The Courier

Henry

It was a warm, summer morning. Henry Cole opened his eyes and stared at the ceiling of his bedroom. After a few seconds had passed, he summoned the courage to roll onto his side and look at the clock on the nightstand. “6:03 am” it read. He had managed to get four hours of sleep. Frustrated with himself, Henry sighed and sat up on the bed. Sleep had become a rare commodity ever since he lost his job three months ago. The introduction of automated robots at the factory meant the end of his sixteen-year career. Henry had worked at the Krager Automobile Factory ever since he left high school. To become more efficient, the plant’s owners decided to modernize the assembly line and in turn, Henry, along with twenty-four of his fellow co-workers were no longer needed. The Rapid Robots Corporation had been convincing factories across the country to purchase and install their computerized machinery for the past several months.

Henry had not planned on being out of work this long and the job market was not yielding many leads. After receiving his severance package from Krager, Henry paid-off the balance on his truck loan and paid the rent in advance for the next twelve months. He was down to a few hundred dollars in his checking account and knew that a source of income would soon be needed.

The ad

As was his daily routine, Henry showered, got dressed and made his way to Ed’s Coffee Shop at the corner of his street. Ed’s had always been the preferred meeting place for factory workers. Here they could swap stories and get caught-up on the latest town news. The fact that he no longer worked at the factory did not change Henry’s pattern. As he walked through the door, Henry saw two of his former coworkers, and fellow job seekers sitting in a corner booth. He joined Trevor and Rocco in the booth and the trio discussed the latest job leads over coffee. After they were done, Henry purchased a copy of the newspaper and headed back to his apartment.

Henry sat at the small table in his kitchen and began reading the newspaper. He was in no hurry to read the Want Ads because he had exhausted all potential listings the prior day. After completing a story about the town’s newest fire engine, Henry turned the page. Something peculiar caught his eye. On page 6, just below an ad for 99 cent cans of tuna, he saw an ad written in bold letters, “WANTED. DELIVERY DRIVER. SHORT-TERM. EXCELLENT PAY.” Henry paused for a few seconds. He had not seen the ad in yesterday’s newspaper, which meant that it was new. Fueled by his dwindling bank balance, Henry immediately picked up his cellphone and dialed the number in the ad.

After a few rings, a man answered the phone. His voice was coarse, and he spoke in a low tone. Henry introduced himself and notified the gentleman that he was calling in response to the ad in the paper. The gentleman asked Henry a few questions and a follow-up interview was scheduled for the following morning at 9am. Henry wrote the address on a nearby notepad and the phone call was ended.

Henry rose from the table and went to the closet to select an outfit for the interview. He thought about the phone call he had just completed and found himself more curious than excited. Henry also wondered if Trevor and Rocco had seen the ad.

The interview

The following morning, Henry decided to skip his trip to Ed’s. He opted instead to prepare for his interview. He wrote potential questions on a sheet of paper and practiced answering them. He did this until it was time to leave. Henry jumped into his pickup truck and entered the address the man had given him into his GPS.

Twenty minutes later, Henry arrived at a single-story building with a fading brick façade. Above the entrance door was a sign that read “Complete Courier Company.” Henry had lived in Townsville his entire life and knew this building to be the former home of a clothing store. He stepped out of his truck and walked inside. A bell on the entrance door announced his presence and immediately, a burly gentleman emerged from a hallway office. “You must be Henry” the gentleman said while extending his hand. “Yes, I am” Henry replied as the two shook hands. Henry immediately recognized the voice as the same from yesterday’s phone call. “My name is Joe,” said the gentleman. “Please step into my office,” he continued. Henry followed Joe into a small, sparsely furnished office. Joe sat behind his desk and Henry took one of two seats located in front of it. “We are a new company.” Joe started. “We are unlike other courier companies because we cater to exclusive clients,” Joe added. Henry handed his resume to Joe and the two sat in silence as Joe read it.

