FicWad

In A Darkened Room
By Mishi

Chapter 16
The Untouchable

Touya entered the darkness of his apartment with a sigh of relief. Mercifully, he had not opened the curtains before leaving the night before, so they were closed nice and tight when he entered. He stuck the sunglasses in his coat pocket and opened the closet to hang up the coat. He felt lighter without the heavy thing on his back. His head continued to pound as he walked over to the bed and set down with the intension of removing his boots. He sat there on the edge of the bed for a long moment with his face in his hands and his elbows on the tops of his thighs. He sighed again, and started taking off the boots. He also made sure to shed the socks and toss them on the floor next to the boots, which he left sitting by the side of the bed.

For the first time since coming in, he paid attention to the large manila envelope sitting at the foot of the bed. He picked it up and scooted backwards until he was in the middle of the mattress, and then laid down. He sat the envelope next to him and crossed his legs at the ankles. Putting one hand behind his head, he stared at the ceiling for a short time letting his head throb. He wasn’t ready for sleep. No, he had slept well all wrapped up in Maire’s body. However, mentally he was exhausted. Her questions had dug up painful memories that he had sooner kept buried. He had to admit that his headache was as much a product of the tension those memories produced, as they were a side affect of his eye’s sensitivity to sunlight. He just hoped that the pain-both mental and physical-would stop soon.

Deciding to push is headache aside; he picked up the envelope and opened it. It contained several printed news articles-some with pictures-and a list of address along with a written report. He tried to read the report, but the headache made it hard to focus. He decided to give up for the time being and returned the information to the envelope. Wanting to take a shower to relax his body, he thought he would get his call to Bethany over with, so he pulled out his iPhone and let it dial her number.

“Boss, you’re up late, aren’t ya?” She answered in a curious tone.

He wasn’t in the mood to explain, so he just said, “Yeah. I need you to do me an extra favor today.”

“Grumpy too. Ok, but tell it to me quick, ‘cause class is about to start. You caught me just as I was about to turn off my phone for the hour,” she informed him as she made her way out into the less crowded hallway.

“Oh, sorry. I need you to come by here after class and pick up a key to my girlfriend’s apartment. I want you to get her laundry done for her today,” he explained trying to sound casual about the girlfriend reference.

“Did you just say girlfriend? Touya the Untouchable has a girlfriend,” she cooed in disbelief.

“Beth, you know I hate when you call me that. Can you do her laundry or not?” He grumbled.

“Shit yeah! I’ll do it just to be sure she’s real. And if you weren’t so ‘I don’t need sex’ all the time, I wouldn’t call you that.”

“You kept offering and I didn’t want to take advantage of you. Why was that a bad thing with you?”

She lowered her voice and answered, “Because the way things are set up I can’t have anyone else but you, and I don’t plan on going dry for the rest of my days.”

“Beth, you can have all the human lovers you want. You just can’t have a vampire. You’re the one that’s obsessed with having a vampire lover. And I didn’t want a human lover.”

“I still think we could work something out.”

“What time are you going to be here?” He was tired of arguing about it.

“I’ll be there at noon. I’ll stop by the drycleaner’s and get your laundry before I come over.”

“Fine,” he said and hung up. He put the phone on the desk, emptied his pockets, and then began to strip.

The shower was a long one. He stood under the hot water until it began to cool. It helped relieve the tension in his shoulders and neck, but his headache was still there. He was hoping for a different outcome. Nonetheless, he dried himself and blow dried his hair in the usual manner, and then put on a pair of grey sweats and a plain white tee shirt. Deciding that he was not going to get over the headache anytime soon, he spread himself out on the bed and figured he would wait for Bethany to show up. He closed his eyes and thought of Maire handing out sandwiches in the soup kitchen; her face glowing and her lips smiling shyly as the poor passed her. He smiled at the vision of her in his head. He let himself remember holding her the night before, and how soft and warm her body had been. She smelled so sweet. It had been so wonderful to wake up surrounded by her body. He wanted that to happen again; he wanted it more than anything. He knew it was selfish and what he was doing was dangerous, but he wanted her more than his survival instincts could convince him it was a bad idea.

