“Excellent. I’ll make a reservation. See you then!”
The doctor had grabbed the opportunity and run with it.
“Respect for her hustle,” Mallery said.
“That does mean we need to move,” Shirin said.
“Hail Mary time?” Leah asked.
Mallery grabbed herself a fork-full of cold spaghetti from the table, took a bite, then pointed the fork at Leah. “Newbie, you’re point on this operation. Shirin is the wild card, since she’s not in either narrative, but you can use any of the rest of us if you can stitch the story together. We interfere with the doc’s potential to have a big moment with Theo, open his eyes to how much of a controlling neatnik she is, and how much he misses Anna’s free spirit.”
Mallery gestured to her plans on the whiteboard, which showed football-esque plays, lines and Xs and Os, but for plays like THE CLUMSY WAITER and THE HAIL MARY. “We take this two by two,” she said. “We need to be ready to approach in any configuration. Roman, whatever you had planned for interference, let’s bring it along. Maybe we can’t bring it home all at once, but we need to head the doc off before she can deepen the breach.”
“I’ve got the outfits.” Leah said.
“Pack some spare clothes for both of us, too. I expect we may need to commit some alcohol abuse to escalate the situation.”
Leah frowned. “More drinking?”
“She means spilling booze,” Roman said.
“Where is our Leading Lady?” Mallery asked.
Shirin checked the screen. “Headed downtown, probably on the E train.”
“Let us know when it looks like she’s back on the street. No sense in chasing her around the city through the subways. Not that I mind a good game of subway tag, but if we can get this one in the bag by tonight, that’d be groovy.”
“Groovy?” Leah asked.
Mallery shrugged. “It fit the moment. Come on, let’s get cracking.”
* * *
Anna’s GPS went still ten minutes on the road, so Mallery and Leah checked her apartment first.
She wasn’t there.
Leah decided to improvise, and they started trekking around the neighborhood, checking at the studio. They left a voicemail and two texts with Anna during their rounds.
“Any more than that is excessive,” Mallery said. “She should be answering by now.”
And yet nothing. Roman settled in across the street from the pizzeria, with Shirin waiting in the wings for the doc and Theo’s reservation.
“I’ve got movement on Anna’s GPS!” King called through the comms.
Leah sighed in relief.
“That mean’s she’s back in the apartment or will be soon.”
Unfortunately, they were a twenty-minute walk from the apartment, and it was closing in on seven.
Mallery stepped out to the street and whistled. “Taxi!”
Ten seconds later, they were off.
* * *
At six forty-five, Shirin put on her I Am Supposed to Be Here face and strode straight toward the side entrance to fast-talk her way into Pizzeria Trio to assert herself as a server. The place was as chaotic as any story-world restaurant during the pre-show dinner rush, which meant everyone was distracted. She caught enough gossip on the way in that by the time she made it all the way up to the hostess, a tiny olive-skinned woman with big eyes, she had her story in place.
Shirin affected a broad Long Island accent. “I’m here to replace Susan.”
The hostess froze for a second, processing. “Who are you?”
“I’m Sherry. Her neighbor’s aunt. She called in, then asked if I could cover for her. I mostly take catering work, but she figured you could use the help. You want it or not?”
She focused her full presence on the tiny woman, who was maybe twenty-two. Shirin had been slipping on identities like outfits since before this girl was born. While the hostess considered, Shirin pegged Theo in her well-trained peripheral vision. Their Leading Man wore a dapper vest that was a bit big on him. He was doubtless down a few pounds after the accident. He fiddled with his hands and took a long sip of water.
Finally, the hostess relented. “Yeah, okay. Here’s the menu, specials are on the board in the back. Orders go to Joaquin.”
No restaurant on Earth Prime would work this way, but on a story world, where an active breach had just walked in? Force of personality went a long way. The story breach had its own narrative gravity, and the restaurant was caught up in it. Shirin rode the turbulent tides into position. She had thirty minutes, maybe an hour before the server came to her senses or the manager caught wind of what was happening. Hopefully, it would be enough.
