Royal Peacock
1553 Words
Laura's Pov
Cassandra was the only friend who stuck by me even after I pushed everyone away. She clung to me through thick and thin. She’s like my sister from another mother.
“Cass, what's up?” I greeted cheerfully despite my ruined mood.
“Lulu, can you come pick me up? Please..” I heard her voice quivering on the other side of the phone.
She held her breath and exhaled after a few seconds. “I need a ride to RP.”
I knew Cassie danced at the Royal Peacock Club from time to time.
I wanted to ask why her boyfriend didn't take her, but I decided to keep it for later.
“Are you alright?”
As I waited for her reply, I merged onto the major highway that led into the city.
“I just need to get to the club first.”
I could sense an urgency in her voice and that she was hiding something from me. But I didn't ask on the phone. We were meeting anyway.
“Alright. I'm on my way.”
I shelved my phone above the slot where my radio was.
I didn't mind giving Cassie a ride to RP. It wasn't the first time and I was not really thrilled by it. But, anything that could help me escape the thought of Corey at the moment, was good for me.
In the next thirty minutes, I arrived at Sunview Apartments, Atlanta Curve where Cassie lives with her boyfriend.
She took a little longer to get out. Cassie appeared disheveled when she emerged. Dressed in regular clothes while suspiciously glancing around like she knew she was being watched.
It triggered me to do the same subconsciously.
When Cassie finally got in, she gave me a fake smile. “Hey.” She sounded dry.
She looked like she had been crying.
“What the—”
She raised a hand to gently touch my lips, urging me to remain silent. “Can you please not ask questions? At least not now… I just want to get to the club as soon as I can. I promise I will tell you everything tomorrow.”
I narrowed my eyes for a second. Then pretended that her words didn't sting like hell. “Fine.”
The drive to RP was a short, silent one.
The street was buzzing with hundreds of young people going back and forth along the major road when we arrived.
It was clear we weren't the only high-schoolers who wanted to celebrate their newly found freedom.
We rolled into the RP car park at the same time as a Black-Matte Maserati Quattroporte
I couldn’t fully see the tall, majestic man that came out of the car because bodyguards flagged his sides but I noticed he had long silver hair that fell down his sharp facial features.
His energy was dangerous and magnetic. He was giving the ultimate, ghost, mafia mob.
Among a lot of rich, influential people I could see here, he attracted me the most.
“Lulu, we have to go now.” Cassie snapped my attention back to her.
I coughed anxiously and unlocked the door.
I had social anxiety and hated crowds but I would do anything for Cassie.
After my father was murdered in cold blood at my fifteenth birthday party, I couldn't bring myself to host or attend any social gatherings. I was likely the only young adult who dreaded going to clubs or going out at all. Such places always triggered my anxiety, and I often felt like I might not make it out alive if a fight broke out.
As we approached the massive, modern building, I lowered my head and followed Cassie through the back door. The dancers of RP shared a large suite in the club’s hotel, and that was where Cassie and I were headed.
When we entered the Dancers’ Suite, Cassie used her user card to open the door.
The room was empty but there was evidence that some had come to use the makeup, and the rich closet provided by RP Inc.
“Lulu, please just have to wait here until I’m back. Don’t open the door for anyone—”
“All the dancers have their cards, so they don’t need me to open the door,” I said, finishing her usual mantra. “I know. I’ll stay here and read. I recently downloaded the ebook 'Acupuncture Points Handbook,' so I’ll be pretty occupied. Don’t worry about me; just go and do your thing.”
She looked at me and nodded. Within a minute, she began to dress up into a classic vixen outfit then ordered a mimosa for me.
“Drink it and relax,” she winked at me, as if she had finally calmed down.
Cass let herself out of the dressing room, while I got to reading. The whole reason I got the book in the first place was to learn how to reduce my stress levels.
And somehow, I found myself in the dressing room of a club. My mind casually wandered back to the man in the packing lot. What did he do as a job to afford such a luxurious ride?
Cassie burst back into the room, slamming the door behind her. I jumped on my feet from her sudden movement.
“Jesus! Are you trying to give me a heart attack??”
“Sorry…” She looked visibly shaken. Her eyes were wild, darting behind us like someone had chased her in here.
“Did someone follow you?” She shook her head.
“No. But Derrick is on the lookout for me and I can't let him find me. Not yet.” Cassie pulled out stacks of money almost the length of my forearm.
“I just cashed this in.”
“You have to do better than that, Cassie. How the hell did you get this much money?” I exclaimed.
Cassie peeled my hands off her shoulders and held them in her hand. “I'm sorry, Lulu. But you are going to have to do me a favor of a lifetime. I was auctioned for a private dance today. Derrick got his hand on the auction video and now he's going ballistic searching for me.”
“I have to do the dance or I'm toast!” Her eyes were beet red. A vein throbbing at the side of her head. I have never seen her look this disheveled.
“You want me to take your place?” The idea delivered a vile taste at the back of my tongue.
“You are the only one who can do this for me, Lulu,” Cassie pointed behind her. “The other girls, they don't give a f**k. They would rip me of everything I am worth. I need this for my mother's hospital bill. Please…”
Cass hugged my hands together, pleading with eyes that have seen more pain than she was telling me.
“Fine.”
Hope torched the void in her eyes.
“Thank you…” She brought my clasped hands to her forehead. It made me feel a bit uncomfortable.
“It's fine. Just stop. Stop the tears. What do we do about Derrick?”
She wiped her face, inhaling with her might. “I can handle Derrick.” She nodded with so much self belief. “I just need you to do this one bit for me.”
Cassie handed over to me her name tag and the room number on a unique key card that has the copy appearance of wood, but was really plastic.
She picked out a black lingerie outfit, along with a black furry robe. I dabbled a little perfume underneath my arm and let her guide me through a secret door from the dancers’ suite to an elevator sealed in the wall.
We went upward. It revealed a floor I had no idea was connected to the club beneath. A maroon carpeted floor and deep purple walls. Thankfully, the overhead amber lights were soft on the tired eyes.
“This is as far as I can go with you. Lulu. Your key card is your way in. Don't ask questions. Talk when spoken to, and never look in their eyes. These are not your regular men in power. They are something else.
Her tone sent chills down my spine. Why did she decide to tell me this now I was already in the creepy hallway?
Cassie handed my phone back to me. I had no idea she had taken it in the first place.
“I set my contact as an emergency. Call me if you feel something is off. I will come get you.”
She left me in the eerie purple hall.
I walked to the room and tested the key card, only to have the door click open instantly. I tried to shut it back as it triggered my fight or flight response. A deep voice beckoned from within.
“Come in.”
I forced my frozen feet to move. I closed the door behind me, my eyes getting stuck on the gorgeous silver haired man in front of me. He was a more handsome older version of Corey.
“Are you an obedient kitty?”
- Writer
