Alex's Story

Chapter 1

May 30, 2012 2:30 AM

Alex woke up slowly. It was dark, and she didn't recognize the blue light filtering through her eyelids. Reaching a tentative hand out, she knocked her cell phone to the floor, and its unexpected crash startled her into full awareness. She sat up and realized that she'd fallen asleep at work again, and that her coworkers at Curley, Hernandez & Smith had long since departed for the night. Quickly glancing at her simple black watch, she cursed herself and stood up to shake the stiffness out of her arms, legs and back. She was tempted to spend the night on the couch -- the office wasn't located in a safe part of the city, and God knew who'd be out and around at this hour -- but she knew from experience that she'd rather run the risk than try and ignore the odd looks from whoever found her on the waiting room couch tomorrow morning. The last time, she'd woken up to find the receptionist and Mr. Curley, the firm's managing partner, standing outside her office door. He'd pulled her into his office to lecture her on the merits of leading a healthy lifestyle. As they passed through the halls, she'd tried to duck away from the glances of her bright-eyed coworkers who invariably noticed that she was wearing the same outfit as the day before.

"Miss Rinaldo," Mr. Curley had said, "our company offers an excellent benefits package. There is a gym and yoga studio on the third floor. The cafeteria serves five star, goumet food. You're a bright, intelligent young woman. I know this isn't the first night you've spent at your desk. We don't expect you to work that hard. In fact, we need  you to maintain your health in order to remain a productive member of the office."

"Yes, sir," Alex had replied tiredly. He wondered what had kept her here so late. It's true, there was always work to be done, but never so much to require an all-nighter. He felt a pang of pity for the poor kid--she didn't realize it, but she had her keyboard's QWERTY imprinted on her forehead. She looked very young as she struggled to stay awake and focused on the conversation.

"You're too young to burn yourself out this way. I've seen it happen before. Go home. Get some rest. We need you to be at full speed. If the workload is proving to be too challenging for you, it might be time for you to consider another position either within this firm, or another. I'd be happy to put in a good word for you with any of our partners." He knew that it was low to use such scare tactics, but as a parent to career-minded kids in their twenties, he knew that his words would trigger the effect he sought. Alex snapped to attention, and stood up. She only wobbled on her stilettos once before catching herself.

"That's not necessary, sir. I'll take better care. I love my job, and hope to have a long and happy tenure here." Alex moved towards the door. "I think I'll take your advice and head home, get some rest." Mr. Curley was pleased to see her retreating form headed toward the main lobby. 

Remembering Mr. Curley's words, she snatched up her company laptop and tossed it into her smooth, black leather briefcase. The files she placed neatly on top of them only had a little bit of drool on them, and it was mostly dried. Sneaking out the back door to avoid any security officers who might recognize her, Alex exited into the alleyway. She started to run towards a passing cab and tripped over the body.

Of course, she didn't realize it was a body at first. It was dark in the alley and at this time of night, it could be anything: rats, cats, stray dogs, a hobo, trash, or even just further evidence that Alex seemed unable to get out of her own way. After the pointy toe of her shoe caught in the soft warm thing on the ground, she put her hand against the slimy brick wall and narrowly missed faceplanting into the filth. Brushing the dirt out of the new scrapes on her plams, Alex sighed and ruefully wished she'd thought better of crashing on the couch in reception. She was startled half to death when she suddenly felt a firm grasp encircle her slim ankle.

"Eeeeek!" she screeched, not knowing who or what was at her feet. She tried to kick free and scrambled towards the mouth of the alley.The safety of the streetlights ahead glowed in the near distance. Almost there, she turned when she heard a soft cry.