Rich Coven

Chapter Three

I had been walking through the hallways for twenty minutes before I found a way out. I had overestimated my memory- getting lost in this house was much easier than I thought.

Once I managed to break free, I found myself in the foyer of the home where a large white piano was surrounded by glass walls. I sat, taking in the crisp pale walls and lush green plants that gave the room color.

"It was my great grandfathers." I looked up to find Mrs. Garcia smiling down at me. "He was a well-known pianist. Unfortunately, I never inherited that gift."

"It's beautiful," I commended.

"Thank you."

Mrs. Garcia reminded me of an older and more graceful version of Summer. She had petite features, the only plump parts of her being her lips and chest. Chestnut brown waves lined her face and fell to her shoulders in a way that was effortless and untouched. She came across as a woman who spent her mornings in hair and make-up and didn't leave room for mistakes in her routine. I'm guessing that's why Mr. Garcia choose her to run the beauty and hair side of GGC.

"Are you ready for you lesson?" she gently examined.

"Lesson?" I gave her a puzzled look. "I thought I was just getting my hair and make-up done."

She laughed lightly. "Oh Eden. Won't you walk with me?" She reached her arm out. Accepting her invitation, I wrapped my arm around hers and we slowly pranced to our next destination. "Many people think beauty is something that can be bought. To an extent, that is true. It takes a certain amount of money to upkeep. But many people have millions of dollars and never become beautiful. Why do you think that is?"

I shrugged. "Maybe they spent it wrong?"

"Darling, if only that were true." She corrected me like a mother would correct her young. "Beauty is more than just changing your look. It has to do with the way you carry yourself. The way you smile and walk. The way you respond when people talk to you. The way you feel about yourself and carry your image to the world." She glared down at me, her eyes piercing mine the same way Summer's did. "You can be the most beautiful woman in the world, but if you don't carry yourself like it, you will never know your power. You can have anything you want, if you just ask for it the right way."

She continued to explain to me about what it meant to be beautiful and how to carry myself in a way that would get anything I want. I learned the importance of having a signature perfume scent, walking with my shoulders back and my head high, and speaking in a way that is slow and alluring. She had educated me more than any video I had ever watched had and I found myself lost in time as I listened.

We arrived at a room on the complete opposite side of the house than I had been at. With mirrored walls, low sinks, and highchairs, the room resembled a modern-day salon.

"Now, let's start with your transformation." She sat me down in a high ruby velvet chair and twirled me to stare at my reflection in the mirror. "I'm thinking longer hair and a different color will be good for you. Maybe jet black and 22- inch extensions?"

I agreed, no longer fearful of the change in my style. Mrs. Garcia seemed to know exactly what she was doing.

"We will do fusion hair pieces and have the curl pattern match yours. You're very exotic looking and I don't want to dull that by any chemicals." I figured exotic looking was just another way to say black, but I kept quiet and let her work.

For the next three hours, I was pampered, prepped, and changed. There were about three different people in and out: an esthetician, a nail technician, and Mrs. Garcia. My eyebrows were plucked and tinted, my body hair was completely waxed off, and my skin was massaged and moisturized. I had been given a full set manicure and a pedicure on top of jet-black hair and lash extensions. When they finished, I turned to find a polished and prepped woman that I barely recognized.