Cosmic Cabaret

by SFR Shooting Stars

  About half way through her shift, Vordol and Ruby came into the dining room for brunch. Ruby looked fabulous, as always, despite her brutally busy schedule. And, of course, Vordol radiated sexiness.

  The area Pitannah had been assigned to cover that day was on the other side of the room, well away from Ruby’s table. With so many guests on hand, she had no chance to stop by Ruby’s table to even greet them.

  Not that she was in a big hurry to come face-to-face with Vordol so soon. Part of her wanted to hear what he thought of the contest entrants, but another part was terrified. So, keeping busy seemed the best option for now.

  As soon as her shift was over she grabbed a sandwich and trudged back to her room. As she gathered the things she needed for her routine, she kept being drawn to her cot. Perhaps a little nap would be good. After all, she’d been on her feet all morning and she needed to be fresh for the stage later.

  She set her alarm and lay down for a short nap.

  Her brain was still foggy with sleep when her communicator buzzed. She blindly activated the speaker to answer.

  “Where the hell are you?” Trenna all but yelled. “We’ve been looking for you all over down here. They won’t let us backstage without you.”

  “What?” Pitannah sat up and looked at the time. “Oh, my God. I must have slept through my alarm.” Her heart pounded in her chest. “I’ll be right there. I just need to grab my stuff.”

  “You’re not even here yet?”

  “No. I’m in my cabin.”

  “Good thing we called then. We’ll wait for you by check in.”

  “Okay.” Pitannah cut off the comm and grabbed her things. No time to change out of her uniform. She’d ask the girls to bring her different clothes later.

  With one last check of her bags she dashed out of her cabin. She said a prayer of thanks for the employee passageways as she hurried to the main stage. She was breathing heavy when she arrived at the check in desk. Like the previous night, she turned in the music she would use and listened to the contestant instructions. By the time the coordinator finished, Daloya and Trenna had joined her.

  “Are you all right?” Daloya asked.

  “Yeah. I just laid down to rest after my shift.” She handed a couple of her bags to Daloya. “I set my alarm but either I slept through it or didn’t set it correctly.” She grimaced. “I guess I was more tired than I thought.”

  “I guess so.”

  “Let’s find you a dressing room. Shouldn’t be as crowded tonight.”

  Trenna knocked on one of the doors and then opened it so she could peek inside. “Is this one full?”

  A woman wearing far too much perfume stopped them before they even made it half way inside. “You’re not allowed back here. Only contestants.” The woman called out, “Security!”

  “It’s okay,” Pitannah told her. “I am a contestant.” She gestured to Daloya and Trenna. “These are friends of mine. They’re here to help with my makeup and hair.”

  “You’re not going for a serving girl routine, are you?” Somehow the woman’s nose rose even higher into the air. “It’s not a sexy look.”

  “No, probably not,” Pitannah mumbled.

  “Perhaps we could find another dressing room,” Daloya suggested.

  “This one is over full with someone’s attitude.” Trenna cast a hateful look at the woman.

  “Yes. I think that would be best,” Pitannah agreed.

  “Mother? Who are these people?” a tall thin young female asked when she stepped from behind the dressing screen.

  “No one important Candi, dear. Just finish putting on your costume.”

  “You said I wouldn’t have to share a dressing room with anyone,” the girl whined.

  “And you won’t. I will take care of it,” Candi’s mother snapped.

  “You know how much it throws off my rhythm when I have to share.”

  Trenna snorted then muttered, “Yeah, we can tell sharing isn’t your strong suit, honey.”

  “Employees are not allowed to enter the contest, you know,” the woman declared in a haughty manner. “I should have you turned in.”

  “Actually, the rules state that Quantum main stage dancers are not allowed to compete. I verified that before entering.” Pitannah smiled her best you’re-an-asshole-but-I-have-to-pretend-to-get-along-with-the-customer smile. “So, you see, I’m not breaking any rules.” She tugged Trenna by the elbow into the hallway and went to look for a more hospitable dressing room.

  “What a rude woman,” Daloya exclaimed.

  “Some stage mothers are starlet wannabees who couldn’t cut it, so, now they’re forcing their offspring to fill the gap in their life,” Trenna explained. “They’re usually bossy and bitchy because they’re bitter about their own failures.”

  “What a horrible way to raise your children,” Daloya said.

  “I don’t know why the kids put up with it.” Trenna shrugged. “But I guess if that’s the only life you’ve known, you don’t know any better.”

  They spotted a contestant exiting one of the other rooms. They looked as if they were finished dressing. The girls scrambled into the room.

  Pitannah hung her costume on the dressing screen and dropped her makeup bag on the counter where Daloya had made room.

  “I preheated the hair sticks so it shouldn’t take long to heat again,” Daloya said. “I’ll start rolling while you get dressed.”

  “Thank you.” Pitannah smiled gratefully. “I don’t know what I’d do without you guys.”

  Trenna waved her comment away. “Yeah, we know. Go put your fancy underwear on then get your ass over here.”

  Between the three of them, they made quick work of her costume, hair, and makeup.

