by Viola Vera
“Yes, sir.”
I thought the incredulity I felt would leak out in my voice. Instead, I surprised myself by the submissiveness in my tone.
“Good girl.” His praise shouldn’t make me feel good, yet it did. “That door leads to the basement. You are not allowed to enter it.” Then he smiled. In his dark blue eyes I saw interest rise and a hunger that both frightened and excited me. A warning voice said I should turn tail and flee this place, extra money be damned. But like an idiot I remained where I stood, waiting to see if the wolf standing before me would eat me. “Not until the time is right.”
Three
* * *
Steam wafted up as I uncovered the boiling pot of soup.
I dipped a spoon into the delicious smelling contents and brought it to my lips. The savoury flavours and the explosion of spices and herbs made me hum in enjoyment. The chicken stock, potatoes and carrots had all come together wonderfully.
My phone rang as I recovered the pot. I shut off the stove and dug my phone out of my pocket. I smiled when Angie’s cheery voice came through.
“Hey, babe. What you up to?”
“Just making soup for a co-worker. She has a cold.”
“Aw! I swear you’d make the best mom ever.”
“Girl, you’re jumping way too far ahead. I need a man first.” We both laughed. “So, how are things with you?”
“I’m fine… except… I just got offered a modelling contract for a designer based in Paris!”
My heart swelled with pride for her. “That’s amazing, Angie!”
“I think I screamed when they told me. No, that’s a lie. I totally screamed.” She laughed then her voice sobered. “They want me to visit Paris the day after tomorrow. And I know it’s last minute, but I was wondering if you’d want to come with me to Paris, Julia. After all you’ve been through with your mom, you deserve a vacation.”
My mouth dropped as excitement rolled through me. But my excitement was immediately tempered by the harshness of reality.
“Angie… god… I wish I could but I can’t—”
“No!” She drew out the word in a needy voice. “Think about how amazing it would be. We’ll go sight-seeing and eat all the tasty foods that France has to offer. I’ll be your wing-woman and help you snag a hot French guy to bang. It’ll be fun.”
The mention of banging a hot guy made me think of Graham West. I remembered the way he looked at me. That hunger in his gaze. That dark mystery surrounding him. I still wondered what he meant by the ‘right time’ for me to visit his basement. Was it some sort of innuendo? A shame I’d never find out since Kim would be well by the time Graham’s house was scheduled for another cleaning.
“I know it would be fun.” I sighed. “But it’s just not the right time for me.”
“Did I mention I’ll pay for everything?”
“No way. Then I’d feel like a charity case. Angie, you’ve already done enough for me. You gave me that seventy grand to pay for my mother’s surgery and you were there for me when she passed away. I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to pay you back that money.”
“I don’t want you to pay me back.”
I smiled. “I know. You keep telling me that. But I’m still going to try. I want to get my life back on track.”
Angie was quiet for a moment before she spoke softly.
“Babe, you have this bad habit of taking on the world on your shoulders. It’s OK to let someone help you bear the burden, you know.”
“After all the shit I’ve done, I think bearing my own troubles is what I deserve.”
“That’s bullshit and you know it.” Then she became animated again. “Anyway, I’m here. If you change your mind about that trip with me, let me know ASAP. But I might just have to take Maddix if the hospital can spare him on short notice.”
“Have to?” I laughed. “A trip to one of the most romantic cities in the world alone with your boyfriend. Oh, how disappointing.”
“I tell ya. It’s gonna be a real chore, sis.”
We shared another laugh before we ended the call. A smile lingered on my face as I set my phone down. I was happy for Angie. She was the Melbrooke City mayor’s daughter, but that was where her relationship with her father ended. He and the rest of Angie’s family had disowned her after she was arrested for cocaine possession, leaving her to fend for herself.
We’d met at a substance abuse program and our friendship grew from there. She’d moved into my apartment and we’d had fun together until my mother’s health began to deteriorate. I was forced to move in with my mother to take care of her, but I’d missed sharing an apartment with Angie.
