* * * * *
The apartment was finally quiet. For the past ten hours Kelsey, Ari, Julia, Dennis, Seung and Joshua had been playing a marathon game of Dungeons and Dragons. Ari was a genius Dragon Master and they had traversed so far tonight no one wanted it to end. It was now three a.m. and everyone had passed out in various bedrooms, on the couches, wherever there was space.
Kelsey and Joshua were still awake, talking quietly on the balcony. It was a warm night, the stars visible and shining brightly in New York City, which was unusual because of all the air pollution. It was a beautiful evening, the lights from all the buildings blinking brilliantly and the hum of the city just a soft purr in the background.
Joshua sat next to Kelsey on the outdoor sofa, her head resting on his shoulder. She adored this man. At nineteen-years old, and he at twenty-one, they would have made an exquisite couple, so strong, so beautiful and brilliant, but Kelsey simply didn’t feel that way about him. At least not usually.
Joshua stroked Kelsey’s hand and played with her fingers. At one point he turned to her, took her chin in his hand and brazenly kissed her, and she let him. It was late and she was so tired, but more than that, it felt just nice to have someone to hold and touch.
“Kelsey, my little elf,” Joshua whispered, grasping her chin gently.
Little elf. He was obviously referring to her Dungeons & Dragons character, but conveniently forgot she was a super powerful four hundred year old being with amazing fighting techniques and an ability to lull her victims with her voice--thank you very much. Kelsey instinctually moved closer to him, and as he leaned back on the loveseat, in a fluid motion, she moved on top of him and he wrapped his arms around her. Her long hair fell around his face and she pressed her lips to his. He kissed her back, strongly and without a thought, while she straddled him, pushing her body against his. Everything felt so perfect. She heard his breathing quicken. She didn’t want the moment to end when suddenly a wave of icy cold water was thrown on her from behind and she jumped up, shocked.
Ari, dressed only in a pair of boxer shorts stood in the balcony doorway, an empty ice bucket in his hands. “Thought you both might need that.” He said it teasingly, but the look he gave Joshua lying stunned on the lounge was anything but friendly.
Kelsey stood there, glaring at her brother, water dripping off of her and onto the floor, speechless. He was so damned over-protective. She couldn’t even find the words to yell at him.
“That’s better.” He turned and stepped back into the apartment.
Kelsey glanced at Joshua and he shrugged. “It was probably for the best. Last thing I need is to get Ari all pissed off at me. Felt like I was kissing my sister anyway.”
Kelsey moved back over to the sofa, leaned over Joshua, water droplets falling onto his chest, and gave him one last lingering kiss, her tongue teasing his mouth. “Really, this is just like kissing your sister?”
He nodded, swallowing hard. “Yeah, I felt nothing. Absolutely nothing.”
With that Kelsey smirked and slinked back into the apartment, leaving Joshua alone to regain his composure.
* * * * *
Still, she knew with Joshua there’d be no lasting repercussions. He’d never do anything to betray his trust with Ari, so she knew he would only take it so far. Not like it would be with Desmond. Ari wouldn’t be there with a cold glass of water to stop her if things got out of control. Why would they get out of control? What in the heck was wrong with her suddenly?
“It’s time,” Seung announced, waking her from her reveries. They all crowded around him.
Seung glanced over his shoulder at Kelsey. “Your father was brilliant. When he turned these discs over to the monks, he must have known to encrypt them so no one would be able to easily translate the information. I can tell Raul and his men have tried to decode it. There are different language decryption programs I can see that have been applied, but none of them have worked so far. We’re lucky they weren’t destroyed in the process.
“It took me awhile to figure out what your father had actually done, but here it is. There are no symbols for a standard alphabet, so no way to get any language algorithms going. What it looks like is that your dad translated everything phonetically. Don’t ask me to tell you what language this is or what any of the words mean though, because I’ve never heard of it before. The world structure appears to be similar to many of the Eastern and Central Asian languages, so I’ve tried to find obscure or abandoned dialects for Tibetan, Chinese and even Burmese, but none fit. Maybe even Hindi or Thai, but it’s not any of them either. Ari, you’re the linguistics genius, maybe you can figure it out.”
