Snakes and Ladders, Part 6

SNAKES & LADDERS
by BlackBladder

PART SIX

Although her smoking experiment was not enjoyable, Gabrielle admitted to
herself that it made her fit in with her new friends.  Over the next few
days, she allowed herself to experiment further with smoking.  The irritant
and alien feeling of smoke in her mouth decreased after every cigarette
smoked.  Gabrielle retired her role of lookout at the breaks as she joined in
the act of smoking herself.  The coughing fits soon came to an end after
gradual encouragement from Mandy.  Gabrielle now also envisaged smoking as
the icon of everything Anita hates.  Her hatred for her stepmother was rife
as ideas of revenge filled her mind.  Gabrielle also reasoned that if she
could learn to smoke, she would be more prepared to deal with Anita when the
time came.

"Come in."  Anita said as she in response to the persistent knock at her
office door.

Dale walked in with his usual broad smile, locking the office door behind
him.  With the blinds constantly shut, Anita always had the privacy of her
main office.  Anita instantly returned the smile as Dale approached her and
kissed her smoothly on the lips.  They locked lips and put their arms around
each other passionately.

"I needed that for so long.  This morning has been a real drag!"  Anita
exclaimed, panting.

"You heard from Benjamin yet?"  Dale said, sitting on the desk.

"No - not yet.  I'll maybe give him a call this afternoon.  I will get the
confirmation very soon."  Anita replied, reaching into her desk drawer and
removing a bottle of wine.  

"I am dying to make you Ms. Anita Bolan.  The sooner you get ownership and
divorce the relic, the better for us.  We won't have to hid any longer."

"I know - I can't wait.  Once I divorce Benjamin, I can fire Gabrielle's ass
out of here!  She is one twisted bitch."  Anita said whilst removing the cork
from the bottle.

"Gabrielle still not buying your cover story?"  Dale replied curiously.

"Nope - the good thing is, with Benjamin in hospital, he can't act as
peacekeeper with us.  At least me and Gabrielle can live our separate lives
without any pressure."

Pouring the red wine into two coffee mugs, the brunette frowned.

"I have something important to discuss.  There has recently been unauthorised
activity discovered on our security cameras."  Anita stated, handing her
lover a mug of wine.  

"What unauthorised activity?"  Dale questioned whilst sipping his wine.

"Look at these." Anita handed Dale a brown envelope.

Removing security camera photographs, Dale frowned as he cycled through them
in disgust.  The photographs contained several employees with packs of
cigarettes in their hands walking into the Archive House.  Other photographs
contained recognised employees standing at the entrance with cigarettes in
their hands whilst more revealed them exhaling some smoke whilst trying to
conceal their habit behind the entrance door.

"I thought we got rid of this problem?"  Dale asked bewildered, as he had
helped Anita set up the Anti-smoking rule.  "I only learnt this recently when
our security team picked up on this.  We will deal with this tomorrow."
Anita reasoned, as the office hours had expired.

Dale continued to cycle through the photographs, then paused at one specific
print.

"Oh my god!"  Dale said in disbelief.

Anita understood his shock as she sipped her wine.

"I know - the camera picked up Gabrielle smoking yesterday.  I want you to
deal with the other employees identified - I will deal with Gabrielle myself.
Once Benjamin sees his precious daughter smoking, he will have to allow me to
fire her ass!"  Anita said with pride at the incriminating evidence.

"I propose a toast, my love---to Gabrielle."  Anita raised her glass as Dale
complied.

They drank in unison upon this latest development.

"To Gabrielle."


"Have you quit drinking?"  Susan, one of Mandy's smoking workmates, smiled as
Gabrielle caressed the Ophthalmoscope in her hand.  She smiled deviously at
the object, lost in thought as her friends placed a drink on the table in
front of her.  

The group had decided to visit another bar in the same area that night.  They
all found that the atmosphere was far more relaxed towards smoking than The
Bunker.  

