The first thing she noticed was the soft feel of warm blankets surrounding her. It felt so nice and she didn't want to get up. Then the night before came rushing back in her head.
She jolted up, the warm and comfortable feeling ripped away, and surveyed her surroundings. She was in a nice room, if a little too big. It was decorated in reds and golds. It wasn't extravagant, just a little much. The bed she laid in was big with red bed sheets. There was a couch with her jacket draped over it.
Seph's heart raced and she quickly looked down and felt at her clothes. Same clothes as last night, except her jacket and boots were missing. She sighed. She placed her hand on her neck. She felt a bandage covering the place where the bite mark was.
"You're up." She turned to see the man who had saved her last night. Now that she saw him in the light and not shrouded in darkness, she analyzed him. He was broad-shouldered and muscular. He had dark hair and eyes with a bronze complexion. He was breathtaking. He was also carrying a tray of food. Even better.
"You." She breathed before shaking out of her haze, "Where am I?"
"My house," He answered as he came closer and set the tray down on the nightstand beside the bed, "I don't know where you live, so I took you somewhere safe."
Seph narrowed her eyes, "Why not take me to the hospital?"
He seemed to think for a moment, "It was just a bite and I didn't think you'd want to wake up to a mountain of paperwork for such a problem."
She sighed, "That's fair, I guess." Now that she wasn't in any danger, she might as well have some fun. She let herself smirk and batted her eyes, "Can I know your name, my oh-so gracious savior?"
His lips seemed to quirk up for a moment, as if he was trying not to smile or emote at all.
What a pity.
"Kieran." He told her, "And you?"
"Seph," She replied, "Pleasure to meet you."
He furrowed his eyebrows, "I thought it was Josephina?"
"It's a nickname. How do you know my name?" She asked suspiciously, her whole body tense.
"The man," Kieran answered, "That's what he called you."
"Oh," She said dumbly, "That makes sense."
Kieran nodded towards the tray, "I brought you food."
Seph bit her lip. She was hungry, but she didn't quite trust the man yet. No matter how hot someone is, She reminded herself, you can't be sure they're not a crazy person.
"Where's my phone?" She changed the subject as she looked around, "It was in my jacket."
He walked over to her jacket and brought it to her, "Here."
She gave a small smile, "Thanks." She rummaged through her pocket and brought out her phone. When she opened it, she immediately focused on the time. One thirty in the afternoon. She then noticed she had missed nearly a hundred phone calls and texts from her family.
Seph groaned, "Shit, mom's gonna kill me."
Keiran tensed, "How old are you?"
She raised an eyebrow before realizing something, "Don't worry, I'm not jailbait. I'm twenty-three. I just have an overbearing mother." She batted her eyes at him, "Why? Are you interested?"
His cheeks became flushed and she laughed, "Maybe another time. I have to face the storm." She swung the covers back and stood from the bed. She sat back down after her head started to spin and her legs felt like jelly. Suddenly, Kieran was by her side.
"Are you alright?" He asked her. His hand was reaching for her, stopping just before touching her. As if he was afraid.
She nodded, "Yeah, just got dizzy for a second." She took a deep breath, "Where are my shoes?"
He quickly left her side and returned with her black boots.
"Thanks," She hurriedly put her boots on and used Kieran's hand to keep her balanced. Now, as she stood on her feet, she noticed he seemed at least a foot taller than her.
That shouldn't be so hot.
"Do you need a ride?" He asked.
As nice as he seemed, She thought, not risking him being a murderer.
"It's fine," She said with a tight smile, "I'll take a cab."
Kieran nodded and got something from his wallet. Seph tried to protest, saying she had money and that she didn't want to owe him anything, but he insisted.
"Just in case you don't have enough to get home." He told her. She bit her lip and hesitantly took it.
"Thanks." She told him, "You didn't need to-"
"I would be worried all day wondering if I didn't." He told her.
Seph nodded, "Right." She couldn't help but smile at his worry. She quickly called a cab and waited outside Kieran's large house. When it arrived, she sighed. Before she could get in, though, Kieran gently grasped her hand and slipped something into her hand.
