by Teya Tapler
Evan was going to have a great time. She smiled and opened her bag. The black velvet, wrinkle-resistant dress was neatly folded on top of her shoes and accessories.
Alex knew that she would be dressed in black and he told her that he would have a white shirt on. Finding the idea of searching for each other at the party romantic Evan didn’t ask him anything else at the time. Now hearing from her friends the secret signals they would use to find their partners she felt slightly uncomfortable.
She dressed up in a long, black, princess cut dress with pointy, elbow length sleeves. She put on a gold and black feather boa around her waist and changed her shoes with the mid height office shoes she wore the first day at Analysis4All. Some gel improved the pixie haircut by adding volume and made it easier for her to redirect a few hair strands to go vertical instead of sideways. After approving the result, Evan sprayed gold all over her hair and put on a black face mask over the top part of her face. The mask had black and gold feathers around. That made her scarlet lipstick and white skin stand out even more. At the end she took off the thick blue bead hanging around her neck and put it in her handbag. She was done waiting for Zander. She had to focus on the present and live her live. Evan adjusted the thick black bracelet on her left wrist and smiled. It was supplementing her costume quite nicely.
The bracelet had arrived on the morning of October 1st, her 21st birthday, in a small box covered with pink paper with black polka dots. The postman had delivered it personally afraid that it would get squashed in their tiny mailbox. It had been addressed to Miss Evangeline Shtuttgart from Hamptonville and then redirected, most likely by Allie, to Evan’s current address in Boston.
Evan had opened it with trembling hands under Brittany’s watchful eyes. Inside, the bracelet was carefully laid under a note with the words - Love, Alexander. The bracelet was from malachite. It was deep black color yet it was reflecting the surrounding lights with light gray even white sparkles. It had a classic and simple design and was about two inches wide and an inch thick. It felt nice on her wrist. That had been a pleasant surprise. Evan wasn’t expecting such an expensive gift from Alex, at least not yet. Brittany had looked at her as a conspirer and the two had laughed remembering Brittany’s 128 day deadline for Evan to find a nice guy.
Evan had successfully found a nice guy and she was going to have fun at the party. She looked in the mirror and smiled with approval. Not sure what she was dressed like, she decided to name her outfit - the bewitched feather. Yes, she was going to enjoy the evening. She could move on and get closer with Alex. The door slipped from her hand and closed with a bang, the room echoing around her. The number on the door lined with her eyesight. It was 1096.
“Today is day 1096 since Zander left,” Evan remembered.” What a better sign that it is time to move on and forget about him.”
She smiled and entered the restaurant.
***
Ollie was among the first to arrive. Alex had given him one of the extra passes he had stolen from Josh the previous day. Walking around the country club Ollie felt in control. He was dressed like a joker, his face covered with heavy make-up. It was impossible for anyone to even try to guess who he was. His body was completely covered with clothes and he could conceal pretty much anything underneath. The only thing he had to do now was wait for Evan to arrive. He picked up a drink and headed to the balcony overlooking the entrance.
When Evan showed up, Ollie pulled a little lens and lifted it to his left eye. From a far one would think that was his weaker eye and the monocle was helping him see clearer. As the image of her got clearer he pressed the top of the lens and it hummed. All Ollie needed to do now is blend with the rest of the guests and wait for her to get out of the dressing room. The sophisticated tracking device caught her parameters and would discretely flash in red whenever Ollie’s sight fell on Evan again.
He took a seat at the bar and browsed the restaurant stopping his sight a tad longer when it passed by the entrance. Golden, green, blue, red and black dresses with magnificent wigs and masques went in and out there. Witches, pirates, various household objects and animation characters danced in the distance. Risking to make everyone around him suspicious Ollie ordered another orange juice and tried starting conversation with the bartender. He had a knife going through his skull and fake blood dripping from his temples down to his cheeks. His eyes had thick layers of gray and green around them; probably it was a zombie costume. The bartender didn’t pay much attention to the few sentences that Ollie directed his way. The guy was busy mixing cocktails, tossing drinks and bottles in the air and behind his back or setting them on fire while trying to keep his costume intact.
Seeing that he would have better luck talking to his drink instead Ollie retreated to the end of the bar and tried to blend in. Whenever a group of masked people next to him cheered somebody or were shouting in appreciation of the bartender’s skills Ollie raised his voice or hand with a drink. Every new group thought he was one of them.
30 minutes passed until a five foot six, delicate figure with a long black dress and a big pink box in hands appeared through the doors. Her gilded hair sparkled under the flashes of the disco balls. Ollie checked the lady through the lens and the red light notified him that was his target. The device was working as expected. The Chancellor didn’t lie to him. Ollie knew he would complete his mission without any interruptions and he will get rid of Miss Evangeline Shtuttgart once and for all.
A big smile shone on his face. Its menacing nuance was hidden behind the colorful makeup and unnoticeable for the people around Ollie. He had found Evan. He had to be patient and wait for her to leave the party before he could strike and wipe her out forever. Their plan was progressing one step at a time.
***
This used to be the Mort’s living room.