“Doc is incoming,” Roman said over the comms.
Shirin looked up to see Doctor Thorsson walk in. Just in time.
The doctor’s hair was done up and back, and she wore a curve-hugging little black dress with a deep V neck. In Rom-Com terms, this was coming out swinging.
“Doc’s here and not pulling any punches,” she said under her breath, grateful for the earpiece’s sensitivity.
Shirin put on a smile and hit her first table, keeping an eye on the pair but giving them time to settle in before her first pass.
Theo stood to greet the doctor as she arrived. Their energy was halting, awkward, his body language cueing uncertainty, hers uncertainty and hope.
They had a very short window to intervene. If this date went well enough, the breached narrative might grab hold of the two of them in a powerful need for relief, for resolution.
All that would do is make the breach permanent—it’d scab over and the ripples would continue. Less, but never quite the same as if they reunited Theo and Anna.
She placed her first table’s drink order with the bar and checked in on the girls.
“Hurry,” she said over the comms.
* * *
Mallery told the cabbie to hurry, but the taxi couldn’t go any faster and avoid an actual collision. Their driver, a chatty Grenadian woman by the name of Karla, alternated between gesturing in frustration at other drivers and relating her life story to Leah and Mallery.
“There she is,” Mallery said, pointing out the window. “You can stop here, please.”
Mallery paid the driver while Leah hopped out, bags in hand.
Anna was walking down the street with a slice of pizza for dinner in classic New Yorker walk-and-eat fashion—slice folded into a V for ease of eating.
Leah waved from across the street. “Anna!”
Their Leading Lady had on casual wear, just enjoying a stroll. Her hair was wet. She must have been taking a shower or something, Leah thought.
Anna crossed the street, jaywalking flagrantly through the congested traffic.
“How are you doing?”
Anna, still caught a bit by surprise, shrugged and said, “Living the glamorous life, as you can clearly tell. Sorry I missed your call. Just needed some downtime.”
“Of course. We were thinking of going for pizza ourselves. Care to join us? I mean, if you want something a bit fancier. That looks great, though.”
Anna shrugged and dumped the slice in the corner garbage can, which was not quite to the precarious refuse-mountain stage.
Mallery joined the party by hugging Anna. “So good to run into you. What are the odds?”
“That’s New York for you,” Anna said. “So, dinner?”
“We were thinking of going to the place you recommended, Trio Mio or something?”
“Pizzeria Trio,” Anna said, slightly less than enthusiastic, from her voice.
Mallery snapped, “That’s the one. You were right,” she said to Leah.
Leah gave a fake-gloating smile and turned. “You said it was on Seventh Avenue, yes?
Just like that, they were off, Anna pulled once more into Mallery’s enthusiasm storm. Leah helped, but Mallery was gale force all on her own.
“Drop back,” Mallery whispered through comms. Leah let the pair drift ahead and reported in.
“We’ve got Anna. Three blocks out from the restaurant.”
“Good,” King said. “Shirin, what’s our status?”
“Some sparks flying here for sure. I can try to interrupt their flow, stifle conversation.”
“Agreed,” said King, audible since Mallery had the volume turned up. “We can be there in ten minutes if you need extra actors.”
“Not sure that will be enough. What’s Anna wearing?”
“Comfy casual,” Leah said. “Not exactly the outfit for a big romantic gesture.”
Ahead, Mallery told Anna, “You know, we should totally go shopping. I bet we’re the same size. I found some great stuff just this afternoon.”
“She’s laying the groundwork for your plan,” Shirin said. “You just have to find a restroom to use.”
Leah was so engrossed in the conversation, she nearly missed the turn onto Seventh Avenue.
King hopped back in. “Once she’s in, you’ll need a plan to get the doctor out of the way.”
Mallery dropped back to grab Leah and pull her forward. “You tell Anna about that time in Culver City with the rabbi. I forgot to call for reservations.”
