Desiree and the Little Black Book

Desiree and the Little Black Book

Desiree for the life of her had no idea why she had been followed. Or why her back account suddenly had $20,000 deposited in it. Or how a little black book mysteriously ended up in the large leather messenger bag she used for work.

Her job as a legal assistant for a small divorce lawyer had never been anything but routine. Answering calls, offering advice to desperate woman whose husbands were filing for divorce, sometimes consoling husbands for the very same reason.

Until two days ago.

That afternoon a mysterious looking woman walked into the firms reception area. She had on a large brimmed hat, sunglasses and a long, black trench. Her hair, what Desiree could see, was blond, probably from a bottle. Her face looked to be of an older woman, perhaps late 60’s, although not much of it was actually exposed. She spoke in a husky, low voice, as if trying to disguise herself. Would I please inform my boss that she was here.

” Who may I say is here to see him?” Desiree asked

“He knows who I am” replied the mystery woman”He knows I’m coming.”.

Desiree left her desk to inform the boss of the mystery woman’s arrival. She was gone less than a minute, but during that time had her back to the woman. Did SHE put the little black book in Desires‘s bag while her back was turned? Desiree could think of no other time her bag was not in her site. She always kept her bag tightly closed when she was at work or on the train and no one ever came behind her desk that she was aware of.

It took only a minute for Desiree’s boss to come out and greet his guest. “How lovely to see you after all these years!” he exclaimed.

The woman smiled slightly and followed the boss back into his office.

Desiree was indeed curious about the woman, but she knew that if this was something she needed to know about her boss would inform her. The woman stayed for about 10 minutes and then left as mysteriously as she had come. She gave the boss a little hug as she left and didn’t say another word as she walked towards the elevator.

Later that evening as Desiree walked home from the train she felt a presence behind her. She stopped , listened, and decided to slip into the local package store, just in case. She wandered around for a few minutes and grabbed a bottle of wine for later. When she left, she didnt feel spooked at all and figured she must have been imagining it for some reason. At her apartment she opened her messenger bag to get out some work she wanted to finish and noticed the little black book. How did this get in here , she wondered. She turned the book over in her hand, nice, quality material, not too big, looks a little worn. But it wasn’t hers and she had no idea whose it was. She felt like she was spying as she opened the cover, but maybe she’d find a name inside so she could return the little book to its rightful owner.

”BEV” was written in the top left corner of the inside cover in large letters. Who’s Bev thought Desiree, I don’t know anyone by that name. She flipped through the first few pages, no other names or address. On one of the pages in the middle of the book was a date , June 30, 1974. Curious. On another page was a name, David L. Wheaten. On a separate page was written ” memorial hospital” and baby boy. She found on the last page. a birth certificate with an official seal, reiterating all that was written on the random pages throughout the book.

Well thought Desiree, that’s odd, not much to go on, but it seemed to be someone’s birth information. Who was Bev? David L. Wheaton? The baby boy,who by now was a full grown man?

Desiree put the book back in her bag and decided she’d try to figure it all out the next day. She poured some wine, put on the tv and changed into her pjs. Within 10 minutes she was asleep.

The next morning Desiree grabbed her messenger bag and coffee and headed toward the train. She snagged a seat near the window. As she watched the buildings fly by she smiled to herself, someone following me, she laughed I must have been overtired last night.

As she stepped off the elevator which dropped her straight into her office reception area, she saw the mysterious woman sitting in a chair. Today she had no hat or glasses. Her hair was indeed expertly bleached and Desiree agreed with her earlier estimate of the woman’s age. This time the mystery woman smiled kindly at Desiree and reached out to shake her hand.

”My name is Bev” said the woman, her voice much more pleasant than the day before. “ I was here yesterday and met your boss. He is my son. I gave him away many years ago. He was willing to meet me briefly yesterday, as you saw. I dropped a little black notebook in your bag that has proof that I am his mother, as well as the name of his father and other pertinent information.”

”But why put it in my bag?” asked Desiree curiously.

”Evidence” replied Bev,” Just in case my son did not believe me. He may have decided to throw me out of the office. I’ve had that book with me for many years. Thankfully he has been wanting to meet me as well. He seems a reasonable and pleasant man, I didn’t need that information. I’ll take the book back now.” she said.

Desiree gladly handed the little black book back to the bosses mom.

”Did you follow me last night?” asked Desiree.

” It wasn’t me, but yes, I had my assistant follow you. I knew from investigating my son and his office that I could trust you to care for the notebook. I’ve kept it safe for many years and didn’t want to miss place it right when I may have needed to use the information recorded inside. I just wanted to make sure you got home with your messenger bag safely and my assistant assured me you did. He followed you until you entered your building.”

”And did you put money in my bank account? A very large sum?”

” Indeed I did Desiree” Bev smiled as she said this. “I am a very wealthy woman and I wanted to compensate you for what you did for me, even though you were unaware of the favor. My son gave me the needed bank information, I hope you aren’t offended that we invaded your privacy a bit to do it. He agreed that you are a deserving g woman.”

”I don’t know what to say” Desiree exclaimed, dumbfounded at the woman’s story.

”You don’t need to say anything my dear” Bev drolls, “ I was once a secretary living on a minimal income. I know that even though you are an assistant here you also perform many menial jobs for my son and his practice. He relies on you to keep things running smoothly. It was my pleasure to give you a little reward for your efforts.”

Desiree thanked the woman profusely and promised herself she‘d send the women a large bouquet of flowers. And of course thank the boss. She also decided to pay it forward to other hardworking people she met who probably got little thanks for their work, starting with the ticket taker on the train that night.

What a strange day, thought Desiree. But how nice that my boss and his mother are reunited. She was glad she had a small part to play in the situation. She sighed and began to daydream of what she would do wirh her mysterious $20,000.