The Position Read Online Free Page B

Lazarus.”  
    Travis stares at me in disbelief. “What?”  
    Liz’s smile disappears. “Jude Lazarus?”  
    I give Travis a smug smile. “I got the job is what.”  
    Travis whoops and throws an exuberant fist punch at the air. “Hot damn, Mickey! You got a fucking job!”  
    He bounds toward me like a sheepdog and sweeps me into the air. His arms are strong and tight, and his bare chest feels hot against my body as he gives me one of his epic bear hugs.
“Listen,” Liz says, leaning forward over her knees. She’s suddenly very serious. “I’m not sure it’s a good idea to work for Jude Lazarus.”  
    Travis and I break the hug and turn to look at her. “Why not?” Travis asks. “He’s huge. There’s no better architect anywhere around here. He’s one of the best in the fucking world, Liz.”
    “He’s a great architect with a lot of personal problems,” she says.  
    “What do you mean?” My stomach is suddenly tight and I feel strangely cold. “And how do you know?”  
    “Because I’m a legal aide at a law firm that has dealt with him before. Several times actually.”  
    Travis leans against the sink and looks at Liz thoughtfully. “What kind of personal problems?”  
    Liz shrugs. “I’m not sure about the specifics. I don’t have detailed information. All I know is that they involve women who’ve worked for him. And that he has a terrible reputation.”  
    I think of what Eva, that bitch from HR, said about Lazarus going through a lot of assistants. Are those the women that sue him? He seems like such a nice guy. What could he possibly do that’s so terrible? And if he just tried to sleep with them… Hell, why would you sue him for that? I’d think they’d pay for the chance. I know I would.  
    Travis looks at me and I can tell he’s worried. He’s always worried about me. But I just wave it all away. Whatever it is, I’ve been through worse.  
    “Well,” I say, pushing the bathroom door open and feeling a waft of steam drift out. “All I can say is, he’s never met the likes of me.”

Chapter Five

    It’s nearly dark by the time I reach the city’s industrial zone. I bike through the puddled streets, past warehouses and junk yards, wishing I had a light. There are few functioning street lamps out here and you never know when you might run over a rat or hit a pothole. The air out here smells of smoke and rot.  
    Captain is sitting on an overturned bucket beside a camping fire, sipping from a steaming plastic mug. His face is so blackened with grime it’s hard to see his true skin tone. The wiry whiskers of his beard are scraggly and specked with dirt.  
    “Mickey!” he shouts excitedly when he sees me pull up on my bike. I wheel over to where he’s sitting, lay my bike on the ground, and pull the pack off my back.  
    “You look skinny,” I observe with concern. “Are you getting enough to eat?”  
    He waves a hand at me. “Oh, don’t start with me, little girl. If I recall, it was me who taught you how to keep your damn self alive.”  
    I grin and sit down next to him, unzipping my backpack. “I got a job, Cap! A real job. Like, a grownup job. It’s at an architecture firm.”  
    “Oh, my darlin’!” he exclaims, throwing an arm around my shoulder and pulling me in for a bony, sideways hug. “Look at you! Straight out of college! I told you you’d be somebody, and soon.” He shakes his head, beaming at me. “Goddamn, Mickey. You done good. You just done so goddamn good.”
    I blush and give him a shy smile. “Thanks, Captain.” I pull out a bagged-up container of rotisserie chicken I bought at Safeway, along with a fresh baguette. Delicious smells fill the air. “I thought we could celebrate together.” I cover the ground with the plastic bag and put the food down. Then I pull out plastic forks and knives. Captain’s eyes light up.  
    “That chicken smells so good I could eat it bones and all!”  
    As we eat, Captain tells me