****

Touya awoke to the sound of someone knocking at his apartment door. He rolled off the bed and opened the door to find Bethany holding up his dry cleaning in one hand, and her balancing a large laundry basket on her hip with her other hand. Her skin tone was pale in color for someone of an African-American decent, and her hair was a wild color of copper, which she wore short and curly. Her body was thin and curvy, and she liked to wear clothing that showed it off. Her choice for the day was a one piece, rust colored knit dress that came to mid-thigh. For the moment, her body was being covered by her black, hip length imitation leather jacket, but the dress would be showing off the curves later.

“How did you manage to get up here with all that?” He asked moving aside to let her pass.

She sat the basket on the end of the bed and laid the dry cleaning next to it before opening the closet door. “Talent, shear talent,” she said arrogantly. She unwrapped the first pair of leather pants from the plastic the cleaners had wrapped them in, and transferred them from the wire hanger to the wooden one which came from Touya’s closet. “So tell me about her,” she said not bothering to look away from her task.

He was watching her from beside the bed. He had one arm warped carelessly around his waist and he was using his other hand to play with his lower lip. With one leg bent and the other off the bed, he sat down to face her on the side of the bed. “What do you want to know?” He asked cautiously.

“Is she a really new vampire or is she really old? I guess she would have to be just as fanatical as you about humans or you wouldn’t have let it get this far.” She was working on her forth pair of pants as she spoke.

He looked down not wanting to answer, because he knew the fight his answer was going to get him into. He ran his hand through his hair and said nothing.

His silence made its affect, because she stopped working and looked at him. Her eyes suddenly grew very serious and she began to shake her head back and forth. “Don’t you dare tell me she’s human,” she whispered.

He tried to tell himself that he deserved her anger, after all he had been so self righteous about not having sex with humans. He didn’t have any excuse to give her for his relationship with Maire.

“Oh God, she is! She’s human, isn’t she? You fuckin’ asshole! After all that shit you gave me, and you’re fuckin’ a human.”

“I’m not fucking anyone! She’s not like that, Beth,” he yelled back, matching her anger.

“Oh, you may not be fucking now, but you will be. It’s the natural progression of things, or didn’t they have the story of the birds and the bees where you came from?”

“I’m sorry, Bethany. I know I gave you hell about it. I didn’t want things to turn out the way they did between me and Maire, but I can’t stay away from her. I’m fucking things up, but I have to be with her.”

“Where does that leave me?” Her hands were clinched into fists at her side.

“I’ve told you, you can have as many lovers as you want.”

“You know what I want. I want a vampire. If you get to fuck a human that isn’t me, then I should get to fuck a vamp that isn’t you.”

He stood up from the bed and walked over to place his hands on her shoulders, with her facing him he spoke, “Do you want me to lift the ban on your body? I can do that. But think of your daughter first, because when they’ve had enough of you they will kill you.”

She looked into his face and saw the sincerity in his eyes. “No, I’m glad you did that for me. I just always thought you would give into me eventually. There has to be some arrangement we can come up with. Can I be with someone if I have your consent?”

“I can give you to someone if I want.”

“Then find someone for me. I’ll trust whoever you pick.”

He closed his eyes and sighed. He didn’t like what she was asking. He could think of a hundred reasons to shot the idea down, but didn’t. “If I do this will you forgive me for dating Maire?”

“Yes, completely.” She looked at him with a face full of hope.

“I’ll look, but I’m not guaranteeing anything. I have a lot going on right now, so it will not be soon, either.”

She hugged him, bouncing up and down joyfully before turning back to the laundry. She finished hanging the rest of the dry cleaning as he returned to the bed and planted himself in the center of it. With legs crossed at the ankles and his arms tucked behind his head, he watched her quietly work. She was finally ready to start on the basket, picking out his socks and underwear and placing them in the plastic utility drawer that sat in the bottom of the closet. The drawers were about three feet high and white, and looked like what you would find in just about any kitchen or bathroom.

