Guarding His Desires (Passionate Security Book 2)

by Jaylen Florian

  Choosing which one to develop further, Gustavo wants to pick the first outline. It is a classic pose, looking forward and directly at the viewer, which is most complimentary to his personal features, particularly his amber irises. If his goal is self-flattery, then he has an easy choice. However, the fourth and final outline intrigues him. Gustavo is looking downward with a titled head, hiding his eyes, though exuding no sadness or despair. He sees traces of his late father and his Brazilian heritage, particularly in his thick eyebrows, high cheekbones, and sensuous lips. Gustavo also foresees a puzzle. The outline beckons continued viewing to determine if the subject is at ease, in pain, revealing vulnerability, or hiding himself behind a formal manner.

  Making his selection, Gustavo moves the peculiar outline directly under the lights. He places the other three canvases behind a wall so they can no longer distract him. He prepares his palette, spending the most time blending colors to capture the light and creamy bronze of his skin tone. Gustavo decides against any mixed media. This is an experiment, not a piece he plans to complete for sale, and he has no need to adhere to his past techniques.

  For the moment Gustavo ignores the background and paints only his face, hair, neck, and shoulders. The result is pleasing to the eye. Though successful in terms of its enigmatic qualities, he finds it a near failure with conveying much depth about the subject—himself.

  He turns away, cleans his palette and brushes, stretches his arms and legs, and takes a stroll around the block to clear his mind. When he returns to the studio, Gustavo studies his portrait from all angles, up close and far away, from floor level and looking downward by standing on a chair. He folds his arms across his chest and pinches his chin. Gustavo recognizes his likeness on the canvas, but, he decides, the truth is that he is not really there.

  He is absent from his own self-portrait.

  Gustavo wants to destroy it. But the days of ruining canvases during fits and tantrums is years behind him. No matter how heinous, Gustavo does not let himself wreck incomplete artwork without a cooling off period.

  Instead of jabbing a paintbrush through it, Gustavo applies vivid colors to the palette. He is not going to invest the time to complete a background for a painting he will never sell. In the blank white space surrounding his head and shoulders Gustavo applies pinpricks of color—just dots—illustrating the colors he would want people to see if they could share his viewpoint. The greens and oranges are most complimentary to his skin and evoke a complexity that was missing before. Gustavo applies more paint and uses his brush to fan out the added colors, transforming dots to ethereal-like glows emanating from himself.

  The startling result has Gustavo's heart racing. Without any mixed media, he has achieved an extra dimensional effect. Worried he will go too far and lose the accomplishment, Gustavo immediately stops work and sets down his materials. From the back of the studio he observes something much more important than a dimensional effect.

  His self-portrait is illustrating an aura. An energy. His personal energy.

  7

  Interview

  Aleksey and Zachary exit the shared ride car at Yerba Buena Gardens in the South of Market zone of eastern San Francisco. They cross the oval-shaped park, then pass an extensive collection of movie theaters and museums. Admitted into a secure corner high-rise office complex, they advance through another round of security on a top floor and enter the offices of a nationally syndicated sports radio station. Both show hosts—one a retired athlete basketball player and the other a longtime sports journalist—genially welcome Zachary and spend a few minutes discussing interview topics with him. Aleksey stands behind Zachary, near his side, as usual in settings like this, drawing no attention to himself.

  The hosts treat Zachary like a rockstar. They have had numerous athletes with more accomplishments, money, and fame join them for taped interviews. But Zachary's previous segment, taped a year ago, was repeatedly aired due to popular demand. Instead of canned answers, he engaged the listeners with authentic and down-to-earth descriptions of what life is like for a contemporary mixed martial arts fighter. Zachary made no attempts to disparage his competitors or bluster with trash talk or false statements of grandeur. He shared his awareness of the need to please the audiences without losing focus on winning the bouts. He spoke of fears of injury, both temporary and permanent, and the battles between his doubts and his confident mindset. Zachary also was truthful about the money—how much of it was up for grabs in the fighting leagues—in purses and prizes, not to mention the endorsements, private clients wanting tips and lessons, social media plugs, paid appearances, charity functions, and international events. Well-spoken and forthright, Zachary gave listeners insights they were not accustomed to hearing on sports interview shows.

