Delmus ~ A fictional short story

Delmus

On a rainy night with near zero visibility, the overpass he knew of just ahead would be a good place to stop until the rain let up. He was still an hour from home, and the dinner Brenda would keep warm for him. His (AM) radio was useless with the overpass blocking the signal to the car, so after some minutes had passed, he felt around in the glove box for the owner’s manual, just for something to leaf through while he waited. He felt something other than the owner’s manual in there, however. It felt like something flat, metallic and thin; about the size of a credit card. As he began touching it, the rain stopped, so he pushed it back in and started the car. Just as he started to pull back onto the road, intensely bright, blinding light came from behind with what sounded like twisting metal and a train horn blowing in the night, and then the horror - his car was demolished by the out of control gasoline tanker careening right into it, which caused a huge fire and explosion.

He was suddenly awakened, as though a jolt of lightning had just hit him, as he sprang upright in a cold sweat. After a few seconds he regained conscious recognition, and muttered to himself, “Damn. Why the hell do I keep having this nightmare?” He couldn’t think of any reason for it. Before this, he’d never had even what he’d call a bad dream. He recalled that day, that he’d witnessed a shouting match between two engineers, and when he’d tried to interject and get them to calm down, they both turned on him, telling him to mind his own business, and he’d had no recourse but to walk away, rather sheepishly. He didn’t think that altercation had anything to do with his nightmares though. How could it? The dreams seemed to come at random, and what happened that day was an isolated incident.

He got up quietly, thankful that he didn’t wake Brenda with his own jolting awakening, and went downstairs to make a cup of hot chamomile, hopefully to help him calm down so he could get back to sleep. While he waited for the water to boil, thoughts about the recurring nightmare kept haunting him. He had no idea what inspired that same repeated scene, over and over. He had no idea of the location of the overpass where he stopped as it played out, time after time, or if it was even a real location. The car in the dream wasn’t even the vehicle he drove, which was a pickup truck. At this point, the nightmare had been breaking up his sleep at least a couple times a month for the past year and a half. Brenda was deeply concerned over how the effects of the dreams were manifesting in Delmus’ mind. She could sense the added stress tormenting him. She held her own fear deep inside; the fear that Delmus would never return to his normal, cheerful self. He’d tried to convince her many times, that things would return to normal once the dreams had played-out, but for Brenda, simple, everyday events were becoming increasingly difficult to carry out, as there seemed to be no end in sight to what Delmus was going through.

Delmus worked as a state inspector, inspecting highway construction projects. He’d worked at his job with the state for the past 16 years, and all things considered, he liked his job. He was fairly well-paid, and the benefits were great, with three weeks of vacation per year, a full pension and hospitalization coverage. As job benefits go, they couldn’t be beat. The job could be stressful though, especially if a project was going over budget and pressure was being put upon him to “look the other way” at those times. And the pressure didn’t just come from the contractor, but even from the department itself, in some cases. He’d wished to himself many times, that he could do something about the corruption, but resigned himself to the fact that he’d never be able to prove anything, and speaking up would just threaten his livelihood and put Brenda’s and little Alice’s wellbeing in jeopardy. The tea kettle whistled its alert, Delmus had his tea, and he was then able to grab a few more hours of restful sleep.

Thursdays were the days Delmus had to report his prior week’s inspection results and updates to the department HQ. It was a few miles in the other direction from his jobsite. This day turned a bit in the wrong direction in Delmus’ mind. When he spoke to Dan Roberts, his immediate supervisor, Dan told him something that rattled his senses. Because of cost overruns and being behind schedule, the governor had ordered the department to be more concerned with getting the job completed so it didn’t cost the state millions of dollars extra. Dan explained to Delmus that doing whatever it took to get the job done, was what the governor was looking for. Without his actually saying it directly, Delmus took what Dan was saying to mean that the inspections would have to be more accommodating and the “little things” could be overlooked in the interest of saving time and money for the state, which would make the governor very happy.

As he was leaving HQ to head over to the jobsite, Delmus thought over what he’d been essentially ordered to do; go easy on the contractors to speed things along. It went against his moral character to be complicit in such corruption, but this was coming right from the top; the governor’s office. He decided he had no other choice but to do as he was told if he wanted to keep his job. Beyond that, he’d have to “bend the rules” intentionally, and that would take some getting used to. He had no idea what was in store for him.

