Hunter's Moon.htm (13 page)

The scent of the meat, warm and bleeding in the sink was too much. Everything was too much today. Fine. If not sex then blood. Sweet, metallic, heady. Even as my mind screamed its disapproval I bit a bloody hunk of prime rib and chewed it slowly. The tension dissipated as I chewed the raw beef and I accepted what I was for these three days.

A wolf. A carnivore. So be it.

At least for today I wasn't a cannibal.

Chapter 12

Darkness came and went. As I woke to the daylight the room was silent as a tomb. I toured the room and found the remains of a gnawed bone in the tub. One end of it was cracked and ragged. The marrow had been removed as far as, I presume, my tongue would reach. Maybe it's better that I don't remember the things I do.

I didn't find any sign that Sue had come back. Not unexpected but still disappointing. I took my shower and dressed again in the Dockers and T-shirt.

I called down and asked that a newspaper be brought to the room along with breakfast. After I finished eating I put the cart outside in the hallway along with the one from the afternoon before.

When I heard the lock release nearly an hour later I didn't even reach for my gun. I could sense who it was— thick moss, musk, and sex. I actually felt my heart stop as the door opened, I watched the silly, sunglasses and wig enter the room ahead of Sue and fought back a grin. She could just be returning long enough to say good-bye. I wouldn't get my hopes up. Shouldn't even have hopes.

"Hi," she said softly. She was worried; nervous. She stood at the edge of the room but wanted to come closer.

"Hi. What's up?" Might as well get it over with.

"Can I come in?" Her expression made it clear that she didn't know the answer.

I couldn't seem to stop the reply. I even meant it. "Always."

She stepped into the room. She looked delectable in a purple cotton short set with pansies embroidered across the neck of the spaghetti-string top. Her breasts were unfettered and made the cloth tent out far enough that the bottom of the shirt didn't touch skin. Another pair of jelly sandals matched the outfit. She must be buying as she went. I wanted to take her right now whether or not she planned to leave me, and that scared the shit out of me.

She took off the wig and glasses. Her hair was damp and tightly curled from the heat and humidity. I smelled the sweat and it still smelled of herbs. I remained seated but leaned forward and rested my arms on my knees. I hoped I looked interested and not like I was waiting for the other boot to drop. Although I was.

She sat down across from me. She looked at me, then away, then back. Her polished nails tapped a nervous pattern on her bare legs. "I've been thinking."

"So have I."

"You first," she said quickly, anticipatory. Her whole body moved forward on the couch several inches.

I shook my head. "This is your decision, not mine."

She nodded and scooted back in the couch. Her eyes dropped again and she suddenly looked as she did when we first met, uncomfortable and set in stone. She couldn't meet my eyes. Her foot began to tap lightly on the thick carpet.

I jumped in with both feet. "You're leaving. Right?"

Her eyes shot up and locked with mine. She looked surprised. "No!"

The heady scent of spices rolled off of her. Too many to sort, but over the top, the comfort smell of baking bread reached me. Then why the nervousness?

She continued, a little flustered. "I mean, not unless you want me to." She looked at the floor. With her legs crossed, head bowed, and hands folded in her lap, she looked like a little girl waiting outside the principal's office. She expected to be rejected one more time. I could feel it in my chest. She didn't even dare hope that I might want her. Odd that we were both thinking the same thing.

"Look, let's just be open here. You said you've been thinking. Do you want to stay or go?"

She took a deep breath. "Stay. If you want me to."

I fought not to grin. I motioned with my hand. "Then why are you sitting over there?" I patted my knee. Sue looked up, watched my face, to see if I was mocking her. I did smile then. With my face and with my eyes.

She smiled shyly and stood. She walked around the coffee table, turned sideways and then sat down on my lap. I put my arms around her waist. She snuggled against my chest and laid her head on my shoulder. A small sigh eased out of her and her arms went around my neck. I felt her fingers glide over my scalp. I rested my face against her hair. The honey-colored curls smelled of salty sweat, soft musk, and herbs.

