JENNIE
I lingered over the threshold while my eyes adjusted.
I couldn't make out much, just a high ceiling and cavernous space. The only light came from a naked bulb dangling in the center of the room, and at first glance, the building appeared to be deserted.
At least until I noticed a flicker of motion to my right.
"This venue is by appointment only!" The voice came from behind what seemed to be a moving stack of clothing. It swayed unsteadily on pale legs supported by dangerously high heels. "If you would like to make an appointment then please call—Oh!"
The clothes fell to the floor, and an exhausted-looking Jisoo stepped out from around the pile.
"Jennie!" She wore another black dress and her dark hair was twisted into a loose bun on top of her head. "Lisa did mention something about sending you over … Oh my—" She broke off frowning as she took in my appearance, hands on her hips. "I warned her that those clothes would not suit you."
Before I could offer a word in my defense, she turned and beckoned me forward with a wave of her hand.
"Come. Let's see what we can find."
I hurried after her, gaping as I did so.
The place appeared to be a warehouse, enclosed by metal walls. Burgundy carpet and a pair of leather couches in the far corner added a touch of homeliness, but nearly every inch of the room was dominated by a maze of shelves, all sporting countless fabrics: brightly colored silks, velvets and delicate cotton.
It was a seamstress' dream.
As Jisoo led me deeper into the chaos, I noticed a familiar emblem emblazed in the middle of the floor: a silver crescent moon with Mystic written in flowing script across the bottom. The clothing Lisa had sent me had come from here, apparently.
"Is this your…store?" I asked, glancing around—though I couldn't see a single salesperson, let alone a cash register.
Jisoo paused to dig through a stack of fabric on a nearby shelf. "I suppose you could call it that—" She waved a bit of silver cloth triumphantly through the air before rummaging through another pile. "We all have our day jobs."
"Like Lisa," I grumbled, thinking of that gleaming office building.
"Yes." She glanced at me from over her shoulder. "Like her." Her mouth remained open, as if she meant to say something else. Then she seemed to think better of it and snatched up another random bit of cloth instead.
"Come," she commanded, moving toward the room's center. "Per Lisa, you are 'forbidden' from wearing white." Her scoff revealed what she thought about that. "And black just does not work."
I glanced down at Lisa's creation and wholeheartedly agreed with that assessment.
"I suppose we'll have to try gray next." I blinked as Jisoo twirled around and draped a bit of gauzy fabric over my shoulders.
With a tug here, and a pinch there, she arranged the material to her liking. Every now and again she paused to pin everything in place with a needle seemingly pulled from nowhere, forming a makeshift dress over my black one.
"It's not as flattering as the white," she admitted as she settled another scrap of gray fabric against my throat. "But it doesn't make you look quite as helpless as the black."
Nodding to herself, she began to unpin all the work she had just done and gathered the fabric in her arms.
"I should be able to whip up a few things tonight and have them sent over in the morning."
I could only stand there, stunned by the whirlwind fitting session. "So …you're a fashion designer?"
Now her role as 'stylist' at the club made perfect sense, though I guessed from her sly expression that it wasn't as simple as it sounded.
"Something like that," she said, while folding all the fabric over the crook of her arm. "We all have our own …talents."
"So," I blurted, desperate for answers, "does that mean that Lisa really is a doctor?"
An invisible curtain fell across her face, blocking off all emotion. "She should be the one to tell you that."
I swallowed back a protest, irritated by the mystery. How hard was it to just come out and say the truth, without riddles or double-talk?
"Oh, like how she 'told' me about the 'auction' or the 'bidding,'" I wondered before I could stop myself. "Or how much she even spent on me?"
"Jennie …"
"Or," I added, suddenly furious though I had no clue why, "how she was able to weasel her way into my household? Or why she even offered me a contract in the first place? And who is this Raphael person anyway?"
I broke off panting, only to realize—as my voice echoed back at me—that I had been shouting.
"I know this is confusing for you," Jisoo began softly. "I can't tell you much. I can't. But ...I can try to fill in the basics as much as possible."
