Authors: Jan Bowles
Chapter Eight
Trent stood on the other side of the street and stared at the impressive shop front. Madame Monique’s looked different to other dry cleaners. It had pretty curtains in the windows. A wonderful red awning, more suitable to a French café, covered the sidewalk. It clearly catered for the very wealthy in society. He guessed having one’s clothes cleaned here didn’t come cheap.
Taking his time, he strode across the street. When he reached the other side, he wondered if Mia would be inside. Just the thought of seeing her again keened his senses.
When he pushed open the door, plush carpets and a woman in her fifties greeted him. A streak of gray swept from one temple and disappeared into her jet-black coifed hair.
“And how can I help you today, sir?”
He cleared his throat. “I’m looking for someone, and I believe there is a connection to this establishment. Perhaps, she is your business partner or manager.”
The woman shook her head. “Oh, no, sir, I am Monica Weston, the sole owner of Madame Monique’s. You must be mistaken as to the connection.”
Trent realized the dress now held the only key to unlocking this mystery. “The woman I’m looking for wore a Bellini dress to the 3G gala event. A red Bellini dress that has recently been in your care. Her name is Mia. Mia Johansson.”
For a moment, the woman turned white with shock, and then a crimson color darkened her cheeks. Without warning, she spun on her heels and disappeared into the back of the shop. He could hear raised voices coming from another room. When he heard a sharp slap and a piercing feminine cry, he forced his way into the backroom. He recognized that voice.
Shocked to see him, Mia’s eyes looked huge as he entered through the doorway. Tears flowed down her cheeks, and a large, red welt marked her face. “Trent.” Her voice was a mere whisper.
“Mia, are you all right? Has this woman hit you?” He stared angrily at the owner.
Mia’s hand trembled as she felt the mark with her fingers. “It’s nothing.” Trent noticed she appeared ground down by life, her complexion now ghostly pale. This wasn’t the woman he remembered. When their eyes connected, he saw fear. Surely she wasn’t afraid of him? It was only then that he realized she was fearful of what he’d unleashed.
Who wouldn’t be? This gorgon of a woman could make grown men quake in their boots but not him. He’d met her type before. They were full of hot air. A few succinct words would easily deflate her. Before he could ease the situation, the woman expressed her displeasure once more. “Sir, this is between my employee and myself. Now please leave. She has work to attend.”
Mia stumbled and then held onto a nearby chair for support. The atmosphere felt stuffy and oppressive, and he wondered if there was proper ventilation.
“I don’t think this lady is in a fit state to continue.” Just as he finished speaking, Mia stumbled again, this time almost dropping to the floor. He scooped her up and brought her out into the front of the shop where he sat her in a chair. “Put your head between your knees, Mia. That’s it. Take deep breaths until you feel better.”
“You won’t get any sympathy from me, you ungrateful girl.” Monica spat out her words.
“Madam, your employee is ill. Do you have proper ventilation? More to the point, do you actually have a heart?”
“I’ve just had to pay fifteen thousand dollars to get a dress repaired that this silly girl has ruined. My reputation could also be ruined because of her. Sir, this really is none of your business. I’m asking you to leave my establishment.”
Trent reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out his checkbook and pen. Women like her were only influenced by money. He began writing. “So, how much did you say you are out of pocket again?”
“Eighteen thousand dollars.”
“Didn’t you just say fifteen thousand?”
“Yes, I did. Fifteen thousand plus expenses.”
“Trent, what are you doing? I can’t allow you to do this.”
He looked into Mia’s beautiful aqua blue eyes. “Would you rather owe me or this lady the money?” She didn’t answer.
He glanced at the woman disapprovingly. “Let’s round it up and say twenty thousand dollars for all the trouble you’ve gone to.” Trent finished writing the check and then tore it free. “Here, take this.”
“How do I know this will cash?”
“Believe me, Madam, it will.” He showed his disbelief. “I’m surprised you haven’t any insurance for something of this nature.” The woman at least had the decency to look embarrassed. No doubt she would be making a claim, too. “I see.”
“No, you don’t see. My reputation could be in tatters. I should really call the police over such a deceitful affair.”
“Madam, you won’t call the police or anything of the kind. You know as well as I do it would only make matters worse.”
He glanced down at Mia. She looked stunned by the whole event. Even the dowdy clothes she wore could not hide her exquisite beauty. Only she now seemed weighed down by life. He wondered where the carefree woman he’d met just twenty-four hours before had gone? Why had she deceived him? Why had she lied? He could still see the red mark on her cheek. No matter how he felt about the lies, no one deserved to be treated so unkindly by their boss. Taking pity on her, he asked, “Feeling better?” When she nodded, he continued, “Get all your belongings, Mia. We’re leaving.” He just couldn’t leave her with such an evil employer. Anything could happen. He’d figure something out later.
As though in a trance, Mia gathered her things together.
“You can’t leave, Mia. You’ve work to do.”
“I just quit, Monica.”
She linked her arm through Trent’s and started to walk with him out of the shop.
“Good, I’m glad you’ve quit. I would have fired you if you hadn’t. You stupid girl.”
