Page 25 of Wicked Flavors

Socks were quick to follow, along with a black baseball cap. Gwendolyn stuffed her hair underneath it. It wasn’t a perfect cover, as anyone behind her would see the strandsof pink trying to escape her hat, but it would do for what she had in mind.

Once properly dressed, Gwendolyn went to her workstation. She ignored the chopped pieces of her hair and snagged the doll. Somehow, Gwendolyn had finished replacing the doll’s hair. A brighter shade of pink than her own. She chucked the head into the same paper bag the doll came in. Gwendolyn hurriedly dressed the doll—old habits died hard, she supposed. She swept all the accessories, including the broken sunglasses into the bag as well. Along with the two outfit pieces she had started for it, because why the fuck not?

Once she had everything in place, Gwendolyn pulled her phone, wallet, and keys from her purse. She shoved the collection of items in her leggings—thank fuck for pockets—slipped on some simple sneakers, and stomped out of her apartment. She saw her neighbor again, this time with a box in hand. Gwendolyn felt that same strange surge of annoyance as he gave her a dirty look.

“Oh, fuck off, shop lifter with extra steps,” Gwendolyn grumbled as she finished locking her door.

Wildly out of character for her? Yes. Dangerous in the sense that her neighbor most likely knew she lived alone, and could potentially cause very serious problems for her later? Yes. Possibly violent problems? Very likely yes. Did she care at the moment? No.

The proof was in how she ignored his offended shout as she hurried into the elevator. He might have been pissed at being called out, but not enough to follow her. Why would he, if it meant getting caught with his neighbor’s package?

She avoided looking at the security camera at the top of the elevator. How the apartment could afford them in the elevator, but not in the hallways of the apartmentbuilding, Gwendolyn didn’t know. Quite frankly, she was too angry to care about it, despite her brain feeding the thought to her. She tapped her foot, impatiently waiting for the countdown as the elevator continued its slow descent.

When the elevator doors opened, Gwendolyn continued her brisk walk. She was halfway to the door when one of the leasing agents came out of the resident lounge.

“Oh, hey!” A perky blonde in a black skirt and silk lavender blouse greeted her.

Gwendolyn had no idea what her name was, but she stopped to listen.

“Just wanted to remind you that we’re having our 4th of July community barbecue in the resident lounge tomorrow! We’ll be having hot dogs, chips, water, and some sodas from eleven to four!” the woman explained.

A strange swell of anxiety and self-loathing blossomed in Gwendolyn’s gut. It felt out of place beside the boiling anger inside. The slight tremor hadn’t left her hands since seeing her hair. But odder still was how the taste of black licorice grew across her taste buds like the sea spreading across dry sand.

She shook off the weird moment.

“Great,” Gwendolyn said bluntly. “Do you need anything else?”

The woman tilted her head before shaking it.

“Good. Bye,” Gwendolyn said before continuing on her way.

The script was gone. Honestly, Gwendolyn hadn’t even noticed as she was far too angry to even think about the rules of peopling. She paced in small circles until her bus arrived, not caring about the attention she drew from other people. Gwendolyn scanned her bus pass and insteadof sitting, opted to stand in the center. If she sat down, Gwendolyn was worried she’d start tapping her feet until her leg bounced clean off. She ignored the man staring at her ass in the corner of her vision, though she did curse him in her head.

She cursed the antique dealer, too. As the bus lurched from stop to stop, Gwendolyn kept eyeing the paper bag at her side. She could feel the doll parts move, a small object that felt like dead weight. How could something so small cause so much trouble? Gwendolyn didn’t have the mindset to think deeply about it. She just wanted itgone.

By the time the bus arrived at theYMCA,Gwendolyn practically jumped off the moving vehicle. It was eleven by then, and she could only hope that the antique store wasn’t closed for lunch.

The sun was shining, the sky was blue, and Gwendolyn was thinking about killing the antique dealer by the time the familiar building came into view. The door was less blue and more green this time around. Something Gwendolyn might have thought was a trick of lighting, or maybe nothing at all if it had been a few days ago.

Now, suspicion grew in her gut as she gathered herself and burst through the front door. The familiar chime was like a mocking giggle as Gwendolyn shoved the door behind her with her foot. Glancing around, she immediately noticed that the once vibrant walls were now a darker shade of blue-green. She couldn’t place it, but it was as if everything in the antique store had changed. Like the objects had lost their luster.

“Hoy!” Gwendolyn shouted into the interior.

She didn’t wait for an answer, bypassing the register and entering the parlor-like space. The plush chairs were gone, instead offering a single love seat in cobalt blue. Gwendolyn didn’t know much about antique furniture,but she noticed the buttons on it. She twirled on her heels, searching past the room into an archway, where more items lay. As she stepped into the entryway, she spotted a dining table set with silver cutlery and—

“There you are.”

Gwendolyn jumped, whirling on the spot, only to see the subject of her ire standing unbearably close to her. Ambrosius was dressed similarly to before, except now his pants had pinstripes, his boots were loafers, and his tightly buttoned dress shirt was open for the world to see. Gwendolyn avoided looking at the strip of skin, though she caught more obsidian ink beneath the layers of silver chains. His eyes were as dark as she remembered them, much to her chagrin.

“I was wondering when you’d show up,” Ambrosius continued as he eyed her face in return. “I was almost starting to worry.”

He was just as handsome as he had been when she saw him last. The same messy bangs were styled back, revealing more of his terribly gorgeous face. She hadn’t seen the small cluster of beauty marks along his jawline before.

Fuck him,she thought venomously, and was momentarily confused at which way she meant it.

“What is it? Have I rendered you speechless?” he asked, tilting his head to the side with an easy smile.

Gwendolyn’s jaw tightened, but she managed between gritted teeth, “You—”

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