Sallas 2: The Gilded Cage

Chapter Description: It's time for Ryan's first day in his new job. The question is... what is actually going to be asked to do?

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Ryan was stood in front of the mirror in his suit. He had been waiting for this, but it was still a scary prospect. He was about to go to his first day at his new job and it was a very strange feeling because he didn’t really know exactly what he would be doing. He had been promised a government job, and a decent one at that, but he knew nothing else. It had hindered his ability to prepare for it to say the least.

The weekend had been tense. After the revelations from his wife, he had found himself feeling on edge constantly. Ryan half-expected the door to suddenly be broken down and to be arrested, that it was all a trap that Anna had walked right into. So far nothing had happened, but he was still anxious. Things had been a bit frosty between him and Anna since the mini argument, whilst they had kissed and made up he could tell Anna hadn’t fully forgiven and forgotten yet.

Ryan had found that he constantly had to bite his tongue. He wanted to ask if Anna had made a choice as to what she was going to do, he had promised to just follow her direction but the longer she went without telling him anything the more anxious he felt. It was the elephant in the room that he couldn’t stop thinking about.

The sound of the doorbell rang through the house and Ryan took a deep breath. Mr. Sawyer had said he was sending a car to pick him up and he supposed this was it. He picked up his briefcase after one last look in the mirror and left the bedroom.

As Ryan descended the stairs, he saw that the door was open, and Anna was standing next to it looking thoroughly annoyed. Ryan came down the stairs and looked outside to see a driver waiting for him.

“Right, I guess this is for me.” Ryan said, “Erm, I’ll let you know when I’ll be home.”

“Have a good day.” Anna replied.

After a small hug Ryan stepped out into the early morning sun and heard the door shut behind him. He felt nervous, this was the first time in a long while that he would be apart from Anna for any serious amount of time or distance. He walked towards the car that was waiting for him with the realisation that he had become quite dependant on Anna for support.

Ryan got into the backseat of the car and once the driver was ready, they pulled away from the curb. Looking out the window Ryan saw Anna looking through the curtains as he left. He swallowed anxiously as he faced forwards again.

“I don’t suppose you know what the plan for me is?” Ryan asked the driver.

“Afraid not, sir.” The driver replied. At least he seemed somewhat friendly, “I just know where to take you.”

“And where’s that?” Ryan continued.

“Number seven, Parkwood Road.” The driver said.

Ryan felt the butterflies in his stomach take flight. He knew he had been told to expect a decent mid-level management role for selling out to Sallas, but he wasn’t expecting to be taken to the monolithic building in the middle of Kingston that housed the most important departments in the government. It was the crown jewel of Sallasian governance. The sort of place bureaucrats and civil servants spent most of their careers trying to get to. It was the tallest and most imposing building in the city, something designed to intimidate.

The car rolled past the security checkpoint and out into the real world. Ryan nervously tapped his fingers on his briefcase as they joined the highway leading into the city. The quiet suburban neighbourhood gave way to denser streets and more traffic. The buildings got taller and instead of families he saw groups of men in near-identical suits talking on phones or walking places with purposes. If he and Anna hadn’t been kicked out of college, he would likely be one of these men by now.

They made their way towards the centre of the city. The buildings were now so tall they towered over the car on every side, but the reason Ryan was there loomed up in front of them. He swallowed nervously as the government skyscraper loomed. He wished he had any idea of what to expect. They carried on down the main street until they reached a checkpoint at the entrance of the underground car park. Ryan eyed the burly security men warily; they were heavily armed.

“Can’t be too careful.” The guard said when he saw Ryan looking at the semi-automatic rifle in his hands, “Those feminist terrorists have been busy recently. Well, I’d like to see them come here so I can give them a piece of my mind.”

The guard laughed as he held the gun up. Ryan smiled nervously and looked away, thankfully they were cleared and drove inside a couple of seconds later. Ryan really felt he was in the belly of the beast now. The sounds of the city disappeared as the tyres squealed slightly, and they ended up in a parking spot.

“Mr. Ryan Manning.” Ryan read the sign on the wall in front of the car when they stopped, “Maybe they’re giving me a government vehicle.”

“I doubt it.” The driver replied.

Ryan saw the driver smirking in the rear-view mirror. He understood the implication. He wasn’t important enough to have a vehicle, nor did they trust him with one. Along with Anna he was being watched all the time, that was something he couldn’t forget. It was the same reason they didn’t let them out of the gated community; they were to be kept in sight and controlled at all times.

“Go to floor twenty-seven. I’ll be here when you finish.” The driver said, “If you need me beforehand contact Mr. Sawyer.”

The moment Ryan had closed the door the driver was backing up the car and leaving. Ryan was now alone in the centre of Kingston starting a new job. He wished Anna was with him.

Ryan saw a few other men animatedly chatting about something sport related and followed them to discover the elevators. It was a little crowded, but he was able to squeeze inside as they started making their way up. Initially the elevator fell into a silence that was particularly awkward for Ryan as he knew all the others knew each other.

“Well, how about this…” One of the men said after looking at Ryan for a few seconds, “We’ve got a celebrity!”

