by Robin Roseau
"How-" I started to ask, my voice a croak. I tried again. "How long have I been here?"
There wasn't anyone to answer.
My body urged me to climb from the bed. I remembered one of the doors led to a bathroom. I looked around for my clothes, but I found none. But I shifted in the bed, finally throwing my legs over the side.
Just getting that far was a struggle.
"God, Teigan," I said.
I managed to climb to my feet. I was unsteady, and I leaned against the bed lightly in an attempt to gain my balance. It was too much effort to bring the blankets with me, in spite of the chill, and so I left them there. I made my way to the door I thought I remembered as leading to the bathroom, but the door was locked. I struggled with it for a moment before trying another door. I tried one door to the left and was rewarded with the goal of my search.
I took care of needs then leaned over the sink, using water on my face in an attempt to wake up. I eyed the shower but decided that was entirely too much effort.
I returned to the bedroom, not sure what I should do. Evaline was sitting on the edge of the bed. She watched me carefully as I came to a stop, leaning against the bathroom doorframe.
"Come back to bed." She patted the bed behind her. "Sleep a few more hours."
"I want to go home," I said. "Where are my clothes?"
"You're in no shape," she said. "Bed, Teigan."
"I want to go home," I repeated.
She stood up and closed the distance between us. It felt a little predatory, and I was ready to escape into the bathroom to flee from her, but she was upon me, taking my hands in hers before I could even move.
"Come," she ordered, stepping backwards and tugging on my hands. It didn't feel like I had a choice, and so I took one shuffling step after another. She led the way to the bed, turned me around, and gave a very gentle push. "Sit."
I sat.
The demon knelt down, collected my legs, and lifted, tucking them under the covers as I lay back.
"Let me go home," I whispered.
"I'll make a deal with you," she said. "Do what you're told for fifteen minutes. If you're still awake at that time, I'll drive you myself."
I looked at her suspiciously. She waited a moment before moving around to the other side of the bed. Before I could protest, she was under the covers with me.
At least one of us was dressed.
"What are you doing?" I protested.
"Cuddling." I felt like I should resist as she pulled me against her, but it was just too much work. I found myself on my side, my back against her front, and we spooned.
She was warm. The bed was warm. It felt good to do what she said.
"What time is it?" I asked.
"Early afternoon."
"I slept for twelve hours?"
"Oh, no, Teigan. You slept for 36. It's early Sunday afternoon." She kissed the back of my shoulders and began to caress my head. Both felt good. And while I'd felt the urge to explode from the bed at learning I'd slept a day and a half, it just felt too good to stay right where I was.
"Are you feeding from me?"
"No. I wouldn't do that. And frankly, I'm still stuffed from Friday night. Thank you for that." She kissed my shoulder again, and I wriggled against her slightly.
My eyes closed.
"There you go," she whispered. "I'll stay with you now. Sleep, Teigan."
* * * *
Time passed, but not as much time as before. I woke slowly, still lying on my side, still wrapped in a woman's arms. I knew where I was, and I knew whose arms they were.
"Demon."
"Yes," she said. She rolled me onto my back, and I turned my head to face her.
"What time is it?"
"Nearly dinnertime," she said.
"Sunday?"
She laughed. "Yes. I told you, only a few more hours."
"You locked me in."
"You'll wear the hood when we leave this room."
"Oh. I suppose." I blinked a few times. "I'm not a prisoner."
"No, but I'm not ready to just turn you out on the street, either. You're in no shape for that. But you have choices."
"What sort of choices."
"You are undoubtedly hungry, probably ravenous."
She was right. I was.
"You probably want to shower."
That would feel good, too.
"You're going to sleep again, too."
"I want to go home."
"Yes, of course. You are in no shape to drive, and I absolutely will not let you."
"You're not my mom."
"No, but I take responsibility for you until you are recovered. And so you have choices. We can order a meal here. You can shower here while we wait. Or you can shower and I will take you somewhere. Or I can take you home. You can shower there, and I can take you out afterwards or have something delivered."
"What if I don't want to share a meal with you? I thought you were full."
"I'm full of that sort of food. But this body requires mundane food as well. If you insist, then I will take you home, but I am not leaving until I know you are eating and will go to bed afterwards. I would rather you allowed me to feed you and tuck you back into bed."
I stared into her eyes for a while, but that was too much work, and my eyes closed. I zoned out for a while, although I didn't doze.
"I feel like I'm on drugs," I admitted. "How long will this last?"
"You'll feel better tomorrow, but I would rather you took it easy, professionally speaking, for another day or two. If you go into work at all, please stick to paperwork."
I couldn't promise something like that, although it was advice I would take.
I opened my eyes and blinked at her several times.
"I want to shower at home," I managed to say. "Where are my clothes?"
"And the rest?"
Again I closed my eyes. She waited patiently. "We can do it your way," I said.
* * * *
She had to help me get dressed. When I sat there limply, she said, "I'd rather you stayed here one more night."
"I want to go home."
"You'll let me feed you and put you to bed afterwards?" I nodded. She paused then said, "All right."
