Stalking Fate

by K. R. Fajardo

  Heaving a heavy sigh, he looked up into his sister’s saddened expression. “No one dared lay a hand on you and your friends. I made sure of it. Hell Andria, you could roam the streets in the dead of night without an ounce of fear. Did that never strike you as strange?” Dropping her gaze, Andria refused to look at him. Duncan exhaled a huge breath, running his hand through his hair. “Stars Andria, I know the things I did were wrong. And I am sure there is a place reserved in the fires of hell for me when I die. And that’s fine, I accept that, I deserve no less for some of the things I have done. But I swear, it was never my intention to hurt you or Paw, only to protect you and give you a chance at a better life.”

  “But at what cost Duncan?” she asked, wiping the tears from her eyes she gestured to the scars covering his upper body. “Everything you have been through, suffered through, sacrificed…”

  “Are you happy?”

  Furrowing her brow, she looked up at him. “Well… yes.”

  “Then it was all worth it.” He said, smiling reassuringly at her. Rising to his feet, Duncan stretched the stiffness from his body just as a quiet knock, pulled both their attention back to the door.

  There Senka stood quietly staring up at him. Unsure of how much of that conversation she had overheard, Duncan lowered his gaze afraid to face her. Biting her lip, Senka shifted her attention to Andria. “Umm, I hate to be a bother, but Gidgit says she is hungry and insists on me giving her a piece of that strawberry cake under the glass cover. I tried to tell her she needed to ask you first but she just keeps sneaking back into the kitchen and trying to pull off the lid.” Furrowing her brow, Senka stared down the hallway. “She’s probably down there now, licking icing off her finger as we speak.”

  “That girl has been trying to get her hands on that cake ever since I took it out of the oven last night.” Andria chuckled. Wiping away the last of her tears, she rose to her feet. “I tell you what, why don’t I go downstairs and make dinner for everyone while the two of you get some rest. Senka, if you want, you can use Gidgit’s room next door.” Exiting the room, Andria glanced back at Duncan over her shoulder. “Oh, and Duncan if you decide to shift to help heal that wound, go outside. The last thing I need is your large ass bear bumbling through my house knocking over and breaking what few nice things I have.”

  Watching his sister disappear out the door, Duncan then turned his attention back to Senka, who was still staring at him blankly. “So, um… How much of that did you hear?” he asked, raking his hand through his hair.

  Her lips pursed. “Enough to know we have more in common than I thought.”

  Slightly tilting his head, Duncan’s brow creased. “How so?”

  “It seems we have both done some things we are not proud of to protect the ones we love.” Dropping her gaze, Duncan watched as she kicked at some invisible object on the floor. Her anxiousness did nothing to settle his nerves. Even so, he felt the overwhelming desire to hold her and comfort her. He wanted her to trust him to be there for her no matter what. Moving forward, he placed a finger under her chin, forcing her to face him once more.

  “What’s the matter? Does it have anything to do with what you heard my sister say?”

  “No, I just heard the last part, but it was enough for me to get an idea of what happened between you.”

  “So what is it?”

  “I feel like I should tell you something Duncan, but I’m afraid you will think less of me if I do.”

  “Nothing you can say is going to change the way I feel about you.”

  “Don’t be so sure of that.” she huffed, turning her back to him.

  Wanting to ease her worry, he approached her and wrapped his arms around her waist. He half expected her to pull away with one of her snarky remarks, but to his utter delight and shock, she leaned into his embrace.

  “You think because you have killed people I won’t care for you anymore?”

  Senka gasped and spun in his arms, her eyes wild with fear. “H-how do you know about that?”

  “Same way I knew what you were when we meet.” He answered, only partially telling the truth. “I’ve been around a while Senka. Long enough to know no one knows how to fight and shoot as good as you can, unless there is a need to use it. Combine that with the fact you are Night Stalker and it seemed a logical conclusion.” Smiling down at her, he brushed a stray twig of hair from her face. “You know, your people had quite a reputation back in the day.”

