The Other Side of the Mirror

by Lex H Jones

  “And he killed your boss?”

  “One between the eyes, then tossed him in the Styx whilst all the girls watched and cheered. I was fascinated with him, couldn’t forget about him. So I called him again a few weeks later, not for a job this time. We kept meeting up, and the rest is history.”

  “You two dating?” Carl enquired.

  “Wouldn’t call it that. Charles doesn’t date people. But I care about him, and I think he cares about me.”

  “You should take him and leave the City.”

  “Now you want him to leave too?”

  “You got hope, he has faith. Two things that don’t belong here. Be good for both of you. Lots of places need a hit-man, he could find work.”

  “It’s a dream, it’d never happen.”

  “I’m sure it could, if you worked for it. Just like I’m sure there’s a few dead Jolly Rogers and few more picking pieces of shrapnel outta their faces even now.”

  “Why do you think they were after us?”

  “They were after me, Miss DuBois.”

  “He had two photos, Carl. Two,” Felicity reminded him, her voice sounding anxious now she was forced to remember the details of what had almost occurred.

  “Maybe they were just me from different angles.”

  “Don’t bullshit me, Carl. You’re trying to make me feel safe and I appreciate it, but not like this. If someone’s after me then I deserve to know it.”

  “Alright, have it your way, let’s say that they really were after you as much as me. Truth is, I can’t think why anyone would want you dead, let alone go to the trouble of sending the Jolly Rogers after you. Taylor’s not an easy man to hire, he tends to do his own business, so to put that much effort into coming after you... makes no sense to me at all.”

  “Maybe it’s that guy. The one who died whilst I was with him.”

  “I hadn’t reported that ten minutes before they came for us. Based on what Pope said, they were planning to come looking for you and me before that guy even bought it.”

  “So who have you pissed off lately?”

  “How long have you got?” Carl chuckled. “I piss people off every day, sweetheart, ain’t no point going down that road.”

  “So it’s gotta be something involving both of us, right? What are we both involved in?”

  “Amber,” Carl replied without thinking, then cursed himself for mentioning the name.

  “What about her? You got her killer, right? You called me and said...”

  “I’m not sure,” Carl admitted with a reluctant sigh.

  “Not sure about what?”

  “That I got her killer. I mean, the guy admitted to it, but...”

  “But what, Carl?” Felicity demanded, stepping closer to the detective.

  “There’s a part of my mind that likes to show me things I’ve missed, okay? Keeps me focussing on things that I’d otherwise let go. Couple days back it showed me Amber, and since then I’ve been thinking that maybe her case isn’t quite as wrapped up as I thought.”

  “So you saw a ghost of my sister, metaphorically at least, and that’s enough for you to think the case isn’t closed?”

  “My mind wouldn’t have shown me that unless—”

  “Maybe you just feel guilty that a girl that young had to die because some jackass couldn’t stand to lose a few bucks.”

  “Oh, I know that I do. I hate every minute that I’m reminded another girl had to turn up in that damn river... but I don’t think this is that. I think there’s more, and as long as I think that...”

  “You’re not going to let it go, are you? Even on this crazy little hunch based on bullshit, you’re going to keep fighting for her memory?”

  “Yeah. I guess I am,” Carl shrugged.

  Felicity put out her cigarette and took hold of Carl’s face with both hands, bringing him close and kissing him passionately. Carl froze on the spot; he hadn’t expected this and didn’t know how to react to it. His hands remained rooted to his sides despite a voice screaming in his head to grab hold of her and return the kiss. The voice sounded a lot like Jimmy, which pissed Carl off all the more. Even here and now he was nagging him.

  “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have...” Felicity said quietly, keeping her slender arms around Carl’s neck and staring at him from barely an inch away. “I just... I don’t know what me or Amber ever did to get someone like you trying to help us.”

  “I’m just a cop, Miss DuBois.”

