As Day Follows Night Pt. 07

"And my balls are always bouncing,
and my ballroom always full.
And everybody comes and comes again.
If your name is on the guest list,
no one can take you higher.
Everybody says I've got great balls of fire."
-AC/DC, *"Big Balls"*

Helena reached the dance floor and looked toward the table where Troy, Julie, and Maria sat. Before she could walk over to them, she was surrounded by young men in expensive tuxedos, all wanting to share the first dance with La Contessa. Soon, Troy lost sight of her through the men descending upon her. A look over at the two ladies who sat with him revealed smaller predator packs who'd realized they had no shot at La Contessa flocking around his wife and La Contessa's maid, asking to have the first dance with them.

Maria enjoyed the attention and chose one of the boys to escort her to the dance floor. Julie stole her seat closer to Troy and replied with a complicated hand gesture that involved pointing to Troy, flashing her wedding ring, and then picking up her drink to show she already had one. The pack quickly moved on to try other prey.

The crowd of men around the landing parted and Helena appeared at their table, taking the seat Julie had just vacated.

"Hello, you two. Glad you could make it. Sorry about your entrance, figured you wouldn't want your pictures in every scandal rag in Europe."

Troy took a sip of his drink. "Helen, we got to enter a CASTLE through a SECRET PASSAGE! You have nothing to apologize about."

Helen smiled; a real one. It got bigger as she turned to Julie. "Love this ensemble, Julie."

Julie smiled back, sensing the sincerity. "Thanks. Yours is amazing too. I expected no less, Helena."

"Well, on the subject of things you expected, I gave the..." She jerked her thumb toward the men that were dispersing from where she'd been, turning it into a wanking gesture at the end. "Billionaire Boys' Club over there the brushoff in order to exercise my privilege as hostess and Contessa to choose my partner for the first dance." Julie gave a nod, Helen turned back to Troy as she stood. "Been keeping up on your waltz, Mr. Equals?"

"No," Troy said, standing. "But give me a minuet and I'm sure it'll all come Bach to me."

"Feel free to keep him after that one," Julie said, taking a drink.

"Careful, hon, you know I just might. Oh, your gift bags each have an extra iPad for your two friends and there's another bag for you to take back to your friend from the party who didn't come along. Tell those girls if we ever meet again, I expect them to be EARNED," and with a wink, Helena led Troy to the dance floor.

Once they were gone, another well-dressed man approached Julie. She smiled, gulped down the last of her drink, said "Fuck it, yeah," and took his hand.

* * *

"People are looking at us to start dancing, Helen," Troy whispered into her ear.

She inhaled deeply and replied as a sigh. "Emay e Komissa, Troy. Thah perimenateh."

"You ARE the Countess, and they WILL wait, it's just getting a little weird."

"Dammit, Troilus, just fuckin' hold me a second here."

"Ok."

She took two more deep breaths before leaning back, taking one hand from around him, and holding his with it. A nod, and the dance began.

"So, what you did with the crowd at the end of your speech? We both caught that."

"That was for you. Julie can take care of herself in a room like this. You're a decent person, Troy; and these people are sharks."

"I know you'll save me."

"Hey, I'm not locked in here with them, they're locked in here with me."

"Just like Maria?"

Helen lost half a step, then recovered.

"It's not like that at all. Maria is happy and I'm happy to have her."

"So she says. In fact, she's the first to defend you. You've taken everything from her and she still defended you when Julie... well, it was the kind of joke she'd tell to your face anyway; it wouldn't really work now."

"Hostility has never become you, Troy. What else is wrong?"

It was Troy's turn to lose a step. He swallowed before continuing.

"Susan, the other woman at the bachelor party; the one who didn't come here with us."

Helena leaned back and looked in Troy's eyes.

"She's important to you."

"And to Julie."

"Yeah, but she's more important to you. Ok, I'm sorry; she's off limits."

"Thanks. That was easier than I expected."

"For one of us, anyway. You used to get that look in your eye when you talked about me. It's not the Julie look, but it's still nice. I wasn't able to accept settling for it; maybe she can."

"Helen, she's had the kind of life you might have if not for an old Greek man with strange fashion sense who loved you just as much as he loved his great grandson; and two friends who taught her how to do this thing they learned." Helen stopped dancing and stepped away from him at that.

"You're going to teach her, aren't you?" Troy nodded. "You love her."

"Not as much as Julie, but yes. They're both ok with that."

Helen put her arms around him again with a small laugh.

"Troilus, any woman who loves you understands what I figured out years ago: If there was a fire and you could only save me or Julie, I'm dead."

"I'd go back for you."

"No you wouldn't. Because Julie wouldn't let you go back in without her and then you'd both die. Whatever you two think of me, I couldn't have that."

"We love you, Helen. We wish you'd come back to us."

"I can't now. I'm in too deep here. They made me a statue, there are oil paintings of me in galleries; tourists buy pictures and postcards of them. I don't have the luxury of just handing it all to Maria and walking away and becoming a 'Hey, Whatever Became Of' joke on VH-1 in 10 years."

"So, you do plan to give Maria her due?"

"If anything ever happens to me, yes. Hopefully, I've taught her something about how to be a decent ruler and take care of the people."

The song ended and the dancing stopped. Troy hugged Helen again.

"Helen, I know that by your own twisted definition of the word, you love Maria. You're HER Proyiayia now. Propappou would be proud of what you've made of yourself, but not how you've gone about it."

"You could help; with Maria AND San Finzione. We could definitely use a top-notch economist to be our Minister of Finance. And Julie would be a great Minister of Art and Culture."

"We like our quiet life below radar, you know that."

"And I'm allergic to white picket fences, so I don't see either of us coming away with what we want here."

