by Derek Adam
“It’s fine, Luca. I appreciate the ride here and helping me look.” Her eyes looked me over. “Be safe.”
It was pretty clear in her tone that she was brushing me off. That stung a little bit…
“I’m not ungrateful.”
“I know.” She smiled at me, but it was a small one and was forced. Practiced. “I’ll be fine here if you want to go.”
“Whoa, hey. Listen, I know you can handle yourself, but after all that, you want to stay here?”
“I have more to look at, I think. Really, Luca. I’ll be fine.”
I started to protest again, when my attention was caught by the sound of nails striking wood. Beyond Emma, I could see Bella padding in through the front door of the cabin.
She didn’t make it very far inside when her hackles raised. She lowered her frame a little and went rigid, a low growl rumbling forth.
Her eyes were the only thing moving, as if she was searching for something. Bella bared her teeth, her lip quivering.
Emma had turned when I glanced toward the door and watched with me. She flipped her wrist, gesturing toward the husky.
“Bella. Aus!” Emma snapped at the dog, and it was the first time I’d heard her speak with any kind of force. It was so potent, I felt compelled to listen, or sit… or do something. I didn’t know.
Bella responded immediately and turned, marching back out the door, though she continued to grumble and growl low on the way out.
“Did she see something?”
“No. It’s just this place. She feels what I feel.”
“Well, if it’s anything like what I felt, then I still say we get the hell out of here.”
“Luca, I need to look around more.”
“It’s getting late. There’s no electricity, there’s no furniture, you don’t even have a backpack or food. OH… and… demons.”
She looked like she wanted to argue with me. I was waiting for the protest, but she said nothing.
“I have to go back to town. Come with me, Emma. I’ll get us some food and get you a room. A week in the forest, I’m sure you want a shower… yeah?”
“You don’t have to do that.”
“My way of saying thanks for keeping that bodekin out of my goodies.” If I could convince that one completely sober girl at the bar that I was Chris Hemsworth’s stunt double, I was pretty sure I could get Emma to leave with me. “I can bring you back in the morning, if it’s that important to you… I don’t think Hitch will make a fuss about me needing a little more time.”
She chewed the inside of her lip and I shrugged a little at her in response.
“You’re not gonna let this go, are you?”
I grinned and lifted my chin defiantly. Because I was Thor, dammit.
“You stay, I stay. You’ll have to babysit me from boogeymen all night long, and Sutter says I sing in my sleep.”
She smiled again; though, this time, it was natural and genuine.
It made her face light nicely and made me swallow hard. Mostly from a slight twinge of worry that she might call my bluff and decide to stay.
Also, because she was absolutely fucking gorgeous, and I really couldn’t deny that anymore.
Trying to ignore it was more distracting than anything else.
I was also really hungry.
“Alright, Luca.”
Chapter 7 – Emma
I learned a long time ago that this was the kind of lifestyle where you stay by yourself.
You don’t have ties to anyone.
This has always been all-consuming for as long as I could remember. Back to the beginning.
Those few times I tried to get close to anyone were sharp reminders of just how consuming this was. That I didn’t get to have what other people had.
One of the men stood out in my memory the most.
I’ll never forget what he told me:
“You aren’t wealthy until you have something money can’t buy.”
He was a mechanic. A beautiful man who gave me flowers and made me feel warm. But he was just a mechanic, and just a person.
He didn’t see what I saw.
During that time, I’d give anything to give back what I had that couldn’t be bought with money.
Kyle died the same way they all did. Violently, by the hands of the things I hunted.
Because of me.
Because they were close to me.
If that was wealthy, then I’d rather be poor. At least, that’s how I felt for a long time. Kyle was my last attempt at trying to find purpose.
Purpose beyond what I had been given, and what I was tasked to do.
I stopped wishing and hoping years ago, and finally accepted that this was all-consuming, and that I would stay alone.
Then I met Luca.
From where I stood at the edge of the thin strip of a parking lot, I could see him inside the hotel, talking with wildly animated gestures.
He looked like he was arguing with the old guy at the desk, but there was laughter thrown in as well.
I considered leaving. I could take any one of these cars and drive back to the cabins. I wanted to see the others for myself.
But there was a twang of guilt at the idea of ditching him.
Bella whined quietly and at the moment I glanced down, her eyes seemed to glow with a bright luminescence.
It faded as the headlights continued past from the nearby road, leaving us in the shallow light of the parking lamp nearby.
“I know, you’re hungry. Soon. I should have thought of you.”
Bella’s mouth fell open as she panted up at me, but only briefly before she turned and continued to prowl through the grass for the perfect spot.
She was taking longer than usual. I blame the trash and various wrappers that littered the weeds here.
People were filthy in this town.
Bella was enjoying herself, though. It was a buffet of odor that distracted her from doing her duty.
No, I would stay. Bella needed to rest. A shower sounded wonderful. I wanted coffee, even though I didn’t need it.
And Luca had gone to enough trouble. It was the least I could do.
