Hacking, crying, retching, Melody finished with, “I wish Bobby and Linda never stole the money.”
Wind whipped up, and the weight was taken off her back. Melody shut her eyes as glass swirled around and repaired the window. She lay on the floor, barely believing what was happening. The weight on her back was gone as the men disappeared. The pain in her head and chest were gone. She sat up slowly. Her Taser was holstered, and the charge hadn’t been spent. Melody breathed normally. Rubbing her ribs, there wasn’t any bruising or pain. The men were gone. Karam was gone.
Chapter Eight
Melody sat there, not believing for a moment. Could she have done something differently? Thinking back over their conversation, now that lust wasn't addling her brain, she picked out bits and pieces. It wasn’t like she’d had a chance to peruse the genie handbook. What was it about giving him his will back? She never took it from him.
Stay behind me.
Melody flinched as her words came back to her.
Then stay out of the way.
“Why didn’t I just say, help me?” She got to her feet. “I’m such an idiot.”
Making her way back to her desk in the lobby, Melody was careful to step gingerly until she realized that her ribs weren’t cracked and her head wasn’t busted. The goons had never been there. There would have been no need, if the money had never been stolen. Back at her desk, Melody checked her systems. No alarms had sounded. Karam’s coffee cup was gone. The Starbucks cup was gone. He had never been there either. None of it had happened.
Melody had an awful thought—that when she got home Bobby would be there. She dialed her old apartment in Las Vegas. It was disconnected. That was good. Then she dialed her place in Connecticut and was relieved when her answering machine picked up. It didn’t mean he wasn’t screening calls, but he probably would have picked up. What else had changed aside from Karam never coming to her workplace? She was still here. So she must have still moved to Connecticut even though Linda and Bobby had never stolen the money. If they didn’t steal the money, what did they do? Was she even still divorced?
It was four o'clock in the morning, Christmas morning. Who the heck was she going to call? Stella. It was only just after one Vegas time. Thankfully, she picked up on the first ring.
“Honey, this has been the strangest Christmas eve of my life,” Stella said, in lieu of hello.
“Tell me about it.” Melody slumped into her chair.
“Either someone spiked my eggnog with some really good shit or I’m going crazy.”
“You’re not going crazy. Can I ask you a weird question?”
“Go ahead.”
“Am I divorced?”
“Shit yeah. You kicked that scumbag husband of yours to the curb for banging that blackjack dealer.”
Relief hit Melody like a tidal wave. Bobby was out of her life for good. Melody had to set the phone down for a second, so Stella didn’t hear her start to sob. She scrubbed the tears away with the back of her hand. So even though Bobby and Linda didn’t steal the money, they ran off together.
“My turn,” Stella said. “Did you blow it with that hunka-hunka magic man?”
“I think so,” Melody said.
She hugged herself to stave off the sudden chill. Because Bobby and Linda never stole the money, Karam might not have needed her to find Stephanie. What if not only did she lose tonight, he might not remember her if they ever met again. Technically, she had erased the events of tonight. Or had she?
“Wait, you remember him?”
“Honey, he’s pretty rememorable.”
“That’s not even a word.”
“Did you call me in the middle of the night to correct my grammar?” Stella asked.
Melody wiped her eyes. Maybe she hadn’t blown it with Karam after all. “How do you know Karam?”
“I’m not sure now. Maybe it was a dream. But—don’t laugh—he and I flew around the strip on a magic carpet. I was being a smart-ass, and he called my bluff. I promised to do him a favor. I might be out of my damn mind.”
“No, you’re not. It happened. It all happened.”
“If you say so, Honey. Merry Christmas. I’m going to bed.”
Where were Bobby and Linda? Not that she cared. Maybe they really were in the Bahamas. Maybe the only thing that changed was they didn’t have the casino’s money.
She stared at the monitors without really seeing them until it seemed like an eternity had passed. The first light of dawn leaked through the building’s windows. She tried to bring up Atlantis Casino on her monitors, but all she got were the laboratory’s cameras. Her fingers twitched to call the casino and have them paged, but for what purpose? Was little Stephanie still in the children’s area? Even if Melody’s head hadn’t been used for a football, trying to think her way around this was hard. What did Bobby and Linda do if they didn’t steal the money?
