A Matter of Degrees

by Alex Marcoux

  “Did I interrupt anything this evening?”

  “No. I’m going out to dinner with West.” Rachel smiled.

  “Please don’t tell me I messed up your date.”

  “No, not at all. We pushed it back an hour.”

  The song that had been playing on the stereo came to an end and a newscaster announced a special news broadcast. It was an occupational habit for Rachel to raise the volume to hear the news.

  “The United Nations once again walked away from discussions regarding Iraq. In an unprecedented move, England took the opposing position to the United States’ desire to move forces into the Middle East. This is the third time in these proceedings that a U.S. ally has taken an unexpected stance to refrain from taking aggressive action upon Iraqi forces. Discussions will resume Wednesday; in the interim, as of last Friday the price of crude oil was up three hundred fifty-seven percent since…”

  Rachel lowered the volume on the stereo. “Wow. When was the last time the United States and England have been on different sides of the fence?”

  Jessie shook her head. The last thing she could fathom was this Iraq mess.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Rachel refused to allow her minor delay with Jessie dampen her spirits. She had looked forward to her date all week. She returned to her apartment with just enough time to look over herself in the mirror. She reapplied her lipstick, fluffed her hair, and sprayed perfume into the open recess of her blouse.

  The doorbell rang.

  An hour later the couple sat at a local Italian restaurant. Rachel had decided that she wouldn’t discuss the subject matters that had pulled them together: secret societies, the Merovingians, or Satan.

  The waiter served them wine, then left, giving them time to peruse the menu.

  West raised his glass of Cabernet. “May I propose a toast?” He paused. “To our third date, and I hope there’ll be plenty more.”

  “Likewise,” she tapped his glass, and they sipped their wine. Rachel had thoroughly enjoyed getting to know West. It had been a long time since she had had the companionship of a man who interested her.

  “May I ask…” West started. “Are you seeing anyone else?”

  There was a part of Rachel that didn’t want to answer. She didn’t want to sound lonely or desperate. “No. Why?”

  He smiled, “I was just wondering. A lovely woman like yourself—it’s hard to imagine that there isn’t a long line of gentlemen callers.” He retrieved his eyeglasses from his jacket pocket, and returned to the menu.

  Dinner was delightful. They chatted about sports, the theater, movies, and growing up. Neither one brought up the documentaries that West had assisted Rachel with. Throughout dinner, Rachel found herself drawn to him. For a moment, she wondered if her interest in the controversial topics was fate. Could her curiosity have developed to bring the two of them together?

  Rachel felt the effects of the wine as West escorted her to her apartment. She had had a wonderful time and didn’t want the evening to end. They silently made their way to her apartment door. She was nervous. She liked West, and he seemingly liked her. You don’t want to lose this one! Something always changed after she slept with them; even after years of therapy it still baffled her. Don’t invite him in! She lectured herself.

  At the door, Rachel inserted a key into the keyhole and turned it so that the door cracked open. She turned back to West, and smiled. “I had a nice time.”

  “I did too.” He leaned up against the doorframe. “May I call you tomorrow?”

  Rachel caught a scent of his cologne. She nodded.

  As in the closing moments of their previous dates, West brushed his lips upon Rachel’s cheek. He lingered just a moment, long enough to sense her soft skin and perfume arousing him. He withdrew and with great effort whispered, “Good night.”

  As West backed away, Rachel seized one of his warm hands, luring him to her. She stepped closer, and brought her lips toward his mouth, firmly planting them on his. He kissed her back and held her intimately in his arms. Their kiss ceased momentarily, and their eyes met, giving each an opportunity to consider their next move.

  With the back of her foot, Rachel jostled open the door. Her eyes settled upon his lips, and her mouth met his again. Rachel’s lips parted and her tongue invited him in.

  * * *

  Monday morning came too quickly. When Rachel woke, she reached for West between the smooth satin sheets, but he wasn’t beside her. Then she felt his wet lips on the back of her neck. He nibbled at her skin, moving down her back, stirring her senses.

