Lead with Talons

There is a hidden war on the streets of New Orleans between the chickens that run free throughout the wards and the cats that claim those same streets. I wrote this short story as a kind of primer for myself as I consider whether or not to expand the concept into a novella. As a kid I was obsessed with Watership Down and have always dug the idea of writing stories that feature slightly anthropomorphized animals. I set the story in modern times but the characters exist in an epic struggle and their dialogue resembles something that wouldn’t be out of place in high fantasy.

Please read and enjoy.

Painting by: Jacomo Victors 1674

“You must always remember to lead with your talons forward. The enemy will give no quarter.” Naargle spoke with his eyes shut tight. His head moved in its usual rhythmic bob as it always had but these days it seemed to me that it was slower than I recalled. The chicks around him strutted and chattered. I was the only one listening to the old rooster’s words.
“It feels like we will always lose to them, Naargle,” I called back to him.
“Use your gifts and you will prevail and should you ever find yourself surrounded remember your wings will carry you from harms way,” he clucked and left me alone with his final words. It has been a year since that conversation and I have grown into a rooster myself. I am Likak, a guardian for our hens, and I am honored to be chosen for the task. Some of my brothers though stronger are not as astute. Their minds are on food and procreation. I think back on Naargle nearly every day. That was the beginning of my training I discovered and Naargle continued to instruct me and a few others on defense of the flock. Naargle died last winter below the wheels of a black Skreek.
“Koo, I need you to move the hens to the neker rows,” Bik ordered as he strutted towards me. A chill ran down my spine as I thought of the neker rows. The food there was spare and the white stone monoliths and the strange spirits that drifted through that space were terrifying.
“Why?” I asked in return.
“The enemy is on the move and the cats don’t go to the neker rows. The high walls and cold stone will keep them safe,” Bik looked down on me with his eyes below a high rigid neck of orange and brown.
I dropped my head and felt stupid for asking. “I will honor your name at the call to the sun.”
He let his neck relax with my admission of fealty. “Thank you, Koo. Understand, you are my best and bravest man. Most of the young don’t understand that we are at war, that is until they are confronted by our foe and die by their claws.”
“I will protect the flock with my life,” I said with my head still bowed. I thought back to the first time saw the enemy. It was a sleek calico monster and it moved like lightning. It stalked Koo and the other chicks in an empty field between two double shotguns. The women rankled and clucked at the creature’s approach as the beast swatted a chick to the ground and batted at it with its two front paws. “Stop, please,” the hens shrieked.
“I’m only playing,” the creature demurred with the chick pinned under his paw.”You, dear ladies, are the real feast.”
“This is truce ground,” Eela the bigger of the two hens spoke up. “You may only hunt on the uneven path or the black place of pain,” she knew the cats didn’t care about truces where their stomachs were involved as all chickens understood. Their nature was as predator so any truce would be short lived. Koo almost laughed at how naive he had been as a freshly cracked chick.
The calico casually batted a pullet to and fro as she eyed the women. “I think the truce applies to hunting. This is merely entertainment,” she stomped on the chick with here claws extracted. The knife-like claws pierce the chicks wings and it squeals in pain. “I could turn my attentions towards you.”
“Please leave,” Eela tried to project a strong voice but even as a chick I could hear her fear. The first understanding of chickens in this war was the simple edict, cats feed on fear.
If a cat could smile she would’ve. She stared down at the pullet with her piercing green eyes before lifting it with her claws gripped around it and batting it into the solid wood of a fence. The chick landed on the ground and shuttered as its life left its body. The women were in shock as the body twitched its last. While they were in their grief the cat leaped at Eela as it growled. Instantly Eela slashed at the cat with her back claws but the calico already had her claws into Eela’s flesh as they rolled on the ground. The cat’s yowl echoed off the two houses and alerted other cats in the area of a fight. I remembered my heart threatening to beat out of my chest as the other chicks and I could only watch.
That was the first time I had ever seen Naargle. His plume was a majestic contrast of green and red with a vibrant tail. He swept in from the fence that bordered the yard from the uneven path. He led with his claws and caught the cat with his talons along the flank. Blood didn’t immediately come but the calico raised her hackles and hissed at Naargle with her head low and her hindquarters high. I looked up at him with his head held high and his neck rigid. His form was pitch black silhouetted against the sun as he stood before the frazzled predator. “You know the pact!” He bellowed with a voice almost as loud as his call to the sun.
The cat tilted her head towards the ground at looked at him with a sadistic gleam in her eye. “I know you. You scarred Thesaly not a week ago.”
“Aye, and I will do the same to you if you don’t honor the pact.” I chirped without warning which caused Naargle to cast his eye towards me. Despite the sun’s shadow I saw him wink at me.
The calico seemed to take his words as a challenge and batted Naargle across the face with her mitt. He was forced back from the hit and took a moment to correct his stance. He used his wings and rose in the air what seemed like a hundred feet at my young age and slashed the cat’s cheek with one claw and his right shoulder with the other. Blood was flowing from the first wound and the cat kept her distance from the powerful rooster that engaged her. Other cats had at that point gathered at the fence wall at both sides to watch the battle. The calico seemed to feel their eyes on her and tilted her head, “I honor the pact.”
I watched the cats at the wall and saw their leader. He was called Macho a fat tom curled at the center of the clustered cats. The calico saw Macho as she looked around the growing audience. “This isn’t how it appears,” she purred. “I chased a cockrell in from the uneven ground.”
His expression affected the usual boredom that permeated his presence. He spun around twice before laying down on a tangle of branches that laid against the fence. The assembled cats were silent waiting for his words as indeed they would come. Finally after several languid eye blinks he seemed to consider the breach by the calico. “Do you think you can defeat this chicken?”
She was silent for ages while she pondered the question. There were political reasons she should answer no but her pride seemed to negate that thought. “I can kill this creature and feast.”
Macho yawned without looking at her and said, “finish it then,” before curling up with his head faced away from the fray.
The calico turned to the proud cock in front of her. “What is your name?” Naargle asked.
“Sundown,” she purred before asking in return, “Why do you ask?”
“I like to know the names of those I defeat in combat.”
She growled and spat as she launched herself at him. The proud chicken rose in the air just over her and dropped his back claws into her back before landing on the other side of her. She howled in pain and ran across the field launching herself off the fence as she bolted around the yard in frustration before attacking again with her claws extended and her paws reaching out towards him. Naargle pressed forward hitting Sundown in the sternum before gripping her legs with his claws. He tore into her flesh and left yet more wounds as he floated over the top of her. Naargle was two steps ahead of the calico at every turn. He didn’t kill her that day but he proved a point that I have carried with me to this day. We are capable of defying our oppressors despite their insistence that we can not.
I was reminded of the present when I heard a squawk from behind that proved to be a small clan of geckos crossing the uneven path. Some of the women picked at them and one managed to rip a tail free from the geckos as they passed. I walked with the women down the uneven path. My head was on a swivel watching as many angles as I could muster for movement. Cats were our primary nemeses but the region was home to Chicken Hawks as well and they could appear even at night but now as the sun set against the west they were in their element. “Why must we leave now? I am carrying eggs that need to be laid in two suns,” Neeska whined at me from behind.
“Bik ordered it for your safety,” I answered.
Binni chirped in after Neeska, “we were safer in our lot, what do the neker rows offer?”
“Defense, higher ground, and perches the cats are reluctant to claim,” I answered and couldn’t help but roll my eyes at their chatter. They are the treasures of our society but it didn’t help when they questioned every movement. I crossed the black place of pain and watched my ward’s passage. The Skreeks were fast and stealthy appearing suddenly out of nowhere with their glowing white eyes and their roaring groans. It wasn’t them I needed to be worried about. I saw a cat perched on top of a house just above the uneven place. It had pitch black hair with a single swath of white that ran from its forehead back to its shoulders. Across the street there was another cat, a gray and white tabby then I spotted a third that was spotted black and white. “Damn,” I cursed and followed after the women into the black place of pain. The black ground was cracked and mounded towards the center of the strip. Skreeks were lined up dormant to the sides of the black place of pain and I didn’t see their eyes shining anywhere. During the day some eyes didn’t shine but day was rapidly becoming night.
Three of seven hens were still crossing when I saw a shining red Skreek burst down the black place of pain. I called to the sun and shouted for them to fly. Eekor, Kaand, and Fleek screamed as they saw the red Skreek. Fleek flew into the air and touch back on the uneven place but Eekor and Kaand struggled with their movements panicking as they tried to lift off the ground. Eekor lifted off and touched the gray-white surface of the uneven ground but Kaand struggled as a second blue Skreek bared down on her. She was still in the air as the red Skreek passed and dropped back to the black ground but the second startled her as their roars blended with each other and she was clipped on her left side as it passed her. I saw her flutter her good wing but I could see her body was broken beyond repair and as much as it pained me I needed to leave her there. The three cats noticed her and her injuries and my mind told me it was a better strategy to leave her than to see to her comfort. I let out a dirge call from my lungs which was caught by one of my brothers who carried the call on then another and another and another until the air was filled with the song of Kaand’s death.
There was only one more black river between us and the neker rows. I was happy for the short journey but I also dreaded the rows in my heart. I kept my eye on the cats moving from rooftop to rooftop as we moved along the uneven path. I chose not to alarm the hens with talk of the stalking cats. It seemed two had dropped away but I was able to spot them again as we made it to the last black river before the neker rows. It’s tall white walls were mottled with green lichen and open rust red spots where the brick shown through and just beyond the towering mausoleums and statues of Leevers long since dead. The last black river was clogged with Skreeks along the sides slumbering but there was also a long parade of the beasts slowly rolling forward. I watched the rooftops for the cats as we were temporarily trapped by the smelly belching creatures. There was a break in the line but it moved slowly. The hens had fallen out of line and were pecing idly at the ground. Only Fleek was watching me for guidance. “Gather,” I ordered and they turned their heads up to me.
“How will we cross?” Fleek asked.
“There is a break just there and we will need to cross quickly as a flock when it happens.”
“Why should we listen to you? Kaand lost her life to your lead, young Likek,” Eekor sneered at me and her birthmate Kikket joined her in scoffing.
Movement from above showed the black stalker just above Eekor and Kikket. The cat leaped spread eagle with his claws out as he fell on Eekor. I jumped at the beast with my talons forward and my wings flapping wildly against the air. The hens shrieked and ran headlong into the black place of pain. I caught the cat against his cheek and knocked him into the side of a bungalow. The other two cats took the opportunity to snatch Meesh who straggled behind the others. Meesh was squawking and trying to swing with her claws but two were too much for her as the orange tabby clamped his teeth around her neck killing her. “Run now!” I yelled and the hens burst for the black river flapping their wings and crowing as they ran. The Skreeks seemed to be startled by their sudden movement and screeched in response. I headed towards them covering the hens’ escape. The black cat squared off with me. “Cheap shot,” he growled.
“I am sworn to defend my brood,” I yelled at the cat and called to the sun trying to alert other Likek to join me. They crowed back their distance. I was too far away and there were other attacks. This was the cats’ offensive. I cast a quick glance and counted four hens at the wall of the neker rows. The cat jumped at me and swatted my face. Three quick strikes stunned me and I struggled to keep from being pushed into a raging Skreek. The cat’s claws extended and his paw rose for a killing blow. I braced for the strike but instead heard the cry of Fleek as she jumped at the cat. The other two saw the struggle and the gray and white saw an opportunity to have his own meal in Fleek. His tail twitched and he pounced at her.
Fleek wasn’t quick enough to avoid the gray cat and was caught below the creature as it wrapped her in his limbs and bit into her neck. I flew into the air and came down on the black cat catching his neck and slashing through the flesh. His cry told me that it was a killing blow. I called out to the gray cat who was teraing into Fleek who only had seconds before her life would flee. The call was enough to get his attention but not enough for it to release her from his grip. “Take your victory, cockrell while I take mine,” He gleefully gripped Fleek tighter with his claws.
“What is your name?” I asked.
“Claudius,” he tilted his name, “why?”
“I like to know the names of those I defeat,” I said and held my neck rigid and tall as I looked down at the tom cat.
He laughed but released Fleek and padded towards me menacingly. “You have called your last sun, cockrell.”
“I am Koo, proud rooster and Likek of this brood and I will honor your name when next I call the sun, Claudius,” our dialogue ended and he tore into me ferociously. His attack was so quick and so brutal that I had worried for a moment that I had been foolish to challenge him but I managed to kick away after a claw tore across my chest. I flew backwards and realized a black Skreek was moving at me on my left. I managed to fly backwards and landed on the beast’s cold hide. I could see the Leever riding him. They screamed at me from the saddle but I had no time to react before Claudius leaped after me with his hackles raised. I pecked at his face and jumpmed on top of him. He managed to twist away and took another swipe at me. This one narrowly missed my eyes. Once again I flew backwards further onto the Skreeks back as the Leever banged from inside the Skreek.
Claudius slinked out of breath as he chuckled at me. “You are good, I admit but this fight will end with your brood in me and my siblings overstuffed bellies!” He lashed out with and stood on his hind legs as he slashed at me. I brought my wings up in front of my face to block his claws from my face and neck an instant before his claws would have taken my life. Without looking I lifted off one more time with loose feathers trailing me knowing another Skreek was right behind me. I hit its hard skin and nearly skid to the front as I watched Claudius leap after me. He wasn’t as lucky as the Skreek roared forward hitting him in the shoulder and knocking him down to the black river. I looked to the neker rows and saw Fleek weary and wounded but with the other hens of her brood. I shuddered as I heard the cry of Caudius as the Skreek stepped on and through him in its path.
The orange cat was still feasting when I crossed to the uneven path in front of the neker rows. He and I locked eyes he cast his gaze towards his fallen brethren, licked his chops, and returned to his meal.
We crossed into the neker rows and strutted deeper in. Luckily there was feed spread around a chalk white monolith. The food kept the brood from compaining as I sat on a cool white slab resting. A moment later I rose and called out our victory and our defeat. The night quickly swallowed the sky as I continued to honor those who died today both friends and enemies. I heard responses in kind across the land. It was good to hear the calls even in darkness. “Who goes there?” a deep voice called from behind.
The voice startled me so I raised my neck plumage to show strength and size to the interloper. The words came from a pitch black rooster who I had only ever heard in stories. “Gogin,” I whispered. The Gogin were mystics and witches his presence here was an omen but I couldn’t know if it was a good or bad omen.
“Aye, and you are Koo. I have listened to your calls to the sun since you were born. Naargle spoke of you often.”
“I am humbled but I don’t know you,” I said with a bowed head.
“I am Gree and I have a task for you,” the hens sat in stunned silence, only Fleek came in behind me to rest her head against my neck. “It is your destiny to end our war with the cats.”

The End

Sucker Punch

So, for the first time in a while I am posting an original story that I can legally put my name to. This isn’t ghostwritten material it’s a writing exercise using the word “samurai” as a prompt. The story centers around a reality show that presents professional fights with a twist they can happen anytime and anywhere. The only rule is last man standing. It was a lot of fun to write and I hope you enjoy it.

Happy Christmas, Hannukah, Yule, and whatever you may be celebrating at this time of year. Bring on 2021!

FADE IN

Psychedelic multicolored Silhouettes throw punches and kicks as names flash by the background in a polka trash style. Big block letters appear: SUCKER PUNCH!

INT. SUCKER PUNCH STUDIO – NIGHT

Two men in suits, one sporting a rattle snake tattoo on the side of his head the other with a conservative hair cut, smile at the camera behind a shiny black desk. Behind them is a chain link fence in front of a graffitied brick wall with a burnt out busted up neon sign reading Sucker Punch between the two men.

The tattooed man speaks first “I am Gunther Stevens.”

“And I am Mikel Norn welcoming you to the Sucker Punch pre-show,” Mikel switches to another camera view. “Tonight we will see Anthony Briars face off against none other than the Immortal Mark Gentry and it looks like one for the ages. Gunther Stevens has the tale of the tape”

The camera switches to a two shot Gunther chimes in almost immediately, “This season has just been a roller coaster and this fight promises to be exactly what the doctor ordered. I have to say on a personal note I am really digging this kid Anthony Briars. He’s got the makings of a champion and could take it all the way to the final.”

“He is going up against the Mark Gentry and there is a reason they call him Immortal, Gunther.”

“Absolutely, Gentry is no slouch, He was a machine in seasons twelve, thirteen and again in the All Star season fifteen but It has been two years and he ain’t getting any younger.”

“I can see where you’re coming from but Gentry is undefeated in eleven straight fights on Sucker Punch not to mention his formidable MMA record of twenty seven and two by TKO early in his career,” Mikel scoffs then shakes his head. “I just don’t see it going Briars way.”

“It’s a gut feeling, man. I have seen a lot of passion in this young man and I got a feeling he’ll have the upper hand on Gentry.”

“How does it break down, Gunther?” Mikel asks.

The camera shifts to a Gunther’s side. “Tale of the tape would agree with my colleague and by the numbers it appears that Anthony Briars has his work cut out for him. The Immortal Mark Gentry at 37 has a three and a half inch reach advantage as well as thirteen pounds of muscle on the new comer. At six foot four Gentry looks like a beast compared to the more svelte Briars.

“Briars is definitely the underdog but he has one thing that I haven’t seen in a long time, heart. Every since Kraft started sponsoring him in the lower divisions he has been an impressive competitor in a variety of environments from bar, junkyard, basketball court, and even spectacularly in his debut hallway fight in his own tenement building. I just see a lot of style and a lot of heart in this new comer and hope he proves the skeptics wrong.”

Camera cuts again to the two shot as Mikel speaks to the camera, “That would be awesome to see but for now we will take a break to hear from our sponsors. We’ll be right back with Nikki Bing on the street and exclusive footage from one of our dark matches that sadly ended in tragedy. See you in a few,” He smiles and winks at the camera.

The floor director yells, “Okay and we’re out that’s three minutes,” She turns away and moves next to the camera operator.

Gunther calls out, “Can I get some alka seltzer over here?” A production assistant nods and turns to find the prize.

“Briars is your pic, huh?” Mikel said casually.

“No fucking way but Kraft paid me thirty five hundred to puff his ass up on screen.”

Mikel was floored, “God, they must be pushing this kid hard.”

Gunther belches, “Yeah, I don’t see it. That kid is gonna get murdered.”

INT. CLUB – NIGHT

Anthony looks at the beat sheet and shakes his head as he reads it over. He shines his phone flashlight on the page, “Tyler!”

A black haired man with a band t-shirt and jeans approaches at the sound of his name. “What is it Anthony?” He asks.

“Why am I drinking, I’m supposed to fight Gentry tonight. Why the fuck would I get drunk before a fight?” He asks as he shoves the sheet into the producer’s chest crumpled. “I ain’t doing that.”

“Listen, you’re not supposed to know you’re gonna fight. You know the premise, anytime…”

“Yeah yeah, anywhere. I don’t drink, though. I’ve been pretty clear about that, Tyler.”

“Kraft says you drink, so you drink tonight,” Tyler says with a shrug. “They’re merging with Pernod Ricard so your drinking Absolut tonight. Make sure you mention the product name, by the way.”

“Is Kraft in charge of this shoot? I mean I can drink cranberry juice. It’ll look like I’m drinking visually.”

“Kraft isn’t but they are in charge of you,” he throws his hands up, “If it helps at all Gentry is supposed to be drinking in the same club when he happens on you so no advantage but they need you drinking Absolut.”

“Could they at least pick a better liquor?”

“Not my call,” he leans in close to Anthony, “and too be honest you’re on thin ice after that whole anti-capitalism thing at your last fight.”

“What?” Anthony takes a step back. “I plugged a meat coop.”

“Kraft didn’t like it. Drink the vodka,” he says then turns back to the surrounding crew, “Alright bring it in, I need steady cam and boom, now.”

Anthony sits back in the white leather couch that looks pink under the neon. The assistant director a redheaded woman with a variety of pens in her hair appears with an attractive cocoa skinned girl showing a lot of skin, “This is Bianca and she will be your date for tonight.”

Anthony stands up and shakes her hand courteously, “Reality television,” he says with a roll of his eyes.

She laughs and says, “Hi, I’ve been watching your fights. I’m a big fan.”

“Thank you, please have a seat, I hope you like Vodka.” He says as he sits next to her.

EXT. BOURBON STREET – NIGHT

A gorgeous blonde in a silver dress with a microphone in her hand is surrounded by tourists who are all hooting and hollering. Her left hand is held to her ear as she struggles to listen to Mikel in the studio, “Thank you Mikel, it appears to be going down shortly! Behind me is Saints and Sinners the bar once owned by Channing Tatum and rumor has it both The Immortal Mark Gentry has just entered the building and I know Anthony is inside but he is in the upper level. It is possible that may might pass like ships in the night but the smart money finds that unlikely. Either way word on the street is we are in for a hell of a show on Bourbon Street in the French Quarter! How about this crowd!”

The crowd screams as she turns to them and asks them to show Sucker Punch some love. She laughs and shouts with them with her hands up before touching her ear again. “Well I do know that Anthony has had a few drinks, especially after what happened to his teammate in that dark match. I have to say this season is in New Orleans and gators exist here,” she says with a shrug. “Thoughts and prayers to Erma Dalton’s family,” She reaches up to her ear again, “Something is happening inside.”

INT. NIGHT CLUB – NIGHT

Anthony takes down the drink and turns to Bianca. The scene is a pleasant moment between a man and a woman with Anthony’s muscles bulging nicely through the fabric of his shirt and Bianca’s bosom heaving and almost translucent under the neon glow. Anthony feels his stomach knot up as he swallows down the vodka. “Not a fan of vodka?” she says at his reaction.

“No, I love Absolut, just feeling weird about today, the show, just everything,” he says but doesn’t feel convinced himself.

“You ready, Briars!” A loud booming voice comes from the darkness and is silhouetted by red light. The camera pans to him. The tall thick man called the Immortal presses forward. His facial tattoos come into view as the camera light hits him.

Anthony is already on his feet when the camera pivots back to him. He throws the table to the side to give him some space as he widens his stance. “I just come here to drink man, we don’t have to do this now,” the shot of vodka was already coursing through his veins and his head felt foggy.

“You know the rules, anytime, anywhere,” The brute growls as he moves closer to Anthony. Anthony springs forward with a jab that catches Mark but it’s the overhand cross that shows him he means business.

Two camera crews are on the scene, one for each fighter and they maneuver around the fighters carefully as Gentry is knocked back from the punch. Mark spears the younger fighter and they fall over the white leather couch. Mark beats at Anthony’s face with heavy blows but Anthony reaches up pops his ears and shoves his thumbs into the big man’s eyes. Anthony throws him over and stands to get some distance from the massive fighter. “That’s hack shit, man.” Mark says as he sits up.

“Fuck you,” Anthony retorts.

Mark stands up and looks over his opponent who stands ready with his hands up in a boxer’s stance. The cameras are zeroed in on each fighter’s expressions. Crystal clear and gorgeously textured in the Red plus formatted digital cameras.

Mark laughs and moves in to strike back when a big hand grabs him by the throat from behind. The hand is big enough to cover Mark’s muscular neck an elbow comes down hard on the center of Mark’s forehead knocking him back to the ground. The follow up stomp to his face caves in the fighter’s skull.

Anthony’s mouth drops open. “Who?”

The monster that dispatched Mark in a few brief strikes takes off the cloak covering his face, “My name is Karl and I will be your opponent for tonight. He catches Anthony hard under his left eye before knocking him hard in his abdomen with an uppercut. Anthony pushes away and dives through a pair of french doors overlooking Bourbon street. The beast follows after and Anthony clinches Karl around the neck and goes to town on his midsection wit his knees throwing in elbows to Karl’s head. Karl grunts and nails Anthony in the ribs with his big hand breaking a rib. All the air leaves Anthony’s body as he drops the clinch. Karl bats his face with his maul-like hand and Anthony can feel his jaw is dislocated if not outright broken.

The beast above him is about to finish Anthony off when he lifts up, grabbing Karl’s legs and hoisting him up over the balcony. The fall wasn’t huge but the wrought iron fence that borders the clubs patio perforated the interloper along his ribs. Anthony stands up and looks at Karl as he tries to pull himself off the fence.

EXT. BOURBON STREET – NIGHT

The camera shows Nikki’s back as she looks at Karl limply trying to pull himself from the fence. She grabs at her ear and turns quickly back to the camera. “Just wow! It looks like Anthony has survived the fight and will move on to the next round. I have no words, back to you Mikel.”

INT. SUCKER PUNCH STUDIO – NIGHT

Two shot of Gunther and Mikel as they look on with shocked expressions. Mikel shakes his head and says, “In twenty years I have never seen anything like it Gunther what are your thoughts?”

“It is unusual but it has happened before in season five when Frank Leach jumped two fighters in mid-fight eliminating both. The difference there was that Leach was an active fighter in the tournament. This comes out of nowhere and destroys the Immortal and nearly takes out Briars.”

“We’ll get the official call momentarily but as it happens Briars is the winner and will move on to the next tier fighter Thomas Finnegan fourth generation boxer and a favorite to take the whole tournament,” Mikel places a finger to his ear and looks up into the screen shocked. “Finnegan is on the scene!”

INT. CLUB – NIGHT

Tyler makes a circle gesture over his head as he approaches Anthony crumpled on the white sofa, “Alright let’s get the Gentry crew out of here and bring in Finnegan’s crew. Anthony I’m gonna need you to have another drink and try to mention the product.”

“What’s going on?” Anthony asks.

“You’re first fight wasn’t long enough so we moved to the next tier. You’re fighting Finnegan in five minutes. That’s enough time to give you for an intro, yeah?”

“I can’t fight again, I have a broken rib.”

“You now the rules anytime, anywhere. You souldn’t have plugged that Coop I guess, Kraft is really pissed off anyway we’re rolling in five, four,” He gestures three, two, and one before pointing at a dead-eyed Anthony Briars.

The End

Eldorado

It’s been a little while since I posted anything. The quarantine blues had me in their clutches and I didn’t really have much that I felt comfortable posting in the last two months. However this came across my desk and I was pretty proud of it. The client asked for a reverse Harem story where the woman has the harem and it’s set on an oil rig out in the ocean or Gulf of Mexico, I pictured the Gulf of Mexico so that’s pretty much how I wrote it. Any way, here’s some fun hopefully female empowering erotica about a woman taking control of her sexuality. It should be a fun read.

Please enjoy,

They left at dawn. The glow of the rig as the sun rose made it shimmer like a dream. To Melanie Flores it reminded her of Eldorado with the shimmering glow of the rising sun reflected off the water. Smoke rose from the platform that only added to the hazy illusory quality of the place.

Two days before she had a kind of going away party with a few of her girlfriends. Sarah sprung to mind as they got closer to the platform. “You know they’re dirty, right?”

“Yes, of course,” she shook her head as the buzz of the vodka hit her. “They drill for oil. It’s bound to get dirty. I’m just there to make sure everything is up to code.”

“For a month?” She was astounded at the time it took to do a full inspection but Melanie reminded her that there was a long list of things she needed to look over. “With a bunch of sweaty gross men,” she stuck out her tongue at the thought then shrugged. “Actually, come to think of it maybe I should chaperon,” she gotta a dreamy look in her eyes. “Statistically speaking there’s at least one hot guy on there.”

“I’m there for work. It would be a breach of protocol for me to fraternize with the roughnecks.”

“Ooh, roughnecks, you know I was skeptical but I find myself warming to the idea,” Sarah quipped. Seriously when was the last time you got laid?”

Melanie’s mouth fell open and then twisted into a grimace of realization before finally admitting, “It’s been awhile.”

“It shows, Mel.”

“I’m not really looking forward to it. I have to oversee a full rotation so I’m going to be there for longer than most. Except maybe the Rig Manager.”

She landed and saw him as he emerged from a bulkhead door. She’d seen from the file his name was Colin Boucher. He was bigger than she expected. Tall, broad at the shoulders, and his dark brown hair made his deep blue eyes pop against his chiseled face. He looked like he could break her in half. The wind swept up by the blades whipped his hair away from his face as the pilot descended.

“He’ll be there the whole time?” Sarah asked.

“Yes but I don’t even know why we’re talking about this because the plan is to work. Just work,” she put her hand down and accidentally tipped her glass. Sarah’s eyes popped as she reached for the drink but it was too late. The pink liquid inside poured across the bar. When she saw the guilty look on Melanie’s face she erupted in laughter which started Melanie laughing.

She reached out her hand to shake Colin’s, “Melanie Flores, I’ll be supervising the inspection,” she smiled at him and tried very hard not to be taken in by his eyes.

“Colin Boucher,” he shook her hand cordially, “I think you’ll find I run a tight rig,” She could hear his voice clear as a bell despite the helicopter sounds.

She felt a momentary shiver run down her spine as his hand lingered maybe a second longer than was professional. In er head she could hear Sarah’s voice say, “Just work?”

“Absolutely,” she answered the internal question out loud. He cocked his head but seemed to ignore the statement.

An hour later he’d given her a tour of the facility. Melanie was in awe of the place it was like a city on the water with every amenity a person could want. While Melanie was well-versed in all the procedures and functions of everything she passed on the tour it was a different thing to be on one. This was her first. The men worked in twelve hour shifts with two crews total. This was one of the smaller rigs Colin had worked on with only a crew of fifty total.

He introduced her while the men were just sitting down to breakfast. The mess hall was set up like a cafeteria but with small lounge areas set out at the perimeter with television screens for watching whatever was available. It looked more like a college then the rig she was just walking along, “This is Melanie Flores,” she heard catcalls and whistles which raised her hackles instantly. She looked to Colin and expected he would put a stop to it but he kept talking over the whistles, “she will be inspecting the rig and all our procedures. I want you to extend her every courtesy,” he looked to her and saws the ferocious look on her face. “There aren’t any women on the rig and some of these men are at the ed of two weeks without companionship,” he explained.

“They look to you for how they are supposed to behave,” she fumed.

“I should’ve warned you,” he said.

“You should’ve reprimanded them,”

A flash of anger crossed his face, “Did you have anything else you wanted to add?”

“No, short of a striptease I doubt they’d pay attention to anything I say. Show me to my quarters,” she demanded.

“Alright,” she heard the tone of his voice shift and knew she had ruffled his feathers. She wasn’t sorry she was right to voice her frustration.

“I’ll be starting my preliminary work shortly but I would like to organize my objectives before I start.”

He nodded and silently as he led her to her quarters. Once inside she opened her briefcase and set to work. Only an hour in and already she was feeling friction around her. It was going to be a long month, she thought to herself as she looked over her itinerary for the day. As she stepped onto the main deck she saw men hoisted by ropes working high above her. That alone wasn’t unusual but the method he was using was clearly dangerous. “Get that man down!” She yelled as the hanged man started welding a steel plate.

The man below shrugged and shook his head but she was unsatisfied with that reaction. Her dark Latina eyes were flashing rage as she got in the technician’s spotter’s face. “I can’t just get him down, lady,” he barked back.

She shifted her neck ready for a fight. He was just a little taller than her but his bare arms were corded with tight muscles. “I have the power to fire you,” she said with venom.

Colin stepped behind the man and Melanie turned her gaze to him. “That man is not secured properly,” she explained as she stepped around the spotter.

Colin cast a glance up, “That’s Squirrel, he’s fine,” he said curtly.

Melanie seethed, “Do you like your job?” she asked Colin.

He looked at her eyes and tapped the spotter on the shoulder, “Tim, get Squirrel down and take five,” he instructed then looked Melanie dead in the eyes, “My office, now!”

He didn’t wait for a response but instead turned on his heels and walked away. Melanie looked up as Squirrel began his decent. She took a breath to compose herself before following.

His office door was at the top of a series of grated steps. The door hung open for her as she climbed the grating. She entered confidently but startled when he slammed the door with a ferocity she hadn’t yet seen in him. “Don’t you dare emasculate me in front of my men!” he bellowed.

“You’re not doing your job!” Melanie yelled back. Her heart was beating a tattoo against her sternum. He terrified her. His size alone made her feel like a little girl again but she was never one to back down from a man and she wasn’t about to start now.

“You have a problem wit how I do things, that’s fine we can discuss it but we do it privately. On this rig I am the final word and anything else makes my job harder. Men second guess me and men die.” She could feel the passion in his words and her breath caught in her throat. Her cheeks and neck blushed involuntarily and he saw her eyes dilate. He broke away from her and closed the door.

Melanie’s throat was dry but she managed to speak, “I would prefer that stay open,” The words didn’t come with the confidence she wanted.

“Is that what you want?” He asked as he got close to her.

She could smell his musk as he got close. Too close. She couldn’t think with him this close. She looked down at the ground but one strong hand touched her chin and lifted her to look in his eyes. The dreamy quality she felt when she arrived returned. She felt like she couldn’t catch her breath and that words wouldn’t come even if she wanted to say something. Se wanted to tell him to stop but she held his face in her eyes. His deep blue eyes drew her in and she understood suddenly what it felt like to be hypnotized. Her chest was heaving and in those endless seconds she was transfixed.

“Kiss me,” he said and she did. The words rattled in her head like a new law. His lips were softer than she expected and when his tongue pressed against her lips her eyes closed and she let him in.

His desk was behind her and just high enough that she could rest her bottom on it. Their mouths moved in sync and she was lost in a sea of lust. It was like her body was moving on instinct. She felt his hand on the small of her back as the other held the arm that was holding her up. Her legs wrapped around his just under his firm ass. Her one free and rested on his hip as they kept making out on his desk. She let her body fall across the top of his desk. She could feel files and papers on her back but she was past caring.

His pelvis gyrated into her and caused little spasms of pleasure that beat her brain into constant arousal. She broke away long enough to look at him. His eyes still had her in their power. She moved into him and pushed him away to get at his belt. Her hands worked furiously as she got him free and then tore at her panties. She couldn’t get him inside her fast enough. As the head slid into her folds she gasped. She couldn’t remember the last time it felt like that. He started gently and she was momentarily relieved. She hadn’t seen his rod but judging from the entrance it was big. Then without warning he thrust home and her brain exploded into spasms of color and light as her brain struggled to contain all the sensations her body was feeling.

She heard herself screaming in ecstasy but it was like she was hearing someone else’s voice. He moved so intensely into her that he displaced her soul and left her nothing but this carnal beast rutting against his desk as he pounded deeper into her. Their mouths were kissing and his spear was thrusting into her. His face was the picture of control. He knew exactly what he was doing to her body. Fast, slow, fast fast, slow, deeper, deeper, deeper. He ripped her top away and left her heavy chest exposed to the air. It was a welcome sensation as they were starting to feel restrictive and she suddenly wanted him to see all of her.

She was topless with only her skirt bunched around her waist. His shirt was gone and she could see his rippling chest working as he played her body like a fiddle. She felt her emotions ripple through her as she wanted him closer somehow.

He pulled himself away and for a moment she felt confused until his hands hefted her at the waist and flipped her onto her belly.

She lifted her perfect round ass into him as he worked his way back in and again she was howling. It felt like an eternity but her stomach tightened and the her inner walls were squeezing against his manhood. She felt a wave rising in her as he kept on with his rhythm. Her eyes crossed as wave after wave crested into his magnificent organ. The sounds that came from her mouth could almost constitute as a language given the range and variation of sounds.

“Do you want more?” His voice was ragged as he asked.

“Yes,” she hissed as he flipped her again and held her close to him. She let her hands play with his magnificent spear working it back into it’s full rigidity. His hands wrapped around her waist and she lifted him onto her shoulders, pivoted in place and leaned her back against one of his walls knocking down an old centerfold calendar. His tongue darted out into her sex as er hands worked through his dark hair. He circled her bean with his tongue before lapping at the folds. She was still coming down from er orgasm on the desk as another crested in her body. One hand shot up and grabbed some kind of pipe while the other pulled at is hair. He hummed into her body and she could feel it vibrate through her sex and up into her brain.

His tongue flicked, circled, and hummed into her body and she was wracked with orgasms one after the other in succession until her brain was pulverized with pleasure. “Down, down,” she panted and he initially didn’t seem to hear her as he intoned another orgasm in her quaking body. Finally he did lower her into a chair. All but naked and spent. He knelt down and kissed her again. She smiled as they kissed. “I should,” she was out of breath. “I should work,” she finally managed.

“You should,” he agreed and kissed her a final time before standing.

Several distracted minutes later Melanie managed to out her outfit back together in a semblance of professionalism. “That can’t happen again,” she said as she headed for the door.

“I see,” he said as he re-organized the mess on his desk.

She saw the look on his face and felt like she’d insulted him, “No, it was great. Mind blowing really but I need to work and this could be a distraction,” she reiterated as she felt the sudden urge to jump him again. “a major distraction.”

“Got it, no strings, just work,” he said.

“Just work,” she repeated and walked out of his office. It was only as she got to the main deck that she realized they hadn’t discussed the safety violation at all. She looked back at the stairs and decided to address it later.

The day moved slowly. Melanie found herself daydreaming about Colin and his stuffy office. A shiver ran down her spine every time she thought of the orgasms that bombarded her body and cleared away any rational thought. She admonished herself each time her mind drifted back to the encounter. She would straighten up and readdress whatever she was previously occupied by. “Hey,” a voice behind her spoke and she didn’t recognize the speaker. He was a tall lank black man with dark skin and a nice smile that split his wide face.

“Hello?” She reached out her hand to shake hers.

“Name’s Jamal Derby but the guys call me Squirrel around here,” he said as he took her hand.

“Oh, right, you were up on ropes when I first got here,” she recalled out loud.

“Yes ma’am,” he said still with his smile lighting up his face. “I was wondering if you might accompany me for dinner?”

She thought about the offer and her first instinct was to say no but he had warm eyes and the infectious smile that subconsciously made her own smile emerge. She hadn’t seen Colin since their meeting that morning which stung a little more then she wanted to admit. “You know what? I would like that.”

“Right this way,” he ushered her.

“Let me freshen up in my quarters for just a little and I’ll meet you there,” she said with a shake of her head.

“Your terms are acceptable,” he said as they parted ways.

She walked into the mess hall and Squirrel swooped in as she she entered with his elbow cocked out. She giggled at his gesture and put her hand on his arm. “What would you like for dinner evening. Tonight they are serving Chicken Cordon Bleu and salmon fillets or we could go ala carte.”

“I do enjoy salmon but I think I would prefer something light this evening,” she answered as the made there way through the room. She could feel the eyes on her in the room as Squirrel led her to deli section for sandwiches, salads, and soups. She grabbed a quick salad and e a sandwich and a soft drink.

“How has your first day been?” Squirrel asked as they sat at a small circular table.

“Well it was touch and go there for a minute this morning but once I got going it was good,” she answered.

“I saw the Chief lay into you,” he acknowledged.

“Chief?” she questioned.

“Boucher, the Rig Manager, we call him Chief around here,” he explained.

She nodded and was met with a lurid memory of their meeting in his office, “He really laid into me,” she said and saw him across the room. Their eyes met but the look on his face was unreadable.

“He’s a teddy bear once you get to know him,” Squirrel added and took a bite out of his sandwich.

“Are you done for the day?”

“Yes ma’am, the second shift starts after dinner. Everybody eats together its just for some this is breakfast and for others its dinner. You get used to it.”

“I bet,” her eyes were still trying to follow Colin as he moved through the room but she lost track of him as she spoke to Squirrel. “Would you excuse me for just a moment?”

