InuYasha Fan Fiction ❯ Purity 9: Subterfuge ❯ Girls' Day Out ( Chapter 189 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

Valerie sank back in the comfortable chair and took the mug of tea from the salesgirl—Carol, she'd said her name was—as she and Madison waited to see the first outfit that Kaci Lea had picked to try on.  "Thank you," she said with a smile.

"You're welcome . . . You know, we have some really pretty scarves that would go wonderfully with that sweater she picked out.  I'll go get a couple of them."

"Your sister's never been in a store like this before, has she?" Madison asked as Carol hurried away.

Valerie laughed.  "I don't think they have anything like this back home, no," she admitted.  She didn't add that, even if there were, there was no way that her family would have been able to afford to shop in one, anyway.  Madison wasn't a snob by any means, but, like Evan, she'd been raised in a fairly well-off household, so she wasn't entirely sure that Madison didn't realize that most people didn't shop this way.

Even still, it had taken some convincing—and a lot of Madison's intervention—to convince Kaci Lea to step out of her comfort zone and into the more expensive stores in the city.  No, it wasn't just that they were expensive, Valerie supposed.  Nothing like walking through the doors of one of these places to remind a girl, especially a young one like Kaci Lea, that she was sorely out of place, now was there?

But as uncomfortable as Kaci Lea was around Valerie, the same could not be said about Madison, and that was the main reason that Valerie had wanted to bring her along, anyway.  Madison had the very rare ability to put even the most uncomfortable person at ease, and maybe that was the real secret to the success of her chain of spas.

In any case, it was a good thing, as far as Valerie was concerned.  The slight tension that had punctuated the air over breakfast this morning had vanished about the moment that Madison had waltzed into the mansion.  Evan and Garret had left for the studio well before Kaci Lea had gotten out of bed, so when Valerie had arrived around eight, she'd fixed a light breakfast—fruit salad and English muffins with some fresh strawberry preserves.  Breakfast had been strained, and while Kaci Lea had answered everything Valerie had asked, she would have had to be stupid to have not noticed it.

Madison had taken her time, slowly circling Kaci Lea, examining her from every angle, and just when Kaci Lea had looked like she might run and hide in her room, she'd smiled.  "She is absolutely delicious, V!  Is this what you looked like when you were her age?"

"Uh, no," Valerie said, lifting a mug of fragrant coffee to her lips.  "Kaci Lea's a lot prettier than I ever was."

Kaci Lea pushed a couple grapes around her bowl with her fork before setting the utensil aside, her cheeks blossoming in embarrassed color.  "Mama says . . . says I look just like you," she muttered grudgingly.

"Either way," Madison went on.  Valerie wasn't sure if she sensed the reticence in Kaci Lea's tone or not, but Valerie figured that diverting the subject was just fine, too.  "So what do you think, sweetie.  Would you like to stop by my salon later and let me fix you up?"

Kaci Lea blinked in surprise.  "You have a salon?"

Valerie's smile widened as she leaned toward her sister.  "She owns Madison's Salon and Spas . . .  Have you heard of those?"

Kaci Lea turned her wide eyes on her sister.  "Really?  Those are like, famous, aren't they?"

Madison laughed.  "I don't know about 'famous', but our customers seem to be happy enough."

"So . . ." Madison said, drawing Valerie out of her reverie.  "You going to tell me why there seems to be so much tension between you two?"

Valerie let out a deep breath and slowly shook her head.  "We're just getting to know each other," she said evenly.

"Is that all there is?" Madison asked pointedly.

"It's a long story," Valerie said.  "It'll just take time; that's all."

Madison nodded, apparently content to let it go, or maybe she wasn't, but she was smart enough to know that Valerie really didn't want to go into detail in the middle of Chaubert, either.

"Oh, that looks fantastic!" Carol said as she hurried back over.  Valerie blinked and glanced up at her sister, who had just stepped through the doorway from the changing room.  The little denim skirt with a very classic pink cardigan over a simple white blouse really did look absolutely adorable on her, and the yarn of the cardigan was light enough to be worn comfortably in the summer.  The sleeves flared out almost like flower blossoms, and the overall effect was simple yet flirty in a very cute kind of way.

Kaci Lea looked rather reluctant but let the salesgirl grasp her by the shoulders to lead her over to the slight platform situated in front of four angled mirrors.  "What do you think of this scarf?" Carol asked, draping a gauzy white cloth with iridescent pearls strung through the frayed ends and held in place by a series of knots.  "It's optional, of course, but really, accessories can add so much to an outfit, don't you think?"

