“Well, I’m impressed, an on-time arrival,” she says.
She notices I didn’t get the joke.
“Industry talk. Sorry. Hello Jake, it’s wonderful to see you again.”
I feel awkward, me the hard-nosed cop who has seen it all. She has some kind of mystical power over me. She is my kryptonite. At that moment, I can barely remember Mika, Harmon, my job, or the girl. I just want Lori Powers to like me. She controls everything, including my heartbeat.
“You look great, really great.”
The entire opening scene of our date is going by at light speed.
“So where is this ‘unique and different’ place we’re going to?”
“I thought we’d give magic a try, the world of deception.”
That brings a bewildered look to her face, which suggests I need to sell her on my idea.
“There’s a theater downtown where they perform magic shows. My favorite restaurant is across the street. I’ve always wanted to go to one of the shows, but I thought I’d save it for when I met someone special.”
Her expression changed to excitement. I had scored a point.
“What a fantastic idea, I’ve never seen a real magic show. Oh, this is going to be fun.”
Her reassurance opens my pressure valve.
“There’s only one problem.”
My head drops and I solicit her pity.
“I don’t have a car, you know, like a real car. I just have my department issued, unmarked cop car.”
I point at it in the street with a look of sorrow.
“Umm, that’s a police car all right.”
She contemplates for a moment.
“I have an idea. We can go in my car, but you’ll have to drive.”
She digs into her purse and holds out the key.
“It’s in the garage.”
Attached to the key ring is a dangling Lexus logo.
I dream about owning a Lexus, but on department pay there is no way I can afford it, unless I start taking bribes. Only with great self-control do I keep from jumping off the porch and running to the garage. While she locks up the house, I pull up hard on the garage door. A moment of silence takes place as I take it all in. Dragging my fingers across the smooth and silky silver finish, I make my way to the driver side door. As I open it, the rich smell of the leather interior permeates my nostrils. I breathe in deep as my butt slides into the seat. For a moment, just a millisecond, I almost forget the most beautiful woman in the world is waiting for me.
Trying to impress her, I appreciate the extraordinary and exquisite things of life, I back out carefully. I also want Lori to know I can care for something, or someone special. I stop backing up when she is at the passenger door, and hustle around the other side to open the door for her. As she is seated, I get a smile. I’m in Fantasyland. In the driver’s seat, I press the automatic door locks and try to be funny.
“I don’t want you to escape.”
I laugh certain she gets my joke, but she has a strange look again.
The theater itself is impressive. The interior is elegant with deep, rich wooden pillars that elevate the ceiling toward heaven. Balconies surround the main floor, which is covered in thick, plush carpeting. The walls are adorned in tapestries, and mirror. Spotlights highlight the crimson curtains, drawn together on the stage. Classical music plays. I would never have guessed there was so much interest in magic shows. The place is sold out. I watch every man in the room watch Lori as we find our seats. It is obvious they are as captivated by her as I am. Each of them knows if she suggested an encounter, they would fall to their knees. As Lori stares up at the stage with anticipation, she takes my hand and squeezes it tight.
The curtains rise. So does Little Jake.
* * *
Megan was to meet the captain in the lobby an hour after the crew had checked into the layover hotel. They would steal away to an elegant, expensive restaurant and dine the night away. Aware of his weakness for younger women, Megan planned to keep baiting him to come back for more. As she strengthened her position over time, she would convince him to leave his wife, and marry her. As she finished with her hair and makeup at the mirror, she stepped back to take one last look. She checked for lipstick on her teeth. The print top that accented her breasts and the short black skirt over black heels was perfect. She felt tempting. Her plan went even better than she imagined. The conversation at dinner was some of the best she had ever articulated. She laughed at all of his jokes and sympathized with him for the failing marriage he said he was forced to endure.
After the bill had been paid, they left the restaurant and decided to walk back to the hotel. It was a night she would never forget. The moon was glorious, the stars brilliant, and the outside temperature temperate. At her hotel room door, Megan maneuvered her computer-encoded room key in and out of the lock. Nick asked politely if he could come in as she gently nudged the door open. She stepped forward. She lightly touched the back of his neck.
“Nick, I don’t think that would be a good idea. The other crewmembers are on this floor. Don’t you think we should wait until––?”
In an instant, and without warning, she felt his hand contact her chest pushing her back into the room. She caught herself on her heels before falling to the floor. She watched as he closed the door behind him. Right before her eyes, Nick Parker changed from a charming, respectful gentleman, into a malevolent beast. The smile on his face was gone. As he walked toward her, she stepped back until she felt the bed against the back of her knees. He shoved her again and she fell back onto the bed. She was startled and afraid.
“What are you doing?”
“Take off your clothes.”
The shock of what was happening paralyzed her. She could not get her arms, or feet to move. She didn’t have the strength to fight him. She could never have imagined he would behave in such a barbaric way. He removed his shirt.
