by Mike Ryan
“So what do you do for Sanders?” she asked.
“I don’t think I’m supposed to tell you.”
“Oh yeah. I forgot. Are you gonna be in New York for a while?”
“I don’t know. I can live anywhere I want but I don’t know where else I would go.”
Cain got up from the table and put the dishes in the sink once the pair finished eating.
“That was really good, thank you. I really appreciate it.”
“You’re welcome. It was nice,” Heather replied. “I enjoyed cooking for someone else for a change. Gets a little boring when you’re only cooking for one all the time.”
“That’s surprising.”
“Why is that surprising?”
“I dunno. I figured a girl like you would have guys banging down your door or begging at your feet to be with you,” Cain surmised.
“A girl like me. You mean a stripper?” she asked without a hint of anger.
“No. I meant a girl as pretty as you.”
“Oh. Well there are plenty of guys banging down my door every day. But it doesn’t mean anything. They’re only after one thing.”
“Sounds like you’re not as into your profession as you made it seem last night.”
“Well I don’t just go around talking about my feelings with everybody.”
“So why are you talking about it now?” he asked.
“I don’t know. I guess you’re pretty easy to talk to,” Heather admitted. “You’re not like most guys I run into.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment.”
“I meant it as one.”
“So how long are you planning on staying? I mean, when do you have to get back to work or whatever?”
“Well, I told Sanders I’d stay for a couple of days to make sure you were OK,” she told him. “But if you don’t want me to then I completely understand. I can leave whenever you want.”
“It’s fine.”
“I can just leave now. I’ll just get dressed,” she said as she got up from the table.
“Heather…”
“I mean, I really don’t wanna feel like I’m imposing.”
“Heather…”
“So I’ll just get dressed and then I’ll be out of your hair.”
“Heather…”
“I’ll just tell Sanders you seem perfectly fine,” she nervously said, not hearing anything Cain was saying.
“Heather,” Cain yelled, finally succeeding in getting heard.
“What?”
“You can stay.”
“I can?” she asked, surprised.
“Well, you already told Sanders you’d stay a couple days so you might as well. Plus I’d like you to stay.”
“You would.”
“Yeah. I mean, I told you I have memory issues. I forget how to cook,” he joked.
A little sense of relief came over Heather as she never felt so comfortable and at ease with a man as she did with Cain. She was glad he wanted her to stay for a couple of days. She sauntered over to the couch in the living room, hoping to get a few lusty glances from him as she walked. Cain stood by the kitchen counter watching her every move. He couldn’t remember much, but he was certain he hadn’t seen legs that looked that nice in a long time. He sure didn’t see anything like that in the army. He didn’t feel right about having sex with her the minute he saw her but he felt no shame in undressing her with his eyes.
“I think you have one problem,” he told her.
“What’s that?” she anxiously wondered.
“If you’re gonna be here a couple days then I think you need your own clothes to wear. I mean, my shirt looks good on you but I don’t think you can walk around the whole day like that.”
“Don’t bet on it.”
Heather went to the bedroom and got dressed into her clothes from the night before. She came out about ten minutes later and told Cain she was going to her apartment to pack a few things.
“Want me to come with you?” Cain asked.
“Come with me? Why?” Heather asked, surprised at his request.
“Uhh..I dunno. I thought maybe you’d need help or something.”
“Umm I think I should be OK.”
She was a little reluctant at having Cain see her apartment. For the first time since she started stripping she seemed a little embarrassed about it. The only guys who’d been inside her apartment were guys she dated or paid for the privilege. For a few brief moments when they were talking at the table she felt like she was someone else. Like they were normal people just having a conversation and she kinda liked it. She’d hate for him to see her apartment and have the reality of her profession smack him in the face and change his opinion of her. She walked toward the door and she thought about what might happen if he had another seizure while she was gone. She’d only be gone an hour or two but what if he had one and she wasn’t there to help. What would Sanders say?
“I guess under the circumstances it’d be better off if you came with me,” she reluctantly agreed. “I mean, with your seizures and all, I probably shouldn’t leave you alone.”
“Oh, yeah, you’re probably right.”
They took the elevator to the ground floor and walked out of the building. Almost immediately a beautiful blonde woman walked past them. She was rather tall with long hair and a striking figure. She gave Cain a slight smile. He was mesmerized by her and watched her walk past him. Heather noticed Cain continuing to watch the woman as she kept walking.
“I wish I’d gotten that kind of response from you last night,” she deadpanned.
She expected some type of reply but he kept silent.
“I wasn’t really serious,” she told him. “Most men would be falling over themselves if she walked past. I couldn’t blame you.”
