SICARIO

You would think that packing up my life and moving to a new place would be a difficult decision for me but let me just tell you it was not. I had nothing left for me in Hudson.

After losing both my parents to a tragic accident when I was about 2 and too young to remember I ended up being raised by my mother’s Aunt Margaret or as I like to call her Margie. Despite being gorgeous and having a spontaneous personality, Margie never married and never had any children of her own so she was happy to take me in.

That was 21 years ago. Margie was already in her late forties by the time I came along but that never stopped her from being the best guardian I could ask for. Somehow she managed to be both parents and my best friend. She always joked that I was an easy child and she didn’t have to do much work. After putting me through school and college and getting me internships, at the best local law firms she insisted that I start looking around in a bigger city. About a year ago she became insistent and started filling out the applications herself.

When I received the message for the online interview from Pearson and Hardy I was tempted to turn it down because I had grown up my whole life in this small town and Margie and I both only had each other left in this world. Of course she would not hear of it and helped me to get dressed in my most professional attire and made sure everything was presentable for when the interview call came through. The interview went by smoothly and they told me it was a long vetting process so they would get back to me.

A few days later Margie passed peacefully in her sleep and the only thing keeping me in Hudson was gone. I never really hit it off with the locals and was always off on my own with my nose in a book. I had a romance or two when I went through the dating phase but neither of them lasted long enough to become something. Margie joked that the boys in this little town bored me and I needed a real man.

On the Day of her funeral I received the call from the law firm offering me the job as a PA to one of their up and coming associates. I agreed immediately wanting to get away from this town which now held nothing but memories of someone I had lost forever.

The firm expected me to start working within a few weeks making arrangements for me to move. As part of the job I would be receiving an apartment about two blocks from the office and the firm would cover all of my moving expenses. The apartment would be fully furnished and ready to live in by the time I got there allowing me a few days of freedom to settle and explore the city. All of the information regarding my relocation came to me from the secretary at the firm. Her name is Natasha Hayes and she is a spitfire. Definitely someone Margie would have approved of.

Within the next few days I had packed up all of my belongings into boxes which were being transported to the apartment. The firm was made aware of Margie’s passing and allowed me a few days extra to get things in order back home resulting in most of my belongings making its way to the Big Apple before I could. She had left the house in my name along with all of her belongings and a boatload of money. When her attorney came to see me to discuss her will I was shocked and had no idea about the money. We never went to bed hungry but we always lived simply, never taking more than we needed. I couldn’t bear to sell the house I grew up in with all of the memories it held and I know that the property meant the world to Margie but I also couldn’t let it be vacant forever.

I spoke to Tim Hartford who owned the best construction company in Hudson and we came up with a quick plan to turn the home I grew up in into a quant Bed and Breakfast. We would keep most of the original structure making a few adjustments here and there to add a few things and then it would be good to go. I employed Beth Hartford, Tim’s daughter, who was slightly older than me to run the B&B since that is what she always wanted to do. Hudson can be quite the tourist attraction and for anyone who is in love with the place having a B&B and open tours is the best way to make good money. Between them they assured me that they would get it up and running in no time. The B&B would be called “Margie’s” and it would be a place to help me remember the best woman in my life.

A few days later I hopped on a plane and left my small town behind me as I got ready for the Big Apple. Along with the things that Margie left me was a letter that she had written herself which I couldn’t bring myself to open. I felt like it would be like losing her all over again if I did and for as long as it remained unopened I’d have something of hers that could never be taken away. That was the only thing of hers that I brought with me to start my new journey.

The apartment in New York had a single bedroom with an ensuite and an open plan lounge and kitchen area with a home office. When the cab dropped me off I did a double take at the sleek design of the skyscraper like building immediately thinking I had the wrong address. I made my way through the front doors and met a lady in reception who explained that the movers had brought my belongings by earlier in the week and that they had been moved into my apartment already. She gave me a set of keys and a code for the alarm system and escorted me to the apartment which is on the 3rd floor of the building. At this point I’m thankful that I didn’t have much luggage with me when I arrived.

I open the door and she leaves allowing me to enter and settle in. The lounge and kitchen area is done in light tones of grey with contrasting dark appliances and deep red artwork as you enter. The two spaces are separated by a narrow breakfast bar which has the kitchen on one side as you enter and the lounge area on the other. There are a few couches to one side in front of a full HIFI set and TV with a small dining area behind it and a balcony to the side which overlooks the city. Between the two spaces is a hallway which has three doors.

The bedroom is also painted in the light grey with one deep grey wall and a light grey headboard behind the bed which is adorned with a black comforter and an assortment of pillows. There was a double window to one side also overlooking the city which had a small reading nook in front of it. The opposite wall had a small bookshelf and a gorgeous black closet. The door leading to the ensuite was located on the wall opposite the bed and is surrounded by more closet and storage space.

The bathroom continued with the grey theme with light grey tiles midway up the wall and black accessories throughout. The only break in the colour scheme was the white tub which was placed at the end of the room. The double door shower is in one corner as you enter with the toilet and basin topped cabinet taking up the middle of the room. The space opposite the shower is covered by a floor to ceiling closet and a drying rack. Even with all of the storage space and accessories the bathroom feels huge. There is a door to one side that leads out into the hallway so that people wouldn’t have to go through the room to get the bathroom. I scoff at that thinking that I would probably never be entertaining any people anyway and that door can remain locked.

The study is across the hallway similar in size to the bathroom and equipped with filing cabinets and shelves on every wall with a desk placed in the middle of one wall between two high cupboards. On the desk there is a MacBook with a sticky note above it with the username and password. Across the desk there is a seating area with a sofa and a small coffee table which fill up the rest of the room.

The way the apartment is set up is as if it were meant for someone who does regular entertaining and will be hosting a few home meetings. Definitely not the kind of place you would expect a first time PA to have. I guess that’s what working for one of the best firms in the city does for you.

I make my way back into the lounge where I find my boxes as promised by Selene who is the receptionist here. I immediately start unpacking and placing things around the sleek apartment to make it feel more like home. It takes me a few hours but once everything is in place and I’ve managed to store all of my belongings its dark out and I can see the city lights from the balcony.

I realize I haven’t had anything to eat today and find a few take out menus stuck to the fridge with a note from Natasha who I think I have become quick friends with. “Welcome home – Tash” is all that is written on the note and I quickly send her a text to say thank you. According to her the place is fully stocked with groceries for the first month since the company didn’t expect me to come with anything. They wanted the transition to be as smooth as possible so that I could start working as soon as possible. The fridge is full of vegetables and there is a fruit basket on the breakfast bar. A few of the cupboards are stocked with dry ingredients and others have crockery in them. I wonder if this is how working in the city is for everyone as I look through the menus deciding to play it safe and order a pizza before bed. Tomorrow is going to be a full day of exploring for me.