by T5 and GoozX
"MBL Consulting Incorporated, how may I be of service?" said Shirley Francis into the headset.
The latest issue of Cosmopolitan was spread in her lap. Apparently, if you had the feeling you were being watched, all you really needed was a new relationship, according to an article. And she had to admit that, during the past few hours, she had been imagining that someone was in the same room as her. But common sense told her that she was just either paranoid or love sick, according to the article. She had just been wondering about the men she was working with, whether they were attractive specimens or just weird ones, when the phone rang.
"Yes, I remember you. How are you, Mr. Richards? ... That's right, sir... Yes, yes, we do... Yes, we have been considering your case... Yes, they have. At least, I think they have. They have some great experiences in their luggage. Ha-ha-ha."
She fiddled with a fountain pen in her right hand and then concentrated on writing down the details of names and addresses.
"Oh, I can assure you that we have the strictest confidential policy in our kind of trade... No problem, sir. Aaand how about the fee. Will you pay in advance, during or after a completed mission? After? Okay. No, it's all right, sir. That is your decision. Allow us another four days for preparation, and we will contact you as fast as the team is headed your way... Yes, sir... It's been a pleasure for me, too. I will tell them that, sir. Yes, goodbye, sir."
TiatMining, Inc. field office, Tiatucurá, Uruguay:
Patrick Keith Richards the third paced to and fro. He had been doing so ever since the strange occurrences had begun. But why did it happen now, just as the clay was at the richest it had been in years? There had to be some other reason for this.
He had first approached this MBL Consulting several days ago cautiously, trying to feel out this unheard-of and apparently brand-new company without giving them too much information about what was happening. He wanted to keep his options open. He also wanted to get the best services his money could buy. Could he really count on an organization with virtually no track record? Yet the disasters had been mounting, and so had his desperation.
A distant rumble caught his attention. He ran to the window to see one of his storage warehouses sinking rapidly into the ground. In a split second, it was fully gone.
"Four days?" he said to himself, his lips shaking as he watched a cloud of dust form where the warehouse had been. "I will be... my business will be gone... I..."
Richards tore his eyes away from the ruin and glanced down at his desk, where he saw the informational brochure for MBL Consulting that his secretary had printed out for him from the company's website. Time was no longer a luxury.
He hit his forehead as he made the decision and yelled into an intercom, "Lois, call MBL Consulting again. I'll make them an offer they can't refuse."
MBL Consulting Inc., Puerta Mibela, La Perdita:
Shirley Francis had just finished up another call when Kit Piper stepped into the office.
"Morning, Mr. Piper."
"Good morning, babe, and feel free to call me Kit."
"Ah, yeah... Kit. We have had a rush of calls. Everyone has been pretty vague about what they want from us."
"I'll get all the info we need from them. No worries."
Kit picked up a file from the growing stack. "Alien abduction in Roswell?" He cracked a smile toward Shirley, who shrugged her shoulders.
The phone rang once again. "At this rate, we're going to need a few more secretaries," she said, answering the phone. "MBL Consulting Incorporated, how may I be of service?"
Kit glanced over the pile, looking for something that could get the company's name out there, something that could prove the group's worth.
"Oh, hello, Mr. Richards. No, we haven't been able to look over your file yet... What? A rush job? Very important? ... You'll triple our asking price?"
The words suddenly caught Kit's attention. He signaled for Shirley to hand him the phone, which she did.
"Hello, Mr. Richards, this is Kit Piper... Yes, I am working co-president. Good to finally speak with you. We've been looking over your case..." Shirley rushed to retrieve the file she began for Richards. She found it and handed it to Kit, who began glancing over it the moment it was in his hands. He had known about the case since Mr. Richards' first call a few days earlier, but the man had not supplied any further information since then.
"I see you are located in Tiatucurá, Uruguay. You've been having strange disappearances and trouble in your... clay fields, yes. TiatMining, Inc." Kit placed the file down and leaned onto Shirley's desk. "Yes, we are very interested in helping you with your problem... Tonight? ... I see. For us to be down there later tonight, I'll have to ask a few things of you... Anything? Well, Mr. Richards, I have to discuss this with the team, and I will get back to you right away... No, it has been MY pleasure."
Kit hung up the phone. "Things are really bad down there. They really need our help."
"Yeah," Shirley said, looking down the file. "Two teams of Investigators have completely vanished, eaten by the earth itself."
"Yeah, isn't it great?" Kit said, grinning. "I don't want to rush into things, but this job is legit, and I don't want to let anyone else get hurt in Uruguay, or anywhere else for that matter. I'm going to call a meeting with the others."
"Yeah, that's a good idea, I guess."
Kit exited, smiling to himself as the amount of money offered to the company from TiatMining repeated over and over throughout his mind. This was a good idea indeed.