by Alexie Aaron
“Staring at my unusual wardrobe.”
“Why?”
“Murphy says, if I continue to dress like a slut, then he will continue to hit on me. Do I dress like a slut?”
“Mia, you have such a beautiful body that you could be in granny panties and a housedress and you’d turn me on.”
She looked over at him.
“This position could keep him from doing that. On the job anyway,” Ted pointed out.
“For the record, you’re the only one I listen to,” Mia said.
“What about Dupree?”
“He’s a friend that will agree with any stupid thing I say. That is what being a friend is for. They listen, they let you vent, they calm you down, and then joke you out of a bad mood, and in most cases, we take it out on Burt.”
Ted laughed.
“For example, Burt made Mike and me stay in that cabin bedroom within inches of each other when we were happier with the distance between us across the room. I told him that I would oblige, but that he would be responsible when the next kid that pops out of me really looks like Dupree.”
“Okay, now I get why he didn’t consider you for the job.”
“I don’t want the job, Ted. I have my hands full.”
“Why did you pop Murphy in the nose?”
“It’s the Martin way.”
Ted couldn’t help laughing. He took Mia in his arms and kissed her. “There is a position available in the tech department.”
“A missionary position?”
“Oh no, this is a ground level position. You need to work your way up.”
“Ah, Menu C.”
Cid smiled. He didn’t say anything to anyone else. He just patted Murphy on the back and congratulated him. Burt was a smart man. He knew that Mia would chafe under Murphy’s yoke, and she wouldn’t put up with any nonsense from him, thus keeping temptation away from the oversexed Mrs. Martin. When would they learn that you couldn’t control Mia? You just had to love her.
~
Altair decided to see Mia in his fallen form. There was no need for pretense. Mia walked into the room and straight into his arms. He didn’t stop her from crying. He understood. He just held on to her. When she was finished, they had a drink. Mia stared at him. She could see faint traces of angel, but the corruption of his fall had altered his features.
“How can you touch me, Mia?” he asked.
“How can you respect me?” she asked.
“We are what we are. I watched you when you burned down your house. I kind of helped you,” he confessed.
“Did you? I thought the wind was a bit high in the neighborhood. I didn’t stay. Did she cross?” Mia asked, sitting at the edge of her seat.
“She did. She looked for you before she went.”
“That makes me happy, Altair.”
“Tell me, what happened with Quentin? He didn’t hurt you, did he?”
“No,” Mia said before she told him the whole story.
“Show me,” he said after she finished.
Mia pulled her dress up and off her body. Altair touched her back and ran his hands along the lotus flower.
“Careful, that, um.”
“I can see what it does to you. I will be careful.” He didn’t hand her back her clothes. He traced her lash marks with his hand. “Why they get such pleasure from destroying a perfect back… Quentin did hold back. I’ve seen worse. Damn!”
“What?”
“Don’t turn around. Please cover yourself.”
Mia did as she was told. Altair had his back to her. She drank her drink and poured herself another. She closed her eyes and focused a moment. She walked up to him and put her bare hand on his temple and instructed, “Open this thought capsule after I have gone.”
He turned and smiled. “Why did you come?”
“It wasn’t to seduce you,” she said. “I came to ask you about Lobo, Billy and Yann’s souls. Could they be just out there? Or would their attackers have collected them?”
“The demons that killed them were not looking for soul bounty. They are out there, hopefully, where your researcher thinks they would be.”
“If I try and recover them, will I be breaking any demon laws?”
“No. They are your dead. Why else did you come?”
“I wanted to teach you how to play chess,” she said. “Come.” Mia led him over to his chess table. “Never lead with your queen.”
He smiled indulgently. He had played poorly because he was worried about her. He sat down and waited for her first move.
That’s how Nordin, the butler, found them: hunched over the chessboard, Mia trying, unsuccessfully, to distract Altair.
