Twisted Fate Chapter 5

It’s refreshing to see Caleb like this. The upbeat, fun-loving, cooter-chasing Caleb, I can deal with. Our quest for ‘tang, as Caleb so elegantly referred to it, led us to a block party off-campus at UCLA. I’ve been here before, which gives me great comfort. I had come to snag a few new clients, Caleb tagged along to snag a few hotties. I guess some things never change.

“Stay here a minute.” Caleb saunters over to the makeshift bar at the back, leaving me alone by the deejay table. I feel like all eyes are on me, because they actually are. The women glance in my direction. Some shy away, but most end up sneaking a peek here and there. Others stare blatantly; I can smell the pheromones from across the room.

“Quite different from the last time you were here, isn’t it?” Caleb hands me a drink. A rum and coke.

“A drink? Oh, to keep up appearances.”

“No,” Caleb says with annoyance in his eyes, “it’s to drink.” He holds up his cup. “Cheers!”

I hold my cup tentatively. Caleb tilts his back, gulping down nearly half of its contents. I follow suit and take a drink, though not as audaciously as he had. It tastes exactly as I remember.

“Soak it up,” Caleb says. “You’ve got your pick of the litter. Maybe I should’ve left you at home.” Caleb nudges me, so I nudge him back. “Love is in the air,” he croons as he scans the room.

The music blares from the five foot speaker behind us, some techno remix that sounds more like someone banging pots and pans together than music. It’s not my cup of tea, but everyone here seems to enjoy it. Girls are swaying slowly, boys are dancing behind them. Love is certainly in the air.

Lavinia’s earlier revelation plagues my mind. I need to know more. “Lavinia mentioned something earlier.”

Before I have a chance to elaborate, he crushes his empty plastic cup and says, “Jesus, Damien! You’re such a buzz kill!”

“She said…”

“I know what she said. I was there, remember?” I was, in fact, aware that he was there, but the supersonic hearing thing is something I have to get used to. “It’s a fool’s quest. Plain and simple,” Caleb says curtly.

“So, you don’t hold any stock in it?”

“She’s been performing her ritual every year for the last century. You know the definition of insanity, don’t you?” I don’t dignify his question with a response. I know he’s being rhetorical. “Whatever makes her happy.” Caleb grabs the drink out of my hand. “Not that it’s a bad thing. It’s the only time we get to have a nice family dinner.”  He sucks down the drink and says, “Reminds me of Thanksgiving.”

What Caleb said makes sense, too much sense. Their attempt at fulfilling the prophecy has failed time and time again. Of course, it’s silly to think it will work this time.

Caleb zeros in on a group of young girls who are heading for the bar. Two of them stop in their tracks, making a beeline straight for us. Damn, these girls don’t even look old enough to smoke!

“Ladies,” Caleb says smoothly. The giggling ensues. I stand corrected. They probably aren’t old enough to drive. “I’m Caleb and this here, is my friend Damien.”

“I’m Carrie! I’m Heather!” they blurt out in unison.

Heather twists her long, scarlet hair around her finger. “You guys go here?”

Carrie smacks Heather’s arm and says, “No way. I woulda noticed you guys if you went here.”

“Carrie’s right. We don’t,” I say a bit snidely, a side effect of my shattered hope. I stand idly by as Caleb works his magic. Cliché after cliché. That crap wouldn’t work for the average man, but he seems to have these girls wrapped around his finger.

“You ladies look like you could use a drink.” Caleb puts his arms around both of their waists and escorts them to the bar. He looks over his shoulder, leering at me as he pretends to squeeze the blonde’s a*s.

The cheesy grin that’s plastered on my face fades when I catch sight of her. She stands alone near the bar, her eyes darting around the room frantically. Her long, auburn hair is loosely clipped up on the back of her head, but a few tendrils hang down to her shoulders. I watch as she brushes one of them behind her ear. She pulls out a phone from her back pant pocket, huffing as she slides it back in.

“Hey, Earth to Damien!” S**t! I didn’t realize he was back. “Can you entertain yourself for awhile?” Caleb leans in close. “I’ll be quick. Just remember what I taught you.” He begins to lead the girls away, then turns around. “Better yet, hold off until I get back.” Caleb pats my chest and leaves the house with both girls in tow.

I try to resist, but there is something about her that’s drawing me in. Perhaps, it’s the adrenaline. She’s emitting it like a rainstorm! She’s afraid of something. That must be it.

I cross the dance area and lean against the bar, resting my arm mere inches from her. She doesn’t acknowledge me, instead she scoots further away, her eyes glued to the front door. Hmm…okay. Let’s try a direct approach.

“I’m Damien.” She glances at me, but I only get a glimpse of her cobalt eyes before she disengages. This is one tough cookie! “You look lost.”

“No, I mean…I’m looking for my friend.”

Well, that got her attention. “Maybe, I’ve seen him. What does he look like?”

“She is a blonde, about 5’ 9’’, who is gonna have a size six foot up her a*s when I find her!”

