Page 76 of All the Missing Pieces

I’m fine. Swear. Had a little run-in with an asshole but I’m good.

Sully

Baker said you were in the hospital.

Me

The ER. Not admitted. And just to be safe. All my tests came back good. Bessie, on the other hand, has seen better days.

Sully

What happened to Bessie?!

I knew that bringing up my beloved van would get Sully off the topic of my own injuries. We were both a sucker for cool vehicles and he’d listened to me talk about every set of upgrades I’d given the ole girl.

Me

Someone did a number on her guts. But I’ll get her fixed up. Might be an excuse to do a few more projects.

Sully

That pullout couch so you don’t have to winter in the south anymore.

Me

Bingo.

Right now my bedroom in the van didn’t have insulation, so I had to spend my winters places where snow was never in the forecast. It would be nice to have an alternative.

I watched three little dots appear, disappear, and then appear again.

Sully

I’m glad you’re okay. But watch your back. Baker’s on the warpath, and I wouldn’t put it past him to try to oust you from the network.

Me

Thanks for the heads-up.

I knew Baker would be pissed about our fight last night, but actually trying to kick me out of his production company? That was too far. Even for him.

He had a board to answer to now, so it wasn’t as easy as him simply giving me the boot. But he could screw me in other ways, and I knew it.

I pinched the bridge of my nose, the headache growing there. It was time to go out on my own. I knew it in my gut. But that was a process. One I wasn’t sure I was ready for. I knew Sully would go with me. But who would deal with the advertisers? That wasn’t something I wanted to tackle. It seemed like a giant waste of time other than the fact that they were the ones who kept food in my fridge and gas in my tank.

There had to be someone I could hire to take that on. Maybe a company or agent or something. But I didn’t want to waste time researching that either.

“Ridley?”

Ezra’s familiar voice had me lifting my head and forcing a smile. “Hey. How are you?”

He held my kale salad and hazelnut latte but stared at my throat, his jaw slack. “Shit, Ridley. I heard something happened. But damn, that looks bad. Are you okay?”

I winced, wishing for a scarf yet again. “I’m fine, really. Looks worse than it is.”

Ezra shook his head as he set down my salad and drink. “I hope so. This is seriously messed up. Did you get a look at who did it?”

I shook my head. “No. But I’m not going to let it stop me.”

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