“You can’t use sex in chess,” he said, pointing his finger at her. “Save that for checkers.”
This caused Mia to laugh.
Altair ended up winning. Mia excused herself and promised to return when she was able to give him some quality time.
She stopped at the door and thanked Nordin before she left.
The butler walked into the library. Altair was putting the chess pieces back. “Mrs. Martin informs me that the winner has to pick up.”
“Are you alright, sir?”
“Yes, I think so. Good night.”
Altair waited until he heard the door of the butler’s room click shut before he sat by the fire and opened Mia’s thought capsule. Images moved before his eyes. They were naught but thoughts, but she had been honest with him and not broken her vows. She presented a vision of them alongside the burned out house all those years ago and wove a story. At the end she said, “To embrace the wind is one of the greatest pleasures I can have.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
Mia and Mike turned green the moment they stepped inside the building. The overwhelming feeling of fear and violence was too much for them. Mike’s stomach was overwhelmed. Mia found herself in the men’s john, puking in the cubicle next to him. They walked out and sat on the curb to get some stability and air.
Burt found them there, leaning on each other. “I need you both to man up. We have interviews to do. The manager wants his interview done by our Ms. Bodacious Beach Body.”
“Give us a moment, please,” Mia begged.
“What if we think of it as an abattoir?” Mike suggested.
“It smells like blood. I don’t mean to be difficult, but all I feel is their fear,” she said. “I need a drink.”
“Mia, we can’t have you out of control,” Mike said. “You look nice. I like that sweater. Cashmere?”
“Yes. I had to wear something that wouldn’t show the lash marks. Burt wanted me to look hot, but I can’t show any skin. I figured it would be cold in there.
“It’s too loose. Come on,” he instructed. He pulled her into the back of the trailer. “Ted, where are those little bungees?”
“In the file drawer marked bungee,” he said.
Both Mike and Mia had to laugh. Ted’s normal filing techniques would stump Sherlock Holmes, so when he did something so ordinary as filing something according to its name or use, it was unexpected. Mike took a handful of them and methodically began to hook them on either side of her sweater, pulling it tight. That’s when he saw the lotus flower scar for the first time. “What the fuck is that?”
Ted got up and pushed him away from Mia. He tucked her sweater into her pants. He lifted her face and asked, “Are you alright?”
“He didn’t know,” she said quietly.
Mike watched as Ted placed a calming hand on Mia’s face. “Just get the interview done. Don’t think about where you are. Listen to the manager with rapt attention. Mike will do the rest.”
“Yes, Ted,” she said softly.
Mike let Mia go on ahead. “I’m sorry. I had no idea,” he apologized.
“Her back is torn up. She’s so worried that people will think less of her. I know I’m going to regret this, but keep flirting with her,” Ted instructed.
Mike nodded. “Mia, wait up. Here, take my leather vest. It will
cover the bungee cords.”
Mia hid her hurt feelings. She had heard Ted’s instruction. She put on the vest, and Mike lifted her hair up and spied Sariel’s mark. “Mia, that looks kind of hot.” He brushed her hair over her head and let it fall around her shoulders. He leaned in and kissed her hard on the mouth. “Don’t hit me, trust me,” he said.
Burt filmed as Mia and Mike walked in. Damn, if she didn’t look like she just had made out. Her lips were red and bruised, her hair mussed up. She smiled at the man she was contracted to interview. He was blown away.
Ted looked at his wife and talked to her via the com. “Mia, you look like you have been giving Mike something from Menu D.”
She looked in the camera and smoldered to punish her husband. Burt knew that, if this had been live, no one on the other side of that camera would be listening to the interview. A hundred thousand teenage boys would have just become men.
When the interview was done, Mike carefully took the bungee cords off the sweater. It was now kind of stretched out. It fell off one shoulder. Audrey knew Mia had just purchased that sweater, and she wanted to look nice not naughty. Audrey was sorry she had ever set up this investigation. It was very evident that Mia was in no shape to shine. Cid walked by Audrey. He picked Mia up like a sack of potatoes and set her down with the other cable spools. Mia woke up and started to laugh.
