A Family Affair

by Marilyn McPherson

Chapter Two

  Two Days Earlier

  It was a cold and wet Monday morning in Melbourne, and Ellen Jackson wondered why on earth she had left the warmth and comfort of her bed. Some days the wet weather did not bother her, but today there was no shelter from the heavy wind and rain that lashed her face. Ellen shivered and cursed the tram for being late.

  Getting out of bed earlier that morning had been more difficult than usual. There never seemed to be enough hours of sleep at night. But somehow she had managed to pull herself out of her warm bed, dress, grab a bite to eat, and rush out the door.

  Living in Coburg meant that Ellen relied on the tram network to get to work. There was a stop quite close to her home, which was helpful on mornings like this.

  When the tram finally arrived, she took a seat about half way along where there were few people sitting. Through the gaps in her steamed-up window, Ellen could just make out the bright colours of people's umbrellas in the streets. Rain pelted down on the tram roof, drowning out the conversations of people around her. She preferred the silence to hearing their talking, and especially their mobile phone use. It was the heaviest rainstorm she had experienced for some years. In the country it hadn't rained like that for years. The drought years had seemed endless, broken only now and again by periods of rain that were invariably less than people needed.

  The tram stopped regularly and unhappy-looking, wet people boarded at every stop. The locals from home had informed her that even though the city was full of people, it could seem like the loneliest place on earth. However, she did not feel lonely in a city that had colour and noise and personality like this. It made her smile to see passengers shake off the water.

  It was not until the third time that Ellen made eye contact with the gentleman opposite her that she started to feel uncomfortable. Her feeling that he was watching her was intense and undeniable. Thankfully, the tram ride was almost over.

  Ellen wondered how she was going to get from the tram stop to the Windsor Hotel without ruining her makeup and hair. She looked at her watch and sighed. It was almost nine o’clock. Her waitressing shift started in ten minutes, and there would be little time to freshen up.

  Ellen often worried about getting fired. This was her first job since leaving the rural town of Mansfield where she had lived her whole life. The desperation she felt to make it on her own without having to ask her parents for money was a strong driving force, controlling many of her daily thoughts. Her parents had been disappointed in her decision to delay university and work for a gap year in Melbourne. They had even offered to pay her tuition fees if she agreed to go straight to university, but Ellen didn't want more study this year. She wanted to see the world, earn her own money, and meet new people. With her best friend Chloe she had made the move, and they were now flatmates. Their home was basic at best, having only second-hand furniture, and a few cupboards. Boxes of clothes, books and pictures littered the floor space as the unit did not have adequate storage. But both were now employed at the same hotel and were starting to save a little money. They hoped to improve the unit every fortnight with their wages until it was homely and welcoming.

  The tram slowed. Ellen recognised the familiar coffee shop and bakery on the corner. The doors opened and the smell of freshly-baked bread filled the air, reminding her of her mother's kitchen back home, where there was always something cooking. She stepped out of the tram and onto the street. The cold wind slapped her face and for a moment, she could hardly catch her breath. Then she remembered the time, and hurriedly blinked the rain out of her eyes and dashed for the cover of the shops. Other people on the street moved quickly for protection too.

  A cheerful voice from behind her said, “At least winter only lasts for a few months.”

  Ellen turned around to see the man from the tram. He had obviously followed her to the footpath. He was an older man, perhaps in his early fifties with curly blond hair, a stylish business suit and a long, woollen black jacket. He certainly looked warm to Ellen. The man was tall and broad-shouldered, but what most struck Ellen were his eyes as they enthusiastically looked her up and down. He had a wide friendly smile on his face that made her reciprocate back, even though she felt silly for doing so.

  The man gave a chuckle and moved towards her. “I'm a senior executive with Satinol Cosmetics,” he said, almost as if he was boasting.

  Unfortunately for the man, Ellen had never heard of Satinol Cosmetics and was unimpressed by this.

  “Here's my card,” he said, watching Ellen intently as she hesitated to take it. “Yes, you can take that, sweetheart,” he said, and thrust it into her hand. “So tell me who your agent is and I'll write it down on this piece of paper.” The man pulled out a pen and notebook from inside his jacket.

  Ellen reluctantly turned the card over in her hands. It said Satinol Cosmetics and Jake Scott – Senior Executive. There was an address and a lot of different phone numbers. No one from Mansfield had ever spoken to her like this on the street before. Her parents had warned her numerous times about the type of people she would meet in the city. People who would try and take advantage of her naivety.

  He repeated his question. “Who represents you? One would assume that you are a model. You must be.” The man looked her up and down again. “Hmmm”.

