Page 29 of Miles. Alton & The 9:04
“Hey, I guess.I just didn't think Petr would leave me too.I mean I rescued his quill covered ass, hand fed him, and raised him to be a man, and he left me.”
“Perhaps he's sowing his porcupine oats.I mean, how far do they travel and are there any nests close by?Where’s the nearest food source or water?”she asked, looking at him.
“Thanks,” he said.“Anybody else would think I was silly worrying so much over a wild animal.Well, he's not wild.I domesticated him, and I don't think he's gonna be able to survive out there on his own.He's not built for that life.”
Megan couldn’t help herself.She burst into laughter.She imagined a gang of porcupines baring their quills, cornering poor Petr for his carrots.The more she thought about it, the funnier it got.
“You're laughing at me.”
“No, I'm imagining a gang of porcupines on the playground after Petr for his carrots and lunch money.Hey, don't make me quill you, Petr!Cough up the carrots,” she said, chuckling.
Jiminy found himself laughing as well.The idea of Petr out there holding off a gang of cutthroat pirated porcupines raised his hackles.He frowned at her, then his face softened as if he’d been hit with a wondrous idea.
“I want some pie,” Jiminy said.“Grab your sweater and let's go into town to the diner and get some pie.”
“I have chicken baking.”
“Hey, take it out.Turn off the oven and let's go get some pie.Pie always makes me feel better.”
“Okay, pie it is,” she said, gathering their cups to take inside.
****
MAE WESTON'S WEEK GOToff to a rocky start.She entered the office on Monday prepared to review the second quarter funding and the third quarter disbursements, only to get hit in the face with an air of discontent in the office.As much as she tried to shake it off, on Tuesday it seemed to worsen, Wednesday, the entire mood of the office soured, and by Thursday mid-day, her staff was looking at her sideways.The staff, whom she hand selected, vetted, and trained, was actually treating her as if she'd gotten drunk at the company holiday gathering and did the nasty with someone's husband in a closet.
At noon, for her lunch break, Mae told her assistant Rosemary she was leaving the property for lunch and found herself at the Amtrak station, boarding the 1:40 Lincoln Service to Alton.The emotions stayed bottled up inside, a bowl of toxins poisoning her soul, and she had nothing with her but her purse and lunch pouch when the train pulled in the station at eight minutes after six.Grateful for the train being on time, she disembarked to find the man she'd come to see on the platform, closing the shift in a conversation with the dude who owned the pet porcupine.
Thom looked up to see her standing on the platform.He called her name.Mae, who had been so successful at being strong, being an example, and showing others how a professional woman behaved, took off at a sprint, throwing herself into his arms.Tears she didn't know she'd been holding poured from her as her body shook from the relief of simply being away from the toxicity, to be in the comfort of his embrace.
He wrapped his arms tightly around her, cradling her like a small child.Thom didn't know what was wrong, but he did notice she had no luggage, only her purse and lunch pail.Mae had left the office to board the train to come to him.
“Mary, whatever it is, we'll talk about it, help you sort through it, and come up with a workable solution,” he told her.
She clung to him for dear life, and more than anything, she needed a good soak, a glass of wine, and a few moments to wrap her head around an issue that wasn't going away. As far as Thom was concerned, whatever she’d left didn't require her to return because to him, Mary had come home.
*****
THOM DREW MAE A BATHin the master bedroom, throwing a peach floral bath bomb in the tub.He’d discovered the bath bombs after realizing that when Megan broke into his home, she must have planned a romantic evening for the two of them with the bath jets fizzing up some hot, steamy action.The fairy hunter had also left a few candles, which he lit to add to the ambiance of relaxation for his stressed-out lady.
In his bedroom, he grabbed a pair of PJs and thick socks, leaving them in the bathroom as he went to the living room to collect Mae.She sat on the couch, still in her overcoat, staring into the unlit fireplace.She clutched her designer bag, still in some form of shock.Thom extended his hand to her as she rose to her feet.Down the hall, they walked hand in hand to the bathroom.
This was her first time in his bedroom and space, but her mind was elsewhere.He spoke to her, and she only heard part of the words he said when he pointed to the pajamas, the thick socks, and the glass of wine.He closed the bathroom door, leaving her alone as he went to prepare dinner.Mae tested the temperature of the water with her fingertips, and found it to be perfect.She undressed, slid into the warm, peach-scented water, reached for the glass, which she discovered was plastic, and took a sip of the wine.Exhaling deeply, the knot in her stomach began to loosen as well as the tension in her shoulders.
Thirty minutes later, dressed in Thom's spare pajamas, she made her way down the hall to find him setting the table for dinner. He’d prepared a simple pasta dish and soft music played in the background as they ate the meal.Mae cleared the table and washed the dishes, then joined Thom on the couch.He didn't ask, but she began to speak.
Mae explained what she did for the company as the Director of Philanthropy.She told him how she took the five million in allocated funding for charities to increasing the funds to nearly a billion, and the projects and programs implemented under her watch.Mae began to tell him of the shift in energy at the company in the past six months, and the rudeness of people she didn't know or had even met before.
“Thom, the worst thing, really, is the team I hired, vetted, and personally trained, spoke to me on Thursday as if I had borrowed money and hadn't paid it back,” she said.“I had no words.I took my lunch and left.I called my assistant to let her know I wouldn't be back in the office until Monday.I am physically sick to my stomach and do not understand what is going on.”
“Simple,” he said.“Someone has decided you're not qualified for your job and has started a campaign to replace you, but it's not going to work.”
“It's not?”
“No, because you're not replaceable, and you need to flex and let them find that out the hard way,” he said.“Others are aware of what is happening, and no one is going to bat for you; therefore, it is not a place where you need to spend any more of your time or energy.”
“Thom, what are you suggesting I should do?”
“Walk in the office on Monday with one of your large designer handbags, collect your shit, and quit,” he said.“Go out to the bullpen where your team sits and tell them it has been a pleasure working with them all, and you hope they show as much loyalty to whoever is coming behind you.Then go to your boss and hand him your letter of resignation.”
