"I don't know if leaving the two of you together is a good idea," says Elias before he kisses Katherine on both cheeks. "Behave, yeah? Don't get into any more trouble."

"We won't get into any trouble," I announce confidently. "How hard could it be?"

"Ummm..." Katherine hesitates. It looks as though she's about to say something but changes her mind. Elias seems reluctant to leave but I guess he really has to because he slowly peels himself away from her. He shoots us a wary glance before he disappears around the corner.

I roll my eyes as Katherine smiles dreamily after him before she grabs my wrist.

"Where are we going?" I ask her when she starts dragging me away.

The main part of the house and the pool area at the back are full of busy workers. The party planner is a stern-looking woman with a stick up her ass. She snaps her fingers and yells at everyone except for Sacha. I noticed her turning from a raging bitch to a flirt in a blink of an eye, like magic, when she was talking to him earlier right before he left.

"Somewhere where we can't get into trouble," replies Katherine as she drags me inside. "I saw the way you were looking at the party planner."

"I don't like her face." She has a natural resting bitch face. "She has a face that inspires me to do something." Like punching her in the nose.

"And that's why we're not staying around. We promised not to get into any more trouble," she reminds me.

"Ahhh, just the girls I was looking for!" exclaims someone from the second floor. Sacha's maman, Julie is waving at us from the top of the stairs. "Come! Come, girls!"

Without a word, we both dutifully climb up the stairs to meet her. It's strange how no one can say no to Julie and that includes me. She's just too sweet, a complete opposite of her husband and her sons...except for Ives. Ives inherited her charms.

"I 'ave your dresses," she says excitedly, looping her arms around mine and Katherine's. Her French accent is very pronounced this morning. "Gaby! Bring the dresses 'ere, s'il te plaît."

"Oooh, so many things to do, so little time!" she frets as she leads us into a room.

Gaby scurries in behind us with garment bags in her arms. She goes to hang them on several hooks behind the door and proceeds to unzip the bags one by one. She then rushes out again to come back with several boxes of shoes and accessories.

"There are several 'ere to choose from. But personally, I think this one is for you, Katherine." Julie brushes her slim fingers over the velvety material of a red dress.

"And Danica, I think this one is perfect for you, ma chérie." She ushers me toward a pale blue silk dress with shimmery silver laces inlay. "Go on, try them on."

We peel our clothes off and put the dresses on with Gaby's help.

When we're done, Julie observes us with a satisfied smile on her lips. A moment later, she slaps her hands together and announces, "Perfect! Just as I imagined, the two of you look magnifique!"

She's right. Katherine looks gorgeous. The scarlet material of the dress looks stunning against her alabaster skin and her strawberry blonde hair. The square neckline is sexy but tasteful.

My dress is exquisite. It's form-fitting and the material hugs me like it's made especially for me. The slim halter strap neckline is made of glittery silver lace. It is long but has a slit at the side that goes up all the way up the top of my thigh. The color enhances my eyes and emphasizes the slight tan of my skin.

"Breathtaking," says Julie from behind me as I stand in front of a long mirror at the corner of the room, admiring myself. I feel absolutely beautiful.

She places her hands on my shoulders and says, "You will command attention, my dear. No one will be able to ignore you and not one of those women will outshine you tonight."

I meet her soft gaze in the mirror and my eyes prickle. She barely knows me yet she's giving me her support and showing me kindness. I give her a wobbly smile and she squeezes my shoulders lightly before she lets go.

When she leaves with Gaby in tow, I feel slightly better about tonight.

Katherine and I try a few other dresses and they are all beautiful but we agree that the ones chosen by Julie are by far, the best and perfect for us.

"Where are we going?" I ask Katherine when she ushers me out of the room with an armful of shoes and a box of accessories. We are back in our clothes from this morning and she has our dresses in her arms.

"To get pampered. I think we deserve it to endure tonight's event."

We walk down the hallway to a hidden elevator where she presses a button that brings us to an underground garage. Her Mercedes is parked there among other cars.

We stow our dresses and shoes safely in the car and she drives us off, leaving the mansion and the buzz of activities behind.

During the drive, Katherine tells me about her grandmother, her legacy, and the Blackwell Estate. It's obvious that despite the horrors that she went through, she misses her grandmother.

I also learn from Katherine that there might be a few Nephilim girls brought by hopeful parents tonight to catch Elias's and Ronan's interest as well.

"Tying themselves through marriage to the Gauthier is the greatest honor and a big deal. Even to a son who is not Sacha."

"I'm sorry," I say. I'm sure that if it's not for me and my situation with Sacha, she wouldn't have to go through this.

