedules eagerly try to compensate for the worlds interrupted rythem every so often missing a beat”.
She looked into the yard through the bright window. “There are no carriers here. We’re all perfect pitch with lifetime guarantees.”
She looked back at Geneva and laughed “Well at least 5 to 20”.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

II

Joey was already in the cafeteria when Geneva got there. His broad shoulders hunched over his tray. He had an institutional way of eating; protecting his food as he quickly ate. Geneva looked past him at her forming reflection across the room as the sky began to darken the wide glass windows. The windows were secure but when they had turned this into a prison they had built a different cafeteria for the inmates designating this one for the staff. No one was sure if it was out of consideration for the inmates or the staff. She knew that looking on the outside was sometimes more painful. The reminder you are not there, you are here behind the glass.
“I had to restrain a violent in Unit A today. Lucky girl.” Joey said as Geneva set her tray down.
“What were you doing on the Unit?” She settled into the seat one down from him to give him space.
“They had to call me in”
They would only call a male into a unit when things got really out of hand. It wasn’t that this was an experimental prison that was trying to use only female guards, it was just they had good management that paid attention. The Warden had gone to the administration and presented his own observation that after a male guard was on the unit the prisoners would become more aggressive with each other. Since some of the Administrative council had also been on the Board of Directors for the Mental Health Facility, and found the woman’s’ prison less interesting that the hospital had been, this piqued their interest. They immediately contracted for a study and found the warden was right, adding their own theory that it was due to sexual response. The rest of the council, knowing little about psychology other than Freud, were quick to concur. There were male guards in all other areas but not running the units. The fact that the prison hired mostly women got out and the Governor received accolades for addressing the problems associated with abuse of power by male guards in women’s prisons and threats of lawsuits for discrimination against men. No one outside the committee had bothered to read the report, and few knew about it. Even the guards made comments about the, as they called it, “Freud Rule”. Not realizing that the rule had nothing to do with Freud but with the understanding of the basis of the study. The warden was sure to tell every new hire how he had observed the cycle and called for the study and that was why it was preferred the male guards remain off the units. He was very proud of himself. He was also a little peeved with the Governor. The Governor had only mentioned once that it was the warden’s quick mind and careful observation that the change was ever made, and it was only made in reference to a threatened lawsuit. So the Warden made sure all the employees knew it was his idea. Unfortunately the employees didn’t care much and someone picked up on the Freudian reference made by one of the more boisterous Administrators (an expert in the field of business). Thus it was passed down as the Freud rule, which also annoyed the warden.
Geneva waited, as Joey shoveled more food in, for him to tell her what the big commotion was.
“The story is that this new prisoner, that just came in for attempted manslaughter, kept ranting and she was going on about how if they didn’t move her from a windowed room they would all be in trouble. I guess she was getting really worked up about it, but she was just pacing, pulling her hair and ranting so the guards didn’t think anything about it, but Box was watching T.V. and told her to shut up about her damned insomnia and this new gal lost it went for her and, well, you know Box. Like I said lucky girl”. Geneva did know Box. JoAnn had all the Sr. Guards read the file because they rotated all the units. It was two-fold nickname. She was large but where as most large women are round and cushiony Box was square and firm. She was also called that because to subdue anyone fighting her she would fold around them and fold up onto the floor. The last time she had done it she wasn’t in here. Box (back when she had been Heather Maltfoy) had been at a bar and when the guy came at her, she seemed to envelope him. First she dodged a punch and spun the guy around then her arms went around him like a wrestler, like a big bear hug, which everyone watching thought was hilarious. Then her knees folded into the backs of his and they went down the man spluttering and getting all red faced, everyone thought she was subduing him. Her legs pinning his. Her knees digging in on the backs of calves, her arms around him and her body bending in closer and closer bending him with her head and chest. She had folded him in two and in the end collapsing his lungs, cracking his ribs and she had strained his back so bad if he had lived it would have been a while before he could walk again. JoAnn had been right to warn the Unit A guards and all the Sr. Guards. Box wasn’t a problem. She was docile and self-contained but with that personality an unexpected, practically unbreakable, move that could end like that was more than dangerous. Joey was about the only guy big enough to manually break Box. He also had a theory that he was the only one too big for her to use that move on, but Geneva had her doubts. Joey was taller and wider but Box’s arms were long. Unusually long. She could scratch her knee without bending. The bar fight had actually started over something like that. The guy called her an Ape she said at least she wasn’t a knuckle dragger, etc, etc.
Joey had just finished his story when a call crackled over several radios in the cafeteria. The humming sound of talk quieted and the scraping of silverware on plate stopped. There was a situation just down the hall. The Inmates cafeteria was just on the other side of the kitchen. The 2 halls were parallel linked by another hall of secure doors. Joey scooted his chair from the table. He flew back about 3 feet. The Freud rule didn’t apply in the halls.
Geneva and Joey took off running down the hall. He barked into his radio and the secure doors flew open before them. The smack of their shoes, crackle of the 2-way and jingle of keys trailed behind them and running on before them meeting up with the chaos of sound that comes from more than 2 inmates cooperating. The sounds of encouragement. The rise and fall of excitement the only thing detectable in the reverberating echoes. Bouncing from wall to wall mashing words and screams. Even whispers are magnified by these halls. Loudness is eternal inside and out.
Just down the hall the past the inmates hall for the cafeteria where Geneva saw a guard dragging a bloody woman calling for infirmary support. Geneva hesitated as she briefly met the frightened eyes of the guard dragging the limp woman, her hair turning from dishwater to a bloody blond. The floor began to dip. The slope led down to a small door where a handball court use to be. In front of the locked court a group of women stand as two in the middle circle each other and then falling to the floor roll around jockeying for the top position. Top-bottom, floor-ceiling. Joey yelling, his deep reverberating tones bounce off the wall behind the semi-circle of women and back into their faces. Waking several out of their teamwork. His hand is on his nightstick and several women line up against the wall hoping to slip by after he passes but Geneva knows Joey can end this fight without her help and stops farther back. They'll need the whole story, half-truths, lies and fantasy all parsed together from those egging the main attraction on.
Geneva stopped before one of the women, eyeing the line, mentally noting who was there. They weren’t troublemakers. These women were all notorious voyeurs. “What were you watchen’ Donna?”
Donna unfolded her arms and brushed her constant rats nest of dark curls back. “I ain’t sure. I didn’t get here soon enough to get ringside” she gave a half grin.
“But you knew where to be, so who were you guessing?”
Donna looked down the line of inmates on the wall “I’ll get to them Donna, don’t worry and don’t pass the buck. You know I know you too well”
Donna shifted her eyes up and down the hall and looked back to Geneva. “Jane” She pointed her chin defiantly at Geneva “Can I go?” Geneva looked down the hall to Joey “Yeah. You 3 too” She said to the inmates who had slipped up on the walls before the brawl broke up. By now there were guards and infirmary staff moving around behind her. Two female guards were working with Joey. They took the fighters while Joey badgered the ringside for information. Geneva walked back to the hall where the guard with the frightened eyes had been. She was still there bloody but sans injured woman. Geneva looked at the ID badge “K. Kelly”. She felt badly that someone who knew this girl better wasn’t the first to her. Kelly straightened up from against the wall. Still new enough not to know Geneva didn’t refused her position an authority figure among her co-workers. “What happened Kelly?” Kelly wiped her damp hands down her thighs as she straightened into a military at ease position. “I was rear guard on the lunch detail and I heard raised voices, but they were like you hear with the lunch detain in these halls, you know? Everything in magnified” Her voice had raised and cracked at the question. She shifted and licked her lips. “But as I approached I saw a couple girls break the line towards the court. I hollered and left the line after them. When I got there she was already down, sorry I don’t know her name but she’s in the infirmary now. Another fight was brewing and the inmate down was getting trampled by the crowd so I grabbed her and backed away calling for back up.”
She shouldn’t have left the line, she should have called for back up first, she should have broken up the fight. But Geneva said nothing. It could wait. Maybe the inmate in the infirmary was badly hurt, maybe K. Kelly had saved her life, maybe there were other factors. “Did you see a weapon?”
-No, Mam
-Do you know how she was wounded?
Kelly shook her head
-It was a lot of blood, maybe a head wound?
-Alright, report to JoAnn. But go to the infirmary first.
Kelly looked less military and more confused
-B-but I’m not hurt, it’s not my b-blood.
-Precisely, and you should learn the name of the inmate you took the time to save
Geneva turned back down the hall as the two guards escorted the cuffed fighters. One hunched so far forward her chin length hair covered her face was dripping blood from an unseen wound on her face or neck kept mumbling “Its not my fault it’s the cycle”
The other glared sideways pulling at her restraints yelling “Crazy Bitch!”
Geneva admired the technique being used on the aggressive inmate as they passed but was instantly distracted by the carrying raised whispers and low voices. The rest of the “witnesses” were coming down the hall followed by several more guards, also talking and followed up by Joey. They got quiet as the passed Geneva and she fell into step next to Joey for a briefing.
-Injured?
-Just the one
-Weapon?
-Teeth
Geneva hesitated.
-That was a lot of blood…Ear?
-Throat
-Good god…Who could…
-Jane. That new girl I told you about on unit A this morning. Maybe Box was the lucky one.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


