by Niranjan K
He was so distracted, he’d forgotten to tell Nolan about Kaylee’s appointment. Alexander knew that was careless, and unprofessional; he might have had another appointment or meeting, and he hated unpunctuality and broken contracts.
David shook his head once the hologram disappeared. “I was certain she wouldn't come.”
“And I was certain she would.”
It was a reasonable assumption, after all. She had talked as if she didn’t like her employers, and she hadn’t sounded like she cared much for her charges either.
The door slid open and Nolan came inside, looking nervous. There was no reason for him to be nervous. He was competent, qualified, extremely good at his job, and organised Alexander’s schedule with an almost inhuman efficiency. He was also easy on the eyes, being tall and good looking, and had most of the women at the office swooning over him, in spite of everyone knowing he was gay.
Alexander had a very good idea why Nolan was always nervous around him, but he never gave any indication that he suspected that Nolan had a crush on him. A few of his department heads had hinted the same, and Robyn, the head of HR had asked him outright if she should talk to Nolan.
“There’s no need for that,” he had told her. “He is young yet, and likely to grow out of it. Besides, it’s not an annoyance.”
“Not yet, you mean,” she had said, her disapproval patent. “The company has no policy that forbids workplace relationships, you know,” she had added.
Alexander had shaken his head. “I know, and if any of you want to pursue a relationship with any of your colleagues, I won’t look askance at you, or fire you.”
She had snorted. “Stop talking like a dictionary, will you? I get you. Whatever the company policy, it’s not for you. That’s what you’re trying to say, isn’t it?”
Alexander had shrugged. “You already know it. No relationships, no casual sex with anyone who works for me.” He had paused, seeing the expression on her face. “I guess that sounds bad.”
“Hey, you’re the boss, but hypothetically, if-”
“Even if Nolan doesn’t work for me, I still won’t be interested.”
“He’s not Ania,” she had said. “But I know you’re not one to mind that. What was the name of that chef you had that fling with? Joe? He-”
“Whoa!” He had laughed. “How do you even know about that?”
“You think HR is just a pretty face?” She had deadpanned, which, considering she had just about one of the ugliest faces he’d seen, made him chuckle. “I also know about that dancer. Whitney? She’s someone I wouldn’t say no to either-”
Alexander had laughed again, cut her off, and had ushered her out of his office, shaking his head and aware of the colour that had mounted to his face and neck. It was scary how Robyn knew these things about him, and worse, how she could get him to blush after all his experience, and at his age.
There was another reason why Alexander wasn’t interested in Nolan, though it wasn’t something he had ever told anyone. He didn’t think even Nolan knew that Nolan’s father and he were – he supposed they could be called friends now; they were certainly more than casual acquaintances. Mason had helped him once, more than helped, he’d saved him from a fate worse than death, and Alexander was not one to forget a debt like that. He’d tried to return the favour when he had helped Mason get his present identity of John Patrick and when he gave his son a job without insisting on DNA verification, but he still considered his debt unpaid.
Alexander was also worried about the State’s surveillance on him. In spite of the fact that he had an informant, Alexander knew there was only so much he could do without blowing his cover. It made it difficult for him to step out of his house or office, but he was also determined he wouldn’t let it bother him. Which was why he’d dropped Shayla off to the spaceport in a hovercab, though he had not expected their farewell to be so passionate. He chuckled to himself as he imagined the Elite watching the footage from the cab. He hoped Luis Cobian was on surveillance duty. He was a prude if ever there was one. Elena Meier would probably be bored. Konrad Stein would be jealous. Valeria Chernova would look disapproving. He wasn’t certain about the reactions of the rest of the Elite, but he could get some petty satisfaction out of frustrating them. The State wanted to watch him? The State could watch him.
It was troubling that Thaxter knew who he was, and yet all he did was put surveillance on him. If it wasn’t for Niek, Alexander could have disappeared, but he couldn’t do that to Niek. The child deserved better. It was one of the reasons why Niek’s presence in his life was a secret. He didn’t want Thaxter to use Niek to get to him.