The rest of her shift passed as if each second was an eternity. She couldn’t concentrate on her book. Melody just stared out the window in between rounds. At one point, she went up into the executive lounge, but as she expected, there wasn’t a trace of lovemaking. If it never happened, why did she still remember him? Why did she still feel his hands on her body?
Melody’s replacement arrived precisely at six a.m. on the dot.
“Uneventful night?” Rebecca said.
Managing to nod, Melody gathered up her things.
“Anything I should be aware of?”
“Nope,” Melody sighed. “Quiet as a tomb.”
“Uh, there’s an image,” Rebecca said. “You have a nice Christmas.”
“I’ll try.” Melody gave a small wave and walked into the parking lot. Her car was covered with an inch of snow, but she managed to brush most of it away with her glove. She tried not to think or feel. Maybe after a few hours of sleep, Karam would seem like a highly erotic dream and eventually she’d be able to smile at the memory of it, instead of feeling as if her heart had been torn out. She should have at least been able to say good-bye. One last kiss? Why had she been so stupid?
Tell me, do as you will.
All she had to have said was, “Do as you will.” And he would have pounded those jerks into dust. Or maybe, turned them into rats so they could be put in cages for experiments. Parking in front of her apartment, Melody sat in the car for a moment. It was real, as long as she remembered. It might be crazy and something she wasn’t going to share with anyone else, but it had happened, and nothing could take that away. She trudged up the stairs and let herself in.
“Renaldo, I’m home,” she said, locking the door behind her.
When she turned, Melody’s nerveless fingers dropped the keys. Her apartment had been decorated for Christmas. A five-foot-tall tree was up—freshly cut, by the smell of it. It reminded her of Karam, but the tears in her eyes were happy ones when she rushed over to touch all her ornaments. Each one had a special meaning for her: her grandmother’s hand-knitted bell; her mother’s needle-felted sheep; Stella’s glass ball with the Las Vegas Strip printed on the side.
Renaldo poked his head out of a tube in a carpeted structure that stood as high as an end table. That was new. It had a sassy red satin bow that had been chewed upon in appreciation. It looked like a jungle gym for ferrets.
“Merry Christmas, buddy.” She picked him up for a kiss and realized that there wasn’t any musk odor. He truly didn’t have any stink on him. Wish number two had come true. Maybe she hadn’t erased all the events of the evening.
Renaldo squirmed down and bounced over to the red ball she had gotten him for Christmas. Squeaking it with his teeth, he rolled around gleefully.
“No fair opening them without me,” she said with a smile.
He darted under the tree. As she watched his antics, she saw a small package about the size of a deck of cards. It was a shiny red box, with a satin bow that matched Renaldo’s little ferret house. Melody just stared at it. Renaldo popped his head up from the tree and then slithered down to the present
. He batted it with his head a few times.
“Okay, okay,” she said and sat down in front of the tree. The twinkling lights blurred for a bit as tears welled up in Melody’s eyes. She had thought she’d come home to a cold house, and instead it was warm and decorated. Sniffing, she realized the smell of freshly baked cookies was coming from the kitchen. She wouldn’t be surprised to find a tray in the oven.
When she made her last wish, Karam became a free djinn. He would have been sent back to the City of Brass. But after that, he could do as he willed. And what he willed was to have come here to give her a Christmas.
Her fingers shook a bit as she opened the package. Renaldo darted in and out of her lap. Inside the box was a set of car keys. The key chain was light blue metal with the number ‘54.
Just like the song.
Running to the window, she looked out. Sure enough, parked next to her beat-up Chevy, was Karam’s convertible. It hadn’t been there when she pulled into the spot. A wet nose bumped her on the arm, and she looked down to see Renaldo holding a note between his teeth.
