New Recruits
PART ONE
Jake was in the office… bored… again. He seemed to be spending more and more time behind his desk, when all he wanted was a bit of action. The last piece of excitement he’d had was when he was called in to help the police with a hostage situation at one of the city banks, but unfortunately for him (and very fortunately for the hostages), just as Jake was getting a long missed adrenaline rush, the robber gave himself up. So here he was, back behind his desk, staring out of the window at the harbour below.
Mike was due in on an afternoon flight in readiness for the recruitment drive the following week. Jake had mixed feelings about it. They needed new operatives, especially as they were thinking of opening a London office, and he was looking forward to the practical side, the group talk and the one on one, but then he remembered all the added paperwork and let out a deep sigh.
His pa, Jennifer, walked through the door just at that point, and noticed the sad look in his eyes. She knew he longed to get out of the office for a while. Walking over to his desk, she placed yet another pile of papers down on the corner, smiled at him and said, “Why don’t you go for a run in the gardens?”
Jake’s eyes lit up at the suggestion, but darkened again when he looked at the new pile of papers.
“Don’t worry about those, Jake. They only need your signature, they’re the reports we went through yesterday. I think they can wait until you get back, and you know you’ll feel better after a run.”
“Aw, Jinny, your blood needs bottling,” said Jake, jumping from his seat and giving Jenny a hug. “I’ll be about an hour, two at tops. In fact, I should be back in time for lunch, then I can go pick up Mike from the airport this arvo.”
Jake winked at Jenny as he headed for his private bathroom to change into his running gear. Jenny smiled, knowing Sandi and Dee, on reception, were going to get a nice bonus when they saw him jog to the lift in the next few minutes.
She was right. By the time she was back at her desk in the outer office, Jake was just coming through his door. Dressed in black tank and shorts, he leaned over and gave her a quick kiss on the top of her head, smiled and mouthed *thanks mum* at her, then made off towards the lifts giggling, before she had the chance to throw something at him for his cheek. The girls hung over the reception desk watching him disappear down the corridor.
“Come on girls, you know he’s spoken for.” Jenny reminded them.
“We know, he’s still well worth a perve though,” they replied, sitting back down behind the desk laughing.
Jenny laughed with them, wondering if Jake realised just what effect he had on his staff, whether he was in a business suit, running shorts, sweats, or even full commando gear. They all adored him, no matter what he looked like, and it wasn’t just the female members of staff he affected. All the men in the organisation would lay down their lives for him if need be. He commanded respect from everyone, not because he was co-owner of the company, but because they all knew he would never ask them to do anything he wouldn’t do himself, and they all knew he was more than capable of doing it twice as well as they could.
Jake was blissfully unaware of the awe in which he was held in by his staff. He just felt lucky to have such good people working with him, and treated them all as he would want to be treated himself. As he left the lift on the ground floor of the building, his staff were the last thing on his mind. He was headed for the gardens and a good run to blow out the cobwebs. He told himself not to feel guilty for playing hooky as he knew that he would work twice as hard when he got back, and Jenny knew he would probably stay well after everyone else had gone for the evening.
Jake jogged through Circular Quay and past the Opera House, then made his way around the harbour walk on the edge of the Botanical Gardens, as he got close to the wharf, he toyed with the idea of sneaking home, but decided against it. He ran past the wharf and headed towards Potts Point and on through Kings Cross and beyond. After running for around 45 minutes, he slowed to a stop, stepping into the first store he came to for some bottled water. He sat on a bench for a few minutes drinking deeply, checked his watch, and turned to head back towards the city.
As he reached The Domain, he decided to cut through the centre of the gardens. Nearing the pond, he noticed a scuffle going on. Four lads were laying into a lone victim. Jake stopped and shouted. They looked over, flipped him the bird, and carried on with their assault.
Heading towards them, jake was soon inthe thick of things, trying to break it up.The victim took advantage of the brief respite to run off, leaving Jake the object of the yobs anger. He may have been outnumbered, but they were outclassed, and he was soon getting the better of them. Just when he thought that he was getting the upper hand, a searing pain exploded inside his head, and his world went black! One of the thugs had ripped a low branch from one of the trees and landed him a good one against his left temple.