“Oh, I’m sorry. You were just standing there, and I thought you were a spool,” Cid said.
“Ah, don’t let him wind you up, pumpkin,” Ted said. “I need you to do whatever you did to get those lips pouty, and get your ass in front of that camera.”
“Really?” she asked, surprised.
“That’s an order.”
“Dupree!” she shouted.
Mike walked over. Mia took his head in her hands and kissed him hard. She stepped in front of the camera. “Is this what you wanted, Ted?” she asked icily.
“Um, yes.”
Mike followed Mia on the tour. She made out with him at every turn. He was about to pop when Ted called uncle.
“I feel so cheap,” Mike complained.
Burt laughed. “No, you don’t. Mia, I think we have enough sex appeal. Let’s work on some actual investigation.”
“Roger. Hey, where is our security guy?” she asked as a sudden wave of angst rushed over her.
“Why? Do you want to make out with him too?” Ted asked, clearly no longer amused.
“No, he’s my boss. I’d like to check in.”
Audrey slid in beside Ted. She patted him on the back. “I think you got their minds off the slaughterhouse, but wow, Mike’s only got so much left.”
The lights went out. Ted plugged in the backup generator. He started to receive the camera feed, and before him on the monitor, there was nothing. Mia was gone.
“Burt, where’s Mia?”
“She was right here a moment ago.”
“Team, check in.”
“Cid and Murphy, in the room with all the hooks. Over.”
“Mike, following Burt. Over.”
“Audrey, in command post with Ted. Over.”
“Mia, check in. Over,” Ted called out.
“Murphy, Mia is not communicating. See if you can find her. PEEPs, for your safety, I need you to come back to the command center,” Ted instructed.
Mia stumbled down the ramp. Her mouth was gagged, and she was being pushed along by a human hand. It had happened so quickly. The lights went out, a rag was stuffed in her mouth, and she was carried off. She twisted and fought, but the man was too strong for her. He put her on her feet, tied her hands behind her, and pushed her along. She had no idea where she was. “Keep moving, slut.”
That wasn’t good. Mia stopped and concentrated. She pushed back with her mind. The man was solidly built. He barely moved an inch.
Mia couldn’t see his face. The flashlight was in her eyes.
“Get moving or you’ll be sorry.”
She shook her head no. He smacked her hard. Her ears rung, and she tasted blood. She ran at the beast, knocking the flashlight away. She ran up the ramp and right into a metal door. Mia searched for a handle but couldn’t find it in time. Her attacker pulled her off her feet, but not before squeezing her breasts hard. “You’ll get yours, slut. But not here.”
Mia continued to fight. She was hit again. Darkness pressed in on her. She fought to stay conscious. Another punch stopped that.
“Why am I always getting hurt?” she asked.
“It’s because of the people you hang around with,” Doctor Walters said.
“Why is it so cold in here?” she asked. “It’s a hospital, not a freezer.”
“No, Mia, it’s a freezer. Wake up!”
Mia forced herself awake. She found herself laying on a hard, cold surface. No light or sound reached her. She forced her arms under her and bore the pain as she pulled them around her legs until her hands were in front of her. She pulled out the gag with her fingers, and she pulled at her bonds with her teeth. She dislocated her thumb, but in doing so, she got one hand loose. Mia worked on her ankles, unwinding the duct tape. She had no shoes. Where were her boots? Her cheek throbbed. The pain increased with her careful probing, but nothing was broken. She was shivering. Slowly she got to her feet. Mia rubbed her wrist and activated the tattoos. The movement of the feathers warmed her.
