Falling For The Mob

05 Fair not equal

Addy

I hear Sam's bedroom door open and slam shut, knowing that this is going to be a long day. Both of the stylists get off their seats for the day to start, but nothing could have prepared them for Sam being Sam.

I didn't tell her that we are switching out parts of her wardrobe today out of fear that she might disappear for a few days or take some other extreme measure in an attempt to stop this. She is so against this, she might actually set her own apartment on fire to avoid it. I just don't have the energy for one of her stunts or a tantrum.

She walks in completely naked with that cold glare radiating off her. One of the women gasps and quickly turns around, while the other stares, almost drooling. I have no idea how, but Sam does tend to have that effect on both men and women.

"Sam, will you put on some damn clothes or at the very least underwear?" After all these years, I'm used to this crap from her, but that doesn't mean I like it. The woman is ridiculously confident in quite literally everything she does, it's the only thing about her that I envy.

Making no attempt to comply with my demand, she walks over to the coffee machine and begins pouring a mug.

"Sam!" From where I'm standing, I hear a slight sigh before she walks to the bathroom to retrieve her robe.

"You are still set on this new wardrobe thing?" She plants herself on the couch, clearly irritated, but there is no point in coddling her.

"Yes, you scare people, and it's not helping with the image we need to project. You already refuse to smile or even address people with an informal tone, so we can at least soften your features a bit."

The two women get to work without any protest from her, and three hours later about twenty percent of her closet is replaced. It's not nearly what I had hoped for, but it's still much more than I expected.

I spent most of my morning with Sam, feeling slightly nervous. I spoke to Uncle Jack this morning, and I needed to begin bracing myself for this afternoon.

~~~

I flinch as I hear her whiskey glass shatter on the floor. "YOU WANT ME TO WHAT!?" Her voice echoes off the wall, making the hair on the back of my neck stand up. It's just the three of us sitting in her office, which is a good thing, if anyone else would try to intervene, it would not end well.

"Pumpkin, calm down..."

"DO NOT CALL ME THAT." She snaps.

It was a bit of a stretch on his behalf, when Sam gets like this, it's best to stay out of the way as she destroys everything in her path. But this is different, I don't remember ever having seen her this angry. Usually, she is just apathetic.

"Did you know about this?" She gives me that deadly glare of hers making me extremely uncomfortable. I don't think Sam will hurt me, but she can sometimes be unpredictable and even unstable. None of us really know how bad it can really get, I'm not even sure she does.

As if she can see distrust in my eyes, she suddenly pulls back and walks to her floor-to-ceiling windows without another word.

A few calming minutes pass before Jack speaks up again. "Samantha, I know you hate this, and by now you must be tired of hearing me repeat this, but this is good for the company. It's been almost two weeks since you've gone public, but the effect still isn't enough." He is choosing his words carefully but clearly struggling.

"Your entire self-presentation is intimidating," I add. "The tabloids are calling you an 'Ice queen,' and it's having a negative effect. You never smile or show any emotion."