by Mallory Fox
Three messages from an unknown number. The last one sent forty-five minutes ago.
Open the door, Pearl. Let me in.
I squint and reread it just in case it I misread it. No, it says what I thought it did. The rest of the messages are of some variation or other of the same thing. Seth is outside and he wants in.
I check in the hallway that the door to Flick’s room is closed before making my way to the security panel in the kitchen. A few taps later it pulls up a view of the outer gates.
My phone buzzes again. Another message.
Are you going to let me in or do I have to break the door down?
On the first camera view our private driveway is empty. On the second view, showing just beyond the gates, there’s a sports bike that wasn’t there before parked right next to the outer wall. The third view shows me the front doorway and a figure standing at the entrance.
As they look up the camera switches to a closer view, zooming in on their features.
A strong, square jaw, hooded eyes, a look of detest flashing across his face. Yes, that’s Seth alright.
I’m contemplating if I should to let him in or not when the doorbell rings, making me jump. Then Seth is banging the door like he’s breaking the house down.
What an asshole. It’s one am in the bloody morning!
“Alright, alright. Chill out.” I undo the security locks and open the door, glaring at Seth as he walks in, right past me without so much as hello.
He’s dressed in his signature black shirt and black jeans, carrying a duffel bag over his shoulder and laptop under one arm.
“You’re not moving in,” I snap at him. The lake house only has three bedrooms and all three are taken, or they will be when Gabby moves in.
Seth, gorgeous as ever, stops short of the open plan kitchen slash living room, with its cosy central fireplace and floor to ceiling vistas of the snowy mountains rising behind the lake, and gives a low whistle, dropping his bags to the floor with a thud.
“Looks like you were holding out on me princess. This place is sick.” He walks over to the fridge and roots around.
‘You can’t stay here.”
“Where are the beers?”
“Beers? There aren’t any.”
“You have a fridge full of champagne but no beer?”
“We don’t drink beer.”
“Apparently not.” He inclines his head to the half empty champers bottle. “Bit early to be celebrating, it’s the first week.” He pauses, as if seeing me for the first time, eyes trailing over me as I stand there with no make-up on and my hair scraped back into a messy ponytail.
I fold my arms, mentally berating myself for wearing flimsy pajamas without a nightgown to answer the door. I knew it was him. I should have changed. “It’s tradition, we’re having champagne Friday.”
“Then you won’t mind me joining in.” He cracks open another bottle and pours two glasses.
“What the hell is going on?” Flick asks, as she steps out of her room in the tiniest nightdress ever.
“I’m moving in. Join us for a drink?” Seth says, as he looks up. I’m relieved to see his eyes settle on Flick for the barest moment, and then look away again. I’ve no idea why I care but it’s obvious I don’t want him fancying my best friend.
Flick’s eyes do no such thing, they light up and linger on Seth, drinking every part of him in. My best friend looks like the cat who caught the cream as she grins. “Thought you’d never ask.”
Seth hands me glass and I accept it begrudgingly. “As I said earlier, you can’t stay here.”
Flick accepts the second glass from Seth while he pours himself another, and takes a seat at the breakfast bar. “Why can’t he? Gabby hasn’t arrived yet. There’s plenty of room until then.”
“And what do we do if Gabby comes back before Easter?” I say rather lamely.
“Then I’ll just have to bunk in with you.”
I whip my gaze over to Seth in time to see his eyes twinkling back at me. “That’s not happening.” I shake my head.
“Ignore her. You can bunk with me Seth.”
If I’m expecting him to reject her that doesn’t happen. He shoots her a grin, eyes still all a twinkle, which makes me sick to my stomach.
I place my untouched champers back on the breakfast bar and slip off my chair. “I’m going to bed.”
“Oh, more champagne for us!” Flick giggles as I leave the kitchen
Just as I’m shutting the door, I hear Seth laugh. A deep, hearty sound I haven’t heard for a very long time. The sound of it causes me to collapse onto my bed, yank the covers over my head and pray for sleep.
