Consequence

By C.J. Langer

All of our actions have consequences whether we know it or not.

Jenny had to learn this the hard way.

Join Jenny as she struggles with who she is and what she is destined to become.

Meet the people who shaped her and helped guide her to Hell and back. People she had to learn to trust even while they manipulated and lied to her.

Find out how Jenny became the fierce defender of humanity in this prequel to Fallacy.

• Language: English
• Publisher: C.J. Langer
• Release date: Apr 4, 2017
• ISBN: 9781386086642

C.J. Langer

C.J. Langer is an author who has been writing for over twenty years. She was born and raised in a small coal mining town in southern West Virginia. She has always been a huge fan of mystery, horror, and science fiction. She began writing as one of the primary contributors to her high school newspaper, which published her first serialized short story, Hammer. Soon after graduating High School, Langer started working on an as of yet unpublished historical novel which is loosely based upon her own Great-Grandmother's journey to America right before WWII. She took a break from writing shortly after to raise a family, including a step-son, two rescue dogs, and two rescue cats. Langer is currently working on Fallacy, the first part of a trilogy chronicling the life of one young woman as she tries to survive Armageddon. She is looking forward to sharing her writing with the public once again. Langer is currently married and living in the Cleveland, Ohio area.

Book preview

Consequence

Book 2 – A Prequel

C.J. Langer

Copyright 2017 by C.J. Langer

Cover art copyright 2017 C.J. Langer

Chapter 1

The world is going to Hell. It is literally going to Hell. Jenny muttered as she jumped back into her car after pumping less than three gallons of overpriced gas into her piece of shit economy car.

Jenny normally paid for her gas at the pump with her credit card, but had finally succeeded in maxing it out so she had to pay with cash. Not that she had much cash either. She only had $6 in bills. She had scrounged almost another $4 in change but hadn’t wanted to use it. There was something so demeaning, not to mention embarrassing, about paying for gas with change. At least she thought so.

Jenny looked back into the store as she started her car. The attendant was still dealing with the idiot who didn’t understand that he couldn’t buy cigarettes and beer with his girlfriend’s food stamps. She shook her head and sent good thoughts toward the clerk. It seemed the world was beginning to be overrun with hillbillies.

Not that all hillbillies were like the guy at the gas station. He seemed special. Jenny felt her anger and frustration ratchet up another notch. Her internal anger seemed to be set at a low boil all the time these days, but could flare up with the least amount of provocation. Things that didn’t even affect her could cause her to fly off the handle in an illogical rage. She felt sorry for her coworkers today.

Jenny had worked for her current employer for almost a year now. When she was being honest she could admit it wasn’t all that bad. She was still getting used to working in an office, though, instead of waiting tables. In a way, she enjoyed being a server more because it was easier to measure whether or not she was doing a good job. Working as a receptionist was probably the most boring thing she could think of doing for a living, but it did make it easier to hide her growing contempt for humanity.

Those last few weeks at the restaurant were excruciating not only for her but her tables as well. She was sure the manager only kept her on because he knew she was leaving and was having trouble finding someone to replace her. Otherwise he wouldn’t have made her work those last two weeks. You can’t accidently, on purpose dump a glass of beer on not one but two guests in a week and expect to keep your job.

Jenny gripped the steering wheel tighter, casually wondering what it would be like to just drive off the overpass on which she was currently driving. She shook her head, laughed nervously out loud, and turned up the radio. She didn’t even care that she hated the song that was playing. She just needed to put some distance between that last thought and the rest of her mind before it became a good idea.

Jenny drove the rest of the way to the small insurance office where she worked without allowing any other thoughts take hold. It wasn’t easy at first, but then she was distracted by another asshole that cut her off as she was trying to merge into traffic. Her anger spiked and she flipped off the unsuspecting driver when he turned to look at her while slamming on his horn. She laughed hysterically when she saw the confused look on the fifty-something year old in a power suit’s face as she sped up to cut him off to make her exit.