The scent did more than turn me on. If only it was that easy. I would kill, or die, for the scent of her. God, I shouldn't ever want anyone this much. It's too dangerous.

"You're sure about this?" I asked after a few moments of silence.

"I really did go stay at a friend's last night. I used to have lots of friends. We hadn't even spoken for over a year!" She moved her head so she could look at me. "I missed you. I spent the night wondering about you; wishing you were there, wishing I was here. I could feel you pace around the room looking for me. I felt you eat the prime rib. I laughed when you got frustrated that your tongue couldn't reach the marrow in the center of the bone. I wanted to be here to help." She was silent for a moment. "A part of me wanted you to come look for me. Find me. Take me. Another part of me was really scared that you would."

"I can't say that I missed you last night. But this morning was a bitch. Yesterday too." Tangerines dusted my nose and blended with the herbs.

"So? Now what? What's next? I've never done anything like this, felt anything like this before. I don't want to leave without you but I'm sure you've got a life. I don't even know if you're married. I don't even know your real name. Is it really Bob?"

I shook my head. "My friends call me Tony. Only clients call me Bob." I ignored the "real name" question. Too soon. "And no, I'm not married."

I paused as I thought briefly, then I nodded. "You're right. We do need to get to know one another. When are you due back at your house?"

She shrugged. "Whenever I get there. Bekki is staying until I get back. So Mom has someone around. I'm sure there'll be hell to pay but I told them I'd be gone a couple of days. I don't have a job so as long as Mom's covered… " She grinned suddenly, "Oh God, Bekki will be mad! Heaven forbid something should intrude on her life!"

I chuckled. My lady was starting to grow a backbone. Good. "Then let's check out and we'll go on a trip. When's the last time you were in Vegas?"

"Las Vegas? I've never been there. You mean that we're just going to pick up and leave town?" She seemed startled at the suggestion.

I shrugged, which rubbed my arms against her breasts. "Why not? I have some business, but it'll only take a few hours. We can take an afternoon flight and make it back in the morning. Hell, we can stay a week if you want."

"Oh! I can't be gone that long! I don't even have any clothes."

I shrugged again and felt the urging of the hunger under my skin as she pressed against me. "We'll buy new. I only need to stop at my place for a second to pick up some stuff." No need to bring up what sort of stuff I needed. Even if we were getting together, the less she knew, the better.

"We're going to be stopping by your house?" The question seemed loaded and I didn't know why.

"Is that a problem?" Her scent was suddenly tense.

"No. No, not at all. I'm just trying to imagine where you might live and I'm coming up blank."

"Well, in a little bit, you'll see. But for the next few minutes," I said and tightened my arms, "you won't be having any time to imagine much of anything."

She was smiling as I kissed her and our teeth clicked together for an instant. The thick, heady scent of her desire made thinking impossible. So I didn't bother to try. I just let the hunger have its way.

Chapter 13

After I checked out she drove me to Nick's so I could collect my car. It's a '67 Mustang Fastback. Black with white interior. It'll overtake almost any other car off the line or on the stretch. Not only had nobody bothered my car, they'd waxed it. I could smell residual sweat blended with the fresh paste wax. It's nice to be feared.

Sue was amazed that nobody had touched my car in that neighborhood so I told her about my conversation with Jocko.

"You'd really do it. Wouldn't you?" Burned coffee, burned water, with the slightest hint of cloves.

"Absolutely," I said firmly. "A threat has no teeth if you're not willing to follow through." It was a lesson she needed to learn if she wanted to be able to stand up to her family.

"Okay… " I couldn't smell her mood.

We stopped at her bank first. She was amazed when I suggested that she take about a quarter mil. She finally agreed to take five thousand. What a waste of a good gambling trip.

I took the lead and she followed to my house to drop off my car. I live in a large ranch-style in a quiet, suburban neighborhood. The house is huge. It's bigger than I need but I like space. The suite is half of the top floor of the hotel but even that feels cramped. As I parked the car I wondered again what was possessing me that I kept letting her further and further into my life. Only the boys have ever been to my place. We take turns hosting the poker game. It's only once every five months, so the neighbors don't bitch. Much. Bodyguards and unconcealed carrys make folks nervous.

