Page 26 of Kiss of Ruin (Brutal Empire)

On one side of the room, a long bar stretches from the front of the building to the back. It’s filled with a variety of liquors at one end, coffee and tea at the other, with everything else in between. Along another wall there’s a TV mounted with lounge chairs sitting in front of them.

I thought that would be all I would find. I look on the other side of the room and realize that Isabel has set up a separate area with computers for completing business, along with a pool table and dartboard. The place has everything someone who hated shopping would need to keep them busy while they waited. Isabel steps out of one of the doors on the side.

“Scarlett, Sofia, you made it.” She wraps us each in a hug like we hadn’t been with her that morning at breakfast.

“Miguel, enjoy.” She gestures into the room. “I’m going to take these two downstairs. We’ll let you know when they’re ready.”

“You got it Isabel.”

“There’s a few new items to snack on in the fridge in the back.”

“Now we’re talking.” Miguel gets up from the lounge chair and walks straight to a door in the back.

“Come. Let me show you what we have.” She leads Sofia to a few dresses and shoes that are completely Sofia’s style. She leaves her browsing and walks over to me. “Let me show you that dress I was telling you about.”

I follow her to small room in the back where there’s a room with multiple doors on the left to try things on. On the right there’s a single door. Isabel pushes it open to reveal a storage area. “I didn’t want it to accidentally get put out before you have a chance to try it on. I was only able to get my hands on one and I believe it is your exact size.”

She hands me an utterly stunning dress. It’s still an everyday wear type of dress, but the cut screams sophistication.

I reach to take the dress from her hands, but she holds onto it a little longer than necessary. I expect her to say something about Nico. I don’t know what he said to her after we left, but she finally let’s go.

I breathe a sigh of relief. I take the dress to the one open room and lock myself inside. I place it on the hanger and sit down on the beautiful chair in the corner. The amenities at this boutique are unmatched. Isabel truly knows how to reach the clientele she wants shopping in her store.

This has got to be the first time I’ve felt uncomfortable around Isabel. It takes me a moment to process it. Once I’m feeling more relaxed, I stand up and start to unzip my own dress.

The black fabric pools at me feet. I pick it up and lay it across the chairs and reach for the dress Isabel handed me. Dark blue in color, I slip the fabric over my head, letting the dress fall into place.

It reaches midway down my thigh, leaving just enough leg exposed without shopping off too much. I reach around the back and tug the zipper up. When I step out of the dressing room to look in the mirror there’s an audible gasp next to me. I glance at the mirror and understand why. Isabel truly knows fashion. The dress is absolutely stunning on me. I don’t think I’ve ever worn anything like it.

Not exactly sleeveless, but not sleeved the top barely covers the shoulders. The skirt molds to my hips and thighs while still moving with me. It’s the top that draws the most attention. Instead of a normal V or scoop neck, this dress is tight to the neck with a large oval cut out in the chest, exposing a bit of cleavage while leaving the rest to the imagination.

The color against my creamy skin is perfect. “I love it.”

“You look gorgeous, Scar.” I look over my shoulder to see Sofia with a few different outfits in her hand to try on.

“I think you should wear this one home.”

I can deny that I feel strong, almost unstoppable in this dress. “I agree.” I spin around, checking out the back of the dress. This dress makes me feel like I can conquer the world. At least keep Nico at arm’s length until he leaves.

I reach for the door of the dressing room when I loud crash comes from the front of the store. To get inside you must be buzzed in by someone inside, unless you have the code to gain access. The three of us rush out of the room.

Sofia screams pointing at the door. Footsteps begin pounding down the steps as I move forward to get a closer look at the smeared blood on the door. I don’t know what could have cause it until I glance down and see the man lying in front of the store. There’s blood pooling around his head.

“Miguel,” Isabel calls as he reaches the bottom.

He makes his way to the front. “Jesus. It’s Jose. Call an ambulance.”

One of our security team guys.

He had a family.

We went to his wedding in Staten Island last year. I think he said his wife was expecting.

Fuck.

Isabel pulls out her phone and calls for help. Since this is one of the legitimate businesses tied to the family name, everything needs to be done correctly to keep suspicion away.

The ambulance arrives a few minutes later, followed by police. Isabel lets them in and we agree to answer their questions. Which all revolve around what we saw. Isabel agrees to let them have the security footage from outside the store.

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