My Name Is Not Alexa Pearce

by Kerri McLoone

  No, I internally scold myself. I am the one who will stop all of this! I look at Cali and silently vow that I won’t let any demon, or any Victus, or any jerk ever hurt her again. I soundlessly promise the same to Mickey and Matt.

  At the same time, I make my vow of protection, my mind flashes like a neon sign that I’m running out of time. I need to learn more, I need to study my book inside and out. I’m going to have to find a way to either stay in the library after hours or smuggle The Book out with me one day. If I get caught stealing, that could create more problems. Better to say I lost track of time while working, I think. I’ll start tonight.

  “Do you still want to go to lunch?” I hear Mickey ask, breaking me out of my thoughts and returning me to the reality at hand. “I can take the rest of the day off and take you and Milo back to your place. We can just order something.”

  “No, I want to go to Marty’s,” Cali answers. “I haven’t seen him in a while. Plus, those guys are gone, right?”

  “Yes, baby,” Mickey answers softly. “I watched them walk away. They’re gone.”

  “Maybe we should call the cops,” Matt says. He’s squatting down in front of Cali next to Milo. My sweet dog has inched his way over to put his head in Cali’s lap to comfort her.

  “And say what?” Cali asks. “A big, tall guy was walking with a fat guy and one of them grabbed me?”

  “Cal, you were assaulted so, yes, exactly that,” Matt answers. I’ve never heard him call her by anything other than Squirrel. It’s odd to hear, but it tells me how deeply Matt cares for his friend and how unsettled he is. He stops for a minute, observing his friend before speaking again.

  “You keep rubbing your arms,” he says. Then, softer than before, “Are you hurt?”

  “I don’t know.”

  Cali pulls up the sleeves of her shirt and reveals a large red blotch encircling each forearm. The four of us stare at the marks. All of us are shocked into silence.

  “Holy shit, Cali!” Matt exclaims, the first to talk. “That’s it, I’m calling the cops.”

  Matt pulls his phone out of his pocket and stands up to make the call. His best friend puts her hand out to cover the screen.

  “Okay, we’ll call and report it,” Cali asks. “But can we do it at Marty’s?”

  “Whatever you want to do, baby,” Mickey says in a soothing tone from her spot on the bench next to Cali.

  The couple stands up together, neither one letting go of the other. Matt reluctantly puts his phone back into his pocket while keeping his eyes on his friend. He looks nervous and tense like Cali could shatter into pieces in front of him if he even touches her.

  Cali takes Milo’s leash from me, and the three of them — plus my pup — walk to the corner of the street. I’m rooted to my spot, my brain not entirely quieted, analyzing everything that has happened within the last few minutes and what it all means.

  “Lex, you coming?”

  For a moment I almost say no to my roommate. I’m itching to get back inside and hole up in CCR3 for the next week. But I smile warmly at her instead and say, “Of course.”

  While we’re all waiting for the light to change to cross the street, Mickey starts murmuring something quietly to Cali, getting her to smile a few times. She still has her arm protectively around her girlfriend, the younger woman still holding tightly to Milo’s leash. Matt takes my hand and brings it to his lips, placing a soft kiss on the back of it just below my knuckles. He lets go of my hand but quickly replaces the contact with his arm around my shoulders.

  The light changes and the large group of people waiting at the crosswalk begin to move as a single mass. It doesn’t take magical abilities to sense that the five of us, including Milo, are still a bit shaken up, Cali most of all. None of us shift or change our grip on our partners, nor do we say much the entirety of the brief walk to Marty’s.

  ● 33 ●

  Matt and I are sitting at one of the small tables inside of Marty’s Deli, Milo is under the table laying across my feet. There are four of the red plastic baskets on the table, a few bags of chips, and four bottles of water. The baskets where Cali and Mickey were sitting are empty; Matt’s is almost empty, with just a few crusts left. My sandwich has barely been touched.

  My appetite vanished as soon as I realized who the men that bumped into and then grabbed Cali are. In fifteen months, in crisscrossing this entire city, I have never run into anyone that Milo has sensed is supernatural. He’s reacted to some unsavory characters, but never like this. Not since my eighteenth birthday. That means that something led those men here. That means they are tracking something or someone. More precisely, me.

  Cali and Mickey are standing close by, talking to the two female officers that quickly arrived, Officers Garcia and Lang. Marty was beside himself when Matt told him what had happened. He insisted that Cali call right away after wrapping her in a tight hug.

  I’m pushing my sandwich around trying to appear as if I’m eating it while listening intently to Cali explain to the officers what took place.

  “I was walking down Tenth on my way to the library,” I hear Cali say. “Two guys were walking toward me, a short and fat white guy, and a tall, muscular black guy. The tall guy bumped into me hard enough to spin me around. He caught me to keep me from falling to the ground. But then he held on to me.”

  She stops here to roll up the sleeves of her shirt again to show the officers the red marks on her arms that are quickly turning purple on her pale skin.

