Greater Vampires

by Trudie Collins

She glanced at her watch. She was early, so she decided to go to the kitchen to grab a coffee before heading to her manager’s office. She took a seat at a table and watched people coming and going, wondering who would be the first to approach her.

  “Anna,” a voice suddenly exclaimed. “What are you doing here? Has it been six months already?”

  Anna smiled as she turned around to look at the woman who had called out to her. “How are you Katherine?”

  Katherine was in her late fifties, though she looked much younger. Her hair still remained free of any grey. There were rumours that she dyed it, but these were not true. Katherine had been working for the company longer than anyone else Anna knew and was bound to know all of the gossip.

  Katherine took a seat next to Anna and the two women chatted for a while, Anna about her adventures as she toured the country and Katherine about everything that had happened in the company while Anna had been away.

  Anna was not happy to hear that her team were no longer together. The person who had taken over from her had not been a good manager and the team members did not get on well with him. It took less than three months before each of them applied to move into different teams. Anna had been hoping to be able to pick things up from where she had left them and was disappointed to find that would not be the case.

  As the two women talked, both watched those who passed by. A few waved at Anna, but none approached. They all knew better than to disturb her while she was with Katherine.

  Two young men who Anna didn’t recognise walked past the kitchen, but didn’t enter. She couldn’t help smiling. “The eye candy has improved I see.”

  “Yes,” Katherine said. “But unfortunately not by much. Those two are the exception I’m afraid.”

  Anna looked closely at them as they walked away. Both seemed to be in their mid-twenties, about her own age. While one had short dark brown hair, the other’s was lighter and a little longer. Both had trim figures, which the tight fitting jeans and t-shirts emphasised well.

  While they weren’t male model material, they were reasonably attractive, which in IT was rare. One of them turned around and when their eyes met, Anna almost gasped. She felt like she had been hit in the stomach and she found she couldn’t breathe. Pain flowed through her, but stopped the moment the stranger turned away.

  Katherine was too busy talking about how all of the new recruits over the last few months had been nice, pleasant and were mostly good at their roles, but were nothing to look at, to notice Anna’s reaction.

  Anna couldn’t take her eyes off the retreating backs of the two men. She had no idea what had just happened to her and she silently prayed it wouldn’t happen again. Maybe she was returning to work too soon. She hoped not, as she needed to get back into a routine. She still had a couple of weeks before she had to return and she was sure her manager would be understanding if she said she needed a few more months. She would see how the day went and talk to him about it if she felt she needed to.

  Anna and Katherine gossiped for a few more minutes, then it was time for Anna’s appointment. She wasn’t sure why her manager had called her in a few weeks before she was due back and initially she had thought about refusing, but curiosity won out and now it was time to find out what he wanted.

  Robin was an interesting man. He always wore a three piece suit, even on casual days. Anna doubted he even owned a pair of jeans. He was loud and came across as domineering, but if you took the time to get to know him, you soon found this wasn’t the case. He listened to what those under him had to say and asked and guided rather than demanded. He was a good man to work for. He genuinely cared about his people and knew how to get the most out of them.

  “You’re looking well,” he said as he showed Anna into his office and closed the door. “How are you?”

  Anna opted for honesty. “I’m getting there.”

  Robin didn’t ask anything more, for which Anna was grateful. Others would and she wasn’t sure what she would tell them.

  “I suppose you’re wondering why I asked you to come in today,” Robin said as he took a seat behind his desk. Anna nodded and waited for him to continue.

  Robin took his glasses off and polished them on his handkerchief, which he always kept in his pocket. “I have received permission from the board to replace our core systems with one integrated one. We have too many small systems to do all of our processing and they are becoming expensive to maintain. We’ve already selected the product we’re going to purchase, but it will need some customisation. I need someone to run the programme to make it suitable for our needs, integrate successfully with our front end and migrate all of our data. I’m giving you first refusal.”

  Anna didn’t know what to say. Robin was not a man to beat about the bush; he always came straight to the point, often seeming abrupt when he did so. This was the last thing Anna had been expecting to hear from him. After what she had been through, she assumed she would be treated gently for a while, given easy tasks while she proved to Robin, and herself, that she was still able to do her job.

  “Who would I have in my team?” Anna asked. This was going to be a lot of work and if she didn’t have the right people, the project would not go well.

  “Whoever you want. Whatever the people you name are working on, they will be pulled off. What roles will you need?”

  Anna didn’t have to think about this. She had run large programmes before. Probably not this large, but she knew Robin well enough to know that he would not set an unreasonable deadline. A small dedicated group would achieve a lot more than a large one. It would take longer, but would be cheaper and more efficient in the long run.

  “I’ll need a project manager, two business analysts, two technical business analysts, three testers, three developers, one for the front end, one for the integration and one for the migration. I’ll also need an architect and an SME on the product you are buying. I assume one will be available.”

  Robin picked up a piece of paper on his desk and looked at it, reading down the list it contained. “That is more or less what I guessed at. Are you sure one project manager will be enough?”

  “If I have the right person.”

  “Who did you have in mind?”