She made her way to where she assumed bathrooms were while also watching for Colin. She gripped the door handle just as he stepped in next to her. “Squirrel,” he said idly.

“Do you mind?” She asked.

“He’s a charmer,” Colin looked over at Squirrel before dropping his gaze back to Melanie. “Are you sure you can handle him?”

“He was just talking to me,” she said defensively.

“Really?”

“Yes,” she bit back. “Not that it’s any of your business.”

“It isn’t, it’s just you talking with Squirrel will get the men wondering,” he let the statement hang in the air.

“What for?” She cursed herself for taking his bait.

“He’s known for his prodigious talents,” He answered.

“Are you jealous?”

“Why would I be jealous? I already had you,” he said matter-of-factly.

Part of her was seething at him but another part felt the same spell that came over her that morning. A flash image of her face down on the desk moaning like a harlot hit her brain like the back draft of a fire. Her face flushed and she covered it with anger. “I’ll be damned if you think you and your men can just trade me around like the village bike,” she pulled at the door and he closed it. She shot him a look with malice in it.

“What I’m saying is that you should feel free to do whatever comes naturally to you,” he explained. His deep blue eyes bored into her, “A month out here is a long time.”

She called is bluff, “No strings attached, remember?”

“I do,” he nodded.

She tried to read his face but she couldn’t find anything. There wasn’t jealousy, mockery, or even anger in his face. The only thing she could feel from him was more akin to a dare. “What would you say if I did sleep with him?”

He shrugged, “My men and I share everything.”

She pulled at the door and expected him to block her again but he just left. Melanie splashed water on her face and looked herself in the mirror. She wouldn’t be traded from one man to the other but even as she worked the thought over in her mind she couldn’t find fault in the idea. Her love life on land had been filled with bad dates and the occasional one night stand. The last real relationship she had was before she got the job with the oil company. For three years she became a workaholic and home body. It was part of the reason she took the assignment. She needed to be shaken from her status quo.

She sat back down with Squirrel, “I thought maybe you had left,” he said as he finished up his meal.

She shook her head, “no, I ran into Colin.”

“Not bad news, I hope?” He said with a smile.

“No, not bad news. I’m just not sure how I want to proceed.”

“Maybe I can help,” he touched her arm and she could feel the warmth of his hand through the fabric.

“I don’t know, it could be risky. There are two ways of doing this job,” she explained as she locked eyes with him. He had such an expressive face, it was beautiful even under the florescent light of the mess hall. She went on, “There is the traditional model which is good, productive, appropriate. On the other hand I could try something unorthodox and maybe come away better in the long run.”

“Without risk there’s no reward,” he said without skipping a beat. “That’s how we get innovation,” again his smile killed her.

Melanie couldn’t help but smile when she looked at him. “What if it doesn’t work? What if it destroys everything?” she asked with concern.

“Oil rig is like its own little world. Get right with Colin and he’ll go the distance for you,” He said with a wave of his hand. “Hey, you want to go for a walk on deck?” he asked.

She was already nodding before she answered, “Yeah, someplace quiet and away from the action would be good.”

“Tricky, there’s always men around but I have a few ideas were we could go that’s quiet. It’s like a harbor,” he explained.

“Perfect,” she said as she stood up.

They walked and talked as they left the mess hall. After a fifteen minute stroll past the next crew setting to work. Bright light blazed against the surface of the deck and made the air feel hotter. Squirrel led her to small circular door in the flooring with a wheel on top. It reminded her of a something out of a submarine. “Is this safe?” She asked as he cranked against the wheel.

“Not completely but this leads to a lower platform closer to the water and without the intense light.”

She nodded as he grunted and torqued the wheel until it gave easily. She caught a glimpse of his wiry pectoral muscles and felt heat in her core. She wasn’t sure what she planned once they got down there but her body definitely had ideas.

The ladder led to a catwalk that zig-zagged between faded girding. Melanie spotted several stairwells leading down. There was still light down here but it was much more subdued and had shadowed corners a plenty. She realized the reason he picked this ladder was because it was in one of those pools. The air below was still hot but a constant breeze snaked through the underbelly of the rig. “Do you like it?” Squirrel asked as he put his arms around her from behind. It was a bold move but it payed off in his favor. She melted into his warmth and relished the heated contact of his body with the cool breeze that whispered across the back of her neck.

“It’s perfect,” Melanie said as she turned to him. Even in the gloom below the rig she could see his eyes gleam. He leaned in and kissed her. She didn’t pull away. All at once she realized what everyone else seemed to already know. She needed this. Colin and now Squirrel, Jamal, she rolled the name over in her mind, Jamal. She preferred it to Squirrel. Her heat was rising and his hands were moving over her body exploring her exposed skin. She followed his lead and found her hands reaching around his waist before sliding down to his toned ass. He smelled like coal and wood fire and his mouth tasted like honey as they made out. Her tongue licked at his lips before darting into his mouth.

His hands found her breasts and squeezed gently as she moaned. She was gushing below and wanted more out of this. The strange sway of the catwalk made her head swoon more and made the movements of his hands seem more gentle or forceful at equal intervals. She cursed herself that she was in jeans instead of the skirt she arrived in.

She felt bold and suddenly brand new as her hands reached into his pants to find his throbbing manhood. It was not a difficult search. She found his thick mushroom just below his belt as her fingered gracefully brushed against his sensitive flesh. He pressed into her in response and for a moment she thought she would fall over the railing but he grabbed her by the back of her head and kissed her hard. His other hand unzipped his fly and let himself free. She called out as e sprang free. And let both her hands stroke at his magnificent organ. “I want you inside,” she gasped.

He responded assertively and instantly. His strong hands unzipped and pushed down the unneeded pants along with her panties. She pushed herself onto the railing so he had a better vantage. He was adept and swift in his execution. He found her willing folds like their sex was magnetized together. There was a moments resistance then he thrust home. She felt herself spasm around him and she cried out.

She thought someone might hear her but the thrum of machinery above and around her drowned out almost all sound. He kept going and moving into even as she felt another orgasm coming. She didn’t remember ever being such a hair trigger but it was like her body was screaming out its need for release. All her libidinous urges swept through her since she touched down like some ancient roman god of lust she felt possessed and couldn’t seem to control herself around men anymore. Minutes stretched into eternity and in the darkness Jamal’s body took on legendary proportions. He wasn’t mortal in her mind’s eye and as he turned her and lined his head up to her ass. She shook her head slightly.

“We’ll go slow,” he growled into her ear. She felt him press into her and she couldn’t deny the pleasure as he pushed against her tiny bud.

Melanie felt him enter and she thought she would burst but instead she howled with lust. Centimeter by centimeter his entered and as she looked across the water through heavily lidded eyes she saw Colin watching as she was bent over the catwalk railing.

Her first instinct was to stop but she didn’t want to stop. She wanted Jamal to go on forever. She found the strength to seek out Colin’s blue eyes and lock onto them. He didn’t flinch but instead watched her. She closed her eyes as she felt each vein of Jamal’s erection pass through her taut rectum. She didn’t believe it was possible but he was inside her and it was heaven. Finally after deliciously slow entry and retreat he poured into her. Jamal fell on top of her for a moment before pulling out. She turned and kissed him.

It was her turn to take charge. She wasn’t finished with him and she wanted to feel in control for once. She pushed him against the railing and stroked him back to full strength as she lowered her eyes to him. For a moment Jamal could see the predator in her. She kissed him one last time before she pull her top from her body, glanced at Colin. He was still there.

“Fuck me,” she said and she climbed up his lank body and impaled herself on him. He held her up easily enough. The catwalk rails acted as the perfect footholds as she rocked into his erection. When she looked up again Colin was gone. She wasn’t sure why but she felt disappointed.

“Let’s go to your room,” Jamal suggested. “I need some water and ten minutes if we’re gonna keep this up.

She smiled and kissed him, “I, should go.”

“You don’t want more?” He cradled her ass.

“I do but I still need to work and I have a feeling if I spent the night with you I wouldn’t be able to walk tomorrow.”

“Damn,” he smiled again, “that’s the nicest way anyone’s ever shot me down.”

“I aim to please,” she kissed him again and rocked against him slowly while they made out.

By the time she got back to her room she was physically exhausted but her mind was on fire with the events of the day. Two different men in one day. It was like a fantasy come to life but when would the other shoe drop. Thoughts of sex filled her mind and cycled until they lost all solvency and became absurd. Minutes later sleep claimed her.

Word spread quickly of Melanie’s romantic liaisons. It wasn’t that anybody said anything explicitly but she could feel the eyes on her as she had her morning coffee and worked trough her day. She didn’t see Squirrel at breakfast but spotted him later. Cheerful as ever he waved to her from high above the rigging.

She grumbled that Jamal still wasn’t secured properly and realized that the problem was never discussed. Her day was packed and this was minor but she was livid that she wasn’t being taken seriously. She was just there as a concubine she surmised from Colin’s actions. She stormed through his office door but found it empty. Still fuming she resolved to find him later.

Her path back down was blocked by a short roughneck with the blondest hair she had ever seen. His skin was deeply tanned from days out on the rig. Despite his height we was stacked with muscle and looked like he could fill in for a He-Man action figure, “Excuse me!” she snapped.

“Sorry ma’am,” he said and tried to get out of her way as best he could. “Is there anything I can help you with?” he asked sincerely.

“I’m looking for the Chief,” she tried to calm herself.

“Yeah, I was just with the Chief. I’ll be heading right back to him,” he explained.

“Thank you,” she said, “That would be helpful,” he finished is business quickly and returned to her.

“I’m Ross,” he said and offered her his hand to shake.

“Hi Ross, sorry I snapped at you,” she acknowledged.

Ross led her past a series of red pumps and a menagerie of meters, tubes, and wires. She heard weird clanking noises from the drill and saw Colin worked with several men pulling thin pipes from the well. Colin was barking orders as the men moved quickly. “Turn it off!” he yelled from the well as he waved his arms to a man in a small booth nearby. The action was frenetic and seamless. Melanie wanted to confront him but her fears seemed small compared to what was happening at the well. She knew enough to know that the drill head was blown and needed to be replaced quickly. This was one of the things she had read about or heard described but never witnessed herself.

The men she spoke to always referred to the crew aboard the rig as a second family. They talked about teamwork and synchronicity and it sounded almost mystical at times. She touched a guardrail with her hand and could feel the hum of machinery through the metal. This was a city on the water. It was a living breathing thing and watching Colin she started to understand his talk of being obeyed without question. Any pause or loss of momentum could result in death at any moment for him and everyone around him. Her rage fizzled as she watched the men work tirelessly. An hour passed and the intensity stayed near the same level. Ross moved around the well himself next to Colin. She saw him put a hand on his shoulder before moving off from the drill.

He stopped in front of her, “Is there something you wanted to discuss?” He asked.

“Safety,” she said with some irritation.

“Squirrel?”

“Yeah, Squirrel,” he looked her in the eye and said, “I’ll get it sorted.”

“Thank you,” she still wanted to tell him off but he had a quiet dominance to him.

“Was there anything else?” He asked. His eyes were working their magic again.

Melanie didn’t say anything for awhile and he moved around her. He didn’t have time to chat, she could already hear him in her head. She yelled to his back as he was about to turn a corner. “Last night!” she yelled.

He stopped and turned to her, “What about last night?”

“Did you like the show?”

He didn’t say anything and instead turned and walked away. The lack of answer was infuriating. What did he want from her? She wracked her brain searching for the answer. The only thing that surfaced was him in the mess hall telling her to do what came naturally. The words echoed like a mantra.

She went back to the monitor station she ended with before she went on her mad search for Colin. Over an hour wasted. She went back to her checklists and diagnostic workbooks. Everything would need to be filled out. The problem was her brain wanted to marry her sudden urges to her desire to get her job done. She couldn’t seem to get both on the same page. Work or pleasure and never the two shall meet.

Time crawled forward. She felt antsy like she needed a cigarette but she hadn’t smoked in years but it was the same kind of dread that rose up in her. The words came again, “do what comes naturally,” She turned and found Ross behind her. “Can I help you?”

“Is it true?” He asked innocently. Maybe it was his height but he seemed younger than Colin and Jamal. Was he younger than her?

“Jamal?” she returned the question. He nodded, “What will you do if the answer is yes?” He shrugged. He looked innocent but there was a hidden edge there. Like he had a secret. “Will you try to seduce me? Ask me to dinner? Come to my room? What will you do Ross?”

“I don’t know.”

“That’s not particularly creative and you look like a very creative man,” she moved towards him like a predatory cat. If she was going to be a party favor she should be in control, she decided. “What would you do to get me?” she was inches from him but he was still.

He reached out his hand and she swatted it away. He took a step back unsure of himself. He screamed country boy and he was thick with muscle. She found herself rooting for him. Finally, he spoke, “What would you like me to do? I mean, what do you like?” He was nervous and she found herself liking it.

“I like sex, Ross,” she said confidently, “work it through, what would you do to get me? Use your words,” she instructed. He probably only ever had one girlfriend but she bet he got lots of play without trying too hard. He was definitely pretty and probably played football in High School. She guessed defense from the muscle.

It was dark. Shift change was coming at any minute. Ross had a short window before the window closed. “Ms.,” he stopped himself and shook his head. The thoughtful look on his face was adorable. “I’ve wanted you ever since I saw you,” he said, “I like that you take what you want and I find that real attractive in a woman.”

The thought entranced her. Ross thought she chose Jamal instead of him coming onto her. What stories these men must tell when she’s not around? She laughed internally but it came out as a smile and Ross relaxed when he saw her smile. “Not bad,” she answered. “Meet me in my room in fifteen minutes,” she ordered and left him there.

Back in her quarters she pulled her sweaty clothes off and stepped into the shower stall. The water didn’t heat very well but after the eat of the long day the room temperature water cooled her skin and washed away the sweat and grime from the day. She worked through the equation in her head. She could be anything she wanted on the rig, it was Eldorado to be sure but what would you do if you had a city made of gold?

She toweled off and heard a knock at her door. Her heart stopped. “Come in,” she said walking out with nothing but a towel wrapped on her head. “Give me just a minute, Ross,” she said as she dried her hair with her towel and dropped it onto her small bed.

“Ross, huh?” Colin’s voice boomed through the room and she raised her head to meet him.

“Just doing what comes natural,” she said. “What do you want?”

“You,” he said as he leaned against her bedroom wall.

“You already had me,” she said bitingly, “no need to be jealous,” she walked to him still glistening from the shower.

He looked her in the eyes. “You get me wrong, I told you I share everything with my men…”

“But you want control,” she finished his statement. “I’m not a resource, a tool, or a pipe casing. I am a woman who knows what she wants.”

“Has so much changed in twenty four hours?” He asked.

She thought about the question. The answer came back, yes. When she arrived she wanted to work and little else but Colin made the move. “You opened this Pandora’s box,” she said as she took his hand and brought it to her glistening labia. “I am my own woman. If you want to have me again you just have to say the magic words.” She moaned enticingly as is fingers explored her outer lips and found the nub of her clitoris.

“What are those?” He tried to kiss her but she moved her head away.

“Please,” she stated. He brooded and bored into her soul with his eyes. “You can’t say it, can you?” A knock came at the door. She turned her eyes to the door and said, “come in.”

Ross entered with his sweet innocent face and saw Colin with his hand moving into her body. “Should I go?” He asked.

“No,” she ordered. “Don’t pay any attention to the Chief,” she smiled at Ross and turned her attention to him. She took Ross by the hand and Colin stayed where he was. She worked at his shirt as they got to the small bed. He looked stunned but seeing her naked body emboldened him to touch her. He kissed her as she brought his shirt down his shoulders. Melanie knelt on the bed and started on his pants. He wasn’t as long as Colin or Jamal but he had girth on his side as his erection materialized. She pulled him onto the bed by his pants and swallowed him whole.

Ross leaned back and steadied himself on his arms as she bobbed her head. His eyes crossed as her tongue swirled around his flesh. She always enjoyed giving blow jobs. There was an inherently dirty quality to the act but on the other side she had him under control. His prized possession was vulnerable, exposed, and it made her feel powerful to feel their will crumble from her skill.

Melanie’s eyes darted over to Colin whose eyes were glued to her performance. She darted her eyes towards her upturned rear then back to Colin. He took a step forward and her expression changed to fiery anger. He stopped and puzzled over the meaning while she slurped and sucked at Ross. “Please,” she heard Colin say and she moaned. Ross was panting as his fingers curled around her hair with one hand while his other tried to keep him upright.

Colin stepped in behind her and she smacked er own ass as he unsheathed. He filled her with his manhood and she felt her stomach flop as he entered. The sudden pressure in her pussy made her gag and she lifted off Ross’s dick with a pop. She grabbed him by the back of his head and pulled him into a kiss as a cock-drunk haze washed over her.

Melanie tilted up as Colin pulsed in her. Ross’s hand groped her heavy breasts while one of her hands stroked him to orgasm. Ross broke away and howled as he came on her chest. She pressed her tongue into his mouth as Colin increased his speed. “Don’t stop,” she panted.

Colin’s head was thrown back as his finished inside her, “Fuck!” he yelled and pulled free.

The sudden absence was almost painful to Melanie. Her dark hair was plastered to her forehead as she broke her kiss with Ross to kiss Colin. They were both panting. As they stared into each other.

Confusion flitted across Ross’s face and he started to move from the bed but was stopped when Melanie grabbed his cock and turned to him. “We’re not finished,” She pulled Ross on top of her while Colin panted just above her head now. “Keep going.”

Ross nodded and move into her. She was warm, wet, and tighter then he had felt in years. She snarled as she pulled him deeper. Her legs wrapped around him and pulled him closer. He cast a milliseconds glance at Colin before sucking on Melanie’s erect nipple. She whimpered softly and looked up at Colin who watched her as Ross fucked her slowly. Se had a blissful glaze across her face as she reached up and caressed his vein with her delicate fingers. She dabbled at the shaft then his balls before wrapping her fingers around his sword.

Ross flipped her legs onto his shoulders and continued with hard thrusts to her vulva as he increased his tempo. His stamina felt limitless as Melanie closed her eyes. She brought Colin’s amazing organ to her mouth and licked the head before pulling him into her mouth. Her hands clutched at Ross’s back and arms as she screwed her neck towards Colin. She felt so full. The knowledge that she was the conductor of this passion play laid out before her stoked her passion further.

Her abdomen tightened and she was forced to release Colin from her ministrations as an orgasm swept over her. Her world melted away like water color and she saw the world fresh and new. Eldorado was hers now and she would bring it with her when she left. Her eyes closed and she saw the men around her as automatons built for her pleasure. In her mind their skin was replaced with chrome and silicon. The heat they generated was electric in nature and made for her. As she clawed the secret name of god in Ross’s back her eyes flashed open and she could only smile and laugh.

There was a sudden sense of liberation that filled her core and she saw all of it flash before her eyes. Sarah would comment on her poise and confidence. The men at the bar would become a candy shop that she could peruse at her leisure. She had heard the term sexual awakening but all she every felt before was disappointment and shame but now she understood she was in control. She had what they wanted and it was hers to dispense. She would make them say, please. The door once opened would never be closed again. Men like Colin saw her as some babe in the woods unaware of her own effect on the men around her. She was always a fighter but it felt as tough she had grown some teeth.

She pushed Ross away from her as she moved off the bed. She kissed Colin on his chest then trailed the kisses towards his neck before finally arriving at his lovely mouth. She felt stoned as she looked at Colin. “It’s time for me to sleep.”

She stepped off the bed and her dumbfounded suitors stayed where they were naked and waiting for orders. She padded to the bathroom naked. Ross turned his head to Colin and opened his mouth but decided to not speak. Colin was stony faced as he stared forward digesting what had just happened. “What happens now?” Colin asked as she emerged from the bathroom.

“Now you two should get dressed, give me a kiss, and I’ll let you know if I require your services tomorrow,” she answered demurely.

Ross went about collecting his clothes as Colin asked, “Services?”

She fell back onto her bed and played with Colin’s penis with her foot, “I’ve decided Ross can stay. He was the one who asked me out. If you want to stay?” She asked Ross. He nodded and she turned her gaze on Colin, “we’ll have fun again but it will be on my terms. No strings attached, no jealousy, and if you can avoid spying on me that would be nice as well.”

Ross stood stock still unsure of how to proceed. He was locked between loyalty to the Chief and his desire to stay with the beautiful woman longer and alone. “I can live with that,” he said as he stepped away from Melanie.

“I’m very glad to hear it,” Melanie said as she bit her lower lip. “It’s going to be a long month.”

Colin left and Ross remained. She beckoned Ross over with a finger and she giggled as he fell onto her kissing her. She pressed his head gently down towards her sex. He gave her another peck and moved to her abdomen. What Ross lacked in experience he made up for with enthusiasm. She started moaning when he was in the right neighborhood and made lower less orchestrated sounds when he was in the wrong locale. Her Pavlovian moans helped direct him into a nice rest from the gymnastics of the past two days. Soon she was rested and ready for more. The rest of the night was a flash of lust and flesh merging. His stamina was incredible but as the dawn peaked through the small window in her wall she fell into a deep sleep. Ross left as she fell asleep but kissed her on the forehead before he left.

Colin approached her the next day and smiled at her, “You are something else,” he said.

“This is a lot easier then trying to jockey fifty different egos while I stay here. You did say you share everything.”

“True but usually I have a say in how I share it.”

“Not this time. Are you going to be okay with this because I would hate to stop fucking you?” She asked as she took his hand.

“I can,” he said and kissed her on the lips.

As they broke away she whispered into Colin’s ear, “Could you do me one little teensy favor?”

“Name it,” he laughed a little. There was a little pang of joy at that small victory over the brooding man’s man.

“Please get Squirrel a fucking harness,” She laughed and kissed him again.

The End

Mumblecore Romance

Now for something completely different. For the first time I was asked to write a romance without vampires or superheroes or weird pig obsessed priests. I am kind of fond of this story, for starters, it’s written from a first-person perspective from the perspective of the two main characters Penelope and Boris. I dug the names. Penelope is a filmmaker who works mostly on commercial productions and Boris is a stagehand and musician. They were really normal and self-aware which is something I do a lot with my characters but for once there were no fistfights, gunfights, or even a hint of murder. I’m glad I finished it but I’m not looking forward to having to continue the saga of Penelope and Boris unless I can add a few more characters to the mix.

Read and enjoy,

Penelope:

After a break-up people look different to you. Some more attractive, some less but the change is in how the equation works. You look at potential partners in terms of time. How long before they leave me. It’s a nihilistic stance and one I rather hate. It comes reflexively when I see them for the first time. It isn’t the game: marry, have sex with, or kill, it’s a cost to benefit ratio. It is exhausting and my job is already exhausting enough, I direct commercials for television, I had made one feature film a million years ago but I never quite got back into that meat grinder, instead I put my effort into something people call work-life balance. Little did I know that the route I took would actually be more time consuming and stressful. I don’t work one commercial at a time, at least not often, there are usually three or four projects rotating at any given time. It was a factor in our demise, but it was just a factor.

I can’t quite remember when it went wrong but there had to be a moment. Roald and I had six years together and there was a struggle with where to go next. He shied away from commitment, never wanted to marry but I did. I wanted to have the party, the ceremony, the fantasy, and all of it. I couldn’t imagine myself with anyone else for the rest of my life. It just never worked, he was too distant and wanted to be secure, or something, his reasoning was always nebulous and vague. The process left me in a weird state. I always found myself looking in the mirror, I definitely got older and I could clearly see the signs of age on my face. He never seemed to care about any of that, always complimented me on my good genetics. Roald laughed at me whenever I got carded at the bar. I was fifteen years past legal age. Good genetics I always said.

Then inexplicably we were strangers. It was like a slow-growing cancer, we rarely saw each other due to work, never talked, and certainly didn’t make love. We were roommates for almost a year when it happened. The argument, the note, and then silence so much history that felt like wasted effort all of a sudden. I didn’t take it well, not at first. I buried myself in work, I was a huge bitch to everybody I worked with. I almost lost my job. I was drinking more and I didn’t speak to any friends or family for months.

I made myself go out at night. It didn’t start right away, there were a lot of lonely nights by myself re-watching the old sitcoms that we would watch together and trying to pinpoint what I could have done to make it all work. I didn’t trust myself, not remotely. He didn’t intentionally damage me, I don’t believe, but the way he was with me re-wired my expectations. I felt like my instincts were flawed and I didn’t know positive from negative, good attention from bad, or passive aggression for establishing boundaries. I felt weak and mistaken more than anything and even as I got ready to go out he still drifted through my thoughts subtly dictating how I applied my make-up. The pattern was always the same, I got tired of it and rejected the notion that I was somehow damaged.

That’s why I had a one night stand. I didn’t set out to sleep with anyone. I had been celibate for almost a year. My toys untouched for months. My sexuality had stalled out. I didn’t even notice. I worked my job, went through my daily routine, watched my favorite shows but gave no thought as to my physical needs. It sneaked up on me like an assassin. I went to the bar that night to watch a local band. I drank, danced, and sang along with the band as they covered classic rock standards.

He was playing on stage and I noticed him. It was impossible not to notice him in all his rock and roll glory. He had a mop of long curly hair on top of his head and he was wearing sunglasses at night. It was a forgivable offense, he was kind of a rock star, at least for tonight, he was. He had wiry muscular arms and was a little thicker in the chest underneath his GnR tank-top. Overall he looked svelte. He wasn’t the singer but he was the lead guitarist and I fantasized about him the way any girl fantasizes about a rock star on stage. It’s always hypothetical and would only happen under the absolute right circumstances. I was sweaty and working on a third gin and tonic when I went out for a cigarette. I didn’t really smoke unless I was drinking and that night I was craving one badly. I stepped out to the patio with my drink and tried to bum a cigarette from the first person I saw. There was a man in front of me with a black Guns and Roses t-shirt that was cut into a makeshift tank-top. He turned and smiled down at me, he was almost a foot taller than me, and he said hello. It only occurred to me at that moment that he was the lead guitarist.

Boris:

We always got a huge crowd at Coop’s on a Friday night so, it was easy money. I mean, I wanted to be a professional musician and we made a decent amount but there were sometimes months between gigs, especially in the winter. Summer it was almost a full-time job. Our band was called The Scalawags and we did about ninety percent covers with maybe a handful of original songs that we only played at certain select venues. Coop’s wasn’t one of those bars. Their stage and sound system were great and we always put on a kick-ass show there.

I saw a girl out in front of the stage and I’m not sure why she caught my eye. Time didn’t slow down or anything but the way she held herself gave her a kind of swagger I didn’t see in many women. I mean, she was hot too but that wasn’t an uncommon thing to see at a show. A single attractive white girl dancing by herself is kind of a dime a dozen but I kept spotting her in the front. She kept checking me out, that much was obvious. She wore glasses and had her t-shirt tied to make it into a bare midriff-like crop top. Her hair was braided into twin ponytails on either side of her head. When she danced they would swing wildly around her.

I had been dating off and on but hadn’t been involved in anything serious and it didn’t really even occur to me to ask her on a date. I was just enjoying watching her dance. I remember having the thought as we started into the intro to You Can’t Always Get What You Want that I wanted t meet her. I just always had this policy, I can’t go look for a girl right off. I know from past mistakes that when a guy my height walks up to you it is almost always intimidating.

We announced our break and I needed some fresh air so I grabbed my beer from the foot of the stage and headed out to the smoking patio. I quit smoking over a year before, but I still enjoyed the atmosphere on the patio. I have discovered over the years that the most interesting people are usually found in the smoking patio. I felt a tap on my shoulder and turned and there she was as if I had summoned her. Her lips cracked into a smile and her laugh lines crinkled. She made me smile.

“I’m Boris,” I said and a reached out my to shake hers. She gladly shook my hand. She smiled again. She made me feel good just from looking at her. She was closer to my age than most of the girls that showed up to see us play.

“Penny, it’s short for Penelope,” She giggled. “Is there any way I could bum a cigarette?”

“Oh, I don’t smoke. I just get really overheated on the stage but I could, hey Chuck,” I tapped the drummer, “Can I get a cig,” he handed it over without a word and I made the transfer, “There you go.”

“Thanks, I don’t really smoke except when I’m drinking,” she explained. She looked lit the cigarette and looked around the patio like she was looking for a friend.

“Are you here by yourself tonight?” I asked.

“I am,” She nodded, “Is it that obvious?” I paused a little too long and she groaned, “I must look fucking desperate.”

“Not at all. You look great actually.” She scrunched her nose at that.

“With a name like Boris you must have some Russian in your background?” She asked.

“Polish and Scandinavian actually, with a little bit of Irish, and you?”

“French and Italian actually,” and after that we were off. We talked through the break. It wasn’t anything too deep, just about my band and what we mutually did for a living. I told her about my work with the stagehand union and she explained that she was a director. After that I went in for another set but I kept an eye on her in the crowd without looking like I was keeping an eye on her. We busted into a Warren Zevon song, Lawyers, Guns, and Money, and she loved it just hooting and dancing. I played to her as she danced at the foot of the stage. I bent down closer to her and she took my sunglasses and put them on. She hit me with a cheeky grin and I headed into the bridge without the glasses. That was the moment I knew I was hooked. I was going to ask her out when the show was over. We finished our set strong and I didn’t see her anywhere and for a moment I had a mini panic attack. My exodus was upended by bar patrons shaking my hand and thanking me for the show. I searched the bar and smoking patio but didn’t spot her anywhere and I was bummed out and then I remembered she still had my sunglasses and I got more bummed out.

Penelope:

There was a coffee shop open until five in the morning a few blocks from the bar and I needed to get a coffee and some quesadillas in me before I headed home. The coffee shop was a grungy little dive with mismatched chairs and ancient tables that had been carved into by several generations of college students that haunted the coffee shop at all hours of the day and night. It was at the front of the line when I realized I still had the Boris’s sunglasses. I smiled to myself and I was about to order when I thought I should return them. I had this quiet wish that maybe he would come back to the coffee shop with me, but I also steeled myself to the idea that he had already hooked up with a groupie.

I rushed back to the bar which had closed by the time I got back. I saw some bartenders cleaning through the window. I felt a little defeated but also a little relieved that I wouldn’t fall into the sinkhole of dealing with a crush. That was the first time my brain had consciously called me out about how I felt. I was shoving it into the back of my brain. It was part of the reason I left as quickly as I did. Those old pro versus con habits were cropping up while I talked to him on the break.

I thought back to the conversation as I milled my way back to the coffee shop. He seemed a little basic but it was more earnest than anything. I hadn’t met anybody who was so optimistic in a while. It was refreshing.

I was lost in thought when I heard his voice. He said, “Hey.”

I waved back and handed him his sunglasses, “I kinda walked off with your sunglasses. Sorry.”

His face lit up when he saw them, “That’s awesome, I wrote them off.”

I looked up at him and felt frozen even though it was a warm summer night. It felt like a moment, like there was significance, and I knew if I chose wrong I would regret it, “Do you want some coffee?” I asked, I stammered really.

“I don’t drink coffee,” he frowned like he would offend me and it made me genuinely laugh.

“They have other things. Would you like to hang out?”

He perked up, “Yes. Ah, let me load gear into the van but I really, really want to, yes.”

It was funny to watch him stumble. His band-mates looked me over and I felt a little exposed. Was I the groupie? Was I being a groupie right now? My drunk paranoia didn’t last long as he broke away from his band and filed in next to me.

Boris:

I felt my face light up when I saw her. I thought she walked off into the night and maybe I would see her again down the road a few weeks or months later but there she was. Leon grumbled next to me, “I’ve seen that look before.”

“What do you mean?”

“Just, don’t get too invested brother. I know you, you go all in, get really intense, and then you get crushed.” He said it with sincerity and he wasn’t entirely wrong. There’s this phrase, he wears his heart on his sleeve, I’m that man and I just dive in with all my cards on the table and it ends up ripping me up. I consider not calling out to her for maybe a second but I hear my voice say hey before I could stop myself.

She invited me out and I thought I almost screwed it up, “Yes. Ah, let me load gear into the van but I really, really want to, yes.” I walk back over and lift a tote bag full of drum gear into the van. I say, “Chuck, Leon, I’m gonna go get coffee with Penny.”

Leon looks her over, turns back to me, and nods, “alright dude just be careful, okay?”

“I’ll call you tomorrow,” I said to Leon and Chuck and then got back to Penny as quick as I can and we take off right away. The walk is short but we start the conversation where we left off. “I’ve been listening to The Ramones again lately.”

“I love the Ramones, that was the soundtrack to my life while I was writing my first feature.”

“Feature?”

“Feature film. I wrote and directed one pretty much right after film school ended.”

“I do remember you mentioned the filmmaking. Do you have a copy?”

She shook her head, “No, it was kind of a pile of steaming shit,” she laughed when she said it.

“I doubt that you’re probably being way too hard on yourself.” I was trying to bolster which was pretty much my go-to move with people in general. I went on saying, “You made a movie and that alone is inspiring. I’ve never done that. I worked as a P.A. On one commercial…”

“Really, that’s what I do, commercials. Lots of them Verizon, Minnesota Tourism, Best Buy, it’s not as creative but it keeps the rent paid and food in my mouth. I love that I made a movie its just my first movie and I was over-confident but I also didn’t control the crew very well and the DP walked all over me.”

“That’s awesome. You’re awesome,” I was totally doing it again. “What was the title of your film?”

“It was called Urban Mosaic, it was a hokey thriller about a psychic who gets stalked by a serial killer…”

“That sounds rad!”

“It does, it sounds great on paper. Our execution wasn’t quite where I wanted it to be and I didn’t have the wherewithal to get it right. It’s still a sore point for me but I have a good career and it’s not like Hollywood is going anywhere.”

“Truth.” and then we were out front of the coffee shop. We stood outside staring at each other for what felt like a long time and then out of the blue she just kissed me. She kissed me. I couldn’t do anything but kiss back.

Penelope:

He was looking down at me with his big brown eyes and I just fell into them. It was like a hypnotic spell. When I say it sneaked up on me like an assassin it’s because it did just that. I was overwhelmed with the desire to be closer to him. I pressed myself so close that I was hoping to enter him on the molecular level and become one person. I couldn’t fathom anything but to keep kissing his soft masculine lips. They were soft and warm and the first lips I kissed since Roald left. The kissing got more intense and suddenly I was just feverish for it. I wanted him. I hadn’t felt like that in literally years. I remembered the beginning with Roald, like three years of this before it even started to taper off. He was getting me hot and he hadn’t even gotten to the touching and caressing. It came. We got a cab and it felt like my mouth was magnetized to his and my hands to his body. I kept brushing my fingers along him and thrilled when I heard him moan.

The clothes were stripped and gone within seconds of getting through the door. We didn’t make it to the bedroom. I pulled him onto the couch on top of me. His left hand had callouses carved into the fingertips. In my mind I imagined him leaving prints on my body pressed in and made permanent by his passion. I kicked my legs around his backside and pulled him into me. It was like liquid fire. Sticky wet heat gaining and gaining as he moved into me. Other mouths worked in perfect rhythm as my tongue and his danced between our mouths and then a thrust would come and I was forced to break away in delight. The moan came out closer to a howl as I felt the tension in my stomach rise. It was building as I knocked him to the floor and got on top. I found him with my hand and impaled myself on him.

It was like time stood still and I felt his hands on my hips as I rocked on him. My eyes rolled back as a cried and screamed. I moved back in to kiss him and he grabbed me by the back and gently rolled me over onto my back. He stayed inside as he performed the maneuver and thrust again. My fingernails were carving the secret name of God in his back as he held himself up on his arms and looked into my eyes.

We fell asleep wrapped together on the floor in front of the couch. A ribbon of sunlight found my eyes in the morning and I panicked for a split second. The whole terrain in front of me wasn’t what I was used to seeing when I opened my eyes in the morning. Memories of the night flooded back into me and I calmed myself but it was an interesting feeling. I laid on the floor with his lank limb draped over me as he spooned me from behind. I could almost see it in my head the slow tracking shot above us over our sleeping form. The light was bright but early enough in the day to keep a sultry quality. I luxuriated in the contrast between the warmth in my core and the coll windy breeze that crawled over my ankle as I laid on the floor in Boris’s embrace.

I don’t hate pleasure. Who does? I just have a hard time accepting pleasure. Large or small I always feel guilty about feeling good. When I do feel good my brain rejects it like an infection. You just get used to being slightly uncomfortable at all times and the absence of discomfort suddenly feels alien.

I was on the floor trying to absorb all the details and commit them to memory so that when it all went to hell I at least had this moment of peace and intimacy. That was just how my brain worked. It’s a transactional apparatus that was always waiting for the bill. I padded around the kitchen and made coffee, eggs, and toast. Boris was still asleep on the floor, but I made a plate for him anyway. It was the smell of coffee that roused him.

“I love the smell of coffee, it’s just too bad it tastes like human suffering.”

Those were the first words out of his mouth and I heard them crystal clear. That didn’t stop me from asking, “What was that?”

He stood on his knees and I eyed up his glorious chest. It was just visible over the couch, “I was just saying I wished coffee tasted better.”

“I love it bitter and black, like my soul.” I raised my coffee mug to him.

He rose from his spot still naked and the light on his body made me feel tingly. There was no self-consciousness as he walked towards me and leaned across from me against the island that separated the kitchen from the living room. “Good morning.” He said and leaned in for a kiss. I wanted to take him all over again but stopped myself I had some things to do at the office and had to leave eventually.

“I made you a plate.” I put it in front of him.

“Oh my God, you are a saint.” He immediately set to his meal sans clothes but again, I wasn’t complaining. Roald was always a little chaste about casual nudity. I think I was a nudist in a previous life. I tried to change his mind on it, he looked fantastic naked but gave up the ghost pretty quick. Roald was always resolute, he would say it and it would be done. It was an admirable trait that could also be infuriating. “What are your plans for the day?” He asked.

I was shaken from my thoughts but still answered, “I have to go into the office for a bit. We’re starting a production Monday and I have a few loose ends to tie up.”

He nodded, “Yeah, cool.”

I didn’t expect to see him again when he finished his breakfast and got dressed we kissed again as I led him to the door. I forgot this part. I liked it but I intellectualized the absurdity of getting involved with the first sexual encounter since a long term monogamous relationship. It seemed foolhardy to want anything else.

Boris:

Whoever called it a walk of shame was out of their mind. I was ecstatic. I walked onto the street and hopped a bus. I couldn’t tell you how long I waited because I didn’t feel the passage of time, just the previous night’s events replayed on a loop in his mind. By the time I walked through the front door the memories had receded enough for me to focus on the inevitable barrage of questions I would get from Leon. Leon didn’t believe in relationships and never stayed with a girl for more than a few weeks. One way or another they always rubbed each other the wrong way and it was done. He never seemed to pine for anyone or really give them a second thought once they were out the door.

“Dude,” he said as I walked past the living room to the stairwell. I stopped and ducked my head into the living room. “We have a rehearsal at seven. Dorothy is going to be there.”

“Dorothy?” I couldn’t place the name.

“She’s that one chick with the mesh shirt and gold bra from the VFW show two weeks ago. She’s a bassist.” The description conjured the image of the girl, she was tall, hot, but she was always lit up when he talked to her, which he was too, but he remembered her grabbing his face and kissing him after a show one night. She bit down on his lip hard enough to draw blood.

“We don’t need a bassist, we have Kirk.”