  “He didn’t let go of me and his grip was getting tighter. He wouldn’t let go, but instead called me sugar and introduced himself as Damon.”

  “And where was the shorter guy standing during this?” Officer Lang asks looking up from the pad she’s taking notes on. She and her partner both have sympathetic eyes. They are diligently paying attention to Cali and what she’s telling them.

  “He was standing behind the guy at first, then he moved to behind me. Damon asked me to get a drink, and I said no, but that didn’t make him let me go.”

  “Okay,” Officer Garcia says. “What happened then?”

  “Well, I was able to finally pull my arms out of Damon’s grip and I turned around to continue walking away. I bumped into the other guy, the fat one, and was stopped again. The first guy, Damon, hopped around me to block my way, too. They both blocked me completely.”

  “Now, what did you see happen?” Garcia asks Mickey.

  “I was across the street on the other side of Tenth, also going toward the library,” Mickey says. “I heard a dog bark that sounded like Milo, so I looked around to see if it was him and Cali. I was closer to the corner but I turned toward the sound and I saw two men blocking her way.”

  “Did you confront the men?”

  “I crossed the street and came up behind them. I think I said something like, ‘Is there a problem here’ and both of them turned around to face me.”

  “That’s when I moved away from the guys and went to stand behind Mickey.”

  “Right,” Mickey continues. “The tall guy was saying how Cali wouldn’t tell him her name, and that she said no to a drink but he thought she should think it over a little more. I cut him off, I don’t know exactly what I said, but that’s when the shorter one started tugging the taller one away.”

  “You said ‘no means no,’ and then you called him darling.” Cali smiles as she says it, but it quickly evaporates.

  “The shorter guy had to shove the tall one a few times before he got him to walk away.”

  “Yeah, he wouldn’t budge. But then the shorter guy, like, barely touched him with one hand and the guy went stumbling backward.”

  Officers Lang and Garcia nod approvingly at Mickey’s gall before Lang asks, “Did anything else happen? Did they say anything to you as they walked away?”

  “Or to each other?” Garcia adds.

  “Damon said something like ‘bye-bye sugar,’ and then the shorter one called him a dumb fuck.”

  “I heard that too,�
� Mickey says. “I also heard the short one say that they weren’t here for this, whatever that means.”

  “Would either or both of you be willing to sit down with a sketch artist to help create a rendering of their appearances?” Lang looks between Mickey and Cali for their answer. The couple nod.

  Lang checks her watch before saying, “Are you both available to come to the precinct in a couple hours, say four o’clock?”

  “Yes,” Cali answers. “My day is completely open.”

  “I’ll be there, too,” Mickey says. “I just have to call the studio and reschedule some things.”

  “Well, if you’ll both write down your contact information for us here, please,” Lang holds out her notepad and pen to the women. Cali and Mickey write down their names and phone numbers and give back the pad to the officer.

  “Here’s our card,” Garcia says handing over a business card. “If you think of anything else in the meantime, please don’t hesitate to call. But unless something changes, we’ll see you at the precinct at four. Ask for either of us at the main desk and we’ll go from there.”

  Cali and Mickey nod and thank the officers. The female cops turn to leave but Marty stops them. He quickly packs a paper bag with two wrapped sandwiches, a large bag of chips and a handful of napkins. He tells them it’s on the house and to grab whichever drinks they want from the coolers as he hands them the bag. They thank him and grab some water bottles before taking their leave.

  As Mickey and Cali sit down at the table again, I go over what I learned from their conversation with the officers:

  The men are obviously supernatural. I guess they are Victus, but I don’t know for sure. One of them definitely had powers and used it out in the open. And if they are Victus then had to have been sent here by Darius. It sounds like the shorter one was in charge, telling the taller one what to do. They also were clearly in Portland for a specific reason, so they definitely are not locals. Milo could sense them, but they couldn’t sense him.

  I’ve been here for fifteen months, so what brought them here now? Why not before? What’s changed? My throat closes, I can feel the bile churning in my stomach as I realize the answer. I found The Book. That’s the only thing different from when I arrived over a year ago.

  I have to get back to the library and get back into CCR3 and figure out what to do. I check my watch discretely and then tune back into the conversation going on at the table.

  “You should call a cab and go home for a bit,” Matt says to Cali. He’s sitting in such a way that he’s able to drape one of his arms on the back of Cali’s chair and has his other hand on my thigh.

  “Yeah, babe,” Mickey chimes in. “We can take Milo home and just hang out there for a bit before we go to the station. I’ll call Jack to cover for me this afternoon.”

  “Lex and I have to get to work,” Matt says. He looks down at his watch, his eyes widen as he sees the time. “We’re already twenty minutes late.”

  He gets up to throw out our trash and put the red baskets in the return bin on the counter. Mickey takes out her phone to call a cab that is animal-friendly to pick them up. Marty sees us all get up, and he comes around to give each of us a hug.

