Push My Pen Chapter One

It was 9:34 AM and Tess Kemper was struggling to remember the name of her client’s youngest grandchild who was the star of his current story. She knew the name but a big part of her brain was still on vacation. A text came in and she glanced at her phone on the desk in front of her. It was from her best friend, Lisa Sullivan.

Coffee break @ $?

On the ground floor of the bank where Tess worked, there was a little coffee house called Cash Cafe. Tess went there with Lisa probably 2-3 times a workweek. But it had been well over a week since their last visit. It had been four days since she’d seen Lisa and she was looking forward to talking with her. Plus, she could truly use some caffeine.

She couldn’t reply yet and she reminded herself to focus. The business part of her interaction was done but her clients expected her to remember not only the names of their children and grandchildren but also the activities they were involved in, the hobbies the clients themselves enjoyed, and sometimes even what color paint they’d used after she’d helped them fund a remodel of their storefront. She quickly pulled herself together.

“Isn’t that going to interfere with her soccer? Wasn’t Sarah the one who was getting really good?”

“Yes, she was. But she dropped out of that. After all that money for equipment. Didn’t like it anymore,” the man said. He ran a hand over his tight-cut beard and smiled a genuine smile that pulled the wrinkled skin on his throat smooth as it accented the wrinkles around his eyes. The sparkle in those eyes told Tess he didn’t care about money spent no matter how he might mutter.

The man’s cell phone blared from his front breast pocket and he covered it with his hand as he moved to stand from the chair across her desk. Tess shot up from her chair as well and moved around to shake his hand and see him out.

“I’ll have to go answer this,” he said over the continued ringing. “Probably the manager over at the restaurant. Always a fire to put out. Thank you, Tess. I’ll see you next month.”

“I look forward to it. I’ll look over those accounts we discussed and have some options for you. Have a great day, Wes,” she said, beginning to close the door behind him. He answered the phone with a shout as he trotted spryly toward the elevator doors.

Tess sighed and let her head rest against the closed door for a moment. It was going to be a long day. It was always hard coming back to work the Monday after a long weekend and they’d had one for the 4th of July. She had taken an extra day off and flown out to the beach in Oregon last Thursday.

Her parents had paid for a short-term vacation rental. They had stayed for just over a week, asking her and her brother to join for the long weekend. It had been a great time but between sight-seeing, a surf lesson, sleeping on a strange bed, and the flight – she was exhausted. It didn’t help that she was sexually deprived.

She’d gone into the weekend needing a release and knowing she’d never get it in the same small house as her parents. A problem her brother had not seemed to share. He had brought home their sexy surf instructor and his six-pack abs, perfect suntan, and fantastic hair; not once, but twice. Their parents hadn’t seemed to mind, but it had definitely driven Tess from her bedroom. Out to the beach, out to the TV, out into a cold shower; anywhere she could escape from her own loneliness.

She chuckled at her self-pitying train of thought and wondered if seeing Lisa was going to help it or hurt it. Usually it helped. But contributing to Tess’s sexual frustration had been Lisa’s many texts describing the man she’d met over the weekend. She’d spent two days and nights with him and had spared no details.

Tess returned to her desk, verified on her calendar that her next appointment was not until the afternoon and only a staff meeting remained on her morning agenda. She had more than a half-hour before she needed to return. She replied to Lisa’s message.

Be there in 5.

She headed toward the stairwell and nearly collided with Brody, one of the building security guards. He was a tall man, white with a tan that spoke of lots of time outdoors, and he always smelled like oranges. He sidestepped out of her way, dipped his head, and smiled broadly like always.

“Good morning, Tess,” he said. He gave her an observant once-over, noticed the wallet in her hand and asked, “Heading down to the cafe?”

Tess nodded.

“I’ll walk with you.”

This wasn’t an unusual occurrence. The security staff were all very personable to those employed in the buildings they covered. And they had to do walk-throughs throughout the day, checking every floor and reporting anything unusual on initialed and time-stamped clipboards by the entry points. Brody would walk her to the cafe and do his check-ins on that floor.

They made small talk about the holiday and the incredibly hot weather.

