Black Iris

Good luck.

Iris

I woke to intense nausea. The scent of grime and blood seemed to cling to me and I immediately rolled over the side of the bed, my insides turning out and the contents of my stomach hitting the floor. I then heaved, trying to catch my breath, waiting for the nausea to subside. Reeling, I heard the sound of footsteps then my door creaking open.

"You're awake."

It was Blake, and at the sound of his voice, white hot rage coiled in my chest. Scowling, I rolled over and looked across at him, fear and hatred mingling to form a dark mess inside me.

Blake just smirked. "Come on, pet. Get up. I'll have the cleaners take care of... that."

I didn't budge, continuing to glare at him as the last fog of sleep left me.

This time, he rolled his eyes. "Oh, enough, Iris, quit being melodramatic. We have places to be, appearances to keep. Go wash your mouth out, brush your teeth, and get pretty for court. We have a bitch to ruin."

"What the fuck Blake," I muttered under my breath. But he just rolled his eyes and turned around.

"Come on pet. We are the city, remember?"

And the glib remark was enough to remind me of all that was at stake, everything I'd worked so hard for.

So I climbed out of bed and went to go get ready.

I went to the shower first. Scrubbed my skin until it was almost raw, trying to get rid of the last twenty four hours. Then, when I still didn't feel clean after twenty minutes of scrubbing, I turned off the water and stood there for a few minutes.

For a moment, I thought about Ophelia. How was she feeling right now? Scared, or just ready to get this over with?

I wondered if she thought she was going to win. Then, I wondered if she would win, or if Blake would. If I had done enough.

This isn't over yet, I thought.

After what I had seen last night, I knew that much.

I took a deep breath, calming my nausea, then let it oud slowly, before stepping out of the shower and reaching for a towel. I dried myself down, and wrapped the towel around myself to go into the adjoining closet.

Here, I hesitated. Scanning over the clothes, I didn't know how to dress. Meek and pretty, the perfect arm candy for Blake? Or powerful... proud. Not his toy.

I bit my lip. You don't want to anger him, I thought.

Not yet.

So I grabbed a lacy salmon cocktail dress and a pair of white flats.

Girl next door. His pet. At least, for now.

I brought the dress to the bathroom and got started on my hair, drying and straightening the wet curls and drawing it all into a tight bun. Then, I worked on makeup, making it natural and light, nothing that anyone would take note of. Finally, I donned the dress and left the bathroom. Already, there was a lady crouched in my room, cleaning the carpet. I smiled at her as I passed.

"Sorry, Bianca," I said. "I think I had some bad salmon when we were out last night."

She smiled warmly at me. "It's okay, Mrs Ivy. No worry." She said, in broken English. Then, "Good luck at courts today. I will be listening to news for you."

"Who do you want to win?" I asked.

She pointed at me.

"Blake?" I questioned. But she shook her head and pointed to me again.