So it was on this particular morning; Bill thanked the answering service for the wakeup call and then sighed and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. He looked to his right where Felicity still lay asleep. Yes amazingly he and Felicity still slept in the same bed - I suppose it was that there was a flicker of an obscure attraction that had remained since the lustful times when they had first come together.
Bill continued to look at his beautiful wife for a moment - in spite of her lifestyle she had looked after herself and was a very attractive woman. Her soft blond hair caressed the pillow just alongside Bill and he visualised in his mind her slim naked body that lay beneath the sheets. In essence, Bill had a raging erection and wanted her - especially being Valentine's Day. Bill at heart was a bit of a romantic.
The sad part was that it was so very rare that they ever made love when Bill did want her. There was always the excuse that her period was due, she had to go to the bathroom or she wasn't feeling well. A tear came to Bill's eye as he reflected on where he was in his life, and how his wife didn't really love him. In spite of Bill's phenomenal success with his computer development skills, a wave of feelings of failure swept over him. There were feelings of "How would it all end?" "Oh God, why does life have to be this way?" and "What the hell is life all about?"
Ever hopeful, Bill smiled to himself when he had a fleeting thought of the times when he and Felicity had first met. He was about to reach out to stroke Felicity's soft blond hair but was interrupted when the phone rang again. Bill quickly grabbed the receiver and put it to his ear before the ringing woke Felicity. Bill then said in a hushed voice. 'Hello, Bill Douglas speaking'.
'Are you there?' A voice roared down the phone.
Bill knew immediately that it was his boss Alf Estrada. Bill felt intensely annoyed at the "are you there?" nonsense and thought to himself. "Of course I am bloody well "there" I wouldn't have picked the bloody phone up if I wasn't"! Still, Bill controlled himself and said. 'Hello Alf, what's up?'
'Change of fucking plan Douglas', said Alf in a gruff tone.
Bill flinched with apprehension because Alf only referred to him by his surname when he was annoyed about something. Bill's brain went into "flash" mode to scan the memory banks for something he might have been remiss about or forgotten to do. There was nothing untoward that he could recall.
'What plan?' said Bill a little tentatively.
'It's fucking Chicago. The Airport is closed with snow and ice - it's a bad one - tons of the bloody stuff'. Alf continued.
'Oh shit, really', said Bill hopeful that maybe the meeting with the Russians might be postponed.
'Yes really', Alf snapped. 'It couldn't have bloody well happened at a worse time. Still I am doing something about it'.
'Tell me more', Bill said trying not to sound disappointed.
'I am at Addison airport here in Dallas now', Alf barked. 'I haven't got bloody long so listen carefully. I am catching a flight out in fifteen minutes to Los Angeles to meet the Russians. We are then all flying to Kansas City where I shall wine and dine them tonight. Tomorrow we fly direct to the conference hotel in Chicago by helicopter'.
Bill could hear Alf chuckle to himself for a moment before he continued. 'Shame you won't fucking be with us tonight Douglas. I have arranged for escorts to deliver the "full Monty". The Russians like a good fuck'.
Strangely enough, what Alf had said was designed to annoy Bill. Alf was actually jealous of Bill because of Bill's incredible intelligence along with the outstanding ability he showed in his chosen field. It was not only Bill's cleverness that made Alf jealous; Bill was also exceedingly good looking whereas Alf was an ugly obese cretin who made no effort to curtail his drinking and gluttony. The only ability Alf had, was to relieve others of money by means that could only be defined as cheating disguised as honesty.
Bill cringed at what Alf had said and didn't respond to his "missed opportunity". Instead Bill said while suppressing a degree of annoyance at Alf's antics. 'Why can't the Russians come to Dallas? Wouldn't it make it all a dam sight easier?'
'Listen Douglas', Alf snapped. 'Don't question what I am doing; you are starting to irritate me. The Russians have other business in Chicago otherwise I would have bloody well brought them here to Dallas. I want this one Douglas and I will do anything to secure the deal'.
'What do you want me to do?' said Bill not really liking what he was hearing and wondering what the hell Alf might have in mind.
'It's absolutely essential that you are in attendance Douglas', Alf snapped again. 'The Russians have techos with them and I want all their questions answered as well as a comprehensive rundown on the product - overheads, whiteboard, handouts, the works. We meet with the Russians tomorrow evening over cocktails at their Hotel in Chicago'.
'Well', Bill said. 'Shall I fly to Kansas City and meet you there later today?'
'No', Alf snapped back. 'I have arranged a berth for you on the overnight train - the Texas Eagle. The train is cheaper than flying you to Kansas City, besides you can use your time on the train preparing your presentation. It leaves Dallas at three forty this afternoon - takes twenty-two hours to get to Chicago. Be on it. Pick up the ticket from my secretary'.
Bill was about to say something when he heard a click when Alf had hung-up. Bill felt rage well up inside him before it melted to despair. It was no good phoning Alf back and expressing his annoyance, there was nothing he could do about it. He had to do as Alf had directed or else risk losing his job.
