Page 78 of Semblance

I wasthathungry.

“You enjoy yourself at the club?” Shadow asked.

“Very much,” I replied, “Though I could have done without Bria’s company.”

“Yeah, she’s a bit of a head case. I try to stay away from that one,” Shadow agreed. “She’s rather aggressive in her…advances. But anyway, I’m glad you had a good time with Calisto. It’s important to me that you two get along.”

“She’s a lot of fun,” I said. “Calisto really knows how to party.”

“It’s her form of release from all the stress as a result of the hard work she puts into the family business. She is the main reason why the Tremaine Empire still prospers.” Shadow said. “Lord knows I haven’t been focusing my full attentions on it. Finding my parents killer will always be my first priority.” He paused to take sip from his wine. “I often feel bad for dumping everything onto Calisto.”

“She seems pretty smart and good at what she does,” I said.

“Calisto is brilliant. You should see her manhandle investors and executives in the board room. She almost has it down to an art.”

“She mentioned you guys were working on a hotel and casino chain?”

Shadow nodded. “The Inferno,” he said. “It will be the Tremaine’s first big venture into the entertainment business. We used to invest in high tech companies exclusively but with all the uncertainties in the technological sector, we decide to branch out and explore new options—entertainment in particular.” He finished the last of his sandwich and wiped his mouth with a napkin. “There’s always money to be made when you focus on people’s vices.”

“I don’t know how I feel about having a casino open up in the city,” I said. “They tend to attract the seediest types of people.”

“It’s a genuine concern,” Shadow agreed. “But I’m fairly confident we can regulate the hotel and casino in such a manner that it remains exclusive to only the upper class. We’re looking to bring in the New Vegas type of crowd while filtering out the rest. Picture it more as a club and hotel, with gambling.”

“When’s the grand opening?” I asked.

“Construction is almost finished. Calisto has everyone on a tight schedule,” Shadow said. “I fear for anyone who misses one of her imposed deadlines. She can get very nasty.”

Shadow dumped his empty plate into the kitchen sink, stretched, and then walked towards the grand piano and glanced at the sheet music resting on top of it.

“Gaspard De La Nuit,” he read.

“You betcha.”

“I thought I released you from the bonds of the torturous task to play this song,” Shadow said.

“What can I say?” I shrugged as I dumped my empty plate into the sink as well and made my way over to him. “I’m a glutton for punishment.”

“You’re a musical masochist,” Shadow agreed.

“I’ve imposed it on myself to master this song,” I said. “Only when I have added Gaspard to my performance repertoire can I truly think of myself as an elite pianist, worthy enough of Vienna. Otherwise, I’d just be a hack who just got lucky.”

Shadow smirked. “A huge part of show business is just that—getting lucky.”

“I want to be better than that,” I said. “Ihaveto be better than that; for dad.”

He nodded, understanding where I was coming from. We were two falling stars on the same trajectory. We were both trying to impress ghosts.

“So how’s Gaspard coming along?” Shadow asked.

“Terrible,” I said. “There are so many hot spots in the song that are finger traps. It’s like navigating a spaceship through an asteroid field.”

“Like you’ve done that before,” Shadow laughed.

“I’ve watched enough Star Wars,” I said as I rubbed my shoulders while stretching out my neck from side-to-side. “But seriously, Gaspard is becoming a detriment to both my mental and physical health. My shoulder blade feels like it’s been stabbed.”

Before I could say another word, I felt Shadow’s strong fingers kneed through the knots in my shoulders. He did it with such confidence and tenderness that I was immediately delivered into the arms of euphoria.

“Oh Shadow,” I moaned as I felt the tension pent up in my muscles loosen underneath the strength of his touch.

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