When the door to Thornton’s office slammed loudly, the blonde businessman looked up from his desk in alarm. This was his sanctuary—no one ever entered without first being announced by Nina. No one, that is, except the woman who was now briskly striding across the floor, with a rolled up newspaper under her arm, and stainless steel flask of the strongest fair-trade coffee in her hand.
Thornton adjusted his glasses and sighed. “Mom, I’m in the middle of…”
Rose Kalgren viciously slammed the newspaper down on Thornton’s desk, causing his printed spreadsheets to float away in fear. “Who is she?”
With a glance at the photograph on the front page, Thornton ripped his glasses from his face and rubbed the bridge of his nose. “Mom, it’s not what it looks li…”
“Her name, Thorn. What is this woman’s name?” Rose demanded. The older woman was dressed in full battle attire. Although she was well into her sixties, Rose looked terrifying in her stylish tweed business suit, expensive watch and pearl jewelry, and her hair gathered in the perfect French twist she had worn for decades when she had been the at the head of K.T. Enterprises.
“Medea,” Thornton answered, knowing that he had no choice.
“Give me her full name, please, along with any other information you have. I’m going to run a full background check to make sure that you’re safe.”
“Mom, look—there’s no need to investigate her. She’s not a spy from another company or anything like that. Ash and I met her in a club and we had a few drinks with her, that’s all.” He studied the beautiful woman depicted beside him on the front page of the newspaper. She had deep indigo hair which fell down her back in soft, feminine waves.
“How could you do this, Thorn? How could you be so dumb and allow yourself to get photographed with this woman in such an intimate way just a few days before you proposed to Pax?” Rose was wearing her war-face; this meant zero chance of escape.
“It’s not how I planned it,” he answered awkwardly. “Actually, I’m pretty sure that girl likes Ash better than me anyway.”
“Ash?” Rose screeched. She grew doubly upset, thinking of the man who had cast her daughter aside. Quickly gathering her composure, she dug her fingernail into the photograph on the newspaper. “Is this a new thing you boys do? Share your girlfriends? Because it looks to me like you have your hands all over this woman in a very romantic way. How does Ash feel about that? Does he know you took her lingerie shopping in a public place?”
Thornton felt a blush coloring his cheeks at the uncomfortable subject matter. “Mom, please! Look, I can explain…”
“No, you look! Give me the girl’s last name.”
Thornton opened his mouth to respond, but found himself staring ahead blankly. “I… don’t know it.”
Rose threw her hands up into the air. “Oh my god! Wonderful. This is wonderful. What is she, an escort? A prostitute? How much did you pay her…”
“Mom!” Thornton shouted, horrified at the thought. “Stop it, seriously! She’s a really nice girl.”
“Poor Paxie. No wonder the girl went berserk.” Rose dragged the back of her hand across her forehead in frustration. “Okay, Thorn. Enough about the women. I’d like to inform you of some important changes which will be implemented to the company administration.”
Thornton nodded, glad for the focus of the conversation to be away from his personal life.
Rose smiled and sat down on the side of her son’s desk casually. “You’re taking a sabbatical.”
“I am?” Thornton immediately swiveled his chair to look at his computer, and began scanning his calendar. “That’s impossible. I don’t remember deciding…”
“I decided.”
The blonde man swallowed. He lifted a hand to brush his hair nervously. “Uh, Mom… what are you saying exactly?”
“I’m saying that you’re fired.”
Thornton’s face remained expressionless for a moment. His jaw worked in disbelief. “You can’t fire me! I’m the CEO!”
“And I’m your mother. I can do anything I want. It’s still my company, honey—you know I have controlling shares. After inheriting K.T.E. from my father, and his father, and spending my life building this corporation from the ground up—it’s impossible for me to fully retire. I’m not going to let you mess up my life’s work. And let’s face it: every one of those wrinkly old men on the board of directors has had a crush on me since I was in my twenties.” Rose sent her son a smug smile.
Thornton swallowed, overwhelmed with guilt and fear. “Mom, I’ve dedicated my life to this company too. I know that recently I made some big mistakes…”
“Sweetie, I’m only requesting that you take a temporary leave. I think you’ll agree that once a CEO starts screwing up so much that he gets blackmailed, agrees to have sex with a competitor, and accidentally gets her murdered… well, maybe it’s time for a break.”
“But no one even found out about that!” Thornton argued. “I did a great job of covering it up…”
“The point is that there shouldn’t be such problems to cover up in the first place. And wasn’t the cost of losing your girlfriend—not just any girlfriend, but Paxie—to cover up a company issue, a little too steep? You need a vacation, son. Maybe you can spend some time with your dad, practice your deva powers a little. Hang out with Ash some more. Do anything; just stay away from the office. Please.”
“Who will take over my responsibilities?”
“I will step back in. Don’t worry, I’ll figure everything out. You will need to keep up appearances and appear at the Charity Ball in the fall, just as you always do. You can serve as a figurehead for a while, but nothing more.”
“When is this effective?” Thornton asked.
Rose smirked. “Now. Get out of here, kid.”
