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“Okay,” I reply, noticing an entry on the control panel that readsPrivate.
My room is at the end of a corridor, near the emergency exit. “This is you,” Dale tells me, making sure the electronic keycard unlocks the door. “I’ll catch up with you tomorrow and go over some things. Until then, have a good day.”
“Thank you, Dale.”
As he heads towards the elevators, Chris and I enter the room and start unloading my things from the trolley. I give him a tip, the door closing quietly behind him as I take in my new surroundings. My new home.
The room is smartly decorated and looks clean. A small living area with two compact sofas and a round table sits opposite my bed. It’ll work nicely as a home office, or for eating dinner. The double bed is dressed in beautiful linens, the cashmere and blue color-scheme making my heart lift with joy. There’s a wide closet that will hold all my suits. The ensuite is white and black marble, the porcelain spick-and-span. All in all, it’s much better than I expected for the staff.
On the table, in a glass vase, sits an enormous flower arrangement. A handwritten message is attached with three different signatures at the bottom.Good luck in your new job! Brecken, Luca, Reuben.
Next to the vase is a small envelope with another key card inside. The message reads:This is for your personal use only. It will give you access to the floor marked Private.
Excited, I start to unpack my working wardrobe first, hoping any creases will drop out. I leave my college books and folders in a box under the desk. Behind the mirrored door of the bathroom cabinet, I place my toiletries and make-up.
I take a moment to check my reflection, my eyes bright and my cheeks rosy. Remembering the necklace, I remove it, placing it in the box it came in, and hiding it with some inherited jewelry in a drawer.
Thirsty, I pour myself a glass of water from the supply provided, reaching for my cell when it starts to ring.
Luca’s voice greets me, his name flashing up on my screen. “Hey. You good?”
“Yup. Fantastic.”
“Get yourself up here to the top floor. Suite Balzer.”
And then he hangs up.
Rude.
I use the bathroom and freshen up, nerves sweeping through me. With my purse under my arm, I head to the elevators again, pressing the button markedPrivateand flashing my new keycard over the sensor. When I exit, I’m greeted with a short corridor. On my right is Suite Balzer. On the left is Suite Balthazar.
That must be where Mr. Balthazar Wolfford resides.
I knock on the door of Luca’s suite, noticing a camera angled towards me. A fancy-looking security system is affixed to the wall. I ready myself to speak into it, but the door release buzzes. Taking a deep breath, I push it wide open.
There’s nobody on the other side.
“Hello?” I call, stepping forward into a small vestibule with a pale stone floor. The walls are lined with a beautiful cream and blue patterned wallpaper, small, colorful paintings affixed to the walls. It smacks of luxury, and this is just a thirty foot square space. There’s a door which I peer behind, seeing a long, wide closet full of coats and other outdoor clothing and footwear.
Seeing their personal belongings in their domain makes me feel warm. What else will I learn about them as I meander through their living quarters?
I continue on, through a door that takes me into a luxurious room. There’s no one here. So, not bothering to take much of it in, I walk towards the doorway at the far side, peering out of the floor-to-ceiling windows and the incredible view beyond as I do. Out here, there’s a half-bath behind a pale oak door.
“Hello?” I call, venturing deeper into their suite and coming across an expansive, gleaming white kitchen. Looking to be the height of professionalism, it makes me wonder if they have their own chef, or if they bother to cook themselves. Surely, they order from room service?
A large walnut table with twelve chairs tidied underneath dominates the space that isn’t devoted to cabinets and appliances. It’s set up by the long windows, offering more excellent views.
Placing my purse on a chair, I try and work out where I am in relation to the main hotel entrance. I think I must be right at the back corner of the hotel, and I know I’m right when I enter a vast living room offering two phenomenal aspects to the north and east.
The luxurious space overflows with pristine-looking sofas in eye-pleasing tones, paneled walls in complimentary colors, gleaming sideboards, bright lamps, and glass tables. The layout is stunning, the high spec obvious. It is luxury contained within a vast room, fit for a king.
Fit for three kings.
But it’s the deep, wide, curved wall in the corner, where the windows meet from the north and east elevations that has my breath running fast.
The turret.
With my heart in my throat, I approach the paneling that curves around it at chest height. I want there to be a secret door, concealed behind clever detailing. But no matter where I push or pull, nothing gives way.
