“Well, okay then.” Stephen grew excited. He hadn’t had a job in some time. This could help provide a fresh start. “What do I need to do?”
“Come to my office tomorrow morning, between eight and nine o’clock. I will tell Patty, my assistant, to expect you.”
“I’ll be there.” Stephen smiled at Waltz.
“Vincent,” Waltz interjected, “I’ll come along as well, so we can catch up.”
“I look forward to it.”
Vincent turned, walked down the steps, and crossed the lawn to a black luxury sedan parked on the side of the road.
Stephen waited until he felt Vincent was out of hearing distance. “He’s sort of odd, right?”
Waltz chuckled. “I guess. But, he’s a good man.”
****
Stephen sat in a high-back chair across from Patty’s office early the next morning. He fiddled with his phone while Waltz talked with some other men down one of the aisles. He ran his finger across the face of the phone: seven fifty-five. He focused on their emotions, just as Waltz had instructed in their most recent training session. Something about one of the men felt off. He focused harder, searching the man’s thoughts.
The man’s name was Johnathan. In every way, he seemed ordinary, right down to his Van shoes and black thick-rimmed glasses. His emotions had grown negative as they talked, but why? When the group broke apart, he walked by Stephen, who had just caught a glimpse of what troubled the guy.
“Hey! You’re Johnathan, right? I’m Stephen,” he said standing and offering his hand as a gentlemanly gesture.
The man adjusted his glasses before shaking Stephen’s hand. “Nice to finally meet you. Waltz talks about you a lot.” He pushed his glasses back up his nose, then swiped his brown hair from his eyes while glancing back toward Waltz. “By the way, most people call me Johnny.”
“Oh, right! Sorry. Habit. People used to call me Steve, and I hated having my name shortened, especially without people asking me first. I mean, if someone really close to me did it, like gave me a nickname, that would be okay. But, I feel like people take me more serious when they call me Stephen.”
“Actually, Johnathan works. You know—no one gets that. If my name was Johnny, they’d probably call me John without asking. Thanks for understanding.”
“You’re welcome.” Stephen looked down the hallway for a second. “I’m meeting with Vincent this morning. What time does he normally get here?”
Johnathan looked at his watch and pushed the brown shaggy hair from his face at the same time. “I’m sure he’s already here. He’s usually one of the first to get in. He’s probably waiting on Patty. She ran to pick up some things. She should be back soon.” Johnathan grabbed his keys from his pocket. “I’ve got to head to a meeting. It was nice meeting you.”
“Yeah, you too.”
The man turned to walk away, but stopped. He turned back and asked, “How did you know Johnny wasn’t my name?”
Stephen pointed to the laptop bag clutched in his new friend’s left hand. It had the name Johnathan Friar embossed in the leather.
“Ah, gotcha. Well, I better get going.”
Stephen gave a wave and sat back down in his chair. He glanced back at his phone: eight o’clock.
He heard loud footsteps coming from the entrance. He turned to see a petite red-haired woman coming down the hall. He watched her with intrigue. She stepped with purpose, her head held high. She wore a knee-length black skirt and a blue blouse. She smiled when she seemed to notice Stephen.
Lost for words, he only smiled back.
“Here for your meeting with Vincent?” she asked as she walked over to her desk to put down a bag of supplies.
Stephen stood to greet her. Suddenly, he was caught off guard by her thoughts and couldn’t help but be embarrassed. She thought he was cute.
“You look flushed. Are you alright?” The lady continued to put the supplies away.
“Oh, yeah, just a little embarrassed is all.” Stephen realized he couldn’t leave the statement like that. “W-Waltz always told me to help a lady. I should have grabbed the bags for you. Sorry.” He wasn’t sure if she paid attention to his fumbling of words.
“Oh, nonsense. I’m used to it. There aren’t many gentlemen around here,” Patty replied, nodding toward the cubicles.
Stephen sensed that she was not only glad to see him but enjoyed talking with him. As he intruded on her thoughts again, he saw that she especially liked his blue eyes. Stephen smiled. She liked his dimples too!