Jenny looked in her rearview mirror to see if the guy was mad enough to follow her. She didn’t think he would, but she never knew. Only one other person had ever followed her after she flipped him off and he wasn’t fooling around. She was actually late for work that day because she had to ditch him first. Ever since that incident she usually controlled herself if the person was driving an Acura. The guy today was driving a piece of shit Mazda that was only slightly better than her own car so she didn’t think she would be seeing him again.

Jenny pulled into the parking lot of the office building where she worked and shut off her car. She sat there for a moment just staring out the window at the random weeds poking through the mulch around the building. She always ended up getting to work early as long as she left by five after eight and there were no accidents or road work. She usually took the extra time to figure out where she went wrong.

She didn’t want to do that now. She wanted to finish what she started with the guy on the freeway. She genuinely liked and respected most of the people with which she worked, but today everyone was fair game, except maybe her boss even though she despised her most days. No, she would need to steer clear of her today and hope she was too preoccupied to want to talk to her at all. She had been looking for other employment but hadn’t found anything yet that seemed any better than this job. So it was best if she didn’t piss of the boss just yet.

Jenny grabbed her bag from the back seat and was almost jogging as she made it to the front of the building. She was already thinking of why she hated everyone in the office including, Amanda, her boss. Nancy chewed too loud when she ate at her desk, which was all day, every day. Beth was flaky and deserved to cry. Todd was just a tool and begged to be bullied. Amanda was a controlling bitch who got off on making people squirm. And the list went on.

There were a total of ten people in the office including Jenny and of course there was something about each and every one of them that annoyed her on any given day. Those were the things that she concentrated on as she rode up to the fifth floor in the elevator. Not the fact that each one of them was very kind to her from day one. Not the fact that they would drop whatever they were doing to help her if she asked. Not the fact that they were only humans trying to eke out a living at a job they tolerated at best, just like her.

The anger had almost settled back to the low boil at which Jenny started the day by the time the elevator made it to her floor. Unfortunately the elevator door stuck again and she had to wait a few seconds longer for it to open. Her anger flared again. She could feel an evil, inhuman grin spread across her face. A flicker of unease surfaced momentarily as she walked down the hallway to her office before she stamped it out like a cigarette butt on cold, hard concrete when she saw Nancy stuffing a crème-filled donut in her mouth as Jenny opened the office door.

Nancy, Jenny said loudly as she put her bag on her desk, You know that donut is going straight to your ass, right? Oh, and try to keep it down over there. Our customers are complaining and asking when we got a cow for the office when they call.

Jenny snickered as she closed the lid to the donut box.

Amanda always put the donuts on her desk so that everyone would see them as they came into the office. There were usually one or two left after the employees took theirs so some lucky client would get a donut. Jenny shook her head. Amanda thought that bringing in donuts once or twice a month made up for all of her abusive language and mistreatment of her employees. Jenny wasn’t sure which disgusted her more, Amanda’s cheap attempt to buy everyone, or her coworkers’ ability to be bought.

Jenny caught movement out of the corner of her eye as she started up her computer and looked over a few notes she had written the day before. She looked up just in time to see Todd trying to tease a donut out of the box without drawing her attention.

Todd, you’re too damn skinny anyway. Jenny said with an unpleasant grin. There’s no need to sneak around.

Todd looked very much like the rabbit that Jenny had to scare away before she let her dog Ricky out that morning. He stood rigidly with his eyes bugging out as he stared at her. She was very tempted to slap his face or punch his arm, but decided to lunge playfully at him instead.

Todd still had his hand in the donut box so when he flinched he knocked the box to the floor. Fortunately the lid stayed closed so the donuts were safe. As Jenny cackled her delight, Amanda came out of her office to see what the commotion was about.

Todd, why are the donuts on the floor? Amanda asked.

Todd was bending over to pick up the box so neither Amanda nor Jenny could make out his reply.

You’ve got to speak up, Todd, Jenny screamed over the top of her desk.

