What They Don't See

chapter 1: Strangers In The Dark

It was late.

Very late.

But Kate couldn't find it in her to give a fuck at that moment.

Not when the rhythm and base had such a tight hold on her body.

No, not tonight. Tonight it was just her and the music. 

She only had one year left. One year of total freedom, and then she would be back in France, running the family business. 

Not that was something she didn't want. She was thrilled. This was something she had been preparing for her whole life. From the day she met her father, she had known her destiny. She just wasn't looking forward to being underestimated every step of the way by men who didn't believe a woman could do this job. She was going to be a first. For all future generations, she had to prove them all wrong. 

But not now. Now was the time to enjoy her hard-earned freedom like there was no tomorrow. 

A year ago, a day after her 26th birthday, Kate proposed a two-year freedom period to her father.

"2 years. I travel wherever I want, and do whatever I want. Then once it's over, I come home, and take my place as the next supérieur."

To her utter surprise, he agreed to the deal. But, he had conditions. The biggest was that if she happened to be in a country where a task needed to be completed, she would handle it. Of course, Kate disagreed with several of the conditions. But after arguing over certain conditions until they were both happy with the agreement, they shook hands and that was it.

That night, Kate packed a suitcase and was out of the chateau at the ass crack of dawn, heading straight to the airport, deciding not to take advantage of the family jet for once. Now that she had some freedom, she intended to do things the right way and experience everything the way everyone else did. She had been fighting for this opportunity for years, and now that she had it, she was determined to make the most out of it. Milk it for all it was worth.

Her first stop was Hong Kong. Then Mumbai, India. Next came Dodoma, Tanzania and Cape Town, South Africa. After visiting several South American countries like Brazil and Argentina, Kate finally found herself in the US.

Now here she was, in the heart of New York, teaching little kids dance by day, and dancing and partying at clubs like there was no tomorrow by night.

Tonight wasn't any different. She had met up with some of her new acquaintances at a bar in Manhattan for some drinks, and the slowly growing group had spent the night going from one club to the next. Their method tonight had been simple, if not a bit unusual. They would walk down a street until they found a club that looked interesting enough to entertain them for a little while. The group had just walked into one that Kate had spotted and dragged them into, claiming that the music was perfect for some good dancing. Kate had gone straight for the dark dance floor with colorful flashing lights as soon as she walked through the doors, and that was where she had remained. 

Pushing away the thoughts of what came next, Kate threw herself into the crowd on the dance floor of the luminescent club. The group of acquaintances (Kate refused to call them friends)  followed after her, excited as she was about the upbeat R&B music. But she barely noticed them. Closing her eyes, Kate moved to the rhythm of the loud music, all her worries forgotten at that moment. 

As she moved eyes followed her, entranced by the way her body moved. Kate could feel the eyes. The attention was something she was used to. Kate had always been a great dancer and liked to take full advantage of that whenever she could. Besides, in the short black satin dress she wore tonight, she could hold this attention standing still in the dark.