  “Jeremy Goodwin.”

  ‘Are you sure? He has trouble following procedure sometimes.”

  “He does what he needs to to get results. He will push those under him but won’t push too far. Trust me. He is the ideal man for this.”

  “You are good friends with him. Will that be a problem?”

  Anna couldn’t help smiling at Robin’s concern. “No. We are both professional. Besides, we’ve worked together in the past. We make a good team.”

  “Alright. What about the rest? Do you know who you want?”

  “Most of them, yes. But I’ll need them to agree. Can I start talking to them today?”

  “Yes, but don’t tell them what the project is. It will be officially announced tomorrow.”

  “Alright. My only concern is the architect. I was talking with Katherine earlier and it seems all of the good ones that I knew have left. What are the new guys like?”

  Anna didn’t like the look that crossed her manager’s face. “I’m glad you brought that up. I want you to take on Gabriel Valentine. He’s a bit of a problem child. Every manager he has worked for so far has requested that he be moved, usually within a couple of weeks, and he has only been here five months. You are his last chance. If you can’t work with him then I will have to fire him.”

  “What do you mean by a ‘problem child’?”

  Robin leaned back in his chair. “He doesn’t do what he is told. If he has a better idea, he will do that instead of discussing it with others. He thinks he is always right. Unfortunately, most of the time he is. He is smug, arrogant and argumentative. He is not a team player. If he wasn’t so good I wouldn’t tolerate his behaviour.”

  “And?” Anna prompted.

  “And he has a reputation with women. He flirts, a l
ot, and always manages to get them to do what he wants, even if it’s the exact opposite of what they have been told to do. Rumour has it that he has slept with half the staff and a few marriages have already broken up because of him. But that is just rumour. I have no evidence.”

  “And you don’t think I will succumb to his charms?”

  “No. I know you better than that.”

  “I’ll see what I can do to bring him into line,” Anna said. “I like a challenge.”

  “Thank you,” Robin said. “It’s not going to be easy. The project or working with Gabriel. I’ve arranged for your laptop to be set up on your old desk. Your start date is Monday, the week after next. I’ll organise a separate area for your team to work in. Spend today speaking to those you wish to join you and provide me a list of names by the end of the day. Then enjoy your last few days off.”

  Anna took this as a dismissal and went to her desk. The first thing she needed to do was log on and find out if those she wanted were in the office. A quick search told her every one of them was logged on, but not necessarily at their desks. She then pulled up on the screen the floor plans for both of the floors of the building that her company occupied and, praying that it was up to date, printed it off. It felt strange being back at work after such a long break and she found herself staring at the screen without really seeing it.

  She pulled herself together, picked up her printouts, quickly found Jeremy’s name and worked out his desk location.

  As she approached, one of the men sitting at a nearby desk looked up. It was one of the two men she had noticed earlier. He looked her up and down, then said, “I’m not interested.”

  “Excuse me?” she said, somewhat taken aback.

  He looked directly at her when he responded, as though he was judging her reaction. “I’m not interested in getting to know you, I’m not interested in dating you and I am definitely not interested in sleeping with you. Now go away.”

  “Wow,” Anna said as she sat down on the edge of his desk. “You really are in love with yourself, aren’t you?”

  “No, actually I’m not.”

  “Well I hate to burst your bubble, but I’m not here to suggest we get together. Firstly, while you are pleasant to look at, I wouldn’t go any further than that. Secondly, I’m not here to see you. I’m here to see Jeremy. Do you know where he is?”

  “No,” the man growled. He obviously hadn’t liked Anna’s comments. “And before you ask, I’m not your messenger so I won’t let him know you’re looking for him.”

  Anna shrugged her shoulders. She hadn’t been planning on asking anyway. With this man’s attitude, she doubted that any message she left would be passed on.

  “Who are you, anyway?” she asked.

  “Gabriel. Gabriel Valentine. Not that it’s any of your business.”

  Anna smiled. “Oh that explains everything,” she said.

  “What is that supposed to mean?”

  Anna ignored the question. “You should really rethink the way you talk to me.”

  “Why?”

  “I’m your new boss,” she said as she stood up. She could hear laughter from one of the other desks as she began to walk away.

  I was one of the hostages

  “My God. They let anyone in here these days,” a voice sounded behind Anna before she had taken more than a few steps.

  She turned around, then ran into the speaker’s outstretched arms. The man was of average height, overweight and looked old enough to be her father, but that didn’t stop him kissing her cheek as he put her back down.

  “It’s good to see you,” he said and ruffled her short dark hair. “How are you?”

  Jeremy was not just being polite; he genuinely wanted to know. They had kept in touch while she was away, but she never told him much detail. He would only have worried.

  “I have my good days and my bad days. My good days are beginning to exceed my bad.”

  “You’ve lost too much weight.” Most people would still class her as plump, but over the last six months she had lost almost half her weight. Compared to Jeremy, she now looked skinny. “Have you been eating properly?” he continued.

  Anna shrugged. “I eat when I’m hungry. I just don’t get hungry very often.” Jeremy frowned at her. ‘I’m getting better,” she said before he could reprimand her.