  “Yeah, I know. My father was… well let’s just say he was well sought after in his field.” Biting her lip, she looked away for a moment. “He taught me everything I know. I guess I owe him for that, without that training me and my sister would never have made it after...” Heaving a heavy sigh, she pressed her head against his bare chest. “You don’t hate me? I mean, I did do my best to be sure my targets were bad people. You know, thieves, rapists, murders, and such. But it was still killing people for money, so I would understand if you did.”

  “Hate you? Stars no girl, I could never hate you. What kind of hypocrite would I be if I judged you for your past when my own hands are saturated in blood.” Tightening his hold on her, he leaned down and gently kissed the top of her head. “I care for you Senka, more than I have cared for anyone in a very long time, and there is nothing you can say or do that will ever change that.”

  His words stirred feelings in her she hadn’t felt in a very long time. For most of her life she had lived on the run, afraid to let anyone get too close for fear they would find out what she really was. Sure she had had a random lover or two over the years, after all a girl had needs to. But nothing that ever amounted to more than a one night stand and nearly always ended with her flashing away in the middle of the night before her lover awoke.

  But what she was feeling now went way beyond her need to fulfill her basic desires. Wrapped in Duncan’s comforting embrace, listening to him spill his heart out to her, Senka felt as if she had finally found where she belonged. “Thank you, Duncan.” She whispered, struggling to fight back the threatening tears.

  “For what?” he asked, his hand skimming down the length of her hair.

  “For accepting me as I am.” She answered honestly. “As a Night Stalker I have lived my life, hiding from men who would kill me just for that reason alone. Over the years, I finally grew to accept the fact that my race wasn’t liked or wanted and that I didn’t belong anywhere. But then I met you.” Sniffing she wiped a stray tear away, “Despite knowing right away what I was, you’ve showed me nothing but compassion… even when I was being a first class bitch.”

  Duncan’s hand halted its caressing of her hair as Senka listened to his heart rate steadily increase inside his chest. Certain all her mushy rambling was probably making him uncomfortable, she sighed. “I guess what I am trying to say, is that I’m glad to know there are still a few people like you left in this world that are willing to accept others despite their differences.”

  This time Duncan stiffened. Uncertain what she was saying that was making him so anxious, but not wanting to upset him anymore than she already had, Senka looked up and offered him a comforting smile. But even that did little to change the brooding expression on his face.

  “Are you ok? Did I say something that upset you?”

  “No, it’s not you.” Pulling free of her hold, Duncan moved away from her. “Senka, there is something I really need to tell you.”

  Confused by the sudden change in his demeanor, she watched silently as he paced back and forth across the room. After several passes and some incoherent mumbling, he halted several feet away and ran his hand through his shaggy hair. Gripping it tightly he glanced reluctantly in her direction and exhaled a troubled sigh.

  In all her years knowing him, Senka had never seen Duncan act so anxious and she couldn’t help but be concerned by his strange behavior. Overcome with the desire to take away whatever it was that was disturbing him, Senka moved to approach him once more, only to have him step away.

  “No Senka
, I need to get this off my chest.”

  “Oh… ok.” She stated calmly, doing her best to conceal the hurt his rejection had caused. Dropping her arms back to her sides, she stepped away. “Well, what is it?”

  Inhaling deeply, Duncan shook his head. “Senka… I’ve done things. Things that were… wrong.”

  “We both have Duncan.” She interrupted, as he adamantly shook his head. “There is nothing you could have done that is any worse than some of the things I have done.”

  A curt laugh escaped Duncan as he pinched the bridge of his nose. “You’re wrong there.” Raising his gaze to meet hers, Senka startled at the intensity with which he stared her down. “I am a far worse monster than you can even imagine. And as much as I hate to tell you the truth, for fear of losing you, I need to. Not only because it is the right thing to do, but because, with us going into Rio tonight, I am afraid you will find out anyway and I would much rather you hear it from me first.”

