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But the hair follicles that had been ripped from her head were supposed to find drugs or their metabolites going back at least three months and up to a year.
How could the lab not have found anything? She considered the fact that the scientists were quacks before she remembered that she’d used a lab that processed results for law enforcement and had all but invented the technique.
Lola’s mind raced. Fortune was smart. Cunning. She wouldn’t have used something traceable. The drug screening only looked for conventional drugs. Fortune had probably used some strange shit she found on the dark web or something.
Sodium thiopental, Lola remembered the name of what she was looking for. She’d seen it on a Law and Order episode, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t true.
Fortune could have slipped it to her to influence her thoughts and feelings. It was how people planted false memories. She could have used it on them.
Scanning the report, she looked to see if it was one of the substances they tested for — it wasn’t. But Lola’s excitement at an angle was short-lived. Apparently, it was a barbiturate. The test had scanned her system for that broader class of drugs and found nothing.
Leaning back in her chair, Lola grumbled. This couldn’t be the end of it. She was sure Fortune had done something to her in the closet. And whatever it was, it was still wreaking havoc on her system.
Lola was single-minded. It was that drive that had made Natalia notice her and give her a promotion. She wasn’t the kind of person who let people invade her thoughts. Not the way Carmen had.
Lola didn’t need anyone. Didn’t ache to be around them. But now it felt like she was losing her mind. Like every undisciplined thought drifted toward Carmen. Every so often her fingers drifted over her keyboard and she found herself on the Law Offices of Bernal, Bernal-Vargas, and Associates webpage.
She hated the jolt Carmen’s picture gave her. Wished she could suppress her desire to see her. To kiss her again. To feel the warmth of her breath on her neck as she dug her nails into her back and held her so close, Lola couldn’t dream of getting away.
Shaking her head, Lola straightened. Fortune had to have done something to them. Lola couldn’t give up just because it was hard to pinpoint. She just had to find a way to prove it.
When her phone dinged with a notification that AfroCubanMamiForYerNerves was going live on social media. Lola clicked on the link and went to Kiki’s page.
In a bright orange bikini, sheer cover-up, and enormous sunglasses, Kiki was lounging on a yacht’s bow. Given that it was docked in a marina, Lola guessed that she’d slipped on to someone’s big ass boat to film her live.
Lola smiled. Kiki was ballsy. She liked that. It was going to take a lot of nerve and constant determination to make the transition from influencer to real celebrity.
“Hey my hot mamis and sexy papis, I have a huge announcement.” She smiled, her teeth straight and perfect thanks to a #sponsor. “You know your girl Kiki has been making big moves and taking the gig to the prime time.”
Pulse jumping, Lola leaned forward as if that might make Kiki talk faster. This was it. People signed with her after long conversations and negotiating details. But as far as Lola knew, all Kiki had done was entertain pitches.
Maybe she’d talked to the agent she’d selected and Lola wasn’t it. Heat flushed over her skin. There was no way she wasn’t picking Dominion. They had no competition.
Despite the facts, a pit opened in Lola’s stomach. She’d been so sure she was going to sign Kiki. What other reputable agency was willing to invest the time and energy into taking her from Insta-famous to a household name?
“Now, the decision was hard, y’all. I had people out here throwing all kinds of offers at me.” She gave the camera a lazy grin before taking a sip of a bright orange drink. “But your girl knows where the opportunity is.” She ran her teeth over her bottom lip. “And I’m nothing if not a calculated bitch with a commitment to queer chaos.”
Lola’s heart surged into her throat, anticipation tensing every muscle. The drops and highs were going to be the end of her.
“I appreciate the hype, but there’s only one place for me.” She pulled down her sunglasses. “Dominion, you think you’re ready for me?”
Lola jumped out of her chair like she didn’t have a mountain of work cut out for her. A moment later, her computer dinged with the sound of a message in her inbox. Without negotiating a single term, Kiki had signed the proposed contract Lola had sent over weeks earlier.
It was a good thing she’d picked Lola. The first thing she was going to do was teach her never to accept the first offer. To read everything over and over. To ask questions and make sure her interests were being served in every deal. Kiki was lucky that their terms were fair, but there were plenty of Hollywood horror stories of talent being abused by their management and left penniless.
But Lola would make sure that never happened to Kiki. She’d teach her everything she’d learned the hard way. Mold her into a business-savvy star with no limits.
Buzzing the bullpen, Lola called for Sawyer. Now that he’d survived beyond the probationary period, she was going to give him a chance to work on a client from day one. The experience would be invaluable.
As soon as he appeared in her doorway, Lola told him to set up a call with Kiki and schedule a time for her to come into the office for a formal meeting. She also told him to have a huge, expensive bouquet of exotic flowers sent to her apartment with a nice note and a copy of the treatment for the dating show.
Taking notes while she talked, Sawyer — and his fresh undercut and cool clothes — was focused and attentive. She liked that.
He was on his way out when Martina darkened her doorstep. Sawyer intercepted her before Lola had to say a word. Taking what Martina had in her hand, Sawyer waited for her to leave before turning back to Lola.
With a smile, he handed her a square envelope. Dropping his voice, he whispered conspiratorially, “No one can stand her.” His satisfying confession came with a wink before he disappeared.
Pleased that she’d been right to pick Sawyer to help with Kiki, Lola looked at the envelope that had been hand-addressed to her. In gorgeous calligraphy, she almost didn’t hate her name.