Troy hugged her again. "I got to have a dance with someone I dearly love and have missed. I'll be satisfied with that."

Helen pressed herself against him harder. "I doubt you were satisfied. But if you want to take care of that, you always have that option, Troy."

Troy responded with a kiss. "I'll have to have a word with someone about that."

"I probably won't be able to talk to Julie for a bit; I still have things to do here. But only a fool would extend that offer to one of you without also including the other."

He looked around the ballroom for Julie and saw her dancing with an older man in a tuxedo. The man was looking at her and nodding in agreement. "Speaking of whom, I'd better cut in. You going to be ok?"

Helena looked at the pack from before, spread out a bit more and wondering if she and Troy were going to dance again or if they had a shot at La Contessa. "I think I'll be all right. Go rescue your Sunflower."

Troy kissed her hand and crossed the dance floor to Julie. From behind him, he heard Helena begin a mocking game of Eeny-Meenie-Miney-Mo with her potential partners.

* * *

"Hey, Math Boy. What'd ya get," Julie asked as Troy put his arm around her waist and led her away from her former dance partner. The man had left without a word and went straight to the bar.

"Job offer and proposition. Told her no on the job and we'll see on the proposition. You?"

"Trophy mistress. But he had a sudden change of heart and he's decided to confess his affairs to his wife in the morning and agree to whatever she wants in the divorce. Probably off to get good and liquored up first."

"Nice one, Mistress. Er, MY Mistress, not the trophy kind."

"Hey, I could be a trophy. I'm a fuckin' catch, Mister," Julie said with a playful little push.

"I'll be sure to mount you on the display case when we get home."

"That sounds dangerous. How about mount me on the bed and work our way there," Julie asked, sliding her hand down his back to grab his ass.

The waltz ended and the orchestra changed to a tango. Troy returned the ass-grab and led Julie to the center of the floor.

"After the party, sure. Still feeling pretty well-fucked from this afternoon."

"Me too," she smiled, meeting his gaze as they danced. "Thank you for that, Master. I know you don't like using the Special Trigger."

* * *

Contessa Helena de San Finzione whispered into the ear of her dance partner.

"Carlos, we appreciate the gift you have brought to the party. I'm certain that my guests who partake will put it to good use. As for the cartel setting up operations in San Finzione; feel the heat of my body pressing against you and relax deeper as I explain why you will tell your bosses why it would not be a good idea..."

* * *

"It just creeps me out, Mistress; the way the light goes out of your eyes and you're suddenly Not Julie anymore."

Julie looked sad for a moment, and then smiled.

"Well, I've spoken to Not Julie, and she loves you too, and she's just as happy as I am to put herself completely in your hands."

They reached the edge of the dance floor, then turned around. It was Troy's turn to smile.

"Well, I do enjoy having you in my hands."

"And I enjoy being handled by you."

Troy spotted Maria and motioned to Julie to look her direction. Her head was thrown back laughing at something her dance partner had said.

"Maria seems to be enjoying herself," Troy said. Julie nodded in agreement.

"She was born for this life, until Helen took it away. Where the hell is that bitch?"

Julie looked around as the song ended. Troy pointed to the largest concentration of men in tuxedos and military uniforms covered with unearned medals.

"Choosing her partner for the next dance," Troy told her. "Just be patient, I'm sure she'll get a break and you'll be able to have a word with her. In the meantime, shall we dance, Mrs. Equals?"

* * *

Contessa Helena de San Finzione whispered into the ear of her dance partner.

"Your Excellency, I know you see now that San Finzione's aid packages must be delivered by our own troops with no interference from your people. Just explain to your warlord partners that if they stop every shipment, soon the world won't send the refugees anything. And if any of them have a problem with this, they're welcome to come speak to me in person..."

* * *

Troy tapped the young man's shoulder. He gave Troy a nasty look, then remembered that this was one of La Contessa's dearest and oldest friends and should be treated as such; and let him cut in with Maria.

"Kalinikto, Troy," Maria said with a big smile. "Do I say this right?"

"Yes, and good evening to you too, Maria. You look like you're having fun."

"Oh, si. Was not so long ago that I had to go with the children on the night of a ball. Now many of those boys are wanting to dance with me."

The orchestra started another waltz. Troy put his arm around Maria and the two began to dance.

"And not a one of them deserves you, I'm sure."

"I start to believe you. All night long, boys trying to impress me with their new autos. Everything is Buggati or Lamborghini or Ferrari with them. This make girls want them? La Contessa have all three and more in autorimessa."

"Well, yes, but to be fair, girls want her too."

"And she who the boys really want. La Contessa only a few years older than I, they only want to use me to get to her. Or get hands on fortune. Only two men ever like me for me, and I am dancing with one of them now."

Troy smiled at this. "And the other is your butcher boy?"

Maria nodded. "I do not think he know I am of la familia. Would probably be scared off if he knew."

"And have you told Helen about him?"

"Oh, no. If La Contessa find out and decide she want him for herself...I could not live with this."

Troy danced with her in silence for a few moments.

"Maria, I think I have a way to solve your problem. Would you be interested in that?"

"Si, Troy. I must to tell you, though, if La Contessa order me to say what we talk about, I must tell her; I no have choice. And if you make me forget...would be a bad scene here at the ball."

"That's why I won't make you forget, Maria. I'll simply give you the option of remembering later. We should find somewhere quiet to talk.

* * *

Contessa Helena de San Finzione whispered into the ear of her dance partner.

"Si, El Presidente, I'm certain your people have assured you a landslide victory, but do you know just how incredibly fucking wet a man who can win an unrigged election makes me? Just continue to relax and stare at my cleavage as I tell you..."