Chapter 31
elaine
The house kept busy as we prepared for the event. Vera worked with her contacts while Petra was out on field work, and my heart swelled seeing how much Caitlyn was coming into her own, getting to help with the computer systems.
Jenna and I helped look after the others—Petra in particular was always getting into scrapes, coming back with bumps and bruises, and I was a good cook, so I got to pitch in for everybody, even though Vera offered to just hire a cook and spare us the trouble. It felt like the least I could do.
Clara got settled, finding her way around the house more easily, and she got some light back in her eyes and some luster in her fur as we got her diet sorted out. She still stuck to Vera—I think she could tell Vera had saved her, that night we met, and she was as grateful as I was.
Days flew by as the preparation settled in. Vera took point on everything, getting our alibis and our disguises sorted, getting in touch with the right contacts, occasionally slipping out for fieldwork to set the stage.
And I would be waiting for her when she got back tense and ready to work off her adrenaline. It was getting so natural now to respond to her desires that my body was getting to it faster than my mind was, like I could just sense when she needed it and I was ready for her right away.
I didn’t even recognize myself these days. She took me in the bedroom, in the kitchen, in the back garden, or even bent over the balcony. All I knew was yes. It was the only thing I ever wanted to know.
Before I knew it, I was dressed for the event, mask in hand, and Caitlyn gave me a hug at the door.
“I’ll be supporting you from back here,” she said. “Good luck, okay? Stay safe.”
“You too.” I squeezed her. “I’m glad you’re here.”
She giggled. “Your wife is a good host.”
“Well, that’s…” I blushed, and she laughed.
“I’ve seen the eyes you two make at each other.”
“Caitlyn!” I shook my head. “It could never really work.”
“As long as you’re happy right now, I’m happy.”
Petra leaned in the door behind me. “You coming, princess?”
I stood up, turning back and brushing my dress down. “I’m ready. Let’s go.”
“Don’t break anything, Petra,” Caitlyn teased, and Petra folded her arms.
“I’m gonna be in the car. What would I even break?”
“Some passing girl’s heart.”
“Eh. No promises. Get a move on, Elaine. Your terrible wife’s in the car.”
“She’s not terrible!”
Petra ushered me along.
Petra’s car was nice, by all appearances a sleek luxury sedan on the outside, retrofitted and decked out with a mobile tech lab on the inside, tinted windows and a hidden compartment where Vera was storing her handgun when I got in the backseat next to her.
She wore a stunning black tuxedo suit with a deep crimson bowtie, her hair styled back sleekly, and dark makeup that made her gaze look sharper, the long pinkish line of her scar cutting through it. She looked appreciatively at me when I got in the car.
“Aren’t I lucky to be showing up with a wife like this?” she said, her voice low. I put a hand on her knee.
“You flatter me, Constance.”
“You’d better not spend the whole night saying it with that emphasis.”
I laughed. “I can be inconspicuous.”
“Enough flirting,” Petra said from the front, starting the car. “We’re moving.”
“Do we know what we’re looking for in there?” I said. Vera nodded.
“I was able to pin down the information buyer, as well as track down his costume. He’s going to be wearing a mask with a lion design. His name’s Peter, but he’s going by Scarborough tonight. I’ll get you an opportunity to eavesdrop on their conversation.”
Soon, we pulled up to the convention center, an old building in the city center with a classical style.
Banners hung down over the front columns advertising the event tonight—on the face of it, a fundraiser gala for the Renaissance art museum.
Petra drove us around to the back, where she turned around and clapped Vera on the shoulder.
“You mess up in there, and I’m gonna kill you,” she said. Vera snorted, putting on her mask, a simple one that covered her scar and her eyes.
“I’m not going to mess up. Be ready to drive the instant we’re back in the car.”
“I’m on it. What do you think I’m here for?”
“Okay, you two, enough arguing,” I said, and I stepped out of the car. Vera joined me, leaving her weapon inside—secret metal detectors, she’d warned me. No guns. But Vera herself was already a deadly weapon.
She took my hand, leading me towards the back entrance, and a security guard in a neat uniform nodded when Vera flashed an invite, gesturing us upstairs.
We went up a red-carpeted staircase and into a glimmering ballroom that took my breath away.
The lights were low, glimmering chandelier glows that danced on polished wood floors, and people in stunning outfits filled the space, talking and laughing together, each with their own mask.
