Mia acts exactly as she looks. I have expected nothing else, and I can’t get fast enough out of this building.
The door opens wider, and Bella withdraws. Mia sees me, and horror appears on her face.
“You forgot something,” I say, holding out her bag. She stares at me as if I were a ghost.
“How did you find me here?” she finally brings over her lips.
“I am a resourceful person,” I say and chuckle. “I also make an effort, unlike most men.” That should be her lesson.
“I don’t need men to make an effort,” she says defiantly. “Nor do I have to impress them.”
“And why is that? Because you don’t feel worthy enough?” I know I can come across as harsh, but this is my personality, and I don’t make myself small to be likeable.
Mia's eyes harden.
“You may think less of me because I don’t live up to your standards,” she says, “But at least I’m not a wealthy, egocentric prick. Must be lonely there when you have nothing better to do than this.”
She turns and slams the door in my face.
I wait.
She opens it again and rips the bag from my hand.
“See,” I call after her as I turn and leave. “You have standards. You just don’t have them around men.”
She looks at me like a reproachful teenager who has been busteddoing something forbidden. Tickling people where it hurts most is something I quite enjoy, especially in people who lead such basic lives. Not because I enjoy inflicting pain, I do, in other matters, but I like to uncover the truth of human nature.
If there is one thing I have learned over the many years of my life, it is that still waters run deep—they just need the right person to dive into their depths with.
“Alright, Henry,” I say when I’m back at the car. “Get me to the venue.”
Tomorrow’s event will be one the world has yet to see, though few know about it. But for those who know, it’ll be something they have never experienced before. I say that with the knowledge that my clients can buy whatever thrill and experience they want.
The events I create are one-of-a-kind. For the wealthy elites, those who are everybody to the world and wish to become nobody for a night of frivolous hedonism. Something a select group of people is willing to pay dearly for. In return, they expect not perfectionism, but a rush. And that rush, the exhilaration, is what I deliver.
The entire ride to the venue, my mind lingers with the woman I just met. I cannot distinguish what it exactly is about her, but my mind is occupied.
It is not only her last sentence, in which she verbally attacked me; she is right about everything she said, and I would rather enjoy my life that way. I feel a certain curiosity towards her.
She is clearly untroubled by men, so it leaves me wondering if she is a woman of different tastes, the same I am inclined to.
3
MIA
PLAYLIST: PULSAR STAR – ANYA NAMI
Istare at the closed door and can’t believe what just happened. The audacity some people have!
I am not easily enraged, but right now, I am.
“What the hell, Mia!” says Bella. “How did Victoria Fitzroy end up with your bag? And what the bloody hell was that?”
I never wanted to live alone more than I do right now.
“Who is she?” I ask. “Never heard of her before.”
“She’s like royalty. Owner of The £1 Million Club.”
