by Alexa Davis
I dropped my phone and grabbed my hairbrush instead. With just a few more strokes, it would get that shiny look that almost could pass for a professional blow dry.
“Okay, let’s just go.” I glanced at the clock, noticing that it was a little past the time Nickie said her and the others were going to arrive. They would be well on the way to tipsy if I walked there, which I intended to. I would much rather spend money on the night bus home, rather than on the way there. “If I go now, it won’t be too sketchy out on the streets.”
It was with a deep sigh that I finally managed to get myself out the door and onto the streets of the big wide world. There was that “Saturday Night” atmosphere clinging to the air, the one where everyone was excited. It was just a shame that I was on the outside looking in. It would be much better for me to get wrapped up in it, to just enjoy myself, but I couldn’t.
“Alright, sexy!” some random skanky guy called out to me, causing me to fold my jacket tighter around me. I hated being catcalled; it made me feel naked even when I was fully dressed. “Hey, come here, come and have a drink with us.”
Urgh, gross. It would be better when I was with the others.
The roads got a little shadier as I drew nearer to Lights Out, only confirming what I already told Nickie. This wasn’t the best place in the city – there was no way rich guys hung out there. She clearly only said that in a piss poor attempt to drag me along, which was pathetic. If that was what she really wanted, then she needed to start hanging out more central.
My heart beat faster as I crossed my arms even tighter around me, keeping my gaze focused on the ground beneath me. If I just concentrated on my steps, on the fact that I was moving forwards, then it left me much less time to freak out.
What was that?
I dragged my eyes up and flicked them frantically from side to side, desperate to locate the source of that noise. I had no idea what it was, only that it spelled danger from the outset. Maybe it was a scuffle of some kind, someone being mugged. I’d seen enough in my time at the hospital to know that anything could happen.
Despite every instinct inside of me screaming at me to run, to get inside the club where it was safe, my body took on a life of its own and I wandered a little aimlessly towards the sound.
All I could see in my mind’s eye was a rolodex of women being attacked, of no one helping them, of everyone else in the side lines putting themselves first. I didn’t want to be like that. Maybe I wasn’t strong enough to be a hero or anything, but I’d hate myself forever if I didn’t try.
I peeked down each alleyway as I passed and eventually I spotted a bunch of shadowy figures. It was much too dark to be able to tell what was going on, but they were the only people I’d seen so it had to be them.
“Hey!” I called out loudly. “Hey, stop it.” My heart freaked out, my mouth ran bone dry with terror, and I was shaking all over, but I felt good for taking action. Maybe my feet were frozen to the spot so I couldn’t actually move, but that didn’t matter. I’d caused a distraction to the scuffle.
“I’m calling the cops.” I reached into my bag, but I didn’t need it because the majority of the people raced off in all different directions. Luckily, not a single one of them came at me.
Oh, thank God.
I gasped and panted, grabbing onto my knees as relief flooded me. It was because of that it took me far too long to notice that there was one person left on the ground, all curled up and beaten. That was the moment my legs unfroze, and I pelted towards the person on the ground.
As I knelt down beside him, all I could see was blood. He was covered in blood and mud, and it made me want to weep. I was surrounded by this all day long, but somehow, seeing this out in the real world affected me much deeper.
“Are you okay? Oh my God, I’ll call an ambulance. You just stay there...” I touched him lightly as I babbled, my hands immediately becoming sticky. “I’ll just... You just...”
“No,” he mumbled thickly through his cracked lips. “No, don’t call anyone.”
“What do you mean? You need some help.” I didn’t stop dialling – this was just his terror speaking.
“No, just leave it.” He forced himself into a sitting position, wincing visibly with the pain. “I don’t want to go anywhere. I have plenty of medical supplies at home; do you think you could take me there?”
I glanced towards the club, imagining my friend’s face when I never showed. Nickie was going to be so mad, but I couldn’t leave this poor guy bleeding on the road. I had to do the right thing; she was just going to have to understand. She had the other girls, anyway. It meant I would have to agree to another night out somewhere down the line, but that was okay.
