“What do you want to know about Chachi?” The other guy behind the counter asked. Lillian looked over to Caleb for help, and then opted for honesty, “I want to know why he’s haunting me.” At this, both men burst into laughter, and the gun pointed at her face was lowered. Caleb sighed. For a moment he was sure that they were both dead. The laughter put both of them at ease for a moment. Caleb eyed Lillian admiring her steely personality. She was incredibly strong.
The man on the right went back to his business of assembling sandwiches, slapping cheese onto the bread as if he was playing cards. The man who had raised the gun to her head apologized. “It ain’t my thing to pull a gun on a broad, but this Chachi shit has me a little bit on edge.” The man shrugged and then leaned on the counter. It was a meager apology, but she appreciated that he had at least made an effort. “You wanna know about Chachi, you need to go and talk to Big Mike.”
Caleb cleared his throat, “Where can we find Big Mike?”
The guy on the right smoothed down his dark black hair and swallowed hard— “Make a right at Salernos Pizzeria, and then keep going down to the Pussycat night club. He’s always hanging out there at the bar—but don’t tell him I sent ya. You might get a little more than you bargained for, messing around with this Chachi foolishness.” The man snorted. “If I was you lady, I’d leave it alone and I’d walk away—go have a few kids, settle down. What you want to go chasing ghosts for?” Lillian nodded her head in appreciation, but ignored his question.
As the two exited the little shop, Caleb’s hand brushed against Lillian’s. Just the feel of his hand sent chills zipping up and down her body. For a moment, she wondered what it might feel like if he were to grab her fingers, and take her palm in his own muscular fist. Then, she pushed the fantasy out of her mind. Caleb was too principled and focused for romance—especially romance with her. Anyway, it seemed that his life revolved entirely around Department 99, as did hers. There was no time for romance. Being a part of Department 99, was like being in the military—except the fact that virtually none of the members had families or took any sort of leave.
When they arrived at the Pussycat nightclub, it was not at all what they had expected. Lillian had never seen anything like it. It was filled with all sorts of shady characters. Not the usual kind of shifty characters that hung out in back alleys, but high-level mobsters who seemed to have a keen interest in the occult.
There were pentagrams spray-painted on each table, candles were lit, and a few of the mobsters seemed to be chanting. Far off to the right, Lillian could see a woman reading tarot cards for a pair of men with slicked down black hair.
Lillian tugged at Caleb’s sleeve gesturing him to bend his 6’4” frame down level with her 5’2” self. “Where should we even start?” Lillian whispered to Caleb, feeling overwhelmed. The way she whispered into his ear, sent chills down his spine. She had been so close to his face that he could actually feel her hot breath coming in short bursts as she spoke. The air from Lillian’s speech tickled his face, and his eyes were riveted to her full and pouty pink lips. Yet, outwardly, Caleb remained like a stone. He stood full height and scanned the room, taking note of all the strange looking mobster types engaged in all sorts of rituals. It was a strange looking place. In the center of the club a few scantily clad women danced with each other around a pole. They looked strung out and sad—in fact, they looked like prisoners.
Caleb cocked his head back for a moment and sniffed the air. Although he rarely liked discussing the fact that he was a bear shifter, the heightened senses, which came along with being a shifter, came in handy sometimes. In a flash, Caleb’s nose was flooded with all kinds of alien and strange smells. Yet, through the symphony of scents, he was able to distinguish something that was a bit off--- something that shouldn’t have been there. Caleb smelled a corpse.
The rotten dead smell was emanating from a blond man who sat over at a corner table completing a ritual alone. The scent was all over the blonde man’s hands and clothes. A regular human nose wouldn’t have been able to pick up on it, but for Caleb the smell was unmistakable. Caleb’s gut told him that this man would probably know something about Chachi. He could smell rage and someone else’s fear all over the man who seemed to have recently committed a murder.
Caleb gently pushed Lillian behind him and signaled to her to follow. Together they cautiously approached the table where the blonde man sat casting his spells. There were a few small, scattered bones on the table, a slab of butter, and a few pennies. In the middle there was a photo of an elderly-looking man that Caleb didn’t recognize. Caleb couldn’t tell if the blonde man was trying to help the man in the photo, or to bring him harm, but from the smell of the blonde stranger—he was probably up to no good. He didn’t look like the type that had good intentions, or any empathy at all. He seemed cold-blooded and sociopathic.
