Serial

18. Nesting

     Venice awoke slowly.

     She lay in a large bed, bare skin gently covered by silk sheets. After a cat like stretch she stood up, letting the sheets pool off the bed and onto the floor. She walked slowly to the closet in the room, opened it and began to rifle through the various assortments of garments. Among them she found a long and sheer nightgown. She put it on carefully, pleasantly surprised at how well it fit. Once dressed, she sauntered over to the bathroom attached to the bedroom. She looked at herself in the mirror, fixed her makeup, and brushed her hair.

     It was in the reflection of the mirror that she saw the handle of the door slowly turn. A second later a woman paraded in. She was half turned to her husband, mid-sentence, before she came to the realization that they were not alone in the room. The intruding woman let out a startled gasp as her husband ogled Venice and the sheer garment she wore.

     Venice turned around slowly, milking the attention. She stared inquisitively at the couple. A sly smirk hinted at the edge of her freshly drawn lips.

     “We- we didn't think anyone would be in here.” The intruding woman said matter-of-factly.

     Venice looked her over. Her eyes drifted from the woman's perfectly pinned up hair, to the short nurse's outfit she wore, meant for a woman half her age. Then her eyes drifted down to her long legs, slender and toned, the reason for the short outfit. Venice then looked over to the intruder’s companion. A man of similar age, who wore a Roman legionnaire outfit and eyed Venice up and down just as slowly as Venice had eyed his wife.

     “I'm Millie Baker. This is my husband, Arthur.” Millie Baker introduced herself politely, then in an angry whisper warned her husband to look away. “Are you a relative or something of Ms. Swann's?”

     Venice smiled at the couple then sat at the edge of the bed. She held her shoulders back, and pushed her chest forward, showing off her round and tattooed breasts. She eyed Millie more and spoke in a soft and enticing voice. “I'm a guest for the party. I couldn't help myself though… These beds are magnificent to sleep in.”

     “Oh you were asleep? Then you don't know about the game?” Millie tried to ignore Venice's pose, but a look of mild annoyance flashed over her face as she caught her husband staring once more.

     “Game?” Venice spoke in a soft purr.

     “Yes. The escape room! The whole point of the party, and the reason for these weird watches. Look, you have one too.” Millie held up her wrist with the metal band. Venice looked at her own wrist. She had noticed the band earlier, but had not cared enough to investigate it.

     Millie Baker continued on, “Each guest has a wrist band on. Each one is supposed to have a code. We are supposed to use the codes on the front door in order of the clues. We think the first clue has to do with Loretta Swann, so we're trying to find her. Have you seen her at all?”

     Venice shook her head.

     “Well then we really must carry on searching. You should join us once you're more… dressed.” Millie glanced around the room once more, unsure if the missing woman could be hiding in one of the corners. She then turned around and began to push her husband out of the room.

     When the door closed shut behind them Venice collapsed back on the bed and sighed. The cold air of the room washed over her as she closed her eyes once more.

     Outside of the door, and a little ways down the hall, Millie Baker seethed as she stormed down the hallway, husband in tow. He followed behind her obediently, soon turning into another bedroom, this time empty and dimly lit.

     “What the hell was that? Who was that woman? What the hell was she wearing?” Millie ranted on as she looked about the room, pulling back curtains and looking through drawers. Arthur sighed and stood by the door.

     “And did you see her tattoos? Was there an inch of that woman that wasn't covered? And we could even see every inch!”

     Millie ransacked through the room to the bathroom, tearing through more furniture as she searched absentmindedly. When she found nothing, she turned back to her husband and continued her rant.

     “And you! You couldn't keep your eyes off of her! Need I remind you that I am your wife, and that you swore a vow to ME? You shouldn't be ogling another woman like that!”

     “Are you trying to tell me who I can and can't look at?” Arthur's eyes went cold and he stepped towards his wife. His voice, normally warm and inviting, had an ice drip and a threatening tone.

     The colour drained from Millie's face and she took a seat on the edge of the bed. She shut her mouth and averted her eyes from her husband's. Arthur walked up to her, grabbing her jaw with one strong hand. He tilted her head up, forcing her to lock eyes with him again.

     “You do not get to tell me what to do, or who I look at. Are we clear?”

     His wife struggled to nod. Her eyes were slowly becoming glossy with tears. He gave her one more look of disgust, then pushed her face away and stormed out of the room.

     Millie Baker took a deep breath. She closed her eyes tightly before opening them once more. Then she slowly walked to the attached bathroom of the bedroom to fix her smudged makeup and perfect her hair. When her eyes were clear once more, she smiled at herself in the mirror until it looked natural. She then walked out of the room, joining her husband again and talking once more about how she wished she lived in a house so grand.