She had me fully dressed, down to tennis shoes, before I put enough of my brain to work to realize, "These are my clothes. How did you get my clothes?"
"I used your key."
"My gun!"
"I presume you have somewhere safe for it at home."
"A safe," I said.
"Then I'll return it when you're ready to place it into the safe."
The hood was last. With it in place, Evaline helped me to stand. She had to steady me with an arm around my waist.
I fell asleep in the car, but she woke me enough to ask, "What do you want to eat?"
"Surprise me."
"Are you sure?"
I nodded and slept some more.
At home, the shower felt good. The demon checked on me three times before I was done. I dressed in sweats and a tee shirt, pulling a robe over all of it before making my way downstairs. When I arrived, there were plates of food waiting on the dinette table. The demon met me at the bottom of the stairs and guided me to a seat at the table. I stared at the food.
"What is that?"
"Sushi."
I looked up at her. "Raw fish? You're going to feed me raw fish?"
She smiled. "You told me to surprise you. It's very healthy. It's easy on the stomach. And it's surprisingly filling. Not to mention really quite good."
"It's raw."
"Not all of it." She paused. "Teigan, you've trusted me with so much more. Do you think you could trust me just a few minutes longer?"
"It's raw fish," I said. "I hate raw fish." No, I wasn't being very gracious.
"Have you ever had sushi before?"
I closed my mouth. Evaline laughed. Then she rose from her chair, put an arm around my back, and guided me to my own seat. She picked up a pair of chopsticks an
d used the to collect something round and flat from one of the little platters. She dipped, well, whatever it was, in a small dish filled with a dark brown sauce and then presented it in front of my mouth. "Open."
"Uh, uh," I muttered, slamming my lips tightly closed.
"I promise I'm not poisoning you, Teigan. Try it. For me."
"For you? You can't be serious." I tried to keep talking, but faster than I would have thought possible, she stuck the thing in my mouth.
"What is it?" I muttered around it.
"A California roll. Open your mind and give it a chance, Teigan."
I'm not sure I opened my mind. I chewed slowly, wondering when I'd start gagging. But I managed to swallow without completely embarrassing myself.
"Well?" Evaline asked.
"What's in it?"
"Nori, rice, cucumber, avocado, crab meat, and tobiko."
I looked up at her. "Raw crab?"
"In this case, cooked."
I studied her carefully. "What's nori?"
She used her chopstick to gesture at another of the California rolls. "The green part that looks like paper."
"Yes, and what is it?"
"Did you like it?"
"What is it, Demon?"
"Tell me if you liked it and I'll tell you what nori is."
"It's not fish guts or something, is it?"
"No."
I sighed. "Fine. It was okay."
She nodded. "Seaweed."
"You fed me seaweed?"
"And you ate it," she said. She used the chopsticks to help herself to the next California roll, and it was clear she enjoyed it a great deal. "It's good."
"What's the orange stuff?"
"That's the tobiko."
"I'm not going to be happy when you tell me what that is, am I?"
"It's a delicacy!"
"Oh god. What is it?"
"Roe."
"That's not any help."
"From flying fish."
I stared at the remaining slices of California roll. "You gave me fish eggs?"
"Consider it caviar. But it's from flying fish instead of sturgeon. It adds crunch."
Evaline pulled her chair closer, sitting down so our knees were touching. "Let me feed you."
"I don't think so. I think there's frozen pizza in the freezer."
"Why are you so closed-minded?" She looked a little angry.
"You're not my girlfriend," I replied. "I don't have to eat this-" I gestured and managed to omit the word "crap", but only barely. "-Just to impress you."
"You've decided to hate it without giving it a fair try. Just like you decided to hate me before you knew anything about me."
"I knew you were a demon."
"And that's all you need to know to come to conclusions about me. And you came to conclusions about my dancers the same way. You're a bigot."
I stared at her then said softly, "I am not."
"You certainly are. You judge people -- and apparently food -- based on labels."
"I do not." I said it more firmly.
Evaline stood up and began picking up the plates.
"What are you doing?"
"If you aren't going to enjoy it, I'll take it home. I'll throw one of your pizzas in the oven for you. I'm sure that's far healthier for you."
She got half the plates cleared, and I could hear her bustling around in the kitchen, opening drawers.
"Wait!" I called out.
The noises from the kitchen continued. Maybe she didn't hear me. I got up and made it to the doorway. When I got there, she was fussing with the oven.
"Wait," I said again. She straightened then turned slowly to face me. A hand moved to her hip. "I'm being ungracious. I'm sorry. I'm not myself."
"I think you're exactly yourself," she countered.
"Maybe you're right," I admitted. "It's just- I'm-" I fluttered my hands, unsure what to say. I clasped my hands in front of myself, trying to still them. "Why sushi?"
"You told me to surprise you. I thought that was permission to offer you something you might find daring."
"I'm sorry," I said again. "It's been-" I looked at the floor for a minute. I didn't want to make excuses. I looked up again. "I'm a little ragged. I don't know if I'm in any condition to appreciate it. But could I try a little more? But I don't think I can handle the chopsticks."
