Page 28 of A Deal in Darkness
To humans, it’ll feel like an ice-cold breeze that reminds them of an unpleasant memory, like someone walking over their grave.
To everyone else, it’s a warning to anyone who dares to even think about crossing me.
I return to the car, pulling out my phone and sorting through the messages and emails I need to catch up on. It’s a mystery to me how we generate so many messages and conversations that need my attention, although the new technology has some advantages over messages sealed in a codex or hidden in a cipher.
The driver fetches me a coffee and I work methodically, clearing through the backlog I’ve created today. Adriana’s held my attention all day and the cost of it is a mountain of emails.
I’ll be discussing this with Byron just as soon as I catch up with the devious asshole. He’s been avoiding work for weeks and I don’t have the time or inclination to let him continue pulling this shit. There are far more interesting pursuits available and I intend to spend my time indulging myself.
I grab the newspaper and read, amused by the ridiculous stories that humans manufacture to convince themselves the world is safe. People attribute an earthquake to some freak event of nature and attribute a massacre on an island in the middle of nowhere to some terrorists.
The lengths they’ll go to as they fabricate their delusions are extraordinary. I sigh, noting the movements and machinations of other demons and creatures of the dark.
I’m rarely caught off-guard these days and being warned is akin to being forearmed.
My phone rings and I silence it before I register who’s calling.
It rings again and I’m annoyed.
I grab the damn thing and yell down the phone that I don’t want to be disturbed. The silence from the other end is ominousand I wait, wondering why the fuck the idiot who dared to interrupt me hasn’t started begging for their life already.
“She won’t buy anything.”
I exhale, and my eyes flick out the window.
“I apologize for disturbing you, Sir.” Eva’s shaken and her voice is trembling. “We’ve been to three shops, and it’s been two hours. The girl won’t buy anything. I’ve tried, but she’s refusing.”
“Is there nothing that she likes?”
I hear the gulp and Eva’s terrified. “There’s plenty that she likes. But she won’t buy anything.”
“Tell her to get everything.”
“I’ve tried, Sir. She says she doesn’t want to.”
My jaw ticks and my fingers tighten around the phone until it makes a creaking sound. I’m enraged and I won’t tolerate this ridiculous behavior. Adriana needs clothes that are suitable for her position at my side and she’s pushing every one of my goddamn buttons by refusing.
And we haven’t even got to the lingerie yet.
“WHERE. ARE. YOU?”
“Prada.”
“I’m unimpressed, Eva. You know what happens when I’m disappointed.”
My assistant whimpers and I hang up, throwing the car door open and marching down the street. The doorman barely has time to open the door before I charge through it, heading straight for the dressing rooms.
One girl dares to tell me I’m not allowed in the ladies’ changing and fortunately—for her, and everyone around her—the manager recognizes me and intervenes.
I’m ushered in amidst profound apologies.
Adriana’s standing in the middle of a large, airy space, surrounded by mirrors, and she looks fucking stunning. The evening dress cuts her figure as if was made for her, save for the few inches that need tailoring off the bottom. It’s elegant, modern but classic, and shows precisely the right amount of tits and legs.
“We’re taking that one.”
She snaps her head around and pales.
“I don’t…”
