Page 34 of The Paranormal Investigation Bureau
Arden moved closer to Beyla, as Nyx said something that made Beyla and Bevan laugh. Arden was watching the entire room like he was expecting someone to snatch Bevan and Beyla. What was going on?
“Beyla threatened to murder me, because she didn’t like how I was looking at her... so I don’t think we get a vote in her harem. Shit, we don’t even know if she wants one.”
Merlin just laughed.
“She’s a fucking witch. They do covens and harems.Trust me.She wants one.”
“Trust me, dude.Do notsay that to her face… she’ll either kick you out or curse your dick!”
“What? Women like it when you are honest with them! They get mad when you lie.”
“I swear, man. If you weren’t an incubus, you’d never get laid. You don’t understand women at all.”
“Excuse me, fucker? We were tied. She was going to be the tiebreaker, until we agreed to call it off.”
“This one isn’t a bet, Merlin. I know you felt it too, when Marsden asked her to step in for Bellatrix.”
“Yeah, sure I felt it, looks like Arden did too. Are you seriously going to fight a fucking gryphon for her?”
“If I have to, yes. What is he doing with Bevan? He’d better not hurt him.”
“I’m not a big fan of Arden, but he was with Bevan when he walked in the dressing room. Julian missed rehearsals for a week straight and only watched for another. I’m pretty sure Arden beat the shit out of him. He gets bonus points for punching Julian because he hurt Bevan. We all want to,” Merlin said.
“No way,” I said. “Julian is Bellatrix’s little pet. If Arden kicked his ass, then you know she would have gotten him fired. Marsden might put up with her shit, but not from the rest of us.”
“So is Arden,” Merlin reminded me. “You’ve seen him at galas. He pulls up in his motorcycle and wears leather. All those wealthy old ladies love him, and he flirts up a storm. Arden brings inwaymore donations than Julian does. Arden totally could have beaten his ass and gotten away with it!”
Fucking Arden, with his spiky hair and leather trousers, even brought in more donations than I did, and if I was playing a love triangle with him, I was always the one that got the girl. IhatedArden. Even if we weren’t on stage, I was getting the girl this time too.
A flash of red caught my eye. That could only mean one thing… Bellatrix and her squad were here. We weren’t little ballet minions in the academy, not anymore, we were professional dancers, and we had no dress code. Most everyone in the company knew this was a technique class, and not a fashion show. They had their knit shorts, leg warmers, and shrugs, but they took them off once they were warm.
Bellatrixalwayswore red to class, and Madame Lucinda had given up fussing at her for having her hair in her face. Ivory and Julian had red on, as part of their ensemble, and woe to anyone else who dared wear it in class. Bellatrix had previously sent a new corps member out of the room in tears, halfway through class, for daring to wear a red leotard.
I swear, Bellatrix was the oldest dancer in the company, and she acted like she was the queen bee in a class for hormonal teenagers. Most professionals didn’t give a shit where they stood in class, or worry about what they wore to class, but here we were.
And fuck me! Beyla was wearing a black and red leotard.
Arden was so far up her ass, he was practically humping her leg. Why did he let her out of her apartment like that? For that matter, why did Nyx and Bevan? Everyone in this company knew what a shit show Bellatrix would make if anyone dared wear her signature color, other than her inner circle.
I elbowed Merlin in the ribs.
“Our girl needs us… look at what she’s wearing.”
“No, look. This was a planned attack. They areallwearing red.”
“Let’s go find out what the actual fuck they are doing, because they might as well have just openly declared war.”
This would not end well. Bellatrix had noticed, and she didn’t shriek like she usually did. She didn’t go stomping across the room and demand they leave and change clothes. Bellatrix didn’t threaten to ruin their entire career, she just glared at Beyla and pulled Julian and Ivory in to whisper furiously.
Before we could even get to them to find out what the actual fuck they were doing, Madame Lucinda glided into the room and tapped her cane on the floor. That meant you had until she made it to the front of the room to be at the barre, in first position and ready for warmup, or she’d boot your ass out of her classroom.That went for anyone and everyone, even if you were one of her favorites or you happened to be one of the stars. Madame Lucinda liked me enough to get arrive early and give me private lessons, but she didn’t give me special treatment and had kicked me out of class before, Merlin too.
We knew better. We settled our left hands on the nearest barre, turned our feet out into first position, and waited for her to give us our warm-up combination. Bellatrix was still furiously whispering with Julian and Ivory in the back of the room, and she didn’t stop by the time Madame Lucinda made her way to the front.
Madame Lucinda was an ancient vampire. She didn’t just use cane to get our attention or tap us on the back or knees to correct our posture, she needed it to walk. She’d already had her hips replaced, but dancers abused their joints horrifically, and there was only so much modern medicine could do after a lifetime of it.
Madame Lucinda might be old and frail, but she was a total beast when she got pissed off. We were all terrified of her… Bellatrix had to be seriously stupid if she wasn’t. Madame Lucinda’s eyes turned blood red, and she bared her fangs as she slammed her cane against the floor.
“The Terrible Threesome needs to get the fuckoutof my classroom, since they clearly aren’t prepared to dance. You can continue whatever vile plot you are working up against Bevan and your understudy away from the people who are actually here to work!”
