Lost in Silence (The Lost Series Book 1)(41)
“Holly,” Bobbi’s voice is sharp. I cringe a little and keep my head down. The woman, called Holly, is a knock out, despite a head full of foil and the shapeless smock covering her body. Her piercing blue eyes burn a hole right through me.
“What? Cat got your tongue?” she hops out of her chair and I notice her banana yellow platform stilettos. “Or are you just stupid?”
Missy moves quickly, placing herself between Holly and me. She step into Holly’s personal space.
“Sit down,” Missy’s voice is dead cold, sending shivers down my spine. The entire salon has grown quiet from the commotion. I look up suddenly aware of the eyes on us.
“Get out of my face Missy,” Holly spits but Missy doesn’t move. “What are you her bodyguard?”
“From bitches like you I am.”
“How dare you—”
“How dare I?”
“Missy, calm,” Bobbi advises remaining relatively calm herself, which freaks me out a bit. I can feel the tension rolling off her but she keeps it in check, under control. Missy is more than ready to throw down with the bleach blonde but I have a feeling Bobbi’s about to prove what it means to fuck with a true southern woman. “Take a breath and walk away.”
“Yeah, Missy,” Holly sneers, emphasizing Missy’s name with contempt. “Listen to your girl before you get your ass beat.”
“Keep that mouth of yours shut if you know what’s good for you,” Missy smiles menacingly. I could tell by her stance she was ready and she knew what she was doing.
“You could try,” Holly snorts, her eyes roam the room. Missy steps forward again but Bobbi moves just as quickly, squeezing in between them. Both women step back, making room for her.
“She isn’t worth it Missy,” Bobbi pleads and Holly gasps, the insult hitting the intended target. “Your brother has some sense, standing her up.”
“You southern fried bitch,” Holly sneers, her venom eyes are pinned to the shop owner. A collective gasp echoes through the salon, all eyes on the scene before them. The black smock covering Holly’s body sticks out at odd angles were her arms are placed on her hips. She looks like a broke down medusa. “Who the fuck do you think you’re talking about?”
“Oh honey, you don’t want to play the insult game with me,” the buxom redhead turns, her copper eyes on what I assume is now a dead woman walking. I don’t know Bobbi well but I get the sense she is not a woman to mess with. “Kelly, remove this woman’s smock and show her the door.”
Kelly, the woman who had been attending to Holly’s hair, snaps to attention, ripping away the smock. She then reaches for Holly’s arm but she pulls back, refusing to budge.
“Oh hell no,” Holly hisses, her eyes flying wildly around her. “Can you believe this? I’ve been a loyal customer for the last decade and this is how I’m treated?”
“Loyal?” Bobbi crosses her arms and scoffs at her. “You’re about as loyal as a bitch in heat. I know how loyal you are honey. Do you ask Tammy for the same deep pocket discount you ask my girls for each visit? If it wasn’t for your daddy and all that he’s done for this town, I would’ve refused service to you years ago. You think you’re hot shit in this town but you got it all wrong. You’re nothing but a white trash whore whose mama wasn’t smart enough to swallow or spit.”
The color drains from Holly’s face as each word hits her like a punch to the gut. She looks away and stumbles backward to her chair, reaching for her purse. Without a sound, she crosses to the door, stopping only as she reaches it. She pauses for a moment and finally turns toward Bobbi.
“Mark my word, Bobbi Lee, you will regret this,” Holly’s words lack fire but her eyes rage war.
“Get gone girl,” Missy cuts in.
“Fuck you Missy and your brother,” Holly hurls the words at her, hatred burning across her face. “I hope he chokes on it.”
She flings open the door and slams it closed behind her. The force of it shakes the building. Everyone sits dazed for a moment, watching the glare of the sun bounce off Holly’s tin foil head as she stomps away. As soon as Holly drives away in her red sports car, all eyes land on Bobbi, who is now staring at the smock in Kelly hands like it’s the plague.
“Kelly, get yourself a new smock from the back and burn that one,” Bobbi mutters, breaking the silence and the tension. A few nervous snickers sound off around the room. She looks over at me and smiles before addressing the salon. “Shows over ladies, time to get back to making the world a beautiful place.”