“Allo.”
She barely stifled her scream as she wheeled around and saw it was the same young man who had been watching her earlier. She didn’t even hear him come up behind her and wondered how he did it.
“Hey,” she said awkwardly. She was caught off-guard by the man, feeling herself sweating in all the wrong places. Geez, I’m acting like a little school girl, she thought. Sure, she had talked to guys before, but most of them were conversations in her head. She didn’t know how to act around them.
“Sorry about your cake,” he said, startling her out of her thoughts. She glanced down at the piece he was holding and was shocked to see he was the one who ended up with the piece with the word ‘tit’ on it.
“Oh my gosh!” she yelled. She must have taken him by surprise because he took a step back and gave her an odd look. Tatyanna was so humiliated at this point she just wanted to crawl into a dark hole and die. She tried to walk away from him before the moment could get any worse, when he stopped her.
He took one bite of it and grimaced in disgust as he casually dropped it over the side of the deck. He simply laughed. “On a scale of one to ten, I would rate this to be at about a twenty.”
“Just a twenty?” she asked in disbelief. She would have rated this at least an eighty.
“I can guarantee you no one aside from you, or I noticed it. You already feel invisible; the people around you almost treat you like you are. So, yes, not one noticed it.”
“How do you know how I feel?”
He shrugged.
“Do I know you?”
“No, but I know you.”
“Did my sister invite you?” she asked, feeling like she was playing Twenty Questions.
He gave her a blank look. “Who is your sister?”
“The Barbie lookalike? She had on white pants and a spiffy red top.”
“Oh, yeah, her,” he said distractedly. “No, she didn’t invite me.”
“Then why are you here?”
“Honestly?”
“Honestly.”
“Because some asshole ran a red light and hit my truck. He didn’t bother stopping to check to see how much damage he caused. I did the only reasonable thing I could think of—I followed him here.”
“And?”
“And, I confronted him,” he laughed. “He denied hitting my truck, and then went with your sister to go make-out.”
“And you just let things be?”
“Oh, hell no,” he said outraged at the thought. “I got my revenge. He won’t be able to show his face again with his fancy car. I made sure of that.” He stopped talking and glanced at her. “Oh, shit. I’m sorry. He’s your sister’s boyfriend. I shouldn’t have admitted to anything.”
“Nah, it’s cool. My sister changes boyfriends as often as she goes shoe shopping. She was probably going to break up with him this weekend anyway.”
They were silent for a few minutes when the man beside her spoke up again. “Do you want to get out of here?”
“Well, I would like to, but I don’t know if I can.”
“What do you mean?”
“I don’t even know who you are.”
He wiped his hands on his pants and held one out. As they shook hands, he said, “I’m Dimitri, m’lady.”
Her eyebrows rose in surprise. “M’lady? If we’re going to leave, there are two things you need to know. I’m not an ‘M,’ and I’m not a lady.”
“Well, unless you want to stay here where it has become one giant make-out session, I suggest you get over yourself. We’ll go out and celebrate your birthday in style.”
Tatyanna looked back toward her house and knew she didn’t want to go back inside. Without a doubt, she trusted Dimitri, and she couldn’t explain why. “Sure, why not? Let me grab my wallet.”
“No need. Where we’re going, they already know who you are.”
“What the heck? What do you mean by that?” she asked but didn't get a response. She frowned, not wanting to go back to a party where she couldn't stand anyone. She also conceded that she didn't want to spend another birthday alone. The chance to meet new people, and the potential to make actual friends, convinced her to go. So, she let it slide that he didn't answer her and asked, “Don’t I have to prove that I’m twenty-one?”
“Trust me. Where we’re going, that won’t be a problem.”
“What about money? We just met. I’m not going to let you pay for me. No offense,” she said, after a moment’s pause.
Dimitri smiled, and she felt her heart melt. “Again, not a problem. Don’t sweat it.”