When it finally comes, birds are singing outside and Flick and Seth have at last shut the hell up.
Sully won’t return my calls. I’ve tried and tried but he’s clearly avoiding me. A few weeks into the term, I take an early flight to London and drop in at his office. I know it’s the weekend but the man has been known to work all hours regardless of what day of the week it is.
“Hello Sullivan, did you miss me?” I say, taking a seat opposite his desk. “No need to get up I’m just here to check in on progress with the hacker issue and then I’ll be on my way.”
He jumps when he sees me, clearly not expecting me to show up. Lucky for me, his receptionist doesn’t work on the weekend so I was able to walk into his office unannounced and unhindered.
“Pearl, this is a surprise.”
I feel sorry for the man, I really do. “You’ve not been returning my calls,” I chide.
“About that…”
I hold up my hand. “No excuses, just tell me why you lied to me and the board about Seth.”
I trusted this man. I did what he told me five years ago to get Seth sent away.
Why would he choose Seth over me now? I don’t understand.
Sullivan sighs, clasping his hands in front of him. “I didn’t lie, Pearl dear, you need to realize not everything revolves around you.”
I narrow my gaze at him, resisting the urge to hit him. Violence never solves anything, especially when you’re five foot three.
“You’re supposed to be my lawyer, if you don’t revolve around me then why am I paying you?”
“No Pearl, It’s Darlington who pays me.”
“Same difference.”
“No, it’s not.”
I cross my arms over my chest, trying to breath calmly like my yoga teacher taught. I’m already seeing red which is not a good sign. “Explain.”
He shifts in his chair, no longer looking at me but looking at the floor. “I wanted to tell you after your exams. Your uncle was worried about your health…”
“Just. Tell. Me.”
When he finally looks at me I can see there are big, fat, dark circles under his eyes. Nothing new as Sullivan works late as I said, but it’s hard to ignore the beads of sweat trickling down his forehead in the middle of November.
“It’s come to light that Seth has a claim too.”
“How?”
“I can’t break my client’s confidentiality but there’s a definite claim Pearl, which means…” He pauses, stopping to mop his brow with his sleeve.
“Which means?”
“Which means the board have decided to delay progressing your inheritance when you turn twenty one. They want to wait until there’s been proper investigation on the matter.”
“So my seat on the board?”
“Delayed.”
“And my money?”
“To be held in trust until further notice. Look, I’m sorry Pearl, but my hands are tied.”
“Does this have anything to do with Seth showing up at my house last night?”
“What? No, of course not.” Lies.
My head is beginning to pound again. A sharp pain just behind my left eye makes me grimace. This is all Seth’s fault. What does he have on Sully?
Sully frowns. “Pearl, are you alright…?”
“Yes. No. Fuck. I need to… I need to go.�
�� Head pounding, mouth dry, heart stuttering like it might stop at any moment, I leave Sullivan’s office without saying goodbye.
I’m at the lift, waiting for it to appear to swallow me up and take me away, when Sullivan emerges from his office and hands me a folder and a flash drive.
“What’s this?”
“The pictures and videos, the ones the blackmailer sent.”
Confused, I look up at him. “Why are you giving me this?”
“The company can’t keep personal data like that on file for non-employees. They’ve destroyed the originals. This is a copy.” He gives me a placating smile. “In case you needed it.”
I don’t know what to say, so I don’t say anything.
Nothing at all.
When I get home, I shove the folder and flash drive as far as I can under my mattress. I’ve no where else to put it. I thought about burning them both but I might need them.
Tomorrow I’ll buy a safe or rent a safety deposit box… or something.
Anything to get it out of my house.
And away from Seth.
Chapter 7
Pearl
Whoever had the idea to hire out a strip of out-of-season ski chalets, complete with private hot tubs, personal chefs, and butlers in the buff serving our every need, was genius… well, according to Flick.