The car’s GPS is programmed to take you to the City of Brass. We formally request your presence to join us for Christmas dinner. Bring Renaldo. Love, Karam and Stephanie
In a heartbeat, she packed an overnight back and put Renaldo in his traveling suitcase with a few of his toys, food, and his water bottle. Putting the still-warm cookies from the oven into a tin, she thought they would make a nice hostess gift for Karam’s mom. She'd have to stop at a gas station to pick up a gift card for Stephanie. Melody already knew what she was giving Karam, and it made her pussy throb just thinking about it. Locking up, Melody couldn't believe this was happening.
Best Christmas ever.
Chapter Nine
After picking up all the essentials to be a good party guest, Melody turned on the GPS and put her foot on the gas. She wasn't sure what to expect, but the car drove onto the road until there was no one else around, and then the world seemed to shimmy, and the car lifted straight up into the clouds.
Worried about losing Renaldo and the gifts, Melody put the convertible’s top up, and then the car really took off. It was like flying in her own mini-airplane. Except the sky looked different. Instead of flying through fluffy white clouds, she was passing through what looked like a nebula with colorful gasses dancing on a pitch-black background. Up ahead in the distance, she saw the rounded domes of what looked to be large mosques and steepled buildings. The car set down on a busy market street. Driving itself, it piloted around pedestrians and avoided stalls. Turning up a large hill, they turned endless times around it until the car parked itself in front of a gigantic palace.
The guards stood at attention. They were dressed in turbans and colorful silk pants. Each had a silken baldric on which large scimitars hung. They wore large gold cuffs and hoop earrings adorned their ears. The guards watched her with cold, reptilian eyes as she entered the palace. Once inside, a stunningly beautiful woman whose face was hidden by a violet veil ushered her through the marbled entryway and toward a room in the back.
“My name is Rahiq. Karam has sent me to prepare you for him.” She was dressed in a silk caftan that was a darker violet than her veil. It clung to her full curves, outlining a toned body. Melody sucked in her stomach but couldn’t keep it that way for long. She relaxed with a dejected sigh. She should have laid off the doughnuts and hit the gym more.
The room they were in was a large study, but Rahiq opened the balcony doors and led her through a lush garden. Melody had little time to gawk at the fruit trees and the colorful flowers as she hurried to keep up with Rahiq. She heard music playing up ahead, the soft strumming of a guitar, the steady beat of a drum, and the jingle of tiny bells or cymbals being crashed together. A party was going on. Women of all shapes, sizes, and nationalities danced and laughed. A few were drinking and eating. Some were playing card games, and still others were dancing. Melody stumbled when she saw one woman splayed out on a stack of cushions while another women greedily ate her pussy. A throb of longing hit her low, and she couldn’t tear her eyes away.
“Welcome to the harem,” Rahiq said.
Melody stopped dead in her tracks. “Karam has a harem?” Her voice went up a few octaves at the end.
“Of course, but tonight you are for him and he is for you alone.”
“Just for tonight?” Melody’s voice shook.
“Trust.” Rahiq removed her veil, and she was as lovely as all the other women. Melody felt a bit like the ugly duckling of the group. “You must undress for your bath. We will wash your hair and anoint your body.”
“I can do all of that myself.”
“Of course you can, dear one, but it is our job to make you perfect for our Master.”
“Karam’s your Master? Do you grant him three wishes?”
Rahiq seemed to think that was funny, because her laughter rang out like a peal of bells. “No, we are not bound to him. We are here of our own free will.”
“Great,” Melody said, between her teeth. Here she had thought Karam and her had something special, but it turned out she was just one in a crowd.
One of the women took Renaldo’s cage from her and another took her bags. “We will take good care of your darling pet.”
Melody tried not to feel abandoned as Renaldo was carried away. The bathtub was the size of a small pool. Steam rose from it, and a constant fountain of hot water poured into it from jug-carrying imps. She barely noticed the hands undressing her while she gawked at the bathroom. Everything was done in brass and marble. It shone like the sun and sparkled like diamonds. Melody walked down the steps into the tub. Rahiq sat her down in a special bath chair. It was like lounging on a beach chair under water. The woman, also naked, poured liquid soap over Melody’s hair and shoulders. It smelled like a sweet flower that she remembered from her childhood but couldn’t place. Honeysuckle?
