Chapter 18
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
AUDRY
I woke up early with a plan fully formed in my mind. I realized that my behavior the day before had been extremely unprofessional. Marco was not my high school crush, he was a mark and I had to start treating him like one.
The first item on my agenda was to get to know more about Amy, since she was the key to Marco’s psyche and I knew just how to do it. I showered, primped as much as I was able, and then went down for breakfast. Marco was nowhere to be seen, but he wasn't the Cassio I was looking for.
“Good morning, Lucia.” I grinned wide at Marco’s sister.
She cocked an eyebrow at me in surprise. “Morning Audry. Why are you so chipper today?”
“Well, because I’ve decided that you and I are going shopping. I’m tired of living in these sweats, no make-up, no skin care products. It’s a nightmare. I’m sure you get it.”
She nodded uncertainly. “I don’t know if you’re allowed out on your own.”
“I won’t be on my own. I’ll be with you. And I imagine your bodyguard or whoever.”
Lucia gave me a shrewd glance, but whatever she was thinking, she chose to keep to herself. “Fine. We can go after breakfast.”
I did a small skip. “Yay.” I said.
Pasadena had a lot of small, unique, independent shops selling everything from thrifted clothes to designer duds. As expected, Lucia knew all the best places and was on first name basis with most of the proprietors. As a result, we were able to get a pretty good haul in terms of clothes, shoes, makeup and skin care. As the bodyguard put our bags away in the car, we wandered over to a coffee shop, to replenish our energy.
I sat down with a sigh, feeling quite happy about how the day was going, and loving the new jump suit I was wearing in olive green paired with brown beach sandals. I even got some new jewelry, all courtesy of Marco’s credit card.
We sipped our drinks, discussing seemingly random topics. Finally, I brought up how everyone in the house mistook me for Amy.
“Tell me about her. Are we really that much alike?”
Lucia smiled, shaking her head. “Not really. You’re like, bubbly and confident, kinda outgoing, you know? Amy was shy. She had the biggest smile, but she wielded it sparingly, you know what I mean? She was kind and loving, but quiet. I think she made Marco feel like a big, strong knight in shining armor.”
“Hmm.” I said, taking a sip of my café latte. “That definitely doesn’t sound like me.”
Lucia laughed. “Definitely not.”
I frowned, not liking her enthusiastic agreement. But I ruthlessly quashed that feeling. “So, Marco was like totally in love with her huh? I can’t imagine it. He doesn’t strike me as the lovey-dovey type.”
“Yeah, he hides it well.” She grinned smugly, playing with her straw.
I was intrigued. “You’re not saying he is ?”.
She laughed. “I know it’s hard to believe, but he’s not just hard-core business deals and threats. He’s also softness and loyalty, humor and kindness.”
“Huh.” I said, “Haven’t seen that side of him.”
“Like I said, he hides it well.”
“Could you tell me what happened to Amy?”
Lucia looked away, blinking rapidly. “I’d rather not if you don’t mind.”
I backtracked immediately. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to pry. I’m just curious. I had no idea doppelgangers actually existed.”
“There’s probably a logical explanation. Maybe you’re related.”
I jerked, feeling her suggestion like an electric jolt to my chest. I cleared my throat. “Maybe.”
She looked at me keenly, as if she saw something in my face that might hint to how I was feeling. I sincerely hoped not. She didn’t need to know how deeply that cut.
“We should probably get back,” I said, “In case your brother decides to have kittens over me leaving the house.”
Lucia laughed. “Don’t worry about it. I let him know you were with me. He agreed that getting you some new stuff was a good idea.”
“Oh, he did?” I asked in surprise.
“Yeah.” She grinned. “Gave us carte blanche and everything.”
“Oh, in that case, I could use some more outfits.”
Her grin widened. “You read my mind.”
We got home later that afternoon, and I immediately went to my room feeling excited to try everything out. I had a long soak in the tub when I gave myself a pep talk.
“Eyes on the prize, Audry. You need Marco to trust you. You won't do that by sulking or pouting like a spurned lover. Whatever happened yesterday is in the past. The future is what you need to worry about.”
I nodded firmly, trying to believe every word I said. It wasn't easy because, as much as I tried to deny it, what Marco had done had hurt. It had hurt a lot. After I emerged from the shower, I used a few of my brand-new skin care creams and potions before putting on a cream off-the-shoulder dress that went right up to my ankles. I paired it with a hand painted set of vans I had found in a charming little shop. Brushing my hair back, I tied it in a ponytail and added a pair of colorful Peacock feather earrings to complete the picture.
I added some blush on my cheeks, and pink lip gloss to complete the look. Satisfied with my reflection, I went downstairs to see if I could find Marco. Plastering a smile on my face - that I hoped didn’t look too fake - I knocked on his office door.
“Come in.” a voice called from inside. I wasn't a hundred percent sure it was Marco’s.
I opened the door and peered inside to see that Marco wasn't alone. Valerio grinned at me from where he was leaning against the window ledge. “Come in,” he said.
I tentatively stepped into the room, bracing myself internally before my eyes met Marco’s.
“Hi,” I said as naturally as I could.
He nodded at me, his face blank and unreadable.
“Good morning.”
I cleared my throat. “So? Any feedback on how the plan went?”
Marco and Valerio exchanged glances, “we were just talking about that.” Valerio said. “Your program is working very well. We're already seeing deposits being made. George tried to see if he could work backwards and find your virus, but he couldn't. In his own words, he's both impressed and terrified.”
I chuckled, feeling quite smug about my program. It took years to develop, with a lot of blood, sweat and tears. I sought out different experts to give their input. The kind of experts who don't advertise on LinkedIn. Then Kylie and I put the info together to make this Frankenstein of a virus. “Thanks.” I said and, in that moment, I completely forgot my awkwardness. This was what it was all about.
“Have they noticed yet?”
“Not as far as I can tell,” Marco answered, and then he smiled at me. “Well done, you.”
I didn't know how to respond to that.
My first instinct was to snark at him and tell him that he didn't get to pat me on the back like he was my mentor or some shit. Luckily common sense prevailed, and I remembered that I was a professional. I couldn't quite bring myself to say thanks but I did give him two thumbs up and a fake smile.
I clapped my hands together and then rubbed them, “So, what's next?”