III

JoAnn was barking orders as they approached her office.
-Geneva, you talked to the Guard?
-K. Kelly
-Joey, you got the statement from the rest?
-All but the fighters and the one in the infirmary.
-Well then how the hell do you know what is going on?
-The primaries were to agitated to talk.
JoAnn stopped pacing and closed her door. “I just want to know, before we file this on paper…she took a deep breath….What the HELL is going on! Joey that’s the second incident scene you’ve been on today and one of them was on a UNIT.”
Geneva looked at Joey, mind still reeling from the information that it was a bite to the neck, JoAnn must be too. But then she hadn’t seen and probably hadn’t been briefed on the damage yet. Geneva spoke up. “I think I should check on Kelly if she hasn’t reported in to you yet. I sent her to the infirmary she was shaken up and covered in an inmates blood”
JoAnn blinked. Geneva was right JoAnn had no idea of the extent of the scene. She was just going through procedure and protocol like any other minor scuffle. Geneva recounted what she had seen, who was there, what Guard Kelly had told her as well as why she held a reprimand back till she could establish if Kelly had saved them from a liability. Joey grunted “Too bad we can’t tell right action from wrong till legal tells us” JoAnn Shifted her gaze to Joey expectantly. He looked at her “Right. So I waded in. Most of the inmates had already backed off when I got there but Dennis, Samantha from unit F and Lyeko, Jane, the new one on unit A. She’s the one who tried to take on Box, um I mean Maltfoy, Heather, this morning. That’s why I was called in…”
Jo Ann interrupted “Yes, yes, I have that report already”
“Well like I said, those two were still rolling on the floor and when Lyeko got the upper hand she was dripping blood down all over Sam, so at first I assumed she was hurt. I saw Lyeko was choking Sam, I mean Dennis, Sam but realized it was Sam’s own hands around her throat. By then I had pulled them both up and Lyeko’s face was covered in blood and snarling and snapping like a mad dog and I had them both so I…so I used some force to stun Lyeko and dropped her to cuff Sam. By then Guards; Sanders, Brooks and Tealer were there and took over restraining.” Joey looked down waiting for the reprimand he knew he deserved and when silence continued he looked up. JoAnn just sat there her loud mouth silent and slightly open. He looked back to Geneva and she nodded for him to continue. She was as fascinated by this as JoAnn but something about it was starting to seem familiar. “Then I start asking what happened and, best as I could put together quickly, it seems that they were all headed for lunch when Lyeko freaked out and jumped Tonya Gibbons from Unit F. Tonya is one of those petit ones and so she ran. Ended up going down the ramp. A couple followed thinking it was play but Sam who was further to the back of the line saw it and came running. Joey paused looking down at the floor again and turning a little pink She’s, uh, she’s a good friend of Tonya’s and a good thing to because by the time she got there Tonya was already down and Lyeko was ripping at her throat…with her teeth. Most of the girls who had gathered round thought it was you know, sex play till the blood started spurting. Sam kicked Lyeko off Tonya and then they started fighting.” He looked up. Geneva quickly closed her mouth and JoAnn’s had dropped open a bit more. He cleared his throat. JoAnn blinked a few times looking a bit like a guppy and then regained her voice enough to breath “Damn” She shuffled a few papers, looked up as if she forgot they were there, looked at them and went back to shuffling papers realizing she had been looking for something “Lyeko is only here on attempted manslaughter. What the hell set her off?” She looked off into the darkness outside her window again “Damn”.
Geneva knew how she felt. There was a-lot missing from the story. It was the most brutal sounding incident they had ever had. It was stunning. Yet Geneva kept thinking there was something familiar. Lyeko, Lyeko, Lyeko. The name tumbled around in her head. She hadn’t read the file but the name seemed so familiar. JoAnn came out of it “Alright” Her tone was forceful, she was back to giving orders “Geneva go check on inmate Dennis and guard Kelly. If Davis can talk get her statement, have the medical reports sent to my office, and I’ll call legal to see about Kelly, but I think she did the right thing in this case. Joey get together with the other 3 guards do interviews and pull together a report. Between the two of you I want statements from EVERYONE involved and witness” Geneva and Joey got up and left. Through the closed door JoAnn called out a final order “And Joey, please refrain from calling the inmates by their first name in your report.”
As they walked down the hall the buzzing in their minds was actually audible. That was how acoustic the halls were. Probably the only reason they couldn’t hear the actual words of thought was because Joeys shoes were squeaking and Geneva’s keys were bouncing against her hip as she struggled to keep up with Joey’s pace.
“When you are doing interviews, be sure to talk to Donna Martin. She and the other voyeurs knew something was up. I don’t know what or how, but they knew something” Joey responded with a grunt.
“Donna will tell you anything. She’s got a thing for you”
Geneva looked up at him sideways waiting for the blush to hit his ears. When it didn’t come she said “Look Joey, its fine. You didn’t do anything wrong. It was a combination of everyone and everything.” He looked down at her “Sure, I know, but how weird was it all, huh?” Geneva reached up to thump him on the shoulder as they split to go in two different directions “But only 3 hours left to go buddy”.

Geneva walked through the silence. It was very odd. The walls were absorbing the sound tonight, or everyone was being particularly quiet. She rounded the corridor towards the infirmary and heard a howl of pain. Already a little keyed up she jogged the rest of the way down and startled an attendant as she swung in through the doors. He jumped. “Oh. Hey” he looked reassured. He didn’t know her and she didn’t know him but they were both visibly relieved at the sight of someone else. “What’s the ruckus?” Geneva asked looking around the empty front rooms. His eyes narrowed “Those 3 that came in” he jerked his head towards the back.
-Three?
-Yeah the guard and the two inmates
-Two?
-The one with the nasty neck wound and the other with a concussion and unresponsive like catatonia
-The other one?
-Jane Lyeko
Geneva felt light headed. The room was too familiar all the sudden. It was then that it all clicked. The room. The man in the white coat with the clipboard. Jane. Everything was melting together the past the present the walls the floor.
She awoke on starchy white sheets. For a moment she wasn’t sure which was the dream or reality. Was there a past and a future. She rolled to sit up swinging her legs over the edge of the bed. She looked at her vague reflection in the window dividing the areas and noticed a strapped down inmate in the room beyond. The same hair that covered the face earlier in the corridor. “Jane”. The thought was a voice in the silence. The head turned and the glassy eyes focused with recognition for a moment. Her lips turned up at one corner in a sickly smile and moved without sound several times and then as her eyes began to glaze over again the sound came. Quiet at first and then louder and louder, like a march, she kept repeating "One on the inside one on the outside"

Something to write your adventures in

If you are reading this I’m either missing or dead
Alex blew on the script, dated it and closed the smooth wooden cover.

The journal was a gift from her sister.

Alex and her sister Meri each moved to a large city at the same time. Having left their hometown time and time again (as many young girls do) Alex was sure that this time there would be no moving back. It felt different. After a week of showing up at Meri’s to routinely help her sort for storage and moving she could tell it was the same for Meri.
The gift exchange hadn’t been planned but being sisters, and sisters being what they are, they had bought each other gifts. When Alex found out that Meri was moving, following a job to become a chef, she went out and bought her a set of Sabatier knives. It sat at Alex’s feet in a bag by the Formica table where they had coffee every morning before packing.

“Stop calling me that. I’m not a chef. I’m working for a chef. I’m just a cook”

Alex sighed exhaling smoke “Chef”. She looked at the steam trying to form a skin on her coffee and blew on it breaking it apart. “It’s all in the title. To us laymen you both do the same thing” She watched the steam creep back turning her coffee into a nighttime pond.
“It’s not the same” Meri said her humility teetering on the edge of deprecation like her spoon on the edge of her cup. “What if I were to call you a…” She paused looking through Alex’s smoke “What are you going to do?”
“I guess I’ll have an adventure” Alex stood, elbow on hip coffee in hand watching Meri sort and thought about the interview. She wasn’t quite sure what she would call herself either. “Ah, well you know politics equals crime so…a jail bird? I guess I’m a consultant of sorts”
Meri smiled with a sisterly knowledge as she plucked the cigarette from between Alex’s lips “Wanna help or just watch?”
“Fine” Alex pulled a box out of the bag by the table “where do I pack this?” and handed it to Meri. “A present for the chef”
“Funny" Meri began pealing back the wrapping paper, carefully not to tear it. She shot Alex a look. It was another form of sisterly torture and Alex knew it was her cue for the age old impatience to be exhibited like a 6 year old. “Just OPEN it!”
“But it’s such NICE wrapping paper…ooooh” She didn’t even have to open the box. For someone who was “not-a-chef” she knew her tools. At her last job she brought her own to work in a toolbox. Labeled and locked Meri had some of the most coveted knives and utensils in the kitchen. “Would a carpenter or painter use whatever was handy, whatever stock someone else provided?” Not a chef, just an artist.
Well wait” Meri bounced out of the room into the bedroom and returned with a Birdseye maple box. She handed it to Alex.
“What is this” As she admired the soft yellow wood with long loops and little winks her hand found the indented side and realizes it was a book.
“Something to write your adventures in”