“Erm, okay sure. Where do you live?”
“My car is just around the corner. Can you drive?” He pulled a set of keys out the pocket, and although I only got a glimpse of it, the car key looked really fancy. “Would you mind taking me back?”
Oh God, this was a mistake. I should’ve just called an ambulance, then I could’ve piled him in and sent him on his way knowing that he’d be looked after. “I can drive. Do you really want me driving your car?”
“I don’t see anyone else offering, do you?” I could tell that he was trying to smile, but he couldn’t quite manage it through the pain. Still, I could tell by his gorgeous green piercing eyes that there was a kindness to him. “Please?”
“Sure. Do you need me to carry you?”
“I think I can stand.” I felt relieved as he got himself into an upright position. There was a lot of this guy – he was muscular and very tall, at least six foot, so I wasn’t sure that I had much hope of lifting him by myself. “Right, here’s my car.”
“This?” It was the fanciest red sports car I’d ever seen in my life. The thought of driving such a machine sent utter dread coursing through my system, but I was excited, too. It wasn’t every day I got such an incredible offer. It was so utterly tempting to grab my phone out my pocket and to take a selfie of myself in it. “You really want me to drive it?” He tossed me the keys and slid into the passenger’s seat, leaving me no other option. “Right, okay.”
The second I flicked the key in the ignition and the engine started up, I could tell what an incredible, powerful machine it was. I just hoped I did it justice. As I put my foot down on the gas, I prayed I didn’t crash...
“Oh my God, that was insane!” I exclaimed by the time we pulled up outside the address the injured stranger had given me. “You are so lucky getting to drive that every single day.” My face was flushed, my heart dancing with excitement, and I had an intense adrenaline rush bulldozing through my body.
“Are you...okay from here?” It seemed rude to just invite myself in, but I also wanted to check these man’s injuries. He didn’t look good to me. From this angle, it looked like he’d suffered mostly surface wounds, but I couldn’t totally be sure.
“I think I might need you to take me up, if that’s okay? I have an elevator, but everything hurts.”
“Well, I am a nurse, so I suppose I could check you over...” This was all so weird; it felt like I was living in some sort of dream world. I never usually did anything this wild, but it was easily justified because it was the right thing to do. “Come on, let’s go.”
As soon as I guided him inside, I got the sense that this apartment block was the opposite end of the scale to where I lived. My place was slightly run down, a bit dingy, tiny, but this was luxurious, incredible, the sort of homes that usually graced magazines.
What was this man doing hanging around outside Lights Out? Maybe Nickie was right and the super rich did go there.
As the elevator rose up through the floors, I could feel an odd vibe between us. It was so strange that I couldn’t even bear to look at him, and I wasn’t sure why. It just felt too intimate for two strangers. When the doors finally opened, I let out a sigh of relief that I didn’t even realise I was holding in.
“Here we are. Come inside.”
&nb
sp; The inside of this man’s home was incredible, even better than the hallways. It actually took my breath away. He had to have even more money at his disposal than I first realized. I didn’t even need to go over to the windows to know that there was an amazing view of the city down there.
I needed to focus. I was here for a good reason after all.
“So, do you want to show me your injuries? That way I can see if there’s anything I can do?” I coughed awkwardly as I spoke, suddenly feeling very underdressed in my outfit that probably cost less than the money this man had down the back of his couch.
“To be honest, most of the kicking and punching was to my face, hence the split lip, but they also got my chest a lot, too.” He tore his shirt off like it was paper, and it took a lot to not gasp out loud. He had an amazing body; it was just a shame that he had bruises absolutely everywhere. “It hurts, but I don’t think it’s as bad as it looks.”
“Who did this to you?” I needed to ask as I stepped closer and lightly brushed my hand against his skin. “Why did this happen?”
