Sappho Intl (Songs of Silk Book 1) Read online

  “I know…I know.” The cigarette’s red tip lit up as she took a quick drag between words and exhaled it through her nose like a dragon.

  “I know. I’ll let it ride, but only because we got bigger fish to fry…Yeah, did the hit go down? Good! What about the keys…Is the shipment ready? All 25? Excellent! I need that to make the other move…once it hits Arizona I’ll be ready for it... just make sure every one of them are below the textile rolls.”

  I tried to decipher what the hell she was saying. The hit? Keys? I know she couldn’t be talking about kilos—as in kilos of powder. But what the fuck else could she be talking about? Was she talking about weed or cocaine? Did it even matter? I mean, I’d hustled weed on the side but nothing major—zips and qp’s —not kilos!

  Sir Sheik was definitely a smoking gun and it was all very possible that she truly WAS running an empire, on the low.

  But who else was aware of this? Does PrimaDonna know about this? Are all of them in on this or what? My mind started reeling with questions and all of sudden I didn’t know who to trust—outside of my own team. I think that I was now justified to question everything and everyone around me.

  Sir Sheik ashed the half-smoked cigarette then went into her pocket to remove a glass vial of powder. She poured powder onto one of the lit and frosted glass booths and used a stiff hundred dollar bill to line it.

  I looked back into the hall to ensure nobody had been coming and continued to peer at her in disbelief.

  She then rolled the bill and proceeded to snort a line through the tooter. She sniffed and wiped the powder residue off her nose and applied whatever residue remained to her gum line and continued the conversation.

  "…Yeah lately I've been residing high on a snow mountain.” the Sheik sniffed and giggled.

  “Yeah, I know…I know…No, not yet…Pharaoh’s on her way down here now. I talked to her while she was in the air…She should be here any minute. We’re gonna head out tonight together…we’ll probably be at the Palace by midnight.”

  “Hold on…I think I hear someone coming down the hall.” She looked over her shoulders and back at the door. And I quickly ducked behind it.

  I breathed narrowed breaths silently and stood very, very still.

  Then after a few seconds she continued talking again.

  “That might’ve just been a figment of my imagination…I’m not fucking paranoid…and I’m not that either…just careful…“

  “I sure wish I was right there with YOU…fucking Miami! It’s too fucking humid for me. Especially when I could be there with you freaks. I can’t wait to fuck that one broad…What’s her name again?”

  “…No, that other one…Yes, that’s the one!”

  Sir Sheik began to laugh and I’d decided that I had heard enough. I slowly began to make my way back to my room as quietly as possible.

  Since SocialClub9, I’d come to the conclusion that Sir Sheik was psychotic or at the least highly unbalanced. But I really didn’t know how damaged and dangerous she really was. When she said that she controlled this empire, I really didn’t expect to take it to be a literal drug empire. I mean, she was operating hits AND drugs; and to top it off—this asshole was a cokehead.

  So many questions raced through my mind as I rushed down the hallway to get ready for the meeting. I’d been inducted for less than ten minutes and now had doubts about the full breadth and reach of the whole organization.

  My first impulse was to gather my things and run far, far away; but my spirit began to tell me that I had been brought here for a reason. And everything had its season.

  Whether I could trust the Sapphic Trust or not would remain to be seen. But in the meantime, I decided to take advantage of the opportunity and to simply take what had just been unveiled to me as a test of fearlessness, patience and will.

  Everything had its tick and chime. And in my experience, the truth always came to the light, right on time.

  As I rounded the corner, Flourish began to walk towards me down the adjacent hall.

  “Congratulations Silk! I heard you just completed the induction. You haven’t gotten dressed yet?”

  “Umm, not yet…that’s where I’m headed right now…”

  “Silk, what’s wrong? It looks like you’d just seen a ghost?”

  “I’m cool.”

  “Uhh, okay…I’ll see you later then.” She yelled down the hall, as I kept walking briskly towards my room.

