I have had the great honor of being asked to join in on the pass the baton challenge started by Marla on the first of August.
The link back to the origin post is here: https://marladragon.wordpress.com/2023/08/01/august-passthebaton-challenge/
*****
This is the story so far:
Marla:
“I can’t meet you tonight. The group before me was late completing their portion and I have to finish my part by Friday. It’s going to be three very long days.”
“They can’t make you work long hours like that! You should quit.”
“It’s my job, and I like it. I’m not going to quit.”
“I wouldn’t work those hours, I would quit. You should too.”
“It’s a contract and I have to complete my work. I need to go.”
“It doesn’t make sense that your contract needs to be completed by Friday. They can’t force you to complete it. You need to have a life too. Tell them to go to hell, they can get it by next Friday.”
“That’s not how it works. It’s a contract and I have to fulfill those obligations.”
“That doesn’t make sense. You should quit.”
“I’m not going to quit. It does make sense.”
“Make it make sense then, because I still vote for quit. I would.”
“You’re not me. I work by contract. My company receives a contract and they assign me. If I don’t complete any part of the project within the set time-frame, they will remove me from the contract and replace me. It’s really not that complicated.”
“You’re not making any sense. Just quit.”
“I can’t discuss this right now, I have to work. I am NOT quitting.”
“You shouldn’t work those hours. It doesn’t make sense that they want you to. Seriously, just quit.”
“I gotta go.”
Di:
Jake was angry when he terminated the call. A contract was a contract, and he was very good at what he did. However, quitting was not an option.
He’d told Stella in the beginning that his job could be very demanding and he may have to be away at times. In many ways, though, she was turning out to be more demanding than his job, and that would have to be addressed relatively soon. Thank god they weren’t married.
He was living a double life and his cover stories were always plausible as he had excellent credentials and was a whizz when it came to computer software. This contract was important, and he had three days to plan, prepare and execute.
Finishing the last of his coffee, he packed up his gear and headed for the departure lounge. His flight took off in an hour and he needed to get some rest. He hadn’t been kidding when he’d told her it was going to be a very long three days.
Fandango:
Exhausted, Jake closed his eyes and fell asleep before the flight left the ground. He was awakened about an hour later when the pilot announced over the PA system that the plane would be turning around and returning to Dallas because a major winter storm had closed the Denver airport. The guy in the seat next to Jake said, “Dammit, it’s my anniversary tomorrow and if I miss it, my wife is going to kill me.”
Jake looked at the man in the seat next him. He knew the guy wasn’t being literal, but what he said amused Jake. Because in Jake’s case, if he didn’t get to Denver tonight, he might not be able to execute his contract in time, and Jake knew what the consequences of failure to execute his contact would be.
His mind started racing, examining his options and determining which would have the highest probability of success. Jake knew he had to act quickly to have any chance of pulling this contract off, and he came up with a plan that just might work. But once the plane landed back in Dallas, he knew he had no time to lose.
Jim:
Jake knew that for just under $200, Jake could take an Amtrak train to get from Dallas to Denver. The train only runs twice a day, and it is just over a 40-hour trip. The first one leaves at 11:00am and if he doesn’t make that he can catch the other one that leaves at 3:00pm. Jake realized that bad weather could delay trains, but it is more likely that a train will get through a bad storm than other modes of transportation, however he could relax more on a train, as he really wasn’t fond of flying in a snowstorm. Being a seasoned traveler, Jake knew that airlines are always delaying or canceling flights when they determine that the weather conditions make it unsafe to take off or land and he wasn’t too worried about the take off, but an icy landing was something that he wanted no part of.
A storm like this is an act of God and even though his contract needed to be completed by Friday, as long as he was making progress toward the goal, the company would understand. Since he couldn’t be sure when the next plane would take off, the train seemed like hoe only option. Jake took a taxi from the airport to the train station, and he was able to get a ticket for the 11:00am departure. This meant that Jake would be in Denver on Friday at 3:00am and he could complete the assignment by the skin of his teeth, making the best out of bad situation. Jake got his own private compartment on the train which was called a Roomette with a comfy seat, a bed, WiFi and outlets with a fold-down table for his laptop and then he heard the conductor shout “All aboard” as the train left the station.
Carol Anne:
Jake sat looking out the window. The weather was so bad, he really hoped the train would get to Denver on time, so he would be able to complete his assignment.
He took out his laptop and began to look at his notes.
He had so much to do and so little time to do it!
His phone began to buzz.
“Oh shit”, he said loudly. “I wonder who that is?”
He picked up the phone and there it was, her number, flashing on his screen.
His hand hovered over the answer button. Should he answer her? She’d be expecting answers. He didn’t have any for her.
He took the plunge and hit the answer button. “Hello?”
He heard sobbing on the other end of the phone.
“Jake?”, Celia sobbed…something terrible has happened!”
