Page 57 of A Lot to Unpack
Liberty
Yeah, I am! Can’t wait to see everyone.
It takes her all of ten seconds to reply.
Mum
Lovely. Everyone’s so looking forward to seeing you. How’s work going?
Another lie will serve me well, I think.
Liberty
It’s going really well actually! Busy, but in a good way.
I hit send and immediately feel like a fraud. I hate lying to my mum but I don’t want to worry her when I’m so far from home.
Mum
Good! I’m so pleased for you. Dad says remember to bring him back a good present.
I can’t help but smile.
Liberty
Tell him I’ll do my best. Love you.
Mum
Love you too!
I’m missing my parents more than usual – probably because it feels like everything is going tits up, and I know they’ll always love me, even when I’m not exactly thriving.
If I thought my mum had the answers to my problems, believe me, I would ask, but I’ve got myself into this mess. Only I can get myself out.
I stare into space, like the answer might be written on the wall in front of me, but it only reminds me that the contract is on the other side of it, safe and sound, and there’s clearly no way I’m going to be able to get my hands on it.
There’s only one thing I can think to do, and I’m not sure how well it’s going to go down, but I’m out of options. I need to call Paige.
The phone rings for a while – so long I’m about to give up – when finally she answers.
‘Liberty, hello,’ she says. ‘How’s it going? Are you enjoying New York?’
‘Hello, oh, it’s lovely here,’ I say. ‘Even more spectacular than I imagined it being.’
‘Glad to hear it,’ she replies. ‘And do you have good news for me? Is it done?’
‘Erm, well, no, not yet,’ I babble.
‘Oh?’ is all she says.
I swear, I can hear the muscles in her jaw tightening.
‘I can’t get anywhere near him,’ I confess. ‘He doesn’t really trust me. He’s polite, but professional. He keeps to himself. The door between our rooms is always locked – any time it’s been unlocked briefly, he’s been like lightning to lock it again.’
‘Well, that is disappointing,’ she says. ‘I thought you were more resourceful, given your experience.’
I feel like, even if my role had been more than admin, if I did have investigator experience, it’s not about doing sneaky things, it’s about figuring sneaky things out. Investigators aren’t the ones up to no good, they’re the people exposing those who are. She’s asking too much, regardless.
