Lily stayed near the Aurelion One because nobody expected a browser to stay very long.
From here she could see the whole floor: the Meridian in silver by the windows, the coffee bar no one had restocked, Marcus gone from the mezzanine, his notes taken. Her wrist still remembered Derek's fingers, not as pain, exactly, but as information.
"You have been standing a long time," Grace Lin said, arriving with a glass of water. "I thought you might want this."
"You did not have to do that," Lily said.
"I know. That is the point of water. It is just kind."
Lily took the glass. "Thank you, Grace."
Grace glanced toward the sales desks. "I wanted to say I am sorry about this morning," she said, quieter. "By the rope. He should not have spoken to you that way. He should not have touched you at all."
"You are not the one who owes me an apology," Lily said.
"I know. But nobody else was going to say it, and it felt wrong to let it pass like it was normal."
"It happens often, then."
Grace considered it. "Often enough that some of us stopped being surprised. That part I do not like admitting."
"Why do you stay?" Lily asked. "You could sell cars anywhere."
Grace smiled. "You sound very sure about my resume for a browser."
"I pay attention to how people work."
"Then you know the cars are not the problem." Grace looked at the One, and her expression softened. "I love these cars. Leaving would be easy. Staying and doing it properly feels more useful."
"Useful to who?" Lily asked.
"To the people who walk in nervous," Grace said. "The ones who rehearsed their questions in the parking lot. The ones Derek decides about based on a coat."
As if his name had summoned him, Derek crossed the floor with a wealthy couple in tow, his voice pitched for an audience. "The Meridian in graphite, that is the one everyone asks about. I can put you in it this afternoon, no games. For clients like you, we make the calendar behave."
The woman laughed, pleased. The man said, "We were hoping to see something rarer."
"Rarer is my department," Derek said, steering them away from the One without ever looking at Lily. "Let me show you what real buyers actually drive home."
Lily said nothing. Beside her, Grace's jaw tightened.
A young man came in then, work boots dusty at the toes, a folded brochure soft in one hand. He stood taking in the room like someone apologizing for existing. Derek clocked him at once.
"Deliveries are around the back," Derek called. "Through the service entrance, past the bays."
"I am not delivering anything," the young man said. "I had a question about the Meridian."
"Everything is on the website," Derek said, already turning back to his couple. "Rates, terms, all of it."
The young man nodded like someone who had expected this and hated being right, looked once at the Meridian, and started for the door.
"Excuse me," Grace said, and was at his side in three quick steps. "Hi. I am Grace. You had a question about financing?"
"I do not want to waste anyone's time," he said. "I am just looking. Saving, actually."
"Saving is how most buyers start," Grace told him. "Come sit down. I will pull the real numbers, not the brochure ones. No pressure."
"You sure?" he asked.
"I am sure. What is your name?"
"Daniel. Daniel Ortiz."
"Daniel, do you want coffee while we look? The machine and I have an understanding."
He laughed and followed her to her desk.
Lily drank her water and watched Daniel's shoulders come down inch by inch as Grace explained deposits and terms like ordinary things an ordinary person was allowed to understand. Across the floor Derek poured charm over his couple like syrup, glancing once toward Grace's desk with open irritation.
"You were watching all of that," Grace said later, back at her side.
"I was," Lily said.
"Most people only watch the cars."
"Most people are missing the actual show."
Grace looked at the clock. "Are you waiting for someone? You keep checking the time like the afternoon owes you an appointment."
"Something like that," Lily said. "Two o'clock. An old acquaintance."
"Anyone I should warn the coffee machine about?"
"No," Lily said, and smiled for the first time since morning. "Thank you for asking."
Grace collected the empty glass. "If he gives you any trouble, you come find me. I mean that."
"I believe you do," Lily said. "That is why I asked why you stay."
Grace shrugged. "Somebody here has to sell cars like people matter."
She went back to Daniel. Lily stayed by her father's car, and quietly waited.
Chapter 19: Arrival