"Y-Yeah," Kaci Lea agreed, biting her lip as she pivoted this way and that to get a better view of the overall outfit.  "I . . . I like this one."

Valerie nodded as Kaci Lea's gaze met hers in the mirror.  She didn't respond, but she did seem to relax slightly when she caught Madison's nod, as well.

"Well, if you've decided on that one, then you should go try on another one," Valerie suggested.

A little uncertainly, Kaci Lea nodded, but she finally broke into a small smile—the first one that Valerie had seen on her face since her arrival last night—and Valerie figured that it was enough for her.


'When asked about how he's been holding up since the unexpected and tragic death of his long-time friend and backup band mate, Dieter Reichardt, Roka said, "Life's short.  There's nothing you can do about it.  Hell, I could drop dead tomorrow, and the world will still go on.  All anyone can do is to have faith that they've left behind something of value.  For Deet, it was his art, his kid, and as long as those things live on, I've got nothing to complain about . . ."'

Valerie paused, taking a moment to re-read the paragraph as a small smile tugged on the corners of her lips.  His earnestness in interviews was rare, and yet, she knew that those words were very true to his real thoughts on the matter.  It spoke volumes about him, didn't it?  Those things that she already knew; those things she loved about him . . .

'So what does this rockstar hope to leave behind as his legacy?  "When I die, I hope there are at least a dozen tell-alls about my sex-ploits," he goes on in his trademark tongue-in-cheek way.  "I hope that I'm remembered as being the one man who fucked 'em all!"'

Heaving a sigh, Valerie closed the magazine and leaned forward to drop it onto the coffee table.  Somehow, that just figured, didn't it?  Evan had an almost uncanny ability to say the sweetest things, ever, and then follow that up with the most outrageous, perverted things, too.

"Speak of the devil," she mumbled as her cell phone rang.  She could tell by the ringtone that it was Evan, and she sighed as she dug the device out of her purse and connected the call.  "Shouldn't you be busy, Roka?" she asked in lieu of a proper greeting.

His chuckle was warm, and even if it was through the phone, it was still enough to ripple up her spine in a very welcome sort of way.  "Yeah, but I was just thinking of you and figured I'd see if you ladies are having a good time?"

Valerie laughed, unable to help herself.  "Yes, we are," she allowed.  "We're at Maddy's salon right now.  I think they're giving Kaci Lea an Asian mud wrap right now."

"Ah, she's getting the works, is she?" he teased.  "Nice . . ."

"How's the recording session going?"

"Better than I expected," he replied, his voice muffled, likely by a coffee mug or something like that.  "I think they wanted to do one more run through with the guitar, but that shouldn't be too difficult.  He should be able to lay the tracks for the vocals tomorrow, and that's all she wrote."

"Wow, that's great," she intoned.  He'd mentioned before that he was a little afraid that Garret might not be able to lay both tracks in one weekend, but unless something catastrophic happened, it sounded like they were in pretty good shape.

It still amused her.  Garret had asked the rest of Philansoclantes—Tay and Frankie—to help out on rhythm guitar and drums respectively, but he was playing the guitar, and Evan, or should she say, Zel, was going to stand in on the bass and provide backing vocals.  Garret had said that he would rather that Evan played the guitar since he was afraid that he'd screw it up, but Evan told him that he'd be just fine.  Besides, they could do as many takes as they needed to, right?

"Since we're doing so well, time-wise, how 'bout you ladies swing by here, and we'll go grab some food and knock off early?" he suggested.  "All they brought in for lunch was half-cold fish and soggy fries . . . Can't say it was too appetizing."

"I think we can do that," Valerie allowed.  "Got anywhere in mind or are we just winging it?"

"Nah, we can go wherever the kids want," Evan said.  "So you buy anything for you?  Bras?  Panties?  Something nice and lacy?"

"You have a one-track mind, and no, we're shopping for Kaci Lea, remember?"

Evan heaved a melodramatic sigh.  "Yeah, but I was kind of hoping," he admitted.

"And even if I did, you wouldn't get to see those, anyway."

"That's what you think," he scoffed.

She laughed.  "Well, I was reading your interview with Big Bang magazine," she went on.

"Oh, yeah?  Is it a good one?"

She snorted indelicately.  "Depends upon your definition of 'good' . . . You're such a pervert."

"Well, yeah, but why this time?"

"Is that really what you want your legacy to be?  Girls?  Not music?"

