Prelude: Christa Howard

Her eyes nearly shot out of her head she was so surprised by that offer. This was one of those moments in a sitcom where the co-star's drink splattered from her mouth in a shocking and hilarious spray coating everything in the car, the main star, the food everything. Thankfully this wasn't a sitcom but surely her bulging eyes and gaping mouth would have made for some awesome comedy. By sheer force of will she managed to corral her disbelief.

"That is awfully generous... how long does this evaluation process normally take? And is there anything in particular I need to be prepared for?"

"The spring Investigative Consultant Evaluation is scheduled from April 4th through April 11th. The briefing and post-evaluation are in Chicago, but the evaluation itself is off-site. We take our talent acquisition very seriously here at Orpheus."

"So I go to a briefing, then an evaluation and finally a post evaluation, this process likely being over a week. Are the briefings individual. Could I schedule it for a weekend perhaps? I'd like to minimize the time I am away from my current position if this doesn't go through."

"One moment, Ms. Howard: I'm going to put you through to our Human Resources Coordinator. He should have more of the details you're looking for. Please hold."

The hold music was something with an eastern sound to it. It wasn't long before someone else picked up the line.

"Ms. Howard -- Robert Ciavarelli. To answer your questions: the evaluation process is Wednesday to Wednesday, in a group." He spoke quickly, with an east coast accent. "Currently, there are seven confirmed participants, and we conduct only two team evaluations a year. I understand your reluctance, but I urge you to consider it. Salary and benefits aside, it's a unique line of work -- not everyone is cut out for it -- and someone of your talent and experience could do a lot of good here.

"What other questions are on your mind?"

Chris rubbed her temple, her head was starting to ache from the thoughts about this process that were charging through her mind.

"Thank you for taking my call Mr. Ciavarelli, when you say here, I assume you mean I will need to relocate to Chicago? Would it be possible to bring my sister and nephew to live with me if I am chosen and need to move?"

"Most of those details vary based on placement in the company, but those are concessions we've made for a few other investigative consultants in the past.

"But by 'here', I meant at Orpheus. Lots of people can get involved in social work -- and that's not to disrespect your profession," he was quick to add. "But very few people have the unique talents required to do what we do. There's a certain closure to this line of work that social work lacks."

His last line resignated well with her. It made her think about her job a few years ago when she worked in a nursing home and watched her clients die, wondering if they were better off now or not. And then there are cases like Joshua's where her unease had concerned her. Now the consequences of this young boy faced her with a life altering phone call. She still had a healthy bit of skepticism, but rationally thinking $10,000 could last her a few months while she looked for a new job. With that thought in mind she spoke,

"Well, you can count me as confirmed Mr. Ciavarelli. Thank you again for your time."