As Alex is shown into the corner office on the 44th floor the man on the phone looks up: smiles and nods, never breaking stride in his conversation. The office is decorated in an industrial style. Almost everything is glass: from the large desk and table in the corner to the two giant windows facing north and east. The rest is black leather and chrome.
She stands just far enough into the office that the door closes behind her. Still on the phone, but without missing a beat, he waves to a chair. “Get the deposition and file the motion and be done with the whole thing. They’ll back down once they realize how much money we are talking about.” He looks over and smiles at Alex as if he just shared some secret and important knowledge with her. Alex smiled back and turned to look out the window.
INSERT VIEW HERE
Great to meet you Alex
You too Sir
Please, call me Terry. I need to make some fundraising calls today. Lets do that between 1:30 and 3:00. Can you have some names and numbers together for me by then?
Alex blinked looking stunned and a bit green. It’s hard to keep your composure when you’ve been thrown into a boiling stew pot, ask any lobster. “Who do you want to target first?”
Terry smiled at her as if she had just passed a test “Good. We can start with my Rolodex first. I’ll have my assistant set you up in my system so you have access. We’re going to get some campaign office software for you so you can keep track of the money and the FEC report. I’m glad you joined the team. I was hoping to have a campaign manager by now but there’s still over a year before the primary.”
He paused, taking a breath for what seemed like the first time, and pushed a button “Yes Terry” a voice came into the room
I’m gonna send Alex out to you and you get her set up with some space and whatever else she needs to win me this election” he winked at Alex.
Alex left Terry’s office shaken and stirred. What had she gotten herself into? What did she know about campaigning or filing an FEC report? Setting up events for fundraising, sure who couldn’t do that. She had enough connections in the state to cultivate some support, but she thought she’d be working with someone. Somebody had to bring something else to the table.
Terry’s assistant Erin showed Alex to an empty office around the corner. She looked Alex up and down. “I read your resume”
“oh?”
“I’m surprised you wanted a job in politics”
“I wasn’t looking for one. It just found me”
Erin shifted her gaze but still gave Alex a sidelong look “I was doing it for a while, but it’s just too much with his law practice. I can only wear so many hats”
“Oh sure” Alex agreed, “So then you can fill me in. Do you regularly do call time with him?”
“Well here and there. I mean he’ll have me get someone on the phone, and occasionally I’ll know it’s a money call”
‘How much has he raised?”
“I’m not sure. I’d have to check the account.”
“Have you done any fundraisers with him?”
“No”
“Does he have any other backing to draw from?”
“Well” she paused her mouth formed something between a smile and a smirk and Alex wondered which it was supposed to be. “There is the Law Firm. Employs 400, has 8 Sr. Partners, 20 Jr’s, about triple that in specialists, and then there are always summers.”
“Summers?”
“Interns”
“So he’s already hit up everyone in his firm then?”
“First thing” Erin interjected grinning so wide Alex wondered if it hadn’t been Erin’s idea, which made her flinch as she continued
“That may cause problems down the road”
“No. They are all really supportive about him running for office”
“That’s great, but it may be cause for review later on, or at least some cattiness from opponents.”
Erin stopped opening and closing drawers. Her eyes darted over the desk, her fingers scurried across the back of the chair, up to her necklace landing about the edges of her face like moths to her burning cheeks. Alex suddenly felt sorry for her “It’s not likely to happen though” Erin moved her eyes back to Alex’s “Well I guess that’s why he hired you” Alex watched Erin walk out as she set her folio down on the desk: looked around the bare office. Terry’s had seemed bare, not vacant, not exactly empty, but untouched like Alex’s apartment.

The excitement of the first day landed on top of her like a wet blanket as she sat at the computer creating call sheets from Terry’s Rolodex.
Name, company, work number, Cell number, call time, amount to request, amount agreed to, follow up date, amount received.
After about 50 Alex had to take a break. She looked at the floor plan “What I need is some coffee” she muttered to herself as she left her office in search of this floor’s break room. Left, straight, right? She found herself in front of Erin’s desk “Well you are definitely not the break room” Erin looked at her. “I, I was looking for the coffee” Alex stammered trying to regain her composure from failed humor. “You turned right too soon” Erin said and returned her head to behind the computer screen.
“Well as long as I’m here, do you have the campaign financials?”
Erin peaked around the edge “You’ll have to ask Terry for those”
“Okay. Thanks.”
The rest of the trip to get coffee and return to her desk was as uneventful as the rest of the morning. As Alex gathered the call sheets into a binder she realized it was 12:45. Being unfamiliar with the area and unwilling to explore so close to call time Alex realized she had to skip lunch. There was a little time left so she logged onto the Internet to look for potential donors. The Internet is an amazing resource if you know how to use it, and looking over others past FEC reports not only gets you an amazing amount of information it is also a good start for learning how to do them.
There was knock at her open door. Alex looked up and saw it was Erin. “Terry’s ready for you”. Alex glanced at her watch “I’ll be right there” She gathered up her stuff and followed behind Erin. Terry’s door was open and Erin stood outside motioning for Alex to go in. He was not on the phone this time but had someone in his office. There was the distinct feeling of a meeting at its end, and the telltale signs of a conversation meandering and becoming social. Alex stood for a moment “Sir” she interjected.
“Come in Alex, and please call me Terry. Tom I want you to meet Alex, she’s the latest addition to the campaign. Alex, Tom is one of my partners” "Great to meet you Tom" He eyed her like a hungry cat who played college football Well if she can't get money for you Terry, no one can". Tom had a laugh like Peter Lori on Helium. Much higher than a man over 40 should have, making him seem like a little girl letch. Alex laughed at the image. Terry joined in and Tom's laugh pitched higher and more panicked and creepy. Alex wondered at Terrys laugh. Did he have the same image or was it her laugh. She glanced at him. "I hope so we are about to make some calls Tom's helium villain laugh ended abruptly "Well I'll be off then” Tom began laughing again as he crossed the room to Erin.” I’ve prepared some call sheets. But I was hoping I could get familiar with the finances too. Establish a base and a goal. Terry looked towards Erin and she closed the door behind them. 'Sure as much as you can" Terry took the folder from Alex and began flipping through it. "This is good. Very good" Alex blushed for his pleasure at simple tasks. "I will eventually bind it but I had enough trouble finding the break room. "Supplies are on the 47th floor. I'll have Erin take you there later. Let's make some calls" He took out the first sheet and handed it to her. "See if you can get him on the phone. Then while I'm talking to him you go on to the next." Two hours passed that way. Alex calling on behalf of Terry: Terry asking for money: Alex writing it down to collect on later. She suddenly realized what a bookie must feel like and that politics and gambling are more of a simile then a metaphor. She was taking bets on her candidate. It was 4:15 when they finished. Terry flipped through the 'calls still to be made' pile and put down the phone “Well I've still got business to check on" You follow through on these tomorrow and see if we can collect any of that. I'll have Erin show you the mailroom and the supply room but for now why don't you call it a day. Your new to the city" He had his finger on the button to Erin "Alex is going but show her the mail room and supply room. Give her the tour." He paused a second and breathed. He was a born politician. They don't need air, their full of it. Alex gathered up the papers as Erin opened the door to show her the way.