She looked at me for a moment then nodded. "Of course." The words were gentle. "Go sit."
It took her two trips to return everything. She took her seat next to me again, turned sideways to face me, and I turned to face her. Then she picked up a teacup and presented it to me. "Try the tea."
I did. It was warm and comforting and not quite like the tea I've had in Chinese restaurants. But I suppose sushi is Japanese, and maybe they have different tea.
"Which one is your favorite?"
"I didn't get my favorites," she replied. "I thought that might be pushing it. I got basics." She described everything.
"That's fried," I said, pointing.
"Tempura," she explained. "I think that's a sweet potato."
She fed me some of the fried vegetables; I liked those.
"It's deep fried. What's not to like?" She grinned at me. But then she picked up one of the pieces of raw fish draped over a bit of rice. I stared at it. She watched me.
"I'm going to eat this one and give you the next one," she said. And she did, sliding it between her lips then closing her mouth and her eyes both. She took on an expression of bliss, not even chewing right away. But then she ate it, slowly, before she opened her eyes and smiled.
"Is it that good?"
"You might not care for the texture," she said. "Western culture assumes certain things about foods with this texture."
"Undercooked and dangerous."
"Right. But if you can ignore that, you're going to love it."
I nodded, opened my mouth and closed my eyes. A moment later I felt the food slide onto my tongue. Evaline caressed my lips with her fingers as she fed the food to me. I closed my mouth and tried to enjoy what she'd given me.
I couldn't have described the flavor. She was right; the texture was a little disconcerting. But the flavor wasn't bad. I chewed and swallowed then opened my eyes and drank some of the tea. When I turned to her, the demon was watching me expectantly.
"You were right about the texture." I looked at the remaining bits. "I wouldn't mind a few more pieces."
I let her feed me by hand. She seemed to get a kick out of it, and the pampering felt good. She ate for herself as well, although we didn't finish everything she had bought.
"I wanted to give you things to sample," she explained. "And no, you can't have more of the tempura. I want your stomach to take it easy tonight."
With us both full, she stood up, but she put a hand on my shoulder to hold me down into my chair. I was sleepy and chose not to argue. She cleaned up then returned to me. She knelt down in front of me, looking into my eyes.
"Evaline?"
"Teigan."
"I don't know what the future will bring."
"Neither do I."
"I don't know if Rachel is going to survive this."
"Are you tempted to come in, guns blazing, and rescue her?"
"Part of me. But I'm not going to." She nodded. "But you have to let her go."
Her lips thinned. "We'll see."
"But that's not really what I wanted to say."
"It's not?"
"No. But if you don't interrupt, I can tell you."
"But as loopy as you are, it's fun to interrupt you."
"Hush. I'm going to say something important, something you need to hear." She grinned but let me speak. "If Rachel makes it through this okay in the end, maybe we can become friends. And if we become friends, maybe, just maybe, you could feed me sushi again another time. But I think in small quantities for now."
"Is your stomach okay?" she asked immediately, concern in her voice.
"I'm fine." But then I let out a huge yawn.
"Come on. Let's get you back to bed."
I let her draw me upstairs. She was very solicitous. "Are you always like this with your meals?"
"No," she said. "But then it's rare I feed from someone the way I fed from you." My question had been a little flippant, but her words should have upset me. Yet somehow, they didn't. It was all quite matter of fact.
Evaline tucked me into bed. "Sleep well, Teigan."
But I reached out and clasped her hand. "Stay for a while?"
"You're going to be asleep in three minutes."
"Then will you hold me for those three minutes?"
"Of course." It only took her a moment to slide into the bed with me. I rolled away and let her spoon me. "Close your eyes now, and I'll tell you a story. Once upon a time..."
I didn't hear the rest of the story.
The Ex
I was still unsteady in the morning, and I was a little surprised to find Evaline's driver parked in my driveway when I stepped out to go to work. I stopped and stared for a minute.
"Good morning, Miss," he said. "Ms. Marsh has asked me to drive you to work today."
"That won't be necessary."
"Ms. Marsh was quite insistent, Detective St. Claire," the driver said. "Please don't make me tell her I didn't drive you."
"You're going to guilt me into letting you drive me?"
"She'll be quite vexed with me," he continued.
I stared for a minute then climbed into the back of the car. At least it was a normal car and not the limousine. "You're an asshole," I said as he climbed into the front.
"That's what my wife tells me," he said. "Buckle up."
We pulled out onto the street before I asked him, "Do you know where we're going?"
"Of course."
"And how am I to get home tonight?"
He reached back and was holding a business card. I took it. "Call me and I'll be there in twenty minutes. If you make other arrangements, please let me know."
"I don't know what time it will be."
"Don't worry about that."
* * * *
It was three days before I felt like myself again. I got a little shit for how hard I must have partied on my vacation, but it wasn't anything I couldn't handle.
The captain invited me into his office and asked how my vacation had gone.
"I don't anticipate a similar vacation," I told him. "But I appreciate the time you gave me for this one."