“I’m not going to say it again, take off your clothes.”
He raised a backhand and she ducked to avoid the impact. Although he did not deliver the blow, she got the message. Paralyzed by what was happening, she could only stare at him. She thought to distract him long enough to get to the hallway, or to the phone to call for help, but instead she did as she was told. The scene passed by her in slow motion. After having believed she was stronger, Megan now trembled uncontrollably. He maneuvered out of the rest of his clothes.
“Resisting will only excite me. If you do anything, other than submit, I’ll see to it you’re fired. You know whatever story you tell, won’t hold up against the word of a captain. I have a lot of friends at the airline.”
He tried to sound consoling.
“Don’t worry, nobody will ever know about our dirty little secret.”
The rate and depth of her breathing made her lightheaded. She couldn’t remember how he forced himself into her. She regretted drinking the champagne. She felt foolish for thinking she could control him, and closed her eyes tight while he unmercifully ravaged her. Frightened by her belief of his purported power over her, she did not resist. Then it was over. He huffed as he got off her. Megan lay on the bed motionless with her eyes still closed. She prayed she would not remember the nightmare. She felt dirty and violated. The thought he might attack her again gave her a chill, but he dressed at the foot of the bed while he watched her. She waited for him to speak, to apologize, and say something that would convince her he wasn’t an animal. She wanted to hear believable words of remorse, but the only words she heard included blame.
“You asked for this. It’s your fault.”
He continued to berate her, while he tucked his shirt into his trousers.
“You’re no different than the other crafty, conniving little harlots looking to hook up with a financial portfolio. You use your bodies to tease then pretend you’re surprised when you get this.”
He grabbed his dick.
“By the way, you play the fearful, young prey part very well. I liked it.”
Megan was revolted and quietly cursed him inside. She wanted him to be afraid of her. She wanted him punished. As he leaned into her face, she tried to hit him with an open hand. He caught it in midair. They stared at one another with looks that could kill until he released her hand. He ratcheted her neck and held it tight. Megan started choking.
“That’s not going to work little girl, it’s too late for that.”
He released his grip on her throat. Megan’s shaking hands covered her face. She didn’t see him walk toward the door. Before Parker left her to the solitude of her hotel room, he left Megan something else to think about.
“Remember, keep your mouth shut. By the way, we’ll do this again, soon. Maybe next time you’ll persuade me I want to keep you.”
He left with a contemptuous smile confident she would not break. It was awhile before Megan got up and walked into the bathroom. She removed her clothes and entered the shower where she washed repeatedly. When she believed she had cleansed away his dirt, she dried herself. As if sleepwalking she returned to the bed and tore away the sheets letting them fall to the floor. She curled up on the exposed mattress, in the fetal position, and cried. She stared at the clock until it was time to leave.
She knew he would be in the van with the rest of the crew when they left for the airport. Normally talkative, Megan sat quietly and did not engage any of the other crewmembers in conversation. She was sure they knew what had happened. Parker, she thought, probably bragged about it. Although she did not acknowledge him, she could feel his stare during the brief drive to the airfield. She felt sick.
* * *
“I got something.”
The confident excitement in Harmon’s voice was unmistakable. He was dancing as if he had just finished six months on the road with James Brown. Mika launched herself at him grabbing at his strong forearms.
“What, what’ve you got? Don’t you screw with me, Harmon Blackwell, not in my present state of mind.”
Mika had been on edge waiting for something, anything to move the investigation forward. She had searched files and crime scenes hundreds of times. She shook Harmon hard. It felt as if the San Andreas Fault was quaking. Harmon acted out boxing with her, bobbing and weaving just to instigate. He added some irritating needling that caused Mika to go ballistic.
“Come on little FBI woman, bring it on.”
He stopped dancing and took a casual look around the room. He saw his co- workers were snickering behind hand-hidden smiles. As far as he could determine, he had to surrender.
“Okay Wonder Woman, you win.”
Fairchild was on the perimeter grinning. Mika stood in Harmon’s face with her hands pressed against her hips.
“Give it up.”
“I talked to a guy out by Abrams’s place, a guy we missed the first time around, a neighbor. The guy’s been out of town visiting relatives. He just got back. He said he saw...”
Harmon read from his notepad.
“A silver foreign car leaving Abrams’s driveway as he was driving away that night.”
Mika’s gaze went through him. Fairchild’s eyebrow arched. Everyone waited while she contemplated the development.
“That’s it, all of it?”
“Uh-huh.”
Harmon’s proud smile slowly washed away and he no longer expected a victory hug from Mika.
“A late-model, silver foreign car.”
She repeated it while turning away.
“Okay, it’s something, something is better than nothing.”
She thought for a moment then in a flurry started shouting orders.
“I want to know who owns a late model, silver foreign car in a radius of fifty miles people.”
No one moved, instead they deferred to Fairchild for guidance. He didn’t have to say a word because a simple gesture would have been enough, but he said it anyway.
