Frequent Traveller (Cathy Dixon #1)

by Pandora Poikilos

  Mrs. Laurie sought the best words to describe her son. Her words were a testament to the loss faced by so many others in the room.

  "No parent deserves the sorrow that comes with the death of their child. But if we have been blessed with their lives, then we must remember the joy they have brought us and not the loss that has shattered us. So many times, my little Nicholas thought I was teaching him a lesson but it was his passion for life that has taught me the best lessons in my life ..."

  As the service ended, the two ladies went for a walk. Mrs. Laurie held Karen's hand tightly as she stopped and looked at the younger woman who had shared so much love in both the life of her son and hers. "This is the problem when we wait too long, Karen," she said.

  She pushed a small object into the palms of Karen's hands.

  "He had asked me for it weeks ago. It was my wedding ring and when they returned his things to me, I realised he hadn't given it to you. Hadn't even asked you. Take it, my love. If anything, you'll have something to remember him by."

  Karen tried hard not to break down but as the memories came flashing back, she held the ring tightly to her chest, "I'll always have his heart, always and always."

  UDEN, NETHERLANDS

  July 2008

  As with most of the smaller European towns, Uden had been dominated by other nations. It experienced all kinds of peril before it settled into the quiet town it is today. Initially ruled by the Germans in the 1400s, it later became part of the Dutch Republic but not before being overpowered by the French. In 1810, it was officially declared as part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Uden is well-known for its religious tolerance, one district in its vicinity has even formed its own church.

  Although the Netherlands was a neutral party in World War I, Uden is dotted with historical elements of this war and World War II. Despite sketchy records, it is believed that thousands of Flemish refugees were put up in a refugee camp at the outskirts of Uden until 1918. The World War II cemetery remains symbolic of the bravery locals displayed when overcoming the German invasion.

  Born as a result of the German invasion, the Volkel Air Base has experienced its share of controversy. Since 1961, it has housed a small unit of the United States Air Force. It is strongly believed that this unit was responsible for the storage and maintenance of nuclear weapons at Volkel Air Base alongside the Dutch Ministry of Defence. These findings, however, have never been officially acknowledged or denied.

  Natural disasters have also had a share in marking Uden's history. In June 1840, a huge meteorite fell into a peat field. It narrowly missed a group of farmers. A devastating cyclone in 1925 left much of the town in shambles but still the town went on to make a booming economic recovery in the ‘50s. While tourism does not seem an obvious attraction in Uden, it is for this reason that exclusive properties such as MoonStar Uden were able to stand out from the other hotels located within the area.

  For more than three years, the Global Leaders Symposium (GLS) had been an annual event. Each year the organising committee picked a different MoonStar property and organised a seven-day workshop for at least two hundred company managers and business owners. Participants arrived from around the world and were from various successful companies with different backgrounds. Key speakers comprised of highly recommended personalities with vast knowledge in IT, property development, foreign investments and other related trades.

  Each key speaker delivered detailed presentations on varying angles that provided necessary tools for business owners to build successful brands. Sessions were also focused on creating better leaders for their respective trades. Each participant was charged $8000 per person which included accommodation, three daily meals, a gala dinner at the end of the symposium and related GLS materials.

  Every year the MoonStar properties with adequate space to host such an event looked forward to being selected. Although it meant their workload tripled during the seven days, it was guaranteed income. Additional sales from food and beverage outlets would also boost overall hotel revenue.

  This year, it was MoonStar Uden. The property had been ideally designed for these very purposes. It was an all-suite hotel that offered numerous team building facilities, an equestrian area and even motivational individual or group sessions with a licensed therapist. Upon request, personalised butlers were available and each of the 280 suites came with a workstation that accommodated two people. When no events took place, it was known to attract business owners craving lavish rejuvenation with the opportunity of being able to keep an eye on their business via Internet and telephone.

  As the GLS staff registered this year's workshop participants, Cathy watched. She remembered when corporate sales had first clinched the GLS deal. Guaranteed room nights for any hotel chain was a big deal. It often made the difference between an entire chain or single property collapsing to the brink of obscurity or staying in the clear to receive guests. However this year, the sales department appeared edgy.

  On previous occasions, GLS hired event planners to work out the more intricate details of the sessions. Within the course of the year, the event planners for the variety of workshops were fired and changed at least six times. More than once, GLS reasoned that "good help was hard to find". Planning events on a global scale took skill and Cathy understood the complications. She sometimes shared the exact sentiment.

  Now, however the redhead was convinced that it was not the event planners that were the problem. As far as she knew, her Communications Department dealt with three people, Joel Gil the Co-Founder, Marcus Lum also a Co-Founder and their Executive Secretary, Brooke. All of them were based in Singapore. Joel Gil or JG as he preferred to be known, currently stood in front of a poster the GLS had approved, printed and placed at the entrance of an event room. Marring the poster with a black marker, he screamed at a timid Front Office MoonStar associate who was not at all sure what a guest's poster had to do with her.

