Chapter 15
SPOV
I let the necklace fall back against my skin because something didn't feel right. That was when I felt it, something that I hadn't felt in such a long time, a tingle that was spreading down my neck. I looked up and around the room, my eyes instantly falling on the suited man who was staring back intently at me.
I wanted to run over to him, to say how much I'd missed him, to feel his arms around me like he'd done before. Even my body betrayed me as heat started to coil deep inside me, how was it that just by seeing him and knowing that he was close could have me yearning for him. I couldn't let that lead me and tried so hard to tamp down those feelings by remembering how he had never come near to me in Trenton, how he had basically ignored me. I used those emotions to feed another feeling, that of anger, or even disappointment. I could feel my eyes water as those emotions raged a war inside of me not sure what to do. I felt trapped as we just stood there looking at each other. The one question though that had me frowning pulled me back from the abyss. What the hell was Ranger doing here?
"Stefania. You were amazing"
I was glad of the distraction that pulled my attention away from Ranger to Enzo. I had to admit that I hadn't noticed that he was there, stood next to me and allowed him to hug me and air kiss my cheeks. As I stepped back, I had to admit that he looked extremely handsome in his black suit and white shirt.
"I'm surprised that Lucio hasn't made you take that off"
I looked down at the necklace probably frowning because I had no idea what he meant.
"That blue diamond must be worth a fortune"
I was lost for words as I looked back down at the necklace, to be honest I wouldn't have had a clue that it was worth so much money. I could feel the awkwardness between us as the silence continued but was so aware that Ranger was in the room somewhere. I needed a distraction so slipped my arm through Enzo's and together we walked out to the center of the room where other people were taking advantage of the music by dancing.
"I'm supposed to dance with our guests so how about you lead me onto the dancefloor"
Okay maybe I was being a little cocky with my request, but no way was I standing on the sidelines on my own. That might encourage Ranger to come over and talk to me and I was nowhere near prepared for that to happen, especially not here. He'd caught me totally by surprise though to be honest no time would have been right. I suppose our meeting was inevitable, but I'd thought that time and distance would be my friend and dampen the effect that he had on me, obviously that wasn't going to happen.
I tried so hard to push the knowledge that he was here to the back of my mind. Like that was going to happen because I felt totally on edge the entire time, like a coil about to unspring. For the next hour I was danced with, talked with and totally occupied as guests commented on the products from the Ania range. I plastered a smile on my face as though nothing was amiss, that was until I felt Ranger was behind me.
I wasn't about to turn around but as the gentleman that I was dancing with seemed to recognize what Ranger was wanting he was the one who turned me around and placed my hand in Ranger's. I closed my eyes as that simple contact sent shudders through me, how was it that he could still have that effect on me? How was I ever going to prize out that hold on my heart that he seemed to have? I tried to keep our bodies apart as he swept me across the floor never looking up into his eyes, to do that would be my undoing. I'd never realized that he was such a good dancer, but then I'd never been dancing with him.
"You take my breath away Babe. You are so beautiful"
No, he was not going to pop up in my life and have me swooning after him, not now when things were going so well for me.
"What the hell are you doing here Ranger?"
I kept my voice low but hoped he caught the annoyance.
"Looking for you"
That both surprised me and annoyed me, why the hell did he think that he could just pick up where we'd been months ago. Memories of being in Trenton came back to me, how he hadn't even bothered to get in touch with me even though he was back from wherever the hell he'd been. I had to use those emotions to withstand his magnetism. I looked up to be sure that he could hear me and see the hurt that he had caused me.
"Forget it Ranger. I have a new life, new friends and for once I don't need you in it"
Maybe the look that I saw for a fleeting moment should have told me something, but to be honest I meant what I'd said.
"I was in Trenton, but you never bothered to look for me then. Go home Ranger"
With that said I turned and started to walk away from him, one of the hardest things that I'd ever done. Even as I headed toward the dressing room, I knew that despite everything that had happened, that I still loved him, and my heart was breaking into pieces again. I was feeling so upset as I headed to the back of the room and even pushed past Lando, who soon got the message to leave me alone. The changing room was the only place where I could be on my own and try to compose my frazzled nerves, so I opened the door into the dressing room, closing it behind me but leaning against it.