  “You need to start calling me Felicity. Seriously, it’s getting annoying now,” she smiled. “And you’re not just a cop. In this City, the cops are the guys who help you for a blowjob, or a few bucks in their back pocket. The guys who help you because it’s the right thing to do... who follow hunches and put themselves in danger because they want to help a dead stranger to rest in peace... they don’t exist. Except for you, the guy whose tired eyes I’m looking into.”

  “I’m always tired,” Carl shrugged.

  “You should relax.”

  “Don’t know how. Think I forgot a long time ago.”

  “What are you thinking, right now?” Felicity whispered as she stared into Carl’s eyes, her nose almost touching against his.

  “I’m thinking that I wanna have sex with you on that couch.”

  “Very forward of you, Detective.”

  “Yeah, well... I’m also thinking that it’d be wrong for about three reasons.”

  “Which are?”

  “One—you’re in a bad place right now. Two—I know it’s not going anywhere. We’re not gonna get married or anything because neither of us is looking for that, so it’d just seem like a cheap fuck, which I don’t want to be responsible for. And three—you’re gonna be thinking about Pope the whole time, which I could do without.”

  “Okay...” Felicity nodded with a raised eyebrow, then cocked her head and replied; “One—I’m in a much better place than I would be if I hadn’t met you. Two—sometimes sex can just be a moment of happiness between two friends who want to share in each other’s company in a special way. It doesn’t always have to be a marriage proposal. And Three—this has nothing to do with Charles. If I wanted to be with him, I would. But right now I’m with you.”

  “You make a good case.”

  “So? You have a verdict, Detective?”

  Carl answered by way of grabbing the back of Felicity’s head and forcing her lips onto his once more. He could taste her immediately, the combination of cherry lipstick and grey smoke forcing its way into his mouth. It was some time since he’d felt a woman in this way, pressed against his chest and wanting him as much as he’d wanted her. Sex or physical pleasure in general wasn’t something that Carl spent a lot of time on. But now, holding this soft, firm woman in his strong hands, something was reawakened in him. A desire to be inside her, to feel her wrapped tightly around him as they embraced.

  His leather jacket dropped to the floor with a heavy thud, and he noticed the arousal in Felicity’s eyes as she removed his shoulder holster, filled with a gun as it currently was. Was the crazy chick actually turned on by the fact that he was packing? Her connection to Pope suddenly made a lot more sense if that was the case. Carl placed his hands on the back of Felicity’s blouse, looking for a zip or button that wasn’t there, and then cursed and ripped it off her instead. The blonde gasped in shock and pleasure as he tore her clothes away, causing Carl to look at her and remark, “That wasn’t expensive, was it?”

  “Oh, shut up, Duggan,” she insisted grabbing his head and kissing him so passionately that he thought he was in danger of choking on her tongue.

  Carl removed his own shirt with equal disregard to the damage he might cause to the garment. When he tossed it aside, Felicity ran her hands over his muscled chest, taking particular attention to the scars on his flesh.

  “What was this?” she asked as her fingers laced over a patch of scar tissue just below his left pectoral muscle.

  “Buckshot. Just grazed me but hurt like hell.”

/>   “And this?” she touched the long, deep scar next to his navel.

  “Punk stabbed me when I tried to arrest him. Don’t worry, I broke his jaw.”

  “And this one?” she brushed her fingers against a scar on his abdomen.

  “Where I had my appendix out.”

  “That’s not too sexy.”

  “And the others are?”

  “What can I say? I’m a crazy chick.”

  “Damn fucking straight,” Carl agreed, flicking open the button on Felicity’s jeans and letting them drop down to her ankles, revealing her long, slender legs. “Always knew you’d have some killer gams.”

  “Why thank you, Mr Detective,” Felicity smiled as she jumped up and wrapped her legs around Carl’s waist.

  Holding onto her with a single hand, the strength of his arm easily bearing her weight, Carl walked over to a wall and slammed her back into it, causing her to gasp out as he ripped off her underwear and lowered his black suit trousers. With a grunt he forced himself inside of her, relieved to see the look of shock and pleasure on her face as she felt him there.