  Zachary enters a small studio with textured, foam-covered walls designed to absorb sound and prevent echoes. He sits with exceptional posture and arched back on a stool across from the hosts, comfortably positioned so that the microphone is only a few inches from his mouth. The taping begins when the producer switches on the red light. Aleksey, standing just outside the transparent door, faces the hallway.

  Zachary is introduced and answers questions about his some of his training techniques, his vegan diet, and his efforts to avoid strangers who think they are tough and want to "test" their strength by challenging Zachary to a punch.

  "Tell us about loneliness," the retired athlete broadcasts. "With the travel, the pressure, and the injuries, is it possible to build a life with someone special?"

  "Frankly, no," Zachary answers. "Let me temper my answer by noting that there are many men and women in the fighting leagues who are building futures with spouses and partners. So we have to rule out a blanket response that applies to everyone. I know that for myself, and the fighters I am closest to, regardless of whether their careers have peaked or not, meaningful romance is not possible."

  "How sad," the longtime sports journalist broadcasts. "Why?"

  "You find that sad?" Zachary asks. "Athletes are not the only people who sometimes must delay that part of their lives. What is the hurry? Would you want to fall in love and then regret it? Blame someone else for your life getting complicated and goals that are not achieved? No. That is not fair to anyone."

  Aleksey, unable to hear the taped interview, sends text messages on his phone to his boyfriend while guarding Zachary's presence in the studio.

  "Are you falling in love with me or my hair?" he writes.

  "It better be the former, babe," Rafael answers, also by text. "Why?"

  "I went to a salon today and made kind of a big change."

  "Color? Curls? Braids?"

  "I'll show you tonight on a video call," Aleksey writes.

  "Any news from your boss on choosing his new home?" Rafael asks.

  "Not yet. The decision is on his mind though. Hopefully we will know soon."

  "Vegas. Please let it be Vegas."

  "I know. I want that too, Rafael."

  Behind Aleksey, inside the studio, the journalist host closes the taping with a rapid-fire word association game with Zachary.

  "Victory," the host says, raising his voice as if asking a question.

  "Discipline," Zachary immediately answers, without missing a beat.

  "Lose."

  "Recover."

  "Chase."

  "Conquest," Zachary answers.

  "Strength," the host says.

  "Seeds."

  "Love."

  "Later."

  After the red light extinguishes and they leave the studio, the hosts plead with Zachary to let them treat him to supper at a four star restaurant on the waterfront. He politely declines, fibbing that he has a dinner appointment, but thanks the hosts for bringing him in for the interview. He promises to return when invited again in the future.

  "I almost gave too much away," Zachary says to Aleksey, telling him about the word association game as they ride down the elevator.

  "Someone clever is going to remember
you associated seeds with strength," Aleksey replies. "I bet you get asked about it in a future interview. Do you have a plausible answer ready?"

  "Sure. I can detour and talk about the benefits of a plant-based diet."

  "Did the interviewers ask anything else related to sexuality?"

  "Nope."

  "Would you admit to your desires for men?" Aleksey asks.

  "I would," Zachary answers. "But they never ask."

  8

  Observatory

  Due to the amiable 75-degree temperature and cloudless sky, crowds of local people from Los Angeles and tourists from around the world are converging at the observatory on Mount Hollywood. Nobly roosting like an art deco palace on the south-facing slope, Griffith Park Observatory and its three copper domes give visitors the sensation of being suspended above the Los Angeles basin, from hills and neighborhoods west of the downtown skyscrapers to the Pacific Ocean on the east.

  Gustavo nonchalantly blends in among the masses, leisurely touring the interior exhibits, planetarium, telescopes, and educational theater. Though fascinated by astronomy and space, this afternoon his primary interest is the human condition, not stars and planets. Gustavo is people-watching, casually, so as not to disturb anyone, stare, cruise, or invoke alarm or suspicion.