Leon shook his head, “He’s moving to Colorado with his girlfriend.”

I didn’t have anything to respond with so I just said, “Okay,” and headed back up the stairs.

He followed after, “How did it go with Pippi Longstockings?”

“Penny,” I corrected, “It went really well.”

“What, no details, divulge the deets.”

“Really?”

“It’s been a minute, I’m living vicariously.” I looked at him and he instantly spun on his heel back to the living room. “I knew it!” he came back to the hallway. “You got bit,” he pointed at me.

“Maybe, but, I’ve learned my lesson. I’m gonna play it cool.”

“Dude, you were born with zero chill.”

“I got this. I’m going to be…”

“Cool?”

“Yeah, don’t worry about it.”

“Alright but when you’re head deep in a pitcher of IPA I’m going to remember this conversation.”

“7pm?”

He nodded, “Yup, hot bassist, it’s a game-changer.”

I walked up the stairs, closed my door, and collapsed onto the bed. I wasn’t tired but I was still wading through the memory of the previous night. Every time I closed my eyes I saw her face. She was sweaty and her breathing was ragged from exertion. Her face and chest were speckled with the signs of arousal.

I got up and got myself together and was downstairs early for practice. Dorothy sat on the couch and waved to me as I came in. “Hey,” I said as I headed to the kitchen to get some food in me. I grabbed something from the fridge and came back out. “Where is Leon?” I asked.

“I don’t know. He was here when I got here but then he went outside.”

“He didn’t say anything?” She shook her head. I went out to the porch to see if he was smoking but he was nowhere to be found.

She came outside after me and lit a cigarette as she walked onto the patio. She was wearing leggings and a black Voivod t-shirt someone altered into a crop top. She had recently shaved her head and rubbed her hand against it as she ignored me. I felt like I was being set up. I looked at her again and she smiled.

Penelope:

I couldn’t focus. I was emailing the assistant director and director of photography last-minute changes to the script which were sent by the client that morning. The only reason I saw them was because I came in, otherwise, they would have been sprung on us on set. After that initial anxiety-inducing moment the rest was really just busy work which I should have pawned off on the AD but I wanted her to have her weekend to herself. She was always more of a workaholic than I was. My motivation just wasn’t there once the crisis was over. Every time I was productive for ten minutes I spent the next twenty watching a video on YouTube or responding to a social media post. It was like pulling teeth to get anything done. It was fine because I planned on staying until I finished no matter how much time it took but it was exacerbated when Trevor showed up at the office.

Trevor was a large white-haired man whose resemblance to Santa Claus had been brought up so often that it had become a sore spot for him. He ran the studio and generally he was easy to work with but recently had been grumbling about productivity. It was my day off so in all actuality I could use the time any way I wanted but I always felt a little watched when he showed up.

I looked at him and said hello as I turned my computer back to shot lists and storyboards. I glazed over staring at the same screen for four minutes trying to make sense of what I was looking at. Apparently, Trevor noticed as well because he was suddenly standing behind me and cleared his throat to announce his presence. “Hi,” I said sheepishly.

“Are you doing okay?” He asked.

“Yeah, why do you ask?”

He shrugged and then pointed out, “You’ve been staring at the screen for quite a long time without moving. For a moment I thought you were asleep.”

“I didn’t sleep very well last night,” I admitted.

“Bad night?”

“No, no, quite the opposite, it was great. I met someone.”

“That’s fantastic!”

“It was.”

“When do I get to meet him?” He asked with some enthusiasm. He liked to be involved in his employee’s lives which was simultaneously nice and frustrating because it led to some less than appropriate work conversations at times.

“I don’t think you will. It was kind of a spontaneous thing,”

He flustered, “Oh, well, I’m glad to see you getting back on the horse.”

“Yeah, I mean I wouldn’t want to jump into a rebound,” He didn’t ask, I just included that. My mouth worked against me frequently. It was the curse of my family, we were far too honest for our own good, often with regard to unwarranted criticism or advice. Never a fun time when you tell your boyfriend’s mother her turkey was too dry without being asked. We were not invited to Christmas, or rather I was not invited to Christmas. I wasn’t made aware of that until months later. Roald took the higher road and hid the lack of an invite with a sudden desire to meet my family.

At that very moment my phone rang and none other than Roald appeared on the ID line. My heart was in my throat, “Hello,” I said tentatively.

Boris:

I couldn’t deny that she was good. Kirk showed up and showed her the base lines and the cheats he used with them. For her part she was letting him but I could tell by the look on her face that he wasn’t telling her anything she didn’t already know. “You’re seriously leaving?” I asked Kirk.

“Yeah, I need a change of scenery and she’s gt a good job out there.”

“Does it involve weed?” Chuck asked from behind the drums.

“No, she’s a nurse but there is also legal weed which was a very chink in my armor during the negotiation phase.”

“It’s still a fucking mistake man,” Leon added as the resident cynic, “you guys are gonna last a year maybe especially if you don’t find work, like, right away.”

“What is it with you about relationships, dude?” I asked. I knew the answer but I was getting really tired of hearing it. He had been throwing in little jabs at both Kirk and I and I was about fed up.

“What relationships are bullshit. They always end in fights and hurt feelings. I say screw it, just have sex with women, and forget about all those social stigmas that tell us we’re supposed to be monogamous and only meant for one person. Divorce rate is at an all-time high and the signs are clear marriage is a passe institution designed for marketing purposes.”

“We’re not talking about marriage,” I stood up at that point. “Dating, being with someone is great even if it does end it’s better than being alone.”

“How?” He fired point-blank.

“I like being with someone. I like all of it, even the shitty parts. It’s amazing to share yourself with someone.”

“Not intrinsically, it’s a lie we tell ourselves.”

There was tension between us and it was because he was telling me I couldn’t date the girl I met. I wasn’t allowed because he believed it was a lie and if I went down that path he would not be with me. It was a terrible feeling of loneliness in that moment.

Dorothy had been quiet through the argument and finally she laughed. She smiled at me and at Leon and then she laughed again. “This is gonna be great.”

“What is your take on this?” I asked her.

“I don’t have an opinion on it, I take the world as it comes to me. You two aren’t arguing about whether or not romantic relationships are good or bad. Leon’s jealous of you because you have something he doesn’t,” she pointed to me.

“What’s that?”

“a skill he doesn’t have. He can’t make connections like you do. I mean, I’m kind of the same way but it looks like he’s jealous because he doesn’t have what you have. That’s just my two cents on it though. I could be wrong.”

“That’s it, you’re fired,” Leon said immediately after.

Penelope:

Roald asked if I could meet him and my heart thudded in my chest so loudly that it threatened to burst through the bone. A year’s worth of grief attacked like some horror movie monster and I didn’t feel like I could draw a breath.

“I can’t do this right now,” I said to Roald.

“Have you met someone?”

Boris’s smile flashed into my head but I had to pause. I didn’t know how to answer. So I said, “No, it’s just really confusing.”

“I just want to talk, get some perspective.”

“Are you seeing someone?” I asked.

“No, I’m not. I miss you, please, just coffee. I’m not, um, trying to do anything. There’s no con here.”

I held the phone to my forehead and closed my eyes. If he’d asked this just two months before I would’ve said yes in a heartbeat and at that moment I just hated myself for even considering it. “I can’t,” and I hung up.

Almost as if on cue Boris called. I hit the decline button and headed out of the office. Trevor watched me take off and I should’ve said something but I didn’t know what to tell him. I got in the car and drove home. I didn’t know what I hoped to accomplish there but I couldn’t be in public like this and I was so angry at myself for breaking apart like this off of a phone call from Roald but there was no fighting it. My heart swelled with hurt and my eyes were burning from tears and I just wanted it all to stop.

She laid on the couch and stared at the blank wall for an hour without moving. I was in shock and I couldn’t force myself to do anything but wait until the world stopped spinning.

Somewhere in the storm my brain conjured I closed my eyes and fell asleep. When I opened them again the sun was down and I wasn’t sure what day it was. I could’ve slept through an entire day and it wouldn’t have surprised me.

There was a knock at my door. I answered it and there he was, Boris with his hands behind his back, and his infectious smile plastered across his face. “Hello, Boris.”

“Penny,” He said and pulled a single rose from behind his back.

I almost wept in the moment. “That’s so sweet.”

“Cheesy, I know, and probably bad form coming to your place without calling first but I wanted to talk to you for just a minute. I promise I’ll get out of your hair.”

“Come in Boris,” I said and opened the door.

Boris sat down and git right to the point, “I felt like we clicked last night and I just didn’t want you to think I intended last night as a one night stand. I mean, or maybe you want it to be that and I’m okay with it. I guess what I’m trying to say is that I’m interested and if you are interested too we could see where this goes.”

“No,” I said with a shake of my head. I was completely numb and I didn’t know what else to say in that moment so I added, “I’m sorry.”

He hung his head and for a moment I could see I had hurt him. I was about to say something as consolation but he nodded his head and looked up at me, “It’s cool. I had a feeling that would be your answer,” his smile dimmed a little but it was still there.

Boris:

I wasn’t expecting to see Dorothy but I walked into a bar after Penny shot me down and she was there, Dorothy. She looked great and in her glory. Se ad a guy catting her up and he looked like he was going for the gold from how he leered over her impressive form. I sat down and said, “Hi.”

The look on her face when I sat was priceless, it said, I’m so glad you’re here. She didn’t express any of that, she just said, “Hi.”

There were drinks. It started tame, a beer and a conversation. We talked about rehearsal and the weird tension between Leon and I but then she said, “I think you’re sexy.”

“Thank you,” I answered but I knew what was coming and I felt a pang of regret. I thought maybe I did get too invested too quickly but you have moments in your life where the universe opens up and shows you what’s up. I intellectualized myself into a corner where Dorothy was the destination. The drunk brain does a lot of things in the moment and rationalization is at the top of the list. I was rejected and it physically hurt but I had a new opportunity in front of me and sure it was maybe not the best idea but we did find ourselves in her car making out. She was more aggressive than Penny but it was welcome in my self-loathing.

I couldn’t help but think my neediness brought me to Dorothy who was clearly thirsty. So I let her kiss me and I kissed her. She wasn’t alone in her affection. My sober mind knew she was trouble but my drunk mind just wanted to be consoled so I put my hand against her cheek and pulled her into a kiss. She moved into me and suddenly it was like a battle of wills. My mind conjured the image of Penny and juxtaposed it against the current situation. Like split screen I looked over the evidence. Dorothy knew what she wanted at least by the way her hands pressed against my hips and made the slow migration to my lap. They stayed there for a long time as our lips and tongues worked together. Saliva and sweat made us more wanton. I could smell her arousal and her hands could feel the evidence of my intentions. I felt my pants getting tighter and the desire that was rising clouded the previous night’s adventure for minutes or hours, my brain couldn’t regulate the time.

“Come back to my place,” the words were like music to my ears.

I had my hand on her breast playing with a nipple through her bra. I wanted to say yes but I didn’t. I looked at her lidded eyes and thought of Penny. I saw them together side by side and they both had their glory. Dorothy was brazen and knew what she wanted and Penny was reserved but passionate. Penny had mentioned an ex-boyfriend and it was possible that their night together had stirred something that made her question herself. He was reacting out of rejection and while his body was screaming at him to say yes he knew the answer to her insistence. “Do you want to play with us?” I asked in a moment of clarity.

“Leon fired me…”

“He’s fired me dozens of times.”

“Really?”

“It’s his thing. I can get you back in if you want.”

“I want to but I want this too,” she stretched and laid her palms against my abdomen with the fingertips of her hands against the top of my jeans and let them sink below the waistline tantalizingly close to my manhood.

I groaned but against my inebriated brain took her hands from my pants, “If we play together we shouldn’t do this, it can get complicated really fast.”

She hung back and looked deep in thought, “You really like her, don’t you?”

“I do but this isn’t about that. It’s actually important.”

“I want to play. I’m a musician,” she said like a mantra. “Do you think I’ll work in the band?”

“I do but I’ll admit I was reluctant.”

“You’re a charmer, you are,” she said sarcastically.

“You’re a good musician and I think we would be better with you than without you.”

“Thank you for that.”

“It’s true but tonight I can’t do this. I don’t think it would be good for either of us. I want to but I want you to be in the band more,” I hoped that would offer some consolation.

She leaned back against the glove compartment and rolled down the manual window as she lit a cigarette. She was still on my lap but didn’t seem angry, just contemplative. She blew out a stream of smoke and for the first time in months I wanted a drag off a cigarette. Especially with her plush emotive lips wrapped around the filter. It was filling my head with the images of what I just declined. “You’re a good guy, Boris.”

I felt like a sack of shit but I still asked, “Why would you say that?”

“You let me down in a way that didn’t make me feel like an asshole.”

“I would never want you to feel like an asshole.”

“I get that, thank you, really. You’re very sweet,” she kissed me on the lips which I was more than happy to accommodate. She did look ferociously hot and it took all my willpower to say, no to her.

“I’m not sweet. I just want the band to work, now if we go on tour and make something of this all bets are off but I want to give us the best chance for success. You’re going to launch us and as Leon says. You’re a game-changer.”

“He said that?”

“Yeah, he didn’t tell you?”

She shook her head, “He just said I was auditioning. I didn’t even play a song, how can you be so sure I’ll work?”

“Instinct and I saw you and Kirk working through the base lines. I’d give it two rehearsals to get in rhythm with us but I’ve seen enough musicians to know someone who knows their shit from a wannabe.”

She smiled again, “You know just what to say to a girl don’t you?”

“No. Not even close, I’m just a guitarist and a guy who pushes heavy shit around for a living.”

She laughed a tiny laugh and dropped her finished cigarette through the small gap in the window. “Can I give you a ride home?” she asked with a renewed vigor.

I shook my head, “No, I don’t trust my resolve,” she laughed, “Besides I want to clear my head.”

Penelope:

I tried to blot Boris out of my head but it seemed a futile effort. The look on his face and the feeling that I had made a terrible mistake loomed over my mood and eventually I was exhausted by the effort and slept. What would be so wrong about giving him a try? The word rebound rattled around my head.

I tried to quantify what a rebound was in what was left of my rational mind. The rebound is a state of desperation, it’s the fear of being left alone. A rebound is predicated on the fear of death, there is little else to it. Boris and I did click but the fear of dying alone felt like it was shading my decision. Roald called and in his weird way put that fear in perspective. Did I want to get back together with him? The answer was no but the answer was also yes. There is no way to get out of a long-term relationship without the fear that you will never find another to fill those shoes. He was a chapter of my life. It was a chapter filled with loving moments and deep satisfaction but it was also filled with conflict and stress. It was a yin and yang that typifies all relationships so the question remains, what if I was wrong? Can I fix it? Can it be something better? All these questions swirled around in my head for months after he left and now they were swirling around again.

Boris got under my skin in a way I never encountered before. He was an honest soul and couldn’t hide any of his intentions. He committed a sin when he showed up at my door but I couldn’t really blame him. I hadn’t responded and the natural inclination of our time is that it indicates a lack of interest but that wasn’t the case. Had he called before Roald I may not have declined an invite to pursue a relationship past that initial one night stand but the stigma was already attached. Boris was made temporary by my dismissal of the rebound. I did want him. At that moment alone in my apartment I remembered his arms around me as we woke up. It was a wonderful place to exist and if I could dwell in one moment for all time that moment would certainly top the list.

I felt broken all of a sudden. All of the strides I had made to become something new and I turned away the one thing that could possibly have been my absolution. I wanted to call him and I did look at my phone but he hadn’t sent anything since he came over. I was suddenly sad and I wanted to call or text but I didn’t. I held off. Instead I did the thing I should not have done. I called Roald.

He was sleeping. I could tell from the sleepy voice when he answered, “Hello.”

“Okay,” I said without preamble.

“Penny?” He asked.

“Yeah.”

“Oh, hey,” I heard movement on the other side of the phone. “I was asleep. What’s up?”

“I was thinking about our conversation earlier and I would like to meet up.”

“Yeah, okay, what are you doing tomorrow?”

“Nothing.”

“Meet me at the coffee shop on Pleasant at two, if that’s good for you?”

“Coffee shop on Pleasant,” He grunted to the affirmative. “Two o’clock, I’ll meet you there.”

“Okay, sweet dreams, love,” he said and hung up the phone.

It was dark and still in my bedroom. My eyes were re-adjusting to the gloom after I turned off my phone and set it on the end table next to my bed. I couldn’t sleep so I got up and went to the fridge. I brought my phone into the kitchen with me and watched it as I reheated my left-overs. I kept hoping that Boris would text or call but the phone refused to ring.

I got dressed and got out of the house. There was no use in hanging around the apartment. I needed fresh air and a change of scenery. I got in the car and initially didn’t know where I wanted to go but I found myself in front of the coffee shop where she first kissed Boris. The thought brought a smile to her face and she decided it was where she should go after all she never did get her quesadillas the previous evening.

Boris:

I passed by the coffee shop, we stopped at the night before wallowing in my own mental funk. It was a sobering feeling of inadequacy never mind that I had the tongue of a gorgeous woman probing my mouth not quite thirty minutes before. It didn’t quite fit the bill though. It was that wanting that killed me every time.

I stammered when I saw her and I expected her to be angry. Odd that it was my first reaction. “Hi,” I said.

She said, “Hi.”

The room was busy, people at the counter, and the shuffling sounds of customer service and idle chit-chat all around him but all he could see was her. Her glasses slid partially down her nose. She pushed them up and smiled as I drifted to her. I sat down half expecting her to run away. Again, the negative reaction was the first place my mind went and it was distressing me. I don’t feel uncomfortable often. I had gotten used to being the eternal odd-ball and in fact relished my otherness.

“I promise not to run.”

“Can you read minds,” I said with a laugh.

“Yeah, kinda, no. It was written all over your face.”

I nodded, “I have that tendency.”

“I’m sorry about before…”
“It’s okay…”

“He called. My ex-boyfriend called me at work today and it made me panic. I like you Boris. I would like to like you more I just need to take it slowly. In a lot of ways I still feel like a woman out of time. While I was with Roald the world just moved around me and I didn’t really notice until we were done and now I don’t trust myself.”

“I get that and I do not want to create more pressure, it’s just that when I feel something as strongly as I did with you. I have to pay attention to that.”
“I do not begrudge you that instinct by any account but the timing just made me feel under the gun.”

“Do you want to get back together with him?”

“That is the million-dollar question isn’t it?” She paused for a second and I wanted to say something but I felt like I should hold off. “Part of me wants to get back with him,” she looked like she was looking for the right words, “part of me wants to go down this rabbit hole with you.”

“You feel stuck.”

She nodded, “Very.”

“I know I can be intense,” I started in with my confession. “When I fall, I fall deep, and as much as I tell myself this time is going to be different I fall just as hard. I’m going to try and give you the time and the space to do whatever it is you need to do.”

“I appreciate that.”

I bought a coffee and we continued talking for another hour. When she realized how late it was she asked if I wanted a ride. I steeled myself to the previous answer and said no but instead walked her to her car.

Penelope:

Let me start by saying I wasn’t going to kiss him. It was how it worked out. I don’t feel like I’ve been in control so much as being drawn by the current. I left the coffee shop with Boris and he walked me to my car. There was electricity in the air and we had both just aired everything out I felt better than I had all day, the confusion was gone and it felt as though there was a massive weight lifted from my shoulders. Boris was such a gentleman and very considerate about my needs and by the time we got to the car parked two blocks from the coffee shop I was just giddy. Sure it was quarter to four in the morning but I was free in a way that I hadn’t been when I left the house.

I did have a passing thought for Roald and the proposed meeting. He was going to try and come back to me. He was going to try and mend fences and get back to what we had before. I was over it, for the first time in my active memory since the break-up I was actively ad completely over it. I didn’t have to commit to Boris forever. I just had to commit to the moment and that was something that I hadn’t been allowing myself to do. I was prepping for a six-year relationship in the first forty-eight hours. I was putting the cart before the horse when it came to me that I could just enjoy this man moment to moment I was overwhelmed with desire.

This was what was in my mind as he explained the musical artistry of Lou Reed. Personally I am a huge fan of Lou Reed but I didn’t hear a single word Boris had said. One moment he was explaining something about Take a Walk on the Wild Side and the next I was making out with him on the sidewalk next to my car. Two nights in a row I found myself with this man kissing on the street.

I am not a fan of public displays of affection and the fact that it happened two nights in a row and I initiated it both times seemed strangely significant. I pulled his head down to mine. I was physically aggressive about my need. His sentence whatever it was was stuffed into his mouth with my kiss. To his credit he switched gears with smooth poise. He picked me up and sat me on the hood of my car as he continued kissing me. My arms wrapped around his neck and my legs around his waist. I could feel his pelvis grinding into me. I broke away and looked him square in the eyes and said, “Come home with me.”

He did and we made it to the bed this time. I felt overclocked my the physical stimulation coupled with the emotional freedom I was feeling kept me heightened throughout the entire process. He was changing his rhythm periodically but it was like he was reading my mind. I would moan and he reciprocated by holding and then slowly pulling away and continue luxuriously at that speed. When I started panting he would speed up and power into me. I felt my eyes literally cross just before I erupted onto his pelvis. I felt like every negative emotion I was yet harboring had been dumped there in that explosive moment.

I wasn’t finished with him we maneuvered and shifted and at some point I went to the restroom and when I returned I saw sunlight streaming into my room and his gorgeous rod looking up at me. I laughed when I saw it cast a shadow against his leg and said, “Look, it’s a sundial.”

He cackled and sat up into a kiss as I moved to the bed. His hand on the small of my back pulling me closer. He gently bit my lower lip as he broke away. “Don’t you need sleep?”

I looked at the beautiful sunny day out and thought about it for just a moment before I went to find my phone. He asked what I was doing and I said, “I need the AD’s phone number. I’m taking today off.” I smiled at him as I picked up my phone and moved to the living room. I texted her as I opened my fridge to find something to eat or drink. I was dizzy with excitement and I quite literally felt like staying in bed and doing just this until we both passed out and then some more later today. All of which would require caloric intake.

He came to the kitchen to join me and grabbed my breast from behind as he pulled me closer. I tilted my head back and he kissed me before asking, “What are you looking for?”

“Sustenance,” I turned to him and wrapped my hand delicately around his length. “We’re gonna need it with all this exercise.” I stroked him and he groaned before pulling me into another kiss. I kicked the refrigerator door closed and leaned against it as his hands moved into my folds. Now it was my turn to moan.

We didn’t make it into the bedroom again for some time.

Roald:

Penelope was the love of y life and it took until she was gone to realize what I had lost. Few things fit together so well that for years it was effortless. I got wrapped up in my own head and started thinking of all the things I was missing out on. That feeling soon became resentment and that resentment made me run away. After it was over I didn’t run to other women, not right away at any rate and while there were a few they never lasted as long or worked quite as well as my time with Penny. I never put much stock in the idea of soulmates but it was a phrase that ad been recurring recently. That and the dreams. She was showing up frequently and it was messing me up.

I was getting worried. The previous night’s phone call and then for her to not answer my calls. I went to the coffee shop and didn’t see her anywhere. My initial thought was that I had gotten there before her but after a half-hour I decided I should call. The phone went straight to voice mail and I was not panicked so much as concerned. It wasn’t like Penny to not answer her phone.

I got to her apartment and knocked on the door and she answered. She was wearing a robe, her hair was disheveled and her eyes were lidded as if she had just woken up, “Roald.”

“We were going to meet for coffee, I got worried.”

“I have company over,” she said as she stepped outside into the hallway.

“I’m sorry, it’s just not like you to go missing like this.” She looked me over with that familiar look. It was the look that said I have said something wrong. She was wearing that look the moment I spoke but she was fully awake.

“I’m not missing Roald.”

“A call would’ve been nice is all I’m saying.”

“Hold on, I don’t hear from you for a year. All of a sudden you call out of the blue mind you and I’m sorry something came up but you’ve got no right to come to my house.”

“I was worried about you.”

“That is a privilege you lost a year ago.”

“I’m not the bad guy here. I have been working on myself and thinking about the mistakes I had made and the things that I regret but I am here now.”

There was a long silence between us. This wasn’t going the way I intended but she hadn’t run yet. She was still talking to me. “I love you,” I blurted.

Her face softened, “I love you too,” She took my hand and looked me in the eyes, “you hurt me very badly and I don’t have any answers for you right now.”

“That’s valid,” I could feel my face frown as I was trying to get the right words out. “I’ve made mistakes and there is nothing I can do to change that but I want the opportunity to try.”

She paused and I drew the small package from my pocket, “Do not tell me that is what I think it is.”

I opened the box and the ring inside was a simple silver band with a small diamond at the center. It was understated and beautiful, like Penny. “I know I hurt you but I am done hurting you Penny and I promise that my every waking moment will be to make up the hurt I caused you and to make you love me again.”

 

Ninja Lady

This story is what happens when you give me the prompt “female ninja” and then show me an Urban Fantasy novel to try and emulate. It was fun to write but almost zero sex. There is definitely a budding romance between the female lead and Koko, the cam-girl and stripper who befriends her at an ex-pat hostel. Overall fun to write, but I nearly had a nervous break-down when I thought I had to kill Koko. Anyway, read and enjoy.

Bishop

1

She held the hilt and scabbard of her ninja-to in front of her as she crouched before the statue of Buddha. Kumiko was short, but she was wiry with taut muscles and had her long black hair braided. The long tail hung to her waist. Her outfit was a black ninja-yoroi, but she wasn’t wearing a mask or cowl. She scanned the treeline and could feel the creature’s eyes on her as she waited for him to strike. She saw movement to her right, but kept her gaze steady, if she reacted too quickly she could be caught off guard, she thought better to wait for a decisive attack. It was a waiting game. She never had patience growing up in the States, but since her parents died she didn’t have much of a choice. She needed to use clear thought and clear action to see through to her goal, which she reaffirmed daily. Find the demon that killed her parents and destroy it. It was not an easy path. She left home. Traveled to Japan without knowing the language or even how she would accomplish her mission. Her only resources were her memories of her father and his lessons. She meditated daily and kept a picture of them both in a locket around her neck. She hated that it was a cliche, but the locket kept her focused and reminded her of her goal.

A pale face appeared at the treeline. It looked like a woman in the woods, but the darkness was so deep she couldn’t make out a body. It could be her demon, but it could just be her mind playing tricks on her. Her brain wanted visual stimulation so it may have created it in the form of a hallucination. The face hovered in the air it seemed. It wasn’t a hallucination. Another face appeared to her right, then another to her left. Still she waited. The demon wants her to act first. It was toying with her. In one swift motion all three of the faces flew at her and it was time for her to strike. When the ghostly faces got close enough her sword flashed from her scabbard in a smooth arc that caught all three heads. For a moment the hovered motionless then red fluid bloomed from the site of her cut and the faces split apart in two, the lower half from the upper half and let out a piercing shriek. Kumiko backed against the statue behind her and saw the bisected faces attached to one amorphous creature the bloomed from the treeline. Its body was a collection of blue, purple, and black blobs of ichor. It flowed from the trees and coalesced in front of her in a bulbous humanoid form. “You can not survive mortal.” Its voice was a warbled chorus of a thousand voices screeching at once. The sound of it speaking was already making her ears ring.

It lashed out at her with its arm, but Kumiko jumped over the limb and flipped in the air. She landed on the creatures right and slashed at its flank, causing a small geyser of blood to erupt spraying the ground. “Where is Nanimonai?” She yelled to the demon.

The demon didn’t answer but looked at her. It formed a face that looked more like a collection of tumors than anything human formed its mouth into a gory smile. “You will die as your father died, screaming for mercy!” It shrieked as it lashed out again with six psuedopods that sprouted from the side of its body. The black-purple tentacles grabbed her at her arms and legs and lifted her high off the ground. She quickly slashed down at the tentacles with her ninja-to. The blade cut through three before she was dropped to the ground. She focused on the center of the monster’s body and slashed as she flew at its body. She moved, jumped, flipped, and slashed as he moved against its thousand appendages that were sprouting almost as quickly as she could cut them. Finally, she moved towards the center. Her sword slashed an X into its body. Blood plumed from the cut as she thrust her sword into the demon’s heart. Its screeches made her ears bleed. She held the blade as she pushed with gritted teeth until the blade finally struck the heart of the creature. She was covered head to toe with the gore that pulsed from the wound. The force of the deluge knocked her against the statue.

She coughed and retched on the ground. She pulled herself and spit the offal from her mouth. She held her ninja-to at the ready. “Where is Nanimonai?”

It sputtered and spoke out of its chest. “Tokyo!” it screamed and the sound dropped Kumiko to her knees.

The search leading to the fight took its toll on her. Her body was pushed to its limits. Her body was shaking as she git on her feet. She used her sword in its scabbard as a crutch to get herself upright. Once she was on her feet she moved uneasily towards the east, towards Tokyo.

* * *

Hina stood on her balcony smoking a cigarette. She stared dispassionately at the man in her apartment. He reminded her of everything she hated about Tokyo. He was an attractive, well to do professional, in a stylish t-shirt and jacket. Physically there was nothing wrong with him, but she wanted to go in a different direction. Her feelings were born from a desire to be something more outrageous. She felt she was basic. A young girl, just barely past her twenty-second birthday and she was already bored with her life. She wanted to be a monster, a beast, a demon. Instead she was a shop-girl who rarely went out and never went on dates. When Kenta asked her out at the shop she wanted to say no, but she heard her mother’s voice worried that she’ll never meet a nice boy and settle down. She wasn’t sure what it meant to settle down when she never did anything out of the ordinary. She didn’t really do anything, except smoke cigarettes and read books on magic and witches. She had symbols all over her apartment inviting demons into her soul. She didn’t actively believe in any of it, but her life as a shop girl was making her sick. On his face Kenta was perfect and that made him somehow more awful to her. Her mother would love him. She smoked her cigarette slowly and played with a butterfly knife she left on the balcony if she took long enough maybe he would get bored and leave.

As she snuffed out her cigarette she watched a cloud of smoke rise from the ashtray. The smoke formed a face and as she saw it she only thought it was a neat coincidence that it looked like an oni mask. She smiled at the shape expecting it to dissipate but was startled when it spoke, “Hina,” it said.

“What?” She looked at the face astonished. She thought she should go inside, but this was something she had been waiting to see all her life. Real magick manifesting in front of her. She poked towards the smoke and her finger drifted through exactly as you would expect, “amazing.” She muttered.

“He is boring.”

She nodded and tilted her head in confusion. “How is this possible?”

“I am Kami, Hina.” He said with a smile.

“What do you want?”

“I think the more important question is, what do you want?” The Kami asked.

What do I want? She thought to herself. She had wanted something like this to happen since she was a child but it’s happening here and now. She wanted so many things to be more attractive, to have more money, to travel more. Where did she possibly start? “I don’t know.”

“Well perhaps we start with Kenta?” he suggested. “I can make him someone else. I can make him someone more interesting, someone more dangerous.”

“Like what?”

“Watch,” the smoke said with a mischievous glint in the black orbs that appeared in place of eyes. The face turned to Kenta who sat on her couch looking at his mobile phone oblivious to her or the strange spirit balcony. His body seized and he fell back against the couch whimpering and groaning as his body warped and changed. His skin changed and became darker in color. His hair grew around his head and his features became smoother, softer. He sat up from the couch a different person. Before he was a Japanese man, now he was a Latina woman and she was staring down at her manicured fingernails and running her hands through her long smooth hair.

“Turn him back!” She demanded.

“Really? Nothing there, no interest?” He asked seductively.

Hina looked at her. She was a gorgeous woman with a large chest and long smooth legs. Even his clothes changed, she was dressed in a short skirt and a halter top revealing her generous cleavage. Hina was utterly stunned, “Can you change him back.”

“I can, but why would I?”

“He…” She stammered and looked at the face, “Where did he go?”

“He’s gone, snapped out of existence, She doesn’t even remember being him.” Hina watched as the voluptuous woman checked her phone and took a selfie as she sat on the couch.

“Can you change her into something else?”

“Yes.” He said with a smile.

The changes came again and this time the Hispanic girl leaned forward bracing herself against the coffee table as her skin lightened and her chest shrank. Her hair stayed the same color, but dirty blonde roots at the part revealed it was obviously dyed. Her face shifted into a chiseled jaw and five o’clock shadow. The clothes became a black metal band t-shirt and leather pants. She was a man again, but now a white man with large muscular arms and piercing blue eyes. Hina shook her head, she felt fear rising up from the pit of her stomach. She ran into the apartment away from the face made from smoke.

“Hey, you ready to go?” The former boring Asian man turned curvy Latin girl, turned rock and roll white guy said with a smile.

“Yeah,” She nodded her head and grabbed his arm as they left her apartment. “Can we stay at your place tonight?” She asked as they moved into the hallway.

He grinned, “I think we can arrange that.” He let his hand drift to the small of her back.

Hina swore she could hear the devilish face laughing from the street many floors below. Did he kill the man who asked her out? Is this new person at her side a murderer? She had too many questions swirling in her head. She thought of the Kami’s words, someone more dangerous and looked at the newly minted man next to her and felt the fear growing in her heart.

* * *

Kumiko saw her father and mother across the dinner table. Her mother was standing by the sink pouring a glass of water. Her mother was a Sudanese beauty with jet black skin. Kumiko’s father smiled and asked, “How was school?” Her father was a Japanese man with a strong handsome face with an infectious smile.

“Same as it is every day, awful.” Kumiko groaned.

“School isn’t supposed to be fun. It’s about knowledge and instruction for life.” Her mother said as she sat down at the table.

“It should be some fun,” She protested.

“Save the fun for the dojo,” Her father added. “speaking of I got some new focus pads so I figure we can work on some boxing tonight.”

She nodded, “Sounds great.”

She heard the door explode at the front of the house. Her father sprang from his seat and her mother ran quickly after him yelling his name. Kumiko was stunned and frozen in place, but she made herself go see what the commotion was about. She saw a giant wearing black onyx samurai armor. Her father looked at her as he blocked the giant’s sword strike. “Run!”

Kumiko jumped as she woke on the train. She rubbed her face and looked out the window. Countryside sped by outside as her father and mother’s faces lingered in her sleepy mind. She leaned back in her seat and tried to meditate on what her father taught her about fighting demons. “I will find you Nanimonai.” She said to herself.

2

Kenta was gone and in his place was Den. Den took Hina dancing and he said pretty things into her ear all night. She was almost constantly blushing from the attention he gave her. She found herself at his place in the middle of the night. His soft lips pressed against her neck and she swooned as she touched his muscular chest. He moved to her mouth and she returned the kiss passionately. Her body was heating up as their kissing intensified. Suddenly, he broke off from the kiss. He shook his head and put a hand to his temple. “Are you alright?” She asked.

Den made a choking sound. His head jolted back as his neck twisted and contorted. Hina screamed and rose from the couch. Den’s shoulders and arms joined in the twisting and soon his entire body was racked with shifting bone and muscle. She backed against the wall as bone spikes shot through his flesh. His formerly piercing blue eyes changed to a vile red color as he lowered his head. His teeth became sharp and he opened his mouth to scream. His head split at the jaw into a massive shark-like maw. She jumped over the couch an instant befor it slashed at the couch with newly formed claws. The couch was shredded as Hina pulled herself up and blasted out the door.

Hina made it to the elevator and desperately pushed the button. The doors opened as Den turned his apartment door into splinters. The elevator opened and Hina moved inside, crying as she punched at the first-floor button. The doors closed as the monster bashed at the door. She moved to the back of the elevator and slid down to the floor. She wrapped her arms around her legs and rocked in place.

She stood outside her apartment door praying that the Kami had gone. She unlocked the door and took a deep breath before opening it. The Kami was no longer only a smoke face, it had a body now, its long limbs and lank body stood in the middle of the room. It looked over its own body as it realized Hina had entered. “How was your date?” he asked with a devious smile.

“What do you want?” She asked.

“Nothing much, just your soul,” He said.

* * *

Kumiko stood on the sidewalk considering her first move. Looking for a lead was always the hardest part of her mission. Tokyo was the location, but to find a demon in a city she would need to wait for something to happen. Her father always told her that demons reveal themselves pathologically. “They are made up of ego and hatred. It is in that nature that they can not help, but reveal themselves.” He said as they stood in their kendo sticks outstretched. She could hear the click-clack noises in her mind. Some days she still woke to that sound, like a song that got stuck in her head

“How long do you have to wait?” She asked.

He attacked with a yell. She moved her stick to defend, but he was too quick and caught her on the top of the helmet. He took off his helmet and said, “As long as it takes.”

She walked through the city getting a feel for the rhythm of the city. Tokyo moved like a vast living organism. People flowed like blood through its circulatory system. Cars, trucks, and bicycles reminded her of neurons and the buildings its limbs. She let her mind wander and walked through the crowds of people with her mind open to the universe around her. That’s when she found herself in front of a hostel.

“Welcome to Miki House.” A young Japanese girl said as Kumiko entered. The place reminded her of a dive bar she went to before she left the US. Kumiko scanned the room quickly trying to absorb as many details as possible. There were three entrance points that she could see from her vantage, plus the simple wooden door behind her. Four access points, exit, office, bathroom, and a stairwell to the sleeping area. There were little tchotchkes stuck in every nook and cranny of the place. A small bar was directly behind the girl. She saw two tourists, a man, and a woman, both were young, both blonde but looked older than Kumiko. The Japanese girl in front of her girl dressed in a simple blouse, jeans, and pink tennis shoes. Nothing hidden on her except a bottle opened stuck in her back pocket. The tourists were dressed simply t-shirt, jeans, and a light jacket. They both had beers in front of them and seemed to be deep in conversation.

“Hello, I’m Kumiko,” Kumiko said with a smile as she stepped up to the counter.

The girl gave a little bow and said, “I am Aiko, how may I help you?”

“I would like a bed, do you have private rooms?”

She looked over the small laptop in front of her, “Yes, we have two available.”

“I’ll take one, please.” She said as she pulled her wallet.

Aiko set everything up and gave her a little key card. Kumiko was still in a strange dazed headspace so she deposited her things in the room and checked the window. Only two stories above the ground and no fire escape. Survivable if she needed a quick exit. There was a single bed and a small desk decorated with more pop culture tchotchkes. Kumiko set her pack down and laid in the bed for a moment. She had no intention to sleep, but it claimed her regardless. When she woke it was dark outside. She sat up rubbing her eyes. She grumbled to herself and made her way downstairs to wake herself up.

Kumiko sat at the bar, “I would like a beer.”

Aiko was still behind the bar. She nodded at Kumiko and filled her order quickly. The tourists were gone, but in their place was a young black girl decked out in a teal bikini top with a matching miniskirt, and a little pink waistcoat. She also wore fuzzy teal boots and her little pink cat backpack set next to her on the bar. “Hello.” she waved cheerily at Kumiko as she settled in.

“Hi.” She said back.

“I’m Koko Jones, It’s a pleasure to meet you.” She stuck her fist out.

“I’m Kumiko, but my friends always called me Kay back home.”

“Where is that?” Koko asked as she sipped on what looked to be some plum wine.

“Honolulu and you?”

“Boston.” She nodded.

“I love your outfit,” Kumiko commented.

“Thank you, I kind of toned it down today, feeling casual.”

Kumiko nodded and thought, that’s toned down. “Alright. What brings you to Tokyo Koko?”