A bad job well done, they ran off whooping and roaring to cause more havoc wherever they could.
************
Slowly, Jake’s senses returned to him and he gingerly sat up. When the garden stopped spinning, he thought he would give standing a go. Staggering a bit, and nearly falling into the pond, he was vaguely aware that the area seemed deserted. Typical, when you want a crowd, there’s never one about! He was only about ten minutes from the office, so his muddled mind told him it was a good idea to head back there and maybe lay down for a bit to ease his pounding headache.
Oblivious to the strange looks he was getting from the crowds around the Opera House, he slowly made his way back to the office building, staggering through the main entrance and slumping into the lift. By the time he got to the 12th floor, he was feeling more than a little groggy. He lurched out of the lift and headed towards his office. With a lot of help from the wall, he made it to the reception area without incident. The girls looked up on hearing him, and gasped in unison.
Making his way towards Jenny’s desk, he saw her rise and walk towards him, just before he fell flat on his face at her feet.
“Jake!” she cried, dropping to her knees to see how she could help him. She shouted to the girls to call a couple of the men from their office to help get him up. A few minutes later he was laying on his huge over stuffed sofa at the ‘informal’ end of his inner office. Jenny was mopping the blood from the gash on his head, while one of the girls put in a call to Doctor Sing, Jake’s Sydney physician and neighbour, both in his business premises (Dr Sing had his office on the 10th floor), and at the wharf.
Within minutes Dr Sing was heading down the corridor from the lift, and was on his knee next to the unconscious Jake. As he was finishing dressing the wound, Jake groaned and opened his eyes.
“G’Day Jake. You’ll go to almost any lengths to get me to make a house call won’t you. How ya going?”
“Wha….?” replied Jake.
“Not your usual erudite self are you, mate. Do you want to try to sit up now?”
Jake groaned as he was slowly eased to a sitting position on the sofa, and Dr Sing got from the floor to sit next to him.
“What happened?”
“We were kind of hoping you might be able to tell us that, Jake,” replied Jenny.
Jake rubbed his hands over his face, wincing when he touched the stitched wound on his temple.
“Shit! There was a bloke by the pond getting a bashing. I went over to help him out.”
“Where is he now, mate?” asked the doctor.
“He shot through as soon as I got there. Didn’t really have much time to see which way he went. I kinda had my hands full.”
Just then there was a knock on the door. Jenny opened it and stood back to let two police officers enter. Jake groaned softly. He was hoping to just lay down until his head stopped pounding, now he knew he would have to make a statement.
As the two officers sat down, there was a commotion from the reception area. Jenny stepped out to see what was going on. Leaning over the reception desk, kissing Sandi and Dee on the cheeks, was Michael, Jake’s American partner. In all the excitement, Jenny had forgotten he was arriving that afternoon.
Hearing the door close, Mike turned and smiled.
“Hey, Jen, goo to see you”
In a couple of strides, he had reached Jenny and she found herself in his arms being swung up in the air.
“How’s my favourite girl?” Mike beamed at the woman he’d grown to love like an older sister.
“Michael, I’m fine. I’m so sorry I didn’t get anyone down to pick you up.”
“That’s okay, sweetie, I managed to get an earlier flight. I thought it would be easier to catch a cab than to mess up your day by having to drag someone away to get me. Where’s the whiz kid?”
***************
Jake was just about to re-tell his story to the police when the door flew open and a whirlwind blew in. Michael was by his side in an instant asking if he was okay.
After around ten minutes of reassurance, he finally calmed down enough to let Jake finish answering the police questions, then Dr Sing told them Jake needed to rest and anything else would have to wait until he was feeling better. The officers got up and said they thought they had enough information. They said their goodbye’s to everyone and left. Jake sank back into the sofa with a groan.
“Okie dokie, I think it’s time to take you home,” said Dr Sing. “I have my car so I’ll give you a lift.”
“I’ll come too if you don’t mind, doc. That way I can see for myself he does what you tell him.” said Mike.
