A dull thud echoed, followed moments later by the sound of the empty liquor bottle rolling across the basement floor.
Mara blinked in shock for several seconds before snapping back to her senses.
"W-WHAT?!", Mara shouted again, completely stunned by how sudden the action had been.
Mara's mind was a whirlwind of confusion and lingering adrenaline.
What the hell just happened?, she thought, as her eyes—still slightly unfocused—shifted toward Alice.
The older woman was simply brushing off her hands with a practical gesture, as if she had just shaken off dust after some ordinary household chore.
However, when Alice turned back toward her, her expression was one of absolute calm.
Alice smiled at her warmly, carefree, as though what had just happened in the lobby were something as mundane as serving a cup of coffee.
"Don't worry about her, dear. She's tougher than she looks, so she'll be fine," Alice said in her serene voice as she walked over to one of the tables in the lobby.
As she sat down, the blindfolded woman made a small gesture with her hand, signaling for Mara to come closer and take a seat across from her.
I think I'm starting to doubt my decision to stay here, Mara thought as she obeyed mechanically, dragging her feet toward the chair.
"Uhh… are you going to explain what just happened, or are we just pretending nothing happened?" she asked, trying to make her tone sound joking, even though part of her was being completely serious.
Alice smiled again, but this time there was a hint of resignation in the curve of her lips.
"Honestly, I'd like to pretend nothing happened… but I think it's best if I give you an answer," Alice said, almost through gritted teeth.
At that point, Mara would have accepted without hesitation if Alice had told her to forget what she had seen, to file it away as an unimportant incident. She probably would have done so out of sheer mental exhaustion.
But since the woman seemed willing to talk, she had no choice but to brace herself and listen.
"Her name is Beckie," Alice began, her tone blending fondness and exasperation. "Our… fourth employee at The Velvet Veil."
"But—", Mara tried to interrupt, only to be stopped.
Alice raised a hand, gentle but firm, silencing her.
"First of all, if you're wondering why you hadn't seen her until now, it's because she tends to be a bit… problematic." The last word came with an almost inaudible sigh, heavy with something that sounded like regret.
That's strange ... Just a moment ago, Alice was looking at her like a bag of trash, but now she sounds almost … sad, Mara thought.
"As you can probably imagine," Alice continued, lowering her voice slightly, "she has some minor issues with alcohol."
The way she said "minor issues" was a clear euphemism—an attempt to soften a reality that was painfully obvious.
"Okay…" Mara replied, because she honestly had nothing else to add.
"Now that we've cleared up this little misunderstanding, would you do me a favor, dear?" Alice said, suddenly shifting her tone to something sweeter.
Before Mara could answer, Alice lifted her hand and gently placed it against her cheek.
The touch was unexpected, intimate, and it made Mara hold her breath.
"S-sure," she stammered, feeling a faint blush creep up her neck.
Alice fell silent for a brief moment, her hand still caressing Mara's skin with a calm that sharply contrasted with the recent chaos.
She seemed to be weighing her words—or perhaps remembering something.
"Could you go make Beckie comfortable in Reiko's bed? I'll prepare something for her to eat when she wakes up."
Mara nodded—a silent but clear answer.
Alice stroked her face once more, with a tenderness that disarmed any remaining resistance, before letting her hand fall and offering a smile that looked genuinely grateful.
Without saying anything else, Mara stood up and headed toward the shared bedroom.
But when she arrived, the smell of alcohol hit her full force.
Beckie was already there—but not in Reiko's bed, as Alice had instructed.
She had collapsed onto Alice's bed instead, curled up like a wounded cat, breathing unevenly.
With a sigh, Mara stepped closer and tried to move her carefully, sliding an arm under her shoulders to guide her toward the other bed.
That was when it happened.
With surprising strength for someone in her condition, Beckie grabbed Mara's arms and, in a quick, clumsy motion, pulled her down onto the bed, rolling over to end up on top of her.
"Aliceee…" Beckie murmured in her thick, slurred voice, dragging out the syllables. "Whyyyy are you sooo thiiiin…?"
Beckie's breath reeked of cheap liquor.
"I'm not Ali—" Mara tried to correct her, but the words were stolen from her lips.
Beckie lowered her head and captured Mara's mouth in a wet, insistent kiss.
Mara felt the woman's tongue push its way into her mouth, moving with drunken clumsiness but unmistakable determination.
She tried to moan, to turn her head, to make any sound of protest, but Beckie either didn't notice—or didn't care—and kept kissing her with a desperate, confused need.
Oh, poor me … looks like I don't have much of a choice but to play along, Mara thought, a resigned cynicism rising from the deepest part of her being.