Page 5 of Wolfish Player
“Seven,” I say. “Not thousand. Just seven.”
Her left eye twitches, and her face reddens by the second. She grabs something I can’t see, and I’m convinced it’ll be classified as a murder weapon days from now.
“So, not only have you not written a goddamn thing in over a year, but you’ve spent your entire advance?”
“No, not all of it… just most of it.”
“Onwhat?”
“My house, remember?” I wave my hand around my living room. “And I bought that expensive Audi you suggested.”
“I did notmakeyou buy an Audi, Heather.”
“You told me not to get the Honda I was looking at…”
“Bullshit.” She shakes her head. “What else?”
“Trips to New York, Vegas, Charlotte, Florida, Costa Rica?—”
“I get the point on travel.” She narrows her eyes. “Next category.”
“Lots of paperbacks and hardbacks…” I walk to my home library. “Sprayed pages, special editions… it all adds up, you know?”
“It’s not adding up to your entire advance just yet.”
“New laptops, gym membership, podcast stuff…”
“Did you ever start that podcast?”
“The microphone is still in the box.” My chest aches as the past year flashes by in an expensive blur: dinners at restaurants I’d always dreamt of, first-class flights for me and my family, shopping at places with names I can’t pronounce.
“I can’t believe I’m just now realizing this.” Tears sting my eyes. “How the hell did I not see this before?”
“It’s okay, it’s okay.” She exhales. “I’ll help you figure something out.”
“Can the publisher actually do this? Like, legally?”
“It’s not typical, but yes… I’m sure it’s in your contract.”
“Can you come over and help me check for loopholes?” I’m starting to hyperventilate. “And maybe draft a pleading letter for a little more time?”
“I’ll be right there.”
THE AUTHOR
HEATHER
Sometime around midnight
Joanna’s heels click across my hardwood floor like a death sentence.
My stomach twists tighter with every step until she drops a copy of the contract onto my lap.
“It’s still there,” she says. “Do you want me to read it aloud to you for the fifteenth time, or are we calling it a night?”
“Maybe the sixteenth time will be the charm…”
“‘In the event of non-submission due to force majeure or any applicable personal struggles and events—’” She reads from her copy. “‘The publisher has the right to grant an extension to the author at any time.’”
