For a moment the guard kept eye context with Leah, slightly dumbfounded. Since she was also a bit shocked, she stayed completely still as well, waiting for his reaction. Without a word, he continued to shuffle through the back, looking through it as if there wasn't an oddly colored cat sitting there like a loaf of bread.
Silently, he closed the bag again, making sure that the small gap in the zipper was large enough to allow air, "No weapons in the carry on, sir."
That wasn't quite what she expected, but also, something she 100% expected. The likelihood of her presence would probably be reported to someone, though.
The security finished their check and sent Adam off, who spent a few more minutes driving. Leah was kind of taken aback from how long it was taking for them to park, and how there was loads of security personnel. After finally parking at some unknown destination, he picked up his bag and unknowingly went along his way with his cat.
Leah peeked through the small hole in his bag and nearly shrieked. It was a large, lavish estate, almost out of their current modern century. It's as if they've been blasted back years, when technology didn't exist and palaces were prevalent. A large series of white-brick buildings with intricate design, the type of place you'd expect royalty to reside. There, too, was a large garden with those fancy-cut hedges, but she could only see so much through the tiny peek hole.
As they approached the front steps of the house, however, Leah noticed the mass amount of security guards. Black button-down shirts with black caps and blacker pants, she felt sorry for the men. It must be sweltering in this heat, forced to stand guard in front of some highly-privileged people's house. She'd die first before she did anything like that, ironic as it is.
They were allowed inside, accompanied by two security guards. The interior of the house was much more dazzling than the exterior. The walls were coveted in a red wallpaper, which seemed to scream royalty and privilege. White and gold decorations adorned the ceilings, pillars on the wall adorning the home. Many vases and antiques sat on equally beautiful tables and chairs, of which were also lined with red silk and velvet of some sort. Despite being so lavish and filled to the brim with antiquity and art, the home still felt eerily spacious and empty.
Leah carefully craned her head, trying to get a better view without alerting anyone of her presence. There was surely more to the mansion, but she couldn't quite get a glimpse of the rest. Her mind fluttered to trivial things, such as the color of the floor or the presence of chandeliers. This was a once in a life opportunity for a low-life commoner like her! This was ripped straight from a movie scene, and she couldn't wait to explore the rest of the house.
"Adam Vice. It's a pleasure to see you again," a lady's voice resonated. Though, the tone of her voice suggested she wasn't quite telling the truth.
"Madam Carlhart," Adam responded, equally as sharp.
"I've increased security, as you can see. There will be more by the end of the week, the day you predicted that vicious gray-hunter will come," Carlhart smiled. Leah couldn't see the woman, but she could definitely assume her looks solely through her voice.
"Extra security will not help your daughter. It's already happened with the other victims. I've told you this before, he will get through-"
"That's enough," her voice suddenly boomed throughout the entire room. Her presence was almost shocking, one that could make you fall to your knees. If Leah had not experienced Sinistra's might, she would have very well felt the effects. Adam, however, was having a hard time standing straight, his legs trembling.
"I will not do as you requested, I refuse to do such a wasteful thing," Carlhart hissed.
"It's not wasteful at all. It'll only be a day, and she'll just be relocated to a less predictable spot."
"To put all that extra effort into something so useless."
"Your daughters life is on the line!"
"You have no proof!"
Stubborn, as always. Adam was one heck of a person. Leah would have left a long time ago, even if there was a .01% chance of her saying no. Hell, it would probably be a good lesson if she had just watched her daughter die due to her stubbornness.
'Damn,' Leah thought, 'that's kinda fucked up to think about.'
"Then, can I request to speak to your daughter for a few minutes?"
There was a slight silence before a slight chuckle from Carlhart.
"Yes, you may. But you will have to leave directly after. Kallista," Carlhart called, "please accompany Mr. Vice here to Violeta's study. And make sure he leaves after exactly ten minutes."
"Of course, Madam Carlhart," a younger girl's voice pepped.
Adam sighed. "Thank you, Madam Carlhart." He was clearly not happy.