  Ordinarily I would have stopped to chat, but I had to get to my room and re-group.

  Outside of my team, I now had trouble trusting anyone. My heart was still pounding and my mind was racing at a dizzying pace.

  As I finally made it to the privacy of my room, I would have to force myself to meditate and exercise calm. I couldn’t jump to any conclusions without any hard evidence. I would definitely have to allow this thing to play out without judging prematurely. I obviously was placed here for a reason and I simply needed to remain cool, calm, and collected.

  But there was one thing that I was sure of—I would have to no longer take my role in this organization for granted. I would have to let this all play out for now. But in the meantime, II would surely need to keep my senses on high alert. I would be vigilant in observing everyone and everything around me, while keeping an ambiguous poker face.

  And on the eve of the Cloud9 kick-off, it seemed that the stakes to this chess game just got much higher.

  ♦ ♦ ♦

  If PrimaDonna reminded me of Monica Bellucci then her mother, Madison, was Sela Ward and her aunt, Diana, was Michelle Pfeiffer—at least this was what I was thinking as we approached the polished bronze door of the Hall of Antiquity.

  Now that I could see all of three of them clearly in the light, I’d decided that I was being escorted by three gorgeous women to whom the word beauty couldn’t even begin to define.

  Although PrimaDonna’s mother and aunt had to have been at least twenty years older than her, they appeared as though they might have been her older sisters. Madison and Diana had aged gracefully and preserved their magnificence as though they had drunk from the fountain of youth. And they both held a Park Avenue elegance while retaining a casual California charm.

  They were all modern day goddesses.

  “I love Miami.” Madison proclaimed.

  “Believe it or not, it‘s one of my favorite cities in the world.” Diana followed.

  “Silk, did you know that Miami is the only major city in the United States conceived by a woman?”

  “No, I didn’t know that…and I’ve lived here for most of my life.”

  “Julia Tuttle is the original mother of Miami and, to this day, the city of Miami is the only major city in the United States conceived by a woman.”

  “Miami stands as one of only a few cities worldwide, begun and birthed by a woman.”

  “Wow, I didn't know that there were ANY cities begun by a woman. But I always knew there was something so different and vibrant about Miami.”

  “Mh hmh. This is one of the reasons why it comes as no surprise that this city has become an important piece of the puzzle to making our Sapphian society whole.”

  After taking a nice shower and performing a round of Egyptian fire-breathing, I began to absolve my mind of many of the fear-charged emotions that my soul had constructed upon and convinced myself that everything would be fine. I’d decided that I would hold Sir Sheik solely responsible for her own words and actions without making judgments about anyone else. For now, I would view the rest of the Sapphic Trust innocent until proven guilty and let the universe continue to deal with Sir Sheik. And I was becoming more and more comfortable with this decision, as I now conversed candidly with PrimaDonna, Madison, and Diana.

  “Now this…is the Hall of Antiquity.” Diana opened the bronze door and lo and behold—a glorious vision from heaven was unveiled.

  “Oh…my…God!” I instantly saw a gigantic oil painting. And my mother, of all people, was the subject.

  “Welco
me to your library. This is where, I presume, most of your thinking, learning and writing might occur. We have taken the liberty of furnishing this room with more than a few artistic pieces that we thought you might appreciate.”

  As Madison and Diana smiled, I moved towards the painting as if I was entranced and magnetized to it.

  “The Sapphic Trust is a global organization. Most of our members are intercontinental. Your mother was one of a few Sapphians from the city of Miami and was the most mysterious.”

  “My MOTHER was a member of the Sapphic Trust?”

  “Your mother was a third level member and overwhelmingly beautiful!”

  All of them now joined me to gaze up at the large portrait painting that’d been framed in gold and mounted on the wall.

  “She held a magnetism that captivated even the highest and most prestigious of our Trust members.”

