Marije dropped to her knees and threw up uncontrollably. Her stomach muscles contracted again and again. She retched louder with each heave. She knew she should never do such a crude thing, but she could not control herself. This caused her to feel even more panicked.
If she had made such sounds in one of Karolita’s bars, there would have been angry, indignant screams from all the other women in the powder room. When she emerged, she would have been attacked for so deeply offending everyone, attacks so vicious she would wish she could have flushed herself down the toilet rather than face the hostile mob. If any one of those beautiful faces ever recognized her again, they would either openly confront her, irrespective of where they were, ensuring to use a voice loud enough to maximize embarrassment, or they would sneer as if she were dirt.
Skillit saw how panicked Marije looked when she stood. She grabbed some tissues to wipe her mouth and anxiously looked at the stall door. Skillit reached over and flushed the toilet.
“Wait a minute. There’s no rush,” Skillit said with a smile. “If you’ve been holding that back all night because of a bag-of-bricks like Odi…like Aniel, you’ve been suffering for nothing. Trust me, he knows what vomit looks like.”
Only a second later, in another stall, someone else started retching. Marije was astonished for a moment — there had been no angry offended shouts, only the continuation of the same background chatter. Delicate fingers ran through her long blond hair, pulling it back behind her. She felt a series of elastic bands being tied along its length. Marije turned to reach for the door.
“There’s no need to rush. Bet there’s some more just waiting to come up,” Skillit said with a calm, encouraging smile. Marije relaxed a little. An instant later, her face paled again. She spun around, dropped to her knees and a projectile stream flew.
There was more retching and heaving — this time louder. Marije’s retching turned into tormented haunted screams.
“Yeah girl. Let it out!” The stall’s small window let in the fresh ocean air and an encouraging shout from a happy male Angel.
Oceania
Marije opened her eyes. She did not know how long she had been sitting on the floor, but she seemed to recall she had been throwing up, then screaming. Right now, all that seemed distant. A petite girl with light blue skin and a cute face was kneeling beside her. The girl had a comforting arm around her back. “Hi,” the girl said. “Feeling better now?”
Marije nodded. The girl helped her stand, reaching for the latch on the stall door while keeping a strong, steadying arm around her — an arm that seemed much too strong for her petite frame. The women in the main powder room did not seem to notice anything was wrong. They continued to fix their makeup and hair while chatting to each other.
In the attached room, there was a long sofa. When the girl with her strong arm around Marije took a couple steps forward, someone immediately got up, smiled, gave the seat a couple friendly pats, and then slid out of the way. Marije sat. Her body felt light, like she was somehow clean inside. A warm, damp cloth began to wipe off her face, then a cool damp cloth found its way to her forehead. It felt foreign. It felt good.
Marije opened her eyes. She did not know how long she had been sitting on the sofa. The petite girl with the light blue skin and cute face was sitting next to her, holding her hand. Someone was holding her other hand. Marije looked at the large woman — her face a couple of shades darker tan than her own. Somehow, her tan skin made her look powerful, more powerful than anyone Marije could remember ever seeing. She was wearing a dark blue uniform with a silver star on her left lapel and a golden badge on her right. The badge had the single word ‘Marshall’ written across the bottom. Her face was kind. There was no scrutiny or condemnation. “Are you feeling better sweetie?” Marije nodded.
When Marije went outside, there were even more people laughing and dancing. All of it seemed to flow together in a way that made her feel comfortable. Still, she felt like a foreigner in a land where she did not comprehend even the simplest customs.
“So there you are.” Her beach bum with the scruffy face appeared, but he did not touch her. He kept a polite, but not an aloof distance as he walked beside her.
They reached a long wicker sofa encircling the back quarter of the dance floor. The sofa had comfortable, large, brightly colored cushions. At first she was sure it was full, but as they approached, just enough space appeared for her and her beach bum to sit beside each other without being crammed together. No one seemed to notice that one of Lakshmi’s Yukta Yogis was in their midst.
