𝐄𝐑𝐔𝐃𝐈𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍

03 | Stalking Erudition

The short man cleared his throat before he opened the doors that led to a room the size of my whole apartment complex. A large table sat in the middle of the room where a collection of older men and a few women who all looked at least a decade my senior sipped on glasses of champagne and whiskey.

Without further instruction from the man, I walked over to the last empty seat sandwiched between a man busy in conversation with the well-dressed man next to him and a blonde woman who turned and shot a smile at me when I sat down. I felt underdressed looking at her navy blazer and skirt co-ord.

It seemed as though the club had already started, although looking around the table, it looked more like some elite social event than the humble club I had in mind.

A look of recognition dawned on the blonde woman's face. "You're Zahra?"

I nodded, wondering if I'd seen her before and forgotten her face. I promptly started to conjure up something to say in case I had to feign recognition of the woman.

"I'm Gianna." Her voice was gentle in a way that evoked instant safety to those that listened. She reminded me a lot of my mama. "Sebastian Miller told me about you. Sweet little thing, he said. Asked me to look out for you."

My heart warmed at the gesture of Professor Miller worrying about me.

"Nice to meet you," I gave her a warm smile and relaxed in my chair, satisfied that I would be in good company. "What do we do here?"

"Drink and wait for the guest of honour." She raised a glass of champagne to her red lips and took a small sip. "But it wouldn't surprise me greatly if the man didn't show up."

"He wouldn't come to his own book club?" I asked, confused.

"No one has set eyes on the man in almost a decade." I could see the humour that made her emerald eyes sparkle. "No one here is actually interested in talking about books, just the hope of catching a glimpse of the social recluse."

"A decade?" I wasn't surprised I hadn't heard of the man before Professor Miller had given me the invitation.

"Yes, I believe the last physical sighting of the man was by some journalist. Said she couldn't get the sight of his face to leave her dreams for weeks."

I could hold the weight of the earth with the strength it took me to kill my curiosity and not ask any more questions regarding the mysterious man. An hour passed of Gianna asking me about college life and reminiscing of her life when she was my age.

"And then this guy comes in like he owns the place. Dark hair that looked like he'd just rolled out of bed with a woman or two, dark eyes and a mouth that could bark and definitely bite if you know what I mean..."

She was finishing up a story of her brief time living in a small town where she worked as a phone operator for the local church before it was taken over by new management when a woman entered the room and waited for the various conversations that filled the room to stop.

"I apologise, ladies and gentlemen, that Mr Vitale could not make it today. I hope to see you next week."

Everyone started to depart the room as if the news was routine. Gianna wished me a friendly goodbye before leaving whilst I fished my phone out of my bag.

Fuck. I narrowed my eyes at the black screen.

"Excuse me," I asked the woman who had apologised for Mr Vitale's absence."Is there any chance I could borrow a phone to call a taxi?"

"You don't have a car?" She questioned with a raised brow.

"I do," I fidgeted with my bracelet. "The tyre's flat."