When they arrived at the table, they did not interrupt but simply stood silently by the table’s edge. The man’s hands moved in circles over a candle, while he whispered in something that sounded like Latin. He then pulled out a small pouch of sand and doused the candle with it. The flame immediately sparkled green and then went out.
“What do you want?” The man said without looking up.
“We were hoping you could help us with a few things,” Caleb stated—purposefully remaining vague.
“If you want someone killed, I suggest you buy a gun. It isn’t good to cast a spell for that,” the man stated softly. Lillian was a bit taken back by his cavalier attitude towards murder. She looked down and noticed a few drops of red blood on the man’s tennis shoe. She wanted to reach out for Caleb in that moment, but knew she would look girlish and immature, grabbing for his hand, so instead she shifted her body a little bit so that their shoulders were touching. Caleb did not move away from her touch.
Caleb pulled a chair out from a nearby table, pushed it up close to the man, and sat down. Lillian felt a little offended that he hadn’t gotten her a seat, but perhaps he had a good reason. “I’m not going to bullshit you,” Caleb said gruffly to the man. “I don’t give a shit about murder or whatever else you’ve done, but I’ve got a little problem that I need to take care of. I need you to tell me about Chachi.” When Caleb said the name Chachi, the man’s eyes grew wide. He jumped backwards, knocking over his unlit candle—his face twisted into a mixture of both anger and genuine terror. Then, he shouted something in a foreign language that neither Caleb nor Lillian recognized.
All the heads in the room turned in Caleb and Lillian’s direction. “These two just asked me to cast a forbidden spell, “the blonde man announced to the room- lying through his teeth. “They threatened me and said that if I didn’t comply they would call the Gollum.” Instantly, individuals all around them clattered to their feet and closed in around Lillian and Caleb.
“What the hell is a Gollum?” Lillian whispered to Caleb. Again he felt the warm rush of her breath against his cheek.
“I don’t know, but guessing by their reaction, it’s not good.” Lillian stood close to Caleb, pressed against him as the dark shadowy figures in the room drew nearer. She couldn’t make out exactly how many people were in the room, but she was sure that they were vastly outnumbered.
“Wait…wait..wait..” Lillian placed her hands out defensively as the circle of individuals closed in on them, becoming smaller and smaller. “We’re not here to do anyone any harm, we just have a few questions, really… I grew up in a small town and I was just always curious. I was hoping you guys could tell me what exactly a ghost is?”
Someone in the crowd burst out into mean laughter. “Good try, lady,” someone snorted in a mean voice, yet Lillian continued to talk. Caleb knew exactly what Lillian was doing. She was trying to buy them some time.
“Smoke em!” An angry voice called out, trying to incite the crowd. A man jumped forward and grabbed Lillian around the wrist. Lillian shrieked and tried to pull away, but the man’s grip was like steel.
Before Caleb even kn
ew what was happening, his bear took over. Lillian needed his protection and he was ready to defend her at all costs. Caleb lunged forward and grabbed the man that had Lillian’s arm. He held the man up by the neck, and his legs dangled and kicked around in the air, searching for an invisible foothold. A few members of the crowd drew back. Then Caleb-- fired up as a bull (or a bear)-threw the man across the room where he hit a faraway wall, and slid to the floor with a loud violent thump.
“Would anyone else like some?” Caleb asked the crowd. Much to Lillian’s surprise, a handful of the men didn’t seem the least bit deterred. In fact, they almost seemed to enjoy the excitement of it all, and eagerly wanted a piece of the action.
A tall man stepped forward, donning some kind of club in his hand. The club reminded Lillian of the old nightsticks that police officers used to patrol with. The man slapped the club against his other bare hand and smiled stupidly. Then, without warning he lunged toward Caleb—attempting to bring the club down on his head. Caleb caught the club in mid-air and twisted the man’s arm back hard, until Lillian heard a loud cracking sound. She then grabbed a beer bottle from a nearby table and smashed it over the man’s head for good measure. By the end of it, the tall man lay on the floor bawling like a baby, with one broken arm and a cracked skull.
