“Hey, don’t close those eyes of yours. I thought I’d take you out for breakfast this morning.” Grant smiled, his teeth gleaming white in the filtered sunlight.
She used to think he was so handsome, only now his smile seemed a bit… smarmy. Other smiles—genuine smiles—circled in the back of her mind, but the molasses caught them and sank them below its opaque surface.
He took her hand and helped her to stand. “Take a shower and then we’ll go. My treat.”
He pulled her towards him so that she came up close to his hairless, bare chest. He spent hours in the gym, so it was sculpted in all the right places. Defined pecs. Six pack. Smooth skin. A line that ran down the center of his stomach to sink beneath the edge of the towel. It usually turned her on. A hidden part of her wondered why a guy like him could possibly be interested in a girl like her, but she never brought it out to examine too closely. She was just grateful that someone was in her life.
She held her arms in front of her so that only her forearms were pressed against his skin instead of her breasts. He wound his fingers around her upper arms, a faint frown playing on his forehead.
“You’re all stiff this morning. What’s wrong with you? Where’s my little Luce?’ He grabbed her buttocks, squeezing her cheeks.
She swiped his hands away and stepped back, “Nothing’s wrong. I’m just tired.”
His face softened, the frown easing from his face. “Of course, you are. Holding three jobs has to take a toll. Well, at least you have the morning off. Let me take care of you.”
Her breath released and the tension in her shoulders eased. Three jobs. That was right. Working long hours had just caught up with her. That must be why she was so tired, why her mind was so fuzzy. She hoped she wasn’t coming down with the flu. If she didn’t work, she didn’t get paid.
“That… that sounds great.”
He snapped his fingers, “Before you shower, get my shirt for me, would you? The one I asked you to dry clean during the week? I need it for this afternoon.”
“This afternoon? I thought… we were spending time together.”
A smile lit his handsome face. “We are. But you must work this afternoon, remember? I must go out and meet with some more people about you. You do your work, and I’ll do mine.” He must have seen something on her face because his expression turned sour. “I’m doing this for you, babe. Everything I do is for you. Then, when you’re selling records and gigs, that’s all you’ll have to do. That was the plan. Remember?”
The plan? Yes. It was. He was right. As usual. He was working hard to meet the right people, get her heard, promote her name. He was doing all this for her, but they had to live on something, of course, so she’d elected to work to fund their dreams.
“Yes. Yes, of course. How silly of me. I’ve just got… a bit of a headache.” She turned to go into the bathroom just off the bedroom.
“Babe?”
She turned. “Yes?”
“My shirt?”
The shirt. The silk one she’d had cleaned because it couldn’t be washed in the harsh washers in the Laundromat.
“The shirt. Of course.”
She couldn’t remember picking it up, but she was definitely not on top of things this morning. Her stomach growled. She was starving. A hangover and starving. No wonder she was confusing things.
She opened the wardrobe doors, careful of the broken hinge. Hadn’t Grant said he would fix that? Maybe not. She couldn’t be sure. She rifled through the shirts she’d ironed and hung, finding the shirt he wanted still wrapped in the plastic wrap, and took it out, a frown pulling her forehead. She couldn’t remember putting it in there, but she must have. Why else would it be in there?
“Here it is.”
Grant’s smile returned. “That’s my girl.”
When he went to kiss her, she turned her head. His lips were cool on her cheek.
She scurried into the bathroom without looking at him.
“I… won’t be long.” She closed the door and sank behind it.
What was wrong with her? Her blood usually heated the moment he looked at her. She couldn’t help thinking there was something she was missing—something very important—but her mind was slippery and the thought was elusive. Maybe she really was coming down with the flu. She made a mental note to stop at the drugstore and pick up some vitamins.
“Come on, Luce. I don’t have all day.” Grant called from behind the door.
