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"I like your shoes." Shiv murmured, looking down to survey Cora's heels. They had just boarded one of the elevators, en route to the upper levels of Waystar Royco. With the ascent, Cora's stomach had given a sharp lurch.

Already she was out of her depth. The moment she had left the cafe, she'd rushed back to Saks in a stress-induced frenzy to scan the racks for something more appropriate than her wardrobe of tight evening gowns and cocktail dresses. She'd bought the first items she'd laid eyes on - an off-white blazer dress, trimmed with blue thread that cinched at the waist and a pair of navy pumps.

Now spying herself in steely reflection of the elevator doors, Cora could have kicked herself. Standing beside Shiv, who wore a turtle neck and pair of tasteful grey slacks, she looked like more like she was shooting a workwear edit for a fashion spread, and certainly not like someone who could handle sitting through a meeting.

"Thanks, they're from Casablancas."

"Ooh, Casablancas." Shiv repeated, and Cora could tell by the tone of her voice that her eyebrows had risen.

"Uh huh." Cora replied, perhaps a little sharply.

"Relax, Cora. Like I said yesterday, you barely have to do anything. Think of it as a favour."

A favour, sure, but did she really owe the Roys one?

Cora ran a hand through her hair, which hung limp around her shoulders, still slightly damp from a rushed morning shower. She'd barely slept the night before considering that very question, tossing and turning. Her presence at Waystar was not a testament to her finding an answer, in fact it was quite the opposite. She had at least figured out a way to make a decision, but that meant turning up at the office, much to her chagrin.

The elevator dinged as they arrived at their destination. Shiv took the lead. The outside floor appeared at first glance to be open plan, though quickly Cora's eyes caught the large glass panels that sectioned off each space and the strip of coiled blinds that hung above them, ready to unfurl. Through walls and windows of glass, a panoramic view of New York spread out at every direction. They were high above the city, a storey or two from the heavens. It would take her a while to acclimatise to the altitude.

As they rounded a corner, Shiv rattling off directions to the toilets and where Cora could find something to eat and drink, Kendall appeared from the inside of one of the offices. One hand clutched a takeaway cup of coffee, the other shoved deep into the pocket of his trousers. Something about the way he held himself was stilted, and he couldn't quite meet Cora's eye. He leaned against the glass edge of his door frame, nodding towards them both.

"Hello, you two."

"Hey Ken. Just showing Cora around the office. She's in for the day."

"Yeah, I can see that." He forced his gaze to Cora's before dipping to assess her outfit. "How are you holding up?"

"Yeah, yeah, fine. Just keeping busy."

"Uh huh. Yeah, look, we have the best doctors taking care of him, he's in the best wing of the hospital too. Same wing dad was in." Kendall took a sip of his coffee. "Frank's an ox, he'll pull through. Until then, though, it's good having you back around."

"Care to elaborate why?" Shiv interjected, annoyance underscoring her words. Kendall opened his mouth, his eyes flickering to something behind Shiv, gesturing over her shoulder. Shiv followed his gaze. Across the way, Logan Roy was leaning out of his office, looking expectantly towards his daughter.

"Pinky! I need a word."

His voice was gruff as ever, and Cora felt herself reflexively straightening her posture. Logan had always made her nervous, and she'd never managed to get over the terror she had felt toward him in her youth. It seemed he'd only gotten harder with age, his brow set in a harsh line across his face. She was thankful when he only shot her a cursory glance, retracting himself back into his office as Shiv exhaled sharply beneath her breath.

"I gotta go talk to dad, sorry Cora." She turned towards her brother. "You don't seem occupied right now."

"Are you asking me if I'm busy?" He replied, raising an eyebrow. "I can look after her."

"Yeah, thanks." Shiv nodded to Cora. "I'll be back with you soon."

As Shiv moved away from the pair, silence settled before them. Despite the chill from the AC, a droplet of sweat run down the back of her neck as she shifted nervously from side to side. Like the shadow of migraine, the memory of when she'd last seem him seized her skull.