“Sorry, I’m Stephen. But, I guess you knew that.”
“Oh, right. I’m Patty. I’m the office manager around here, and Vincent’s secretary.” Patty began getting some papers together. She quickly picked up an envelope and a binder and set them on her desk in front of Stephen, knocking over a stack of papers. “Sorry about that.” Stephen helped her pick up the papers and placed them on her desk.
“It’s not a problem.” As he inhaled, he smelled her sweet perfume. He found everything about her attractive, the long red hair, emerald-green eyes, and even the few freckles on her neck.
After cleaning up the stack of papers, she handed him the folder. “You’ll need this and a pen.”
“So, number one aunt? Niece, nephew, or both?” Stephen leaned forward, taking a pen from her mug that read: “#1 Aunt.”
Patty smiled. “One niece, Kaylin. And she’s a handful. But I love her to death! You?” Patty sat down behind her desk. “Any nieces, nephews, kids in general?”
“Nah. I’m it. I don’t know what you know about me. Folks around here seem to know Waltz pretty well. But, uh, my mom died when I was young. I don’t remember much about her. I know nothing about my dad.”
Patty looked back up from her work, her face very solemn. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know the details.”
“Don’t be. It’s alright. Waltz has been as good to me as any father ever could be to a son. I got a good deal when he took me in. It just felt right from the start. Don’t get me wrong, it wasn’t easy. We had struggles. But he’s my family—he, Uncle Bernie, and Bernard—Bernie’s nephew.”
Patty smiled. “I’m glad they were there for you.”
“Yeah, me too.” Stephen turned to walk away but then stopped. “Hey, what’s the deal with Vincent? He seems a little odd to me. Do you like working for him?”
“I do. He’s very efficient. He doesn’t have you do a lot of wasteful stuff. But he does keep you busy. Some people find working for him hard. He isn’t the most personable guy.” Patty answered her phone as Stephen turned to walk back toward the chair. “Yes sir. They’re both here. Hold on. Stephen,” Patty called out to him.
He stopped and turned.
“They’ll be right in,” she told Vincent over the phone.
Waltz walked up. “I heard. Vincent’s ready?”
Patty nodded. “Yes, sir.”
“How many times do I have to ask you to call me Waltz?” he laughed.
“Ask many as you like, Mr. Stockton,” Patty replied with a smile.
“Well, let’s go,” Waltz said. “Everyone stays pretty busy here, and I don’t want to keep Mr. Vincent Abbott waiting.”
Stephen swallowed the lump in his throat. He wasn’t sure why he was nervous. He already had the job.
Stephen and Waltz walked down the hallway and knocked on the frame of the glass door.
“Come in!”
Waltz opened the door and walked in first. Stephen followed.
“Mr. Stockton.” A voice came from the right. “Thank you for coming. Mr. Cross, it is good to see you too.”
Stephen turned to see a large desk in front of an even larger window. Behind the desk stood Vincent in a navy suit and white button-down shirt, but no tie. “You too, Vincent!” Waltz approached and shook Vincent’s hand.
Stephen walked forward to shake Vincent’s hand. “Nice to see you again.”
“Please, both of you, have a seat.” Vincent motioned to a table and chairs positioned in
front of a side window. He picked up a file, walked over, and sat opposite them.
“Stephen, yesterday you said you were planning to stay awhile. Correct?” Vincent began tapping a pen on the file in front of him, which made Stephen even more nervous.
“Yeah. I was away for a while. I guess you could say I wanted to give it a go on my own. I went to college for a time. I got about three years completed and decided it wasn’t for me.”
“What was your major?”
“Business . . .” Stephen hesitated. He realized this might be less nerve-racking if he knew what Vincent was looking for. He started to focus in an effort to hear Mr. Abbott’s thoughts, but he heard nothing. He tried harder—still nothing. Stephen looked at Waltz, realizing the old man must have been blocking him from reading Vincent’s mind.
Waltz smiled.
“How were your grades?” Vincent asked.
“I had a 4.0 gpa. What is this—a job interview?”