  Ellen was reluctant to speak, so remained silent for a little while longer before tentatively responding, “I'm not sure what you're on about, to be honest.”

  “I don’t understand. You don't know what I'm talking about?” he asked slowly, looking confused.

  Ellen continued to stare at him, dumbfounded.

  “Really? Oh well, pardon me then. I'm sorry. Let me introduce myself properly. My name is Jake Scott, and your name is?”

  Ellen didn't see any immediate harm in telling the man her name. “Ellen,” she replied hesitantly. “Ellen Jackson.”

  “Ellen Jackson,” he repeated. “Well, it’s nice to meet you, Ellen. As I mentioned, I work for Satinol Cosmetics, and we are always looking for a fresh face to represent Belle – that's Satinol's range of cosmetics and skin care for the youth market. What am I saying? I'm sure you've heard of Belle!” he said hopefully.

  Elle thought of her favourite light pink lipstick at home on her dresser. “Yes, I have a Belle lipstick, I think,” she replied.

  “Well, never mind all the details. I think I'd like you to come into the studio. You have a very interesting look, a sort of wild natural beauty.” He paused and studied her for a moment, with a curious look on his face. The girl was not dressed for this weather at all. “But look at you now. You must be freezing. Where's your jacket and umbrella?”

  Ellen looked down at herself and felt slightly embarrassed. “I,” she said, hesitating again. “I haven't bought any winter stuff yet.” She was in fact, saving money to pay next month's rent, and after that was paid, hoping that there would be some money to go shopping for new clothes.

  “Why don't you come with me and I'll buy you a coffee and you can give me your details. That will allow you to warm up anyway.”

  Ellen was very puzzled by this man. Surely he wasn't serious. Her parents had always told her that she was pretty in her own way, but no one had ever said she had wild beauty before. Maybe this man was trying to scam her for money. He didn't look as though he needed money however. She wasn't sure what to think. In any case, she was definitely going to be late now.

  “I'm sorry, Mr. Scott. I'm late for work. I have to go.” And with that, Ellen took off across the street, willing her long legs to move as fast as they could towards the hotel.

  “Wait! What?” The man called out. He continued to yell after her, but Ellen could not hear his words because the rain was pelting furiously. The man obviously did not want to lose her, because he gave chase, easily catching her by the shoulder and spinning her around to face him.

  At this point Ellen felt a rush of anger causing her hackles to rise. What was going on? Of course he could not really think she was a model. “N
ow listen here, Mr Scott. I am only going to say this once. I am not a model, and whatever you really want from me, whatever your intention is, I am not interested.”

  Jake seemed to be quite shocked by her reaction, which made Ellen feel that maybe she had reacted too quickly without giving him a fair chance.

  “I'm sorry. Listen, Ellen. My apologies for startling you. I really am who I said. Is this where you work?” He motioned to the Windsor Hotel in front of them.

  She nodded.

  “How about I come here for lunch today and I'll bring another colleague to meet you. We can organise something from there.”

  Ellen's long hair was starting to come undone. The rain had drenched her shirt completely and she could not argue anymore. She shrugged. “Whatever you like. I can't stop you from eating here at lunchtime but I really have to go now.” Without looking back, Ellen went inside quickly to dry off and start her shift.

  Chloe had started work earlier that morning for the breakfast shift. She was in the kitchen doing dishes and nodded a friendly hello to Ellen. Chloe had been her best friend since she could remember. They had grown up together in Mansfield and had shared their most treasured secrets. They had been planning their escape to the city for over two years, and Chloe seemed to be loving every minute of it. They had both met many new people already, but only Chloe had brought a number of them home late on Friday nights. It wasn't that Ellen disapproved of this kind of behaviour exactly; it just wasn't the sort of thing she was ready to try herself. Well not yet anyhow.

  Time always passed quickly at work for Ellen as the hotel was generally booked out weeks in advance. So, it wasn't until five hours had passed that Ellen noted that Jake had not returned for lunch as he had promised. She looked at her watch. It was two o’clock. She stared mutely at the entrance to the restaurant. It had been a busy meal shift as always. But the atmosphere had quietened now, with only a handful of people remaining to enjoy a leisurely lunch with friends or work colleagues. The buzz created by hundreds of people eating and drinking together was replaced by the softer sounds of music, interrupted only now and again by the sound of laughter and talking.

  Whirling past, Chloe exclaimed, “Didn't they show up?”

  Ellen shook her head. Chloe had a weird way of knowing what Ellen was thinking about.

