I jump, dribbling tea down the front of my blouse. I frantically brush the drops away before they seep into the fabric. “Where have you been? Valerie’s on the war path, and she’s looking for you.” “What?” I set my teacup down and stand, reaching to close my laptop, grabbing up my phone. “Why didn’t you call me, Paul?” He follows me out the door. “I did. It went straight to voicemail.” I look down at my phone to see that I haven’t turned it back on since my interview that morning. “Shit!” “Yeah, she’s fit to be tied.” “She’s always fit to be tied,” I mumble. “Yeah, but this time she’s been shut up in her office all morning with people. Something’s up.” I look over at my close friend and co-worker, Paul Sims. We hired on at Query Magazine the same day and struck up an immediate friendship, smart enough to see allies in each other.