  “Duncan, you are kind of scaring me. Can you please just tell me what it is you need to tell me?”

  Back straight and eyes fixed on her, Duncan opened his mouth presumably to make his big confession, only to be cut off by the sound of small feet running up the stairs in their direction. In unison they both turned to face the door about the time Gidgit came sailing into the room. Darting past Senka, she dashed right up to Duncan and proceeded to jump up and down in place.

  “Mister, mister.” She called, pulling on his pants leg. “My momma says you’re my Uncle and that you are a bear Shifter like me!”

  Blinking rapidly as if snapped from a daze, Duncan regarded the small blonde child curiously. “I am your Uncle and I am a bear. But aren’t you a little young to know what your animal is?”

  “You sound like Momma.” Gidgit huffed. Stopping her bouncing, she crossed her arms over her chest and glared up at him. “She says since my grandma, her, and Daddy are all cougars that chances are I will be one too. But I told her I had a dream and in my dream a giant brown bear came to me and told me I would be a bear one day. Momma don’t believe me though.” Dropping her arms, Gidgit looked pleadingly up at Duncan. “You believe me though right? Since you’re a bear, that means I might be one too… right?”

  Senka watched as Duncan stared down at the little girl at a loss as to what to say. Finally after a few quiet moments he shrugged, “I guess it’s possible, I mean me and your grandpa are both bears so…”

  A high pitch screech cut him off before he could say anymore. “I knew it, I knew it.” Snatching Duncan by the hand, Gidgit proceeded to drag him toward the bedroom door. “Now come on Uncle, I want to meet your bear. I bet it was him that I dreamt about.” Pausing she glanced back at him, “Your bear is brown isn’t it? I mean your hair is dark brown… well the ones that aren’t grey anyway.”

  Senka coughed out a laugh, causing Duncan to cast an amused glare her direction. Allowing himself to be lead forward, he stared from her to the determined little girl leading him from the room, appearing torn as to what to do. “Senka…”

  “It’s ok Duncan. Go and get to know your niece. Whatever it is you need to tell me can wait a bit.”

  Smiling she watched as Duncan reluctantly followed the small child from the room. Once alone, Senka then turned her attention to the oversized bed he had just vacated. Exhausted from all the flashing, not to mention the stress of worrying about Duncan these last few hours, she made her way across the room and flopped into the comfort of the thick mattress. Immediately she found herself surrounded by the scent of fresh pine needles and rain. Immersing herself in Duncan’s unmistakable scent, Senka closed her eyes and nestled deeper into the soft sheets. Seconds later, she was fast asleep.

  Senka awoke from a deep sleep to find herself alone in a room, disoriented and confused. Panicked she sat up straight in the bed and scanned her surroundings for anything that could remind her of where she was, but was swiftly distracted when her nose caught whiff of one of the most enticing scents she ever had the pleasure of smelling. “Andria’s house,” she sighed, immediately calming, as another wave of fresh cooking bombarded her senses. In response to the teasing aromas, an angry growl rose from deep in her stomach reminding her how long it had been since she had last eaten a full meal.

  “Duncan?” she called, hoping he had returned to her, but only silence answered her. “He must still be entertaining Gidgit.”

  Sitting up and wiping the sleep from her eyes, Senka climbed her way out of the comforts of the bed and stretched the stiffness from her muscles. Immediately she made her way across the room to the en-suite bathroom on the other side. There she stopped in front of the large rectangular mirror and stared in disgust at her reflection.

  “Well aren’t you attractive?” she huffed.

  Lowering her gaze to take in her filthy, blood soaked clothing she wrinkled her nose. “There is no way I am going to eat dinner at his sister’s table looking like this. Surely there is a…” Turning around her eyes widened as she took in a massive claw-foot tub sitting in the corner of the room. “Oh my gosh YES! An actual bathtub!”

  Rushing to its side her grin widened as she ran her hands over the smooth edges. “This is going to be so great!”

