Page 47 of Dark Shaman: Eternal Hope
"Ready as we'll ever be," Marlene said, striding in with confidence that looked innate rather than a mere façade. She'd dressed more practically today—dark slacks, a simple blouse that wouldn't restrict movement, and low kitten heels that were comfortable but still looked fashionable and polished.
Carol approved.
They filed in and took the same seats as before, which told Carol they were already creatures of habit. That would need to change.
"First rule," Carol said, remaining standing. "Never sit in the same place twice. Patterns make you predictable, and predictable makes you vulnerable."
Teresa immediately stood and moved to a different chair. The others followed, some more reluctantly than others.
"Better," Carol said, taking a seat herself—not at the head of the table this time, but along the side. "Today we're focusing on observation. It's the foundation of everything else you'll learn. You can't become someone's ideal woman if you don't know what they're looking for, and most people never say what they really want. Sometimes they don't even know that themselves, but you will learn to puzzle it out by observing their behavior."
Grace raised her hand. "We did observation exercises last week."
"That was just for demonstration. This is the real deal." Carol pulled out a tablet and tapped the screen. "I'm going to show you a thirty-second video. Watch it once, then tell me everything you observed."
The wall-mounted screen came to life, showing what appeared to be a coffee shop. A man in a business suit sat at a corner table, typing on a laptop. A woman walked past with a dog. Two teenagers argued near the counter. A barista called out an order. Then the video ended.
"What did you see?" Carol asked.
"Man working on his computer, probably a businessman based on the suit," Marlene said. "The woman with the dog was wearing designer clothes—wealthy neighborhood."
"The teenagers were arguing about money," Teresa added. "One claimed that the other owed him twenty dollars, but the other was saying that he's already repaid it."
"The barista called out an order of soy latte with extra foam and caramel," Grace contributed.
Regina spoke up hesitantly. "The man kept touching his wedding ring. Twisting it."
Carol smiled. "Good catch, Regina. What else?"
Greta, who'd been silent, finally spoke. "The businessman wasn't typing. His fingers were moving, but if you watched the screen's reflection in the window behind him, it never changed. He was pretending to work while watching the woman with the dog."
"Excellent," Carol said. "What else did everyone miss?"
They looked at each other, uncertain.
"The teenagers weren't customers," Carol explained. "Neither had drinks or food. They were there for another reason—probably dealing drugs based on the quick hand exchange that happened when one 'bumped' into the other. The woman with the dog? She was casing the place. Her eyes swept every corner and noted the camera positions. The dog was a prop to make her look harmless. And the businessman? He wasn't wearing a wedding ring. Regina saw what she expected to see based on his demographic, not what was actually there."
Regina flushed. "But I saw him touching?—"
"It was his class ring. Different finger, different meaning. He was nervous, yes, but not about infidelity. Watch again." Carol replayed the video, and this time they all saw what she'd pointed out.
"This is what I mean by observation," Carol continued. "You need to see what's actually there, not what you expect or assume. Your targets will be powerful men who've spent their lives learning to hide their true intentions. You need to see past their masks."
"How do we learn that?" Teresa asked.
"Practice. Constant, deliberate practice." Carol switched to another recording. "I recorded this earlier on the street below. Pick a person and tell me their story—not what you imagine, but what you can actually observe and reasonably deduce."
"There." Marlene pointed. "The woman in the red dress. She's walking fast but checking her phone constantly. She's late for something but expecting an important call or message. The dress is wrinkled on one side, so she might have slept in her car or someone else's bed."
"Possible," Carol said. "But look at her shoes."
"Flats," Grace observed. "She's carrying heels in that bag."
"So, she changed shoes for the walk, which suggests planning, not a spontaneous overnight. The wrinkles could be from a long flight. The phone checking might be waiting for an Uber. See how the story changes when you notice more details?"
They spent the next hour watching clips of random people that Carol had recorded at different places doing everyday things. She was pushing them to look deeper, to question their assumptions. Regina, surprisingly, began to excel at it. Her natural anxiety made her hypervigilant, and once she learned to channel that into observation rather than worry, she caught details others missed.
"That man is favoring his left side," Regina pointed out about a pedestrian. "Old injury, probably military, based on his bearing. But he's trying to hide it, which means he doesn't want to appear vulnerable. It might be something that is innate, or he's going to a job interview or an important meeting where he needs to project strength. I would need to observe him in different situations to know which is true."