A few minutes later, Joe looked at Henry and said, “given your past experience, I have the perfect assignment for you.” “As the ad stated, our assignments are short-term, and you will be responsible for your own transportation and incidentals.” “Depending on your performance, we may be willing to permanently hire you” Joe continued, “on the bright side, this assignment pays $1,500.00.” Henry’s eyes widened and he had to prevent himself from screaming with delight. Joe continued, “you’ll receive payment upon delivery.” “Our client needs a package delivered to Bay City by 6pm today.” Noticing a look of curiosity and shock on Henry’s face, Joe continued. “No, it is nothing illegal. Our client wants to ensure the package is given individualized attention due to its importance and does not want to rely on Fedex or UPS." Henry quickly considered this tempting offer. Bay City was four hundred miles away and would take him about six hours to get there. Coincidentally, Henry had relatives living in Bay City. He could make the delivery, crash on their couch overnight and be back home by morning. This would be the easiest $1,500.00, minus expenses, that he would ever make. “I’ll do it.” Henry said as he emerged from his thoughts. “Great!” replied Joe. “I’ll get the package for you.” Joe also added, “we expect you to leave immediately as time is of the essence.” Henry nodded in agreement and Joe walked out of the office. A few minutes later, Joe returned with a box-shaped item, wrapped in brown paper. “Here it is,” said Joe. Henry stood and took the package from Joe. He noticed that the box was not too heavy. Joe then returned to his desk and removed a card from the top drawer. He gave the card to Henry and said, “this is the address and person it is being delivered to.” “Call me as soon as the delivery is made.” Joe then walked over to the door of his office and held it open for Henry. “Have a safe trip” he added.

Henry gently placed the package on the passenger seat of his pickup truck and closed the door. As he climbed into the driver’s seat, he felt relieved that this day was turning out to be a great one.

The trip

Henry stopped at a local gas station to fill his fuel tank and get some snacks for the trip ahead. Not wanting to leave the package unguarded, he decided that he would get food at a drive-thru restaurant instead.

As Henry exited the gas station, a grey sedan with tinted windows stopped to let him onto the roadway. Henry proceeded a few blocks east and joined the drive-thru line at his favorite restaurant, Burgers & Beets. After receiving his meal, Henry exited the restaurant. As he did, he noticed the grey sedan from the gas station in the parking lot.

Thinking this to be a coincidence, Henry made his way to the interstate and headed north. As he drove, Henry replayed the events of that morning in his mind. He looked over at the passenger seat and wondered what was in the suspicious package, wrapped in brown paper.

A few hours later, Henry saw the exit sign for Bay City. He looked at the clock on the dashboard and it read “4:53pm.” The GPS below the clock indicated that Henry would arrive at his destination by 5:20pm. Henry felt pleased with himself. He was glad that his truck had dual fuel tanks, but he needed a bathroom break.

The delivery

At approximately 5:23pm, Henry arrived at the address. It was the Silver Shoe Company. Henry immediately recognized it as the factory where his cousin Howard worked. Not believing his good luck, Henry anticipated making the delivery, then finding Howard. He would not have to search far for his cousin to ask him for a place to stay that night.

Henry grabbed the package and made his way to the security desk. He informed the guard that he was making a delivery and was allowed to sign-in. The guard directed Henry to the receiving office, and he had no difficulty finding it. Henry walked into the office where he found a thin-framed man seated behind a desk. “I’m looking for Mr. Finch”, Henry announced. “I am he” replied the man as he stood and approached Henry. “I have a delivery for you”, Henry countered. “Ah! My package” said Mr. Finch excitedly as he relieved Henry of the box. Mr. Finch placed the box on his desk and opened a drawer where he removed a white envelope. He then returned to the counter where Henry was still standing and handed the envelope to him. “This is for you” said Mr. Finch, who then returned to his desk. Henry proceeded to open the envelope and saw that there was cash inside. As Henry flipped through the hundred-dollar bills, he observed Mr. Finch opening the package. Allowing his curiosity to get the better of him, Henry now pretended to be counting the money as he watched the package being removed from the brown paper.

Mr. Finch, now oblivious of Henry’s presence, picked up the phone on his desk and dialed a few digits. “It’s here”, Mr. Finch said into the receiver. “This is going to change everything” he continued. Mr. Finch then hung-up the phone as he continued to open the box. It was at this moment Henry saw it. On the lid of the box was written the words, “Rapid Robots Corporation.” Feeling a hint of nausea, Henry continued watching as Mr. Finch removed what appeared to be a tracking device from the box, along with a thick binder with “Introduction to automation” written on the cover.

Henry rapidly left the office and dialed Joe’s number. Disgusted with himself, Henry notified Joe that the delivery was made, and that the payment was received. “Great!”, Joe replied. “See me when you return; I may have another assignment for you.”

Joe disconnected the call and Henry made his way back to the parking lot. He now had to find Howard and warn him of what was about to happen at the Silver Shoe Company. As Henry dialed Howard’s number to see if he was still at the factory, he looked up just in time to see a grey sedan driving away.