by N. K. Vir
Annie sighed as she placed her Henry the eighth mug on her bistro table. It could stay there until she got home later, she just didn’t feel like going back inside. She adjusted the strap on her messenger bag she had purchased the week before at the Army and Navy store and ran through its contents to make sure she had everything she needed for the day and night looming in front of her. Wallet, keys, her mini pocket knife, a bottle of water, and a book she had been trying to read for weeks and a few rice cakes for when hunger struck, all the essentials were nestled safely inside her bag. Satisfied she latched the bag and checked her apparel. Pink converse were comfortably molded to her feet, above them dark jeans hung nicely on her long legs, luckily free on any stains since she and a nasty habit of dropping food on her lap. She had donned a comfortable plain black tee shirt and covered it with a thigh length light weight cardigan that belted around her waist. She was sure the sweater would be stuffed in her bag at some point during the day. Living by the ocean had taught her that the forever shifting winds could mean a warm day but a much cooler night. She stood on her tip toes trying to get a last minute look at her reflection in the window. Her strawberry blonde hair was knotted on top of her head and as far as her makeup went it appeared to still be in place and doing a decent job of hiding the dark circles under her eyes. Satisfied that she was ready to face the day she adjusted her bag onto her left hip and exited her tiny garden and stepped onto Orange Street.
A light breeze wafted up from the ocean a few hundred feet down the street. Annie inhaled deeply as she walked savoring the salty air. When she had rented her tiny house she couldn’t believe how lucky she was to have found such a gem. It was nestled neatly in between Essex and Derby Street which made almost anywhere in town easily walkable. The red line which cut and curved its way through town to guide tourists past all the historical locations passed right outside her bedroom window. Some people would be put off by tourists traipsing up and down the street, but Annie thought it added to the charm of the house’s location. She passed by Brookside manor and waved at a small group of elderly ladies enjoying their late morning coffee. The exclusive home for elderly ladies was one of the many stops on her Historical tour.
She reached the end of Orange Street and out of habit checked both ways even though at this point Derby Street became a one way street. She knew all too well, that more than one tourist had driven the wrong way down Derby Street; she did not want to become a statistic. Then she quickly crossed the street and paused on the edge of the freshly mowed grassed of Pickering Wharf.
The tide was coming in and the wind was coasting over the ocean carrying more salty scented air. Annie loved the wharf. During colonial times it had been the busiest harbor in America. Ships from all over the world would unload their exotic wares right here on these very shores then loaded them into horse drawn wagons to be shuttled across the street to the Customs House. Annie loved that she lived just feet from real historical places and would often wonder what the wharf would have looked like in its heyday. She shielded her eyes from the flare bouncing off the ocean and cursed herself for forgetting her sunglasses. Maybe if there was time in between tours she could snag a pair from one of the local shops.
A dog splashing in the shallow waves caught her attention. Its owner was walking along the muddy shore, head down looking at the ocean garbage the incoming tide was depositing on the shore. Annie could imagine the strange little treasures littered around the owner’s feet; pieces of clam shells and crabs, bits of sea glass and of course garbage. If they were lucky they’d find bits of ancient broken pottery that Annie liked to call pirate tea.
A high pitched screeched sounded over head as seagulls circled around the Friendship, a replica sailing vessel that would soon open to visitors interested in Salem’s maritime history. A small group of children sat on the tiny dock next to the Friendship. Their little legs dangled over the edge of the dock kicking and swinging. Annie could see their bare little feet were covered in drying sand and ocean muck. Their clothes seemed oddly dark for children but they could just be wet from an early morning romp in the harbor. They raised their dirty little hands and waved at her. Annie waved back and realized she could tell they were covered in muck but couldn’t get a really good look at their little faces. Every time she tried to concentrate on their features her vision would get blurry. It wasn’t until tears started to well in her eyes that she realized she had been staring without blinking for a while. She blinked a few times and tears streamed a path down her face threatening to ruin her make up. She dug into her pocket for a tissue to prevent further damage all the while thinking of the strange three children sitting on the dock Why was it she felt she should recognize them?
“Ratboys,” something or someone whispered. Annie spun around looking for the source of the whisper. Besides the dog and his owner no one was around.
“Meow”
Annie looked down and found a shaggy, charcoal gray cat seated at her feet, its green eyes blinking lazily up at her.
“Did you say something?” she asked the cat who merely replied with a long meow. Annie shook her head. She must be more sleep deprived than she thought. Not only was she talking to the most disheveled cat she had ever seen but she had accused it of speaking.
Deciding she had dawdled enough and in desperate need of more coffee Annie left the cat, the wharf and the Ratboy/children behind and headed for the small coffee shop on the corner. She had just made it a few yards past the Friendship to where two swans were gracefully swimming when she had the distinct feeling she was being followed. She stopped and cautiously turned her head. The glint of the sunlight caught something shiny and drew her attention. It appeared to be coming from the swans. Annie squinted trying to get a better look. What she saw, or rather what she thought she saw was a thin silver chain hanging around both of their necks. She shook her head trying to clear her vision and looked again. There was definitely something around both of their necks but now she wasn’t sure what it was. Again there was something familiar about the swans and silver necklaces she just couldn’t seem to place the memory. Another loud meow sounded behind her. Annie frowned as she looked down to find the large gray cat back at her feet looking even more rumpled than before.