His laughter was warm and welcoming.  "Do you think they wanted a serious answer like that, V?  Because I doubt they did."

Okay, so he probably had a point there.  Magazines, especially the genre-based ones like Big Bang, tended to enjoy the more outlandish answers that the stars that graced their pages could come up with.  Still, it pained her to admit that he might be right.  "You are such a dork."

His laughter didn't wane.  "So tell me, is my girl getting the full treatment from Maddy?"

"Yes, she is," Valerie replied.  "Don't worry.  I told Madison to bill you."

Evan chuckled.  "I'll bet you did.  Can't wait to see how she turns out."

"That makes two of us," Valerie admitted.

She heard a muffled voice in the background, and Evan sighed.  "They want to do a full run-through," he told her.  "I'll see you in a few?"

"Sure," she said.  "I think she's about ready to get her hair cut and styled, so it shouldn't be too much longer."

"Looking forward to it," he assured her.  "Bye, V."

"Bye."

Dropping the phone into her purse as the line went dead, Valerie smiled to herself.  Off to the left, one of the girls—Bana, she thought her name was—was leading Kaci Lea out of the back, all wrapped up in one of Madison's creamy yellow robes with 'Madison's' embroidered on the left breast and a fluffy turban of a towel in the same color wrapped around her head.  The robe that would barely brush Valerie's calves just below the knees fell all the way to Kaci Lea's slender ankles, and she rather resembled a little girl, all wrapped up in her mama's bathrobe.

She didn't even glance Valerie's way as she climbed into the stylist chair, while Bana stepped on the floor panel that activated the air lift.  Madison stepped out of the back hallway where she had been checking messages in her office.  She dismissed Bana with a smile and grasped Kaci Lea's chin as she leaned down to peer into the girl's face.  She said something that made Madison smile, and when she straightened up, she caught Valerie's eye and winked.

Valerie got to her feet and wandered over to them.  "Having fun, Kaci?" she asked, meeting her sister's gaze in the mirror.

Kaci Lea was positively glowing.  All of the earlier shyness had seemingly melted away, and she looked young and excited.  "The mud wrap was amazing," she admitted, her cheeks pinking slightly.

"I love those myself," Valerie stated.  Then she glanced at Madison.  "Evan called.  He wants us to head over to White Wave after we get done here.  He said he'd take us out to dinner."

Madison giggled.  "You sure that's a good idea?  I mean, he hasn't gotten the bill yet."

Kaci Lea's smile vanished, and she frowned at Valerie.  "I-I can pay for this, can't I?" she asked a little reluctantly.

Valerie laughed as Madison separated Kaci Lea's hair into sections for the cut.  She knew from experience that everything Kaci Lea had been treated to thus far would easily cost five thousand dollars or more.  "Given that you've gotten the full treatment?  I doubt you can, actually," she said.  "Don't worry.  He told you that you're his guest this weekend, right?  It's his treat."

"But—"

"No buts.  Besides, he has more money than God," Valerie added for good measure.  "He likes to do stuff like this, so don't worry about it, okay?"

She didn't look like she was entirely in agreement, but she must have realized that arguing over it wasn't going to work, either, because she said nothing more, gnawing on her bottom lip as Madison started cutting her hair.

"You're not cutting it too short, are you?" Valerie asked, unable to help herself.  She sounded a bit like a mother hen, she supposed, but she couldn't quite help herself, either.

"Nope.  I'm just going to trim it up and give it a little more volume . . . Her hair is so fine even though it's pretty thick that it will look much better this way."

"All right," Valerie said, satisfied that Madison wasn't going to suddenly go scissor-happy.  "You promised you'd remember that she's only fourteen, too," she reminded her.

Madison rolled her eyes but smiled.  "Don't worry . . . Kaci Lea is much too sweet for that, Valerie . . . Now go back over there and wait, will you?"

Valerie heaved a sigh but turned to walk away.

It was too easy, wasn't it?  Too easy to want to grow up too fast, and the last thing Valerie wanted for Kaci Lea was for her to make the same stupid mistakes that she'd made when she was her age.  But then, Kaci Lea seemed to have a more level head on her shoulders than Valerie had—or maybe it was just circumstance that had led Valerie to make the choices she'd made.  Right or wrong, by the time Valerie was Kaci Lea's age, she'd gone through so much more than her sister had, and maybe that was the big difference between them.

She just wanted to make sure that Kaci Lea never felt like Valerie had—alone and lonely and just wanting someone—anyone—to love her . . .


