Dance Moms - Lorelei (3) James & Hilliker

Chapter 2 : Heritage

Chloe followed the fat woman, crossing the elevator hall to the opposite wing. They arrived a room and passed a young secretary, Ms. Waltz picked up some files from her desk and showed Chloe through a door.

This is more like it! Chloe nodded at the interior.

There were medals and trophies, but none were dance related, some carried a figure of a shooter, others marked the year of decorations, some in foreign languages. On the shelves were pictures of Ms. Waltz, mostly stood formally with figures Chloe didn't know, until she stopped at one.

"You know Morris?" she gasped. "You're with Orion??"

The woman stood in silence, watching the young girl explore.

In the picture, Morris was young in his thirties, displaying a big laugh across his face, both him and Ms. Waltz were toasting big beer mugs in their hands, they looked half drunk.

"You guys looked so happy." Chloe smiled.

"Keep looking."

There was a picture of Ms. Waltz standing next to a young girl, like a mother at her daughter's graduation, a nerdy girl in glasses.

"Madison!" Chloe turned to the woman. "She's your daughter??"

"She was as stubborn as her old man!" Ms. Waltz smiled. "She insisted finding her own path. Just like you."

"But you're not with Orion. What are you?"

"We are a competitor."

"Competitor?" Chloe's eyes widened. "I didn't know there are other agencies."

"Oh believe me, there are many, just like your ALDC and Candy Apples, and we always look for new potential agents."

"And Madison recommended me to a competitor?"

"She told me you weren't the kind interested in taking tasks for money."

"I prefer to help those needed, not those that can afford."

"And that is exactly what we're looking for here, someone who works for their beliefs."

The woman walked up to her, adjusted the picture to a preferred angle.

"Orion is a dying breed from the Cold War. The world has changed."

"Into what?"

"The world is ruling by millennials now, entrepreneurs get younger by the year, Facebook, Space X, Theranos..."

"Theranos was a scam." Chloe corrected.

"It doesn't matter. My point is, young people are capable to run billion-dollar companies now, meaning clients and targets are also getting younger. Grown-ups like Orion will stick out like a sore thumb."

Chloe couldn't agree more.

"Does Morris know this?"

"Oh he knows, but he came from the old era when people still believe in loyalty."

"He told you that?"

"No, but I know him. I was his supervisor back in the days for Christ sake!"

"You were?" Chloe amused.

"What? You don't think I was capable? He wouldn't be alive if I didn't save his old ass from time to time!" Ms. Waltz said with her hands at her hips.

Chloe couldn't help giggling thinking Morris being screamed at by this woman, it must be like when Ms. Abby screamed at him in the studio.

"So you want me to work for you?" Chloe put away her smile and asked.

"This is an audition, the agreement is mutual, but here's a gift to show our good faith."

The woman pushed a folder across her work desk, Chloe opened it and read.

"Cardinal Rivers!" her eyes widened.

"He goes by the name Les Roberts now." the woman said. "A priest in a youth rehabilitation facility in Philadelphia."

"How did you come by this information?" Chloe read word by word, trying to memorize all the data.

"We have our ways, better than Orion." Ms. Waltz snorted.

"Are you giving me a task?"

"Not exactly. Like I said, it's a gift. Whether you carry it out is your own business. But before you deploy, let me show you our facility."