It was tough, at first, for Delmus to adjust to letting things just go by, when he knew that the work wasn’t being done correctly. In the first two weeks, the foreman of the contractors had seen it necessary to discuss the way the process had to work with Delmus, because he wasn’t “getting it.” The foreman had been told by the big shots that it was his job to see to it that Delmus got in line one way or another, since he’d already been briefed by his superiors. The foreman, Frank Oswald knew what he had to do. He chose the easy way to begin. “Delmus, we both know that this project has been put into high-gear by governor. But we know there are lots of decent, honest men working as inspectors, like yourself, and that to all of you, overlooking even one minor incident is out of the question. We respect that attitude, but in cases like this, it’s different. The issues are so critical now that everyone involved has to bear down and get this job completed. This can be a very rewarding time for all of us working this job, including you Delmus, but you’re going to have to loosen up. Remember, your own supervisor told you the same thing, so we’re just asking you to consider what we’re looking to do here when you make your decisions.” Delmus didn’t know what to say. The foreman wasn’t his boss. But what he’d said was a hundred percent correct. He wasn’t going to get anywhere playing the hard ass in this case, and he’d surely lose his job if he continued to resist the plan. “Frank, I’ll tell you what – if you swear you’ll make sure that nothing big gets by that shouldn’t, we’ll see about getting the job done without unnecessary work stoppages.”

A couple of weeks later, things were running like clockwork on the project, and the workers were moving faster and getting more done than it seemed possible. At his end of the month meeting with Dan Roberts, he got a surprise. “Delmus, the governor has been so impressed with the turnaround with your project, that he’s showing his appreciation with a bonus, a raise and a promotion to the Project Manager position. Congratulations!” Delmus didn’t know how to react. The bonus check was enormous - $125,000 – and additionally, his pay would nearly double. In those days, it was a fortune. He could retire if he wanted to, and the thought crossed his mind very quickly. “So, this is my reward for cooperating with the project, I take it,” Delmus asked. “You’re looking at it wrong Del. I know how hard it was and is, for you to go against how you feel things should be. We all feel that way. Why don’t you just enjoy the gains you’ve made for your family, and stop thinking that you’ve done something wrong. You haven’t. You truly deserve this.”

On the way home that evening, he wrestled with himself over how he’d explain the bonus, raise and promotion to Brenda. He just couldn’t tell her he’d broken his work ethic as an inspector, and that it was the reason for everything. The idea about retiring was enticing, but he was still six months from turning forty. What would he do? Well, he could move to another state, and be a project manager there, since he’d now been promoted. He could write a book, or take the family on a vacation every month. There were so many thoughts going through his mind. It felt kind of exciting, he had to admit.

Brenda’s reaction when he broke the news to her brought even more positivity to the whole deal. The first words out of her mouth were, “Delmus! We’re rich!” Her words gave a reality to the situation that hadn’t yet dawned on him. The most expensive home in town was for sale at $25,000. That they could easily afford it, meant that they were, indeed, rich. “You know honey, since I’ve been promoted, it might be wise to move to another state, where I could start out my new position with a new group of co-workers. I think it would help us in the long run.” Brenda had always wanted to live in California, so he didn’t have to twist her arm. “Let’s move to LA, or Hollywood,” she gushed. She didn’t really want to live in LA or Hollywood; she just wanted to tease him. He knew.

Six months later, the job had been completed and Delmus had moved his family to Orange County, California, and a town called Santa Ana. They were getting ready to start a new freeway for the region, that would connect LA with other big cities, such as Orange, which was a few miles from their new home. Delmus had been hired as Project Manager for the entire freeway project, with the help of the governor who had promoted him. The Varga family would be living the good life in Sunny California.

For Delmus, Brenda and little Alice, things were going wonderfully. The nightmares had stopped right around the time Delmus had decided to cooperate with the plan as laid out by Dan Roberts, and then with Frank Oswald. It had been eight months since that last nightmare. Delmus was a big shot now. With a powerful position, making lots of money, and being seen as an important man in his new town, he felt he was only getting started. Work on the first part, the Hollywood freeway, would begin soon.

Delmus no longer drove a pickup. He’d bought a fancy, new 1949 Buick Special. He wore a suit to work each day now, and most of his time was spent inside his very nice office, complete with a hot secretary. If he did go out to the jobsite, he had a company coat he’d wear rather than his suit coat. Life was really going well for Delmus and his family.

A big meeting with state government that had been scheduled for several weeks was getting underway, and Delmus flew up to Sacramento on Thursday. On Saturday, with Delmus gone, Brenda decided to go on a little shopping spree. She hired the daughter of their closest neighbor to watch Alice, and then she drove around to one store after another, buying things for herself, for Alice and she even picked up something for Delmus. It was a gold case for Delmus’ business cards, very sleek and elegant. She’d had the bottom engraved with “We love you Delmus - Brenda & Alice,” and she even put a little card inside with a more “adult” message for him. She put it in the glove box, so that it would be a big surprise for him.