Before too long they were back at the wharf, and Jake was safely in his apartment, tucked in bed with a hot drink and, despite his vehement protests, some pain meds.
“Get some rest now, Jake, and don’t hesitate to call me if you feel any worse.”
“Don’t worry, doc,” Mike said. “I’m staying here while I’m in town, so can keep an eye on him. If we need anything I’ll come knocking.”
Dr Sing got up from the edge of the bed. “I’ll say goodnight then, and if you don't need me before, I’ll drop by in the morning.”
Mike saw him to the door, and by the time he returned, Jake was fast asleep. He closed the blinds and quietly left the bedroom. Moving to the kitchen, he made himself some coffee and went out onto the balcony to enjoy it while taking in the view. He never tired of it, and thought once again how lucky Jake was to wake up to this every day.
He was still on the balcony, watching the sun setting over the bridge, when he heard a commotion from Jake’s bedroom. Rushing in through the lounge room and up the stairs, he reached Jake’s room in time to find him half out of the bed chundering his guts up and moaning.
“Shit!” said Mike, on his way to the en-suite to fetch a damp wash cloth. He was soon back, helping Jake onto the bed once more, and wiping his sweat covered face with the cool, damp cloth. Even though he was being as gentle as he could, each touch seemed to be agony for his friend. He helped him lay back against the pillows, cleaned up the floor, then made his way to Dr Sings’ apartment.
“Sorry, Doc,” he said as the door opened in response to his hammering.
“What’s happened?”, asked the doctor, reaching for his bag and keys and following Mike along the walkway back to Jake’s place.
“He’s just chucked his guts up all over the bedroom floor, and he seems to be in a lot of pain.”
Dr Sing made his way up to Jake’s bedroom and found him tossing and turning on the bed. It was quite dark in the room with the blinds closed so Mike went to open them. As the last rays of the sunset lit up the room, Jake flinched and quickly shut his eyes.
“Light hurting?” question the doctor.
“Umm hmm,” Jake mumbled in reply.
Mike quickly shut the blinds again and put on the light in the bathroom. After asking a few yes/no reply questions, Dr Sing reached for his bag and took out a syringe. Jake opened his eyes long enough to see it and tried to move away from it.
“Jake, I know you hate taking medication, but I’m pretty sure this is a migraine, and the only way you’ll get any relief is to let me give you this shot. It will take the nausea away, help with the hammers of hell you have in your head, and allow you to sleep. Trust me, I’m a doctor,” he said, winking.
He slipped the tiny needle just under the skin on Jake’s side, and within minutes the deep furrows on his forehead began to smooth out and he relaxed as the medication took hold. He was soon asleep once again, and Mike took the doctor downstairs for a cup of coffee.
“He should sleep through the night with that shot. He’ll be pretty groggy when he wakes up, but hopefully the pain will have gone. Try to get him to stay in bed tomorrow, or at least lay him on the sofa for a few hours. I‘ll drop round after brekkie, knowing him, he’ll try to get up at the crack of dawn as usual.”
“Okay, doc. Sorry for nearly knocking your door down, and thanks for coming over.”
“No worries. See you tomorrow.”
************
Dappled sunlight was weaving its way through the blinds. It was going to be a lovely day. There was a rustle from under the bedclothes, and a soft moan. Jake was returning to the land of the living. He took a risk and slowly opened one eye. Grateful for the absence of flaming arrows searing into his brain, he opened the other eye. He pulled himself up into a sitting position, and decided that he didn’t feel too bad. A swim should bring him back to normal, he thought, and went to get out of bed to head for the bathroom.
As soon as he put both feet onto the polished hardwood floor he knew he wasn’t as good as he had felt while still in bed. The room began to spin and his temples began to ache. Just as he thought he was going to say G’Day to the floor, Mike came through the door, rushed to his side, and eased him back onto the bed.
“Where the fuck do you think you’re going?” he asked.
“Mate, I need the bathroom.”
“Well, okay. I’ll help you, but then it’s back to bed for you quick smart, and don’t even think about heading down to the pool this morning.”