  “Bastards! Don't worry sweetie – I think you're beautiful.”

  Ellen shrugged and sighed, not wanting to show any disappointment. Secretly, she was hoping for something exciting to happen for her and Chloe now that they were living in the city. She lowered her head, as she no longer expected anything more from the day.

  Chloe saw her expression and came over and give her a quick hug. “They don't know what they've missed. We'll go out tonight and have some fun, okay?”

  As they were talking, two men in suits entered the restaurant and waited to be seated. Ellen recognised Jake instantly and wondered who the second man was.

  “That's them. They did come, Chloe,” said Ellen, unable to hide her interest in this new development.

  “Where?”

  Ellen indicated towards the men, who were now being seated. “The suits.”

  “Ah,” Chloe said. “They’re a bit late for lunch though. Are you going to go talk to them?”

  Jake and his colleague ordered some drinks from their waitress. Suddenly, the waitress pointed towards her and Jake turned his head and beckoned to her to come over.

  “I guess so, Chloe. This should be interesting.”

  “Tell me all about it afterwards. I want you to remember every word, okay.”

  Jake watched as Ellen approached the table, her heart pounding nervously. He leaned over towards his colleague, whispering something inaudible. Jake stood up as she finally approached the table.

  “Ellen, this is Colin McLeod. Colin, this is Ellen,” Jake announced proudly. “Colin is from ‘Marketing and Sales’.”

  Ellen’s focus shifted to Colin. He was a plain-looking man with slightly grey hair. He was probably in his forties, although the intensity of his expression made him appear older than this. Ellen felt a little clumsy and shy in his presence.

  He studied her face intently for a long period of time, and then said, “Yes, yes, I think I see what you mean,”

  “What did I tell you?” Jake seemed happy with himself.

  Ellen noticed Colin's eyes starting to wander up and down her body, lingering on certain parts and then moving on. His eyes moved once again to her face and then slowly downwards, until they were firmly fixed on Ellen's breasts.

  “Is everything real, Ellen?” he asked in a serious tone.

  Ellen started to feel her face turning red hot. She could hardly believe he had asked such a question. Perhaps her parents had been right about city people.

  Jake seemed to read the embarrassed look on her face. “Colin,” he said disapprovingly. “That's enough.” He seemed annoyed at his companion, but also gave Ellen a quick wink, causing Colin to mutter something under his breath.

  “Ellen,” Jake said. “Are you free on Wednesday morning? I'd like you to come down to the studio.” He handed her another business card after writing something on the back.

  Ellen turned the card over. It said nine o’clock and level twelve. Ellen recognised the street address in the inner city.

  Jake gave her a broad smile. “I've explained to Colin that you don't have any representation, but that's not really a problem for us. It's unusual but not a problem. So, how about it then?”

  “I…. um…. I don't know, Jake,” Ellen muttered, while putting the card into her back pocket to think about later.

  Jake responded quickly. “The company will pay you for your time, of course. You will receive two hundred and fifty dollars, just for a morning's work. Does that sound all right?”

  Ellen was momentarily silent. That sort of money certainly did help convince her. She started to think about all the groceries her and Chloe could buy for two hundred and fifty dollars, and was suddenly feeling more interested in the idea.

  Jake continued, “I could talk to your boss while I'm here if you like. To make sure you can have the morning off.”

  “No, it's okay. I don't work Wednesdays,” Ellen replied, not wanting Jake to say anything to her supervisor.

  “That's great news.”

  Ellen moved awkwardly from one foot to the other, before asking, “So even if the pictures are all terrible, I still get the money?”

  “That's right,” he replied. “But I really don't think the pictures could be terrible. You are a beautiful girl.”

  Colin nodded in agreement.

  “And I'm not going to take my clothes off!” Ellen added firmly.

  “I'm glad to hear that,” Jake replied, laughing a little. “We're not that sort of place.” He then stood up and put out his hand for Ellen to shake.

  Ellen looked over to Colin. He was now busy studying the coffee that was arriving, and did not look too pleased.

  “Sugar please, miss,” he barked.

  “Okay then. I guess I will come on Wednesday to this address”, she said, pulling the card out of her back pocket and examining it.

  Jake was looking very pleased with the turn of events, and he sipped from his latte happily. Ellen smiled at the waitress awkwardly. It was generally frowned upon to spend too much time talking to customers like this. Ellen looked around for her supervisor, but breathed a little more easily on noting the latter’s absence from the main dining room. However she then decided that it was in her interest to leave the men to their discussion.

  In any case, they drank their coffees, paid, and left promptly after Jake received a phone call.