Chapter12
Nina was up and at the breakfast table shortly after sunrise, but the dining room was nearly deserted. She grabbed some fruit and a couple bottles of orange juice out of the refrigerator. Her heels clicked on the marble floors as she made her way out the door.
There was a sleek, coal black car sitting in the turnabout driveway in front of the door. She recognized the mechanic instantly, though she couldn’t remember his name.
“Your car, Señora,” he said, handing her the keys with a huge grin on his face.
“What is this?”
“Audi A8L, security addition.”
“It looks like a regular car.”
His smile widened.
“Oh, but this car can withstand machine gun fire and a hand grenade.”
“I don’t plan on throwing either of those things at my car,” she said.
The mechanic’s smile slid off his face and he stared at her for a minute before her meaning dawned on him.
“Very funny.”
He motioned to her to hand her phone over and she complied before she thought about it. She watched him intently as he waited patiently for the ten seconds it took to download an app, then pointed it at the car and programed it. When he tapped the screen and the engine roared to life, he smiled triumphantly.
“It’s the only model with remote start,” he said. “And, this button right here summons the car.”
“Summons it?”
“Yep. Hit the button and make sure your GPS is on, and the car will pull right up to where you are.”
“That’s insane.”
“It’s only standard on this model, but the auto summons is supposed to be released as an option over the next couple years.”
“This is an amazing car.”
“And it’s all yours. You have a good day. And be careful; the engine is very powerful.”
She got in, setting her laptop and phone on the passenger seat and closing the door. When the door sealed, everything went silent, and she realized that the yard had been filled with the buzzing of insects in the trees, and birds calling to each other as the world awakened. The silence in the car was deafening. While she’d become accustomed to the relative silence in the cabin of luxury cars, this was far more profound.
She had no doubt that withstanding hand grenades and automatic weaponry was just the tip of the iceberg.
She eased the car onto Bayshore Lane and headed north, deciding to stop at the gas station first thing to see if her theory was right. If the bulk of the traffic was going north this morning, then the gas station should be extremely busy, which would give her a chance to see the property in action.
It would take a little longer to go through the new software with their cash office clerk since they also took care of customers at the gas station, but she was willing to take that chance. Seeing the business running at capacity might give her a better feel for the business as a whole, and once she had everyone working through the new system, she would be able to generate reports that Alex could use to streamline his business.
She was starting to feel giddy as the possibilities ran through her mind. It was all so exciting, and she couldn’t wait to see how her expertise lent itself to improving the overall business model and making Alex more money. He was going to be thrilled.
She fought her way through the heavy traffic, the sleek car turning heads as she maneuvered down the 395. She took the exit when her phone prompted her and pulled into the familiar gas station.
It was completely empty.
Maybe it’s just a lull, she thought, parking next to the employee’s car on the side, just in case the station suddenly got busy. When she entered the store it was equally quiet, and the clerk didn’t appear for quite some time after the doorbell chimed to announce her presence.
“The pumps are broken and—” the man was saying as he walked down the aisle, then stopped abruptly when he saw her. “Miss Nina, I didn’t know you were coming today. Is everything alright?”
“Just came to walk you through the new accounting system.”
“I’m sure I can manage,” he said warmly.
His obvious dismissal irritated her.
“There are certain aspects that are completely different from the old software. Part of my job is to make sure that everyone has inputted their information correctly so the process is smooth. It’s not about what your location does anymore, it’s about the whole business. Surely, you can understand why making sure we’re all on the same page is important.”
He looked like he was going to argue, but she stood her ground, crossing her arms and raising a single eyebrow in challenge. The man stared at her for a second, as if he couldn’t believe that she was for real, then his shoulders slumped ever so slightly and he motioned with his head toward the cash office in the back.
“Let’s get this over with so I can get back to work,” he grumbled.
“Aren’t you going to lock the front door so we don’t get robbed blind while we’re in there?”
Her question caught him off guard, then he nodded and did as she asked.
Nina shook her head, using her phone to make a note that would sync automatically with the files on her laptop. This note was for her eyes only, and she quickly wrote down the manager’s complete lack of common sense and poor work ethic, then made a note that the store should be audited for shrinkage.
She had a feeling more merchandise was stolen from this store than purchased.
She followed the man to the office, taking out her laptop and setting it on the rickety table they were using as a desk.
“Where is the computer that’s supposed to be in here?”
“We use a laptop.”
“Alright, but where is it? I can’t really show you how to do this without the computer in front of you.”
“Aren’t we just using the old software?”
She sighed.