“Don’t know how you always wear a jacket,” Brody said, nodding to Tess’s teal blazer. Underneath, she wore a light pink, sleeveless button up shirt, tucked into her tan dress pants.

He held the door open and Tess passed out into the brighter light of the ground level. Floor-to-ceiling windows let the morning sunshine fill the space. It was noisy. This was home to all the teller stations, the cafe, the entrance to the safety deposit boxes which were down one floor, and two large meeting rooms, often in use. There was always a bustle of people here and Tess stepped to the side to allow a group to pass as she turned back to answer Brody.

“Office winter. They love to crank that A/C.”

She thought about commenting on his long-sleeved shirt, but stopped herself. She knew the security company provided short-sleeved options, but she’d noticed some tattoos peeking out from his sleeves. Maybe they had a policy about covering them.

The company Brody worked for was called Fortifierz with a ‘z’ and the ridiculous word was emblazoned on Brody’s shirt. Her eyes caught there on the logo for a moment. Brody opened his mouth, but the sound of high heels rapidly clicking up to them seemed to stop his words. Tess turned and was swept into Lisa’s hug.

“Four days is too long, babe. I missed your face!” Lisa said. People called Tess and Lisa twins a lot. But today, Lisa’s shoulder-length brown hair was gently curled and swept up into a clip at the back of her head. She couldn’t tan, so she protected her fair skin at all times and it looked like porcelain against her darker hair. And the extra height from her heels meant Tess had needed to tiptoe to give a proper hug. “Hi, Brody,” Lisa said as she pulled back from Tess.

Brody nodded at Lisa, gave a wave to Tess, and departed to finish his rounds.

“I missed you, too.” Tess said, thinking that they could never truly pass as twins but maybe as sisters, if one considered Lisa the older and more elegant of them. Tess usually left her own shoulder-length brown hair straight as it was quicker that way. Her own skin did tan, though it brought out freckles which she could never imagine as elegant. Plus, she hated heels so she never looked taller than her average 5’ 4.”

Lisa strung an arm through Tess’s and led the way to the end of the coffee line at the cafe. The floor of the coffee shop was the same bright-polished stone as the rest of the bank’s ground floor but the lighting was dimmed with special shades. This morning, blinds had been closed over most of the windows as well. The cafe swelled with customers, filling most of the tables. Instead of tablecloths, actual dollar bills had been laid over the top of each table, then covered with heavy, plexiglass covers bolted to the sides.

Ted, the owner of Cash Cafe, had told Tess there were 60-120 bills per table making them rather expensive when you factored in the covering and the table, too. But they were probably the coolest tables in town. The hallway leading to the restroom was decorated by framed foreign currencies with explanations about the symbols and value. A display at the entrance commemorated the lifespan of the US dollar bill with replicas. The door to the small kitchen was decorated like a bank vault. And each drink had a money-themed name.

“Hello? Tess? You in there?”

Tess shook her head. She’d zoned out.

“Sorry,” she said. “I really need this coffee.”

“Clearly. I asked if you were thinking about quenching your drought with Brody?” Lisa said.

Tess was alert now and she glanced around to make sure no one in the cafe had heard. The man at the table nearest them was chuckling and she hoped it was at something funny on his open laptop. The group of three teens ahead of them was too absorbed with a video on one of their phones to have heard.

She shook her head at Lisa. “Where did that come from? You know I’m not attracted to Brody.”

“You were staring at him when I walked up,” Lisa said. “And he has such an obvious crush on you. I don’t know how he’s never asked you out.”

“I ask again why you think that. He treats everyone in my office the same. I was thinking about the stupid company name on his shirt, I wasn’t staring.” They moved up in line a spot as the barista helped the group ahead of them. “The answer would be ‘no’ anyway, he’s too young and he’s too tall.”

“Ah yes, a classic turn-off for women. A tall, young, fit, virile man.” Lisa laughed.

“Virile?”

“Okay, but he’s definitely tall and fit. And he’s not that much younger than us.”

“I don’t even think he can grow a beard.” Tess thought about what age she would guess Brody to be. 23 maybe?

“He shaves it!” Lisa said. “He shaves his head, why not his face?”