She’d better be quick. He wasn’t the most patient man, and besides, he was only busy because of her. He was the one who was going to get her career off the ground. He was the one who would help her climb the ladder. He’d already met Donald Stephenson, and he was the person to get to know. If anyone could help her, it was Grant.
Trying to ignore the overwhelming need for sleep, she turned on the shower, only the water refused to warm up. She remembered Grant in the towel. He’d already showered, and the hot water tank wasn’t that big.
She stepped beneath the cool stream and made short work of washing her body and her hair. At least the cool water might help her wake up properly.
* * *
They drew up to Flips’n’Burgers. For a Sunday, the breakfast crowd was thick and steady.
She turned to Grant, squinting. “What are we doing here?”
Grant stunned her with his hundred-watt smile. “We’re here for breakfast. Surprise!”
“But… but I work here.” She wasn’t due for three more hours. Her shift started at twelve until nine or ten that night. Depending on customers.
“Right. Now you won’t have to drive here after breakfast—and I’ve secured you another couple of hours extra on top of your regular shift. Just for the extra cash.”
He reached behind and grabbed something on the back seat, placing it on her lap. “See? I even brought your uniform so you won’t have to go back to the apartment.”
The uniform was retro red-and-white check to fit in with the fifties style burger diner popular with teens and families. She’d worked here for years. Why did she remember that, and everything else was white noise?
Before she could stutter a reply, Grant opened his door and stepped out. The silence in the car was stifling. He walked to the front of the restaurant, seemingly oblivious to the fact she was still in the car until just before he entered. He turned, sending her a ‘what’s up’ gesture.
She shouldn’t complain. He was taking her out for breakfast. She just should have asked about the location. Sighing, she grabbed the uniform and her bag, stepped out of the car, and followed him into the familiar restaurant.
Elvis warbled over the loudspeakers and she was enveloped in the aromas of fries and fat.
Grant sat in one of the stalls and before she could sit next to him, he said, “Grab me a coffee, babe? And while you’re up, might as well order something to eat. I’ll have the Beatle Burger and fries. And put me down for the Supremes apple pie. Love that pie.”
Lucie sighed and made her way to the counter.
Janie, her friend and fellow waitress, looked up, surprised, her smile welcoming, but confused. “Hey. You’re three hours early!”
“Hey, Luce!” Luke waved from inside the kitchen and sent her a friendly way.
Lucie smiled and waved back. This place might be hard on her feet, but the people she worked with more than made up for it.
“Oh, yeah, we’ve come for breakfast. Grant thought it would be handy if I came here and started early. Might as well, you know. Makes it easier to start my shift and I can earn an extra couple hours work,” she said.
Janie scowled, her eyes sliding to Grant slouched in the seat. “Could have taken you anywhere. Why not to the five-star place just down the road?”
“He just thought it would be easier for me, that’s all.” Lucie felt her face heating. It would have been nice to sit down and have someone else wait on her for a change, but she shouldn’t be angry. The extra pay would come in handy for the recording she was going to make later
in the week. She remembered that now. “Professional recordings are expensive and I need the best choice we can make.”
Janie put her hand over Lucie’s and squeezed. “Yes, but—are you sure he’s making the best one for you?”
Lucie’s gaze shot to her friends. “Of course. Why wouldn’t he? It’s expensive to start up and producers only want to hear professional recordings.”
Grant saw her talent. He’d been the only person to believe in her dream. The only person to actually take on her career and help her without wanting anything back.
“It’s just that…” Janie bit her lip.
“What?” Lucie’s tone flatlined. She mentally winced at the hardness in her voice.
What reason would Grant have to lie? He was the only one to have her back. Everyone else had turned theirs on her. Life was harsh, but that was just the way it was.
“Doesn’t there come a time in life when you’re due a little bit of happiness, Janie?” she continued. “You’ve got to grab it wherever it comes from.”