Jake turned to Mike with a frown, but knew his best friend was right, he was still a bit too fragile to take his normal early morning swim. He felt stupid being helped to take a leek, but Mike was adamant that he wasn’t going to let him go it alone. His ablutions over, Mike wrapped his arm around Jake’s waist and helped him back to the bedroom, and into bed,
“Can you manage a cup of tea?”
“No, mate, but I could murder a glass of water.”
“Coming up my friend,” said Mike, heading down the stairs and into the kitchen.
Just as he was getting some water from the fridge, there was a knock at the door. He opened it to find Doctor Sing smiling at him.
“Morning, Doc.”
“G’Day, Mike. How’s the patient?”
“He’s pretty groggy, like you said. I had to help him to the bathroom just now, and he didn’t even fight me when I put him back to bed.”
“Don’t look so worried. That’s just an after effect of the medication I gave him last night, It will soon wear off, then you’ll have fun trying to keep him down. Can I go up?”
“Of course, I was just taking him some iced water.”
“Right. He’s not up to eating anything yet then?”
“Didn’t offer him food, but he sure went green at the thought of a cup of tea,” Mike answered as they entered Jake’s room.
“That’s because you make lousy tea, mate,” Jake said from the bed. “G’Day, Drew.”
“Hey, Jake. How ya going?”
“I’ve had better days I have to admit. Good job it’s Saturday eh? Didn’t fancy the office today.”
Doctor Sing sat on the edge of the bed and quickly examined Jake. Deciding there was no permanent damage, he told Jake he could get up, as long as he took it easy for the entire day, and that he should be fine for work on Monday. Jake groaned, remembering that Monday was group chat day for the job candidates.
“Can’t you give me a note for the boss?”
“Get real, Jake, you ARE the boss. Don’t be a pussy, you know you love interviews,” laughed Mike.
Jake groaned and leaned back against the head of the bed with a small smile on his face. The doctor told him he would be at home all the weekend, and not to hesitate to call him if needed. He said goodbye to Jake and Mike saw him out.
When he returned to the bedroom, he found Jake standing by the picture window, swaying slightly. He’d managed to put on a pair of old sweats and a tank, so Mike helped him down the stairs and out to the balcony. As he was settling him onto a steamer chair the security phone rang.
Mike answered it. It was Jenny. A few minutes later, she was fussing over Jake.
“G’Day. Mum,” he joked.
Jenny gave him a playful swat on the shoulder, and a gentle kiss on the top of his head. She didn’t mind his jokes, it meant he was feeling better. She headed of to the kitchen, and was soon back with mugs of steaming tea, a pile of toast, and jars of marmalade and Vegemite.
She took one look at Jake, sitting there with one eyebrow raised.
“No arguments, you haven’t eaten since yesterday morning.”
“He refused tea earlier,” Mike said.
“That’s because you can’t make a decent cup,” Jenny quipped.
Jake burst out laughing, then groaned a little at the twinge in his head. He sat and ate his toast like a good little boy, then took a grateful swig of his tea. He thought it would make him chunder again, but instead, it seemed to settle his stomach, and he immediately felt almost back to normal. He knew that he was going to have to be a good boy for the rest of the day though, as Mike would stick to him like a limpet to make sure he followed doctors orders.
The rest of the day passed without incident. Jake shocked Mike by doing what he was told, for a change, and taking it easy for the entire day. If the truth be known, all he really wanted to do was sleep anyway, so most of the day was spent dozing on the balcony, with Mike making sure that he was shaded from the worst of the sun.
Sunday found Jake feeling himself once again and when Mike woke up to an empty apartment, he knew just were to find his friend. He grabbed a towel and headed down to the pool. Sure enough, there was a human torpedo swimming lengths underwater. When he finally came up for air, he spotted Mike sitting on the side of the pool.
“G’day, mate.”
“Hey yourself. You look like the Man from Atlantis down there.”
“Rack off, mate,” grinned Jake, hauling himself out of the water and dripping all over his friend.
“My belly thinks my throat’s been cut. Fancy some brekkie?”
“Only if you’re buying, my friend.”
“Okie dokie, let me dry off and we’ll go to the café.”