After shoving the empty laundry basket into the closet beside the utility drawers, Bethany closed the closet and went over to sit on the bed next to Touya. “So where does this woman of yours live?”

“Get me the note pad and a pen and I’ll give you the address,” he replied not bothering to move from his comfy position.

She got up and went to the computer desk for the pad and pen he always kept on the corner of it, and then returned to the bed. She passed them to him and watched as he scribbled the address down.

“She doesn’t live that far from your grandmother, to be honest,” he commented handing her the pad and pen.

Bethany looked at the address and agreed, “Only about a mile or so away.” She tore off the page she needed and returned the pen and notepad to the desk. “Are these her keys?” She asked picking up a set of keys attached to a Cinderella keychain from the desk.

“Yes, those are her keys,” he rolled his eyes.

She twirled the keys around her finger and asked, “Are you sure she’s legal?”

He laughed it off, because he had questioned Maire’s age several times himself. “Yes, she’s a consenting adult. She’s just strangely obsessed with Disney stuff.”

She dramatically mouthed an “ok” and stuffed the address and keys in her jacket pocket. She crawled onto the bed and bent over him with a hand on each side of his body holding her up. “Can I ask one last thing?” She said softly looking down at him.

“Which would be?” He returned without moving his body.

“Can I kiss you just this once? No games or tricks…I just want to kiss you.”

He was fairly positive why she was asking this, so he nodded and she lowered her lips to his. He let the kiss grew in intensity until her tongue entered his mouth, then he pushed her back.

“Damn, I knew your lips would feel as good as they looked,” she whispered half panting.

“Thanks, I think,” he said with a concerned look on his face. She backed off the bed and straightened her clothing. He looked at her and asked, “Was that closure?”

“Yeah, that was closure. But if she dumps you…I’m all over that.”

“Noted,” he pointed at his head with a smile.

“Ok, I’ve gotta take Naomi to the doctor at two and I’ll pick up some new clothes for you right after. I hope to be back here by four. I’ve got time to get your lady’s necessities right now and drop them at the cleaner’s, but I don’t know if they’ll be ready by four.”

“Naomi’s sick?”

“Yeah, the poor thing spent the weekend pukin’. She’s with Nanna right now instead of that fancy pre-school you got her into.”

“Your grandmother know you’re working for me today?”

“Yeah, Nanna knows.”

“Well, if you can’t get back here at four, it’s alright. I don’t have anywhere to be until eight thirty. Don’t rush around with Naomi, I’m sure it would be best for her to take it slow.”

“Trust me; I know how to take care of my daughter. This doctor’s fast and he’ll have her out of the office quick. I’ll have her back at Nanna’s and in bed in about an hour,” she explained sounding a bit annoyed.

“Ok, ok, you know what’s best. Just letting you know you don’t have to rush.”

“Got it,” she acknowledged going for the door knob. “I’ve gotta get out of here now, or I’ll never get anything done.”

He nodded and she walked out the door, closing it behind her. He listened to the sound of her footsteps as she walked down the hall and out of the building.

“Where the hell am I going to find a vampire that won’t hurt her, or run to Andrew?” He thought out loud. He wondered if he might be able to go to Marcus and find a vampire among his people who might be suitable. He shook his head and told himself he had other things to think about first. He had to make sure that Maire was safe; and to do that he had to catch her attackers, before they could come for her again.

He reached out and snatched up the envelope he had put aside earlier, and emptied it’s contents once more onto the bed. He looked at the report, happy his eyes were finally able to focus on the words. As he read, he would occasionally stop to glance at a referenced news clipping. Jagger’s report explained how he started with the small agency in charge of selling the building. After a lot of unethical research, he found the building on Seemore, along with several other properties scattered around the city, could be traced to two people, Alfred Swartz and Tabitha Martin. Mr. Swartz was the actual owner of the buildings, while Ms. Martin’s signature was being used to sign the checks that paid for the utilities. Jagger went on to conclude that his hunch was the independent real estate agency wasn’t a legitimate business, but a cover for something more devious; because all it’s cliental could be linked to Martin or Swartz in some way. He finished off the report with all the information Touya would need to hack into the real estate agency’s computer system, as well as those of a few choice utility companies.