“You heard the agent, get moving.”
The hustle began. Mika looked at him and mouthed the words “thank you.”
Ed simply returned a smile.
6
It feels like we’ve known each other forever, and I have been born again. A lot fell out onto the table during dinner. The world looks pretty much the same to us. She hears what I’m saying.
As we walk to her car, we pass beneath a halogen streetlight that illuminates the parking lot. She reaches to take my arm, but that brings a grimace to my face.
“Jake, I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay, just a little sore.”
“I forgot, I’m really sorry.”
She displays real concern. I cradle my arm.
“Really, I’m fine. You looked like you wanted to say something just before.”
I watch as my little do jet d’art shyly looks back at me.
“You’ll probably think it’s silly.”
In all of my years on the job, silly wasn’t something I had found anything to be. I want her to feel at ease and comfortable.
“There’s no silly, now stupid, I know stupid, but not silly.”
She hides a smile behind her hand. I watch her eyes come up to meet mine. She hesitates, studies then decides to go ahead.
“I was wondering.”
“About?”
“I was wondering what a Jake Roberts kiss would be like.”
Her eyes widened.
A Jake Roberts kiss? She wants to know what a Jake Robert’s kiss is like.
All I have been thinking about is what a Lori Powers kiss would be like. The only thing I wasn’t sure of, was whether or not, I should chance it. We were both at a time in our lives when we needed someone to make us whole, someone to love. As my arms surround her, Lori’s hands slip around my waist and up my back. Our embrace intensifies as we anticipate riding on an emotional wave. We hold on tight. Her lips press against mine and I spiral up into another galaxy. I forgot what passion was like, and I had given up on love believing I had been sentenced to the isolation of my cave long ago. Right now, at this moment, I’m not alone. Lori feels it too. After the kiss, she rests her head on my shoulder and whispers into my ear.
“I liked that.”
Her head tilts back as she looks at me.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve felt this way, Jake.”
If only women knew how sentimental and romantic men want to be, how much we want that special someone to come along, and make us feel the way she made me feel. We lock in another passionate embrace, and kiss. The few moments it lasts causes all sorts of feelings to surface inside of me. The most important was feeling like a man again. The kiss ends and I can feel her trembling a little.
“Jake, I have never been kissed like that before.”
I get another incredible Lori Powers smile.
“Have you been saving that kiss just for me?”
A boyish grin appears on my face. No one ever said that to me before either. I wish I had something clever to say. For some reason, I’m thinking about how I learned to take down a suspect in the academy. It probably has something to do with the fact that I want to make love with her right now. I just don’t want to scare her off. It also has been a long time for me. Besides, I don’t want just a takedown. I want her for a lifetime.
“Command center to Roberts.”
She speaks in an elevated tone as the sensual expression on her face is replaced with a smile.
“I was just thinking.”
“About what?”
My hand waves toward the billions of stars over our heads.
“About how enormous the universe is, and how it keeps expanding, and about how one day it’s going to implode, and then all this will be gone.”
My eyes come back down from the stars and lock onto hers.
“And I was thinking about what it would be like to spend all of that time with you.”
“Do you mean that?” she says.
“Yes, I do.”
Lori looks up at the night sky.
“I’ve dreamt about finding someone who feels like I do, who
understands, someone who means what they say, and someone with a genuine heart.”
We kiss surrounded in the silence of the night. Not much else is said on the drive home. The open moon roof allows the fresh night air in. The radio is off. The scent of her carries me to another place. We hold hands. Neither wants to let go. The garage door opens and I return the Lexus to its proper place. We walk to the base of her front porch and I pull her close to me. With both hands, I draw her face close. I want another Lori Powers kiss.
“When can I see you again?”
“Jake tonight means so much to me. I had lost all hope that there was someone out there like you.”
Her head falls onto my shoulder. With a slight tilt of her head, she says she has to fly in the morning, but it’s only a two-day trip.
“I’ll call you the minute I get back in, I promise.”
Her words circle my entire body as if held by a tether so I won’t fly off into the vastness of space. I run my fingers through the golden waves of her hair, and down over her soft neck. Her hands feel warm against my chest. We say goodnight with one more kiss then I watch her climb the porch steps. The walk to my car is only a step away, but I struggle to get my feet moving. The drive to my apartment is only a blur. Back inside, I stare out the window and watch the streetlights blow out like candles on a birthday cake, while a new sun rises over the buildings to the east.
I want to call her before she leaves on her flight. I need to hear her soothing, healing voice again.
* * *
“You’re wasting your time. He’s just an old guy who barely remembers ten minutes ago, I think he’s at half-zeimers. Besides, I already questioned him, and I don’t think he can take much more, unless you want me to rough him up a little. Man’s got to be a hundred years old.”
Harmon’s frustration was maxed out.
Where are you, Jake?
After the Evil – A Jake Roberts Novel (Book 1) Page 10