  She hugged each of the girls then headed for the area near the stage reserved for contestants. As she waited to be called, she noticed a man exiting one of the dressing rooms. Something about his behavior seemed off. It was as if he deliberately tried to look casual, but it seemed forced.

  For a minute she regretted her decision to leave her things in the dressing room. It was a risk that something might be stolen, but in reality, she had nothing of value to anyone other than herself or the girls. She wore the only jewelry she had and Daloya had taken her communicator with her. Makeup and clothing could be found all over the backstage area so it should be relatively safe.

  “Ginni Fizz. Stage left.”

  Pitannah shook off all thoughts of the man and took her place near the stairs. Shouts from somewhere deeper backstage drew everyone’s attention. Several members of security ran toward the commotion. One of the contestants came forward demanding to speak to the stage manager. Her voice carried just enough that Pitannah could tell something had been stolen from the contestant’s dressing room.

  “That’s what I was afraid of,” Pitannah mumbled to herself.

  The contest assistant motioned her forward giving her little time to contemplate the incident further. As soon as the workers on the other side gave them a thumbs up signal, she climbed the stairs to the stage. Now her only thoughts would be on her routine and wowing the audience.

  She took a cleansing breath and waited for the music and lights to cue her. The piece she had chosen for this round was similar in style to her previous one but with a much slower rhythm. Some dancers leaned toward in-your-face bawdiness but she preferred to tease and seduce her viewers. She kept all of her movements slow and deliberate with just a hint of sex.

  Her gown hugged every curve of her body down to her knees. There it flared out into layer upon layer of satin and glitter, which rippled with each step she took. The shimmery blue-green fabric reflected the light and leant to the illusion that she was wading through water. In her mind’s eye, she was a creature of the sea. She danced to encourage her imaginary mate to frolic in the waves with her.

  Using one of her gloves as the first lure, she tossed it into the audience. When she glanced into the crowd to see where it had landed, she spotted the same man she
had seen sneaking about backstage. He had taken a seat behind one of the jewel-laden VIPs near the stage. Instead of watching the show, the man seemed more interested in inspecting a woman’s necklace.

  She needed to warn security about the man. But how? She couldn’t stop her routine and shout at him. Especially when she didn’t know for certain he was the thief. If he was, she didn’t want him to get away with stealing anything else.

  The only thing she could do in the middle of her routine would be to draw attention to the man. She eased her way to that part of the stage. Once there, she waved him closer. He resisted at first but the man sitting behind him prodded him forward. With a sexy pout she encouraged him to help take off her other glove. Instead of basking in her attention as many male patrons would have, his eyes widened in panic and he kept glancing toward the exit. Reluctantly, he held onto her glove as she’d asked. Slowly, she backed away until she was free of the garment.

  That small effort should have gained the attention of most people in the room. He would be identifiable after that. Satisfied she had done what she could, she returned to her routine. From the corner of her eye, she saw the man slink out the door. She wasn’t able to tease the closure of her dress down as long as she would have liked, but it had been worth it.

  He might have gotten away with stealing from a contestant, but hopefully he hadn’t gotten anything else. As the lights drifted away to close out her routine she noticed security dashing out the same door the man had used. Perhaps he would be caught after all.

  As before, she waited below stage for her things then circled around the back to the dressing room area. She prayed the detour in her act wouldn’t cost her many points.

  Ten

  Vordol exited the cabaret so he could take Rege’s comm. It was still early in the program but didn’t want to miss Ginni Fizz’s act. Anticipation thrummed through him.

  “Hey, Rege. What’s up?”

  “Have a favor to ask.” Rege said. “Amethe has been begging me for to take her to the burlesque competition. She heard you were there and wants to know if you can get us tickets. Apparently she’s tried to get in for a couple of years and hasn’t been able.”

  “Yeah, I can get you in. Ruby has a couple extra tickets. Your bigger problem will be whether or not you can get a room booked.”

  “Not a problem. A friend of Amethe’s works in reservations. She said rooms always free up after the first round.”

  “You know it’s the second night of competition already, right?” Vordol told him. “There’s only one more round before they pick the winner.”

  “That’s fine. Not sure I would have had the patience to sit through the first round anyway. The job I’ve been on finished early, and she really wants to go.”

  “Can you get here in time?”

  “Yes. We’re in Omia Prime now so it will only take a few galactic hours to arrive at Quantum.”

  “Well, come on then. I can either meet up with you when you get in or leave the tickets at the window for you to pick up.”

  “I’ll comm you our arrival time as soon as I confirm it.”

  “Sounds good.”

  “Thanks, man. I owe you one.”

  Vordol chuckled. “No problem.”

  “Oh, and Solir said he had the info you wanted. He’ll send it to you shortly but he wanted to know if this was just a test.”

  “A test? What the hell is he talking about?”

  “He said you’d asked him for information on two different people but come to find out they’re one and the same.”

  “He said what?”

  “Solir said the picture of your mystery woman is the same girl you’d asked about earlier. Pitannah Lorento.”

  Vordol wiped a hand across his face and mumbled, “Son of a bitch.”

  “Not what you wanted to hear?” Rege asked.

  “Not what I expected, for sure. Tell him to send what he’s got.”