After a minute she realized she was basically talking to herself because he seemed like he was in another world. His head was still turned in that woman’s direction though she was fading from view and barely noticeable at that point. Heather put her hand on his arm and shook it a little to try and break him from his trance. She shook it gently without success before putting a little more weight into it. It worked as he finally turned his head back to her. Heather was a little alarmed by the blank look that overtook his face.
“Are you OK?” she asked.
“Yeah, I’m fine.”
“What’s the matter? Don’t remember seeing a pretty woman before?” she kidded.
“No. I mean, I saw something.”
“What do you mean?”
“It was an image,” Cain admitted.
“An image of what?”
“A woman.”
“Well she just walked by you, it’s understandable. Most men would probably have the same image in their head.”
“No, it wasn’t of her. It was somebody else.”
“Who?”
“I don’t know. I just saw her face. She had blonde hair, a little past her shoulders, and a pretty face.”
“What was she doing?”
“Nothing. It was just her face. Everything else around her was just white space. Like a picture of a face on the pages of a book and that’s all there is.”
Heather could tell he seemed troubled by this vision. He seemed genuinely disturbed by it.
“I feel like I should know who it is. Like she’s connected to me somehow,” he said.
“Maybe it was a high school girlfriend or something. Maybe a friend that you knew from before.”
“Maybe.”
Heather made sure that Cain was all right before they started walking toward her apartment. They could’ve taken a cab but they decided to walk the half hour to her place. It’d give them some time to talk along the way. With each step they took they seemed to grow a little closer to each other. In another time and place Heather thought about how things might be different. Maybe they’d be holding hands or exchanging playful glances with each other. But she knew that at this point in time there was no chance of anything ever develop
ing further. After a half hour of walking, sidestepping bustling people who seemed to be charging at them, they arrived at a nice looking building that stretched up fifteen floors.
“I’m impressed,” Cain stated.
“I told you I was paid well.”
They went inside and went up to her apartment on the eleventh floor. Heather put the key in and unlocked it, taking a deep breath before opening the door, hoping he wouldn’t change his opinion of her after seeing it. There was nothing unordinary about the place, nothing that anyone would associate with her profession like poles attached to the ceiling, furry handcuffs on the couch or kinky fetishes. But to her, it was a stripper’s place, and she attached a stigma to it even if no one else did.
“Well, here it is,” she said, walking in.
“Very nice. I like it,” Cain responded, looking around the living room. “Not quite what I expected.”
“Which was?”
“Well, I, uhh, I was kind of half expecting some unflattering things to be out and about.”
“Most people do,” she dejectedly replied.
“Well, I’m gonna go pack a few things. Sit down and make yourself at home if you want. Kitchen’s over there if you want a drink or anything.”
Cain sat down on the black leather couch, shifting around to different positions to get a feel for it. It was so comfortable that he didn’t want to sit on it for too long or else he probably wouldn’t want to get up. He walked into the kitchen and opened the refrigerator to see what was available. He poured a couple glasses of orange juice for the two of them. Just as he finished pouring there was a loud knock on the door.
“You want me to get that?” Cain asked.
“No, no,” Heather huffed, scurrying into the room. “I’ll get it.”
She turned him around and told him to wait in the kitchen. The loud knocking continued.
“Come on Heather, let’s go,” a deep voice yelled from the other side.
“Coming,” she replied.
Heather opened the door to reveal a large, bald man with a Fu Manchu. She took a deep sigh, obviously displeased to see the heavyset man before her.
“Hi Tommy,” she said.
“So what’s this about you not working tonight?” he asked as he pushed past her.
“Sure, come on in,” she sarcastically remarked.
“So why aren’t you working? You don’t look sick.”
“I just feel like taking a couple of days off, OK?”
“Boss doesn’t think that’s a good idea.”
“I don’t really care what he thinks. I’m taking a few days,” Heather insisted.
“Maybe you just need a little something to pick you up.”
Tommy took some drugs out of his pocket and placed them down on the coffee table. Heather looked at him curiously before glancing down at the table.
“I don’t know what you think you’re doing but take that stuff and get out of here,” she told him.
“What, you don’t have time for some old friends?” he cheerfully asked.
“Please just leave.”
Cain was still in the kitchen, overhearing the entire conversation, and was beginning to worry about his new friend. She didn’t sound particularly pleased to have him in her apartment and didn’t appear to be leaving anytime soon. He assumed she asked him to stay in the kitchen because she didn’t want him to get involved in it. With each passing second of Tommy’s bullying Cain grew more weary of his presence. Another minute elapsed and Cain had heard all he could stomach. He couldn’t stand bullies, especially when it was a woman involved. He emerged from the kitchen to the surprise of Tommy, who smiled as he looked over to Heather.
“Got a little something happenin’ on the side, Heather?” he asked.
“Shut up,” she replied.
“I believe the lady would like you to go,” Cain stated.
“She ain’t no lady. Listen, buddy, just go back in the kitchen and mind your business,” Tommy warned. “And maybe I won’t bust you up some.”