In that room on my own it gave me a chance to calm my breathing down and to stop the tears that were threatening to fall. With that inner calm came logical thinking and I was thinking that maybe I'd been wrong. I was so wrapped up in how Ranger had affected me that I had never considered any other reason for why he was here. How stupid was that, how egotistical of me to think that he was here because of me. Maybe Ranger wasn't here because of me, that him turning up at the launch was just a coincidence and maybe nothing had changed between us, and he was still the opportunist that he'd always been. He'd been in the city and thought that he could use me for the night. Well as far as I was concerned, I wasn't going to be his entertainment while he was here. I wasn't that lovesick woman who would jump into his bed to appease some sexual attraction just for him to leave again. No, I couldn't handle the emotions that came with doing that. I was just hoping that he'd received my message loud and clear and had left.
I knew that I needed to return to the hall, hell Lucio and Allegro would be annoyed with me for not being there to smooch up to their guests, but I needed to check my makeup first so walked over to the table and mirror. Looking at my reflection, the makeup was still good, but I still pulled a tissue from the pack and dabbed underneath my eyes. I could almost see the sorrow in my face reflected back at me.
That was when something in the mirror attracted my attention, someone moving in the shadows. I half expected Ranger to walk out, I mean that was his MO wasn't it? I turned around to where I'd seen the movement, ready to tell Ranger that he needed to leave, surprised as I watched a woman begin to emerge from the shadow of the clothes hung up on a rail. I might have thought that she was one of the many people who had been working here if it wasn't for the fact that she was holding a gun in her hand and was pointing it straight at me.
I couldn't place her, so was confused with who she was or why she was here, that was until she stepped forward into the light. She looked so similar to the woman who had fronted Scintillante and yet so different. Jade or Rosa? I had never asked what her real name was, in fact I'd never asked anything about her at all. All I could do was to look at her as I struggled to stay calm, not easy to do when my heart was beating so quickly. Her hair looked unkept and was pulled back into a ponytail, but it was her face and eyes that drew my attention. There were dark circles under her eyes and even through her dark skin she looked pale.
"What do you want?"
Thinking that maybe she was here threatening me because she wanted to try and steal the necklace. To be honest she could take it if it meant that she would leave.
"He kicked me out like some used piece of clothing for what? You. What the hell do you have, that he preferred you?"
I shook my head because I had no idea that she'd been dropped by Scintillante, for some reason I thought that she was modelling for someone else. No one had ever mentioned her to me or what she was doing so why the hell hadn't I been more curious about her?
"I'm not sure that I follow what you're saying. I didn't know"
How would I but it seemed that whatever she thought I was going to say, was causing her to get more annoyed. I could see it on her face and as she shifted on her feet, I'd seen it before when someone was threatening me, and I knew that it didn't always end well.
"What, that I was pregnant with his baby. I got rid of it like he said, but it didn't make any difference, he still threw me out"
It was definitely me frowning now. Did she think that I was sleeping with a man, living with them, replacing her?
"You've got it wrong. I'm not sleeping with anyone"
"Yeah right. He doesn't do anything unless he gets something from it, someone to do his dirty work, so you're lying"
I was at the stage where I wasn't sure who she was talking about. Was it Lucio who had treated her so badly? Decided that he'd had enough of her? My confusion seemed to only be annoying her, but I had no idea what to do next. The door was behind her so getting past her and out of the room wasn't going to be happening.
"No one does that to me and gets away with what he's done and I sure as hell aint gonna sit back and watch you help him"
Okay, I was definitely worried now, probably close to panicking with what she might do. I froze, literally, knowing there was no way to talk to her and no way out. Was that why she was here, to get rid of me? That wouldn't change anything, but I saw from how she moved her hand that she was about to fire that gun, so I was already throwing myself out of the way when the sound of the gunshot filled the room.
That wasn't the end and as another shot echoed around the room I was diving for cover underneath a table and curling myself into a tight ball. I was expecting her to suddenly appear in front of me but not as it happened. There was the slightest sound of movement and the rustle of fabric, but what made me cringe back into my hiding space was the sight of her eyes looking at me, never blinking and totally devoid of life. My breathing was coming fast because I had no idea what had happened and there was no way that I was moving from where I was.
"Steph, Steph where the fuck are you?"
I was sure that I recognized the voice as Tomas, Tomas was here in the room with me.
"Here"
I couldn't move, for one thing I was shaking because I honestly thought that she was going to kill me and then looking at her face and eyes, well that hadn't helped. Seeing her face and eyes so devoid of life had a little bit of myself dying with her. She couldn't be dead, she shouldn't be dead. Was it because of me that she had died, had I somehow been the catalyst for that happening? My ears were buzzing and all I could feel and hear was the pounding of my heart in my chest. Sound and noises blurred until I was aware of hearing footsteps and then lots of noise was filling the room around me. I so hoped that people had eventually arrived and when the desk started moving and being physically lifted above me, I was so afraid of who might be there. I felt myself being picked up and was aware of being in Tomas's arms before I was laid down on the couch that was against the wall. It was Enzo who was knelt down beside me stroking his hand down my face.