She sensed that something was in front of her. Her hands felt a cold body. It was large. She moved upwards and felt the cold steel hook. She was in the cooler with the processed beef carcasses. She patted her pockets down, and they were empty. Of course they would be. Her abductor wasn’t stupid. She felt her ear, and the com was still in. She tapped it. Nothing. She tapped it again. Nothing. Either Ted had been taken out too or the freezer was blocking the Wi-Fi.
She called out to Murphy with her mind. Nothing. “Damn it to hell, think, Mia!” She moved through the large freezer, using her hands to see. She hoped to locate a loose hook or something to use as a weapon. There was nothing she could find. She next felt along the wall. She found a switch, but after flipping it a few times, she remembered the blackout before she was taken. “Bloody hell!” she shouted in frustration. She moved again, feeling the tile wall, until she came to the door. She pushed hard on the circular disc that was the release lever, but it would not open the door. Something must be blocking it on the other side. She took a few steps back and ran at the door, using the momentum of her body against the lever. She heard a crack. Mia hoped it wasn’t a rib. She repeated the procedure, and the door opened. She stepped over the broken knife that had been used to jam the release. She backed up and picked up the blade. She wrapped the snapped-off end with some of the duct tape that remained on her wrist. This way, she could hold the blade without slicing her hand up.
She now had a weapon. There was an exit sign. She ran to the door but found it chained shut. She needed to leave this area and find someplace to hide.
~
“My wife is in there,” Ted insisted.
“I’m sorry, but our security guard said he saw the blonde leaving with a guy. She got in a black sedan. We would appreciate your leaving. The building is not safe without electricity,” the manager stressed.
“Ted, I’ve called the cops,” Burt said. “We’ll wait for them outside.”
“No, she’s been abducted, and she’s inside this place. I’m not leaving.”
The manager nodded to the guard, and he drew his gun. “I’m sorry, sir, but I have to insist.”
Burt put his hand on Ted’s shoulder. “Murphy is looking for her. Mia was mad at you for pimping her out like that. Maybe she’s cooling her heels at a local bar.”
“No, that’s not Mia. Burt, you know that’s not Mia. She would check in with me and give me hell first before leaving an investigation.”
“Sir, you need to leave.” The armed guard pushed Ted out and locked the door.
Mia ran up the ramp. This time, she found the pressure plate and the door opened. She continued running unti
l the lights went on. She dove under a butcher bench to hide when she heard the approaching footsteps.
“Let’s see if the bodacious beach bod has cooled down a bit. Man, did you see the tits on her? The redhead would have been nice, but she got out of here as soon as the lights went out. I was this far from nabbing her.”
Mia waited for them to pass her before she would let herself breathe. She got out of her hiding place and ran out into the main processing area, looking for an exit. She found two doors, both of them chained tight. She headed up to the office, counting on the possibility that there would be a phone where she could call 911. She heard the footfalls returning. She backed into the shadows, wishing once again for a loss in electricity.
“Come on out, slut. I’ve got something hard for you.”
Mia did not move. She felt something icy cold travel around her legs. Was that Murphy? She looked down and saw an entity trying to manifest. As if she didn’t have enough problems, the slaughterhouse really was haunted.
Murphy checked out the last of the surrounding buildings and reported back to Ted that he couldn’t locate her.
“She’s in the slaughterhouse, for cripes sake, Murphy! Who the fuck told you to leave the building without searching it first?” Ted asked. “Get your ass in there, now!”
Murphy had gone on the assumption that someone from the outside had kidnapped Mia. He moved back through the wall and began a methodical search of the slaughterhouse.
Cid and Mike tried every door they could find to get back in. The place was sealed like Fort Knox. The neighborhood was a bad one, so it did make sense.
“Do you think she’s in there?” Cid asked Mike.
“My gut says yes. God, we were duped. They didn’t want ghost hunters, they wanted Mia. The manager and the security guard. I’ll never be able to live with myself. I’m the one who tightened her clothing, messed up her hair and bruised her lips. I feel like I set her up for this!”
“Burt was right behind you, and even Ted played along.”