Storm Chaser: Chapter 25

Chapter 25

Elena slipped her coat off as she walked the hushed hallway in the hotel. The thick carpeting, patterned with muted oversized flowers on a beige background, muffled her footsteps and she felt as though she were the only one in the building. The air vents were a steady white noise barely discernable over the sound of her own breath. She passed identical doors each with a brass oval inscribed with its number. As she walked the doors became further and further apart.

‘The rooms must be getting bigger,’ she thought. Finally she reached her destination. Room 28203. It wasn’t where either Peter or her grandfather were staying but a room rented out for the sole purpose of tonight’s celebratory gathering. Elena tugged her shirt straight and brushed absently and the wrinkles in her pants. She wondered if she should have taken the time to run home and change but dismissed the notion as soon as it formed. She had been working since first light. Changing would have lured her into a shower and a shower would have just made her want her pajamas not a new outfit for this event. Elena straightened her back and knocked lightly on the door. The door opened. The light tinkle of polite laughter and the murmur of small talk voices snuck into the hallway. Elena smiled as she was ushered in.

Alexandro walked over a smile on his face and a champagne glass in his hand. By the glass she knew he had taken a hand in the supplies for the celebration. He hated champagne flutes and always replaced them with the glasses of earlier design when possible. He handed her the glass and leaned over to kiss her cheek.

“I am so proud,” he whispered before pulling away. Her smile became genuine and she squeezed his hand in response. Alexandro straightened and nodded to Peter. Peter plucked two glasses off of a serving tray and walked over, passing one to Alexandro, who nodded his thanks.

“To a magnificent beginning,” Alexandro said. The crowd politely repeated the phrase and took their sips.

“And to Elena, without whom this would not be possible.” The crowd once again echoed and drank.

“I can’t claim full responsibility,” Elena said as people looked at her expectantly. “Any great venture requires a great team. Not only were Peter Baranov and Alexandro Calabrese great partners but they allowed me the space to secure the best for our team. I would like to thank Andre Baranov for his brilliant marketing and willingness to work.” She saluted Andre with her glass. He winked back at her and Peter lifted an eyebrow in question. “Nibbles also has a great manager in Roger DeAngelo, which allowed me to spend more time doing what could only be done by one of the guild.” There was polite laughter and Elena regretted that Roger was not here for her to salute. “And I would also like to thank Consuelo McCracken who provided the various edibles not only for Nibbles tonight but for the Wineshop around the corner, which allowed for greater exposure.” Consuelo laughed and Elena’s smile deepened as she lifted her glass in the woman’s direction. Other’s followed suit and drank. Elena turned to her grandfather. “I think that covers the necessary speech making for the evening.”

“I agree,” he said. He and Peter backed away, which seemed to be the signal for the rest of the crowd to press in. She found herself being congratulated and questioned alternately. Occasionally she caught glimpses of Mateo or Andre circling through the crowds. Andre seemed to be nearly as inundated with questions as she was.

“Remind me to thank you for not thanking me,” Mateo whispered in passing as he dropped off a fresh glass of champagne. He waggled his eyebrows, darted his eyes towards Andre and then shivered theatrically. Elena laughed as he melted back into the crowd. A few minutes later he saw him chatting with an attractive brunette.

“So is the Wineshop guild owned?” someone asked. Elena turned towards the speaker. She vaguely recalled seeing him both on the Docking Facility and in Nibbles earlier but couldn’t place his name.

“No,” she answered. “It is a locally owned shop not a guild held one.”

“Then isn’t it risky to work with him?” Elena had to swallow a laugh.

“No,” she said. “He does not know we sell off world goods. He knows that we sell high end food, which pairs well with wine. His customer base and mine are similar so we can work with each other easily. In addition partnering with other shops in the area makes sense not only financially but as a stronger cover.”

“How?” the man demanded.

“By working with him, I am just one of the local businesses and one that doesn’t mind working with the others. I don’t stand alone, I stand as one of the group.” Elena had thought that piece of logic would have been obvious.

“Huh,” he said. “Clever that.” Apparently her logic was not that obvious.

“Elena,” Consuelo said walking over to her. The crowd parted before her and the questioning man stepped aside. Elena smiled. For the event Consuelo had donned a fuchsia caftan with blue and gold spirals. She still wore black chef’s pants and combat boots. In her ears hung huge spiral earrings, one blue and one gold. In a sea of black and grey dress suits she stood out like a daisy growing out of cracked asphalt.

“I stopped by to see Doug before coming out. I believe he described your food as Heaven,” Elena sighed the word dramatically as Doug had earlier and Consuelo laughed.

“Then it shows he has good taste.”

“I think he’ll also be after you for catering services shortly.” Elena replied taking a sip of champagne.

“Really,” Consuelo looked thoughtful. “It is something to ponder.” Consuelo looked at someone behind Elena and smiled. “Ah, a more delightful topic than business. Elena I believe you have met my good friend Benni…I mean Benjamin Valentine?” Consuelo chuckled to herself as Elena turned.

“Nice to see you again,” Elena said. “I would have thought you would have headed back by now.”

“I have been back,” Benjamin said with a grin. “I returned yesterday morning and will be heading back as soon as can be arranged. Will you be heading out soon?”

“Possibly next week,” Elena said.

“Then perhaps later we can discuss possible arrangements.”