"So." Kendall raised his eyebrows. "You're here."

"I am." Unable to think of what to follow up with, she turned to a familiar topic. "I heard you went to rehab."

Kendall chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Shiv likes to talk."

"Mmhmm. I guess we're twinning though, because I als-"

"Went to rehab, yeah. I know." Kendall's eyes flickered upwards to meet Cora's. She felt a sensation almost like an electric shock pulse through her chest. "What did you go in for? If you don't mind my asking."

Cora pulled her eyes away and pretended to smooth down the bottom of her dress.

"A bit of everything, but probably the same thing as you."

"So you kept up with it."

It was not a question, but a statement. The air between them felt suddenly tense. Cora knew she should try to laugh to break the tension, instead she found her jaw tensing at the wound he had poked.

"I guess you could say you had a lasting impact on me."

"Cordelia! Almost didn't recognise you. I thought for a second Kendall gave his escort the wrong address."

Cora's shoulders sagged from relief, a short moment of respite as she realised it was Roman who had spoken. He was distinctly upbeat in comparison to when she had last seen him, striding forward, his chest puffed outwards as he swung his arms by his side. He dressed casually in comparison to Kendall, but the assured grin on his lips and his robust posture provided as much authority as a suit and tie.

He slapped a hand against Kendall's shoulder, his eyes taking a moment to brazenly roam up and down her body. Cora opened her mouth to reply before stopped at the arrival of a very tall and youthful man, who towered over the group with his lanky figure. Cora placed him quickly as having been at the hospital.

He seemed to recognise Cora instantly, his face lighting up, bushy eyebrows ascending. His mouth spread into a goofy smile, almost like an excited puppy.

"Oh, h-hey! I didn't know you'd be here." He nodded his head towards Cora. "Kendall's new assistant, right? Hi."

"I-" Cora frowned. "I'm not Kendall's assistant."

Roman snorted, folding his arms over his chest.

"What's this nonsense you're spewing, Greg?"

Confusion frosted over Greg's features. Panicked eyes flickering between the three at a dizzying pace, stopped only to let his jaw fall slack.

"Uh, I might've received shonky intel then because everyone's been tol-"

"Let me guess." Kendall interjected. "Tom."

Greg nodded enthusiastically. Despite the clarification, Cora grew all the more confused. The Roys had always been insular. It felt irregular that someone so blatantly incompetent could deign to approach the brothers, regardless of Cora's presence.

"Wait, sorry, who are you?"

"This is Cousin Greg."

Roman motioned towards him, using the excuse to turn away from the man. His distaste was unhidden, both in his tone and his expression. Greg bowed towards Cora before extending a hand.

"Uh, yeah Greg here." He chuckled awkwardly as he shook Cora's hand. His hands were strangely soft, palms silken and pillowy. "Nice to meet you. I have ... Not really heard too much about you, and what I have heard was a lie, but totally excited to learn more."

"Nice to meet you too. So, uh, what is it that you do at Waystar? Are you on the board too?"

Greg gave a nervous snort, scratching his ear, both of which had gone bright red. Roman shook his head, clamping a hand on Greg's shoulder at considerable effort. Of the group, Roman stood noticeably the shortest.

"No, no. Greg here, he's ... He does ... Honestly, man, I have no idea what you do here."

A dark haired man appeared then on Greg's other side, wearing a wide grin, though it looked to be a smile made in pain rather than pleasure. Cora placed him instantly. Tom Wambsgans, Shiv's husband. Tom placed a hand on Greg's other shoulder, a gesture that made Greg visibly tense.

"Greg here is the gentle giant of the office, so to speak. He guards the water cooler and makes sure no one pinches my lunch from the fridge." Tom let out a forced chuckle.