As she watched the Angels dance, her mind began to clear. Memory of the day returned. She remembered Karolita, but rather than panicking, she knew her new friend would protect her. Right, the petite girl with the light blue skin and cute face is Skillit. Then Skillit bent down and kissed her on the cheek. Marije looked up at her.
“This is my shift. I better get back to work or Mac’ll pretend he’s angry with me,” Skillit said as she gestured to the Melchizedek behind the bar. MacKenzee looked up. He gave a smile, a wink, and a little wave. It could have been for Skillit, but Marije knew it was for her.
Marije chuckled at the thought of Mac winking at her. “Now that’s funny,” she muttered.
“What’s funny? Finding yurself holdin hands wit someting as ugly as Odi…, uh, as ugly as Aniel?” This new individual slapped Aniel hard on the arm.
Again, someone started to call her beach bum ‘Odi’. That was strange. Stranger still, out of the corner of her eye, she saw Aniel’s right hand come up for a quick second, go through a series of finger flicks, then just as quickly drop. It was then that her beach bum’s name suddenly switched from Odi to Aniel.
“May I introduce my pal, Butler Metcalf,” Aniel said. “He’s not always a jerk, just most of the time.”
A tan-colored hand extended toward her. She took it, studying it with curiosity. Its color matched hers perfectly. His fingers were the same shape too — even their veins had similar patterns. She followed his arm up to his neck and saw a sky-blue uniform, double thunderbolts, definitely Valkyrie, and the golden oak leaf cluster of a Major. That should have mattered, but somehow it did not.
Unlike everyone else who had chatted with Aniel, Butler was obviously not terribly interested in her. He quickly, but not rudely retrieved his hand, then crossed his arms across his chest and started yakking it up with Aniel. He did not look back at her once. This seemed quite familiar. Plenty of times she had shaken the hand of someone who kept all their attention on Karolita or some other beautiful, popular face without once even glancing at her.
Marije looked toward the bar. Skillit was there, continuing to chat and pour drinks. No one had screamed at Skillit for taking such a long break when there were so many patrons waiting to be served. Skillit looked up and smiled at her.
Marije stood. There was no way out. She knew she needed a sponsor. She knew she had to be completely honest with Skillit. She quickly walked to the bar.
“Skillit, I’m in trouble.”
Skillit fixed her eyes on Marije but did not say anything. She took Marije by the arm and led her away from the crowd. Skillit glanced behind her for a second and caught Wrenn’s eye. Marije looked back in time to see Wrenn stand, walk behind the bar, and take Skillit’s place. Marije knew Wrenn had been on duty at least since early afternoon. Since Skillit had relieved her, she had been enjoying some laughs with her friends.
But Wrenn did not look angry, or resentful, or even in the slightest irritated. She glanced at Marije, winked and smiled, then went back to her customers — at the same time her friends walked back to the bar with her and continued their conversations. Two of her friends even walked behind the bar to help.
“What’s wrong Marije?” Skillit asked, interlocking her arm with Marije’s as they slowly walked down the beach. There were no slick comments about her previous nausea, no jokes about Bag-of-Bricks making an uninvited pass at her.
“Skillit, I’m in trouble. I’m not
who everyone seems to think I am.”
“Oh?”
“I’m not an Angel. I’m one of Lakshmi’s Yukta Yogis. Actually, her daughter, Karolita’s Yukta Yogi. I’m here on a forged passport and visa. We came here to shop, but mainly to make fun of Angels.”
“Really?” Skillit asked, turning her head sideways.
They walked in silence. Probably better not to mention the part about Karolita’s revenge. Just put that out of your mind. What am I going to say? By the way. We’re also here to murder some guy named Collin and chop out Angel eyes.
Marije glanced over a couple of times. Skillit’s face was not defensive or enraged. She just looked like she was trying to solve a mystery.
Marije noticed the row of neat cottages along the tree line on her right. These were obviously the homes of the permanent residents, but there were no signs of guards — another strange part of Oceania life.
Skillit stopped and faced Marije. “This isn’t some strange joke that Bag-of-Bricks put you up to, is it?”
Marije gave her head a quick shake. She was shivering. Tears began to flow down her face. “Are you going to have me killed?”
