by J. L. McCoy
“Enter,” Archer responded.
I opened the door a few inches and peered in. Archer was sitting behind his massive African Blackwood desk and was talking on the phone. Aoife was perched on the edge of the desk next to him, her long, shapely legs crossed at the knee. She glanced back at me, gave my body a judgmental once-over with her piercing crystal blue eyes, and turned her attention back to Archer.
I rolled my eyes and walked into the room, closing the door behind me. Archer motioned for me to have a seat in one of the sleek black chairs sitting in front of his desk. I silently complied, double crossing my legs, and waited patiently for him to get off the phone.
“I don’t care how long it takes, Gunnar. Just get it for me. Spare no expense.” Archer said into the phone quickly before hanging up and turning his attention to me with a sigh. “How’s it going down there? Is everyone almost finished?”
“Yes, sir,” I replied with a nod. “They’ve been cleaning circles around me.”
Archer leaned back in his chair and looked up at Aoife. “Can we have a few minutes alone, please, Cion?”
Aoife’s back became rigid straight and she glanced at me before getting up. “As you wish.”
I made a point not to look at her as she sauntered around the desk and to the door, her eyes watching me every step of the way. I waited for the door to close before I spoke. “Did you need something?” I asked.
Archer leaned forward in his chair and took off his expensive charcoal gray sports coat. “I wanted to see how you were handling all of this,” he said, throwing the coat onto the couch and moving to take off his cufflinks. I watched him struggle for a second before I intervened.
“Here, let me help you.” I said as I got up from the chair and walked around his desk. He smiled tiredly, sighed, and thanked me. I hopped up onto the desk, sat in the same place Aoife had only moments ago occupied and pulled his hand onto my lap. I slowly took off his left cufflink and sat it down on the dark desk beside me. I looked into his ice blue eyes as I rolled the shirtsleeve up his muscular forearm. “Honestly, Archer, I don’t know how I am handling this.”
He stared intensely into my eyes and searched them for clues. “Are you scared?” I nodded my head and gave him his arm back. I picked up his right one and began the same process again. “You know I’ll never let anything happen to you, don’t you?”
I watched my hands work as I thought about that for a few seconds. “I know,” I said finally, looking back up into his beautiful eyes. Neither of us said anything for a long moment. “I’m worried about you…about all of you,” I admitted reluctantly, my fingers finishing their work.
Archer took one of my hands in his and leaned closer. “We’re going to be just fine,” he said, tucking a stray hair behind my left ear and then lifting my chin. “We’re a lot stronger than we look, Skye.”
I had a sudden flash of Greyson’s mutilated body and I swallowed hard, shaking my head. My eyes glistened with unshed tears. “But Greyson…,”
Archer shushed me with a gentle finger to my full lips. “Don’t,” he whispered, looking deeply into my eyes. “Don’t think about that.” He cupped my cheek and tenderly ran his thumb over my mouth, tracing my bottom lip.
“I’m sorry for how I acted earlier tonight,” he apologized gently, his eyes remorseful.
“I know,” I whispered. I tilted my head into his cool hand and closed my eyes. His touch was so comforting, his strong arms safe. I felt my body slowly start to relax for the first time tonight.
“I want you to stay with me tonight, Skye.” My eyes flew open in alarm and I sat up straight. “Us,” Archer amended quickly. “I meant I want you to stay with us…at my house.”
I relaxed infinitesimally and shook my head. “I’m sorry. I can’t. I’ve got to go home to Styvi Nix,” I explained. He dropped his hand and leaned back a bit. “Besides, I’ll be safe at my house, Archer. That monster isn’t going around killing humans, right?”
Archer shook his head and sighed. “No, thank God.”
I scooted forward on the desk so that my feet touched the floor. I crossed my legs at the ankles and folded my arms under my chest. “Is there anything else you need before I call it a night?”
“Actually, there is. I’m going to be busy with An Dílis tomorrow evening so I need you and Jameson to run the club. I want Trey working the front door with Seamus and scanning the emotions of everyone coming in. I don’t want anyone with malicious intentions stepping foot into my club again.”