“I honestly don’t know,” he sighed sadly, staring a little too intensely into my eyes. “But this sort of thing happens to people like me. It’s just the way it is, I’m afraid.”
I grabbed the first aid box from his hand and grabbed some antiseptic cream out from it. “Well, I think you might be right, I don’t think there will be any permeant damage. Let me just see what I can do. It’s just lucky for you that I do this sort of thing all the time.”
Chapter Seven
Terrance
Sunday
“Terrance, by the way.” I smiled at this vision of beauty stood before me, running my eyes over her wonderfully angelic face. “My name is Terrance.”
I wasn’t sure how she’d managed to turn up in my life exactly the right moment, but God damn it, I was glad that she had. If it wasn’t for her, anything could’ve happened. I couldn’t exactly defend myself with about five guys going at me.
She focused really carefully on the cut on my cheek, as if it was hard for her to look directly at me. That made me want to smile, apart from the intense ache in my mouth and cheeks. I was more used to women giving me the come to bed eyes from the outset. “My name is Morgan,” she eventually told me. “Try to keep still while I got this done.”
My head was fuzzy, and my eyes were stinging it a bit. All of this felt like a nightmare, rather than something that was happening in real life. Maybe it was, maybe I was sleeping, but still it felt incredible. This woman... She was something else.
“Right.” As she pulled back to stare into my eyes I felt my heart skip a weird beat. It had to be the trauma of being beaten to a pulp, there was no other explanation for it. “Everything seems good now. I think it might be best for you to get some sleep. If you still feel like hell in the morning, you will have to get yourself checked out.”
“Okay, Morgan,” I replied, enjoying the way that her name felt as it rolled off my tongue. It wasn’t actually a name I could recall coming across before, and I truly loved it. “Anything you say.”
She stepped backwards, moving away from my body, and as she did, I instantly missed the warmth of her body. It wasn’t exactly the way that I thought I’d end up getting someone into my bed, but this was as good as any. Morgan was here, she was beautiful, and she would just have to treat me gently. Her touch would have to feminine and loving, rather than passionate and aggressive. It was a shame, but better than nothing.
“Stay,” I pleaded with her, giving her the eye. “I would love it if you stayed with me. I can’t be left alone.”
“Why?” She instantly looked panicked as I suggested that. “Do you feel weird? Do you think that you might have concussion or something? Shall I call an ambulance, after all?”
“No, no,” I laughed at her adorable freak out. “No, nothing like that. I just have a very large king-size bed and I don’t want to be alone in it.”
“Oh...” She didn’t look quite as pleased as I thought she might, which took me back a bit. Maybe I didn’t look as good as I normally did, but that was no reason to turn me down. “Erm, no I don’t think that’s a good idea. I think I’ll be better off going home...” She indicated towards the door, breaking my heart a little bit. “I can get you to bed first.”
“Sure, that would be awesome.” I could work my magic from there.
But as she lifted me and took me to my bedroom, the wooziness became too intense, and I could feel my eyes closing, my brain shutting down. I still wanted to lock this down, to guarantee myself some loving, but I couldn’t seem to muster up the strength to do so...
***
“What the...” I bolted upright in the bed, feeling like I was missing something awful. I’d had endless nightmares of death and violence, and now I felt a bit sick. “Argh!” I gripped onto my aching head, wondering how I had such a throbbing hangover. Surely I hadn’t been drinking that much? But I could barely remember anything, so I couldn’t be sure either way.
Last night... There was something about last night. I’d done something or something had happened. I wasn’t totally sure what it was, but from past experience, I knew that by getting up, it would come flooding back.
I rubbed my eyes hard and shoved myself into a standing position, before padding my ailing body towards the bathroom for a pee. This was the one bad thing to come out of a partying lifestyle, the constant stream of mornings spent feeling like utter shit.
“Oh my God!” As I glanced at my reflection in the mirror, the bruises and cuts reminded me of exactly what had happened. I’d been jumped – and not randomly.