My amazement must have been obvious even behind my mask, because Vera squeezed my hand.
“Remember, act like you belong here,” she whispered.
“It’s beautiful, though.”
“Never liked these kinds of things.” She paused. “Might reconsider if my wife likes them, though.”
I laughed nervously, sticking closer to her side as we approached the party. We said hello to a woman in a golden dress and a grand, feathered mask, the organizer, who showed us the rows of food, the dance floor, the quiet rooms off to the side.
“The Centauri room is private,” she said, “but the rest, you may use as you please.”
“How do we book the Centauri room ourselves?” Vera said, and she gave us an apologetic smile.
“I’m afraid you have to have an invitation,” she said, and Vera nodded. Once we were alone at the end of the food table, she whispered to me.
“So, there we are.”
“You think Peter is going to be in the Centauri room.”
“If someone’s buying from Glenn, on that kind of scale, it has to be. They wouldn’t skimp out on safety.”
“So there must be some protection… soundproofing on the room.”
She nodded, picking up a knife from the cutlery supplies and pocketing it discreetly. “I’ll slip into an adjacent room and… do a little damage. You stay here and see if you can find Peter.”
“Will do. Good luck.” I didn’t know what possessed me to do it, but I leaned in and kissed her on the cheek, our masks touching. She stopped, glancing at me, and I blushed, not able to read her expression behind the mask.
It was silly to be embarrassed, given the kinds of things we did, but… that was just helping Vera fulfill her needs. A little kiss like that?
“Just… playing the part,” I said sheepishly.
She smirked, and she took my chin in her hand, tilting me up and pressing a kiss to my lips before she pulled away, leaving me reeling.
“I’ll miss you,” she said huskily, and I held onto the table breathing fast as I nodded, looking for words.
I didn’t find any. She turned away, and it took me a minute to remember how to walk.
I couldn’t start falling for Vera. I was only in this situation while the South Yard was still relevant. Once it was over, our contract was finished, and Vera wouldn’t have any reason to keep protecting me, and we’d be out of each other’s lives.
But the eye mask wasn’t the only mask of hers that I’d seen behind. And I kept wanting to see more.
It didn’t take me long to find Peter, his mask a dark gold that was carved into a lion’s face, dramatic and stunning, and he was talking to a small group who seemed to hang onto his every word before I drifted by.
He turned to me, and even with the mask covering his whole face, I could tell the way he smiled.
“Well, well,” he said. “Who’s this? I haven’t seen you tonight. And trust me, I’d remember.”
I swallowed hard. He was probably twenty years older than me, at least…
but I couldn’t make a scene now, no matter how uncomfortable the flirting made me.
I smiled at him while I subtly flashed my wedding ring, folding my hands on the table.
“My wife and I only just arrived a bit ago,” I said.
“It’s nice to meet you. Call me Valentina. ”
He chuckled, looking at his posse. “How about that?” he said. “This one’s got a wife. I don’t see her with you.”
“She’s in the bathroom…”
“In the bathroom, or off flirting with someone else?” He chuckled, and his group laughed with him.
I shrank, feeling weak in front of all of them, and he reached out and put a sweaty-palmed hand down on top of mine.
“Don’t worry, sweetheart. What happens tonight stays at this party.
That’s the fun of a masked ball, isn’t it? ”
I felt like I would throw up, but I forced myself to smile. “Is that what brings you here tonight, then? Looking for tonight to be forgotten?”
“I’ve got some business,” he said. “But a pretty girl like you doesn’t need to worry about that. How long have you and your wife been together?”
“Three years.” I went with the first lie to mind, and he whistled.
“That’s a long time to go without,” he said.
“Without what?” I tried to pull my hand away, and he held onto my wrist.
“Without a real experience. Am I right?” he said to his friends, and they all cheered for him. I felt dizzy, my heart racing, as he pulled on me. “Come on, sweetheart. I’ll show you one of the quiet rooms.”
I tried to pull away, but his grip on me was like steel. “I’m sorry, I just… I should be getting back to my wife,” I blurted, lighthearted and weak.
He pulled me in closer, and he put his hand on my hip. “I’ll make you forget all about your wife,” he said, and I felt myself pooling with panic as I tried to pull away—until a shape darted in between us, and in an instant, Vera was there, holding Peter by the wrist.
“Pardon me,” she said, her voice glowing with quiet rage. “You seem to have confused my wife for somebody else.”