  Specifically, he is trying to identify and behold auras. Gustavo knows that the concepts of people and animals, and perhaps even locations, having unique auras is at least a century old. It is even traceable back to ancient times with different terminology, but it is not something that he has seriously contemplated and focused on until now. He mistakenly thought that auras, or energies and intangible forces, were claimed solely for the realms of religion and medicine.

  Challenging himself to ignore lines and shapes of bodies and faces, Gustavo finds that it is not difficult to perceive an individual's energy. Body language alone is revelatory and it is not arduous to discern a person's vitality apart from her or his clothing or facial expressions. He sees that these detectable energies change, obviously and easily, depending on a person's emotional state. For example, these types of transformations dramatically occur while he witnesses friends sharing gossip, lovers speaking to each other with intimacy, and young people battling their parents for snacks or souvenirs.

  Gustavo's people-watching efforts are even less complicated outdoors on the plaza north of the observatory entrance. On the vast expanses of grass lawns between the entry pathways, people are visiting, enjoying picnics, taking photographs, typing into their phones, or waiting for their friends or family to arrive. Gustavo sits and relaxes on the grass, wearing a ball cap and sunglasses, while people stream in and out of the attraction. The people around him are mostly calmer too, which is understandable since they are not dealing with lines or interacting much with strangers. Like Gustavo, they are in a public space, but afforded some privacy, which alters their demeanor.

  As he is taking prolonged and meditative breaths, Gustavo's epiphany dawns. A visual tone materializes for each person he examines. Some glow, some don't. Some are rich with color, while others are in a haze. Some radiate energy, some absorb it. There are people surrounded by ethereal vibrations, ranging from delicate popping motions to raging swirls and piercing gushes. Gustavo studies dozens of strangers in this manner and every one of them reveals unique qualities of an aura with color and motion.

  Beholding an elderly couple holding hands and moving from the bronze sundial to the obelisk-like Astronomers Monument in the center of the plaza, Gustavo's revelations advance further. The couple revolves around the monument, looking at the sculptured faces of the six featured astronomers: Nicolas Copernicus, Galileo Galilei, John Herschel, Hipparchus, Johannes Kepler, and Isaac Newton. The older woman and man possess their own energies, but their auras interact, creating something effervescent and dynamic.

  His breakthrough makes him restless. Gustavo leaps to his feet, travels around the grand dome, overlooks the breadth of Los Angeles before him, and tackles his skepticism. Is this a true insight or a playful imagination? His thoughts ponder whether he just sees what he wants to see or if there is really more—a noticeable energy or aura accompanying physical life forms. Millions of people live in the miles stretching before him. Each one of them has a discernible spirit?

  Gustavo is not threatened with the notion that people and animals have souls. He believes they do. But something that is so essential and personal as a spirit being an expressive and existing form, not an idea, is phenomenal.

  If accurate, it potentially changes everything.

  Numerous serpentine-like trails maze through the landscape surrounding the observatory. They are popular with joggers, hikers, families, couples, photographers, and others pursuing outdoor adventure. Gustavo launches onto a primary trail descending eastward from the plaza and then south down the slope of Mount Hollywood. He puts his new discoveries to the test, observing several people enjoying the trail around him, and within half an hour his epiphany is confirmed.

  Spirits are visually detectable and unique, and they attain new forms, speed, and power when entangled with the other auras of others.

  Gustavo crawls under the shady branches of a small tree to escape his surroundings and record his discoveries without interruption. He sits with his back to the trail and types his notes into his phone, trying to select accurate words that will help him summon and remember everything he has witnessed. Gustavo fills many screens with text, including facts and everything flowing in his thoughts. Countless minutes roll by, shadows lengthen and the sky darkens, and the sounds of footsteps passing by him on the trail fades to a trickle.