“That’s a really good idea,” I said, nodding my head. “Will he be able to pick up if someone is trying to be deceitful? I mean, what if someone is really good at hiding their emotions?”
“Nathaniel is an extraordinarily sensitive empath,” he said simply. Archer appeared confident in Trey’s abilities and that was very reassuring.
“I’ll have to work the main bar if Trey is going to be working the door. Our barback Ducky just got his bartending license but I don’t think he’s ready to handle the level of customer influx we have, not yet anyway. Besides, I’m pretty sure I’m going to be relying heavily on him tomorrow night. I’m not as fast as Trey.”
“That sounds good,” Archer said, smiling up at me. It was a very brief, small smile, but it was genuine. All too soon, his face fell again and you could see the night’s events weighing heavily upon him.
“You should go home and get some rest,” I said gently, sympathetically.
His brow furrowed and he looked away, sighing and shaking his head. “I can’t. There’s so much still to do.”
“Are you going to cremate Greyson tonight?” I asked uncertainly.
“Yes. It is tradition,” he explained. “We do not rebury our dead.” He rubbed his left temple and sighed again.
I uncrossed my arms and hesitantly reached up with one hand to run my fingers through the tiny patch of gray hair that dappled his left temple. I couldn’t help myself. I could see that Greyson’s death had taken a serious toll on him and I wanted to comfort him; to tell him that everything would be okay. I wanted to wrap my arms around him and kiss the pain from each of his eyes. No matter our problems, or how abundant they were, I couldn’t stand to see him hurting. I never again wanted to see the look he had on his face when he turned away from Greyson’s body.
Archer looked up and slowly studied me. For a while, neither of us said anything as we stared into each other’s eyes. “There’s so much I want to say to you right now,” he whispered, breaking the comfortable silence; his voice filled with raw honesty and immense sadness. Vulnerability was not something I was used to seeing in Archer’s eyes. He was the opposite of vulnerable in every way.
“I know,” I replied softly, pulling him close. His strong arms slid easily around my narrow waist as he relaxed into me. He gently laid his head on my chest and I cradled it with one hand as I softly ran my fingers through his silky brown hair with the other.
We quietly sat like that, our arms wrapped around each other, for a long while.
The office door abruptly opened and I jumped.
Archer lifted his head from my chest and looked up into my questioning eyes. “What do you need, Aoife?” he asked, never breaking his gaze.
I broke eye contact and turned to look at her. She had her fists clenched tightly down at her sides as she looked back and forth between us. She looked angry. Oh hell, I thought miserably. I didn’t feel like dealing with her attitude right now. I turned back around and let go of Archer as I moved to stand up.
I saw the muscles working in Archer’s jaw as he stood up too and crossed his arms over his chest. “I asked you a question, páiste,” he said firmly.
Aoife bowed her head somewhat in submission. “Everyone is finished, Athair,” she said, a slight bite to her voice. “They await our departure.”
Archer swiped the cufflinks off his desk with a sigh and roughly shoved them into his pants pocket.
“I’ll get your jacket,” I quickly offered and crossed the room. I trie
d not to look at Aoife, but I could feel her watching my every move.
“Enough, Aoife,” Archer suddenly growled behind me. “Ifreann na fola! Mórán cainte ar bheagán cúise, don’t you think?”
“Ní maith liom ise, Archer!” she bit back, harshly annunciating his name.
“Is cuma liom, Aoife!” he replied, copying her.
Oy vey, I sighed inwardly. These two were giving me a headache. I was guessing she must have been talking silently to Archer before the fight broke out. The look on his face clearly stated he wasn’t happy with her. Well, this isn’t awkward at all, I thought sarcastically. I brought the jacket over to Archer and chanced a peek at Aoife. She was still glaring at me, her nostrils flared.
Archer took the jacket from me and slung it over his arm. He quickly handed me the five black wristbands that I would need for the VIP dancers tomorrow. “Would you like us to follow you home?”
I shook my head and put the wristbands in my back pocket. “Thank you, but no. I’ll be okay.” The last thing I wanted was Aoife knowing where I lived. I shuddered at the thought. I looked into his eyes and silently spoke. I’m going to go. Have a good night and be safe.