Gary

It's 3:15 in the digital, and then it's dark. Fingers find the slit where it was.
To fingers it's a soft rubbing. To the eyes it's a scratch. Rubbing salt crystals back and forth gathering moisture to get softer and softer till the eyes are clear.
3:16. Gary felt wide-awake. He pulled aside the covers and kicked his feet to the floor fighting for space with the clothes, shoes, and clutter for the floor. His toes turn over yesterdays blue pants as he considers the brown pants left hanging in the closet. Stumbling towards the open closet he awakes C.V.. It was a sudden and unpleasant moment he and the cat shared nearly every morning. If Sheila was gonna take the kids why didn't she take the damn cat too? Sheila had let Joey name it. Joey was 2 at the time and thought his mom had been pointing to a C.D. Sheila thought it was so funny. Gary was sure that Joey missed kitty.
He dressed for work and caught the pre-dawn train.
The wind really does moan through the guts of a construction site. The would be building apprehensively complaining about future tenants.
Every time he got married he walked away with a souvenir. Like a prizefighter carrying a scar away from a fight: won or lost.
His first wife was a brilliant singer: torch and jazz. Left him with a love for music and a complete record collection he had bought for her. The second, all business, left him two dead houseplants he had brought back to life while they had lived together and a healthy drinking habit he cultivated after she left. At night when she got home they'd listen to music and get drunk. She always drank whiskey. She would always eye the bottom of an almost finished whiskey on the rocks, down the last bit and say "Have to keep that sultry sound" holding up her glass to be refilled. Gary loved those moments and after she left he kept up the tradition getting drunker and drunker till he started getting "who’s afraid of Virginia Wolf" Drunk. It was that same low point of his life that Sheila walked in. Her name reminded him of a Morphine song and he decided to fall in love with her when they first met. She took care of him and when he was better, she got pregnant and took care of the baby. Finally security in a family. When Jill, their first, died Sheila got pregnant and they had Joey, then Sheetha and everything was fine for years. As Joey got older and Sheetha needed less and less care Sheila got C.V. Gary guessed the cat must have been too independent because she left it when she took off to star in the roll of single struggling parent. Of course he still got the occasional letter bemoaning her life and demanding the money he sent every month like clockwork, letter or no.
He quit reading them when he realized it was another part of her one-man delusional show. Still trying to keep him attached as a background character. A character he felt he played in his own life often enough and didn't need reinforcement.
He looked up as he walked into the building. 47floors up was his perch. Nothing moved without his knowledge. "Manager of Shipping and receiving": Glorified mail clerk, Pha hardly. He was entrusted daily with immeasurable responsibility. Gary stepped off the elevator. It was like a tomb this early. The building breathed slowly at this hour. Still sleeping. Resting up for the busy day. He patted the softly sighing walls and began to sort, keeping an eye out for the important envelopes. Ones containing checks. Ones urgent to a case. Ones never meant to get where they were going. He was an important player in the game. His last wife, Sheila, had objected to the importance he gave to the job, but not too loudly as it gave her another plot to her pathetic life. She could safely take the moral high ground without worrying that he might mistakenly quit his job. He'd been there for too long to quit now. What and walk away from 25 years of service? He expected a good pension. She expected a big pay off.
8am and others begin to arrive, trickling in. Gary still hadn't found all the envelopes he was looking for this morning. But there was FedEx, UPS, DHL, not to mention the messenger services. Carla walked by in a Monday mood "What you staren at"
"Always looken for number Four"
Carla laughed and the Monday morning scowl lifted from her face. Gary's track record of wives was a running joke on 47 or for anyone who knew him long enough. Some had been there since the first divorce, then thru the second and third. The humor had helped him get over it. Carla had seen him crawling around in the bottom of the bottle of the second one. There had even been a time when he thought she'd be number three. She was truly just being a friend, trying to help. There were times when a joke cut to deep on a fresh wound. She was either the defender or the deliverer of the fresh slice. Either someone had no right to say that to a man, or she beat someone to the first blow. He had to let it go. Her cuts were sweeter than anyone else’s. Carla laughed as she walked into the back "Oh, I had my chance".
Gary flipped over an envelope: no shipping info, no address, just here. Gary retraced what was on top of it. Nothing to anyone working on important cases in the stack: no mixed mail, all postal, no inter office. He tucked it in the cubby above his lap and turned to the stack left from last night. Sorting into carts foe the runs. It worked out a rhythm in his head. Thunk, Swat, slap, slip. Rumbling less noticeable like his heartbeat like the increasing background noise. The humm of conversation blending with the sucking whir of the postage machine. The cymbals brushing of his sorting with the interjection of the base from packing made his frame sway. This was his daily music. His morning bit of Zen before the rounds. Drop off's, pickups of mail and gossip. Interns and associates had all the information. It was like a trail of breadcrumbs. The sooner you got to know someone the sooner you got information. It's always a mater of time and persuasion. He'd gotten the inside scoop on that city case from Ina, and catching those "about to be" mis-sent document while Myrna was out was no masterpiece, though it did pay off handsomely. He figured he must have saved the company a lot of money or a lot of embarrassment. He just knew to check. The intern trying to handle it was inept, self-proclaimed and quality tested. Add pressure to that and you have yourself a situation. Poor Kristen. Now he was on to other news. He stepped onto the elevator. Judy had just let him on to him about the internal scandal. So he knew the funds were in question and that there may be some early retirement to cover it. Gary knew more than most. He stepped off at 44 "Well hello Evelyn and a happy day to you"
"Morning Gary"
"That it is, but maybe I been up longer so it's sort of sunk in for me by now."
Evelyn set aside her make-up mirror "You got anything foe us today?"
Gary took in her surroundings. The big desk, the huge glassed in conference room with a view behind her. "Just a few. Mostly for Erin or Terry"
"Want some coffee,” She offered as she pushed on the wall behind her and an Oval Office style door opened for her to step into where she refilled her cup.
"You know it. I know you keep the good stuff back there"
Evenly smiled "Erin huh? She told me that Terry's bringing somebody else on board today."
"What for?" Gary asked stirring in the packets of sugar Evenly handed him.
"Probably his campaign"
"Oh, that" Gary laughed "Soon that'll be the joke around here stead of my wives"
Evenly laughed hard till the elevator cut her off with a ding. Gary slipped his coffee off her counter and rolled down the hall as Evenly became instant charm "Morning Mr. Johnson"
Gary thought about what he had said and sensed some truth in it. He'd have to start paying closer attention to Terry. This internal deal wouldn't break for a while and he needed something to sop up his spare time. He moved through the other floors where it seemed nothing new was going on.
10 am and break time. Gary dropped his cart off and headed back to 47. "Hey Evenly, I got a floor plan for Terry's new hire. Where does it go?"
"He put her on the south side of his office. She's probably there now."
Gary "got a move on" as he liked to call it and strutted and ducked his way out of Evelyn’s sight causing her most silent giggle to bounce off the glass and granite room behind him.
Erin was at her desk opening the morning mail he had already dropped off. On the desk before her lay checks. He passed Terry's closed office and popped his head around the corner of Alex's office. Gary put the floor plan in her desk. Most people immediately reach for the right. Gary placed it in the middle drawer, right above the lap. The last place most people look.
Off in search of Judy. His standard break of Tea and biscuits waited. His round little English girl: dark curly hair, thick glasses, and rosy cheeks, always kept a tin of cookies at her desk. Gary suspected that she only kept the cookies there so others would stop by. Gregarious and shy. She looked up as Gary neared her mahogany fortress of a cubical. "I was just on my way for tea"
Gary smiled. She said 'tea' like Audrey Heppburn in My Fair Lady. The part before they changed her. "Me too, so I'll bring the tea" Judy's apple cheeks burst into flame like firecrackers "I'll bring the biscuits". It was a daily routine, but it never seemed to grow old on her. He returned with two teas and mentioned Alex. Judy was too uninformed to speculate. He was only a wellspring of information when she had her facts. She had heard that Alex had an impressive resume. Judy changed the subject to her dog as they finished their tea and since there was nothing else he went back down to work.
He looked through the stacks. Nothing there. He walked past his desk and eyed the blank envelope tucked under his desk. Carla was watching him. "I'm eyeing lunch already"
"So you go for a change. I got this" She waved her arms in the air as if to encompass everything.
"Alright, maybe I will"