“That’s what I like about you, Jagger, you’re fast and thorough,” he said picking up the list of address to look through. Most of the address were varied in there position around the city. He was surprised to find there were none on the West side. They stayed out of the nice neighborhoods, but didn’t exactly use the dirty part of town either. One address stood out among the list, and he rose from the bed to make certain he was right. His computer was always on and downloading something, so it was nothing to bring up his browser and type the address into Google. Instantly, a map came up and he plotted out the directions in his head. Next, he looked for the paper on which he had written the directions to the farm house that the prostitute Sandy had given him. Upon finding it, he checked it against the map and it was a match. “Damn,” he whispered, exasperated and throwing his head back. “A cult is doing this. I’m not just working with a few dumbass kids at the mercy of the Hell Bitch. I have an entire cult of dumbasses…no, make that dumbasses with money… and the Hell Bitch.” He shook his head and rubbed his forehead with his hand, and then sighed, “And I had such a lovely night last night.”

*****

Seven thirty found Touya parked in front of the Stack Shack waiting for the traffic to clear, so he could get out of his car and cross the busy street. Maire had called him and asked that he come to the Shack early, so she could talk to him about a surprise that Allison had just dropped on her. He was more than happy to have the extra hour with her. Besides, he had no reason to stick around his place, Bethany had already come and gone with an assurance that Maire’s clothes would be waiting for her by time he got her home.

He entered the shop to find Maire behind the counter with the full figured Peggy, Lu’s wife, dressed in a white blouse covered in aqua colored flowers and a pair of khakis. Maire was wearing the same red and white hoodie he had left her in that morning. He liked how the top formed to her body and flattered her breasts, and he wondered if he should tell her as much later. He walked up to the counter with a devilish grin that matched the thoughts the hoodie inspired. The woman with Maire noticed him first and tugged at Maire’s sleeve then nodded her head in his direction. Maire turned too see the grin and instantly blushed and looked down.

Touya crossed his arms and leaned down, resting his elbows on the counter. He was trying to get Maire to look at him as he greeted her with a very smooth, “Hello Maire.”

Though her face was still burning, she forced herself to look at him and return, “Hello Touya.”

“I really like that top on you. It sets off your hair and makes your eyes sparkle,” he said with the grin turning into a full blown smile.

Maire threw her hands over her face as the woman next to her said, “Oh my, he’s a charming one, Maire.”

Touya looked at the woman and responded, “Thank you, but really I’m not. I just can’t help myself around her. I love cute women, and Maire’s just adorable.”

“You’re good. Maire, where on earth did you find this Casanova?”

“In an alley, next to a dumpster,” she mumbled through her hands.

Touya laughed at the irony that Maire would tell the truth instead of making something up. Noting the odd look on the older woman’s face, he quickly came up with a story that would satisfy her mind. “I had been mugged and was unconscious when she found me.”

“Oh, that’s terrible. Did they find the guy who attacked you?” The older woman asked.

“No, I didn’t really see the attacker. He sorta got the drop on me.”

“Well, I’m glad that you weren’t badly hurt.”

Touya smiled in response and left it at that. Maire, who had finally uncovered her face and returned her hands to the counter, was trying to keep quite and go with the merry little deception that Touya had set up.

“Well, I’m glad I got the chance to meet you, Touya. I’m Peggy, by the way. My husband, Lu, and I own this shop,” she told him as she offered him her hand.

He shook her hand and replied, “It’s nice to meet you too. Maire really loves working with you and your husband.”

“Well, we do love this girl like a daughter, so you better be really good to her,” she said cheerfully putting her arm around Maire and giving her a good squeeze.

“I’ll do my best,” he assured her.

