Page 98 of Us Deadly Few
Spade insisted Khalani needed to look her best at the casino, and in Hermes, that meant showing off as much skin as possible without actually being naked.
The red dress had a plunging V-neck, hugged her waist into impossible proportions, accentuated her hips, and ended mid-thigh—no matter how hard she tried to tug it down.
Khalani rubbed her hands down her legs, more comfortable in her old, abysmal prison uniform.
A light knock sounded at the door.
“Come in.” Khalani swallowed, combating the urge to rip the dress off.
Serene popped her head in, eyes widening when she got her first look at Khalani. “Wow. I don’t even have words.”
“That bad, huh?” Khalani subconsciously rubbed her palms down the thin material that barely covered her nipples.
“No.” Serene walked in, still staring at her. “You look incredible. Might actually give the Captain a heart attack.”
“I doubt he’ll be impressed.”
Very little caught Takeshi’s attention unless its primary use was for murder.
She still didn’t understand why he volunteered for the job.
Perhaps he sensed Khalani’s mental instability and didn’t trust her to break out of the prison camp alone.
“Spade gave you makeup too?” Serene asked, cutting through her spiraling thoughts, sifting through the other items on the nightstand—a hairbrush and a thin iron tool.
“Yeah. But I’ve never worn any. Don’t really know how to use it,” she admitted, her cheeks flushing.
“I’ll help you.” Serene grabbed the beauty products and gestured for Khalani to sit on the bed.
“No, it’s okay. I don’t need it.”
“You’re right, you don’t need it.” Serene seized her shoulders and forced her to sit. “But when everything’s falling apart around you, you can at least control what you look like when it happens.”
Her knee bobbed up and down as Serene brushed powder over her cheeks and eyes, curling her long brown hair with the strange gold tool. Finally, Serene stepped back, a slow smile spreading across her face.
“Well?” Khalani asked, picking at her nails.
“Come see for yourself.” Serene took her hand and led her to the tiny bathroom, where an oval mirror hung above the sink.
When she was abruptly placed in front of it, Khalani’s mouth parted.
Her wide green eyes were enhanced by smoky eyeshadow and extra-long lashes. Her cheeks were dusted with a rosy tint, and her lips were a deep red, glossy color. Brown hair cascaded in curls just past her breasts, the frizz and tangles smoothed away.
Khalani barely recognized the woman in the mirror, as if she’d borrowed someone else’s skin.
And the longer she stared at herself, the faster her pulse raced.
Stepping into the casino, everyone would surely recognize her as an imposter.
She was the wrong person for this.
She was going to get them all killed.
Serene gripped her hand. “Whatever you’re thinking, stop. You look incredible.”
“I don’t know if I can do this.”
“Listen to me. If it weren’t for you, I would’ve still been stuck in prison. There is no one stronger or defiantly beautiful.Thatis who I see. And it’s about time you started seeing it too.” Serene’s heartfelt words were laced with pure conviction, as if she were testifying to the world.