Christine:
This was getting to be too much. First he had Stella on his back about quitting a job which, although he didn’t tell her this, was extremely lucrative. Next, his flight gets cancelled and he’s going to arrive right before the deadline, making it impossible to have any time to relax. Now, Celia! And Celia in tears? Jake started to feel a lead weight weigh down his stomach like a thousand pound rock!
“Celia, what’s wrong? Stop crying and talk to me.”
“Jake, remember I told you I was going to meet my brother in the city this weekend?”
“Yeah, did something happen?”
“Jake, he just messaged me and said that he won’t be around this weekend anymore and that he won’t be able to get together for a long time. A long time! What is that supposed to mean?”
Jake was happy Celia couldn’t see his face. Yes, it would be a long time before she saw Clint again, well unless she died soon too! Celia had no idea what her brother was into and if she knew she wouldn’t want to see him anyhow. But, the contract specifically said that Clint would be in Denver for dinner Friday night. That was when it was all supposed to go down. Now here he was on a train to Denver for what? To go to a job that couldn’t be completed? Of course he couldn’t say any of this to Celia.
“Celia, I’m sure your brother has a good reason for needing to cancel. You know, I was thinking about coming out to Denver to see you both. Now, maybe it’s not such a good idea.”
“Oh, Jake, come see me still! I will be so lonely now that Clint isn’t going to be coming.”
Jake didn’t want to tell her that it was the last time she was going to be seeing Clint anyways. But now what was he going to do about finishing up the contract? Would they believe him when he said the target wasn’t there? This was turning out to be a true shit-show and he was somehow in the middle of it. All he wanted was for Clint to be at the restaurant in Denver Friday night. Beyond that he couldn’t care less what Clint did.
“Celia, listen, give him a call back and beg him to come Friday for dinner and then go off to do whatever it was he was going to do. He’s your brother. Explain to him that right now you need family. He’ll probably be able to rearrange his schedule that little bit.”
“Yeah, you’re right. He knows how desperate I am to see him. Maybe he wasn’t thinking about that part of it. I’ll call him right now and beg him to meet me.”
“You go girl! Let me know what he says. okay?”
Jake might not have to worry after all. If Celia could convince Clint to show up for dinner then Jake could execute the contract and move on, being there to hand Celia a tissue and lend her a shoulder to cry on. He could do that much. On the otherhand:
Sweeterthannothing:
On the other hand, he wasn’t sure he should be doing this at all.
His phone rang in his hand, Stella again, he rejected the call and dropped his phone into his backpack, she could ruin everything if she got her meddling hands in this mess, it was bad enough as it was. Why couldn’t she just let him be and get this done? She had never been this clingy before.
He tried closing his eyes and getting some sleep in, there was still a few hours left on his train journey and the stress of the most recent past was weighing on him.
But he just couldn’t settle, something wasn’t right, he could feel it. Stella, Celia, Clint… Even the plane! Everything seemed to be telling him to not go through with this but he had completed plenty of ‘contracts’ like this before, what could go wrong? Sure this one was a little close to home so to speak but no one had any idea of his second life, he had no reason to think they would ever suspect him.
But that wasn’t quite what was worrying him either, he just couldn’t put his finger on it.
He jumped when the train announced his stop was approaching, admonishing himself for letting his guard down so much he grabbed his meagre luggage and stretched, trying to convince himself all was well, it was nearly over with after all.
Until he stepped off the train and came face to face with Stella.
“What the fuck are you doing here?”
“I begged you not to do this,” she said, tears in her eyes.
“What are you talking about? It’s just work…” It was then he noticed the small gun she held to her hip, pointing straight at him.
The Sicilian Storyteller:
“It’s just work! That’s your answer for everything, Jake.”
“Stella, what’s gotten into you and where did you get that gun?”
“Shut up, Jake. I’m so sick of all the lies. Do you think I’m that stupid, that I don’t know about your secret life?”
“Look, Stella, I have no idea what you’re talking about. Let’s get off this train platform, go someplace quiet to talk.”
“You really do take me for a fool, don’t you, Jake? How very careless of you to make that mistake.’’
Jake had never seen Stella like this before. Exactly how much did she know? Was she talking about his job? Or maybe it was Celia. A dozen scenarios flashed through is mind in a matter of seconds. All that was important right now was for him to regain the upper hand. He had to get that gun away from her.
“Come on, baby. I have no idea where you’re coming from with these ideas. You’re upset, I get that …. but a gun? That’s not you, Stella. Please, baby. Put the gun away or better yet, just hand it to me.”
Jake saw Sella hesitate for a second and he knew that was the only chance he’d get to disarm her. He was about to reach for the gun when someone came up behind Stella and twisted her arm behind her back.
It was Clint.
My turn to nominate someone; I’d like to tag Lady Sighs ….. https://ladysighs.wordpress.com/ …..
if she would be so kind as to take on the challenge.
UPDATE: Lady Sighs is unable to pass the baton but no worries; Sadje is running with it. Go Sadje!
The Elephant's Trunk 