Conrad arrived as though summoned by the sound of expensive glass hitting wood.
He took in Victoria’s empty glass, Emily’s soaked uniform, and the eyes turning toward them.
“Miss Langford, I am deeply sorry,” he said.
Emily looked at him.
“She threw water at me.”
“Emily, step away from the table.”
“I didn’t touch her.”
“You have created a disturbance in the dining room,” Conrad said.
Victoria folded her arms.
“At least someone understands hospitality.”
Conrad faced Emily, speaking loudly enough for the nearby tables to hear.
“Remove your apron and leave the premises.”
“You’re firing me for feeding someone?”
“You’re being dismissed for insubordination.”
Emily could feel water dripping from her hair onto the carpet.
She untied her apron, folded it once, and laid it on the service station.
Her fingers were shaking, but she refused to wipe her face until she was out of Victoria’s sight.

At table twenty-two, the elderly man stood.
He had finished only half his soup.
“Conrad,” he said.
The manager turned, annoyed that the man knew his name.
“Sir, please remain seated.”
“You have made an extraordinary mistake.”
“I will attend to you in a moment.”
“You don’t have a moment,” the man said.
He reached into his coat and took out a slim black phone.
He dialed a number without looking at the screen.
When a woman answered, his voice became crisp and assured.
“Mara, I’m in the Halcyon Room,” he said. “Bring the company upstairs. No entrance cue. Come through the front door.”
He listened to the response.
“Yes,” he added. “All of them. Right now.”
Conrad stopped walking.
Victoria lowered her glass.
Emily looked from one face to the other, suddenly aware that the name Mara meant something to the manager.
The elderly man put away the phone and turned toward her.
“My name is Walter Finch,” he said. “Please don’t leave yet.”

CHAPTER TWO — THE COMPANY

Emily had never heard Walter Finch’s name before, but Conrad looked as if someone had removed the floor beneath his shoes.
“Mr. Finch,” he said in a voice nothing like the one he had used with Emily, “this is an unfortunate misunderstanding.”
“What part did you misunderstand?” Walter asked.
“The situation became emotional.”
“It became wet,” Walter replied. “The emotion came afterward.”
Victoria straightened her jacket.
“Who is this man?”
Conrad hesitated, and the pause interested everyone at her table.
“Mr. Finch is involved in this evening’s special program.”
“Involved how?” Victoria demanded.
Walter did not answer her.
He looked toward Emily, who was standing with her hands hanging uselessly at her sides.
“Will you take a seat?” he asked.
“I’ve just been told to leave.”
“Then consider it an invitation from another guest.”
Emily sat at the nearest unoccupied table because her knees had started to feel unreliable.
A young busser named Luis brought her a dry towel without being asked.
She pressed it to her face and whispered thanks.