Page 61 of The Winter Princess

Instead, I look over the work and offer praise. “There. You built a bridge.”

20

Shipping You

FREJA

I deliver the raw footage to Erik, and he scrolls through a digital calendar tool.

“I’m sorry it’s about Belgian linen. Restoration wasn’t cooperative.”

He shrugs. “Doesn’t matter what he talks about.”

“When is it scheduled to post?” I ask.

He points to his computer screen full of hot pink highlights at the beginning of each week. “Museum Mondays for behind-the-scenes stuff. That’s where most of Velasquez’s posts will be.”

“NeerVelasquez.”

He shrugs.

“Orange is…?”

“Feature Fridays. Roland is this week. Agnes is next week. You and Oskar are the week after that, if you can get the artifact interview to me. These things take time to edit,” he says. If he were a spinster librarian, he would be delivering a pointed look over the top of his reading glasses.

I lean forward, examining the rest of the boxes. “Trinket Tuesdays is when you post about the jewel lotteries.”

“Um-hm, either the drawings or the photographs. Marie used one of her ex-husbands, a photographer named,” Erik consults his spreadsheet, “NeerHom to shoot them.”

“Hom? Asger Hom?” I squeak. “TheAsger Hom? As in the man who wired the first photos of Lars and Bianca’s wedding to the world?”

Erik grimaces, his face squishing into his neck, hands flailing, creating an invisible barrier between us. “I don’t know what you’re saying.”

“Asger Hom is a 70s icon, and he’s a legend for getting that shot. Marie is a legend for nabbing him. The scandals would melt your eyes.”

I glance at the paper thermostat. The top has more white space than the cover of a book about disappointed French people and the sedimentary layers representing each day’s guests are getting progressively thinner. I look at Erik’s screen again and swallow back my panic. He’s got social media posts scheduled every day. It’s something.

“Have you forgotten to add new updates to the visitor count?” I ask, crossing my fingers.

“Nope. That’s it,” Erik says, leaning back in his chair like a grizzled veteran of many wars. He has seen much. He deals only in cold facts. He is resolute.

Vede.

“Any new ideas for how to reverse that trend?”

“Now that you mention…” Erik taps his finger on an electric blue strip highlighting something called On-Site Saturdays.

He leans forward and he is a slouchy young man again. “So, like, going live on social media is hot.”

“Hotter than well-considered posts that provide context?”

“Way hotter. People want authenticity.”

“Forgive me, Erik, but people want to watch a train wreck so they can slow down and rubberneck for gore.”

He bobbles his head.Isn’t that what I just said?

“Velasquez suggested visiting places in person which tie in with art in the gallery. He even made a list,” he says, tapping a second screen. “I want you to set aside a few Saturdays to go out on excursions with him.”