h was a crumpled me

but it would h

She added a disposable face mask, obscuring everything but her haunted eyes.

r with a faded "TATTOO" sign buzzing weakly above it. The air inside was thick wi

aw, healing wound on her shoulder, his eyes lingering for a beat too long on its tell-tale shape. He rais

counter. It wasn't enough for a masterp

aspy. She pointed to a flash sheet on th

garish thing with wings of

d the wound. Pain, sharp and relentless, radiated through her shoulder. She gripped the arms of the chair, her knuckles white, her nails

terfly was perched on her left shoulder. Its wings spread wide, completely o

sement, she began the second

ng dress in a cheap, shiny fabric and a pair of scuffed platform heels

ffect. She drew on thick, clumsy wings of black eyeliner, rimmed her eyes until they looked bruised, and appl

d at her

bly. There was no trace of the woman who had sprinted through a hail of bullets, no hint of the person who had

s smile touched

he last few blocks, the cold air a stark contrast to the heat of the city's underbelly. She slipped into The Onyx Clu

ferent cheap perfumes. Girls in various states of undress were crammed in front of the mirrors, frantically applying another layer of

was about to change when th

gunshots on the tiled floor. She clappe

er the room. "Tonight, the entire club has be

excitement. Braeden Buckley. Heir to the Buckley crime syndicate. A man known for hi

ical black lace dresses. They were little more than scraps of fabric, w

ha announced. "Mr. Buckley's r

y and cheap in her hands. It would offer no protection, no place to

a collection of uncomfortable, half-dressed dol

erious, warning tone. "A special rule for tonight. Th

letting the

ny of his guests, when you are pouring

few of the younger girls looked pale, th

hem we know our place. Anyone, and I mean anyone, I see serving while standing will b

order was absolute, the t

d into tight fists at her sides. The cheap lace of the dr

ntwerp, respected, even feared. Now she was being told to kneel for a spoiled, violent

f girls and landed on Jasmine. She st

thick, suffocating layer of paste. "You're lucky to even be here after your little disappeari

blank, projecting nothing but meek com

hove. "Alright, ladies. Gra

weight of it a small comfort in her trembling hands. She fell into line behind the ot