I looked across the room as other people came in but was curious what Tomas was doing in the far corner of the room. I shrugged it off as Enzo began to talk to me.
"Are you hurt?"
I shook my head, okay maybe I might have a few bruises from where I'd landed on the floor, but nothing serious.
"What happened Stefania?"
"I, I came in just to check my makeup, she was already in here"
No way was I going to be telling anyone that I'd left the hall because I was so upset over Ranger.
"Then what?"
"She had a gun"
"Stefania, did she say anything?"
I thought about that. I wasn't sure if telling Enzo exactly what she'd said would be such a good idea. I mean what repercussions would that have on me? I'd assumed that she was talking about Lucio but maybe I was wrong and to be honest I didn't want the fallout if I said that, after all that was just an assumption on my part.
"She was annoyed because I was the new model for Scintillante, that it should have been her. Then she took a shot at me"
That was the most that I could say because what she'd said to me didn't make any sense. I suppose I should be grateful that someone shot her, but did they have to kill her? Maybe seeing her aiming a gun at me they'd thought that there was no other option, but it did have me wondering who had fired at her. I was hoping that Enzo would see her as some jealous woman who hated me. Maybe that was true but the more that I thought about it, trying to kill me for that seemed a bit extreme. I wasn't too sure how I was feeling right now but knew that there was no way that I could go back out amongst people and act as though nothing had happened.
As Enzo stood up and talked to some police officers, I noticed that Jade, Rosa's body had been covered up. Her gun was now inside an evidence bag and Enzo was talking to Tomas. Tomas was removing his gun from the back of his trousers and handed it over to Enzo so maybe it had been Tomas who had come into the room and taken a shot at her. Everyone seemed to be busy so left me alone which suited me fine. I'd stopped shaking as much and was more aware of what was happening around me, but my brain wouldn't stop going over those few minutes when she'd been alive and talking to me. I was relieved that it was Tomas who came up to me, his hand a comfort as he held it on my shoulder.
"How about I take you home"
I nodded my head and was grateful when his hand supported my back to enable me to sit up. A coat appeared in front of me being held by Tania, so I stood up surprised at how steady I felt, I felt guilty that someone being shot and killed in front of me could be so easily pushed away, then again, I suppose I was becoming immune to death around me. As Tania helped me into the coat I was surprised when she leant into me and hugged me, but even more surprised when I heard her whispered words.
"I knew her, something bad must have happened for her to do that. She was happy last week, had found a new man, but I'm so sorry that she tried to hurt you"
I heard but didn't listen, maybe I'd talk to Tania another day and ask her what she'd meant. It seemed that the party was still going on and maybe people weren't aware of what had just happened, or they just didn't care, whatever, I was held close to Tomas as he made for another door that would lead us outside, so no one would see us. Moving outside into the evening air I tried to take in a cleansing breath but suffered miserably as the air seemed to stick in my throat. As we reached the car it was Allegro who was stood there and who opened her arms to me saying the words that might console me.
"I'm so sorry about what happened"
I nodded my head as she held me close and hugged me. To be honest I wasn't sure what to feel. What was wrong with me that I wasn't feeling anything at all, had all of the incidents that had happened to me in Trenton left me empty of being emotionally affected? As I felt hands at the back of my neck I turned and then watched as Tomas removed the necklace that I'd been wearing and handed it back to Allegro. No sooner did she have it in her hands than she was walking away from us. I suppose the phrase that the show must go on was exactly what was happening.
I couldn't think or even speak as we sped through the streets. I wasn't sure if Tomas even knew what to say so I was thankful that he didn't try. As he held me close to him in the elevator up to the apartment I still wasn't thinking clearly and was grateful when he actually led me upstairs.
"I'll get you a drink while you change"
Glad to be on my own I went through the ritual of removing my makeup and actually took a quick shower. All that I wanted to do was to curl up and forget what had happened. A mug of hot chocolate was by the bed when I came out of the bathroom so drinking it quickly, I was soon under the covers, dreading the thought that I might relive what had happened tonight.
I slept a strange sleep, a deep sleep yet at the same time feeling so emotional. I hated that Jade was dead because of me and I hated that it could have been Tomas who had been the one to shoot her. Dreams came and went as though through a haze. Not frightening so that I felt afraid, more like a film that I was watching on TV. Then there was Ranger, I never saw him again and yet I felt that he was close, close enough that I felt safe.
