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Hopefully the money would come soon.
Staring at the house from the partially hidden space in the parking lot, I smoothed my newly changed clothes and spritzed perfume to cover the smell of fried food.
At the beep on my phone, I silenced it, ignoring Amara's incoming message. I’d spent a lot of time these past two weeks listening to her, offering my support when I could, but now, I had to focus.
I hadn’t said a word to her about my decision to sign the contract—she had enough to worry about.
Besides, I couldn’t afford to let her talk me out of it.
My knock reverberated loud and deep, quickly opened by the same woman from the bank.
“Oh, hi,” I stared at her, surprised, quickly trying to remember her name, “Lux? I didn’t know you’d be here.”
“Summer, come in.” Her solemn response made panic blossom. I pressed my hand to my chest, pulling in a deep, quiet breath. Forcing my racing heart to calm. “Follow me.”
I was greeted by a grand space, with high ceilings, intricate crown moldings, and black chandeliers. Through large glass walls, the sky blazed orange and yellow. As Lux wordlessly led me through the foyer, I watched the ball of red slowly sink into the bay.
Symbolic—the sun was setting on my old life.
It was the worst decision of my life, but I had no choice.
We stopped at a large and imposing door marked, ‘Private’, opened by another skeleton key, similar to the one at the bank. With tight lips, she said nothing as she unlocked the door.
I stepped forward, when suddenly, her hand snapped out, grabbing my wrist.
Startled, I blinked up into her intense, russet brown gaze. "Are you sure you want to do this?" Her fingers tightened, gripping, her eyes expressing a sense of foreboding, dread…
Terror.
"I..." The words stuck and I froze, unable to move back or forward. I have to, I wanted to say, but the words were stuck in my throat. "I..." I tried again but my mouth was dry, tongue thick.
Her fingers dug into my wrists, her eyes pleading with me to turn around and run away. “Don’t?—”
"Miss Duvall," Olivia's crisp, sharp tone cut through the tension. Lux's grip on me was suddenly gone. She stepped back, her eyes on the floor.
"Well?" Olivia stood in the doorway, her clothing almost identical to the last time I’d seen her—a grey pants suit and crisp white button-up shirt. She gave me an impatient glare, her cheeks flushed. "Are you coming?"
"Yes?" My face felt hot. I was pretty sure sweat marks were spreading under my arms.
“Is that a question? Or do you know your own mind, child?" Olivia was giving me a choice—no one was dragging me through this door.
“I…”
There was a small movement from Lux. I felt her judgement, and shame made my face blush. Both Rook and Lux had warned me but I—I was going to do it anyway.
I straightened to my full height, lifting my chin.
“Yes, ma’am.” I met her gaze with a determined one of my own. “I’m sure.”
Smirking with satisfaction, Olivia stepped back, her frigid gaze assessing me.
This time, I’d dry-cleaned my dress; it was sharply pressed and wrinkle free. My hair was pulled up in a tight bun, clipped with pins to make sure there were no strays.
I felt like I’d just injected Botox into my face, it was pulled so tight.
When she was done, she turned her back on me. "Follow me."
I glanced at Lux, who wouldn't meet my gaze. Taking a deep breath, I stepped into the darkness, the door clicking ominously behind me.
