by Ebony Olson
The building next door was too quiet to be a nightclub but possessed enough foot traffic at this time of night to tell me it was a business dedicated to pleasure. Another predator like myself made their way up the street and into the business, sparing a look in my direction as they entered. It was annoying that predators of the same age could sense each other nearby.
I heard a familiar male voice as a door to a balcony slid open on the third floor of the apartment building and Miss Michaels stepped out with a male in his mid-twenties. I felt my anger ignite at his proximity to this girl. For his age, Alexander Williams made a very quick name for himself among the Nachtwelt as someone not to be messed with. That Miss Michaels knew such a powerful sorcerer well enough to come to him at this early hour told me she was a lot more deeply embedded in the Nachtwelt than I'd expected.
Alexander's brown hair was disheveled, as if he'd been asleep when she arrived, and his athletic upper body was bare, with just dark jeans pulled on. He lit up a cigarette and leaned back on the railing, watching Miss Michaels with interest.
“I don't know what you think I can do. You get good at what you do, of course, the unsavory clients are going to come knocking. You should just take the money. You'd be raking it in if you dealt with both sides of the coin.”
“I don't want or need their money, and I want to make sure tonight doesn't happen again.” Spectra's voice sounded annoyed.
Alexander shrugged. “So handle him. You've handled other predators before.”
Spectra shook her head. “This one is too old, and I really pissed him off when I searched him for a wire.”
I felt my hands clench at the memory of her hands on me. Not because I'd hated it. It was, in fact, the opposite, which was the problem. For centuries, every woman looked at me with lust, and I couldn't stand them anymore. But this one, she looked at me with loathing, but her touch was full of curiosity and wonder, which fascinated me.
“You did what?” Alexander coughed, choking on his cigarette. “You not only let one get close enough to touch, you actually searched him? You thought he was a cop?”
Spectra shrugged and leaned against the wall opposite. “He pissed me off. I was really looking forward to just chilling out tonight.”
Alexander stood straight, putting his cigarette out. “How did the exams go?”
“All done. Graduation ahoy. Now I can get a legitimate job and earn an honest living.”
I frowned at the sadness in her voice. Alexander stepped towards her and bent his face to hers, capturing her mouth in a slow, careful kiss. I felt the ball of anger that was building within slam into my chest as it tried to escape. I knew that my outward appearance was still and calm, but inside, as his mouth caressed hers in the most tender of kisses, I wanted to grab the next person to walk near me and rip them limb from limb.
Spectra put her hand on Alexander's chest and gave a gentle nudge. Alexander pulled back to look down at her. “Stay with me tonight. I'll celebrate your graduation with you.”
Spectra smiled shyly. “If I stayed, I'd miss morning Mass, and I have an angry client to meet.” She stepped towards the door. “I should get some sleep.”
Alexander dropped his head in disappointment but didn't try to convince her to stay. “What's the name of your predator? Maybe I can find out more about him.”
“Bay Ryder,” Spectra replied easily.
Alexander's shoulders squared, and his body went rigid at the mention of my name, and I understood that reaction. Spectra didn't miss it either. She waited patiently for Alexander to explain his reaction. Alexander lit another cigarette. “Stay the night.”
“I just explained...”
“I'll come with you to the meeting in the morning, make sure he doesn't try anything.”
“He won't. I don't think he's into women.”
Alexander laughed. “He's not into anything and hasn't been for centuries. But he is a predator, Spectra, and I don't want him near you.”
“Why would he be in such a rush for this stuff?” Spectra folded her arms across her body, still halfway inside the balcony door.
Alexander took a long drag before he spoke. “He runs a business that has been awarded a government contract. They are due to sign this week, and he'll need to prove who he is for the deal to go through. Stay with me.”
Spectra gave Alexander a sad smile. “If you were still that guy I knew in high school, the answer would be yes. But you're the popular guy now that all the girls want, and I'm the quiet nerd without a chance at more than being a drunken party hookup.”
Alexander caressed a hand down her cheek. “You were the popular girl in high school, and you dated the most popular boy, but you always gave me the time of day, Spec. Everything changed out in the real world, but even flipped around, I will always give you the time of day. You will never be a drunken party hookup.”
He kissed her again and this time the kiss was more insistent, but Spectra ended it quickly. She stepped back, and I saw she was crying.
“Dating the popular boy got me killed, remember? I'd rather not repeat that experience.” She turned and moved back into the darkened apartment.
Alexander took a deep breath, pulled out another cigarette, and lit it before turning to look down at the front door of his building. I stayed still amongst the shadows. Miss Michaels emerged from the building and made her way down the street. Alexander watched her till she rounded the corner a block away then stubbed out his cigarette. I'd met Alexander on several occasions and never once seen him smoke, and several times we'd been in each other's company for hours. His behavior around Miss Michaels suggested he was a chain smoker, but I'd never caught even a whiff of smoke around him.
Alexander stood to his full height, and his power swirled his aura around him like a kaleidoscope in a tornado. I smiled again as understanding dawned on me. The cigarettes were guilt. Her presence caused him pain for some reason. Alexander's head tilted, and his eyes turned angry as they fell upon the place I waited. I knew the moment he'd recognized my presence.