“Ok, then. Maire, I’ll go ahead and start the sweeping so you and Touya can chat. Just make sure you don’t lose track of time and forget to lock the door at eight.” With that Peggy walked away from the counter and headed for the back of the store.

Maire watched as Peggy disappeared. After she was sure they were alone she turned her attention to Touya, who was standing before her with his hands behind his back and a smile that stretched from ear to ear. She made an awkward smirk and looked away, and then pleaded, “Will you please stop?”

“What else would you rather I do?” He asked with humor in his words.

“Anything; just don’t be so goofy.”

“Would you rather me be all dark and broodish?”

“I don’t know, maybe.”

He dropped his hands to his sides and tried to make his face look serious. His forehead wrinkled and he frowned. “Alright then, broodish,” he said completely deadpan.

She laughed at him and his smile returned. “Fine, act goofy if you want. You made your point,” she returned.

He reached out for her hand and she let him take it. He used his thumb to make circles on the back of her hand as he spoke, “What is so goofy about being happy in your presence? Is it a bad thing that you make me smile?”

“I’m just not use to it. I’ve never met anyone like you. I’m not just talking about what you are. I mean, I’ve never had a guy act like you do around me.”

He lifted her hand to his lips and gently kissed the backs of her fingers, “Have all the men in your life treated you badly?”

“My boyfriends always made me feel like they were doing me a favor by going out with me. It was usually pretty clear that they thought they could do better, so I had to be super girlfriend to make up for what I lacked. So, yeah, I guess it didn’t do much for my self-esteem,” she finished looking down at the counter.

He released her hand and placed his hand under her chin. Gently, he lifted her face so their eyes would meet. With a face so sincere it left her no room for doubt, he whispered, “Baby, there’s nothing you lack.”

Then he kissed her with that same gentle kiss he had given her that morning. However, this time she let herself put her hand on his face. He covered that hand with his and held it in place. In that moment she wanted to cry, but she fought back the tears. It was all too perfect, so she would not cry.

He pulled back from the kiss and said, “Maire…,” and then stopped himself. He looked down at the counter with her hand still pressed against his face. Suddenly everything was clear to him. He knew beyond a doubt that he loved her and she would be with him forever. It was a knowledge so strong that it threatened to override all his senses. He feared this and what it might mean for her. And though the smile was still in place, it faltered; becoming strained and not the result of joy that it originally had been.

She was puzzled and asked, “What, was there something you were going to say?”

He made a noise and shook his head. He finally led her hand away from his face and said, “I was just getting ahead of myself. It’s not important.”

She could tell there was something he wasn’t telling her, but she lacked the courage to press the issue. Letting it drop, she pulled a piece of paper from her back pocket and unfolded it. “This is a copy of the so called blessing that Allison wants to perform,” she explained handing him the paper.

He read over it quickly and commented, “It looks harmless enough.” He shrugged and handed the paper back to her.

“I still don’t know what to do about it. I know that as a Christian, I can sit in on worship services of other faiths. It’s a way of establishing fellowship. But I also know there are parts of those services that I can’t take part in. I’m not clear on where the line is with this thing that Allison has planned.”

“Well, what’s the line you’re afraid of crossing?” He asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

“The reason I’m not allowed to use things like tarot cards is because it’s like I’m relying on something other than God. I’m afraid this spell will be like the same thing. Like I’m relying on spirits instead of God. That’s a sin, because God said not to put anything before him. I have to trust that God will protect me, and not some group of spirits that Allison and her coven conjured up.”

“Baby, Allison isn’t asking you to believe. You’re doing this for her piece of mind, not because you believe in any of it.”

“Did I happen to mention that she wants to do this tonight?”

“Tonight,” he repeated with raised browses.

“Yep, she said it was the only night she could get the coven together,” she confirmed with a sigh; leaning on the counter.

“What did you tell her?”

“I told her I’d have you drive me to her house after work, and I’d try it.”

He bent down and put his arms on the counter, and then reassured her, “I’ll be right by your side the entire time. If you want to leave, just say the word and we’re gone.”