"Well get that move ON then" Carla teased as she walked into the other room. Gary grabbed his lunch and bent the envelope around it executing the move with duck out the door. "Hey Mr. Zypher" he said automatically as his mind adjusted from the feeling of a crook getting caught just on the other side of the door. Tom Zypher looked down and then everywhere but a t Gary. "I need some boxes sent out immediately. There up in my office. See to it will you Gary?” Gary wondered if the envelope would unseal from the moisture of his palm. "Got it, right now" he tucked the envelope into his pocket as he did an about face to his desk and dropped his lunch on it. "Carla I'm up in Zypher's office. I'll be back when he's done with me." He was apprehensive about leaving the mailroom to long. But everyone left the interoffice mail to him and his cart was empty and waiting for Carl to sort into. "I'll be back for the final run" he called to Carla and followed Tom down the hall to the elevator.
"I'll want you to personally package and ship them. The address in my office" Tom nodded to Evenly who was on the phone but gracing them with one of her loveliest attentive smiles. As they neared Zypher's office it began to smell of smoke. Gary had gotten use to it. Zypher joined the firm 20 years ago and Gary still saw the puzzled look on people’s faces once in a while that was either followed by a wrinkled nose or a look of desire.
"Shit" Tom brushed past Gary into his office jumping for his desk and began stabbing a cigarette that had rolled from the ashtray onto his desk still smoldering. Gary looked at all the boxes. "Mr. Zypher, you look like you 'bout to have a fire sale"
Tom looked up from his mashing "What" he said crossly. Gary gestured from the butt in his hand to the boxes. Tom relaxed, his shoulders sinking making him look older 'I just thought I'd move out the important stuff before I set my office on fire" He giggled, a little more forced and panicky than usual, setting Gary’s nerves on edge. Tom brushed the ashes off the branded papers on his desk and handed Gary an index card with an address on it. "Mark all the boxes personal and confidential once you seal and wrap them for shipping"
Gary looked at the address. Still downtown, looked like a business address "To who’s attention?"
"Mine" Tom came around the desk and put his hand on Gary's shoulder "You'll take care of this for me won't you Gary?"
"Course, but I'll be adding this to the list of favors you already owe me for"
"Do that, and keep that address with the list." Tom Zypher seemed to become suddenly and uncomfortably aware that his hand was on Gary's shoulder and snatched it back. "I'm gonna be out the rest of the afternoon so take your time but get it done." Tom nodded to the crystal decanter by the window as he stepped away backing over boxes towards the door "I know it's not ol'grandad but I'll bet it'll do once you've finished"
Either Tom Zypher knew that he occasionally swiped a glug, or this was a big favor. "Well I'll get right on this then "He called out as he surveyed the piled and the door closed.
Most of the boxes were the kind of file boxes usually sent to storage. Some lids were pressed over the surplus of capacity. They weren't numbered or catalogued as far a Gary could tell so he looked for the less full to absorb some spill over. Since Mr. Thomas Zypher was a Senior partner no one, certainly no one in the mailroom, would question him shipping off stuff. There was no real reason for him to ask a favor of Gary so the fact that he had made it suspicious. Maybe he was the one retiring and was taking these for insurance. For the company or for himself. The files appeared to be old cases. They were chronological so he figured to work backwards from the stuffed boxes. He opened the lid: paper spilled out. He began picking up copies of checks, tracking information, ledgers. The tabs on the filed documents were financials for the company. Another set of books maybe? Gary stood up. He locked the door, went across to pour himself some whiskey in a Styrofoam cup, and dumped the ashtray into the empty garbage. Sitting down at the desk he pulled the box closer to him and lit a cigarette. As he tried to make sense of all the numbers Gary realized he couldn't take them all down at once. He didn't bring the dolly, and even if he had the probably shouldn't. It was obvious that Tom didn't want anyone noticing. Gary wrapped two to take down, finished his whiskey, emptied the ashtray was into his cup, dropped his cup in the garbage and unlocked the door. He took the boxes down on the freight elevator. It opened directly into shipping and receiving and Gary dropped them on the out palate. He'd have to make several more trips like this and he'd have to take time out to do his run. "OT" Gary smacked his forehead. He should have had Zypher sign off for some overtime before he left. Next trip down he remembered the envelope. If it was another conspirator that this month may turn out to be profitable, or at least interesting.
"Where you going" Carla called after him
He held up his bag and smacked his lips "Lunch and then back to 44"
"What's he got you doing up there"
Gary saw her rolling scenario after scenario over in her unimaginative head.
"He's redecorating or something"
"Shit. That man has more décor and brick-a-brack than that whole floor does."
"Well maybe it finally got on his nerves too" Gary touched the envelope in his pocket, anxious to return to his "office for the day" and read it. "So I gotta put something in my gut or my shaky hands will drop some of that obje'de breakable."
Carla hollered after him “You want me to do your run?"
Gary popped his head back around the corner "Naw, I'll be back"
"Take your time. Maybe you'll get some OT"
"Never know" he called back down the hall to her.
On 44 Gary stopped by the new girls office. Alex still wasn’t there but there were sign she had been. He turned down the hall to Zyphers office. The door was closed. Gary couldn’t have closed it with his arms full of boxes. He knocked cautiously on the door, there was no sound from the other side so he opened the door.
Ina jumped up from tom’s chair smashing a cigarette as she did. Gary made the umming sounds small children do when someone is in trouble “I was just thinking the same thing”
Ina attempted a rescue of her brutally smashed cigarette “I know it’s awful but sometimes I don’t want to go outside. So when I know he’s gone…” She trailed off, her apologetic whine was almost cute and made Gary think if Zypher were a woman his laugh might almost be cute too. Women were amazing; they could pull off almost anything. Ina looked at him skeptically “What are you still doing here?”
Gary did a little jig between the boxes “Over Time”. She nodded and relit her bedraggled cigarette. Gary tapped his pack and one flew from the pack to his mouth. He lit it as he crossed the office to the window where he climbed onto the ledge and adjusted the exhaust vent to its widest capacity. “Drink?” He pointed to the decanter with his toe.
”It may be after hours for you…but I think he’d notice anyway”
“Your right there. I swear he marks the decanter”
They smoked in silence for a while. Ina looked up at Gary staring down at all the tiny people. “Come down from there”. He ashed in his hand and jumped down landing like a hippo. He opened his hand and tipped it over the garbage can watching the ashes flutter down on to his cup and another with Ina’s shade of lipstick. Ina looked nervous “I’d better get back to work” as she picked her way across the office “Coming?”
“Naw. Zypher asked me to come get rid of these boxes”
Ina looked around as if noticing for the first time the boxes on the floor and chairs “I don’t know how anyone can work like this.”
Gary kicked at a box “What? With liquor on the credenza and imported cigarettes on the shelf?”
He went down with two more boxes and figured on grabbing the cart for his run so he came through the main room bumping into Erin.
“Gary, this is Alex. She works with Terry so if we get any envelopes marked U.S. Senate give them to her”. Gary moved past them with the boxes and set them down “Welcome Alex. If you need anything just let me know.”
“Well I’ve got nothing in my office”
“Nothing? Not even a floor plan?”
Alex smiled “No, your right. I found that first thing. Thank you if that was your doing.”
“Anything to help”
Erin interjected “Supplies are right around the corner” she told Alex “We’re going there next” she informed Gary as she eyed the boxes he had walked in with. Gary had to het Erin’s nosey butt out of there. “There are some empty boxes in the hall” he showed them through the door. “Lets get you one for the supplies you’ll need to take back. Better yet just give them to me and I’ll bring them up on my cart. I have one last run to do anyhow.”
“I really appreciate it”
“That’s his charm” Erin said coolly.
Gary made a face over her shoulder. Stern and tight mimicking what he thought of as Erin’s schoolmarm charm. Alex’s lip quivered and her eyes shone with moisture.
“We also copy, collate, bind, fax, messenger, etc. Anytime you need an assistant for a project you come to us.” Carla stood in the supply room doorway talking to Jeff. “Carla quit bugging bumpy and get back to work. Alex this is Jeff. We call him bumpy cause he’s always hitting his big ‘ol head on the shelves in here. Once we found him napping in the middle of the floor with a bump the size of a goose egg. Jeff claimed he was knocked out, but we all knew that it would take a computer or one of those old IBM typewriters to fall on that head before he’d lose consciousness.”
Alex and Jeff laughed. Gary handed a box to Jeff over Erin’s head “Give her everything she needs to set up house here. Ladies I’ll be in the mailroom if you need me”. He hurried back to the boxes and moved them to the palate. There we already ten there. He looked back towards the door and saw Alex in the doorway shifting a heavy box. “What’cha need hon” Carla asked. “Gary said he’d cart this up for me.”
Gary came around the corner. “Hup, yah. Give it here girley girl, I’ll be by with it in a few “
“Seems you’re on box detail today” Carla mused as she clocked out. “Two and a half hours of overtime so far today. How late you stayen?”
Gary had his run and two more boxes “Maybe I can stretch it for an other hour”
“Well I’m getting out of here too” Alex said to Carla.
“I’ll be happy to set your things in your office. That should take me an hour” he said winking at Carla.

