Excelsior

Prologue

"You are such a sweetheart, Miss Russell! Besides, I can tell you are a clever lady -not like all the girls today, big fans of alcohol and recreational drugs consumption!"

Sabrina smiled and shrugged.

"Is it there a gentleman courting you?"

The girl hesitated. She took a sip from the glass.

"Yes... there is a gentleman at my school."

"Oh, of course there is! Any gentleman would be fool if he does not court you, and a fool I would be for asking such an obvious question -well, it is certainly a shame. In any case, I am sure that my grandson would be honored to make acquaintances with you. He is a handsome boy with a good taste. He has started his first year at Princeton"

"I am appreciating your compliments, Mrs. Morris. I am sure that a grandson of the quality you are mentioning must have to come from a distinguished family leaded by a respectable woman"

Mrs. Morris blushed and covered her face with the fan. They kept socializing for the rest of the evening, which went bustling to the point that no guest did listen to the symphony present, and no one seemed to care. Some of them ended up under the joyful effects of whiskey like Mr. Humbert Gabai, whom did not feel any shame for flirting with the young ladies. The embarrassment in the face of his wife, which she tried to cover up, excused his behavior when she hit him with her fan while they were leaving the party, moment when he stared upon Mrs. Bates cleavage, one of the hosts of the event.

Among the crowd in the reception room that was about to leave the place, Sabrina met with her friend.

"Thank you for coming with me." Angelica said with a soft and careless voice. "It has been more bearable."

"Are we going to meet at the café?"

"Sure, send greetings to your mom."

"And send hugs to Mr. and Mrs. Russell", she sent a kiss with her hand.

Sabrina fell asleep while her car was driving her home, which was about a fifteen-minute drive away, forgetting everything that had just happened. She woke up when the doorman opened the car's door on which she was lying down her head, almost leading her to the street.

She put her pink purse down on the hall table, and carried the hunched back up the elevator to her room, where she took off her shoes and tossed them in the dressing room without remorse. That is when her heart beat rapidly as she checked her purses' closet for something, and then she hurried to search through the clothes in the drawers. Soon, she began to sweat despite the cool temperature and her eyes went white.

"Did you lose something, Miss Russell?"

Sabrina jumped up.

"Mr. Bernard! Why have you come in into my bedroom without asking first? It is two a.m.; I will tell my dad tomorrow morning."

Ralph smiled subtly and opened his hands.

"Are you looking for this, Miss Russell?"

He held a small blue sapphire velvet bag. There are no words to describe the terror in Sabrina's eyes. She had her mouth opened and could not utter a single word. Her hands were trembling.

"Mr. Russell wishes to speak to you first thing."

"Will he come to have breakfast in my bedroom?", she wavered.

"No. You Will not be served breakfast in your bedroom, but rather, you and Mrs. Russell will join him in the breakfast room."

"Understood.", she whispered and lowered her head.

"Have a good night."

"Thank you. Good nights to you too."

Mr. Bernard left the dressing room and Sabrina did not move for a few minutes. She sighed deeply and looked up at the ceiling. Her mind was working on the excuses she would tell about what her father discovered in her bedroom, mixed with images of the heated argument she would start her day with. She shook her head and opted to forget everything. She got ready to sleep and let her body fall over her perfectly groomed bed, with five soft, silk-covered pillows and closed her delicate, sleepy eyes, wishing that the night was long enough to never end, and the day to never come.