Children of Vice (Children of Vice 1)

But I’d never let go of the name Nari Callahan.

Exiting the penthouse, both of the guards nodded at me. I entered the elevator, taking out my phone. It only had to ring once before he answered.

“And here I thought someone forgot about me.”

“I did not. Not all of us have free time to just lounge around all day.”

“Excuse you. First of all, after the stressful life I’ve lived, there is nothing wrong with resting a lot. Secondly, I don’t even get to rest now that I’m a bar and grill owner—ouch!” he hollered. “We own a bar and grill!”

Smiling, I shook my head. They never changed. “Dad, you and Mom might want to hold off on the opening. Ethan’s getting married soon.”

“When did you all get so old? Just yesterday you were all kids fighting over who got to get on the back of my motorcycle.”

“You let them on the back of your motorcycle?” My mom snapped at him.

“You can’t be angry about that now! It was ages ago.”

“Oh really, and not just yesterday?”

I could listen to them like this forever.

SIX

“Whoever believes that great advancement and new benefits make men forget old injuries is mistaken.”

~ Niccolò Machiavelli

IVY

“Holy shit!” I yelled, clasping my hands over my mouth, turning around to face the team behind me, and all I could say was, “Holy fucking shit!”

“Miracles do exist,” Nari replied, looking me up and down, then reaching into her purse to pull out debt cards and handing them to one of the people. “They go by the names Visa and Express.”

“The swelling really went down.” I leaned into the mirror, kind of scared of myself. It took three days for every single bump and blemish to be lasered away. All the bruises were gone too. I looked…I looked, well, like Nari, not physically but effortlessly beautiful like she said. “My hair bounces!”

“Okay, now you’re being embarrassing,” Nari said, signing the receipts as I ran my hand through my golden hair. I’d never used the word gold for my hair. But after they’d done their magic that was what it looked like, streams of gold sprouting out of my head. I was beautiful…really beautiful.

“Come on, let’s go.”

“Go?” I looked at her, everyone else already leaving.

She nodded, handing me a yellow clutch, which matched the yellow heels I was wearing perfectly. Both were “pops” of colors, added to the long-sleeved gray Carmen Marc Valvo Pleated Scallop Dress I wore. Words I still didn’t understand, but whatever.

“I’m glad you like it. However, right now I’d like to see how everyone else reacts. Come on,” she said, walking to the door.

“Everyone else?”

“People in the hotel. Think of it like a road test while we get brunch,” she said. When I stepped into the hall, the two men who stood guard behind me moved for the first time in three days, or at least I saw them move for the first time, to stand beside us…me…while Nari called for the elevator. It arrived quickly, and the same bellboy stood waiting.

“Good afternoon.” He nodded at us and his eyebrows came together when he looked at me. He stared even as I walked to stand behind him, his gaze meeting mine in the reflection of the elevator doors. Finally, when we neared the ground floor of the elevator he shook his head as if he’d ridded himself of whatever he was thinking.

“Have a good day,” he said when we got off.

“That was good,” Nari replied, standing beside me. “He came to the conclusion there was no possible way you could be the same woman who was brought up three days ago.”

“He was the test?”

“Part one.” She nodded and then looked down the lobby. “This is part two.”