50 hours remaining.

It was dark by the time they reached Utica. Stars littered the sky like tiny diamonds or dew drops. It was hot, much hotter than England, and Claudia hooked her coat over her arm accordingly.

They trudged through the empty streets, Claudia gawking at the buildings around her. It's so beautiful, so different, she thought, as the warm breeze picked up her hair, twirling the strands around her face.

Claudia became aware that Bonnie watched her side-long and turned to her. Bonnie quickly looked forward and quickened her pace.

"So we'll have to find a motel for the night; I think I know a place on the corner of Shenton and Cornice," Bonnie said, hefting her bag higher on her shoulder.

Claudia frowned. "No, we don't have time. We have to go straight to your contact." Bonnie just shook her head resolutely and continued forward. So Claudia came to a dead stop, parking herself in the middle of the deserted sidewalk, legs planted and arms crossed.

"No," she said simply, causing Bonnie to stop and spin around. Bonnie stalked back to Claudia, nostrils flaring.

"Yes," she said back, drawing the word out, glaring at Claudia. But Claudia met her gaze, squaring her shoulders. Like two forces of nature, they both stood their ground, silently warring with the other.

A wicked plan formed in Claudia's mind. Whilst maintaining eye contact, she softened her stance and jutted out her lower lip. Then she widened her eyes and tilted her head to the side, exposing her neck as she slowly licked her lips before sucking on her lower lip.

She watched as Bonnie's gaze dropped from her eyes, to her lips, to her neck and back up to her lips. She watched as Bonnie swallowed audibly and unconsciously leaned forward, pupils dilating.

"Please Bonnie?" Claudia whispered as seductively as she could. Bonnie closed her eyes in restraint, teetering backwards. She growled and Claudia knew she had won. Works like a charm, every time. Not a man or woman in London could resist that.

"Ugh. Fine." She groaned, running her hand through her hair. Claudia beamed as Bonnie pulled out her phone. "Wait here."

Claudia waited patiently, shifting her weight from each leg as Bonnie talked into the phone. Her voice was clipped, low and the conversation was over quickly. Bonnie jammed the phone back into her pocket and stalked over, grabbing Claudia by the elbow and dragging her forward.

"Okay, where are we going? A mansion, an apartment, a secret underground bunker?" Claudia guessed as she shook off Bonnie's hold and strutted foreword with renewed energy.

Bonnie scowled, lips pressed into a hard line.

"Bloody, irresistible, straight girls." She muttered instead, leading them down a side street. They walked in silence, both consumed by very different thoughts, winding through the streets until they stopped in front of an apparently-abandoned warehouse.

Claudia slowed down, watching as Bonnie walked right past the roller door to a tiny metal door, recessed deep into the frame. Without hesitation, Bonnie lifted her fist and knocked a pattern against the door, a rhythmic 'thud, thud, thud' that reverberated through the silent night.

A pause, and Claudia strained her neck, waiting for something, anything. Then the door grated open, and without a word or a glance backwards, Bonnie disappeared into the abyss. Claudia fidgeted nervously, absentmindedly rubbing the back of her neck, chewing on a fingernail.

Realising she had no choice anyway, Claudia followed Bonnie into a very tight corridor. She focused on Bonnie's outline and retreating form, almost invisible in the darkness. Narrow walls shrouded in shadows seemed to impress down on her, and she shivered, quickening her pace to catch up.

Claudia's foot caught on the floor and she stumbled forward, grabbing the wall next to her to break her fall. Instead her hand landed on something smooth and distinctly wooden. She strained her eyes in the darkness to make out a narrow side table that held an almost-full wine glass. She hesitated, staring at the drink.

I wonder... Claudia didn't know what it was. If it was the reverberations of far-off music beneath her feet, or the constant count-down assaulting her brain, or the mysterious and magical ghost of her past before her. But whatever it was, it made her grab the glass and in one quick swig, it was empty. Bitter aftertaste, hint of triple sec and lime...

She stumbled forward as the faint noise got louder, the sound of bass and illegible words. Claudia opened her mouth to ask Bonnie where they were going, when she suddenly slammed into Bonnie's strong back.

"What the...?" Claudia muttered, rubbing her sore chin in annoyance, the words trailing off as she peered over Bonnie's shoulder. Claudia opened her mouth in surprise, blinking twice, earning an amused smirk from the woman next to her.

The narrow hallway opened up to a steel balcony with metal frames overlooking a cavernous space. Claudia stepped past Bonnie onto the balcony and grabbed the railing, staring at a dozen fragmented images of herself. The square space, easily three stories, had four walls adorned with giant shards of mirror, reaching up to support the domed ceiling of glass, revealing the starlight night sky.

