by Adan Ramie
"It smells divine in this penthouse," Betheny announced, and Adonia grudgingly opened her eyes. "Thank you all for your hard work and dedication to my cause over these last few days." She beamed at them as if they were old friends working together in a semi-successful startup. "This is going to be a night to remember." A couple of girls came from the kitchen carrying bottles of chilled wine buried in buckets of ice. Another dropped the last two bread baskets on the table. "Now, all that's left is to eat it."
Leah came up beside Adonia and leaned her face close to Adonia's ear. "Yeah, eat and clean it all up. It is going to take us days to clean up all these dishes."
Adonia shook her head slightly. "We don't clean up; that will be left to someone else. But we will have to revel. This festival is one of abstinence that culminates in literal abandon: anything goes, and I'm sure it will."
"If there is anything still cooking, please attend to it quickly then go clean yourselves up. In ten minutes, we dine," Betheny said with a flourish of the hand that met with applause from a few. Daiyu watched Betheny with reverence, but Betheny's eyes slid over her and landed on Leah instead. "Tonight will be the wildest, most amazing and beautiful party you'll probably ever attend."
"Unless we party with drag queens," Adonia whispered, and Leah suppressed a giggle. "They're the only people who put on more of an unnecessarily elaborate production."
The women busied themselves putting the final touches on their dishes, then one by one filed out of the kitchen to go ready for the feast. As Adonia was walking through the doorway, Betheny's hand shot out and grabbed her forearm. She shot the rock star a dirty look, but took a deep breath to keep her cool.
"What do you want?"
"I want to forget this rivalry we have."
"I would say it's less of a rivalry and more that you despise me."
Betheny considered that for a moment, then shrugged. "I know you don't like me. And that's okay. We don't have to like each other to push all that aside. I want everyone to enjoy this celebration, even you, and I don't want any more hard feelings gumming up my sense of peace tonight." She held out a hand.
"A truce?"
"A truce. A promise that, at least for tonight, we can be sisters."
Adonia stared hard into Betheny's face for a few moments, then took the woman's hand and shook it, probably harder than any handshake she had ever given.
Betheny grinned and took back her hand. "I'm so glad we did this." She glanced up on the wall behind Adonia, then back at her face. "You'd better get a move on. We start dinner in just a few minutes and you don't want to miss anything while it's fresh."
Adonia nodded. "Have someone check the pig. I don't think it needs to cook quite as long as you think." She tried to smile, settled on something like a smirk, and then walked back to her room to change.
Leah crouched on the floor of the empty bedroom and stared into the closet with a deep frown on her face.
"You look happy," Adonia said as she back into the room from the bathroom. She was wearing a black button-down over a white t-shirt and jeans. Leah appraised her as she rifled through her bag for socks. "What?"
Leah groaned and laid her head on the closet door jamb. "I can't decide what to wear." She turned with her head still on the door to watch Adonia finish getting dressed.
Adonia pulled socks onto her feet followed by solid black Converse sneakers, and she looked over at Leah as she laced them up. "No matter what you wear, you're going to look beautiful."
Leah tried to meet her eyes, but Adonia had already flicked her gaze down to work on double-knotting the laces of her sneakers "I don't want to look beautiful." She stood and started pushing outfits aside, checking out the ones with the most fabric and the highest necklines. "I want to look like someone who isn't worth the time to check out, someone who turned out to be not as attractive as you thought she would be the night before." She turned to face Adonia again.
Adonia finished the bow on her shoe and wrapped her arms around her legs, chin placed on her knees, a half smile on her face. "Coyote ugly? Sorry, you drew the short straw on that one. If you can look beautiful gutting a suckling pig…"
"You know, if I didn't know any better, I'd think you were coming on to me." When Adonia didn't reply, Leah turned to look at her. "Are you?"
