Warma had jumped out of his seat, eyes glued to the file in his hands. His sudden outburst startled a few nearby customers in the café, drawing curious stares.
Embarrassed, he quickly sat back down across from Max, who remained completely calm, casually taking another sip from his drink.
"This number…" Warma muttered, still staring down at the page. "This can't be real. You're playing some kind of joke on me, aren't you, kid?"
He looked up, disbelief written all over his face.
"I can't believe kids these days. Was my daughter in on this? Did Cindy put you up to this?"
Max smiled slightly as he looked Warma straight in the eyes.
"I liked your reaction," Max said. "And I liked that your first instinct was to think it couldn't be real. That's exactly how I want people to think."
He leaned forward, his voice calm but confident.