I stepped out of the shadows and gave a small nod before following Miss Michaels's drift. I saw the anger set into Alexander Williams's features and suddenly understood what would make such a powerful young man feel guilty. Love. Alexander Williams loved Spectra Michaels so much it hurt.
My phone rang a few minutes later. I answered, already knowing who it was. “Mr. Williams, I trust you are enjoying this beautiful evening.”
“Leave her alone, Ryder.”
“She spiked my curiosity; that's all. I just like to know who I am doing business with. My interest goes no further.” I continued following the trail of her aura.
“She's been through enough, Ryder. We are not friends, but she doesn't deserve to be brought into this.”
I paused to assess his words. “A lesser man would exploit a weakness like Miss Michaels in his adversary. I have no such intentions. I learned a very long time ago that love will make a man stronger, not weaker.”
Alexander didn't deny his feelings, which impressed me further. “Thank you.”
“Mr. Williams, if I may offer some advice?” When Alexander stayed quiet, I took that as approval. “You do yourself no favors hiding who you really are from her. If she is to love you, she should love you for who you are.”
Alexander chuckled. “Only someone who has never truly been in love would think it is that easy.”
I rounded the corner in time to watch Miss Michaels walk into church grounds and cross the gardens to the convent. “She lives in a convent?”
Alexander audibly swallowed. “As I said, she's been through enough.”
The phone disconnected, and I slipped my mobile into my pocket, curiosity taking seed as I thought through all the reasons a young civilian girl might live in a convent. Her interaction with Alexander suggested they were lovers at some point in the past, if not on occasion now, so she didn't intend to take vows. I watched for a light to switch on, tell
ing me where I could find her should I want to, before I turned and went in search of supper.
CHAPTER TWO
Spectra
The church was never full for the early service. Only the devout attended. So when Bay Ryder walked in, enough people took note of the new face. He stayed in the back pew during the service; I was with the sisters from the convent, and he didn't dare approach. After I had taken communion, I continued down the aisle past my usual pew and slipped into the pew beside him. The others paid no heed. I'd met clients here enough in the past years that it didn’t surprised anyone anymore.
Not that they knew what I did for a living, but Mother Superior commented a few years back that a new face at Saturday morning mass was usually a result of a murder or my side business. She just hoped the two were not connected. It was a joke on her part. Mother Superior was one of my first clients years ago, when she needed false documents for an abused woman and her children needing to escape her husband. That job opened the door for my side business in helping victims and survivors escape their pasts.
As I sat back from praying after taking sacrament, Mr. Ryder slipped his hand in his pocket and began to withdraw an envelope. I shook my head as Father Mathew started the final prayer and Mr. Ryder left it alone, standing beside me to sing the last hymn with gusto in a perfectly pitched tenor. As Father Mathew came alongside, he gave my client a stern look before taking my hand, stealthily slipping a piece of paper into it before continuing outside the church.
The rest of the congregation followed after him except for those who knelt and continued their prayers. I opened the slip of paper and read the request before pocketing it and turning to face my client. Mr. Ryder raised a brow at me, having seen the priest’s communication.
“Even the Rectory employ your services, Miss Michaels?” Bay sat back down, slightly slanted to face me.
I stayed standing. “Everyone has their needs, Mr. Ryder, and sometimes those needs can only be met at a cost.”
I slipped past where he was sitting and headed for the side door out of the church. Outside, the sun was already up and promising to be a beautiful autumn day. I walked to Mary's Grotto and took the seat a few meters back from where I usually kneel to pray. Mr. Ryder followed casually, taking in the gardens before sitting next to me.
“It's quite beautiful and peaceful here. I never knew a place like this existed in the city. I guess I should feel privileged that you would bring me here.” His eyes glanced over me. “I much prefer that dress on you than last night’s casual attire.”
The flowing black velvet maxi dress with long lace sleeves, cinching under the bust, was a favorite of Alexander's too. I smirked. “Mr. Ryder...”
“Call me Bay.”
“I'd rather not be on a first name basis with you.”
“You've fondled my genitals, Miss Michaels.”
“I'd prefer we not use the word fondled either.”
“Would you prefer caressed?”
“Definitely not!”
“Then, since you have fondled my genitals, I believe you can call me by my Christian name, and I shall call you Spectra.”
“As long as by midnight tomorrow night you stop calling me at all, I can live with that. Shall we do business?”
Bay gave me a quick nod and handed me the envelope from his pocket. “My license, passport, recent passport photos, and fifteen thousand dollars cash. The agreed deposit for your services. I would suggest not depositing it all in one hit with the way governments monitor cash withdrawals and deposits these days.”
“Thanks for the advice.” I reached into my sleeve, withdrawing a piece of paper rolled around my arm under the sleeve and handing it to him. “Your birth certificate stamped and authenticated.” I stood up and took a step away. “While I can get a license fairly easy, passports are very hard work these days. I'll do my best to make it back for your deadline. If I'm running late for the drop, I'll call and reschedule the meet before sunrise.”