"Uh, do you think the word giant is maybe ... Like, I don't know, it might be considered ... You know, um, a little-"

"Oh what, Greg, are you offended? Need to have a whinge to HR? Gonna tweet about it and hashtag it with 'microaggression'? Get real."

Tom suddenly pulled his hand away from Greg's shoulder and folded his arms against his chest. Cora didn't quite know what she was witnessing but suffice to say, it was giving her a headache. She cleared her throat, extending a hand for Tom to shake.

"Hi Tom, I don't think we've formally met, but I did get your voicemails."

Tom coughed sharply and reached a hand forward. He gripped her roughly, and shook so hard she thought he might pull her arm clean from the socket.

"Oh yes, yes, yes sorry about that. Was just trying to help the family out."

"Uh huh, of course."

She found herself considering the consequences of addressing Greg's earlier comment. Perhaps it would be kicking the hornets nest. She had never worked in a corporate environment before, but she knew enough to know that it was a boys club, that speaking up could brand you as a prude, too sensitive, even weak. Before she could make the decision for herself, Kendall leapt at the opportunity.

"Hey Tom, we just heard from Greg that you've been telling everyone in the office that Cora is my new assistant."

Tom beamed at Kendall's words, giving an enthusiastic nod.

"Yes, I thought it would be a bit of fun, just a little light hazing for our brand new board member."

"Uh, no, it's not a bit of light fun, because people are actually believing it."

"Yeah, I mean I-I believed it and, yeah, I'm usually ... Usually really quick on my toes with tha-" Greg began.

Tom's voice cut over him. "Wait, hang on, what's wrong with telling people she's your assistant?"

"It's a bit," Kendall paused, lowering his voice. When he spoke again, it was with an air of caution. "Sexist."

Tom frowned, the words clearly sinking in. After a moment, he gave a loud chuckle.

"Oh, sexist! No, no I'm not a sexist. No, really, I believe women can do and be anything. Receptionists, teachers, nannies, uh, nurses, waitr-"

"Maids, strippers, sex slaves." Roman interjected, nodding enthusiastically.

"Se-" Tom frowned. "Come on now, Roman, that's not very PC."

"Ah, but if it were Tom, you'd add it to the list, wouldn't you?"

Tom waved his hand in dismissal.

"I'm sorry Cora, I didn't really think anything of it. Anyway, I'm off now, so you can all rest assured that no one will be discriminated against anymore. Come on Greg, we have work to do."

They watched as Tom turned on his heel and stalked off down the corridor towards the elevator. Greg shot the group an apologetic look before quickly following in his tow. When they were out of earshot, Roman huffed a sigh.

"'No one will be discriminated against more'. He underestimates me."

"Would you mind keeping it down?" Kendall muttered. "Someone's going to eventually take something you say the wrong way. Don't need a Twitter firestorm on our plate."

"C'mon Ken, really?" Roman snorted, beginning to pace away from them backwards. He spread his arms wide, gesturing towards his body. "The only person who's getting harassed is this chunk of human excellence. I keep telling you, everyone wants a piece of the Romanator."

"Go do some work." Kendall rolled his eyes.

"Uh, I'll think about it." Roman smirked, quickly pointing a finger at Cora. "We'll see you at lunch, right?"

Cora nodded. Roman shot her a wink, before turning around and skipping towards his office door. She turned back to Kendall, who pursed his lips apologetically.

"So, uh-"

"Anywa-"

Their words crossed over one another, mouths clamping shut at the sudden appearance of Gerri by Cora's side. The older woman was dressed in a matching pantsuit, elegantly cut and in a shade of muted dark blue.

She hadn't seen Gerri in person since her mother's funeral, but arguably she was the person who Cora had stayed in touch with the longest. Gerri would message her from time to time to check in, and had always had a kind word for Cora, albeit with a hint of firmness. Gerri had been the one to schedule Cora's rehab trip after she'd hit rock bottom, no doubt a favour for Frank. Looking at her now, Cora felt her throat grow tense with emotions that she hadn't known she was nursing, washing over her like a tidal wave.