He tugged on her hand and pulled her around the house to the long line of cars parked in the driveway and on the street. As they neared the end of her street, she saw a car that looked like it had seen better days. She didn’t know her cars, but she could tell just from the looks the car was far out of her price range. It appeared to have driven through a hailstorm. The windows were even shattered, and two tires were slashed, one on the driver’s side and one at the rear. Tatyanna let the damage sink in, and then she comprehended this must be Jon’s car. She studied the destruction closer, noticing his right bumper was smashed in and missing a headlight. That must have been where he had hit Dimitri and kept on driving.
“This is what you call revenge?”
“Damn straight it is. I fucking hate guys who think because they drive a nice car they should be treated like they are royalty. I bet you he will have his car towed, and will be driving a brand new one in a matter of days. While I, on the other hand, will be putting long hours into getting my car fixed.”
“How do you know he’s one of those guys?” Dimitri stared at Tatyanna as if she had an idiot sign pointing at her head. “Okay, okay, so he is one of those guys. My sister sure does know how to pick them. It looks like it was a nice car. I like that shade of red.”
Dimitri peered at her in surprise. He looked from her to the car and shook his head in disbelief. “It’s a 2015 Nissan GTR, cost the guy an easy hundred grand. Your sister must have expensive tastes.”
Tatyanna flicked a glance at him and walked further down the road until they finally reached Dimitri’s truck. Tatyanna’s eyes grew wide, and her mouth dropped open. “That is not a truck. That is a beast,” she said, glancing up at the huge truck, wondering how in the world she was going to get inside it. It reminded her of what you might see in one of the monster truck rallies because it was so high up. And, it seemed to have taken its fair share of beatings.
“Yeah, it’s my baby,” he said fondly, patting the side of it. “I’ve been working on her every spare chance I get. Isn’t she something?”
“She sure is something,” Tatyanna agreed, knowing that their definitions of ‘something’ weren’t the same.
“What did he hit you with? Your truck looks as bad as his car.”
“Oh, this baby is a work in progress. If you come over to my side, you’ll see where he ran into me.”
As she neared the front of his truck, Tatyanna could have sworn she heard growling, but maybe it was her stomach rumbling. She instantly saw his front bumper and light had also been hit. With Jon’s car, everything was still intact. Dimitri had resorted to using duct tape to keep his bumper from dragging on the ground.
“How much is this going to cost you to fix it?”
“Not much. I have been putting in the time to get this baby up to mint condition. I know I have a long way to go, but I’m up for the challenge.”
“How much did you buy it for?”
“A buck. I know it looks rough on the outside, but this baby has a monster engine to match its attitude. The lady who sold it to me was just trying to piss off her boyfriend. She had no idea what a gold mine was hidden under its hood.”
Tatyanna nodded her head. “I’ll take your word for it.”
“Not a car fanatic, huh?” She shook her head. “I suppose that’s a good thing.”
“What do you mean?”
Dimitri didn’t answer her. Instead, he wa
lked to the passenger side of the truck, opened the door, and waited for her to come around. When she did, he placed his hands on her waist and lifted her up as if she weighed nothing, then walked to his side of the car.
Tatyanna could hear the growling again, but this time, it was much louder. She turned around, coming nose-to-nose with a giant wolf, who was staring her down as if she were going to be its next meal.
Chapter Two
The Ghastly Web
If Tatyanna was perfectly honest with herself, she had hoped it wasn't a wolf, but by the way, her night was going things weren't in her favor. She was, in fact, up close and personal with an actual wolf. She wasn’t sure if it was her eyes playing tricks on her, but the longer she stared at the animal, Tatyanna was sure it was glowing blue. Maybe she was suffering from everything that happened thus far, but she didn’t dare move in case the animal found her to be a threat.
Dimitri settled himself in the driver’s seat and turned to see what had caught Tatyanna’s attention. “Oh, hey, I see you met Althea.”