  “Will do. I’ll check in with you later.”

  “Okay.”

  “Watch your back,” Rege reminded him.

  “You too.” Vordol disconnected the transmission.

  Pitannah was Ginni Fizz? How was that even possible? Her dad talked about paying a lot of credits for her dance lessons years ago. But that had been some kind of fancy old-fashioned dance. He would have never allowed her to take burlesque lessons! How would she even know how to do it?

  He opened the door to the cabaret with a little more force than needed and startled the guests sitting nearby. The next contestant was just about to take the stage. He stood next the wall of doors and took a moment to puzzle through the information he had.

  When the music began Ginni—no, Pitannah—stepped into the spotlight one body part at a time. Her slow, graceful movements captivated him immediately. He forgot about Ruby. He forgot about Rege. He forgot about everything except the woman on stage.

  When she tossed her glove into the audience he stifled the impulse to rush up and grab it. Then, her attention seemed to be drawn to man sitting close to the stage. Jealously burned in his gut when she motioned the man forward. He wanted her to focus on him. To tease and entice him. Not some stranger.

  At least he hoped the man was a stranger.

  Oddly, when she turned away from the man and returned to the center of the stage, the man bolted out a side door. Soon after, security followed the man out the door. Vordol frowned then altered the frequency of his earpiece so he could listen to Quantum Security’s broadcast.

  He picked up enough information that he could tell there had been a robbery backstage and they were in pursuit now.

  Had Pitannah known the man was a thief?

  He shook his head. It wouldn’t surprise him. That was just the kind of foolhardy thing she would do. When she exited the stage, Vordol made his way back to Ruby’s table.

  “Another excellent performance,” Ruby declared. She looked at the other judges. “We do have a talented group this year, don’t we?”

  The others murmured their agreement.

  Vordol motioned Zak forward from his position near one of the columns. “Take my seat with Ruby. I need to take care of something.”

  “Got it.”

  On his way to the venue exit, Vordol changed the frequency of his ear piece back to his team’s channel. “Yranac, I’m stepping out for a minute. Zak has Ruby. Move in until I get back.”

  “Will do,” Yranac responded.

  Vordol headed to the entrance designated for contestants and stage hands only. He doubted Pitannah had been able to leave yet and he had things to say to her. Because of his association with Ruby, his access card granted him entrance to all areas involved in the contest, including backstage.

  He knew where the dressing rooms were located, but with the amount of people buzzing about, it seemed an impossible task of finding one person. He flagged a stagehand and asked where he could find Ginni Fizz. Three people and two propositions later, he found someone who had seen her returning from the stage and pointed him toward one of the far dressing rooms.

  He knocked on the door.

  “One minute,” Pitannah shouted from the other side. Finally she opened the door. “Vordol.” The breathless way she said his name sent blood rushing straight to his groin.

  She checked the passageway behind him. “What are you doing here?”

  He pushed her back into the room and closed the door behind them “I would ask you the same thing.”

  She backed up, putting space between them. “Wha— What do you mean?”

  “Ginni Fizz?”

  She bit her lip.

  “Is that name familiar to you?” He closed some of the distance between them.

  “Yes.” She moved to the side. “Why?”

  The front of her robe slipped, making the V dip even lower. His eyes were automatically drawn to the creamy flesh of her chest. The light dusting of sparkle drew even more of his attention. “I don’t even know where to start.”

  She straightened her
spine and lifted her chin. “How about with why you have a problem with it?”

  “I don’t care about you competing. What I do have a problem with is you deliberately putting yourself in harm’s way by engaging a possible criminal.”

  She cringed. “You noticed?” She faced the dressing table and began taking tiny fasteners out of her hair.

  “Not right away, but when Security chased after the man I tuned in to their frequency to see what was happening.”

  She caught his gaze in the mirror. “Was he the thief?”

  “They seem to think so. What I want to know is how you knew.” Unable to not touch her any longer, he pushed her hands away and took the remaining clips and pins from her curls himself.

  If she was surprised by his actions, she hid it well. “I saw him leaving one of the dressing rooms.”

  He handed her the things he’d taken out of her hair then took the brush from her.

  “I thought he looked suspicious. He tried too hard to blend in backstage.” Her eyes closed and she swayed as he brushed her long tresses.

  He didn’t really understand his compulsion to tend to her but he needed to touch her. “You didn’t confront him backstage, did you?”

  “No, I was queued next to the stage entrance by then. I heard one of the contestants yelling about something being stolen from her dressing room. I know it was an assumption on my part that he was a thief but when I saw him down front I couldn’t stand the thought that he might get away with stealing again.”

  She turned and looked up at him. “He was more interested in some woman’s necklace than he was in the show.” She held her hand up. “I’m not saying that I’m the sexiest thing around but men are men and most men would rather see skin than jewelry.”

  He started to correct her opinion that she wasn’t the sexiest thing around but instead he said, “Most men wouldn’t notice the crown jewels if there was a beautiful woman taking off her clothes in the same room.” He handed her brush back to her. “No matter. It was damn foolish to engage him.” He pointed at her. “Just like attacking that Terridine in the dining room yesterday.”