"Well, look at you. All grown up. It's good to see you again."

"You too, Ger. Thanks for everything, by the way."

Gerri waved a hand.

"It's not a problem. I promised your mother I'd always keep an eye out for you."

"Mm, yeah of course."

Cora quickly became aware that Kendall was still standing nearby. Gerri sensed her discomfort, turning towards the man to produce a thin smile.

"We might just take this conversation elsewhere if you don't mind, Ken. A little catching up is in order."

"Oh, yeah. Sure. Yeah. Uh, Cora, if you need anything, my office is just over ..." he paused to gesture to one of the larger spaces, walled off by glass. Cora nodded.

"Yeah, sure. Thanks Ken."

"Not a problem."

She followed Gerri to her office, attempting to ignore the hammering in her chest. As she seated herself opposite Gerri, looking at her over a desk made of dark wood, she found herself fiddling with the hem of her dress.

"So, how are you going? I heard a little from your doctors at the clinic. They said you did quite well. Do you have a sponsor?"

"I did. He acted a bit ... Weird towards me."

Very weird, actually. It was like he had been wanting to give her an excuse to flake. She'd held tight but had stopped returning his calls. Eventually that extended to the clinic itself. She could do this on her own, she assured herself, how hard could it be?

"I suppose you haven't found a replacement."

"I'm doing fine. Well even."

Gerri smiled, thin this time, before readjusting her glasses.

"You were. But you're not stupid, Cora. This is familiar territory. Maybe too familiar."

Her words stung but Cora knew they were true. Just from her introduction to the office, she'd felt transported back in time. Old friends, old circumstances, and that familiar itch. She'd barely been in the Waystar building for an hour and already she was on edge. Cora found her eyes drifting out the window, lingering on the skyline of New York, tracing the skyscrapers like the waves of a heartbeat monitor. Her chest ached in dull reminder. It hadn't been all that long ago since her vice had gotten the better of her.

"Yeah." Her voice was soft and gauzy. "But I just have to sit on the board until Frank gets better, right? That's not so hard."

"Right ... But Cordelia, what's best for you? Be honest with yourself." Gerri gazed over the rim of her glasses. "Think about it. Right now, you're doing them a very big favour with very little in return."

Cora let the words hang in the air. What could she possibly want? She was the heir of an oil barron's son, the daughter of a mother whose crowning achievement was marrying into the world's most pervasive media conglomerate. Money would never be an issue for her, nor would status. But purpose? Another question entirely.

"Something for yourself would be a good start." She sighed, an edge of exasperation to her tone. "This company, this family ... It's a den of thieves. And you can't hope to do anything but play the fool if you don't consider scavenging something for yourself."

"I just ... I don't know what I could even ask for."

"What do you want? Not just from Waystar or this situation. From life."

Cora opened her mouth, pausing to consider the question. She found herself stammering, eyes cast down to her feet. When she was an addict, all she had wanted from life was to feel numb, to not have to acknowledge the chaos in her life, the messes she had made. Ever since she had left rehab, it was as though she was floating through life in a dream, slowly rebuilding something that had barely been there to begin with. She'd lost herself at 18 after all, she'd barely gotten to know herself when she was sober.

"I guess I just ... Want ... To matter, or whatever. To matter again." Her eyes flickered back to Gerri as here face flushed, hard. Quickly she coughed, squirming a little in her chair. "But that doesn't really mean anything."

"You can make it mean something, Cora." Gerri replied, her voice firm. "You can make something of yourself. You just need to do ... A little negotiating."

≪ °❈° ≫

Lunch was in a restaurant a stone's throw from the Waystar building, an Italian place where they were seated promptly and then harassed to order every five minutes thereafter. Cora settled on a garden salad, her stomach still a mess from the beginning of the day. Since her meeting with Gerri, she'd been mistaken as Kendall's assistant by at least five other employees, and it was beginning to feel less mortifying and more a source of growing frustration.