  Cathy approached him and gently asked if there was anything she could do to help. He curtly remarked that he was able to handle the matter at hand and stomped off, still angry. That was the other thing the MoonStar sales team had started to get fidgety about.

  Because of the number of room nights GLS provided MoonStar, the co-founders were allocated a certain number of complimentary room nights while staying at other MoonStar properties around the world. Common practice for a General Manager of any MoonStar property was to acknowledge this complimentary request from Corporate Office by greeting each guest upon arrival.

  Alternatively, they would have a quick "meet-and-greet" drink with them. JG however, announced loud enough for all to hear that the General Managers of the properties he frequented were far beneath him and refused the courtesy. On one occasion, he was even quoted as saying, "he is not important enough for my time."

  Cathy understood good customer service usually meant the customer had the upper hand. As most hotels pledged excellent customer service, it was apparent that most guests knew they could get away with insolent behaviour. But at which point did it become practice to throw out common courtesy and behave in uncommonly fashion? That was anybody's guess. The next morning at breakfast, Cathy heard a loud commotion as she bit into her croissant.

  "How stupid can you be?! How can you book the flight without checking if it would be delayed?"

  With great attention, she watched as JG screamed at a girl in her early twenties. To Cathy's mind, the girl looked like she could use a bite of breakfast instead of being yelled at in front of a hundred other breakfast patrons.

  Annie adjusted her spectacles, fully aware of people in the lobby looking at her. The humiliated girl made sure her eyes did not tear up and cause her any further embarrassment. 'Think happy thoughts,' she reminded herself over and over again as she tried to picture her favourite spot in Spain, a holiday destination she had dreamt of as a child. People stared as JG screamed at Annie. Most felt sympathetic but dared not cross the irate man while others just did not wish to get involved. He screamed at
her for more than fifteen minutes and blamed the flight delay of a key speaker solely on Annie. When he was finished, Cathy observed the distraught girl as she ran towards the ladies' washroom.

  A quick mental image flitted before Cathy of JG on a delayed flight. He would probably grab the controls of the aircraft from its pilot if the crew announced a delay in landing or takeoff. Cathy never understood how people chose to get worked up over situations that could not be controlled.

  If a remote control existed for everything that happened in life and the world, global hunger would have been wiped out decades ago. She continued to mull over Annie's situation but she knew that approaching JG directly was out of the question. Something needed to be done for Annie but what?

  "Hmmmm ... I'm certainly becoming an interfering mother hen," she muttered to herself. But when in power, you had two options. The choice to do good or to charge at others like life would never find a way of returning what you dished out. Either way you were responsible for how you treated people around you.

  It was lunchtime before Cathy heard JG's booming voice again. "You're such a bloody twit! I want an Internet connection now! You hear me?!" he boomed into his mobile phone.

  Annie had stepped out to a nearby shopping mall to buy some last minute stationery items and workshop props that were required for the following day. Once in his suite, JG found no Internet connection since he had ignored collecting an Internet card from the check-in counter. What he demanded now was for Annie to come back from "wherever she was", get him an Internet card and then return to "whatever mundane task" she was involved with. Concierge winked at Cathy. Obviously, he too had overheard the conversation.

  With great care, he went up behind JG and offered him an Internet card which he explained would be charged to the room. JG grabbed the card from him, looked at it and threw it to the floor.

  "I want a connection, not some card that tells me how to get a connection."

  "No problem, Sir. I'll come up to your suite and connect it for you, if you'd prefer that," the Concierge offered with a smile and bent down to pick the card from the floor. JG stomped off and the Concierge followed the livid man. Cathy sighed.

  That evening, she saw him at it again. "You were touching him! How can you touch a client? You are such a stupid slut."

  JG screamed at Annie who pressed herself against a wall. She wished she was invisible. Earlier, Annie had mentioned to another colleague that one of the workshop participants had squeezed her thigh when sitting at the dinner table. Somehow the news had got back to JG who insisted that it was the other way around.

  It was easy to find Annie after that incident. Cathy saw her sitting on a bench at the swimming pool having a cigarette. Shoulders shaking, she sobbed. Her tear stained face was twisted between frustration and embarrassment.

  "As cliche as it sounds, those things will really kill you," Cathy said.

  "Yea ... all the better then," came the soft reply.

  "Annie, right? Listen. Growing a thick skin is something you and only you can do. It's your body, your heart and your mind. If you don't protect yourself, no one else will."

  Annie sniffled and sighed. "I just really, really need this job. I graduated two years ago ... and it took me almost a year to land this gig ... and I have a student loan to repay ... and ..."

  There was a long pause.

  "You won't tell him right?" she expectantly looked at Cathy.

  "Of course not. We are not even having this conversation. Here's my business card. Email me your resume? I can't promise you an immediate offer or a guaranteed position but it's worth a shot." Cathy offered.