Adam and Kallista began to walk down a long hallway, which was also beautiful and fancy for no reason. The walls were lined in huge windows that allowed the harsh light of day into the home, reflecting down onto the red wallpaper, making it much brighter than it needed to be. Outside, there was a large field of empty grass, and in the farther distance, a large wooded area.
Suddenly, the two of them stopped.
"I'm going to be completely honest with you…" Kallista sighed, her voice heavy.
"What's the matter?" Adam asked, concerned, "Is there anything I should know?"
Leah ears perked up. Gossip? Things that weren't meant to be said? A trusted ally and worker of Carlhart outing her for something highly illegal?! She needed to know!
"I… don't know where we are."
Silence.
"You see, I was just hired today."
Leah craned her head to get a look at the servant, but to no use. She was on the opposite side of the peek hole. If she could see her, though, she'd be staring daggers at her.
"So… uh…" Kallista trailed off, sounding a bit nervous. Leah could imagine Adam staring at her the way she wanted to. Probably even worse so, with his tired eyes and messy hair. He probably looked like some sleep deprived coder who found out the error in his code was a missing semi colon. Leah mentally chuckled at her imagination.
"You can call me Kali-" "Do you have a map?"
"Ah, yes! Here. I, uh, here. Here you go…" she fuddled, sounding embarrassed. She pulled out a piece of crumbled paper and unfolded it. "Should be this way…"
"It's upside down."
"Ah. Okay, here we go."
"It's sideways."
"There."
"Wrong side."
"…here?"
"Give me the damn paper."
Adam snatched the paper from her angrily, taking a moment to read it. There was a moment of tense silence.
"We passed it some time ago."
"Ahaha…"
Finally, the two (technically three) of them got to the right door. Kali nervously knocked on the door.
"Miss Carlhart, you have a visitor. It's Adam Vice," she announced softly.
"Please, come in," a young girl's voice called out.
Kali opened the door for Adam, politely allowing him in first.
"Good morning," the girl smiled, "I am Violeta Carlhart. Nice to meet you.
"I am Adam Vice. Nice to meet you as well."
Leah was able to crane her head just enough to see Violeta. She was taken aback. Violeta really did live up to her name as a "gray princess". Her hair was a soft gray, smooth and silky, like some type of velvet cloth. Her eyes were also a pretty dazzling gray, light enough to be confused with white. She had smooth, fair skin, and beautiful rosy lips. Adorned with a simple but beautiful white dress. Leah wanted to subtly remind Adam that two grays in a relationship was an awful idea.
But now that Leah wasn't a gray… ahaha…
The two continued their pleasantries, asking how each others day was, if they were doing well, and whatnot. Leah scanned what little she could see of the room. It was a large, spacious office area, the walls lined with books. The ceiling was so tall, it seemed to go on forever. Most notably, though, was the large amount of windows encircling the area around Violeta. Beautiful stained glass designs lined the top and bottom parts of the window, causing different colored light to scatter across the room.
There was a lot more to take in. Even more intricate wall designs, and unlike the ones outside, these seemed to actually be made from real gold. Plants, antiquities, everything you could think of that screamed pretentious lined the room. Even the desk Violeta sat at was a beautiful dark mahogany laced with intricate designs.
It made Leah feel… uncomfortable. Not because of the obvious, overzealous use of money for things that seemed useless, but something else. Something she couldn't quite lay her finger on.
Leah looked over at Kallista, who was quietly standing in the corner, arms folded behind her back. She had long, yellow hair, which fell to her back, and hair clipped just above her right eye. She was staring right at Adam's bag. Leah didn't know if she had seen or known of her presence, but she wasn't looking inside the bag, or at her. Just at the bag.
Something felt off about Kallista.
She began to walk away, out of Leah's sight. Annoyed by her limited view, Leah poked her little face out just a little bit, trying to maintain her view of Kali.
More.
Just one more look at her. There's something up with that woman.
Pop!
Without realizing, Leah's head had completely popped out of the bag as she was trying to keep her eye on Kali. She heard a gasp and quickly turned around.
"You brought a cat with you?"