Time will tell...time will answer... Silence...and time.
                                 —Deyth Bonger

Mr. Beaumont had left his office so cluttered that cleaning it up proved downright stressful. For hours, Ramona rummaged through the pile of papers and office supplies, doing her very best to sort them into meaningful categories as she went. Though the pile shrank, it didn’t reduce fast enough. Ramona increasingly resisted an urge to tug at her blonde hair. 

The magnitude of her task gave her anxiety, not to mention a pang of loneliness that stabbed her heart. Ramona was no stranger to chores at home, but at least after finishing those, she’d get to play a game with her mother or work together on baking a delicious treat. And the house drone Buzz would hover nearby while offering what assistance it could, lightening her load a good deal. 

Here in the government house, she had none of that. Instead, she worked away, a lonely girl on her hands and knees in a mess of an office. She’d signed up to be a secretary, not a chambermaid. 

Gradually, the realization settled over Ramona that she wasn’t alone at all. God always dwelled with her, and when she remembered that, a bit of peace returned to her. She continued her work with a little more enthusiasm. 

By the time Mrs. Aleric returned, Ramona had diminished about half the clutter pile and cleared a path to the window in the back. She hadn’t finished by any means, but when her boss entered, she received an unnatural smile as a reward. Mrs. Aleric’s face clearly hadn’t been made for smiles, but Ramona preferred it to a frown. 

“Good, good.” Mrs. Aleric said, the residue of cigarettes on her breath, “Looks like I won’t have to fire you, yet.” 

Ramona smiled meekly and smoothed out the creases in her skirt. “Glad you’re happy with my work so far. You were right; Mr. Beaumont left–” 

“Yeah, he left a lot of junk lying around, I know. You find anything interesting in those piles for me?” 

“Well … no? I haven’t been reading a whole lot here, just sorting by subject lines and such.” 

“That’s fine. A silly girl has no place poking into politics.” 

“Of course.” Ramona said, biting back a remark on the irony of Mrs. Aleric saying such a thing as a fellow woman. “I’m here for work, not drama.” 

Mrs. Aleric cackled so vigorously she stumbled, catching herself with the desk. “You’re in the wrong business if you’re trying to avoid drama, young lady. You’d best believe that.” 

“Yes, ma’am.” 

Mrs. Aleric snorted. “Anyway, you’ve been working hard. It’s time to take a break for lunch. Be back in 40 minutes.” 

“Will do. Thank you, ma’am.” 

“Don’t thank me; I’m only dismissing you because my husband’s laws say I have to. Otherwise, I’d want that pile out of here ASAP, so I can walk in my office without my blood pressure going up.” 

Ramona laughed politely as she made for the door. “I don’t blame you there.” 

Mrs. Aleric grumbled a response, but Ramona didn’t pick it up. Neither did she bother clarifying. She whirled about to head off for lunch, only to realize she had no clue where to go. Ramona turned right back around, peeked her head in the office, and asked Mrs. Aleric. 

A wicked smile crossed her face. “You can ask Ricardo. He’ll be glad to help you.” 

It took all Ramona’s mental strength to keep from rolling her eyes. She made her way back to the front, where Ricardo’s sinewy hands worked at sorting out a pile of papers. He glanced up when her shadow cast over him, politely at first. Then once he recognized her, the grin gave way to a snarl. 

“What do you want, silly girl?” he asked. 

Ramona beamed at the receptionist out of spite. “I was told to ask you for directions lunchroom room. Lucky you!” 

“Some luck…” Ricardo smacked his stack of papers down on the desk and shot to his feet. Grabbing a tattered leather bag from under his seat, he gestured for Ramona to follow him. “I just happened to be going to lunch myself, so I guess it’s not so bad.” 

“Well, judging by your disposition, I can’t believe you’ve had a bad day in your life.” 

“Clearly you’re an idiot, then.” 

“Takes one to know one.” Ramona said with a saccharine smile, “You’re so helpful.” 

“And you’re so annoying.” 

How anyone could be so blatantly rude and still have a job as a receptionist was beyond Ramona’s understanding. But even so, he guided her through the network of corridors inside the government house, and they ended up at a slab door with a window placed in the middle. Above the entrance had been fixed a sign reading “break room”, with a sticker next to that. The sticker read “security cameras in use”, which Ramona could only scratch her head at. 

“Here we are.” Ricardo said, shoving the door open as if it had done him harm. “You don’t have to say thank you, because I won’t hear it.” 

It was then Ramona noticed Ricardo had a pair of wireless earbuds lodged in his ears, and he tapped a big “play” button on his touchscreen phone deliberately before walking away. He left Ramona alone to navigate a confusing environment filled with new people and lots of commotion. 

To her right stood a row of microwaves and toasters for reheating lunch, and constant foot traffic went back and forth from there to the tables to her left. Some of the men and women in the break room eyed one anothers’ food with greater interest than their own. One older gentleman even pouted as he scraped his entire lunch into a trash bin in the corner. He’d burnt the whole meal to an unrecognizable crisp in the toaster. 

