The Good Doctor's Tales Folio Eight by Randall Farmer Read Free Book Online

her way to Polly’s bad side.  “Director of the Mentoring Program will be perfect for you.  They all think you’re the Wicked Witch of the East because they haven’t seen you in any other role.  You’ll be talking to all the Focuses, helping out, letting them get to know you.  I bet after a little while you won’t hear any more of th e Wicked Witch nonsense.  Besides, your reputation will, um, get the attention of the more independent and recalcitrant younger Focuses who might normally ignore reasonable advice.”
    “Polly, this is crazy.  You need some charming Focus everybody loves, not some crotchety old lady with a bad reputation.”
    “What I don’t need is some pushy young bitch from the Young Focus League with lots of enthusiasm and no brains,” Polly said, smile gone off her face, her lacquered red-painted fingernails drumming the table.  Tonya wondered if the young leader of the aforementioned non-sanctioned and almost illegal group, Focus Linda Cooley of Chicago, had somehow squeezed up a nomination from one of the first Focuses.  Tonya found the whole concept of the YFL, all Focuses born after the early ‘40s and culturally sympathetic to the youth movements of the day, to be tacky and distasteful.
    “What I need is you,” Polly said.  “Faith has been running the Mentoring Program for years with her cronies, and I’m not pleased with the results.  We need to get some new blood involved.”
    Tonya shook her head.  “Me?  New blood?  You think any of these Focuses will want to deal with me?  After the Arm Flap and Hancock’s letter?”  She had a bad feeling Hancock’s letter had sealed the deal, and the firsts really didn’t want anyone to help the new Focuses.  Tonya, with her bad reputation, would be perfect for the job of ‘not helping’.
    “Tonya, have a little faith in me,” Polly said.  “You’ll do a wonderful job.”
    Tonya sighed.  “Polly, you’re just going to get me in more trouble.  I’m already too high profile as it is.”
    “Tonya,” Polly said, and she was serious, now, her face rock.  “No more arguments.  We all need you.”  She looked away, meeting the gazes of the rest of the Council members.  “As this is an elected position, I need to call for a vote.”
    The Council voted unanimously in favor of the move.  Tonya abstained.  The fix had indeed been in from the start.  She was now Director of the Mentoring Program.  God save them all.
     
    (3)
    The Council meeting had adjourned for an hour, to let the Focuses re st, and in Connie’s case, make a collect call to her household and catch up on business.  Tonya found a dark room, put her head in her hands, and tried to recover.
    The trouble kept piling higher and higher.
    Although Suzie Schrum was still peeved with Tonya because she hadn’t enslaved Hancock and brought the young Arm under her direct control, she still wanted Tonya to be the Region rep.  At least that’s what she said.  Tonya no longer believed it; the Focuses hadn’t considered the Director of the Mentoring Program to be a Council-level obligation for years.  Was Suzie about to force her into semi-retirement while burdened down with a killer job?
    Then there was the business of Carol’s letter to the Focuses.  Tonya was glad Carol had recovered, as Keaton had told her she would, and was especially glad Carol hadn ’t come by to try to kill her.  At least so far.
    No, to Tonya’s surprise, Carol had gone after her politically.  Tonya was going to have to stop thinking of Carol as the same sort of bull-headed blunt instrument as Keaton.  Her letter wasn’t a rant, but a finely crafted complaint about Tonya’s behavior in the Arm flap.  Among the younger Focuses, it not only reinforced her Wicked Witch of the East image, it made her look like a fool.  She wasn’t sure what it made her look like from the first Focuses’ perspective, but whatever views they held on the subject, they couldn’t be pretty.