Todd looked up first at Jenny and then Amanda realizing that he was living his worst nightmare. There was no way out of this without making one of them angry. The question was who frightened him more. It didn’t really make sense, but Jenny was his first choice. Amanda liked to scream and yell, but she was mostly talk. Jenny on the other hand was capable of backing up her talk with awful, devilish actions. There was something about her eyes. Something that told you she would make you pay for crossing her. He saw that something now.

Todd stood up with the donut box and said, I knocked them off when my sleeve got caught on the edge of the box.

Amanda looked confusedly from Todd to Jenny, opened her mouth like she was about to say something, and then thought better of it. She shook her head, went back to her office, and shut the door. She immediately felt better once she couldn’t see Jenny anymore. It was like heaviness in her soul had been lifted which didn’t make any sense.

Jenny watched and waited until Amanda shut her door before she turned to Todd and said, Thanks buddy! Of course I think she had some idea of what really happened. You know, I think she would fire me if she could figure out how to make it look legit.

Todd had no doubt that Amanda would get rid of Jenny if she could, but Jenny was reliable. She never called off, customers liked her, and Todd and the rest of them were too afraid to lodge a formal complaint. It was amazing how well Jenny hid her craziness just long enough to make it impossible to get rid of her.

It took him weeks to realize she was manipulating him and causing him to treat the rest of their coworkers horribly. When he finally did catch on it took another month or so to gain their trust again. He looked at Jenny now and was disgusted to see how happy she was that he had done her bidding yet again.

Chapter 2

Todd had just grabbed a donut on the day Jenny first walked into his life. He was standing in front of the same desk she would later occupy after she was hired. Todd never ate a donut that day. It seemed as if history really did repeat itself.

He had never seen anyone quite like Jenny. He couldn’t figure out why she had such a profound effect on him at first. She was of average height, slightly overweight, and had dark brown hair. Her eyes were her most striking feature.

At first glance they looked brown, but when he was able to hold her gaze he noticed that only the outermost ring was brown. The rest of her irises reminded him of the iridescent scales of tropical fish, chameleons, or even dragons. Depending on how Jenny turned her head it seemed Todd could see every shade of green imaginable.

The moment seemed to stretch out and it wasn’t until Jenny reached out and slapped his forehead that he realized he had been staring at her with his mouth open. He shook his head, looked down at the crème-filled donut he was holding, and then back up at Jenny.

You just slapped me, Todd said, rubbing his forehead.

Jenny smirked and responded, Yep, I sure did. You were staring at me. Now, can you tell me where your boss is?

Todd nodded, pointed to Amanda’s door, and said, Amanda’s office is over there. Is she expecting you?

Jenny was already walking toward Amanda’s office when she looked over her shoulder and said, She sure is. She’s about to hire me as the new receptionist.

Todd looked at Jenny as she knocked and immediately entered Amanda’s office. He didn’t know anyone who had the balls to enter Amanda’s office unannounced, but it didn’t seem to be a problem. Amanda wasn’t screaming and Jenny was still in there.

Do you really think Amanda will hire her? Nancy, one of the senior agents, asked.

It seems so, Todd answered as he threw his donut away. If Amanda wasn’t going to hire her she would have kicked her out by now.

I saw her slap you, Nancy said, still looking at Amanda’s door. You don’t have to take that you know. You’re a nice guy and your good looking to boot. You deserve a nice girl. That girl is not a nice girl.

Todd smiled sadly. It was easy for a woman old enough to be his mother to tell him he was good looking. He knew she meant well so he didn’t yell at her like he wanted.

Instead he said, Thanks, Nancy. I’ll be careful, but getting a date isn’t the easiest thing for me to do. And there’s something about her.

Nancy turned and looked at Todd, not liking the sound of his voice. She cared even less for the goofy grin on his face. She knew firsthand how destructive the wrong woman could be. Her son, Aaron, self-destructed in less than a year because of the woman he met while working at a club.

Aaron wasn’t much older than Todd and would spend the rest of his life in a nursing home needing twenty four hour care, while his girlfriend was free to live however she wanted. Nancy stared at Amanda’s closed office door for a moment longer, and then looked back at Todd.