  “Good morning,” she whispered.

  He stopped kissing her back. “It’s a wonderful morning,” he agreed. Rachel rolled onto her back. To her surprise, West was fully dressed sitting beside her on the bed.

  He reached for something on the nightstand, then handed her a coffee mug. “I made some coffee. It’s black. I wasn’t sure how you like it,” He propped up a pillow behind her.

  She sipped. “It’s perfect. Thank you. How long have you been up?”

  “A little while. I’ve made breakfast. Hungry?”

  Rachel retrieved her robe and slippers, and joined West in the kitchen. She eyed pancakes with caution. “It’s pretty scary thinking that anything edible could have come out of my refrigerator.”

  “I did notice that pickings were slim around here, but I think this is safe.” He moved to the table with his subtle limp, and pulled the oak chair out for Rachel.

  Rachel wasn’t used to the attention. “Thank you.” She sat at the small dinette set. “What time do you have to be at the school?”

  “Not until ten.” He offered her some syrup.

  “Thanks. It’s only six-thirty! Why are you up so early?”

  “I wasn’t sure what time you had to be in.

  “My calendar is clear until lunch,” she took a bite. “Thank you for breakfast.”

  “I should have let you sleep in.”

  “I usually get up early, anyway.”

  “Even after being up most of the night?” His blue eyes sparkled.

  Rachel was tired. It had been only a few hours since they had fallen asleep in each other’s arms. She smelled a trace of his cologne on her skin, almost veiled by the scent of sex.

  “Do you realize that last night was the first time we hadn’t discussed Freemasonry, or the Merovingian Dynasty, or even Satan?”

  “And look what happened,” he reached for Rachel’s hand. “Thank you.

  Rachel was uneasy. Half of her relationships ended after her first intimate encounter. She needed to walk a fine line between being interested and indifferent, She smiled, sipped her coffee, and then changed the subject. “A friend of mine came across a couple of names. She wondered if they were Egyptian. Would you know?”

  “It depends. What names?”

  Rachel recalled her discussion with Jessie. “Lukeman and Kek.”

  West removed a pen and pad from his tweed jacket. He jotted down the names. “I believe they are. Would you like to meet for dinner, and I’ll let you know for sure?”

  “Dinner?” Rachel didn’t know how she should respond.

  “There’s a great Thai restaurant in midtown…I can’t remember its name. Do you have a Zagat’s Guide? That is of course, if you’d like.”

  Rachel hesitated. Then she rummaged through the pantry and drawers. Clearly, she hadn’t spent a lot of time in her kitchen. “I’m not sure where it is.” She pulled an iPad from a drawer instead.

  “That will work.” West speedily retrieved the location and phone number of the restaurant. He noticed Post-it tabs adhered to the inside cover of the tablet and recognized some of the names of churches.

  “Are you doing a story on religions or churches?” he asked.

  “No.” Rachel took the tablet from him.

  West eyed Rachel inquisitively. “Personal interest?” he pressed.

  “In a way,” she admitted. “I was never raised in an organized religion. Although my
father was a spiritual man, I didn’t have the opportunity to study different faiths. So, over the years, I’ve set out to do so.”

  “And I thought I had strange pastimes,” he smiled.

  “Do you consider yourself a religious man?”

  West shook his head, “No. I used to be Methodist.”

  “What happened?”

  “Because of my work, I’ve had to dissect the Bible…I just don’t believe that the God, or Jehovah, in the Bible is our supreme God. At least not my God!”

  “Why not?”

  “I vowed never to discuss religion or politics on my dates.” West peeked at the clock, then smiled. “Are you sure you want to get into this?”

  Rachel nodded. “Absolutely.”

  “Do you have a Bible?”

  Rachel left the kitchen, and when she returned she placed a Bible in front of him.

  He picked up the book and cracked the spine. “I don’t have to go very far into the Old Testament to question whether Jehovah deserves my devotion.” He leafed through the new pages. “You haven’t read this?”