Adonia stood, zipping and tossing her bag back under one of the massive beds. "It doesn't really matter, does it?" She took a few steps toward the door, then turned back to glance at Leah. "You're spoken for, whether by your ambition or by crazy Betheny." She ran a hand along the door molding, then looked at Leah one more time. "You'd better hurry. Most everyone else is already at the table, and since you're our esteemed hostess's favorite, they'll all be waiting for you."
20
Adonia left the room and went out onto the terrace with everyone else. A few minutes later, Leah was in the doorway, and when she stepped out onto the terrace, conversations dwindled and died. Adonia winked at her from her spot lounging against the far wall on a tall stool with a cold beer in one hand and a chunk of crusty bread in the other. Betheny hopped up from her seat at the head of one of the tables and wound her way through the bodies to greet her.
"You're finally ready."
Leah looked at her shoes. Her voice was soft, almost childlike, and Betheny leaned forward to hear her. "I couldn't decide what I wanted to wear."
Betheny ran a hand from Leah's shoulder down her arm, and led her by the elbow over to a table in the center of all the women. When Leah was sat, Betheny remained standing, and sent a winning smile all around her like the pageant queen she had once been.
"Now that we're all here, the feast will commence!" She raised her eyebrows at two women in front of her. "I have changed my mind on one count." She nodded at one woman. "Just for you girls," she said, gesturing for them to look behind them, "I've brought in some male servers."
Two men came out onto the terrace carrying trays loaded with food. The first, a short, stocky man with a blond buzz cut and a tight black t-shirt that displayed his bulging muscles, handed out trays of fried pickles still steaming from their stay in the oven. The other server was much taller, and toned but slim, with braided hair and an easy smile. He placed beautiful salads in front of each of the women and left behind him a scent trail of marijuana and brownies.
"I hope that you are all happy with my choices, and I'm sure you'll find that there is more than enough to go around of Anton and Kelly." She sat back down, unrolled a red cloth napkin onto her lap, and waited while everyone was served.
Adonia watched as Leah offered a courteous smile to Anton as he placed a small tray of fried pickles to her left. She looked around the table for dressing and frowned. Adonia followed her gaze and found Daiyu glaring at Leah from two seats down. At the same moment, Leah apparently gave up her search, turned her eyes down to her tray, and raised a pickle to her lips to nibble through its rind. Adonia knew she would be trying to figure out why the woman seemed so angry with her, but she didn't know if Leah had pegged her as a rival yet.
Kelly placed salads in front of them. Leah picked off a crumble of bleu cheese and popped it into her mouth. Adonia could tell when the pungent flavor it washed over her palate, because she closed her eyes. Betheny must have caught it, too, because she grinned at Leah and leaned in closer.
"Are you enjoying the feast so far?" she asked. Leah nodded, and Betheny turned her attention up to the server. "Can you start serving the wine, please?"
Adonia held her nearly empty beer in one hand and the last of the fried pickles from her tray clenched in the other as she watched Betheny fawn over Leah, wondering if tonight would finally be the night they would be released from what she had come to consider a freak show. She barely noticed the women with whom she shared a table.
"Will you pass the vinaigrette?"
Adonia startled. "I'm sorry?"
"The vinaigrette," the woman across from her at the table repeated, pointing to a cork-toppe
d glass bottle filled with speckled amber liquid.
Adonia passed the bottle to the woman, who gave her a smile. "I guess when we leave here your relationship is going to be a lot different." She nodded a head at the table across the terrace.
"Oh, no, we're not --" Adonia started, then heaved a sigh. Her face broke in a sheepish smile. "I guess it's pretty obvious, isn't it?"
"That you're head over heels for her? Yeah, it's obvious."
Adonia laughed. "It's pretty pathetic, too, right?"
The girl shrugged and stabbed the last cucumber slice in her bowl with her fork. "I don't know about pathetic. But it's definitely noticeable." She shoved the cucumber in her mouth and chewed. She looked toward Betheny and Leah, and Adonia followed her gaze to find the two eating and talking. "I think it's reciprocated, too. It's just a tough situation with Big B being so obsessed with her." She pushed away the plate with one hand and took the glass of wine from the server with the other, licking her lips and smiling up at him. When he had gone, she turned back to Adonia. "If you ask me, you should ask her on a date when this is all over."