Ramona had brought along a cold sandwich with slices of apple and carrot, so she had no need of the heating elements. She headed for the tables, none of which had less than two people sitting at them, aside from Ricardo’s in the back corner. Sorting Mr. Beaumont’s old trash had been more enjoyable than sitting with Ricardo would have been. 

With a bit of hesitation, Ramona took a risk and seated herself at the end of a large table with plenty open seats. Half a dozen ladies already ate and chatted there before she arrived, and most of them paid her no mind when she joined them. A few merely looked, but nobody made an effort to greet her. She barely minded. Ramona simply put her head down and ate. 

As she chewed, Ramona kept her ears peeled just to scope out the sort of conversations that took place around lunchtime. At her own table, the ladies gabbed excitedly about some of the letters that had come in that day. One of the girls had been tasked with sorting the facility’s mail that morning, and the others hung on her every word for hints of some gossip or scandal she may have spotted. 

“I can’t help but wonder what business Mr. Bolivar Ortega of Newhill has, sending a letter to Mr. Aleric.” she said, “Steelfort and Newhill usually try to stay out of each others’ way.” 

“Maybe he needs money.” one of the ladies said, flipping red hair over her shoulder, “Heaven knows Newhill needs new roads.” 

Another woman with bright eyes and a big nose waved her hands wildly. “What they need is to level that blasted mound in the middle of town. Their main park’s in shadow half the day just so Ortega’s mansion can get all the sun.” 

“It’s not his fault the hill’s there; you’re absurd!” 

“What are you, Ortega’s PR agent?” 

“Well no, but…” 

“Ooh, Maribelle probably visited his mansion.” crooned a girl who resembled a doll more than a person; she’d overdone her hair and makeup by far. “Is he as good a kisser as they say?” 

Maribelle’s cheeks reddened. “Why would you assume that? I’ve never met the man in my life.” 

“That’s not what you told me!” piped up the youngest of the girls present. 

“Okay, maybe I did meet with Mr. Ortega once, for purely professional purposes, but you’d best believe I’m no easy catch.” 

“Maybe not, but Bolivar is no ordinary man.” 

Ramona tried to tune out the conversation as it continued on, getting sillier and sillier as it went. All sorts of nonsense about Bolivar’s captivating conversation, gracious gifts, and capricious kisses, the sort of stuff Lolita would wrinkle her nose at. She could only pray working at the government house wouldn’t turn her into a woman as ditzy as the ones at her table. 

One kernel remained in her mind, though. The fact Newhill’s young mayor had sent word to the governor of Steelfort would probably serve as a sign of something significant. The two municipalities had ranged from outright antagonism to arms-length tolerance over their history, so for one to break the silence couldn’t help but shake things up. 

For better or worse, that was a question only time could answer. 

* * * 

After dropping his sister off at the government house, Gael went about a day just as busy as hers. He briefly stopped by home to grab his hunting gear, and then he made his way to the woods. About two hours later, he’d shot a deer and done his field prepping before heading to the butcher’s shop in town. 

Gael hadn’t shot a doe of any significant size, so he braced himself for low compensation as he drove. As it turned out, God granted him another avenue to increase his earnings. The delivery driver Steelfort’s butcher relied on had fallen sick, and Gael had a truck. For several extra shillings, he agreed to load up a shipment of meat and take it to the retirement home. 

The packages filled up the bed of Gael’s truck nicely, and their denseness gave him a workout. His shoulders burned as he drove to the retirement home. After making his way inside and introducing himself to the chef, the two worked together to restock his meat supply. Some of the packages went into a deep freezing chamber so cold it stung Gael’s face. In contrast, the kitchen’s atmosphere of steam and sizzling made him squirm. 

That accomplished, the chef gave Gael a tip for his help, as well as a quick bite to eat for lunch. With both his pockets and his belly full, he finally began making his way to the exit. 

When Gael reached the door and stepped through, he picked up on footsteps pattering down the hallway behind him, so he peeked back. A brunette walked in his tracks with her head down, studying some piece of paper. Since she wasn’t far behind, he opted to hold the door open for when she reached it. 

The female raised her head upon realizing the door hadn’t closed, and then a smile of recognition crossed her face, which Gael excitedly returned. Once more, he’d crossed paths with Paloma, the lady he’d met with the petition the yesterday.

                        ★★★★★

Ayyy, they finally meet again! 😁
Who is happy about that?

But, aww, poor Ramona. She has to deal with the likes of Mrs. Aleric and Ricardo. Two nasty people 😥😂
Drop a vote to cheer her on. XD

Hmm, are you as curious as her to know what the sudden appearance of Bolivar Ortega, the mayor of Newhill will bring?

Leave your answers in the comments section.

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Until next time, stay blessed! 🙏❤