Which was a weird premise but far from the weirdest she’d been pitched in her improv days. Leah started making a story up to distract Anna while Mallery dropped back. Leah heard the team chatter continuing, which was incredibly distracting as she tried to BS on the move.
“Leah’s plan means we’ll have Anna in the right outfit to make our move. Newbie can play the klutz, and I’ll agitate to get the doctor to reveal herself. King, I’ll want you in my ear as we go in case you have ideas of where to provoke her. Roman, good to backseat from your position?”
“No problem,” Roman said. “I can be inside within a minute.”
“King said, “Shirin’s already in place, so I think we’ll be fine as long as she doesn’t get made by the manager.”
“Got it. I’ll get my earpiece in and leave my phone on in my pocket,” Mallery said. “Any questions?”
Leah dove back into relating her story to Anna.
I’ll take that as a yes, Mallery thought. You got this, newbie.
* * *
The three women walked into the restaurant, Mallery in the lead. Leah nodded to Shirin as Anna froze for a second and then not-so-casually walked right back out again. Leah made a “one second” gesture and followed.
“Is everything okay?” Leah asked as they clustered on the sidewalk.
“It’s fine,” Anna said.
“It’s clearly not,” Mallery said, her voice more supportive than critical. They had to handle this scene with absolute care. Leah’s instant makeover idea was solid, but this was still a Hail Mary move. Forceful, and honestly, they were doing it without a lot of set-up. Shirin’s help would make it possible, but chances were, the Doc wouldn’t step aside without a fight.
Anna pointed. “Theo’s there. He’s sitting at a table with some gorgeous woman.” In any normal world or situation, Anna would be totally right to GTFO. They’d been fanning the flames, building the tension, and done everything they could to make this a big-finale scene. Anna wavered at the edges, flickering, the jagged edge of her broken story flaring up.
Leah tried to peek in the window, playing along. “Oh, damn. Should we go somewhere else?”
Mallery cut Leah off, building the scene’s energy. “No, we should eat here.” The affirmation built the scene, got the blood going.
Leah was getting a hang of the tag-team dynamic, switching back and forth between the role of foil and supportive friend, controlling the conversation and heading off doubts even before Anna could express them.
Leah said, “This is your favorite restaurant. Plus, what better chance to talk to Theo and sort things out?”
Anna was losing her nerve. “While he’s on a date with someone else? And while I look like this? Plus, when I tried to call him, the number was blocked.”
Mallery countered. “You don’t know it’s a date, do you?”
Anna was certain, playing into their move. “He’s wearing a vest. He doesn’t like wearing vests to work. Also, I saw her neckline. It’s a date.”
“All the more reason to go in there,” Mallery said. “You’ve got to fight for love.”
“Do I?”
“You do, you do.” Leah said, aligning herself with Mallery to reinforce the argument.
“I’m going to need some wine first. I’m dressed like crap.”
Leah put on an “I have the best idea” look. “Well, we just happen to have gone shopping. And Susan here is basically your size, so we can go and do a quick-change while she holds down the fort!”
Mallery clapped in genuine appreciation of Leah’s hustle, while also playing along. “Perfect! I’ll check out the bar and make sure we have a table.” She leaned in to whisper instructions to Leah, covering it with a kiss on the cheek. “I’ll be your smokescreen cover you for the change. Don’t let Theo or the Doc see you.”
The women stood, and Mallery whispered more instructions. “When we go over, you’ll spill something on the Doctor. We may need to interrupt more to drive the doc over the edge.”
Then Mallery adjusted her dress, cracked her back, and thought to herself: You own this room.
She strode toward the bar, activating Bombshell Mode to draw as many eyes as possible while Anna and Leah scurried off to the restroom.
* * *
Leah watched Mallery charge off.
“Is she always like this?” Anna asked.
Leah caught this moment on the front end. She gave a happy sigh. “Yep.”
Leah offered her hand back to Anna, the other holding the shopping bags. “Let’s go get your boy back.”