“Oh my god isn’t it obvious,” she motioned to her outfit, “I’m getting my little weeaboo fix.”

“I’m just getting back to my roots.” Kumiko offered, “My father was from Japan, but he died before we got a chance to come together.”

“I’m so sorry.” She patted Kumiko.

She shook her head, “It’s okay, they’re still with me.” She clutched the locket hanging at her chest.

“May I?” Koko asked. Kumiko nodded and Koko scooched closer. Kumiko could smell her perfume, gummy bears, and she felt little butterflies flutter in her stomach.

“Your mother is gorgeous,” Koko said as she looked up at Kumiko’s face. She felt her cheeks blush. She’d never had this reaction to a girl before and it made her feel awkward, a sensation she wasn’t used to. The only similarity between Koko and her mother was that Koko’s skin was almost as dark as her mother’s, but where her mother was tall and statuesque, Koko was short and voluptuous. Koko looked adorably soft and at that thought Kumiko blushed again. “Was she from Africa?”

Kumiko nodded, “She was from Sudan but emigrated just before high school, That’s where they met. He grew up in Hawaii and had only been to Japan once.”

“What? That’s crazy.”

She nodded emphatically, “I know, but most of his family moved to Hawaii in the 50s. They were trying to get away from some kind of family curse.” Why was she telling Koko everything? She felt comfortable with the girl.

“You have great genetics. You should be a model,” She suggested.

“No, I couldn’t, I have a thing I do,” She stammered.

“I mean it, you’re gorgeous and your skin is like flawless.”

“You should model,” Kumiko suggested.

“I do, I mean, I’ve got a huge Instagram following and I’m a Cam-girl and a stripper, but that’s totally modeling.” She grabbed her little backpack. “Say, do you want to go dancing?” She suggested.

“I’m not really dressed for it.”

“So what? Come on,” She tugged at Kumiko’s sleeve. “We’re in Tokyo for God’s sake.”

Kumiko let herself slide off the stool and follow Koko. Hunting demons can wait, she thought to herself as they left the hostel.

* * *

Hina’s hands shook as she washed her face in her tiny bathroom. The mirror revealed her puffy tired eyes. “What’s wrong Hina, this is what you wanted.” She heard his voice from the bathroom. She stepped out and looked at the creature.

“I won’t give you my soul,” She said with as much conviction as she could muster.

“Then give me other souls,” He laid across her couch with his arms crossed behind his head.

“What do you mean?” She sat on the floor and tried not to look at the Kami. There was a smell in the room, like rotting meat. Flies buzzed around the creature’s body.

“I’m not finished, my body is in flux and without souls I rot as I’m sure you’ve noticed by the scrunching of your nose.” He sat up and leaned towards her. His lank body was tall enough to bridge the gap between them. The smell was overwhelming with his face inches from hers. “Everyone has wishes they want fulfilled.”

“Kenta died.”

He retreated back to his lounging position, “yes, but you didn’t like him anyway.”

She thought of Aiko, her friend once upon a time. They had a fight and hadn’t spoken in days. Aiko told her parents she was smoking and it enraged Hina. Aiko always seemed to think she was better than Hina and she was always undermining Hina’s efforts to rebel. She could sacrifice Aiko. She nodded her head. “Okay.” She said quietly. She looked at the spirit, he smiled but said nothing.

Hina texted, “I’m sorry.” to Aiko on her way out, she knew she would be working at the Miki House. Hina planned what she would say as she walked. She only needed to get her to make a wish, just one, and the Kami would have her.

Aiko saw Hina enter but she didn’t immediately acknowledge her. Hina bowed to her friend and said, “I’m sorry. I was angry but you didn’t deserve the things I said.”

Aiko regarded her friend and said, “Thank you for the apology. I’m working overnight tonight but we can discuss it tomorrow.”

“Could we talk now. It seems slow here.”

Aiko nodded, “It is tonight, but there will be people coming back in a while from their activities.”

“I promise I will leave when they start arriving.”

Aiko nodded and waved her to the bar. “Do you want anything?”

“May I have some water?” She asked.

Aiko gave her a bottle and they sat across from each other at the bar. “I’ve missed you.” She said quietly.

“I missed you too. I really am sorry for the things I said. I don’t care for how my mother conveys her frustration. She can be very cold.”

“I understand that,” Aiko said. They talked about what they had been doing in the past few days and Hina talked about her date but left out the part where he became a murderous demon. She was having second thoughts about sacrificing her friend when she spotted a fly near her hand. She could hear his laugh in her head. She winced at the sound, “Are you alright?” She asked.

“Do you have a secret wish?” Hina asked in response.

Aiko regarded the question and Hina felt a lump form in her throat. “A secret wish?” She asked herself, “I wish I was more like you.” Hina forced herself to smile even though she heard his laugh grow louder in her head. The flies multiplied they buzzed around the bar behind Aiko crawling on the bottles and the knickknacks.

Aiko noticed the flies as well and stood from her seat tow swat them away, but then she grabbed at her stomach and felt her face flush with heat. The mirror behind the bar showed the skin on her face undulating as though the flies were crawling just below the surface. She screamed as her face twisted and became the spitting image of Hina. Her hair grew to Hina’s length and acquired the same blue streak. Her septum was now pierced and she wasn’t having a hard time thinking. She knew her name was Hina, no that wasn’t right. Her name was Hina. No, it was something else, but she couldn’t remember the name. It was on the tip of her tongue. She looked back at her friend whose face was filled with terror. They were twins now, but not twins they were the same person. There couldn’t be two Hina’s. She felt a need in her heart. There could be only one and it was her. She was the true Hina. She looked at the small pairing knife behind the bar and saw the imposter on the other side of the bar.

Her hand gripped the knife with one hand as she grabbed Hina by the back of the neck with her other hand. Hina pulled away and the former Aiko climbed over the bar after her with the knife in her hand a look of murderous rage on her face. “Please Stop,” Hina said as she backed away.

Aiko-Hina shook her head, “I have to kill you.”

The door opened and two blonde tourists walked in and dropped their packages when they saw the twins. Aiko-Hina ran at the couple with the knife.

3

Koko took Kumiko on a mad run through the city. Kumiko swam in oceans of neon and club lighting. They blasted through arcades and danced as Koko took her by the hand. It was the first time she laughed since her parents died. She hadn’t thought of anything but training and fighting. The night reminded her of the importance of taking a break. Even though she felt guilty she knew Koko was helping her release a pressure valve she wasn’t aware she had.

It was nearing two in the morning when Koko brought her to a brightly lit diner. They shared a burger, fries, and a shake between the two of them though Koko drank most of the milkshake herself. Kumiko seldom drank so the inebriation was catching up to her quickly. The greasy food was working its magic when she leaned over to Koko and said, “Thank you.”

“Don’t mention it. You looked super high strung when I met you. I can tell when a girl needs a night out,” Koko explained.

“Tonight has been amazing.”

“Don’t mention it,” she said with a wave of her well-manicured hand.

“It’s good to finally have a friend. I got so wrapped up in my work that I didn’t even realize how high my stress level was.”

Koko stuffed some fries in her mouth before asking, “What is it you do?”

“It’s complicated,” she waved her hands in exasperation. “You could say it’s the family business.”

“Oh, now I’m really intrigued,” Koko said with a raised eyebrow.

“I can’t, You wouldn’t believe me anyway,” Kumiko’s head was spinning from the alcohol.

“Kay, seriously, just spit it out. I’m a stripper. Nothing you say will shock or surprise me.”

She looked her new friend in the eyes. Her father told her to always keep their work secret but he did tell her mother. A confidant could be helpful. Now she was looking at Koko and the way she smiled with her whole face. “Okay,” She said as she nodded. “It’s going to sound crazy but I need you to keep an open mind.”

“Mind opened and my ass will follow,” she crossed her heart.

“I hunt demons,” She said as soberly as she could, but the smile on Koko’s face was infectious and she couldn’t help but smile as she said it. “Specifically the demon who killed my father.”

She cocked her head and was waiting for the punchline. “Are you messing with me?”

“Nope, I’m a demon hunter. I was taught by my father.”

She rolled what she heard around in her head then pointed at the girl across from her. “Kay, you are bat-shit crazy,” she stood from the table and headed for the door.

Kumiko was stunned and got up to follow her before she realized they hadn’t paid for the meal yet. She quickly pulled bills from her pocket and dropped them on the table as she ran out. “Koko!” She yelled as she ran up next to her. “I warned you. I told you it would sound crazy.”

“The crazy part is you gotta make up a story though. Why are you gonna do me like that?”

“It’s not a story. I can prove it. I have a ninja-to and a ninja-yoroi in my room.”

“Oh, you’re a ninja now, well that proves it.” She said sarcastically.

The argument carried them to the hostel. As they walked to the door Koko was silent Kumiko couldn’t read her thoughts, but she had a feeling her friend was trying to figure out what Kumiko was hiding.

Kumiko felt the hair on the back of her neck prick up, “Wait,” She said, “something is wrong.”

She didn’t look at her she just raised her hand and said, “Kay.”

Kumiko grabbed her arm and put herself in between the door and Koko. Koko protested but Kumiko was already opening the door. Inside there was a trail of blood leading from a few feet into the door to the stairs leading up to the sleeping rooms. “We need to call the police,” Koko whispered, but Kumiko put her finger to her lips.

“Where is Aiko?” Kumiko asked and Koko shrugged, “The auditor.”

“I don’t know, we should get out of here and call the police.”

“No, wait. This is what I do.” She looked at Koko and despite the alcohol still working its way through her system she had a look of confidence and poise that made Koko listen.

Kumiko crept across the floor with her head low and her eyes focused on the trail. Koko said, “I’m going to stay down here.”

Kumiko shook her head, “It’s best to stay together. Ever seen a horror movie where separating the party worked for anybody.”

She nodded her acknowledgment and followed Kumiko up the darkened stairwell. The first sleeping room held seven bunks set against the wall. To her right a Japanese girl was weeping. She saw Kumiko and Koko and shook her head. “Get out,” she whispered. There was a wet smacking sound coming from the next room. The girl covered her head.

“Stay with her,” Kumiko said to Koko. She had a look that said, you’re crazy. “I’m just going to look on the other side of that door.”

She nodded and went over to the cowering Japanese girl. Kumiko continued on her path. She pressed the pads of her fingertips gently against the door and pushed. She dropped low against the door and looked inside. There was the silhouette of a girl sitting upright on top of someone. She raised a small fruit knife in her hand high and brought it down with force then heard the door open and turned to the sound. Kumiko was hidden in the shadow of the door. The girl with knife stood up and walked over to the door and flicked a switch. The lights flared to life and she saw the same girl who was crying in the previous room looking down at her. Kumiko rose and struck her at the same time. She dropped the girl in one punch and called the others over.

“What happened?” Kumiko asked as she stood over the girl’s prone body.

“I, she’s my sister,” Hina quickly answered. “She went crazy and killed everyone.

With the lights now on Koko could see bodies in many of the bunks against the wall, “Oh my God!” She yelled in shock.

“Who are you?”

“I’m Hina.” She kept her eyes on Aiko-Hina’s body.

“I’m calling the police. This isn’t a demon, just a crazy girl gone on a killing spree,” Koko said.

“Looks like it.”

“No, no, no, no.” Hina pointed at her friend on the floor.

Kumiko turned and the girl was rising from the ground her limbs twisted and warped as she stood. Koko’s eyes went wide and she screamed. Kumiko looked at the girl transforming in front of her eyes. She calmly picked up the paring knife from the floor and held it upside down with the blade on the pinky side of her hand. Aiko-Hina grew to nearly three meters tall, Bone-y spikes jutted from its back and shoulders, and its jaw split into a toothy gape as she lashed out at Kumiko. Kumiko somersaulted in the air over the strike and ran at the creature slashing at its flank with the small blade and using the monster’s knee as a spring-board to jump in the air and bring the fruit knife into the side of its neck. She nearly stabbed herself on one of the monster’s spike, but reflexively jumped away. At her back. Kumiko looked to Koko and said, “close the door and get downstairs,” she ordered.

Kumiko slashed at the back of the creature’s knees as she crossed to her room door. The beast ran after Kumiko, but Kumiko was already inside her room and had her hands on her sword before Aiko-Hina bashed through her door.

Kumiko wasn’t able to unwrap it before it started clawing at her. She blocked the first two strikes but was caught along her stomach. Had she not rolled with the strike it would have disemboweled her. The room was too small to effectively fight. She used her sheathed sword to block its strikes as she tucked her chin into her chest and threw herself through the closed window. She caught a wicked slash as glass cut her arms and the back of her neck. She managed to roll to a standing position as she waited for the creature to dive at her. She saw it look out the window and it looked like it would jump, but it abruptly disappeared from the window. “Koko,” she said to herself and ran to the front as quickly as she could. She felt warm sticky liquid down her back and realized she had been cut badly. The blood was pouring worse because of the alcohol in her system. She burst through the front door and saw Koko screaming in the center of the room with the Japanese girl. The creature made it to the bottom of the stairwell. Its bulk made it difficult to get through the doorway giving Koko a precious few seconds. “Koko!” Kumiko yelled.

Kumiko burst forward drawing her ninja-to from its sheath. She kept the sheath in her off-hand. She cut the creature as it destroyed the wall around the doorway. It grabbed her by the throat, but her sword cut the hand free from the arm. The beast cried out and dropped to its knees. Kumiko beheaded the creature and fell back against the floor.

* * *

Hina ran home as fast as her legs would carry her. She slammed the door as she got inside and dropped with her back against the door as she cried. “That was good,” the Kami’s mocking voice drifted to her from the balcony.

“Why do they become monsters?” She asked.

“Without a soul they become empty vessels waiting to be filled.” He walked in from the balcony and looked at her on the floor in front of the door. His body was still tall and lank, but his skin looked healthy and the smell of rotting meat was replaced with a floral bouquet that filled the room.

“Filled by what?”

“Oni, demons,” He said as he walked towards her with his arms behind his back.

“Do you have enough now?” she asked, but cast her eyes to the floor, she didn’t want to look at him.

“Look at me Hina,” he ordered.

She did and his form changed from the gangly-looking creature to a handsome older man in a tailored business suit. “Just give me what I want and I will leave your life.”

“I don’t want to be a monster.” Her mind flashed back to Den’s transformation and the to Aiko-Hina’s and it sent a shiver down her spine.

He nodded, “It is a terrifying visage, but I had nothing to do with their transformations,” He knelt on one knee next to her. “You have bad energy following you. It sticks to you and latches on to those around you.”

“I don’t know what you mean.” She looked at him.

“Look around your home. You have these names and scripts hung all over your house. You have been literally inviting evil into your home.” She looked at the Ofuda hung all over her walls. She didn’t know what most of them meant, it was true, she just thought they looked interesting. She liked the idea of Kotodama and loved all the ancient meanings and the strange creatures, but her knowledge was superficial. She knew many of them were malevolent which was largely by design. She wanted to be malevolent but never had the heart to go through with it in practice.

“Are you evil?” Hina asked.

He chuckled to himself, “I am a nature spirit. I am not defined by these kinds of moral signifiers. I eat souls, by nature, as a lion eats a zebra, by nature.” his face looked almost compassionate.

“Why my soul?”

He tilted his head with curiosity, “I could tell you, but you’re not ready to hear the answer yet.”

“I was almost killed if it wasn’t for that girl I would have died.” She said and stood up. She was still terrified of the spirit in her house, but her stomach was screaming out for food. She pulled some food from her small refrigerator and ate it next to the counter while she watched the spirit. He didn’t move or say a word while she ate. She considered the Kami’s request, she asked for evil, she asked to be a beast but was unwilling to go as far as she needed.

“What girl?” He finally asked.

“Her name was Kumiko. She knew how to fight the Oni.”

“Do you have a wish, yet?”

She shook her head, “No.”

“Then I will need another.”

“Why, you look well.”

“I have heard rumor of a demon hunter stalking Oni and Kami alike, she makes no distinction. If you have met her she may follow you here and I will have to defend myself.”

She considered it as she digested her food. Her neighbor was often petty, but he had a crush on her, which was a horrible combination in a neighbor. She couldn’t believe she was considering sacrificing a third soul, but Aiko was a true friend and she had it in her to sacrifice her to the Kami. What was her neighbor to her? She already felt corrupted and the Kami’s words were starting to make more sense each time they spoke. “I know someone.” She said as she took her last bite of rice.

The Kami smiled wickedly at Hina.

4

Koko was the first thing she saw when she opened her eyes. “Hi,” she croaked. She was still on the floor.

Koko had a concerned look on her face. “Hey,” she responded. “that’s a hell of a way to prove me wrong.”

“Where is the girl?”

“She ran when you killed her sister.”

“I don’t think that was her sister.” She dabbed at the back of her neck and saw blood on her fingers. She tried to sit up, but her head spun and she felt her stomach churn. The combination of drunk, fighting, and blood loss caught up with her. “I’m gonna be sick.” She said and tried to dash for the bathroom. She found another body stabbed to death in the bathroom and just couldn’t hold it in anymore. She threw up on the floor in front of her. “We need to leave this place,” she said as she emerged from the restroom.

“Okay.” Koko nodded. “Where will we go?”

“We need to find that girl, Hina,” Kumiko said.

“Why?”

Kumiko explained her suspicion that Hina’s twin was actually an exact copy of Hina. “The clothing, the jewelry, everything was exactly the same,” She explained. She went on to explain something her father called doppelgangers and how usually it was a demonic dog whistle.

“Okay, how do we find one girl in this city? Tokyo is a pretty huge,” Koko looked over the bar and thought about grabbing a drink. She shrugged to herself, at this point she was already embroiled in some next-level supernatural stuff so why not indulge in a shot before they figured out their next step.

“I don’t know, but this will be impossible to explain to police and there will be spirits coming, a kind of magical cleaning crew. We shouldn’t be here when they arrive.” They collected their things quickly. “What are you doing?”

“One for the road,” Koko said as she poured herself a healthy shot of tequila. “Just need a chaser,” She looked over the bar and saw a cellphone sitting next to a bottle of plum wine. “What do we have here?” She picked up the phone and slid her finger across the screen. The first thing she saw was a text from Hina that read, “I’m sorry.” Koko smiled as she took the shot. “I got her phone number!” She yelled as she tossed the phone to Kumiko.

“That’s amazing!” She said as she wrapped a bar towel around her neck wound and another around her arm. “We can hopefully track it to her apartment.” She grabbed her phone and synced the two phones together. “I have an app for this,” she grinned as she set up the call.

Kumiko dialed Hina’s number and it didn’t pick up. Frustrated Kumiko tried again, this time she picked up, “Hello,” she answered.

Kumiko spoke, “We got your number from Aiko.”

There was a pause, “you should be careful.”

“Say again,” Kumiko answered.

“I know what you are,” she said and hung up.

Kumiko considered the girl’s response, “I know what you are,” she said to the hung up phone. “Are you finished?” She asked Koko.

She nodded as she held an empty third shot, “yeah. Let’s go,” She smiled at Kumiko.

* * *

“She knows,” she said to the Kami behind her.

“The hunter?” Kami asked as she put her phone down. She nodded, “well, it was inevitable. Tell me more about this neighbor.” He said with a gluttonous tone.

She paused to consider her approach. “He is obnoxious. I don’t care for him much, but he is attracted to me.” She moved to her bedroom and changed clothes, something that flattered her body. She knew she was attractive, but she always had trouble dressing to enhance her features. She tried to think of what she had seen on social media. After some thought she decided on a ripped band t-shirt with a push-up bra, some tight pants, and heavy eyeliner. She looked like a different person when she was done and she had to admit to herself she liked the look. The sheer absurdity of sacrificing her friends and neighbors made the look resonate for her. She wasn’t quite the same girl she was when she met the Kami. She felt freer, more uninhibited. The monsters terrified her, but she survived those encounters. Perhaps with time she could become like the demon hunter and learn to fight. The idea of being a kind of demon queen warmed her to her core. She realized as she stared at the vampish woman in the mirror that she didn’t care if the Kami out there was good or evil, she wanted into this new world she discovered. “It’s time,” she said with a seductive smile.

The Kami clasped his hands together with joy.

Hina knocked at Fumihiro’s door. “What?” He asked from behind the door.

“It’s Hina,” she said and followed with, “your neighbor,” clumsily. Her palms were sweating worse than they were for Aiko. She felt the sudden rush of what she was doing. She knew no matter how the Kami tried to calm her that something strange and terrifying would likely happen soon.

He opened the door and said, “Hina?” He looked her over and she couldn’t quite read the look on his face. “Is something wrong?” He asked as he stuck his head out and looked down at either end of the corridor to see if trouble was coming.

“No,” She pouted, “I’m just a bit lonely tonight. My date stood me up.” She brought her arms together in front of her as she bowed her head. The way her arms were positioned was intended to emphasize her cleavage, but Hina wasn’t sure what effect it was having.

He looked her over then opened the door and sort of half stepped out of the apartment. “Are you alright?” He had a concerned look on his face, “Did someone exploit you?”

“No, nothing like that, I just don’t want to be alone right now. You’ve always been so kind to me, I just thought we could talk.”

“It is very late.” He looked at his watch.

“What were you doing up this late?” she asked with a knowing smile.

He stammered, “Nothing, just couldn’t sleep.” His tone shifted to a more confident tone. “Tonight has been strange. Have you noticed any weird voices? I swear I heard someone in your apartment, but you didn’t seem to be home.”

“No, nothing strange tonight,” Her brow was sweating and she felt dread returning.

“Come in, please,” he said realizing how long the conversation has taken in the hallway. Inside he moved some things from his couch quickly and clicked on his laptop before she could see what was on the screen. Hina’s confidence was floundering. “Sit,” He gestured to the couch.

“Thank you,” Hina said as she sat.

Fumihiro kept stealing glances as he quickly tidied the room. Finally, he sat down, an appropriate distance away from her. “What are your troubles?”

She smiled at him, “Do you have a wish?” she surprised herself with her directness. She felt something wrong as soon as she walked in, but she couldn’t put her finger on what it was. Fumihiro was always awkward and his place was close to how she pictured it. Something felt strange.

“A wish? That is an unusual question to be asked at,” he squinted at the clock on his laptop, “3:33 am.”

“I realize it is a strange question,” improvise Hina, she thought to herself, “I’ve just been thinking about wishes and mistakes I’ve made in my life.”

“Go on.”

“I just wish I could be the kind of person I want to be,” she caught herself, but it was too late. She knew what she said. She looked at the balcony doors in the same place in his apartment as hers. Her eyes focused on the door next, then back at Fumihiro.

“What’s wrong Hina,” he said as he stood up. His visage changed and he grew taller and lank in his limbs with that oni face she saw for the first time only a few hours before. Kami smiled down at her.

“Where is Fumihiro?”

“What do you think I was doing while you were gone? I didn’t isolate myself in your hovel. I needed a lay of the land and Fumihiro is just so nosy,” He explained.

“You killed him?”

“Like you care, you have put up zero resistance to sacrificing anyone in your place. Friends, neighbors, I would wager your parents and siblings were next on the list for the chopping block.” He mocked as her tears welled up. “That is the kind of person you want to be Hina, devilish, evil, and I will give that to you.”

* * *

Kumiko changed in the alley outside of Hina’s building. Koko watched her change and tried to imagine what it was like to be her and to move like she moved. She had been to Tokyo once before with three other girls, they had a blast and got lit up every night, but none of it compared to what happened to her tonight. All her childhood fantasies about being a bad-ass ninja superhero crystallized and fixated on a girl she only met a few hours before. All she wanted to do was help.

The app Kumiko used showed the relative area at the time of the call so her time was limited, “I’m going in,” she said.

“I’m coming with,” she insisted.

“No. It’s too dangerous, go to a hotel I’ll meet you when I’m done.” Kumiko said as she pulled her mask over her face.

“I’m here already, two hours ago I thought demons were reserved to fiction and religious allegory.” Koko pleaded.

“I need to focus, I don’t know what I’m walking into…”

“Are you calling me a distraction?” Koko asked in her teal bikini top and bright pink waistcoat.

Kumiko nodded emphatically, “Yes, please get someplace safe.” She gave her friend a hug and was surprised when Koko started crying. “What’s wrong?” She didn’t handle crying or really any emotions well, they always made her feel too robotic.

“I’m sorry,” she sniffed, “I just really hope you don’t die.”

“I won’t, I promise. My father trained me very well and I, well you’ve seen me fight.” She pointed out.

“Yeah, I believe you,” Koko admitted.

Kumiko jumped at the fire escape of the building and scaled the side of the building with alacrity. Koko was left alone and with the city sounds of traffic and distant human movement. She walked to the street in front of the building when the sensation struck her. She had to pee, desperately.

Koko walked into the lobby of the apartment building. The lobby which housed a wall of mail slots, four elevators, and an army of vending machines. However the one thing she didn’t see was a bathroom. She ran down what looked to be a promising hallway, but it only led to a locked utility room. She felt suddenly like she was going to explode. She decided the street was the best option given the circumstances. As she got to the main entrance the lights shut off. She suddenly worried about Kumiko as she pushed on the door, but it wouldn’t budge. “No, I have to pee!” She yelled as she shook the door, “Please let me out,” she whined.

She heard laughter behind her and a smooth voice ask, “Do you have a wish?” she turned and saw a slender man with his hands clasped together.

5

Kumiko got to the roof and quickly found an entrance to the building. She couldn’t get Koko’s crying out of her head and cursed herself for not focusing on the mission. It was difficult to meet new people given her apparent calling, but she couldn’t stop now, she was close to Nanimonai, she could feel him in this city. That rubber and licorice smell that was burned into her nostrils for weeks after the encounter. She caught wafts since she arrived in town. She was fixated on the demon, before she met Koko. In another world maybe she could go to Boston with Koko and build a life for herself. She would never be a model or work at a strip club but she couldn’t imagine what Koko would be like without those experiences.

She moved down the stairwell without knowing exactly what she was looking for but her instincts told her that Hina was at the center of it all. Her mind tracked straight back to Koko, unbidden. She couldn’t explain it any other way, she was smitten. She always thought of herself as straight but Koko challenged all that for her. The glances, the blushing, the surreptitious touching. She felt warm when she thought of Koko and it turned her brain upside down. Yesterday she checked into a random hostel and maybe met the love of her life. Koko couldn’t be that, could she? Maybe fate took her to the sight of a demon attack, after all, both occurred. Her mind swam with theories and timelines and she almost missed the scream she heard.

She drew her sword from her sheath as she worked her way down the hall. The dirty fluorescent light in the corridor left her no shadows to work with. “In the absence of shadow, keep moving, there is no other option,” her father told her. She moved steadily and held her sword high, but couldn’t shake Koko from her mind.

Kumiko saw Hina in the hallway. She was just standing looking downtrodden. Kumiko approached cautiously and said to her as she approached, “It was a trap, it was never about me,”

“Who?” She asked with dread creeping around her words.

She only said one word, but it was the word she knew she would hear, “You.”

Rage filled her eyes and her first instinct was to strike but she restrained herself, “Why?”

“Why do you think?” She turned to her as she posed the question. Her form shifted and distorted as she threw her weight into her attack. Kumiko was taken momentarily off-guard and she dove back slashing upward. Distraction, was the first word on her mind. Hina attacked again, her size and strength was greater than her counter-part earlier. Kumiko had dodged around her. Who was she talking about? The question loomed in her head and she put the pieces together. Who was behind the doppelganger? She got caught along the flank with a claw and it brought her back to the present. She yelped as she spun out and dropped to the carpeted floor.

Hina turned to her as Kumiko scrambled to her feet. “You’re off-balance, unfocused, dead meat,” Hina said with murderous glee. Her voice degraded and sounded as though her throat were full of gravel. She moved in for the killing stroke, but Kumiko cartwheeled out of the way and she cut through the wall to an electric line. Sparks flew from the wall and blasted Hina through a doorway. The lights cut out leaving her alone in the dark. Kumiko capitalized on Hina and cut her across the chest. Hina could feel the wound was serious. She had never felt so much pain in her life. Blood drenched the floor below her and she searched out the hallway or this neighbors home for signs of the spirit near her, but she yelled his name all the same, “Kami!”

Kumiko paused for a split second as she heard the girls plea and looked down at her bleeding on the floor. Hina’s form was bathed in green and red neon from the street through the balcony doors. She looked up at Kumiko with her hand outstretched. The light color switched to red. “Stop.”

“Where is Nanmonai?” Kumiko asked.

“Who?” Hina said as the light shifted to green. “It’s Kami, he did it all.” She explained. “He did it all.”

Kumiko brought the blade down and bisected Hina’s head as the light shifted to red. She limped back to the hallway and it was still dark, so she ran for the stairs.

* * *

Koko stared up at the strange tall creature in front of her. “Wishes are for children. I need a bathroom,” she said with her arms crossed.

“Oh you are lovely aren’t you.” He said as he moved closer to her.

She winced the creature glowered down at her as she crouched lower and lower until her butt was touching the floor. “What do you want?”

“Everybody seems to ask that question. In truth I am more concerned about what you wish.” His skin was an ashy black color, but his teeth were gleaming white.

“Nope, seen enough horror movies to know when a demon asks what you wish nothing good ever happens,” she tried to appear defiant, but the creature in front of her seemed to be intimidating by default. The position she was in felt like cowering by default.

`She pushed herself upright but he stayed still as a painting in front of her with his creepy gaze. “Fair enough,” he finally said and backed away. “I suppose you’ll do as bait then.”

“Excuse me?” She asked, but an instant later his hand was around her throat.

“Kumiko is my quarry and you will provide adequate motivation for her to do as she is told. Your life for hers, you get the idea, horror movie stuff,” he quipped. Shuriken shattered the glass door and sunk deep into the Kami’s back. He tossed Koko aside without care and she landed on her shoulder accompanied by the snapping of bone. She shrieked in pain as she put her hand to her shoulder.

“Why don’t you ask me about my wish?” Kumiko asked as she stepped into the entryway.

The Kami reared up like a cobra and hissed as she drew her ninja-to. He lunged headfirst at her, his teeth bared with elongated canines pushing out from the creature’s red gums. Kumiko ran at the Kami with her sword at her side. He moved like liquid as she swung her blade at its body. Se grabbed another handful of shuriken with her off-and and threw them in a wide arc at it. Several sunk into its black flesh as the monster wrapped around Kumiko wrapping her in its coils. The Kami tightened his grip around her and made her gasp. Her vision was going dark and she dropped her sword to the ground.

“I have killed the demon slayer!” He yelled with joy. He felt the steel blade sink into his back and the ensuing pain forced him to release Kumiko dropping her to the ground, “What?” He yelled and he saw Koko with the sword and in her hand.

“That’s right,” she said, dropped the sword, and ran for the exit as the Kami thrust at her.

Kumiko gasped for air as her eyes shot open. She saw Koko head for the door, she did a quick kip-up and scooped her sword up as she ran at the Kami. She jumped at the monster cutting him through the middle of his grinning face. Is lower half squirmed and flipped like a snakes body as the two sections of his head fell away from each other. Blood spewed from the wound and splashed against the floor.

Kumiko walked outside and dropped to her knees. “Koko!” She yelled, and the girl ran to her and gave her a one-armed hug. Koko was beaming at Kumiko, “Are you okay?” Kumiko asked.

She shook her head, “No, I think I broke my shoulder,” Kumiko reached for her with concern, “Don’t, don’t touch it.” Kumiko laughed gently at her friend.

The End

 

 

Cops and Vampires part 2; A Night at Scooters

So I was told to write a sequel to the first story, and I did that, but I kind of hope they let me write a third because this is my Empir Strikes Back. I have enjoyed short stories for their momentary look at a subject, a person, or a moment in time, but with these stories, I keep feeling like I’m building something, but I never know if they want a sequel or will hire me for that sequel so I would rather a longer form in that case (novella, or novel). Anyway here is a sequel, I was trying to do some different things, introduce some new characters, and create a contrast between this and the first story while maintaining a cohesive world.

As always read and enjoy, 

 

They left tracks in the snow outside and burst through the door. Their hands seemed to be magnetized to each other as they peeled clothes from their bodies. His cold hands moved to her naked skin and she felt electric. Each new touch and position lit a circuit in her mind. By the time her lips found his again her cold undead skin was on fire with lust. She curled wrapped her fingers around his length and coaxed at least that part of him back to life. “Do I have to kill?” She said softly as he teased one of her nipples. He shook his head as he found her warmth and moved into her. She almost purred when he filled her. “It’s never felt like this before.” She said as he pushed her against the wall and she covered him with her body.

“It can feel like this forever.” He said as he kissed her neck. “Let me show you.” His canine teeth pierced the skin above her breast and she moaned. He only drank for a moment before lifting his head up. “Bite me.” He said as he looked into her eyes.

A smile curled at the corner of her lips. She bit into his neck with clean white teeth. She’d never experienced anything like it in her life. She had always heard the term ambrosia and thought of the jello concoction, but for the first time she understood the flavor. It was beyond indescribable. Nothing in her life compared, not sex, not liquor, not cocaine, or marijuana. Nothing prepared her for what would happen when she tasted vampiric blood as a vampire. She still loved the act of sex and loved the feeling of him penetrated her, but as she bit into him she felt like an Ouroboros, a snake swallowing its own tail. She could feel what he felt. She felt herself biting into his skin and felt the nerves on his thick penis as it thrust in and out of her. She also felt him filling her with each long stroke and she let out a moan that she swore they could hear in the twin cities. “This is impossible.” As soon as she pulled her mouth away she lost the connection, but that did next to nothing to diminish the ecstasy running through her body. She set out to form words, but each syllable she spoke turned into a howl, or a sigh, or a grunt. The language centers of her brain were rendered monosyllabic while he kept at her. Her back was against a wall and her fingers managed to put ten small holes into the sheetrock above her head as she tried to think of anything but his inhuman genitalia. It was occupying every corner of her mind. Even her name was lost. “Bed! Bed!” She finally grunted. He hefted her by her ass and carried her to the bed and sat her down while continuing his ministrations.

She pushed him over and got on top. She thrilled at the new strength that seemed to come from an endless reservoir of energy. She slammed herself into him and felt like she could go on forever and they probably could if not for the day coming.

Bram stopped suddenly and looked to the door. He pulled her over onto the opposite floor as bullets exploded through the door. Men dressed in black military-style uniforms and ski masks kicked through the door. The laser sights from their rifles crisscrossed through the room. Two men inside and two at the door. Bram jumped at one of the men, lifted him off the floor, and bashed the back of his head through the wall behind him. The other three targeted him and raised their rifles to fire as Mallory grabbed another mercenary around the neck with her forearm and pulled him deeper into the room. The men outside fired and bullets hit Bram on his back and leg. He dropped the man he held and turned his attention to the men in the hallway firing on him.

Mallory punched her man in the face and threw him out the window in one swift motion. He landed on a metal fence outside and folded him in half at the middle of his spine. Mallory heard more gunshots, but couldn’t see Bram or the other men until one of them crashed through the wall adjacent to the door. She moved to the all as he bit into the last mercenary. She admired his stark naked ass in the dark hallway. His skin was so pale it almost glowed in the gloom. He dropped the mercenary and turned back to her. She rushed him kissing and pulling him closer. She lapped at the excess blood around his mouth and sucked the warm stick fluid from his chin as he pressed on her pubis with his hand and let his fingers explore her vulva and her clitoris. She pushed him against the wall and stroked at his cock as he worked her overheated pussy.

“Don’t you ever stop?” Lysander shouted from down the hall. She had an annoyed look on her face as she held her bag over her shoulder. “We don’t have much time to find a new place. This one got burned.” They were still pressed against each other, but they otherwise stopped their actions.

“Yeah boss,” Bram said.

“And get out of the hallway, you’re both buck ass naked.” She pointed at them with the sternest mom look Mallory ad ever seen on a twelve-year-old looking girl. Lysander was closer to two hundred then she was to twelve at that point in her unlife.

Mallory Edy was a detective with the Minneapolis Police Department before Bram made her a vampire like him. She was angry, but her anger didn’t last long. She would be dead now if Bram hadn’t acted. It took the two of them ten minutes to get themselves back together and out the door.

“I checked the car for any transponders and got squat so I figure someone put out a reward. So, there’s only one place left to go.”

“Shit,” Bram grumbled as he got back in the car.

“What?” Mallory asked.

“We’re going to Eau Claire Wisconsin.”

“Where is that?”

Lysander answered, “It’s close enough that we can get there before the sun rises and far enough that the vampires in the Twin Cities will have less sway.”

“I hate Eau Claire,” Bram said as he put the car in drive and pulled out of the hotel parking lot.

* * *

Jim Kroger did as he was told, but he was still having a difficult time adjusting to the new world he found himself in. He had to admit he felt better than ever. His bones no longer creaked and he felt like he could run a marathon. Not going out during the day was by far the worst adjustment he had to make. He could live with a liquid diet he been more or less doing that already. It was the morning jog he missed most. His train of thought was interrupted by the entrance of a tall well dressed black man. His skin was exceptionally dark and is proportions and features were so symmetrical he looked almost like a statue carved from ebony. Straight to the point he said, “You need to bring more over to our side.” He sounded English from his accent and Jim felt dizzy when he spoke, but it was nothing compared to when he made eye contact. The man’s dark almost black eyes had flecks of gold that reflected the light in the room and drew you in. Jim was a conservative man in his 60s, but he felt butterflies in his stomach when he looked him in the eye.

“Why?”

“Does it matter? You have connections in the city we find useful and we need you to get started immediately. This club will be our base of operations for the indeterminate future. Once your friends, business partners, adversaries, et cetera.”

“I don’t understand. Where is Kimberly?”

“She’s not here. I am, now to avoid the obvious follow-up questions I represent Sacri Sanguinis, an organization devoted to putting our kind in power all across the country and fulfilling our destiny as the apex predator of the planet. You’re one of the lucky ones, your wealth and standing will allow our organization access to the power structure of this frozen wasteland. In return and apart from never aging, getting sick, or dying we will give you wealth and power beyond your wildest imaginings if you follow my instructions. Do you have any other questions?” Jim shook his head. “Good, you will throw a party, convert as many as you can. They will be bound to you as you are now to your daughter, they will do whatever they are told.”

“I can do that. It may take a few days to arrange.”

He nodded, “That was to be expected, however, expedience is necessary.”

“I can do it, for my daughter.” He stood and as he moved to leave he turned back, “Who are you?”

“I am Lux Manta. I will be your contact with the Sacri Sanguinis until you have proven your loyalty. Now please I am very busy.” Jim left and Lux moved to reorganize the desk as someone knocked at the door. “Come in.” A man in black military fatigues entered the room and stood at attention. “Report.”

“Bram and Detective Mallory Edy escaped and the trail has gone cold.”

“They were in Hudson, right off of 94, to my understanding there are only two directions those roads go in.”

“Sir?”

“check population centers along the way. They won’t be going far I don’t suspect so I think they would be somewhere close enough to get back, but far enough to hide.” The man still looked confused, “They won’t go further than Madison on 94 I don’t believe so check the population centers along that corridor. Bram is many things, but subtle is not one of them.” Lux sat behind the desk and leaned back against his chair. “Please get me a Heineken from the bar and let me know when the Lady arrives.”

