The Rise of Rachel Price T-Girl Pt. 06

Seven more days had passed, and Denver stood in an alleyway near the restaurant where he worked as a busboy. He waited there, feeling dumb. This seemed too complicated to be a trick, and he couldn't think of anyone who would play a trick on him. There had been moments when he felt like this might be some kind of sick YouTube prank. He decided that if that was the case, he would just bluff his way through it. He would say that he wasn't a transphobe and that his family needed the money, which they did. Charlie's last message had contained the pickup time and location.

Denver checked the time, it was locked behind the bars made from the cracks on the phone. They were late. Then, when he wasn't looking, a limousine turned up. The driver wore a peaked cap. The back door opened itself, and Denver bent down to see Charlie sitting inside.

"Hi, Denver," Charlie said.

Denver looked around, checking to make sure the alleyway was empty.

"Are you getting in?" Charlie asked from the back of the car with a coquettish smile. "It's going to be fun."

Denver subconsciously licked his lips.

"Yeah," he said, bending down and getting into the back seat next to her.

As the limousine pulled away from the alleyway, Denver couldn't shake the feeling of unease that had settled in the pit of his stomach. He glanced over at Charlie, who was sipping her martini and studying her perfectly manicured nails. Despite her confident exterior, Denver couldn't help but wonder what could possibly be going through her mind.

Denver said, "Look, I just wanted to confirm. This is just dressing up. No gay stuff, right?"

Charlie's voice sounded slightly hurt. "No... the rules are clear. Dressing up, passing off. Dinner. Believe me, you couldn't even get Levant to go and see the Lady Boys of Thailand. You're safe there."

"Pictures all gone at the end," Denver added.

"Like it never happened," Charlie said.

They continued moving their way into the city, making small talk as they went.

He couldn't deny that she looked stunning, with her long legs and sophisticated outfit. But the way she had casually mentioned Levant's aversion to Lady Boys of Thailand made Denver wonder if there was more to this evening than just dressing up and "passing off."

Denver took a deep breath and tried to push these thoughts out of his head. He knew he had agreed to this, and there was no backing out now. He just hoped that Charlie was telling the truth and that this was just a harmless evening of role-playing.

Denver gazed out of the tinted windows of the luxurious limousine, feeling a sense of detachment from the world outside. The streets, once so familiar to him, now seemed hazy and indistinct, as if he were seeing them through a veil. He tried to shake off the feeling and reconnect with the world outside the vehicle, but it was no use. The passing scenery of San Francisco looked almost like a movie set, unreal and distant. As the car turned a corner and headed towards Thornbury, Denver looked at the stunning Charlie. He felt certain that the memory of this night was going to fly beside him until the end of his last breath.

***

The limousine pulled up at the drop-off circle next to the Thornbury Hotel. He had never been in a place like this before, with its opulent furnishings and stunning views of the city.

Denver remembered how Mom was so pleased when he gave her the money. He had told her it was extra hours as a busboy and that the wages had gone up, and it had been backdated. When he left, Grandpa was propping up a new tank of oxygen.

Charlie walked up to the reception desk, where the same concierge, Hector, stood. The luxurious lobby of the Thornbury hotel was adorned with crystal chandeliers and marble floors, giving off an air of opulence. Charlie's heels clicked against the shiny surface as she approached the desk, her designer handbag swinging by her side.

"Any sign of Acacrombie?" Charlie asked, her eyes scanning the room.

Hector looked down at his computer screen, his fingers typing away. "No, not yet," he said with a hint of concern. "The other competitors have arrived. As requested, they are on floor nine - the heating still isn't fixed on that floor. I've told maintenance but somehow it isn't a priority. I checked and Mr. Levant is currently inbound. Wheels down in about two hours and fifteen minutes. Beth is waiting in suite 1442."

"Thank you, Hector. Reliable as always," Charlie said, flashing a smile. "Can I have the key to the service elevator? I'll be up in the suite, but it has to be a real emergency to get me, okay?"

"Understood, Ms Bechtel," Hector said, handing over a small worn copper key.