And so they went.
Chapter Eight: The Hail Mary
Shirin got them a table with a clear view of Theo and the doctor’s table.
Mallery left the group, walking over to “check out their bar,” aka “scope out the pair for herself.”
Yep, Anna’s quick-read was dead-on. The Doc was going all in.
Which is why it was good that Mallery was still the interdimensional champion at the five-minute makeover, even without help from the genre world. Anna now wore a show-stopping silver dress and a basic everyday makeup look, her hair snazzed up with the simplest of quick braids.
Mallery caught Anna’s attention. “Remember to breathe, dear.”
Shirin approached and filled their water glasses. Mallery gave a silent prayer of thanks that it was about as hard to fake your way into being a waiter in the Rom-Com region as it was in the Heist region of Crime World—which is to say, not very. She and Leah could catch snippets of Theo and the doc’s conversation through the earpieces.
“Can we get some wine, please?” Anna asked.
Shirin nodded.
“Hold on, Anna,” Leah said. “They’re still on their entrée; you’ve got time.”
“But they’ve seen us.”
Mallery poured her smile on thicker. “That’s fine. Let her sweat.”
Anna peeked over her shoulder. “I don’t think she’s sweating.”
Leah took a sip of her water. “Not yet, but soon.”
They kept watching, Anna sipping and sipping, finishing her first glass of wine before their bread was gone.
Mallery peeled the crust from the last piece of bread, eating it one bite at a time. “Do you know what you’re going to say?”
“You can try it out on us,” Leah added.
“I can’t overthink it. I’ll freak myself out. I just need to go over there and start.”
“Do you want us to go over with you?” Leah asked. “We can be your excuse to say hello.”
“That. That might be good. At least you can keep me from running for the door.”
“I don’t know; I think you’re in better shape than either of us, Ms. Always En Pointe,” Mallery said.
That got a chuckle from Anna. “They’re finishing up. We should go now.”
>
* * *
Leah, Mallery, and Anna slid out of the booth. Anna took a breath, then walked across the restaurant, weaving through tables and past servers toward Theo and the doctor’s table. The doctor clocked them first and adjusted herself in the seat, her face unreadable.
At least this is unlikely to end in gunplay, Leah realized. No one was going to die here, since this world didn’t have shootouts. The stakes here were no less powerful. If they failed, thousands, maybe millions of relationships on Earth would crumble and people around the world would give up on finding love. Then, they’d all get fired. Good to not forget that part.
Anna started friendly. “Glad to see you out and about!”
Theo’s response was hard to read. He eased his way to his feet, setting the napkin on his place setting. Desire, hurt, and uncertainty passed over his face in turn. “Still coming along, but it beats a hospital bed.”
The doctor coughed, poker face intact. Not subtle, are we?, she thought.
Theo gestured to his companion, “Anna, this is my friend, Doctor Thorsson.”
The doctor stood, offering a hand. “Ms. Grace.”
Anna met the doctor’s hand and shook it. “Yes,” we spoke on the phone when I called about Theo.”
The doctor faked confusion well. “I’m sorry, I don’t recall.”
Here we go, Leah thought. Would Anna insist, breaking social niceties, or let the lie stand?”
“Like I said on the phone, I appreciate everything you’ve done for him. Doctor, Theo, this is Susan and Toni, some friends of mine visiting the city.”
Nice, Leah thought. Roll the correction into a compliment—a perfect riposte.
Theo’s look of confusion deepened. That was an opening if she’d ever seen one.
The doctor gave them a territorial smile, keeping Leah and Mallery at bay. “Charmed.”
“We’ve heard so much about you, Theo.” Mallery-as-Susan cut through the doctor’s stare and went straight in to hug Theo. She watched his leg as he shifted in surprise, keeping pressure off. Subtlety in everything even as she was brash.
Leaving her to play the understated counterpart to round out the experience. Leah offered a hand to shake once Mallery had released Theo.
Genrenauts: Season One Page 27