  “Not entirely. Certainly the readings during services.”

  “The ones the church selects for you to read. Let’s start with the story of Moses. When the Hebrews were still slaves in Egypt, Jehovah asked Moses to go to the pharaoh to ask him to free the slaves. Right? But Jehovah warned Moses that he would make him say no. Here, this is Exodus 10:

  And the Lord said to Moses, “Go to the Pharaoh: for I have hardened his heart, and the heart of his servants, that I might show these signs before him.”

  “So Moses, of course, goes to the pharaoh, and asks him to free his people. And time after time, the pharaoh refuses because Jehovah has hardened his heart, And each time, Jehovah punishes the Egyptians, from vermin infestations, to plagues, to boils, and finally…the murder of the eldest sons.

  “Anyway, the Hebrews are freed! They leave Egypt and go to Mount Sinai where Moses is given the Ten Commandments on two stone tablets, which interestingly enough, Moses breaks! Then he’s given a second set of tablets. The Bible points out that no one was permitted on the mountaintop with Jehovah except a select few, which included Moses and Aaron. Jehovah even threatened to kill anyone else who tried to see him. Now, through the commandments, they were given very specific moral teachings. To start, they shouldn’t kill, steal, or want their neighbor’s possessions, right?”

  Rachel nodded. “I’m following you.”

  “Well, Jehovah demanded obedience from them as they journeyed to the Promised Land. Unfortunately, not all were compliant, so according to the Bible, Jehovah killed up to fourteen thousand people.

  “Then, they reach Canaan, and settle in their new homeland. But Jehovah sends them on a mission, under Joshua, to depopulate the area. The first city they cross is Jericho,” He leafed through the pages. “This is Joshua 6:21.” He read again:

  And they utterly destroyed all that was in the city, both man and woman, young and old, and ox, and sheep, and ass, with the edge of the sword.

  His finger skipped through a few more paragraphs, and he continued:

  they burnt the city with fire, and all that was therein: only the silver, and the gold, and the vessels of brass and of iron, they put into the treasury of the house of the Lord.

  “The next city was Ai which had thousands living in it…and Jehovah ordered all twelve thousand to be butchered. This is Joshua 10:40:

  So Joshua smote all the country of the hills, and of the south, and of the vale, and of the springs, and all their kings: he left none remaining, but utterly destroyed all that breathed, as the Lord God of Israel commanded.

  “This army went on a seven-year holocaust under the direction of Jehovah and killed thousands of innocent men, women, children, and animals. But what’s really barbaric is that the Bible actually explains why most resisted Joshua’s army. This is still Joshua:

  There was not a city that made peace with the children of Israel, save the Hivites the inhabitants of Gibeon: all others they took in battle.

  For it was of the Lord to harden their hearts, that they should come against Israel in battle, that he might destroy them utterly, and that they might have no favor, but that he might destroy them, as the Lord commanded Moses.

  “Jehovah hardens their hearts, so that they resist him, and he can have them slaughtered. And this is supposed to be a loving God? In my opinion, Jehovah is undeserving of my love and devotion.” Clearly angry and fervent about the subject, he slammed the Bible shut. He took a deep breath, and softened a bit. “I’m sorry.”

  “No need for an apology. I find this interesting. Do you consider yourself atheist?”

  “No. I very much believe in God; just not the god of the Old Testament.”

  “If Jehovah isn’t God, though, then who is he? He’s clearly an advanced presence.”

  West smiled. “That certainly is another topic for conversation, perhaps tonight?”

  * * *

  Rachel left her lunch meeting and headed back to her office. Something was different. She was humming. She turned west on Forty-ninth Street, and found herself smiling as she dodged the hustle of New Yorkers rushing back to their offices. West didn’t stray far from her mind. Memories of their previous evening replayed in her head, and Rachel looked forward to her date later that evening.