Tess would turn 31 this year. She’d been divorced for five years. And she had broken up with a short-term boyfriend 9 months and 6 days ago. Which meant it had been 8 months and 4 days since she’d last had sex.

“I haven’t had sex in 8 months and 4 days,” she said aloud.

Lisa burst out laughing and from Tess’s other side, the cafe’s owner cleared his throat.

“I never heard a thing,” Ted whispered. He maneuvered past with a couple of coffees and bagels on a small tray.

Tess’s cheeks heated and she hung her head. “Why did I say that?”

Still laughing, Lisa answered, “Not that you’ve been keeping track or anything.”

Tess raised her head and glared and Lisa composed herself. She cleared her throat and said, “I’m sorry. We just need to get you laid.”

Ted, now walking back from serving the food, paused beside them again. “We only do food and coffee here, unfortunately.”

Tess couldn’t help but laugh at his dry comment.

“Can I get you ladies your usuals?”

They both nodded. In a moment, they stepped up to the counter as the group ahead cleared away. Ted was already working on their order himself and had told the cashier what to charge them. A discounted amount, Tess noted as she took out her card to pay. They alternated who paid and it was her turn. If Ted served them, they always got a discount, but they never asked for it from anyone else.

After finishing their drinks, he came around the counter and sat at a table with them. He talked for a moment about taking his two young kids to the 4th of July parade and then to his parent’s farm out of town to shoot fireworks. When he asked about their holiday, Tess gave a brief summary of her trip.

When he turned to Lisa, her eyes lit up.

“I met someone,” she said. She smiled a little closed-lipped smile that Tess didn’t see too often. It was her friend’s most genuine smile.

“He took me out on his canoe,” Lisa continued. “He’s a fisherman. We went to the fireworks together. Talked a lot. He’s amazing.”

“You deserve amazing,” Ted said. “My favorite customers.” He smiled at them both giving each of their hands a quick squeeze as he stood to return to work.

Tess asked more about Lisa’s new man, Thomas. She said she hoped he’d be her boyfriend soon, describing him as a loyal sort that had already expressed a desire to be official. But he wanted to take her on a “real, restaurant date” first.

“We didn’t want to wait for Friday, so we’re going Wednesday,” she said. “He throws axes, like competitively, and he has league tonight and tomorrow.”

“That’s kinda hot,” Tess said.

“Yeah,” Lisa said. She got a dreamy look on her face. “I’ve never had chemistry like this before. Especially not with a decent, romantic guy.” She gave Tess a strange look. “He’s younger. He’s only been in one serious relationship. They were engaged, but never married. He’s 27. But he’s mature. Really.”

“That’s only 3 years younger than you, Lisa. You can’t compare that to what I said about Brody who is definitely not even 25.”

Lisa shrugged.

“Just be careful because I love you.” She waited for Lisa’s eye contact and said, “Be sure. And I want to meet him.”

“This weekend, I swear. He has an axe tournament on Saturday. Come with me.”

Tess nodded, “Sounds great.” She was so happy for Lisa.

Like Tess, Lisa was divorced. But while Tess’s ex had been an indecisive cheat, Lisa’s husband had been an abusive asshole. He’d put her in the hospital, so she’d put him and her whole life in the rearview mirror. Lisa had grown up here, and her parents still lived here, so she’d moved back. It was around the same time Tess was starting over after her divorce. They’d met at a farmer’s market, both reaching for the same used book at a stand.

Lisa was a paralegal and Tess had suggested she check out the law office in the historic Gilder Building across the street from High Mountain Bank. Lisa did not get that position but she impressed them enough that they recommended her to another attorney when he was hiring a couple months later. The two of them had worked in side by side buildings ever since, going on 4 years.

They’d been best friends through the last painful ripples of Lisa’s divorce. Lisa had bolstered Tess when she discovered that her ex had a kid that had to have been conceived before their divorce. They’d been strong for each other through a rough time when Tess returned to therapy because she was worried she might relapse in her addiction, and through Lisa’s dad’s death from cancer. Then they’d cheered one another through promotions and life getting good again.