  “You need anything, my little Squirrel,” he says. “You just call me. Any time.” He turns to Mickey and adds, “Take care of her, Michaela.”

  Usually, Mickey would flinch a bit when someone who isn’t her mother uses her full name, but this time coming from Marty she just nods and says, “Yes, sir.”

  The fours of us step outside and I hand Milo’s leash somewhat reluctantly to Cali. I have a strong desire to keep him as near me as possible based on the day’s events. With one more hug for each of us, and last check-ins that Cali is okay right now, Matt and I head back to the library leaving her and Mickey and Milo waiting outside Marty’s for the cab.

  ● 34 ●

  “Hey, Sam,” I say letting myself back into CCR1.

  “Hey, Lex,” she replies not looking up from the laptop she’s typing away on. “I’m just finishing up this last synopsis and then I’ll be out of your hair.”

  We usually both work on Wednesdays, but Jeff asked us to come in early to work on the project in the morning for some overtime. We flipped a coin — Sam lost — so she has to spend her actual shift upstairs while I thankfully get to stay down here.

  Samantha Stavros is a quarter Native American, a quarter Chinese, and half Greek. She’s in her late forties but looks like she’s in her early twenties. Good genes, she’d tell you. Her short brown hair is styled in a faux-hawk today and she’s wearing a fitted, light gray, cotton dress. Sam is quite simply beautiful with a capital B.

  “Okay. I’m sorry I took so long at lunch, there was a bit of an emergency.”

  The clacking of the keyboard ceases. Sam finally looks up at me and her face shows immense concern.

  “Is everything okay?” she asks pushing the sky blue frames of her glasses higher up on her nose.

  I don’t know how much to tell her. I don’t know if Cali would be upset about me sharing with Sam, if it would add to her distress. Or if she would be okay with it as a way of making others aware of these guys. I decide to go with the latter and will apologize profusely to Cali if it ends up being the wrong choice.

  I push up my own glasses and say, “Uh, not really. My roommate Cali was on her way here with my dog, Milo, to meet me for lunch. And some really tall guy bumped into her and then grabbed her and wouldn’t let go.”

  “Oh, my god!” Sam exclaims.

  “Yeah. She’s got bruises on her arms. Her girlfriend Mickey was on her way here too and saw them. She was able to get the guys to walk away, but it definitely shook Cali up.”

  I sigh and rub my forehead and pinch the bridge of my nose under my glasses.

  “You should be careful when leaving later. I mean, Mickey got them to leave, but I don’t know if they’re actually gone. Maybe call someone to meet you here or take a cab or something.”

  “I’ll be careful. Is Cali okay though, really?”

  “I think so. She called the police and filed a report, and she and Mickey are going to the station in a bit to sit with a sketch artist. It was a tall and muscular black guy that actually grabbed her, but he had a short and heavy white guy with him.”

  Sam’s brow furrows, “Hmm.”

  “What?”

  “It could be a coincidence, but I think I might’ve seen those guys.”

  “You did? Where?”

  “Here before when I went upstairs to get a cup of coffee right before you went to lunch,” she says.

  I don’t know if it’s possible to feel the color drain from your face, but based on my sudden lightheadedness, I’m going to say you can.

  “They were talking to Jeff,” Sam keeps talking unaware of my current unease. “He did not look happy with them. You know Jeff, his emotions can be a little flat, but he actually looked... angry. Huh, that’s probably why I took notice because it was such an unusual reaction from him.”

  My vision starts to swirl in tandem with the thoughts running through my head. Oh, no. No, no, no, no, no. Could Jeff be a Victus and I’ve missed it this entire time?! A cold fear is creeping up my spine as I fully comprehend how much danger I am in if Jeff turns out to actually be against me. My voice roars in my head: How could this have happened?!

  “Could you hear anything Jeff was saying? Do you think he knows who they are?” To me, the tremble in my voice is clearly audible, but if Sam hears it she doesn’t acknowledge it.

  “Only a little. It sounded like Jeff was saying that he wasn’t going to confirm or deny who his employees are without being given an excellent reason. Whatever that means.”

  “Weird,” I say outwardly. Internally I think, Oh, fuck. I know exactly what that means. Sam nods her agreement with her eyebrows raised.

  “Anyway,” I continue. “You should go. Jeff wants one of us upstairs for our shift, and I’ve already made you late enough.”

  “Yeah, okay,�
�� Sam says.

  She saves her entry in the database, returns the book to the shelf, and grabs her lanyard with her key card from the table draping it around her neck. She takes off the white gloves and hands them to me. She gently squeezes my shoulder as she moves toward the door.

  “You be careful too, Lex, okay?”

  I count to two-hundred in my head after Sam leaves before I exit CCR1 and use my card to unlock the door of CCR3. Between the two of us, Sam and I have made six entries, so I don’t think Jeff will mind too much if another one isn’t added for today.