I turned my attention back as I thought about him, and saw him crossing the lot to his truck nearby. He threw some papers into the driver’s seat before walking to me.
He was grinning, and even in the poorly lit parking lot, I could see the growing gleam of his teeth as he rubbed his hands together.
“I got the room for you. It’s not exactly the Westin… more like a two-star joint in the sticks. But I know Oliver, so I was able to bargain a bit.”
“Thank you.” I took the key card from him and smiled as he winked at me.
“Right on. It’s the room next to the office. I asked Oliver to keep an eye out.” Luca shrugged and smirked. “Not that you need it, really… obviously. Just asked him to.”
“Which room is yours?”
“Oh… well, I could only get the one for you. I’ve got my truck.”
“Luca, I can’t let you sleep in your truck.”
“I do it all the time. That’s my home.” He grinned at me, the excitement suddenly pouring off his face. “You wanna see?”
He turned and jogged toward the truck before I could respond. A quick glance told me Bella was still hunting and nosing through the grass. I let curiosity pull me along after him toward the back of the truck.
He had the lock off and was pushing the door upward, standing on the bumper as I came around the back.
“Eh? Yeah?” He stood to the side of the open door, showing off the interior with an outstretched arm.
It was remarkably clean, with thick rubber mats on the floor of the truck. There was a large work bench and desk on the left, with a rolling chair that was strapped in place with bungee cables.
The right wall of the truck was floor to ceiling with cabinets, shelves draped in netting across their openings, countless drawers, as well as additional several tall metal lockers.
He held
a hand out to invite me up, but I waved him off, stepping up on my own to the bumper and into the truck.
It was lit with small LED lights draped through cargo netting that clung to the top of the interior, the lights weaving around and hanging like small twinkling stars.
There was another area at the very back, acting as a loft, up above the cab of the truck. Luca had built that space out as a bed, though the walls all around the loft bed were covered in little bookcases.
Each was filled with books held in place by more small bungees.
My favorite part had to be the shallow cage on the left wall near the work bench.
I recognized every one of the guns he had stored. It made me smile again.
Not the guns, but the assorted display of swords also stored inside the cage. They were ancient; that was obvious enough, if you knew what to look for.
I loved swords.
“I thought you might like that.” He wandered into the truck’s interior. It wasn’t too spacious, but I could see how living alone, it would be comfortable. “Let me get something for you.”
He opened a few drawers and fished around before pulling out a couple small bottles.
“Here…” I smiled inwardly as he placed the tiny travel bottles of shampoo and conditioner in my hand, along with a pink one that was blank. “Just some… body wash and whatnot. Leftovers from an old girlfriend. Figured they would come in handy.”
A shower immediately sounded so much better and I wanted to thank him again, but it felt a bit redundant.
Bella’s nails clicked at the metal of the truck and we both turned. She was standing on her hind legs, front paws on the edge of the truck’s floor, panting and staring at us curiously.
“I should get her some food.”
“Go ahead and get cleaned up.” Luca fished his keys from his pocket. “I’ll bring some food back for you ladies.”
“Thank you, Luca.”
He winked at me again and smiled. “Right on.”
*****
Eight days.
Not the longest I’d gone without taking some downtime, and certainly not the most exhausting hunt.
Still, I felt abnormally drained and dirty.
I figured it had a lot to do with the condition of those cabins, and the foul darkness bundled with hate that was so heavily concentrated there.
When was the last time I had felt something so intense? Where was I? Palermo, maybe. Or was it Panama?
The most memorable was Berlin. That was unforgettable, but it had been a while.
I kept my eyes closed, as the hot water poured over me. It was refreshing and absolutely needed. I had it as hot as I could stand, finding comfort in the sting of the scalding water.
It took the intense heat to even begin to make me feel clean.
Or to feel warm.
I continued working my hands slowly through my hair to remove the conditioner. A luxury I didn’t really use often. There weren’t many opportunities to pamper myself.
Or I just didn’t take them.
It was nice of Luca to give this to me.
I rinsed my face and took a deep breath, sighing. Everything felt more relaxed. Luca hung in my thoughts as I stood in the shower.
I should have stayed. Bella could have found food. I didn’t need to be here. This was a luxury I didn’t need.
The thought of a bit more time with Luca was what really lured me. I had things I wanted to ask him. He was a curiosity.
His ability to see across the veil was so rare, and he was so calm about it. He had a collected confidence and intelligence, but an endearing silliness that held my attention.
But there was something else I felt in him, that was a sharper distraction.
I felt warmer inside as the water flowed over me, and took a deep breath. I could taste the metal and minerals in the steam that rolled and hung in the air.
His tattoos were fitting and I wondered what they were for. I couldn’t recall any of them exactly, but they were all over his arms and hands, and his neck.
I relaxed a bit more, sliding a hand down my stomach as the water poured over me. I continued down, taking in another deep breath of the hot air as I moved to touch myself.
Luca’s face was there as I shut my eyes. I focused on it intently as I pressed firmly and began a slow massage with my fingertips.
