The boss was wearing his blue tie. Yeah, had to be Tuesday. You know your universe is in a rut when you can tell what day it is by what color tie your boss wears.
They say the Chinese have many hells. Daniel often wondered how he ended up in the "Hell of Martin West and Associates". When he had graduated from business school, Dan had thought the MW&A job was a dream come true. He could learn a lot there about smart investing, and if he played his cards right, be a millionaire before he was 30.
Dan was 31 now, and he really wondered what had gone wrong. Some people blamed the government, others the economy, all he knew was, it seemed like he had barely enough money to get by most months.
They'd called him "The Wizard of Finance" at one time. What a joke.
And now, as if that weren't enough, there were pay cuts and possible layoffs on the horizon.
Too much stress. Dan was 6' 3", with a lean build, sandy blonde hair, and blue eyes. Lately tho', he'd noticed a bit of a gut forming, his hair thinning, and his eyesight failing; he'd taken to wearing glasses after he lost his third contact lens.
Screw it. Dan decided to take the rest of the day off. What's the worst thing they could do, fire him? Bastards.
He walked across the park to get lunch from DeSoto's, a little cafe and take-out place he was familiar with. The park was quiet, and he paused by the fountain. Even though he knew it was silly, he reached for some loose change to toss in.
Looking into the water, he saw the glint of gold. Someone had tossed in an expensive-looking ring! Looking both ways, he rolled up his sleeve and snatched the ring out. It was a man's ring, set with small diamonds in the shape of a five-pointed star; a pentagram.
There was an inscription, but Dan's latin was rusty. Still, what a find! He could pawn this sucker for quite a bit, just in case he did lose his job.
Smiling, he tossed his change in, and headed for the cafe, little realizing that he was being watched...