Chapter 47
Gatsby
I had her all to myself for two months. Two beautiful months of her exquisiteness in my heart, my arms, and bed. Anything and everything she wanted to do, we did. We ignored all calendars and schedules in favor of enjoying the time together that we knew, with each passing day, was dwindling. Even though she'd sworn up and down that when Max returned, she was returning his ring to him, I had my doubts. Mostly because since I'd given it back, she hadn't taken it off.
"We have selected a production," she told me one early morning as we walked along the beach. "It's called Checkmate, and it's one of my favorites. I championed for it, so it was a nice surprise to see the announcement."
"I can't wait to see it," I told her.
"We start rehearsal at the Theater next week. You should come. You are the owner of the building, after all. I'm sure the owner would take interest in the show."
She'd read my mind.
"That is why I bought the place. "
She laughed. "You're telling me now that you didn't have a passion for old, run-down theaters?"
"I guess the truth is out." I put my hands up in innocence. "I just wanted to impress a pretty girl."
"Color me impressed." She leaned up to kiss me. "Although, I was impressed long before this. You could have two pennies in your pocket and I'd still choose you, every time."
I joined her at the Theater that evening, although we took separate vehicles; her with Tuth, and me being driven by Dewayne. I went through the back, talking to her Madame, and some of the other staff that had been hired recently. With renovations almost completely finished, I needed to get people trained. I shook hands and greeted new faces, all the while keeping an eye on the ballerinas floating by to get to the stage.
Where was she—Oh.
At last, she entered in a green leotard. Even with no makeup and her hair pulled back rigidly tight, she was still so, so beautiful.
Once I'd done all the things an owner would do, I made my way to the balcony, where I watched them practice. She was so graceful, and it was easy to see why she'd been chosen as Prima Ballerina. She was the only one not being scolded. Her moves were perfect, and she was able to adjust to each partner she was asked to try out.
It was all so fascinating, watching her at work. Her face was so focused, and her silly, normal self was placed aside in favor of getting her job done and showing her Madame her best work. It only made me love her more, seeing her so passionate about ballet.
When they had a break, I hurried down to try to sneak some time with her, but Madame De La Rosa caught me to ask me my thoughts on their rehearsal thus far. I tried to focus and engage, but Daisy was on my mind, and the ticking clock was ringing loudly in my ears. I managed to get away and as I started toward the dressing rooms, I saw a group of dancers huddled around one of their friends. I recognized the hair and leotard before anything else, and as much as I wanted to comfort her, it would seem odd that I, a stranger, would do so. I paused and stepped behind a large column.
"What's wrong, Lilly?" a woman asked.
Lilly? It wasn't Daisy?
Oh, Lilly was Max's mistress, I remembered..
"Clarke just got fired again." The Daisy look-alike lifted her head, and I saw her up close for the first time. Sure, there were some resemblances, but only from a distance. She wailed again and threw her head back down. "He's going to get put on a list."
"Why? What happened?" a concerned friend asked as they all moved closer to comfort the crying ballerina.
"They were all out after work at the bar, and he got into a fight with someone else. And of course, my stupid husband had to escalate it. He pulled out his gun and everyone freaked out. I told him I hate when he drinks."
Her problems, while sad, didn't concern me. I slid through the darkness to Daisy's room. I knocked, but there was no answer. I tried the handle and found it unlocked. Opening it, I was disappointed to see she wasn't inside. Rehearsal restarted a moment later, and I had to decide whether to go watch or sit and wait. Not wanting to miss her again, I opted to stay inside her dressing room until she was done.
The moment she opened the door, I flew to her, lifting her up in the air and spinning her.
"Oh, did you want to become a dancer now, too?" she teased after I put her down.
"I could never in a million years do what you do. You are incredible out there, Daisy." I kissed her, my tongue finding hers and gently caressing it. I pressed my body against her so she could feel how hard I was when suddenly a knock came followed by the door opening.
"Daisy—Oh!"
Our bodies froze, but our heads turned to see Lilly, of all people, at the door. She stared at us in a full embrace and blinked.
"I see."
Daisy yanked herself from me, and Lilly quickly shut the door. I rushed after the ballerina.
"Lilly!" I reached my arm out as I followed. She speed-walked through the backstage, past all of the dressing rooms, bathrooms, and other places she should have gone. I called her name again and she spun around.
"Don't come near me." She pointed and glared.
I stopped, hands raised, and looked around, realizing she’d dragged us into a dark corner.
"I just want to talk," I said calmly.
"There's nothing to talk about. I saw you with Daisy. Are you wanting to know if I'll tell Max or not? Your secret is safe with me as long as you do me a favor."
"Anything," I answered. While I knew eventually the truth would all be laid out, Max needed to hear it from Daisy, not anyone else.
"My husband needs a job. I was coming to ask Daisy to talk to you about it because she was the reason we booked this place, anyway. Now I see how she did it." She smirked and crossed her arms. "What a little hypocrite."
"Your husband needs a job," I redirected.
"Yes. A good paying one. He just got fired by the construction company working on this building."
I nodded. "Done. Bring him tomorrow; I'll put him to work somewhere else."
She stared at me for a long moment, and I opened my mouth to ask if we were done, but she spoke instead.
"You don't remember me, do you?"
I shook my head. "Should I? I'm sorry I don't."
"You were a military brat. So was I."
My blood chilled. That was Emile's life, not Gatsby's.
"Oh? What base?"
"Fort Riley. Well, that's the only one I spent any good amount of time at. There was one year my dad really wanted to pretend he was a family man to my stepmom, so he made me spend a summer with him."
I rubbed the back of my neck nervously.
"Cool. People came and went all the time; it's hard to remember everyone."
"Oh, absolutely. I'm not surprised you don't remember me. The only reason I remember you is because you were friends with my stepbrother, Darren. You came around a bunch and then stopped. When I asked him why, he'd said you'd gotten a summer job."
The air around me grew hot, and I felt like I was suffocating. Lilly stepped forward slowly, a grin spreading over her face so wide it was horrifying.
"You remember Darren, don't you?"
"I do." A bead of sweat fell from my forehead. I needed to get out of here. Something wasn't right.
"But I bet you remember my stepmom, Erica, more, don't you? "
I didn't answer, but the guilt was clear on my face. Everyone on base knew what my mom was making me do. It was the secret that wasn't a real secret. Much like the list of women who came to our house.
"You hear what happened to her?"
"No, what?" I asked, my breathing ragged. My heart felt like it was going to explode out of my body. Lilly came close and ran a finger down my sweaty chest. She stood on her tiptoes to whisper the most chilling words in my ears.
"She went missing, along with a bunch of other military wives. I was told, when they found her body, the man doing the autopsy said it looked like an animal had tried to eat her. Do you remember that, Emile Dumas?"