Penelope didn't make the audition.
She felt okay, a little disappointed, but okay. The casting director thought she performed very well, and there would be nothing to change for her audition. There were just people better than her and better suited for the role.
She will survive; it wasn't the end of the world. She had another audition set up for Saturday, which was today. This time Danny couldn't make the audition because he had other business to get too. She didn't expect him to take her to every audition.
This audition required her to dance, so she brought a change of clothes and dance shoes in her bag.
Penny, while waiting to hear back from the first place, went shopping with Ms. Birdie for new clothes for the winter season. She got some professional clothes, some cozy sweaters, and even a few fun dresses. Now that she was in New York, she was free. She could go to a club or two if she wanted to. It was finding someone to go with that would be the problem. She has never really had the chance to drink. She is not even sure if she wants to since her father was clearly an alcoholic.
She wore one of her new professional outfits today to her audition. It was starting to get fairly cold in New York. Fall was ending early. So, she wore a nice white sweater dress. This allowed her to get changed quickly into dancing clothes.
She did arrive to the building a half hour early, but she didn't mind waiting. She plugged a pair of headphones into her phone and just tried to relax, taking her deep breaths in and out.
A half hour later exactly, she was called into the audition room to complete the first half of her audition. This went exactly like the last time, both her monologue and her vocals. She thought she did very well, but fate wasn't in her hands. It was in the casting directors.
The casting director told her to change and that in a little bit they are going to call the group in for the dancing part of the audition.
Penny hurried to the bathroom with her bag in hand. There she came across so many girls, stretching and talking. She saw woman with one leg resting flat against the wall. A split on the wall. She saw others catching while putting on their makeup.
Once Penny walked in, all of these women's eyes were on her. She was the new one, the odd one out.
Fresh meat.
She tried to ignore all the stares and just hurried into a stall to get changed into her pair of leggings and a loose t-shirt. Some of the girls in the bathroom wore clothes similar to her. Others wore booty shorts and a sports bra. Others were decked-out in tights and leotards. It was obvious that people came in what they were comfortable with.
Penny wasn't comfortable in many types of clothing, at least nothing like what these girls are wearing.
The talking and chatting resumed once she hid in the stall. Not many of the girls care too much about the new girl. They were all once like her, naive and hopeful. They honestly wished they could be like her. Others saw her as a potential threat. They didn't know who she was. Some group of friends whispered amongst themselves over the mystery girls. Other friends just talked about how nervous they were.
Penny talked to no one.
She quickly got dressed, put her hair into a high pony, and walked out of the bathroom with her bag. It was around lunch time at this point and Penny was getting hungry. However, she still had to dance which was going to take time. She didn't even pack herself a snack.
A little while later, she and a big group of men and women were called into a different room, a much bigger one.
She put her bag down at the edge of the room, close to other people's and walked out to the center of the room. Many men and women fought for a place in the front, so that the choreographer and camera filming them could be scene. Penny just fought for a place to see. She wasn't in the back, but not in the front. She stood in the middle where there was room for her to dance.
Then the choreographer began. He was very fast in handing everything out. The dance was fast and meant for the flexible. It had a similar style to Bob Fosse, but she wasn't told which show it was. She still tried her best. She picked everything up as fast as she could and kicked as high as she could. Hopefully, it was enough.
She left that audition room sweating, alongside everyone else. There were definitely people better than her in that audition room and she would be shocked if she got a callback.
She had years of dance training, but nothing vigorous as some professionals in that room. She took a class twice a week in college, and that was for credit. She was good at some aspects, but not everything. One challenging part was the flexibility. She had decent technique and nice lines since that was forced upon the dancers, but never flexibility.
She left the building in her leggings and baggy t-shirt and stepped out into the cold, bustling New York. The air was refreshing and nothing like the damp room she just left.
She texted Danny to tell him that she was finished and hailed another cab to the penthouse. She was still starving. She tried to call Ms. Birdie to ask her if she could cook something for her but remembered that she was taking care of some personal business.
She was dropped off at the building and took the elevator to Quentin's floor. She is still very hesitant about calling it home. She still wasn't comfortable in the place or it's people to call it home. She never had a place to call home at all.
Penny took a quick shower to rinse off the sweat and change out of her dancing clothes. She braided her wet hair in two Dutch braids and wore some blue jeans and a random comfy striped shirt. On her laptop she looked up on the map to try and find some food. She found a street that had a few different restaurants. It was only two blocks away.
