Page 13 of Cosplay & Consequences

By the time I got back to the hotel, I was running late. I barely had time to take a shower and get dressed before I realized I had a wardrobe issue. I hadn’t packed any dress socks to go with my suit.

“Paige! We have a problem!” I called out.

Two seconds later a pair of balled up dress socks bounced off my head.

I caught the socks before they hit the floor as Paige walked into the room. I laughed “How did you⁠—”

“Thirteen years I’ve been your assistant, Danny! And every effing trip you forget socks. Every damn time!” she scolded.

“Where’s the Boss?” I asked, pulling on my socks.

“She’s checking out all the authors downstairs and buying a ton of books,” Paige said, holding up my blazer for me. “She’s fine.”

“Didn’t she do that all day yesterday?” I asked, slipping my arms into the sleeves.

“She read reviews on all the books she didn’t buy and went back for more.”

I chuckled. “When does she have time to read all these books?”

“Pretty sure she never sleeps at night. She’s sleeping through most of the day right now. Again. I swear daylight burns her if it hits her skin,” Paige joked.

She hustled me to the elevator, down the various halls and through a back entrance. We finally arrived at what had to be the smallest room in the convention center. “The interview is happening here?” My disdain was clearly evident.

Paige punched me in the shoulder. Hard.

“Don’t go Hollywood on me. It’s a hundred seats, and people are buying standing room tickets to see you and her face off. Plus, the whole thing is being broadcast live on her stream as well as the MVFC Virtual Con. It’ll be posted on MeTeeVee on both their channels. If it goes well, the social media managers for the Tyrant series will post it as well.”

Suddenly, the room size didn’t seem to matter. My anxiety crept into my gut, twisting it around in knots. I took a deep breath to clear my head. “What was her name again?”

Paige glared at me. My cheeks burned red. I knew exactly what she would say next.

“You didn’t read the notes.”

“I read some of the notes.” Unfortunately, my voice did the pitchy thing where it was too high.

Paige’s eyes narrowed at me. That was not the answer she wanted to hear.

“You’re going to crash and burn this interview.”

“It’ll be fine.” I tried to shrug it off as I fiddled with my collar, trying to get it to sit right. “Fans love me.”

Paige ground her teeth and spun me around, deftly snapping my collar into the right spot. “Soap opera fans love you. These are obsessed fantasy geeks. That’s a different level of a fan than you are used to. These are people who write fanfiction and debate endlessly on the internet about various characters. Meanwhile, your fans swoon when you get amnesia. Ten bucks says you screw the pooch on this interview.”

“You’re making a bigger deal of this than it is. Please tell me her name so I don’t embarrass myself.”

Paige spun me around again and finished straightening my collar. “Her name is Jessica Richards. She’s the one in the corner.”

I followed her directional head bob and froze. She wasn’t wearing the costume or the fuzzy robe anymore, but after last night, there was no mistaking her. She sat in a chair, her long red hair pulled into a messy ponytail. She wore a crisp white tailored shirt, and conservative black slacks paired with some expensive-looking shoes. That wonderful smile I liked so much was nowhere in sight. She frowned as she tapped on a tablet with her fingertips. My eyes almost popped out of my skull.

Paige stared at me. “What’s wrong? You look like Han Grubber right before he fell off Yakatochi Tower.”

“We have a huge problem.” I nodded in the direction of the woman apparently named Jessica Richards.

“What about her?” Paige said, glancing at her and shrugging.

“Imagine her with black hair and ram horns.”

Paige’s face went from nonplussed to a vicious smile. “Oh, man. She is going to kill you.”