  Giddy at the thought of taking a bath in an actual tub with running water instead of a wooden wash basin, Senka twisted the knob for the hottest setting and began to fill the porcelain bowl. Stripping out of her clothing she carefully dipped a toe into the tub to test the water temperature and immediately jerked it back out with a shriek. The water was just a notch below boiling, but Senka didn’t care. Determined to take advantage of this rare opportunity, she sucked in a deep breath, bit her lip, and submerged her entire foot into the steaming water. It took her a few seconds, but eventually her body adjusted and she was able to carefully ease herself into the tub until she was completely submersed.

  Once inside, Senka shut off the valves and leaned back, resting her head on the back edge of the hard surface. There she remained, relaxing and soaking her aching muscles, until eventually the heat began to fade away. Not wanting to get out just yet, she briefly considered draining the tub and refilling it again, but decided against it. The last thing she needed to do was make a bad impression on Duncan’s sister by wasting all her hot water.

  Slightly disappointed but with her mind made up, Senka decided she had better actually clean herself up before the water became too much colder. Glancing around, she located a bar of lavender soap on a nearby stand and used it first to wash her hair, and then her body. Finally satisfactorily free of the dirt and blood, she stood and removed a nearby towel from its rack and wrapped it around her body. It was then she realized her mistake.

  “My bag.” She groaned, remembering she had left it by the chair next to the bed. With no other choice, Senka secured the towel snuggly around her and stepped into the room. Peaking first one way, then the other to be sure the coast was clear, she stepped out of the bathroom and bolted for her bag. She was just about to the bed when a flash of movement in the doorway caught her attention. Spinning around to face the intruder, she shrieked when she spotted Duncan in the doorway that had been empty only seconds before.

  “Shit!” she exclaimed, clutching her heart. “Don’t you ever make sounds when you walk?” Turning her back to him, she closed the distance to her bag and rummaged inside until she found her change of clothes. “I’m serious Duncan.” she continued, gathering the garments in her hand, “You need to teach me that trick one day, ok?”

  Still silence. Wondering what was going on, and why he wasn’t answering, Senka sighed and spun back to see what he was doing and instead ran face first into his rock hard torso. Stumbling backwards, she dropped her clothing and nearly followed it to the floor, but was instead caught around the waist by Duncan’s thick arm.

  Tucking her snug against his body, she heard a low groan escape him. “Stars you are gorgeous.”

  Staring down at her with what she could only describe as a predatory gaze, Duncan tucked a s
mall piece of her dripping wet hair behind her ear, allowing his hand to linger there just a little longer than necessary.

  Heart racing, her body flushed in reaction to his touch.

  “Thank you.” She managed to squeak out between heavy breaths.

  Studying her as if he was memorizing every angle of her nearly naked body, Duncan inhaled a deep breath, “I need to ask you something Senka. And I don’t want you to take it the wrong way.”

  He paused. Noting the troubled look in his eyes as he waited for her permission to continue, she grew more nervous. Not trusting herself to speak without sounding like a mouse being stepped on, Senka merely nodded her head.

  “Do you think me and you could ever have something more than a friendship?”

  Her brow furrowed.

  “What I mean is… would it be possible…” Duncan paused, the primal look in his eyes almost frightening. “Damn it Senka, I can’t even think straight because all I want to do right now is kiss you… but I won’t do it,” he added quickly as her eyes stretched wide. “At least… not without your permission this time.”

  She stared up at him in shock, unable to believe what he was telling her. When he kissed her in the woods, she had assumed it was just a fluke, a moment of confusion given the weirdness of the situation. But this was not a fluke. And there was no confusion.

  This. Was. Real.

  Duncan had all but just told her he wanted her. Problem was, did she feel the same? Well, if she went by the way her body was responding, she’d have to say yes. But everything in her mind was screaming no. What would become of them if she let this happened and it didn’t work out? What if they did this and then decided it was a big mistake? Was it worth the risk of losing her best friend, and the only person she truly trusted, to satisfy some impulsive feelings?

  “Duncan…” She began, but he cut her off.