Evan frowned as he listened to the play-back.  It sounded good—damn good.  In fact, it sounded pretty much perfect . . .

"Garret, play through the opening riff again, will you?  Frankie, Tay, give it another listen.  You two are a little sluggish at the pause," Stan 'Thrash' Jenkins said through the mic.

Tugging off the headphones, Evan dropped them onto the sound board and shot a wolfish grin at the producer.  "You're busting their balls again?"

Thrash chuckled.  "Frankie's gotten fat 'n lazy," he replied without taking his eyes off the window.  "You pay him too damn much."

Evan laughed and shook his head.  "Why don't we call it a night after this take?" he suggested.

Thrash shrugged.  "You cutting out of here?  Go ahead.  I'll just get Tay and Frankie to do their parts one more time—see if they can finally get it right."

"Damn . . . remind me that I don't want you producing my next album," Evan muttered despite the grin still on his face.

"Yeah, like I wanna work with a damn poser like you," Thrash shot back with a good natured smile.

"Hey, rockstar," Madison quipped as she stepped into the room and strode over to kiss Evan on the cheek.

"Well, hey, hottie . . . Where are my other hotties?" he asked.

Madison giggled and jerked her head toward the doorway.  Evan glanced over just in time to see Valerie step into the room, and his grin widened.  He supposed that it shouldn't surprise him, just how gorgeous she was, just how much it struck him every single time he saw her, but it did . . . and he vaguely hoped that it would never stop surprising him, too.

"V!" he exclaimed, rising from his seat and grabbing her into a warm hug before she could object.  "Miss me, baby?" he teased as he planted an obnoxiously loud and sloppy kiss on her cheek.

"Ugh, you slobbered on me," she complained, digging into her purse for a tissue.  "You're so gross, Roka."

He laughed, but that amusement quickly died as Kaci Lea reluctantly slipped into the cubicle, too.  "Oh, damn," he breathed moments before he broke into a wide grin.  "Well, look at you!  Turn around for me, sweetheart," he said, spinning his finger, pointed at the ground.

Kaci Lea's cheeks pinked, but she smiled uncertainly and did as he asked.  "D-Do I look . . . okay?"

Chuckling at her breathless tone, Evan caught her hand and kissed the back of it.  "What, are you kidding, K?   You look fantastic!" he assured her.

"K?" she echoed, shaking her head slightly in confusion.

Evan's grin widened.  "Sure . . . I mean, if your sister's 'V', then you're definitely 'K'," he told her.  "You're just as hot as she is, too, for the record."

"Oh, uh . . . I-I-I don't know . . ." she muttered though the blush on her cheeks deepened.

"You absolutely are," he insisted.

And she was, not that he'd expect any less.  After all, Madison herself had been in charge of the makeover, right?  Her hair was only a few inches shorter, but the cut Madison had given her had added volume to it, and she'd cut wispy, fly-away bangs—not a heavy layer of them, and added to the chunky highlights she'd added around Kaci Lea's face, the overall effect was almost ethereal.  Even her makeup was understated, meant to enhance her looks.  Instead of the bolder colors that were so 'in style', Kaci Lea wore pale pinks, just a kiss of color, and to anyone else, it might even look like she wasn't wearing any makeup at first glance.

"Do another turn," Evan coaxed.

Kaci Lea blushed but slowly spun around again.  The almost gauzy skirt of the little sundress lifted with the motion but not nearly enough to be indecent.  In fact, as far as dresses were concerned, hers was a little longer than most girls tended to wear them, just barely brushing the tops of her knees in soft ripples of pale pink fabric, and the fawn suede booties—Evan figured that Madison had probably picked those out herself—matched the cropped short sleeved jacket perfectly.

It was also pretty obvious to Evan that the girl wasn't used to wearing such clothes, either, considering she kept pressing her hand against the top of the dress, as though she was afraid that it was going to slip too low.  All in all, Evan figured that she definitely was a girl who would've caught his attention very easily when he was in school . . .

"You look fantastic," he finally said, giving the pastel purple scarf around her neck a playful tug.

She smiled bashfully and ducked her chin.  "Thank you . . . and thanks for the makeover," she replied.

"Don't worry about it," he told her.  "I consider it to be money well spent.  Did you have fun on your shopping trip?"

She nodded and opened her mouth to say something.

