Chapter Four
The Best Resume Yet

Rex finished the vocabulary worksheet in between customers. He was amazed at how simple all of the jargon was, and how quickly he was picking it up.

He spent the weekend working on new ring pieces for the upcoming Valentine's Day, staying up late hours and getting up early to make his planned quota. The order of stones came in late on Tuesday evening, which made him another half-hour late for class.

"Mr. Shepard," Mollie said as he rushed in the door and handed her the homework assignment. "I was beginning to think you weren't showing up."

"Terribly sorry," he apologized, feeling like a teenager again. "I had some trouble at the shop."

"That's quite all right. We started with the basic functions of the computer and now we're working on some typing skills on the word processor." Mollie looked around the classroom. "Ah, Susan. Would you care to help Mr. Shepard catch up?"

Susan looked up from her computer and smiled. She still wore clothes that might have come right from a goodwill bin, including those awful shoes, but her demeanor was quite different. As she walked Rex through the paint, My Computer and the other icons, he got the impression she was being particularly cheerful.

This time, when Rex left he made a stop in the restroom, timing it so Mollie would likely be out the door before she could stop him to grill him for more information. When he was sure it was safe he made his way for the exit. In the lobby he saw Susan looking at the job descriptions again and offered her a ride home.

"Thank you for your help today," Rex said, sincerely. "I haven't shown up late for a class in…well, never."

Susan laughed. It was a startling, yet pleasant change from the reclusive woman he met last week.

"Not a problem," she said, still beaming. "You helped me last week and I figured this would be a good way to return the favor."

Rex shrugged it off as he stopped at a red light.

"You seem to be picking things up quickly," he said.

"My neighbor lets me use his computer to practice on."

In spite of her cheerfulness, there was no doubt Susan was in a difficult situation. Old clothing a maximum security prisoner would never have to wear, having to walk so far to get a little job skill training. Rex wondered how he could find out more, without seeming snobbish. As he pulled into the trailer park, an idea occurred to him, but he didn't voice it just yet.

It was an idea that should have occurred to him sooner. Whenever he had to close the shop for a week so he could take an important business trips, it would have been smarter to have someone watching the shop so he wouldn't lose a potential profit. Or on the days when he was simply not feeling well and needed to take a break from the diamond saw and the molding equipment.

There was something else to consider. Eventually Rex would have to "die". It would be nice to have someone to leave the shop to instead of letting it die with him.

A voice of logic even louder and more overbearing than the chirp of conscience filled his ears.

You don't know the girl, It said. These days are different. You don't know the kind of person she is or why she's in her situation. Perhaps she's a drug addict, did you ever think of that? You'd be providing her with all of the habit supporting money she'd ever need.

Rex pushed it aside. Of course he wouldn't just hand the keys over to her. In fact until he knew it would work out he wouldn't even leave the shop. Nothing would be different until he knew for certain. But if it didn't work out, at least his conscience would leave him alone as it sulked in its corner where he tried to banish it before.

Thursday he spent his lunch break running errands all over the Northeast Kingdom, managing to sneak in a bite at the diner between stops. Dropping off advertisements for the Valentine's Day specials at the newspaper, making arrangements with his travel agent for the summer months, and stopping by the YMCA to find out when the next self-defense class was being offered. He even managed to stop by the vocational center to complete a very special errand, before returning to the shop.

When class let out, Rex went through the motions of avoiding Mollie again. Only this time he took a walk around the school grounds, wanting to avoid a pattern as much as possible. Patterns can be observed and then predicted, Marcus always told him. Improvise as often as you can and use every possible advantage.

At the moment Rex had only one advantage. For the first time in ten years he was truly comfortable with the fact that Mollie Sherman would not be around that long. In a century or so he would never have to worry about people recognizing him or connecting him with people they knew.

"Raymond?" Someone called, breaking him from his musings.

He looked up and saw Susan approaching him. She was wearing a sweater and jeans that at least seemed partially new, but they were both very thin and she shivered. He thought she was about to ask for another ride, but then he noticed the 3x5 card in her hand.

"I didn't know you owned your own store," she said. Not a request, just conversation.

"Shepard's Jewelers," Rex said in response. "I've had it for about ten years now."

"Wow."

Susan fell into step beside him as he continued his walk. He half expected her to question what he was doing out this late, but it never came.

"I could never imagine running my own business," she went on. "The last time I had a steady job was at a McDonalds over twenty years ago. I've been getting work on and off since then but my skills are just too weak."

"You'd probably do well if someone were willing to teach you."

Rex waited as the suggestion hung in the air. Susan seemed deep in thought. Then she said, "If you're offering a job, I'd like to apply for it. I mean, I don't have a car or any other reliable transportation but you know that. And my history isn't something to brag about either…"

"You don't know much more than I do," Rex said, sincerely. "As far as I can tell, you have the best resume I've ever seen. When can you start?"