“Look, I’m not going to look at your browser history, so whatever you were looking at before I walked in, I don’t care. It’s up to you whether you dick around all day on the internet of get some actual work done, because as the store manager, any dip in profits come down on you. So, whatever it is you’re trying to hide, I’m not even looking for.
I’m uploading the updated version of the software, syncing the old files with the new software, and showing you how to input new information. I’m trying to do all twenty-two properties this week, and you’re slowing me down. I’m not here to play games, I’m here to get stuff done. So, please, get the laptop, shut down whatever you were looking at and then bring it here so I can update everything and be on my way. You can waste your time, but I’m not about to let you waste mine.”
Her words must have had some effect on him, because he finally quit arguing and left the room, coming back almost five minutes later with the laptop in hand, giving it to her after unlocking it with the password.
Updating the software while they spoke, she gave him a quick rundown of how the new system worked, including the features she was most excited about. As she went through the list and the software finished loading, she synced the old program with the new, then went into the settings menu and scrolled down until she found what she was looking for.
She found the single credit card machine on the dropdown menu, right-clicking on it and pairing it with the laptop.
“There, now you won’t have to come to the cash register unless there’s a customer.”
“Okay?” he said, clearly confused.
She clicked on the icon again, then ran the reports. It generated a saved file almost instantly, naming it the current date and time.
“You’ll have to run reports again tonight, but I wanted to show you how it works. You choose run reports, then when this little file pops up, you drag it to this area right here, and drop it. It automatically inputs your reports and updates the file. It’s probably the easiest thing you’ll do all day, and that’s saying a lot.”
“I don’t have to do anything else?”
“You will have to count the cash drawer and note any discrepancies, but otherwise, the system does most of the work for you.”
She checked her laptop, making sure that the information synced in real time as it was supposed to, thrilled to find that everything she’d done on his laptop was already on hers.
It worked exactly how she thought it would, and she was delighted. This was going to make keeping track of twenty-two separate businesses doable. Alex was going to be so happy when he saw what she’d done, and how she’d taken initiative. Everything was already looking better, and by the end of the week, she would have every penny Alex spent and earned at her fingertips. Only then would she show him what she’d managed to do, and she hoped that he was surprised.
She set her computer to sleep and packed it up, thanked the manager, then followed him to the door so he could let her out. The parking lot was still empty, though traffic on the freeway was still packed. She’d been there long enough that there should have been several customers, but there hadn’t been a single customer. It was weird, but she’d only been there about an hour, so it was possible that she’d just found a lull in an otherwise steady day.
If not, and this was par for the course, the reports she would generate every quarter would make it clear that the gas station was not making the money it should, and Alex would likely sell the place if he didn’t want to deal with the hassle of making necessary changes. Either way, she’d be making a difference, and that made her feel like she was doing more than just crunching numbers to justify her allowance. She was earning her salary and it felt good.
The morning air was already warm when she stepped onto the walkway that led around the side of the building to her car. She almost thought she heard the manager lock the door behind her, but he was probably just removing the key. Dead or not, there was no way he was going to just lock the doors and give up for the day before it was even eight in the morning. The store manager didn’t strike her as the brightest star in the sky, but no one was that stupid.
She looked at the map of properties, picking the next one down the line. She’d already broken them up into mini territories, so each day she would visit between four and six properties, depending on how close they were to the others. Today, she was hitting a cluster of six, then heading home to go through the files and make sure she’d worked out all the kinks before doing it again the next day. Even though the gas station manager had dragged the twenty-minute process out being difficult, the next five properties were all within a few minutes of each other, and she would finish before lunch. Her first paycheck had already hit her bank, so she would treat herself to a nice, early lunch out for a change, then finish her workday in her office. By the time she was done for the day, it would still be early, and she could take a swim and relax until Alex came home.
The next five properties went just like she expected, and unlike the lazy store manager at the gas station, the clerks greeted her with warm smiles, ready to learn about the new system, and interested in how it was going to make everything run smoother. She was in and out of each property in less than thirty minutes, and as she expected, she was done well before lunch. At this rate, she would have everyone on the same page by Friday, which was exciting.
You’re such a nerd, she thought, still laughing. But she loved what she did, and a position like this was almost unheard of for someone fresh out of college. What could have been the biggest mistake of her life had turned out to be so much better than she could have imagined. She had a great car, a well-paying job that she could use as a stepping stone to a lucrative career, a baby on the way, and a good man that really got her like no one else ever had.
Nina couldn’t have planned a better life for herself, and she couldn’t wait to see Alex tonight to tell him everything she’d accomplished. Life was good.