Me, not so convinced.
One it’s cold here, much colder than on campus, and two it takes a thirty minute car ride and a ten minute ski lift just to get here.
Still it’s the mid-term party and I promised Flick I would go.
So I’m going.
I’m wearing much warmer clothes this time. I’ve gone for black jeans ripped at the knees and a lacy off-the-shoulder top, complete with studded Chelsea boots and a faux goose-down coat with fur hood. I’d rather be prepared if I bump into Seth again, even if my heels did save me from losing my sanity the last time.
And did I mention it’s freaking cold?
I keep my make-up simple this time, no sparkles, just smokey eyes and some gloss. My hair I put more effort into and curl it, so it hangs soft around my face.
Flick has gone for the whole knit dress and Prada knee-high boots look, curling her hair to match mine. She looks gorgeous actually, and I half wonder before we leave the apartment if I should change. But when we get to the strip and the wind is buffeting us every which way, I’m glad my legs are covered.
For the first time in a while, I’m apprehensive about going out.
There’s a host of butterflies in my stomach that I thought had died out along with the shock of losing my parents. I know Davis will be there, he messaged on the group chat to say he would, and that he had a surprise for everyone. It’s probably drugs. Only guys like Davis think they need to show up with drugs.
Seth though, I’ve no idea. I’m still trying to figure him out. I used to know him, know him only too well, before I got him sent away. He was the type of guy you could count on to get you home after you’d drunk the bar so dry, you didn’t even know your own name.
He drove two hours to pick me up after such a night, when our parents were at some gala charity event or other halfway across the country, and held my hair while I vomited all over him and the bathroom. Afterwards, he even helped me undress while looking in the opposite direction.
He loved me so much then he wouldn’t lay a hand on me.
And now.
Fuck, I’m so confused.
We enter through the the first chalet and make our way to the second one via the connecting terrace. The place is booming with loud music and even louder screams from rich brats as they run around in their bikinis and shorts, ducking and diving into hot tubs dotted throughout the snow across the lower verandas.
“We didn’t bring swimsuits!” Flick exclaims, looking at me in horror as a buff butler brings us a steaming glass of hot toddy.
“I’m so glad that we didn’t.” I mutter, saved only but the fact Flick is momentarily distracted by the butler’s bare ass as he walks away.
“Oh my, would you look at that.”
“Just butlers? No maids?” I say, looking around.
“This is the girls’ chalet, only butlers allowed in this one.” Claudine purrs as she appears out of nowhere wearing what looks to be the fur of dead muppet.
We all air kiss and then I take a large mouthful of my hot but very sweet drink, while Claudine spanks the ass of a passing butler.
I try not to flinch and refrain from asking her if she’s permitted to go around doing that. The butlers are free to leave, I guess. And hopefully sue if they feel violated enough. I really hope one of them does.
“So Pearlie, where’s your gorgeous brother hiding. I invited him to come and play tonight but so far I haven’t seen him. Thought you might have hit him with your shoe again.”
“I wish I had.” I say, my tone as dry as my glass is getting. “And my name is Pearl. Not Pearlie. Please Claudia do get it right.”
Flick snorts, trying not to laugh, hot toddy going everywhere.
Claudine sighs. “You know, Pearl, I do worry about you two. There’s such a thing as familial abuse. You should be careful with that so-called temper of yours”
She says it in all seriousness that I can’t help but stare.
Flick looks the color of beetroot, about to let loose on our mutual friend in my defense, but I beat her to it.
“You know, Claudine, there’s such a thing as vaginal trauma. You should be careful what you stick up your fuck hole. It might just get lost in that so-called cavernous trench of yours,” I say, turning and walking back out the way I came, leaving Claudine to spit fire.
Flick follows me outside and we traipse by three guys and two girls having some sort of orgy in a hot tub before we come to the boys’ chalet, where we stop to stock up for drinks.