Six
Paige Flett looked curiously at the lady who was sitting on the sofa next to her. She was pretty, but she was biting her lip hard and there was a look in her eyes like she was sad, and she had her hands clasped tightly on her lap. She also looked a couple of times at the time displayed on the wall behind Nolan and pressed her lips. Paige touched her arm, and she turned to look at her, her surprise turning to a smile.
“I’m Paige,” she said.
“Hi, I’m Kaylee,” The lady said as she took Paige’s hand in hers. Her hand was warm and soft and covered Paige’s completely.
“I like your name,” Paige told Kaylee, pulling her hand out of her loose grasp.
“Your name is beautiful too,” Kaylee smiled.
Paige could see the shadow that surrounded her. It wasn’t as dark or as large as the one that surrounded uncle Alexander, but it was there. The shadow didn’t mean Kaylee was bad. It wasn’t scary, not like the shadows on the men who once came to their house to talk to her father. He’d scared her, and she had seen many people with shadows that looked darker, but they didn’t make her afraid
Most people Paige met had shadows. Even her parents did, though theirs were small and barely noticeable. She once asked her father about it, and he told her she was seeing the secrets they tried to hide. The bigger the secret, the larger and darker the shadow, and if the secret was bad, then the shadow was scary. He’d also explained to her that some people kept secrets to avoid hurting others, and some out of fear, and some kept them because they were bad.
“Can you see them?” She had asked him, and her father had shaken his head.
“Only special people can see them,” he’d said. “Like you, my darling.”
Kaylee was again looking at the clock and she pushed a tendril of hair that had escaped out of her braid behind her ear.
“Do you work here?” Paige asked Kaylee.
“No! No, I don’t.” Kaylee smiled at her. “What about you? Do you work here?” Her tone was teasing and Paige giggled.
“No, I’m only seven. My dad works here. He’s in there with Uncle Alexander. This is Uncle Alexander’s office, you know. Are you here to meet him?”
“I sure hope so,” Kaylee muttered, a frown on her face.
“Don’t be angry,” Paige said.
Kaylee looked startled. “Oh my god, is it that obvious?” There was a rueful smile on her face. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“You didn’t,” Paige said.
Kaylee was the one who was scared, though she hid it. Perhaps that was her secret, that she was scared. After all, her father had told her that people kept secrets out of fear. Her father had also made her promise that she would not tell anyone about the shadows or about what she saw when people thought bad things.
“That’ll be our secret,” He’d smiled at her.
When Paige looked in the mirror the next morning, she had expected to see a shadow around her too. She was prepared to dislike it even, but there was none. She couldn’t understand it, but she was glad, though she didn’t know why she was keeping a secret. She wasn’t bad, and she wasn’t scared, and her secret was not going to hurt anyone, but when she asked, her father had looked sad, so she didn’t ask again.
“You’re pretty,” Paige told Kaylee, because she was, with her curly black hair, and dark eyes, and
skin that reminded Paige of chocolate. She thought of the hot chocolate that her mother used to give her every night before bed, and how it tasted sweet, and slightly bitter with an underlying flavour that Paige could never place. She hadn’t had that chocolate since her mother became ill, and though her father tried, his chocolate was never the same. It didn’t taste or smell the same.
“Thank you,” Kaylee smiled at her. “You’re very pretty too. Does your father bring you to work often?”
“No,” Paige shook her head. “My mom isn’t well, so Dad had to bring me. She’s home now, but she needs quiet.”
“Oh, I’m sorry to hear that,” Kaylee said. “Was your mom in the hospital then?”
Paige nodded. “It was a big hospital. I didn’t like it. So Dad had taken me toUncle Nat’s. He’s my mom’s brother, and I was staying with him and Aunt Ki. She’s pretty too. And nice, just like you.”
“Thank you again,” Kaylee had a really nice smile. “You’re nice too. So, how was it at your uncle’s? Did you enjoy yourself?”