I glanced at the time on my phone screen. I had to leave soon. I was due to clean another one of Kim’s clients. But first I wanted to stop off at Kim’s and give her the soup I’d made for her since we lived in the same apartment building.
I poured soup in a bowl and gathered my things to leave. I got off on Kim’s floor and knocked on her door. Kim answered wearing a bathrobe, her brown eyes puffy, her nose red, her fingers clutching a crumpled tissue.
“Hey, Julia.” Her voice was lethargic and stuffy. She punctuated her greeting by blowing her nose noisily into the tissue. “What’s up?”
I held up the bowl. “I made you soup.”
“Wow. Thanks.” Her eyes lit up as she took the proffered meal. “You’re really nice. First you take on my shifts, now you’re giving me homemade soup.”
“I’m not being selfless. I benefit too.” I grinned. “I get extra money for the shifts, but I also want you to get back on your feet so I don’t have to work so hard.”
Kim chuckled. “You wanna come in?”
I shook my head “Gotta run. I have to do your shift at Mrs. Wheelman’s.”
Kim’s smile immediately disappeared into a scowl. “Oh god. I’m warning you right now. That woman is a major bitch. She finds everything you do wrong. Plus, she has cameras and she’s not shy about it that she’s watching you on them. Be careful with that one, OK?”
“I’ll be fine. I know how to handle difficult people.”
Kim opened the bowl’s cover and slurped some of the soup. She made a humming sound of satisfaction while closing her eyes.
“That’s the best shit right there.” Then she grinned. “Good luck at Mrs. Wheelman.”
Downstairs in the park garage, my car refused to start. No matter what I did, it wheezed and sputtered but did not come to life. It had finally given up the ghost. With a sound of frustration, I grabbed my bag and headed outside to the nearest bus stop.
It was as if the universe conspired against me. Not only did the bus show up ten minutes late, we hit a slow crawl of traffic that seemed last forever. By the time I got to Mrs. Wheelman’s neighbourhood, I was almost an hour late.
Kim’s words replayed in my head about how difficult Mrs. Wheelman could be, but I tried not to let that bother me. She might be difficult, but didn’t meant she was entirely unreasonable. She’d understand my situation.
A brunette dressed in a white A-line dress answered the door when I rang the doorbell.
“Hi, Mrs. Wheelman.” I had to take a deep breath because I’d walked so fast to get to her house. “I’m Julia. I’m a cleaner from Nadine’s—”
“You were supposed to be here an hour ago.” She glared, a sour expression on her face.
“I’m so sorry about the inconvenience, but my car—”
“Save your excuses for someone who cares. Your lateness is proof of the unprofessional nature of Nadine’s employees. You will not be entering my house. Get off my property.”
She attempted to close the door when I flung my hand out to stop it.
“Wait!”
“I said get off of my property!” Her sour expression morphed into total rage. Her yell was so loud that birds took flight from the tree in her front yard. “Leave now or I will call the cops!”
Stunned by her overreaction, I stumbled backward down the short stairs. She slammed h
er front door shut so hard, I was sure the windows would break from the sheer force.
I was barely on the sidewalk when my phone rang. I dug it out of my bag and saw Nadine’s number. Groaning, I answered it.
Nadine’s voice came through, enraged. “What the fuck did you do?”
“I didn’t do anything!” I was taken aback by her accusation and her swearing. Up until this moment, Nadine had only ever spoken to me in calm, clipped tones.
“Of course you did! Mrs. Wheelman just got off the phone with me. She said you were an hour late, Julia. An hour! And what’s worse, she said you put your hand in her face when she told you to leave.”
“What? She’s lying! I put my hand on her door when she tried to—”
“I don’t give a shit. Mrs. Wheelman is one of my best clients and she’s threatening to walk and spread the word about my unprofessional services. I’ve worked too hard to build my business and I won’t have it tanked by your actions. You’re fired.”
