Xavier pulled up to my house and cut the engine. I didn’t know what he had on his mind, but I was quick to set him straight. “No sex. I’m too damn tired, but you can come in and get a little rest before you have to hit the road again.”
He patted the wheel. “That’s mighty kind of you, darlin’. Tell you the truth, I’m a little tired myself, wouldn’t want you to be disappointed, now would we?” I ignored him as we got out of the car and walked up to my front porch.
I pulled out my keys and turned them in the lock. “How about we just call tonight a draw, how about that?”
He smiled broadly, his eyes lighting up like I’d just issued him a challenge. “I think that’s a fine idea, darlin’. After all, there’re many more games to be had.”
Yes, there were, and I planned on playing as many of them as I could. Starting with the high stakes game he’d told me about earlier. That was a lot of money, and no way was I letting it slip through my fingers.
Neither was he, judging from the fact that he’d stayed and fought with me in Pear Town only because he liked my skills at the card table. At least that’s what he wanted me to believe anyway. I had my doubts, but that was something to be discussed at a later date.
My house opened into a living room, and I flipped the lights on so that he could better see where he was going.
Xavier took a curious glance around. “You want me on the couch?”
Whether he meant it as a double entendre or not, I chose to ignore it. Walking right past him, I dragged myself toward my bedroom. At the last minute, I turned and motioned for him to follow.
I fell onto my bed fully clothed, pulling him down with me. “Sleep,” I mumbled, before closing my eyes and doing just that. His big arm wrapped around me and I leaned into his embrace, grateful for the comfort after such a long and tiring day.
Tomorrow would bring its own set of problems, but for now, Pear Town was safe, and Twist at least knew where his sister was. There was a lot of healing to be done there, and I wasn’t sure Twist would ever get his sister back. Not the way he wanted her anyway.
As for Pear Town? Well, I didn’t plan on going down there for a very long time.
Belle of The Ball
1
Feet hit pavement as I ran as fast as my legs would carry me. The cold sliced through me, chilling me to my bones and making me shiver with every step I took.
Man, what I wouldn’t give for a good thick, winter coat. Hell, even a warm sweater would be better than the rags that hung from me now.
Still, I trudged forward, knowing if I didn’t make it to the shelter in time, I’d be locked out for the night. Not only would I be forced to sleep in the cold, I’d also go to bed on an empty stomach again. The last thing I’d eaten had come out of the dumpster beside the library. I didn’t want to have to go there again.
I arrived gasping for breath, taking in the large building that housed the shelter. Jones, the night guy, looked at me sadly and shook his head. “Sorry, Kerry, just let the last one in.” I felt like crying. It took everything in me not to fall to my knees and beg.
Squaring my shoulders, I gave him the best smile I could muster and walked away. Begging would do no good, I should know, I’d tried it many times before.
It hadn’t always been this way. Once I’d had a good job as a weaver, with good benefits, and in my mind, I was an upcoming star. Well, maybe that was exaggerating it a bit, but before the old mill had closed, it’d employed over half of my city at one time or another. With a population of just over fifty thousand, I thought that was saying something.
It wasn’t very hard to meet someone, who, if they themselves hadn’t worked there, they at least had family, friends, or even acquaintances who had.
In my small city, “the mill” had at least six different buildings set up at one time. Large industrial places, each employing workers in the thousands.
I’d gone there straight out of high school, as had many others. Three months later and I’d put down the payment for my first car. Three months after that, I had my own place, leaving my parents’ house for the freedom of my own.
They were gone now, my parents. They’d both worked at the mill until they’d retired. Hell, they’d met there, so I guess it was fitting.
The short end of it was, it closed, and left many of us hanging by a nail. Some regrouped and scooped up openings at one of the many other factories in town. Some went back to school. Me? I sunk deeper and deeper into a depression so great that it ate me from the inside out.