Seeing the goofy grin still on Todd’s face reminded her so much of Aaron when he had first introduced her to his new girlfriend and it hurt her heart. Todd had learned nothing from her son’s experience and would likely let this girl manipulate and hurt him. Why had she even bothered to tell him anything if he refused to learn from it?

Nancy shook her head and tried to let her foreboding go. Todd would do whatever he wanted no matter what she had said. From his perspective she was just an over-the-hill coworker who he humored by listening to her stories.

It hurt to think of Todd that way, but she had already lost too many people with her delusion. She couldn’t afford to drive anyone else away, even if her warning was justified.

Ever since Aaron’s accidental overdose and her divorce, Nancy had chased all of her friends away. She played the martyr to perfection and as a result no one wanted to hear anything she had to say anymore. So she took Todd to lunch one day during his first week of work at the agency, knowing in the back of her mind that he would likely shy away from her after she was through with him.

To Nancy’s surprise Todd hadn’t run from her. He spoke to her every day after that first lunch and listened to everything she had to say. It wasn’t long before she was tired of the same old rants about the injustice of it all.

She also had to admit that her son wasn’t stupid. He knew what he was doing and was at least partly responsible for the way his life turned out. She wondered again if Todd knew how special he was or how dangerous this new girl could be for him.

Nancy shook herself out of her reverie and looked at Todd once more. He was still staring at Amanda’s door, but at least some of the glassiness was gone from his eyes. She would keep an eye on him, but knew from bitter experience that there was little she could if he was determined to ruin his life.

Todd shook his head and looked around the office. He noticed Nancy was staring at him and said, Don’t worry, Nancy. I’m sure she’s got men lined up who want to go out with her. I doubt she’ll even notice me.

Amanda’s door opened and they heard her laughing. Amanda and Jenny emerged, shook hands, and began walking toward Nancy and Todd. Amanda scowled at them when she noticed they were just standing around.

Is it a half-day and no one told me? Amanda asked in her fake sweet voice.

Nancy just smiled and said, No, of course not, Amanda. I was on my way to the rest room and Todd stopped me to tell me about an appointment he has lined up for this afternoon.

Is that so, Todd? Amanda asked. It’s about time you start earning.

Todd opened his mouth to reply, but Amanda had already turned back to Jenny and was ushering her out of the office. He supposed it was better that he hadn’t been able to actually say anything. He had a tendency to stutter when someone embarrassed him. He also didn’t care for the cruel smile that played at the corners of Jenny’s mouth. He hoped she didn’t really have anything in common with Amanda.

Hiatus

It turned out Jenny was far worse than Amanda could ever be. Amanda’s cruelty stemmed from her general lack of consideration for others and overall callousness. Jenny, on the other hand, actively cultivated her cruelty. She searched for others’ weaknesses in order to emotionally maim and manipulate them.

Todd didn’t even consider this the worst aspect of Jenny’s personality. Jenny was capable of being kind and considerate, but usually only acted that way to gain others’ trust. Once someone trusted her they would open up and tell her things that they wouldn’t or couldn’t tell anyone else. Jenny then sat on the information until she could use it to achieve the maximum amount of pain and then profess her innocence if anyone blamed her afterward. It was diabolical.

And yet in some twisted way, Todd appreciated Jenny. She had bigger balls than most men he knew, certainly bigger than his. She wasn’t afraid of confrontation and wasn’t afraid to get hurt. Of course, she never seemed to be the one who was hurt. He supposed he was still infatuated with her even after everything she had done to him to be able to think anything good about her.

Chapter 3

Jenny watched Todd as he floated back to his desk. She snarled unconsciously at his back. She knew Todd had a crush on her and it disgusted her to her very core. She supposed that he was attractive to some women, but Jenny didn’t have time for someone she could push around.

