by Amelia Jade
The tree was so large it didn’t pick up speed, and though much of the lower hillside was washing away, it was simply too big to fling downward at high speed. If Lex could get himself on the trunk itself, he could hopefully use it as a way to ride out the mudslide.
If. I really hate that word.
The trunk may have been over two hundred feet long, but it was moving straight downhill, while Lex had to take an angled approach to reach it. The jagged end where it had broken was starting to overtake him as he closed in. Lex reached into himself for even more speed, jumping from stone to stone, from a branch to a patch of ground that seemed to be more rock than earth, and then back onto patches. If it was even, solid earth he was running across, it wouldn’t have even been close. As it was, his haphazard crossing meant that by the time he was finally able to leap onto the trunk, perhaps only ten feet remained between where he collapsed in agony and the broken end of the once-majestic tree.
Made it. His lungs heaved and his brain screamed in pain as his hind legs finally collapsed. He dragged himself to the middle of the log, the platform surprisingly stable as it was carried downhill. Several times it jolted and bounced, but it was large enough that he wasn’t dislodged. From his vantage point he watched as the violent storm continued down the hillside and practically launched itself with a vengeance at the town nestled at the base. Lex stared for a long time as it battered the surrounding area, his mind playing back a scene from far in his past.
Eventually the tree came to a halt as the mudslide ran out of easy ground to rip apart and reached harder bedrock that protruded below, dissipating the force. At this point Lex heaved himself to his feet and—gingerly—hopped down to the ground below. The sky was still black and the wind whipped at his sopping-wet fur as rain pelted him, but the worst of the storm was still two or three miles farther downslope.
Bedraggled, hurt, and thoroughly whipped, Lex started the long trek up the gravel road to his place. He passed the official turnoff for his residence and slipped down the slope at the edge of the road, forced to swim through the creek that had formed there before emerging on the far side and up into the forest. There was a path through the trees that was much quicker than following the winding road.
He discouraged visitors, and the nearly mile-long driveway twisted and curved, despite his house being less than a third of a mile from the turnoff itself. It gave him plenty of time to prepare for guests.
Or avoid them.
He emerged from the woods and headed to the sheer rockface that was the entrance to his home. Ignoring the human-sized door, he padded ten feet off to the left, pushed upon a certain rock and then made his way down the stairs that were suddenly visible, wedged between the rockface and a boulder so as to be obscured from anyone who might come to his place. The horizontal door slid closed after he passed, and Lex was at last safely ensconced in his home. He went straight to his bed and passed out, not even bothering to shift back.
So he was a werewolf who lived in a cave. Who said stereotypes weren’t based in reality?
1. Disaster Report
Petal
The elevator ride was empty for the first few floors. With her badge getting her access to the lowest subfloor for parking, the area reserved for corporate executives, she was able to bypass the lobby on her way to the upper floor offices. Unfortunately, eventually economics took over and the elevator did stop for all intra-building floors.
Which meant that she inevitably had to share the limited—and silent, because elevator music cost money—space with others, most of whom she didn’t recognize. Those few that she knew by sight did their level best to avoid having to interact with her in any way possible, short of walking back outside the elevator. Though she was sure that some of them would have preferred to do that. One person had actually veered off attempting to catch the elevator after realizing she was in it, letting the doors close and claiming they would “wait for the next one.”
Petal sniffed in derision at their cowardice. As she did, several people in the elevator shuffled away from her, obviously hoping to avoid her attention. Nobody talked while she was there, though many of them sagged with relief as they exited at their destination, glad to be free of her.
I’m not that bad. Besides, I don’t even know most of them.
Everyone knew her it seemed. She’d heard the whispered rumors, the names they call her.
“Look out, the Full-Petal-Bitch is coming!”
“Oh shit, did you hear the rookie got stomped by Petal-to-the-Metal?”
And others. She chose to ignore most of them, simply because she had already elevated herself above those who spoke of her like that. Her attitude might be a bit frosty, true, but it was the only thing that had helped her climb the corporate ladder. Petal knew she wasn’t considered a classic beauty. Too much around her hips and thighs took care of that. But it didn’t matter. She had perfectly blonde hair, bright blue eyes, and had been endowed with a large chest.
That was, everyone thought she was a dumb bimbo. She still had a list somewhere of the number of times and number of individuals who had tried to solicit her for sexual services within the first month of her getting hired at Western Hydro. The company was notoriously bad for being an “old boys club,” but it was also the best paying job she’d been offered. Now, nearly fourteen years after starting, she’d hit the jackpot.
Corporate executive. Full job title: Southern Coastal Operations Director.
It meant that she was in charge of operations for one of the four quadrants of the entire company. That ranked her in the Top 20 of the company. At only thirty-seven years of age, she was the third youngest member of that exclusive group, and more notably, the only female. While the seven senior-most members of the board were all old white males—OWMs as she called them—the hierarchy below them was notably more open to females. There were a number of them in the company now, which she was happy to see. There had been very few when she’d first started, and almost all of them had worked in “administration,” as glorified secretaries.
