She laughs weakly. “Fair point.”
I secure the bandage and sit back. “How do you feel?”
“Stupid. Clumsy. Like I need a drink.”
“You were getting a drink. That’s how we ended up here.”
“A different drink. One that’s not all over the wine cellar floor.”
I consider her for a moment. She’s pale, shaken, and there’s something fragile in her expression I haven’t seen before.
“Wait here.”
I go back to the wine cellar and grab a bottle that didn’t meet its demise. Something good but not precious. When I return, she’s still sitting where I left her, staring at her bandaged arm.
I pour two glasses and hand her one.
“To not bleeding to death,” I say.
“That’s a terrible toast.”
“You have a better one?”
She thinks, then raises her glass. “To surviving our own stupidity.”
“Better.” We drink, and I settle into the chair across from her. “What were you doing down there anyway? It’s almost midnight.”
“Couldn’t sleep. Thought wine might help.” She takes another sip. “What were you doing awake?”
“Working. I’m always working. Someone has to keep this operation running while my father builds empires and Kai causes chaos.”
“You make it sound like you don’t have a choice.”
“I don’t. Not really.” I lean back. “Plato said the price good men pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men.Replacepublic affairswithfamily business,and you have my life philosophy.”
“So you see yourself as the good man keeping evil at bay?”
“I see myself as the pragmatist keeping everything from falling apart.” I swirl wine in my glass. “Someone has to care about the details while everyone else focuses on the big picture.”
“That sounds lonely.”
“Does it?”
“Yes. Being the only one who sees the cracks. The only one holding things together.” She drinks. “That’s exhausting and lonely.”
I don’t know what to say to that, so I pour more wine instead.
We drink in silence for a while. She’s starting to relax, color returning to her face. But there’s still tension in her shoulders.
“What’s really keeping you awake?” I ask.
“What makes you think it’s something specific?”
“Because you were in the wine cellar alone at midnight, reaching for expensive bottles.”
She laughs, but it sounds hollow. “You’re too observant.”
“Occupational hazard.”