Jenny didn’t have time for anyone at this point. Or more accurately she didn’t want to take the time to get to know anyone. Getting to know someone required her to trust them at least a little at first. She had no room in her life for trust. Trusting led to betrayal. Betrayal led to pain. It was best if she caused the pain first. Then she would be on a level playing field.

Jenny sat down at her desk and stared at her blank monitor. Her anger was still elevated, but now she was also irritated and confused. She couldn’t understand why she treated people the way she did. On good (or bad depending on your perspective) days she convinced herself that everyone was asking for the treatment she gave them. After all when people were idiots or morons they needed to be made aware of it otherwise they would never learn.

Then there were days like this one where Jenny was having fun at someone’s expense and the price seemed too high. She supposed she liked Nancy and Todd. They helped her a lot when she first started and seemed like genuinely nice people, but there was always a but. People always ended up hurting other people. Her parents were proof of that.

Jenny looked around suddenly aware that she had lost time again. She almost fell down the rabbit hole again. It was ironic how thinking about nice people always brought back memories of her parents and her childhood because they were anything but nice. In fact, she spent most of her waking hours purposely avoiding thinking of them and her childhood.

But on days like this one, when she was second guessing her every action, her parents were on her shoulders. Everything they ever did to her was replayed in her mind. The walls were closing in around her and she needed to lash out at the first convenient person.

Jenny looked around again and was slightly relieved to see that everyone was sitting at their desks and not looking at her like her mind told her they were. Panic was still a heartbeat away, but if she could have a few minutes to calm down then she might be able to make it through the day without melting down completely. Unfortunately, Beth chose that moment to grab a donut from the box on Jenny’s desk.

Hi Jenny, Beth said as she looked over the donuts. Angela always gets the best donuts! Did you get one? You should really have one before they’re all gone.

Jenny clinched her jaw, bit her tongue, and just shook her head. She made a show of looking at her computer and turning her back on Beth, hoping she would take the hint to leave. Beth could be sweet, sickeningly so, but was not the fastest on picking up social cues.

Jenny didn’t bother to turn around when she heard Beth take a huge bite of her donut and begin to chew like a heifer in a pasture. She knew Beth was staring at her back and waiting for her to turn around. Maybe if she ignored her long enough Beth would go away. Jenny willed her to go away. It didn’t work.

Um, Jenny, Beth said around bites of her donut. I heard what you said to Nancy when you first got here today, and I think you need to apologize to her. She’s been crying at her desk ever since. I know you didn’t mean to hurt her, but you did.

Jenny lowered her head, giving Beth one last chance to walk away. She must know how dangerous it was to be this close to Jenny. She must. But no, Beth just stood there chomping away at her donut. Jenny wondered if she had grabbed another one, no one took that long to eat just one.

Beth finally finished eating her donut and proceeded to lick every one of her fingers including the thumbs with lip smacking enthusiasm. By the time she was finished Jenny was practically shaking with anger and irritation. Part of her was very surprised that she hadn’t torn Beth apart already, but she could tell it wasn’t going to be long before she did if Beth didn’t walk away soon.

Beth being the oblivious, naive person she was didn’t pick up on the growing tension and continued. Boy that was a good donut! Anyway, if you could just apologize to Nancy I’m sure it would make her feel better. She would definitely stop crying and that would make it easier for the rest of us to work. So do you think you’ll be able to go over there soon?

Jenny had pulled up her email and made a concerted effort to read them, but she had finally reached her limit. Beth had finally gone too far. She turned slowly from her monitor and looked Beth directly in the eye.

She smiled and at first Beth returned her smile. The longer she looked at Jenny, though, the more Beth understood that Jenny’s smile was not the same. It was harsh and evil somehow. It was the kind of smile you would expect a predator to have before they attacked.

Jenny stood up from her desk and leaned over the donut box until she was mere inches away from Beth’s face. Beth, I want you to remember one thing after this is all over. I gave you plenty of time to leave. Now you will learn there are consequences for ignorance and social ineptness. Do you understand?

Beth could only nod her head.