Now, two men dressed in leather stepped forward. Lillian’s psychic abilities clearly told her that both were possessed by a demon. Lillian looked at Caleb and shook her head no—as if trying to communicate that fighting with them would be a bad idea. Caleb ignored her warning and sprang into action. He kicked the first man square in the stomach, and with a crackling and popping sound, in seconds he transformed into his bear while still in mid-air. There were a few loud gasps from the crowd. Through her job with the Department, Lillian had been around plenty of shifters, but even she was impressed by the speed grace of his transformation—shifting in mid-air was magnificent. Caleb hit the ground with a large heavy thump— a beautiful bear, yet a particularly vicious predator. Caleb raised his gigantic claws into the air and roared. His roar was so fierce that it shook the rafters of the building and sent shivers down Lillian’s spine. Then, he bore his razor sharp teeth. Drool dripped from the corner of Caleb’s mouth and a growl emanated from his chest. He was scanning the room, ready to kill. Another roar, and the sound moved through Lillian’s body fiercely. In a strange way she found herself somewhat turned on by this display of his strength—yet this was not the time to marvel at her impressive comrade. They were in serious trouble.
For a split second, Caleb caught Lillian’s glance. “Follow behind me,” his bear-eyes seemed to convey. Before Lillian knew what was happening Caleb was swiping at people in the crowd, ripping at limbs, and baring his teeth to anyone who approached. Lillian kept close behind him, squinting and shielding her eyes from some of the carnage and blood splatter. After a few minutes, most of the people lay on the floor groaning and clutching at themselves, while Caleb and Lillian ran for the door.
Instead of opening the door like a human, Caleb simply lunged through the glass, shattering it in one swift movement. Again, he shifted mid-air, back into his human form as they ran towards their car in the parking lot. Even amid all of the chaos, Lillian couldn’t help but smile as she saw Caleb’s bare butt running in front of her. His back was sleek and muscular, and his muscles rippled as he moved. When they reached the car, both of them flung the doors wide open and jumped inside.
They sat in the car for a moment attempting to catch their breath. Lillian’s heart fluttered within her chest, as she caught Caleb’s glance. He was such a striking man. The excitement of it all had made Caleb feel invigorated and particularly brave and much to Lillian’s surprise, he reached across the car and pulled her close. After pausing for one brief moment he pressed his lips to her own and kissed her deeply. Lillian parted her lips, accepting his tongue and taking it inside of her mouth. He tasted sweet, but there was also a hint of blood in his kiss. As he kissed her, the rest of the world melted away and she felt a tingle emanating from the pit of her stomach. Her body instinctively wanted more of him. She felt a trickling warmth between her legs as her heart fluttered within her chest. Both her body and heart seemed to be opening to him. She wanted more of his touch. She couldn’t help herself.
Then, out of the corner of her eye, Lillian noticed a shadow. A man now stood before them, in front of the vehicle pointing a gun at the car. Before she could even cry out, the man had emptied a handful of bullets into the car. Lillian covered her head and screamed as the bullets flew all around them. Caleb seemed unafraid. Instead of hiding, he started the car, and pressed the accelerator down hard slamming the hood of the car into the body of the man who’d shot at them. Lillian could hear a series of loud thumps as the man’s body flew up and over the hood. He then hit the pavement with a loud thud as they peeled off, leaving him for dead. Lillian glanced in the side mirror, and could see the crumpled form of a man lying in the parking lot like an abandoned rag-doll.
Caleb pressed the accelerator down hard, but his driving skills seemed to suddenly become a bit erratic. He was weaving all over the road. Lillian looked down and noticed a massive amount of blood flowing from Caleb’s leg. Without thinking, she pulled off her shirt and pressed it hard against the wound while Caleb winced. Caleb smiled slightly at the sight of her beautiful full round breasts bound up in her red bra. She looked incredible, was it the blood loss or the sight of her that made him feel weak.
“Pull over and let me drive, Caleb. You’re losing too much blood!” Lillian yelled.
“We have to keep going. They’re probably following us.” Caleb barked back.