“Possibly,” Elena said. She and Mateo were planning on testing the potential new channel on the way out. Having an extra person on board could be useful or a detriment depending. She would have to find out more about Benjamin Valentine, or rather Bennie V. to determine which he would be. Standing between Consuelo and Benjamin made Elena feel like she was standing in a hole. While she enjoyed their company more than most in the room, it was still a less than comfortable position. The feeling altered when Riko walked over. The two slipped away as the small councilmember approached. Elena changed from being short to being tall in one smooth curve.

“Now I see why you have been so occupied,” Riko told her. “A very successful enterprise that many will mimic. Congratulations.”

“Thank you,” Elena responded politely.

“You and your cousin will be shifting your attentions soon?”

“Somewhat,” Elena said.

“That is good to hear,” Riko commented with a smile. Her smile became fixed and she shifted her gaze.

“Well Peter you seem to have a success on your hands,” Riko told Peter as he walked up to them.

“So it would seem,” he responded. Elena fought off the urge to step back. They both had sharp predatory looks that made Elena feel as though she were standing too close to a shark tank when chum had just been thrown in the water. She gritted her teeth and hoped she wasn’t about to become a meat flavored chew toy.

“I must complement you on your choice of partnerships,” Riko said.

“Yes, with luck there will be many more to come,” he answered.

“Perhaps,” Riko said. Her attention swiveled to Elena.

“And I must complement you on your skill at bringing in Andre, Elena. There are many who would have sworn it couldn’t be done.”

“Andre is a brilliant designer and we are very fortunate that he agreed to work with us on this project.” Elena realized there was a subtext she was probably missing and decided to ask Andre about his guild history at some point so she didn’t accidentally get him into trouble.

“Indeed,” Riko said. “And I am sure there will be many more partnerships.” She smiled coldly at Elena, the smile edging towards smug when she turned slightly towards Peter.

“Again,” she said beginning to turn away. “Enjoy your victories.” She walked away. Elena glanced at Peter. His eyes were still on Riko’s back. He blinked hard and then turned towards Elena.

“I presume that conversation was more for you than me?” She asked. His smile thawed a bit.

“We have a history,” he told her. Further conversation was interrupted by another less conversationally barbed well wished and Peter left her. As she once again answered a bombardment of questions Elena felt the tiredness seep into her body. There was no clock in the room but Elena knew she had pushed her body to the fullest extent it was willing to give her. There were reasons that people who rose before dawn did not attend late night gatherings. After a round of goodnights Elena was finally able to extricate her self and slip back into the hallway with her coat clutched in her hand.

“I never realized how long good bye took.” She muttered to herself as she put her coat on. After the warm press of the room the hallway seemed chilly.

“That more or less depends on how good the goodbye is,” Consuelo said. She and Benjamin had apparently had enough of the party as well.

“This wasn’t that great,” Elena said. She realized that Consuelo had probably risen before her in order to get the food ready. “You must be exhausted,” she said.

“I am accustomed to long days,” Consuelo said. She seemed pleased that Elena would have thought of it. “But extending them with this crowd is not high on my list.” The trio walked down the hallway and got into the elevator. Downstairs Elena found herself sharing a cab with them as they seemed to be heading in the direction of Elena’s apartment. To her surprise, Consuelo had the cab drop her off not too far from the hotel while Benjamin continued to ride.

“You didn’t come together?” Elena asked as they continued their trip.

“Yes,” he answered. “We came together but are not ending up at the same place.”

“Okay,” Elena said unsure how to respond. Benjamin laughed but did not explain further.

“When will you know your travel plans?” he asked. His eyes sparkled with humor.

“You really like leaving people wondering,” she said with a laugh.

“It is a hobby of mine.”

“I suppose there are odder ones.” She looked over at him. “Travel plans will depend on a few more details.”

“About me?” he asked. He didn’t really sound surprised.

“About you,” she confirmed. He nodded.

“I thought it might be something like that.”

“Oh?”

“Mateo is well known. I took a guess.”

“Ah,” Elena replied. Apparently everyone knew she was up to something. “Fame does have its drawbacks.” The cab pulled up in front of Elena’s building.

“I would be happy to answer your questions,” Benjamin said holding out a card. Elena took it.

“Really?”

“Yes,” he said as if vaguely surprised by his own answer. “I think so.” Elena left the cab and went inside. She tiredly made her way up the stairs. She was sure Benjamin trusting her had some import but was too tired to dwell on it. She braced as she reached her floor but the hallway was empty. She sighed with relief and unlocked her apartment door. There was no way she would be able to deal with either Smith or Jonathan tonight. The apartment door swung open and Elena was startled to find a wooden box with a note taped to it placed in the center of her living room floor. Elena shut her door and listened quietly for a moment. The apartment felt empty. Spin walked around the corner and mewled.

“Well mostly empty,” Elena amended. She still checked each room before returning to the package. Spin looked at her like she was crazy.

“This from the cat who followed Benjamin around for two days?” She told the cat. Spin merely propped her leg up and began to wash herself. Elena bent down and pulled up the note.

“In celebration of a successful venture, Peter.” Elena flipped the lid of the box open. Inside was a small metal wand like thing. A piece of paper was taped to the inside of the box lid. Elena removed it. She smiled as she read. Apparently she would not have to wait for a deal with Smith. She would be able to detect the electronic bugs on her own. She had no doubt that anything Peter gave he would work efficiently and effectively.
“Of course other people would just send champagne.”