Paige thought about it. She wasn’t certain. Aunt Ki had been smiling and warm, and Paige really liked her, but Uncle Nat was too worried and scared, and though he tried to be cheerful, he looked like someone with a toothache. Her father had taken her to the hospital on the first day, but Paige had been overwhelmed by everything there, too many shadows and many of them dark and scary. Some of the shadows smelled awful, making her gag and want to throw up.
She’d held on to her father’s hand, whimpering, “I want to go home... bad place...” He’d phoned her uncle Nat to come and take her to his place, but in spite of Aunt Ki’s welcome, it didn’t feel good to be in Uncle Nat’s house.
“It wasn’t home,” She said finally, not knowing how to say what she thought.
Kaylee nodded. “Home is home,” she said, and she sounded very sad. Did she have a shadow because she was so sad? Did people have secrets out of sadness?
Nolan came out of Uncle Alexander’s office, looking scared. Nolan had a shadow too, but a small one, and it looked like angel wings, beautiful and not scary. Perhaps he had a little secret, like Paige did.
“Hey princess, your dad wants you inside,” He smiled at her, and turned to Kaylee. “Miss Ashton, my apologies. This won’t take long.”
Kaylee nodded. “Okay,” she said, and her face was tight and her eyes hard.
Paige entered the office as Nolan held open the door for her, nearly wincing as she looked at Uncle Alexander. His shadow was large and dark, with jagged edges and it was painful to be too near him, but it wasn’t scary. Uncle Alexander smiled at her and Paige smiled back.
“Hello, my darling. Were you bored?” Her dad smiled as he rose from his chair, knelt by her and put an arm around her. She could see his shadow, small and dark and she looked at his face, the smile in his eyes and on his lips. She felt warm and wanted to smile because he looked at her like no one else existed. It made her feel like there was a full balloon inside her chest and that she could float up at any moment.
“No.” She shook her head. “There’s a really nice lady there, and we talked. Her name is Kaylee and she’s pretty too.”
A look passed between her dad and Uncle Alexander. Her dad shook his head as he rose, smiling.
“I don’t know how you knew, but I’m glad, and relieved too.” He looked at Paige. “Paige, how would you like it if Kaylee were to come and teach you lessons every day and take care of you?”
Paige smiled wide. “I would like that,” she said. Perhaps Kaylee wouldn’t be so sad once she had a friend.
“That’s settled then,” Uncle Alexander said, as he touched something on his desk. “Nolan, could you ask Miss Ashton to come inside, please?”
Paige smiled at Kaylee as she came inside. Kaylee’s face relaxed and she smiled back at Paige.
Seven
As the sliding door to the inner office closed behind Kaylee Ashton, Nolan Patrick sighed and went to his desk, touching the panel that opened Mr. Selwood’s appointments for the day. Fortunately his next appointment was at 1500 in the afternoon, unless there were any more surprise appointments. Nolan grimaced at his own thoughts. Mr. Selwood was a considerate employer, and never forgot to inform him if he ever made an appointment without consulting him, so he could rearrange his schedule accordingly. Except today, and perhaps that was why he was upset. Perhaps the fact that the surprise appointment was a really beautiful girl had something to do with it as well.
He sighed. He had no reason to be upset. Mr. Selwood was only his employer, and no matter how friendly he was, he never gave any indication that he was interested in Nolan as anything but an efficient assistant. Nolan knew that he was attractive, good looking and intelligent, but he had no idea what Mr. Selwood found attractive. He tried not to think of such things, to keep everything professional, but though he could keep his behaviour professional, his thoughts were another matter altogether.
A small beep from the calendar panel on his desk intruded into his thoughts. He nearly rolled his eyes as he saw it was a reminder from his brother.
“Ashley’s birthday, don’t forget,” was written in block letters across his desk.
“No, I won’t,” he said. “I haven’t. I’ll be home on time,” as he swiped his middle finger across the panel.
He sat still for a moment. He had forgotten. It was his sister’s birthday, and he had completely forgotten. His family often made fun of how he managed to keep Mr. Selwood’s schedule straight when he forgot every important thing. He’d tried to explain that he forgot only personal things, but his father had asked with unanswerable logic,
“Do you mean to say personal things are not important?”