  “Jesus Christ, you’re so fucking...”

  “Don't say it. I appreciate it, but I can’t get out of my head the fact that you probably say it to every...”

  “Don’t make me slap you,” Felicity said sternly as she gasped for breath with each of Carl’s thrusts.

  “Hey, I might like that,” Carl shrugged.

  Felicity reached behind her and pushed herself off the wall with her hands, so that she and Carl were still fucking as they walked across the floor. Finding the floor in the centre of the room covered with a soft fur rug, Carl threw her down on it and immediately got down on top of her. He held her wrists above her head as he moved into her once more, causing her to moan so audibly that his eardrums rattled.

  “Cuff me... right now... fucking cuff me...” she gasped as Carl thrust in and out of her.

  Carl didn’t need asking again, snapping the cuffs off his belt and wrapping them around the blonde’s wrists and locking them above her head. The feeling of being unable to stop him even if she wanted to evidently worked for her, as her moans and gasps suddenly doubled in volume and Carl felt her tighten around him even as she wrapped her legs around his back.

  “Of fuck, you are good...” she gasped.

  “Gotta say… always thought you’d like to be the one doing the cuffing,” Carl smirked as he continued to give her everything he had.

  “I always am... that’s what they pay me for... so fucking nice to have it the other way...” gasping again, her breathing short and fast. “Oh God, you’re gonna make me...”

  Carl winced as Felicity’s scream cut through his ears, so loud and piercing that he thought the windows or at least the light fittings were going to crack. As she stopped, she looked up at him and her eyes widened.

  “You’re not done yet... are you?” she asked with a look of alarm.

  “Um... no...”

  “Oh God, you’re gonna fucking kill me,” she smiled, laughing despite her physical exhaustion.

  “You want me to stop?”

  “You dare and I’ll kill you with your own gun,” she warned.

  Carl continued for several minutes more until finally he reached his own climax, Felicity having done so twice more before they were done. He removed her handcuffs and then kissed her softly. Their breathing was heavy and Carl actually felt light-headed as he stood up. He took a few steps to reach for his shirt and fell to the side, catching a chair to keep himself upright.

  “I’ll take that as a compliment,” Felicity smiled as she stood up and began dressing herself.

  “It’s been awhile,” Carl admitted.

  “Didn’t feel like it.”

  “I’ll take that as a compliment,” he smiled softly.

  “So are you going to ask me to marry you?”

  “Huh?” Carl asked, freezing in the act of buttoning his shirt.

  “Joke,” the blonde smiled as she realised her blouse was actually damaged to the point of being unusable. “Hope that wasn’t too awkward for you.”

  “No, it was... well, I think I needed it. Unprofessional as all holy Hell, but... thank you.”

  “We all need to feel close to someone now and again. Like I said, sometimes sex can just be about friendship.”

  “Yeah, it’s nice to...” Carl stopped himself as he leaned against Felicity’s marble kitchen table, his eyes feeling glassy.

  “Carl, are you alright?” Felicity asked as she walked over to him, her top half still naked save for her bra.

  “I just... something’s wrong. I don’t remember the last time I did this with anyone, but... I know that it hasn’t been that long... and thinking about it makes me feel dizzy.”

  “That doesn’t really make sense.”

  “I know,” Carl sighed, looking down at the marble table and trying to get his eyes to focus. “My head doesn’t feel right.”

  “Let me get you some aspirin,” Felicity suggested.

  “It’s alright, I got something,” Carl replied, rooting through the pockets of his leather jacket until he found his wallet. He opened the button for the section where loose change was kept and took a white pill from where it rested there. With a single motion he tossed it into his mouth and swallowed it, then took a drink from the glass of water Felicity handed him.

  “What are those for?”

  “Some kind of vitamin deficiency. Been taking them since I was a kid,” Carl shrugged. “I’m okay now, don’t worry about it. Think you just blew my mind.”

  “I’m a little worried about you.”