  “So why are you here?” he asked. “I thought you weren’t due back for another couple of weeks.”

  Anna grinned at him. “Funny you should ask that. You know I always said I wanted to have you under me? Are you still up for it?”

  Out of the corner of her eye, Anna could see that Gabriel was listening in on the conversation. Her comment had caused him to raise an eyebrow.

  “Definitely. What’s the project?” Jeremy said.

  “I can’t tell you that yet, but you should hear in a couple of days. I’ve been told I can have anyone I want and Robin will make sure they are rolled off their current projects by the time I officially start back.”

  “Who else have you got in mind?”

  Anna listed off some names, while Jeremy nodded his head. Not only had she selected the best people, they had worked together before and made a good team.

  “I’m also going to ask for Priya. I know she is young and doesn’t have much experience yet, but she’s a fast learner and I have more faith in her abilities than I do a lot of the more experienced BAs.”

  She wasn’t expecting Jeremy to complain and he didn’t disappoint her. “Good idea. So who’s your architect?”

  Anna grimaced. “Robin has persuaded me to take on this idiot here.” She pointed toward Gabriel, but didn’t look at him to see how he was reacting. “Apparently he does not play nice with others and Robin seems to think I can bring him into line.”

  Gabriel grunted, so Anna continued. “I’m his last chance. If I’m not happy with him, I get to fire him.”

  Jeremy laughed. “If only you weren’t joking.”

  Anna didn’t join in the laughter. “I’m not.” Jeremy waited for her to smile, but when she didn’t he knew she was serious. He opened his mouth to say something, then closed it again. He had no idea what to say. While Gabriel was notoriously hard to work with, he was very good at what he did and Jeremy didn’t want to see him leave the company.

  “I have more people to see,” Anna said and hugged Jeremy once more. “See you in a couple of weeks.”

  She consulted her floor plan, then headed toward the far corner in search of Priya.

  “Who was that?” a voice sounded from a nearby desk once she was out of earshot.

  Jeremy turned toward the speaker. While Gabriel was a complete womaniser and a pain in the neck as far as work was concerned, his cousin was the exact opposite. He was easy to get along with, went out of his way to help out anyone he could and seemed to spend a lot of his time apologising for Gabriel.

  “Anna Pearce. She worked here for a few years before taking six months off.”

  “What’s wrong with her?” Luke asked. “What was that comment about having good days and bad days all about?”

  “You’ll have to ask her about that,” Jeremy replied. While Luke could easily find out by speaking to almost anyone, he didn’t want to be the one to gossip about Anna.

  “I think I will,” Luke said and turned back to his computer screen.

  ————————————-∞————————————-

  “Hi Sarah,” Anna said as she approached Sarah from behind, making her jump.

  “Jesus Christ Anna,” Sarah said as she turned around. “What are you doing here?”

  “Offering you a job.”

  Anna then proceeded to tell Sarah about the team she was setting up. “Are you in?” she asked when she had finished.

  “Definitely, though I’m not sure I want to work with Gabriel. He flirts with me whenever I have the misfortune of seeing him. He never goes far enough for me to make a complaint, but it’s beginning to get really annoying. It’s get
ting to the stage where I think I may have to bring JD in to meet him.” While Sarah always referred to JD as Jason when they were at the Sanctuary or when speaking with hunters, and was the only person permitted to do so, she always called him JD when talking with anyone else.

  Anna laughed. She had only met JD once, but knew that he would be more than a match for Gabriel.

  When Anna returned to her desk, she opened her email and checked the calendar of the only person on her list who she had not yet spoken to. His availability told her that he was in a meeting, but would be free in an hour, so she decided to stay at the office for a while longer.

  She was slowly working her way through all of her accumulated emails when an instant message appeared on her screen.

  ‘Please let me apologise for my cousin’s behaviour,’ it said. It was from someone called Luke Stevenson. Anna didn’t need to ask who he was referring to. ‘He’s not so bad once you get to know him.’

  ‘There’s no need for you to apologise on his behalf,’ she replied.

  ‘I know, but I want to. Let me take you for coffee. When are you free?’

  Anna glanced at her watch, then opened up a new message window and asked Jeremy what he thought of Luke. His reply said he was a good guy. She still had thirty minutes before she could meet with Jack, so she let Luke know she was free.

  ‘Now. How about I meet you in the cafe downstairs,’ she entered on her screen and hit send. Then she grabbed her handbag and headed to the lifts. Hopefully this Luke person would give her some useful insights into his cousin.

  She had only been sitting down for a couple of minutes when she noticed a man walking toward her. “Oh shit,” she said under her breath. It was the man who had been with Gabriel when she first saw him, the one who had made her struggle to breathe.

  This time she had no reaction to seeing him as he walked up to the table she was seated at and held out his hand. “I’m Luke.”

  She looked at him closely as she shook his hand. His skin was warm and soft and his grip firm, but not forceful. His hair was lighter than his cousin’s and his brown eyes were darker. Initially she thought he looked cute, but when he smiled his whole face lit up.