I didn't miss how she stressed that word—can't. Perhaps her silence was more than just loyalty to Lisa? The thought sent a shiver down my spine.
"Here, sit down." She nodded to a leather chaise, and I obediently perched myself on the very end of it.
"Now, Jennie, what you need to understand is—" Abruptly, she broke off, shook her head, and seemed to change tactic. Sitting down beside me, she raised both hands and formed a triangle by connecting her thumbs and forefingers. "The business that Lisa and I 'work' for, so to speak, is like this triangle," she began. "There is only one person at the top—"
"Raphael," I guessed, and she nodded.
"Yes. Directly below her are 'commanding officers,' of sorts." Something told me that Lisa and Mikhail fit into that category. "And then below that …"
She paused expectantly and surprisingly I knew the answer.
"Peons." Or in this case, people like me tethered to a contract.
One of my father's associates had spoken of his own business in the same way, after he'd had one too many glasses of wine.
Jisoo nodded again. "Peons. Pawns—whatever you want to call them, they provide support for the …business."
Something in her tone warned me that she wasn't just speaking about some kind of money-oriented pyramid scheme.
"You mean, like a society?"
Those green eyes flashed, but she didn't answer—at least not directly. Instead, she shifted, folding her hands neatly on her lap and turning to face me head on.
"Hypothetically speaking, how would such a society be able to exist, parallel to yours?"
She waited until I finally answered, taking a stab in the dark. "By having friends in high places?"
It was something that my father had claimed to rely on. 'Charming, powerful friends,' otherwise known as blackmail.
Jisoo nodded once again. "Very high places, and very many friends who are bound to this hypothetical world by favors."
A nice way of saying 'contracts,' I supposed, but the thought was alarming. One Lisa was enough— but she made it seem like there was a whole network of 'contractors,' with even more contracts spread between them.
In other words: a secret, shadowy world, complete with its own rules.
"Those 'favors' allow this society to exist in secret," she went on, "but everything comes with a price. A price that must be paid—by anyone wishing to partake in this hidden world—to one person." She connected two fingers together, forming part of a triangle once again.
"Like, to a king?" I supplied, playing along with the guessing game.
Jisoo smiled but there wasn't any warmth in it, just an ageless chill that made me shudder.
"Ah, but 'king' is such a mortal concept," she said. "After all, how can one be a 'king' without a set reign? Do you know of any rulers who've held power for centuries? Millennia?"
I gulped at the prospect. Frankly, I never wanted to meet a man who could amass that kind of power.
"So all contracts belong to this …not-king?"
Or, in other words, Raphael.
"All are owned by him, usually," Jisoo corrected.
I frowned. "But I thought you said that—"
"Usually," Jisoo insisted. "But in rare cases, the contracts of certain individuals have been known to change hands, for a price." I was lost, but those green eyes were insistent, unnerving. They peered deep into my soul, willing me to see whatever she seemed to be unable to say. "For a price, sometimes the contract of another can be bought," she repeated. "And a very steep one, at that."
Oh. Suddenly it clicked. 'Bought,' like mine had been apparently by Lisa.
"What kind of price?" I pressed when she didn't continue.
She lifted her shoulder in a shrug.
"You tell me; what is your soul worth?"
The words struck deep. There was something hidden within them; a message she seemed desperate for me to understand, though her cryptic tale ended on that note.
"It's getting late," she declared, rising to her feet, though I was pretty sure that it wasn't even past noon. "I'll start on your wardrobe and have the first few items dropped off in the morning."
She showed me to the door before I could ask more about this 'hypothetical' world and the 'favors' that may or may not have been contracts. Seconds later, I found myself standing on the curb while Lisa's driver ushered me inside the car.
And then I could only sit there, staring into space as I tried to puzzle out what, through that whole convoluted tale, Jisoo could have possibly been trying to tell me.
--
"Get up."
The harsh command gave a whole new meaning to the term 'rude awakening.'
