Beautiful

16. A Change is Coming

A Change is Coming

"Well, Mr. Baxwell has a meeting scheduled with me this afternoon. I finally made my way around to opening the envelope he gave me a while ago." Tierra paused, reflecting on the contents of the mystery envelope she received almost two months prior. "Every time I was about to open it, I'd get a phone call or an emergency would arise and back in the drawer it would go. Then Mr. Baxwell, himself, told me to hold off on opening it. Talk about confusing."

"Why were you confused?"

"I've received plenty of perks from him before. Usually they came along with a promotion or something of the sort. There are not promotions in the works right now. I mean, I'm the head of my department, there isn't another promotion for me, from here."

"So, what did the envelope contain?"

"That's the confusing part. It was just a letter, but it was written in his hand, not typed, as one would normally have been and it read,

'Tierra, you are my most trusted employee. Having said that, I have an important matter to discuss with you. When you read this, please call my secretary and confirm that you have read this letter, by saying only one this one word to her, FUTRE. She will know what to do, and will set up a meeting for you and me to conclude the rest of this. Please, Do Not Breathe a Word, of This to ANYONE!'

Secrecy isn't a thing Mr. Baxwell usually does. I mean, sure to keep something under wraps until the big reveal, but secret meetings? I've never known him to have one. I guess I wouldn't though right, if they were a secret. If he wanted to meet with me why not just tell me to make an appointment with him from the jump, why the envelope? Why all the drama?"

"Are you worried about your job?"

"No, I mean, I don't think so. There is no one at B.E. that can handle things, that I do. They don't bring in the clients that I do. And, they damn sure don't have a love for the job as I do. But lately, I've cut back on my hours just a little bit. See, I've been more active at the prayer meetings at church. I haven't gone on a Sunday yet. I figure when God is ready for me to, I will."

"So, between the uncertainty at work and your reluctance to go to church on Sunday's, what do you think is going on?"

"I don't know? You're the therapist. Don't I pay you to tell me what's wrong with me?" Tierra said, as her therapist wrote in his notebook. When he finished writing, he looked up at her, as if he were waiting for her to comment on his thought. So, she did. "Okay look, maybe it's all those people. I mean, it's not a business deal. What if they begin to ask those usual church questions, like who needs Jesus or who wants to give their life to God? Then there's this lady, that's there sometimes, and she is so beautiful. She looks vaguely familiar, but she doesn't say much. When she does, it seems to be just what I needed to hear."

Again, the therapist wrote in his notebook.

Tierra sat stiffly on the gray and purple striped sofa, with her legs bent and her arms wrapped tightly around them. Ever since her mother showed up unannounced on her doorstep, she's been hinting that Tierra should seek some type of professional counseling. Finally, a few weeks ago she gave in and received a few referrals from her primary physician and found someone close by and scheduled an appointment.

"Well, you should think about what it is that bothers you about being there and write it down," the young-looking therapist began.

Dr. Mark Burton, was a nice looking man, who didn't look a day over twenty-five. At first Tierra had an issue with allowing someone so young to give her advice on her life. After two sessions, she mustered up enough nerve to ask him how old he was. To her surprise he revealed that he was actually forty-two years old. She was impressed, and glad, because out of the three therapists she'd seen so far, Dr. Mark, as she referred to him, made her feel the most comfortable. Though she wasn't comfortable at all talking about her feelings, at least he was able to get her to open up somewhat.