New Avalon

[yamikuronue]

"My... expressed input?" she asks, intentionally ignoring his question, letting the fear she feels seep into her voice. "Is there something I did to cause the issue?"

[CalamityJade]

"That is part of the investigation. Actually....could you speak a bit about anything else today that was odd? It may help find the point in which the problem appeared."

[yamikuronue]

"Well, I... oh, I suppose, I saw something unusual about a Pulse engine in the museum. A trifle, really, but... I could have sworn the gears were incorrectly placed."

[CalamityJade]

"...facinating. I will pass that along. Now then, back to the detective's investigation..."

[yamikuronue]

"Oh, sorry. I was very preoccupied with the engine, but I know he came away frustrated, without much information."

[CalamityJade]

"Well, that IS quite the shame...though I would wonder if that was entirely true, seeing how he was seen heading out to one of the outskirt areas around one of the historical dig sites. One is rarely that intuitive if a meeting at the Natural History Museum was 'not having much information''. Then there is the question of why you seemed to split off from him around the same time as our last talk."

[yamikuronue]

"I wanted to lie down for a while, to ease my frayed nerves,:" she adds, stammering only slightly.

[CalamityJade]

"...I see. Well, I imagine you have had something of a stressful day. Hopefully you will have an easier time of it tomorrow...at least with much better results. I have it on...good authority that this Rob will be speaking with you again, and I truly would like to have some information about how his investigation is going." There was a pause for a moment. "I apologize for prying into your affairs, but I believe the two of you were at the ballet premier, correct? Ghastly sort of thing to happen, wouldn't you say?"

[yamikuronue]

"Oh, absolutely. I nearly fainted. Truth be told, I'm concerned about the affect these sights are having on my heart. I may need to steer clear of him for a few days."

[CalamityJade]

There was a drawn out sigh from his end. "Miss Stark...when I first explained the situation between the two of us, I was quite sure that you were going to be smarter than that." For the first time, there's a bit of an edge to the voice.

"You had no problem accepting a position with one of the more influential people of the city. You worked hard to seem the best at what you did, and above all else, you were discrete about our dealings. No, I am not sure if it is personal reasons or a belief that the situation has changed, but neither of those make for good business." there's a short moment that Erika felt that light-headed feeling and sort of unfocusing of her eyes that she'd felt at the diner with Rob before it faded again. "So, while I know it may be stressful, and I am sure that you can find a day to go to one of the wonderful spas around the city, I must request that you give the detective your full attention the next time the two of you meet. After all, what better way can the Welcomed repay the city that blesses us than by assisting those that serve it, hmm?"

[yamikuronue]

"Oh, my, my deepest apologies. I had no idea you were so concerned about this. Of course, I'll make it my top priority." Erika finds herself babbling an agreement almost as soon as she feels the lightheadedness fade. Coward, she admonishes herself, but that just makes her feel all the worse.

[CalamityJade]

"Thank you, Miss Stark." He gave a sigh of relief...or at least he was making a good play of it. "I also apologize for being less than gentlemanly. There has been some...trying news delivered today. None of which is your fault. If you ever decide to go into business for yourself, I would advise against hiring too much 'help'. No matter what you do, there is always someone that believes that they know your business better than yourself." He gave a slight, friendly chuckle.

"Now then, I will allow you to go back to you're evening activities. Hopefully we will be able to speak again later. Best of luck to you." And the phone hangs up.

[yamikuronue]

Erika puts the receiver down, numbly, staring at the telephone. Nearly half an hour passes before she can bring herself to rise from the couch; then, however, it's only to stumble into the kitchen in search of a bottle of mead she'd picked up on the way home the other night, hoping for a chance to celebrate her rise in station with friends.

As if I'll ever have any, she thinks, bitterly, as she forgoes a cup, opening the bottle and stumbling back to the couch.

[CalamityJade]

Well, she does have people that may be considered friends. In fact, one such person was already heading on his way there, though this was several hours before he had started a...very interesting day and was now probably wondering how he would find Erika in the first place.

[yamikuronue]

It being late afternoon now, Erika's hangover has faded, but she still doesn't feel like talking to people. The few visitors she'd had to buzz in were torture, but she'd grit her teeth and done her job anyway, though with less of a smile on her face than usual. Hopefully her boss had believed her that she had a random headache; he hadn't pried, but that didn't mean much necessarily.