This chalet is filled with French maids wearing hardly anything at all, in fact, most of them are wearing only half an outfit; naked from the waist up or from the waist down depending on the fashion, appealling to the opposite sex equally.
“Claudine can be such a self righteous bitch at times.” Flick fumes as she hands me a G&T with more gin than tonic, grabbing the bottle to take with us as we move to sit on a sofa by the open fire.
It’s best not to let angry Flick out, she can be downright scary when she chooses to be.
Time to change topic.
“Whose idea was it to have maids and butlers this year?” I say, as some drunken frat boy openly gropes one of the maids without her so much as pausing or batting an eyelid. She only stops, giving a tight smile mid-step, when he produces a wad of cash and sticks it in her cleavage, in exchange for one beers she’s carrying. Then she’s off servicing the other end of the room.
“Davis?” Flick shrugs. “He’s on the student exec committee this year. Why do you ask?”
“It’s a bit sleazy, don’t you think?”
“Students are having five-way sex in a hot tub outside and you think a French maid serving drinks with her tits out is sleazy?”
She has a point. But the five-way looked consensual at least. I say as much.
“Pearlie, are you okay? You seem… off.”
Flick’s green eyes are full of worry as she looks into mine and I suddenly feel tired. Nothing in this lifestyle appeals to me anymore. I don’t know when it started to become something tainted and broken, but it did. And the worse part is no one else seems to have noticed.
“Sorry, I’m just tired. It’s been stressful running Darlington full time. Nothing I can’t handle though.”
“You need to relax more and work less. Talking of which what are you doing for mid term break, a bunch of us are going to Charlevoix…”
I don’t get to reply. The noise levels ramp up as someone turns on the music and the hot tub crowd from outside comes into take advantage of the warmth. They form a group around us, laughing and dancing in whatever space they can find.
One glance out of the window tells me why; it’s sno
wing heavily and most students are wearing less than the maids. There’s barely a strip of swimsuit between them, girls included. I’m still snug in my jacket but now I shrug it off. I’m starting to get hot by the fire, and feel over dressed if anything.
I don’t recognize any of the faces, partly because I took a year out, but mostly since I stopped socializing a lot after the first year. The faces that do seem familiar are those from my own year and they are few and far between.
I needn’t worry because Davis and his boys, Fletcher, Jace and Hugo, along with Claudine and a gaggle of girls I don’t recognize, all walk in a second later just to torture me.
Claudine gives me a dirty look the moment she enters, clinging to Davis like a limpet who seems to be lapping up the attention.”
“Ignore Claudine, she’s only trying to wind you up.”
“Trust me, it will take a lot more than Claudine flirting with Gladstone to wind me up.” As though hearing his name, Davis catches my eye and winks at me.
“You two definitely not a thing now?”
I shake my head. “We were never a thing, more a passing interest.”
“Well, that passing interest is headed this way.”
It takes Davis less than three seconds to extract himself from Claudine’s clutches and work his way around the room to where we’re sitting. I’m relieved to see he’s fully dressed in a white polo shirt and pair of dark, blue Ralph Lauren jeans. The swimsuit affliction only seems to have affected the lower years of La Roche, thank god. Honestly, It’s like they’ve never seen a hot tub before.
Davis, a bottle of Champagne in hand, studying if not mentally undressing every inch of me, inclines his head.
“Pearl, we need to talk.”
Don’t you love a guy who gets straight to the point?
I sigh as though bored. “Can’t you see I’m busy? I’m chatting to Flick.”
“Felicity, can I borrow Pearl from you? Just for a moment.” He gives her his disarming smile and she flakes.
“Um, I’m just going to go over there.” Flick says, giving me an apologetic look and getting to her feet. She leaves taking the bottle of gin with her. I glower at him as he takes her now empty seat beside me, sitting closer than he probably needs to.