Nightmare? I wondered groggily, but the icy chill clinging to my feet seemed to negate that hope—the result of a very real person yanking the blankets from over me. With a groan I peeled my eyes open only to have a coffee mug shoved beneath my nose.
"No," I croaked, picturing Jisoo and her customary serving of alcohol. My stomach pitched at the thought of another liquid breakfast. "No, thank you."
But when the hand didn't move, I had no choice but to sit up and take the mug in both hands.
I forced down a careful sip, only to discover that the amber liquid was tea rather than alcohol; sharp, incredibly bitter tea that kicked twice as much as the strongest shot of brandy ever could.
Or maybe it was just the sight of the person standing by the foot of my bed that sent my heart into overdrive?
"I don't have all year, Jennie," Lisa snapped, infuriatingly impatient.
She tossed something down onto the mattress and then turned, tucking her hands into her pockets. I hated myself for the way I stiffened at the sight of her. Today, she was dressed from head to toe in elegant black—the only hint of color was that blazing yellow hair.
"I'll expect you to be downstairs within the hour," she called while marching to the door. "Fully dressed."
I stared after her, shivering, as her words finally sunk in. Was today the day I would finally have to put that 'endorsement' clause in our contract to use?
She didn't give me a clue before disappearing over the threshold, and I took a hasty sip of tea rather than ask. Only when I was sure that she was gone did I leap out of bed. My gaze automatically went to the item she'd left for me; another Mystic garment bag. This one, however, contained a simple, sleeveless dress in a soft shade of gray.
Unwilling to test my luck by keeping Lisa waiting, I barreled into my bathroom and dragged a brush through my hair. Then I pulled on the dress and paused only to grab a pair of heels from my wardrobe, before tip-toeing out into the hall.
I wasn't brave enough to look at my reflection this time. Instead, I focused on retaining my sanity as I made my way down the stairs, knowing just who waited for me at the bottom.
This is your house, Jennie, I told myself sternly. Don't you dare let her intimidate you.
That seemed easier said than done once I caught sight of Lisa standing in the foyer. At the sound of my approach she turned, eyes narrowing as they took me in.
"Decent," she announced as I descended the final step.
I nearly tripped in shock. Coming from her, the statement could have been either a veiled compliment, or just another one of her many insults. Still, I decided to give her the benefit of doubt; at least she wasn't scowling.
"Thank you," I replied, running a hand over the soft material of the dress. It was a modest length, reaching down past my knees. Lisa's eyes followed, tracing the hem. Then, surprisingly without a snide remark, she pulled another pair of sunglasses from her pocket and faced the door.
"I need to stop by the club today," she announced. "You will accompany me."
Her words had the effect of a bucket of ice water being dumped over my head.
"The …club?"
"It's just business."
Considering that her 'profession' dealt in the trade of souls, I wasn't at all comforted by the term.
"Are you going there now?"
Shw didn't answer. Instead she inclined her head, placed her glasses over those sharp eyes and moved through the doors, leaving me to follow. I scrambled out after her, surprised by a dreary, cold rain that steadily fell outside. A mist of gray clouds covered the sky, but Lisa never removed those sunglasses, oddly enough.
The driver waited for us, holding open the door and I rushed inside, shivering on the leather seat. Beside Lisa, I may as well have been inside a freezer. Without a word, the driver headed toward the city while I tried my hardest not to stare at the person beside me.
When we finally reached Anemia, Lisa said nothing before stepping out onto the curb. She didn't even reach for my hand this time to drag me along. I had to race after her just to keep from having the main doors slammed in my face.
It was dark inside. There was no one at the front desk or in the entire lobby for that matter—though realistically, in a club for vampires, who would be at eleven in the morning? I was quite willing to classify Lisa as an abnormality in her ability to withstand sunlight and the like, but to believe that all vampires were like that? It would have been too strange.
I observed the abomination in question, who stood beside me, dripping wet. The rain didn't seem to bother her. She didn't even lift a finger to wipe away a damp strand of hair glued to her forehead with the moisture. It was only when she turned to face me—with the lenses of her sunglasses gleaming like mirrors—that I saw my own reflection; eyes wide, mouth gaping open, cheeks red in a way that had absolutely nothing to do with the cold.