Yes it really was an unfortunate situation for Bill as he had surmised many times before. Now the jpad was completely developed; it belonged to Apricot Computers and its shareholders. Bill Douglas could, if push came to shove, be easily dispensed with. The team of fifty that Bill had lead in the development phase, all had a complete knowledge of the product and could easily move on without Bill. It was depressing if not a little worrisome. In reality, to secure his job from this point in time, Bill would have to come up with a jpad2 with much improved features. For Bill it was a life of ongoing pressure to satisfy the company's greed for money.
By now, Felicity had stirred and she enquired as to what was going on. Bill told her of what had happened and how he felt misled by Alf and the Company. Felicity didn't have any great concern for the despair Bill felt. No her mind was on the socialite activities of the day - in particular golf she would be playing that morning followed by lunch at the Country Club.
In response to Bill's feelings of despair Felicity kissed him on the cheek (a quick peck of feigned affection) and said. 'You'll sort it out. By the way I will be taking the Hummer this morning. There are eight of us playing golf. Seeing you are going to be away tonight Bill, I'll stay over at Madeline's place'.
What Felicity had said further added to the degree of despair Bill felt. Bill had met Felicity's friend Madeline before, and he knew in all probability what Felicity meant by "staying the night". It would no doubt relate to some drug and alcohol fuelled "sexual romp".
In one last attempt to be close with his wife, Bill slipped his hand down under the sheets and tenderly massaged the muff of her vagina. This brought about the "half expected" response of. 'What do you think you are doing Bill? There is no time for that. I have got to get up and get moving!' With which Felicity leapt out of the bed and ran to the shower in the en-suite. She was in a mood that could only be described as being an indignant huff. It was almost as if Bill had violated her.
Bill could have broken down there and then in absolute despair. But no, he knew he had to keep his life together and hold onto his job. As had happened before, thoughts of divorce flitted through his mind; but that wasn't the answer either. With divorce there were draconian property ownership issues to be dealt with under the Texas Community Property Law. Half of everything would belong to Felicity irrespective of Bill having earned everything they owned. There would be the issue of who would continue to live in the house. Then there were horrific legal fees and possibly "trumped up" damages to face that could be f
abricated by Felicity under the influence of the in-laws. In essence, divorce would bring about the loss of everything that Bill had worked so hard for.
One thing that kept Bill from "going to pieces" was a genuine love of the work he did. To Bill there was no greater satisfaction than creating something that people enjoyed using. It gave him an intense feeling of pride to see the jpad being used by the masses and seeing them enjoy the product. What Bill felt in relation to the pride he had in his work, was something his wife Felicity would never know or understand - well she never got to truly know her husband either.
When Felicity had headed for the shower, Bill relieved his desires for her by masturbating. He closed his eyes and fantasized about earlier times when they had made mad passionate love.
With that issue of pent-up sexual desires out of the way, Bill pushed aside all the "monkeys on his back" so he could make a positive start to the day. This was things such as the indignity at having to travel to Chicago by train, the anguish of his wife not loving him anymore, as well as all the other problems that related to his teenage children, the in-laws, the money worries and the feelings of being exploited. Bill's attitude was that life was too short to let the "crap" associated with living in the 21st century get him down. Accordingly he muttered firmly to himself. "Shit and god dam it - I am going to do something about my bloody predicament!"
While Felicity was in the shower, Bill grabbed an overnight bag and filled it with the clothes and things he would need for the nights he would be away. He then headed to the shower in the bathroom down the hallway. He wanted to be alone to think.
Bill showered and dressed and then slipped away without saying anything to Felicity. There was nothing out of the ordinary in doing this; he and Felicity really lived two separate lives under the same roof.
As Bill slipped out the front door, he once again muttered to himself what he needed to do. "Bloody Felicity will just have to learn that I am not her lapdog. I will open a bank account in my name and have my salary directed there. I will take control of my life. I have bloody well had enough!"
First thing that morning that was exactly what Bill did. He opened a bank account under his own name and transferred into it, half of what was left in the joint account with Felicity. Mind you there was only a couple of thousand because of what Felicity had spent on the "necessities" of being a socialite. It really struck Bill then that every month there had been roughly fifty-thousand of his hard earned salary going into their joint account to be squandered by a wife who didn't love him. When Bill later arrived at his place of work, he had payroll direct his salary to the new account.
With mission completed, Bill smiled to himself when he thought of how it would be that very night - now that he had changed things - his monthly salary would be going to the new account. He would be away until at least Wednesday or possibly even Thursday; and Felicity would run out of money or maybe have an embarrassing situation when she couldn't pay for lunch! Felicity didn't have the luxury of using a credit card because the one she owned had already reached its fifty thousand dollar limit. "Hmmm" Bill thought. "Maybe she will begin to appreciate me a little more".
That morning when Bill had left the house, he decided not to take the car but to instead catch a bus and take a connecting train. This was in part because he didn't want to leave the Lamborghini at work unattended for two or three days. It was also because it was such a beautiful morning - even though it was winter.
The walk down to catch the bus was invigorating and refreshing in the cool morning air. There were early signs of spring and the birds were active and twittering as they went about their "lovemaking" to bring about the new arrivals over the coming weeks.
