by MF Bishop
Chapter Eighty Nine
Even after a restless night, Helen got up feeling refreshed and determined. Somehow, today, she would turn this thing around. She would talk to Loughlin and change his mind. But when she got to work, Barry Meyers, the office manager, met her at the door.
"The Senator called," he said, his thin face twisting anxiously, "he's not coming in today. We're to clean out the office immediately."
"What about his constituents?" Helen asked furiously. "And what about us?" Barry looked miserably at the floor and didn't answer. Helen marched to the phone and called Loughlin. The maid who answered said the Senator did not want to be disturbed, but she could speak to the Senator's wife if she so wished. Helen did so wish. She drummed her fingers on the table while she waited for the wife. Barry hovered in the background.
"Oh, yes, Helen. Hello, dear." The Senator's wife was a large, gray, nervous woman with a nasal voice.
"Mrs Loughlin," Helen began, "I really must speak to the Senator...."
"I'm afraid not, dear," Mrs Loughlin interrupted, "he's really not feeling well, you can imagine. I'm having to arrange for the movers on my own...."
"But Mrs Loughlin," Helen interrupted in her turn, "to close the office so abruptly does quite a disservice to the Senator's constituents. And what about the staff, their pay, that...."
"Oh my yes, I can understand how you would be concerned."
Damn right I'm concerned, Helen thought grimly.
"But," Mrs Loughlin continued, "the Governor is going to appoint a replacement right away, so the Senator wants to get things cleaned up. I'm sure the staff can stay on for the time being. This is all for the best, you know...."
"The hell it is," Helen snarled, and slammed the phone on Mrs Loughlin's shocked gasp.
The staff cleaned out the office, packing away years' accumulation of files and memorabilia. Some people sniffled occasionally as they worked; Mrs Gaither broke down and cried. Helen directed their efforts, arranged for storage, and called the movers. She felt more anger than ever before in her life. As she worked, her mind seethed with emotion and plans. By the end of the day she knew what to do: she would go to Howard and Gunnar.