Page 27 of Tarnished Queen

When I stop in front of the center’s wooden double doors, a woman is sitting on the steps. It’s impossible to tell how old she is. She could be thirty or a hundred or anywhere in between. Her chapped lips crack and bleed as she smiles. It’s unsettling.

“If you’re here to find your woman, good fuckin’ luck,” she slurs.

“I’m looking for my… daughter,” I say carefully. It’s a better label than “the sister of the woman I impregnated and am now holding hostage.” More succinct, at least.

“Doesn’t matter,” she says. “Half the women in there are hiding from some man who looks just like you. Strong, violent, angry… They won’t let you through the front doors without calling the cops.”

“I’m not angry.” Not at Elise, anyway.

“No dicks allowed.” The woman cackles, her voice more cough than anything else. Then she snaps her attention to me, her eyebrow quirked up. “But I allow dicks. Plenty of them. All I need is a place to sleep tonight. Tempted?”

“Not even remotely.” I step around her and open the door.

“Wait!” she cries. “The center is full. I’m desperate.”

The woman looks pitiful. Near tears and reeking of filth. But I’m here for Elise and no one else.

“Try the next poor bastard who stumbles past.”

The door slams closed behind me. I’m in a dimly-lit entryway. The tile floor is cracked and scuffed, and an older woman behind a warping wooden desk looks up as I enter. Her eyes narrow immediately.

“Women and children only,” she barks.

“I’m not here to stay,” I snap back. “I’m looking for my daughter.”

The woman immediately starts shaking her head. “If your daughter is here, then she is safe for tonight. She’ll leave in the morning and you can attempt to find her then. But as a rule, we do not reveal the identity or location of anyone who comes to stay with us.”

“As a rule, I get whatever the fuck I want,” I growl. “Her name is Elise…”

All at once I realize I don’t know Elise’s last name. She and Belle have different fathers, so it may be Dowan, but it may not. It doesn’t matter anyway. The woman staring at me has zero interest in hearing anything I have to say unless it’s “goodbye.”

“Once she leaves in the morning, you can connect with her if that is something she is interested in.” The woman talks like she’s reading from a script. “We do not attempt reunification unless there is a police report filed. If you’ve filed a report, then the police can come and collect your daughter. We will not hand her over to you.”

There are glass doors behind the woman covered with foil and cardboard. Through some of the cracks, I can see a larger space beyond. Based on the rumble of chatter, there are a lot of people in there.

“Do not attempt to open the doors,” the woman warns, reading my thoughts. “We have a security guard just inside the doors who will do his job if necessary.”

I can feel my gun on my hip like a brand. My fingers itch to grab it.

But there are women and children beyond this door. People who, as the elegant woman on the steps made clear, are scared and running.

I’m still debating my next steps when the doors behind me slam open. I spin just as the woman from the steps drags herself inside. She bobs and sways with every step.

“For God’s sake,” the woman behind the desk groans. “There’s no space for you tonight, Camille. I already told you.”

“But this man is looking for his daughter!” Camille is shouting now. Her voice echoes off the ceiling. I can hear the voices on the other side of the glass quiet at the uproar. “He’s a good dad.”

The woman behind the desk looks exhausted beyond words. “Both of you have to leave or I’m calling the police.”

Suddenly, Camille rushes forward and flings the doors to the main room open. There are gasps and stifled screams.

A security guard steps in from the side and pushes Camille back. “You can’t be in here,” he bellows.

Camille starts screaming and fighting with him. I utilize the distraction to step into the doorway. The woman at the desk is yelling orders at me, but I’m not listening to her. I’m looking for one familiar face.

And I find it.

Elise is in the far corner of the room. She’s standing perfectly still, her wide eyes pinned on me. I half-expect her to roll over and play opossum.

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