“No, of course not. We’ll…”
Marije saw a confused expression come to Skillit’s face as she stared at one of the cottages.
“What is it?” Marije asked, quickly drying her eyes.
“That cottage belongs to a good friend of mine. I didn’t see him at the bar, so it’s just a little strange for him to be off-island.” Skillit led Marije down the small stone path that ran beside the cottage, and then up the three steps to the porch that ran along the width of the building. There were four wicker chairs around a little table on one side of the door and a wicker couch on the other side. Marije moved toward the table but Skillit stopped her. “It’s okay. We can go inside.”
“Are you sure? He won’t mind? What if he’s…”
“Entertaining?” Skillit smiled. “Doubt it. You can’t hear any moaning, can you?”
“No, but how can you be sure?”
Skillit walked to an open window, presumably his bedroom window, put her ear to the screen, and listened carefully. With her mouth about a millimeter from the screen, she shouted, “Hey. Yummy. You boffin’ anybody in there?”
Marije could not stop herself from grinning and letting out a chuckle.
“Yeah, it’s safe,” Skillit said with a smile as she opened the unlocked door and walked in. She started lighting lamps in the living room and small kitchen.
“Come on in,” Skillit said without looking over. Marije remained frozen, unable to enter.
“Don’t you trust me?” Skillit asked.
“Yes, of course,” Marije said quickly, walking in and closing the door behind her.
“You must be hungry by now,” Skillit said as she started opening kitchen cabinets. “Wow,” she said as she pulled out some packets of nuts and dried fruit, and tossed them on the kitchen table. “We’re off to a good start. I told Yummy he should at least have something to feed an Angel after…”
She looked over to Marije with a semi-disgusted look on her face.
“So Collin’s a good friend of yours?” Marije asked as she cautiously walked across the living room and into the kitchen. Could this be ‘the’ Collin Karolita wants to kill?
“Yeah. His good fortune, my bad luck,” Skillit said as she pulled two glasses out of a cabinet and filled them with water.
A moment later, they were sitting at the table eating cheese and crackers. And the water — the water tasted sweet and full of goodness, a taste Marije thought she remembered from a dream but certainly not from Eden.
“Feeling better?” Skillit asked. Marije nodded.
“Now,” Skillit said. “All that I ask at this point is complete honesty. Do you understand?”
Marije nodded. Skillit had changed. She looked intense, like the Valkyrie officers. This change seemed natural for Skillit — not contrived — not for showmanship — not for her own ego boost — simply another part of her personality.
“Marije, if what you just told me is true, we can help you. But…but right now, you must be completely honest. I assume you have some concept of where you are and what types of creatures are all around you and the powers they possess. If we later discover you have been lying to me, you will find yourself in real trouble.”
Marije nodded again.
Skillit looked deeply into Marije’s eyes. “Very well,” she finally said. “Please, start where you think appropriate and tell me how you came to be here and why.”
Marije confessed the whole story. How one day Karolita appeared with five sets of passports and visas with good photographs, authentic-looking stamps, and fingerprints. In the passport area indicating occupation, they were listed as members of The Sisters of Mercy.
“That’s the biggest joke of all,” Marije said. “Karolita is bad enough. But to have something as deviant as Eros claiming to be a member of The Sisters?”
Skillit nodded. “Have any of you harmed anyone or committed any crimes?”
“Yes,” Marije said with a heavy sigh, slumping in her chair, staring at the sparkling glass of water in her hand.
“Go on.”
“Karolita loves to steal things and then brag about it. She also loves to make me and her other ‘slaves’ steal things for her. It was part of the bet she made with some of her friends — go to Oceania and steal from the Angels. So, between yesterday and this morning, I stole three pairs of earrings, one very pretty bracelet, and a nice pair of shorts — all from the underground stores. Just buying something isn’t enough for Karolita. And this goes beyond her bet. You have to take a risk. It’s the homage she requires you to pay.”
Skillit only nodded.
“Then later in the morning, she took us to a nice, upscale women’s clothing store in the open-air areas toward the resident’s part of town. It had some of the nicest things I think I’ve ever seen.”
