Chapter 4: A New Job
1484 Words
As soon as he finished cursing, he heard someone shouting behind him. It seemed to be Barret's voice.
"Wait! Stay here!"
Joe said to himself that the Andrew family was as unkind as Aaron had expected. They would not give him the promised money after taking the bag back. They were probably planning to take the money back.
In that case, he had done a good deed for nothing and gotten slapped twice? Why? f*****g outrageous!
So, he decided to run away.
"Oh, don't run, the dogs will catch you."
Joe thought to himself, “Who are you kidding? You are a bunch of mad dogs. If I do not run, I will be eaten alive soon anyway.”
Joe ran towards the gate as fast as he could when he suddenly heard dogs barking behind him. He turned his head and found two ferocious Rottweilers rushing towards him. He could not overrun them and had nowhere to go. Joe turned around to look for an escape when he saw the pond. Within a split second, Joe jumped into the pond.
At the moment he jumped in, he hoped the two dogs could not swim. However, he forgot one crucial factor: he did not know how to swim either.
Running for life immediately turned into shouting for help.
"Help, I can't swim, help!"
He was choked immediately and struggled for help, but he heard a burst of laughter from the second-floor terrace. Even while almost dying, Joe could make out the vicious laughter of Nicole Andrew.
"That’s f*****g hilarious. How could a man be stupid enough to jump into the water when he cannot swim? You deserve that!"
Then Barret's voice came through to Joe.
"Mr. Smith, don't panic. The water is not deep here. Just stand up and get out quickly."
Joe calmed himself and stood up.
The water was not deep enough to even reach his chest.
Wow. Joe felt embarrassed.
Barret was a little bit dumbfounded to find Joe as wet as a drowned cat.
"Mr. Smith, you...what were you doing?"
"I..."
"Please come out first."
"What about the dogs?"
"It's okay. They don't bite when I’m around."
Barret scolded the dogs, they wagged their tails like puppies and obediently ran away.
Joe finally got out of the pool.
"Mr. Smith, I will take you inside. You may shower and change your clothes, and then you will go to the study to meet my Lord."
"Never mind. I am not taking the money."
He took the wet money out of his pocket.
"An unlucky day for me indeed. Here you are, Barret. Can I go now?"
"Mr. Smith, you’re mistaken. I am not taking the money back. My Lord has already scolded the lady. Please don't be angry."
When Joe heard Barret, he thought perhaps the $100,000 dollars was still on the table. Maybe this ‘Lord’ was not as bad as Nicole Andrew?
"I do not want to take a shower and change my clothes. If you really want to pay me, then just give it to me here. I have other things to do."
"Mr. Smith, why don’t you talk to my Lord first? I am sure you will benefit a lot from the conversation. I am not bragging, but there are a lot of people lining up to talk with my Lord."
Joe was not very keen to see such an important and popular Lord, but he could see that if he did not go to see him, his reward would be at stake.
He had to agree for the sake of money.
"Well, I hope you will keep your word."
"Don't worry about it. The money is ready in the study."
"Where will I take shower and change clothes?"
"Please follow me."
"This...is it free of charge?"
"Well, Mr. Smith, you have a good sense of humor. Of course, it is free of charge," Barret stared at him with a dumbfounded look.
"All right then."
Joe had a hot bath after a very long time. The jacuzzi was huge and the jet stream seemed to wash away his sore muscles. He then changed into a set of clothes Barret had prepared for him. Joe took his sweet time getting ready for who knew when he would get an opportunity like this again?
He combed his hair, put cream on his face, and sprayed some cologne.
Barret was stunned the moment Joe walked out of the bathroom. His mouth slightly opened as he looked at Joe in disbelief.
"You look so much alike…"
"What, who do I look alike?”
"Oh, nothing, I mean you look like a movie star."
"Uh, could I see your Lord now?" Joe felt uncomfortable; he had never been complimented before.
"Yes, this way please."
Barret took him to the third floor. They walked through the long corridor to the entrance of the study.
He knocked on the door.
"Lord, Mr. Smith is here."
A slightly tired voice came from inside.
"Let him in."
"Please come in, Mr. Smith."
When Joe went in, he found the inside more like a library. There were rows of shelves in the huge room, full of books, but there was not even one table or chair.
Joe thought, "If I sell all these books to the junkyard, I could make a lot of money."
He would have been shocked to learn that many of the books in this room were rare and that a single book could be as expensive as an apartment.
An old man was standing in front of a bookshelf and turning the pages of a book. He was a man of medium height with silver hair and a commanding face. He looked very powerful.
Joe felt that he should be polite and take the initiative to greet the old man.
He opened his mouth but did not know what to say. He would sound like his servant if he called him Lord. And it would be a bit unpretentious if he called him Sir Andrew. How about just calling him Mr. Andrew, Joe thought. Though it sounded a bit cliché, at least it was a safe choice.
"Mr. Andrew."
The old man laughed, his eyes twinkling in amusement. He seemed very excited to see Joe, which made Joe uneasy.
"Barret tells me that your last name is Smith?"
"Yes."
"My name is Joseph Andrew, and you can call me Joseph."
Joe whispered to himself immediately.
Joseph? Isn’t that still inappropriate? We are not even that close. And Barret calls him Lord?
Never mind Joe, you will not even see each other again after today. No big deal.
"Nice to meet you, Joseph."
"Thank you for returning my granddaughter's necklace. It was given to her by her late mother. It is very precious to her."
"You’re welcome. What about my money?"
"Barret, give the money to Mr. Smith."
"Yes, my Lord."
Barret took down a bag from a shelf nearby.
"Mr. Smith, please have a look."
Joe opened it and found that the amount of money was wrong. It was more than the promised amount, not less!
"It...it seems to be $200,000?"
"Yes, it is."
"But didn't the newspaper say that there was a reward of $100,000?"
"That is true. But since there were no leads, I had decided to add another $100,000."
"Was that announced in the newspaper?"
"Not yet. It is supposed to be published in tomorrow's newspaper, now it seems that it is not necessary."
Joe was shaking in excitement. Barret had not lied to him, and the Andrew family was trustworthy after all. With $200,000 in his hand, he could really turn his life!
"Thank you!” Joe turned around to walk out.
"Wait."
Joe trembled.
Are they going back on their word?
"Yes?” Joe replied suspiciously.
"Well, the family is looking to hire a cleaning boy. The job is very easy and includes food and lodging, as well as a monthly salary of $5,000. It will be paid once a month on time. There will be eight days off each month, an extra allowance for holidays and year-end bonuses. I wonder if you are interested in such a job?"
Joe wanted to turn it down, but after hearing the salary and benefits, he nodded involuntarily.
He had worked so hard picking up garbage, day and night and sleeping in a shitty house with barely any food. This was like a dream job compared to that! He would be a fool not to accept it.
"Okay, then when do I start?"
"You can start now if you like,"
"Well... I have to quit my old job first."
"How about tomorrow?"
"All right, I'll be here at 8: 00 A.M. tomorrow."
"Alright then, Joe."
With the money in hand, Joe hurriedly left the mysterious manor.
- Writer
