Chapter Thirteen
Edris
Back in the city, my routine waited for me.
Up early to work out in the building gym, shower, and dress then off to the coffee shop along my walk to the office.
When I bought the condo, the saltwater pool was a big draw, but the true selling point was the fact that I could avoid having to find parking or pay for it at work.
My condo came with a spot in the underground garage, so I didn’t have to move my car for weeks on end.
Might have contributed to my waiting so long to buy the new one, since I so rarely had to sit on that folded towel on the damaged driver’s seat. Also…underground, the mysterious leak in the roof was not an issue.
But I had gone out and bought a new one—which, thanks to one of the many extras I’d purchased, had a return policy I was still able to take advantage of on the day I returned home.
Cranky as heck at leaving my omega behind, someone was going to feel my wrath, and who better than the dealer who sold me a car that a scan of the internet and chat with Jesse the mechanic showed me was basically a lemon.
So, after dropping off my bags at home, I made one quick stop then buzzed on down to the dealership to take care of business. The second I’d parked, one of the salesmen appeared out of nowhere. “Welcome, sir. How can we help you today?”
“I bought this here.”
“Isn’t that nice. Are you in for service?”
“Not exactly.” I offered him a toothy smile. “Is Roger in today?”
His face fell, likely assuming that whatever I wanted might be something he could get a commission on. He should be thanking me. “I’m not sure…”
“Edris!” The hearty voice of the man who’d told me this vehicle was one of the safest, least troublesome cars on the road came from behind me, and I turned my smiling face in his direction. “Good to see you. Did you come back to add that extra package we talked about? The free car washes for life?”
Even my naive car-shopping self had known I didn’t want to go to the dealer every time the car got dusty. It would take hours and they’d likely find time to try to sell me a new one after a year or two. “No. I’m returning the car.”
The other salesman, standing at my side, gasped. “You can’t do that. I mean, not unless you bought the… Roger, is this the guy that bought…”
Roger gave a stiff nod.
“Oh my God. He can do that.” Salesman number two backed slowly away. “Nobody’s going to believe it.”
I’d learned a little more on this topic too.
While I was killing time waiting for my omega to come home from work the day after our first night together, I’d done that internet scan.
The return policy I’d been tricked into signing up for was so expensive, nobody ever bought it.
Roger had taken advantage of me. A good read of the downloaded document revealed that my current action would get me back every penny, including most of that policy.
I was out 800 dollars total. A lesson well-learned.
“Anything I can say to convince you to keep it another week or two?” Roger asked. “So you have a chance to get used to it. All the new technology—well, that car you traded in was not of the same caliber, you’ll have to agree.”
“That car I traded in got me everywhere I needed to go for over ten years. It never dumped me in the middle of nowhere and made me wait days to get a dealer part I had to wait for or pay thousands out of pocket and void the very expensive warranty. So, no, there’s nothing you can do.
Here’s your car. You can transfer the funds to my account.
You know…the one you took the money out of to start with. ”
I started to walk away, but he called after me, “You’re going to need another car. Can I show you—”
“Nope,” I called over my shoulder. “I’ve already bought one from your competitor. And please stop sending me all those emails about your sales. I’ll just put them in spam if you do.”
His curses followed me down the block where my new ride waited at the other dealership.
A much more practical vehicle for country roads.
Mid-range SUV with 4-wheel drive and a roof rack.
Consumer rated five stars. Because I might not have all the details, but one way or another, I was going to make it work.
My mate’s life lay in Autumn Hills, and therefore so did mine.
As soon as I could figure it out.
But now my new SUV was parked in my old car’s spot.
And my job awaited my attention. City hall’s security involved going through a metal detector, even for staff, and I waited in line for my turn.
It was habit, and never bothered me before, but now, it made me want to shout out my objections.
Not that I didn’t want people to be safe.
Of course, I did. But I didn’t want this to be part of my life.
Didn’t want to spend my time in a place that required this kind of a procedure to make sure nobody was going to stab the mayor or attack the tax collector.
Inside, at my desk, everything that hadn’t been an issue before suddenly was. I kept remembering what it was like in Autumn Hills. How friendly everyone was, how supportive. My irritation threatened to overflow, had me snapping at my assistant and having to apologize. Twice.
If I wasn’t careful, I wouldn’t have to give notice—it would be provided to me.
Promising myself I would use the time away from the office to find a solution, I settled in to work. As soon as possible, I’d pay my omega a surprise visit. Gave me something to look forward to.