  "Oh wow, thank you ... so very much," said Annie excitedly. She was already able to picture her final day with JG.

  Cathy watched as she reread the card as though she were expecting something else to pop out of it. They shook hands and Cathy left her sitting on the bench. If the girl had managed with JG, working at MoonStar would be a walk in the park.

  It was late Sunday morning when Cathy walked towards St. Peter's Church, the only one within walking distance from the hotel. In dire need of some peace and quiet, Cathy entered the church. The morning service had just ended. She met the Vicar at the entrance and he invited her in. He told her she was more than welcome to offer a prayer. Wherever she was, she made it personal practice to visit a church for at least one hour on Sunday, even if she could not attend a full service. Lighting a candle, she sat down at the church pew to deal with the voices in her head. Sometimes she heard thankfulness, other times the voices preached revenge and sometimes the voices got confused between remorse and frustration.

  Dealing with past issues was not always about moving on. Sometimes it was about unlocking the past, one door at a time and throwing the weight away. Unlocking was easy but the ‘throwing away’ remained the difficult part. Today, she was not alone. At the altar, a male figure was kneeling with his hands raised heavenward. He sang a chorus to himself and ended with a loud, "Hallelujah, Hallelujah". When he turned, Cathy’s own reflections scattered. It was JG.

  "Ah, you're the hotel girl," he said in a loud whisper and sat down next to her. He signed the symbol of the cross and gently nudged her. "We must always put the Lord first, never let Satan win," he said.

  Cathy managed a slight nod but was still in shock. How could someone who deliberately treated others so poorly be preaching religion? Was he reading a different Bible? Did he not recognise the hypocrisy he practiced or had he become so blind to his ways and now found joy in ruining others?

  'Almost like he has multiple personalities,' thought Cathy to herself.

  JG left through a side door and Cathy could hear him whistling the tune of "Amazing Grace". In prayer, Cathy bent her head, now more convinced that Annie definitely needed a new job.

  It was the last day of the GLS workshops and true to his nature, JG was at his peak. He was like a volcano about to spew out its lava. Every few minutes or so, he was heard screaming at a hotel associate or one of his employees. Annie scurried around as she did her best to get things moving.

  When she served JG his coffee during the mid-morning break, he screamed at her. "Where the bloody hell is my milk? Am I supposed to squeeze it out of your sagging tits?!"

  The entire room went silent, a trolley of crockery could have collapsed and no one would have moved. Annie turned and slowly walked back to him. She stood at his table, stared him in the face and poured a whole pot of fresh coffee into his lap.

  "I quit," she announced as he yelped and got up.

  Applause broke out as she walked away from the breakfast area. Cathy smiled and looked at JG. He seemed bewildered that a person he saw as measly and stupid could stand up to him in such a manner. What surprised him most of all was that other people supported her.

  PENANG, MALAYSIA

  October 2008

  Commonly known as the Pearl of the Orient or the Island of Pearls, Penang is a popular destination and a definite “must visit” for those planning a trip to South East Asia. It is rich in culture, history and flavour with a long list of achievements to its name. It is believed that Englishman Sir James Lancaster who discovered Penang in April 1591, was one of the first few foreigners to make Penang home. He converted the port into a thriving pirates den and robbed all boats that crossed his path. He did this for two years until he returned to his hometown in Plymouth.

  What changed the course of state and country, was the arrival of Francis Light at Fort Cornwallis on 11 August 1786. With its strategic location by the Straits of Malacca, Penang was established as a successful trading port. This is a venture it continues to profit from despite being challenged by the Federal Government. Governed by Malaysia's opposition party Penang is no stranger to political controversy.

  Aside from this, it is home and birthplace to many well-known personalities which include shoemaker Jimmy Choo; actress Jill Benett; All England Champion, Eddy Choong; badminton's world number one, Lee Chong Wei; sole distributor of Honda motorcycles
in Malaysia, Loh Boon Siew; women's squash world champion, Nicol David; Chinese Consul for the Qing Emperor, Cheong Fatt Tze and Tunku Abdul Rahman who was the first Prime Minister of Malaysia, to name a few.

  Aside from its booming economy and tourism related industries, it is also famous for its historical landmarks which include Penang Free School, the first and oldest academy in South East Asia; St. George's Anglican Church which has been declared a National Treasure by the Malaysian Government as the oldest Anglican Church in South East Asia and the Penang Turf Club built in 1864, Malaysia's oldest Equestrian Centre.

  Away from the city centre, MoonStar Penang was located by the beach. A twenty storey building which catered for family holidays, it was fully occupied over the long weekend. In one of these rooms on an early Saturday morning, Cathy was sound asleep, oblivious to the activity around her. She reached out to the other side of the bed and expected a warm snuggle. Her eyes shot open when she realized the bed was empty. She sat up and walked towards the balcony.