Mia stopped in her tracks. “Excuse me for a moment, Trent. There’s something I need to do.” She turned and walked back toward Monica. Standing very close to her, she said, “Call me a stupid girl again, Monica.”
The woman sneered. “You stupid, girl. I should have fired you a long time ago.”
Mia wiped the smile off the shop owner’s lips with a stinging slap to her cheek. Face powder billowed into the air in a huge cloud. The woman looked shocked, and for once, remained speechless.
Mia turned back to Trent. “I’m ready to leave now.”
He tucked her hand in his and proceeded to the door. For the despicable way she’d treated Mia, Trent decided to leave his own cutting remark. “Madam, for someone dealing with designer fashion on a daily basis, you really have absolutely no dress sense. Has anyone ever told you your clothes don’t fit? The phrase mutton dressed as lamb springs to mind.” He just heard her strangled outrage as the door finally closed behind them.
* * * *
Once outside the shop, Trent hailed a cab. Mia stole a glance in his direction. She knew disappointment when she saw it. Her perfect fantasy had turned into a complete nightmare. Now the dream had truly crashed and burned. Trent thought she was nothing more than a common thief.
He didn’t speak until they were seated in the cab, and when he did, he couldn’t hide the derision. “I take it you live in New York. Or is there something else you’re not telling me?”
Her voice came out rather thin and reedy. “I live in the Bronx.” She told him the address. “I can find my own way home.”
“Oh, no.” He held onto her arm and then gave the address to the cab driver. “You’re staying right here, where I can keep an eye on you. I don’t want another disappearing act.”
Mia cleared her throat. “Trent, I am truly sorry about last night. I didn’t mean to deceive you. It just happened.”
“Really?”
“Yes, really.” Mia clasped her hands tightly together, making the knuckles bare white. “It just…” she shrugged, “all got out of hand.”
“Then you didn’t mean to deceive me?”
“No.” She shook her head and bit down onto her bottom lip. It threatened to quiver at any moment. His eyes looked hard as they scanned over her. Now he knew the real Mia Johansson. He was annoyed.
“So wearing someone else’s dress all happened by mistake.” She could hear the sarcasm in his voice, and it hurt. They’d had such a wonderful evening together. She hadn’t wanted it to end. Now it had. Badly.
“It was the only way I could go to the event.”
“Why was it so important?”
“You wouldn’t understand.”
“Try me.”
She breathed in. “I wanted to see the painting.”
“So you thought you’d steal a dress just to see it.” He sounded incredulous.
“I borrowed the dress,” she countered indignantly.
“Mia, much as I dislike your boss, she certainly had the right to be angry. The dress belonged to someone else, and it was no ordinary dress. It was a designer piece by Bellini, a one off. Worth about fifty thousand dollars, possibly more.”
“What are you going to do? About the money, I mean.”
He leaned back against the seat and stared out of the cab window. When he turned to her, she saw intense disappointment in his eyes. “I haven’t decided yet.” His gaze raked over her, assessing everything about her in an instant. Her student clothes were threadbare and dull. Mia wanted to crawl under a stone and die. “I suppose everything you told me about yourself was a lie, too.”
“I didn’t lie to you, Trent. You just assumed things about me because of the way I was dressed. Everyone’s prejudiced one way or another. You thought I was wealthy, so you decided to talk to me. If I’d been dressed as I am now, you probably wouldn’t have given me a second glance.”
“Perhaps you underestimate yourself, Mia. You’re a very attractive woman,” he waved his hand disparagingly in the air, “even in these drab clothes. “So do you actually have a degree in art?”
“Yes.”
“And you really were genuine about the Hans Vergen painting I bought?”
“Yes, of course. I stand by what I said. He is going to be big someday.”
“That’s something, I guess.”
The cab pulled into the curb just outside her apartment block. It looked sleazy from the outside. God knows what Trent would make of the inside. She just hoped he didn’t want to come in.
He stared at the dilapidated building. “You live here?”
Mia stated the facts. “I had better accommodation when I was a student, but now it’s all I can afford. Not everyone can live the wealthy jet-set lifestyle like you do, Trent. Some of us have to live in the real world.”
Her stomach churned as he followed her out onto the sidewalk. He handed the cab driver a fifty-dollar bill. “Wait here, and I’ll give you another fifty when I return.”
“You don’t have to come in, Trent.”
“I do. I want to make sure you actually live here.”
“You don’t trust me?”
“No, I don’t.” He held her chin and forced her to look at him. “After all the deception, I want to see for myself where you live. Maybe I’ll understand you better.”
Chapter Nine
When Trent realized where Mia resided, he felt sad that this beautiful young woman lived in such a poor part of New York. It was truly awful. A gray tenement block raised ten floors high. Undesirables hung about on the steps outside, and used syringes littered the ground.
Mia led the way into a large hallway. Paint peeled from the walls, and a smell of stale cooking pervaded the area. He stared at her. She’d taken his breath away last night. She had been so full of life and vitality. How could she possibly have been so upbeat and optimistic, when she lived in a hellhole like this? Her human spirit amazed him.