I never tried, not really. By that time both my parents were gone, I had no other family, and I just didn’t feel as if I had a reason to go on. I stood by in unmovable indifference as my house, car, and everything else I owned were taken away from me. I didn’t care.
At first, sleeping on the street was a cold comfort to where I thought I should be. That was two years ago when I’d been twenty-four. Now, a little older, well, now I was just cold.
Stomach aching from the lack of food, I headed to one of the benches in front of the library. I’d try to be up before daybreak. I didn’t want to be here when the staff arrived. In fact, I took great care to avoid them. The look of pity in their eyes was just too much for me to bear sometimes.
I’d probably been shivering in and out of sleep for a good fifteen minutes when a hand on my shoulder jerked me awake.
Damn it! Did I oversleep again? I could swear I’d just lay down. “Okay, I’m going. I’m going.” I came to a sitting position, body cold and head swimming. I had to make it to the shelter today. No way could I withstand this weather for another night.
Once I got my bearings and could to stand, I realized two things: One, it was still too dark to be morning, and two, the clock on the Sears building said it was only three a.m. Before I could ponder that further, I heard laughter coming from my left.
“Not need to rush off, Kerry. I just wanted to talk to you for a bit.”
It took a second for the face and voice to make its way through my sluggish brain. When it did, I squinted my eyes so that I could get a better look. “Ed?” I said, finally recognizing the gray-haired, long-bearded man in front of me. Like me, he was a street dweller, someone I’d talked to from time to time throughout the last couple of years.
I sat back down, and wrapped my arms around myself, trying to stave off the cold. “Haven’t seen you in a while, Ed. What’s been going on?”
“This.” He flipped open a small, oval shaped device and pointed it at me. Something that looked like a portal opened, swirling blackness that kept getting closer and closer.
Heart in my throat, I jumped up, trying desperately to get away. Ed stood in front of me, blocking my escape. “I just want to help you, Kerry. Now you have to go.” He pushed me inside and suddenly I was twisting and turning through a large, empty space. Rigid with fear, I closed my eyes, thinking maybe this would be the end of me.
With nothing to hold onto, I was basically in a free-fall until my body landed on a hard, solid surface.
I sat up immediately, eyes searching, looking for anything familiar. All I saw was a brightly lit room, housing a TV, couch, loveseat, and recliner.
“Well come on, sweetie, get off the floor, we can’t get anything done with you down there, now can we?”
I looked up to see a medium height, medium built woman dressed in red staring down at me. Brown hair, tinted with hints of gray covered her head. She had on red and gold earrings and a big smile on her face.
I had no idea who she was, but she didn’t appear hostile, so I decided to try my hand. Maybe she could even help me get out of here. “Where am I?” I stood up, hoping to put us on more equal footing.
She held her nose and stepped back a few steps. “Have you smelled yourself lately? My God, a trash sewer smells better than you.”
“Well, it’s not like there’s an abundance of baths and showers out on the street,” I deadpanned.
She nodded, her features softening just a bit. “Yes, yes, Ed t
old me all about you. We’ll talk about that when you’re done. First things first. Let’s get you cleaned up.”
Ed, the man who’d brought me here? I’d forgotten about him. “Look, lady, I don’t know what’s going on but--”
“Come now, Kerry. You’re not giving my wife a hard time, are you?” Ed came into the room and stood beside the woman in red, whom I assumed was his wife.
I gave him the once over. There was something different about him… Ah, it took me a minute to realize what it was. He was clean, the beard was gone, and he didn’t stink.
I’d been played. I knew that as well as I knew my own name. Anger turned my hands into fists, and I took a couple of steps forward, not able to stop myself. “What the hell did you do? What gave you the right? And how the hell did you get so clean!”
Ed looked at me with disappointment. “Now, now, Kerry, we’ve been friends too long for all of this.” He stared at me with those same kind eyes that had first drawn me in. “How about a nice bath? Hmmm? Doesn’t that sound good?” He sounded placating as hell and I wasn’t buying it.
