Sonya didn’t know what to make of the situation. Was she not doing well as a hostess and Halim was just dumping her into another job, but being nice about it?
Maybe she’d end up with a low-paying secretarial position for one of his other businesses? She’d never be able to pay tuition with that.
But who invites someone to a swanky steakhouse to fire them? she thought.
So maybe he’s just putting the moves on me, after all, like every other creep.
He’ll wine me, dine me and 69 me, just like Dmitri. Those two assholes are probably trading notes on me and passing me around.
Yet Halim doesn’t seem to be banging any of the other girls at work, so perhaps he’s a decent guy.
Sonya tried not to think about it much until she found out more. At least she had a reason to get out of the house on her day off.
She took a shower and put on her red dress before leaving. The trip was slow. Traffic was jammed because of an accident, and her anxiety was building fast.
Sonya got to the restaurant ten minutes late, and Halim was already seated. He had an open bottle of wine on the table. He looked irritated, continually checking his watch as she walked toward him.
When he saw her, he smiled and thanked her for coming.
“Sonya, you’re doing a fine job as a hostess at my club. But I have another opportunity for you. You’ll make more money, meet important people, and you’ll get to travel.”
“That sounds awesome. But what would I be doing?”
“That’s what I’m going to explain,” he said with a condescending smile.
“If there’s a lot of travel, will I still have a chance to go back to school?”
“You’ll be able to continue your education, don’t worry about that. The position is similar to what you’re doing now. Well, as an analogy it’s similar.”
“An analogy?”
“Yes. Instead of greeting guests into that dirty little club, you’ll be greeting clients into one of my larger businesses.”
“What kind of business? And how would I greet them?”
“The business is importing and exporting, as well as security. The way you will greet these wealthy gentlemen is with your charm. You see, even at the highest levels of power, the innocence and beauty of a young lady such as yourself have an incredible effect.”
Importing and exporting, eh. Hmmm, where have I heard that before? Sounds shady. Well, at least this guy is offering a job and not looking for a blowjob, Sonya thought as she listened to Halim.
He paused for a moment and looked Sonya up and down in a manner he’d never done before.
She felt something was wrong with the way he eyed her, yet she liked it. It soothed her a little to know that other successful men besides Dmitri were attracted to her, even legitimate businessmen and not low-life mobsters.
Halim continued:
“Doing business with presentations and financial statements is all well and good, but to close a big deal, there’s nothing like the feminine allure.”
“Okay, but you don’t mean I would have to… do things… with these men?”
“No, of course not. Just like I didn’t ask you to dance at Sultan’s, I wouldn’t ask you to - I wouldn’t let you - agree to do anything vulgar in my other businesses. Anyone can hire an escort to soften up a prospective client. What I do is much more sophisticated.”
As he talked, he kept refilling Sonya’s wine glass.
She had a tightness deep in her stomach, almost a nauseous feeling. It was similar to what she’d been feeling lately, but not quite the same.
She didn’t know if the wine was making her feel better or worse. It seemed like Halim hadn’t drunk a drop of it himself.
When the waiter came by, Sonya declined to order anything. She’d lost her appetite, and didn’t want expensive food to go to waste, even if it was on the boss’s tab.
Sonya wondered if she’d lose her hostess job if she declined this new one. She didn’t want to ask for her old waitress job back. She’d get the worst shifts at the diner, if she could even get hired again, and make less than before.
This whole thing doesn’t seem right. But maybe I’m being too suspicious because I’m upset about Dmitri. I shouldn’t blame all men for his cruelty.
Sonya just wanted to relax, to not worry, to not be afraid. Not every girl gets a chance for adventure.
“I’ll think about it, Halim. When would you want me to start?”
“Tonight. There’s no time to think about it. You can’t go back to the club, because I don’t want the other girls to find out you got this promotion despite being my newest employee. They’ll all bitch at me. But the truth is, I don’t think any of them are intelligent enough to handle this career. Also, I have an important client I want you to meet this weekend.”
“Tonight? But I…”
“If you’re not sure about this, then you should say no. I only work with motivated, ambitious people who can make quick decisions.”
“But we’re going somewhere tonight? For how long? What about my apartment? I would need to pack a bag, at least.”
“Yes, I said we leave tonight. You will need to call the apartment manager and inform him you will be out of town for a while. Your rent and bills will be taken care of. You don’t need to bring clothes or personal items. You will have all new things soon.”
The urgency of it should have made Sonya even more skeptical about the idea, but she was in a daze, so she just nodded along.
It seemed like she’d been in a daze for as long as she could remember, and now she had a chance to break out of it, to become a new person.
If she took the job, she would soon be far away from Dmitri, that scumbag criminal. She would associate with real businessmen.
Halim helped her stand up.
Confused thoughts drifted through Sonya's mind: Why is he helping me? Well, I do feel a bit dizzy. Maybe I drank too much wine.
Gilad was waiting in a black SUV outside the steakhouse. Halim led Sonya into the back seat.
He reached into her purse, dialed her phone, and handed it to her.
“Tell your landlord you’ll be gone for a few weeks and that your company will pay the rent.”
She repeated what Halim said to the vaguely familiar voice on the phone.
As she rode in the back of that SUV, Sonya was groggy. She still hadn’t realized she’d been drugged.
That’s part of what the drug did to her, blurred her thoughts until nothing made sense, until she was too dazed to be afraid.
She didn’t know why, but she couldn’t stop looking at something on the floor of the vehicle. She stared at it, though she was numb, indifferent to what it was and what it meant.
Deep inside, she must have felt something. Some part of her subconscious must have been clinging to what she saw, trying to warn her.
She faded into unconsciousness. As her body slumped down on the leather seat, her foot knocked a broken orangish-red fingernail under the floor mat.