Janie smiled, though Lucie ignored the pity in her eyes. “Of course. You deserve all the happiness in the world, Lucie. You know that. Why don’t you sit down while you can and I’ll come over and wait on you? It’s Elvis’ birthday. The lunch crowd is going to be big today and I’ll bring over your favorite. Okay?”
Lucie nodded and quickly gave Grant’s order before turning back to the table and her waiting boyfriend. When she got there, he held up his phone, an excited look on his face.
She sank onto the seat next to him. “What?”
“Just got a call from Stephenson. Wants to meet with me in an hour!”
Lucie’s heart stuttered, excitement mixed with every heartbeat. This was finally it. Everything they’d worked for. “Does he want to meet me too?”
After all, she was the artist in the sample he had shown the man.
Grant’s smile twisted. He slipped his phone into his front pocket. “That will come in time. At the moment, I’m working on the details. There’s no use going down this path unless everything been signed, sealed, and delivered.”
“But… why?” She couldn’t understand why the producer didn’t want to meet her. See her. Listen to her live.
“Let me handle things. I want the best for you and there’s a procedure for doing this type of business. I know how to treat these people. Believe me, they like the mystery. Build it up and they’ll snap you up like a shark on a hook.” He leaned forward and gave her a peck on her mouth before sliding from the seat. “I’m only trying to get the best deal for you, Luce. You know that. I’ll call you later. Tell you how it all goes. You never know, this might be the time, Luce.”
He walked out of the door without a backward glance. Her little red car slid out of the carpark and into the flow of traffic. Belatedly she realized Grant had taken the car and she had no way to get back home after her shift.
The day seemed to be normal. Just another day out of her life, and yet there was a sticky white mass in her brain that made her mind foggy. She couldn’t help but feel there was something she had to remember. Something important, but her mind was caught on a slippery slope.
She sighed, got up from the table and reached for her apron. Might as well help Janie set up before the lunch crowd came in. Lord knew, it was going to be busy enough today as it was. Maybe a day mindlessly taking orders would shake her brain back into gear and she’d remember what on earth she’d forgotten. She had a deep feeling that it was very, very important.
Chapter Five
Juliran
Blue green light surrounded himself and his brothers as he stood at Lucie’s side, and then he was racing down a tunnel made of intense light. Two bright sparks sped next to him following the ever-changing twists and turns of the wormhole. There was one final twist and a white light enveloped him.
His feet hit hard ground. The light withdrew to reveal a city unlike any he’d seen before, steeped in nighttime shadows. A hard, black surface lay beneath his feet. Strange, cube-like vehicles on four wheels lined the path they stood on. Stretched on either side were buildings made from small, brown and tan bricks interspersed by small windows covered in sheer, shiny coverings. Overhead, lights shone from tall poles, illuminating spots of light beneath.
A sound blasted, and a vehicle hurtled towards them. Kyel grabbed his arm and propelled both himself and Zaen onto a grey sidewalk.
“It wasn’t going to stop?” Juliran stared at the vehicle as it sped along the pathway, its engine spewing evil-smelling fumes. In their Homeland, pedestrians were always safe, their transport vehicles being restricted to air-space only unless disembarking.
“We’re in Lucie’s mind, remember? We are wherever she is,” Kyel said.
Juliran glanced at the dark, depressing scene. It was a world so unlike their own, and his first impressions were unsettling. He didn’t like the thought of their bright star in such darkness. “The quicker we can get her back to us, the better.”
“I second that, brother.” Zaen, twitched in his clothes, rolling his shoulders and grimacing as though not comfortable at all.
“If we’re in her world, where is she?’ Juliran said, spinning about. People in couples or groups walked past, ignoring them. Some entered a vehicle and after a moment, two lights at the front end lit up and the boxy-looking machine rumbled along the wide, black surface past them before disappearing around a corner. Juliran coughed as acrid smoke stung his nostrils.
“At least we look the part,” Kyel said.