Rahiq washed her hair and conditioned it with a thick oil whose scent reminded Melody of tropical breezes. Two other women stroked every inch of Melody’s body with soft face cloths. She tried not to compare herself to them, but it was difficult. It was even more difficult not to be embarrassed by their intimate touches, especially since she was still a little aroused by what she had seen.
But they bathed her lovingly, without a hint of sexual tension, and it became easier to relax. By the time Rahiq had braided her hair, Melody was drifting into a light doze. They walked her over to a massage table and put her facedown.
More scented oils and lotions were rubbed into her back, arms, and shoulders. The women kneaded the muscles in her legs, and when they gave her a foot massage, Melody could understand the allure of being in a harem. However, when they flipped her over and started to massage her front, it was hard to remain unaffected.
Rahiq spent a lot of time on her breasts, oiling them up. Melody couldn’t stop a moan when she circled the nipples. “That’s right, sweet one. Enjoy. Karam wants you completely at his mercy.”
The other women who had bathed her were oiling up her thighs. Rahiq’s rhythmic stroking over her nipples and breasts made Melody aware that she was wet and aroused. When they parted her thighs wide, Melody croaked a protest.
“Shhh,” Rahiq whispered. “They are going to paint your clit with a pleasure cream that will intensify your orgasms.”
Melody whimpered at the tickle of the brush they used. Heat throbbed through her clit. Rahiq left her aching breasts alone, and Melody thought the torture was over but then saw her oiling up a flexible dildo with two heads, a larger and a smaller. Rahiq smiled wickedly and inserted the long end into Melody’s pussy. The smaller head slid into her anus. Melody bucked up.
“The Master told us that you liked these.” Rahiq placed jeweled nipple clips on Melody’s sensitive tips. They were attached to a delicate golden chain.
Melody gasped, biting her lip against the familiar pleasure pain of the clamps.
One of the other women kept pushing on the dildos. The sensitized paint
on her clit had Melody close to orgasm.
Rahiq’s eyelids were half-closed. “I would love to bring you pleasure, sweet one. But the Master has forbidden it for tonight. However, you have made all of us so very happy.” She secured the dildo in place with a strap that attached to both of Melody’s thighs, tucked tight so it wouldn’t fall out when she walked.
Melody moaned.
“You are very responsive,” Rahiq whispered in her ear as she helped her down from the table. Leading her by the nipple clamps, she walked her out of the bathroom.
Part of Melody thought she should be embarrassed or scandalized, but the other part of her was drowning in sensations she had never felt before. It felt as if she was made for pleasure. She felt proud when the other members of the harem cheered for her as she was led to a bedroom suite. The dildo rubbed the right places. Her nipples were on fire and her clit pulsed in time with her heartbeat. She would do anything to come.
Rahiq settled her on the bed and kissed her, tonguing open her mouth while she held Melody’s arms down. She kissed her until Melody’s hips were straining up and Rahiq’s mouth was red and puffy. Then Rahiq released her and whispered in her ear, “I am going to come thinking about you getting fucked tonight.” And then she bit Melody’s ear and left, closing the door behind her.
Melody drowsed on the bed, wondering how long she would wait for Karam. Almost immediately he walked in.
He wore only flimsy linen pants that clung to the muscles of his thighs and did nothing to hide the hard curve of his cock. He wore small hooped nipple rings and a dangling scimitar earring.
“Welcome to the City of Brass,” he said, climbing on the bed with her. “Did you enjoy your welcome?” Karam nuzzled her neck and pulled on the chain to the nipple clamps.
“Yes,” Melody said. “Please fuck me.”
Karam leaned up on one elbow and kissed her sweetly. He slapped the dildo. Melody jerked and moaned as it rubbed into her most sensitive spot. “You are in my domain now. I give the orders. And right now, I feel the need to punish you for your last wish.”
Santa Genie Page 6