Chapter 2: The Fatal Snag
Chapter 2: The Fatal Snag
Maya was trembling. At twenty years old, she was the youngest assistant ever hired by Blake Empire, a position coveted by thousands and survived by few. Her task was simple: escort the crown jewel of the evening’s showcase—a $68,000 custom gown woven from spun gold and scarlet silk—from the dressing room to the main stage.
Her hands, clad in white cotton gloves, shook as she navigated the labyrinthine corridors behind the ballroom. The music thumped against the walls, vibrating in her chest. As she stepped into the blinding light of the ballroom’s backstage holding area, her heel caught on a misplaced power cable.
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Time seemed to slow. Maya pitched forward. She managed to catch herself, avoiding a catastrophic fall, but the momentum jerked the gown. A sharp, sickening riiiip echoed through the immediate silence that had suddenly fallen over the backstage crew.
The hem of the scarlet gown had caught on the jagged edge of a metal lighting stand. A six-inch tear now marred the pristine silk, the spun gold thread unraveling like a bleeding artery. Maya gasped, the sound choking in her throat, as a shadow fell over her. Regina Blake had arrived.