Unfortunately, none of them had neither the ambition, the smarts, nor the leadership abilities to rise up and join her in the executive circle. Petal knew that there were plenty of women out there who could. It just seemed that none of them worked at WH. It frustrated her, but she pledged herself to lead the way, hoping that eventually there would be others who would follow.
Someone has to be a trailblazer, I suppose. I didn’t intend to be one, but if that’s another burden I have to shoulder, fine. I’ll do it, I guess. I just hope they don’t take too long. The upper levels need an infusion of different views if we hope to keep growing.
The OWMs were notorious for hating change, and the information age was giving them more stress than they could handle. She was almost positive some of them were going to drop from a heart attack any day now. The company was lagging behind because of their refusal to adapt to new technologies, and while she was doing her best to drag them along to the future, she was only one person.
So, perhaps there was a reason they hated her after all. She’d donned the cold exterior reluctantly, sheltering her personality away from the prying eyes of the workforce, and only showing them the worker side of her. It had succeeded beyond her wildest dreams, rocketing her up the ranks of the company, but somewhere along the way she’d lost the ability to open up to her peers and coworkers, preventing her from developing any friendships at the office.
“Miss Olson?”
The tremor was barely notable in her assistant’s voice. Good. Maybe she was going to last longer than the previous one, who’d quit after less than three weeks on the job. Finding someone with the strength to deal with her was proving far more elusive than it should have been. Petal was going to have to speak to the recruitment agency if this latest one didn’t pan out. They needed to up their standards.
“Yes, Mackenna?”
She stepped out of the elevator into the corporate suites where her assistant waited, obviously havi
ng been notified that she was on her way up. That showed some initiative, coming to meet her. This way the walk to her office could be made useful. Petal made another mental note about her new assistant.
Mackenna opened her mouth to speak, but as she did, Petal noticed the way she braced herself before speaking.
“Is it bad news?”
A nod.
“Is it something that could have been avoided?”
“Not in any realistic or even highly imaginative scenario, no ma’am.”
“Okay, then you’re just the messenger. I don’t shoot the messenger. Just tell me what happened, quickly and concisely. Then put together a more detailed report for me to read.”
An arm extended with a file folder in it.
“What’s this?”
“A more detailed report.”
Petal’s only reaction was to lift her eyebrows fractionally as she accepted the folder, not slowing down at all. The estimation of Mackenna went up another notch.
“Have you ever heard of the Surrey Hydro Generator?”
She considered the name for a moment. “Yes. It’s one of our medium-sized plants located near the middle of nowhere. It supplies power to many of the tiny communities, making it actually rather more vital than it should, by allowing the major coastal cities to keep their power to themselves instead of having to shuttle it inland.” Petal considered her brain for several more seconds, then nodded. “How am I doing so far?”
“Excellent. Well, in case you aren’t aware, the dam is actually not located in Surrey, but to the east of it by several miles. It’s also not staffed by people from Surrey, but from the neighboring town of Everett.”
“Is this relevant?” she asked, pushing open the door to her office and striding inside. Her bag went down at the side of the desk and she sat down into the expensive yet ergonomic and comfortable chair behind it.
“Not overly, but I’m just providing basic background so you have it.”
“Why do I need it?”
“Surrey was hit with a major storm last night. The dam is still mostly up and running, but power flows out of it in two directions. East to Everett and then branching off from there to dozens of tiny communities to the east. And then west into Surrey, where it branches off into even more communities.”
“And?”
“Surrey is gone.”
“The town was destroyed?”
“Not literally, no. But the town was devastated by the storm. No power, nothing. Everything is out from west of the plant.”
Petal frowned. “What about Everett?”
“Untouched.”
“Can we not reroute power through there and then to the other communities.”
“That’s the problem I was telling you we couldn’t really have foreseen, ma’am. We don’t have backup routes through Everett. Nothing like this has ever hit the region in recent history. Not only that, but according to reports, it seemed to center over Surrey and pound it hard. Some of the area just north and south was barely touched. It’s crazy, and reports coming out of the area are jumbled. It’s bad.”
“Shit.”
Mackenna wisely didn’t say anything. Petal tugged her charcoal-gray suit jacket down. She wore loose-fitting clothing with a very sharp male cut to it. It was the best compromise she’d come up with to try and hide her assets, to ensure she was taken seriously. The sports bra she wore underneath was just another attempt. It helped, but she still had to deal with several assholes a month at least.
“Okay, get me out there ASAP. Flights, car, get it organized while I read this.”
Mackenna just nodded and pointed at the folder. Petal opened it. On the left tucked into a little slot were two printed flight itineraries for the two flights she would need to get to Surrey, plus a rental car confirmation.
“It’s about a forty-five minute drive from the nearest airport to Surrey. Your flight leaves in three hours.”
“Good work.”
