Page 216 of Chandelier Sin
Eve approached her. “Do you know who the fourth partner is?”
I knew why she had asked the question and could see Eve’s subtle warning that Stella didn’t need to answer.
I sensed the connection between them, the unspoken understanding that we were the only ones who could navigate her exit.
And as far as I knew, Stella hadn’t discovered the truth about Cameron.
Everyone’s focus returned to her.
Eve gestured, showing her insistence that Stella answer the question.
Stella hung her head in shame, letting everyone know she had no knowledge of the fourth partner’s identity. She’d merely been bluffing.
I placed all my trust in Eve to get us out of here, because I, too, hadn’t been invited. Though with so many members here, maybe I’d go unnoticed. Since I was wearing gloves, I stood a better chance of remaining under the radar.
Eve’s lips curled in approval. “Let’s not keep the Grand Master waiting.”
I took that as my cue.
Resting my palms on Stella’s shoulders, I pressed down, forcing her to kneel before me. “Down,” I commanded.
She obeyed without resisting.
I tapped her head. “Crawl beside me.”
Eve walked next to me, and we headed toward a double doorway.
Ahead of us towered two stone pillars with ancient pharaohschiseled into the white marble. The activity was as erotic as you’d expect in this place.
The doors opened and we proceeded through to the next chamber.
Eve hadn’t led us to an exit—she’d directed us into another vast room. I glanced her way to question her decision.
“We have no choice,” she whispered.
With a nod of understanding, I looked down at Stella. “Do as I say.”
If we had tried to leave the sixth floor, they would have stopped us.
Stella glanced up at me. “We can’t leave?”
“They’re watching.” I again placed my palm on top of her head, attempting to calm her.
What I did know about hieroglyphs, and there wasn’t much, to be honest, was that they didn’t just represent sounds, they represented entire words and even complex concepts. They were everywhere. The endless symbolism captured throughout this brilliant chamber defied all architectural logic.
Pendulum’s allure was in the way the architect had created a paradoxical design.
Though it struck me again how Greyson, with such talent and insight, would not have predicted a floor like this could exist.
Carved into the vast pillars were more secrets offered up for interpretation. My mind struggled to grasp the weight of such marble structures.
Unless they were as fake as the guests we’d left behind.
My eyes adjusted to the dimness. The realization of what this room was meant for came into view.
A shiver went through me, not of fear, but of something primal and ancient, as though I were witnessing a session that went back centuries.
This was seemingly a modern setting taken from the city ofBubastis, which saw the wildest scenes of unbridled debauchery, with a landscape of hundreds of people enraptured in euphoria.
