Page 13 of The Labyrinth
“Please,” Marion begged softly.“Just one minute to ask about my friend.His family is very worried.I’m here before they involve the police.”
Any lingering pleasantries dropped away as the woman understood the hidden meaning in her words.“Stay here.I’ll be right back.”
“Thank you,” Marion said politely.“I deeply appreciate it.”
The woman walked away toward the concierge desk and picked up a phone.Walking around the huge glass enclosure, she passed a set of elevators where a large statue of a Komodo dragon sat next to the exit door marked STAIRS.The sculptor had paid a lot of attention to detail, especially the tough leathery skin where each scale was meticulously carved.
Above the statue hung a huge golden eagle, with its wings spread wide and its head turned to the right.Between the talons clutched a coat of arms with the sayingBhinneka Tunggal Ikaprinted on the banner.
“Unity in Diversity.”
The cool feminine voice startled her, and Marion swung around.A statuesque woman dressed in a bold, red dress stood behind her, poised like she was about to give a speech.Her black hair coiled on top of her head accentuated her graceful neck.
How the heck does this woman turn into a giant, ugly lizard?she thought.
“That’s what the motto means,” she explained, flicking a glance up at the statement piece.“It’s the national motto of Indonesia.”
“Oh,” Marion said.“It’s very, um, golden.”
The woman’s eyes narrowed.“I was told you wanted to talk to me.”
“Ms.Sinaga?”
Shiel gave a royal nod.
“Thank you for meeting with me.”
“Just get to the point of why you insisted on talking to me.”
Marion shifted feet, suddenly feeling threatened.She took a deep breath to help calm her nerves, reminding herself Shiel wouldn’t attack her with visiting people admiring the tropical rainforest in the middle of the building.
She placed her coffee cup on the floor in order to pull out Peter’s picture.“I’m searching for my friend.”
Shiel didn’t even flick a glance at it.“What does that have to do with me?”
“I learned he’s a personal acquaintance of yours.”
“Who told you that?”
Marion’s gaze flickered to the statue.“My own friend with ashiftingpersonality.”
If possible, Shiel’s eyes became even more frigid.“I’ve never met this Peter, and I have no idea who or where he might be.”
For a brief second—one of those blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moments—a spot on top of Shiel’s forehead shimmered and a third eye appeared.Almost immediately, it disappeared again.Marion frowned, not sure if she saw anything at all.
“If I were you, Peter’s friend,” Shiel glowered.“I would leave well enough alone and go back home to whatever hovel you crawled out from.”
“Wow,” Marion mouthed before she could curb her tongue.“I’ve never been threatened before with such a discriminatory sneer.I know you don’t know me, but I’m a pretty persistent person, and I’m just as tenacious as a pit bull.So, your cute little jab at me is as transparent as your third eye peeking out.I know what you are, and I know you have Peter.”
“Get.Out.”Shiel Sinaga took a step closer.Her voice pitched very low.“If you know what I am, then you know one bite from me can kill you.”
Yes, Marion had read Komodo dragons had a venom that prevented blood from clotting.Didn’t sound very pleasant.
Marion leaned down to grab her coffee cup to take a drink.“Have a nice day.”
Then she casually strolled away and left the building.
****