Evan instinctively looked for the door to the basement just to see a big, mahogany trimmed mirror hanging at its place. The basement door wasn’t where she remembered it to be. The whole room had a different look with the black mahogany floors and deep royal green velvet curtains, antique appliqués between the windows and dark oyster color walls. It felt warm and welcoming. Everyone was talking or dancing. Servers were carefully moving around with plates full of drinks or appetizers and then swiftly returning for refills.
Evan tried to find Brittany but the birthday girl was hard to recognize. Evan vaguely remembered how a few days ago Brittany was trying to choose between the costumes of Alice in Wonderland and Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz. Everyone around Evan wore masks and costumes. There were a lot of blonde wigs with or without curls or pigtails. Everyone was having a good time. The room was filled with people dressed up in a variety of Halloween costumes. Ghosts and witches, snowmen and dwarfs, wizards and kettles were dancing in the rhythm of a popular song. Everyone had a mask or was covered with a lot of makeup. Evan left her present on the big pile with the other boxes. There were many weird shaped packets, gift cards and chocolates as well as flowers. The presents opening part was going to be as exciting as the celebration itself. Brittany would open them at midnight, and thank her friends with hugs and kisses.
Thinking happy thoughts Evan headed to the center of the party hoping to find Alex before the midnight masques off deadline. That was going to be the signal for Brittany to start opening her presents.
Evan picked up an umbrella drink and started to mingle looking for a guy with a white shirt. She thought she was headed to the outside balcony for some air when step by step Evan came to the second floor at the top of the staircase. The room looked smaller and more crowded from up there. Her eyes looked down at the masked congregation as she leaned on the now black mahogany banister and started slowly to move her hips in the rhythm of the music.
“Nice song.” She heard a familiar husky voice and turned around. A tall guy, dressed in a white loose shirt with frilled collar, black pants, tall boots, red silk scarf and a saber on his waist stood beside her. His black boots were decorated with gold matching the
feathers and sequins on his pirate hat. The light was low and she couldn’t see his eyes very well. They were hiding in the shadow of his black masque.
The white shirt made her heart jump. Thinking of Alex, Evan calmed herself with a deep breath and said, “It reminds me of a very different time in my life.”
“High school?” The guy asked and she nodded. He had leaned on the banisters at her left and was browsing the crowd below. She noticed him not looking at her and said, “Yes, high school.”
“D’you recognize anyone?” he asked nodding towards downstairs.
“No, but I could guess who you are?” she suggested.
“May I try to guess who you are, at the same time?” he asked in return.
“Okay,” Evan asked her first question, “Have you been here before?”
Without hesitation he said, “Yes, how about you? Have you been here before?”
“Yes,“ she replied and wondered what to ask next. Alex was both from Hamptonville and later, after his family had moved out, have visited the club to play golf. That was the wrong question. She tried to turn it around and asked.
“How long ago?”
“This is an invalid question. Please rephrase your statement to require a ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ response,” The guy said in a robotic voice and looked at her.
She smiled forgivingly and said in her own version of the robotic voice, “Challenge accepted. Beep! Beep! Have you been here recently? Beep! Beep!”
“Yes,” He laughed at her impersonation. Evan laughed in return.
It must be Alex. She thought. He’s the same height, same structure and has the same sense of humor. Let’s continue exploring.
“Did you go to high school in Hamptonville?” his question interrupted her thoughts.
“Yes,“ she said and fired back remembering that Alex’s family had left Hamptonville in his freshman year, “How about you?”
“Yes,” his answer came fast and then he fired back, “Do you have pets?”
“No. Do you work with computers?” Evan asked hoping to hear a positive answer.
“Yeah, how about you?” he replied.
He should be Alex. She thought.
“Yes. Do you drive a car?” she asked with the hope to gain time to think of a better question.
“Yeah,” he said and paused for a while before asking her, “Were you happy the last time you were here?”
Evan left her drink on the nearby side table and turned toward him. He wasn’t leaning over the banister anymore. He stood there looking at her, the moving lights playing on his face. She focused on the unmasked part of his face, on his lips, the shape of his teeth. They all looked familiar and yet she wasn’t sure if that was Alex. The guy in front of her looked pretty ordinary and she couldn’t see his hair cut behind the mask’s feathers and his eyes were still in the shadow. As she studied his face she noticed a scar on the left side of his chin. She couldn’t remember seeing it on Alex’s face, yet she knew she had seen it before.
Instead of answering she fired a question.
“Did you get the scar today?”
“Please answer the question of the other player,” the guy replied in the robotic voice. “Were you happy the last time you were here?”
“It’s complicated,” she retreated.
“Yeah, tell me about it. I like complicated things,” he said.
“It happened when I was in high school,” she started.
“You said earlier that those’re the simpler years,” he tried to joke.
“To some degree, they were simpler,” she looked down.
“What could have made it complicated?” he wasn’t giving up. “You’re a smart and from what I can see a very beautiful young woman.”
Evan didn’t respond.
“Your parents?” he asked.
”All teenagers hate their parents. It’s an inevitable part of growing up,” she replied unintentionally quoting something Zander had told her years ago.
“Your sister?” he asked.