“Go on, go home,” she said making shooing motions with her hands. “My morning has been weird enough. I don’t need a feline stalker.”
The cat meowed loudly in a way that Annie interpreted as outrage. She huffed at the thought of offending a cat and wondered if she should substitute alcohol for caffeine to make it through the rest of the day.
“Look,” she said pointing at the cat. “I have not slept well. Between weird dreams and strange sexy neighbors I tossed and turned all night. As a matter of fact for all I know I’m still dreaming,” she practically shouted.
“Who are you screaming at now?” The familiar voice of Kat asked.
Annie jumped; startled she whirled around and looked down at her friend. Kat was dressed in a black summer dress and flip flops. In her hands she held a cardboard tray stuffed with ice cold caffeine packed drinks. Whereas Annie usually stuck to just her morning caffeine fix Kat would suck down gallons of iced coffee during the day. It was her friend’s personal drug of choice. Annie relieved Kat of one of the beverage and quickly sucked down a few gulps before answering, “A cat.”
Kat peered around her,” I don’t see anything.”
Annie looked behind her. Apparently her stalker had gotten the hint and had hurried home. “There was this scraggily looking cat following me. You must have scared him off.”
Kat rolled her eyes before trying to steal the iced coffee back from Annie. Annie turned slightly holding the cup of out of Kat’s reach. Annie stood a good head and shoulders taller than Kat there was no way she was getting the drink back and Kat knew it. She sighed in defeat and stuck her tongue out in one last rebellious act.
“Since when do you drink iced coffee?” she asked shooting an accusing stare at Annie.
“Sin
ce now,” Annie replied sticking her tongue out at Kat. “My usual dosage isn’t working this morning. I had weird dreams that kept me up most of the night.
A sly smile spread across Kat’s face. “Did they happen to revolve around a certain smokin’ Scotsman?” she asked wiggling her eyebrows up and down. Annie blew out a sigh and began walking leaving Kat to catch up. “So did they, come on spill,” she demanded.
“I wish,” Annie admitted. Annie thought back to last night and the few moments they had been alone. She felt drawn to him in a way that she could not describe. It was as if she had known him forever. She was attracted to him, his voice and those strange blue gray eyes that seem to draw her in and hold her captive. She remembered how close they came to kissing and how much she wanted, no needed to kiss him. Even now just the thought of kissing him made her crave the physical contact even more. She frowned at the thought of kissing a perfect stranger; it was something she had never done.
But he’s not a stranger, something inside her whispered. Annie’s frown turned into a scowl.
“Stop that,” Kat chided. “You’ll mar that pretty face will premature wrinkles.” Annie willed her face to relax. “So then tell me about these dreams.”
Annie took another long pull on her stolen iced coffee. “I can’t really remember them,” she admitted. “It’s frustrating actually because for some reason it just really feels like I need to remember them. It’s like I’ve forgotten something really important.”
Annie saw Kat out of the corner of her eye nod in understanding. “Well,” Kat said coming to an abrupt stop. “I can think of one thing you forgot.” Annie looked down at her questioningly. “Your sunglasses, here, she said, plucking hers of the top of her head. “Take mine; I don’t want you running around town squinting all day.”
“You sure?”
Kat waved a tiny hand at her. “Please this is as much as I will see the sun today.” She glanced down at her watch and cursed. “I gotta fly girl. Robert will be prowling around the shop waiting for his morning fix and I need him on his game today he’s booked solid.” They shot air kisses at each other and Kat scurried down the street. “See you tonight at the pub!” She called over her shoulder.
Annie waved goodbye and put the borrowed sunglasses on. If she could make it through the rest of the day without any more hallucinations or daydreams about kissing her neighbor she promised herself a few extra pints of home brewed ale at the end of the day to balance out the over caffeinated morning.
The problem with lots of caffeine in an empty stomach was that it had harsh long lasting effects. Her stomach felt like a lead ball had taken up residence and both of her earlier tours had to suffer as Annie chatted away so fast that she was almost incoherent. By five o’clock her stomach was screaming for real calories instead of the rice cakes she had shoved into it a few hours ago. Since she had a couple of hours to kill before the dreaded ghost tour Annie made her way to the Pedestrian Mall in search of pizza and a bottle of fizzy diet soda. She planned to spend the next two hours huddled in a booth at her favorite pizzeria, nose buried in a book, preparing for the last leg of her day.
She pushed her way through the early evening dinner crowd and up to the counter. She placed her usual order and chatted amicably with the girl behind the counter as she waited patiently for her two slices of cheese pizza to be heated up to a perfect edible temperature. When they were done and slid in front of her, her stomach growled in delight.
“Oh, I’ve missed you,” she whispered to her dinner.
“Well I’m here,” chuckled and accented voice behind her.