Adonia pushed away her plate and passed on the wine, but asked the man to bring her another beer. When he had gone, she picked at the label on the empty beer bottle, chewing the inside of her mouth in contemplation. "She's got big dreams."
"Why can't you be a part of them?"
Adonia opened her mouth to respond, but Betheny stood at the same time and tapped a butter knife on her wine glass for attention. The sounds around her ground to a halt as women stared up at her in anticipation of the next big announcement. Betheny signaled to the servers, who left the room in a hurry, then raised her glass into the air.
"This has been an amazing week. Really, this whole tour has opened my eyes to so much, has made me feel so deeply," she said, turning her eyes briefly to Leah's face.
Leah looked down at the tablecloth, and when Betheny looked back to the group, her smile was a little more forced.
"I want to thank you all for coming on this journey with me and being so patient with all that I've put you through." She chuckled softly. "I'm sure most of you think I'm just another crazy musician, but I want you to know that this experience has opened my eyes." She laughed again, her gaze falling on Adonia. "And, I guess, it's freed my mind from the grip of the lifestyle I was in before I went down the addicted path of all those who paved the way for my success. If not for a single drunken conversation, I might have already drank, smoke, or snorted my way into the grave." She raised her glass to Adonia, then turned back to the group as a whole. "To new beginnings."
21
Plied with liquor and filled with appetizers, salads, bread and soup, most of the women were in high spirits the next time Betheny called for attention. It had been two hours since the feast began, and most of the women were lazily slouched in their chairs, giggling and talking in loud and animated fashion.
"Before we move on to the main course, who wants to dance?"
Kelly turned on the music, and both servers began to dance, grinning and waving at the women in their seats. Several women hopped up, including Betheny, who held out a hand to Leah. Adonia watched as Leah excused herself and went inside. Betheny danced over to the remote control to the stereo and turned it up loud, then pulled the men by their t-shirts, trailing women behind them, onto the upper terrace.
A few women stayed behind. Daiyu stood only long enough to grab one of the wine bottles and refill her glass. She looked after them with malice that was sure to get uglier as she got drunker. Instead of helping her, Adonia hopped from her chair and walked inside. She went to the empty kitchen, pulled two beers out of the fridge, and made her way back to the bedrooms. She found Leah in one bent over her cell phone playing a puzzle game.
"As always, the life of the party," Adonia said, leaning on the door frame. She held up a beer. "Can I join you?"
Leah smiled sheepishly. "I'm so full. And there is something wrong with that wine Betheny made us drink."
"I managed to drink two glasses before I finally couldn't do it anymore and switched to beer." Adonia twisted the top off and handed her a beer, then sat down in front of her. She twisted the top off her own and took a healthy gulp. "How are you holding up?"
Leah dropped the phone into her purse and wrapped both hands around the icy beer bottle. "I hate it, but I'll be okay. I do kind of feel…" She shook her head slowly. "Light-headed, I guess."
Adonia put a hand to Leah's forehead and found it warm. "You might have a little fever. Want me to start a shower for you? It might help."
"Nah, I'll be okay," Leah said. She put the beer bottle to her forehead and closed her eyes. "I just want to rest a while."
"Do you want me to leave you alone?"
"Thanks. I'll just lie down for a minute and try to cool off." She smiled. "If Betheny comes in, will you follow her? I really don't want to be alone with her."
Adonia smiled and reached out, but her hand stopped in midair. She hesitated, then with the lightest touch, rubbed her palm and fingertips along Leah's hair down to her chin. Leah's hand came up to cradle it, and a warmth spread all over Adonia's body. Leah pulled Adonia's hand to her face and kissed the palm, then released it and pushed herself back up on the bed.