Can you believe it's only day two?

When Alex arrived the next morning she found her office unpacked and looking like a place of business. This was certainly Gary’s doing. She made a mental note to thank him later. It felt more productive already. And she was detecting a sense of belonging. Alex had set up a P.O. box on the way into the office. It was better to keep his business separate from his campaign as much as possible. Alex settled in and began following up on the calls from yesterday. Call: remind of promised support; supply pep talk; give the new P.O. box address, thank for support. Most of the calls went that way. One call did provide an opportunity for an event. The gentleman had promised support to Terry but when Alex called to collect he Hemmed and Hawed. He wasn’t sure with so many players on the field and it being so early. He couldn’t afford to give to every campaign, which he’d need to do for business reasons. “It’s just not a good investment at this time” he paused “but Terry is a good friend” he relented.
Alex convinced him to host an event. “You could raise 10K and it wouldn’t come from your pocket. You could support Terry later with a personal check when he’s made it through the primary. But he’ll have a better shot if you do something for him now.”
“It makes sense” he said, “Everyone knows I’m friends with Terry and they would expect me to do something. They don’t need to know I’m not ponying up”
Alex laughed with him.
“But you will in a manner of speaking. Your space, food and beverage will be an in kind contribution. More effort, less pocket. You could do a quick cocktail thing after work.”
Alex encouraged an in home gathering of social associates as opposed to business associates at work. While the latter usually provided larger amounts of cash, the former tended to expand contacts, provide more exposure and produce more raisers. It was really a matter of the short run verses the long run. Alex had to finesse them to that decision. It had to be all the raisers idea, even if Alex was the one to orchestrate it. Settling on a date in the beginning of next month and with his promise to send her his list of guests the got off the phone. Lists were everything. If you had the names and information you could expand a database. The database was what made consultants worthwhile. Alex had just helped the raiser to understand that his time was too valuable. It made more sense for her to create the invite, send it out, receive the RSVP’s, make the nametags, etc. When it’s broken down for someone they tend to quickly give up control. She had four weeks to pull it all together. All he had to do was have his house cleaned and order the hors d'oeuvres. It showed signs of being a good event. When she had offered to recommend a caterer he told her he had one he always used. Alex wrote up the brief notes and arrangements and a “Save the Date”: an informal form of invitation. Working up a schedule for call time was hard. Setting it up for once a week the first month, then twice a week the second, and then every other day. It would be something Terry would have to ease into and get use to doing. Even then Alex wanted to do every day but would have to feel it out. Erin had told her everyone was very supportive but that had yet to be put to the test of time. As the partnership weighed the free advertising –vs- the # of cases Terry assigned to Jr’s , or the amount of business he wasn’t bringing in. Alex had to consider all this. There was still time though and maybe Terry could balance all of this.
Alex looked at he clock and stretched. It was only 10:30 but on top of everything else she was half way through the calls from yesterday. She looked around and tapped her pen on the floor plan “And my reward shall be coffee” She looked at the floor plan and wondered if she would get the other floor plans as well. Alex made sure to make all the correct turns but still lost the break room. A head popped up from behind a cubical wall “Would you like a cookie?”
Alex started “Well, I was, looking for coffee”
The woman looked crest fallen “Oh, then not a tea drinker?”
”No,no” Alex realized she had just made a fau paux “…I love tea, it’s just I’ve become a bit of a coffee drinker recently” Alex lied, her love affair going back to childhood. Coffee had a way of making things better. She thought of church and the Anti room where the sermon was piped in. Her dad preferred sitting there. He could hear better and they got to drink coffee there. Alex always suspected it was the coffee that seduced them away from the uncomfortable pews.
”I usually take tea about now. I’ll show you the break room, you just walked passed it. Alex right?”
Alex had only a moment to nod before she continued again “I’m Judy, and you know where I sit now. If you make it to me you’ve gone too far for the break room. I’m use to people getting lost by me. I’ve been here for almost a decade. I hear you just started for Terry.” There was a momentary pause and Alex took it as a sign for her to jump in “Yes. I’m working on his campaign.” Judy looked at her as if waiting for her to continue as she pulled a tea bag whose tag was dangling from her vest pocket like a watch fob.
“What do you do?”
Judy seemed disappointed that the conversation had turned back to her “I work for Sam Norman” Alex looked up “As in the name of the firm Norman and Green?” Judy blushed again, this time from pride and nodded. “Wow, that’s quite a bit of responsibility. If I need pointers I’ll be sure to ‘accidentally’ miss the break room again.”
Judy blushed so hard Alex thought her face might burst a capillary or two.
“You shouldn’t need many pointers, but every one needs something…I mean I’m sure your qualified for what ever Terry hired you for.” The flustered Judy, now with her glowing face in her tea, puzzled Alex. “I’m not sure what you would call my position…or what all of my responsibilities will be. The interview was mostly regarding fundraising but I seem to be taking on some other campaign manager related duties. I just hope I don’t have to write up his position papers too.” Judy nodded but the vague look in her big eyes told Alex she had done a worse job of explaining the job than the headhunter had done. Gary appeared at the doorway “Initiating Alex to teatime?”
“I would but she says she’s on coffee these days” Judy shook her head at Alex.
“Thanks for setting up my office Gary”
“Sure. Whirlwind first days never leave time for settling in.”
“Well it sure seemed to make me more productive today”
“Good, good. We want you to feel at home here. Right Judy?”
“Absolutely. It’ll be nice to have her here.”
Alex looked at her watch “I’d better get back to work if I want to stay here”
Alex spent the rest of the day switching back and forth between plowing through the other candidate’s resumes and looking up the FEC rules. By the end of the day there were 3 stacks on her desk. Candidate information and issues: Campaign rules and regulations, and her event stack. Alex typed up a memo to Terry outlining her ideas for call time, synopsizing her work towards the event at the beginning of next month, requesting access to the financial records, and a time line for getting campaign software.
Alex felt as if her mind was spinning from all the information she had collected. She slipped the memo into an interoffice envelope and left it in her tray for Gary, grabbed her bag and headed down stairs. What she needed was a quiet little bar. A couple drinks and some writing. She touched the journal inside her bag. The wood always felt warm to her as if it were pulsing and alive. There was a restaurant over looking the water on the first floor of the building. Probably too expensive Alex mused as she walked past out onto the sidewalk. She looked around passing noisy, crowded or pricey looking bars in search of something dark with a vacant and familiar feel to it. The first one she found was over by Greek town. Alex inhaled the scent of Uzo and garlic as she slipped into a barstool. The bar tender looked up. “Something for you?” She asked. “Gin and tonic, and would it be alright if I took a booth. I want to get some writing done” The bartender nodded to the corner. “I’ll bring your drink”

Journal entry

The intimate crush of the rain covered bus where I keep touching your things
Those red pouty lips come right to your hips except she keeps turning away

She waits at the bus stop, dressed against the rain. Too young looking to be so professionally dressed under the vintage males muted plaid all weather jacket. The raincoat hit's below her skirt to her damp calves. The shoulders hang slightly over hers making it look like her fathers old coat. She shakes it softly as she gets pressed into the bus. The droplets that refuse to scatter slowly soak into the once water resistant fabric and her eyes scan, imperceptibly, as she moves in to stand in front of a row filing in. They all adjust to the pockets of space as the bus leaps to crawl forward and their swaying forms drunken sailor’s footsteps. A woman looks back scowling like a grade school teacher over the crooked line while the bus driver's gaze stretches back, as the doors open again, with the look of a high school teacher counting heads having long ago given up on lines. Smiling over formation and flow as some get up and others refill the space. Ever down, ever back. One up, one down, all back till she swings sitting into the crowd. His briefcase brushes into her and she touches his open coat gripping the vertical bar beside her.
He looks down feeling the brush against him like a tug. The tidy hair that looked like it would be soft when let down, the tiny up turned nose perched above full lips that glisten like the rain on her eyelashes when she lifted her chin. Eye level at his hips she keeps turning her head trying not to notice the admiration of the businessman before her.

Alex’s mood was as heavy as the dreary day. It had been a busy couple of months. Aside from the first event she had set up she had started work on others. The campaign software had been ordered and between the creators of the software and the manual she had learned it and begun entering the checks she collected. Every check required follow up to get the information necessary for filing the Federal Election Committee report, information that had not been needed for local fundraising was imperative for federal. After some studying Alex had discovered that some personal information was required for contributions. She had decided to send out donor cards as part of the RSVP. As she designed it she had a surge of pride. Erin had walked in at that moment with a pile of invitations “Terry feels that since you are setting up all these events that I should give you his invitations” She had looked cross and left so quickly Alex had not gotten to share her moment of discovery and creation. That moment was soon crushed as she opened an invitation from a congressman and it had the very same card she was designing. Another fleeting moment of being on top of her game. The past month had been full of moments quickly dashed. The first event had been a moment like that. The event had been a promising 100-guest list with 30 RSVP’s and $6,000 in hand with more to come at the door. The home was a ½ scale replica of a 3 story house that had once taken up 4 city lots. It was built like a fortress and took up so much land that it was almost a sin in the city. The inside was probably a replica too considering the overly ornate marble and sweeping half moon staircase. Alex had set up a sign in table in the entryway and had the host adjust the lighting as she discussed the plan for the evening with the host. Terry’s call time would be 30 minutes into the event with about 15 min of mix and mingle then the host would introduce him and the rest of the evening would flow as normal. Alex thought the event was a success. She walked home with sign in sheets full of contact information and an envelope full of checks. That moment had lasted about 8 hours and 5 of those had been wasted on sleep. Terry had called her in the next morning for a total. He had been disappointed in the amount raised, and how few contacts had been made. “Alex I need you to point people out to me and collect business cards. What happened to you last night?” When Alex had tried to explain that she had most contact information from the sign in sheet he had just asked why she hadn’t pointed out the important people to him, when she tried to tell him she had to be at the sign in table to collect this information as well as other checks being brought in he had questioned her ability to do the job. Alex had taken the opportunity to bring up Terry hiring a campaign manager again. A campaign manager would be better suited for introductions than a fundraiser. Alex had also created more tension by requesting the finances. She left Terry’s office under the smirking gaze of Erin. It had just been weeks of tiny victories and huge setbacks. Alex went back to her office mulling over plots for why the finance records had not been turned over to her. As she sat at her desk, even that thought was dashed by disappointment. Erin, whom Alex was beginning to dislike, delivered the books momentarily. When Alex finally perused the books she saw the reason for the delay. It was 2 months away from first quarter filing and there was nothing to speak of in the account. That did not bode well for Terry. People paid attention to who raised the most money and from Alex’s observation of the indistinguishable players on the field this would be one of the deciding factors before the primary.
No wonder her mood was darker than the day. She tried to shake it off with the rain as she entered the building. On and off the elevator it all still clung to her.
“Hey Evenly”
“Hello Alex. It’s a lousy day out there”
”It’s a lousy day in here”
Evenly looked at Alex, but even her polished professional smile had sympathy in it.
Alex went to her office and checked her voice mail as she booted up the computer. Two messages: one a confirmation for the driver to the capitol the other was the bookings for the hotel. Alex had set up five fundraisers in two days in the capitol using mostly her own contacts. Terry had asked her to drive him but Alex wanted to be able to use the otherwise wasted hours in the car for call time. Things were always picking up and Alex had too many projects going on at once. Travel arrangements: fundraising coordination, invitations, calls, collections, research; there was always too much to do. Alex spent the rest of the day panning for gold. Contacts and invitees for the capitol city event that she could tap or have Terry tap for support on the drive down. They would have to leave early tomorrow to be there for the luncheon.