Thornton leaned back in his chair, running both hands through his hair. He felt like he had just been informed of the death of a child. “But what am I going to do with myself?”
“See if you can find that amazing young man I used to know. He’s buried under there somewhere. Rediscover yourself, and bring my son back to me.”
He released a sigh, and nodded slowly. “I’m… sorry, mom. For all this… everything, lately.”
“Just get it together,” Rose said, standing up. She pointed to the door, indicating that he should make his departure.
Sometimes, Thornton was not sure which of his parents was more terrifying: the demigod or the businesswoman? He lifted himself out of his chair, feeling as though he weighed more than a blue whale. He picked up his glasses, and was about to return them to his face when he realized that he did not need them any longer. He sighed and began walking around the desk, but he paused and turned back to look at Rose Kalgren. “Do you think she’ll agree to marry me, mom?”
The woman’s hard face softened slightly. Her periwinkle-blue eyes glided to the photograph on the front page of the newspaper. “I think she’d be a fool not to. I think she’d have difficulty living without you. But Thorn—I’m almost positive she’s going to make you suffer first. Because you made her suffer… and well, the girl’s a fire goddess.”
“Then I’ll suffer,” he answered. “That’s fair.”
Rose watched her son leave the room, but when he had almost reached the door, she shouted after him. “Thorn!” When he looked back, she picked up the newspaper and thrust it forward so that he could see the photo. “Keep me involved in your life, young man. If things don’t go the way you want with Pax, and you find yourself spending more time with this girl—remember that I’m your mother. Before you get in any deeper with this girl, bring her home to meet your family. You should also find out her last name.”
“Yes, Mom.”
“Okay. Go on—get out of my office.”
Thornton had never felt greater shame than when he pulled open the door and left that room. The room to which he had devoted decades of his life. He felt the burden of true failure for the first time in his life, and it had caused him to stumble from his pedestal. He now clung to the edge of the pedestal with just his fingertips, trying desperately to pull himself back up—he was somehow unsure of whether he was even worthy of being on top.
“Have a good day, sir!” Nina said amicably. She smiled at him and took a sip from her coffee mug. It was a mug that Thornton had given her years ago, and printed on the side were the words: World’s Greatest Secretary.
Those three words were almost enough to make Thornton break down in tears. Instead, he scowled at himself for even wanting to cry. Wow, I guess I really do need a break. I am way too emotional and high-strung lately. When did I become like this? He nodded at Nina as he entered his private elevator. He punched in buttons angrily and crossed his arms, leaning against the glass wall as the capsule descended. He had a spectacular view of the other downtown office buildings from his glass elevator, but it gave him no joy on this day. When the elevator landed, he marched out of the pod and into the company foyer.
He felt a hand roughly grab his arm. “Thorn!” said a young woman’s voice.
Knowing that Pax and his sister were as much out of the country as possible, he imagined that it could be Medea. But when he turned to see his attacker, he was surprised by the face of a stranger. She had dark skin and dark hair, but striking hazel eyes with green flecks. What he noticed next was the glaringly green outfit that she wore—possibly some kind of gaudy new athletic gear.
“Do I know you, miss?” Thornton asked politely.
“Yes,” she said in a tired but serious voice. “Listen, Thorn. An apocalypse is about to happen. The end of the world as we know it.”
“Oh,” he answered in disappointment. She was just another crazy. He gestured to security by inclining his head to the side slightly. “Sweetie, every day that Kalgren Tech mass produces new innovations is the end of the world as we know it and the beginning of a better world.”
“Are you fucking kidding me?” the young woman exclaimed. “I give up everything to come to you with serious information, and you respond with some fluffy PR spiel?”
“Sorry, whatever your name is. You’re beautiful, but even if the world was going to end tomorrow, I’m afraid I wouldn’t be able to sleep with you. You see, I already have a girlfriend… I think.”
The dark-skinned woman looked horrified. “What the hell, Thorn? When did I ever say anything about sleeping with you? Disgusting! As if I’d ever find such an old man attractive!”
“Did you just call me old? Security!” Thornton shook his head angrily and began walking away. “As if this day could get any worse!”
“You ungrateful fool!” she shouted after him, easily shrugging off the security guards that surrounded her. Thornton hastily left the compound, and she stared after him furiously. And I thought he was less intellectually inept because he works in an office? A security guard tried to grab her arm, and she sent him flying across the room using only a thought. He crashed roughly into the wall. Various guards continued to surround her, perceiving her as an active threat. The woman sneered and flung her hands out to her sides, hurling all of the security guards into the walls without touching them. Several concussions and dents in drywall later, she begun marching after Thornton.
A man instantly materialized before her, blocking her path. The massive older blonde man was scowling, with his arms crossed across his chest. “Nyssa!” he shouted. “Stop this.”
She froze in surprise. Her shoulders, covered in bright green fabric, had been tensed up in rage—now they relaxed and fell. “Uncle Vince. Thank Sakra you recognize me.”
“I do not observe the world with only my eyes,” Vincent answered. “I can distinguish your life force. So come with me, and explain why you have traveled back in time. When I saw the Earth Deva this morning, his daughter, Nyssa, was only five years old.”