“You’re here!” Drew says, walking to meet me. He leans forward like he’s going to give me a hug, but decides against it and just clasps his hands behind his back. “What do you think?”
“It’s amazing.” There are people all over the two rooms I can see from here, sitting on couches and perching on the arms of the chairs. Like at the club, they are all different ages, but everyone has something about them that makes you look twice. Not to mention that they all look expensive. I scan their faces and wonder if any of them are the person the Sekhem are looking for. If maybe somewhere among these well-dressed people is the one who’s willing to risk it all for ultimate power. My heart sinks just a little as I realize there must be at least thirty people in these two rooms alone. Even if I was great at it, I’d never be able to read all of them in such a short time.
“Come look out the windows,” Drew says, interrupting my thoughts. “They’re the best thing about this apartment and the reason I bought it in the first place.”
I instinctively put my hand on the wall behind me, just to feel something solid. “Maybe later.”
Drew glances at the windows and then back at me. “Are you afraid of heights?”
I nod quickly. “A little.”
“Views are overrated anyway. When you’ve seen one group of buildings, you’ve seen them all. I know that what you’d really like to see are the fabulous appetizers made by my wonderful caterers.”
“More my speed, I think.” I glance back to the windows. “How high up are we?”
Drew smiles. “Sixty-fifth floor.”
I can tell my smile is all teeth and no feeling. “Great.”
“Is that for me?” Drew asks as we walk farther into the apartment.
“What?” I look down at my hand. I’ve forgotten all about the ivy, which now seems like the dumbest idea I’ve ever had. “Oh. I’d like to say no, but I can’t come up with any other reason I’d be carrying a plant around.” I hand it to him. “Happy housewarming.”
“It’s perfect.” Drew sets the little plant in the silver wrapping on a glass table, where it looks totally out of place. “The designer didn’t put nearly enough plants in here.” He beams at me. “I love it.”
“I’m glad.”
He leans over to a large round platter of appetizers. “Ooh, you have to try one of these.” Drew hands me a tiny triangle of bread with something on it. “Totally rare. You’ll love it.”
I take a bite and it tastes like the ocean threw up in my mouth. I quickly spit the leftovers into my napkin and look around for something to take the salty edge off.
Drew laughs at my reaction. “So much for my special Almas caviar. Do you need a drink?”
I nod quickly, hoping that I’m not going to be sick here in front of everyone, and almost as fast, there is a glass of white wine in my hand. I take a swig and it washes away some of the salty fish taste. “Sorry. I’ve never had caviar before.” I shudder a little at the memory.
“I’m guessing the raw oysters are probably not going to be your favorite either.” He looks around the coffee table. “Crab cakes?”
I nod and eat one quickly. “Now these are good.”
“Good. Take a couple and let’s go into the other room. I promise I’ll keep you away from the windows.”
I can feel Drew’s hand hovering over the small of my back as he leads me into the living room, but he doesn’t actually touch me. I’m a little annoyed that I even notice.
“So, we’ve been missing you lately,” a blond woman says to Drew, pulling him to the side. “You’ve been hiding yourself away.”
A guy standing with her nods in my direction. “And now I see why.” I can tell they’re both a little drunk already.
“I’ve been busy,” Drew says, smiling at me.
“Too busy for your oldest friends?” The woman pouts at him and then turns to me, waving her hand lazily. “Drew and I spent many years in Paris together.” She leans down and stage-whispers, “Not this time. A time before.” She leans back, tilting her head toward the ceiling. “Oh, the salons in the Saint-Germaindes-Prés. Late nights at Chez Ma Cousine. Paris in the twenties was really something to see. It would have been a shame to miss it.” She glances at me. “Or did you miss it?”
“I don’t know.” In the Clarissa lifetime I would have been in my forties in the nineteen twenties, so it’s possible I was there. “I don’t remember.”
The guy nudges me in a way I’ve come to find familiar with Iawi Ahket. “Ah, Shewi.” He leaves his hand on my arm a beat longer than necessary, I’m sure to try to find out if we’ve been connected before. I quickly try to block out the rest of the room and focus on him to see if there is something dark in his essence, but all I feel is a happiness that borders on giddy. Or that might just be the wine. “Such an interesting time,” he says, pulling his hand away from me, breaking our connection. “So much to discover.”
“It’s true,” I agree, giving him a smile. He has no idea I was reading him, and that makes me feel a little more confident.
Drew leads me farther into the living room, where several people pull him into a large group and he greets some new arrivals with hugs and cheek kisses. I look around but don’t feel comfortable just plopping down somewhere, so I hover on the edges. Someone laughs on the other side of the room and I see Giselle, perched on the corner of a low table, drink in hand, talking to an elegant African-American woman. She doesn’t look my way, but I can tell from her body language that she sees me. And that she wants me to see her.
Every few minutes there are more people coming off the elevator and into the room. There’s no way I’m going to be able to read each person individually, even if I had all night. I think back to the guy on the bridge that day, and how it seemed like there was a spotlight on him, separating him out from the hundreds of other people in the crowd that day. I wonder if I can do the same thing here. Janine says that empathy is just a higher form of intuition, and that if I allow my conscious mind to be free, my instincts will be my guide. Maybe I’ll be drawn to the people who need to be seen.
There’s a barking laugh to my right, and I turn back toward Drew. A couple of the people next to him are talking about a party that happened in France a few weeks ago, and I’m trying to listen in when my phone buzzes with a text. I reach into my pocket and pull it out.
You look beautiful. I’m so glad u came tonight.
I glance up, startled, and catch Drew’s eye from the middle of the group. He smiles and raises his eyebrows, and I can’t help but smile back. I quickly type a reply. Me too. Except for the fish eggs. Ick.
I watch him and grin when he twitches as the text comes through. He holds his phone up to the guy who’s talking. “You’re going to have to excuse me a second. I have to get this.”
“Thanks for the save,” he says, leading me away from the group. “Sit down with me over here?” he asks. The suede couch is big enough for ten people, and I instantly recognize Portia at one end of it, talking to a girl who looks like a Russian model, all skinny limbs and hard angles.
“Ah, Andrew!” An older woman wearing a lot of makeup pats the seat next to her. “Is this the young lady you were telling me about?” I can see Drew shaking his head just a tiny bit. I’m sure she sees him, but completely ignores the signal and grabs my hand, pulling me close to her. I feel that she’s Akhet, but I don’t sense any past connection between us or anything dark that would make me want to read her further. “So nice to meet you, dear. I’m Sonia.” As soon as she says her name, I recognize her throaty voice; she’s the actress who starred in all of those old movies that Dad loves to watch.