The Disciple and Other Stories of the Paranormal

by Jemma Chase

  She laughed, and it was, I had to admit, a very pleasant, enticing sound. “I’m not crazy, Mister Masters. I’ll pay you well, even if you can’t find what I need, though I’ll pay you more if you can.” She opened the backpack at her feet and pulled out a wad of cash. “Here – as a retainer.”

  Against my better judgment, I took it. “Old bills.” Some of them looked like they’d seen far better days. More than a couple had stains that matched her hair. Most were tens and twenties, so it took me a few minutes to straighten the bills out, stack, and count them. They totaled a thousand dollars. “Where’d you get these?”

  “Daddy likes to hold on to old things, some for sentimental value. He also doesn’t trust banks. So…” She shrugged. “All the bills are legal tender. Take that money as a retainer and we have a deal. Return it and I go to your most potent rival and give him the opportunity.”

  This wasn’t an idle threat. One of my best investigators had gone off on his own a couple of years ago. He was giving me a run for it. A client tossing this kind of cash around was always good for ensuring your bills were paid, crazy or not. “Fine, I’ll take your case, Missus…”

  She laughed again. “Oh, I’m not married. Daddy says I’m too young yet, and besides, I haven’t met Mister Right. I’m Ruby Prince.” She pulled off her glove and put out her hand.

  I took it. It was warm – not freezing or overly hot, as I’d expected. “Nicholas Masters. Feel free to call me Nick.”

  She brightened. “That’s one of Daddy’s nicknames. I like it.”

  “Your father has more than one nickname?”

  “Oh yes. He’s very popular and has a lot of friends. They all call him something different. He likes it, makes him feel more beloved.”

  “You have a good relationship with your father?”

  Her eyes clouded. “Yes. Though I haven’t seen him in a while.” She shook herself. “What do we need to do to get started?”

  “I’d like a listing of what, precisely, you’re looking for, a listing of where you’ve already gone that hasn’t met your standards, and any other pertinent or relevant information, even if it’s on the fringes of being relevant.”

  She nodded. “I’ll go to my hotel and work on that right away.”

  “You could do it here. I find many times that it helps, you and me, if we do this sort of work together.” This was true, to a point. But I was asking her to stay more because I was finding her fascinating, in her way. I wanted to know more about her, especially about her relationship with her father and who he was. Professionally, of course.

  She cocked her head. “I can’t stay here too much longer. It’s just too cold. If you don’t mind being very warm, you could come back to my hotel with me and we could do the work there.”

  Every movie and detective novel said that this was a bad idea. I smiled. “Let me tell my assistant I’ll be gone the rest of the day.”

  Ruby was staying at the Phoenician. Whoever her father was, he was loaded. Her room was, as expected, broiling hot. We got in, and she heaved a sigh of relief and began removing layers.

  She finally stopped, revealing the figure I’d expected. She was in a long-sleeved sweater dress that hugged her curves. They were old-fashioned curves, very womanly, and I found myself staring.

  Ruby smiled at me. “Daddy believes that women should look like women.”

  “I agree with your father’s viewpoint.”

  She laughed again, and this time the sound traveled into my gut. I wanted her, and I wanted her now.

  She sat down at the desk in her suite, got a pen and paper, and started writing. “What do you want to know?”

  “How old are you?” Out of the parka, she looked younger than I’d been assuming.

  Ruby looked up at me, eyes twinkling. “Old enough to do whatever I want, and young enough to not always do the right thing. Why? How old are you?”

  “Thirty-two.”

  “That’s young to be as successful as you are.”

  “I’m driven.”

  “I guess you are.” She leaned back. “My mother passed away a few years ago. Daddy still misses her. He’s not happy that I’m traveling, but he understands why. I’m an only child. I was spoiled but not rotten. I like animals, most people seem interesting, but I don’t have any close friends here – all my friends are back home.”

  “Where is back home?”

