Boss From Hell

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER TWO

Waiting for the train back to the Richmond interchange gives me plenty of time to research Mackenzie Consulting on my phone. The company website is bright and colorful with lots of high-resolution photographs of offices and city landscapes. I can’t find any staff photos, and there’s only a generic reception contact. The company description states Mackenzie Consulting is a hands-on, client-focused firm. Well, that doesn’t tell me a lot.

It’s not even midday yet, and so much has happened. My skin is still a little clammy. I figure I’m in shock. I need chocolate and I don’t have any in my bag.

Though Melbourne is heading into winter, the sky is clear, and the sun makes itself known against my face. I unzip my coat and check the platform display. The next train is expected in four minutes.

I have trouble hitting the call button on my cell but when I finally manage it, Dad answers on the second ring. “All set for tonight?”

“Hi, Dad. I have to cancel the party.”

“What? Why? What happened?”

“Dad, can I . . .” Suppressing a cough, I wander along the uneven asphalt and concrete of the platform. I hate giving Dad bad news, and telling him I’ve just lost my job is the worst kind of news. I breathe deep and spit it all out in one go.

It’s a while before I stop talking. The silence stretches interminably and the stopwatch in my head becomes a grandfather clock, each tick pounding my body like it is bread dough.

“What do you need? Money?”

Mom and Dad are happily retired. They’ve paid off their house but they don’t exactly have a lot of cash to flash and always budget carefully. They were super excited when I moved out. I know I was at home longer than they’d expected but they’re proud of what I’ve accomplished. I can’t let them down. I’m an adult. I can sort this out.

“Actually, Dad, if you can believe it, I already have a job interview.”

“Really?” His voice is suddenly a lot lighter.

“Yeah, but they want me to come in tonight.”

There’s another pause. “Right, so the party is off. No problems. I’ll call Andy and your grandmothers. Your mom and I will pop round tomorrow instead.”

I hadn’t realized how hard it was to breathe until he said that. “Well, since I’m not working . . . yeah, tomorrow is perfect. I’ll call Elisa.” Turning thirty-four is not that big of a deal, right? My brother, Andy, won’t mind the last-minute cancelation but I know my grandmothers were looking forward to seeing my new place. I hate to put them off. They’ll be round on the weekend now, guaranteed. I’d better get some stuff for afternoon tea.

I sag onto a peeling dark green-painted metal bench and listen to a kookaburra laugh in the distance. I glare at the gum tree harboring the winged devil. Rude.

“Thanks, Dad.” Hopefully the train pulling into the station hides the quaver in my voice. “I might not get the job, though. Or I might not like the boss.”

“All true.”

“My train’s coming. I’ll tell you all about it when I see you tomorrow. I need to call Elisa.”

“Take care, honey. See you soon.”

“Love you, Dad.” I step aboard the second-last carriage. This train will return me to Richmond, where I can catch my actual train home. I glance through the scratched window and remind myself to pay attention to the stations this time.

Pressing down on my bouncing knee to still it, I watch suburb after suburb zoom by. I’ve always taken the train to work. The population in Victoria changes constantly; you can see it in the way the inner suburbs have influenced those further out. It takes most of the train ride home before I see larger properties and trees instead of graffiti-covered concrete. Townhouses have jammed into what were once large single blocks, and the streets grow skinnier by the year. More fences and hedges have popped up too, as neighbors close themselves off from one another. A sign of the times.

I find Elisa’s number and hit call. A weird smell penetrates my mental bubble and I examine the empty fabric-lined seats around me. Gross.

“Hey, sweets. Are you excited?” Elisa’s happy voice takes my mind off the smell.

“I have had the worst day,” I moan.

“Ooo, I told you. Remember I said there were bad signs around this week?”

I suppress a sigh. “Yeah, I remember.”

“You trust me, right?”

“Since preschool.” And isn’t that something? Somehow, Elisa and I have remained friends through years of house moves, changed schools, and now her married-with-kids life. Her new-agey premonitions are part of the package that is my best friend. I should listen to her more. “The party is off.”

“What? No! Frank’s taking the twins bowling. I have the whole night free.” The horror in her voice tells me she’d planned for a boozy evening. “What happened?”