“We do?” Another of the men said with a frown.

“Sure, we do.” The first man said again, “Don’t you recognise him? That’s Anna’s husband. From the commercials?”

“Oh shit.” The second man said.

Ryan turned to look at the two men who were talking about him. He didn’t know if they were being friendly or threatening, in Sallas there was usually very little to distinguish the two, especially when it came to highly competitive workplaces. He gave them a little nod and a smile. It was so easy to forget how many people had seen him and his wife plastered all over their television screens, the internet and every other place the government could put them.

“Welcome aboard.” The first man said as he reached out a hand. Ryan shook it but felt the other guy squeeze nearly hard enough to crack something, “I like the way you treat your girl.”

“Thanks?” Ryan replied feeling somewhat strange about the whole situation. Of course, what was shown to the Sallasian people was a lie, but it still felt wrong to play along. He had done that at college, and it had not gone well at all.

“Which department are you working in?” The second man asked.

“I… don’t know.” Ryan admitted, “All I know is I’ve got a job somewhere.”

Ryan chuckled nervously. The smiles on the faces of the other men had hardened somewhat, forced to remain even when the joy behind them had evaporated. They were sizing him up, like a pack of wolves when a new male had entered the territory.

“What floor?” The first man asked.

“Erm, twenty-seven, I believe.” Ryan replied.

“You lucky son of a bitch.” A third man in the corner said, “You know what’s on floor twenty-seven, right?”

Ryan shook his head but before he could ask the elevator dinged and the doors slid up to show a sleek and immaculately clean corridor beyond. Not wanting to miss his floor and end up late he stepped out of the elevator and the doors closed behind him. He looked around.

In front of him was a short corridor leading to a lobby area. There was a desk with a rather harangued looking receptionist behind it and rows of seats opposite. Ryan was surprised that a lot of the seats were taken by people who looked very agitated or upset, nearly all men but a few tearful women as well.

“One moment.” The man behind the reception desk said as Ryan approached. He raised a singer to ask him to wait as he wrote some things down on a form.

Ryan nodded and stood to the side. Around the room were several doors, some led to bathrooms and janitor supply closets but there were a couple of others that seemed to lead to corridors and offices beyond. It was from behind one of these doors that Ryan heard a sudden outburst of shouting.

“You can’t do this!” A woman shouted from behind the closed door. There was some banging as everyone turned towards the source of the sound.

There were exclamations and muffled shouts before the door suddenly burst open. Two big security men were dragging out a woman who was fighting tooth and nail to get free. It was like she was possessed as she tried to wrench herself free of the brutes.

“Help me! Please!” The woman begged at the assembled onlookers, “They’re taking me away! Oh god!”

Just as the woman disappeared out of sight through another door Ryan saw two men step through the open doorway she had first appeared from. One was an older man with greying hair and soft features and a slight frame whereas the other was younger and more muscular. The older man said something causing the younger to laugh before they shook hands and the man went down the corridor towards the elevators. The older man was turning back to go through the door when he caught sight of Ryan.

“Mr. Manning?” The man asked.

“Yes, that’s me.” Ryan said as he stood up a little straighter.

“Great timing. Come with me please.” The man said.

Ryan picked up his briefcase and hurried past the rows of seats. He tried to ignore the looks of hopelessness and desperation as he passed. He didn’t have a clue what was going on or what was happening to that woman, he felt a little ashamed he hadn’t stepped in.

“My name is Isaac Taylor.” The man said as he led the way down a corridor past other closed doors, “I am your new boss.”

“Oh, hello, Mr. Taylor.” Ryan quickly said, “I’m sorry I wasn’t told-…”

“Call me Isaac.” Ryan’s new boss interrupted, “I am in charge of the Department for Security. I answer directly to the Chief of Defence. You will be in charge of the Department of Re-Education. You will run it, and you will answer to me. Understood?”

“Y-Yes, sir.” Ryan stuttered. This was a lot to take in. When his boss turned to look at him impatiently and with raised eyebrows Ryan realised his mistake, “Isaac, sorry.”

“Of course we’ve all seen you on television.” Isaac continued as if there hadn’t been a pause, “But don’t think your celebrity status will mean you can rest on your laurels. I expect hard work.”

Isaac stopped in front of a door and looked back down the hallway. He raised an arm in a sweeping almost theatrical gesture. Ryan looked back at the dozen or so doors they had passed.

“All these people work for you now.” Isaac said, “There’s two people in each office. You are responsible for them. I like to think of myself as tough but fair. If you do your work well there won’t be any problems but if you slack off, well, I can find plenty of people to take your job. Understood?”

“Yes.” Ryan said. He was feeling a bit shell-shocked. It was like he was being simultaneously welcomed and threatened.

“Great, you’ll find everything you need in your office.” Isaac said. Suddenly the warm smile was back, “Call me if you need anything.”

And just like that Isaac walked away leaving Ryan alone in the corridor. He wasn’t quite sure what he was supposed to do. He had never been in a management position and didn’t know whether he should say hello to the people working for him or get started right away. It was only when he looked at the door and saw his name on a plaque right above “Department of Re-Education” that what his job actually WAS started to worry him.

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