"Hey babe, what's up?" I said, giving her a friendly hug. She was dressed down that day, just some track pants and an old sweatshirt that she'd picked up in Europe along with a backpack. She looked more like the college student I'd roomed with for four years than the sexy executive ass kicker I knew she was now. I felt some nostalgia, and was glad to see that girl back. "You want some coffee? I'm sorry I missed your call last night, I was kind of distracted."
"I know," Sophie said. She came in, and instead of sitting down, pulling out a palm sized device. Turning it on, she walked through my apartment, talking the whole time. "I just had some business stuff I wanted to talk about, sorry if I worried you."
I followed her, confused, as she completed the swift walk around of my apartment, staring at the little thing in her hand. When she reached my bedroom, she barely gave my stripped mattress a glance as she finished what I could only describe as a sweep, then stopped and nodded. "Okay, we're clear."
"Clear of what?" I asked, curious.
"Bugs. Mark and I were worried he may have planted a bug in your place while you were distracted or something." She took the device and put it into her backpack, and looked at me with a weight in her eyes I hadn't seen in a very long time.
I shook my head, confused. "Sophie, what the hell is going on. You're acting totally weird."
Sophie sighed, and led me back into the living room. "Tabby, we need to talk about Scott Pressman. And if you don't mind, I think I'll have that coffee, if you can ice it for me."
After I got Sophie her iced coffee, she handed me a tablet. "There's no other way to put this, so I might as well be direct. Scott Pressman is a member of the Confederation, Tabby," she said with a sigh. "He's a seduction specialist, in fact."
I couldn't believe it. I shook my head, over and over, refusing to listen to anything Sophie was saying. "No. No no nonononononononononono!"
I had to give it to Sophie, she stayed calm through my rant and sipped at her coffee, waiting me out. Finally, she took the tablet from my hands and tapped the screen a few times. I heard Scott's voice, cutting through my denial like a knife, and stopped cold. I watched the ten minute video twice, before setting the tablet aside with trembling hands. "What an idiot I've been."
"No you haven't," Sophie said, sipping her coffee. "You were played, yes, but from what Mark tells me, Scott Pressman is one of the best in the world at what he did."
I felt the first red flushes of anger creep into my mind as I kept thinking about everything that Scott had said about me. "Tell me one thing."
"Sure."
"Tell me he paid for it, that the video cut off because Mark didn't want to show blood on screen."
Sophie shook her head. "He's still alive, but he's not going to bother you again. Mark made sure of that."
"What do you mean?"
Sophie shook her head again. "He didn't tell me everything. I just know he put together a couple of mixes of chemicals, and when he came home this morning he told me that Scott Pressman was not going to be a problem ever again. He did tell me he was alive, but that was it."
I nodded my head, then looked at her. "I want to talk to Mark about this. No offense, but you don't have the answers I want right now."
"No offense taken. He wanted you and I to talk first, he thought you'd take the news easier from me than from him. But if you want, he can meet you. You want him to come here?"
"No, not here. In fact, I think I'm going to start shopping for a new apartment. But, I do know a place that we can meet."
* * *
Tabby
Mar de Napoli didn't look all that different from when I'd been there with Scott just a few days before. Still, it wasn't the same restaurant. The atmosphere seemed contrived, the rustic Italian cheer forced. I knew what was different, and it wasn't the music. It was not having Scott
After Sophie left the apartment, I spent the next two hours alternating between fits of rage and fits of self recrimination. How could I have been so damn stupid? Finally, I put it temporarily aside by contacting a few real estate agents, and setting up apartment viewings for the following day. My agreement was month to month, so I wasn't going to be out too much. Besides, maybe a slightly better apartment was needed, I could afford to not live in the same place I had crashed when I was an undergrad after all.
I had been sitting, nursing an ice water for about ten minutes when Mark showed up, looking nothing at all like Marcus Smiley. It was really the first time since he had rescued me from the club that I saw the guy that Sophie fell in love with, the real guy inside there. He was wearing a navy blue t-shirt and jeans, and looked like just a really handsome regular guy in his mid twenties. "Hey, have you been waiting long?"
"Not too long," I said, gesturing. "Have a seat."
"Thanks," Mark said. "I'm sorry about what happened, Tabby."