Chapter 8
The district attorney's office was in a building as old as time itself.
The building had been preserved and maintained over the years, but in spite of the necessary renovations, the additions, the roof being replaced due to the ravages of a very mean and ugly storm, it stood graceful and strangely dignified, like an old woman past her prime.
Kara wasn't thinking about that, nor was she mindful of the bracing fall air and the trees waving in the stiff breeze. She had spent most of last night going through her clothing, discarding and deciding what was worth keeping.
Today, she marched inside, nodded to several employees, and ignored the appreciative looks from the males, not stopping until she turned toward the left at the long, narrow hallway that led to Abigail's office. Her assistant was absent, no doubt making a coffee run or out on an errand.
Good, Kara thought in relief. She needed a few minutes alone with her friend.
Knocking on the door, she pushed it open when she was ordered to enter and saw Abigail behind her big, scarred desk surrounded by case files.
She looked up briefly before leafing through a file. "Good, you're here. I just need-"
She looked up again and blinked, eyes roving over the snug-fitting teal blue cashmere dress and supple black leather boots.
"Well." Amusement and admiration coated her voice as she leaned back in her creaky leather chair. "Someone has seen the light."
"And it's about to get brighter." Kara pressed a hand on her jittery stomach and sat. "I need your help."
"Of course you do." Shifting, Abigail leaned on the desk and clasped her hands. "Precisely how?"
"I took most of my clothing to Goodwill. Some to a thrift store on Main Street."
"I see." With pursed lips, Abigail studied the older woman. "And?"
"I need an entire new wardrobe. A makeover." She lifted a hand to her hair. "Highlights, red tints and a trim, nothing too drastic. And a facial, pedi and mani. The works."
Abigail's eyes gleamed. "What brought this on?"
"William proposed last night at dinner with my mother there."
Abigail's eyes flew to her left hand.
"I turned him down."
The woman nodded in approval. "Good for you. He would have made a lousy husband and I'm speaking from experience. So, after refusing the ring-there was a ring, right?"
Kara nodded with a slight smile. "An exquisite square-cut diamond."
"Wouldn't have suited you." Abigail gave her a speculative once-over. "Too predictable. Emeralds or topaz. Anyway." She waved a hand. "What do you need?"
"How busy are you now?"
The gleam in Abigail's eyes became brighter.
"Nothing too pressing. What do you have in mind?"
"I'm about to blow several thousand on a complete makeover. And I feel sick. Literally sick. I need you to tell me I'm making a mistake. That I should march right back to Goodwill and grab the two garbage bags of my fairly expensive suits and take them back home. Same for the thrift store."
"Probably all gone by now. You're not the only boring dresser this side of town.
" Pushing back her chair, she rose, giving Kara the opportunity to admire the rose pink pantsuit she was wearing.
"Let's go get you more gorgeous than you already are.
" She clapped her hands gleefully. "I know just the places. "
*****
With her arches weeping, her credit card severely abused, Kara stared in horror at the mounting packages on the back seat. And that was not all of it. Romano's. Oh dear God! Romano's of all places. The most expensive and exclusive store in town.
They delivered, and some were already on their way to her front door. They had not stopped at suits and dresses for work, but fancy outfits, in jeweled colors and hardly any material to speak of. They had also stocked up on the most scandalous lingerie Kara had ever seen.
According to Abigail and the saleslady, you could not just do the outerwear and not think about what was underneath. That would not do.
"Now for Barry's." Slamming the car door shut and pressing the alarm to secure it, Abigail turned toward the delightful storefront shops near the mall.
"I called in a favor, and the dear man is waiting for us.
He has people lined up to do the facial, mani and pedi and a full body massage.
" She glanced at her phone and sent off a quick text message to her assistant.
"We're supposed to be working," Kara concluded weakly. "Instead of traipsing all over the place on a vanity run."
Abigail merely glanced at her as she pushed the door of the salon open. "It's necessary. Darling!" she gushed as a towering black man glided forward, his hair as pink as cotton candy, his teeth dazzlingly white.
"If it isn't my favorite DA." He embraced her, twirling her around in his big strong arms, before putting her down and staring at Kara. She jolted when he cupped her face and studied her like a man on a mission.