  “Don’t be, I’m fine,” Carl assured her. “Look, I don’t really know what I’m supposed to—”

  “You don’t wanna stick around because you have stuff to do, but you don’t just want to fuck and run because that makes you feel like a jerk?”

  “You’re good,” Carl smiled.

  “For what it’s worth; I don’t think you’re a jerk because you have to go, and I know that a guy like you probably has a ton of stuff to before you hit the sack tonight.”

  “And you’re sure you’re okay to be alone? I mean, those guys are still after us... for whatever reason that might be... I could arrange for a couple of cops to watch the place.”

  “The Jolly Rogers won’t get in the Complex, don’t worry. I can tell the guards downstairs to keep Taylor out, makeup or otherwise. It’s just going out to work that might worry me a little.”

  “Tell Dice you have some personal business to take care of and won’t be seeing clients for awhile,” Carl suggested. “Least ‘til we get sorted.”

  “He really won’t like that.”

  “Then I’ll tell him. Or better yet, have Pope tell him,” Carl smirked.

  “Oh, that does sound fun,” Felicity laughed.

  “You got my number, right? In case you need anything?” Carl asked, pulling his leather jacket on.

  “I do, and I won’t hesitate to call you,” Felicity smiled, straightening Carl’s shirt for him as she rested her hands against his chest.

  “Thank you for a wonderful evening, Miss DuBois,” Carl said warmly, brushing a strand of blonde hair from her face.

  “Goodnight, Mr. Detective,” she smiled as he took his leave of her apartment.

  Chapter Twenty-Six;

  Discharged

  W hatever weight it was that kept Carl’s eyes tightly closed refused to relinquish its pressure at the sound of his alarm clock. To actually get his eyelids open was more of an effort than he could have imagined. When finally the lids parted, the clock read “6 p.m.”. Earlier than he usually woke, but still enough that he should have enjoyed a good sleep. He wasn’t aware of being restless in the night, so why was he exhausted this way? The state he found himself in was like some waking coma, his mind unwilling to drag him from the dream world and into this one. Carl came close to turning off the alarm and going back to sleep, when he remembered the reason he was waking early. With a groa
n and a curse muffled by his pillow, Carl rolled out of bed and shuffled into his bathroom. When he emerged into the living room a few moments later, Jimmy was sat watching the TV, the volume turned quiet.

  “Hey, hope I didn’t wake you,” said Jimmy.

  “Nah, the alarm did. Wanted to get up early enough to make a visit to Skye at the hospital. See how she’s doing,”

  “You look like shit,”

  “Thanks,” Carl nodded, pouring himself a black coffee, pleased to find that the pot was still warm.

  “I only got back a couple hours ago. Been taking in some of the local eateries. To say this place is such a crap hole, there are some good restaurants.”

  “Eating’s about the only honest thing to enjoy here, so we do it well,” Carl smiled. “Make any friends?”

  “Oh yeah, I brought him back here. Look how handsome he is,” Jimmy said sarcastically, pointing at the empty couch at his side.

  “Well keep trying. The cheap floozy of your dreams has gotta be out there somewhere,” Carl joked.

  “For someone who looks like the walking dead, you seem awfully happy this morning,” Jimmy remarked. “You have some fun last night?”

  “I may have,” Carl shrugged as he leaned against the kitchen counter.

  “Dish! Don’t you dare hold out on me!”

  “It was Felicity. I took her home, we got talking and, well you know how it goes.”

  “She’s the hot blonde, right?”

  “That’s the one.”

  “Nicely done, Mr. Duggan. Even I’d consider mowing that lawn!”

  “Lovely use of metaphor there, Jimmy. Tasteful,” Carl nodded.

  “You going to see her again?”

  “Not in that way, I don't think. It was a one time thing, a special night. Nothing more.”

  “Those are often the best. You’re not expected to make breakfast.”

  “Romance is alive and thriving in the gay community, I see,” Carl smirked, before taking one final sip of his coffee and grabbing his coat.

  “Tell her I said hi,” Jimmy called after him.