She saw Mackenna struggle not to inflate with pride from the rare compliment, but she chose to ignore it. Her assistant had earned this one. Petal was quick to correct, and very reluctant to give out praise, but this time it was warranted. Mackenna had done a masterful job of anticipating all her needs, and she deserved to know it. Not only because it was the properly encouraging thing to do, but also because it would show her just how far she needed to go every time to be the assistant that Petal required.
Still, perhaps she wouldn’t need to call the recruitment agency at all.
“I think Mr. Masutoe will probably want to speak with you before you go,” Mackenna said, elation coloring her tone a little bit. “His assistant already called to see when you’d be in. I asked if he wanted me to have you call him, but said no, he’d be in touch. That’s all I have for you, ma’am. If you have any questions, let me know. Otherwise I’m going to go get on top of everything else that will have to be taken care of, including a hotel reservation. Apparently all two of the places in town were booked, so I’ve resorted to having to intimidate and bribe so that you don’t have to drive back to the airport hotels every night.”
Petal nodded. “Very well. Keep me informed.”
Mackenna nodded and then left the office while Petal opened the folder and began to read up on Surrey, Everett, the Western Hydro dam they had there, and everyone who worked there.
The local agency head worked out of Surrey itself, not the dam. His name was Vince Kilally. Petal’s mood, already bad because of the unexpected trip and work deposited on her lap, worsened the more she read about the man. He sounded like a primitive baboon. Several misconduct reports about his attitude toward women, as well as five failed promotions because apparently he couldn’t tell his ass from his face when it came to his job.
She flipped the page and continued to study.
It sounded like it was going to be a fun trip. She contemplated bringing her taser.
2. Recovery Begins
Lex
His hips and lower back hurt, but by the time he arrived at the shop the next day, Lex was recovered enough to do his job. Which was a good thing, because the damage to Surrey was near catastrophic. His skills were going to be in high demand.
“Lex! Good to see you, buddy.”
He turned at the call, pausing to wait as one of his work friends jogged up to him, having just arrived himself.
“Hey, Jay. Yeah, looks like we’re going to be in for it today.”
Jay had been working for Western Hydro nearly as long as Lex. Between the two of them they had nearly forty years of experience working the lines. He was glad to see that someone who was as close to a friend as Lex would allow himself to have had made it through the storm unscathed. A bit of him was also glad he’d been able to make it in to work. They were likely going to be extremely busy for the next few days.
“You said it! I wasn’t sure whether we’d see you today.”
Everyone knew Lex lived out in the middle of nowhere. With the numbers of downed trees and nigh-unpassable roads, it wouldn’t have been that unsurprising if he hadn’t made it in. But Lex didn’t like to let people down. Besides, he actually enjoyed his job.
“Let’s go on in then. No time to waste.”
The pair of them had—unsurprisingly—been called in early, along with every other line-worker that their boss could get his hands on. Probably even some of those who had moved on to other things. Rumor was that power was out to the entire town. Only those places that had generators—which was a surprisingly high number—would be able to operate. The sooner Jay and Lex got out on the roads and worked to restore power, the better.
They split up upon entering. Jay went to find his crew, while Lex went straight for the boss’s office. His team knew what he expected of them. There was no need to find them. They would either be there, or they wouldn’t. Either way, Lex was heading out as soon as possible. The town needed him.
“Alexander Cronus! Where the hell have you been?!”
He shuddered at the us
e of his full, given name. Lex hated being called Alexander. He hated even more when Vince, his boss, used his full name as if he were in trouble.
“Hello, Vince,” he said in a neutral tone that would have scared many another people into being more respectful. Unfortunately, for whatever reason, the powers that be had seen fit to assign him a superior who was completely oblivious to the power brimming in his voice.
“What the hell took you so long to get here?” Vince snapped.
“Well, Vince. I’m not sure if you’ve been outside much today, but the traffic is pretty bad. Some prankster idiot came up with the brilliant idea to cut down hundreds of trees and lay them across the road. On top of that, he dug up a lot of the smaller roads too. It probably took him thousands of buckets of water to wash it all away, but he was really persistent it seemed. This, unfortunately, meant that I had no quick way in to work after you called me twenty minutes ago.”
The drive in to work was usually half an hour, but as soon as Lex had awoken from his slumber and shoveled food down his throat he’d started preparing to come in. As soon as the storm abated he’d saddled up and started heading in to work. In reality the drive had taken him most of two hours, but he’d been well on his way when Vince had called. Not that he intended to tell his boss any of that. The less he had to interact with him, the better.
Vince just ignored the rebuke and started shaking a finger at him. “You know what Crones”—when he was really mad he started to butcher people’s names on purpose, thinking it was an insult—“I’ve got enough shit to deal with today. You taking your sweet time to get here isn’t necessary. So get your team together, and get to work.”
Lex nodded, not feeling like wasting any more words on the fool. It irritated him sometimes that Vince was the one in charge. Lex could do the job in his sleep, and if he tried, he was sure he could get it. But he didn’t. Being out working on the lines, using his hands, that was where Lex enjoyed being. Stuck behind a desk was not for him.