He closed the two foot gap between us and placed a gentle, lingering kiss on my forehead. “Thank you for everything,” he whispered gently before stepping back.
I nodded my head, turned, and made my way to the door, quickly sidestepping Aoife in the process. I was eager to get out. You could have cut the tension in the room with a butter knife. I hurried down the spiral stairs, completely forgetting about the pain in my feet, and, when I reached the second floor, descended the second set of stairs equally as fast.
“Where are you off to in a hurry?” Jameson asked me, concern filling his voice, as I crossed the main floor.
I stopped and detoured over to the barstools where Jameson and the rest of the crew sat talking. “I’m going to head home,” I answered. “Archer and Aoife will be down any second and then you all can leave.”
“Do you want me to follow you home?” Jameson asked, concern lacing his voice.
I shook my head and thanked him. “I’ll be fine,” I said quietly. I leaned over and quickly kissed him on the cheek. “Thank you, though. I’ll see you tomorrow?”
“I’ll be here, love.”
I gave him a small smile then walked two barstools over to where Trey sat staring into a glass of amber liquor. “How are you doing?” I asked him, putting my hand on his shoulder.
Trey looked up and smiled tiredly. “I’m better now…much better, thank you.” He turned in his chair and reached for my hand. He held onto it tightly with both of his and said, “I want you to know that I really appreciate what you did for me up there…with Greyson. You are a kindhearted and compassionate soul.” Trey patted my hand and his brow furrowed momentarily as he searched for words. “You…radiate goodness, grace, mercy and love, Skye Morrison. I’ve been on this earth a long time and have met thousands of people over the years, but you, my dear, are a rare find.”
I put my other hand over my heart. “Aw, thank you Trey. That’s really sweet.” I was genuinely touched by his words. I reached over and hugged his neck.
“You are a real gem honey, and I am glad to have you as a friend,” he said as he patted my back.
“Me too, Trey,” I said, squeezing his neck one last time before bidding goodbye to the somber gathering of vampires.
I stopped by the lounge and retrieved the messenger bag from my locker before heading out the back door. All I wanted to do was get home, take a blisteringly hot shower, and go to bed.
Ten minutes later, I pulled into my driveway and parked next to Nikki’s old brown Volvo wagon. I looked over at her side of the house and saw that she was still awake. Her living room light was on and I fought the urge to knock on her door and tell her about the awful thing that had happened tonight. How would she take it if I told her that vampires really existed, that I was working for them and one of their vampire friends was dismembered earlier tonight inside The Mausoleum?
I shook my head and chuckled bitterly. “She’d have me committed to a mental institution,” I said aloud to myself.
I really wished that I could open up to her about my new job. I talked to Nikki about everything; she was my best friend, but I couldn’t talk to her about this. Archer and Jameson never told me that I couldn’t tell anyone about them, but I’m sure they’d appreciate my silence on the subject.
I grabbed my bag and keys and made my way over to the front door. As I approached my porch, I saw a vase full of flowers, a card, and a giftwrapped box sitting on the doormat. I stopped mid stride, looked around, but saw no strange cars and no one outside. It was 3:30am and all was quiet on my street. I hurried to the door, unlocked it, grabbed the gifts from the doormat and brought them into the house before quickly shutting the door behind me.
Styvi Nix, my three year old miniature French bulldog, quickly came bounding down the stairs to greet me. I sat the gift box and my bag on the floor and placed the vase of flowers on my entry table. I bent down, scooped her up, and held her tight. “How’s my gorgeous girl?” I purred. “Were you a good girl today?” She barked and licked my face, her stubby tail wagging furiously. I sat her down and went to the kitchen to retrieve a treat for her. She followed me in, jumping up and down all the way before sitting obediently at my feet. “Here you are, super star,” I said as I handed her the small milk bone. She happily tossed it around the kitchen a few times before taking it over to her black skull doggy bed to devour.
