Through the weekend.
Like she was asking me to survive a storm.
I should have listened harder to that. Instead, I asked, “Who are these people?”
There had been the slightest pause. Not long. Just enough to register.
Then, “Old money. Big money. Very particular money.”
I snorted despite myself. “That is not helpful.”
“It’s what I’ve got.”
“No, what you’ve got are names.”
Another pause. This one longer.
Now, I signal left out of habit, though there isn’t another car in sight, and turn onto a narrower road lined with wrought-iron lanterns glowing to life in the dimming rain. The estate can’t be far now. The road itself feels expensive.
I remember pressing the phone tighter to my ear. “Talia.”
“Please don’t freak out.”
An excellent thing to say if your goal is to make someone immediately freak out.
“What does that mean?”
“It means they’re… connected.”
I frowned. “Connected to what?”
A brittle exhale on the other end. “Everything, maybe? I don’t know. Rich people stuff. Powerful people stuff.”
I actually laughed then, sharp and unbelieving. “Are you sending me to a wedding or into a hostage negotiation?”
“Sienna, I’m serious.” Her voice dropped. “They’re powerful people who can’t be pissed off.”
I rolled my eyes, even though she couldn’t see it. “That narrows it down beautifully.”
She exhaled hard. I could hear movement on her end, a zipper, a drawer slamming, the clipped panic of someone throwing a life into a suitcase.
“They’re intense, okay? Particular. Very particular.”
I tap the brakes as another curve opens up in front of me. Mist hangs low over the road, silver in the weak afternoon light. The estate has to be close now. Even the road feels manicured.
I laughed then, because what else was I supposed to do with that? “What does that even mean?”
“It means don’t improvise unless you have to. Don’t get smart with anyone. Don’t make promises you can’t keep. And for the love of God, don’t offend anybody.”
“Are you sending me to a wedding or a summit for minor royalty?”
“Sienna.”
Her voice stopped me cold. No panic in it that time. Something stranger.
“Just trust me,” she added.
I chewed the inside of my cheeks. “Okay.”