Those guys had been after me. They sent someone into Lights Out to spin me some bullshit lie about my car, then they’d attacked me. More than one of them, I didn’t stand a chance. If it hadn’t been for Morgan calling out about the police, then maybe they wouldn’t have stopped until I was dead. “Fucking hell, Terrance.”
Braxton was going to have a field day with this. He told me not to go out by myself. I was a fucking idiot for not listening. When he came back, he would kill me.
I flinched as I touched my face, the sharp pain striking heat into my heart, but the memory of that gorgeous woman putting her night out to the side to help me touched me. That was really good of her; she didn’t need to do that...especially when she clearly had no angle. She didn’t even stay here afterwards – she didn’t even want to sleep with me or anything.
I spun my neck a bit too vigorously towards the door when a knock sounded, causing yet another round of painful twinges tearing all over my upper body.
Knock, knock. Knock, knock.
Those assholes really did a number on me last night, it was a miracle I hadn’t needed hospital treatment, actually. It was a good job that Morgan was a nurse, she’d really come in handy. Without her, anything could’ve happened to me.
Knock, knock. Knock, knock. Knock, knock.
The banging was getting louder and more insistent. They were back for more; they knew where I lived and now they’d come back to finish off the job. There was no point in me trying to ignore them – they’d break down the door if they had to.
I needed to take protective action. With a pounding heart and a racing brain, I grabbed the nearest thing to me, which just happened to be a discarded baseball bat I’d acquired at some time or another.
With that clutched between my fingers, I edged my way forwards and I pushed myself right up against the door. Thankfully, I had a peephole, so I could gear myself up.
“Oh, fucking hell, Braxton. What the hell are you doing here?” I went hot and cold all at once. Thank fuck, my luck had come back! Only a little bit too late. “Come in.”
The second I swung the door open, I realized how this must look. Me standing half naked, covered in bruises, cuts, and scars, while clutching on to a bat like a crazed idiot. Even dropping the bat to the floor did nothing to wipe the stunned look from his face.
“Boss, what the fuck happened to you?” Braxton steppe
d inside and shook his head at me. “Who did this to you?”
I glanced downwards, preparing myself to tell the lie yet again. “I don’t know.” There was no point in giving him any more than that – Braxton would only go crazy and this didn’t really have to involve him. “But you were right about Lights Out. I won’t be going there alone again. Now, more importantly, why are you back?” Changing the subject was the only way I could get him off track.
“I told you I’d be back today.” He eyed me curiously. “Have you only just woken up? It’s five in the evening.” Holy fuck! Had I been asleep all day? “So, are you going to tell me exactly what happened to you or not?” He took a seat in my kitchen and gave me a look that suggested he wasn’t about to give up.
“Well, I had just parked up the car when I got jumped by a bunch of guys.” I was only fudging the truth slightly – it didn’t make me that bad a person. “I guess they thought the Jag was too flashy or something, I don’t know.”
“Did they steal anything?” He furrowed his eyebrows, unable to find the truth.
“No...” Shit, my story could potentially fall apart here. “But that was because this woman came along and scared them off by threatening to call the police. They ran, getting nothing from me.”
“Have you been to the hospital? You look pretty messed up.” Braxton was on the verge of overreacting. I needed to calm him down before I ended up strapped to a bunch of machines somewhere with doctors poking around in me.
“The woman was a nurse. She helped me back here and took a look at my injuries. Morgan said that it was all surface wounds and that I was alright.”
“Morgan?” He raised his eyebrows at me, seeing right through me. “That was this mystery nurse’s name was it?”
“It wasn’t like that.” I shook my head a bit too hard. “She just looked after me, then she left.” I drifted off into a dream world. “I even asked her to stay, but she refused.”
“Someone turned you down? Wow!”
I glared at Braxton, unimpressed by his reaction. “Alright, you don’t need to sound so pleased about it. Yes, I got turned down, and she was a fucking beauty, too. I wouldn’t much preferred waking up with her in my arms than looking at you.”