Juliran glanced at his clothing. Gone were his leathers, replaced by a thick, dark blue material that covered him from waist to ankle. An uncomfortable tin metal catch ran from his waistband to the bottom of his groin. His leathers were much softer on his cock.
He wore black boots on his feet, but they ended at the ankle. No calf protection at all. He would have to remember that if they were attacked. On his torso was a white shirt made from soft, light material. The sleeves ended mid-bicep. The cool of the night was warded off by a jacket with a fake-fur-lined collar. His brothers were dressed in similar styles, matched by the males that walked around them.
He peered closer at his brothers. Despite the shadowed light of the night, they looked different.
“Your skin has changed.” He glanced at his hands. They were a tan color, close to their Lucie’s skin. Gone was the blue hue known in their Homeland. However, their eyes had retained their glow. “Your horns are also missing.”
Instead of the familiar battle horns that grew in adolescence, their temples were now the smooth skin of children.
“We look ridiculous,” Juliran snorted.
“I guess we fit in like this. Sort of,” Zaen said, although he ran his fingertips along his smooth forehead with a frown on his face.
“Do you still have your markings, Zaen?” Juliran said.
Zaen lifted his top to reveal the black and blue swirls on his abdomen. Either one or all of any Trio were born with them, and Zaen was the only marked of his brothers. Instead of their usual shifting colors, the colors in the swirls didn’t change, but remained a static neon blue. Many a time, Juliran had teased his brother when he’d been unable to hide his emotions through the swirls and changing colors in his markings. It would seem they wouldn’t behave like that here. Zaen tucked his shirt into the waist of his pants.
“We fit in close enough not to draw attention, that’s the main thing. I suspect we will have to take Lucie’s world as we find it,” Kyel said.
“What do you mean?” Juliran said. “Can’t we just find her and bring her home?”
Kyel’s gaze gleamed in the low light. “Lucie has been tortured, brother. We don’t know in what state we’ll find her. She may not be able to withstand another shock if we try to pull her out of whatever we are in too quickly. It is up to us to soothe her. Calm her. Make her understand that her life is with us so she might feel our mate bond. If the entity has brought her here, it must be for a reason. We need to watch out and m
ake sure she is protected at all times.”
“I will do anything necessary,” Juliran said. He suppressed the feeling of helplessness that swamped him.
He knew there was something holding her back, but was unable to understand exactly what. Or how horrific it was.
She should be happy. Joyful. Secure in the knowledge of their love, but she had doubted all along. If anything, they had to get to the bottom of that before she had any chance of healing and fully accepting them.
Maybe that was the brunt of the matter. They hadn’t tried hard enough, hadn’t been able to break the shell surrounding her for her to feel secure. It was down to them to rectify many things.
Shouting, laughter and pumping music emanated from a building behind them. Juliran made out a tune with a steady beat.
Inside the building, many people sat next to windows, sharing meals. Females bustled around, all dressed in a similar fashion: a uniform of red and white checks with a frilly white apron tied around their waists. It seemed to be in a slightly different style to those sitting and eating.
A woman passed by a window, and his heart stopped. “Brothers, it’s Lucie! We’ve found her.”
He strode towards her, but a hand on his arm held him back. He turned to face Kyel.
“Remember, brother,” Kyel said. “We do not know what to expect. We will greet her, but she is in a fragile state of mind. The laws of physics may not apply here. This is not a real world. This is her mind’s construct. However she is, we will need to go with what she believes to be real. Work with her, not against her. I ought to suggest… her mind might have blocked us out altogether. We are not a part of the world she has regressed to. She may not even recognize us.”
Juliran nodded. Trepidation washed over him as his brother’s words sank in.
“Time is not on our side either,” he said.
They had no idea how long it might take for the entity to drain her fully, or trap her mind in the shell it had created. Her body was on the brink of shutting down and she was already weakened. So many variables. Too many.
The Erion Triad: A Negari Sci-Fi Alien Abduction Reverse Harem Romance Page 4
