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CHAPTER 14
Another day at theclimbing center. Terry dropped his coat over the back of his office chair and punched the power button on his computer. He glanced at the clock over his door. 7:32. Good.
Employees weren’t required to clock in until eight o’clock, but Terry liked to arrive early to respond to emails, organize his to-do list, and generally collect the loose ends of his thoughts before the rush of the day. Today he had a lot of collecting to do.
Sinking into his desk chair, he pulled open a deep-bellied file drawer and removed a fat manila folder. Employee attendance rosters. Sure, most places probably had online records for that these days, but Terry was old-school. Every week he printed a new chart and marked any absentee employees. The folder held probably five years’ worth, all neatly notated with the week, month, and year for easy location. Organization was paramount to Terry.
Unless there was a real problem or a serious trend, Terry rarely had to address issues of attendance with an employee. If they missed a day here or there, he let it slide, as long as they gave him advance notice and were doing a good job in other respects. He’d never been a stickler for counting up sick days or haggling over minor faults. But today, he had some checking to do in this overstuffed folder.
Beginning with the pages from three years ago, he worked his way through the file, sheet by sheet. Ten minutes later, he laid the folder down on his desk and leaned back in his chair. His suspicions were correct. Now, what should he do about it?
Idly he spun his swivel chair to face the window. The view of Whistler Mountain from his office was the best anywhere—which only made sense, considering his profession. Today the mountains looked especially inviting—alluring, glimmering in the early morning sun.
Terry propped his feet on the low, spacious windowsill and continued to gaze at the panorama, as if he might see an answer to his dilemma scribbled on the sky. With a sudden irritated gesture, he loosened his tie. Just minutes into his workday, and already the thing felt like a noose around his neck. Sometimes he wondered why he’d been so keen to get this position, wished he could go back to the old days of just climbing the mountain and not worrying about the business end of things. There were certainly a lot of problems that came with the big chair—and not just problems of budgets and schedules, either. Real problems, about the hearts of employees.
Like this. Terry laced his fingers behind his head and glanced back over his shoulder at the file.
Just as he’d suspected, Darius Payne had not missed one day of work in three years of working for the company—except for two days back in his first year when, according to Terry’s meticulous notes, he’d been diagnosed with the flu. But this week, he’d been absent for a whole day. Hadn’t even called beforehand, either.
It wasn’t the missed day or the lack of notice that bothered Terry. Sure, it had forced him and the other employees to scramble a bit, but it wasn’t that big of a deal. It was the fact that it came from Darius.
Unquestionably, the kid was one of the best employees Terry had ever had. Probablythebest. He was hard-working, respectful, and diligent. Unlike most people of his generation that Terry had dealt with, he actually seemed to have a sense of responsibility, to be concerned with doing the right thing. Qualities that Terry valued highly.
So why would honest, reliable Darius Payne play hooky for a day?
Terry shook his head as he remembered Darius’s response to the incident. He’d voluntarily come by his boss’s office the very next morning. “I’m sorry I wasn’t here yesterday.” His jaw had been set, eyes focused on the floor as if he were resigned to whatever punishment came. “I should have called and let you know ahead of time. It was very irresponsible of me, and I apologize.”
Terry had just shrugged. “Let’s forget it this time. Just call me or shoot me a text next time, okay?”
Darius had nodded. “I will.” When Darius had glanced up, Terry had noticed that his eyes were red-rimmed. And he looked utterly exhausted. Terry’s annoyance had melted into concern. “Darius, is everything okay?”
“Yes, sir.” Darius’s face had immediately smoothed into something more presentable. Or tried to. “I just—something came up yesterday.” He bit his lip. “Something unexpected.”
Remembering the encounter, the same uncertainty and worry that Terry had felt then shivered through his chest again. He wished he’d questioned Darius further, but the young guy had just turned and headed into the breakroom. No further comment.
Something unexpected.Terry let the words roll around in his head. Taken by themselves, they could mean anything. But coupled with Darius’s expression—the silent agony of a man who’d lost all hope—they seemed ominous.
Terry leaned forward in his chair and tried to think like Dick Tracy, the eponymous hero of his favorite comic strip when he was a boy. He racked his mind for any clues that might explain Darius’s behavior.
He flattered himself he knew the young man fairly well. He’d hired him at a time when Darius’s life was just emerging from a long, dark tunnel—the loss of his parents, his career-ending injuries at his second Olympics. Climbing Whistler over and over had been cathartic for Darius, helping him release some of the darkness and helplessness he felt.
Darius had always been a rather quiet and subdued type, never really mingling with the others for coffee breaks and pretty silent when they were all swapping stories of The Most Annoying Customers Ever. In truth, the kid seemed a bit melancholy always, but Terry figured he’d never really recovered from his parents’ deaths—at least not yet.
He squinted, leapfrogging from possibility to possibility in his brain. Surely Darius would have explained if he’d had car trouble or some other circumstances beyond his control. Had he gone to the doctor maybe, gotten some bad news? Darius had always been incredibly lean and fit, but some diseases couldn’t be staved off by a healthy lifestyle.
Was he tired of working at the climbing center, needing a change? He certainly always seemed to enjoy the job, though. And really, wouldn’t he have just given notice if that were the case?
Or what about that girl? Terry suddenly realized he’d never followed up about that. He’d been excited to see Darius interested in someone—finally. He’d meant to ask the next day how their date went. How could he have forgotten?
From the looks of Darius, though, it wasn’t something pleasant that had kept him away for a day. He had looked like a man trapped in a hollow nightmare.
Lord, what should I do? What is wrong with Darius?Terry sighed and rubbed his eyes. Maybe he was being too analytical, looking for a deep, dark secret where none existed. To be frank, had the problem ended that day, he probably would have dismissed the whole incident from his mind. But this secret misery—whatever it was—still had Darius in its power.
Oh, he hadn’t missed any more work, and his performance was top-notch, as always. But his heart was gone. His eyes were dull, heavy. He showed up, did his job, and left—like a ghost. Something was gnawing at him from the inside out.
Terry sighed. That was it. He couldn’t let this situation keep dragging on. Darius had had a week to figure this out on his own—and it didn’t appear that he was making any progress. Terry had to talk to him. He frowned as another concern struck him. Was Darius emotionally stable enough to be taking people up the mountain? This was a challenging job, not a routine treadmill that could be occupied mindlessly by someone preoccupied with personal problems.
Terry cared deeply for his employees, always had. He’d eaten lunch with them, worn the cheesy Santa hats at the office parties each Christmas, and gently reprimanded them when they made the wrong choices—not just at work, but in life. Most importantly, though, he prayed for them constantly. Each one was special—like a member of his own family. And he didn’t believe that any one of them was at the climbing center by accident. God arranged everything.
