Page 2 of Dancing With Lies

“I don’t know anything.” Chloe was surprised to hear her father’s voice, full of fear, his voice thick like it was when he had a cold. Chloe tried to see her father but couldn’t see around the two wall-like men.

The trio were in the foyer of the house, an entryway full of white and blue tiles with lots of glass figurines and the pottery her mother collected during her travels. Her mother loved her collection so much she displayed it for her visitors to see from the moment they stepped into her sanctuary. Even the tiles had come from Spain and were each hand-painted with a different scene that Chloe had spent many hours looking over. Was it one of her mother’s vases that had broken then?

“Lolly.” June hissed, her fingers like clamps on Chloe’s thin shoulders, her voice edged with even more fear than Chloe’s father’s.

Chloe was afraid too, but she was curious as well. What was going on? “Hush, June. Let me hear.”

“Why don’t you tell Celeste you don’t know anything yourself, Mr. Abshire?” The one with the neck tattoo said in an accent that grated on Chloe’s nerves. “I’m sure she’d be interested in hearing it out of the horse’s mouth, so to speak.”

“I don’t…” Chloe’s father paused, and she heard him…spit? Did he just spit on the floor? Why?

“Listen, dude, it’s nothing personal, okay?” The other one said with a shrug. “We’re only doing what our boss told us to do. Now, you need to take Celeste’s call when it comes tonight, hear me? Or we’ll be back.”

Chloe couldn’t see anything else, and June was clawing at her so much she felt her skin tear under the girl’s fingernails. She broke away from the wall with a hiss and glared at her friend again.

They made it back to Chloe’s studio before June, her eyes downcast and her hands clasped together, spoke to Chloe. “I’m going to go home before it gets dark. I’ll talk to you tomorrow, Chloe.”

Chloe looked at her friend and nodded her head, tears in her eyes that she wanted to hide. She was always the tough one. “Okay, ‘bye. PS: I love you.”

“PS: I love you, too,” June whispered, before she scurried out of the room and down the other side of the hallway towards the kitchen.

Chloe tried to practice some more and not worry about what she’d seen. She’d heard a car start and leave and hoped the men were gone. When she fell a second time, her feet dragging as if they wanted to keep her grounded, she gave it up and turned the music off. She remembered now, how her father said the graffiti on the front of the house last week, something that looked like a skull spray-painted on their front door, was just a Halloween decoration that someone had put up early, even though it was only September. She also remembered when she came home from June’s house a few days ago and all the flowerpots and flowers on the front porch had been smashed to bits. They lived in a very safe neighborhood, but suddenly it didn’t seem very safe at all. It couldn’t all be a coincidence, could it?

2

She flew past the mirrored walls the next day, her hair a stream behind her back. She wore a black leotard with a pink sweater over it to fight off the chill in the room. She’d left off the leg warmers which she hated. Her pink slippers were worn in perfectly and it was a good day.

It was her parent’s 30th anniversary, a day they always took for themselves. Only having one child, late into their marriage, meant they could often get away alone, especially when they had the money for a live-in maid who was willing to keep an eye on Chloe. She knew they didn’t worry about her anyway, she was too focused on ballet and getting into a good dance academy to get into trouble.

When she wasn’t at school, or at June’s, she was in her studio practicing to get the routine for her auditions just right. It was already perfect, she knew that, but it had to be more than perfect, it had to be…spectacular.

She grinned into the mirrored wall with perfectly straight teeth, her flat chest poised at just the right angle as she bent into the motions, her legs and feet the main focus as her arms came up gracefully. Her parents would be so proud of her if she got into the New York academy, but she’d be happier if she got into the Royal Ballet in London. Her idea of heaven, though, was the academy in Paris. She’d even started to learn French, in anticipation of getting a place. Either way, wherever she ended up, she’d be happy, so long as she was able to dance.

As the music came to an end and the routine finished, Chloe headed for a table and picked up a bottle of water and a towel. She dried her face before she took a drink of water. When she put both down, she reached for her phone and saw she had a text message from her best friend, June.

You coming over tonight to stalk my brother? Her BFF asked.

Chloe rolled her eyes with a huff, but yeah, she did have a crush on June’s brother Liam. Not Lincoln though, he was just a big jerk.

No, I’m coming over to stalk you, of course. She sent back with a wink emoji.

Yeah, right. I’ll believe you this time. June’s text came with an emoji that seemed to be feeling under the weather.

The real reason she was going to June’s was that she wanted to give her parents some time alone. Sure, it was a big house, but still, they’d probably appreciate knowing she was in someone else’s care. It was odd that they hadn’t gone on a trip this year, as they normally did, but maybe thirty years of marriage was enough to keep them home this year. Her mom always went with her dad on trips, whether it was business or pleasure. They couldn’t be without each other and Chloe wanted a love like that one day, when she got around to love.

Ballet came first, then love, she’d decided from the moment she first noticed how cute boys were sometimes. Boys like Liam were…cute all the time.

Have you seen your mom’s present yet? June buzzed Chloe to ask.

Girl, it’s a huge watch, covered in diamonds and it’s from Chopard. It even has her name engraved on it. Mom said it must have cost a fortune when she showed it to me. It is dazzling!

I can’t wait to get married and get really expensive gifts like that. June sent back.

Chloe rolled her eyes. Are you kidding me? Your mom went to AUSTRALIA to get you the exact iPhone you wanted for your birthday. Besides paying over 2 grand for it, she paid for airline tickets. And a hotel. Girl, please…can’t wait to get expensive gifts.

I see your point. See you later? June added a smiley face and Chloe had to grin back.

You know it. PS: I love you.