  She looked sad. “Far, far away.” Ruby looked back at the paper on her desk. “What about you? What does Missus Masters do to pass the time?”

  “I’m not married. I don’t have a girlfriend, either.” I now felt like an idiot. My libido, however, felt like it was being tortured.

  Ruby looked back at me. “Oh? Why not?”

  “I’m not considered great-looking.” I also wasn’t used to sharing things like this with anyone, let alone a client. Ruby wasn’t doing anything that I could tell, but there was some kind of voodoo being worked on me.

  “Really? I think you’re quite handsome. Then again, I like men with widow’s peaks, a moustache, and a Van Dyke beard. You’re handsome in a rather old-fashioned way, which I find quite appealing.”

  I sat down in the chair on the other side of the desk. “Good to know.”

  “That can’t be the only reason you’re single.”

  “It’s not. I’m too suspicious. I don’t trust people’s motives, and I’m usually right not to. That puts a strain on relationships.”

  “I’m sure it must. That won’t bother me, however, so I’m sure we’ll get along just fine.” Her brow wrinkled. “Are you all right?”

  I swallowed. “I’m feeling hot in here.” I was. I was in a suit and sweating, though I had to admit this had more to do with lust than temperature.

  She shrugged. “Take your clothes off.”

  “Excuse me?”

  “Strip down to something acceptable where you’re a little more comfy. I’m used to people having to do that around me.”

  “I can’t.” I couldn’t. By now I was fully erect, and if I stood up, let alone undressed, I was going to rape her. I didn’t know what was wrong with me – I didn’t rape women, I didn’t force myself on them; I barely knew her, and while she was attractive, there was nothing about her that was giving me a logical reason for why I wanted her so badly.

  She looked a little closer at me. “Oh. I’m sorry. That happens sometimes. I don’t mean for it to, but it does.” She bit her lip and a growl escaped me. “Well, nothing for it.” She stood up and reached her hand to me. “I like you. I know you don’t really like me yet, but I need your help.”

  “What?”

  She took my hand, pulled me up, and then pulled me to the bed. “You’ll feel better, and more normal, afterwards. I promise.”

  We lay in bed together. I did indeed feel better after making love to her for several hours. What I didn’t feel like was normal. “It’s never been like that for me.” There I went again, telling her things I shouldn’t, and wouldn’t normally.

  “Really?” She sounded hopeful. “I thought it was wonderful.”

  I kissed her head. “So did I.”

  “Are you able to work now?”

  I thought about it. “Yes.” I thought some more. “How many men have you slept with, in order to get what you need?”

  “Oh, not that many. I usually just have them take a cold shower while I put my parka back on.” She shifted and looked at me. “I only make love to someone I actually like. Like you.”

  “You barely know me.”

  “Oh, I know you. I studied up on you before I came.” She leaned her head on my chest. “I need to find that place soon.”

  We got up and dressed. I still wanted her, but was sated enough that I could concentrate. She ordered room service and we worked.

  She’d been all over, to what I considered the usual suspects in terms of heat – Saudi Arabia, Yuma, here, Florida, and more places besides. “You know, some theorize that Hell is actually so hot it’s freezing,” I s
aid as we went through her temperature requirements, which were at the far end of what any human should be able to stand.

  “They’re wrong.” Ruby pointed to Death Valley. “I haven’t been there. I heard that Phoenix and Yuma were hotter.”

  “I think they are, at least at some points in the year, but Death Valley is certainly an option. Of course, it’s called Death Valley for a reason.”

  “Well, let’s consider it.” She sighed. “I don’t know that any well-known place is going to do it, though.”

  “Do what? What are you looking for?”

  Ruby looked at me like I’d asked an obvious question. “I want to find someplace where I feel comfortable enough that I don’t have to be bundled up like a sausage every day. Even in the room I’m not warm enough, and the cost for heating like this is exorbitant. Believe me, I know. I have to make special arrangements with every hotel.”