“No,” she replied and added one more check mark in her mind under Alex’s name. He knew she had a younger sister.
“Did you have health problems?” His voice became apologetic, ”Pardon the intrusion but there isn’t anything else left.”
“It was boys,” Evan leaned on the banisters again looking at the crowd below.
“I get it,” he started,” you were the ugly duckling.”
Evan laughed. This must be Alex.
“You’re a very stubborn person,” she turned towards him. “It was boys. I had a boyfriend who was not right for me that I thought I liked and there was the other boy that I thought I'd never talk to that turned out to be the right one.” She was so engaged in explaining her high school love triangle that hadn’t noticed how close he had come.
“Yeah? And what happened next?” he asked her in a lower voice than before. It sounded like a gentle whisper.
“Then he-” she started but his lips prevented her from finishing the sentence.
The kiss was familiar to her; it reminded her of the simpler times. Her heart started to fill with happiness and she kissed him back. When he tried to hug her, she pulled off his mask and stepped back. She almost said - I knew it was you Alex - when she saw …Zander.
Evan couldn’t think straight. She felt only one emotion, anger. She was angry that he didn’t show up for so long, she was even angrier at his bad timing; to show up now when the things with Alex were going so well. The only thing she could do was to slap his face with her right hand as hard as she could and then run down the stairs into the changing room.
“Wow, what’s that?” Zander heard Peter’s voice in his communicator. ”You keep up bringing the best in her!”
“My ears hurt. Why didn’t you turn that thing off?” Emil said.
“What d’you expect?” Mary chimed in. “She hasn’t heard from him for a long time. That was a terrible move, I’ve warned you. Now it’s too late. Don’t chase her just head to the accident site and pray to reach there on time before the car explodes.”
“Aren’t you coming?” Zander asked.
“I’ve to make sure that no one follows her,” Emil said.
“I’m monitoring the police and ambulance frequencies,“ Peter added.
“And I can’t run in high heels,” Mary said. ”You should see what they’ve done with the place.”
Zander pulled the tracking device from his pocket and checked Evan’s location. She was still in the dressing room.
“Mary, could you ple-ease check on her,” he said in the communicator. “Men are not allowed in there.”
“Don’t you think that she’ll recognize me?” Mary asked. “I don’t even have a wig on.”
“You’re in full costume,” Emil reminded her, “just don’t take your masque off.”
“Okay, okay, but remember that each of you owes me a cocktail when we get back,“ Mary headed to the lady’s dressing room.
Zander went into the men’s locker room, threw the mask, sabre, and red scarf on the bench and pulled his black leather jacket from behind the lockers. His reflection in the close by mirror caught his attention. The left half of his face was red and it was easy to distinguish where Evan’s fingers had hit him. He touched his red cheek, the place was warm and pulsating.
It’s dark outside. No one will notice it. He gave a crooked smile, raised the collar of his jacket and left.
He was right. People outside were doing one of three things; kissing, smoking or securing the perimeter. The first group didn’t want to be disturbed the second one was happy to be allowed to smoke at all and because Zander left the club, the third group did not consider him a suspicious subject; being alone could be explained with many things.
He walked slowly through the parking lot and the iron gates. There he stood in the shadow of one of the pillars and checked Evan’s location once more. She was still in the lady’s locker room inside. Zander was about to ask for directions when Mary’s voice cam
e through, “What happened? Are you all right?”
Some sobbing followed then he heard Evan’s voice at the background.
”He… how could he… after that… after so many…I…”
“Could you go closer? She’s breaking up,” he said.
“Calm down dear, calm down. Here take another tissue. Would you like some water? It will help you put your thoughts in order,“ Mary stood next to Evan with a box of tissues.
“I don’t want to see him ever again!” Evan hid her face in her hands crying. She had just put the full stop, at the end of the long and difficult sentence her feelings toward Zander had been writing for the last three years, when he showed up again.
Mary patted gently Evan’s shoulder and smiled, “What did he do to upset you so much?”
Here we go again. Zander thought.
“He… and then left…and….now… he is here and…” Evan’s voice came through muffled as she blew her nose in the middle of a silent sob.
“We have to be careful,” Emil said, ”keep her in until she’s able to drive again. We don’t want her to crash earlier.”
“I’m outside the gate heading to the location. Over.” Zander said and switched off the communicator. He walked with medium speed, trying not to look in a hurry or loitering. It was cold; the fall wind was throwing oak leaves into his face every so often. The sky was dark, covered with clouds and he couldn’t see the moon up there either. There were no cars so he walked in the middle of the right lane.
The lights of an approaching vehicle behind him alerted Zander to move off the road. The car almost brushed him as the driver took it around the corner. Zander recognized Evan’s car with the non-working left tail light. With that speed she would be at the location long before him. His feet sped up as he started running and slowly moved to the middle of the right lane again.
After a while another set of headlights elongated his shadow and he quickly moved toward the road side bushes trying to avoid becoming a road kill. When he heard the car stopping, he got back on the road and continued walking. A window rolled down and the car slowly followed him. When they leveled a female voice from the inside called his name, “Zander!”