Super Secret

Chapter 5- A Summer's Ball

"Well, that went a whole lot better than I thought it would," Eleanor admits, straightening out the suit she 'borrowed' from one of the now unconscious party guests.

Susan laughs under her breath, looking around at the swarms of visitors that consumed the hotel's grand lobby. "What can I say? Maybe you should listen to my ideas more often."

It was Eleanor's turn to laugh. "That's debatable."

Eleanor had to admit she was reluctant to following Susan's plan at first. But they'd made it into the party undetected and had acquired some pretty neat outfits in the process.

Eleanor found herself dressed head to toe in an expensive dapper suit, a contrast against Susan who wore a big, dazzling ballgown layered with various shades of deep blues and purples. The very same gown she had been eyeing up earlier that day. The unfortunate owners now lay outside the hotel, propped up, heads nestled against each other, unconscious in an alley. But Eleanor tried to refrain from thinking about that too much.

"So you got any idea as to where this guy could be?" Susan asks her teammate, helping herself to a glass of champagne from a nearby waiter, "This place is huge."

"I've noticed," Eleanor replies flatly, examining the crowds with narrowed eyes.

Unfortunately, again, Susan was right. The lobby was completely packed with guests, conversing and standing shoulder to shoulder with one another. There was barely enough room to squeeze from one place to another, let alone managing to grab a drink at the bar. Finding this 'ghost guy' who had Mr Colour hostage was going to be a lot harder than the pair had originally planned.

"Do you think he could be in one of the upstairs rooms?" Susan suggests instead, "Maybe he's not the party type?"

As if on cue, the sound of cutlery repetitively clinking against glass brings the crowd to an excited hush. A red-headed woman with an eyepatch stands on the grand staircase at the centre of the lobby, trying to grab the attention of the party guests, a sly smirk plastered on her cherry red lips.

"May I have your attention please?" the woman calls out in a strong European accent, raising her voice to be heard, "Dr Heinfeld would like to make a speech."

This was followed by thunderous applause from the excited audience as a man began to descend the lavish staircase. 

But not just any man, it was their guy. The ghost guy from the CCTV footage.

Susan almost choked on her drink. "Holy shit, speak of the devil."

He'd certainly cleaned himself up, the man was kitted out in an immaculate blood-red velvet suit and his tousled dark hair had been slicked back with some sort of gel. Grinning from ear to ear, he threw out his arms to the audience in a welcoming gesture, releasing a loud hearty chuckle that only encouraged the crowds to cheer louder. 

Eleanor was impressed by the man's act, he could have easily fooled her if she hadn't already known the truth. 

"Thank you, thank you, you're too kind!" the man gushed as he accepted a microphone from an approaching waiter, "I cannot thank you all enough for being here today, seeing all your wonderful faces here truly brings me great hope for our future together at FutureTech Industries."

Eleanor and Susan share a quick concerned glance as the crowd ruptures into another round of enthusiastic applause.

"This year certainly got off to a rocky start, but over the past few months, we've made staggering progress that is going to change the future of technology forever. And let me tell you this, I cannot wait to show you all what we've been working on. You're going to be mesmerised."