* * *

Bram pulled into a gas station on the outskirts of Eau Claire and Mallory stepped out. It looked cold. Indeed it felt cold, but while she registered the temperature it didn’t hurt her face like it used to. It wasn’t even an inconvenience it was just normal, her body was at the same temperature which helped her acclimate to the temperature almost instantly. She wondered idly if she was still a Magi, now that she was a vampire. Bram told her that she could bend the universe to her will and control the chaos around her and tune it like a radio. She felt something happen when she confronted that monster. It could have been coincidence, deus ex machina, but when she needed firepower it arrived in the form of MPD and assault weapons. She thought about that moment frequently since it happened and wondered if she shaped reality or they just happened to be there as she thought about it.

She walked through the small convenience store. She didn’t need anything and in fact, she didn’t need to eat or drink if she didn’t want to ever again. It was like being lactose intolerant, she could eat and drink and it would taste amazing, but her body processed food much differently than it did before and it created something akin to heartburn which was more of a nuisance than an actual problem. She had been made into a monster that she didn’t believe existed a week ago. Things were fresh and new, but she wondered when it would become mundane. How many centuries will pass before she no longer cares about physical contact, fucking, eating, and drinking? There again she had watched her father fade away as his youthful passions became his daily labor. He loved fixing up cars and she grew up going to car shows at the State Fair, then he started a body shop and year after year their trips to the car shows became less frequent.

She realized she had been walking around the convenience store for minutes while she was lost in her thoughts. Lysander came in and broke her from her musings. She didn’t even say anything, she just cocked her hip, “Did you find it?”

“What?”

“I don’t know? Whatever you were looking for?”

She stammered and said, “No, they don’t have it here.”

“Alright, well let’s go. The sun is rising soon.”

She nodded and waved to the attendant who only lifted his chin slightly at her acknowledgment, but went back to his phone as soon as they left.

“Try to avoid lingering like that. It draws attention especially if they look back on the security camera and see nothing. Where there was a person.”

“I’m sorry I was just lost in my thoughts.” She said as she got into the car.

“I get it. It takes a minute to adjust.”

As they got into the car Mallory asked, “Am I still a Magi?”

“That is a tricky question,” Bram said from the driver’s seat. “Because it’s never happened before to my knowledge.”

“There are only a handful of true Magi alive today. Alan Moore, Grant Morrison, and Damien Echols come to mind and are probably the only ones you could find on a Google search. Mostly men now, but there were women in the past. Oneida Toops and Marie Laveau come to mind, and there are indeed witches[-a-plenty especially in this area of the country, but they have varying degrees of talent and ability.” Lysander explained from the back seat.

“How do I harness that power, or at least find out if it’s still inside me?” Mallory asked.

“We’ll see my child, we’ll see. Elton will know.”

“Elton?”

“We’ve set up a little meet and greet. While you and I were tackling the albino hulk Lysander was calling people.”

“Where are we meeting them?”

“A gay bar called Scooters. You’re gonna love this.”

Chapter 2

Scooters was quiet for a Friday night, but the cold kept most away. Only the regulars and the barflies hovered around the place. Bram and Mallory walked in through the back entrance at the parking lot. A single man was dancing and singing to Alicia Keys as she sang about New York. Across the large room, there was another door leading out to a sidewalk. It was unabashedly a gay bar in every aspect of its personality flamboyant and maybe a little sleazy. Mallory fell for the place as she crossed the threshold. It reminded her of a sample size of the Gay 90s in the Twin Cities. With her new vampiric senses everything seemed new again. She remembered her youth watching drag shows in the upper level and if you knew where to go the male strippers working poles all night in a hidden bar in a back hallway. Two cute twinkie looking men dispensed beer and liquor as customers huddled around the bar. The purple neon gave the place a kind of black-light feel, but overall it was like any dive Mallory had walked into over the years. The pool table was covered in purple felt, but apart from that novelty the trappings were all in place. Bram sidled up to the bar, “A martini would be great.”

The man behind the bar looked confused by the request. The last time anyone ordered a martini at that bar it was a different bar under different ownership. He simply said, “We don’t have any of that.”

“Vermouth?” Bram questioned.

“Yep, keep it, simple honey. Liquor and a mixer work best.”

He rolled his eyes, “Vodka soda, with a twist of lime.”

“So bougie.” Mallory chastised him, “I’ll have Jameson rocks and a bottle of cider.” The bartender nodded at her and set about making the drinks.

He looked at her like she was crazy.

“It looks weird if you don’t have a drink in your hand at all times.” She explained. “You look like a creeper.”

“That’s why I ordered the vodka soda. It’s not like you can get drunk unless you drink from a very drunk person. It can be pleasant at times, but other times it is not pleasant.”

She looked over at him and her body swelled and heaved. It was a horrible distraction being so turned on at all times. “Will I always be this turned on?” She asked as the wandered over to an empty booth.

“It’s part of this, your senses are all heightened.”

“That’s what I thought, it’s like being high forever.”

“What?”

She shook her head, “It just reminds me of smoking weed. I always got super horny and loved dancing. Right now all I want to do is get on that dance floor. It’s amazing.”

They waited and watched. Lysander had to stay at the safe house which was conveniently located immediately above the bar in an apartment that was furnished with bean bag chairs and a single futon mattress on the floor.

Elton was first to enter. He was a bald black man that stood 5’7” by Mallory’s estimation. He said hello to nearly everyone at the bar. Most of the conversations were short, but others took time as he explained himself, he laughed loudly, like he wanted the establishment to know he was there and important. Mallory suggested an introduction, but Bram refuted her suggestion, “Let him do his thing. He’s important for you to meet.”

“He’s a Magi?”

Bram answered, “Not quite. There isn’t much he does that’s accidental. He saw us, he knows we’re here and he’s testing the waters. Traps are everywhere and that man is especially sensitive to them.”

“What is he?” She felt bad about the phrasing but didn’t know how to correct herself without digging a bigger hole. “He is a Leprechaun.”

“Really? How?”

“Leprechaun is just a place holder really. They’re tricksters that devote their lives to avoiding traps. He’s important to our mission,” Bram explained.

Finally he wandered over to their booth after smoking a blunt with a few younger men outside. He slid into the booth and all but ignored Bram, “I’ve seen you before.” He said, his voice was honey-covered gravel.

“No, I don’t think so.” She said. She would’ve remembered this man covered in pins and buttons and not a small amount of military medals. His outfit was a red beret, a leather vest cluttered with what looked like hundreds of buttons and pins, black Dickie’s, and some brown work boots.

“I live in Minneapolis I’ve seen you.”

“I’m sorry I don’t recall, what area? Where do you live?”

“Never tell a man all your business.” He intoned, “but believe me I’ve seen you.”

“Okay. I believe you.”

“You think too much. Keep it down inside, don’t let all that shit out.”

The rest of the interaction was easy. Elton seemed to need to impart messages from time to time, but they were not timed, they came up as he felt them. He acknowledged Bram after and their exchange seemed almost banal. Elton worked for IATSE setting up lighting, moving equipment, and other aspects of live shows and performances. He would talk your ear off about the various concerts he helped put together, but Bram would eventually undercut the story with what they were endeavoring to do. Elton wasn’t a Vampire so he drank, on Bram’s dime, until he hit a point where he was edging complete drunken oblivion. It was the most amazing thing Mallory had seen. After two pitchers of beer and several shots that Elton alone drank he set to business.

“I know about these Sacri Sanguinis fucks. They’re fascists and they think the time is nigh since the world seems to be turning that direction anyway. The rise of authoritarianism is evident and this is why they’ve chosen this time to strike. The populace will accept a loss of freedom if it means safety and security.” Elton kept on, “I would ignore it, but without dreams my people will become sick and eventually wither away and die.”

“Is that happening?”

“Honey, it’s been happening. The world is a maelstrom of ideas, but very few of them revolve around more than paying bills and basic sustenance. For every inspired artist there are a thousand men and women just trying to pay their bills. Our battle is for the soul.” His plea was passionate and she recognized the face of desperation as she saw it so many times in her career. Most people worried about the death of their spouse, mother, father, sibling, lover, but the first thought on their minds was ‘How am I going to go on without their income.’ which always diminished them in her eyes. She wondered why they didn’t care/mourn more for their relative/spouse, but what he said made sense. There was a prevailing sense that money was the only power worth focusing on.

“What do we do about it?” She asked as she sipped at her warm after an hour and a half cider.

“Nothing, but Sacri Sanguinis don’t care about belief or security, they believe they are the apex predators in this population and should therefore rule, but I reject that.” He said as the alcohol was starting to kick in. “I believe we exist on the fringes for a reason. We sway. We cajole, but we do not bully society. We won’t ever get involved. Sacri Sanguinis believe in the servitude of humanity, that has been their goal from the beginning.” Elton said.

He drifted off at that point. The alcohol caught up with him and he drifted away. Bram for his part indicated Elton was always an anarchist at heart and they waited for the other team members to arrive. Bram was fidgeting as he waited. “This won’t work without the others,” Bram said as he sipped at his drink.

“The others will come,” Mallory believed.
As the night progressed Mallory watched the bar fill with a humanity that she was now separate from. She watched them as they toiled in their struggles. “Why do you do that?” Bram asked.

“What? Watch them?” She considered the question. “A day ago I was with them.”

“It was five days now.”

“It will take me some time to fully extricate myself from ‘Them’.” She said. “The analogy stays the same. Less then a week ago I was them and as I don’t age anymore I would say a day. Time is more a construct of decay than an active measurement of anything.”

“You’re getting pedantic. Let go.” He said.

“Let’s be clear, I didn’t ask for this.” Her demeanor changed subtly, but Bram watched the shift.

“I wasn’t trying to be insulting.”

“You weren’t trying, but you were insulting just there. Whatever their short time is still relevant. Humanity is still relevant. We all exist here and it isn’t just a change in paradigm we’re talking about.”

He said “No.”

“Because I want to be clear, the people we’re fighting want to turn humanity into cattle. Apart from your apparent political affiliation, how does it affect you?”

“It doesn’t, you’re not wrong, but despite my seeming callousness I do not want humanity to be subjugated. We all came from them. Indeed all these magical creatures were born from a human dream. We couldn’t exist without them.”

“ I sense some resentment.”

“Some. When I became a vampire the United States was still killing farmers in Viet Nam. Their humanity was coming into question even then. This new world is almost dystopian by comparison.”

Their conversation was cut short by a commotion by the pool table. The bar had filled up since they arrived and by now it was filled with bodies. Elton was sitting in the corner smiling to himself, but Bram and Mallory noticed the girl with the pink mohawk by the pool table. She was staring down a frat guy and was surrounded by his friends. “You’re in a fucking gay bar bro.” She put emphasis on the bro, “Why do you think in your neanderthal brain it would be okay to touch my ass.”

“That’s Naomi. Weapons specialist and really just tech overall, she’s a hacker.” Bram pointed out.

“Should we do something?” Mallory asked. Bram shook his head and Elton laughed as he raised a glass. Mallory turned her attention back to the tiny girl with an impressive bust and a pink mohawk. She was wearing a pink tank top and her arms were weighed down with leather bracelets and her hands were decked out in large rings that looked like they would tear up the face that was punched with them.

The dude behind her grabbed her and Mallory jerked forward, but she saw her leg raise and tag the dude behind her in the forehead. He fell back as she shot her hand out at the guy she was yelling at. She caught him in the throat faster than lightning and he fell towards the dance floor holding his throat. She turned to his other friend and gave them a look that dared them to come at her. The bouncer came up to her tentatively and politely asked her to leave, she raised her hands in protest, but made her way towards the door all the same. “It’s time to go,” Bram stated as he moved from the booth and beckoned Elton to come with him.

“Isn’t there a third?”

“Yeah, They’re not here yet.”

Outside approached the firebrand. She was still angry, but she smiled when she saw Bram. “Oh my God! I haven’t seen you in so long.” She shrieked and launched at him with a hug that almost took him down.

A Native American man with close-cropped hair approached the group and said “Naomi.” She detached from Bram and the glee on her face as she saw the other told Mallory that he was the other member. She attacked him with equal veracity.

Bram stood next to Mallory and said, “Thomas Crying Hawk.”

“Hey Bram.” Thomas slapped at Bram’s hand.

“Let’s adjourn upstairs.” He said to the assembly.

“I’m Mallory.”

“It’s nice to meet you.” He said and hugged her much to her surprise.

She followed up the stairs last and heard a siren in the distance. For a split second she reached for her phone assuming it would ring at any moment, but stopped herself and continued up the stairs.

* * *

Trevor Conroy was frustrated with the assignment, but there wasn’t much he could do about it, never mind that it was good money. Tonight his job was to look for three people in a town of 50,000. There were two main bar districts in town, Water Street and Downtown. He started his search on Water Street, but the search turned out to be useless. It was predominantly college students. his search became tedious he decided on a break for himself. It was still technically working since he would be in a bar. He hated working solo, it made him feel isolated, he preferred combat and people around him working towards a mutual goal. He walked into a gay bar to unwind a bit before continuing on his search. The purple felted pool table and the Peaches playing told him he was in the right place. The crowd was picking up and the dance floor was sparse, but people were dancing. He ordered a beer and took in the scene. The first sip went straight to his back as he felt all his muscles unwind in a pleasant wave from the top to the bottom. He wasn’t sure why he had been tense since he got into Eau Claire, but something about this assignment made him wary.

He scanned the bar and had to do a double-take when he saw them. Bram and Mallory sitting at a booth talking with an older black man. He looked back at the photos he was given and it was definitely them. He dialed the number and turned his back to them. “Go.” The voice on the other end said.

“I’ve found them.”

“Where?”

“Eau Claire, Wisconsin. A bar called Scooters currently.”

“Stay on their trail. Lux is coming with a crew.”

“Lux Manta is coming?” Trevor asked.

“Yes. Stay on their trail Conroy. Don’t disappoint me.”

“No sir. I won’t.”

It was rare for the employer to come to the sight. Trevor shrugged and watched as a pink-haired girl took apart a larger man without breaking a sweat. He raised his glass to her by way of a cheer.

Chapter 3

This was the first time Mallory had seen Bram with anyone she could call his peers, but the way they socialized it was like they had done this a million times before. Mallory wasn’t really sure what to say and how to even engage with them. They were all so alien. Thomas was a werewolf who mostly stuck to his reservation in Northern Wisconsin. Elton said he was a country boy from Louisiana, but he’s lived in Minnesota for thirty years. Naomi was a wanderer, originally from New York, but preferred the nomadic lifestyle like Bram. She thought about her own future and where she wanted to go. Would she be a nomad too?

It hadn’t been much more than two hours when they heard the door below busted down with a battering ram by tye sound of it. “Fuck that was fast,” Naomi said as she moved for the door.

Mallory looked to Bram he didn’t look surprised. None of them looked surprised. “I can see the confusion on your face,” he said. “This was inevitable and that is why I was in such a rush. We are on the radar, there isn’t many places we can go where we won’t be discovered.”

Elton watched out the window. “They got a lot of guys out there.”

Thomas stood on the other side of the apartment door. Elton took Mallory to the back. “You were asking about magic. No time like the present.” He showed her to a room in the back. Lysander was finishing up a circle and strange-looking arcane symbols with corn-meal. “Get inside the circle and focus your mind on manifesting your wishes.”

“What are those?” She asked feeling suddenly overwhelmed by the sudden spike in activity.

“Really. I would say in the immediate future your wishes should be pretty straight forward.” He lead her into the circle careful not to break any of the lines or symbols. Lysander stood to the side as the stood face to face in the circle.

“Shouldn’t we light candles and incense or something?”

He shook his head. “Everything you need is right here, A sacred space and your mind. Now focus.”

Thomas and Naomi moved into the stairwell. At the bottom there was a group of four mercenaries dressed in black fatigues. Thomas dove from the top step down on top of them. They fired their weapons catching him solidly in the chest, as well as his arms, and legs, but he seemed unfazed by the attack as he landed with his foot on one of their chests while he knocked a man out with a punch. Another decked him with the butt of his rifle. Thomas grabbed him by the throat and pummeled his face with the other hand. He was getting larger by the moment as his face twisted and changed. Hair sprouted and his nose grew into a snout. Another mercenary fired at him at point-blank range.

One of them got around the massive black-furred werewolf and moved up the stairs into the waiting kick of Naomi who lifted her leg into a nice arch and essentially slapped his face with the instep of her Doc Martin’s. She descended down the steps as Thomas made a path for her.

* * *

Lux waited and watched as the werewolf and vampire took apart a crew of ten men in less than a minute. He sighed and turned to the woman behind him. “What do you say we separate the dynamic duo?”

Yvonne lit a cigarette and took a long drag. The cherry lit her exquisite face. She blew the smoke out and spoke, “I am enjoying the show, but you’re right. We can end the fight quicker and retire for more engaging activities. This is a college town after all.”

He stepped out of the vehicle and opened her door for her. She stood up slowly and dropped her cigarette on the snowy ground. “I’ll take the werewolf. You take the vampire.”

“Excellent.”

* * *

Bram stepped into the room with the others. “Has anything happened yet?”

Lysander shook her head. “How are they faring out there?” She asked.

“They’ve got it under control.”

Elton and Mallory’s eyes were both closed. Elton had his left hand pressed against her forehead. She pictured herself standing outside in the parking lot and tried to visualize every aspect she could remember. Every inch of snow, the river nearby. The streets on either side of the parking lot where the fight was currently happening. She could see the ghost-like images of Thomas the terrifying werewolf and Naomi. She saw the hazy images of mercenaries scattered around them struggling to stay alive against the monsters that were tearing them apart. She could see other people an attractive tall black man with an immaculately tailored suit. The woman at his side was as inhumanly beautiful as he was. The most curious thing happened when she looked at the woman. She looked back and smiled at her. “She can see me?”

“Who?” Bram asked.

“A woman, absolutely gorgeous. I’ve never seen anyone as attractive as her. It’s almost dizzying.” She said in an almost whisper.

“Yvonne,” Lysander said. “Is there anyone else out there?”

She nodded, “A black man. He’s just as beautiful as she is.”

Lysander looked at Bram, “Get Naomi and Thomas back in here now! They are in serious danger!” Bram headed out of the room. Lysander followed and quickly added. “Yvonne and Lux are charmers, don’t let them talk to you at all.” She warned and he nodded.

* * *

Yvonne stepped up to the wolf and touched him on the shoulder. He lashed out with is claws, but she caught his hand. “Sleep.” She said with her perfectly inflected voice. He shook his head and backed away from her. Se said it again, “Sleep.” and he stumbled against a wall.

Naomi looked towards Thomas and yelled out his name as she grabbed a mercenary by the lapel. There was a woman next to him dressed in a silver gown. Thomas dropped to his knees and Naomi moved to help him, but a man stepped in her way.

Naomi watched as he moved closer to her. She wanted to run, but she was frozen to the spot. “Drop him.” He said with a milk chocolate voice and she dropped the man to the ground. He addressed the mercenary. “Go find the others.” The man rushed from the alley. He moved closer to Naomi. She put her fists up in front of her ready to fight him. “I don’t want to fight you,” Lux said as he opened his palms and dropped his arms to his side. “Do you know me?” He asked.

“I’ve heard of you, Lux Manta. You’re in the inner circle.” She said and cursed herself. She didn’t want to do as she was told, but each time he asked her to do something she complied without resistance. She should be attacking him right now. Instead they were talking. She hated talking.

“I am. Part of the reason I have risen so quickly is my unique ability to negotiate. The tone of my voice. The color of my eyes. Everything about me is attractive and hypnotic. You agree.” It wasn’t a question she did agree. He was attractive and hypnotic. Everything about him was perfect and she couldn’t bring herself to strike such a beautiful creature. “Put your hands down.” She did. He was a foot from her now. She couldn’t do anything, but stare in his beautiful face. “Naomi is your name, correct?”

She nodded, “Yes.”

“You are a member of Sacri Sanguinis.” He said.

She shook her head. Something felt wrong and she couldn’t put her finger on what. “I don’t.” She was trying to resist something, but it was so hard to remember what.

“You do because we are lovers.” She shook her head and backed away from him. This is what happened to Thomas she thought and turned to run, but he said, “Don’t run away.” She stood still, “Turn around Naomi.” She did “You want me.” She realized it was true, she wanted him. “You’ll do anything to be close to me.” He said and they were inches apart. She nodded and her eyes were filled with adoration for the man in front of her. She felt her body reacting to him. Her hand reached out and touched his and it was the most wonderful moment she ever had. “I’m everything you want.” She stared up at him. “Kiss me.” Her lips pressed against his and she was in heaven. Her fervor increased and she parted his lips with her tongue. She lifted his hand and moved it to her breast.

It was a curious sensation to have her entire life rewritten. The words he said were the truth, they had to be the truth so her mind reshaped her into his lover. Her time with Bram was a ruse, she lead them here and betrayed them and it was a torment to be away from Lux. Her relationship with Lux was born from pure lust. He was powerful and she wanted to be at the table with that power. Her mind was being filled with images of them fucking in every conceivable position. He filled her with longing and desire and their every touch was electric. Her personality altered to suit her new position as a member of Sacri Sanguinis. She abhorred humanity and wanted nothing more than to have humans served up to her. She had a new memory of relishing her first kill of devouring the blood of a man she seduced. She now used her sex to get what she needed from the men around her. She liked it when they watched because she knew if they wanted her she was in control. Some called her a slut, but it was an unwelcome word. Better than being a prude.

“Touch me baby.” Her voice changed, became more sultry.

“You are in Sacri Sanguinis.” She nodded emphatically. “These aren’t your friends. They’re your enemies.” She nodded again.

“Of course they are.” She smiled up at him. “Fuck me.” She said.

“Tell me who you are.” He said as he held her in his arms.

“I’m Naomi, I’m the best fuck you’ve ever had and I am Sacri Sanguinis body and soul. Their goals are my goals. Now, please baby. Please. I need you inside me.” She was on fire with lust. His arm around her was almost enough to make her scream and she couldn’t wait until they were alone. “Bram is here.” She said with anger.

“As soon as you’ve finished with him you and I can be alone.” He said with a smile.

She kissed him and let her hand slide up his amazing cock. She bull-rushed Bram. “Naomi!” He said as he spotted her. He was taken by surprise and her attack was savage. She lashed out with a combination of punches at his face then dropped to his body. An elbow to his throat, and a knee to his balls dropped him to the ground. He dropped and she stomped on his head.

“Meet me at Ground Zero,” Lux said as he grabbed Naomi from behind. She squealed with delight and turned to kiss him and ended by licking his upper lip.

“Can we please fuck now.” She pouted.

“Yes we can.”

* * *

“Bram!” Mallory screamed and ran from the room leaving Elton and Lysander in the dust. She raced down the stairs and held him in her arms. His face was swollen and bleeding and his skull looked like it was caved in. “Please. Oh please don’t be dead.” She cried.

Elton and Lysander finally made it outside. Lysander gasped at what she saw.

“It was Naomi. He changed her.” Mallory said as she cradled Bram’s head.

“It’s what Lux does, He and Yvette have a special gift that allows them to alter people, but they’re just vampires. They have the same weaknesses. I’m just confused as to why they didn’t just kill us off?” She asked.

Elton dropped down next to Bram and Mallory. “Listen, he’s hurt bad, but he’ll heal. He just needs blood.”

* * *

Naomi peeled her shirt off her body and let heavy heavy tits bounce in front of him. Lux smiled at her. This wasn’t the first lover he had gotten with is power, but she had been the most enjoyable by far. The change was so dramatic. Gone was the spitfire punk girl. This Naomi was sex on legs. She pulled her pants down seductively over her ass and bent at the waist so that he could drink in every curve of her body. She crawled over him as she undid his pants. His long thick cock sprang out and she giggled with joy as she grabbed it with both hands and brought her mouth down to the shaft. She licked it longingly and then pierced the center vein and she relished as she heard him moan with delight. He grabbed her head in his hands and ran his fingers through her pink hair. “God damn lover, I am obsessed with your cock. How is every inch of you so beautiful.” She looked at him with pride swelling inside her, but as she admired his body she wanted something else swelling inside. “I need it inside me.”

He pivoted on top of her and slid in with ease. She wanted him more than any man she had ever met in her life. His body was like an addiction to her. She moaned loudly as she felt every vein, every inch reach deep inside of her touching places she hadn’t been touched since she was alive. She heard Yvonne come in, but she didn’t care, and luckily neither did he as he pulled that amazing rod back out before slowly agonizingly moving back in. “Oh my god!” She screamed.

“Don’t you two look amazing together,” Yvonne said as she let her own gown fall.

Naomi had always loved women’s bodies, but Yvonne was simply divine. Her white flesh was flawless and the sensual curves of her magnificent ass and mouthwatering tits made Naomi’s jaw drop. “Baby,” Naomi said as Lux plowed back into her kissing her neck then her mouth as he moved in deeper with each new thrust. “Can Yvonne join us.”

“If she wants.” He said and pulled away from Naomi.

“I didn’t tell you to stop.” She whined.

Yvonne knelt on the bed and delicately licked Naomi’s lips before probing into her mouth. Naomi let her tongue in and was pleased by the smooth texture as it swirled around her own tongue. Naomi’s right hand reached for Yvonne’s pussy as her left hand brushed over her breasts. Yvonne smiled down at Naomi, “You are lovely aren’t you?”

“You should kiss me some more,” Naomi said and Yvonne indulged and they made out as Lux watched. Yvonne finally made her way to Naomi’s pubis and licked and gently nibbled at her clitoris. Lux moved behind Yvonne and let himself in. Yvonne wasn’t expecting but still loved his meat inside her. Yvonne wanted blood and soon tired of giving Naomi head so she took her dexterous tongue out of Naomi’s snatch and bit her inner thigh. Naomi howled with pleasure. Lux bent over Yvonne and bit into her neck which made Yvonne detach. The blood from Naomi’s inner thigh washed over her leg and the bed. Naomi smiled wickedly as she dabbed her fingers into her own blood and smeared it across Yvonne’s bosom.

It was near dawn when the three of them stopped their orgy. Naomi’s newfound love of fucking was going to get her in trouble someday, but tonight she was treating herself, she beat the ever-loving shit out of Bram. She smiled to herself knowing that she caused him pain.

Chapter 4

They stood in the snow in a line outside of Ground Zero. Snow was falling and there were few cars on the road. Bram rubbed his hands together and looked at his assembled friends. “She’s here.”

“I know,” Thomas said. His fists were clenched and his eyes were pools of rage and regret. “I will handle her.

“Are you sure you’re ready for this?” Mallory asked.

Bram nodded. “Fast and hard and don’t give them a chance to speak. The headphones will help, but it works through a combination of their voice and their eyes. They’re strong, but we can beat them.”

“Who are you trying to convince?” Elton asked. “look here, there is an entrance through the back that goes right into the back bar. Mallory and I will be there waiting for you. Get the knife and get out, Thom. We ain’t trying to settle scores yet. Just leveling the playing field.”

Thomas nodded and lifted his rifle at the door and Bram followed suit. Mallory set a charge on the door and waved at them before moving with Elton to the escape location. The thought kept circling in her mind, why did they let them live. With their backs against the wall, Bram and Thomas out of action they could’ve easily finished the job, but in the four days it took to heal it dawned on her they needed a magus to use the knife. It was one of the first things Bram said he needed when they met which meant they needed her. She shivered at the thought of what would happen if Lux had gotten to her first. “Elton, can someone come back from Lux’s power?” She asked.

“Yeah, but it’s a process. It’s not easy, but you have an advantage over most. The magic can insulate you.”

She nodded as they ducked into the alley by the back entrance.

* * *

The charge blew the door open and they moved in. The place was empty of people. There were no mercenaries, just Naomi standing in front of the door to the back bar.

The mohawk was gone, she had a shaved head with the beginnings of growth and instead of her previous punk attire she wore a corset, leather panties, and stiletto knee high heel boots. There was a whip hanging loosely from her hand “Hey baby.” She said seductively. “Are you guys gonna shoot me?” She said and stuck out her bottom lip and bent slightly at the waist displaying her cleavage.

“Wow,” Bram said reflexively.

“Dude,” Thomas said back.

“It slipped out.” They refocused on Naomi. “We don’t want to shoot you and we won’t if you don’t make us.”

With superhuman speed she rushed Thomas and he fired as she flipped over him and kicked him in the back of the head. Thomas went flying and the rifle skittered across the floor. He changed almost instantly as Bram tried to locate her. Bram moved for the door but was kicked in the face as he reached for the handle. He fell on his ass as Naomi laughed at him. Thomas was on her slashing and trying to bite her. Bram put on his headphones and started the music. Seven Nation Army blasted into his ears as he moved again for the door. He pulled it open and the second bar was also empty. He moved through the office door and nearly had his head taken off as a white claw slashed at his head. He fired as he looked up at Drox as big and gnarly as ever. The bone ridges on his chest and head looked like they increased in size, but he was otherwise the same and just as big as ever. The assault rifle caught him on the chest and blasted clear trough to the wall behind him.

Lux sat behind the desk and looked like he was laughing. Bram went low and shot at his knees dropping him to the ground and then fired three shots through is head. It wouldn’t put him down for good, but it would temporarily. He turned back to Lux who was out from behind his desk and on top of him. He punched him in the face and reached for the headphones. Bram dodged him and returned with a jab and cross to his face. He lowered the rifle and caught Lux through the chest. The force of the shot knocked him onto his desk. He kept shooting until the clip was empty. Drox was unfortunately back in action.

* * *

Thomas slashed at her stomach, ripped through the leather corset and her abdomen. The strike stunned her and he grabbed her by the throat and threw her against the opposite wall. She fell to the ground in a heap. Thomas returned to his human form. “I loved you God damn it!” He yelled and pointed at her.

Naomi’s eyes opened up as he got closer. “Aw, poor baby.” She cracked her neck and back into place and stood up. “Thomas Crying Hawk. I don’t remember ever liking you. I was all a cover for my work with Sacri Sanguinis.”

“No, that’s a lie. Lux changed you, made you something you’re not.” Thomas’ heart was breaking as he looked at the girl he loved and she wasn’t there anymore. This was somebody else.

She put out her arms to give Thomas a hug. He swatted at her and that’s when she bit into his neck.and wrapped herself around him. He shifted and tried to pull her off clawing at her back, but the werewolf blood was making her stronger as he lost blood. She remembered they had fought together, but she remembered him being much better at it. She drained his corpse dry and dropped got off of him. She wiped her mouth with her forearm and headed for the back. Her corset was shredded so she pulled it off and dropped it to the floor. She liked being topless better anyway. She picked up her whip a skipped into the back bar. Bram had managed to get behind Drox and was elbowing him in the head as Drox knocked him into the bar and the wall and finally he jumped and landed on his back with Bram hitting the ground first. Naomi smiled at the scene and moved to find her man.

“Lux.” She yelled and straddled him. She ripped open her wrist and fed it to Lux. He twitched and then grabbed her wrist drinking it in. he smiled up at her and pulled her into a kiss.

* * *

“It’s taking too long. Something is wrong.” She reached for the door, but Elton grabbed her by the shoulders shaking his head.

“Don’t do that,” He pleaded. “Help him with what’s up here.” He tapped her forehead.

She nodded and leaned against the wall. “Okay.” She focused on Bram and found it much easier than the first time. She saw him fighting Drox. “Drox is alive.”

“Okay. Focus on the knife.” Elton said.

She pushed her mind out to the rest of the bar and the office. She could see all of it. She could almost feel it like it was skin. She saw Naomi making out with Lux while Bram was fighting for his life and she saw a tabernacle in the office. She saw it open and the knife was laid in it on a pillow. She could feel the physical space. Then she saw Lux standing next to the tabernacle and he seemed to look at her. “Hello Mallory.” He said like he could see her.

“How can he see me?”

“Because I’m telepathic.” He said with a smile.

Naomi came around and put her arms around him. “Who are you talking to baby?”

“Come out of there Mallory,” Elton said.

She wanted the door to the tabernacle to open and it did. She wanted the knife to move and it started to shake. Lux watched it curiously. It shot out of its enclosure and Lux caught it. “That is amazing. You are a Magi after all.”

“Mallory.” Elton said, “Don’t do this, come back out.”

“Shut up Elton.” A rich feminine voice behind Elton spoke and he turned to Yvonne. “You disappoint me Elton. You fell into a trap.

“Mallory,” Lux said. “I have you trapped. Bram will be dead soon. Join us and I will let them both go.”

Mallory’s thoughts were swirling. They were going to mind fuck her like they did to Naomi. She didn’t want to be important, she just wanted Bram safe and back with her. “I’m scared Elton.” She said out loud.

“There is nothing to be afraid of child.” The woman next to her spoke and the fear evaporated.

Mallory thought a little clearer and pushed her mind towards Bram and Drox. Drox had him pinned to the wall with his claw raised for a killed strike. She thought to herself and focus on his limb. Focused on it and where she wanted it to go. He struck and missed Bram’s head, but sunk into the wall next to him. The lights flickered and Drox’s muscles seized as electricity shot through his body.

Lux and Naomi came out to see the display and Lux clapped. Bram was beaten and bloodied and kneeling on one knee as he tried to stand and fell back against the wall. Drox collapsed with his and still in the wall. “I will ask you one last time Mallory. You in exchange for the lives of Bram and Elton.”

“The knife requires a Magi to use it doesn’t it?”

“To unlock its full potential yes, but it is still a knife.” He said.

Bram no longer had his headphones on. “Bram, stand up, but otherwise don’t move.” He did so and handed him the knife. “Do not attack me with the knife.” Bram did as he was told he held the knife in his hand. “Mallory on the count of three Bram is going to stab himself through the heart, which I am fairly certain will kill him.”

Bloody tears were streaming down her face as she watched Bram holding the knife. “Please.”

“What was that, One.” Drox roused for a moment, but a stray pulse of electricity put him back down. “That was unexpected. Two. Mallory, Th…

“Stop! I’ll do it, I’ll do it, please just stop.”

“Excellent. Bram go outside and tell Mallory to come in, then stay with Elton.”

He nodded and moved to the back door. He opened it and said “Mallory come inside.” His words were slow and cold. Almost robotic. She put her arms around Bram, hugged, and kissed him.”

Elton shook his head as Mallory went inside.

Mallory created a little room in her mind and she locked herself inside with a password to open it. She pictured it as a solid room, her old apartment. She pictured every stick of furniture, every morsel of food in the fridge, and every DVD she refused to sell or get rid of and she locked it all away deep in her mind with the single word, “tabernacle,” to open it.

“It’s a pleasure to finally meet you Mallory Edy.” He put out his and to shake. “how do you like the new Naomi?”

“She looks a little slutty.” She said as she wiped her eyes.

“I don’t take it as an insult,” Naomi said. She was still hanging on Lux running her hands up and down his chest and his pants and occasionally stroking his dick.

“Mallory. Forget about Bram.” He said and he was gone, just gone. It was extraordinary how powerful his words were. “Now I feel slutty would be a very accurate description of you.” She shook her head and pictured the last sex she had. She couldn’t remember him or his name, but he knew they were naked and fucking in the hallway which certainly sounded slutty. She couldn’t help but agree and she felt her posture shift. Every thought in her head revolved around that single premise. She wanted cock. “You are very attracted to me aren’t you?” She nodded emphatically and really wished she was in Naomi’s place right now.

* * *

Kimberly Kroger and her boyfriend Randall were arm in arm as they entered Ground Zero for the most unusual gala. The place was packed with older men and women as well as waiters and waitresses in black ties and white shirts which seemed strangely out of place with the goth décor. She spotted her father and waved at him. “Hi Daddy.” He beckoned her over.

“This is really weird, huh,” Kimberly said.

“A little, but it’s finally happening. The men and women in this room are the power brokers of the city. If they want something to happen it happens.” her Daddy seemed nervous, but she wasn’t sure why. She put the thought away and decided to ask him about it after the party.

“Cool,” Kimberly said. She spotted a tall handsome black man flanked by two gorgeous women who were dressed in skintight black dresses that clung to their bodies like they were painted on. She recognized the one woman, her hair was dyed platinum blonde since she last saw her. She wanted to say hello to him so she advised Randall to take her that way.

“Hello, My name is Lux Manta.” He said with a smile as he shook her hand his voice made her legs go weak at the knees.

“I’m Kimberly Kroger and this is my boyfriend Randall.” He waved curtly. He was clearly staring at the two women who seemed to be completely obsessed with Lux. The platinum blonde whispered something in his ear as she shoved her hand down his front pants pocket. Kimberly could clearly see the outline of the erection she was working with her hand.

“Randall, I can see you clearly staring at Mallory here. Please take her for a spin. Kimberly you don’t mind.” he said.

Kimberly blinked and realized what e just said was true. “What should I do?” She asked Lux.

“See how many men you can make into a vampire in this room tonight.” He said.

“Okay,” She said and marched off to find someone to make into a vampire.

Mallory removed her hand from his pocket as he whispered in her ear. “Give him head in the bathroom.” She seemed pleased with the order as she took Randall by the hand.

“I’m Randall.” He said sheepishly.

“That’s a nice name.” She turned to him and kissed him on the lips, “Listen Randall, I’m going to suck your cock so well you’re not gonna remember your girlfriend’s name.”

It was a strange sensation to have two minds. Mallory knew what the other was thinking and it was hot, but deep inside her mind in the room marked Tabernacle Mallory paced in her old apartment and hated pretty much everything that was happening, but soon he would need her to use the knife and then she was going to come back and kill him in his fucking sleep. She just had to be patient. In the little apartment in her mind she wrote down Bram and underneath she wrote remember Bram.

Cops and Vampires

Another ghostwritten story. This time it was a vampire romance. It was a weird week and this story took more out of me then it probably should have. There are a lot of factors here, the full moon, almost a month in quarantine, a general frustration with vampire tropes. I was a wreck, usually my brain devises a logical progression to these stories that guides me along the way. I can churn out a thousand words an hour if I have that direction, but this story was a battle of attrition for some reason. That being said I think it still turned out okay. As always read and enjoy.

Chapter 1

Dirty piles of snow framed the city as they huddled in the car. His lips reached out to hers and lifted the chill from them. Her breath was ragged, but she could still feel the warmth rising from her core as she leaned into the kiss. Paul pulled her coat apart. Moments before she would have swatted his hand away for letting the cold in, but the cold was superseded by arousal. He groped at her breast and she moaned. The windows were already getting foggy. Nobody got her this hot before, but Paul had a kind of magic when his hands touched her. Their mouths had found a rhythm in their making out. She realized that she wasn’t doing anything with her hands. One was holding some of her weight on the seat, but the other hung awkwardly in the air clenched into a fist. She moved the idle hand to his thigh. As soon as her fingers touched the denim feeling came back into her hand. The sudden variation in temperature caused a strange almost pain that coursed through her hand and up past her arm into the center of her being. Paul broke away, “Kimberly.” He whispered into her ear.

“Fuck.” She breathed out as their mouths went back to their previous positions. She pulled her hands away from his jeans, but let her fingers graze past his cock, with purposeful intent as she pulled her coat off of her body. She broke away again and said, “Fuck me.” their eyes met and kissed again while pulling there clothes away from their body. Paul was quicker and pressed forward. His mouth kissed her navel as he pulled at her pants. He smelled her and let his tongue trace down from her navel through a small thicket of pubic hair to her engorged lips. Kimberly was crying out as his tongue lapped at her clitoris. She pushed away and it was her turn to push him down onto the bench seat. The cold was gone, there was only heat now and Kimberly could feel a trickle of sweat on her forehead as she impaled herself on him.