“Of sorts,” Vincent replied. He opened the folder. “I run this place. It is a nonprofit organization that helps the less fortunate, including advocacy and other legal issues. The shelter is part of our charity. We are responsible for Bernie’s operating budget. Waltz helped me out a few years back. So, I agreed to oversee the shelter too.”
Vincent continued. “I walked by the shelter the other day and saw you working outside. You were tending the flowers. So, I went by the next day too. You were mending the gutters. The day after that, you were mowing. You, Mr. Cross, are a hard worker. That is very important to me. I could use more like you around here. I do not think, however, that the shelter’s work will not keep you completely busy. There is some work you could do around here too. This old building has been renovated, but still needs some attention from time to time. We have a janitor, but he is older than he wants to admit. There are some things he can no longer do, or at least not alone. You would tend to both places. We offer benefits. And if you would like to finish that degree, we can also help with that.”
“I want to make sure I understand.” Stephen sat straight. “You want to pay me to do what I’ve already been doing?”
“Well, again you would have to come work here some too. Probably once or twice a week.” Vincent slid the file over to Stephen. In it was additional paperwork to be completed, including a background check. “We just need a completed application and your signature to make it official.”
“Stephen, it’s a good offer, and Vincent is a fair person. They do a lot to help people too.”
Stephen could read between the lines. Not only would he have a job that he could support himself with, but he would be in the perfect place to help others and to use his gifts.
“Okay, Waltz. I could use the money anyways. Besides, I love this building. I remember seeing it when I was a kid. It has a lot of history. This’ll be fun.” Stephen clicked the pen and completed the form, somewhat excited about earning some money of his own. He wasn’t too sure about Vincent though. His face lacked expression. And his speech seemed overly formal. Vincent reminded Stephen of Lurch from The Addams Family.
“Good.” Vincent took the pen and the application and looked at Waltz. “May I have a moment with Stephen?”
“Sure.” Waltz got up headed to the door. “I’ll just go talk with Patty a moment.”
After he left, Vincent spoke. “Stephen, I am glad you are back. Waltz is a dear friend. I truly value his friendship more than any other. Why you left, where you went, is none of my business. I do not care. But you need to know that I expect a lot from the people that work for me. You seem like a hard worker. It would be less than fair, however, if I did not tell you that I want commitment from my employees. You hurt Waltz when you left, a man who loves you dearly, like his own son. He wants you to have a fair chance at life, regardless. He is a generous and forgiving man. I, on the other hand, am not as forgiving. I will be fair but firm. If you are anything less than dedicated to this job, you will be held accountable.”
Stephen stared into Vincent’s eyes, trying hard to see what was behind them, to what hid inside his mind. Vincent’s tone of voice wasn’t harsh, but very matter-of-fact. Still, he wanted to know more. Did Vincent have an agenda? What was his relationship with Waltz? Would Vincent really give him a fair shot?
Nothing. The harder Stephen tried, the more there seemed to be a wall between them. This agitated him. He figured Waltz was not wanting him to know what business Vincent and he shared.
Stephen spoke boldly. “You’re right. My leaving, all of that, it’s personal . . .” Stephen took a deep breath. “. . . and none of your business. Waltz seems to trust you. That’s good enough for me. But don’t think that my working for you gives you the right to nose into the relationship I have with Waltz.” Stephen realized he had become a little too emotional. Waltz wanted him to have this job for some reason. “Look, if you don’t want me to work here, don’t hire me. But you’d be missing out on a good employee. And if you do hire me, I only ask one thing. Don’t judge me before you get to know me. If you can’t do that, again, don’t hire me—and save us both the trouble.”
Vincent’s facial expression didn’t change. Instead, he sat silent, looking at Stephen. Then he closed the file and got up, taking the file to his desk. He picked up the phone and dialed. “Patty, please come bring Stephen the information I asked for.” Vincent put the phone back down and looked at Stephen. “It will take her some time to get all your information in our system. Officially, you start today. You’ll pick up your check on Fridays.”