"Exceptional pores, beautiful skin. Reminds me of the way I like my coffee, dark with just a hint of cream. Lips to die for." He muttered something under his breath.
She started again when he let her go to tug at her hair. "Thick and healthy. I have just the color to liven it up."
"Nothing too bright," she managed to squeak.
He merely smiled and patted her cheek. "Leave everything to Uncle Barry. Selene! You slut, get cracking. We have special clients."
Selene the slut just cast him an icy look before gliding over. "Let's get you on a table."
"The hair is last," Barry told her with a wide smile. "We have champagne," he said to Abigail.
"You just called my name," Abigail said.
*****
She was pummeled, tweaked, buffeted, rubbed, and massaged, until her limbs were completely fluid.
She didn't even protest when the towel was her only covering.
By the time Irene and Selene had finished and she had imbibed two glasses of champagne, she was floating.
Draping a robe over her, the women propelled her toward the shampoo chair where Barry was waiting to do his 'magic,' as he told her, the anticipatory gleam in his eyes making her quake.
Before she could protest and remind him that she didn't want anything outrageous, he had doused her head with warm water.
Giving up, Kara closed her eyes and sighed as his nimble fingers massaged her scalp.
She drifted off to some titillating gossip about someone by the name of Michelle Day and her scandalous affair with a married senator.
The scent of rose petals and lavender tickled her nostrils and made her even more relaxed, if that was at all possible.
Barry gently turned her toward the chair in front of the mirror and whipped a cape around her.
When he picked up the scissors, she tensed automatically, making him grin.
Leaning down from his lofty height, he whispered in her ear, his breath smelling of peppermint candy.
"Relax, darling, and let Uncle Barry take very good care of you. "
She did just that and closed her eyes and ears to the snipping of the scissors.
Her eyes flickered open when she heard the loud gasp from her left. Thinking the worst, she looked at the mirror and went very still.
"Well?" Barry beamed at her. "What do you think?"
Lifting a hand to her face, Kara continued to stare, her expression dazed. "This cannot be me."
Barry's smile widened in pleasure. "It's a new and improved you."
"Good God!" Abigail exclaimed. "Barry darling, you're the best."
"Don't I know it." He rubbed a hand over Kara's shoulder and leaned in to stare at her in the mirror. "I just buffed the package a little. You have wonderful skin, darling, and your hair! So thick and alive. The color suits you."
He had used a mixture of colors, dull red into orange and gold, and the combination was fantastic. He had trimmed a little off the sides and layered the back until it was like a peak down her nape. He had also snipped the thick curl that was over her left brow, leaving that part of her face clear.
Selene had persuaded her to bore another hole in her lobe. The tiny, medicated earring glowed against her skin. Skin that looked soft and dewy to the touch. Her toenails were painted a brilliant orange sunshine. She had balked at having the same shade on her fingers and had settled for pale pink.
They had applied makeup to her face, the smooth foundation blending in with her skin. Flesh-colored lipstick completed the package.
"There's no way I'm ever going to look like this again," she breathed.
"Honey, we have a tutorial to give you on how to apply the makeup.
With your skin tone, it doesn't take anything much," Barry reassured her.
"And we've included a selection of creams and foundations as well as lipsticks for your skin tone.
Ah," he grabbed a pair of large-framed shades and added it to the pile. "With our compliments."
"With the astronomical amount I'm paying you, you should have included some towels and washcloths," Kara said dryly, making him laugh.
"Now, darling, I'd advise you to come by once a month to keep up the trim and get your eyebrows attended to. It was a pleasure serving you both." He clapped his hands in delight and leaned in to hug her. "Now go away. I have some more important clients coming in shortly."
"Go home," Abigail urged as soon as they were back at work in the parking lot. "It's late and there's nothing pressing." She peered into the back seat of Kara's vehicle. "Besides, you have a lot of unpacking and sorting out to do. And I have to say, darling, you look fabulous."
"Am I crazy?" Kara asked, pressing a hand to her stomach. "I feel as if I've gone completely off the rails."
"A woman deserves to go a little wild at least once. And the fact that you never did makes it even more necessary." Abigail patted her hand. "Stop feeling guilty. Believe me when I say it's money well spent. See you tomorrow."