Scary And Suspicious

“New girl downstairs now, your schedule is ready.”

The voice echoed through the hallway outside their room.

Emily immediately looked toward the door.

“Quick, rush into the bathroom,” Eve whispered urgently, shoving a dress and a bathing soap into her arms.

“She’s in the bathroom,” Eve called toward the person outside.

“She has ten minutes to get downstairs,” the person replied before walking away.

Emily looked down at the dress in her arms.

“My pants,” she whispered.

Eve rolled her eyes and immediately opened one of her drawers, digging through a pile of clothes.

“Here.”

Her panties flew through the air.

Emily caught them awkwardly.

Her cheeks heat up slightly.

“Be fast,” Eve warned.

Emily nodded and hurried into the bathroom.

The bathroom was larger than she expected.

Nothing luxurious.

But clean.

Cleaner than anything she had ever used at the Collins house.

She quickly washed herself.

Her body still ached from yesterday.

Her lip hurt.

She ignores it….

Pain wasn't new.

Pain had practically raised her.

A few minutes later she stepped out.

Eve and Remy were deep in conversation.

Both girls looked up immediately.

“I hope they assign you to a good club,” Eve said.

Then she stood up.

“Come here. Let me quickly dry your hair.”

She grabbed a dryer from another girl's drawer.

Emily opened her mouth then closed it.

Eve was already dragging her toward a chair.

The towel around her head disappeared.

“Wait.”

Emily turned toward her.

“Won't the person that owns this mind?”

“It’s a dryer, not her kidney.”

Eve pushed her into the chair.

The dryer came alive.

Warm air filled her hair.

She clamped her mouth shut.

“You have created an enemy with the leaders,” Eve said.

“That attack looked planned. Did you have a fight with any of the heads here?”

Emily shook her head automatically.

Then paused.

Did she?

Her thoughts drifted backward.

Madam Florence?

“Well...” Emily started.

“I think so.”

Eve narrowed her eyes.

“With who?”

“Maybe Madam Florence.”

Eve stopped drying her hair.

“What did you do?”

Emily looked away.

“She asked me to kneel.”

Eve stared.

“And?”

“I refused.”

The room went silent.

“And?”

Emily rubbed her neck.

“I told her fuck you.”

The dryer slipped from Eve's hand.

It hit the floor with a loud clatter.

Remy slowly sat upright on her bunk.

The expression on her face looked almost religious.

Like she had just witnessed a miracle.

“You did what?”

Emily blinked.

“Is it really that bad?”

Remy climbed down from her bed.

She walks around Emily studying her.

“Why exactly are you not dead yet?”

Emily had no answer.

Remy folded her arms.

“Your father must be ridiculously connected.”

Eve slowly turned Emily's chair around.

“You told her fuck you?”

Emily nodded.

Eve stared at her for three long seconds.

Then burst into uncontrollable laughter.

The dryer remained forgotten on the floor.

“Oh my God.”

She grabbed her stomach.

“Oh my God.”

Emily frowned.

“Why are you always laughing?”

“Because you're insane.”

Remy nodded seriously.

“She is.”

Eve finally picked up the dryer.

“She will make your life a living hell here.”

The warm air returned to her hair.

“She will send you to the worst possible place to work.”

Emily's stomach tightened slightly.

Now she was curious.

And a little worried.

Maybe…..Just a little.

“Now I'm scared of what your schedule is,” Eve said.

“You're already worse than me.”

She laughed again.

“At least now I'm not her least favorite…..Sorry Emily.”

Emily sighed.

The dryer finally stopped.

“You should start going downstairs before they come up for you again,” Remy said.

Emily stood up.

She adjusted the dress Eve just gave her.

It fit surprisingly well.

“Good luck fish.”

____

The staircase seemed longer than before.

Or maybe she was just nervous.

She couldn't tell.

When she reached the ground floor, the mansion was much quieter.

A few girls sat around playing cards.

Others watched television.

Someone sat near a window smoking.

Conversations died the moment Emily appeared.

Every eye turned toward her.

The hostility was immediate and obvious.

She resisted the urge to turn around and run back upstairs.

Apparently punching someone in the face on your first morning wasn't the best way to make friends.

She walked slowly across the room.

The girls continued staring.

One whispered something.

Another laughed.

Emily ignored them.

Her eyes moved around the room.

She needed to find whoever handled schedules.

Then she spotted a familiar face.

The female guard from earlier.

The one who had stopped the situation from getting worse after the fight.

Emily immediately headed toward her.

“Excuse me, ma'am.”

The woman turned.

“What is it?”

Emily relaxed slightly.

At least she wasn't shouting.

“I was asked to come down for my schedule.”

The woman nods toward a corridor.

“Go to Madam Florence's office.”

Emily followed her gaze.

“You know where that is, right?”

Emily nods.

“Yes.”

“Good.”

“Thank you, ma'am.”

The woman's expression softened slightly.

“Call me Sali.”

Emily smiled.

“Thank you, Sali.”

Then she walked toward the corridor.

Her confidence slowly disappeared with every step.

Madam Florence.

Just hearing the name made her arm sting.

Was she scared?

Maybe….A little?

Fine.

More than a little.

But there was nothing she could do about it.

Avoiding Florence wasn't possible.

She stopped outside the office.

Took a deep breath.

Then knocked.

“Come in.”

Emily opened the door.

Madam Florence was sitting behind her desk.

Another woman occupied a nearby chair, arranging files into neat stacks.

Neither looked up.

Neither acknowledged her presence.

The atmosphere felt cold.

“I was asked to come down for my schedule.”

The woman arranging files grabbed one.

Without even glancing at her she tossed it on the floor.

“Pick it up and get lost.”

Emily blinked.

Then nodded.

“Okay.”

She bent down.

Picked up the file.

“Thank you.”

Neither woman responded.

Emily left quickly.

The door closed softly behind her.

At least that had been fast.

She looked down at the file.

Her name was written boldly across the front.

Emily.

The sight made her smile.

No Collins.

Just Emily.

She opened it while walking.

Rows of information filled the pages.

Schedules.

Working hours.

Off days.

Rules.

Penalties.

Deductions.

Her eyes moved lower.

Then stopped.

Her daily payment.

Emily almost tripped over her own feet.

Her eyes widened.

That much?

For one day?

She quickly checked again.

Then a third time.

The amount remained the same.

Her entire monthly salary all her life had been exactly zero.

So this number looked ridiculous.

Then her eyes moved lower.

She froze…..

She stares at the word staring back at her.

Casino?

She stared.

Then looked again.

The word remained there.

Emily frowned.

Eve had told her about the casino.

Most workers there weren't mansion girls.

They were regular employees.

Only a handful of women from the mansion ever got assigned there.

The best workers.

The trusted ones.

The lucky ones.

People who had been here for years.

Not someone who arrived yesterday.

Emily slowly lowered the file.

Her heart began beating faster.

How and Why?

Her eyes drifted upward.

The casino was where his office was.

The casino was where he spent most of his time.

The casino was where she could actually see him and get close to him.

That's everything she wanted.

Everything she came here for.

She looked back toward Florence's office.

This wasn't a mistake right?

Her fingers tightened around the file.

Why are things going so smoothly….

Things weren't supposed to be this easy.

Nothing in her life had ever been easy.

She stares at the word again.

Casino.

A direct path toward Ghost.

The one thing she desperately wanted.

The one thing she had been planning since the moment she chose to enter this mansion.

Working in the casino meant countless possibilities to see Ghost and even get close to him.

Things can't just be going easy like this for her?…. It's scary and suspicious…..

What the fuck?