The Mobster's Girl

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Twelve

Stella spent the afternoon at practice, and had miraculously only been a few minutes late, where she spent the first ten minutes apologizing to the girls for her behavior the days prior. She told them that she had simply been experiencing a bad month with her monthly curse, and they had all understood, and agreed to help with the gala as planned.

Stella promised to bring as many articles of clothing that she could, but knew she wouldn't have enough for everyone. She told others to bring their most conservative items of clothing, and she'd assess them to see if they were debutante material.

Maggie and Evelyn, or rather, just Maggie, still hated her, but Stella wasn't surprised in the slightest. The girls had stood by in the dressing room and glared at Stella as she discussed the plans for the gala. She no longer felt the need to be discrete about the plans, since Dorothy had let the secret slip, and she instead had plans to have guards at the door to insure that the two couldn't get into the gala and tell her secret to her parents.

After practice, Evelyn approached Stella, once Maggie was nowhere in sight. She looked nervous, and Stella looked at her as if she had lost her mind, which didn't help the girl's nerves.

"Stella, I've been thinking about what you said the other night."

Stella immediately began to apologize, but Evelyn stopped her.

"You're right about the dancing. I need some help nailing the steps, because I too, want to prove to my parents that I can do this. They don't know that I work in a speakeasy, but they know that I'm a dancer, and have kicked me out of their house. Maggie's my roommate, but I don't know if I can live with her much longer. She's so awfully competitive, that I can't get any help from her. I'd really appreciate if you'd help me."

Stella eyed the young woman in front of her suspiciously, certain that it had to be a trap.

"You can have Hazel and Kate around if that makes you more comfortable, but I promise this is just me reaching out to you for help."

Evelyn couldn't be more than eighteen, and her face was still round and had some baby fat in it, but she had striking green eyes, and chocolate brown hair, and a gangly frame. She was taller than most of the girls, but Stella was certain that she could use that to her advantage.

"Okay," Stella agreed. "We can meet here an hour before practice to get some extra time in?"

Evelyn nodded eagerly. "I really appreciate this, Stella. How can I repay you?"

Stella thought for a moment, then met Evelyn's gaze. "Keep Maggie away from the gala on Saturday. Like you, I have parents to impress as well, and if she comes and messes it all up, I'll be in trouble."

Evelyn nodded once, a serious expression on her face.

"You got it."

With a wave, she was gone, and Stella hurried and collected her things, then rushed back to the hotel, where she'd meet her parents once more for dinner.

She'd convinced Marty to make the performance thirty minutes later for the evening, that way she would definitely be able to make it back to the speakeasy in time. She was already exhausted, but knew that she couldn't miss the performance, as it would throw everyone else off.

She couldn't wait for the day to be over.

She ran to the hotel, and burst into the lobby, which caused a few of Jack's men to stand up, paranoid that she was some sort of threat. She smiled at them apologetically, and they immediately sat back down, having recognized her. She grimaced when she looked at the clock that hung behind the front counter, and realized that she was ten minutes late, which would not go unnoticed.