  “Your family has money.”

  “True, but Daddy doesn’t feel it should all go to the utility companies. Plus, I like to go outside, and it would be nice to be able to do so without having to wear three extra layers of warm clothing.”

  “Good points.”

  We went back to work. I pulled up every map of every region worldwide on my laptop, but she’d been to almost every hot spot in the world already.

  “Why did you wait so long to come to Phoenix?”

  “Oh, I liked the travel. I truly hoped this would be the end of my search, so I thought I’d check out my other options first.” She sighed. “No options and my search isn’t over. Other than meeting you, Phoenix has been a waste.”

  “Thanks.”

  “No, I mean it.” She smiled, reached over, and stroked my hand. “I’m very glad I met you. I enjoy remembering things, and I’ll always remember this time with you.”

  I realized she had absolutely no expectations of a relationship once we were done with her case. I was somewhat relieved. But I was also bereaved, much more than I should have been. I wondered if there was some drug in her perfume, but the truth was that she wasn’t wearing any. The only smell I got from her was her own feminine musk. So, if a scent was making me lovesick and lust filled, it was her natural one.

  I hadn’t eaten or had a drink until the room service arrived, so she couldn’t have slipped me some kind of aphrodisiac. No, I was feeling like this because of her.

  I went back to work. Somewhere in the middle of the night we went to bed. I made love to her again, again for hours. As we fell asleep I wrapped myself around her so she couldn’t leave in the night.

  We worked on her case for a month.

  What she wanted was simple – a place as hot as Hell. Ruby insisted she had no ulterior motives – she just hated being cold, even for a little while. I didn’t believe her.

  She was looking for a place that likely didn’t exist. I got the impression she was looking for something more than just a place to be warm. The pattern of her search prior to coming to me indicated a search of ancient sites. She’d exhausted those, then hit modern ones. I’d met her at the end of that search. Now she was trying the uncharted regions, and I got the distinct impression she was getting desperate, though she did her best to hide that from me.

  Finding places she hadn’t checked was the hard part, but after a week I’d found some good, albeit completely off the map, options to check out.

  But I didn’t tell her that. Instead, I kept on asking questions about her, her family, her wants, needs, and desires. And I kept on making love to her, as often as I could get away with it and still appear to be working.

  My staff sent me daily emails asking if I was ever coming back into the office. Ruby found these funny. I didn’t know how to answer them, other than to tell everyone to carry on and let me know if something vital needed me.

  We didn’t stay in the hotel suite the entire time. We went out, usually to dinner, sometimes to see if parts of the desert would be warm enough for her. At every place, Ruby insisted on paying.

  She always pulled the money out of her backpack. The money was always old, usually stained. Sometimes a gem or gold piece would surface, almost always if we were dealing with one of the Native Americans. She’d laugh, then put whatever precious gem or metal had surfaced away and get paper money. The backpack never changed shape – it always looked full, no matter how many times Ruby put her hand in and drew out a fistful of bills.

  Ruby seemed to find my fascination with her surprising. Not my initial lustful desires, but that they were still going on. I’d given up asking myself how or why. Despite knowing I was playing with fire, literally and figuratively, I focused instead on how to keep her with me.

  After a month, though, I couldn’t come up with any more stalling techniques. The time had come to check out the options I’d found for her. “We can check some of these places out in person. You want to start with Death Valley or leave it for last?”

  Ruby blinked. “You’re coming with me?”

  “If you want me to. I mean, some of these places are almost uncharted. You could get in trouble if you went alone.” And I didn’t want her to leave, in case I never saw her again.

  “No one else has ever wanted to come with me.” Ruby sounded confused. “Why do you want to? I’ll come back if I don’t find a place.”

  “And you won’t come back if you do.”

  “Nick, you’ve spent most of a month in an undershirt and shorts. Is that how you want to spend your days?”