He went on as if he hadn’t noticed the enraged look on my face. “A hot bath and even hotter food in your belly. We’ll talk after that, okay?”
No. Not okay. I didn’t even know where I was. I didn’t know who they were. My stomach growled, and I realized that the promise of a hot meal wasn’t such a bad idea.
Ed and his wife had been nothing but kind so far. But common sense told me they’d kidnapped me for a reason. I had no plans of sticking around to find out what that reason was. Just the thought of it made my skin crawl.
So I’d play their game for now, but as soon as I got the chance, I was out of there.
“I could take a bath, and it’s been awhile since I’ve had a hot meal,” I said, in a calm voice that in no way conveyed my plans for later.
Ed’s wife smiled kindly and then motioned for me to follow her down the hallway. We walked into a large bathroom, with brown walls and brown floor tile to match.
In the middle of the floor sat the biggest bathtub I’d ever seen. It looked like a mini pool, except for the clawed feet. It wasn’t hooked to any plumbing that I could see, which led me to believe that the water came from underneath.
The bathroom itself smelled fruity and clean. My clothes itched on my skin and I couldn’t wait for her to leave so I could get inside that tub.
“My name’s Renee, by the way. In case you wondered.” She pointed to a shelf beside the sink. “All your toiletries are in there. Anything you could possibly need.”
“Thank you.” I looked down at my dirty rags and wondered if I could find something else to put on after having such a clean bath. If I could, then maybe I could convince someone outside of this house that I was a decent citizen and persuade them to help me get back home.
Renee must have noticed the look on my face. “Oh, no, sweetie, don’t worry about your dressing. We have plenty fresh clothes and undies for you to choose from in your room. You go head now and bathe.”
I waited until I heard her steps fade away, before locking the door and stripping off my clothes. Did she say my room? What the hell made her think I’d be staying that long?
2
After my bath, Renee led me to a large room, with a bed, desk, dresser, and TV. The bed looked to be a queen, and the dressers matched the blue and yellow of the headboard. Everything was spotless, no dust in sight, which told me it was cleaned often.
“You’ll find clothes and other such things in the closet, some in the dresser.” She waved her hand around like a Realtor would when showing a new apartment. “I hope you like it, Kerry. Your own space. Bet you haven’t had that in a while, have you?”
I didn’t answer, just took another look at my surroundings. It was a nice room, and it was warm and smelled like the fruity soap in the bathroom. Everything looked fresh and brand-new. Which led me to wonder just how long they’d been planning this.
She kept right on talking as if I was still paying attention. “Once you finish in here, come on into the kitchen. I fixed oxtails with rice and beans for dinner.”
It sounded heavenly, and she seemed nice, but still, all of this was more than a little wonky.
I had so many questions, and I figured the only way to get answers was to play their game. For the meantime, anyway.
I blow-dried my hair and then changed into a pair of blue jeans and a red T-shirt. The smells from the kitchen called out to me, and I followed my nose toward the delicious scent.
Renee beamed when she saw me. “Just in time. Oh, sweetie, you look so lovely. Who knew what a pretty face you had hiding behind all that dirt?”
I took a seat. The table held one large bowl filled with oxtails and three bottles of water. Renee encouraged me to fix my own plate, and I heaped it high, not ashamed of my hunger. Still, I waited until they’d each eaten from the same bowl before sticking any in my mouth.
“Why am I here?” I asked them after I’d had my second helping of food.
Renee patted my hand in a, “there, there” motion. “We need your help, sweetie.”
They both looked at me expectantly. “With what?” I asked, sure I wouldn’t like the answer.
Renee smiled as she got up to clear the table. “Best we talk about that in the morning, dear.” She and Ed shared a brief look and then he began to load the dishes up, taking them to the kitchen.