"If you need anything," He said, "Come by. You're always welcome."
As she looked down at her closed fist, she saw he gave her a piece of paper.
His number.
She wanted to laugh, but he said it with such seriousness that she didn't. She just smiled, "Okay, I'll keep that in mind."
She got into the cab and told the driver her address. She sighed as the driver stopped in front of her house. He told her the price and she paid. She suddenly felt guilty that she had taken the money from Kieran. She didn't need it at all.
As she approached the front door, she took a deep breath. She opened the door and walked into the living room. Her mother and step-father were in there and noticed her walk in. As she predicted, her mother began to berate her.
"Would you like to explain to me why you left your little siblings at the club while you went God-knows-where?" She sounded mocking and as if she already knew the answer.
"I didn't-" Her step-father cut her off.
"Alina said you insulted her before you took off! What were you thinking?!"
Seph flinched, "I'm sorry-"
"You clearly aren't!" Her mother said loudly in that sarcastic tone.
"Allie took off-" She tried.
"Don't you dare pin a thing on your little sister!" Her mother told her.
"She ripped the necklace off my neck, mom!" Seph raised her voice as she pulled out the broken chain of her necklace. When her mother saw it, her face softened slightly.
"Josie…" She trailed off before hardening again, "Look, go apologize to your siblings and we won't punish you."
Her step-father looked shocked and seemed to want to protest, "Amy-" He was cut off by a look from his wife and kept his mouth shut.
"Fine." Seph bit out before rushing to her room. She took her boots off and placed them by the bed. She sat on her bed and sighed. She knew her mother was going to side with her sister.
Someone knocked on the door before immediately coming in. Of course, it was Allie. She had a smug look on her face, as if she had won something.
"Regret your decision?" She asked with a smirk.
Seph rolled her eyes, "Not really, no."
Allie narrowed her eyes, "So, I know where I went. Where'd you go?"
"Looking for your ass." Seph replied, not even flinching at the lie that came from her mouth. After all, she wasn't going to tell her little sister the truth. She could already hear her mocking comments about her attack float around in her head.
Allie smirked, "Sure, and you didn't think to go to Zane's?"
"Were you even at Zane's?" Seph bluffed. She didn't know at all where her little sister had gone last night.
"Not like you'd know," Allie quipped.
"Shouldn't you be at work?" Seph asked.
Allie groaned and sat on her sister's bed, "Hangover. I called in sick."
Seph raised an eyebrow, "Won't you get in trouble?"
Allie shrugged, "I'll just bat my eyes at the boss and I'm sure he'll understand." She joked. At least, she hoped she was joking.
"Please, tell me you're joking." Seph nearly pleaded. Allie just laughed.
"He's hot! Too bad he's not good at picking up my flirting." She told her.
Seph huffed, "Maybe he's just not interested."
Allie scoffed, "How can he not be? Have you seen me?" Seph grimaced. She didn't want to think about her little sister like that. Allie seemed to enjoy her discomfort.
She laughed again, "Well, I'd understand how he wouldn't be interested in me if I looked like you."
Seph narrowed her eyes, "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"
Allie rolled her eyes, "Well, you're short and stocky. I'm nice and lean." Seph bit her tongue. While she wasn't the thinnest, she was in no way stocky. If anything, Seph was curvaceous.
"Don't worry!" Allie continued her, "When the two of us get married, I'll make sure you don't become a prostitute."
Seph wasn't surprised at her little sister's comment. Her sister had always been fixated on the idea that Seph would be working the streets, even when she was in her early teens. So Seph just rolled her eyes and carried on, "What about you and Zane?"
Allie made an amused noise, "Please, he's good for sex and not much more." In all honesty, Seph felt bad for the poor guy. He had been into Allie since as long as she could remember and she knew that Allie felt next to nothing for him.
"You shouldn't lead him on, Allie." She told her.
Allie scoffed, "Or what? You tell him to stay away again?"
"I didn't tell him to stay away," Seph corrected her, "I told him to be careful with you."
Allie rolled her eyes, "Same difference." She stood from the bed and headed towards the door, "I'm going to talk to Lyn." With that, she left the room.