Charlie and Hector stepped into a more utilitarian elevator, leaving behind the glitz and glamour of the lobby. As the elevator ascended, Charlie's mind wandered.

"Rumour is," Charlie began, her voice lowered to a whisper, "after 9/11, Levant installed a secret personal escape elevator from his penthouse. In case of a fire, he can bail if he wants, but it only takes one person one way, and only he knows the code. Don't mention it to him."

The elevator dinged, announcing their arrival. Charlie stepped out and made her way down the plush hallway towards suite 1442, her heels sinking into the deep pile carpet.

The elevator stopped.

Charlie chuckled and pulled Denver's hand down the suite. "You'll be fine, Denver. Just relax. We're just here to have a good time and make some money."

***

As they left the elevator and walked towards suite 1442, Charlie led the way. The plush plum carpet beneath their feet muffled their footsteps, creating a sense of hushed elegance.

"Hi, Denver," Beth said opening the door a concern evident in her voice. "You had me worried. Are you okay?"

Denver, his tall and lean frame against the door, let out a deep sigh. "I'm starving," he said, his voice tinged with frustration. "I've been on the mother of all crash diets, and I feel weak."

Charlie, her eyes sparkling with amusement, couldn't help but tease him. "Did you drop that weight?" she asked, a hint of a smirk playing at the corner of her mouth.

"I don't know," Denver said. "Weigh me."

Mom had dismissed Denver's not eating as girl problems. Denver had smirked, realizing she was right but in the wrong way.

Beth was there, and she pulled out the scales from the bathroom. Denver practically jumped on them.

"Looks like someone has a bonus," Beth said, taking Denver's jacket.

"Do you want to drink Coke or hotel Coke?" Beth said, smiling. Denver felt embarrassed. It was clear that Charlie had told Beth about the whole drinks thing, and he felt smaller than a pea.

Charlie interrupted. "Well, if it's anything, it's hotel grape juice. Someone has to get used to having it with dinner. On the subject of which, have a look at this." She handed over a driving license as Denver got down from the scales. This one had Rachel's picture from last week, but it was laminated into a license.

"This fake is really good," Denver said, looking at it.

"Okay. Number one, I only want Rachel's voice. Number two, this is a real license. Notice it says you can drive. If the police check it, then yeah, it will pass a database check. I told you, Levant showed me how to get everything, even a real American passport if I had to," Charlie said.

Beth smiled and, taking Rachel's license, looked at it. "Real ID is the best fake ID you can get. This is good."

Charlie pointed at a sheet of paper. "That's a non-disclosure contract. All the competitors signed one. You do too. It means you can't legally talk with any outsider about what is going on without prior permission from us. I warned you about it, but now you have to sign it." Denver grabbed the pen nearby and scrawled his signature.

Then Charlie sounded strict for some reason. "OK, I have a couple of new dresses I would like to try out. You need to shower, shave. After that, let's get the wig on and start tucking so we can check out the dress. We need to hustle people, everything has to be ready for six, and we have already lost 30 minutes."

After showering and shaving, Denver noticed his street clothes and trainers were gone.

Drying off, Denver noticed a chair in the room sitting in front of the mirror like a siren. Denver sat down and Beth quickly took his real hair away, then combed and brought over the blonde Rachel wig. While Beth fiddled with it, Charlie poured a glass of wine.

"OK, you will be drinking this over dinner. Levant always gets whatever is most expensive. He knows little about wine but likes to claim he's the big expert. Just nod and agree with anything he says." Charlie said. "This, on the other hand, is fairly good and tastes better. It's French. FYI, he likes..."

"Red Château Mouton Rothschild Pauillac. Yeah, I know, I read the binder." Denver said, mispronouncing it. Beth tugged the wig firmly down and began pinning it into place.

"You read the binder," Charlie said, smiling. "Good."

Denver had never tasted wine before, and this tasted slightly disgusting. He finished the drink anyway. As he got up to go to the bathroom, he began to feel warm inside. When he started tucking his balls up inside himself, it felt more painful this time. He struggled with a half-erection and some medical tape and the gaff. Charlie offered to help, but Denver said that would make things worse. He reached under his legs from behind to hold his dick while sliding the gaff pants up. When Charlie came in, Denver was now Rachel.

