Confronting the Fallen by J. J. Thompson Read Free Book Online Page B

voice answered him. “This is Cynthia, down at the front
desk. This is your six forty-five wake up call. How are you this
morning?”
    “Um, fine,” Chris said, still feeling
groggy. Six forty-five? Ouch, it was early. “I'm fine, thank
you.” He hesitated a moment, then said “How are you?”
    “I'm quite well, thank you,” she
replied briskly. “Now, since you are new, allow me to explain
the routine here . Residents are expected to be cleaned up, dressed
and in the dining hall for breakfast no later that seven-thirty each
morning except Sundays, when a brunch is served. You will find
clothes to fit you in your room. To reach the dining hall, turn left
when you leave your room, take the first right you come to, continue
until you reach the stairs, turn left from the bottom of the stairs,
and the dining hall will be halfway down that corridor. Okay so far?”
    Chris stared blankly into space, trying to get his
foggy brain to repeat the directions back in his head. “Um...”
he said.
    The woman sounded amused. “Let me go through
that again, Mr. Wright.”
    She repeated the directions a bit more slowly and
this time Chris was sure that he had them memorized. “Excellent,
Mr. Wright,” Cynthia said when he had told her that he knew the
way. “Now, it is almost six fifty-five. You have thirty-five
minutes to get washed, dressed and down to the dining hall, so I
won't keep you any longer. Oh, just one more thing. Please take the
cellphone you are using with you whenever you leave your room; it is
yours for the duration of your stay. If you have any questions, or
need directions, feel free to ring the front desk at any time, day or
night. The number here is one eleven. Any questions?”
    “No, I don't think so. Thanks for the
information,” Chris said.
    “My pleasure. Have a great day,”
Cynthia said brightly and she hung up.
    Chris put the phone back on the table and sat
there for a moment, his mind a blank. Too much had happened in the
last few days and he had not had time to absorb it all yet. Then he
realized that he had to be downstairs in a half hour and jumped out
of bed and ran for the bathroom.
    After a quick shower, Chris looked through the
closest and chest of drawers and realized that all of the clothes
were exactly his size. How was that possible? But he was in a rush
and decided to think about it later. Finally, dressed in black jeans
and a blue shirt, he shook his head once to get rid on any lingering
moisture, pushed his hair back off of his face, grabbed the cellphone
and slipped it into his pocket and left the room.
    Chris remembered to lock the door behind him and
set off for the dining hall. Following the directions he was given
over the phone, he soon found himself outside of the dining room. He
stood in the hall and looked inside.
    The room was very large. Chris counted at least a
dozen round tables scattered about, each one with six or more chairs.
    The tables were covered with linen table cloths,
place mats and cutlery, and a vase of fresh flowers sat in the middle
of each one.
    There were already people seated and eating their
breakfasts, maybe a dozen so far and Chris stood looking into the
room, uncertain where he should sit. Suddenly a voice behind him made
him spin around quickly.
    “Good morning, Mr. Wright.” It was
Martin. He smiled at Chris' expression. “Sorry, I didn't mean
to startle you. Come on in and I'll find you a seat.”
    Chris followed Martin gratefully and they entered
the dining room.
    Not too far from the door, two teens were sitting
together, eating breakfast with great gusto and chatting amiably.
Martin led Chris to the table and waved him toward a seat.
    “Good morning, gentlemen. Allow me to
introduce Mr. Wright. Christopher, this is Mr. Whitby and Mr. Saint
James. I'll leave you all to get acquainted.”
    Martin walked away and at once the boy he named
Mr. Whitby grinned and said “Sorry for the whole formal thing.
The judge insists on it. I'm Tyler and