Lady of the Night (Downworlder Series, #3)

Chapter Four: Glitz and Gore

Glittering like diamonds, the dress I wore caught the light beautifully. It was a slinky number that I knew Mama had paid dearly for but as she always said, os-i nalgaeda, or our clothes are our wings. I had shifted it around in my mind whenever she said it, the clothes create the fantasy. And I had to be transformed into a fantasy.

The gold sequined dress was heavy but it provided that glow to my skin that Mama always complimented me on as she would rub oils into my back after a hard night of work. I turned away from the mirror and shuffled things around on the floor in the giant walk in closet. I needed to find the black pumps that went with the dress. I finally found them tucked into the corner and made a mental reminder to give the girls shit for not putting the shoes in their appropriate place. It was hard enough to find things without them adding to the mess.

I slipped on the shoes as I moved to my makeup station. I added a bit more highlight to my cheek bones and grabbed my clutch before heading out into the main floor. I only had a few minutes before Conrad arrived to pick me up for the gala. I wasn't a normal fantasy tonight, I was an alluring companion who spoke of art and literature as if I knew the finer points in life.

Sutton had taught me well in the subjects but I found them to be tedious. However I had a fantasy to sell and if I played it just right the marks I made would cover me for the next few days of working if I wanted to visit with the kids. It was my main reasoning to picking up the job. I normally didn't like catering males who wanted an 'exotic' beauty because it made me feel cheap but I hadn't seen the kids in a while and I needed the time off.

I adjusted one of my dangling earrings right as Mama exited her office with a rather harried movement that was unlike her usually calm and demure self. I looked at her with worry and she waved at me, gesturing for me to meet her as she moved towards me. "Kinta, remember rules." Her voice was stern as she held waved one of her extra long gold binyeos at me. "Come come. Mama fix hair." I dutifully closed the distance between us and crouched down with my head lowered so she could fix my hair how she wished.

She clucked her tongue as she pulled the various pins from my hair and shook it out before gathering the tightly rung curls into her hands and fastening them in a rather complicated fashion with the binyeo that I could never replicate. "An Kinta wearing make up again. No no. Mama knows better." She tsked at me and I hid a smile as I lifted my face to let her remove the makeup from my skin. Someone knocked on the door and she shouted in Korean before muttering under her breath as she flourished an intricate make up brush and dipped it into a small red pot of lipstick that she had tucked in her hanbok.

Within a few moments she had my lipstick put on perfectly before she tucked it all away and pulled out her small black box that had my eyebrows rising. "Makeup terrible. Mama makes best make up." She made a face as she opened the box of gold powder and brushed it along my cheekbones and hairline. She smiled at me brightly as she closed the box. "Much better. Kinta looks like beautiful warrior." She patted my cheek affectionately before grasping my elbow and leading me to the door.

"My girl not go out without protection. I send my boy?" She looked at me and I shook my head quickly.

"Keeki can't come." The last time he had been on protection duty I had to nearly tear him off a male for slapping my ass. He didn't understand that it was acceptable and I needed to let it happen to get my marks.

"Keeki." Mama made a face at the name. She didn't like it. He was her Prince and she didn't like the nickname we gave him. "No protection then my girl takes care of herself." She pulled a long and thin dagger in a rather non descript scabbard from her hanbok and tucked it into my cleavage. It felt strange but the action wasn't something I wasn't unused to. If we didn't take one of the boys, we took a knife and Mama made sure we knew how to use it.