I turned away, gazing down at the floor instead.
"Wait here." Without another word, Lisa retreated down a hall that I guessed led to the upper level—but not without first issuing another command from over her shoulder. "Stay."
Very well then. I grounded out a sigh between clenched teeth and observed the lobby with a frown.
It was spacious and decorated in the same mode as the rest of the club; dark colors and bold lines. Cold. Foreboding.
Only now could I appreciate just how different Lisa's lair above the cathedral was in comparison. The dark wood had seemed softer, and yet there the silence had echoed endlessly. Jisoo had mentioned that she didn't have visitors very often. Picturing her charming personality, it wasn't that hard to imagine why.
When the minutes passed without Lisa returning, I sat down on the very edge of a leather chaise and waited. God, Jennie, I scoffed at myself, disgusted by my own obedience. Maybe she should have gotten me a leash after all to go along with my new wardrobe? I was acting more and more like her pet every day ...
"Well, that's because you are, dear."
Alarmed, I bolted to my feet just as Somi appeared from the shadows lining the hall. Red hair was piled elegantly on top of her head, amber eyes burning. Today her dress was a somber navy blue.
"Oopsies!" She giggled. "Was I not supposed to sense that? Look!" She made a show of slapping her hands over her ears and winked. "Can't hear a thing."
I couldn't move. The little voice at the back of my mind was whispering, Impossible! There was no way in hell she could have heard me unless …
"D-Did you—"
"What?" Her sly grin turned playful. "Read your mind? Now, tell me darling, how on earth could I have?" On razor sharp heels, she came forward and circled me once; a hunting shark in a beautiful dress. "Unless Jisoo told you all of our dirty little secrets," she added, frowning. "Though if she did, you sure as hell wouldn't be standing there now, would you? Hopefully, like a smart little girl, you would have already ran far and fast in the opposite direction."
Running sounded like a good option now. I should have gone back to the car—and not taken the bait by asking the obvious question.
"Know what?"
Somi tilted her head to the side like a cobra about to strike. "The truth, of course, about you and our dear friend Lisa. What? You didn't think that she just picked you out of the crowd, did you? A plain, unassuming little thing like you?"
She threw her head back for a harsh bark of laughter. When her gaze met mine again, it was ice-cold. "Did it never cross your pathetic mortal brain that there might have been …a reason?"
Oh, I could guess her 'reason' all right—and it had everything to do with gaining control of my family's fortune. Before the suspicion could fully form in my mind, Somi shook her head.
"No," she said quietly. "An insubstantial thing such as 'money' is something only mortals feel the need to obsess over. Here, I'll let you in on a little secret—"
She sauntered closer, and it took everything in me not to react as she cupped my chin in her palm. Nails sharper than tapered steel scraped my jaw line in a dangerous caress.
"Lisa probably has more money lining her trash bins than is in any bank you could think of. We have no need for it. No desire for money." She spat the word like a curse and let me go, turning on her heel. "Person like Lisa deal in the trade of lives—and they treat them with less reverence than you mortals do your precious money."
I vaguely remembered Lisa saying something along those same lines; your name means more to me. Once again, Somi shook her head—though, I figured that she didn't even have to read my mind to guess my line of thought that time.
"There's more to it, my sweet," she purred, eyes gleaming. "So, much more. I would tell you, of course, but I'm not sure your little soul could stomach the answers."
Listen to her, Jennie. Walk away ...
But, once again, I couldn't help myself.
"Like what?"
I tried to remain still as she came towards me again. Somi's movements were like those of a lioness circling its intended victim—fluid, graceful, deadly. Each pointed tip of a heel struck the marble floor in tandem.
"I'm sure she's fucked you already, hasn't she?"
"W-What?"
Calmly she snagged a piece of my hair between two pale fingers, twirling it around and around.
