Ben
The bouncer said, "Boss, let's take this to the office. Let the guests get back to dancing and drinking."
Ben looked around as if just realizing all eyes were on him.
He took his hand off Teela. "Will you follow me to the office—just the office—so we can talk this out? I promise, just the office."
I looked to Bea for answers.
"If Teela goes, we all go."
"For sure," Sup agreed.
Ben nodded and led the way, security clearing the path ahead of him. Ben signaled for the DJ to resume playing music.
I wasn't going back. I was afraid if I let Ben take me to his office, it would be way too easy to hold me there until King made an appearance.
I exchanged a knowing glare with Bea, willing her to understand. Before we exited the public area, I had to make a break for it.
Bea nodded and fell back to speak with Logan, Alex, Sup, and Bruce. The conversation was quick and frenzied. Bruce split off, and a little while later, so did Alex.
Bea rejoined me. The exit was up ahead to the right. To the left was the staircase leading to the VIP lounge, staff locker rooms, and the business office.
JJ joined us, along with a half-dozen servers with trays. Some of the trays were still loaded with drinks. Bruce and Alex also rejoined us.
Ben looked over his shoulder and nodded as if reassured that we were keeping up. And we did keep up, all thirteen of us, until we were within a few feet of the stairs.
The men at our back merged forward, pulling in passersby as if gathering partygoers. They created a human wall between Ben and his goons and us.
At the stairs, Logan and Sup helped us clear a path toward the exit while JJ and his people clogged the stairs behind Ben.
I wasn't sure why these strangers were helping us in direct opposition to their boss. I was grateful they did, though. But I was a realist. Tomorrow, every one of those servers would be looking for a new job. I owed them big time.
We dashed to the door. I prayed we made it before Ben notified the guys guarding the door to stop us. Between us and the door was a heavy stream of newcomers joining the mass of clubbers already enjoying everything Well Water had to offer.
This was every fire marshal's nightmare. My nightmare was returning to the Heavenly Estate.
We pushed and elbowed our way through the crowd.
The door was straight ahead. A bouncer stood on each side of the entryway. Bea pulled us up short. She stripped the shirt off Sup and helped me into it. She took off her wide belt and used it to fasten the oversized shirt over my eye-catching dress.
Bea stopped a guy in a black leather baseball cap. She slipped him some cash in exchange for the cap. She talked another girl into parting with her face mask.
I didn't mind wearing the cap, but I balked at wearing a used mask.
"Which is worse," Bea asked, "COVID or Lettie Heavenly?"
I chose to wear the mask.
We made it outside. We controlled the urge to run. Instead, we strolled away like two couples on the way out for breakfast after a long night of partying.
I resisted the instinct to pull out of Logan's arms. After all, he wasn't King.
"We did it." My teeth were chattering.
Bea let out a nervous giggle. "Yeah, we did."
"Ya'll girls always this much fun?" Sup asked, glancing back as Bea hugged his waist.
"You know me," Bea said. "I gotta be me."
Three blocks down and two blocks to the left, we reached an all-night diner.
Bea said, "Let's split up here. Guys, it's been real."
She gave Logan and Sup hugs. I thanked them and made a mental note to repay them. At this rate, I'd have a long list of repayments in my future.
"I'll call a car to take you home." Bea pulled out her phone.
I stopped her. "No, Bea. You can't. Ben knows who you are. King can use you to get to me."
"Teela, I'm willing to take that chance. I can't lose you after just finding you again."
I hugged her. "You won't. Do you remember my Night Shadows email address? I'll contact you through a secure connection in a few days.
"Tee, no."
"I know what I'm doing, Bea. I'm afraid King will come after you when he can't find me. If he does, Bea, you've got to let me know. I'll take care of it. I've got a lot of things to take care of, but you're my priority. Always."
We were both crying. Right now, though, it felt like forever. I knew it wasn't, but between the effects of the alcohol and the exhaustion creeping in, any time away was too much.
I saw Bea off in an Uber, promising her I'd ordered my own car. I hadn't. I had nowhere to go. With how things had developed tonight, I didn't feel safe returning to my brand-new apartment.
Instead, I took off into the darkness, letting the fog swallow any trail I might leave behind.
King
"What the fuck, Ben? What didn't you call me?"
King paced Ben's office. His hair and clothes were mussed.
Teela was driving him crazy.
"I did tell you as soon as I got the situation under control. She's with Bea. Bea had half my staff revolting against me in a matter of minutes. By the time I had the upper hand again, they were gone."
"Who is this, Bea? Besides a thorn in my side."
Ben shrugged. "She DJs for me part-time. She's good at it. People like her, but no one knows much about her.
"It's obvious she has a day job because I don't pay her shit. She trades services rendered for a private table and free drinks."
"I want to see the security footage."
"No, King, you don't."
"What aren't you telling me, Ben?"
"What aren't you telling me? Why did Teela leave?"
"It's none of your business. Show me the footage."
Ben looked to Min for answers. Min stood by quietly, revealing nothing.
"King, what did Mom do now?"
"Don't ask."
"Damn it. I knew something was brewing. It's why I made an excuse to get out of there for a while.
"She treats Teela like shit. Anya eggs her on. You let her. Teela's got nobody to stand up for her, including me. I feel like a total dickwad for watching everything she endures and doing nothing about it. It's killing me.
"But Teela deals with everything Mom throws at her, so what happened to push her over the edge?"
King bowed his head. "The reflection room."
Ben fell to his knees. "You did it, or was it Mom?"
"Mom's idea, but I took her there."
"You fucker. When Mom said something about it at the dinner table, I thought it was an empty threat. You promised me you'd destroy that room years ago. I would never have survived if I'd known Mom could use that place against me or anyone else ever again."
King nodded. "Show me the footage."
"After what you just told me, I don't know whether to show it to you or not. You're a bastard who deserves whatever Teela does to you. You know that, right? If I'd known you'd put her in the reflection room, I would never have called you in the first place."
King sighed. The conversation wasn't going anywhere. He turned to Min. "Find me the footage."
Twenty minutes later, he regretted it as he watched the woman he knew as a plain, gentle, good girl transform into a beautiful, outgoing woman. She danced, smiled, and laughed with Bea and a stable of good-looking men.
He hated that she could look so happy so soon after destroying his world. Then he watched as she kissed a stranger. He saw red.
Teela was a wife of the Heavenly family. Above all others, she had a standard of behavior she must adhere to. Kissing anyone in public was prohibited, even if it were him. That it was an outsider, well, if his mom found out about it, Teela wouldn't survive.
If there was one thing Lettie couldn't tolerate, it was an adulterer, but this went beyond Lettie. King wouldn't allow it. While he admittedly wasn't the best husband, he had never physically abused Teela. She'd always had plenty to eat, a safe place to sleep, and he'd given her a family to depend on. King had been careful not to take his carnal needs out on her any more than was required. He'd kept up his end of the bargain. Why couldn't she?
It had to be this Bea person's fault. If it were the last thing King ever did, he would find that smart-mouthed woman and teach her a lesson for interfering with his marriage.