When Rachel was done, Charlie wrapped the strapless bra and jellyfish onto Rachel's chest. After this, Beth came in with some self-adhesive silicon bum and hip pads. They stuck on Rachel's skin and under the gaff, but this put more pressure upwards and inwards.

"Forget the tights. Just get the dress on," Charlie said.

"OK," Denver said, using Rachel's voice. Her accent was becoming more set, and was drifting slowly away from the artificial. Denver had practiced by playing Tomb Raider and repeating Lara Croft's words. Late at night he practiced by recording himself and listening back.

Charlie picked the dress up and held it so Denver could get it on. It was a tube dress, but this time it was much more glittery and dripping in gold sequins.

"What do you think of it?" Charlie said, looking at Denver in the mirror while she straightened it.

"It's like being in a river of gold. I am Midas remade," Rachel said, accepting a matching jacket.

Charlie stood back. For the first time, she nodded to herself.

"Yeah, yeah. That's working," she said. She turned to Beth. "What do you think? The smoothness on the stomach is good. The dress really fits well on the hips. Turn around."

Rachel turned around.

"Needs the shoes," Beth said.

Charlie grabbed Rachel's hand and dragged her out of the bathroom. Rustling in a box, she pulled out a pair of stilettos. The soles were red and the rest of the design looked clean and elegant

"These are Christian Louboutin stiletto pumps. They are expensive. Treat them well, okay? Put them on," she said.

Rachel slipped the shoes on and had to hold herself against a table to balance. Charlie and Beth went around.

"That is peak Levant. That works really well. The shoes really get it right," Charlie said.

"If I can walk in them," said Rachel uneasily.

Charlie shrugged. "You don't walk in these shoes. You sit, and sometimes you lay down, but never walk."

Beth pulled out a pair of highly decorated Lirika Matoshi tights. It was like wearing mini art pedicels on Rachel's legs. Charlie got Rachel to begin walking around the suite to get used to the heels.

"He likes a catwalk. Put one foot in front of the other, like a tightrope. That's it," Charlie said.

Rachel continued to move but just after turning round a corner she fell over with a "fuck."

"Charlie ran over, "Are the shoes OK?" she said, kneeling down to Rachel on the floor.

"Yes, thanks," Rachel said, wondering if anything was twisted.

"Well, the good news is you managed to say fuck, as Rachel," Beth said.

"Yeah," Charlie said. "Look, sit down. Why don"t you get on with the nails? Then the face."

"Good idea," Beth said, helping Rachel get up. She had set up a more comfortable folding chair near a mirror.

"Sit down, relax," Beth said, helping Rachel over.

"I"m going out," Charlie said at the door. "I"m going to find out what"s happening to the competition."

After Charlie left the room suddenly felt much emptier. "Dont mind her. You"re doing great," Beth said, taking Rachel"s hands.

Rachel tilted her head over to the doorway. "Does she seem a bit crappy to you? I mean, what did I do?"

Beth started putting some acrylic nails over Rachel"s natural short ones. "She"s nervous. No one knows what Abercrombie is doing. She"s worried herself into a corner. This contest is being held here. We think Levant is doing it deliberately so if she fails, she fails before the entire staff."

"Don't tell me everyone knows who I am?" Rachel said, her palms clenched.

"No, they know that something big is happening tonight. They know the one who looks a bit like Taylor Swift - that"s Rick, the doorman"s description, not mine - is the home team, but after that, it"s only me and the boss." Beth said.

Rachel found herself letting out a breath she didn"t know she was holding.

"Promise me you won"t tell anyone. I"m super petrified someone might see me," Rachel said. "No, I am. I really am. I know you"re going to say this is stupid, but someone might be here, a teacher or something."

"You"re fine! Your going to be fine. Your teachers would have to be pretty rich to eat here. Any way the restaurant your going to be in is private, just Levant and his guests" Beth insisted, there was a reassurance written in her brown eyes.

Beth started to look through nail colors and picked one up.

"Are you sure Rachel would wear that color?" Rachel said looking at the bottle.

