Page 31 of Emil

“Anders, you look amazing,” Lacey declared when she stepped into the cottage. I rushed forward to take the banker’s box of files from her, but that didn’t stop me from doing a little peacocking.

“Aren’t you the sweetest one?” I answered. I plopped the box on the table and swept her up in a bear hug. Her feet came off the ground when I gave her a twirl.

“This isn’t the worst place to hide out in,” she said with a grin as she took in the workspace. “You stay out here?”

“Yeah, the main work area is shared workspace, but there’s a little guest suite set up down the hall with a private bathroom for anyone staying over with longer projects.” I felt oddly protective of my tiny temporary home.

“I thought you were suspended?” Lacey’s question hung in the air while I moved to get out my laptop.

“I am from John’s firm, but not Mr. Magnuson’s. He gave me a temp position there while they do the investigation.” I paused before I added the next part. I knew I’d regret the question, but it was like a car crash you had to look at on the highway.

“That explains why I still see your name in the files occasionally,” Lacey said with a shrug.

What I really wanted to know still hadn’t been asked, but the curiosity would eat at me until I finally got an answer.

“Has he said anything about me?”

Lacey’s side-eye told me everything I needed to know. She braced herself on both sides of the banker’s box and took several deep breaths.

“I guess that answers that question.”

“He’s had a lot of things to say about you.”

“Like what?”

“Like how he discovered you were stealing money before, and he fixed it so nobody would know because he wanted to protect you.”

Lacey looked absolutely tortured admitting that. Her eyebrows knit together, and I knew in my bones there was more she wasn’t saying.

“What else did he say?”

“What’s the point of this?” she asked. “It’s not going to change anything. What he said or didn’t say doesn’t change that an investigation is happening. And you being out here tells me where Mr. Magnuson is landing on this.”

“It’s that bad?” I took a deep breath and gave her my full attention. “What else did he say?”

I stared at her with my best tough-guy impersonation. I don’t think she was intimidated, but I did get another sigh before she continued, “A couple of months ago, remember when everyone was getting reprimanded for being in the systems when they weren’t supposed to be?”

“Yeah?”

“John told everyone that was you. That you were the one who went to HR saying it was other people. That you were setting them up to cover your tracks.”

Lacey didn’t look any more relieved after saying it. And she wouldn’t look at me, and I doubted the ceiling or the baseboards were truly that interesting.

“I know there’s more.”

“Seriously, what is the point of this?” she asked. “It’s not going to change anything. Why are you torturing yourself like this?”

“It must be horrible then.”

“John’s a really convincing liar. They bought it. And they’re all pretty pissed that you’re only suspended and not fired.”

“They believe him.” I tried to stay calm and measured, but my heart was breaking. How could they believe that about me? I’d organized birthday parties and baby showers. I’d made sure the office Secret Santa and birthday potlucks happened, which were just me baking a cake and bringing lunch. I covered phones, stayed late, and offered rides.

“But not you?”

“I know what a piece of shit that asshole is,” Lacey snapped. “I wouldn’t trust a fucking word out of his mouth.”

Funny Lacey might be my favorite Lacey, but the pissed-off version of her was a very close second. I desperately needed something to do with my hands, so I moved to the kitchenette and wiped down the counter. I couldn’t wash away my life, but I could wash away the crumbs from lunch.