He sat back while they all leaned in. One look and Kelsey sucked in her breath and nearly fell backwards. Ari caught her and they both stared at each other in abject shock.
“What? What?” Julia, Seung and Dennis all said together.
No, this isn’t possible. Kelsey shook, her fingers moving repetitively in the age old motion. Ari grabbed her hands, stilling them and she stared at him, wide-eyed and frightful.
“What does this mean? How can this be?” She started to hyperventilate.
He shook his head, for once, completely and utterly speechless.
Julia spoke up. “If one of you doesn’t explain what the hell is going on, I’m going to scream.”
Ari stared at the screen, and then back at Julia. “That language… it’s… the language of Tedanalee,” he stammered.
Seung raised his eyebrows. “Kelsey’s made-up language? The one she dreams about? That’s impossible.”
I thought so, too. Kelsey gently removed her hands from Ari’s, took a deep, disjointed breath and slowly returned her gaze to the screen. She leaned in, saying the words silently, her lips moving. She glanced at her friends. “I understand everything on this screen. I can translate all of it. It’s a Tibetan Buddhist Prayer. ‘May I become at all times, both now and forever a protector for those without protection, a guide for those who have lost their way, a ship for those with oceans to cross, a bridge for those with rivers to cross, a sanctuary for those in danger, a lamp for those without light, a place of refuge for those who lack shelter and a servant to all in need.’”
Seung shook his head. “Your Dad transcribed the words from old scrolls he got from the monks directly to this disc, right?”
Kelsey nodded.
“Did your parents ever speak this language to you?”
Speak Tedanaleese? Of course not, it’s not even a real language. Kelsey shook her head. “And I never saw it written either, so I’d have no idea how to read it if it weren’t written out phonetically on paper. That’s how I’ve been teaching it to Ari.”
“How many languages did your dad know?” Seung asked.
Kelsey pursed her lips. “Four. English, Tibetan, Mandarin and French. And a little bit of Egyptian, too.”
Ari ran his hands through his hair. “Then how in the hell is the language of Tedanalee on this disc, Kelsey?”
I don’t know, I don’t know! She swallowed hard, staring wordlessly at the sentences as they flashed on the screen, clicking page after page.
Seung sat back, crossing his arms. “So you’re telling us you are fluent in a language that, apparently, the monks have been keeping secret for thousands of years?”
She stared at all of them silently and then nodded. “I guess I do.”
There was nothing else to say.
* * * * *
They were in Desmond’s townhouse in a comfortably-appointed family room decorated to resemble a country ski lodge. Rustic furniture and heavy oak coffee tables were placed strategically around the room, giving it the illusion of great space. A bookshelf filled with biographies of musicians and poets and family photographs lined the back wall. A large flat screen TV hung over the fireplace. The fireplace itself was a real one, not like the fake ones many apartments in New York City boasted. This one was presently burning with two Duraflame logs, their colors dancing upwards through the draft,
like colorful ribbons of light.
Kelsey tore her eyes from it. They reminded her too much of the sky in Tedanalee and she simply couldn’t think about it after the revelation she somehow knew a secret language the monks had kept hidden. A language she was never taught. She and Ari had sat up for hours discussing how and why and they still had no answers. Instead, they decided to move on to the last part of the plan. The last, most dangerous part and one which would test her beyond anything she had experienced so far.
“So, what’s the next step?” Desmond asked, sitting on one of the sumptuous leather couches. He was finishing up a grilled chicken sandwich.
Kelsey paced the room, having already shoved down a tuna sub, barely even tasting it. She ran her fingers along the fireplace mantle and stared thoughtfully at the framed photograph showing a much younger version of Desmond playfully holding a blond infant in his arms. He seemed so happy. She turned back to the burning log. “Hritili ooch tlashaphah (ribbons of light),” she whispered as she fixated on the colors streaking upwards. She turned back to Desmond, a little unsure of how to begin. She hardly knew this man. How she wished Joshua could do this assignment with her. At least she knew where he stood. He’d relish the job and then tease her about it mercilessly for years on end.