At the table in the restaurant, she found herself seated between Shiv and Greg, directly across from Kendall, who kept shooting her furtive yet entirely conspicuous glances. Save for herself, everyone at the table ordered white wine, and it was hard to not feel embarrassed for her paltry glass of orange juice. Most of the conversation at the table was between Roman and Shiv, who bounced off each other uninterrupted, with Tom and Greg adding commentary or asking questions in between. Kendall was surprisingly quiet, and by the time Cora was left with only dregs of salad dressing left in her bowl, she had gained the impression that whatever had happened during Kendall's coup had caused a rupture that was yet to be mended.

Cora opted to observe, adrenaline still pulsing through her veins. It wasn't until Tom looked her way from across the table, expectancy dancing in his blue eyes, that she felt prompted to speak.

"So, Cora, does this mean you're staying on at Waystar?"

A hush fell over the table at the question. Cora squirmed uncomfortably in her seat. Something for yourself, a den of thieves, Gerri's words circled around themselves in her mind as she considered her answer. She ran her tongue against her lips, pursing them. In her lap, her hands folded upon themselves, nails pressing harsh against the back of her hand. She felt stripped by the attention as though she sat before them in stark nudity. She supposed she was just as defenceless.

"I've been thinking about that. And I think I might, yes. If I can be granted some kind of security after Frank leaves his coma. A position."

The moment the words left her lips, she could feel the mood at the table shifting. Tom's eyebrows rose quickly, Roman's lips parted, Kendall's gaze fell to the table. From her peripheral vision, she could see Shiv opening her mouth, a scoff ringing out, followed by breathy laughter. The only person who didn't react was Greg, who was still slowly eating his penne, chewing methodically and studying his fork as he did so.

"Wait, hang on. Let me get this clear." Shiv's voice was stilted as she spoke, and Cora could tell she was holding back some condemnation towards Cora's sentiment. "You want to work at Waystar? For my dad? With us?"

"I mean, yeah. I wan-"

"No offense Cora, but you haven't worked a day in your life."

"That's no-"

"Standing around promoting clubs and getting papped leaving limos isn't work." Shiv said quickly, and Cora felt a harsh sting in her chest.

Roman reclined in his chair, balancing on the back legs as his hands steadied himself mid-tilt. He didn't look up as he spoke, keeping his eyes fixed on his knuckles.

"You're telling me that someone so rich that they could retire this very second and spend the rest of their life collecting tasteful paintings of women's breasts wants to work in corporate America?"

"Couldn't I say the same thing for you?"

A snicker broke from Roman's lips, nodding his head to no one in particular.

"You're not wrong."

"And what kind of job would you have?" Shiv muttered, ignoring her brother.

"I guess you'll just have to figure that out along the way."

Was this really a controversial statement? After all, what exactly was she getting from their arrangement? The answer was nothing. No one knew how long Frank's coma would last, it could be a month or it could be three years. Either way, Cora was signing away her life for an undetermined amount of time. Even if Cora hadn't been sure if she wanted a job at Waystar before, her stubbornness was kicking in.

"I'm scratching your back. The saying says something about you guys returning the favour, right?"

Shiv scoffed, but before she could speak again, Kendall stirred. His gazed fixed with Cora's as he nodded slowly, and Cora swallowed down the urge to deny him the exchange. When he spoke, his voice was firm.

"I'll talk to dad, see what we can do."

"Ken-"

"She's right, Shiv. She's doing us a favour. It's only right we do the same." His eyes flickered to Shiv and she quietened, Kendall's gaze returning to Cora as he continued. "You won't leave empty handed, I promise."

I promise, I promise, I promise. The words echoed inside Cora's skull as though it were made of concrete. Her gaze said 'remember what happened the last time you promised?' but she held her tongue. Still, her thoughts refused to silence.

Remember what happened the last time you looked me in the eye?