“Pull over!’ Lillian insisted again. Caleb turned towards her in order to answer, and in that split second, the car careened off of the road and ran into a ditch where it flipped over, cartwheeling down the side of a steep hill.
Everything happened so fast that Lillian wasn’t even totally sure of what had occurred. All she knew was that she was now hanging upside down in the car, held in by her seatbelt. Caleb was on the floor, laying in a mass of broken glass, groaning. He seemed to be going in and out of consciousness.
“Damn you Caleb, I told you to let me drive!” Lillian yelled down to him. Caleb barely stirred, which cued her in to the fact that he was going in and out of awareness from blood loss. Lillian knew shifter healing was incredibly quick compared to that of humans, but that wasn’t to say that they couldn’t be gravely injured and killed. She also knew that for him to be in the state he was in now, Caleb was hurt very badly. Lillian unbuckled her seatbelt and plummeted to the ground, landing on her hand. She crawled over to Caleb and felt for a pulse. It was weak, but it was there nonetheless—he was alive. For a brief moment, Lillian felt a small surge of relief. She searched the car for Caleb’s Department 99 radio to call for help.
She found the radio among a heap of metal and glass. “Agent down, approximately 2 miles west of Eudora, near the 10. Requesting immediate medical evac.” The radio crackled and Lillian repeated herself. No one responded. This time, Lillian held down the button on the side of the radio and virtually screamed into it.
After a few moments, a Department 99 dispatcher responded. “Help is on the way, agent. Hold tight.”
Lillian dropped the radio and lay back for a moment. She then made her way back over to Caleb, crawling over broken glass. Again she reached up to Caleb’s neck to feel for a pulse. It was weak, there wasn’t much time. Lillian noticed a warm fluid dripping down into her hair and onto the side of her face. The fluid was falling onto Caleb too, soaking his beautiful mane of hair. The strong smell of gasoline flooded the inside of the cabin. Even though Caleb’s body technically lay on the ground, he was enclosed by metal. Lillian crawled over to the passenger side door and tried to pry it open—it was mangled shut. Then, another harsh smell flooded the cabin. It was the smell of an electrical fire. Lillian was hit with the realization that if she couldn’t find a way out very quickly, they would burn alive.
> She kicked at the glass of the mangled door, trying to shatter it with the weight of her legs. The glass was sturdy and wouldn’t even budge, but then a tiny crack appeared on the right hand side. Lillian kicked again—another crack. Then, Lillian screamed and kicked three more times in rapid succession. Finally, the window shattered. She crawled back over to Caleb and tried in vain to wake him.
“Caleb, we have to get out of here. Caleb, wake up!” Lillian shook him and he simply bobbed limply from side to side. Without thinking, Lillian grabbed him by the ankle. She used her body weight as leverage and slowly began to pull him towards the window. Inch by inch, she was able to move Caleb’s body closer to the window. Lillian winced as she raked his back across the broken glass. When he woke up he would be injured, but hopefully they would both be alive. When she reached the window she relentlessly shoved at Caleb’s limp body over and over. Inch by inch, she pushed him out of the hole and crawled out right after him.
Soon after, sparks flew within the car. In a matter of moments, the vehicle was engulfed in flames. First, the cabin went up in a bright orange blaze, and then the fuel tank exploded, sending pieces of metal flying all around them. Lillian leaned over Caleb and shielded him with her own body.
When Caleb woke up in Department 99’s hospital ward he was surprised to see Lillian sitting by his side, clinging to his hand. Lillian. He could smell the sweetness of her shampoo, feel the softness of her touch. Maybe he was dreaming of her- again. The look of concern in her eyes moved something within him. Caleb’s vision was a bit hazy, but eventually his eyes started to adjust. As he became more alert, the memories started returning. He assessed his surroundings. He had and IV in each arm and was receiving a blood transfusion. His thigh ached and was tightly bandaged. Slowly, Caleb remembered that he had been shot.
Lillian squeezed Caleb’s hand and then withdrew. He wondered why she’d let go. “How are you feeling, tiger?” Lillian asked with a sly smile. Her smile made his heart skip a beat, and stirred something within him. “I’m a bear, not a tiger.” Caleb managed to squeak out with a tiny smile.
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