Chapter nineteen
Alexander
Irubbedmytiredeyes for the thousandth time to refocus on the work in front of me. With the mess Sam had left and the barrage of well-wishers wanting to congratulate me on my newly married state, I didn't have time to be distracted. Yet, all I could think about was Agotia.
She had tossed and turned all night before giving up on sleep at dawn. I was sure she was worried; What was the cause, and why she was not telling me-I didn't know. She had left the lodge early, whispering that she was headed to the farm to work. I had wanted nothing more than to wrap my arms around her and drag her back to bed. She needed sleep, as did I.
My phone rang, pulling my thoughts away from my wife. For once, this was not a phone call I wanted to ignore.
"Hey, Nori. What's up?"
“Don’t ‘what’s up?’ me. Are you kidding me? You get married, elope with some girl none of us have even heard of in Voss, and I have to find out in an email from Mom?”
I scrubbed a hand over my face, having forgotten that I had not talked to Nori about this yet.
"I am sorry you found out that way. It has been a whirlwind. By the way, you have heard about her. We talked about Agotia on our last phone call. In fact, you are the only one who’s heard of her before.”
"You really expect me to believe that in two weeks, you went from being unsure if you even liked this girl to being married to her? Oh, and how convenient for you that the media is now more focused on your marital status than whatever nonsense Bridget is spouting.”
“You can’t tell anyone,” I warned, giving up the act. “Not even our mother. No one can know that this is not real.”
“What are you doing, Alex? This is not like you.”
"I know. I know. It was a business deal. Agotia needed money and refused a loan. I needed a way to get the media's attention away from Bridget and my investors to trust me. It was the best we could come up with, and now, I don't think she wants it anymore, and it has only been a few days."
“Tell me what happened.”
I gave the snaps of the entire situation to Nori, including how tense Agotia had been last night at dinner. I had expected the ring to cheer her up, but it only seemed to make her sadder; I had no idea what to do about it.
“And then she left this morning, and I have not heard from her since. What should I do?” I asked once I had finished explaining everything.
"I think you both need to be honest with yourselves and each other," she said.
“What is that supposed to mean?”
"It means I doubt this marriage is as fake as you would like to pretend it is. You were never this worked up over Bridget. I don't think I have ever seen you so upset. You care about her."
“Don’t be ridiculous, Nori. I’ve known her for less than a month. I couldn’t possibly…” I trailed off, no longer sure Nori was the one being ridiculous.
“Mmhm. That's what I thought," she boasted. "Hey, how's your search for the missing snuff boxes going?"
“Not well,” I admitted, a little thrown off by her rapid change in discussion.
"Well, good news on my side. We made a discovery here in Manchu-Picchu yesterday that has been an amazing breakthrough; I will tell you more about it another time. But briefly, we recovered layers of dirt that give us an idea about the Inca tribe's agriculture style. Now back to the snuff boxes, if I may suggest; go back to the beginning of how you found out about the missing pieces and retrace your steps. You might find a clue you did not see before."
“Good idea. I will try that.”
I attempted to hold the conversation for a few more minutes but was slightly relieved when Nori had to go. I was anxious and wanted to find Agotia; it seemed like she needed her space right now, so instead, I stalked off toward the library.
Taking Nori's advice, I wanted to retrace my steps which meant finding the letter and the envelope the letter came in. It was that stack of mail that had started this whole investigation, and I was ready to look at it with fresh eyes.
"Alex, I was not expecting you out of your office quite early. Everything okay?" Asta asked as she moved around the room, stacking the papers across the floor.
“Everything is fine. Do you know what happened to that letter from the museum?”
"I just set it back in the envelope and put it on the desk over there. I am surprised I found it; you two tore this room apart."
"We were determined to get to the bottom of this whole snuff box ordeal, but our efforts proved in vain. I just got off the phone with Nori, and she suggested I try a few things."