"Don't be. I'm not concerned. I know Elias loves me," she replies airily as we pull up in front of Blue Haven Spa. "You shouldn't be too. You know that Sacha has eyes only for you," she adds and I wish I had her confidence.

Getting myself pampered at the spa is supposed to be relaxing but it only causes my mind to work extra hard. Even when the lady is massaging my neck and shoulders while she washes my hair, I can't relax. I'm thinking about the Nephilims, tonight's event, the Grimoire, Astaroth, and even Pappalardo.

What if Sacha changed his mind after meeting all those other Nephilim women?

But what if Sacha still chose me? Will they really accept me as their leader's choice? Do I have to prove my loyalty to the Nephilims to make it easier for Sacha?

A few hours later, we're done...well, maybe it's almost a full day later. The sun is sinking on the horizon. The sunny sky is now pink and orange hues.

Inside, I'm still a mess but outside, I look great. My make-up is perfect. My hair shines and bounces, my nails are beautifully painted pale pink, and my silky soft skin glows.

The dress skims my figure flatteringly, the long slit of the dress and the nude heels show off my long legs.

Katherine has her hair trimmed a few inches and is sporting a delicate updo. The red dress looks even better on her now, if that's possible.

"You look gorgeous, Danica. Sacha won't be able to take his eyes off of you," she assures me as she's getting her phone and her purse out of the locker.

I just manage to nod my head distractedly.

"Katherine, can I borrow your phone?" I ask her as we're walking out.

Katherine presses her thumb on the screen and hands me her phone with a raised, questioning eyebrow. I see several unanswered texts from Elias and Sacha asking where we were since we left home.

When I show her the screen, she smiles and comments, "I guess we'd better let them know we're fine before they send out the search party."

"They're certainly not going to be happy with us," I reply.

I start dialing the numbers of someone I haven't talked to in a while when we get into her car. Thank goodness for my ability to memorize numbers.

Somebody answers my call after the third ring and I grip the phone harder. This is probably going to cost me my life but it's something I have to do. There's no point in postponing it any longer. This is me declaring my stand and showing everyone where my loyalty lies. This is also me declaring a war on Astaroth.

My stomach clenches painfully and not in a good way while my heart feels like it's about to burst out of my chest. Nothing and no one could induce fear in me like Astaroth.

"Hello, Joshua King?" I say and Katherine isn't even hiding the fact that she's listening in to my conversation.

"Hey, pretty girl. Fancy hearing from you. What's up?" says Joshua. I hear a smile in his voice and he doesn't even sound surprised. "I heard you've got yourself tangled up with the other side."

I ignore his probing inquiry. "I need you to do something for me."

"Sure, anything for you, baby girl," he drawls. "You know the drill."

"Yeah, I sure do." Everything comes with a price and Joshua King doesn't come cheap.

Sure, he's charming but don't let that charm and boyishness fool you. He steals and sells everything from rare ancient relics to weapons, from strange and bizarre services to information. All for the right price.

I've dealt with Joshua King a few times before and he gave me freebies when I was dealing with Deedee's revenge. But freebies don't come often in my world and they don't come without strings.

"Is the line secure?" I ask, wanting to make sure. I slide my glance to Katherine who turns her face toward the windshield and starts the engine.

"Of course, baby girl," murmurs Joshua.

"I want you to steal something for me."

"Oh, tell me more," he says, sounding intrigued. In his book, the more dangerous the assignment is, the better. He's a fellow adrenaline junkie and I know he won't want to pass up this challenge even though he's going to try to milk me dry in the process.

"Let's stop somewhere for dinner," suggests Katherine after I end my conversation with Joshua King. I'm thankful she doesn't insist on discussing the conversation that she just heard.

We stop for Korean food and by the time we exit the restaurant, my jangled nerves and clenched stomach from the phone call I made have settled down a bit.

Katherine has proven to be a valuable friend and one of the best allies I've ever made in my life so far.

"We're not on time but we're not exactly fashionably late either," she says when we turn into the driveway of the Gauthier mansion.

The sun has totally gone down but the driveway and the whole front yard are bathed in lights. The mansion itself is brightly lit. It looks magnificent and a little bit intimidating.

We have to drive up slowly and wait in line as luxury cars cue up, filling the driveway. There are valets in vests and bowties standing at the entrance as well as guards in black suits checking the invitations.

*******************************************************

Hello dearies!

My next update is going to be on Friday evening (est). If you want to read three chapters ahead, go to Inkitt: 

https://Inkitt.app.link/RA_NicoleRidd3y

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Have a wonderful week and stay safe and healthy!

Much love,

Nicole♥