As Bill moved on along the tree lined streets and avenues, and made his way to the bus, he couldn't help thinking how uncomplicated the life of the birds and the bees was. He reflected to himself. "If only my life was that simple".
It was when Bill walked past one of the many mansions of the area, a small terrier with shaggy eyebrows, floppy ears and the most appealing of brown eyes came running up to him with a tennis ball in its mouth. The terrier dropped the ball at Bill's feet and then barked expectantly to have Bill throw the ball for him. The dog's tail was wagging so hard one might have expected it to "fall off"!'
Bill smiled at what he saw and said as he bent over to be closer to the dog. 'Hello little fellow. You want me to throw your ball for you?'
'Rruff", was the enthusiastic response.
Bill obliged and picked up the ball. He threw it back towards the house from whence the dog had come. It was a house that reeked of extravagant opulence that was derived from greed and the exploitation of others. It flashed through Bill's mind then, as it had on the odd occasion before, "I don't belong here".
When Bill had thrown the ball, the terrier ran off barking and yelping with absolute joy to fetch it. In seeing the joy the little dog experienced, Bill reflected to himself that in all probability, the terrier with its simple life was possibly the only happy creature that lived at the address. Yes Bill was doing a lot of soul searching about his life, and where he was at, this particular day.
On the bus and the train that morning, Bill looked about him at the people as they headed to work. Most of them were in a low income bracket. In general they looked happy and were laughing and chatting away to each other. It really struck Bill then that money didn't make people happy, in fact it had the exact opposite effect as he knew only too well. Bill would have done anything to have Felicity love him - somehow he knew instinctively that it would never happen. Bill's thoughts about life were changing. Bill didn't know it yet but his life was indeed about to change.
Chapter 2
Midnight Aboard The Texas Eagle.
Before Bill departed for Chicago later that Monday, he spent time with his colleagues at the Apricot headquarters to sort out presentation material for the meeting with the Russians. By 3.00p.m Bill was armed with a carry-case full of brochures, giveaway jpads, and whiteboard pens - the usual presentation "guff". Bill had phoned the hotel in Chicago to organise an overhead projector and display tables, along with the necessary seating and refreshments. He knew from previous occasions that Alf wouldn't have done anything about it. Alf's role was to talk insufferable bullshit, look important and not get involved with any of the "sleeves rolled up" stuff.
Bill would be arriving in Chicago at 2.00p.m the following day so he would have time to get things organised for the evening conference and ensure all would go smoothly - Alf depended on him.
Unfortunately for Bill, the evening conference would only be the beginning of what he felt to be an absolute ordeal. The evening conference was what could be described as being a preliminary overview of the jpad. Negotiations with the Russians were set to continue for most of the following day.
The negotiations part was something that Bill absolutely hated. This was when Alf would make outrageous promises about the jpad and its capabilities. In particular these were things that jpad couldn't do in its current format; that later Alf would insist Bill make happen - or else! For all Bill knew Alf would inform the Russians that the jpad could make toasted sandwiches! Bill and his team would then have to go into panic mode and satisfy Alf's wishes.
To a sensitive and intellectual type like Bill, the meeting with the Russians was an absurd load of crap. As far as Bill was concerned it was an ego trip for Alf and a means of justification for his highly paid position. It was an excuse to party and have sex at the company's expense, and then report "his" success to the shareholders - the success that really belonged in the domain of Bill and his team.
Still this was the typical company structure of the times where parasites like Alf would bullshit their way through life with an ego as big as the South Texas Plains. However it had to be remembered that Alf would, deep down, be as lonely as the deserts of the South Texas Plains as well. Not that Bill felt that "crash-hot" in the loneliness department either. However Bill was a different animal all togethe
r, he was a strong self contained unit that enjoyed others company but had no problem being alone with his own thoughts if the need arose.
Bill often thought to himself how he would run things differently if he ever had the opportunity to manage Apricot Computers. As far as Bill was concerned, the Russians were already sold on the concept of the jpad and it didn't need all the baggage and fluster that Alf brought with him.
Union Station, the station where the Texas Eagle departed for Chicago, wasn't far from Apricot Computers. Bill decided to walk and left Apricot at 3.00p.m. He found walking took his mind off the irritations of Alf.
Sometime before it was time to leave, Bill had checked that the airport at Chicago was still closed. This was in the vain hope that he might avoid the long train trip and use the air tickets which he still had with him. It was not to be; there was still severe icing of the runways and aircraft. There were subzero temperatures brought about by Arctic winds that were sweeping down across the Canadian border that were likely to last several days.
Bill was relieved that Alf had at least had the consideration to arrange a sleeper aboard the train. In fact Bill was quite pleased with the arrangement because he could be alone and think seriously about what he would do in relation to his future. He vowed to himself that by the time he had returned from Chicago he would have a positive plan about his own future firmly sorted out in his mind.
Bill arrived at the station at 3.20p.m - twenty minutes before the train was due to depart. He felt a degree of excitement when he saw the Texas Eagle waiting at the platform. Somehow there was a magic about the concept of having one's own sleeper and travelling through the night to wakeup in a new place.
Midnight Train To Chicago Page 2