Tess would be so happy if Lisa had found someone to share that good life with. She hoped Thomas was someone who could make it even better.

She glanced at the clock on the wall beside them and flinched.

“I’ve gotta go,” she said. “I’m gonna have no time to prep for my meeting.”

“Yeah, I’m late, too.”

They carried their unfinished drinks away, heading to the elevators in deference to Lisa’s heels. They stopped at the level with the skywalk to Lisa’s building and she stepped out.

“I don’t know if I can do lunch today. I may have to work through,” Lisa said.

Tess held the elevator door to stop it closing. “I have a sandwich order in for 12:30 at Toast of the Town. In case you can make it. If not, swing by my office after work? I have something for you.”

“You know I love presents. Sounds good girl, love you.”

“Love you.”

Smiling, Tess watched Lisa walk away until the elevator doors cut off her view.

***

Luckily for Tess, everyone was under-prepared for a meeting after the long weekend so she fit right in. She’d worked for High Mountain Bank for several years, starting out as a teller. She’d been a Small Business Loan Specialist for the last three years. She loved building real relationships with people in her community and helping them achieve their goals. The meeting was short and Tess had plenty of time to prep for her afternoon appointments before lunch.

Just before 12:30, she made her way downstairs and turned toward a side exit that led into the alleyway behind the bank. She pushed open the metal door and walked into a wall of heat.

“Yuck,” she said aloud, glancing at her surroundings to be sure no one else was in the alley. Midday muggings were pretty rare here, but it paid to be cautious. Satisfied, she stepped away from the building to shrug out of her blazer so she could continue to survive the outdoors.

She folded the blazer over her arm and started to walk down the alley toward the sidewalk, cursing a little. She should have gone out the front doors, she thought. It would have put her closer to the restaurant. But, it was her habit to exit here because it was closer to her office and kept her out of the crowds usually present in the bank lobby.

As she stepped out from the alley onto the sidewalk, the hairs on the back of her neck stood on end, despite the hot weather. She had the strangest feeling someone was watching her.

She glanced behind herself, back down the alley, just as someone crossed the opening at the other end, speeding along the sidewalk probably toward their own lunch. She glanced up at the levels of the parking garage that sat on the side of the alley opposite the bank. She didn’t park there. Ironically, no one from the bank did even though it was closer than their own garage on the opposite side of the Gilder building. This garage was all reserved for government employees as it attached to the court house and other office buildings across another street.

She often walked through the garage on her breaks and at lunch for the exercise and to seek out the view from the roof level, so she knew it well. She looked into the shadows on each level quickly, but she didn’t see anyone looking out. She glanced across the street, into the opposite alley and saw no one.

She shrugged off the feeling. It was humid and there was a crackle of static in the air. The weather forecast called for thunderstorms tonight, so she wrote the event off as meteorological and continued on her way.

She crossed two streets to get to Toast of the Town, the crowd of people increasing as she neared an area with several restaurants. In the second crosswalk, someone bumped into her shoulder and her blazer slipped from it’s spot on her arm. She retrieved it and shook it to get rid of any dirt, frowning at a small oil stain from the street. She got safely across to the sidewalk and tucked it more securely in the crook of her elbow as she entered the restaurant.

It was blessedly cooler inside but not frigid like her office. She headed for the shelf labeled “pick-ups,” but it was sparse. There were only two orders there and neither was hers. An employee hurried over to the computer on the counter and leaned toward Tess.

“Name?” she asked.

“Tess Kemper.” She practically shouted it to be heard over the music and the noise of the lunch rush. But the woman got it and scrolled down the touch screen.

“I’m sorry, we’re a little behind today. It’ll be out in just like two minutes.” She held up two fingers and Tess smiled and nodded, stepping back a little bit to wait.

The door opened and Tess looked up in time to see Lisa trying to enter. A man dressed in gray cargo pants and a gray jacket which looked like it would be miserable in this weather full-body slammed into her friend in his hurry to leave. He must’ve apologized to Lisa because she nodded and stepped aside to let him out. Her frown faded as she spotted Tess and approached.

As she walked over, Tess chuckled. They were wearing the same pants.

