Chương 169: Chapter 167 – You Look Different

Mordak sat behind his desk looking over the reports that had just come in. He searched page after page of worthless drivel looking for what, in his mind, was the most important report of all… Jimmicks. He threw the stack down on his desk, his frustration mounting as he searched each page carefully for it. Realizing that no matter how many times he looked, it would not magically appear, he stabbed the intercom button with his pointer finger.

"Get in here!" he shouted, his voice cold. Mordak didn't look up from the papers as he searched through them again, one more time, just to be sure. Pages rasped under his fingers, the stack uneven and slightly curled at the edges from being handled.

"Where's Jimmick's report?" he asked, certain that his stupid assistant had not included it.

"I told you I wanted all of them, not some of them… ALL OF THEM! Every single one, not some, not a few… BUT ALL OF THEM!"

"Sir, that is all of them," his assistant replied meekly. The man hovered just inside the doorway, shoulders slightly hunched, hands clasped behind his back like he wasn't sure what to do with them. Mordak looked up, his eyes narrowed and fierce. Flecks of light reflecting out of the coldness like ice chips.

"Well if it is all of them, then why am I asking you where the rest of them are?" he snapped.

"Do you think I'm a moron? Do you think I would waste your time and mine if they were all here? Do you think I enjoy searching page after page for the one page I need… the one page I want?" He huffed.

"If they were all here I would be smiling… does this look like a smile to you?"

"Sir, I assure you, every report that was submitted is there in that stack. Perhaps the one you are looking for was not submitted by the department head? Maybe it is not there because I never received one to give to you?" the assistant said, the flippant tone of his voice sending Mordak's teeth to audibly grate. Mordak stared at him blankly, then looked at him perplexed. Something tugged at the back of his mind, a wrongness, subtle but persistent. He hadn't noticed it at first but his assistant seemed different.

He couldn't put his finger on it but he was definitely different.

"Did you do something different with your hair?" he asked, momentarily forgetting about the missing report.

"No sir," the assistant answered. He smoothed a hand over his hair, confusion flickering across his face.

"There's something different about you but I don't seem to be able to put my finger on it." He shook his head, "New suit maybe?" He shook his head, Jimmick's missing report rattling back to the surface.

"The report, where is Jimmick's? His should have been right here on top." He thumped on the pile.

"He is never late with his weeklies."

"Jimmick, sir?" the assistant asked.

"I'm not sure who that is, sir." If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

"You really are stupid, aren't you. You still don't know who Jimmick is?" He rolled his eyes.

"The Director of Special Operations, dumb ass. He is on special assignment, where is his report?" Mordak snapped.

"I'm sorry sir, but I did not receive a report from anyone named Jimmick, or the Director of Special Operations, or the Special Operations Office," the assistant said matter‑of‑factly. His tone was steady now, almost annoyingly calm.

"Would you like me to call the office and see where this Jimmick's report is, sir?"

"Yes! Find out when the last time he checked in was!" Mordak said, before returning his gaze back down to the papers. His fingers drummed against the desk, a restless, irritated rhythm.

"I think I'm going to call you Buttmosis instead of Tuthmosis," he mumbled.

"Excuse me, sir?" the new assistant asked.

"I said that will be all Tuthmosis," he said louder.

"What are you, deaf as well as dumb?"

"My name is not Tuthmosis, sir. My name is Steve." The new assistant turned on his heel and walked out the door. His footsteps were brisk, almost relieved. Mordak looked at the door, his face riddled with confusion.

"Steve?" he asked himself.

"Since when?" he sighed.

"That can't be right." He pressed the button on the intercom.

"Get in here!" Steve popped his head in the door. He kept one hand cupped over the phone receiver, the cord stretched taut toward his desk.

"Yes, sir, I'm on hold with the secretary in Special Operations. Can this wait?"

"No! How dare you even ask!" Mordak said, rising up from the chair. The wheels on the chair not having a chance to spin scraped sharply against the floor, punctuating his anger.

"I tell you what to do, not the other way around, you got that Tut?"

"I told you sir, my name is Steve," he replied, looking at his desk with a sense of urgency. The phone's hold music leaked faintly from the receiver, tinny, repetitive, and amazingly irritating.

"What can I do for you, sir? I really need to get back to the phone." He sighed.

"You're sure your name is Steve?" Mordak asked, still trying to put the pieces together.

"Yes, sir, my name has been Steven since birth," he added.

"If you'd like you can confirm that with my parents, I'll be happy to get them on the line for you once I am done with Special Operations. Now if you will excuse me I have to get back to the phone." Steve left the room with Mordak standing by his desk, not understanding what was going on. The office suddenly felt too quiet, the hum of the overhead lights pressing in around him.

He wasn't sure if he was more disturbed by the fact he thought his assistant had successfully pissed him off with his incompetence or the fact that Jimmick had not reported in. Too much hinged on Jimmick establishing a foothold in the elven realm. He rushed to the office door and threw it open.

"Whatever your name is, you're fired!"

"Oh thank God!" Steve said, hanging the phone up.

"I don't care how much they said they will pay me, it's not worth it!" He stood up and smiled brightly at Mordak. The relief on his face was almost radiant.

"I'm sure GR will send down my replacement." He snickered, "When they can find one… that is. Good day to you, Mr. Blackwood." Mordak watched, his mouth hanging open while Steve pressed the elevator button. The elevator chimed softly, doors sliding open with a mechanical sigh. Feeling Mordak's eyes on him, he changed his mind and opted for the stairs.