  “With her long flowing hair and eyes wired with the wisdom of a thousand ancient prophets…”

  They began to reminisce amongst the both of them like they’d forgotten I was there.

  “Her face adorned with a magical proportion, as though she drank from the divine pool of beauty and the fountain of eternal grace.”

  “Diana, you remember her mother's high cheekbones and deep-set dimples?”

  “How could I forget? I would’ve died for her bone structure and those dimples... when she smiled the whole world smiled on her.”

  “You have your mother's dimples AND smile.”

  “She has her father's nose and strong jawline.”

  “... and her mother and father's beautiful hair and height" They said in unison. They looked at each other and laughed.

  "You are much taller than I expected though...But shame on me, because your mother towered over everyone...and that hair...just striking...”

  “But those eyes are entirely your mother’s…eyes loaded with the passion and sensuality that fills your soul.”

  Diana studied me, smiled and then returned to appreciate the painting.

  “She was so compelling. Her allure commanded all eyes to drink her beauty in, from the moment that she entered a room. A painting of your mother was commissioned within the Trust and painted by one of her adoring lovers—who happened to be an esteemed artiste at the time—as a tribute to her light and beauty, before she passed. We stored it carefully and securely within our facilities after the tragedy and only now had the truest reason to display it.”

  “Your mother was one of our most treasured members. She was a beacon of light and everyone adored her presence.”

  “She loved your father dearly, but could never deny her appreciation and love of the female form. And he respected both faces of her, so that they could continue to engage in an open and honest marriage—which is true for some of us Sapphians, who have chosen to live dual lives in order to raise a family, yet enjoy the true nature within us.”

  I peered at the painting of my mother and began to recollect my own visions and memories of her. We had such a close relationship that I had to push back many of these same memories, in order to endure the loneliness that would follow, after their death. Even now, I pushed back tears at the mere thought of her smile and laughter.

  “She had an all encompassing knowledge and a plug to a power that reverberated throughout her essence. She was an engaging intellectual, with a seductive awe; and yet she managed to move with a silent, humility.

  “She was one of the most divine women I had ever known.”

  “Yes, she held this magnetism…” Madison now looked deep into my eyes. “…a magnetism that could have only come from the goddesses above. And it seems that this beauty...this magnetism...this internal light and love might’ve been passed on to you, Silk.”

  In our shortened time together, my mother passed on one religion—the religion of love. Although we’d studied virtually every faith and culture together, she used to say that all of them held one thing in common; one thing that had lasted throughout the ages—the ultimate belief in the power of love. Pure love conquers and unites all.

  She taught me daily that the pureness and power within me can only come from a place of truth. And the truth lived internal, with the divine guidance of light and genuine love. As long as I loved myself and remained connected to the source of love, then I would live a life truly free.

  This practice and belief would radiate through me for years to come.

  “You, Silk, are a perfect mix of both your mother and father. You’re absolutely illuminated—which is why this house fits you and one of the reasons why you’ve been brought into the fold with such haste.”

  I was touched by their sentimentality and acquaintance with my mother and father—but I couldn’t let them see me cry.

  I had to maintain my bearings in such a confusing and conflicted state. And I would not allow them to see a weakness within me yet—especially with the information that had been handed to me, in the form of a phone conversation by Sir Sheik.

  So, I managed to fight back tears and re-align my vessel, as I looked at Madison, Diana and then PrimaDonna. They each smiled at me, as though they were being re-united with a long lost member of their family. And PrimaDonna smiled at me lovingly as though she’d just unveiled one of the greatest gifts to me. She was now seeing a different side of me—but it was a side that I wasn’t sure that I wanted to confront within myself, let alone to approach and show to her yet.

  Although I was relieved to know that they were more familiar with my family than even I had anticipated, I couldn’t shake the feeling of being blindsided.

  This surprise left me feeling somewhat vulnerable, but I remained poised.

  “This comes as quite a surprise to me. It gives me comfort to know that I’m in the company of greatness—as was my mother. And I’m truly grateful for your thoughtfulness and your genuine truth.”

