The rain picked up again, making Cobb dash towards the door. The valet took his keys and proceeded to park the car around the corner. A beautifully carved glass door was opened for him, an elder man standing behind it.
"Good evening, Mr. Cobb," He said as he bowed slightly.
Cobb smiled sideways at the man. "Evening," He replied as he looked back at the elegant place filled with people.
The room was very spacious, with a high ceiling, decorated with exquisite chandeliers. Cobb stared at the beautiful details on the walls. The expensive paintings on the wall gave the place a touch of sophistication, making it a classic ball room.
"Cobb!" Eames said as he turned from the bunch of people he had been talking to. Cobb looked down and snapped out of his delight. His co-worker gave him a squeeze on his right shoulder and motioned for him to walk with him.
"Looks nice," He said as he searched for the person he had been intending to meet.
"More than nice, this woman is the queen of the world right now, she showers in champagne," Eames said in a low voice, making Cobb nod and smile.
They were joined by the rest of the group. Ariadne was wearing a beautiful beige tunic, making her look like a goddess. Arthur was standing next to her, trying to keep up with the conversation they were having.
"Seen the girl yet? She's beautiful. Breathtaking," Eames asked.
"We're not here to know if Ms. Abbott is hot or not," Cobb said as he sipped on the glass of the costly champagne that they had offered him.
Arthur had grown tired of having to put up with Ariadne's attitude for today. They had been together for a couple of months, but the rest of the team didn't approve of their relationship. Cobb thought that it was not safe that they were a couple, and insisted that when the end of their relationship came they would have to put up with each other at work. Eames secretly encouraged them to be together because he thought they were a good match.
x.x.x.x.x
"I'll go get a drink," Arthur mumbled as he left Ariadne's side. She sighed, frustrated, and started conversation with Cobb about their newest project.
Arthur moved between small groups of people who were chatting about their newest acquisitions like yachts, penthouses, and helicopters. He saw the bar a few meters away and squeezed himself once more to fit between the backsides of two overweight women.
Sitting down on one of the high chairs that were placed against the bar, Arthur decided on what he would drink thoughtfully.
While he discussed on what he wanted to drink, a woman sat next to him quietly.
"I'll have a chocolate Martini, Jeff," She said as she gave the bartender a half-smile.
"Right away," Jeff answered and turned around to prepare her drink.
Arthur took a look at the woman and his breath caught in his throat. This was their new target: Camille Grace Abbott. Barely twenty-three years old, with a signature vintage look on her. The pictures didn't do her enough justice.
Jeff the bartender served Camille's drink with ease and dropped a stick with a cherry on it. "There ya go," He said, smiling at the young woman.
"Thanks," She said as she grinned at Jeff. She then took a sip of her drink and sighed in contentment.
Arthur kept staring at her but remembered to keep a low profile just in time. Jeff looked at him intently as he wiped his work place with a white cloth.
"Manhattan," He said, feeling like drinking something strong. Jeff nodded curtly and proceeded to grab what he needed.
Camille turned to look over at Arthur's sitting figure and her eyes met his for an instant. She looked back at her drink and a hint of a smile showed up.
"Manhattan," Jeff said as he served Arthur's drink quickly.
"Thank you," He said as he took the Martini glass to his mouth and sipped nervously. There was this little voice that urged him to speak to the beautiful woman beside him, but he feared that this would mess up the project somehow. Then, he remembered Ariadne.
"That's a nice choice, Manhattan," Camille said in a hushed tone, giving Arthur a flash of her white pearly teeth.
"Oh, it's my favorite," He blurted out, taken aback by the sudden conversation.
"Not my number one, but it's pretty close," She said, taking another sip of her drink. "Camille," She extended her hand.
Arthur took the hand, so smooth and silky, and shook it. "Arthur," He said as he let go of her hand.
"Well, Arthur, enjoy Manhattan," She smiled as she got up. "Both of them," She winked.
Arthur chuckled, "Thank you," he replied and returned to his drink.
x.x.x.x.x
"Would you like some more champagne?" A waitress asked.
Cobb politely answered, "No, thank you very much," for all of them.
Ariadne looked around once more to see if Arthur was nearby. No such luck.
"I think it's time for me to start this job," Cobb said as he heard a peculiar sound. He turned around and found Camille's back facing him a few meters away. She laughed again and patted a man in a grey suit's back.
"Be careful," Ariadne said as she observed the woman discretely. "Remember, she's full of surprises,"
"We'll be outside," Eames said as he took another high glass of champagne from a tray.
Without answering, Cobb turned to follow Camille, who was walking towards a staircase. Every two or three stairs there would be some groups of two or three people having conversations.
"Oh Miss Abbott, you look lovely," An aged man turned to greet Camille. She smiled at him as he took her hand and kissed it.
