Chapter 33: Emptied Shelves
The next day, Violet woke up early and took a quick bath. The meeting with Leo was scheduled for 2 PM in the afternoon, which meant there was sufficient time to do other things.
She scrapped her earlier idea to visit the warehouse during the weekend. Since she was free, she might as well store everything in her spatial inventory right now.
After taking her bath, she wore a black simple dress and combed her smooth, silky hair. She left her face bare, but even at that, she could easily pass as the most beautiful girl in any room. Her face was oval, framed by heart-shaped lips and a straight nose. She wore a baseball cap and dark sunglasses.
Satisfied with her looks, she stepped out of the room and walked to the sitting area. Jen was awake and ready too.
"Let’s go." Violet said, and Jen simply gave a nod before stepping forward. Her shoulders were slightly slumped, and the usual glow and enthusiasm she held had disappeared.
Once they got into the car, Violet put on her seatbelt and took off the cap. She had only worn it to hide her face. It had been a week since she began staying in the hotel, and the staff had only ever seen Kierra Adams.
The drive to the warehouse was silent. With Jen, Violet had always maintained a professional front and had never initiated any conversation with her. But the silence in the car today was a heavy kind.
’Jen has a lot on her plate.’ Violet reminded herself and looked out through the glass. She hadn’t forgotten about Jen and her husband.
The warehouse was surrounded by tall black walls. The black car drove through the driveway and stopped a few feet away from the entrance. There were three trucks parked at the side of the building. Violet stepped out of the car and walked forward. The marble floor stretched underneath her.
Jen stepped forward and opened the door, and they stepped in to see the warehouse stacked to the brim with bags and sacks of grain, flour in bulk, stacked containers of sugar and salt, various beans and legumes, and large plastic containers of vegetable oil lined along the walls.
Violet walked through the aisle, her single hand trailing along the edge of the shelf. Jen walked closely behind her. She didn’t need to lift a finger to get these stored in her spatial inventory; however, she couldn’t do that if Jen was here.
So Violet turned around, and Jen, who had her head lowered to her phone, her fingers jabbing the screen furiously, almost slammed into her.
They were standing just a few inches apart. Jen quickly stepped back, her face flushed. "I’m sorry. I was um... I should have been more careful." Her head hung low, her hands clasped together.
"It’s fine. You can step out for a while and do your thing. I’ll check around and join you shortly." From what she saw, Jen could use some time alone, and so could she.
After Jen left, Violet inhaled a sharp breath and rubbed her hands together. She had been looking forward to this. She began by walking through each aisle and touching things. The ones she couldn’t touch simply disappeared into her spatial inventory with one thought.
It felt insane, even to her. In three minutes, she had emptied the shelves on that aisle. Bags of grains, sugar, beans, flour, and other supplies disappeared like they were nothing, without leaving even a speck of dust.
By the time she was done, only fifteen minutes had passed, and that turned out to be the easiest and most fun fifteen minutes she had had since her rebirth.
Her eyes swept through the now-empty warehouse one more time before she stepped out and closed the door herself.
Jen would freak out if she saw the empty warehouse, and Violet couldn’t be bothered about trying to offer an explanation to her.
After closing the door, she turned around to see Jen standing at the side, her back turned away from her. She had her phone pressed against her ear and was speaking in hushed tones.
Violet didn’t call out to her. Instead, she glanced at her wristwatch. It was 11:09 AM, which meant she still had time before the meeting with Leo. So she sat inside the car and decided to wait for Jen.
While she was in the car, she entered her spatial inventory to explore it.
She found out that only 30% of the space had been occupied. The items were organized on what looked like shelves and were neatly arranged.
In front of each section was a small box with a number indicating the amount of things in it. No matter how many bags she placed inside, the number would simply update—incrementing when she added items, and subtracting when she removed them—without affecting the arrangement.
Violet stayed in the space for over ten minutes, and before she left, she picked up some snacks and a can of cold drink she had kept a few days ago.
She opened her eyes just in time to see Jen removing the phone from her ear.
Violet took a bite from the cinnamon roll and chewed softly.
When Jen entered the car, her eyes were a bit red and misty, evident of the amount of time she had spent crying.
Jen saw the cinnamon roll in Violet’s hand and furrowed her brows. Violet noticed the question in her eyes, but Jen didn’t ask. She simply turned away and ignited the car without another word.
***
The meeting was scheduled to take place at Leo’s office, and Violet got there at exactly 1:55 PM. She was greeted by a member of his staff whom Leo had personally sent to welcome her.
The girl led her to the elevator and then through a hallway. People sauntered around, their IDs dangling around their necks.
She finally stopped in front of a door, and after the girl knocked twice, they were invited in. Violet inhaled sharply and clutched her purse a bit tighter before she walked in.
Leo sat behind his desk, which had a glass nameplate with his name written across it in thick black letters.
Seated in front of him was a man in his late fifties. Leo’s eyes were fixed on the man, and when he finally lifted them and stared at Violet, silence stretched between them.
Five seconds.
Ten seconds.
Something in his cold eyes greatly unsettled her. And at that moment, her system chimed.
System Notice.
Con Playbook Updated.
Target Trust: 20%.
Probability of Scam Success: 15%.