  * * *

  West strolled the drafty university hallway. His mind wandered from the task at hand, which was to grade exams. Reminiscences of his previous evening drifted into his head: Rachel straddling him, their bodies coupled, sweating, surging, and collapsing in each other’s arms. With only a couple hours of sleep, he should have been exhausted, but thoughts of their date kept him going. Occasionally, he considered that he hadn’t been completely forthcoming with Rachel, and feelings of guilt pestered him.

  He unlocked a wooden office door with WEST KERRY stenciled on an opaque glass panel. The glass clattered as he closed the door, echoing within the room’s tall ceilings. He dropped a stack of exams on his desk, beside a galvanized statue of an Egyptian man with a falcon head. The inscription on the base of the sculpture was RA—SUN GOD. A flashing light on the telephone indicated that he had voicemail. He sat behind the large desk, his back against a drafty tall window. Beneath the window was an old-fashioned cast iron radiator that knocked from use. He lifted the handset and pressed a few buttons.

  A digital voice said, “You have…two messages.”

  West pulled the top exam from the stack of papers and started to evaluate it. But he stopped as soon as he heard her inviting, husky voice.

  “It’s Rachel. I just wanted to say thanks for last night. I’m looking forward to this evening. See you then.”

  A smile came to his lips. Almost instantly, he was lost in the feel of her soft skin. But the smile quickly vanished when the next message began playing.

  “I told you to stay away from Rachel Addison!” The haunting voice bellowed through the handset. “You were warned.” Dial tone sounded.

  “Who the hell is that?” West whispered as he rested the handset. “She told me she wasn’t seeing anyone.”

  Preoccupied, West returned to the exam in front of him. He pulled open his desk drawer to retrieve the red marker he always used to grade papers, but hissing came from beneath the desk. Slowly, he closed the drawer and gasped. A king cobra’s head had reared up between his legs. The yellow-bellied serpent flattened its neck ribs into a hood. The snake hissed madly, exposing the half-inch venomous fangs.

  How could this tropical snake find its way into his office? West knew that if he moved, it would strike, and cobra’s venom could kill an elephant. His heart pounded wildly. He eyed the galvanized statue on the right side of his desk. It must have been thirty pounds. Can I reach it? Even if he could, the movement alone would prompt an attack.

  His adrenaline surged, and his movements were swift. He thrust away from the desk and sprang to his feet, twisting his body to grab the heavy piece. The movement exposed a leg,
and the snake lunged. He hoisted the sculpture above his head, took aim, and heaved it downward, as the venomous fangs plunged into his calf. The iron statue simultaneously crushed the snake’s head and West’s leg, toppling him to the ground where he hit his head on the radiator. All went dark.

  * * *

  It was seven o’clock when she arrived at the restaurant. Rachel was surprised that West wasn’t there yet, but asked to be seated. As she waited, she eyed her Gucci watch. At ten minutes after the hour she checked her phone. There was no message. Something wasn’t right.

  Rachel could feel it. Just as she pressed the speed dial button, jingling alerted her that the front door had opened.

  It was West. His subtle limp was now obvious, and he shuffled with a cane. He peered around the room, scrutinizing other diners. Then he slid into the seat across from Rachel. There was an air of unease about him.

  “What happened?”

  “Are you seeing someone else?” he asked unexpectedly.

  “You asked me this last night. No, I’m not! What happened to your leg?”

  A glass dropped at a nearby table and West jumped. Impulsively, he raised the cane to protect himself. It was then that Rachel noticed the bandage at the base of his skull.

  “What happened to your head?”

  It was barely a whisper. “You were seeing Stanley Chancellor.”

  “Yes. It ended very soon after it started. What’s going on?”

  West spoke softly, “Before our date last night, I received a call from a man. He warned me to stay away from you.”

  “Away from me?”

  “Yes. And today—” The jingle bells on the front door distracted him. He sighed when he saw an old couple enter. “Today I got a phone message, pretty much reiterating the warning, and someone planted a king cobra in my office.”