The capitol

I go home shaking information from my fingertips. I dip my fingers into the inkwell everyday. Projects and papers flow through my fingers leaving with details filled out and signatures of completion. I leave bits on the phone as I attach it to my ear for hours at a time. Nothing stays in my grasp for long. It comes and goes
Bit by bit
Moment after moment
I can only vaguely recall when asked, project by project, what is done.
Do not ask me about my day
Remembering is a chore

Terry was still on the phone when they pulled up to the hotel. Alex left him where he was, finishing up his conversation, while she went in to check them in. She was signing them in as she noticed “Adjoining rooms?” She paused pen mid signature “That’s not necessary. Actually I’d prefer a room on a different floor” She could just see ending up working well into the morning if she were that accessible.
“Not a problem” and the clerk bent back over his computer to make changes. Alex wondered. She was the one who made the arrangements. She hadn’t requested that. Maybe it was standard operating procedure. She couldn’t remember, had she said for her and her boss?
“There is also a message for you.” The clerk handed her a phone message along with the keys.
Terry,
I’m running late and can’t make it till one. I’ll meet you in the lobby between events.
David

Alex wondered who David was, how he knew Terry’s schedule, whether or not Terry would break off between meetings to come back for this person. She folded the paper and looked thru the glass doors. Terry was off the phone and walking towards the glass doors of the lobby followed by the driver with the bags. Alex met him at the door and handed him the phone message. She smiled towards the driver and took her bag from him handing him Terry’s room key. “Just give all that to the bell hop and let them know he’s in room 1221. We’ll be ready to leave again in 20 minutes. ”
“Alex” Terry called across the lobby to her “I have a meeting this afternoon between events. You or I will need to be back here at one” Terry crossed the lobby and they walked towards the elevator. “I’ll call the host and let them know you have to leave the luncheon early. They’ll have to start on time, you can speak at 12:30 and then go” Alex pushed 12 and 14. Terry looked at her “I’ve had you bags taken to your room. You are in 1221” They watched the floors creep slowly by. Alex wished she had gotten a garden room. Terry got off the elevator “I’ll freshen up and meet you back downstairs in twenty minutes”
Alex kicked off her shoes as she stepped inside the door. She was a no shoes kind of gal. It was mostly because she liked to sit on her feet. She caught herself in the car. At one point while Terry was on the phone she had slipped off her shoe to slide under her for a better writing surface but the leather had creaked under her weight and Terry had glanced over. Her foot had quickly retreated to her shoe. Alex fell into the chair and flung her overnight bag across to the bed as she reached for the phone. She called Willmon and told him something had come up and the luncheon would have to be a short and well-orchestrated visit. She twirled the phone cord.
“I know he’ll meet with you before the luncheon. No, no but you know how quickly these trips go” Alex was losing him. “Well he has a very important meeting that came up last minute. No he didn’t tell me who it was with. Usually when it’s like that it’s a politician. I believe the Governor is in town today. Could be. That’s how it goes you know. Last minute someone’s schedule breaks free. Well I didn’t say anything about it to you though. Right.”
She hung up. She maybe misled him, but since she didn’t know and it gave Willmon a way to save face, she guessed it would work out. After all it was all supposition on her part. Terry left the luncheon early enough to make it to his meeting late while Alex stayed to placate the host, mingle and collect checks. She called Terry on his cell as she left to let him know she would head straight over to the next event and set up. Willmon had taken great pleasure in introduced her around after the luncheon while she collected business cards. Everyone was happy to meet her and she made a few connections with big money. “He is in town just over night but maybe we could stop by and have a private meeting with you before we leave”. Alex could tell Willmon had taken Terry’s leave in stride and she knew it had been in part because he found her charming. When she had been about to leave: business cards pocket, calls to make for tomorrow listed and hands shaken, Willmon had grabbed her hand before she left the room. “I know a lot of politicians who could use someone like you. Keep me in your Rolodex and don’t forget me after the primaries. There are other campaigns you know.” Alex pondered his statement as the cab took her across town. Was he serious? She flipped through the cards looking for any politically motivated people. There were some people from out of state, but that didn’t necessarily mean anything. There were always out of state donors in the capital. Some one like me…she saw herself dog paddling to stay afloat, someone must see something else. Her cell phone buzzed. “Hello? I’m on my way Terry. You’re not there yet? I didn’t know you wanted me to call you during your meeting. I was with Willmon and the rest of your donors. Well it looks like ten grand in hand. So I’ll call them and then meet you there. Tell your driver to floor it.” She laughed and hung up. Her mind reading skills were slipping. Besides what was she supposed to do. “Oh, sorry to cut you off ‘Aid to the mayor of Pennsylvania’…I have to call my boss.” Well he probably would have understood, but the rest of them she doubted. Alex flipped through the cards again. Phil Dunkin. Yes she had spoken to him briefly but she didn’t recall making an impression, or maybe he was the one who hadn’t mad an impression. She tucked his car into her wallet next to Willmon’s unable to stop thinking about being scouted. The cell phone buzzed in her pocket again, looking at the number she flipped it open. “This is Alex. Oh you must be a mind reader, I was just thinking of calling you.” She paused and briefly chewed on her lip listening to the internal dialogue in her mind and the voice on the other end. “Oh no, everything is fine Willmon. After this next event I have nothing but work to do and I’d do almost anything to avoid that. Sure. How about the hotel bar about nine? See you then.” The cab pulled up outside the Kemper building and Alex scrabbled with papers, phone and cash. Alex hopped out just as Terry’s driver pulled up. There were two people in the back seat. Alex waved and Terry waved back leaning over and saying something to the other man as they approached the door. “Alex this is David. David, Alex” David grabbed her hand “I’ve heard so much about you. Terry thinks the world of you. Says you’ve gotten him organized and already raised almost a quarter of a million”
Alex looked at Terry then at David. Where did he, or either of them, get those numbers? Who was this person? She had no idea what to say. They passed through security and finally as they entered the elevator Alex said “Sorry I ran late too, but you know these office affairs don’t take much last minuet organization.” Terry turned to David “See she’s got this end under control. I need someone to help with image, policy, posters, buttons really everything else.” “A campaign Manager” Alex muttered, “That’s right. You’ve got her to thank. She’s been pushing for me to hire a Manager. She knows her stuff”
“Knowing what you need and recognizing your limitations is the first step. Knowing who to hire …” He winked at Terry “is the final step.” They laughed as the elevator door opened. Alex bristled a little at the “limitations” comment but at the same time was just so glad someone would be there to pick up the slack she extended her hand again as they left the elevator “Well, welcome aboard then.”

