Outsourced by Dave Zeltserman Page A

She hesitated for a moment, then asked, “Can you take Julie and me to the beach tomorrow?”
    “I can’t, darling. I have to meet with some people tomorrow.”
    “Mom says you have an interview at eight in the morning. We could leave later.”
    “I’m sorry, but I have to meet with some people after that. Maybe Saturday?”
    “Whatever,” she said. Her mouth seemed to shrink as she stared straight ahead. “Julie and I can always take a bus to Salisbury beach.”
    “I don’t think so. I don’t want you taking a bus all the way up there by yourselves.”
    “How would you stop me? You won’t be home. You’re never home. Even though you’re not working you’re never home.”
    She stared at Dan, her eyes challenging him to argue with her, and then she turned on her heels and rushed back into her room, closing the door hard behind her.
    He sighed and rubbed his eyes. Earlier, he would’ve been eaten up by guilt over having to turn his daughter down so he could plan a bank robbery. Now he just felt nothing inside. He had finally gotten used to the idea of what he was going to be doing. There was no longer any fear, just numbness. More than that, though, he felt committed to it. He had robbed that bank so many times in his mind that he was now anxious to do it in real life. The thought struck him – if he was offered a job, then what? He forced the thought out of his head. He’d cross that bridge when he came to it.
    He showered quickly and brushed his teeth before going into the bedroom. Carol was waiting for him, lying on the bed wearing one of his old T-shirts as a nightgown. He got in next to her. She moved closer to him, moving her thigh so it was on top of his, her mouth searching for his mouth, her breath hot, her hands touching his chest. Then her hands moved lower. He tried playing along, but he couldn’t shake the numbness he was feeling. It was almost as if she were trying to get a rise out of a dead man. After a while she gave up. She pushed away from him and turned over on her side.
    “Goodnight,” she said, her voice flat.
    “I’m sorry, Carol, I guess I just have too much on my mind.”
    “It’s been weeks since we’ve even tried doing this.”
    “I’m sorry—”
    “Forget it. Let’s not talk about it. I’ll make sure you’re up early for your interview. Goodnight.”
    Dan closed his eyes. Still nothing but numbness. Not quite peace, but also not the torment he had been routinely suffering each night. No thoughts racing through his mind. No images of the robbery gone bad playing out in his head, no imaginary police sirens, no shootouts, no bloody bodies. Just an emptiness filling him up. After a while not even that.
    Carol woke him the next morning. Even after passing out for seven hours in that parking lot, he had still slept soundly through the night. With all the stress he had been under he figured his body needed the extra sleep.
    He offered to make breakfast, but Carol insisted on doing it. While he sat at the kitchen table and watched her, he couldn’t help wishing he had time for another shot with her in the bedroom. She looked fresh, relaxed, her hair pulled back in a ponytail, her skirt making her hips look so damn slender. When she brought him a cup of coffee, she let her fingers linger on his hand for a long moment. Her smile was as pretty as any he had seen in years.
    “Good luck with the interview,” she said. “I have to head off to work, but call me. Let me know how it goes.”
    He nodded and told her he would. She gave him a quick kiss and squeezed his hand. He watched as she left, thinking to himself for the first time in a long time how beautiful she was. It was only seven fifteen. He sipped his coffee. When his cup was empty, he got up and poured himself another one.
    At eight o’clock the phone rang. When he answered it a man introduced himself as Martin Phillips. He told Dan he was vice president of Software Development for a new startup that was forming and