She grabbed a light coat, a scarf, and her purse and walked back down to the street. While the walk was a cold one, it was nice. She got to take in her surroundings. She felt like a woman at that point, like an actual adult woman. It was a strange feeling. She, at that moment and throughout the whole day, did everything on her own. Nothing, and no one got in her way. It was a great feeling.
She got to the street that had a few different places. She decided on a cafe that had some bakery food and brunch foods.
She walked in, it wasn't too crowded. People sat at tables, plugged into laptops, but the line wasn't long. She ordered a decaf coffee with caramel flavoring and cream, as well as some tasting-sounding avocado toast with arugula and goat cheese. She found small table that faced away from the window.
All of her stuff came out soon, and she just sat in the ambience of the cafe, enjoying herself.
***
Quentin rarely was home since his new tinder date hookup. She became a regular, nightly thing. He would go to her place at night, where they would eat dinner with each other and then have sex. He would only come home in the mornings to get changed for work.
Now it was Saturday, and usually, he would take the day off, but since the two companies were still in the process of merging, he was working overtime. He didn't mind since he was going on a lunch date with his new hook-up buddy. Her name was Adria Hook.
They were not exclusive, but neither was seeing anyone else. Well, unless Penny counted, but in Quentin's mind it didn't. They were attracted to each other, but Quinn still had Penny lingering in the back of his mind. He didn't tell her about his marital status. He honestly doesn't think they would last. Quinn always managed to annoy his partner or ruin it somehow.
So far, it was just casual fun.
But going to lunch together was them stepping out of her apartment and into the real world. It was kind of a big step in their relationship.
After all, it is a lunch date.
He spent Saturday morning, basically alone in his office, working very hard to get his work done. He was super focused in what he was doing. So much so, that he lost track of time. It was already past lunch and creeping into mid to late afternoon. He finally looks at his phone and sees many messages from Adria ranging from where are you? to I'm leaving here, I'm fed up with this.
Quentin curses repeatedly as he tries to call her back. She picked up the phone.
"What, Quentin? I can't believe you bailed on lunch," she sneers into the phone, clearly upset that he stood her up.
"Adria, I lost track of time. I was really focused on getting stuff down at work. It's not too late though, maybe we can just grab some coffee at a coffee near my office?" He tries to convince her.
They were supposed to meet at a nice place for lunch, but after waiting outside the restaurant for him to show up, she left.
Adria was still hungry and in the area, "Fine...but you have to make this up with dinner."
Quentin smirks, " I prefer to make it up in other ways."
Adria giggles over the phone, "We will see about that. But, right now, I will see you in fifteen minutes."
"That sounds good," Quinn confirmed. "I'm leaving the office now, so I don't forget."
Adria says a quick goodbye and hangs up the phone. Quinn takes a moment to make sure that he hasn't forgotten anything. He has his phone, office keys, and wallet in his pocket. He has everything, and leaves to the cafe.
He doesn't take his car since it is so close to his office. His PA would often stop at this place to grab him a coffee, well his ex-PA. He hasn't had a chance to have a cup since he fired her. This was a nice opportunity to grab his favorite coffee with the woman he was casually seeing.
He walks into the cafe, it wasn't crowded. A majority of the seats were open. Some sat in the comfy chairs and others sat in smaller tables, alone. Like one redheaded woman. He couldn't see her face, but it reminded him of Penelope.
Now with this random redheaded woman, he was thinking about her. He was supposed to be thinking about Adria, but every once in a while, she creeps into his mind.
He stood at the order area and got his usual, decaf coffee with vanilla flavoring and milk. If he got a full caffeinated beverage, he would be bouncing off the walls more than usual. For food, he just got a pastry. Even though he hasn't eaten since early that morning, he wasn't too hungry.
He saw an open seat behind the redheaded woman when he walked in. Her head was down, so he didn't see that fact that it was Penelope Marshall; but he wasn't paying attention in the first place. He sat with his back facing Penny.
Quentin stayed on his phone for a little bit longer, until he heard a voice, "Thank God! I was worried that you would stand me up again."
He looks up at his phone at Adria, "I couldn't do that twice in a day now..."
She gave him the "wait on moment" finger and told him that she was going to order. She soon returned with a cup in her hand and some food on a plate.