"She probably couldn't resist. Our Lisa has always had a soft spot for innocence." She sniffed as if the word were something utterly disgusting and released my curl. "How she loves to taint and destroy pretty, pure things. She sure as hell didn't want to share you, her sweet little Jennie. One could only imagine what measures she's taken to secure your contract—to ensure that you had no choice."
"W-What do you mean?"
Her expression hardened. "While they tout their code ad nauseam, they rarely follow it, my dear. We are all but mere pawns in their grasp, meant to be manipulated as they please."
"We?"
Rather than respond, Somi raised a scarlet eyebrow, as if daring me to put the pieces together on my own. She was alluding to something. Something about Lisa, and more importantly ...me.
Only, I was too stupid to figure it out—at least until an elementary grasp of grammar revealed the answer for me. We.
"You have a contract …"
"We are all tethered to contracts," she interjected. "Even your precious Lisa has another's claws digging into her soul—so is the price of this life. You were damned the moment she laid eyes on you, and you poor pathetic thing, you probably didn't even notice. You still don't. There is nothing that a person like Lisa wouldn't stoop to in order to get her way. Nothing."
For a split-second, something crossed her expression: wrenching, tormented agony the likes of which I could only dream of.
"Nothing is sacred to them," she hissed. "There is no part of your life they wouldn't hesitate to destroy if only to meet their end goal. You would do best to always remember that. To her, you are a pawn, nothing more."
Her words were chilling, I couldn't deny that. Chilling and haunting—even more so, because they echoed everything that Lisa herself had said.
"How much did she pay for me?"
Somi frowned at the interruption—in retrospect, I had no damn idea why I even spoke up in the first place. I would have almost preferred to cling to my indignant guess of five dollars …but this instinctive pull in my gut goaded me; there's more to it. You need to know.
"Oh I'm sure Lisa told you all about that," Somi hissed. "Did you gloat when she did? You probably felt so pleased to be her favorite little puppet—" She broke off abruptly, eyes widening as if she discovered something in my expression that she hadn't seen before. "Unless you really don't know …"
"Know what?"
"She didn't tell you," she went on in awe. "Oh, darling, this is rich." She laughed again, but it seemed more like a witch's cackle, full of malicious glee. I half-expected her to clap her hands together like a child given an unexpected treat.
"Know what? What didn't she tell me?" I was confused. Horribly confused—and terrified, because I knew deep in my soul that whatever could make her so smug was nothing good at all.
"Oh, Jennie," she murmured, in a tone much softer than before. "Unlike Jisoo, I am not bound to that bastard. I can tell you everything, but first, you must do something for me."
Run! My conscience warned.
If Lisa was the Devil, then Somi was a creature far, far worse. I would be a fool to make any sort of deal with her. Still, that tiny voice I couldn't ignore spoke up once more; you need to know.
I swallowed hard. "What favor?"
"I want you to say something to Lisa," Somi said innocently. "Just one little word, whispered right into her frigid ear. That's it."
It sounded so harmless, so innocent.
I wasn't fooled.
"Like what?"
Amid a cloud of cloying perfume, Somi leaned forward, allowing her warm breath to graze my shoulder.
"Just one little word. You can't just blurt it out, of course," she warned. "You must wait for the right time. Oh, I know!" She grinned, eyes glowing. "The next time she takes you to her bed, while she's buried inside of you to the hilt. I want you to say it only then."
I grimaced at the imagery. "Say what?"
"This—" She came close enough to whisper a single word into my ear before pulling away.
"Pranpriya?" I frowned, tasting the strange syllables over my tongue.
"Uh-huh!" Somi wagged a pale finger. "Only at the right moment. God, I wish I could see the look on her face …"
"How will you know?" I asked around a dry swallow. "Once I've said it—if I say it—how will you know?"
Her answering chuckle sent a shiver down my spine. "Oh, I'll know. Trust me, she will make that moment very, very clear—"
"What the hell are you doing?"
Instinctively, my mind conjured up a fearsome silver stare to go along with that voice, even before I turned and saw Lisa standing there behind me.