I thought I saw silver sparks fly from Ed’s hands, but I couldn’t be sure. Still, it had looked like he’d lifted a plate with no hands and guided it into the cabinet.
I continued to watch them both, a cold feeling settling in the pit of my stomach. They were planning something, plotting. I just didn’t know what. “When can I go home? I appreciate the bath and nice meal, but now I think it’s time for me to go.”
Renee had her back turned, but it stiffened when I asked that question. “We’ll talk about it tomorrow, dear. For now, let’s just get a good night’s sleep.” It was pitch black outside, and I had no idea where I was, or what danger lay beyond this house, so I decided to stay for the night, and then at daybreak, I’d run as fast as my legs could carry me.
I tried to stay up. I even sat with my back up against the wall, but somewhere in the middle of the night I must have fallen asleep, because the next thing I knew, a knock sounded at my bedroom door and I was told to get dressed, it was time to go.
I sat on the side of the bed, trying to figure out my next move. That we were leaving the house could be played to my advantage. If I could get a good look around, maybe meet a few people, it could go a long way toward helping me escape when the time came.
I looked over the clothes in my closet and picked out a pair of blue jeans and a blue and yellow blouse. It would take more than one day to form a relationship with someone, much less learn the lay of the land. So I’d give it a couple of days, maybe a couple of weeks. Until then I’d play the part of the perfect guest.
I made my way to the bathroom, snatching up my toothpaste and toothbrush as I went. What I didn’t understand was why they’d kidnapped me in the first place? Why hadn’t Ed just asked me to come?
He’d sent me through a wormhole of some sort. I chuckled and shook my head. A wormhole. I’d never believed in such things, but I didn’t know how else to explain it. If that was true, did that mean I was in a different universe?
The bathtub had a panel with a myriad of buttons on it. I pushed the one for hot. Water erupted from multiple holes, filling the tub in seconds. I stepped inside and sighed. This really was nice; I’d long since forgotten what it was like to be clean every day.
Once we’d dressed and eaten breakfast, Renee announced it was time to go. We stepped outside to a nice humid morning. Back home it was still winter, here it was clear that summer was in full effect. Trees blossomed with blue and red leaves, flowers lined the walkway, and the air smelled fresh as a spring day.
No pollution stained the air, and one look around told me why. I didn’t see on
e vehicle. Not in the driveways, not riding up and down the street.
People floated by on little white metal disks, the same color and material as the street. I’d never seen anything like it and I tried not to let the awe show on my face, but my mouth did hang open just a bit.
We stepped on the street and onto one of the little white things. I thought I’d feel unsteady, but my feet sunk into the disc, almost as if I was glued to it. A panel came up in front of us, and Renee typed in our destination.
We took off flying through the sky, with no seat belt, yet steady as a car ride. The wind blew my hair back and danced playfully across my face. I loved it! This feeling I got from being up in the air. Adrenaline spiked through my veins, and I found myself looking forward to doing this again. Living on the streets taught you to always look for that silver lining, and I guessed this was one.
We ended up in a large room with a stage, and below it was a large group of men and women. “You go over there with them.” Renee pointed to the people on the floor. “Me and Ed will take our places on stage. Go on, now. We’ll catch up with you later.”
I watched them climb a large platform with multiple chairs and take a seat beside the other couples already up there. I looked around trying to gain some insight as to what was going on.
The people beside me on the floor milled about with blank faces and confused eyes, almost like sheep on their way to the slaughter. At least that’s what it felt like anyway.
Renee and Ed talked to others around them, pointing me out and nodding their heads agreeably. The pleased look on all their faces left something cold and hard in the pit of my stomach. Just what the hell did they have planned for us?
My breath caught in my throat, and I realized in that moment, just how scared I really was. More so than I’d ever been living out on the streets.
These people meant us harm. I could feel it in my bones. I took a few steps back but ended up stumbling sideways.
A Magical Reckoning: Magic and Mischief Book 1 Page 15