Seph sighed. Her phone pinged and she noticed she had a text from her friend, Willa.
Wanna hang before work?
Seph smiled.
On my way
She grabbed all the things she needed for work and quickly got into her beat up car. They had taken Alex's car because their parents didn't trust her car.
She drove to Willa's apartment. When she opened the door, she had a key, she noticed Willa's girlfriend was over too.
"Hey, Bettie."
Bettie smiled, "Hello, Seph." She had her legs on Willa's legs as the two watched a movie, "How was your sister's party?"
Seph groaned, "Shit. It was at Eve's." The blondes both winced. She had met the two working at the club, both of them were also employed there.
"Did any regulars recognise you?" Willa asked.
"No, thankfully. Thank God for the masks."
Eve's Serpent was known for its staff wearing masks. Each mask was special for each member of the staff, Ms. Adame insisted. Ms. Adame, herself, wore a serpent mask. Seph wore a fennec fox mask, Bettie had a calico cat mask and Willa's was a black cat.
Seph shook her head, "Can we just watch a movie before work?" She whined. They agreed and they watched an action movie.
When they needed to leave, they all crammed into Willa's car and drove to the club.
The three of them headed into work to see Ms. Adame talking to a woman. Or more like arguing. The woman was very pretty and seemed to be of Indian descent.
"Sorry, Ms. Adame." Seph and the girls apologized.
Ms. Adame shook her head and waved her hands in a 'forget it' sort of way, "It's okay, dears. Ms. Mehta was just leaving."
Ms. Mehta nodded, "Yes," She seemed to stare straight at Seph, "I'll be on my way." She walked away and out of the club.
"What was that, mom?" Bettie asked.
"Just one of my investors, nothing serious." She smiled at the girls, "Could you help me set up for tonight?"
The girls nodded and got to setting up. They had arrived early and none of the other employees were there yet. As the time ticked on and more girls began to arrive, Seph began to feel her nerves going off. She tried to hide it from the others, but Ms. Adame had noticed. She pulled the young woman to the side.
"Are you feeling alright?" Ms. Adame asked, eyebrows furrowed in concern. Seph gave a shaky smile.
"Yeah, just nerves." She responded. Her boss frowned.
"I can change you to bar duty if you'd like-"
"I'm fine." Seph assured the woman, "I'm fine to do my routine."
Truth be told, Seph loved performing. It was one of the main reasons she chose this line of work. Sure, some people don't want to keep their hands to themselves, but it was thrilling to have people watch her and be entranced with her movements or voice or anything. She lived for that attention. It was fun, too, being able to feel sexy and appealing. On top of all that, it was a good exercise. She took pride in her work and she would have been more open about it if her family weren't assholes about things like that.
Ms. Adame pursed her lips, "Okay, just don't overwork yourself." Seph just nodded.
With Bettie behind the bar, Willa and Seph were in the dressing room getting ready with the others.
When Seph started her routine, it was normal. She let herself move with the rhythm and feel the beat. Her muscles moved with her memory of her rehearsal. It was all going smoothly. At least, until she looked into the crowd.
The man from the night before was sitting there, just watching her, his eyes burning with hatred. She stared into those eyes, her pulse spiking and her breath hastened. She began to see spots in her vision. She dropped like a stone in the endless water of blackness.
She awoke to the faces, or masks, of her co-workers. Willa's eyes stared at her in extreme worry. She could tell by the ceiling that she was in the backroom.
"Are you okay?" She asked in a hushed voice.
"What happened?" Seph asked.
Another woman, whose name she didn't know, spoke up, "You froze for a couple seconds and then you just dropped like a fly. You should have stayed home if you were feeling sick."
"I-I'm fine-" She tried to quickly get up, but was pushed back down by Ms. Adame herself.
"Not so fast, you'll get dizzy." She told her. Seph slowly sat up and noticed she was draped in her jacket.
"Now," Ms. Adame said sternly, "You are going to call someone to pick you up and I'll pay you for the day."
"But-"
"No buts!" The older woman's face softened, "Just call someone and get some sleep, okay?"