I woke feeling very tired. It was like those mornings when you overslept yet still felt half asleep. I wasn't sure what time it was or what I should do, almost as though I was in some kind of limbo land. I mean what was the right thing to do? Images from the night before flashed through my head leaving me with a feeling of frustration. I suppose that I was still reeling from Ranger's unexpected arrival and just how much that had affected me and wondered if he'd taken what I'd said seriously and left town. I wasn't too sure how I felt about that.
Then there was the whole incident with Jade. There was something that was niggling at me about what she'd said but I wasn't sure that I could do anything about it. This wasn't Trenton and I wasn't the old Stephanie Plum who got involved with something because it puzzled me. Pulling a robe on over my shorts and strappy top I ventured outside and onto the patio surprised to see Allegro sat on one of the chairs with a tray on the table by her side.
"Hey, I wasn't expecting to see you for a few hours. Are you doing okay?"
I nodded my head as I sat down beside her and watched as she poured out some coffee and handed it to me.
"I had no idea that Jade would do that, I'm so sorry that it was you that she took her anger out on"
Me too, after all she could have tried to shoot the man that had basically screwed her over. I wasn't sure about asking Allegro for details about Jade, to be honest Jade was dead now, so no good would come from delving into her past, or would it?
"I'm sorry to have to say this to you but we have other bookings arranged. Last night was a total success thanks to you"
I had to admit that I'd never asked or been told what would happen after last night's launch, I maybe just assumed that it was a one off and the company would reap the rewards through selling their products.
"Are you up to that, I know the first one will be lower key, not so many people there and there'll be no show as such"
That had me curious, so I was looking at her wondering what she meant.
"It's more a private show for one very important and influential man"
A feeling in the pit of my stomach began to churn at hearing that. I wanted to know who it was and where it would be happening.
"When is it?"
Hoping that by asking that simple question Allegro would be more open on giving me details and hopefully not be aware that the suggestion had me nervous.
"Monday, the day after tomorrow. The venue is yet to be arranged. He likes his privacy, so we probably won't know until the last minute"
Two days seemed very close to me, and I had to put on a smile to cover my nervousness, wondering why I didn't like the sound of this one man show and went with trying to sound eager.
"Do I need to rehearse for it?"
"No. The outfit that you wore at the start of the launch will be enough"
In my mind I was remembering that dress, a simple pale grey sheath dress. I suppose that it was versatile enough to wear any of the accessories with it and maybe the idea of not having to keep changing was appealing. I had two days then to occupy myself, including today.
Sight seeing around Milan didn't appeal to me but neither did I want to spend those days cooped up in this apartment. I also wondered if Tomas would still be hanging around now that the drama from the previous day was finished. To be honest I wanted to be on my own and as I sat there drinking my coffee, I knew exactly what I wanted to do. But to do that I needed some cash which I didn't have, hell I didn't even have any bank cards with my wallet being stolen.
"Allegro, I err, wanted to buy a few things, you know personal things, but I have no way to access any money as that thief took my wallet"
It took a few moments for Allegro to respond to me which had me a little worried, surely, I was owed some money from the work that I'd already done?
"I never thought about that. I'll get HR to order you new ones, but they'll take a few days to get here"
That wasn't going to help me now and it would certainly infringe on whatever I wanted to do. In some ways it annoyed me, but I knew that it wasn't her fault.
"Allegro, could you maybe lend me some money. I'll pay you back as soon as I can access my own"
I hated asking, hated that it seemed as though I was begging her, but what other option did I have? Maybe she just hadn't thought through the dilemma that I was in because I watched as her face fell.
"Oh, Stefania, how stupid of me. Of course you can have some money, I'll leave it on the dining table when I go out. I have some long hours to put in now, making sure the marketing is right for the clients who placed orders. Will you be okay on your own, I mean last night had to have been upsetting?"
Was she right, should I have been more upset? I was feeling saddened but not because I'd nearly been hurt. How sad was that. I was feeling saddened because a young woman was dead and I had no idea why. I hoped that Allegro was right about being on my own because I wasn't in the mood to have anyone following me. I wanted some privacy for what I was planning on doing. Maybe that was how I had coped with stressful situations in the past, by finding a purpose to fill my mind.
"I just need to get my head around what happened and doing something will help with that. I'm going to get changed. Is there anything I can do to help?"
Okay, maybe I was crossing my fingers behind my back and hoping that she answered with a no, but I needed to be polite, after all Allegro had been nothing but nice to me and I was staying here rent free.
