Throwback Thursday: ‘The Commute’ by Sophie Panzer

There’s a demon in the metro again, which means I’ll be late to work for the second time this week. 

“This is ridiculous,” I hear a woman behind me hiss as a small crowd of harried commuters throngs around the Atwater metro entrance. A sign in French and English reading, “Out of service 6h–9h due to demonic paranormal activity.  We apologize for the inconvenience and thank you for your patience,” is affixed to the doors. 

“This is the second time this month!” I turn to the source of the voice, a middle-aged woman with a severe haircut and a navy pantsuit. She looks and sounds like my mother, a formidable, wealthy matriarch from Westmount used to getting her own way in her office and on the synagogue board.

“The people who cut funding to the DPAM don’t even live here,” someone else wails. “If they had to deal with this commute, we wouldn’t have to deal with this bullshit.”

I’m already mentally drafting an apologetic excuse to my boss, Sharon, but I doubt it will do me much good.  I’m working as a paralegal in her downtown office because she’s an old friend of my mother’s. 

I take out my phone and call Katie, the office receptionist.  “Weisenfeld and McCall,” she chirps in her annoying WASP-y upspeak.

“Hi, Katie.  It’s Anya.  Could you tell Sharon that I’m going to be a few minutes late?”  My voice is hoarse and raspy, betraying the fact that I woke up less than twenty minutes ago.  “My metro stop is closed for demon extermination.”