Cain didn’t feel at all threatened by the burly man and continued to walk in his direction. Heather quickly looked at both of the men before her and tried to diffuse the situation before it got out of hand.
“Tommy, please just go,” Heather pleaded.
She put her hand on Tommy’s arm to persuade him to leave but he shoved it aside. Cain kept walked closer to his adversary, who also wasn’t about to back down. He looked like he was in good shape but Tommy had been pitted against plenty of guys who were in good shape but couldn’t take the power of his punches.
“I really don’t want to have an altercation with you,” Cain told him. “But the lady asked you to go several times. I do believe it’s best if you take her advice.”
Tommy simply laughed at Cain’s suggestion. He felt the implied threat Cain was giving him was just some tough guy bravado and he didn’t have the stones to back it up. Cain, on the other hand, was ready to toss the meathead out the door. He wasn’t itching to fight, but could tell that the bald bruiser in front of him wouldn’t have it any other way. Heather tried one more time to separate the pair but it was falling on deaf ears.
“Matthew, please don’t,” she pleaded.
“I’m not doing anything. If he leaves then there’s no problem,” Cain replied.
Heather looked up at him and sighed knowing there was nothing else she could do. She worried that one of them was going to get seriously hurt. She was fearful of Cain getting injured, and though she didn’t personally care for Tommy, she didn’t want Cain to get in any kind of trouble for anything he might do. Just as she turned around to face Tommy once more, he shoved her out of the way, pushing her into the wall. That gave Tommy the distraction he needed to catch Cain by surprise. He stunned Cain with a couple of big right hands, causing Cain to stumble backwards. After Cain regained his composure he blocked a couple of Tommy’s blows, countering with a few of his own. Cain quickly got the upper hand using a combination of strikes and kicks to get Tommy off balance. Cain unleashed some moves that he didn’t even know he had in his arsenal. Now Tommy was the one trying to stave off his attacker, albeit unsuccessfully. Using a combination of punches, MMA holds, and kickboxing maneuvers, Cain had Tommy in a world of hurt. A few minutes of brutality elapsed with Cain showing no mercy on the thug laying before him. He bounced Tommy’s head off the floor a few times due to the fierceness of his punches.
Heather shook off the pain from hitting her head against the wall and watched as Cain continued his assault. Tommy was bleeding profusely from the nostrils of his nose, along with the bridge of it, which by now was broken. Blood was pouring out of cuts from above his right eye and both sides of his mouth. He coughed up a few teeth and was certain to lose consciousness any minute. Cain was showing no mercy and Heather was getting concerned about the carnage she was witnessing.
“Cain, stop!” Heather yelled.
It was no use. She yelled a few more times for him but he didn’t hear a word of it. He was in such a zone that he had blocked everything out. There could’ve been trumpets playing behind him and he wouldn’t have heard a single note. Heather worried that Cain was going to kill Tommy unless she stopped him. She was a little afraid of getting in the way and possibly catching some of Cain’s wrath but felt she had no other choice. She raced in between the two men, catching hold of Cain’s right arm in the process.
“Stop,” she told him.
Cain immediately snapped out of whatever trance he was in, noticing the concerned look on her face. He released his curled up fist and dropped his arm, signaling the end of his confrontation. He slowly backed away, his face showing remorse for the amount of pain he just inflicted. He walked over to the window and reflected on what he’d just done. He was reminded of it by the blood stained on his knuckles. He was sure that Heather would think he was a monster now, and he wasn’t sure if she’d be wrong. He realized he took it too far.
Heather had taken the next few minutes to get Tommy somew
hat stable and help him back on his feet. She was sure he had some broken bones and probably a concussion. She wasn’t really as concerned about his well being since he was a major jerk, but didn’t want anyone dying because of her. As soon as he was able to stand on his feet, she hurried him to the door to prevent any other problems. Not that Tommy was looking for anything since he now knew that his opponent could easily have killed him and was not close to being a match for him.
“You can consider yourself done,” Tommy painfully whispered. “You’ll never work again in this town as long as I can help it.”
“Just go,” Heather replied, shoving him out the door.
She knew he wasn’t just giving an idle threat as he knew all the owners of the major clubs and would badmouth her to the point where she’d have to work in run down joints that hardly paid anything of substance. She closed the door behind him and sighed heavily as she wondered what she’d do now. Cain turned around to face her, somewhat shamefully, as he waited for her to snap at him. She looked at him a little differently now, seeing what was inside him, as opposed to just half an hour before that when it didn’t seem like he was capable of such a vicious beating. Neither person said a word, both waiting for the other to start the conversation, as Heather slowly walked to the couch. She sat down on the couch, still not quite believing what she just witnessed. Cain could see the hesitation she now had with him and attempted to alleviate her fears.