Seraphina
"The investors were delighted with the success of the exhibition. And they were thinking of hosting a gala," Victoria said. "And since you planned everything last year, I was thinking of leaving you in charge of it this time."
"That sounds—"
"Fun?" Victoria supplied.
"Not sure that's the word I was looking for," I retorted. "I'm glad the exhibition on Saturday was a success, but planning a gala on such short notice is nearly impossible."
"You'll have to make it work," Victoria said.
"I've asked Val to take an account of what we have left in inventory so you can know where to begin."
My heart picked up pace at her words. The scale.
"Okay."
"I know this is a short notice, but I promise if you make this work, you'll be given a generous bonus," said Victoria. "The investors have decided to have all our inventory on display at the gala."
"But we don't have that much time to inspect the state and authenticity of every item."
Victoria went around her desk to the file cabinet. "You are free to hire as much help as you need to get it done faster," she said, handing me a list of people she had hired before.
"How long do we have exactly?"
"Till wednesday."
"That's just two days away!"
"I know."
Arguing with her wouldn't solve anything. She was just as helpless as I was. Maybe even more. "I do this, and I'm using all of my annual leave," I said. "And I want a paid vacation."
"You do this, and I'll personally, pay for a trip to wherever you wish to go," she smiled.
"Fine," I sighed. "Do you have a guest list in mind or, is it an open invitation?"
"Send the draft for the invitation to me, and I'll fill out the invite list before sending them off."
I nodded. "Well, I better get to it." I returned to my office, with lots of ideas in mind. While my system powered on, I made calls.
The line rang for a second before a voice came through. "Hello, you have reached Petal paradise. My name is Edward, how may I be of service?"
"Hi, it's Dr. Vance from the museum of obscure antiquities' and gallery. I want to make an order," I said. "It's urgent, large and I'm hoping you'll be able to have them delivered by Wednesday morning."
"That depends on how large this order is," Edward replied. I could hear the russel of pen and paper in the background as he prepared to take my order.
"I need about fifty white tulips, twenty blue, and about twenty lilies," I listed off.
A long exhale came from the phone before he replied. "That's a really large order."
"Can you deliver?"
"Can I check our inventory and get back to you on that?" he asked.
"Yes, that would be great," I replied. "You can get back to me on this line before the end of day."
"Alright. We'll be contacting you soon."
"I would appreciate that," I replied and hung up. Next on my list was drinks and complimentary gifts. I was making a list of what I needed when a knock on my door pulled my concentration.
"Come in," I called.
"Dr. Vance, we found an item that wasn't logged into the system," Logan said.
"What?"
"It looked like a scale of sorts. Val checked if it was logged since it was hidden behind some boxes."
"Oh, that was me. I forgot to log it in on Saturday after it was delivered," I said. My hands turned clammy from thinking of it and the vision it had showed me. It was a reminder to call Nick.
"Okay. I'll have Val log it in."
I nodded and he left. I placed orders for drinks and whatever else was needed to make the investors' vision come true. After three hours of back and forth, Petal paradise finally called back. I answered on the second ring.
"Dr. Vance."
"This is Edward from Petal paradise," he said.
"Hello, Edward. So what's the verdict? Will you be able to deliver?" I asked.
"Yes. There's only one slight issue. There's about forty-five white tulips, but we could make up for that by making the blue tulips to be twenty-five. If you're okay with that, we can proceed with it," he said.
"That's okay. As long as you can have it delivered by Wednesday morning, then it's no problem," I replied.
"Okay, we can have it delivered by ten on Wednesday morning."
"That would be wonderful, Edward," I said. "Have the payment sent to us via email. You can find my email on the museum's website."
"Okay. Do enjoy the rest of your day," he said. I said the same then hung up.
It was almost closing time, and right now, I needed a break and some answers. I scrolled down to Nick's name and dialed.
"Sarah."
"Nick. Do you have anything for me?"
"Not yet. I wasn't able to get anything off the paper. I doubt whoever sent you whatever it is they sent you wants you finding them," he warned. "So don't go poking the bear."
"Well, I can't just sit still. If someone's coming after me I need to know who it is so I can be better prepared. And you're the only one who can tell me who."
"I can ask around. If any new supernatural comes into the city, I'll let you know," Nick said.
"I'll wire your full payment right now, if you find out if anyone is coming into town," I said.
He sighed, and muttered words I didn't quite catch before he replied. "Give me a minute."
He hung up, and I packed up the rest of my things ready to call it a day. I'd only gotten to my car when he called back.
"Nick."
"I've asked around, and I heard some vampires are coming into town," he said. "I have some vampire friends that owe me some favors, so I asked around for a name."
"And?"
"Lestat Black. That's who's coming."