The door between the sound booth and the recording room smashed open, smacking into the wall and bouncing back, only to be sent crashing open once more as Garret stomped in.  He stomped over to his sister, looking entirely unhappy about something.  Evan's grin widened since he had a good idea just what was bothering the boy.  "Wh-What the hell is that?" he demanded, waving a hand in Kaci Lea's general direction.

The girl blinked and shook her head.  "What?  My dress?"

Garret snorted.  "If that's what you wanna call it," he went on indignantly.

She stared at him for a moment then shrugged.  "What would you call it, then?"

Another snort.  "A nightgown," he shot back.

This time, she stared at him for precisely five seconds before she made a face and rolled her eyes.  "It's a dress," she repeated again, adding extra emphasis on the word 'dress' this time, "and you're being stupid."

"We'll see about that," he scoffed, yanking his cell phone out of his pocket and quickly dialing a number.  Evan crossed his arms over his chest, his smile still firmly in place as Garret tapped his foot on the floor impatiently.  If he were a betting man, he'd say that Garret was calling the only person on earth who might be able to make Kaci Lea change her clothes . . . "Hey, Dad?  You need to do something about your daughter.  She's completely out of control!"

'Yeah,' Evan thought, idly scratching his chin.  Out of the corner of his eyes, he caught the amusement on Valerie's face, though she, at least, was trying to hide it.  'That's pretty much what I figured.'  Still, Evan figured that he ought to do something, so he pulled out his phone and snapped a picture of Kaci Lea to send to Jack.

Garret clicked the phone to put his father on speaker.  "You should see this thing she calls a dress," he said, his voice raising with his agitation.

"Now, Garret, I'm sure . . . Hold on a second.  Zel sent me a picture . . ."

Garret uttered a terse 'hmph' and shot Kaci Lea a smug look.  She rolled her eyes in response.

"Oh, he sent me a picture of Kaci Lea . . . That is Kaci Lea, right?" Jack asked.

"Of course it's her!" Garret fumed.  "Who else would it be?  Anyway, never mind that!  You saw it, right?  She needs to go change, right now!"

"Well," Jack drawled, as though he were considering what he was about to say, "actually, I think she looks real nice . . . Hey, Ronnie!  C'mere and get a look at your daughter!"

"Wh . . .?  Are you crazy?" Garret blasted.  "Do you know what guys are going to think when they see her in that get-up?"

Jack chuckled.  "Hate to tell you, boy, but your baby sister ain't really a baby anymore.  Now give the phone to Kaci Lea, will you?"

Garret looked fit to be tied, but he handed the phone over, albeit with all the ill grace he could muster.

"H-Hello?" she said.

"Hey, little girl.  You look damn pretty," he assured her, "just like your mama."

She finally smiled.  "Thanks, Daddy . . . but Mama's prettier."

Jack grunted.  "I'll have you know that I have excellent taste when it comes to pretty ladies," he informed her.  "So if I tell you that you look just like her, then you do.  Don't let your brother bully you around.  It's a real nice dress; your mama thinks so, too."

"Okay.  I love you and Mama," she replied.

"You, too.  Now go have yourself some fun."

She laughed.  "See you in a couple days . . . bye."

"Bye," Jack replied.

"He's lost his mind," Garret muttered, snatching the phone out of Kaci Lea's hand.

"I think she looks great," Evan piped up.

"Absolutely," Thrash agreed.

Garret snorted again.  "Who the hell asked you?" he growled at the producer.

Thrash's grin widened.  "They think so, too," he added, flicking a finger at the window.

Garret's scowl darkened as he followed the direction of Thrash's gesture, only to find both Frankie and Tay standing there.  Both of them had their eyes on the girl in question, talking to each other.

"Hey!  You damn perverts!" Garret yelled as he stomped back through the doorway.  "She's too young for either of you, so don't even think about it or I swear to God, I'll flatten you!"

Kaci Lea heaved a sigh, shaking her head in disbelief.

"Something tells me that poor Garret just now realized that Kaci Lea's growing up," Madison commented, a smile toying with her features as she watched Garret advance on Tay in his best attempt to be menacing.

"Looks like it," Valerie mused, having much better luck at hiding her own amusement.  Too bad Evan could see the added brightness in her eyes.  When she glanced at him, Evan's grin widened, and Valerie had to quickly turn her head to keep from laughing outright.  "Let's hope he gets over it, or the next few years are going to kill him."

'Yeah,' Evan thought with a chuckle as he grabbed Kaci Lea's hand and pulled her over to the mixing board to show her the controls.  Yeah, he supposed that Valerie was right about that, too . . . But it might be kind of fun to watch . . .