  “Clothing’s overrated.” It was. I liked seeing Ruby naked, and that only happened in bed or in the shower. Otherwise, even in the room, she was too cold to stay undressed. I wanted to see her naked every day, to watch her walk around and see her breasts jiggle and her butt sway. I wanted to make love to her anywhere, not just in bed under five blankets and a down comforter.

  She looked doubtful. “Well, if you’re sure…”

  “I am.”

  I left her at her hotel and went home. I packed for a long trip, then called my assistant and assigned cases. I waited for the longing to be with Ruby to abate. It didn’t.

  I looked around my condo. I hadn’t wanted the fuss of a house, though I could afford a nice one. I had nothing but my business and staff tying me here – family was long gone and, like Ruby, I found most people interesting but had no close friends.

  The month I’d spent with Ruby was, in retrospect, the best of my life.

  I put anything of sentimental value or importance into my luggage, then went back to the Phoenician. She wasn’t there. All her things were gone and, per the front desk, she’d checked out thirty minutes after I’d left.

  I sat in my car and considered what to do.

  By now I was confident Ruby wasn’t truly of this plane of existence. Everything about her was human, except at the same time, nothing about her was normal. She struck me as a young woman who’d gone off to prove herself in the world, only to find that her father’s admonitions and warnings had all come true.

  I believed she wanted to find someplace hotter than Hell so she wouldn’t have to go home and admit defeat. Of course, if Hell was real – and by now I knew it was – there truly could be no place hotter. Those were the rules, after all. I knew this, and I knew that Ruby, in her heart of hearts, knew this, too.

  She loved her father, missed her home and her friends. Even if she found someplace where she was comfortable on the earthly plane, she was going to go back sooner or later. I bet on sooner.

  I also knew where she was going before she’d give up, just not where she’d choose first. So, I could go back to work and my life and just remember this time fondly – like a sane, normal, intelligent person would – or I could be a romantic idiot and go after her.

  It was the age-old question: Did I want to risk my life, my soul, for love?

  “What’s a nice girl like you doing in a desolate place like this?”

  “Shivering.” Ruby shook her head. “I didn’t think you’d come after me. You were supposed to realize our time to
gether was just a fling and go on with your life.”

  “Our relationship may have been a fling for you. It wasn’t for me.” I looked around. The wind blew and some dust devils sprang to life around her rental SUV and mine. We were literally in the middle of nowhere. “This place is really awful. Do you like it here?”

  “No. This is nothing like home. There’s no one and nothing here. How did you know I’d come to Death Valley first?”

  I shrugged. “In your prior search you left the most likely spot for last. So, logically, you’d leave the most likely spot for last again. Running away from me meant you’d try to fool me. You can’t, and here I am.”

  Ruby bit her lip. “Nick, I don’t think you understand what you’re trying to get involved with. Or who.”

  “I just spent a week tracking you. It was the longest of my life. I’ve never felt fear like this before, the fear that I’d be too late, that I’d never find you. I don’t want to go through that ever again.” Some hair flew into her face. I brushed it gently behind her ear. “At least it’s warm enough here that you could take one layer off.”

  “One layer isn’t really what I was hoping for.”

  “I know who you are. And I don’t care. I thought it was a spell or something that was making me want you so much, but it wasn’t. It was just you. You didn’t find me by accident – you were meant for me.”

  “You have no idea who I really am.” Ruby sounded sad. “You really don’t.”

  “Sure I do.” I took her hand and pulled her into my arms. “You said one of your father’s nicknames was Nick. I’d bet it’s really Ol’ Nick.”

  Ruby looked shocked. “Yes.”

  “Why are you here? On this plane of existence, I mean?”

  She sighed. “I got…bored. I thought things would be more interesting away from home. They are, in some ways. But…it’s just too cold.”

  I shrugged. “I can take the heat.”

  “So I’ve seen.” She looked down. “And now I can’t get back the way I wanted to.”