Page 105 of Damaged

“With all due respect, sir, I believe the best course of action would be ifyoucalled him to arrange that.”

I sigh. He’s right. This isn’t the kind of errand I can pawn off. “Alright. I will, Mark. Thanks for the call.”

“Of course. And while I’ve got you on the phone, I’ve got a litany of clients who would appreciate a word. They’re all very concerned about your well-being after the robbery.”

“I’ll do the rounds when I’m in town. Coffee with the VIPs, and phone calls for the mid-tiers.”

“Good plan, sir.”

“Talk to you later.” I end the call, and when I turn around, Sophia is already looking over at me.

“I have to—”

“I heard. It’s okay. I knew we couldn’t just hide out here forever.”

“I can be back tomorrow night.”

“Are you sure?”

“Positive. I can do a lot of damage control with a single conversation. But… I should call the car around now. Get the jet ready to go.” I point at my steaming plate. “You can eat mine if you want it.”

Sophia smiles, but I can tell she’s upset by my sudden exit. We both thought we were going to have a night to ourselves after spending the last couple days with friends.

“I’ll text you when I land,” I say and start towards the living room to try to get Kim Davis on the phone.

“Sounds good. And maybe… if you go home, you could bring back a suitcase of my things? I just need some essentials that aren’t at the local Target.”

“Of course. Send me a list.”

“Okay. Let me know if there’s still a bunch of paparazzi there.”

“I got an update from building management this morning. There’s still one or two waiting to get a picture.”

“That’s insane.”

I shrug. “Neither of us has been seen publicly since the robbery. The going rate for a photograph of us together could be ten thousand, easy.”

“Ten thousand dollars for a picture?”

“It’s a mad world. And all for a story that’s died.”

Sophia smirks skeptically. “You don’t look at social media much, do you?”

“No.”

“It’s still plenty popular. The DMs from reporters haven’t slowed down any. In fact, our vanishing act seems to have given this thing a second life. And not in the best way.”

“Like what? A bunch of morons think we ran off with the artifacts together?”

“Pretty much.”

“I’m not surprised, but… I’ve got to make this call. Don’t let me keep you from dinner.”

Sophia nods and sits with a thin smile.

The silence grows as the phone rings. Once. Twice. Three times. When Kim answers, I don’t respond right away. I’m too busy staring through the doorway at Sophia.

Watching her eat, slowly, silently, across from my empty seat.

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