"Why did you take it?" Mandy asked, whilst lighting up a cigarette for her
friend.  Gabrielle placed the object on the table next to her glass, whilst
reaching out to accept the cigarette.  She placed the cigarette between her
lips without remorse, then inhaled shallowly on the filter.  Gabrielle had
recently been taught to inhale the smoke after mastering how to hold the
smoke without coughing.  Gabrielle could not deny that the feeling of smoke
seeping down her throat like a river was a growing pleasure with every
inhale.  Since starting smoking, she now felt a strong connection with her
peers.  She had also been interested to find out how her friends had came to
starting smoking themselves.

"I started when I was twelve - went behind my garden shed with my older
sister to try it.  I've been hooked ever since."  Susan admitted whilst
admiring the burning cylinder between her fingers.

"I started smoking after a bet with my classmate at school.  I was like you,
Gabrielle, cause I didn't like it at first.  But I soon learned to love it
when I was encouraged to keep smoking."  Dustin, another of the smoking work
colleagues replied when asked.

"How about you, Mandy?" Gabrielle asked, tipping her head and releasing a
stream of smoke.

The smokers all looked towards Mandy as she tapped her cigarette into the
overflowing ashtray.

"I started when I was just fifteen.  I had always been an outsider.  One day,
I saw some of my classmates smoking behind trees in a playing field.  At
first, I was shocked seeing them smoke, as I associated the habit with adults
like my parents.  When I got home, I told my parents about this.  As they are
smokers, they got me to try smoking as they thought it would solve my problem
being an outsider at school.  After some persuasion, I tried smoking and
loved it from the offset.  Smoking was the answer of my prayers  - and became
my only friend during the latter school days.  The smoking crowd still
rejected me as a smoker - so I found myself indulging in a smoke by myself."
Mandy said, as she expelled smoke.

"It was not till I came to Ikair that I met like-minded people.  School
pupils are so immature they don't understand we smokers must stick together
as today's world is against our habit."  Mandy concluded, taking another draw
on her cigarette.

"You sound like a fucking politician!"  Gabrielle laughed, exhaling smoke
towards Mandy.

The group burst out laughing and continued drinking and smoking for several
hours.  Gabrielle found that smoking and drinking were the perfect
partnership - and the alcohol was now affecting her thinking by the time the
group split up.

Gabrielle and Mandy sauntered down the road together as the full moon shone
down.  

They stopped outside The Bunker, as it was on-route to their respective
homes.  Mandy extracted her pack of cigarettes and removed two unlit cancer
sticks.  Putting the pack back in her pocket, she handed Gabrielle a
cigarette and the lighter.

"Go on - show me!"  Mandy shouted, the alcohol affecting her mind.

"OK then - watch."  Gabrielle placed the cigarette between her lips and
flicked the wheel on the lighter, producing a flame.  She dangled the
cigarette free-handedly, whilst lighting her cigarette.  After an initial
deep draw, the cigarette standing erect and glowing red, she extended the
flame towards Mandy.

Not arguing, Mandy leaned in to catch the flame and light her own cigarette.
Whilst inhaling sharply, Gabrielle handed back the lighter to her smoking
friend.  

"Well done!  You've now mastered the lighter - all you need now is your own
damn pack of cigarettes!"  Mandy laughed, exhaling smoke above them.

"That's why we've stopped here - I will buy a pack in here."  Gabrielle
points her cigarette towards The Bunker.  

Mandy frowned at her last experience in that bar.

"But what about those assholes?"  Mandy inquired.

"Fuck them!  I won't be taking any crap of them tonight!"  Gabrielle replied,
fondling  the bulge in her jacket pocket.

"I'll catch you tomorrow then."  Mandy said nervously, hitting on her
cigarette hard before walking away.

As Mandy walked into the foggy distance, Gabrielle turned to face the
entrance of The Bunker, she inhaled once again on her cigarette.

It had been days since she had fallen out with her old friends

"Gabrielle is back, you fuckers!"  Gabrielle stated as she walked through
it's doors in a cloud of smoke-

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