Twice Over

Chapter Seventy - Absquatulate

absquatulate
verb
1. leave abruptly

"Why didn't you tell her the truth?" Grant asked, curious about my actions.

"I did tell her the truth." I stopped walking and looked him in the eye. "I did not find her bracelet. A security team member did. That was the truth."

"But you were the one who figured out who stole it." Grant argued.

"I don't don't need her favour." I scoff and kept walking.

"That was Mrs Hamilton. She is a close friend of Mrs Overmeyer senior."

"She believed that I stole her jewellery just to give it back to gain her favour. She didn't ask anything about how it could have ended up away from her wrist, or my part to play in the whole affair. She just listened to someone else and believed I could be responsible for it going missing in the first place. Such narrow minded people do not deserve my favour." I walked away, leaving it at that.

When I received a text from the twins, we returned back to the bar and met them there.

"Oh, you look gorgeous. Vintage D&C? Very classic chic!" Carlie was all over my outfit and shoes. She was really jealous of my limited edition Versace clutch purse, but both of them wore lovely gowns of up and coming brand designers. Not over the top expensive, like my original dress, but suitable in this crowd. Both went for a mix of black and white, but both almost opposite in pattern.

"Was your outfits meant to be matching? You know, the whole she's wearing black shoes, you're wearing white?" I pointed it out to Teresa and watched as she froze, like a deer in headlights. Then she growled in frustration and I giggled.

"You had no idea, did you?" I covered my mouth, nearly spilling my drink as I laughed at her frustration.

"What? Oh that, yeah. I thought that's what we had planned?" Carlie tilted her head to the side and it was really hard not to think ditzy blond jokes were made for her.

"Your twin sister didn't know and probably didn't want to do the whole twin thing," I wave at their outfits.

"Really?" Carlie looked at Teresa's frowning face and giggled.

I was onto my second plate of hors d'oeuvre when a waiter brought over another round of drinks for us. Lemonades for each of us. I handed them out to everyone then took my glass last. I sipped the drink, thinking about how to break it to my new friends that I would be graduating school in less than a month, when realised my lemonade drink tasted strange, familiar even. Then it hit me where I'd tasted that flavour before and my heart sank.

"Hang on. Don't drink it." I quickly called out, putting my hand over the top of Carlie's glass just before she took a drink. "Its spiked. I've been drinking lemonade all night, but this one doesn't taste right." It wouldn't be the first time I've been roofied before. I was familiar with this taste, also with the nasty affects of it.

"Oh my gawd!" Carlie cried out. "Teresa, did you drink it?" She quickly turned to her twin, but she was OK. Then we all turned to Grant who was already looking pale, as he'd drunk the whole glass before I could give the warning. I pulled on his arm and drag him towards the exit of the ballroom. Calling over my shoulder, I say goodnight to the girls.

"I had a wonderful night with the two of you. I apologise for what just happened and implicating you both." I didn't get very far hobbling along before the twins pulled me up and wrapped me in a twin sandwich.

"Its OK. I'm sorry you have been targeted like this. Grant told me what happened to your original dress. She's a witch." Teresa's muffled voice blew across my neck on one side followed by Carlie's voice on the other side.

"We love you. Please stay safe." Then they let me go and I took a hold of Grant, my one crutch and left quickly, hobbling all the way. On the way down the elevator I called Patricia, who had a back up car waiting for us. She will be meeting us at the main hotel lobby. Then I called Wallace.

"Wallace, thank you for a wonderful evening. I have to apologise to you for leaving before your grand speech, I hear they are wonderfully enlightening and boring as hell." I giggled at his low scoff.

"Lily, that's OK. But I trust you have a reason for departing so soon? Do you have someone with you? Are you safe?" I could hear my mother beside him ask why I was calling.

"Please don't tell mum, but my drink was roofied. Not just mine, but our whole group. Four glasses of lemonade and Grant was the only one to drink it before we discovered the drug."

"Are you telling me the truth, Lily?" He asked in a stern voice, lower than normal. I could feel his dragon aura leaking over the phone and I shivered.

"Yes, sir. I would never lie about that. I'm taking Grant home now, before it hits him. I'll have a doctor take care of him tonight, then let him sleep it off."

"Good. Be careful on your way home."

"I will. But please do something about your daughter, she is getting out of hand. This is now moving away from petty larceny and into criminal activity, but I doubt there is any evidence leading to her." I shrugged as the lift dinged at our floor we moved out into the hotel lobby. I held a pale Grant by one arm.

"She wouldn't do that." He almost growled, like he was trying to convince himself of that statement.

"Just like she wouldn't steal a laptop, instigate bullying at school, or frame me frame for plagiarism? Just like she wouldn't thieve a ball gown and wear it to an annual business banquet?" I snarked sarcastically. "All four of our non-alcoholic drinks were spiked, Wallace. Do something about it. A lock smith will be around to install a lock on my bedroom door in the morning." I hung up, not waiting to hear what he had to say to that.