“Yikes! Mental note, don’t piss off…you never told me your name.”

She cracks a smile and says, “Rachel.”

“Right. Don’t piss off Rachel!”

I open my mouth to speak, when three women corral me. The one directly in front of me says, “Hey, I remember you. Damien, right?” I nod in agreement. “It’s me, Nicole. You gave me your card, but I lost it.” Her lips bend into a pout. “I really want to set up a meeting. You wouldn’t happen to have one with you, would you?”

I look over and Rachel is gone. Damn it! I reach into my inside jacket pocket and pull out one of my business cards. “Here.” I hand it to her and slip between them. I ignore her plea to come back as I cross the room anxiously.

I stand on the sidewalk, concentrating on every sound I hear. None of them are her. Finally, I hear her voice briefly. Rachel exits the neighboring house and walks further down the street. I know what she’s doing, looking for her friend, but the wind has picked up and the area too quiet. This is not safe for her, or anyone for that matter.

I keep my distance as I follow her. The next house is dark, too dark for there to be a party going on there. She must realize this, because she turns around and is heading this way. Rachel stops and stares down the alley.

“Stop it!” Rachel inches forward toward the distress call. “That’s not what I meant!” Without thinking, I fly down the street, nearly knocking Rachel off of her feet as I blow by her.

A man has a girl pinned to the side of the house, his face buried into her neck. I stop beside them, grabbing the man by the throat. He releases the girl and grabs my wrist with both hands. When the girl is a safe distance away, I take him down to the ground, my fingers still clutching his neck.

He coughs and says, “Hey, man. We were just having a little fun. No worries.”

My eyes narrow as I yank his head up to meet mine.  My hold tightens as I say, “If you value your life, I suggest you leave.” I let go and watch him fall to the ground, gasping for air.

I turn and see Rachel sitting on the grass, consoling her friend. She is holding the girl’s head close to her chest, stroking her hair and offering reassuring words. “Shannon, it’s okay. He’s gone. Shhh, he’s gone. He’s gone.”

Relief is too mild a word to describe how I feel. If he had hurt Rachel, I would have torn him limb from limb! I tug on my hair, riddled with confusion. Why do I feel so strongly for this girl I barely know? I could care less what happened to her friend. Heartless, I know, but I can’t help how I feel. This intervention was all about Rachel’s welfare, but why?

I approach them. Rachel looks up at me with kind eyes. “Thank you, Damien,” she says softly. “Come on Shannon, let’s go.”

Shannon tries to stand up but her knees give out. I scoop her up into my arms. One whiff and I can tell that this girl is three sheets to the wind. “Where’s your car?”

Rachel points down the street, back in the direction we had come from. I readjust my hold and head for the car. Shannon’s body is limp. She conked out in record time. The taillights of a brand new midnight blue Corvette flash. Wow, this is a shock! A bit flashy for a girl like Rachel, but then again, what do I really know about her? I guess the world is full of surprises. I open the passenger side door and gently set Shannon down, buckling her in tight. When I back up to shut the door, Rachel is standing right beside me.

She stares at me, mouth agape, then she sighs, saying nothing. She unclips her mussed up hair, gathering it at the nape of her neck and clipping it into place. Oddly, this sort of thing would send my feeding urges into overdrive. I pray it doesn’t rear its ugly head anytime soon.

“Thank you, Damien. I couldn’t have handled that by myself.”

“I’m just glad I finally captured your attention.”

“You were preoccupied. I didn’t want to intrude.”

“I beg to differ. Those other girls were the intrusion.” I lean in close. “I would have greatly preferred your company.”

Rachel smiles slightly, then peers around me to check on Shannon. “I really should get her home,” she mutters. Rachel walks around the front of the car and opens the driver side door. “Thanks, again.”

“Wait!” I shout, suddenly appearing right next to her. I grab the car door, preventing Rachel from closing it. “I would like to see you again.”

“I don’t…”

“Please,” I interject, “just consider it. I regret that we didn’t have time to get to know each other. I’d like to.”

 “Okay,” Rachel replied. “I’ll think about it.”

I pull out a pen from my jacket pocket and scrawl my number onto a card. “Here’s my business card. My private number is on the back.” My finger grazes hers as she reaches for it. “You might want to roll that window down. It’d be a shame if she defiled this beauty.”

“I think I’ll take your advice on that one.”

“Drive safe,” I say as she grabs the door handle. “I hope to hear from you. Goodnight, Rachel.”

A dull ache crawls through me as I watch her drive away. She won’t call, I’m sure of it. My fingers curl involuntarily, coiling into tightly packed fists. The pounding in my chest consumes me as watch the man that had just been body slammed approach me with beer bottle in hand. Is he really that stupid! The man raises the bottle over his head and lunges at me.

“No, Damien!” Caleb shouts as I block the attack with my forearm. I barely notice the bottle crashing to the ground or the sound of Caleb’s voice. I only focus on him, this man, this idiot who has no idea who he’s dealing with. A sinister glare emerges as everything around me fades into darkness.