She kissed him hard on his mouth, their tongues tangled together as his hands massaged her chest and moved down her belly. Paul snaked a thumb into her and found her clitoris as she rocked into him. She broke the kiss and lifted herself up her hands bracing her against the ceiling of the car as he continued stroking her little head. The other gently tweaked one of her nipples. He raised his hip and braced his legs on the driver side armrest. “God!” She screamed.

There was no warning when the glass shattered behind Kimberly. One second she was riding Paul and the next she was gripped by two icy hands that pulled her back towards the steering wheel. Paul looked up to see a pale bald headed man tear into Kimberly’s throat. An instant later he was showered in blood. The warm red fluid burned his eyes as he tried to reach for the attacker. His pelvis was pinned underneath her and he couldn’t reach her. Instead, in a panic, he reached for the door handle on his side and cranked on it. The door flew open letting in the sub-zero air. Paul gripped either side of the door frame and pulled himself out to the cold. His naked flesh burned as it touched the icy ground. Blood was splattering from his face as he crawled along the ground. Paul lifted himself up and turned to face the car but there was no attacker, just the lifeless body of Kimberly hung limply over the driver side door half in and half out of the car. He cautiously approached the vehicle, the cold was starting to overwhelm him and there was a phone somewhere in the mess of blood, flesh, and clothes inside the old Chrysler New Yorker. He still had his pants around his ankles so he pulled them up and reached for his coat. He quickly pulled it on and fumbled for his phone.

He heard a snarl and looked around. The park around him was empty and snow was drifting from the sky above him and coating the world in a thin layer. The street lights were helping, but there were still huge swathes of ground covered in dark shadows. He pulled out his phone and dialed 9-1-1 before bringing it to his ear. His eyes were alive with fear and when a voice on the other end answered he started speaking in a deluge. “My name is Paul Lund I’m at Bde Maka Ska Park my girlfriend was attacked send an ambulance now to the parking lot near Lake and Thomas.” Those were the last words he said as his larynx was pulled from his throat and bit into like an apple. Paul was dead before he hit the ground seven feet from the open car door.

* * *

Detective Mallory Edy pulled onto the crime scene. This is the last winter I spend here, she thought to herself as the temperature display in her car read out -17 degrees Fahrenheit. She hated the cold, but got out of her car all the same to examine the scene. Seven police officers and five paramedics hovered around. The coroner hadn’t arrived yet, but was likely close if they got the call when she did. A cop on the scene intercepted her, “Detective.” He said as he matched her stride.

“What have you got so far?” She cut right to the chase.

“Paul Lund, 24, bartender. He was found here.” He points to the crumpled body surrounded by a halo of red brown snow. “In the car Kimberly Kroger, 21, heiress and part of the top 1%.” The name on the officer’s uniform read, Dubuque.

“What were they doing out here?” Mallory asked idly.

“They appeared to be having, ah, relations.”

“That much was evident, but money-wise why? They could go to his place, her place, a hotel, but instead they came here. Having sex in the car in a park on a cold night like this. Why?” She shook her head at the question. She left Officer Dubuque and surveyed the area. The hole in Paul’s throat looked vicious, a hollow gummy wound where his Adam’s apple once was. He was already covered in a thin layer of snow and ice was forming on his face and in his hair. She walked around the car and looked over Kimberly’s body. Her throat was also damaged, but the wound was different, more like a dog bite. Her hands were down at her side and her back hung at a painful angle in the car door.

The coroner had arrived and extracted the bodies while a tow truck hoisted the massive car. Detective Mallory found the girl’s cellphone after a minimal search and luckily it wasn’t covered in blood, but it was locked. It was too late and too cold to look it over so she threw it in a baggie and tossed it in the back of her car. She thought she saw someone standing among the skeletal trees at the park’s bike trail. She felt a chill crawl down her spine as though someone had walked over her grave, but shook the feeling away.

Inside the car her heater blasted her with warm air and she started to feel life returning to her body. “I swear this is my last winter in this tundra.” She said to herself. She watched over the scene and let the car warm. At this point she was wired and the sun would rise soon and she wanted to be the first on the scene before some slack jawed beat cop walked all over her evidence.

She watched the lights across the small lake twinkle and flash as she stared off into space. The heat was nice and soon she felt the warm syrupy feeling of sleepiness wash over her brain. She caught herself and slapped herself awake. Despite her frustration with the cold she decided to take a short break from the heat. The cold hit her like a punch to the face quashing the dreamy feeling. She thought back to the bodies and the way they were murdered. It was like an animal attack, but the driver’s side window was shattered from the outside and she had never known an animal apart from a bear to be able to shatter car glass like that. There was still a smattering of cubed safety glass where the vehicle once was. It was starting to circle in her brain which signaled a need to step back and wait. Answers often presented themselves through patience, although that was a trait that didn’t come naturally for her. That didn’t stop her from idly walked around the crime scene. It was just an inert piece of ground. The evidence here was fairly obvious. Blood, glass and an apparent path from the where the car was to where Paul had died. It started with dragging, then a few lingering hand prints until finally moving to footprints. She shook her head and tried to picture the scene in her mind, but there was something missing. Why were they here? She thought again. She thought to get witness statements, but that would be a needle in a haystack affair so she decided to wait to view any cctv footage or for a witness to step forward. It was still dark and at least another hour before the sun rose.

“I don’t have much time.” A warm honey voice said from seemingly right behind her. She drew her gun instantly and swiveled in place, but saw no one there.

“Who is that? Come out and identify yourself.” She ordered. Her heart was suddenly racing.

“My name is Bram.” She heard a step and turned to the sound. “I’m here to help.”

Everything was bathed in the yellow glow of the sulfur colored lights overhead. She saw him surrounded by a yellow-orange glow in silhouette so all she could see was that he was a well built man of about six feet in height, wearing a leather jacket, and jeans. “Get your hands up.” She ordered and he complied lifting his arms casually to his shoulders.

“I have information that will help your case.” He said calmly.

“Slowly come into the light with your hands where I can see them.” She didn’t like that she was so out in the open suddenly and worried that this strange man might have friends. She moved forward slowly with her gun raised.

He moved with smooth confidence which under the current circumstances made her incredibly nervous. Her car was over a hundred feet away so she couldn’t radio for help and he looked like he could be trouble if he decided to attack. The gun was her only current leverage and something in the back of her head told her that wasn’t enough.

He was an attractive man, and appeared to be biracial, but it was difficult to tell in this light. “I promise I am not here to hurt you. You’re an officer, a detective, correct?” She nodded, but kept her defensive posture. “In my, let’s just call it community, I have a similar role and I may be able to add some perspective.” He explained. His voice was calm and soothing and she noted an accent that she couldn’t place, possibly South African or Dutch.

“We can talk from here.” The cold was creeping into her limbs and her fingers were going numb despite her gloves. “What do you know?”

“I know who is responsible.” He started lowering his hands, but Mallory reacted, lifting the gun for affect. “Sorry, sorry, it’s just cold out here. I can see you shivering from here and I would suggest retreating to a warmer place.” He suggested.

She thought it over. “Put your hands behind your back and turn around.” He did as he was told and she holstered her gun and handcuffed him.

“Am I under arrest?”

“You are definitely a person of interest Bram.” She searched his pockets quickly. He didn’t have any ID, but had a wad of cash in his jacket pocket as well as two vials of red liquid that she assumed was drugs. “You have the right to remain silent…”

“I understand my rights.” He interrupted.

She loaded him into the back seat and started the car. There was a small store front the police used as a holding area and office in Uptown. Not exactly a police station, but close by and warm. She watched him in the rear view as she drove. There was something off about him, he wasn’t wearing gloves or a hat and didn’t seem cold although his hands were freezing as she hand cuffed him.

The drive was short and he didn’t say a word and he seemed unnaturally still as he sat in his seat patiently staring straight ahead. She pulled him from the car and moved him through the small office into the interrogation room. “Alright. Talk.” She said as she put him in a chair next to a small table. “Why were they in the park?” She asked as she sat across from him.

“I have no idea.”

“You said you knew who killed them.”

“I have an idea, yes. He was a creature called Drox.” He answered.

“Drox?”

“Yes, a homicidal monster and a kind of enforcer for the Sacri Sanguinis.”

“That sounds like Latin.”

“It is.” He paused before continuing, “Sacri Sanguinis is an organization that runs counter to my community. If they are in operation in your city then everyone here is in danger.”

“How did you know about the murder.”

“I have a friend who listens to police scanners for certain patterns.”

He was holding something back and she could feel it. “What is your community?”

His hands were still cuffed behind him. “I didn’t commit this murder and I am willing to help, but you have to trust me.” He said in that same smooth tone that seemed to cut through her body.

He didn’t seem to blink or breath, but he still had incredible magnetism that pulled Mallory in. The way he was looking at her as she interviewed him was making her knees weak. She tried to banish the thought, but once she pictured him alone with her in her home, in her room the image was embedded and refused to leave her mind’s eye. “I can’t do that.” She said, but part of her wanted to trust him. Part of her wanted to meet him elsewhere, but this was her life. This was her job and she had to follow the law.

“What will it take to earn your trust Detective?”

“Give me something I can work with for starters.” She implored.

“I wish that I could, but there are things in this world that defy explanation. Your murderer is one of those things.”

“I’m sorry to say this, but I need to leave shortly.” He said.

She felt dreamy like waking suddenly from a long sleep and she couldn’t seem to look away from his eyes. “I can’t.” Her mouth didn’t want to work. She felt her body slump in her seat.

“I promise we’ll talk again soon.” He said as he pulled his hands apart with a metallic clink from behind his back.

She saw him pull the hand cuffs apart like they were nothing. “No.” She tried to call out, but sound came out more like a whimper and she felt a tear trail down her cheek from her suddenly watery eyes. Her limbs were leaden as she felt the strength stripped from her muscles. All she could do was watch him walk out the door. She closed her eyes and felt herself drift into darkness.

Chapter 2

“Detective Edy.” She heard her name distantly and eye eyes shot open. There was a patrolman, Girard, standing above her in the interrogation room.

She sat up and saw the remains of her handcuffs on the floor, “Fuck!” She stood up looking around the small office space. “I had a suspect!” She moved from the room frantically. “security footage, where is it?” She asked Girard.

He showed her the footage and her hands started shaking as she saw herself enter the interrogation room, seemingly talk to herself for a few minutes and then pass out. “No, no, no. This isn’t right. He was here.”

Girard was stunned, “The door was wide open when I arrived.” He explained.

“Fuck.” She blasted from the office to her car and drove back to the scene of the crime. None of it made sense. There were footprints still visible from when she put him in the back of the car, there was the blood and the glass and a few guys looking over the scene. One was taking photos and the other was looking over the lake. She tapped him, “What did you find?” She asked.

He was wearing a heavy winter coat, his badge hung awkwardly from his lapel. “Detective.” He looked at her. He was a balding man in his forties wearing frameless glasses. “We’ve been collecting samples, but otherwise we haven’t discovered much except for this.” He pointed to footprints in the snow that trailed out across the lake.

“Bare feet?” She asked.

“Appears so. And check this out.” He pointed out across the lake and when she looked she saw police cars in front of a green art deco home.

Her phone rang almost as soon as she saw the cars. “Edy.” She answered. The voice on the other end explained the situation and she hung up. “There’s been another murder.” She kicked herself for letting her suspect get the best of her as she got in her car. “Motherfucker!” She screamed and pulled out of her parking space. She had him. Bram was the key to all of this there was no question of that in her mind. He said he knew who committed the murder. As she pulled up to the house she could see officers filtering in and out of the residence.

She smelled the blood before she entered the house. She is immediately greeted with upper torso of a middle aged man was sat upright on a couch. His lower half was tangled in front of couch on the carpeted floor. The second body was in the kitchen, a woman flung into the kitchen sink with half her arm shoved into the garbage disposal. Her face was submerged under half a foot of coagulated blood. She surveyed the rest of the house. She spotted Officer Girard and asked him, “When is CSI arriving?”

“On there way now.” He answered.

“Has anyone checked the rest of the house.”

“There are two officers upstairs, but no one has checked the basement yet.”

She nodded, “Okay, get everyone out of here until CSI has cleared it. I’ll check the basement.”

“Yes Ma’am.”

She moved through the house as delicately as she could. There was blood everywhere and those same bare footprints crisscrossing the seen. They lead to the basement. She opened the basement door and descended. She flicked the light switch, but nothing happened. She grimaced and pulled her flashlight from her belt. The beam did little to penetrate the gloom as she continued down the stairs. The basement was unfinished, but larger then she expected with walls covered in sheet rock. Straight ahead there was a rack of cleaning supplies and a hallway set to the right. She could hear a slow steady drip coming from somewhere deeper in the basement. To her left a washer, drier, and large utility sink. To the right a work bench with tools hung on a peg board above the bench. She stepped onto the cement floor and crept through towards the hallway and felt panic rising in her chest. She breathed out trying to lower her heart rate and keep her brain working. The short hallway had a door midway down and another at the end of the hall. She twisted the door knob to the middle door carefully and swung in with her gun raised. The room was more finished then the rest of the basement with a bed, a bookshelf, and a single rectangular window. There was nothing below the bed, but the closer door was parted slightly. Her heart was in her throat as she cautiously pushed the closet doors apart and let out a scream when an ironing board fell forward and nearly crowned her. “Shit.” She said. She could hear movement in the floor above and thought to return upstairs to greet the CSI crew, but decided to press on.

The door was cracked open so she pushed it gently with her gun and as it swung open she pivoted into a bathroom. The bathtub had a semi translucent shower curtain obscuring her view. The light from the window lit it up and she could see a mound in the tub. She swallowed and drew the curtain open. The mass was a pile of clothes and she breathed a sigh of relief and turned back to the door.

The door behind her was closed and she saw a massive pale chest illuminated by a ray of sunlight. The flesh was blistering where the light hit it. It moved towards her and his face came into view. It’s face was bestial with a wide mouth filled with rows of shark-like teeth and its forehead was crested with a bony ridge. It lunged at her and she fired her gun. The bullet hit and exploded out its back. Its taloned hand swiped at her tearing through her coat and dug into her flank.

Adrenalin pulled her to her feet. Mallory turned in time to see the creature burst through the window. She blasted through hole the creature made and chased it. The monster’s skin was blistering and smoking as it ran. Finally it stopped in the center of a street and lifted a manhole cover from the road and flung it in Mallory’s direction. She dropped to the ground as it came within inches of her head and smashed into a tree with enough force that it stuck there. She suddenly felt the wound in her side and howled in pain.

“What the hell hit you?” The paramedic asked as he looked at the wound.

“I don’t know.” Mallory answered. “Drox.” She said almost to herself as her mind conjured Bram from a few hours ago.

“We don’t have the ability to deal with this here. You’re going to have to go the the ER.” He informed her. “Whatever hit you cut into the bone.”

The ER was a tedious ordeal and took the better portion of her day and by the time she was out her body felt exhausted. She called the precinct and told them that she would be following up on leads in the evening. At home she examined the wounds and her body in the mirror. Her lithe body looked like one giant bruise. The winter darkness was already closing in and she tried to settle her brain enough to sleep, but the components of the case came crashing in the moment she started to doze. Her interview with Bram and her encounter with what she presumed was Drox replayed in her mind. Nevermind, the lingering question of the initial murders.

She poured herself some scotch and put a record on as she sat in near darkness with a single lamp on hoping the music and the liquor would lull her to sleep. Portishead filled her head and managed to calm her nerves. As her eyes fluttered and closed she was jarred by a knock at the door. She seethed to herself and tried to ignore the intrusion, but the damage was already done and a second knock broke the spell of sleep as relaxation was replaced with anger. She opened the door and was about to scream at the interloper, but stopped when she saw Bram’s face. His piercing eyes looked over her face. “I apologize if I woke you, but I felt bad about our last interaction.” She felt shame and anger and panic and in the end froze in place. she was in a t-shirt, sweat pants, no shoes, and her gun was locked away. “May I come in?”

“No.” She spat.

He nodded, “You’ve been hurt.” He said.

She covered her wound and regarded him, “Who is Drox?” She found her voice finally.

“He is a vampire,” Bram chewed on his next statement, “Same as me.” She laughed and shut the door on him. Bram said from behind the door, “You’ve encountered Drox, haven’t you? He is still out there and I am here to stop him, but I need your help.”

She opened the door again, “Why?” She asked.

“This is all very difficult to explain from the door. Would you please let me in.” He pleaded.

“I can hear you fine.” She knew that the door wasn’t remotely enough defense if he truly wanted to get in, but the psychological security it offered was helping her sleep deprived brain at that moment.

“I can’t really explain, but I can show you.”

Her instincts could usually tell her when someone was lying to her, but this man was completely unreadable. She didn’t see any of the usual signs of lying and he certainly exhibited superhuman strength and some form of hypnosis. Was it such a stretch to believe he was a vampire? In spite of her better judgment she opened the door more and said, “Come in.”

“Thank you.” He said demurely as she opened the door. The stood in the doorway inches from each other and she could feel that same magnetism. The half image of them alone returned to her unbidden. He couldn’t help, but look at his lips. Then the thought entered her mind that if he was a vampire perhaps this fascination was part of his magic. He had turned the tables on her that morning in the interrogation room, perhaps this was a trick. She didn’t want it to be a trick, but her rational brain had to take it into account.

Chapter 3

Mallory recognized the place, a club called Ground Zero. “Your taking me to the goth club?” she asked.

He nodded, “Yeah.”

“A little on the nose isn’t it?”

“Easier to hide in plain sight.” He offered.

The smell of sweat, liquor, and vomit invaded her senses as they entered the club and she felt a wave of heat hit her radiating from the mass of bodies dancing to the throbbing music. Bram lead her past the crowd to a door on the far side of the bar guarded by a single bouncer who looked like a brick if you covered it with tattooed skin. “She can’t come in.” He said after a brief cursory glance.

“She is Magi.” he said as Bram passed a folded bill into his hand.

The bouncer looked her over and looked back at Bram, “How?”

“The universe is a strange place.” Bram offered.

He slid the folded bill into his pocket and opened the door for them. “Appreciated.”

“Thanks Frank.” He patted the bouncer on the shoulder.

Once they crossed the threshold she grabbed him and turned him to face her, “Explain.” She said.

“I knew last night, but I wasn’t sure, but you survived an encounter with Drox. Humans can’t do that.”

She shook her head, “I’m human.” She said.

“Yes, but you harness magic, which elevates you to a different level. I assume you’re unaware, but you channel the chaos of the universe around you and center it in a direction, like tuning a radio. This is neutral ground where the supernatural gather we can speak in peace here. It also serves as an object lesson. Vampires, werewolves, fae, and magi all exist here hidden from the mortal realm in plain sight.” She couldn’t believe what he was saying. “Look around you.”

She scanned the room they entered, the red light made it difficult to see details. Most appeared to be normal bar patrons, but she could make out a man with four goat horns jutting from his forehead. There were others stranger still a lithe woman standing almost seven feet in height. Another creature stood about four feet tall with brutish musculature “What does this have to do with my case?” She asked still trying to wrap her brain around what she was seeing.

“Your case threatens to expose us. Drox is your killer, but he is extremely old and extremely powerful. Magi are rare and it is your abilities that will bring this beast to bear.” He lead her through the crowd to the bar. He leaned to the bartender, a green skinned woman with inhumanly sized black eyes that seemed to have some kind of nictitating membrane as well as regular eyelids. “I need to speak with Tolliver.” and slid a bill to the bartender.

The bartender slid a plastic cup in his direction. Bram smiled as he raised the glass to her. “Is that blood?” Mallory asked with more of a sarcastic tine then she intended.

“Actually, yes.” He answered.

“How do these people blend in?” She asked.

“The aesthetic of this club already lends itself to the unusual and beyond that Tolliver, the proprietor of this club, uses wards to distract the humans from those with more alien appearances.”

She looked over the bar at all the creatures that inhabited the place and despite the surreality of the situation she recognized the mannerisms that she’d seen at any bar she’d ever been to. Some were loud and animated, others were dancing to the music and yet others were quietly existing in their own space enjoying the environment. Tolliver was a foppish looking man in a black brocade coat, black pants, and a ruffled shirt with his chest exposed. He looked to be a man in his sixties, but his chest and abdomen were heavily muscled like he spent his life in a gym.

“Bram.” He said with a smile.

“Tolliver.” They hugged. “This is Detective Mallory Edy, a magi.” He presented.

A wide grin split his face ear to ear, “Fantastic!” He said with a mischevious glint in his eye. “Let me look at you.” He stepped back and looked her over. “It has been an age since I saw a magi in the flesh.” He turned his attention back to Bram. “Come with me.” He said and turned away from the pair.

Tolliver lead them to a smokey office with Nag Champa smoldering and a single small lamp on top of an ancient wooden desk casting a honey colored glow on the room. A bottle of absinthe and a single glass filled with the cloudy green liquid sat next to the lamp. He sat behind the desk as he motioned towards the seats in front of his desk. “Please.”

“So what are you?” Mallory asked.

“I am a faerie.” He said with a flourish. “as if that wasn’t already evident.”

“Drox is here.” Bram said with some urgency.

Tolliver’s demeanor changed and his face affected a more sullen expression. “Sacri Sanguinis.” he nodded. “How many know?”

“Lysander, myself, and now you.” He said.

“What do you need from me?”

“The knife.”

Tolliver took a sip of his absinthe and stood from his seat. “I’m afraid I can’t do that for you Bram. I’m sorry.”

Mallory noted the rapid change in the dynamic of the room. “What have you done?” Bram asked.

“Humanity is growing out of control and something needs to be done. Sacri Sanguinis has a plan and as the years pass I find myself more and more in agreement with their philosophy. It’s time to let the monsters out.” As he spoke Drox entered. “It was so nice to meet you Mallory and I apologize for the timing as you are just discovering your true nature.” Mallory’s eyes went wide as she saw his pale form and tried to pull her gun from its holster, but Drox grabbed her face with his clawed hand. Bram pivoted from his seat and launched at Drox striking him in the face with a series of lightning fast punches that had no discernible effect on the brute. Drox casually tossed Mallory to the side, shoved his claws into Bram’s chest, and lifted him off the ground. Mallory scrambled for her gun and fired. The bullet hit with a crack that sent a spray of blood across the desk.

Tolliver rolled his chair back and stood from his seat. “I’ll leave you to it.” Tolliver moved quickly to the door around the combatants.

Drox dropped Bram and turned his attention back to Mallory. His shark teeth came into view again and she fired two more rounds. The first hit solidly in the monster’s chest, the second struck him in the face stunning him long enough for Mallory to stand. “Bram!” She yelled.

Bram got to his feet, but collapsed again. Mallory tried to go to his aid, but Drox was already on the move again. He swiped at her, but she was able to dodge the claw and roll forward to Bram. She turned and landed against the wall next to Bram where she fired again hitting Drox again in the head blasting a chunk of his skull free. That shot was enough to drop him, but she could see he wasn’t down for the count as he was grabbing his head with one hand and pushing himself off the ground with the other. She pulled Bram off the floor and started moving for the door. “Mallory.” Bram said and pointed as she saw Drox was already standing. Despite his unsteady feet Bram put himself between Her and Drox as he nailed the beast in the face with a kick. “Run.” She did as she was told and got to the door and out. The crowd in the bar seemed oblivious to the gunfire so she used the crowd to cover her exit. She couldn’t see Drox or Bram. Bodies moved all around her and she saw the bouncer, Frank, obviously looking into the crowd. Mallory was able to slip out the door into the main bar where she holstered her gun and walked out trying very hard not to attract attention.

The cold air was a welcome change as she walked out into the winter air. She didn’t want to leave, she wanted to find Bram and save him, but the prospect of going back in seemed foolish so she did the only thing she could think to do and got to her car and started the engine.

Chapter 4

The morgue was cold at night. The bodies that arrived during the day were arranged in a row for processing in the morning. The stretcher that held Kimberly Kroger’s body twitched and moved. Her arm fell from under the sheet. Her fingers curled into a fist as she worked out the stiffness. She got up delicately and looked around the room. There was cold and she could interpret the sensation, but it didn’t matter. She didn’t shiver or feel any discomfort if anything she felt good. She hopped off the gurney and padded to a small mirror. Her face was pale, blood still trickled from her mouth, and she looked like she had bags under her eyes, but otherwise everything looked fantastic with her new eyes. There was something slightly unnerving about not hearing blood in your ears or feeling your chest rise and fall with the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the lungs. Then there was the hunger. She was famished in a way she had never felt and had a vague recollection of what she was told to do.

Before she left she pulled Paul’s sheet down and looked at him. He still looked as sexy as ever, she bit into his neck and tasted what little blood remained. She didn’t know if this would work, but she wanted to try, to feel his hands on her again and to be by his side. She wished she had thought to include him in the beginning, but things moved so quickly that she wasn’t able to convey her desires. The blood was bitter and cold, but it helped a little with the growing hunger. She needed something warmer. She finished the ritual by kissing him with her bloody lips and hoped it would work.

Her patience evaded her as the hunger motivated her exodus. The naked woman walked slowly down the hallway until she found the security office. She could smell the warm living blood on the other side of the security door. She knocked at the door and heard movement on the other side. He startled when he saw her, but she put her arms around his neck and pulled him into a kiss. He pushed himself away from her and started to speak, but she spoke instead, “I’m so glad you’re here.” She smiled sweetly as she pressed into him and became acutely aware of how much stronger she was then him. A phenomena that had never happened before. The man struggled to push her away, but she once again pulled him close and bit into his neck. The warmth and flavor of his fresh blood made her almost moan, but she wanted to be closer. The fluid bathed her tongue and fell down her chin, throat, and heaving chest. His struggling subsided as he dropped to the ground near death. She cut her wrist open with her new vampiric teeth and fed the poor security guard. She looked him in the eye and said, “You must feed and increase our number dear heart.” His eyes closed as she released him.

She heard movement behind her and was thrilled to see Paul standing confused at the security office. “Good morning Paul.” she said with a smile and a giggle.

* * *

Bram fell more then walked out of Ground Zero. Mallory was watching and jumped out of her car to help him. “Bram!” She yelled.

He reached for her and draped his arm over her shoulder. He said, “I told you to run.”

She helped him limp to her car and poured him into the passenger side. She started down the road when she spotted Drox in the rearview mirror. He was running at her car and surprisingly started to gain on her. She ran a red light and a car laid on its horn as it narrowly missed Mallory, but ran headlong into Drox. The hood crumpled and folded around his mass, Its back end tilted upward from the momentum. Drox grabbed the hood of the vehicle lifted it off the ground nearly five feet before slammed it back into the ground.

“Fuck.” Mallory breathed out. She looked at her passenger who looked like he had been hit be that car instead of the shark toothed nightmare that was chasing her car down. She got onto the highway to create some distance between. “Talk to me.” She said as she pulled into traffic.

He pulled out one of those red vials and downed its contents. “I just need time to heal.” He drank the second vial as well.

“Is that blood?”

He shook his head, “No, its a chemical solution that accelerates healing. Think of it like an antibiotic for vampires.”

“Okay. So what do we do now?” She asked.

“I need to get to Lysander. She is likely in danger.” He leaned back against the seat and looked at Mallory, “Are you alright.”

“Apart from a splitting headache I’m okay. Where is your friend located?”

“I’ll direct you.” They drove into the suburbs north until they came to a trailer park. The streets seemed to weave into strange curved streets that all looked virtually identical. She was asked to park in front of the trailer with Christmas decorations still hung in the windows.

Bram was already moving better. It was Mallory’s turn to feel beat down as the adrenalin wore off and she felt every bump, bruise, and wound she had accumulated over the last day. Lysander’s slender form met them at the door. She couldn’t have been more then twelve years old, but Mallory’s sense of expectation had altered since she left her house. The world was now filled with monsters and magicians and she was somehow connected to all of it. “Bram.” She said cordially.

“We’ve been double crossed.” He said.

“You guys don’t do small talk at all, do you?” Mallory noted.

“Come in. Do you need blood?” She asked as they entered the house. The trailer was small. The living room and kitchen were separated by a partial counter. He nodded and Lysander threw some blood bags from the fridge into the microwave. “To answer your question, we don’t really do small talk. Not often anyway.”

“Are you a vampire as well?” Mallory asked as she looked around the place.

“I am, and older than him to boot.” She offered. She was a young black girl with close cropped blonde hair.

“Really?”

“She taught me everything I know. About this condition anyway.” Bram added.

“Just how old are you?”

“A lady never tells.” Lysander answered. She handed Bram the blood bags.

Bram sat on the couch and said, “I was born in 1942 and have been a vampire since 1971.”

“Holy shit, that would make you…”

“78 come March.”

Lysander switched gears and addressed Bram, “What do you mean double cross?”

“Tolliver is with Sacri Sanguinis.”

“Shit. I’ll start packing.”

Bram nodded. “What’s happening?” Mallory asked.

“We’re moving. Tonight we stay here and tomorrow after dark we will need to leave the area.” Bram explained.

“Wait. You’re leaving?”

“We have to. Tolliver was right, we are outnumbered and the two of us alone can’t defeat Drox and the full strength of the Sacri Sanguinis especially if Tolliver has already opened the door for them. We need more allies and we can’t be sure of allegiances in the city.” He explained.

“I can’t leave.” She protested. “I have a life here, a job. If this organization is as bad as you say how can you just leave?” She felt her heart rate rising.

“This is a strategic withdrawal so we can formulate a better plan. This is a temporary measure.”

“You said I was a Magi and you needed my help.”

“That is still true, but you need training and we need the knife if we hope to neutralize Drox. I’m sorry, but we have no choice.” He stood and looked down at her and for the first time touched her shoulders. She was angry, but his sudden closeness did a lot to defuse her frustration.

“I don’t like running away.” She said quietly.

“I don’t either.” He said.

She didn’t realize that her hands were touching his thighs and suddenly her hands felt impossibly hot. They stood like that looking into each others eyes for what felt like an eternity. She raised her head to his lips and kissed him. He returned the kiss and her hands slid along the contours of his thick legs from his thighs to his hamstrings just below his buttocks. After an eon their lips parted. “We are spending the night here aren’t we?” She asked and he nodded. She smiled and returned to the kiss. He scooped her into his arms and carried her into a bedroom.

Their wasn’t any light coming from the windows, the room was pitch black. He laid her on the bed and she immediately pulled her shirt from her body. All worry and doubt left her as she felt his hands on her flesh. His hands were cold to the touch, but the contrast between her too hot living flesh and his ice cool skin was causing erotic spasms everywhere his fingers touched her. “Does it feel good when you bite people?” She asked and wondered instantly how long that thought had been in the back of her head.

“Yes.” He whispered as they peeled more clothes off and their hands explored each other’s bodies. His hand slid against her sex and she gasped as it sent a quiver through her pussy that made her whole body vibrate.

“Fuck, bite me.” He complied and his teeth sunk into her flesh as her hand found his rigid cock head and was happy that at least one part of his body was warm. She moaned as she felt the warm wetness between his mouth and her neck. She guided him into her and wrapped her legs around his as she pulled him deeper inward. She could feel her heart in her chest beating against her rib cage like it was trying to escape. Every nerve ending was alive and his cool skin was heating at her touch. He released her neck and lapped up the excess blood from her neck as he thrust deeper. She felt pressure in her abdomen and the fission of their love-making was bursting into from her and she screamed as she dug her fingernails into his back.

Light pierced the gloom and she dimly saw her phone through her haze of lust. Mallory reluctantly looked over to the phone and saw it was the coroners office. “Fuck!” She yelled as she grabbed the phone. “Hello.” Bram stopped his ministrations.

“The bodies are gone.” He said over the phone.

“What?”

“Kimberly Kroger and Paul Lund’s bodies are gone. The security guard is missing too.”

“Okay. I’m coming in.” She said and got off the bed.

The sting of lamplight caused her to wince and she saw Bram laying across the bed naked. She glowed at the image. She couldn’t help, but smile. “You, Christ God. I have to go. Two bodies are missing from the morgue and I need to go in.”

“Missing?” he asked as he stood and pulled her close to him.

“Yeah, their bodies were stolen.” They kissed again.

“I should go with you.” He said.

She nodded, “Yeah.” She pulled herself together, gather her clothes, and pulled her hair back in a pony tail.

Chapter 5

Paul had been silent and kept shivering. The security guard on the other hand seemed a marvelous acquisition. He was strong, confident, and seemed to adapt to his new lifestyle well. If Paul didn’t shape up she was tempted to break up with him. They found a house to set up shop and as much as she enjoyed walking around naked she decided she would need to wear some clothes. The home they invaded was luckily occupied by college girls and didn’t put up much of a fight between her and her security guard. Paul drank some blood from one of the blonde girls, but he didn’t really kill anybody so that was a huge demerit against him. She was camped out on the couch trying to cuddle with Paul, but he kept shivering which was very annoying so she ended up lounging on her own watching some reality show on the coeds television. She was dressed in Love Pink leggings and a tank top which Security Guard certainly seemed to be drooling over. There was movement outside. She could hear dogs barking somewhere and the heavy footfalls told her the person was big.

“Security Guard.” She said and snapped at him.

“My name is Randall.” He responded.

“Yeah, okay, could you check the door? I think somebody is outside.”

Randall got up and went to the back first and saw nothing. He opened the door and lit a cigarette. Breathing was weird as a vampire, it was like he had to relearn how to do it to take a drag off a cigarette. He was getting the hang of it when he saw him. A massive man naked standing over seven feet tall with bony ridges on his chest and forehead. His mouth was made of grisly looking shark teeth. He walked up the back porch and pulled the door off its hinges and tossed it aside as he entered. In a voice that sounded uncomfortably like dental drills the creature spoke, “Kimberly.”

She bolted upright and looked at the direction of the voice that called her name. She saw him in the kitchen. His bulk was enough to block er view of the back door. She moved to the kitchen, “Master.” she said and dropped to her knees in front of him.

“Why are you here?” Drox growled.

“:We needed clothes Master. To blend in.” She answered. Her heart swooned at his presence. His voice was like a summer breeze to her. In her heart she knew there was nothing she wouldn’t do for him.

“Go to your home. To your father and bring him into the fold.” He instructed. Paul wandered to the kitchen and knelt next to Kimberly. She rolled her eyes at his presence, she should definitely break up with him. Drox regarded the vampire. He grabbed Paul by the head and lifted him off the ground. Paul offered no resistance and was by his head and one of his legs. Drox sniffed at him with his skeletal nose and grunted. He pulled him apart. His leg came off at the ball joint and his neck was stretched in an awkward unnatural way. The leg spewed blood along the kitchen floor as he howled in pain. His vertebrae snapped and left him paralyzed from the neck down. His eyes rolled in his head as he looked at the blood dribbling from his hip where a leg once was. “Silence him disciple.” He said as he left the house. Drew snuffed his cigarette as he watched the thing leave the backyard.

Inside Kimberly looked around the kitchen and stopped when she found a heavy rolling pin. She hefted it and batted it against the opposite hand. She stepped over Paul and tilted her head as she looked him over. “It’s not working out babe. I will always love you, but I’ve moved on.” She lifted the rolling pin and brought it down. The first hit ailed him hard, but only left a welt on his forehead. On the second she heard a bone crack. He was still shrieking when she raised the rolling pin a third time. He stopped shrieking, but his eyes were still rolling in his head in a befuddled stupor. “It’s not me, it’s you.” She said as she brought it down again. “I think we should see other people.” The fifth hit seemed to stop his twitching jaw. She dropped the pin on the floor and walked out the broken door. “Are you ready to go boyfriend.” She asked with her arms crossed.

He nodded. “Paul?”

“He’s not coming with. Do you have a car? I should’ve asked that before.” She said as she descended from the patio.

“I do actually. I kinda spaced it.” He said as he pulled his keys from his pocket.

“Cool. We’re going to Edina.”

* * *

Mallory pulled up to the Morgue and parked the vehicle. “I’ll just tell anyone who asks you’re a consultant.” She stated across the top of the vehicle.

“Understood.” He said as they ventured in.

There was only a single police officer there when she arrived. She didn’t recognize him, but there were so many that it wasn’t an unusual occurrence. She saw the blood stains in the security office and saw the state of the morgue. Mostly just things knocked over. The lights were off in the coroners office and several bodies still there. “Do you think Drox was covering his tracks?” She asked idly.

“Not his style. I think she got up and walked away.” He said matter-of-factly.

“Okay,” She drew in a deep breath, “Do go on.”

“Well look here.” He pointed at the floor. “There are footprints. Small feet here and larger feet here trailing out into the hallway.”

She saw them and had a shiver run down her spine. “They’re vampires aren’t they?” Without looking over the details she did see dirt and grime in the larger prints consistent with Paul and his trek through the snow.

“It is very likely, yes.”

Gunshots echoed from the hallway. Bram and Mallory moved quickly to the door and saw Drox mauling the Police Officer. “Shit.” Mallory cursed.

“I’ll try to slow him down while you get out.” He stated.

She shook her head, “He nearly killed you last time. No we leave together.” She looked around the medical equipment here didn’t look formidable enough to do anything but annoy the monster. Instead she snapped at Bram, “We make a run for it.” She remembered he kept up with her car. They were too late he was already too close for them to have any shot at running

Mallory checked her clip and reinserted it as she stood back behind a cabinet. Bram hid on the other side of the room. Drox entered and scanned the room. “I can smell you.” His grating voice echoed in the room.

Bram stepped out. “Hello Drox.” He said.

“There is nothing for you to do.” He stood in the way of the door.

“No negotiation?” Bram had his hands behind his back.

Mallory clenched her eyes shut as they spoke and ran through scenarios in her head. Drox was blocking the only entrance out and she could fire on him, which managed to slow him, but not by much. She was boxed in and needed a solution. She thought back to Bram’s words before, ‘you channel the chaos of the universe around you and center it in a direction, like tuning a radio.’ She thought about chaos and coincidence and the single thought in her mind was that she wanted more firepower.

“What if I were to join Sacri Sanguinis? I relinquish the human race to your order and you let us go. I swear on my blood.”

Drox shook his head, “You are meat.” He crouched and drew his arms up and as he moved his back erupted from machine gun fire. The door was wide open allowing officers arriving on the scene to open fire. He turned to the gunfire in time to see a grenade launched at him. The explosion knocked Drox across the room into a wall where he seemed to be out cold

Bram smiled at their luck and Mallory yelled , “Run!” He moved for the door as the police were reloading. Mallory stepped out with her badge held in front of her like a ward. “MPD!” She declared loudly as she ran down the hall. She got behind the wall of officers and turned in time to see Drox already stirring.

“Detective Edy?” A gray haired officer addressed her.

“How quickly can you get SWAT over here.”

“In literal minutes.”

“Do it.” She ordered and he stepped away to give the order.

Someone yelled, “Incoming!” Drox burst through the door ripping through steel and sheet rock. The Police fired again and Drox still advanced. The grenade launcher fired again, this time Drox grabbed the grenade and threw it back towards the cops. Mallory pulled Bram down the hallway and out the door. The subsequent explosion shook the building and caused the lights to flicker and go out. The survivors were ripped apart as Drox tore into them with claws and teeth.