Fortunately, he’d bought Ash a present when Dylan had reminded him last month. So, all that he had to do was to get Mr. Selwood’s permission to go home early. He cursed himself. He should have asked earlier. It was going to be highly inconvenient for Mr. Selwood. He was going to be so disappointed in Nolan, but he would rather suffer Mr. Selwood’s disappointment than Ash’s. He looked at the door to the inner office. He would ask him as soon as Mr. Flett and Miss. Ashton left.
Right on cue, the door slid open and Mr. Flett walked out, Paige held in his arms and Miss. Ashton at his side.
“Bye, princess,” he waved at Paige, and the girl waved back with a big smile. That girl was adorable, with her missing front teeth and cheerful smile. He didn’t know Mr. Flett well, but he wouldn’t have taken him for an inventor. He was always so diffident.
Mr. Flett and Miss. Ashton both smiled at him as well, and he returned their smile. Once they were out of the office, he touched the communicator on his desk.
“Mr. Selwood, may I please have a word with you?”
“Come inside, Nolan.”
He walked inside, feeling slightly nervous. “Mr. Selwood, I’ve a personal request.”
“Your sister’s birthday is today, and you want to go early?” He was dumbfounded and Mr. Selwood smiled at his expression. “Quinn reminded me in the morning. He keeps track of such things, you know.”
“Right,” Nolan said. He knew that Quinn was not their run of the mill Sentient, but how did it know about Ash’s birthday?
“You had to leave early last year too,” Mr. Selwood said, as if he knew what Nolan was thinking. Was he that transparent? “So, Quinn created a reminder for this year. I think he knows the events in the lives of every employee here.”
“Yes, of course,” Nolan said, “Thank you. I was afraid I would be inconveniencing you. I’d forgotten, you see.” Nolan was rambling, almost babbling and he cringed inwardly. How pathetic!
“Really? Good to know you’re human too,” Mr. Selwood smiled at him.
Nolan wanted to stand there and convince his employer that he was indeed human, but jokes apart, he was hired to be efficient, and so he cracked a polite smile before returning to his desk. He sat down and buried his head in his hands. He was relieved that Mr. Selwood hadn’t taken umbrage at his askin
g him so late, but he probably owed it to Quinn. At least, it was better than last year when Ash had taken it upon herself to call Mr. Selwood directly.
Should he have invited Mr. Selwood? He didn’t think his parents would like it if he did. Their birthday celebrations had always been low-key with only the family present. They had never invited any friends over, or gone to friends’ houses like some of the others did. His father had never given him a reason, just saying it was safer that way.
His calendar display suddenly lit up with fireworks, startling him. He stared at it, hoping no one else would see it. It was undoubtedly Ashley. She liked tinkering with things. He swiped his finger across, turning it off before someone could see it. Not that he thought anyone would mind, but it was hardly professional to have a calendar display that spewed out fireworks. He would need to have a word with Ash about it, but it wasn’t going to be easy to make her understand.
Did Dylan put her up to this? He couldn’t have. It wasn’t like him. Dylan might be an ass most of the time, but he wouldn’t do anything to jeopardise Nolan’s employment or his reputation at his workplace. Not that Ash needed anyone to push her into doing something stupid. 70% of their parents’ time was spent in pulling Ash out of one scrape or another.
“Nolan,” Mr. Selwood’s face appeared on the panel. “Can you bring me the production figures for the Farming division for last year? And the comparison chart with the planetary and Galaxy-wide farming stats. Also, I need the survey report on Ignis that our team compiled last week.”
“Yes, Mr. Selwood.” He swiped his index finger across the panel and said, “Miley?”
“Yes, Mr. Patrick?” A female voice spoke from the panel.
“Please get me the production figures for our Farming division for last year and the comparison chart with the planetary and Galaxy-wide farming stats.”
“Compiling,” Miley said.
Nolan touched another part of the panel and a face appeared on the panel.
“Lu? Mr. Selwood requires the survey report on Ignis.”