Four
* * *
I yanked my apartment building’s main door open and stormed inside.
A week later after being fired and I still hadn’t found anything new. Not for a lack of trying. I’d even returned to my old job at a staffing agency to see if they’d hire me back. No luck.
Granted, it was still early. Finding a job took time. But time equalled money and I already didn’t have much of the latter. I had a bit of savings, but only enough to pay for food for a month or so. And that was if food consisted mainly of ramen noodles.
I jabbed the call button for the elevator and waited impatiently for its arrival. The thud of the apartment building’s door opening drew my attention. Kim strode toward me.
“Hey, Julia,” she said. “I’m sorry to hear what happened with you and Mrs. Wheelman.”
“You heard?”
Kim grimaced. “Everybody did. Nadine held a meeting in her office and used you as an example as to what would happen if we fucked up.”
I scowled, but the elevator arrived so I kept my nasty comment to myself as we both got on. Kim gave me an apologetic look.
“I kinda think it’s my fault you got fired, though. If I hadn’t been sick, then you wouldn’t have taken my shift, then you wouldn’t have had to deal with that crazy bitch Mrs. Wheelman.”
“Kim, that’s silly.” I smiled. “This is life. At least, my life. It’s like advanced Murphy’s Law with me. If fucked up shit can happen to me, it will. No question.”
“I don’t know what Murphy’s Law is, but you shouldn’t say shit like that.” Kim shook her head. “You gotta welcome positive energy, you know? Speak good and it’ll appear. That’s what my grams used to say anyhow. Like, before you showed up with that tasty soup, I was thinking about how much it sucked being sick, but at least I had life and I’d get better soon. Then you show up.” Kim grinned. “Girl, I felt better the next day!”
I laughed. “I’m glad it helped.”
“It really did.” Kim nodded. “That’s why I was thinking I wanna help you too. You got another job after Nadine let you go?”
“I’m still searching.”
“You ever been to college?”
I eyed her and spoke carefully, not willing to tell the whole truth that I had dropped out.
“Yeah. Why?”
“My brother runs a temp agency. Sort of. I think you’d be good for a job he has because you look the part.”
“How?”
“You know. Smart.” The confusion must have remained on my face because she laughed nervously. “I can’t explain it. It’s not like you wear glasses or anything. But you just give off this vibe of somebody who’s really intelligent. And I think I’m right if you went to college. Me? Never gave a fuck about school.”
The elevator pinged for her floor and the doors opened. She stepped out and I followed her so we could continue the conversation.
“So this job… it’s not porn, right?”
Kim grinned. “Porn or even cam girl stuff ain’t a bad gig.” Then she lowered her voice. “No, it ain’t porn or drugs, but it ain’t exactly legal either. It pays good though, and it’s quick. Hour, two hours tops. I can’t tell you anymore unless you say you want to do it. Then I’d have to let my brother know and he’d explain the rest. So if you wanna think it over, that’s cool.”
“Don’t need to. I’m interested.”
Kim smiled. “I’ll let my brother know then.”
Kim turned and headed to her apartment, while I jabbed the elevator button to head up to mine. Once I was home, I took a shower. The hot water washed away the day’s disappointment of not finding a job. But I felt energized with excitement at the possibility of having a new source of income.
Kim said it was illegal though. I hoped it was on the lighter end of illegal, if such a thing existed. As long as it has nothing to do with killing or drugs. Still, doubt nagged at me. I already had a police record from past misdeeds. Maybe getting tied up Kim’s brother’s dealings might not be such a great idea.
I should at least hear what Kim’s brother had to offer. If I didn’t like any of it, I could just say no.
When I got out of the shower, I checked my phone and saw a text from Kim.
Come down in an hour. Jared’s coming over soon.
