That woman—no, that *man* in disguise, her nemesis in satin gloves and fake eyelashes. They had fought for everything: applause, attention, the gold-ringed fingers of rich fools in velvet booths. The very name curled on Giselle’s ghostly tongue like bitter wine. That man—that fraud—had been her competition for nearly a decade. Always twirling in finer silks, always stealing glances from sugar daddies too drunk to care that “The Lady" was no lady at all. Every flirt, every wink, every applause had felt like a dagger between Giselle’s ribs.
So it made sense, didn’t it? That *he* would be the one to slip something in her drink. That *he* would finally outdo her... permanently.
And yet, no one else wept. Not the dancers in their feathers and fake diamonds. Not the barkeep polishing glasses like souls weren’t slipping through the cracks. Not even René, the club owner with a heart made of debts and cigars. He’d only looked at the body once, grunted, and barked orders.
“Put Lady onstage,” he said with all the empathy of a cash register. “She’s on in five.”
Even as The Lady clutched the hem of her sequined corset, begging for mercy, the stagehands dragged her into the wings. The spotlight did not wait for grief.
Giselle shivered—though no cold could touch her now—the club roared with drunken laughter, the clink of glasses, the soft growl of a jazz saxophone. The Master of Ceremony’s sinister voice echoed in her head:
"Three days, darling, to find who ended your curtain call."
She glanced down where her body had fallen and back at Dupree, now center stage beneath the cruel glare of gold. Her sobs had quieted. Her eyes were empty, her makeup smeared.
On her, Lady Dupree:
Shoes: Seydr Pendle Boots, Legacy M [mesh](Engine Room)(750L)
Hat: Grasshopper ST GHS Stovepipe Hat [mesh](Engine Room)(263L)
Veil: Grasshopper ST GHS Wedding Veil [mesh](Engine Room)(300L)
Makeup: Eyecing Georgiana, fatpack [BOM](Engine Room)(75L)
Underwear: NOCHE. Latex Ayo Jockstrap, Legacy [mesh](249L)
Stockings: Violent Seduction Psyche Stockings, Black [BOM]
Makeup: K R E E P Roaring 20s, EvoX [BOM](1L)
Body: TheShops [BODY] Athletic Meshbody (Legacy)(m) (1.7.1) [mesh](5000L)
Set FNY Designs The Night Car Backdrop [mesh](999L)