Beth looked at Rachel, slightly taken aback, and narrowed her eyes. "Really?"

The pair talked, argued and eventually agreed on a dark, glossy red color."

While they waited for nails to dry, Beth got started on covering Rachel face in concealer then foundation. The make up continued with Beth irritated with the eyebrows. After this long process Denver's face was swallowed up and Rachel's magically appeared.

The door opened and Charlie came in carrying an iPad.

"How's it looking?" Beth said.

Charlie moved in and looked at Rachel. "That's pretty good. I mean your really convincing."

"Finally years of being called the runt of the class is paying off." Rachel said. She caught a glimpse of her self in the mirror. Rachel was pretty hot. A curvaceous figure with thin legs topped with dark deep set eyes, ruby read kissable lips. The sequin dress shimmered steeling the light and reflecting it like a disco balls. The light in the room shifted with every breath.

Hot enough that Denver would already be both desiring her and thinking she was out of his league. For a second she glowed in her own worth, she basked in her desirability. In the heels she was at eye hight with Charlie and being this hot put her on a equal with her. Charlie smiled confidently back to Rachel.

"Good, oh yer" Charlie said, then held out the iPad. "Do you know who this is?"

She held up an image that had been taken from CCTV. It was Rachel outside the lift with the man in the tuxedo.

"Who is this?" Charlie said. She didn't sound angry this time, but more highly inquisitive.

"I told you about him. The guy who hit on me. I think his name is Hunter," Rachel said, glancing at the iPad screen.

"Him? He'stThat's elevator guy? He's Detective Hunter. He's local PD or FBI we don't know. You be careful of him. He blames Levant for his wife's death," Charlie said.

"What is he doing around here?" Rachel said, looking up as Beth applied another layer of mascara.

"Yeah, I wondered that as well. Turns out there is this club of retired detectives. They meet up once a month to swap stories here, as it happens. Either he doesn't know this is a Levant hotel or his loathing doesn't extend to our hors d'oeuvres. Either way, don't talk to him. Don't talk to him under any circumstances, got that?"

"I don't want to talk to him more than you do, believe me," Rachel said.

"Also, I got this," Charlie said, pulling out an expensive Macbook Air laptop. "As promised If I win, you get this."

"Well, thanks," Rachel said.

"Levant told me to dump this in landfill, and you said you didn't have a good computer at home," Charlie continued.

Rachel tilted her head. "No, I didn't."

Charlie looked awkward. "Are you sure? You didn't. I thought you did."

"No," Rachel said.

"Weird. I must have just thought you said that. Never mind, do you want it? It's still worth a truckload of money. It's top-of-the-line, latest stuff. You want it enough to win?" Charlie asked.

Rachel nodded.

Once Beth had finished, Rachel got up and looked at herself in the mirror. Charlie was right about the dress, Rachel looked stunning.

"I think this might just come off" Charlie said standing next to Rachel. She put her hand around Rachel's hip. Rachel felt a strain in the medical tape under the gaff, holding her together. Rachel returned the favor.

"OK," Charlie said, handing Rachel a tiny clutch bag. "Don't lose this. It has Rachel's license."

Charlie moved across the suite to a table that had been laid out for dinner. There was a plate surrounded by pairs of cutlery.

"I will get changed, and then we need to go through table manners."

It was getting close to the appointed hour when Charlie emerged. She was more business smart, still wearing something closer to a suit. Her plan was not to upstage Rachel.

"Where do you start on the table layout?" Rachel asked, looking at the place setting.
"Outermost, work your way in. The stuff above the top of the plate is for dessert."

Charlie smiled and looked at her watch.

"Earrings check. Shoes check. Bag. You have the ID right? Door key also in the bag. If you need anything, just say you need to go powder your nose and I will come with you. Beth will be hiding there, ready for any touch-ups. Oh, he likes his women to be slinky."

Rachel looked over. "Are you slinky in front of him?"

Charlie paused. "He thinks I should be, but now you know why I'm running second to a moron like Apacrombie. OK Rachel, it's show time."

Hand in hand they walked out and Rachel left Denver's ID and clothes behind her.