Claudia stared at herself across the room. I'm almost unrecognisable... Her blonde hair, greasy from the flight and matted from the bus trip, was scraped into a limp ponytail. Her black sweater top felt itchy against her skin, her slacks were lined with creases and her ankles sore from her boots. But more than that, it was her face that was so different. The softness and shine she'd exuded only a couple days before, an image of perfectly maintained and manicured motherhood, was gone. In its place, was a brow lined with worry, guarded grey eyes, prominent frown lines and shoulders weighed with burdens.

Claudia rolled her head and shoulders, keen to shake the look away. If she dug deep into herself, inspected her feelings, she'd see the flickering flame reignited, burning for the past she once had. Consuming the danger, the madness, the exhilaration like air, burning and threatening to devour everything in its path. But Claudia didn't inspect, didn't probe or question; she simply closed the door on the fire, extinguishing the light. And focused on the warm fuzzy feeling in her gut.

"Pretty cool, huh?" Bonnie smirked, strolling over to stand next to Claudia, hands in her denim pockets. Claudia could only nod. Down below, a party raged in full force. Eardrum-shattering techno beats caused the entire room to throb and the balcony to tremble, so loud Claudia felt swallowed by sound. Electric colours bounced throughout the space, reflecting off the mirrors, creating the illusion of a rainbow mosaic, like being cocooned in a disco ball.

"What is this place?" Claudia breathed, heading towards the stairs, bewitched. A beautiful man with coffee coloured skin stood there, holding a tray of glasses filled with golden bubbling liquid. He smiled at Claudia, and she reached out her hand, just about to accept the drink and step down onto the first step, when a hand roughly grabbed her wrist and yanked her back.

"Uh uh," was all Bonnie said, pulling an annoyed Claudia in the opposite direction towards a graffitied door, but not before she had grabbed firmly onto the champagne flute. Claudia tried to pull her wrist away, her mind considering to very childishly just make a run for it to join the party below, but Bonnie tightened her grip. Before Bonnie could realise, Claudia tipped her head backed and sculled the drink, letting the sickly sweet nectar run down her throat. Gin, some vodka, passionfruit syrup maybe, with something else...

Bonnie yanked the door open and pushed Claudia through, not noticing the empty flute Claudia hastily abandoned on the floor. She raked an eye over Claudia and raised an eyebrow, hip jutting out. "Not looking like that."

Claudia opened her mouth in indignation to snap something back, when she glanced at the room, and her jaw dropped. Before her was a professional dressing room, filled with racks and racks of designer outfits and shoes and wigs of every imaginable colour and style.

"Woah," she breathed in awe, twirling slowly to take it all in, her head starting to spin with the room. Bonnie stalked forewords, barely glancing at her, before pulling something off a coat hanger and chucking it at Claudia.

"What's with the frown, grumpty dumpty?" Claudia shouted above the music as she caught the silky fabric with her elbow, and the accessories with both hands. Bonnie glanced at her side on, frown deepening, as she pawed through the nearest rack of clothes.

"Wear that. There is a changing room in the back," was all Bonnie said, motioning with her head towards a thick grey curtain in the corner. Claudia held up the outfit she'd been given: a neat navy dress with empire waist and voluminous bell sleeves, complete with block heels with pearl trim and matching clutch.

She wrinkled her nose and dropped the outfit on the floor. Bonnie looked over at the sound, surprised.

"I thought you'd love that..." Bonnie commented softly, watching Claudia prance over to a rack and start furiously throwing clothes over her shoulder. Claudia held up a bedazzled bra and giggled, flinging it like a slingshot. Bonnie's eyes narrowed, studying Claudia, before she looked back at the door and saw the empty glass. Her eyes widened in surprise and she sucked on her lip in annoyance.

"Of course you did," she muttered, shaking her head, turning back to her own rack of clothes, "you just had to drink the pretty drink, didn't ya Alice?"

"I'm not Alice! My name is Claude," she giggled, the sound pitchy and airy, followed by a burp. She covered her mouth, body shaking with laughter, as she stripped off her top. "Oopsies."

Bonnie didn't even turn around, just headed towards the changing room, still grumbling under her breath. By now, Claudia had stripped down to her bare skin and wiggled into a little dress, pulling her hair into a top knot as the floor shook like a boat in the ocean.

The music was getting louder, matching the ringing in Claudia's ears. Claudia tiptoed towards the door, bumping into various obstacles along the way. She stared down at her hands, relaxing and clenching them.

"Woah..." she whispered, staring at her hands, "they're so soft and big!"

"Claudia!" She heard Bonnie call from behind her, the warning both loud and distant at the same time. Claudia ran forward and out the door, laughing hysterically.

"Can't catch me now meanie!" She hollered, swaying forward towards the staircase. The music increased in intensity, making everything else secondary. After what felt like an eternity, Claudia reached the beautiful man again.

"Why does the giant keep shaking the floor?" She asked him as she grabbed another drink. He just smiled and stepped aside, allowing Claudia to stumble down the iron staircase, sloshing her drink.

Claudia reached the bottom, immersing herself into the buzzing, vibrant crowd, loosing herself in the moment.