Skillit’s eyes got wide as she turned her head slightly, leaning back in her chair. “Do you remember the name of the shop?”
“Josie’s?”
Skillit just nodded. “Do you remember the names of any other stores near by?”
Marije thought for a moment. “Only that there was a grocery store right beside it. When Karolita walked past the grocery store, she looked inside and saw someone organizing merchandise on the shelves. Then she looked at me and said, ‘You must feel right at home. Her dirty brown skin is as ugly as yours.’”
“Who was in Josie’s store?”
“A few small groups of Angels. I dunno, three or four groups.”
“Anyone else?”
“The clerk, and some…
“…I almost forgot. It was so traumatic. Karolita had Eros distract the clerk. Then Karolita reached into the jewelry cabinet and stuffed a wonderful diamond necklace in her pocket. Evidently the clerk saw her do it…”
“There are mirrors around the store,” Skillit offered. “If Rachmiel was suspicious, she was probably looking right at her when she did it.”
“Okay, I wondered. Well, anyway, the clerk challenged her. Karolita denied it, acted insulted.” Marije looked at Skillit intently. “Then this massive white Angel with a strong face came out of nowhere and blocked the front door. Don’t know what she said, but Karolita tried to smash the necklace against the wall. But another Angel was there and caught it.”
Marije’s face melted. “I’ve never seen anything so beautiful. Such rich creamy skin, long auburn hair, deep green eyes.”
“Really? Karolita came in when Josie was actually there? What an idiot.”
“Well, as I’ve been thinking all day about my time with Karolita, I have to agree. So, who’s Josie? When Karolita saw her, she freaked out. That was right before the massive white Angel tossed her out of the store. I mean, physically tossed her. Then, when me and the others tried to leave, Josie singled me out. She was so nice. Intense, but nice. You wanna know what she said?”
&
nbsp; Skillit nodded.
“‘It is wise to know with whom you associate.’ She just whispered it in my ear. Then let me pass.”
“Well, that would be exactly what Josephine would say. She’s very classy.”
“Then Karolita and her little tribe ran off toward the vacationer’s uptown area, probably to hide. I went the other way. Aniel appeared at my side and started talking to me like he had known me forever. I end up at Bill’s with him.” Then a new fear hit Marije. “And that’s another thing. Karolita has all my money. How am I going to pay for all that? I doubt a beach bum like Aniel can take care of it.”
“Don’t worry about that. Bill and Aniel have known each other a long time. They have some kind of arrangement.”
Marije accepted this with a simple nod. Skillit opened the kitchen window to let in some fresh air. She stood there for a couple of minutes lost in thought — looking at the surf crashing in the red moon’s light. “As for Josie, uh Josephine,” she said to the surf, “that would be Colonel Josephine Doulmahel.”
“Oh my god.” Marije laughed as she banged her head on the table several times. “Karolita walked into the Theatre commander’s private store and stole a diamond necklace? Lakshmi’s eldest daughter drags four Yukta Yogis into the Theatre commander’s private store and commits a crime right in front of her eyes? Perfect.”
Marije jumped from her kitchen chair and sprinted to the front door. She threw it open, leapt down the stairs in a single bound, and screamed at the night sky, “Karolita. You’ve got to be the biggest freaking idiot in the Creation.”
“Yeah Girl. Let it out!” It was the same happy male voice again.
Skillit came out and sat on the steps. “Why don’t you join me,” Skillit said, patting the space beside her. “Now, Marije. What do you want to do with the rest of your life?” Skillit draped her arm around Marije, pulling her close.
“I don’t really know what happens next.” Marije replied. “Do I go to prison? Do I…”
“That’s not what I asked.” Skillit turned and looked her in the eyes. “I asked what you wanted to do with the rest of your life. Do you want us to send you back to Eden and resume your life with the Pharisees? Your personal crimes were not that serious. I doubt if the local Valkyrie captain of the guard would even need to scream at you.”
Lilith: Eden's Planetary Princess (The Michael Archives Book 1) Page 32