"Thank you, Earnest," She said as she greeted the rest of the party quickly and went back to climb the staircase.
Cobb kept his distance of five stairs so he wouldn't look suspicious. When he reached the same group of people, they nodded gently as he passed by. He gave a small smile and turned again, keeping his eyes on Camille.
The young woman reached a set of glass doors, carved identically as the ones Cobb had been greeted by at the entrance.
She pushed one of the doors open and the cold night air welcomed her outside. Cobb waited a few minutes before deciding to join her in the terrace.
Camille was holding on to the reeling of the building, the sight of the city lights below her. This was her town. She reached into her small leather clutch and took out a cigarette case and her lighter.
There were a couple of people admiring the view as well, chatting enthusiastically and minding their own businesses.
Cobb went through the glass door, taking slow steps until she approached Camille, who was taking a drag of her cigarette.
"What a beautiful sight," Cobb said as he stood a meter apart from the girl. She looked up to him and smiled.
"Indeed," She said, moving her body so she was facing him. Cobb looked at her and took out a cigarette from his pocket as well.
He pretended to look in his other pocket for his lighter and Camille took a step further, opening her Zippo and giving the flint a spin. Cobb lit up his cigarette and took the first drag.
"Thank you," He said as he extended his hand. "Dom Cobb,"
"Pleasure," She responded. "Camille-"
"Camille Abbott," He said in a smooth voice. They shook hands firmly and Camille gave a frown.
"Yes," She said, obviously surprised that this man knew her name. She had never seen him before.
"It's nice to finally meet you, Miss Abbott," He said as he took one more drag of her cigarette.
Camille smiled and mimicked Cobb's action. She blew the smoke out of her mouth and looked up at Cobb. "You too, Mr. Cobb," She squinted her eyes at him. "Mind telling me where have you heard from me?"
Cobb took a step further and got closer to her. "I've heard about you, Miss Abbott. You're a young entrepreneur… just like me back in the day," He took another drag.
"Oh," She replied, feeling relieved. "That's interesting," She took the last drag of her cigarette and threw the stub in the air.
"Would you like to dance with me? I happen to have a very interesting project in mind that you might like to put your hands on,"
"It would be my pleasure, Mr. Cobb," Camille said as they re-entered the building.
"Please, just call me Cobb," He said as they went downstairs. The center of the room had a band playing, and couples were dancing around. Cobb noticed Arthur and Ariadne on the floor, wrapped around each other in a slow dance.
Cobb took Camille's hand and they started moving to the music. After a few songs, Camille had learned that Cobb was a widow, and that he was a powerful businessman in Europe. He had been successful in his architecture career, and he had traveled all around the world.
"Mind if we take a small break, Cobb? I would like something to drink," Camille said as she walked out of the dancing area.
Everything was going according to plan.
"Oh, let me get it for you." He said as he smiled down at the girl. "What would you like?" He asked. Camille smiled.
"Chocolate Martini,"
"I'll be right back at you, Camille," He said as he disappeared between the crowd.
Cobb ordered the drinks on the other bar. The bartender knew what he had to slip on the drink.
A few moments later, Cobb came back to Camille, who was talking to another woman.
"We'll talk next week, Helen," She said as she turned to face Cobb.
"Here you go," Cobb said as he handed Camille her drink.
The sedatives would work in at least one hour, and Cobb needed to give notice to the rest of the team that they were ready to start.
Cobb caught Eames looking at them and he straightened his tie, the sign that they needed to prepare the room upstairs for them. Eames nodded once and disappeared in the crowd, ready to get Arthur and Ariadne to work.
"So tell me, Camille, what are your plans for those shares?" He asked as he started to walk towards the staircase.
"That's something I prefer keeping a secret," She said as she sipped on her drink. They went upstairs again and Cobb led her to the library, where the rest of the team was waiting.
Arthur pretended to look through the bookshelves for something interesting and took a random book as he heard the faint voices of Cobb and Camille. Ariadne and Eames were sitting together on a couch, pretending to chat about business. They had around five minutes left until the sedative would make effect.
"So, Cobb, tell me about your children. What age are they?" She asked when she saw Arthur flipping the pages of a book with a red cover.
"Phillipa just turned seven, she's a beautiful girl. My boy James is four. They're really close," Cobb said as he eyed Arthur.
Arthur smiled at Camille and approached them.
"My, my! Mr. Manhattan," Camille said. Arthur closed the book he was holding and before he could say something, she was on the floor unconscious.
Ariadne, who was closest to the door, closed it swiftly and locked it, while Arthur made his way to a hidden, silver case.
"You were right, she's beautiful," Cobb said as Arthur strapped a wire to her wrist.
Hello! This is PrincessDudette. I just saw Inception yesterday and this idea invaded my mind as soon as I woke up today. Camille is not going to be an easy character. Please, let me know your thoughts on the first chapter. Thank you.