Dallas, Texas

"So Jack, we haven't really had a chance to talk, so excuse me if this is a redundant question, but now that you're in Dallas, what do you plan to do here?" Observing Sue Ellen with interest as she posed her question to him, Jack wondered whether JR had put his wife up to pursuing answers or whether she genuinely wanted to know herself. From everything he had experienced with JR so far, pushing until he got the answer he was looking for was exactly his style, and using others to do his bidding for him wasn't beyond belief, however, he couldn't necessarily say without a doubt that he believed Sue Ellen was the same way. Her comment was correct, they hadn't really had a chance to talk, so he could be reading her wrong, but on the surface she seemed nice, but also firm, and he wasn't sure that JR could easily manipulate her into playing his game. With that in mind though, her firmness had all been in defence of her husband, and their interaction during their first meeting had seemed to be mostly just polite interaction, not the open friendliness he'd received from Jock, so really, he couldn't be sure about his opinion of her; perhaps she was completely on JR's side, willingly playing his game. Whatever he motive for asking him the question she had though, he knew what his answer had to be; he had to appear to be being open and transparent, Jock appreciated honesty, and with JR watching him like a hawk, just waiting for him to slip up, there was no place for lies. Of course, that didn't mean he had to tell the whole truth, some things didn't need to be said in as much detail as he had considered them, but on the whole, he would be better off telling the truth.

"No, no, not redundant, I understand why you'd be curious. I'll be honest with you, I didn't come to Dallas with any concrete plan; I came to meet my family and see and experience what life outside Alaska is like. I wanted to see the other side of the oil business looks like, my daddy is quite content to do the hard labour day in and day out, as is my sister, but I've always wondered what else there was, what went on in the offices of the men behind the list of orders received by the rig manager. I guess I'm opportunistic, because once I realised that I actually did have family involved in that side of the business, and I had means to make contact, that was it, that was the start of my separation from Alaska and the start of my journey here to Dallas. To answer your question in simple terms, I suppose I'm doing what I planned to do, because I didn't plan all that far ahead. Do I plan to do this long term though? No, I can't afford to. I can't afford not to work, and if I have to go back to working in the fields, then I will. Before deciding to do that because it's the only option left though, I'd like to look for other roles, something to satisfy my desire to see a different side of the oil industry. I feel I'd be lying too if I didn't say that I hoped being here, with my family, in Dallas, rather than somewhere else in the state or the country, would be of some benefit to me. I don't mean that in the sense that I'm looking for a handout from anyone here in Dallas, I have enough to get by on for now and as I said, I will go back to working manual labour if necessary. I was thinking more along the lines of an insider's perspective of the companies around town, perhaps an introduction to useful connections, from what I've heard, a number of jobs are never advertised, and being new around here I don't know where to begin. I suppose what I'm saying is, I don't have a job here in Dallas yet, so what I plan to do is ambiguous at the moment, but I am motivated, and I am experienced, so I feel positive about my future here".

Holding Sue Ellen's attention for most of his speech, he hoped he came across as genuine, because for the most part, he was. He had come to Dallas hoping to make connections with his extended family and escape his life in Alaska, both his work life and his home life, so he hadn't been lying about that. He was also telling the truth about being willing to get a job doing what he had been doing in Alaska, because he wasn't a leech, he did have some morals and allowing others to pay his way while he did nothing didn't sit well with him. As it was though, what he really wanted more than an introduction to important connections, or information, from Jock, was a job offer at Ewing Oil. Ewing Oil and his uncle Jock were the things he had heard so much about from his father, so even if it was a bit of a naïve fantasy, the idea of being a part of the successful Ewing family had been what had really pushed him toward Dallas, rather than anywhere else in the country, when he'd left Alaska.

"Other companies, or Ewing Oil? Come on Jack, be honest with us". Moving his attention just a few inches to the right, from Sue Ellen over to JR as JR interrupted his response and his thoughts with a probing comment, Jack inwardly groaned; for some completely unknown reason, JR didn't like him and had it in his head that he needed to sabotage his efforts to integrate. He was sure Jock knew he'd been motivated by more than just wanting to meet his extended family, they had discussed working in the fields and how backbreaking that could be, they had also compared mental toughness to physical strength, however, he had never specifically detailed to Jock that he desired to test his mental abilities at Ewing Oil. It appeared that now was the time to do that though, otherwise JR probably would; he didn't know him well, but he seemed like the type to research things so that when he asked a question, he already knew the answer.

"JR, I don't know what your problem is with me, but I'd appreciate if you weren't so sceptical all the time. I have nothing to hide; like I just explained, I'm interested in other companies, because I don't expect handouts; to answer your question though, I'm interested in Ewing Oil too, why wouldn't I be? Historically it's just as much mine as it is yours, my daddy was there too, I grew up with stories about the wildcatting days just like you did. Even with that history though, I don't lay claim on it, I know it's not mine, however, it's not a crime to be interested", pausing for a few seconds to let it sink in that he and JR weren't all that different, he then continued speaking. "If you're really probing too, I know all about Bobby's open position, it's not a secret, not in this family and not to the public. If that's what you're getting at then there's your honesty, and if it's not, then tell me, because I'm sick of this cold, suspicious attitude". Glaring at his cousin as he finished speaking, he actually felt pretty good; he had had to justify himself, and everyone's reactions were still to be determined, but at least he had broken the barrier, in front of everyone, so they all had the same version of events, from his thoughts down to his demand for an explanation from JR. He didn't know JR well, but he had a feeling that if their conversation had occurred in private, the story relayed to everyone later on wouldn't be quite so close to the reality of what was happening. JR couldn't be trusted, at least not now, that was a fact.

To be continued…