Willmon and the head hunter

Alex was late. Events always ran late, so she was usually running late from one to another. For someone who was habitually on time, to the point of being too early, this drove her nuts. She had go straight from the Office event on to the Dinner to set up. Since Terry had David as an attaché Alex had cut out before them leaving them the car and driver. The last cab in front of the house took off so Alex started walking. She needed the fresh air and a walk while looking for a cab was good for replaying the evening. Today had easily been a Hundred Grand day. She patted her briefcase stuffed with: business cards, sign in sheets, left over nametags and supplies, and of course the checks. Since Alex hadn’t been back to the hotel she was still carrying all of them with her. She found herself suddenly nervous at not seeing any cabs, wandering the streets with that kind of money. She looked back up the hill towards the house she left. It was already too far and a waste of time to go back. She walked on another two blocks: aware of shadows, her impractical shoes, and the lack of traffic. Alex saw lights in the distance. The car had the recognizable peak on top and she hailed it with all her might. As it slowed she realized it was a patrol car.
“Are you in distress Miss?”
“I’m sorry. I’m just trying to get to the Crown downtown and I thought you were a cab. So I guess I’m distressed that you are not a cab.” Alex smiled realizing most cops didn’t have a sense of humor about much and who could blame them. You’d be unpleasant too if you protected and served and all you got was stereotyped with doughnuts and flagged down as a cab “Sorry. Could you direct me to the cab stand?”
“You’re not from around here are you?”
“No” She felt suddenly defensive “but I am familiar with the area.”
“Well outside of downtown and the Capitol building area there aren’t a lot of cabs.” The patrolman looked her over. “Lobbyist?”
“Fundraiser”
“Well, you’d better let me take you. This neighborhood is fine but you’ll cross through a development and a construction site before you hit downtown. While this is not technically my job those politicians do mind losing fundraisers…Now if you’d been a lobbyists, I would have just called you a cab” he had a nice understated laugh. Something between a chuckle and a gruff rumble.
Alex smiled as his laugh softened him “I appreciate it, but you’re not going to make me ride in the back are you?”
The patrolman reached across the front and popped open the door. Alex slid in kicking aside several diet coke cans “Thanks again.”
“Did you just leave the Lt. Governors house?”
“No, but one of those other grand homes on the hill. I wanted to split out early and had to leave the driver for my boss.”
“Lucky for you I was patrolling.”
“So you’re on the Lieutenant Governors home patrol I take it.”
“Anyone out on this beat makes a point to make it up in that area. The commissioner lives up there too.” He looked over at Alex “Job security. And if I were to find anything out of the ordinary…I’d have something. You know, they’d owe me, personally. I’d get that promotion I’ve been after.”
“So its not what you know, or who you know, but who you can stop from doing to whom?”
“And then it who you know.”
“You’re not going to tell them there was a fundraiser wandering their neighborhood are you?”
“No. They’d just ask why I didn’t bring you up to see them. Especially if I told them how attractive you are.”
Alex blushed a bit “I bet they’d be more interested in my track record. A pretty smile will only get you so far.”
“It got me to give you a lift.”
“Yes but you’d as much for any suspicious character.” He laughed that comforting disarming chuckle. Alex looked over at him “I’m Alex” He reached out his right hand as he kept his eyes on the car ahead of him “Officer Hightower”.
“I’ll just pass on all the jokes and comments that you’ve probably heard before.”
“Thank you. Since you’re willing to do that then I’ll admit to being 6’ 12’’.”
“Wow. That’s what you admit to?”
“Actually my drivers license says I’m 6’ 10’’ he turned the corner and she could see the hotel “Safe and sound delivery”
As Officer Hightower pulled into the hotel round a bout. Alex wondered how to repay him. “How much do I owe you?”
He laughed. “Darn it. I forgot to run the meter”
“If you wait right here I could grab you a Diet Coke.” She said kicking the cans around as she stepped out.
“Well, since I’m on duty I’ll take it”
Alex grabbed her bag and went up to the front desk. “I need a diet Coke for the Gentleman outside”
“The vending machine is down the hall.”
“I really don’t think I ought to make the cop wait”
The attendant looked up and glanced at the cop car outside “I’ll call the bar and get you one”
“You call the bar and I’ll go get it. Unopened” she called back and held up one finger to Hightower begging for a moment as she passed the doors. Alex went up to the bar and saw Willmon beckoning to her. “Let me just run this out to my driver” turning to the bar tender “I need that unopened coke”
He eyed her suspiciously “Front desk said it was for a cop”
“Yes, my driver for this evening is an officer of the law. Say you’re from around here right. You probably know Hightower.” The bartender blanched and Willmon almost choked on his drink a look of amusement passing before he regained control.
Alex ran the coke out to the car. “Well if your as good a fundraiser as you are a car hop I’ll see you at the next swearing in”
Alex laughed “Only if your as good at protecting as you are at serving” he laughed with her. “I’ll see you around Alex” he called after her.
Back at the bar the bartender served her and Willmon and retreated to the far side of the bar where he could still scowl at Alex but was well out of her reach.
“Now then what was so funny?” Alex asked Willmon.
“Aside from you fetching for a cop…tossing that name around could get you in trouble”
“Really” Alex leaned in “What. Is he a bad cop? Tough cop? Dirty cop? He just gave me a ride to the hotel”
Willmon could not contain his mirth this time.
“Stop it! Stop it and tell me!” Alex thwacked Willmon on the back as his laughter cracked into a gasping guffaw.
“Sorry” He said wheezing and wiping his eyes. He leaned back in and lowered his voice “From the look on that bartender’s face he knows Hightower for his busts. I bet he has been run in by him before.” Alex looked up scrutinizing the bartender who, aware of her gaze attempted to find the COLDEST beer by inserting himself down to his hips into the cooler headfirst. “But that’s not the best part” Willmon patted her knee looking conspiratorial at her “Let me first ask you how it happened that he was driving you?”
Alex explained briefly anxious for the rest of the story. “Of course. That’s Hightower’s hill. He’s almost their private security. He got into the academy and worked his ass off as a rookie. Solid Citizen type of cop. But when his Uncle was elected to U.S. Senate his days of real work ended abruptly. He’s asked for other assignments but they never came through. He transferred but that didn’t help. There is no Commissioner going to take that risk with Senator Eisenhower’s kid sisters youngest. Ever since then he’s been up on that hill. I suspect that he is trying to get some dirt on someone high enough in the system to be put back to work.”
“What. He’s gonna blackmail someone to get his cushy job taken away?”
“Yep. Straight as an arrow with an old school work ethic. So every bodies afraid of him because he’s everything a cop should be”
“Fascinating”
“Speaking of politics you met Phil Dunkin?”
“Yes, I have his card, but to be honest I don’t remember him”
”Apparently people make less of an impression on you than you do on them. I met you last year at the Mayors ball when you were working on the Treasurers campaign.”
Alex looked down at her drink. It was her Achilles Heel. In fundraising you needed to be able to remember everyone.
“Don’t be so hard on yourself. I know what you are thinking. Actually it’s more important that others remember you, not the other way around. That’s what Managers are for.” He paused to jingle his ice at the bartender who slunk over and refilled both their drinks “The important thing is that they remember you so when you call or visit you can get to them.” Alex nodded and the bartender slunk back to his corner glancing towards the doorway as if he were afraid Hightower would appear any minute.
“So Phil approached me after the luncheon and asked how about you. I told him I’d known you for a while, so I lied a little, and told him where we met. Anyway, he asked if I’d speak to you about working for the Mayors run for Governor.” He waited stirring his drink. Alex sat: stunned and flattered. Considering that she was working on the poorly organized campaign of a nobody with a one out of nine chance of even making it to the primary: she salivated at the thought of one of Pennsylvania’s most prominent Mayor. She was being head hunted.
“Okay, so we’re talking.”
Willmon laughed, “You’re tougher than you look. I guess you would have to be.”
“I’m flattered. Really. But what…I mean how could I help from here.” She said more to herself than to him.
“Not willing to move?”
“Not mid-campaign.”
“You really think he’ll win?” Willmon looked surprised
“At this level people care more about how much you raised and less about whether or not your candidate won”
He tapped his stirrer on the bar the bartender and Alex looked up attentively at the same time for different reasons. “Oh yeah, you are good” Willmon looked into Alex’s eyes “and you don’t even know it.” Willman began to laugh “You! A natural. Phil will absolutely LOVE you. I’m along for the ride. Please just bring me along for the ride!” He was becoming more and more animated and excited. Alex felt herself being carried away on his enthusiasm. She held up her glass to the nervous bartender. Maybe she could raise for him here. There were lots of businesses that wanted contracts in Pennsylvania. She could do some traveling and raise out there. She watched her busy life unfold as it could be. She thought about the possibilities. She’d have to take time off but now that Terry had a manager maybe she could renegotiate. Maybe.
“Well you’ve talked to me for him. What’s next?”
“You’ll take a meeting with Phil. He just wanted me to feel you out. I’d say your interested. Just give him a call.”
“Do you think…” Alex hesitated ‘I can do it’ was on her lips, but Willmon wasn’t her mentor or some father figure. He was someone who wanted this for his own reasons. “…I can get him to visit me or should I call him now. I leave tomorrow after the event”
Willmon looked at his watch. “It’s late. Better wait and call him in the morning.”Alex looked at the still empty bar “Yeah, I guess it’s late and I should take some rest”
Willmon finished his drink and tossed some money down on the bar “Well it’s your future. Just do let me know how it turns out” As they walked out of the bar he chuckled “Hell with my connections I’ll know. But call me anyway. I like working with you”
6 a.m. the phone rang. Hand to phone to ear… “This is your wake up call”
“Thank you” …to receiver Her body wanted to stay in bed but her mind was already playing out various conversations she might have with Phil. She reached for her cell phone and wallet on the nightstand. Still bleary eyed she put down the phone and headed for a quick shower.
At 6:45 she returned to the edge of the bed again with her cell phone and Phil’s card in her hand. The phone was ringing. “Hello. This is Alex. I apologize for the early call. Willmon said I should call you while we were both in town. I’m generally an early riser much to most peoples chagrin. No, I have to leave this afternoon, but you’re always welcome to visit me if you find yourself in my area.” Alex paused, “Sure we could meet for breakfast. I can easily be there in 20 min. provided I can get a cab. Great I’ll see you there” She scribbled down an address as she got off the phone. Then she picked up the hotel phone. Sitting in a hotel, holding the phone, trying to figure out what to say. Her pause answered by the buzz on the other end. Leaving early, leaving a note. Other hotels, other times, other excuses. What did she say then? She could make it back by 9 what were the chances she’d even be missed. Her finger hesitated in it’s steady pressure and she dialed the front desk “I need a cab” that was first “I’ll also need to leave a note incase Terry in room 1221 is looking for me. Just have it say I’ve gone out for breakfast and am reachable on my cell…Yes he has the number. Thank you”