Adonia took Leah's beer from the floor and put it on a nightstand nearby. "Do you need anything else?" she asked, and she could hear it: her voice was thick with concern and something akin to lust.
Leah shook her head, her eyelids already drooping, but gave Adonia a sweet smile. "If I'm not out there in fifteen minutes, come wake me, okay?"
As Adonia left the room, she glanced over her shoulder one last time. Leah was asleep. She took a long gulp from her bottle, turned, and walked back out onto the terrace, where Daiyu sat alone, a scowl deep set into her delicate features.
"You're not going to dance?"
Daiyu stared up at her as if she was personally responsible for killing the older woman's favorite pet. "Why would I? No one wants me here," Daiyu spat.
Adonia pulled back, surprised at the venom, but took a deep breath and smiled back. "Why would you think that?" She sat down in a chair across from Daiyu, whose eyes, she noticed, were almost shut. She leaned forward to look into Daiyu's face, but the woman pulled back and overturned her chair. Adonia jumped up to help her right it. Daiyu barely moved. "How much have you had?"
"I don't know," Daiyu snapped, and tried to push up on her elbows.
Adonia hefted the woman up into her arms against Daiyu's weak protest, then brought her inside and plopped her onto one of the empty beds in Betheny's main room. She checked Daiyu's pulse and found it strong, then listened to her breathing. She turned the woman onto her side, and placed a small plastic trash can beside the bed. In the bathroom, she found a cloth and wet it with cool tap water, then placed it on Daiyu's warm forehead.
"Call if you need anything," Adonia said, pulling the cell phone from Daiyu's pocket and placing it on the nightstand with considerable effort. She couldn't get the table to stand still. "9-1-1 if you have to."
Daiyu barely nodded, but Adonia took it as understanding, and walked back out and into the other bedroom. Leah lay still, quiet but breathing normally, though her forehead was still warm. Adonia left her to go back out and climb to the upper terrace to give Betheny a piece of her mind.
When she stepped onto the higher deck, the words stuck in her throat, and her mouth dropped open. None in the group was fully dressed. The men were beset by three women each, and Betheny had two women herself. No one of them was not connected to another by mouth, hand or pelvis.
Adonia backed up a step, eyes taking in what her mind struggled to reject, until Betheny looked up into her face and grinned. The naked rock star used her free hand to beckon Adonia closer. Adonia took one step in her direction before she backed up again, swiveled on a boot, and scrambled down the stairs.
When she got to the bedroom, Leah was sitting up, a warm beer in one hand an
d the remote to the large screen television in the other. She startled when Adonia crashed into the room, then put both beer and remote on the table beside her.
"What's wrong?"
Adonia stopped where she stood, her mouth open to speak, but there were too many thoughts in her head that were racing too quickly. She shook her head absently, looking around her on the floor for something.
Leah stood and walked over on shaky legs. Her face was flushed, and as she came closer, Adonia noticed her wide pupils. She grasped Leah by the face and looked into those eyes. The effect of the drug was strong. Leah couldn't contain a wide, toothy smile.
"Your hands feel so rough," Leah whispered, and rubbed her cheek on Adonia's palm.
Adonia's mouth felt like sandpaper. "Something's wrong," she said, and marveled at the echo of her own voice in her ears.
Leah leaned her face toward Adonia's, eyes closed, and smelled the length of Adonia's cheek. "You always smell so nice."
"It's my body wash." Her voice cracked as the swell of euphoria washed over her body. She closed her eyes, and the feeling of color swirled behind her eyelids. When she opened them again, Leah was pulling away and struggling with her slacks. "What are you doing?"
"I'm hot," Leah said, a scowl on her face. "I have to get out of these."
Adonia grabbed her waist with one hand and tilted her chin up with the other, and made Leah meet her eyes. "Matakia mou, we're all high."
Leah stopped fighting with her buttons and frowned. "High?"
Adonia slowly nodded her head, grasped Leah's hand, and they both walked to the bed to sit. "I think Betheny put something in the drinks, and maybe some of the food."