There was an ache that rose suddenly and sharply. One I had ignored for years. I felt a growing need. It was there when I was with Luca, but I hadn’t identified it for what it really was.
I sighed as I felt the pleasure rise, putting one hand up on my shoulder to rub at the crook of my neck. I wanted to feel his mouth there and imagined what the dark beard on his chin would feel like against my skin.
Breathing deeply, I increased the pressure from my fingers.
Bella barked sharply and I blinked, straightening and turning to find her head peering around the shower curtain.
She was staring at me, mouth closed, like a statue.
“What?”
She grumbled as her head dipped before she bounced her nose toward me and huffed.
“I’m almost done. You’ll get fed. You’re lucky Luca was sweet enough to feed you.” I stood there as she stared at me. “I’d have made you catch your own dinner.”
I ran a hand through my hair and sighed, my thoughts still on him, but clarity had returned. That rise of lust was shattered by a furry attention whore.
She grumbled again and whined quietly.
“He is sweet, isn’t he? And different.” I ran my hands over areas I had already washed. I was finished. I didn’t need to wash more, but I was hoping for an inkling of the feeling to return.
I glanced to find Bella still staring intently at me and my shoulders sagged, my arm dropping.
“Bella. Aus.”
She didn’t budge. I scoffed and stuck my chin and jaw toward her, scowling a bit.
She grumbled.
“Aus!”
Her head disappeared as she pulled back. It wasn’t like her to argue with me.
Well, it was. That was exactly like Bella. It was the disregard for her commands that bothered me. That was very much unlike her.
“Can’t even get a moment to myself. Bella… five minutes with Luca would have been perfect. I don’t ask for much.”
I turned the handle for the shower and pushed the curtain to the side. She was sitting in the middle of the bathroom floor, slowly wagging her tail.
“At least one of us gets to stay excited.” I gave her an eye roll as I wrapped in the towel and grabbed another for my hair.
When I stepped around through the doorway of the bathroom, I came up short and stared at the bed.
Neatly folded clothes were set at the end. Across from them, on the long dresser, were several Styrofoam carryout boxes, along with a plastic pouch featuring a cartoon dog.
I turned and looked back at Bella, who was standing just to my side with ears erect. The speed of her tail wagging doubled when I looked at her.
“He was in here while I was in the shower… and you wanted that food.”
She barked deep and edged a bit closer to me.
“Oh… perfect.”
Bella grumbled, either out of impatience or at my thoughts.
I grabbed the plastic pouch and looked over the generic dog treats.
“You could have told me.” I waved the bag at her. “I should make you eat these.”
I tossed the sack down, grabbing the largest of the takeout boxes and opened it, setting it down on the floor in front of her. She wasted no time. Everything else in the world was forgotten in that moment, and replaced with the most important task of all.
She went about noisily putting an end to an overloaded hamburger. I could feel her, completely unfiltered and unguarded. She had become fifty pounds of joy, muscle, and substantial fluff.
It was another moment where I envied her for that ability to block it all out and find absolute bliss.
Chapter 8 – Luca
Eight days.
Going on nine days now, as I looked at the time.
I had hoped to find a deposit in the account, but still nothing. It was pretty unusual for the transfer to take that long.
“You should write the bank a strongly-worded letter.” Virgil stood over me, next to my chair. I switched tabs to continue my research when Sutter chimed in from his perch up on my overhead bunk.
“That don’t matter. I want to hear more about what she said.”
“I told you what she said, Sutter.” I didn’t give him my full attention, choosing instead to focus on my work. I turned the laptop a bit toward Virgil so he could see the screen.
I plugged the SD card from the busted phone into an adapter and stuck it into the laptop.
“Yeah, but… c’mon Rooster. You ’spect me to believe you didn’t peek at her butt? You did, you dog. Admit it. I ain’t gonna harsh ya for it. Hell, boy, I’d be proud of ya.”
“Shut up, Sutter.” I opened the drive and started picking through the image files. “Here, Virgil. These.”
I tipped the screen of the laptop back a bit more for him to see and he bent over to look, picking at his bushy mustache while he pondered.
“Ain’t nothin’ wrong with lovin’ a woman, son, unless she’s unclean. Bible has rules against eating unclean meat.” Sutter could barely finish the words without laughing loudly. I glanced back toward him silently.
He was sitting on the edge of the overhead, kicking his feet like a child as he laughed.
“Grow up, Sutter.”
“Aww, c’mon now, Rooster. Don’t get mad. You know I’m messin’. Your heart is my piñata!”
“You see it, Virgil?” I ignored Sutter. It was the best way to get him to stop.
“…which is kind of bass ackwards for your heart to be a piñata, when you’re such a candy ass.”
He laughed again at his own joke, good and loud, like an old drunk cowboy off his rocker.
Which… he basically was, through and through.
Virgil started to laugh and managed to catch it, clearing his throat to mask it with a cough.
“Oh, don’t you fuckin’ start.” I ran a hand through my hair, shaking my head as I dropped my hand to scratch at the stubble around my ears.