Mallory and Bram finally made it outside where she spotted several police cars and an ambulance. An idea flashed in her head. She jumped into the back of the ambulance in spite of the protests by the paramedics there and she spotted what she was looking for. “Bram, can you lift this?” She tugged at the oxygen tank. Realization hit and he nodded. Drox was finished with the officers and making his way down the hallway as Bram lifted the oxygen tank. “Throw it at him.” Mallory ordered. He nodded and chucked the tank down the hall with as much force as he could muster. Mallory lifted her gun and aimed at the tank. Drox caught the tank and pulled his arm back to throw it back at them. “Channel the chaos.” Mallory said to herself as she fired and hit the tank. The explosion blew out the entrance of the building and threw Mallory back against one of the idle cop cars.

Bram ran to her crumpled form. He could hear her heart beating, but her lungs were punctured by several broken ribs. “Mallory?” He looked worried for the first time since she met him. She could see him speaking, but the ringing in her ears blocked out everything he said. She wheezed and tried to catch her breath. With her lungs spasming she focused on Bram beautiful face. He pulled her up into an embrace and she felt his teeth bite into her neck. She barely registered the bite with all the other breaks and bruises overloading her senses. She closed her eyes and felt warm liquid touch her lips and tasted copper in her mouth. Her eyes darted open.

“What have you done?” She said as her body shuddered and her eyes closed. He hoisted her up in his arms and took her to the car.

* * *

Jim Kroger sat in front of a roaring fire with tears in his eyes. He was midway through a bottle of Laphroaig when his phone alerted him that someone was at the door. Through tear stained eyes he saw his daughter and a security guard at his front door. He wiped the tears away and raced to the door. “Baby!” He cried as he opened the door and pulled her into his arms.

She smiled and said, “I’m sorry daddy, I seem to have lost my keys.” She chirped in his ear.

“Oh baby. How? How is this possible?” He wiped the tears away as best he could, but they kept coming.

“You’re getting snot all over me.” She complained.

He beamed and hugged her again, “You’re freezing. Come in. Where is you’re coat?”

“I must have lost that too. Can my friend come in?”

“Yes. Of course.” They all entered the house and he closed the door behind them. The house was warm and she noted it in the same way she noted the cold. It was just different.

Jim ushered them into the room with the fire and she felt a momentary fear when she saw it, but just thought it was an old habit from when she was alive. “Who is this now?” He addressed the security guard.

“I’m Randall, sir.” He shook his hand.

“He’s my new boyfriend.” She beamed at him.

“Oh my you’re cold as well. Would you like some Scotch?”

He shrugged, “I don’t think I drink alcohol anymore.”

“Oh well that fine, please sit by the fire.” He sat them down and took his original seat. “Honey. The police told me you were dead.” He mind was awash with happiness tat his daughter was alive, but noted the frustration with such a cruel mistake.

“Well I was, for a little while, but my Master told me to wait for a while before I got up. It was really hard to tell time and I think I fell asleep for a long time.” She babbled at him as she patted Randall on the thigh.

“I’m sorry, Master?” He shook his head at her words.

“Oh for sure. I’m a vampire now Daddy and you’re gonna be a vampire soon too. It’s part of the plan.”

“What plan? Vampire?” His head was swimming from all the things she was saying and the half a bottle of Laphroaig certainly wasn’t making it any more understandable.

“Oh I don’t know, Master only told me this part.” She smiled at him cheerily. “Hey Randall?”

“Yes baby.” He said.

“Could you hold my daddy down for me please?”

“Yes baby.” Randall crossed behind the couch, grabbed Jim Kroger by the shoulders, and pinned him to the couch as his daughter stood still smiling.

“Hold still Daddy” She giggled and then bit into his throat.

Dark Mafia Romance (revised)

This was what I was given as an assignment. Part 1 of a 5 book series. There were few descriptors apart from length and word amount then as I start to write they send me a note that says the woman, the protagonist, is this tough as nails warrior person so I wrote the project and made it the fuck work. I could post the notes I was sent on this story and though I went the River Song, Bourne Identity route with it I still feel the story works. Again this is raw unedited stuff, and I really need an editor by the way, so please read and enjoy. mind the typos. I will totally, totally put the other arts of this story up if I am hired to write them.

Note: I did edit it some and added about 5,000 words to the story so it probably reads a little different then it did before. Please read and enjoy and by all means let me know what you think. 

 

 

1

Emma Byrne was already sweltering in the jungle heat. The vehicle was impossibly hot and she didn’t know what part of town she was in anymore. Sweat was stinging her eyes and she was trying very hard not to move her hands from her lap. They covered her head in a black bag and for a second she thought to herself, this is it, this is how I’ll go out, but that wasn’t the case. Several miles later the van finally stopped, the men that surrounded her shuffled out, and one of the men gently held her hand as they lead her out.

A short walk later she was given a chair and the hood was removed from her head. The room was a vast warehouse filled with wooden crates and vehicles. She shook her black hair out of her face and lowered her gaze as her vision adjusted to the light and was face to face with Duende, the prolific up and coming kingpin of Sao Paulo Brazil. She did her research. It only took him two years to conquer a quarter of the city. His meteoric rise was a combination of popularity and brutality. She saw pictures of him as a child and he looked so sweet in his school uniform. Today he looked hard. His eyes were dark and seemed to watch everything with a steady even gaze. The moniker came from his youthful appearance, “Duende” was Portuguese for “Elf” and it was very fitting, he was tall, with wiry muscle, and his face was still youthful, but there was an edge that you only got after looking your demons in the eye and embracing them.

He “What is it you want from me?” His accent was heavy and thick.

She stammered, “I’m a reporter.” She wasn’t usually shaken like this, but she had read the file and knew his gang, Os Novos Deuses, was at war with Primeiro Comando da Capital. This wasn’t the first real test of his strength, but it was certainly the most daunting. “My employers, Truth Hunters, are very interested in your story.”

He nodded, “This, I already know, my question is how do we move forward from here?” He leaned back in his chair and lit a cigarette.

Emma heard movement behind her and several men spoke in hushed tones. Duende took notice and looked at the commotion and waved someone over. “O que e isso?” She understood the phrase, what is it, but Duende and his man spoke and the rest was too fast for her to follow. She stiffened when Duende pulled a large handgun from his desk. He waved Emma to him, “Come. Rapida!” She did as she was told and he ushered her out. That was when she heard the first gunshot. It was a single shot outside followed by yelling and automatic gunfire. Duende took her hand and ran with her to a back room. Inside was a file cabinet and a metal desk. He pushed the desk out of the way quickly. The sound of gunfire was still present and Emma couldn’t tell where any of it was coming from, it seemed to come from every angle. “Follow the tunnel and you will be safe.” He said and she looked back to him and saw an opening in the floor. He pulled up on a metal ladder and hung it over a lip in then opening. leading to an underground tunnel. It smelled like garbage and stagnant water, but the gunfire seemed to be getting louder so she took to the ladder with speed.

She paused, “How will I get a hold of you?” She asked.

More popcorn sounds distracted him, but he looked at her with the same steely gaze he had when she first saw him. “Someone will contact you.” He assured her and shoved her down the stairs. She climbed and moved as quickly as she could. There were shriveled light bulbs that dimly revealed the long hallway. The floor was covered in an inch of water and the walls were lined with wires and pipes. Everything looked coated in brown and black grime and she didn’t even want to think what her feet were stepping in apart from water given the uneven and gruesomely malleable texture of it all as she pressed forward.

The tunnel seemed to wind on for almost an hour and she wasn’t sure where she was in relation to the street and even more wary of what could happen when she did find her way out. Where she could possibly be and what people she might encounter there. She did finally find a ladder and though her heart was thumping wildly in her chest she felt exhilaration. When she started with TruthHunters.com she knew they were exciting. They did the kind of investigative journalism that made a difference and showed the things other news agency couldn’t or willfully wouldn’t. The money wasn’t great, but they were making waves the same way Vice did when they first started. Their subscribers were numbering in the hundreds of thousands and she was itching to get out in the field. So far she had interviewed white nationalists, Antifa, and bikers, but this was the first time she had felt in danger. This was the first time she thought she might be shot. Rick Gantz, her camera man, was left at the hotel room waiting for a call to let him know she was alright. He was probably already panicking. He was good at being the rational pragmatist and was proud that he managed to keep her safe in spite of the subjects she was interviewing.

The ascent was somewhat underwhelming. She was in an abandoned building. Plastic hung over demolished doors that were open to the world. There was rubble and garbage strewn across the floor and pipes emptied water onto the eroded cement floor of the building. She careful made her way through the rubble watching for broken glass, needles, and worse. She heard people move into the building and her first instinct was to run, but there was no easy escape route from where she was standing. Instead she crouched as low as she could without laying on the ground and tried very hard to become invisible. A man and a woman came into view. She initially looked like she was trying to run from the man and Emma felt a jolt run through her when he grabbed her arm spun her around and kissed her. She was reciprocating as his hands explored her curves and she certainly had some. Her voluptuous body was pressed against a concrete wall as she curled her leg around his waist. Emma noted the similarity in their builds, they were both sexy, but what Rick would call thick. Emma never had any trouble attracting attention and here in this intimate place where she felt like an incorporeal ghost she could put herself in the woman’s place. Despite skin color, language, or religion she understood what the woman in front of her was feeling and she was envious. Their kissing gained fervor. She grabbed his muscular back as he bit her neck. She heard the woman moan and watched as she dropped her leg and released her grip from his back and reached for his pants. He pulled back to allow her access. He lifted a hand to grab at her heavy tit and must’ve decided he wanted a better view because he ripped her shirt open revealing her naked bosom. She bit her bottom lip as she looked at him lustfully. Her vision drifted from his handsome face to his erect cock.

Emma held her breath and felt her cheeks flush. She looked for an escape again, but the effort was only halfhearted. She didn’t actually want to leave and it felt almost like a participant. Of course that was her mind transferring onto the couple. She turned her attention back to them and shifted uncomfortably on her haunches and felt pins and needles in her thighs, but still she couldn’t bring herself to move. He lifted her up using his hands and the wall for support. She gasped hard as he pushed into her. She threw her head back harder enough that Emma was concerned, but she didn’t seem to notice or lose her focus which was clearly on the man in front of her. They were pulsing into each other and their sounds were getting louder. With each whimper Emma became more uncomfortable. The image in front of her was hypnotic, she couldn’t bring herself to look away until at the last moment. A moment that Emma could almost feel from where she was. The woman carved her nails into the man’s back and screamed, he groaned into her neck and she, to stop her sounds, bit into his clavicle. It was at that moment that the woman’s eyes lowered and met Emma’s. They were glazed over from what she had just experienced, but they were clear enough to know what the saw. Emma saw her eyes crease into a smile. Emma was discovered and embarrassed. She reacted without thought and clumsily rain toward the closest street access. Emma didn’t breathe again until she was on a sidewalk and three blocks from the couple.

“I couldn’t get a cab.” Was the first thing Emma said to Rick as she walked into the hotel room. Her pale white skin was beat red from the sun and her blouse was covered in grime and soot. Her phone died somewhere over her hour long walk through the sewers and when it happened she kicked herself for not putting it in airplane mode. Rick was a younger guy fresh off of reality shows and it showed in his sensibilities. He dressed like a metal head, with long hair, t-shirt and jeans combo, and his ever present denim vest that was eternally evolving with patches that seemed to materialize over night. Rick was holding something back. She could always tell. “What is it?”

He held his hands out and gently took her by the shoulders, “You might want to sit down for this.” He postioned her in the chair and she was too exhausted from the walk to resist. “Duende died about twenty minutes ago.”

“Shit.” Was all she could muster. Rick pointed to the television. It was a speech by the Mayor about the apparent shootout by Primeiro Comando da Capital and Os Novos Deuses. Duende was the only member mentioned by the Mayor and according to the news it was considered a great blow to organized crime in Sao Paulo. “So, night on the town before we fly home?” she asked defeated.

* * *

“Barsoom is the ancient name of Mars.” Bam Bam said over the man on the ground, David Head, as he pointed to the bathroom stall door where the word Barsoom was written in red. “You know that? You know where that comes from?” David shook his head, terrified. He was leaning against the corner in a bathroom stall cramped between the wall and the toilet. He looked over Bam Bam and the two other men who flanked him. “You guys ever heard that?”

The dude on the right, Miller, spoke up, “I mean I’ve seen the tag around town.”

Bam Bam was a handsome man. His face looked as though it could switch from an easy smile to burning righteous anger in the blink of an eye. His deep brown eyes, gave him a mysterious quality and it was that quality that he used in the service of the Irish mafia. He had a way of making people feel comfortable even while he was shoving their head into a toilet on Lower Decatur. “It comes from John Carter of Mars by Edgar Rice Burroughs, the guy who wrote Tarzan.” Bam Bam answered.

“I saw John Carter on Netflix, you know, it was okay?” The dude on the left, Dagby, chimed in.

“Really?” Miller asked.

“I wasn’t really asking for much and I heard it was shit, I was pleasantly surprised.” Dagby answered.

Bam Bam was listening and then glanced over at David and shook his head, “I’m getting distracted, You owe money, David, and we need that money today. If we don’t, and that was why I brought up Barsoom,” He points out to the guys, “Bringing it around. Bringing it around.”

“I don’t have it.” David sputters.

Bam Bam stands up, shakes is head and punches the door jam of the stall. “God damn it I hate when people say that.” David flinched at the punch, “Stand up David.” He orders, “Stand up.” David starts to move, but isn’t quick enough for Bam Bam’s taste and he pulls him up physically and pushes him against the wall. “I hate this part, but you know what David? I got bills to pay and unlike you I have to have the money to pay them when it’s due. See you got this idea, like, this ain’t a real bill. Like this is something you can put off.” Bam Bam punched him in the solar plexus, dropping him to the ground again. Bam Bam lifted him back up, “I’m about to go Tarzan on you David and these guys will tell you I can get real savage. Like the lord of the fucking apes.” He grabs David by the ears and looks him square in the eye, “We don’t want this, come chasing after you like this. Please don’t make it us do this again. You have another seventy two hours otherwise, I will have to disconnect something.” He stepped out of the stall, “Guys.” He said as he washed his hands at the sink. Dagby grabs David and pulls him from the stall and raises his arm to punch him as Bam Bam left the bathroom.

Bam Bam walked out of the bar casually, it wasn’t an area that he frequented, but he still knew a few places nearby, he wandered down Saint Charles until he found Lucky’s and made his way up the stairs. “Hey!” Lily said as he walked up to the bar, “Haven’t seen you in a while. You look beat.” She said as she tossed a coaster in front of him.

He smiled at her, “I’m fine. Tully and a beer please.” Lily went about filling his order. He always took a while to come down after he worked a guy over. It created a weird kind of Adrenalin. He used to like the job, enforcer to the mafia, but more and more it just felt like he was spinning his tires and not getting anywhere. The only pleasure he got anymore was how obscure he could make a reference and then tie it back to the guy they were leaning on. John Carter was a pretty big stretch, but not quite the biggest. It became a little bet between the guys at one point, but that was when the job was fun.

By the time Dagby and Miller sidled up to the bar Bam Bam was already nursing his beer. “See?” Dagby said as he walked in, “Figured you would be here.” Dagby said as he sat down.

Miller looked uneasy, but he also sat down. “You can’t run off like that.” Miller said.

“Dude, you guys called me last minute. You know I was supposed to be at the gym. I have a fight in two months.” Bam Bam explained.

Miller got up from his bench and grabbed him around the neck in a friendly way, “When you get the call you come, but we’re supposed to arrive and leave together. You know the rules man.” He gave Bam Bam a half hug before heading for the door. “I love you man, you just can’t be doing that shit.”

“Got it. You taking off?” Bam Bam asked.

“Yeah, jobs over and I have to be on my way.” Miller said before pointing out the door and exiting immediately.

Bam Bam nodded and he looked over to Dagby who shook his head. “I have to get home too. The wife is making Shepard’s Pie.”

“Nice.” He said as they slapped hands together in a goodbye. “I’ll see you soon, man.”

“You still good?” Lily asked as they left.

He lifted his beer and nodded. After another round he stepped out with a healthy buzz and groaned when he thought about the work he was about to do. He bee-lined to the gym and got changed with a few minutes to spare and the itching of a hangover creeping into his brain. Gordon, a short bald black man with a busted up nose and fists that were broken so many times they resemble maces more then hands, cuffed Bam Bam across the back of his head. “What were you thinking?” He said with a growl.

“What?” Bam Bam recoiled away from his trainer.

“I smelled the beer on you when you walked in, smell like a God damned brewery.” Gordon eyed him over, “At least you’re changed, get in there and start warming up. I’m gonna work that liquor off of you.” Gordon moved to the office and Bam Bam was left by himself again. There was a class working a few feet away, but they didn’t pay him any notice. He moved into the ring and started his warm up routine, which consisted of a circuit of push-ups, planks, and punch/kicking combos in rotation. He followed that with several rounds of shadow boxing. His brain started to dissolve into the work out and he thought again about his frustration with work. He was paid to hurt people, enforce the rules of his bosses, and act as a courier when necessary. Still, he had a nagging feeling that he wanted something more than to be a thug.

He saw one of the guys from the office talking to Gordon as he was finishing up his warm ups. Gordon was shaking his head and reacting with animated gestures. The other guy, he recognized as Jimmy, a low level weasel of a guy who ran book and did inventory for the restaurants and bars his bosses owned. He had only seen them speak once before and never like this. After a minute Gordon waved him off and got into the ring with a set of target pads. “What was that all about?” Bam Bam asked as Gordon squared off with him.

“It’s nothing.” He raised the gloves, “Jab, hook, hook low, hook, hook high. Then switch to the other side.” Bam Bam shrugged, lowered his head and nailed the combination twenty five times on each side, building on speed and power with each combination. They worked for an two and a half hours switching from target pads, to heavy bag, to sparring. Bam Bam tried to shake Jimmy from his head, but he couldn’t quite wrap his brain around it. Like an itch that wouldn’t quite be relieved. After break they worked grappling from different starting positions between top mount, bottom mount, side mount and on and on until his muscles were screaming at him and his arms and legs were glowing through a sheen of sweat. The shirt came of at some point during the grappling rounds. His partner kept moving on him which became frustrating quickly, “Get your head in the game.” Gordon yelled as he watched each move, each reversal, “You know this one. Breath, escape, get out of that. Keep breathing. You know how to escape. When you stop breathing you stop thinking. keep moving, hustle, hustle, hustle.” On and on until Bam Bam could hear it in his sleep. “Quit sleeping out there.” He said as if he could read Bam Bam’s thoughts.

Bam Bam was trapped under neath and his partner was moving into an arm bar. “You know better!” Gordon yelled, “Quit sleeping. Wake up Bam Bam! get your head in the game!” That was when he lost his patience.

Bam Bam tapped and got up from the mat. His face was red with frustration. He didn’t feel like he had any strength left in him. “Fuck this shit!” He yelled as he tore off his gloves.

“What’s wrong?” Gordon asked with concern in his voice, “You’re doing well, you just need to keep your focus is all. You looked like your head was all over the place.” He steadied Bam Bam who seemed agitated.

“I’m sorry Coach, I’m done tonight.” He never told Gordon what he did, but he suspected he knew. “I’ll get my head straight by tomorrow.” After all he knew Jimmy.

“You do that. I’ll see you tomorrow.” He nodded and Bam Bam headed for the locker room.

His phone buzzed as he was about to step into the shower. He answered it automatically. “Hello.”

“Hello, my name is Emma Byrne and I work for TruthHunter.com. We would like to interview you.” She said on the phone.

She had a great voice. Bam Bam smiled and answered, “Tell me more.” He wrapped a towel around his naked waist and sat on a locker room bench.

2

“Are you sure you want to do this?” Rick asked as he walked beside Emma on some street way out of the French Quarter.

“Brazil was just bad luck.” Emma said off-handedly. “Besides that, we’re already here. We’re in the Big Easy Rick. Why back out now?”

“How did you contact this guy?” Rick pressed as they stepped up to the bar.

“You’re not the only one with contacts. I have an old friend who lives down here and she, I guess, met the guy. This guy is an honest to goodness enforcer for the mob. Semi-pro MMA fighter out of New Orleans who moonlights as a genuine bad guy. The story writes itself.”

Rick found himself nodding at that in spite of his apprehension. “It really does, but still”

“still nothing. I just hope it’s not a dud, like Brazil.” She walked into the bar. She spotted him. It had to be him. She saw one poorly shot fight on YouTube, but still recognized the face, brown hair and defined arms. He was shooting Pool across the bar. There was a sense of determination on his face, but there was also a kind of casual nature to him. The way he interacted with the world around him said volumes about his character. He was confident, assured, and in control. He didn’t look anything like the bruiser she pictured in her head when her contact told her about him. This was a man who wouldn’t seem out of place in any environment you put him in. Time slowed the closer she got and she felt a kind of static the closer she got to the pool table. Jack “Bam Bam” Riley, a real-life professional criminal.

Bam Bam picked a bar in the Bywater to meet her. He felt like the French Quarter was too close and the other guys might see him. He couldn’t have that. This had to be discreet, he could bring her in, but he wanted to show her his world first, try to scare her off. This wasn’t the first reporter who wanted to talk about the Mafia. It was almost an inside joke among his friends, and some they let in, but most got shown a side they weren’t prepared for and high-tailed it put of the city. The mob ran New Orleans, it was like a secret that wasn’t really a secret. Most of the bars in the Quarter touched mob money at some point and there was an understanding. This was mutually beneficial. Local government got what they needed and the mob got to make their money without much intervention. The golden rule was don’t get seen. This was the last stand for old school organized crime and the city itself seemed to be protective of that fact. It didn’t matter if it was Italian, Irish, or even Russian mob, they all had stake in the city. He held his breath when his phone went off. He was at the pool table shooting some stick with the locals. Mostly hipsters at this point, but he remembered the darker times when the Bywater was a place you didn’t walk alone. It wasn’t an accident that he was working a table, always a fan of The Color of Money with Paul Newman and Tom Cruise and he wanted to look cool. He wanted to look like he was just a regular guy before he showed them the underbelly, but there had to be an edge. There was a kind of showmanship. Pool worked that angle hard.

She walked in as he was leaned over the table, he glanced up at her and the first thing he saw was her eyes. Dark blue against her pale skin that as was accentuated further by her black hair, her lips were pouty and full and he got weak in the knees when she licked her lips. He refocused on the cue ball and took his shot. He knocked it in and said, “I have to take care of something real quick, you wanna grab a smoke?” His playing partner, a guy called Sonny, shrugged and set his cue against the wall.

He reached out his hand as she approached and she grabbed hold. Instantly there was a spark between them literally as a shock passed between them and they both jumped from the experience. “Shit.” He said, she didn’t scream out, but she did put her finger delicately in her mouth and raised her eyes with a playful smile that melted him. That look with that smile played on him and stirred him. “Fuck.” He said, but it wasn’t about the finger, it was about her face and her energy.

“let’s try that again.” She said and reached out her hand. He was warm and reactive. He smiled as the current passed between them and when he grabbed her hand the second time it was an entirely different kind of current that passed between them. In her minds eye she was transported back to that Brazilian building with water cascading onto them from a pipe above. They took the place of the previous beautiful man and woman and were equally voracious in their appetites. Then her thoughts turned and in the dream Jack “Bam Bam” Riley hoisted her onto his shoulders with his face and more significantly his mouth working at her pussy. His strong hands held her waist just above the hips and she writhed above him showered but the water above her soaking her clothes as he lapped at her clit. Bam Bam found the man in the boat and made him stand up and salute. The spell was broken. Emma squirmed in her skirt as she fought the blush that was threatening to creep across her face. “So nice to finally meet you in person.”

“Likewise.” He said in response.

Rick crossed over and shook Bam Bam’s hand, “It’s a pleasure to meet you Mr. Riley.”

“Please just call me Bam Bam,” He turned back to Emma for a moment and addressed her, “I wasn’t aware that there would be two of you.” He said.

“I’m the camera man.” Rick disengaged.

“It is photo journalism, I can’t do much without a camera man Bam Bam.”

“That’s fair.” He was about to convince her to come with him alone, but Sonny returned from his cigarette and tapped him on the shoulder. He lost his train of thought and said, “Let me just finish this.”

“Of course.” She nodded and again laid that smile on him. He shook his head and wandered back to the pool table.

“What do you think?” Rick asked from her side.

“The jury is out, but he moves really well.” She said as she admired his stance as he worked his stick.

Rick followed her view and rolled his eyes, “shower it off there, Cap’n.” He said sarcastically.

“What? A guy like that is probably an asshole, never mind the fact he’s actively a criminal.” She gave him a little smack on the shoulder.

He raised his hands in defeat and said, “I’m getting a beer.” and then moved to the bar.

She watched him play his game and saw him glance at her as he played. He moved around the table give her a full view of his form, but she couldn’t quite get into the “bro” aspect to his demeanor. He reminded her of the kind of guy that she knew in college who always tried to get in her pants. She banished the momentary fantasy and stacked it with things she would think about when she was alone and about to go to bed. She joined Rick at the bar and found a fireball shot and a cider waiting for her, “Oh, you shouldn’t have.” She said and gave him a short arm hug shoulder before taking down the shot.

“Don’t mention it.” He said as he gave her a squeeze in return.

She shook her head and said, “No really, you shouldn’t have, this looks dangerous.” she eyed the shot.

“You know what they say, ‘when in Rome?’” He clinked his beer against her shot.

She took a breath for inspiration and took the shot. Her face screwed together as she took it down, “Cinnamon.” she grimaced.

“Chase it with the cider.” He insisted and raised the coder to her.

She took a swig from the can and the nodded, “Wow.” She looked at the label and then back to Rick, “That was pretty okay.” Rick shrugged and she followed with, “I am pleasantly surprised.”

“I think homeboy is almost done.” Rick pointed towards Bam Bam who seemed to be celebrating his win. Emma looked up in time to see the opponent put money into Bam Bam’s hand.

“Double or nothing.” Sonny said with an aggravated tone.

Bam Bam shook his head and said, “Not tonight man, I have to go to work, but we should do this again soon.”

“That’s some bullshit. You should give me a chance to win my money back.” Sonny was clearly puffing up.

“Just walk away, man.” Bam Bam warned.

Sonny’s eyes were burning into Bam Bam. Emma watched with curiosity and could feel Rick behind her fidgeting. She paid him no attention and instead watched the show. Bam Bam and Sonny they stood at about the same height, but Sonny was a lot bigger. She felt her stomach tighten.

“What did you say?”

“Did I stutter?” Their eyes locked together. Sonny didn’t seem to have the patience for the stare-down and shoved Bam Bam hard. Instantly Bam Bam pushed back and struck him with a jab and was following up with a cross, but failed to land it. Sonny stepped to Bam Bam’s back. He still had his cue and whaled on Bam Bam’s back. Bam Bam fell forward, but caught himself and turned to face Sonny as he was bringing the cue up to strike him again. Bam Bam was faster and speared Sonny into the pool table. The edge of the table got Sonny solidly in the middle of his spine, but Bam Bam wasn’t finished, he clasped his fists together and hammered at Sonny’s sternum.

He jumped on him as the bartender stormed over yelling “I’m calling the cops!” Bam Bam was on top of Sonny on the pool table pummeling Sonny in the face with blow after blow. The bartender pulled Bam Bam off, but he was in the moment and struck the bartender with an elbow to the face. He spun grabbing the bartender in an arm bar before stomping at his head as he put him to the ground. The fight grew as two more guys stepped up towards Bam Bam. One tried to grab Bam Bam, but he wrapped his arm and punched him in the throat dropping him. The bartender stood up as the second new guy threw a punch at Bam Bam, but with a smooth motion he wove his hand between the guy’s punching arm and his head and tripped him. The Bartender grabbed Bam Bam from behind in a bear hug and Bam Bam simply thrust backwards nailing the bartender against the wall and dropping him again.

Emma watched Bam Bam move and tried to anticipate the next action Bam Bam or his assailants would take and she felt a wave of euphoria when she was right. She was enjoying watching him take the men apart. Each punch, or hold, or sweep looked familiar to her even though she didn’t watch MMA and certainly hadn’t taken any self defense classes. It was like a memory of something before.

Rick was having a fit as Emma watched the display, “We really should call the cops.” He said.

Emma shook her head, “Don’t.” Bam Bam stepped away from the fight and exited. Emma grabbed Rick and pulled him outside with his half finished beer. “Come on.” Outside Bam Bam smoked a cigarette.

He stood next to a bank of plastic garbage cans as they got outside.“You ready?” He said and they both nodded in unison.

“Did you start that fight on purpose?” She asked.

“What? No. Why would I do that?” he waved it off.

“I saw money change hands.”

“That’s how gambling works, baby.”

She grabbed him and spun him to face her, “Don’t call me baby, and yes that’s how gambling works, but he only gave you two dollars. Not exactly worth the fight is it?”

“What?” he said feigning innocence, “Fine, yes I had him fight me, but the other guys were purely organic. I didn’t plan on them getting involved.”

“Why?”

“Showmanship.” He pointed out.

3

Rick turned the camera towards Bam Bam as he drove. Bam Bam kept stealing glances at Emma, but stopped once Rick cued her that the camera was ready and rolling, up until that point she had been staring out the window and watching the scenery. Bam Bam wasn’t driving anywhere particular it seemed, just cruising the streets.

Emma stepped into interviewer mode, “Did you grow up here?”

“Yeah, well Kenner and Chalmette mostly, but I’ve lived in New Orleans for the last ten years and we came down for Zulu and other stuff. Nola is where you come for a party. Kenner is where you go home and get a good nights sleep.”

“What about Chalmette?”

“Chalmette isn’t bad these days, before Katrina it was pretty rough, Hell all of this was pretty rough, but I mean, like anyplace else, keep your head and know where you’re at. Don’t be stupid.”

“Where are we going?” Emma finally asked as she looked over the huge boats on the river.

“Killing time. Things don’t really get going until about 11, but I am taking you someplace you might dig.”

“oh yeah, where is that?” Emma asked with a hint of flirtation in her voice.

“End of the world.” He said with a smile.

He followed the curve in the road as it passed a massive building covered in graffiti. “What is that?”

“Old Naval base, mostly just a squat now.”

“Have you ever been in there?”

“No. I know people who have. It’s about what you would expect, dark wet, smells like piss and shit.”

Emma crinkled her nose at that. Bam Bam parked next to a bar that had a small crowd of people sitting in front of it drinking and smoking. The neon sign in front read Bar Redux. The exterior had a mural across it of a cat of some kind with glass cutting into its face. He reached over to Emma who was still enamored with the Naval base and the potential mysteries it held inside, “We’re here.”

He touched her elbow and she felt that same warm energy as before and she turned to him as a smile crept across his face, he’s a charmer, she thought. “It reminds me of something.” She indicated the building and she felt something stir inside.

Bam Bam shrugged, “Maybe you were here before.”

She shook her head. “No. Never.” She got out of the car and looked over the small crowd in front of Bar Redux. “Is this the end of the world?”

“No. This is Bar Redux, it says so on the sign.” He lead them inside and the bar looked like mayhem. The young man behind the bar was a fuzzy headed elf of a man with a stoned grin plastered across his face.

“Is this a bar you frequent?” Rick asked as he took in the scene. There was nothing particularly unusual about the bar, but it had a rogues gallery of strange-looking men and women. A man in a three piece suit, but no shirt between the vest and his skin. Another girl was literally covered in clown makeup and just beyond the door to the smoking patio there was a congregation of people dancing to Latin music. None of it seemed to fit together intellectually, but it all worked. The vibe was good and comfortable.

“Can we continue the interview in the front where we have light and less noise?” Emma suggested.

“Sure. Let me grab a round.” He moved toward a break in the bar near the cash register and spoke to the elf who gave him a brief hug. Others greeted him with a nod or a handshake as he got drinks.

“He’s really cool isn’t he?” Rick asked Emma as they both watched him.

“A little too bro-y for my taste, but it seems to work for him. He doesn’t look out of place and that guy is wearing a dinosaur onesy.” She pointed out and Rick nodded in agreement.

* * *

Bam Bam sat against a graffiti covered wall with a High Life in his hand. He adjusted his shirt, “Can you hear me okay?” Rick gave him a thumbs up and he started talking. “I started with the organization six years ago as a bar back with a strip club in the French Quarter. It was alright, It was on Bourbon street and it was seriously lit. I did so much coke and smoked about an ounce of weed a day while I worked there. It was closed a few years ago when they tried to crack down on prostitution, but New Orleans has always been kind of a slutty city. You can’t remove the sex from this town. It’s in its DNA and there isn’t much else to say to that.” He took a swig of beer and waved at an acquaintance as they left the bar. Some of the other patrons were watching the interview. “So yeah, I was working and one day this guy comes in and, like he’s a friend of the manager, he asks if I would take his duffel bag across town and drop it off at an LA Fitness. I did it. Didn’t think much about it, I had an idea of what was being asked of me. I mean this is a mob town, but it’s symbiotic and it’s been here so long its like taking salt out of seawater. The gave me a hundred dollars to put a bag in a locker. So that became a thing. He came by once or twice a week and gave me a duffel that I took to a random location, sometimes it was LA Fitness, but other time it was other places and some of them a lot more dangerous. It just grew from there.

“I’ve been training in martial arts since I was like four years old and I have been into MMA forever. Everybody knew it. I did tournaments constantly so I should have figured, but at some point they asked me if I would go talk to a guy for them. They told me he beat the shit out of one of the strippers and it’s always been a weakness of mine, but I’m really protective of strippers in this city. I don’t allow that shit anywhere in my sphere of influence, so I was like, ‘yeah, please, let me.’ you know? So, I found the guy and, look, like, I’m not gonna get into the details here, but let’s just say they saw my talent that night. That was the last night I worked at the strip club.” He took another swig of beer and looked over at Rick. “Was that okay?”

“Yeah, we got it.” Rick gave an almost automatic thumbs up.

“How about you? Anything else you would like for your story?”

She smiled and thought for a second about the phrase “They saw my talent.” and her mind went to a warmer place then he likely intended. She shook her head with a smile, “I mean you’re free to elaborate as much as you would like, we’re just happy to put something on tape.”

“Can I ask you a question?” Bam Bam tilted his head with a smirk.

She shrugged, “Sure. I’m an open book.” She lied.

“You mentioned over the phone you had just gotten back from Brazil. What was the story down there?”

Her mind immediately flashed back to the couple in the abandoned building ravaging each other and smiled at the memory before she answered. She dropped the smile and said, “Well we were going to interview a crime lord, but he was killed.” There was something else nagging at the back of her head about the shootout, but she couldn’t quite follow the track of that thought.

“That’s unfortunate.”

“I was there right before it happened. I was one of the last people to see Duende.” She wasn’t sure why she told him that. She suddenly felt exposed and while there was no reason to take the event personally on some small level she felt somehow responsible.

“Have you had anyone die around you before?” He asked and when she looked at him his eyes were on her. She felt her face blush and hoped the light out here obscured her reaction.

“I never really knew my mother, which was like death, but I was so young it was just normal for me.” She admitted. She wasn’t sure why she was telling him all of this. It was as if the capacity to omit had been suspended and she was just singing her guts out to this guy.

“You ready to go?”

“Yeah,” Rick was fidgeting with his camera, “let me just pack this up and we can go wherever.”

Bam Bam stood up and stretch as he swallowed the last of his beer. Emma headed for the car, but Bam Bam stopped her, “We’re not driving over there. It’s just behind that building.”

“It’s all fenced off?” She looked confused.

He shook his head and said, “No, this way. There’s a path. It’s a just a short walk from here.”

Rick returned and they moved down the street in a staggered grouping. Emma and Rick were still in alien territory and checking out all the details of the place. The smell of the water, the traffic down the street on Saint Claude, and especially the shotgun houses they passed painted in strange colors. Bam Bam let them look as he lead them up a bank and onto a path back towards the Naval base. The river looked like it swallowed the land up ahead. Near the end of the path the saw a structure that looked something like a watch tower and a few dark tents out by the trees. It was very dark, but there was still some bleed from the street that made everything appeared as a shadow.

Bam Bam took her hand and lead her towards the structure. “My friends and I used to drink here after work.” He lead her towards the shed.

“It looks terrifying.” She pulled back.

“Nobody is here right now.” He cajoled.

She was sheepish, but followed him anyway. Her stomach tightened as they walked inside the building. “This was my place for years. Bars are expensive and people always showed up here. I miss it a lot.”

A beam of light from somewhere by the Naval base lit his face as he spoke. She realized they were inches apart as she looked up at him and stared into his eyes. The current she felt before spiked and traced a path from where their hands touched to her core and she felt herself quiver from his hand touching hers. She wondered idly as good as this felt what would it feel like if their lips touched. He seemed to read her mind as he lowered his head to her and their lips touched. Her soft tongue reflexively probed upwards towards his. His kiss was soft and strong simultaneously as his mouth moved gently with hers and their tongues finally made their way through to each other. She felt electric and the small quiver from before became a tempest that startled her enough that she needed to step away.

“I didn’t…” Bam Bam started.

“No, I, we should find Rick.” She couldn’t think. She could barely breath. She wanted him, but she stopped herself and hated herself for ending the kiss. She stepped out of the structure and saw Rick crouched on the trail as he watched a boat passing slowly on the river. She looked over to the Naval base and saw a hole in the fence. A chill crawled down her spine and felt a sense of deja vu. She was at the hole in the fence before she realized she was walking.

In a daze she kept moving forward. She thought she heard someone behind her say her name, but she had to see where this road lead. She lifted herself to a loading dock and found a found a door folded almost like paper with a hole big enough to allow access.

Inside the building it was dark and cold. She saw a woman and a baby out of the corner of her eye. She looked at them. She was clutching her baby tightly and her eyes were wide with terror. She looked to her right. Emma followed her gaze and saw movement in the dark. Maybe one hundred feet there was movement. A mass moving towards her blocking out the ambient light behind. She quickly realized it was men, three of them coming at her. She followed her instincts and ran in the opposite direction down a hallway rather then out the way she came. She turned a corner into a tall man’s chest. She smelled pungent body odor coming off of him. He grabbed for her and she screamed, the men behind had broken the distance and she was alone. The tall man grabbed her and pulled her too him, she felt hands behind her yanked at her skirt. She was pinned to the tall man’s chest, she pushed back as hard as she could, but he was too strong. One of the men behind her pulled her hips towards them at an awkward angle. Emma shut her eyes tight and as the hands behind her pulled at her panties she gave one last ditch attempt at escape. She shoved hard against the man holding her, but he was like a wall. Hope was evaporating until she heard the click of a hammer. That click stopped all action. “Hey cocksuckers!” She heard Bam Bam’s voice. The hands stopped groping her and the tall man’s grip loosened. A gunshot echoed through the desiccated building and a man’s voice howled in pain. Emma was dropped to the ground as the group shifted their attention to the man with the gun.

Through the gloom she turned to see Bam Bam fire his gun again and in the flash saw one of her assailants heads explode. Bam Bam pressed forward and batted another man across the bridge of the nose with the butt of his gun. Everything was happening all at once, another gunshot, another voice screaming in agony followed by the sound of a bone breaking. She stood from where she was and saw Bam Bam standing over one of the fallen men beating his face with the gun still in his hand. And after maybe five seconds she felt Bam Bam’s hand fold into hers and pull her down the hallway.

Outside Bam Bam looked her over, “Are you okay?” He asked and lifted her head up in his hands.

