Chapter 4

Between 2005 and 2008, Vincent lives a luxurious life as Jonathan Alkaitis’s lover. The two never actually marry, but they do exchange rings in order to project a sense of stability, which Alkaitis claims is important to his professional image. Vincent does not love Alkaitis, but she does respect him, and the two are happy enough together. In order to prevent herself from becoming vapid and listless, Vincent establishes a daily routine for herself: she gets up early in order to go for a run before traveling to Grand Central Station and exploring the city. Every night she swims in the pool at Alkaitis’s home because she feels she must overcome her fear of drowning.

Over the course of her relationship with Alkaitis, Vincent reflects on her past and her interests. She buys herself a new video camera so that she can continue a hobby from her youth in which she would film five-minute scenes of the water. 

Alkaitis introduces Vincent as his wife to a number of wealthy business associates and clients. The two also travel extensively. However, Vincent finds herself increasingly lonely, but this changes when she meets Mirella. Mirella is the lover of a Saudi prince named Faisal, who also happens to be one of Alkaitis’s investors. Like Vincent, Mirella was not born into money, and the two become good friends.

During dinner with one of Alkaitis’s main investors, a music producer named Lenny Xavier, Vincent begins to wonder if Alkaitis is hiding something from her. While Xavier talks about a young singer—Annika, from Baltica—who failed to “recognize an opportunity,” he vaguely references Alkaitis’s business model as an opportunity he could not pass up, which puts Alkaitis on edge. Vincent chooses not to think too much on it, as she does not want to sacrifice her own opportunity to live a financially secure life with Alkaitis.

Later, during a shopping trip, Mirella and Vincent reflect on the shallowness of wealth. As two people who did not come from wealthy origins, they have unique insight into how boring and pointless days spent endlessly shopping and luxuriating can be. However, they both find the idea of never having to worry about money intoxicatingly freeing. 

Chapter 5

Olivia Collins is a retired painter who once had some success as an artist, but she has spent most of her life poor and uninspired. She recalls a time when she was younger when she worked with and painted a portrait of Jonathan Alkaitis’s older brother, Lucas, who was also an artist. The two agreed to model for each other. The portrait she painted of Lucas depicted him with shadows on his arms, representative of his heroin addiction. Lucas was furious when he saw the piece, but he ended up overdosing several months later. Olivia met Jonathan briefly at one of Lucas’s shows, at which Olivia bluntly stated that she did not like Lucas’s work. This impression stuck with Jonathan, although he does not seem to hold the remark against Olivia. Olivia, however, feels guilty for having been so rude.

Jonathan and Olivia come back into contact decades later when Jonathan purchases Olivia’s portrait of Lucas at auction for $200,000. Olivia, unused to having that kind of money, decides to invest it in Jonathan’s company. Although Jonathan normally works with wealthier clients, he makes an exception for Olivia, since she makes him feel more connected to his brother. Shortly before Jonathan’s arrest, Olivia spends the day on a yacht with him and Vincent. Olivia remarks sadly that Vincent seems to be acting out a part in order to “dissolve” into Jonathan’s...