Bay stood. “You got my email with the location and time?”
I nodded. “Do you have other plans that may cause an issue if I run late?”
“Just dinner.”
I swallowed hard and closed my eyes on the mental image.
Bay's voice dropped an octave, “I do not kill my food like humans do, Spectra. I am old and have a lot more self-control than younger predators.”
“And yet I feel no more comfortable in your presence than I did two minutes ago.” I turned, heading towards the convent to grab my bags and take the morning train to our country’s capital.
* * *
With all the security procedures in place these days, it was near impossible to forge a passport in our country. So I didn't. Three hours of train travel and two different bus rides later, I was sitting in an office cubicle of the passport office creating Bay Ryder's tamper-proof passport based on his most recent birth certificate. I honestly thought it would take me longer to access their files, but one of the staff responsible for issuing new ones went off on a long lunch break without logging out of their computer.
I was still prompted for her password during the steps in the process, but I'd already watched her process two passports before she left, so I was good to go. After I finished processing the passport, I just needed to wait for it to be generated and authenticated. The bonus of doing this on a Saturday was that the place ran on skeleton staff who tended to take long lunches. The downside was that generating and authenticating took longer. By the time I held Bay's passport in my hand, I'd missed the train home.
I booked a cheap hotel and opened my laptop to check my emails. My personal business account only held one new entry, a request from a longstanding client at a woman's refuge. It wasn't an urgent request, so I flagged it to follow up next week and closed the browser. I set the laptop aside and lay back, closing my eyes.
The dream floated in like always. Snippets of scenes like a mangled video tape. My vision was foggy, I felt sick, and Jeff, my high school boyfriend’s smile, swam through that fog.
~
Come on; it'll be fun.
I don't want to. I don't feel well. I want to go home.
Just chill, babe. I really want to try it. I felt his hands pulling my knickers off as I lay face down on his college room bed. Everyone’s doing it.
I'm not everyone. I really feel sick, Jeff. I think I need a doctor.
You'll be fine.
Did you give me something? My eyes were struggling to focus on the can of Coke on his bedside table.
Chill, babe, I just wanted you to relax. I've wanted to try this for so long.
I don't remember going into cardiac arrest from the allergic reaction. I only remember waking with a shock, my lungs burning, body freezing cold, everything hurting, and then Alexander's face, tears streaking his cheeks.
I thought I was too late. I'm sorry, Spec; I couldn't lose you.
~
I came back to the waking world, eyes opening slowly in the gloom of the room. I turned my head and looked at the window; it was light outside. I groaned, sitting up, and looked at the clock beside the bed. I swore a string of profanities, quickly gathered my stuff together, and bolted for the door. Another four hours and a rushed taxi ride later, I disembarked the train to find Alexander standing on the platform.
“You look like you just crawled out of your grave, Spec.” His face was serious.
“Thanks for coming. This place crawls with predators after dark.”
I yawned and let Alexander pull me in close to his body as we left Central Station for the walk to his apartment just ten minutes away. We stayed, walking with his arm around me till we entered his building, then I let him lead the way up the stairs to his apartment.
“I'm still down the license. I'll have to get it on the way to the meet.”
Alexander checked the watch on his wrist as he opened his door, “You'll be hard pressed to make the meet then.”
“I h
ave a contingency set up if I miss it.” I walked into his bathroom to freshen up since I was still wearing my clothes from yesterday.
“Take the time to shower, and I'll leave you a dress on the bed.” Alexander's dark eyes were alight with mischief. “Pity we are both pressed for time or I'd join you in the shower.”
I rolled my eyes and headed for the bathroom. I didn't question Alexander having clothes ready for me. He probably arranged them the minute I called from the train station and told him the time I'd be getting in.
“I have to get going, Spec. You alright to let yourself out?”
“Of course, have a good night.”
I heard the front door close as I stepped into the shower and washed away two days’ worth of travel grime. In the bedroom, I found a short-sleeved black cocktail dress, stockings, underwear, heels, and an ankle-length jacket all in my size. I wouldn't spend this sort of money on myself, and Alexander knew it. He knew my sizes because he'd bought me clothes when I first went off the radar and was hiding out in a hotel room he'd paid for while I learned to deal with what happened to me.
I got dressed, slipped Bay's passport into the pocket of the elegant but practical jacket, along with my smartphone in its wallet case, which I only used for checking emails and emergency calls. I cursed Alexander's choice of shoes halfway to the licensing office but continued regardless. As I approached the building, I breathed out entirely and slipped through the employees’ only entry.
Licenses were an easy ten minutes. I just called up his last license, changed the date of birth, and reprinted it. While I was waiting, I updated his details to reflect the most up-to-date birth certificate information. Alexander was right, except for passports, I could make easy money working for the Nachtwelt, but my morals cringed at the very idea. Committing federal felonies to help abused women and children escape their tormentors didn't give me the 'burn in hell for all eternity' feel that helping predators did.
With the license safely tucked into the passport protector pouch, I walked the twenty minutes to the meet.