CHAPTER TEN
Xeno could barely get up that Monday. He rolled out of bed with sleep collected in his eyes. Checking his phone, he realised he had overslept.
Oh.
Scrambling to get ready, he sprinted to the bathroom, cleaning his teeth while washing his face. He looked at himself in the mirror. He had looked better. His beard was unkempt, and his eyes were wild. Why hadn't he been able to sleep last night?
Oh.
Today would be his first day back at the museum since the party.
Over the weekend, he'd tried to put his mind off it, off of the rumours he'd seen on work group chats, but he'd have to face it now.
Still, it's not like it was actually caused by anyone, right?
That thing looked like it was held together with tape and a prayer, it could have just fallen on its own, he reasoned.
Still, he tried not to let it get the best of him.
He needed his brain to be firing on all cylinders, working at full calibre if he was going to work to be a head of department.
He had a meeting with Dr. Carmazan that morning, so that would shield him slightly from the rest of the museum.
Surely everything would blow over once they realised it was an innocent mistake?
Ms. Pepper would get someone to check it, and they'd all be fine after.
Despite his rationalisation, a small part of him wondered if it was actually an accident.
Surely Jess would text him if she found out it wasn't? He wondered whether Mrs. Pepper knew already.
It wouldn't be hard to check if someone had tampered with the strings, perhaps she checked it the night of the party, and she was just waiting to tell everyone.
While thinking, he shaved his face, maintaining his relatively clean beard. One day he'd be able to grow a moustache. He grew worried; what if the prank war started again? He forced the thoughts out of his mind. There was no way, right?
"Ow!"
He'd nicked himself with the razor. This wouldn't be a good way to start his interview.
He cleaned up and got dressed. The cut wasn't really that noticeable, and he checked his watch.
The time that Xeno had wasted by oversleeping had been caught back by his haste to get ready.
Now, he just had to get in the car to drive to the museum.
As he got in the car, he banged his head on the doorframe.
It's like the universe doesn't want me to go. He thought to himself, turning the car on. He put the keys in the ignition and, just prior to driving off, he put a "Ghost" CD in the player.
When Xeno was thirteen, he had gone with his father to a Ghost concert.
It was one of the happiest memories he had with the man.
Not that he was a bad father, things had just always been a little icy since their falling out.
The music perfectly captured the early September sunrise.
Painterly yellow and purple strokes coloured the early morning sky.
The huge, intimidating gates of the museum seemed ancient, though it was hard to gauge exactly how old they were. As for the building itself, it seemed gothic in construction, with dark stone arches that seemed to reach up to the sky, catching the waves of morning sunlight like waves on a beach.
He entered the creaking door with apprehension and was happy to see business as usual. Employees were milling around calmly, preparing for the museum to open in an hour, and there was only a slight hint of tension in the air. Everything was going.. surprisingly smoothly.
Relieved, he returned to the task at hand.
Having been instructed to turn up at Dr. Carmazan's office at exactly seven-thirty, he began the walk to astronomy.
Normally, he would have used the astronomy car park, but he couldn't be bothered with the traffic at the end of the workday, especially since astronomy was at the very back of the museum.
Finally, he made it to her office. Knocking on the door, he was surprised to find it swung open - it was unlocked.
"Come in?" Asked her bold voice. Xeno gulped and walked into her office.
It was similar to his, and it was clear she had made little effort prior to his arrival.
Papers were strewn across her desk haphazardly, with bundles of spreadsheets flowing onto the ground like waterfalls.
"Hello, Xeno." She began, glancing at a file on her desk that seemed at least five years old.
"Why don't you have a seat?" Carmazan was cold at the best of times, but he was sure the temperature had dropped by five degrees since he'd walked in.
"Hi, ma'am. I just want to clear up, I'm not trying to take your job, I just thought that.. well.. you're probably going to retire soon, and-"
"And why would you think I'm going to retire soon? How old do you think I am?" Xeno froze. He knew from his talks with Jess and Aruda that that was a question that you should never give a straight answer to.
"Um, not a day over sixty..?" He ventured, trying to gauge her reaction. If he were lucky, she'd be flattered.
"I'm joking around with you." She said joylessly. It was hard to tell when she was joking; her demeanour never changed. She paused, thinking for a moment. "Xeno, I'm afraid I misjudged you." She looked at him through slightly narrowed eyes, as if seeing him for the first time in her life.
"What do you mean, ma'am?"
"You're just doing whatever you can to get to the top. I can.. admire that, even if it's a scary view from the summit. You remind me of myself when I was younger.. though you don't have my bone structure."
"Thank you?" Xeno let out a quiet sigh of relief. These mentoring sessions would have been unbearable if she'd kept up her grudge against him.
"Truth be told, I am retiring soon. I'm glad that Ms. Pepper at least let me train my prospective replacement." He jumped at that. "This could be it." He thought to himself, he could finally prove himself.
"When?" He asked, a little too quickly.
"I haven't decided. In the next couple of years, I'll leave when I decide to.
" That was perfect. It gave Xeno just enough time to get in Ms. Pepper's good books.
"Now, where were we? Oh yes; the first and most important lesson I can teach you is.
." She continued, leaning closer to him, almost conspiratorially.
"You have to keep your head down if you want to work here.
It's just like what happened with Kiara . ." She trailed off.
Xeno nearly flinched at the mention of Dr. Aruda's first name. She reprimanded anyone who dared to call her it, and he couldn't blame her- he'd be proud of a doctorate if he had one, too. "Wait, what do you mean keep my head down?" he asked. "What happened with Dr. Aruda?"
Just as she seemed to be about to respond, the museum's speakers picked up.
"All employees from the palaeontology and astronomy departments must report to the main hall immediately.
I am giving you all express permission to leave your stations.
This will be a brief meeting. Those who are currently touring may continue, but must report to the main office afterwards to receive this announcement.
" Ms. Pepper's voice rang out, tinny because of the terrible quality of the speaker system.
"Well, that seems to be all the time we have left, I'm afraid." Carmazan replied, getting up from her chair. She seemed to be grateful to be free of the conversation, he recognised her caginess about the past from Aruda. What could have happened all that time ago?