20
DONATELLA
Even though there was no full-body mirror in the small dormitory that she shared with Vera, Donna knew she was looking good. Clara had picked out a dress that flattered everything she thought was sexy about her. It was low-cut, slimming, and it accentuated her long legs. Clara was on the mark when it came to dressing her. Actually, she dressed all the women.
Donna was not at all that surprised at her elevated level of taste. After their trip to Chicago, she was able to get a taste of how Clara was accustomed to living. The woman had excellent taste in food, clothes, hotels, and liquor. Donna worked hard but could nowhere near touch Clara’s extravagant lifestyle, which was infuriating since the woman was supposed to be living as modestly as the rest of them.
Donna had a feeling Clara would go all out, and she was right. For the Blood of the Chosen, the gala was the event of the year. It was Bobby Lee’s chance to lure in wealthy parishioners. And he and Clara had made sure that their young female congregation was able to entice. All of their faces had been done by a crew of talented make-up artists. All of their hair had been professionally done. The goal was to look good and procure members with deep pockets.
Donna glanced over at Vera. The woman was unquestionably gorgeous in her red, formfitting mermaid dress with the surprisingly tasteful peekaboo cutouts. Her normally colorful hair had been dyed back to her natural blonde and was pinned in a messy bun. Her face was beat to perfection. Vera was indeed a beautiful woman, but with the way she behaved, Donna could guess she didn’t believe it. For someone so young and so attractive, Vera’s self-esteem was shot to hell. She was pretty and kind, but she had no idea what a prize she was. Maybe that was why she was so susceptible to brainwashing.
Vera was a true believer. To her, Robert Lee Khal was the one and only true Messiah. She would, for sure, take a bullet for him.
“Wooooow!” Vera sang. “You look so amazing!”
“You think so?” Donna did a quick spin so that Vera could get the whole effect of the cornflower blue dress Clara had picked out for her. She had her normally straight bob styled with big, wavy curls. The makeup artist had even painted bronzer on her exposed chest and shoulders, enhancing her Native American features.
“You look like a model! That dress was made for you.”
“Thanks, V. You look amazing too. That red is gorg! That’s your color.”
“Thanks. Hopefully, we’ll get some new members tonight.”
“Surely we will with you looking like that.”
Vera did a cute little twerk and walked toward the door. “Okay, well, let’s go get this done.”
Donna grabbed her silver clutch and followed Vera out of their bedroom. They clacked down the hall in heels. When they stepped out of the building, a car with a driver was waiting to take them to the party. The gala was being held in a ballroom on the compound, but because of the five-inch, open-toed rhinestone covered heels she was wearing, Donna was more than grateful for the ride.
The car drove past the fancy cars pulling up to the entrance of the ballroom to the rear. So, she figured the women who were already members were entering in a different location.
The car came to a stop. Seconds later, the driver was opening the door for them. Vera stepped out and waited as Donna got out. She then grabbed Donna’s hand and the walked to the entrance.
“I am excited,” Vera beamed.
Donna smiled, pretending to be just as elated to be used, dangled like a carrot in front of a bunch of very rich rabbits.
They entered a back door and joined about twenty other waiting, well-dressed female parishioners in a large conference room. She could hear music and muffled chattered coming from the main hall.
“Okay, ladies!” came from across the room.
She turned in the direction of Clara’s chipper voice. Wow, was all Donna thought as she looked at Clara. She was stunning from head to toe in a silver gown covered in sparkling stones. Clara had already been attractive, but as she stood in front of them, she was downright breathtaking. Not only that…she was fucking sexy.
“This is the day the Lord has made; We will rejoice and be glad in it. Amen?”
“Amen!”they all choired.
“Now, just past those doors are the resources we need to champion for the Lord. Soon, we will be able to build the world He intended for us. I want you to smile, bat those lashes, and help them, no,forcethem to join this battle to restore the word and the laws of God.”
Donna looked around and saw the glint in everyone’s eyes. She wondered exactly how well she was at pretending to be one of the pod people. Thankfully, Clara’s pep talk only lasted one minute more. Finally, she was escorting them through a door and into an exquisite ballroom. Nowhere in her wildest dreams would Donna have thought that there would be a place on the compound as magnificent as the room she entered.
As instructed, Donna and the rest of the women spread out amongst the guests. To her surprise, as she looked around, she noticed that there were absolutely no women partygoers. Were none invited? Donna thought this event was all about getting money from rich people. Were there no wealthy women in the world?
Donna smiled and batted her lashes as she weaved her way through the expensive tuxedos. Her destination, the bar. Not once did Clara forbid them to indulge. So, she’d rather ask for forgiveness than permission.
Unfortunately, by the time she made it to the bar, she had been poked, groped, and grabbed several times by men that gave less than a damn that they were at an event to advance membership in a church. They certainly weren’t behaving very religiously. But, somehow, she made it through without getting impregnated by one of the grabby guests.
When she was less than three feet from the bar, she began to experience a great sense of victory. Sadly, it was crushed when Bobby Lee cut her off at the path.