“You know this beast?” she asked quietly, maintaining constant eye contact with the animal.
“Of course. I’ve had Althea since she was a pup. She’s perfectly harmless.”
“Then why is she looking at me like I’m her next meal?”
“Althea!” Dimitri commanded in a dominant tone. The wolf glanced at him, but she didn’t back down and let out a low growl.
“Hold out your hand, and let her sniff you.”
“No way! I’m not going to lose a limb that way.” Tatyanna clutched her hand to her chest.
“You won’t. She’d never hurt you.”
“How can you say that? She’s a wolf. They are wild and unpredictable for a reason.”
“Oh, I can assure you, she is predictable. She is a fierce protector, and won’t hurt you. Just hold out your hand,” Dimitri urged this time more firmly than he had before.
Tatyanna glanced at Dimitri’s serious expression. She took a deep breath and slowly reached out a shaky hand. The wolf refused to move. “Althea,” Dimitri said again, and it sounded like the wolf sighed before leaning forward to smell her hand. The wolf’s eyes widened, and to Tatyanna’s astonishment, the beast appeared to bow down before her.
“See? I told you she wouldn’t hurt you.”
Tatyanna was shocked to see that the animal was still prostrate. “Your animal is bowing.”
Dimitri shrugged it off. “She is showing she accepts you. Say her name and give her permission to rise.”
“Althea, rise.” The animal did as she was told. “She listened!” Tatyanna exclaimed.
“Of course she did. She understands what we say.”
“You mean she understands certain words.”
“No, I mean she is following our conversation and knows exactly what we are saying. She’s very smart for her kind.”
“If she is so smart, then why are you raising her? Shouldn’t she be out in the wild with her own pack?”
Althea nodded.
Dimitri shushed her. “She already accepts you, and now, she is in agreement with you. She can’t wait to go back to her homeland, but until recently, it just hasn’t been the right time,” he said cryptically.
“Right time for what?”
Dimitri didn’t hear her as he turned the key in his ignition, and the beast of a truck roared to life. Tatyanna wasn’t sure who to be warier of, the truck or the wolf.
Tatyanna turned around in her seat long enough to put her seatbelt on and then glanced back to study the wolf. “So…” she began.
Dimitri glanced at her briefly before concentrating on the road. “So…”
Tatyanna pursed her lips together, trying to come up with a way to phrase her question without her sounding like she had lost her mind. She took a deep breath and asked, “So, why is your wolf glowing?”
“Glowing?”
“Yeah, glowing, like a lightbulb, or better yet, as if she’s on fire.”
“I think you’ve had too much to drink.”
“I haven’t had anything to drink.”
He snapped his fingers, pointing them at her. “There’s your problem. Don’t worry about that. The bar isn’t too far from here. I’ll fix you up with something in no time.”
“So, your beast is not glowing?” she questioned.
Dimitri laughed in response.
“How’d you come up with the name Althea?” Tatyanna changed topics when she realized she wasn’t getting anywhere.
Dimitri shrugged.
“Did you know Althea is Greek for healer?”
“You know Greek?” he asked her, surprised.
Tatyanna frowned. “I don’t actually. I’m not sure how I knew that, but I did.” She shrugged it off. “Probably something that I read once. So where is this bar you are taking me to?”
“It’s called The Ghastly Web, and it’s in town. Besides my house and my garage, it’s my third home.”
“Why do you like it so much?”
“Because it reminds me of home.”
“You mean your house?” she asked, confused.
He smiled sadly. “I’m not from around here. I haven’t been back to my homeland since I was a little boy, and this place is one of the few places where I can be me. It is a place where differences are accepted.”
“It sounds too good to be true,” she commented cynically.
“You don’t have a place that you go to, where you can truly be you?” he asked, frowning at the thought.
“No, not really. I’ve never felt like I have ever belonged anywhere. Not at school, not even within my own family.”
“You don’t share a special bond with your sister?”