Annie, startled, spun around yelping in surprise and lost her grip on her plate. She watched in awe as lightning quick reflexes sprang into action rescuing her pizza from a painful fall to the floor. Duncan balanced her breakfast, lunch and dinner on his hands under her nose. Her eyes traveled slowly from her rescued pizza up to his face lingering to see the sights along the way.
She admired the fit of his light gray tee shirt; the way it clung perfectly to what she imagined was a well chiseled muscular torso. Her eyes traveled up slowly resting briefly on the hollow where his collar bone met at the base of his throat. Further up she admired the five o’clock shadow that hugged his jawline, and above that those wicked lips that she had fought all day to forget. She watched as one corner of his mouth slowly raised up creating a devastatingly wicked half smile.
Unconsciously she licked her lips wondering if he tasted half as good as he looked. She heard him suck in his breath and her eyes snapped up to meet his. She watched as his steely blue eyes were overcome with a flood of some emotion that defied words. For a moment the world stopped spinning, time froze and she was struck by the uncanny feeling that she should know this strange man so much better than she did. He reminded her of her dreams, begging to be remembered. She tried hard to shake the feeling that she knew this man much better than she actually did.
She reached into her memory searching its archives for some shred of evidence that he had existed somewhere in her life’s timeline before yesterday. A tiny spark ignited, she saw a flash of a lake surrounded by fire and image of a figure hiding behind the flickering wall of flames. She heard the howl of a man filled with frustration and pain then the vision snapped out of focus. Annie heard another sound, a low rumbling growl. At first she thought the sound had emanated in her throat, but it was quickly revealed that the sound had come from just slightly lower.
“Hungry?” Duncan asked as he teasingly waved her pizza under her nose. Her traitorous stomach growled again.
“Yes,” she muttered slightly embarrassed. Her cheeks grew hot as she blushed. Damn, she really knew how to make an impression. Last night she had almost blown them up and now she was staring at him like he was something to be devoured. As if that wasn’t embarrassing enough her empty stomach had decided now was a good a time to be heard. Avoiding his eyes she reached for her plate so she could go hide in a hole far away from him and eat. She held out her hands silently asking for her food. He held it away from her.
“Does it taste as good as it looks and smells?” He asked. She shivered in delight and reminded herself that he was asking about the pizza.
A wicked grin possessed her mouth as she allowed the thought a little bit of life inside her mind’s eye. “Better,” she replied as she watched his eyes widen in surprise. She wanted to be shocked by her shameless flirting but found she didn’t care and besides it seemed normal. Her grin transformed into a smile. Maybe this attraction thing wasn’t as one sided as she thought. She ordered two more slices for him.
Who knew pizza was an aphrodisiac?
A few moments later they were settled into a booth hungrily devouring the best pizza Salem had to offer. They ate quickly and in silence all the while Annie was watching him and everyone around them. Every woman in the place was staring openly at her dinner companion. He caught her looking around occasionally tracing her gaze back to him. He raised an eyebrow at her silently asking a question. “What?”
She leaned forward resting her elbows on the table; he copied her leaning forward more as she crooked a finger at him.
“What?” he asked in a hushed whisper.
She cupped a hand next to her mouth and whispered, “Every woman in this place is staring at you.”
He chuckled softly and motioned for her to come closer. She turned her head so he could whisper his secret in her ear.
“Every mon an’ woman is starin’ at your beauty mo gradh,” he breathed into her ear. “Including this one,” he said slowly sitting back.
Annie laughed at him not wanting to admit to him or herself how those words really made her feel.
“So,” she drawled searching for words that would quickly change the topic. “Have you gotten to know your way around Salem?” She asked quickly slipping into her comfort zone.
“I’ll admit, I do seem to keep wanderin’ in circles.”
Annie laughed. “It does happen. Most people seem to end up on ei
ther Derby or Essex Street. A good chunk of the small streets in the downtown area dump out onto one or the other. Would you care for a tour from a real official tour guide?” She asked flashing her phot id that allowed her to operated guided tours.
“Absolutely,” he quickly replied.
A short while later they were wandering down Essex Street. Annie was pointing out the sights. The big brick manor house at the end of Essex was the scene of a real murder back in the 1800s and inspired by Parker brothers to create the board game, Clue. She showed him the Commons and explained that during the great fire of 1914 it became a tent city for refugees. A big red trolley rounded the corner ringing its bell to warn pedestrians of its approach.
“Care for a driven tour?” she asked.
He shrugged. “Where you lead I shall follow, bhanphriosa,” he said motioning for her to precede him. She found herself giggling as he bowed deeply.
She flashed her tour guide ID at the driver who nodded his head. “We got plenty of room, hop on.”
They found seats near the back and settled in. Duncan seemed to keep a few inches of space between them with both hands clutched tightly on the seat in front of him. Annie was disappointed by his rigid almost aloof posture. It was as if he was trying very hard not to have any physical contact with her at all, which seemed at odds with the way he was flirting with her earlier.
Maybe she had misread him?
She watched him out of the corner of her eye, he sat ramrod straight his face and gaze locked on the road in front of them, his knuckles white from the death grip he now had on the seat in front of him. Every muscle in his body was tense and rigid as they seemed to struggle to hold him stone still. It didn’t even look like he was breathing.