I remembered the gifts left at my door and walked over to retrieve them. I brought the flowers, card and box into the kitchen and sat down with them at the kitchen table. Who could have gotten me these? The flowers were a gorgeous mix of colorful Peruvian Lilies and Gerbera Daisies. I took a moment to bend over and inhale their happy scent. I decided to open the box first and slowly undid the ribbon and wrapping paper. The gift box was pink and stamped with a gold V.S. My brow furrowed and I put the box down. What the hell? This is from Victoria’s Secret. No one should be buying me anything from Victoria’s Secret. I wasn’t dating anyone so the box was really starting to weird me out. I hesitantly reached out, took off the top, and peeled back the gold tissue paper. Inside was a skimpy cut-out, barely there white eyelet and ruffle teddy. I swallowed hard and put it back in the box. I was suddenly scared to find out who had been so bold as to buy me lingerie. I grabbed the card and tore the envelope open. My hand started to shake as I read the inscription.
“My dearest Skye,
Please forgive me for how I’ve been acting. I’ve been a complete jackass. I’m just so lost without you baby. I thought maybe we could try dating again and take it slow. What do you think? I’ve included a ticket to this weekend’s Black Keys concert and I hope that you will meet me there. I’ve got the other one and will be waiting for you by the front entrance. Wear the teddy for me, sexy. It’ll be a night to remember for sure…
All my love,
Jesse”
Jesse Prescott was my ex-boyfriend turned delusional creepy stalker. Just last week he put his hands on me at my old job, Drop Kick Dan’s. I hated to admit it, but I was terrified of him.
I looked into the envelope and there sat the white concert ticket. I dropped the card in horror and got up from the table. “Are you freakin’ kidding me?” I said aloud, my voice rising angrily. I scoffed and put my hands on my hips. “Un-freakin’-believable!” I was angry. Not just angry, I was furious. How dare he come by my home and leave that disgusting teddy! As if I’d EVER wear something like that for him again! Hell would freeze over first. Jesse and I were over and had been for months.
I quickly gathered the flowers, card, giftwrapping and box and walked out the side door that led to my garage. I lifted the lid on my trash can, threw everything in it and put the lid back down. I walked back inside, locked the door and washed my hands. There is something seriously wrong with him. How could he think, after what he did to me in the club last
week, that I’d ever want to have anything to do with him again? I shook my head, dried my hands and realized that my whole body was shaking. Get a grip, girl. You’re in your house and you are safe.
My eyes flew to the front door and I realized that I had forgotten to lock it when I came in. I ran over to it and threw the deadbolt as quickly as I could. I locked the door handle and threw the chain on it too just for good measure. I leaned my back up against the door and tried to take even, calming breaths. My heart was racing and I felt sick to my stomach. Jesse Prescott had become an object of my nightmares. He had been calling my phone and coming by my work and house for weeks. He was defiling my home, my sanctuary, with his unwelcome visits and gifts. I shook myself again, made sure all the doors and windows were locked, and went upstairs to take a scalding hot shower. After the day I had at work, Jesse’s loser antics were just the icing on the cake. I was mentally exhausted and couldn’t wait to crawl into bed.
I showered quickly, toweled off, and blew my waist length red hair dry. I threw on my TXRD Holy Rollers t-shirt and a black pair of bikini panties and crawled into bed. I whistled for Styvi Nix, set the alarm on my cell phone, and snuggled under the covers with her. “I love you so much, my good girl,” I said kissing her head. She licked my cheek and snuggled in my arms. “Goodnight, sweet pea.”
Chapter 2
My alarm went off at noon and I groaned, fumbled around, and finally managed to cut it off. Styvi Nix was sitting at the end of the bed, patiently waiting for me to wake up. “Well good morning, sunshine!” I cooed at her. “Are you hungry?” She wagged her tail furiously, barked once and turned around in a circle. I laughed and threw back the covers. “Okay, okay I’m up! Let’s go.”
I followed her down the stairs, rubbing the sleep from my eyes as I went into the kitchen. I put out some fresh water and a cup of dry kibble and watched her happily attack it for a minute and before turning and putting a kettle of water on the stove to heat up.