"Thanks for asking, but I've got it"
Once back in my room I turned on the main light to check out what I could wear from my closet. Stubbing my toe on the chair I was about to swear at it as I bent over to rub my foot but noticed that the chair was in a different place. The indentation on the carpet showed that it had been at least a foot further toward the window. Strange, because I couldn't remember moving it or seeing anyone use it. I shrugged it off and opened the door to the closet. There wasn't a lot of choice. I'd lived in jeans most of the time that I'd been working, well apart from when I was wearing the apparel for the launch. Maybe jeans and a T-shirt weren't for today, maybe I could use that coral sundress that I'd brought with me. Taking it out I found some underwear and went about getting ready to go out.
Once downstairs I was aware that Allegro must have already left and that there were some notes on the table. I went over to the sink to rinse through the mug that Tomas had used when he brought me a drink. I only intended to rinse it out but was surprised to find a white residue in the bottom. I couldn't understand what it was, after all it had only been hot chocolate that Tomas had brought for me. Then I thought back to last night and how quickly I had fallen asleep, the way that I had dreamt but also how I had felt when I woke up. Had Tomas put something in my drink to help me to sleep? I wouldn't be pleased with him for doing that without asking me first.
I'd talk to him when I saw him, for now I was going to head out of the building and see what happened. Wearing sunglasses, I was soon walking down the street, not too fast and stopping to look at the menus of any cafes that I passed. You guessed; I was actually looking at the reflection in the windows to work out if anyone was following me. My gut was telling me that there was and from what I'd caught a glimpse of I was pretty sure that the man with the baseball cap and jeans on was the culprit. I couldn't understand why someone would be following me or was this Tomas's idea of keeping an eye on me? Why would he want to do that? The launch was over with and as far as I knew there were no other women who might be annoyed with me or anyone who would want to hurt me. Were Allegro and Lucio worried that someone might try to coerce me into giving away their company secrets? Nah, they were in the public domain now and I hadn't been privy to anything else that they were looking at in terms of designs.
Looking into a café I decided to take advantage of having something to eat so made my way to the table at the back of the room. The man in question decided to sit at a table outside. I was soon ordering yet another coffee and a croissant, I needed the comfort of sugar and to decide how to lose my tail. Simple. As soon as I'd finished eating and paid the bill I stood up and went to the door that showed that a restroom was that way. I was so relieved to see that there was also an exit that led outside so was soon walking out of it and into a small alley way. One way led back to the front of the café while the other looked to lead into a maze of more alleys between the buildings. I turned to go back to the front of the café and staying out of sight looked at the tables set out at the front.
The man was still there but he was constantly looking into the café, no doubt looking for me to come out. I waited and sure enough the man was walking into the café and heading for the same door that I'd used. That was when I came out of my hiding spot and was soon walking back down the street, I retraced my route hoping that there was only one man involved. I'd passed an underground station so knew that it wasn't far away, so I made my way down the escalator, reading the map that I'd picked up on the way in when I'd bought a day ticket. I still wasn't sure that I was on my own so planned as though I wasn't. Once on the platform I stepped forward as a train approached and then stood back as other passengers got off and then hesitated as I looked down the train. I put my foot on the board as though I was getting on and then just as the doors started to close stepped back onto the platform.
I wasn't sure if it worked or not or if there had been someone following me, but I got a kick from what I'd done and realized that I missed the thrill of being out on the streets. So I did the same a few more times between actually riding on a train before I was walking up the steps and into the warm bright sunshine. The first boutique that I came to I went inside and found some linen trousers and a short sleeved blouse. A sunhat had my hair inside and the brim was low over my face, though I was sure that the sunglasses helped.
I'd chosen this area because it was close to the university so was banking on there being an internet café somewhere close by. As I continued to walk in the direction of the university, I spied a bookshop that had internet written on the window.
An hour later I had a name for Jade, Bria Abano, and a brief background of her career as a model from a magazine article. Unfortunately, there was nothing after she'd joined Scintillante. Google might be a good search engine and have access to a lot of photos but there was nothing, it was as though Bria Abano had vanished only to be seen in Scintillante's promotional adverts as Jade and Rosa. It was times like this that I wished I had access to a decent search program.
I was so disappointed and even as the computer timed out on me, I was considering what to do next. The only person who had said anything about Jade had been Tania, what had she said? That she knew her and that something bad must have happened, that she was happy with a new man. That was who I needed to talk to. It seemed to me that even though I was in a strange city living under a different name I couldn't change who I was. I had a puzzle in front of me and wanted to solve it.
