Shire Bottom Chronicles

Chapter Twenty-One

Allie pushed open the door of Glenwood Manor Apartments and walked into the lobby. She closed her sopping wet umbrella, shoved it into her purse, and approached the doorman at his desk. He glanced up from reading a book. "Hey, Allison. It's after midnight. What are you doing here?"

"I came to see Rose," Allie replied. She felt guilty about their conversation over the phone. Rose hadn't given her a chance to explain herself, and she wanted to patch things up before Rose stopped talking to her for good.

"You know the way, but I think she ran out earlier." The doorman smiled as he handed the brunette a keycard for the elevator. Allie rushed toward the elevators, and as she went to swipe the card on the penthouse elevator, she noticed that the doorman had slipped a business card into her hand as well. It was for the craft store, but in pen was a note: 'If you want the truth, go to the basement after 11:30 p.m.' She stuffed the note in her pocket and continued to the apartment.

She was shocked to find their apartment door unlocked. Cracking the door open, she realized it was empty. A note on the counter simply read, 'Going to pick up my new puppy, see you later -Cat'. Allie stared at the paper in disbelief. Rose and Cat were getting another puppy? She found it odd that Rose had never mentioned it. Her fears were slowly coming true. Cat was brainwashing Rose.

Allie thought of all the instances recently where Rose had tried to blow her off, saying she had plans with Cat. Allie had always considered Rose to be one of her best friends, but Rose hardly ever called her anymore. She never visited her house, or invited her for drinks and a movie like they used to do on the weekends.

Her friendship with Rory had also taken a plunge lately; Rory hadn't spoken to her in a few weeks. Allie knew the common denominator in the rift between her and the other girls had to be Cat. She wanted Rose and Rory on her side. Allie couldn't let that happen.

Allie froze as she neared the door to the bedroom. She'd never had the chance to look into Cat's bedroom without Rose in the house before. Rose had gone in to drop a few things off before, but Allie hadn't gotten a good look. Who knew what she would find inside? On the other hand, Rose would only have a real reason to hate her if Cat caught her.

Deciding it was worth the risk, Allie pushed the door open and was hit by a coppery smell that she couldn't quite place. She looked around the room. Cat's bed was neatly made, and she couldn't see a single speck of dust anywhere. Allie leaned down and looked under the bed. She didn't know whether to be upset or relieved to find nothing underneath.

She opened the closet door and flipped the light on, but yet again, it was suspiciously clean. Designer dresses and blouses were hung neatly on hangers, while at the opposite end, several men's suits hung perfectly pressed.

Allie checked every pocket and came up empty, except for a lighter in one of the suit pockets. She was about to give up when she spotted a small box at the top of the closet. She carefully grabbed the box, but a strong electrical charge hit her. Then, everything went black...

She forced her eyes open, unsure how long she had been unconscious. Her ears started ringing slightly and she could have sworn she heard a voice telling her to leave. She heard the front door open and hushed voices as footsteps neared the room.

Bang!

Something hit the wall in front of Cat's room. Allie flipped the closet light off and shut the door almost entirely, leaving only a small crack to peek through. The door to the bedroom opened, and Allie saw Cat and Bane making out as they backed into the room.

"We should get back to the hotel," Bane whispered, but was quickly silenced by Cat kissing him passionately. He pulled away to take a breath. "The council is waiting for us, my love."