City services

Finishing the numbers I was working on I pick up my phone to check the message.

506-4: The City of Pembina regrets to inform you that effective 30 minutes from this sending at 4:32pm there will be a closure on all bridges across the Pembina River do to the recent and continuing snow fall. Please do not abandon your vehicle in the middle of the road unless it becomes unsafe. Thank you and have a good long weekend.

Looking down at my watch I see that it is already 4:48 and scramble to gather my things. Taking a quick look out my window I see it is snowing so hard that I can not even see the street below or the building across the road. I fall back into my seat defeated as I realize I drove the Lexus today and not the Range Rover.

Sitting there in a mild stupor, my desk phone rings startling me to attention. "Hello?"

A silky smooth feminine voice on the other end begins, "Hi Mr. Doe. Sorry to bother you, but I have a Ms." The lady on the phone covers the receiver and I can still hear both sides of the conversation on the other end.

"Sorry, what was your name again?"

"It's Holly. You can see this is my ID says it right there, I am Mr. Doe's secretary. I literally left here 35 minutes ago. Why won't my ID pass work?"

Returning to the phone she continues, "Yes, sorry about that Mr. Doe. She says her name is Holly and that she left only a few minutes ago. She seems rather agitated and I was going to turn her away, but when I searched her name she was listed." The smooth voice tells me rather dispassionately.

"Yes, sorry what is you name? Can you buzz her up, or extend her card access please?"

The smooth toned voice replies, "I am really sorry Mr. Doe, regulations state that any people entering site after business hours must be met at security. It's because of the high security floors."

"Ok I will be right down." I offer in reply intrigued as to whom is on the other end of the phone.