Good, Beth, Jenny said, That’s really good, because right now I’m working really hard to not become completely unhinged. Yes, I said something horrible to Nancy this morning and yes a small part of me feels really bad about it, but I’m having a hard time figuring out how any of that is your business. In fact, I will even go so far as to say that it is none of your business.

Beth had expected Jenny to yell so when she did the exact opposite Beth was at first confused and then very freaked out. If asked, she couldn’t even pinpoint what it was that bothered her so much. It wasn’t like Jenny had said anything all that bad, but somehow Beth felt threatened and scared. She opened her mouth to defend herself but Jenny quickly cut her off.

Don’t even bother to try and defend yourself, Beth. Jenny said seemingly reading Beth’s mind. Better people than you have tried and failed. You see I have cold logic and truth on my side and there is no defense against that. You may say that being mean to other people is never justified, but I say there’s no excuse to not be as truthful as possible with others. And if it hurts, so what, we’ve become soft. I would say a little more truth in the world would help.

Jenny, really, I didn’t mean to upset you, Beth said, jumping gamely into the fight when she should have just lay down and played dead.

Jenny had been on the verge of letting Beth go, but that last comment was like waving a red flag in front of a bull. She stood up from her desk and leaned into Beth until she forced her to take a step back. Jenny smiled and Beth cringed.

Really Beth, you didn’t mean to upset me, Jenny responded, her voice rising with each word. Well, Beth, you’ve upset me! I will give you a little truth right now. I hate people like you. You represent everything that is wrong with this country. You’ve grown up expecting others to cater to your every whim. You prance around the office in your short skirts and tight, low cut tops thinking that gives you the right to stick your nose in other people’s business. Well, here’s a bit of truth for you. Your choice in wardrobe doesn’t entitle you to anything. Your vapid expression and cute giggle doesn’t mean people have to like you. All that means is that you learned to manipulate people from an early age. Did your daddy teach you how to seduce men or maybe it was your mommy? Which was it? Was your daddy a kid diddler or was your mommy a whore? Which one taught you to fake concern and stick up for others to get them to like you?

By the time Jenny had stopped asking questions she was breathing heavy and had backed Beth all the way to the wall opposite of her desk. She didn’t notice that Nancy and Todd were both standing to watch over their cubicles and that Amanda had stepped out of her office. Jenny was too focused on crushing Beth’s spirit and apparently her throat. It was the event Jenny had been working up to all morning. Her smile widened when she noticed the tears streaming down Beth’s face. Her mission was indeed accomplished.

Chapter 4

Jenny, will you step into my office please? Amanda asked somberly from across the room.

Jenny’s smile of triumph flickered. She knew she had been on the edge with her behavior lately at work, but now as she let go of Beth’s throat and stepped back she had to admit she may have done the high jump right over it. She was living paycheck to paycheck and couldn’t afford to lose her job, but was still satisfied enough with her actions to make it worth it to getting fired.

She walked quickly into Amanda’s office prepared to exit quietly. As much as she loved confrontation she understood when it was time to make a clean break. The look on Amanda’s face told her there was no talking her way out of trouble this time.

Jenny, Amanda started as she sat behind her desk. I really don’t know what to say. I’ve never had an employee physically attack another employee in my whole career. I’ll be honest with you I’ve wanted to make her cry myself on occasion. Beth can be so dumb sometimes, well-meaning, kind, but dumb. If our clients didn’t respond so well to her I probably would have fired her a long time ago. I inherited her with this office. The former owner only handed over his client list after I promised to never fire her. I thought they were related somehow; turns out she just gave him hand jobs from time to time. It really was disgusting. What bothered me was how much you enjoyed inflicting pain on her. And don’t think I haven’t noticed how mean you are to everyone. I’m certain you would treat me the same way if you thought you could get away with it.

Amanda paused, looked at Jenny, and was surprised to see the top of her head. Jenny, look at me.

Jenny looked up and Amanda was again surprised to see tears in her eyes. "Wow, I never took you for the crying type, Jenny. Look