  A lumbering gait descending down the trail catches Gustavo's attention. He turns around, still cloaked behind tree branches, and watches a middle-aged man in a pin-stripe navy business suit shuffling his fancy shoes, stirring up dust, and whipping his head from side-to-side. His thin eyebrows are furled and his mouth is open and distorted. The man, slightly overweight and with a receding hairline, carrying a long and slender tube-like package, shambles off the trail into a nook in the mountainside thirty feet below Gustavo.

  "Dear God," the man whimpers with an unrecognizable accent, "please forgive me."

  Gustavo sees the man's head drop out of sight and hears the sound of a body crashing to the ground. He scrambles out of the tree's shelter, down the slope, and finds the man lying on his side with his head against the dirt and his eyes clenched shut.

  "Are you hurt?" Gustavo asks, reaching out his hand. "Are you having a seizure?"

  The man mumbles an unintelligible reply.

  "You are in medical distress?" Gustavo asks, activating his phone and trying to remain calm. "I will 9-1-1 for you."

  "No!" The man roars his response, awkwardly waving his arm in agitation at Gustavo. "Stop!"

  "I am not touching you," Gustavo replies, "so don't scream. You need help."

  "No help," the man responds, slurring his thickly-accented words and struggling for breath. "Leave me."

  "You are having a heart attack? You have been poisoned? What is happening?"

  "Leave me."

  Gustavo crouches down to get a closer look at the man's pupils, which are not dilated. He again extends his hand but takes care not to touch the man.

  "I am not leaving you suffering like this," Gustavo says, lifting his phone again. "What is your name? Let me call in some help for you."

  "Help her then," the man says, suddenly cogent but still having difficulty with his breathing and English pronunciation, handing the box to Gustavo. "Take this. Run!"

  "Why?"

  "Wanda. Cobra de capello."

  "What?"

  "Please go! Now!"

  Catching sight of something behind and to the side of Gustavo, the man's face instantly contorts into a petrified expression. Gustavo flips his head around. A short and stocky man wearing a camouflage hunting mask, brown t-shirt, jeans, and black boots charges toward him.

  Gustavo springs to his feet and scurries up th
e incline. The masked man clutches Gustavo's hind right leg and tries to yank him downward, knocking his phone out of his hand. Gustavo's left leg strikes the man in the head, freeing his right leg from the man's grip. Gustavo dashes across the trail and into the desert brush on the mountainside. Hearing the man chasing him, he runs with all his force, darting out of the way of trees and rocks. Even after he is certain that the man is no longer behind him, Gustavo sprints for several more minutes.

  Reaching a thick patch of evergreen trees, Gustavo kneels down behind a boulder. He carefully peeks over it. Optimally placed mid-slope, his vantage point permits a full survey of the mountainside east of the observatory. Not hearing or seeing any signs of pursuit, Gustavo takes stock of his situation. His hands are raw from scrapes and abrasions against the desert vegetation. There are some tears in his clothing. His wallet and keys remain in his pockets, his phone is missing, and he is still holding the heavy tube-like package.

  Gustavo remains frozen in place until darkness fully descends. His watch indicates he has less than an hour to reach the parking lot before the observatory closes at ten o'clock. Gustavo finally emerges from the protection of the trees and climbs the barren mountainside. He stays as low to the ground as he can so that his silhouette cannot be spotted moving up the rocks.

  Upon reaching a bank of trees by the parking lot, most of the vehicles have departed. In the middle of the lot, his own car is alone, like an island, fully illuminated in the lights. Gustavo remains in the darkness and scans the entirety of the parking lot. He looks for someone he can approach to request their phone and call the police. But he sees nobody in or out of their vehicles.

  Gustavo bursts into the lights, dashing toward his car, and abruptly spots danger. From the restroom facilities on the other side of the lot, the stocky man appears. He runs directly toward Gustavo in the same attire he wore at the nook, but with the ski mask folded into the shape of a knit cap. Gustavo surges ahead, climbs into his car and slams the door shut just in the nick of time.