I focus on the empty train seat in front of me. Foam padding has spewed from a frayed gash.

“I have a job interview.”

There’s a long silence over the line. “Where are you? It sounds like you’re on a train.”

“I got fired.”

“WHAT?” I count silently, waiting for her to continue; I get to seven. “I knew it. I knew something bad was going to happen this week. I’ve been skittish all day. It was that Toby character, wasn’t it? I told you I had a bad feeling about him. Surely you can contest this? It’s got to be an unfair dismissal.”

“The file I used for the data entry is missing, so I’ve got no proof. And even if I did win, how can I work for Jack after this? And Toby is still there. I think if I ever see that smug face of his again, I’d punch it and get fired anyway.”

“Argh, this is so infuriating.” I smile at the tone in her voice. This is just the support I needed. “Do you want me to do a reading? I have my tarot cards here.”

“Maybe later? I’m freaking out. I just wanted to tell you about tonight. None of this was in my plan, you know?”

“I know. You have everything planned out for years to come. I don’t know how you do it. If it helps, I don’t feel like you’ll be out of work for long. And remember, my last reading didn’t bring up any money issues.”

“I already have a job interview. Maybe it’s meant to be?”

My friend huffs out a breath. “I’m not sure how I feel about that. Tell me what happened?”

I fiddle with the strap of my fake leather handbag as I tell her about the phone call. The black plasticky-rubber peels away under my fingers. “So you think I should go?”

I can hear her shuffling cards. “I didn’t say that, exactly. Something feels . . . off. How did you get an interview so fast?”

What I’d imagined was a long story didn’t turn out that way. I tell Elisa all about my morning as the train pulls into Richmond. Ignoring the new bald patch on the strap, I shoulder my bag and hike my backpack over the top of it. I tug my jacket free from bunching under my armpits and stagger off the carriage, fighting the icy wind that tries to blow me back onto the train. “Damn, it’s got cold all of a sudden.” The sky is now a gloomy gray and the smell of rain hangs heavy in the air.

“So, to top it all off, you caught the wrong train?”

“Yep, quite the horror show.”

“Honey, these days, anything can happen.” The shadow cast by the long roof panels make the platform even chillier. I edge away, searching for even a miniscule bit of warmth. The platform display screen sets me grumbling further. Eleven minutes?

“What about the interview, have you heard of the company? Who will you be working for?”

“The recruitment agent said they’re a new client so she didn’t have many details to give me. I did a basic search but there’s not much on them.”

Elisa gives a long-thinking hum. “Well, it could be meant to be. Still, take care, okay? I’m coming over tonight after your interview. You can tell me how it went over a drink or two. Or three. It’s still your birthday. We’re celebrating. We have to invite all the good vibes in for the coming year.”

Elisa’s gift—at least, that’s the way I think of it—is a way of seeing the truth, good or bad, via feelings, energy and auras. It’s all a bit mumbo-jumbo but she’s my best friend and I love her. Besides she’s rarely wrong. About anything.

I grin. “If you do sense something, you will tell me, won’t you?”

“Of course. Text me tonight after the interview and I’ll pop right over.”

I love the sound of that. “Will do.” I disconnect our call and breathe hot air onto my icy fingers. Twin yellow lights appear in the distance, breaking through the gloom. Finally!

After another endless train trip, I walk what seems like the half mile to my car and plonk down in the driver’s seat. I hesitate before putting the key into the ignition. This is crazy. Why am I sad? I shake my head. I have to focus on the coming interview, not on Jack’s betrayal.

Next steps. Go home, freshen up and travel back into the city for the interview. Then come back home and—

My handbag jiggles on the wool-covered passenger seat. Welcoming the delay, I fish out my cell phone and check the screen. Grandma Berry. Nope. I can’t talk to her just yet. I’ll call her back later. She’s probably with Grandma Rose, and who knows what crazy shenanigans they’re getting up too. Hopefully, the call isn’t to complain about the missed party tonight.

I let my phone ring for a moment and glance out through the car windshield, catching sight of a fluttering piece of paper jammed beneath the wiper blade. No, no, no! I spring out of the car, snatch up the offending paper and curse loudly. The number on the parking ticket appears to grow larger right before my eyes. “Oh, come on!”