I unlocked the door and ushered her inside. "Look around," I said. "I'll just be a minute. I really want to get out of these clothes."

She smelled like I had hurt her feelings. "You don't like them?"

I smiled and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. "Actually, I like them a lot. But I've been wearing them for two days."

"Oh!" came a relieved comment. Her fragrance was sunny again. I was going to have to watch what I said around her until her skin thickened a bit.

I went into the master bedroom and as I stripped, she called to me.

"This is really nice! Did you decorate it yourself?"

I turned on the shower for a quick rinse. "Mostly. Some of the paintings were gifts from my dad."

I turned to see her standing in the doorway of the bedroom. "I thought you said your dad died before you were born."

"No, I said my father died before I was born. My dad is the man who raised me."

She gave me a questioning glance.

"Dad was a bodyguard for the Patrone" I explained, using the Italian pronunciation. "You've probably heard him called the Godfather. Patrone doesn't actually translate to Godfather. Literally, it's 'patron'; figuratively, 'grandfather'. The head of the family, a protector. Anyway, Dad didn't have any family and when I moved into the big house, I didn't either. Dad felt sorry for me and he always wanted a kid. So he asked and Patrone let Dad raise me."

She smiled at me and smelled of warm cinnamon rolls. "That's nice. It's nice that you found each other."

I stepped into the shower. I spoke louder to be heard over the water. "It's a family of choice, rather than a family of blood. Both are important."

I heard her voice move closer. I could sense that she was standing just inside the doorway.

"Do you have any blood family left? Did your mother or father have any family?"

"If they did they've never come forward. I didn't know my mother's real name. She just called herself Amber."

I stepped out of the shower and joined her in the bedroom. The towel I wore around my waist was to finish drying off. I'm not real modest.

I could feel in my head that she was hoping I had a picture. I did, but it was old and tired-looking from riding in my wallet for years. Still, I sorted through receipts and business cards until I found it. I pulled it out so she could see it.

Sue stared at the photo as I scrubbed my hair with the towel.

"She's beautiful!" she exclaimed in surprise. I glanced at the picture. I don't look at it often. Mom had thick black hair, which I inherited and sapphire blue eyes I didn't. Her pale skin and delicate features put her in the model category. The body matched the face. She could have been more than just a whore if she had tried, but I didn't know her long enough to ask her story. It's not something that a ten-year-old thinks of.

Sue pointed to the young boy smiling out of the cracked and faded wallet print. "Is that you in the photo with her?"

"Yeah. I was five when that was taken. It was right before she got the syphilis real bad. She didn't look so pretty when she died. It wasn't anything that a kid should watch."

She looked at me and watched the brief flash of pain appear then disappear from my eyes as the memory slipped through.

"I'm sorry." She really was. The feeling made my chest tight.

I shrugged. "Oh, well. Can't change the past. It's what happened."

"Yeah. I understand about pasts not going away." She stood there staring at the picture of a woman long dead, a person she didn't even know and felt sorrow. Hot tears shimmered just below the surface. She handed me back the photo without a word.

I wanted to go to her and hold her; make it better. But I couldn't. Instead, I hurriedly put on clothes suitable for Vegas. She watched me dress with a proprietary air. As I would walk from place to place she would reach out and touch a leg or an arm. Like it still wasn't quite real to her. I smiled at her once and she smiled back.

Once I was dressed and packed for a day or two, I reached into the closet behind the clothes and the shelves. My finger found a small indentation in the wall and I pulled sideways. A small panel opened and blind fingers found the handle of a briefcase. It was a typical hard-side case made of black leather, with twin dial locks set into the top. I didn't open it. There was no need. I knew what was in it. There was a handcuff attached and I snapped it closed around my wrist.

Sue watched with interest. Curiosity sparkled in the back of her eyes. "What's in the case?"

"Something I need to deliver to someone. It won't take long." My voice was light but neutral.

She shrugged but I could smell her curiosity. I was pleased that she didn't ask any questions I didn't want to answer.