On second thought, maybe that wasn’t such a good idea.
“Look, I know you just made detective and found Ricardo, but there’s nothing in the logs anywhere that the Miami trip was sanctioned by the department.”
“How do you know this?” Desmond frowned.
“We checked up on you.”
Desmond stared at her for a full minute and then sighed. “No, the trip wasn’t sanctioned by the department. Let’s just say my cold cases haven’t been getting the highest priority and I decided to see what I could do myself.”
Kelsey nodded. So he could play outside the rules. Maybe he could do this after all. “Raul keeps the map he stole from my father locked in a wooden box. The key to this box is kept on a chain he wears around his neck and he never takes it off. The concern is with me stealing the disc from Ricardo, he may do something rash. It’s time for me to take the map before something happens to it.”
Desmond took a swig from his water bottle. “So you want to steal the box to get to the map?”
“We’ll steal it eventually, but not yet. First, we need the key to open it. Supposedly, if you open the box without the key, it’ll destroy the object inside. Some sort of trigger, a liquid or something inside it. I don’t know how much of it I believe. It’s a little too Da Vinci Code for my taste, but I’m not prepared to take the risk after all these years.”
Desmond wiped his hands on his napkin. “So, how do you expect to get your hands on this key if he keeps it around his neck all the time?”
“I’ll just have to get close to him.”
Desmond raised his eyebrows. “And how do you expect to do that?”
Ok, here we go. “The last Thursday of every month, Raul travels to South Beach where he frequents a high-end swingers club called “Garters.” Raul isn’t into swinging himself, but likes to have sex with women who are with their own devoted men and who like to watch their partners with other people.” She let that sink in.
Desmond lean back and exhaled with a blasting breath. “Let me get this straight. You intend to have sex with Raul to get this key?”
Kelsey rolled her eyes disgustedly. “Are you out of your mind? Have sex voluntarily with the man who killed my parents?” That was the least of her reasons. She shook her head, pacing. “Raul likes younger girls and always chooses the same type. They’ve got long dark hair, blue eyes, fair skin, about five-six, five-seven, big chests. That remind you of anyone in this room?”
Desmond sighed.
She smirked. “Good, so we have an understanding. I could do this myself, could possibly get him to choose me, where I would hope to get him into one of the private rooms, do the job and then get out, all on my own. But, it would be much easier, and according to Ari, a much greater chance of success, if I could play the part the way it goes down each and every time. I’d rather not blow the one opportunity he gets to have a good look at me without a disguise on and then not get selected. So, if I had a partner, the entire operation will go more smoothly. Just know if you intend to help me, you’ll have to play the part of my husband. This isn’t going to be a Sunday School lecture or a square dance. It’s a sex club.”
“Why me? Why not have Ari help you?” Desmond asked.
“You want me to do this with my own brother? No, thanks. Besides the obvious, he’s too much of a live wire, has anger issues and while he is brilliant in support, planning and maneuvers, on-point, he’d have a problem controlling himself. The first time Raul touches me Ari would probably hit him. I need someone with more of a level head who can control himself. Don’t take this the wrong way Desmond, but I had someone else in mind for this assignment. Unfortunately, he’s presently unavailable and I can’t afford to wait for him to get back in town. I have to move now and with your connections to the case, we thought you would be a good fit.”
Desmond considered this. “Just how much of a part am I playing?”
Exactly how much would you like to play, Desmond? “I’m not intending to sleep with you either.”
He reddened. “Um, I wasn’t expecting you to.” He drummed his knees with his fingers. “Ok, I’ll do it. Just tell me what I’d have to do.”