So, for the rest a majority of the afternoon, they just sat at the cafe and talked. He felt little stupid questions slip out like, "Do you sing?" and her interests in the theater. In the past, he never cared about those sort of things. Now, they felt like important things he needed to know about a person
He returned to the office, actually planning on heading home for the first time tonight. Adria returned back to her apartment, alone for the night.
***
DR, since the morning after visiting Lila Perri, worked hard in finding this Ross DeLuca. He was a difficult man to keep track of. Luckily, The Company had some ties into different mafias, and they put the name out to see if there are any bites.
DR got one.
Ross DeLuca was the nephew to the Gallo mafia head. The Gallo family was just one mafia family that based around the major cities of the United States. The head's sister had a son, who was Ross. He wasn't a big part of the family, rather just used his uncle's name to fuel some fires. He did little jobs for the family, primarily on the west coast. One of his growing responsibilities was to work as an in-between man for William Marshall and the Gallo family.
Mr. Marshall met the head of the family once when he traveled to New York for a few years after college. Mr. Marshall's need some money to start up his business, and the Gallo family gave it to him. He has been slowly paying back the family over the course of many years. The start was fairly slow, but once the business picked up, he sent more money.
It turns out that Ross DeLuca, a few days after the murder of William Marshall, took a private plane back to New York. He moved out of his apartment as well, planning on never returning. After putting his face through facial recognition, he picked up his face on one street in New York. The street had a little cafe. He decides to sit in there on a Saturday and wait to see if he walks by or even walks in.
He arrived very early in the cafe with his laptop and continue to research this man and his relationship with the Marshall. He searched all other the internet and dark web, hacking into different sites. Nothing was helpful.
William Marshall must have stopped giving the Gallo family money because all debts were paid off. However, the family got greedy and wanted more. They repeatedly asked for more money, and he kept refusing until the family sent Ross DeLuca to murder him.
DR might be able to get away with killing this man without getting caught by the Gallo family. That will be a problem when he finds Marshall's murderer.
He decides to look into Mr. Marshall and his financial records. He was right in the fact that he was paying money to the Gallo family until he stopped a few months before his murder.
He worked all Saturday, sitting on his computer and drinking straight black coffee. He was minding his own business in the corner of the cafe.
That was until a redhead woman walks into the cafe. Not any redheaded woman, Penelope Marshall. Luckily, he was in a dark corner, and she didn't see him. He was hidden behind the computer, keeping a close eye on her. She just grabs some coffee and food and sits down, minding her own business.
However, luck wasn't on his side.
His brother, Quentin walked through the cafe doors. DR sighed and hid again. Thankfully, Quinn didn't notice him. Penelope did though. He watched as her eyes widen, then her head dropped. Her hair covered her face, so that when Quentin walked back, he didn't see her face.
Quentin had his back to Penny, right behind her. A woman walks in and starts talking to him. She also sits down soon, and they start chatting. Penny took this opportunity to make her escape.
Interesting. So, his brother was married, but also still kept a side piece. It should have stayed none of his business, but he couldn't resist an opportunity to mess with his younger brother.
DR watched as she bumps into a man. Not any man, his suspect Ross DeLuca.
DeLuca hit Penny's shoulder hard and gave her an unsettling smile. She quickly walks away, trying not to make any sort of scene. He knew that she was William Marshall's daughter. He didn't know that she was in New York.
He watches her as she walks out the into the street. DeLuca walks towards the order counter. Once with a coffee in his hand, Ross heard someone call his name.
It was a man sitting in the corner of a cafe with a computer in front of him.
He walked over and asked, "How do you know my name?"
"Wouldn't you love to know?" He teases DeLuca. He could tell he had a short temper, so he tried to get under his skin.
"I'm a dangerous man with some powerful friends. You don't want to mess with me," he smirked at the random man.
"Oh what, like the Gallo family. Don't worry I have dangerous friends too. I just want to have a little chat."
DeLuca took this moment to sit down, "Who are you and what do you want?"
"You can call me DR. I want to know your relationship was William Marshall," DR stays neutral.
"Huh," DeLuca laughs a little bit. "Maybe I killed Marshall, maybe I didn't. You will never find out. You would have to catch me first." With that, the man walks away back into the city, forgetting his drink.
DR smiled. He never said anything about murder. He always loved a good chase.