“Remember we swore we wouldn’t do this.” She gestured from her pants to Lisa’s. They often shopped together but it was rare they decided to buy the exact same things and when they had, they had done a pinky-promise in the check-out line that they would coordinate and not be twins. Lisa even wore a sleeveless shirt like Tess’s today. But it was white and not a button-down.

“This is why we simply have to talk to each other every day,” Lisa said. “Four days is too long. Throws us off our game.”

“Got a lunch after all?” Tess asked.

Lisa shrugged, “I have to take this back and work while I eat but I didn’t want to pay the delivery fee. I needed a minute out of the office, anyway. There’s an insufferable client who’ll be leaving about now and I’m happy to avoid him.”

Tess knew better than to ask the client’s name so she just gave a sympathetic nod.

The same employee returned and asked Lisa’s name. She looked it up and similarly apologized for the delay and promised it would be ‘under 5 minutes.’

“She’s new,” Lisa said.

Tess nodded. They chatted for a moment, then Tess took the opportunity to use the restroom. As she washed her hands, she admired her tan. The weekend was the first time she’d gotten out into the sun all summer. She ran a few times a week but always fairly early in the morning this time of year, before the sun had a chance to take hold of the day.

When she returned to the pick-up line, she saw the young employee handing a sandwich to Lisa. Tess laughed a little, knowing that was more than likely her order. Lisa always ordered a salad.

As Tess walked up, Lisa passed her the sandwich wordlessly but with a smile. The employee, now returning with Lisa’s salad did a double take, but still tried to hand the salad to Tess.

Lisa reached across and took the container.

“It happens all the time,” Lisa said.

The woman still looked confused. A familiar, older woman walked up behind the new employee and laughed out loud, patting the younger woman’s back. Lisa and Tess both smiled at Nadine. She’d been working at Toast longer than they been coming and she was usually the one who handled the pick-up orders – and about everything else front of house. They knew her well.

“These two are in here a lot,” Nadine said. She leaned close to the new employee and pointed at Lisa. “Lisa is a little taller.” Her finger turned to Tess. “Tess’s face is a little rounder. They won’t look that alike once you see them a few times. Have a good one, ladies!”

Tess and Lisa said “thank you” in near unison and moved out of the way of a fresh group that was approaching the pick-up shelf. Tess heard the younger woman say, “Oh no” audibly as the group approached. Then she heard Nadine suggest that she take a little break.

Tess was smiling about it still when she and Lisa exited the restaurant, both groaning at the heat.

“I love you, girl,” Lisa said. “I’ll be over just after 5.”

“See you then,” Tess said, shifting her sandwich to the other hand so she could blow Lisa a kiss. The two women went their separate ways, Lisa jaywalking at a run in heels, waving thanks to a car that slowed for her as she headed straight for the Gilder building. Tess stepped to the first crosswalk to wait for the walk light. She was headed to the front door of the bank this time. Screw the crowds, she wanted that A/C now.

A bus startled Tess, roaring up to take the corner tight just before the light turned red. She felt the exhaust of the huge machine as the enormous face of a local realtor leered from it’s side. She took a half-step back, her heart racing. Before she could let out the breath she’d gulped, people came past from behind her to cross the street. Shaking off the scare, she followed the group across.

Just before she entered the front doors of High Mountain Bank, she felt the tingling on the back of her neck again. She resisted the urge to look around her. Let whoever it was watch her sweat if they wanted. She’d be lost in the crowd in a moment. And she was.

***

“Are you thinking murder things?”

Micah Scott pulled back the binoculars he’d been holding to his eyes and blinked. It was 1509 and the principal was on a break, walking the parking garage that attached to her building. He’d just watched her lean on the half-height wall that surrounded the roof and then pull back as she burned her forearms on the hot metal.

He scrolled back through the last minute of conversation that had taken place in the hotel suite they were working out of. He’d been hearing it, though not participating so it took a moment for him to remember.

Devlin, his usual mission partner, a tall, white man with starkly contrasting black hair, round-framed glasses, and a deep voice that didn’t suit his appearance in the least had broken a half hour of silent work. He’d said, “We need to have a planning meeting briefly here if Micah can take a break.”