“No. I used to wish that we were closer, but we are like oil and water. Lilah tries to understand me, but she doesn’t. She has her own life. And my parents—well, they gave up on trying to mold me into the perfect daughter. Why should they, when they already have Lilah? They let me be, and, to tell you the truth, I don’t think they have even realized I am still living at home. The only time I have truly felt comfortable is with my cat, Tux. He’s my best friend. I tell him everything, the good, the bad, and the really ugly, and he can’t judge me for any of it, or talk back, or tell me I’m crazy.”
Dimitri smiled wistfully, “That’s how Althea is for me, my best friend. But it looks like I might be able to go back home soon.” Althea’s ears perked up, and she made a soft sound. He laughed. “It’s been a long time coming, girl.”
“What’s changed that you are now able to go back home?”
Dimitri didn’t respond. Instead, he slowed down as he pulled his truck into a sparsely lit parking lot. “Here we are,” he announced.
Tatyanna looked out the window and shivered. “I don’t think this is the best part of town.”
“Appearances aren’t everything. Don’t worry. This place is safe. No one will bother you here.”
Tatyanna arched her eyebrow and knew she could either sit in his truck or go inside. The building looked like it should be condemned and was on the verge of collapsing. After a moment, she decided she was feeling brave and opened the truck door to step out. She practically fell out of the truck, grateful that she had on pants. Anything else and she would have been flashing half the neighborhood.
As she walked around the truck, Tatyanna was surprised to see Althea, still glowing blue, was standing next to Dimitri. “You’re taking her in with you?”
“She’s always welcomed here.”
“Interesting,” Tatyanna mused, bracing herself as they entered the dilapidated building.
She had expected to see mice and cockroaches racing across a dirty floor, peeling walls, and broken windows. Instead, she noticed the inside of the building was the complete opposite of her worst nightmare. The place was dimly lit, with wide booths against one wall, tall round tables against another, and a wraparound bar. Only one bartender was working, and another man leaned against the bar, casually watching Tatyanna like
a hawk as she entered the bar with Dimitri and Althea.
As the man walked toward them, Tatyanna felt like hiding behind Dimitri for protection. However, she realized he was no longer standing next to her and was talking to the bartender. The man coming toward her was at least six-foot-five and built like a WWE wrestler. He resembled a street thug, with shoulder length, red hair, pulled back with a thick string, and huge tattoos of swords covering the length of both arms. There was an intricate tribal tattoo on his left bicep in almost glowing red ink, but she chalked it up to her runaway imagination. First, she had thought the wolf was on fire, and now, she thought a man’s arm was glowing. Tatyanna shook her head, trying to clear it. Who knew what she might think she would see next.
As the man neared closer to her, she noted a look of surprise in his eyes that quickly turned to approval as he openly checked her out. “I know you,” he said in a deep voice.
Panicking and wanting to run away, Tatyanna stood her ground, remembering she was feeling brave today. “No, I’m sorry. I think you have me mistaken for someone else.”
“No, I’m sure I know you. I never forget a pretty face.”
Tatyanna glanced around, hoping Dimitri would come to her rescue. Unfortunately, he was in a heated argument with someone who looked oddly familiar to her, dressed in all black, matching with his long shoulder length black hair, and the makings of a beard starting on his face. As he turned his body toward Dimitri, Tatyanna noted the white shirt which stood out in the faint lighting, and a black leather jacket enunciating that he was in shape, even though she wasn’t close enough to see just how fit he was.
“Weren’t you that chick who gave me that awesome lap dance last week, but turned me down when things started to heat up?”
“Considering I’m not a bird, I don’t see how that could possibly be me,” Tatyanna said sarcastically.
The man laughed. “A woman with a sense of humor, I like that,” he said, pulling her toward him.
She tried to push him away, but his grip only tightened.
“It’s my first time here, and I’m waiting on Dimitri. I’m sure we’ll be leaving any moment now.”
Tatyanna Page 2