Page 4

Laura grabs me and screams, “Clarissa!”
Her yelp pulls the attention of everyone in the room. Heat stains my cheeks when I feel their eyes sliding from my bent knee to my tilted ankle. Swallowing back my horror, I glance down at the little stick that used to be attached to my heel.
“Are you okay, Miss Maura?” Winifred asks with the last shred of humanity he has left.
Crippling humiliation sweeps over my body. Laura feels the shame too because her cheeks are stained pink.
“Come on,” I tell Laura under my breath.
Head ducked and my ankle slightly throbbing, I stumble out of the room. My gait is uneven thanks to my broken heel and it feels like I’m walking on a see-saw.Up. Down. Up. Down.
Doing my best impression of a one-legged pirate, I increase my speed and burst into the hallway. Desperately, I stab the button for the elevator.
Laura pushes her silky black hair behind her ear. “Are you okay? That looked painful.”
“Are you talking about Winifred cutting our funding or the way my heel broke?” I smile in exhaustion.
“I meant your heel, obviously. But the way that went down was a nightmare too. Why’d you hold me back? That guy had a punch coming.”
“Sure. Great strategy. Punch all the corporations that refuse to donate. I’m sure that’ll loosen their purses.”
“It’s better than apologizing.” Her eyebrows form an angry V.
“He’s not obligated to give us money.”
“He’s not obligated to be a decent human being either. Clearly.”
The elevator doors open.
I walk in and hook my arm around Laura’s elbow to make sure she enters with me. “It’s fine. I’ll make an appointment and talk to the new owner. I believe I can change his mind.”
Laura purses her lips.
The doors open at that moment and I drag her into the spacious lobby.
“The least they could have done was let us present,” she mumbles. “You worked so hard on that powerpoint.”
“Powerpoint?” A sickening realization dawns. I groan loudly. “Oh no. I forgot my laptop upstairs.”
Laura narrows her eyes. “I’ll go back up there and get it.”
With a determined look, she stalks past me, pushing up the sleeve of her shirt like Popeye after a can of spinach.
“No, you most definitely will not.” I pull her back. “I’ll get it.”
“Your heels are busted,” she points out.
“And you’re too young to go to jail. Which is exactly where you’ll be headed if you pick a fight with Winifred.I’llgo.”
“Fine,” she huffs.
“Here.” I hand her a bill. “There’s a cafe around the corner. Go buy yourself an iced coffee and cool down. I’ll meet you there after I get the laptop and we can catch a cab back.”
She snaps the bill from me and stomps away.
My lips curl up. Laura’s a spitfire, and a part of me is jealous of her confidence. At her age, I was never that sure of myself. Never that brave. Maybe if I was, my heart wouldn’t have been shattered…
No. I’m not thinking about that. It’s already been a crappy day.