She nodded, “Yeah.” Her body was vibrating from t he Adrenalin. He took her by the hand and lead her back to the car. The shock of her experience was lifting by the time she sat down in his car. He crouched next to her still looking her face over.

“You have to be more careful.”

4

“Where to now?” Rick asked as they started driving again.

Bam Bam didn’t respond, he instead passed a car and sped down the road. A train whistle sounded somewhere in the distance and Rick leaned back into his seat. Emma had been silent since they started driving and it looked like Bam Bam was still wired from the altercation. Bam Bam finally spoke, “I’m taking you somewhere, it’s a little too early yet. You go into a place when it’s busy and crowded when you’re picking up so it’s a little more invisible. I mean here anyway. I don’t know how they do things anywhere else.”

Rick arched an eyebrow at the phrase, “What for you mean by that?”

“Thinking out loud.” He pulled into a parking spot.

Emma lifted her head as they parked, “Are we near the French Quarter?” She asked.

“Welcome back.” Rick said. She looked back at him and gave him a smile, “I was just processing. I feel better now.”

“We’re on Esplanade.” Bam Bam answered Emma’s question. “On the edge of the Quarter.”

She nodded.

Outside as they walked down Royal street Emma watched Bam Bam who seemed distant since the end of the world and she wondered what he was thinking about. They seemed to have instant connection, but since they were in the shack he seemed different somehow. She thought back to the building and while it was terrifying she was more interested in why she did it in the first place. There were so many things filling her head, but it was like a din and she couldn’t get a fix on why she was so antsy. There was something building she could feel that, but she felt like there was someplace she was supposed to go that would answer the questions that were burning in her brain. Even more infuriating was the fact that she couldn’t quite put words to the questions. So she tried to let it go and look at her surroundings. The French Quarter was alive with tourists moving in slow moving crowds with beads and fishbowls filled with red liquid. Most were laughing, some were crying, and here she was with this guy who didn’t quite match her expectations. He could fight that was clear and he had a dangerous edge, but it seemed like he went to great lengths to hide it. His head was looking straight ahead and seemed to be surveying the crowd as they walked down the street. “You’re not what I expected.” She finally said.

Bam Bam turned to her, “Who? me. What were you expecting?”

“I don’t know, more brooding maybe. You’re nice.”

“You mean soft.” He smiled back, “Yeah, I get that a lot. I’ve seen some things that would make you question God, but I stuff that shit down.”

“I don’t think you’re soft, just nicer then I expected.”

“I don’t like to be mean until it’s time to be mean. If you owe money, you’ll see mean.”

“Have you ever hung a guy off the balcony of his hotel room.”

“I have.” He said and he stopped in his tracks and turned to her. “A week ago there was a guy who didn’t just owe money, he ran drugs in another part of town and he made the mistake of putting an escort in the hospital. The boss had a sweet spot for her, I did too. She’s still got a broken rib and her arm is in a sling. Anyway I pay the guy a visit and he tries to play it tough, but I wasn’t in the mood so I shot him in the leg. To start. His guys show up, but they knew better then to step in and I had some back up anyway. I hit the guy, a lot, and there were words exchanged, but I had his face in my hands and I dug my thumbs into his eyes. I just kept hold and he was kind of whimpering and trying to talk, but he was having a hard time through his busted teeth and I just kept squeezing and jamming my fucking thumbs in there.” He stopped his story, “The worst part is they almost always shit themselves when they finally die. I can never quite get the smell out of my nose.” His face held the same mild expression, but she could tell he meant what he said.

“Wow.” Was all she could say. Rick was listening and while he was trying to be stoic his face showed his thoughts. He felt like she did with that hood over her head in Brazil. This might be the end of me.

“I’m not nice.” He said and started back down Royal, “Anyway, it’s your first time in New Orleans and I’m thinking a tarot reading would be good.” he said as he continued on.

Jackson Square was filled with people filing down Saint Ann and Saint Peter. On Chartres where the Cathedral and the Cabildo rose over the Tarot readers set out in front of the two ornate buildings. “We could just go to a shop.” Rick suggested.

Bam Bam looked over the readers then turned to Rick. “The shops are fine, but there’s someone I’m looking for specifically. She doesn’t do the shops, but I don’t see her tonight.” Bam Bam started into the alley until he came to a bar, “Here we go.” He said as they got to a little bistro style bar. He pointed out a woman, pale and skeletal thin, she was wearing a white gauzy slip and had a glass of absinthe and a book in front her. “Ms. Eleanor.” He called out.

She perked from her book, “Jack.” She said with a smile, her dentures were yellowed from age.

“I would like to introduce you to Ms. Emma and Rick, they’re journalists.”

She smiled as she rose and took Emma’s hand, “Aren’t you lovely.” She said as she ushered her into the seat across from her. “I would recommend a place in the Marigny. It’s a little pricier, but it’ll suit you better.” She said as she settled in and fished her cards from her purse.

Emma was suddenly nervous, “I don’t want a reading.” She said.

“I’ll pay.” Bam Bam announced and turned to Rick, “Have you ever had absinthe?”

“No.” He shook his head.

“This is my favorite absinthe bar, let me buy you a drink while Eleanor and Emma have a chat.” he lead Rick into the small bar.

“I’m not moving here.” Emma insisted.

Eleanor smiled at the response as she shuffled the cards and without warning rubbed the cards against Emma’s shoulder. The first card she laid was a man and a woman with cups in their hands facing each other. “I think the cards say otherwise my love. The two of swords speak of connection and love. You two are intertwined, you’ve already kissed.” She said as she examined the card. She drew another card, It depicted two children in a garden with cups laid around them. “The six of cups reversed, this past is coming back to haunt you. It is important to examine your past, but the concern is that you may be held back by your past and unable to move forward. The knight of swords reversed indicates resistance and lack of communication.” She said as she laid another card. “I understand you’re restless, he is to, and together you maybe able to forge ahead. He wants you, you want him, but you both are already putting up obstacles in your mind. There will be a period of misjudgment, what appears to be a curse may lead to your salvation and a steadier road.” She was laying cards faster and speaking as she dropped them at random intervals. She looked Emma in the eye as she spoke and as she laid the wheel of fortune card. “Fate is in your favor now, but you are at a major crossroads and before you find your path you will suffer catastrophe” She looked over the cards, then Emma, then reached into her bag and lit a cigarette. Emma was stupefied, she blew the smoke in Emma’s face then put the lit end in her mouth and blew smoke out from the filter and lifted the smoke over her own face and head. The cigarette’s job was apparently finished because she snuffed it out and grabbed Emma’s hands in hers. “I see your mother surrounded by women in celebration. They have suffered, but continue the struggle. The world is open to you now and there are wonders to come. Follow his lead as best you can, but understand your own path and honor it as well.” She said and smiled at Emma.

“Is that everything?” Emma asked looking over the woman with a mixture of bewilderment and whimsy.

“No, not quite.” She said as she leaned back. “There is a man here, he follows you. I don’t understand what language he speaks, but it sounds almost Spanish.”

“Portuguese?” She asked.

“Yes.” She perked at that.

“Duende?” Emma questioned. “Why? We only met for a moment.”

“It would seem your spirits connected in some way. Spirits are things of passion and it seems one of his last acts was to protect you.” With a wave of her hand she continued, “I don’t speak Portuguese, but this man follows you and will help you for the trials to come. It’s not going to be pretty for a while, but you have some powerful protection. Just don’t fuck it up.”

“What?” Emma asked with a laugh.

“Future is a delicate thing, today, tonight this is your future, but alterations can happen. You could fuck it up.” She shrugged.

“How do I not fuck it up?” Emma asked.

“already told you, follow his lead and honor your own path as well. It’s when you try to resist fate that things get cocked up.” She stated as a fact.

“How do you know Bam Bam?” She asked.

“He helped me once upon a time.” She answered.

Bam Bam and Rick wandered out from the bar as Eleanor scooped up her cards. Bam Bam slipped a hundred in her hand as he kissed her on the cheek, “Thank you.” He said quietly.

“Keep yourself safe. Tonight is a full moon.” She said as she graciously put the money in her bag.

“How was the absinthe?” Emma stood and stretched her arms over her head.

He shook his head. “Didn’t care for it. It tasted like black licorice.”

“Do you want to know the future?” She asked Rick.

“No.” He answered resoundingly.

“She’s very good. She knew some crazy things about me.” Emma explained as Bam Bam joined them.

“It’s time to go to work.” He said.

They both nodded and the group ventured off back to the car. “Eleanor said a few things about you.” Emma said to Bam Bam as they walked back to the car

“Did she now?”

Emma nodded emphatically, “She said you saved her life once.”

“It’s true. I suppose you want to know how?” He asked back and she nodded. She let her hand brush against his knuckles as they walked side by side. He didn’t retract his hand and started in. “Eleanor is addicted to heroin and one night I found her in that alley with a needle in her arm. She Oded, but luckily it was when I was working the strip club so I happened to have some Narcan and I saved her.”

“That’s it?”

“No. I sat with her as she came around and got her some food and coffee and just hung out with her for the rest of the night.” he explained.

She absorbed the information, “She also seems to think we’re romantically entangled. She knew we kissed. You didn’t happen to tell her that did you? Given your earlier display of showmanship.”

He stopped and turned to her, “You think I told her?”

“It crossed my mind.”

“What do you want to believe?” He asked.

“I don’t know. She knew things that only you and Rick know and I, just, don’t know.”

“You’ve been with me all night. How many times have I been on my phone?” She shrugged, “When would I have had the opportunity tell her anything.”

She screwed her eyebrows together trying to puzzle out the question he asked. He hadn’t been on his phone at all the entire evening as far as she saw and she wasn’t sure if Eleanor even had a phone. “Alright, I guess it’s legit. It was just crazy the things she knew.”

At his car he opened her door for her and said, “This has just been the appetizer for where I’m taking you next.”

“Where is that?” She asked and let her hand rest on his as she stood at the doorway.

“Collections.” He said with a smirk. She released his hand and got in.

5

RouxGarou didn’t look like much on the outside. It was not in the French Quarter, or Uptown, or any of the places tourists usually tread. It was in a nondescript building in the Lower Ninth Ward of New Orleans. The only indication that there was anything at all going on was the collection of cigarette butts along the curb and street in front and the fact that the house was painted a dark crimson red. Bam Bam parked a block down and get out. “This place is called RouxGarou, it’s literally an old school bordello, but really they treat it more like a bar where everybody gets laid.”

“Why isn’t it busier?” Rick snickered.

“What do you mean by collections?” Emma asked, Rick was cramped into the back seat with his camera and he was doing his best to film their conversation.

“It’s self explanatory. We take payment for services rendered, consider it franchise rights, whatever. Usually I go in with a couple of the guys, but I convinced them to let me take it alone tonight. Just a couple of locations to give you an idea of what we do without showing you the whole operation.”

“They were just okay with that?” Emma asked.

He shook his head, “Not really, but I told them I was meeting a girl over here.” He looked back at Rick, “No cameras in there.”

Rick looked to Emma with concern, “How do you want to do this?” They puzzled over the details before Bam Bam got out of the vehicle,

“I don’t like sitting this long. You guys coming in or not?” He asked as he got out. Emma and Rick quickly followed. “This place is all about discretion. Don’t draw attention. Don’t make a scene.” He didn’t lead them to the front door, instead he took the path around the side of the house and pushed a red button on a wrought iron door.

A large man with a face full of tattoos and an impressive mohawk in a three piece suit held the door open. “Bam Bam!” He said. The guy was so muscular that he was bulging out of his suit and his face looked incapable of a smile until he saw Bam Bam’s face. A grin cut across his tattooed face and changed his whole character.

“Marvin!” Bam Bam greeted him back with a nod. They clasped their hands together with a slap. “How you been?”

“Good, and you?” Marvin called back. Bam Bam just shrugged and moved past him. The population grew with every step and as Emma and Rick passed a doorway the were met with a bar. Completely invisible from the front, but alive and thriving from the back. Attractive men and women flirted to the sound of clinking glasses and soft jazz playing somewhere deeper into the house.

A tall older woman with salt and pepper hair greeted Bam Bam with a kiss to each cheek, “Darling.” She said with the drippings of an eastern European accent. Emma wondered if it was an affectation, but banished the thought and just went with it.

“Hello Ms.Nichelle.” He kissed her one cheek and gave her a brief hug. “This is Emma.” Bam Bam introduced her.

“I’m Rick.” Rick added.

Nichelle pondered the two of them, “I like her.” She turned to face him, “This isn’t a regular call, is it love?”

“No. I wanted to show Emma something she’s never seen.” He looked at Emma as he said the phrase. She gave a small smile. “I have some business with Ms. Nichelle if you’ll excuse me.”

“Please look around. Enjoy. Anything you want is available.” She eyed Rick on the last statement.

He nodded and moved to the bar. Emma followed after watching Bam Bam and Nichelle for a few steps before breaking away to join Rick.

Emma turned and lost Rick. She went to the bar, but didn’t spot him. Then made an attempt to find a bathroom in the hopes he would be there. As she moved through the house it had the feel of an elegant house party with the occasional liaison moving ethereally through the crowd until some man or woman scooped her up like an hors doeuvre. She was mesmerized by the crowd naked, kissing, in at least one case literally having sex against a bookcase. She found stairs leading to a second level. The upper level was strangely empty. There seemed to be murmurs from rooms as she walked down a long elegant hallway. More so than the lower level this place screamed bordello, but still had enough elegance that it didn’t feel on the nose, just sexy.

She moved into a room and saw movement deep inside. Gauzy fabric hung from the ceiling, obscuring her vision, but she could see a glint of sweaty flesh. A mocha colored thigh quivered just beyond the shrouds. She licked her lips, her mouth was dry; again she was a voyeur, but still she needed to see them. Courage was building in her spurred by the fire in her core. She pushed forward carefully parting the curtains that kept her from seeing what was going on in the room. She saw a gorgeous black woman straddling a man raised high above him like an angel with sweat glistening on her skin. She was rising and falling on the man’s length. The man was older then her, balding, but still fit for an older man. He back was arched slightly as he tried to reach further into her. Her attention was rapt, but something pulled against her elbow from behind. A hand. She recognized the feel of it, the warmth, and then she caught a waft of is scent, mostly, she believed, his natural musk with a hint of cologne. She spun and faced him and knew the eyes she would meet. The smirk was still present as he kissed her with intention. The slow interplay all night was culminating in the heat rising off her body.

There was a moment when she hesitated. A moment where she thought about the events of the night and about the world she was now in. She gave into the waves of feeling that were crashing into her. There was something to this place, something visceral, and real. It was something she felt the need to explore no matter where the road lead. In a fraction of a second she saw both exaltation and ruination and either choice lead her to the exquisite joy of his kiss.

Emma grabbed him around the back of his neck and pulled him to her. His hand moved under the small of her back and lifted her closer to him, but she wanted him doing other things with his hands. She pulled one down to her ass as she found the bare skin of his six pack stomach with her other hand. She was exploring him and he pressed into her stronger and set her gently on the carpeted floor. Her eyes went wide as she realized he was on top of her. She could feel the heat rise in her and wanted him, but she could hear the other couple feet away from them. Her head swam and soon she forgot about the people, the bar, Rick, all she was thinking about was his growing member pressed against her pelvis and how much she wanted it inside her.

Their mouths were moving in sync with each other, their hands were exploring delicate parts, and newly discovered places. They moaned into each other as her hands moved for his pants.

“Emma!” She heard Rick’s voice and for a second thought to ignore it. She wanted to go back to a second before, instead she groaned in frustration.

“Yeah Rick.” The irritation clear in her voice.

“There was a couple, like swingers, like they wanted me to join them. In bed. I am currently hiding from them” Rick’s face came into view, “What are you guys on the floor?” His face morphed from oblivious to understanding in short succession, “Fuck, I’m sorry.”

Bam Bam buried his face in her shoulder before standing up. “Shall we move on?” Bam Bam suggested.

* * *

Emma saw a dirty mattress leaned against a garage door. There was a single street light and chickens roaming between the houses. “Where are we now?”

“This is a trap house.” Bam Bam explained and turned to Rick, “they are not going to let either of you in.” He said clearly, “I can take a portable microphone if you want to listen in, but that can be tricky for obvious reasons.”

Rick thought for a moment and said, “Just call me. I have an app that will let me listen and record calls.”

Bam Bam shrugged, “That could work. What if they see the phone on?”

“Hang up.” He responded. “It’ll be something to work with.”

“That sounds great.” Emma added.

Rick and Bam Bam hooked everything up in moments. Bam Bam went inside and left Rick with headphones in his ears and the camera on his phone focused on Bam Bam’ entrance. He held the shot steady at the door.

“What’s happening?” Emma asked.

“Nothing. It’s hard to hear with the music they got playing, but he seems to be greeting them.” He said distractedly. It was an expression she had seen many times, it meant he was trying to focus on the words being said. The camera came down after he was clear that very little would happen at the door. She saw someone come out for a cigarette. He looked like a young black kid, lanky, but dressed in the latest fashion, which in this case consisted of a bullet proof vest and cargo pants. The kid didn’t seem to be paying any attention to the door or the car, but he smoked his cigarette. He seemed to be listening to something, because he seemed to be dancing here and there as he smoked. “Wait, something is happening. Conversation got heated.” He looked her in the eyes. “We should go!” His eyes were wide and she saw the keys were in the ignition.

She heard a gun shot. The boy raced into the house. She thought of Brazil, the panic she saw in Duende’s men. Her first instinct was to run. She wanted to jump into the driver seat and get away. There was something just below the surface. Something she felt when the bullets started to fly in Brazil. Something she was hiding from herself and she tried to focus on that kernel of sensation and explored it deeper. Her vision went red and she pulled herself from the vehicle. She didn’t want Bam Bam dead, but in that moment her concern was less about his survival and more about the growing beast in her belly that felt the need for release. She felt it in Brazil, but she also felt it in the bar where she met Bam Bam and she had an inkling that was the reason for her attraction. The violence was a puzzle piece that she wasn’t aware she was looking for.

She got out of the car and heard Rick say something, but she didn’t understand the words, or more importantly she didn’t care to understand them. She made for the side door Bam Bam had entered from. The door hung open and she heard another gunshot. This one close enough to make her ears ring. The first room looked like the garage guarded by the mattress. There was a bank of monitors showing the exterior of the house from all sides. One was clearly displaying the car they were in. Whoever was supposed to be watching the screens had moved to the house where the action seemed to be happening. The kid was just ahead of her and hadn’t paid attention to her, but he met the same scene. There were four men and a teenage girl in the room apart from Bam Bam. One of them had Bam Bam held from behind. Two looked like they had just gotten in a fight.

Something clicked in her head and she instinctively grabbed the kid and pulled him back in the garage. “What the fuck?” The kid yelled and pulled free. He lashed out and threw punches which Emma, to her surprise as well, managed to parry away. She wrapped one of his arms, pinned him against a wall, and grabbed the meat under his throat before she came to. She pinned the kid against the wall and had him immobilized.

She made a quick assessment and decided it would be better to pretend the position they were in was intentional instead of some unconscious instinct that seemed to be surfacing today. She said, “What the fuck happened?”

He swallowed hard through her hand on his throat, “Dude is a narc.”

“He is not.”

“Motherfucker was wired. Rhino don’t fuck with that shit.” She felt something in the back of her head react to what the kid said and her hands reacted again. She had him by the throat, literally, but she took a step forward and pushed her forearm against his throat. Her thrashed and tried to break the grip, but only punched him in the solar plexus and then his face to make him stop before he stopped thrashing. She let him go and the kid dropped to the floor like a brick.

6

Rhino clicked the hammer back and pressed the gun against Bam Bam’s forehead. Bam Bam winced and tried to breath. “You about to get a bullet in your head unless you start talking to me.” Rhino’s words were calm, but the others were egging him on yelling “kill this nigger!” and “you got be hard Rhino.” Rhino waved them off. “Right now we just talking. Ain’t that right Bam Bam.” Bam Bam nodded as best he could with the dude behind him pinning his arms back. “I didn’t hear you.” Rhino got close to Bam Bam, “What are we doing?”

“Talking.” Bam Bam stuttered. He was trying to turn his head as far from the gun as possible, but it was just there impossible to avoid and Bam Bam felt his life laid out before him. He fucked up. He brought reporters to a trap house. He didn’t let anybody know where he was at. Now he was about to die and he knew that it might cause a war.

“Stop!” Emma’s voice was loud and clear. Bam Bam couldn’t see her, but knew what must be happening, she was listening and was trying to save his dumb ass. Rhino took the revolver away from Bam Bam’s head and aimed it in her direction. She raised her hands and stepped forward cautiously. “I think there’s been a big misunderstanding.” She said.

“I’m listening.” Rhino waved her closer.

“I’m a reporter with Truth Hunter, it’s an independent news website. We’re doing a story on Bam Bam.” She pointed at him. She was creeping closer and marveled at how in control she felt. The room was big enough for her to move easily, there was a weight bench, a heavy bag, couch, television set, and a couple of reclining chairs. The kitchen was behind Rhino and beyond the a deck that lead to the backyard. The music was still playing. The girl on the couch was watching everything with an unconcerned look on her face, like this was some kind of minor inconvenience. She was close now. Close enough to deal with that gun which he was holding looser then when she first came in.

Rhino turned to Bam Bam, “You’re just fucking stupid.” His gun was lowered and Wu Tang came on the stereo and that’s when she moved. She moved on Rhino taking the gun hand and twisting it until it was aimed back at Rhino who’s face was an expression of shock. The trigger was pulled and the gun exploded in Rhino’s face. Blood spattered against Emma’s face as she pulled the gun from Rhino’s dead hand.

“Define irony.” Emma said as she raised the gun and fired again. Three men dead in as many seconds. The only one left was the guy holding Bam Bam and his jaw was on the floor as he watched this woman kill everyone in the room. “Let him go.” she said without malice. He did as he was told and Bam Bam was equally stupefied. “Are you ready to go.” She said with the casual manner of someone ready for their check at a restaurant. Bam Bam just nodded and followed after her as she went downstairs.

“What the fuck was that?” Bam Bam asked as they left the house.

She shook her head, “I don’t know. I’ve been feeling different lately.” she seemed strangely wistful as she got into the care.

“Different? That’s different? Seriously, we need to have a long talk.” Bam Bam said as he slid into the driver’s side.

“Yeah, we should talk about what happened at the bordello.” She said. Bam Bam was dumbstruck, “That is not…”

“What happened?” Rick asked.

“Emma here went all terminator and very likely started a war.” Bam Bam explained as he put the car in drive. “I am so fucked.” Gunfire popped from the window upstairs hitting the car and shattering the back window as he pulled out and blasted down the street. Rick was screaming in the back.

“I’m shot!” Rick screamed.

Emma snapped out of it and turned to the back, “What? Where?” Rick was patting his whole body down to look for the wounds. Emma helped, but found nothing. “There’s nothing there.” She said.

He calmed himself, “Oh, yeah. I’m, I’m okay.” He calmed a bit as they pulled out onto a busier road.

Emma turned back to Bam Bam, “Where are we going?” she asked.

“Well, we need direction.” He said and shook is head as he drove.

* * *

Bam Bam drove in a kind of daze. His thoughts were all over the place and he couldn’t figure out what to do next. He kept looking down at his phone expecting a call. After some time to cool down and let the Adrenalin in his system subside he found himself in front of the gym. Rick was checking his equipment and Emma still had a dreamy expression on her face, “Everybody out, we’re here.”

“Where is here?” Rick asked.

“Gordon’s gym.” He got out.

Rick tapped Emma on the shoulder, “What happened in there?”

She turned to him and shrugged, “I don’t know. It was like I was possessed or something. I felt this in Brazil, but it wasn’t this strong. Ever since I got off the plane I’ve felt familiar, like I’ve been here before.” Her eyebrows screwed together as she tried to search for the words for what she was feeling. She thought back to her childhood and remembered very little. Her mother had left when she was young and she never really knew her, so it was just her and her father. He never talked about her except to say she was beautiful and loved her very much. She pressed more when she was a teenager, but his answers were always evasive and she eventually gave up. “We should go in.” she said when she realized they were both sitting in silence as Rick was searching her face for some answer as to what was going on. She smiled at him and touched his hand on the headrest before leaving. He followed quickly after. She hadn’t thought about her mother in years, but suddenly it seemed she was a clue to what was happening to her.

Inside she saw Bam Bam talking to stout man next to an octagonal ring. They hadn’t seen Emma and Rick yet and seemed to be in deep conversation. She closed the distance and reached out to shake Gordon’s hand, “Hi, I’m Emma Byrne.”

He made eye contact, but didn’t take her hand. “You’re in a heap of trouble.” He said as matter of fact.

“I was just…” She tried to explain.

“It was a mess. This boy,” Gordon cut her off, “This boy thinks more with his cock then he does with his head and you just come here and walk in like you own the place. I don’t want none of this in my gym. Do you even know who that was that you killed back there?” He was getting animated as he admonished her.

She looked over to Bam Bam who wasn’t making eye contact with her. “I don’t know who they were.”

“They were part of the Guede Boys. They aren’t huge, but they are well connected to the city and you have just kicked a hornets nest.” He put his hands on his hips and shook his head. “I want you and your camera man out of here. I never saw you. I don’t know you.” He waved his hands and walked away from her and Bam Bam.

She turned to Bam Bam. “Do you want me to leave?” She asked.

He couldn’t quite look her in the eyes, “Listen, I have to find a way to clean up this mess and it’ll probably be dangerous to be around me. You should probably get out of here.”

“Well, can I contact you tomorrow?”

He shook his head, “I don’t think you get it. You are in danger, you should probably leave New Orleans all together.”

She tried to read his expression and that’s when she saw he was terrified. All night she hadn’t seen it, even when he had a gun to his head, but here and now she saw his whole spirit was afraid of what was coming for him. She wanted to be angry, but they were right, she had done something. She had murdered three people and hadn’t even batted an eye. She didn’t even know she was capable of what she did and now in after thought she didn’t regret any of the actions she took. Emma wondered what that meant, but she felt the sting of tears starting to form at the corners her eyes. She turned away from him and grabbed Rick who was a few feet back. “Come on Rick.” she said as she marched out of the gym. “I need a fucking drink.”

* * *

Bam Bam sat in the locker room on a bench with is head hung low and his arms draped on his knees. Gordon walked in and sat next to him. “It’s going to be alright.” He said and patted Bam Bam on the shoulder.

He didn’t look up at Gordon, “I really don’t think it is. The worst part is, I kind of asked for this.”

“When you work for those kinds of people you have to expect something like this and yeah, you certainly did step in it.” He nodded.

“No, I mean lately, I’ve wanted out. It’s been all I’ve been thinking about, but I just can’t quite get myself to pull the trigger.”

“well I think your girl pulled that trigger for you.” He said and in spite of himself Bam Bam let out a laugh.

“She certainly did. I thought for a second she might be the one, but man, after what I saw tonight I think maybe I dodged a bullet.”

“Don’t go sticking your dick in crazy.” He said, again trying to lighten the mood.

He finally lifted his head up. “I didn’t quite make it there, but man I was this close.” He made a small gesture with his thumb and forefinger.

“Shit. Well, she was a looker.” He nodded.

Dagby and Miller walked into the locker room and Gordon shifted and stood up. Bam Bam looked confused. “What the hell?”

Gordon shrugged, “I called them. Look, it’s better to come clean and rip the band-aid off.”

“I’m a dead man Gordon.” Bam Bam shook his head. He stood up and faced Miller. “Come on out with it. I know you want to say it.”

Miller smirked and started in,“You should’ve called us before you went to do collections Bam Bam.” Miller said, “At least then we could back you up, but now we have to bring you in.” He said.

“You know what’s gonna happen next man. I can fix this.” He insisted.

“How?” Dagby started in, but Miller stopped him.

“There isn’t any fixing this. Ian is going to have a sit down with the Guede Boys and try to smooth things over, but they’re gonna need to see you’ve been punished.” Miller explained.

Bam Bam tensed, unsure of his next move, but he knew something had to happen or he was going to be brought in and probably killed. They would drop him in a swamp somewhere out in the bayou and he would never be heard from again.

* * *

Emma and Rick found themselves back in the French Quarter and after brief walk down Bourbon Street found it to be far too crowded and headed for Frenchman based on a locals suggestion. Rick was doing his best to keep the mood light and was doing a decent job, but Emma’s mind went back to the trap house and what happened there. She was a murderer now. She killed men and what’s more intriguing, she was good at it. They wandered down Decatur Street towards Frenchman and she was still in a dreamy haze. Rick looked at home among the dirty kids hanging on the street and the tourists milled by with a slow awkward gait looking at everything they passed. They hadn’t quite made it to Frenchman when they wandered into a bar called The Abbey. It was a dark place filled with punks and a few tourists, but most of them talked and reacted to each other as though they were regulars. The woman behind the bar was a short woman with dreadlocks wearing a tight fitting vest and black and white striped pants. She was joking with a customer towards the end of the bar when they sat down on two mismatched benches. “This looks like my kind of place.” Rick said.

“Wait, you didn’t love the bordello?” She asked mockingly.

“Not near as much as you did.” He said as he shook his head.

Her mind jumped to Bam Bam and their encounter at the bordello. It was so random and not what she had expected to happen, but she was happy it did. She could feel his mouth on hers still even as her mind was reeling from tonight’s events.”Yeah.” a smile formed across her lips.

“What happened to him being to Bro-y for you?”

“Never say never.” She said as the bartender got to them.

“What can I get you?” She asked pleasantly.

“Hi, I’ll just have that shot and beer special.” Rick said as he picked up the small menu in front of him. “Um, Fireball and a Rolling Rock, haven’t had that in years.” he said with a smile.

Emma just said same and went back into her head. There had to be a way for her to fix the situation, but she was at a loss. There were so many questions that needed answers. “I’m staying.” She said out of the blue.

“What? Why?” Rick asked as the beer and shot were placed in front of him.

“I want answers and I want more then anything to fix the mess I made.” She said as she nodded her head. She took her shot down with a grimace and took a swig of beer, “Not as good as the cider.” She winced.

Outside The Abbey a tall black man in a t-shirt, a tail coat stood, and a pair of sunglasses with one lens missing lifted an AK-47 and fired on the bar.

Clown.

When I first started this blog it was with the intention of showcasing not only my work, but also the work of other authors. It is with pride that I present this story written by my son Sebastian Gabriel Titus Bishop. I really enjoyed this story and insisted he put it on Neon Rabbit.

Please read and enjoy.

The body of a woman lay upon the ground, her blood soaked victorian dress draped loosely over unnaturally contorted limbs. Her head completely degloved of its flesh, crisp white bone could be seen peeking through the crimson liquor.

A clown skips away from the scene, a gleeful smile creeping from ear to ear; he picks at the blood and hair lodged beneath his fingernails. He walks through the carnival grounds, an elegant hat sitting upon his head, tipped forwards slightly, concealing a painted face. His left hand drags a large sack behind him, leaving a trail of blood. He frolics, whistling a joyful tune, his glistening teeth shining through the shadow that obscures his face.

Frightened onlookers watch him as he conducts an inaudible symphony using a scalpel lacquered with blood. A crowd of people stare towards him, their faces petrified. The clown’s skipping slowly comes to a halt. His eyes scan the crowd as men and women avert his gaze. Yet eye contact still occurred. A young boy, frozen still, stared directly into his core as only a child is able to. The clown’s face lights up. Elated, he walked towards the child. A terrified mother holds the boy against her chest. The clown drops to one knee.

“I have a g-gift for you little boy,” he whispered ecstatically. The mother still watched the clown in horror. However, the child regarded the clown with something like curiosity. The clown’s hand reached into the bloodied sack. The boy’s eyes widened,

“What is it?” he whispered, asking politely. “Is it candy?”

“Something better,” his hand reemerged from the sack, holding what looked like a rubber mask. He handed it to the child slowly. The boy then held the mask gently.

“Wow!” He held the face up to his own, looking through the eye holes. “This is such a cool mask!” The clown simply smiled,

“Something like that,” He stood up again, making eye contact with the mother. He extended his scalpel bearing hand, dragging the tip gently down her cheek. Her eyes somehow seemed to widen further, pursed lips suppressing a scream. Muscles in his face begin pulling the corners of his mouth across both sides of his head, producing an inhuman gash of a smile. He proceeds to cut downwards, leaving a bloody slit behind as a keepsake.

Walking away slowly, he flourises his blade, then wiping it across his tongue. He turned around and curtseyed, then proceeded to throw his elegantly adorned hat into the horrified, shivering crowd.

Whistling a gleeful melody, he capered, taking long energetic strides, practically bounding towards his small trailer. Before disappearing into the dark box, he turned around and winked towards the crowd, then disappearing.

Suddenly, the crowd erupted into a stupendous roar, applause and cheering ringing all throughout the carnival grounds. A deep, growling voice then played through speakers spread throughout the grounds,

“Wonderful! A wonderful show! Bravo!” Everyone was silent, waiting for the next announcement, “Can we have a big round of applause for our dear Mister Giggles please!?” Applause could be heard once again, like a stampede of bulls. “Just, wonderful! And only twenty-five people had to die”  He put an emphasis on the twenty-five, almost as if he were satisfied by the number, “Thank you all for coming!” Applause again, “I do hope we’ll see each other very soon! Have a wonderful night!”

 

Night at the Club

I’m back. The work has changed somewhat recently. It’s been a focused change to create something more personal. I am getting back to my roots. The idea is to step away from genre and write something visceral. The idea is to bleed on the page and hope some truth comes from that writing. I will always love genre, but in order to write it better I have to take a step back and write from my life for a while.

The piece I am posting today is satire. Let me state that again, it is satire. I was writing about masculinity in a way that pokes fun, but also shows the fragility of the male psyche. A lot has been written about male psyche recently and toxic masculinity. I have dealt with it in my own way and I’m sure I have a long way to go before I rid myself of these prejudices. This is a way of showcasing what it was like for me as a young man in my twenties while also poking fun at the sense of entitlement men often seem to espouse.

The following piece is a work of fiction. It is a satire. It is meant to poke fun at men. I wrote it in second person perspective with the tone of books about masculine etiquette (maybe, I don’t know, I’ve never read one actually). It also reminded me of “Pick Up Artists” from the aughts.

Please read and enjoy,

 

 

She walked into the room like a cliché. The room went silent, she laughed with her whole body to something her friend said. She was a woman that you could fall in love with, grow old with, have children with. All your fantasies fuse onto her like a bear trap and you suddenly can’t picture anyone more attractive. She is light and sunny, but has an edge that screams of some hidden kink that you get to explore. She is unattainable, but highly gettable. She moves like Dita Von Teese and looks like Pam Grier. You imagine she can drink you under the table, but always maintains poise and balance. She is all these things right up until you speak to her, get to know her and find out she is broken and looking for a place in this cold dark world. This doesn’t deter you however. You knew that she was a real person. You are not objectifying her, because in that two second introduction you are in love with her whole being. You don’t even know her name, but you’re sure it’s something exotic, like Rain, or something regal and old like Muriel. The names aren’t important, they’re just titles really. A way to put a sound to the woman you want to spend the rest of your life with. She moves and your eyes follow her into the bathroom and you lose sight of her. You will find the opportunity to speak with her by the end of the night and declare your undying love.
You get a drink at the bar, nothing fancy, a man’s drink. Whiskey neat or on the rocks, both are masculine enough to be seen with. Martini glasses are for women or Hunter S Thompson. Wine is for the artsy types. Beer is yesterday’s big thing. This bar doesn’t have any craft beer anyway. You are a man’s man, here for the music, the atmosphere, and the women. The drink is just a prop, like the cigarettes. The cigarettes should be cheap, but not too cheap. No Basics, No Pall Malls, It’s either Camels, Marlboros, or American Spirits if you’re feeling spendy. Nothing with black paper, no cloves, you’re not in high school, and Johnny Depp is the only straight man you’ve ever seen that can pull off cigarellos. With your bourbon neat in hand you turn back to the dance floor.
Dancing is a tricky prospect. It is necessary in a club to dance, but it can also be off putting. You need to move just enough so that the women around you can dance with you without the distraction of quality dance moves. You are not John Travolta. You stick to the two step, because you can make it look somewhat more complex than it is. Sway the arms more, step quicker or slower, Kick out a foot if you’re feeling frisky. A woman may join you on the dance floor. Match her pace, let her be the star of this show so that perhaps you might be the star of the show to come. Always be aware of your drink. A clumsy spill could end your night on the town. Watch for rings on the fingers of your dance partner, this may make it more challenging to take her to bed. Obstacles are just things to be overcome. Bear in mind it may be too much effort so be prepared to bow out gracefully. You haven’t managed to entice any women so you move off the dance floor. You were starting to sweat and that may be unseemly.
Out to the smoking patio for a quick smoke. Don’t pay too much attention to anyone in the smoking patio. The men tend to be too chummy and the women may be more brazen than you are used to. Light the cigarette, be mindful of your own space. Encourage conversation by having an open stance, but don’t be too encouraging. How many great people have you met in a smoking patio after all? This is a lottery you don’t need to win. Smoke quickly, but not too quickly, the smell may stick to your clothes. Keep an eye out for your one true love. Her smoking habits would be worth noting for later encounters.
Inside the bar the patrons have grown in number. Scan the bar for your beauty, than the dance floor. You had not seen her in the smoking patio, it would be heartbreaking if she had already left. You make a pass through the throng of dancing bodies. No need to dance while you are in pursuit. This is a tenuous time where you should look for her, but you mustn’t seem like you’re looking for her. This can create an aura of desperation that others may see and confuse as an overall desperation to find women. You don’t have any trouble finding women, not usually. The women tonight have been cold. Not one has approached you on the dance floor, at the bar, or indeed even in the smoking patio. There can be no doubt in this regard. It’s not you, it is the women. You are a healthy specimen of masculinity.
At long last you spot her on the dance floor. She is dancing with her friend close enough to ward off lesser men. You should not be fooled by this ruse, she is waiting for the right man. She is waiting for you. You move closer. Dance nearby, within eye sight, but not too close, you mustn’t let your intentions be known until it is absolutely necessary and she can be understandably wooed. At a booth is most preferable with her hand in yours as your eyes drink each other in and you ask her where she would like to spend the night. You find the opportunity to make your move. Her partner has left and she is dancing by herself. Move closer. Make eye contact. Nod at her as you dance. Not too close, but close enough where she can easily close the gap. Your eyes glance over her amazing assets. You note with some joy that she has no ring, that is not a hurtle for you tonight. You move closer. She smiles. The air between you is electric. There is a ferocity in her movements that you don’t believe were there moments ago. You feel a tap on your shoulder, it is the friend of your true love. You move your ear closer to her imagining the possibility of two partners this evening, “That’s my girlfriend.” She says to you in a more serious tone than you were expecting. You nod, of course they are girlfriends. The friend shoves past you and embraces your love. She kisses her. Your love kisses back. The friend’s hands are moving more intimately than you are comfortable with.
In these situations it is best to retreat quickly, but not too quickly. Your haste may be misinterpreted as homophobia. You are not homophobic. You’re drink is finished so you go to the bar. Glance back at the dance floor and you will see your lady’s passion for her friend growing. There is a slight sting in your chest, but this night is still young. Out of the corner of your eye you see a woman enter. She walks in like a cliché.