I show up at Achilles club thirty minutes late as per my agreement with Cassandra. The state of my apartment sends a chill down my spine and now I have to find a place to stay until I can find another apartment.
The scary part is how unsafe I feel. It is like someone was looking for something and they didn’t even try to make it discreet. Throughout my ride, I have had to continuously look back to confirm no one was following.
I have angered people in the past however, the fact that this coincidence with just a week after I met Cassandra… Something doesn’t sit right and now I have to be extra careful.
I am welcomed to the soundproof VIP section. I spot Cassandra and this time she is not alone as her assistant, Janine is with her.
“Wow! You look ludicrous!” She notes my formal attire that is long compared to my usual.
I ignore her remark and sit next to her assistant. We exchange pleasantries. She is either too serious or not fond of me. I choose the latter. It is the common denominator in most of my interactions with people.
“What will you have?” Cassandra asks and I give her a blank look. I am surprised she is not raining threats and blackmail on me. Her rushed meeting and the tone of her texts gave me the impression she was raging mad. Now I don’t know what to do with the speech that I had prepared if at all she would turn against me.
“Katerina!” She half shouts my name.
I shake my head coming back to reality, “Beer is fine.” I say.
“Beer?” Janine snorts, “Are you an old cheap man?” She sarcastically asks.
I don’t find offense in her words, I was ‘introduced’ to beers by an old cheap man, my Dad. I would occasionally steal from his pack when I was sure that night he was drunk enough not to remember, how many cans he took and the ones that remained unopened.
“You should respect the code about a woman and her choice of drink,” I state.
She raises her eyebrow skeptically but doesn’t say a word.
Cassandra calls one of the servers and places an order on my behalf.
“Did you do as I asked you?” She asks.
“I failed to convince Mr. Thorne to take me along,” I say even though I took some photos that may be useful to her.
I will hold on to them, they may be useful at some point.
“What did you say to my husband?” She hits me with another question. Her moods quickly transformed. I realize I was quick to make a judgment, my speech may be useful after all because I don’t see this ending otherwise.
“What do you mean?” I am confused or she wants me to come clean to her?
“My husband is having you investigated and with how quickly I was able to uncover your real identity. Imagine with his resources what he will be able to find out.” She says.
My body tenses, my eyes widen and I can feel my pace accelerating fast. I look up in the hopes that my drink has been brought and I can drown one quick. I should have known nothing good would amount when I allowed her to blackmail me. I have done so much and broken too many laws if that comes to light, I am ruined.
“I can counter his efforts by throwing his investigator into endless loops,” Cassandra speaks again and just like the first time, I can smell her blackmail from a mile away.
“In exchange for what?” I ask.
She smiles deviously, “Smart girl.” She comments. The guy that took my order returns and seems to be edgy as he places a tall glass with foam in front of me and a mojito in front of Jenine. He does a double take at Cassandra who throughout ignores his presence until he leaves.
She all of a sudden appears pale as her focus is on someone who enters. At first, I expect to turn and see her husband but when I do it is a scrawny man that is staring back at us.
“What is he doing here?” Janine asks.
“Who is he?” I find myself speaking out loud.
Cassandra doesn’t respond. She stands and walks towards the mysterious man. They seem to get into a heated argument until Cassandra pulls him by his hand towards the bartender’s counter and walks through a door that leads to the back.
When I turn back I find Janine silently watching me. She holds an odd expression.
I tap on my glass as awkwardness settles in the air.
“Did you enjoy Dubai?” She asks.
“I certainly did. It was my first visit abroad.”
“The perks of working for the Thorne’s.” She smiles.
“How long have you been with the Thorne’s?”
“Too long.” She jokes.
“Are you close to Cassandra?” I ask even though her presence in this meeting is evident they are.
She nods, “We met at…” She stops herself as if she is about to say something she is not allowed to, “We are.” She opts for a safe response.
She smiles at me and I return it with a fake one.
We are both relieved when Cassandra returns but she seems agitated. She remains standing, “Something came up, I will email you with the instructions.” She states.
“Instructions or blackmail?” I flatly state and she is not impressed.
“Make sure to follow them. You only have three weeks remaining.” She warns.
I sip my beer and nod.
“Come with me.” She turns to Janine and she bids me goodbye while Cassandra reminds me I can have anything I want.
I am about to remove my phone and try to find accommodation for the night when my half-sister sits in front of me. She is in a sexy black dress that can barely contain her ample breast — It runs in the family.
She has a huge grin on her face, “Hello?” She says.
“He-ll-o” I answer unsure why she is here and if she remembers me.
“I didn’t think I would see you, again” She smiles.
“Aren’t you too young to be in here?” I say even though her attire makes her look like an adult.
I make a mental note to raise the concern with Mr. Thorne about his club allowing underage kids in.
She looks like our mother and inherited the tall gene too. She still holds a huge grin. She’s too perky for someone related to me. Probably got that from her father.
“You called out my name the other night.” She states.
So she remembers our interaction. I never thought I would be face-to-face with her. I had no interest in knowing her or her and the rest of her siblings knowing me. I was content watching from afar.
“I must have heard someone call you that.” I lie.
“I come here too often and I have never used my real name.” She eyes me.
Again I am caught in my lie and I can’t tell her the truth that I am her sister. The one our mother abandoned and went to start a new family, wiping my existence away from her memory.
“It must have been a lucky guess.”
“You took me home, another luck guess you know where I live?” She asks.
Somehow I can’t stop staring at her. It feels so unreal that she is seated in front of me.
“Who are you?” She asks when I just stay silent.
“Consider me a guardian angel,” I say, standing. “I can escort you home.” I offer.
She scoffs in disbelief, “You haven’t answered any of my questions and you think I can trust you?”
She stands and I watch her swing her hips as she walks over to a group of middle age men. I change my mind and decide to sit and keep an eye on her to make sure she gets home.
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