  I hugged Madison and Diana in sincere appreciation.

  “It is we who are truly honored with your presence, Silk.”

  I felt the need to get out of the spotlight and began to walk around the room some more.

  “You, Silk, are impressive! Most transformations take anywhere from three to six months and the manifestation of these transformations usually happens in waves. You, however, were placed on the fast track and underwent a one month transformation—you simply needed a little polishing. And your presentation has been immaculate thus far. We are truly inspired by you.”

  “Thank you…Thank you.”

  I was still a little weakened by my mother’s painting. I needed a diversion to keep me from falling apart.

  It was then that I took notice of another painting that was mounted in the room. The woman from my dreams was looking down upon me. I began to move towards it.

  “Who is this woman?”

  Madison and Diana joined me to stand in front of two large paintings.

  “That is the 'In the Days of Sappho' oil painting by John William Godward and the painting next to it is Charles-Auguste Mengin’s 'Sappho' oil painting.” Madison pointed to the painting before my eyes and then Diana pointed to a black vase on the floor nearby. “This is ‘Sappho Reading to her Companions’ on an Attic vase commissioned in 435 BC.”

  “This is the woman who was named Sappho…and the originator of our organization.”

  So the woman who had been appearing in my dreams and guiding me all of this time was indeed Sappho. I gazed at the paintings in awe and disbelief.

  “There’ve been some myths throughout the centuries by outsiders as to the origins and original story of Sappho and of the Sapphic Trust.”

  “Some say that she was an aristocrat that loved men and women alike. Some say that she was simply a beautiful poet who could love and appreciate the female form—and with violet hair and a honeyed smile—was the first to put it to song.”

  “Her poetry was thoroughly awe-inspiring at the time, especially for a woman...so much so that Plato called her the tenth muse.”

  “To the members of
the Trust—the truth has been revealed from the mouth of Sappho herself.”

  Madison and Diana were now speaking directly to me with a tone of seriousness and transparency in their voices. They were delivering a speech as a tag-team and I imagined that this was how they spoke at the Trust’s board meetings as chairman and secretary.

  “For you, Silk, there is a time and a turn for all truths. But here is a single truth...”

  “…Once upon a time, around the year of 600 BC, Sappho, who was a wealthy and famous poet and lyrist, was exiled to Sicily from Greece. It was here that she met a beautiful woman named Sophia Luna.”

  “And although she’d been known to romance many women throughout Greece and Egypt, Sappho had fallen deeply in love with this Sicilian woman.”

  “Sophia Luna had topped Sappho’s long list of lovers to become more than just another lover…she became her only soulmate.”

  I couldn’t help but peak at an unaware PrimaDonna, as Diana and Madison began to tell the story of Sappho’s love for Sophia Luna.

  “They lived happily as one and would even raise Sappho’s daughter, Cleis, and Sophia Luna’s daughter, Luna, to grow up together.”

  “As time went on, Sappho started the Pleiades, or the Seven Sisters—which were a circle of women loving women and were also composed of some of Sappho’s past lovers.” She pointed to a beautiful oil painting of seven women dancing among dizzying sheaths of cloth within a composited circle.

  “They would feast together and provide support and sisterly guidance in a woman’s only environment. They were all content. And lived and loved in peace.”

  I began to settle into this love story, like a warm blanket on a cold winter day. And as I felt its truth, I looked again across the room at PrimaDonna. I couldn't help but return back to the kiss that we’d shared in the hallway not less than a couple of hours ago. I couldn't help but fall in love with that brief moment of sincerity and cohesion. That brief moment of realness and oneness. That—even in that moment of distrust and uncertainty—I couldn't deny this feeling of overwhelming attraction to this woman. In fact, it was more than an attraction. For the first time ever, I couldn’t help but feel like I was falling madly in love—and it would be with this woman—PrimaDonna.