Seph nodded, "Yes, Ms. Adame."
The other woman hesitantly dispersed and Willa sat beside her, "Going to call a cab?" Seph nodded. She hugged her friend, "Call me when you get better, okay?"
"Of course." Willa got up and went to do her routine. After she got ready to go, she reached into her pocket for her phone and felt a slip of paper.
Kieran's number.
Seph bit her lip. She shouldn't trust him, but she doesn't want her parents to find out about her job. So she grabbed her phone and dialed his number. It rang for a moment before someone picked up.
"Hello?"
"Kieran, it's Seph." She heard the rustling of fabric on the other end.
"Are you okay?" His voice was concerned and that made her heart melt.
"Um, can you pick me up? I need a ride." She told him and, suddenly, she began to feel anxious and bad that she even asked, "You know what? Nevermind, I'll call a cab-"
"It's fine, Seph." He seemed rushed to say, "I'll pick you up. Where are you?"
She bit her lip, "Eve's Serpent. Meet me in the alley?"
"Okay, be there soon."
"Thanks."
A pause.
"It's no problem."
The call ended there and Seph was relieved. She quickly left the club and into the alleyway. She should have known better, she realized as she was pushed up against the alley wall. Her attacker's hand was around her throat. Luckily, not tight enough to restrict airflow, but just enough to keep her still. Her feet didn't even reach the ground as he held her up. Her hands grasped at the other's hand around her neck. The man from before glared at her.
"Found you, little bitch." He hissed at her. She kicked him in the groin. The man let her go to try and ease the pain in his private parts. She landed on her feet and tried to run. He grabbed her by her hair and pulled her against him. She grabbed onto his hand and held it as she twisted it around with her. Seph kicked him in the stomach. The force of the blow seemed stronger than she expected as she watched him fly across the alley. She turned to leave, but he was right in front of her, blocking her exit.
How-?
"I can see why the Mistress wants you for herself." He told her as he took a step forward. This time, though, Seph stood her ground.
"What the hell do you want?" She snarled at him, "And what the hell does it have to do with me?"
He smirked, "You don't need to know. You may be strong, but I'm stronger." He went to approach and Seph tensed her body, both ready for a fight. A growl came from the entrance of the alley.
A woman stood, her stance straight and dominant. She was shrouded in shadows, the lamp posts made it seem like she was glowing. What was really glowing was the woman's eyes. They glowed a bright blue.
"Oh, look at that," Her attacker mocked, "A Beta bitch."
The woman growled, "You're the real bitch."
He rushed at her. She seemed prepared for it, though, and slammed him against the wall. He grabbed her wrist and kicked her back. She stumbled, but stayed up-right and charged back at him.
Arms wrapped around Seph. She let out a shocked and strangled scream. She tried to struggle and escape the person's grasp.
"Seph, it's me,"
Kieran
She stopped her struggle and let herself be dragged out of the alley and away from the fight. Kieran took her to a car and set her in. He then left her alone, presumably to help the woman.
Now that she was in a somewhat safe place, she felt numb. She distantly realized she was in shock. She took deep breaths and twiddled her thumbs. She made a list of what she knew just happened.That man attacked her. Again. He kept talking about a Mistress and was definitely going to kidnap her.
She jumped when the back door opened, but relaxed when she noticed it was just the woman. She turned around and looked at the woman. She was fair-skinned and blonde. The woman stared at her, concerned.
"Are you okay?" The woman asked. Seph nodded slowly and turned back to face the front. If she wasn't in shock, she would have assured her. She would have told the woman that she was completely fine and other countless lies.
When Kieran got in and started driving, Seph pulled out her phone.
If my mom calls, tell her I'm at yours
As soon as they were at the house, she turned to Kieran, "Do you mind if I sleep on your couch?"
Kieran quickly nodded, "You can sleep in a spare room."
"Thanks, I really appreciate it." Seph told him. He guided her to a room. It was similar to the room she woke up in that morning. It felt like it had been a lot longer than just a few hours.
She passed out on the soft and warm bed as soon as she closed her eyes.