I passed the hour in jittery anticipation, then went down to Kim’s apartment. Kim answered the door and let me into her apartment. A lanky guy in a too-large t-shirt and baggy jeans sat at her small dining room table. He had dirty blond hair and brown eyes like Kim.
He stood when I entered, sizing me up. I did the same to him. He looked more like the type of guy who loved to idle and smoke weed with his friends on someone’s property than a business man. But I guess it wasn’t wise to judge a book by its cover.
“I know the perfect job for you. University.”
I folded my arms. “What’s the job about?”
“Lazy U of M kids who ain’t go to class all semester. Then they realize they fucked when final exams roll around. So they look for a get outta jail free card from me.”
His laugh was a loud, obnoxious sound especially when what he said wasn’t funny.
“So the job is I take a final exam for someone?”
“Yeah, I got a girl who wants to pass her Economics course but knows she ain’t ‘cause she did squat all year. She kinda looks like you but you’re way cuter.” Of course, he winked. “All you gotta do is pretend to be her and take the exam. You don’t need to go for no A or anything. She ain’t that bright and it’ll look suspicious. Get her a passing score at least and you’ll get five hundred easy.”
“That’s it?”
“That’s right, baby.” Jared smiled revealing several teeth capped with gold. “And there’s more money to make if you know how to play the game. So you in?”
I looked between Jared and Kim. Fake an exam and give someone false credentials? It wasn’t ethical at all and it might not be legal either, but Jared had spoken the magic words.
More money.
The goal that was perpetually out of reach.
“I’ll do it.”
Five
* * *
Standing in the University of Melbrooke’s parking lot, I stared up at the spread of glassy buildings with a mixture of dread and nostalgia.
The sound of laughter and conversation carried across the expansive lot of cars. Though it didn’t drown out my heart’s heaving thudding in my ears. My fingers clenched the straps of my backpack. I wanted to move my feet, but I couldn’t.
Not yet.
Nothing had changed since the last time I’d set foot on campus. I reminisced on the pleasanter times of when I attended U of M. Then the memories darkened. The pressure of school and wanting a way to lighten the stress. Popping a few pills to make things easier. No longer being able to function without the pills close at hand. My life spiralling out of control. My relationship with my mother sinking into the depths as she begged me to be better and I ignored her completely. Then my e
xpulsion when I was arrested for shoplifting drugs from a pharmacy.
Shame and disappointment cloaked me. Threatened to suffocate me and weakened my will to move forward. Inhaling deeply, I fought to regain calm and a clear mind.
I had a job to do.
Quickly adjusting my ball cap, I marched toward the campus building that held the exam. I was glad I still remembered my way around. As I walked, I took out my phone and pretended to read an email on it so I could keep my head down. Even though it had been years since I last came here, I didn’t want anyone who still worked here to recognize me.
The hallways bustled with students. When I got to the correct room, I found a cluster of students idling outside the door. Nobody looked at me as I approached. They all had anxious, unhappy expressions I knew well. Pre-exam panic. Some were frantically going over notes, repeating words to themselves under their breaths. Last minute attempts to remember all that they were supposed to learn during the semester.
Yesterday had been much the same for me. After I’d agreed to do the job, Jared had emailed over PDF documents for me to go over. It had been so much. And I had to learn it all in one day.
I’d thrown myself completely into the task, studying as much as I could. It had felt like I was back at school again. And it had made me feel good. Like I had a sense of purpose and a second shot at my education.
Even though what I was preparing to do was unethical.
A few minutes passed while we all waited and then the door opened. My body froze, my eyes widening as I recognized the handsome face of the man who stepped out and regarded us all.
Graham West.
“Please come in and place your bags in the area provided. Ensure your cellular phones have been turned off. Show your IDs to my assistant and sign your names on the sign-in sheet.”
Then he stepped aside to let us through. He swept his gaze over everyone before his gaze stopped on me. His gaze lingered on me for a brief moment and I took a step back to flee, but as quickly as he noticed me, he disregarded me.