Her outfit on the side
Play the song before reading.
•••••••••••••••
"Justine? Child, wake up."
I groaned and cuddled deeper into my sheets. Before covering my head, I peeked at the alarm clock on my nightstand that read 10a.m. Jumping up, I ran into my bathroom. "Mrs. Peters! I'm late! Why didn't you wake me?!" I shouted. I let the shower run as I poked my head out the door to glare at the elderly woman. She kept her long grey hair in a long braid down her back and dressed in simple long gowns. Mrs. Peters was the owner of the motel and allowed me to stay in one of the rooms for a cheap monthly fee. In a way, she was like a Grandmother to me.
"If you had remembered to set your alarm then we wouldn't have this problem, would we?" She scolded pulling my uniform out of my drawer and walking over to the ironing board. She paused and picked up something off of my bed. "This is pretty. Who gave it to you?"
I walked over to her and got a good look at what she was holding. It was a choker with a charm hanging from it. A dragon wrapped around a bell. Then last night rushed back to me. Joel...he must have left it. I smiled and took it out of her hand. "It was a thank you gift," I told her.
"Hm. That was nice of them," she commented, taking out the ironing board. Them? "Go shower. Steven may be nice but he doesn't tolerate lateness."
•••
Today at the café, Steven was receiving important guests and asked me to, for the first few hours, play on the grand piano "elegant" pieces. He even bought me an outfit to play in, a pretty black dress that flared out a bit. The main accessory I wore was the dragon choker Joel left behind. I played the "Moonlight Sonata" by Beethoven when the guests started pouring in. I overheard Steven explain that I was one of his waitresses when a woman asked who I was. I tuned out the small comments and murmurs while I played. Growing up, my mother forced me to learn the piano and in the end it became my greatest solace.
"She plays beautifully, Steven," I heard one woman say and couldn't help but turn around to look. The woman looked very important, like an aristocrat. Her dress clung to curves and her every movement was so seductive. Her dark hair was pulled back into a bun and the only jewelry she wore, besides her rings, was a simple headpiece that looked like a crown.
Her eyes swung my way and I messed up on a few notes but quickly recovered. Her eyes...they are the same as Joel's. The woman looked much too young to be his mother. Perhaps a sister? Or cousin? I shook my head which caused the bell around my neck to chime a bit and I focused on the piece I was playing. When I finished the first half of the song, the guests applauded and I blushed. Not even when I played for my college audition did they clap or even comment.
Dinner was served and all the while I played I felt that woman's stare. It bore into me from the side of my face and I suddenly regretted my staring. What if she makes a complaint to Steven?
"You are doing well," I heard Steven's voice from next to me. "When you finish this song hand the piano to Charles. There is someone who wants a word with you."
That woman I bet. I nodded slowly and felt his presence move from me. I prayed to God I didn't offend her or cause trouble for Steven. As I finished the piece, those who weren't caught up in conversation or their food, stood up and gave me a standing ovation. I stood up from my stool and bowed. "Ladies and gentlemen, I now give you Charles Hall," I announced moving away from the piano as Charles took the stage. Charles was a waiter here but I recognized him as one of my classmates from when I was in college. He winked at me in passing and started playing another Beethoven song in an attempt to out play me. Cheeky bastard.
"You are an excellent pianist."
I turned and looked into the familiar grey eyes again. I took a step back so there was enough room for me to breathe. This lady was the essence of beauty, it hurt. Up close I see how long her eyelashes are and how they swept across her cheeks every time she blinked. I cleared my throat. "Thank you, ma'am," I said and she smiled at me.
"I never knew an American could play so passionately. Is the piano the only thing you play?" She questioned.
I shook my head. "I can play the guitar. Acoustic, electric and bass," I named off.
"Steven mentioned you sing."
"And dance," I murmured.
She smiled and started circling me like a vulture. Something wasn't right. My inner self eyed the woman suspiciously. "And yet, you are a waitress here. With all that talent," she says and then looks behind me at Charles who was still playing. "You attend the same college as Charles?"
"Attended," I said through clenched teeth.
The woman raised an eyebrow, "Hm. Why don't you attend it now?"
I put on my best smile that I reserved for annoying customers and flashed it at her. "That's personal, ma'am. I don't even know who you are," I told her tightly.
She just smiled at me and then grabbed the choker that was around my neck and pulled me close. It happened so quickly that no one else noticed and didn't seem to see anything was wrong.
"Where did you get this choker?" She demanded in a low growl.
I would have been lying if I said I wasn't scared. Her presence aura changed and it sent shivers down my spine. I gulped hard and looked up at her. "It was left in my room...a man named Joel left it," I whispered. She stared into my eyes for a moment or two and then her eyes drifted to the charm on the choker. The woman released me slowly and it was then that I realized her grip was tight as hell. I took a deep breath as she straightened herself.
"I am the Duchess of Dragon's Keep. Not just anyone wears the Dragon in London and think it appropriate," she said coldly. "Especially people who are not from around here. You may call me Duchess."
I stood quietly, hoping by not saying anything it would make her less hostile. Steven walked over and Duchess's face lit up in a nice smile and I knew it was fake. Steven told her my name and she pinned me with her gaze. With the promise that she would visit again, she turned and left the café. "Are you okay, Jus? You look pale," he commented.
"I'm fine..."
•••
It was a week before I saw the Duchess again...
After my encounter with her that night, everywhere I went I felt eyes on me. I didn't take off the choker because it was all I had of the guy Joel. He just disappeared and I wondered about him often. If he was okay or not. During my afternoon shift I walked over to my usual table and smiled when I saw my favorite customer, Tommy Masters, hunched over his laptop looking stressed out.
"Hard at work?" I asked setting napkins on his table.
He looked up at me and smiled. "More like hardly working. How are you today, Justine?"
I silently smiled taking out my pad. Tommy was the only person in London who understood me. When I told him about my living arrangements he offered me a room at his house but I immediately turned it down. "Coffee?" I asked.
"Please. And the lunch special, I have piles of work to get done," he groaned.
I wrote it down quickly and smiled. Tommy never told me about the work he did but there were times he would stop by with fresh bruises and scars. I personally thought they made him all the more handsome. He was a buff guy but managed to have a boyish look to him with his dimples. "You're staring again, sweets," he chuckled tapping away at his keyboard.
I blushed and walked towards the back to the kitchen where the chef, Roman Pearce was chatting with Steven. I handed him Tommy's order and winked at him. "What are the two of you arguing about now?" I chuckled.
"Steven was telling me how things were done back in his day," Roman commented rolling his eyes.
I pretended to think for a moment before saying, "Oh you mean during the First World War?"
"Is your memory in black and white?" Roman asked innocently.
Steven glared at me for joining in the banter and I laughed. "You two have absolutely no respect for your seniors," he snapped but patted my head to show he knew it was all jokes. Roman snorted and said, "You know so much. Too bad you don't remember anything."
I ducked as Steven threw a cup at the back of Roman's head who yelped at the impact. Steven winked at me and told me to take out the trash from this morning.
I grabbed both bags and kicked open the back door, walking towards the dumpster. Between work and just living here, London was definitely worth it. There are moments I feel the loneliness but then I get happy around the little bit of friends I have. I turned to go back inside when a guy dressed in all black stepped in front of me. "You're coming with us."
I turned to see two guys get out of a black car and the one I took my eyes off of grabbed me and put a handkerchief on my face. Last thing I saw was one of the men whispering into his collar.
How 007...