She eyed his rumpled blue jeans and polo shirt. “Well, first of all, you need to get some club clothes, something black, tight and designer. Then we have to get a flight to Miami by tomorrow night.” She paused, staring at him. “Listen, I don’t know you that well. In fact, except for what I’ve read online and the amount of time we spent on the last job, I don’t know you at all. I can fake this with the best of them. You saw me with Gino and Chaz, so you know I can handle this, but I need to make sure you won’t freak out on me or get all weird when we’re in there. You’ll have to play your part well if we want Raul to be convinced of the ruse and be interested enough in us to take us to one of the back rooms. Are you going to be able to do this? Tell me now so if I have to, I can come up with an alternate plan.”
Desmond stared at her coolly. “I think I can handle this, Kelsey. I may hate this man with everything in my being, but I won’t freak out seeing him. And for another matter, you won’t be the first woman I’ve ever been close with. I was married before and for the record, I can improvise with the best of them.”
Oh really? We’ll see about that. Without warning, she hopped over to Desmond, straddled his lap, took his startled face in both her hands and kissed him, passionately and deeply. For a brief, tense moment, he didn’t move, but then he relaxed, moved his hands to her waist and started kissing her back. She felt him draw her close to him, his tongue enter her mouth. Her stomach fluttered and after a few more tantalizing seconds she pulled back, staring headily into his eyes.
That had been… incredible.
“Yeah, you’ll do just fine,” she said quickly, jumping off of him and moving to the couch on the far side of the room.
Desmond sat there, staring at the ceiling and trying to get his breath back.
* * * * *
The fire was dying down in the bedroom fireplace, the colored embers drawing into small tufts of orange and yellow light, one by one fading to ash. Desmond sat on the floor in front of the hearth on the area rug, thinking.
So many people he loved had died at the hands of Raul Salazar and Ricardo Perez. Innocents caught up in something which had nothing to even do with them. He thought about his baby boy. He had barely gotten the chance to know him. And Charlotte. So sweet and humble and unaffected by the amount of money she had. Even this brownstone he was living in now. It had been a wedding gift from her parents. They’d been content living in Desmond’s West Side Village studio.
Desmond held a photograph of his family, staring at Tyler as Charlotte held him in her lap, both of them smiling at him beh
ind the camera. Charlotte’s round Irish face was beaming, her light blue eyes happy as she held her baby, her strawberry blond curls bouncing gently on Tyler’s shoulders. Tyler laughed, his new baby teeth peeking through his smile.
Ten years since they’d been murdered. He was sure it hadn’t been a simple hit and run. Perhaps their murderers had found out he tried to avenge his brother’s death and punished him. Perhaps they had thought he was in the car with them.
None of it mattered. They were dead and gone and now he was avenging all of them. He had given up opportunities to advance his career, wanting only to be on the street and to be assigned to cold cases where he could solve crimes--and to always have this case active in the background.
He’d had his share of partners over the years. Men and women who were loyal, good cops, but they never lasted long. They simply didn’t fit into his world and they slowly took other assignments. There were a few casual girlfriends over the years, but they never lasted long either. He kept mostly to himself, both on and off the force.
Then he finally got a break in the case.
A few weeks ago, right at the time he got his promotion to detective, he had busted a young drug dealer who knew Ricardo. He spilled his guts to Desmond to get a lighter sentence. The fact that Ricardo was in Miami drastically complicated things. The paperwork alone to coordinate between state departments would take days, maybe weeks, and he just couldn’t afford to waste any more time. So, he decided to do it on his own.
He closed his eyes and his mind drifted to Kelsey Porter.
Her face came unbidden to him. Those big, succulent lips, those eyes, the way she’d kissed him. It was so brazen and cocky. She was like no other woman he’d ever met before and while he had been with his share, Kelsey seemed different than all of them. Something about her appealed to his very being, as if she had been physically made for him. He remembered being thrust up against her in Raul’s office closet. It felt so good holding her and he was disappointed when it ended. He thought she might have felt the same by the way her heart had started racing. He could literally feel it pounding through her shirt when her breasts were pressed against him.
The Hunt for Xanadu Page 9
