A Web So Dark and Deadly

Chapter Five

Saige and I ride in silence. My hands lace together over the wooden board on my lap. I feel like a child about to be grounded. I don't know which is worse, getting fired from a job or laid off from a friendship.

All things considered, Saige has been pretty good about things since she picked me up in the mall's parking lot. I had parked my car, then walked all the way through the mall to reach the opposite parking lot, where I told Saige to get me. Fortunately, I wasn't panting by the time she arrived, but I'm sure the wild look in my eyes coupled with the facts that I didn't have a car and carried a strange-looking object encased in leather were enough to raise her suspicions. Her lips are pressed tight, and her eyes keep straying to the case.

"I still expect an explanation at some point," Saige says.

"Yeah, sure." Maybe a year from now, after my contract has expired.

The trouble is that even if I wanted to explain, she'd still be mad at me, perhaps even more so than whatever substitute answer I give her. After all, I just broke into a car. How low can I stoop?

Saige sighs, breaking the tension that built since I last spoke. "Look, I just want you to be okay. Are you in some sort of trouble?"

I swallow. "No. I mean, yes, but it's okay. It'll all be fine. Really."

"Is this related to your job?"

My fingers flex, then curl around each other again. "Yes?"

Saige groans. "Cleo, you have to get out. I don't know what just happened, but things have gone too far. It's getting out of hand."

"I know, but—"

"Promise me you'll quit. Just say it wasn't for you."

"I can't," I whisper.

"The money doesn't matter, Cleo."

"It's not about the money. The contract has me locked in for six months."

Saige's jaw drops. "What?"

"I told you before that she can't fire me for six months!" I try to protest.

Her head slumps forward. "Yeah, but I didn't realize it meant you were trapped into working for her." She shakes her head. "What are you going to do?"

"I don't know." My voice is barely a whisper.

Saige turns into the Vista Villa parking lot. In daylight, I can truly absorb the complex's extravagance. The exterior stone sparkles in the light, as do the two pillars ascending by the entrance.

"I'll wait for you," Saige says.

I hop out of the car, heading up to Tabitha's apartment. The piano music flowing through the elevator does little to calm my nerves. If anything, my anxiety increases as the floor ascends, as the doors part and I walk through the corridor. I ring the bell outside Tabitha's apartment, and the door swings open moments later.

"You got it!" She reaches long, spindly fingers toward the board. I draw back, unnerved by how pale her skin is. For the first time, I also notice long nails extending from her fingertips, painted a ghostly white to match her hair. Now that I see her in the daylight, she exudes a far more eerie elegance than the wealthy society member I first pegged her for.

"The, uh, car alarm went off." My foot catches on the floor, and I stumble a step before steadying myself.

"Uh-huh." Tabitha flows across the room in a navy pant suit. Satin fabric ripples around her wrists and widens into a puddle at her ankles.