Though he’d met Shayne, their other team member, he had never been in the field with her. She was a tall, blonde woman with short, spiky hair, a scar cutting across her jaw and neck, and a snarky attitude. She had wandered over and folded herself onto the chair sitting in the window next to the one he was looking through. But instead of watching the principal outside, she’d studied him for a moment before asking, ‘Are you thinking murder things?’

He cleared his throat, stepped further back from the window, and turned to meet eyes with Shayne.

He wondered what she was thinking. He had warm, gold-brown skin and his short, brown hair curled tight to his scalp. He kept his beard and goatee short, with clean edges, too. He had brown eyes, a firm but not crushing handshake, and was only a couple of inches taller than Shayne – all details he was sure she’d noted when they met days ago and perhaps not thought of again until now. Her interest did not seem sexual, which suited him. He didn’t mix work with fun and since they lived on opposite sides of the country, he didn’t anticipate them meeting up while not on a job.

“What are murder things?” he asked.

Shayne’s face split into a smile and she laughed almost soundlessly. “Mur-der things,” she repeated, emphasizing the syllables as if that would make the meaning more clear to him. “You’re stalking someone, right? That’s basically what we’re doing here. So are you thinking about how to kill her?”

The thought was repugnant to him, but he kept his face blank. There didn’t seem to be judgement in Shayne’s expression, but he didn’t know her well. She was sizing him up. That was fine.

“That’s not what my job is,” he said dryly.

“We’re security, Shayne. Remember?” Devlin interjected. “We don’t kill people.”

Shayne swung her gaze toward the other man, her whole, flexible upper body following the motion. “We might kill people, if we need to,” she said. “But I mean, you can’t really protect somebody if you don’t have the ability to imagine how to murder them.” She turned her whole body and her focus back to Micah. “Right?”

He waited a moment before replying. Shayne and Devlin had worked together before, he knew. But, since he’d been hired, he’d almost always been paired with Devlin if tech support was needed. From what he knew, Shayne could do a little of everything. She could assist with tech, she was a break-in specialist, she’d done undercover in the field, and she could bodyguard. The company worked her all across the country pretty relentlessly.

“I hate it that you call it murder,” Devlin said, shuffling things into a stack on the nightstand he’d pulled up close to his desk. “What you’ve done is not the same as murder.”

Shayne didn’t look at Devlin, but her tone definitely changed when she addressed him versus when she addressed Micah. She kept her gaze on Micah’s as she said, “Are you my therapist now, Devlin? Some people may handle it by putting it into a different box and not calling it what it is but the dictionary agrees with me. Intentionally ending a human life is murder.”

“Intentionally and unlawfully,” Devlin argued. “Unjustifiably. You were a soldier, Shayne.”

But Shayne kept looking at Micah like this was a test he needed to pass. This attitude was taking him by surprise. She was quick-tongued but she’d been pretty cheerful and easy to get along with thus far. The whole time they’d been scoping out locations and setting up shop she’d been professional and even occasionally funny. But now, she was showing him another side. Of course, he’d known a darker side was there. Her path to this job wasn’t that different from his own.

“What do you think,” she asked, “as an ex-solider? A former merce- sorry, Private Military Contractor? Is what we do justifiable? Lawful? Or is it murder?”

“What’s gotten into you?” Devlin asked quietly. She ignored him.

“Was,” Micah said. “Was it justifiable? Ex. Former. Whatever I’ve done in the past is just that. Past-tense. I have no intention of killing anyone on this mission and no intention of letting anyone die. I don’t want to see a murder. And I have no plans to commit one. Ever again.”

Her eyes sparkled a little as she nodded. She liked his answer, he guessed. Her posture relaxed and she rocked a little in the chair as she said.

“But you are thinking murder thoughts,” she said. “Maybe not how you would kill her but how someone might.”

How someone might try. No one would be killing this one. Period.

Outwardly he just shrugged and headed toward the desk where Devlin now sat quietly.

Laughing, Shayne rose to follow him. “It’s just a resting murder face then, huh? RMF. I can accept that.”

They sat across from Devlin and talked business.