Patty walked in and over to where Stephen sat. “Here is your laptop and a cell phone. This packet here explains our information policy. Basically, anything on either of these devices can be seen, used, or deleted by the company at any time, without your permission. This packet explains getting into your email and setting up your devices. Johnny sits outside. His number is listed here. He is our IT person, should you ever need him. Also, in here is a company directory of anyone you may need, Vincent and myself included.”
“Thank you.” Stephen looked at Patty. The sunlight shone through the window, causing her eyes to sparkle.
“You’re welcome.” She smiled and continued. “Checks are at my desk on Fridays, after one o’clock. But before four thirty. If I’m out, Vincent will have them. Any questions?”
Stephen shook his head. “No. I’m good.”
“Great. You’ve got my number in there if any come to mind.” Patty smiled again. “Welcome aboard.”
“Thank you.”
Patty turned and walked out. As she left, Stephen allowed himself to glimpse her mind—only what was on the surface. He seems nice enough. I better get him entered into payroll and have Johnny set up email and give him system access. I hope he stays around for a while.
Stephen felt calmer after having spoken with Patty. He glanced around the room. There wasn’t much to see. A bookshelf, filled with what appeared to be legal books and journals, sat against the wall opposite Vincent’s desk. There were no personal pictures on the walls though. No family or friends. It seemed odd.
“So, Vincent, do you just not like me or is it people in general?” Stephen’s tone wasn’t harsh but inquisitive.
Vincent’s brows furrowed. “Why do you ask that?”
“Well, it’s obvious you don’t like me. But you don’t have any personal pictures around here. In fact, the whole office setup says business. When I was traveling on my own, I met a lot of people and learned to read them. Your speech, your composure, your office—it’s all closed off. My experience tells me either you don’t like people or you’re hiding something.”
Vincent leaned forward in his chair. “Well, you are bold. I give you that.” He got up and walked over to Stephen, then looked out the window next to the table where Stephen remained seated. “You see those people across the street? I do not know them. I may never meet them. Some people would wonder about them as they looked out the window. Me, I do not. I am a very focused, goal-oriented person. My ult
imate goal here is to help and protect people who cannot do that for themselves.” He turned toward Stephen. “True, I do not like you. I do not dislike you either. Because, I do not know you. Waltz has been good to me. I have finally gotten my feet settled here. I had an unorthodox upbringing. I was schooled by private tutors at home, and I am not very well socialized. Waltz has helped me to get past that and to be who I am meant to be. I owe it to him to focus on that.”
“Yeah, he has a habit of doing that—helping people be better than they are.”
“As far as decor, I remain a private person who is not looking to make friends with employees. I am not what you call a people person. That is why I have Patty. She is really good with people.” Vincent walked to the door and opened it. “Well, it was a pleasure speaking with you. Welcome to the team.”
Stephen walked outside to find Waltz and Patty talking with each other. He couldn’t help but wonder if there had been another reason Waltz had protected Vincent’s mind from being read. Maybe he had been Waltz’s attorney. Perhaps Waltz had secrets that he didn’t want Stephen to know.
“Ah, there you are! You set?” Waltz turned toward Stephen.
“Yeah, Waltz, I’m ready.”
“Good. I need to talk with Vincent a moment. If you don’t mind hanging out here?”
Patty interjected, “I can show him around.”
“Great.” Waltz walked into Vincent’s office, closing the door behind him.
What does he need with an attorney? Stephen tried to read their thoughts, but it was no use. He needed to continue his training.
Patty showed him around the building and introduced him to the various people. She also took him to the other offices on the lower level, which were separate businesses. He would be maintaining the entire building. The more they talked, the more Stephen felt this was the right place for him to be at this time. He had needed a place to establish himself, a place to belong.
As they ended the tour back at Patty’s office, Stephen thought for a moment, wondering if he should ask Patty out on a date. What the heck! “Patty, would you mind getting lunch with me sometime? Nothing fancy or formal, just a casual lunch. I’d like to get to know you.”
Chronicles of Stephen BoxSet Page 6
