Claudia

A dark short story.

             

Claudia

The city lights from afar looked stunning.  Claudia couldn’t wait.  Her bag of clothes and other items sat by her feet.  The bus she travelled in came to a halt.  It was time to get off.  Being late there wasn’t that many people about, apart from youngsters on a night out.  She didn’t mind this though, this is how she made her cash.  Pointless sex, money in her pocket.  On the other side of the street she saw her competition.  They gave her the evils, as she proceeded to the hotel which she’d booked online, quite cheap as well.  Perfect.  From the outside the place looked shabby, but she was only visiting for a short while.  So who cares.  Once through the door, a man wearing a black suit approached her with a worried look.
“I’m sorry but we’re all booked up,” he said rather abruptly, looking her up and down with disgust.
She had the perfect answer for this judgemental idiot.  “I’ve already booked.  I’ve got money, but if you don’t like the look of me, I’ll go.  Doesn’t bother me at all,” she replied, wanting to dig his eyes out with her sharp red nails.
“Okay,” he answered, seeming flustered by the whole affair.  He ran to the reception, then flicked through the book that sat on the front desk.  “What’s your name?”
“Claudia Secret,” she said, knowing the response she was going to get.
He peered up, confusion on his forty something face.  “What a strange surname.  I apologise, your name is here.  Your room is 196.”  He handed her the keys with a fake smile.  She took them and made her way to the lift.  

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Claudia peered at her image in the bathroom mirror.  Late thirties wasn’t a good age to be, especially for her.  She made money out of selling her body, and the lines on her face were becoming more prominent.  She walked back into the bedroom.  Tonight she would stay here where it was safe.  Picking up the remote she turned the TV on.  She watched a film.  By two she was fast asleep.

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The next day she spent the morning exploring this historical city.  She ate in a fine restaurant at lunchtime.  The food was very nice..  
She enjoyed her own company.  She’d never been close to anyone apart from her mother who she missed terribly.  The day she passed still saddened her, and the worst thing was, it was her father who’d caused it.  “F*****g hate you,” she yelled.
The hotel room now looked like a ferocious dog had torn it up.  She fell to her knees crying.  The pain was too much.  Within minutes a knock was heard at the door.      Great.  
Reluctantly she opened it to be faced with the prick she’d first met when entering this establishment.  “What do you want?” she said, far from impressed.  Then she gave him the look that most men hated, meaning, get lost.
“Maybe I’ll talk to you another time.  But keep the noise down, because some people have complained.”  With that he vanished down the hall.
She slammed the door.  It was mid afternoon, she needed sleep.  Tonight was going to be a busy night.  She lay on the bed and thought about how many days she’d stay here before moving on.  It was unsure.  Before long a dream had consumed her, and with it came the nightmarish memories of her father.  

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Her first customer was a fat belching fool of a man, who stunk of stale sweat.  Disgusting.  Her second client was handsome but shy.  At times she felt like his mother, as she explained to him what was going to happen next, but it ended well.  And he left with a satisfied look on his face.  Her third client was a reluctant type, probably married.  But he seemed to enjoy it once the fun got started.
Claudia counted the money she’d made that night while sitting on the comfy bed in her room.  Her body hurt a little from all the physical activity.  More sleep would sort that out.  She closed her eyes.  Within minutes bad dreams consumed her mind.

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Slowly Claudia was becoming restless, soon she’d move on to another city.  But she had one last thing to do, because she felt like she deserved it.  One evening she dressed up nicely, then headed to a nightclub.  When she entered the building she noticed loads of people on the dance floor.  Some sat at tables while they nervously looked about.  Tonight she was on a mission to pick up a nice young man, and hopefully end up at his place.  Then the real fun would begin.  This was something she liked to do once in a while.  Claudia wasn’t working tonight.  To her this was a fun night out.  Since being here she’d trawled the dark streets for the last seven nights, picking up anyone who’d pay her a good price.  
Across the dance floor she saw a bloke of her liking.  He was about 6 feet tall with short dark hair.  He looked like he worked out as his arms were big.  With her eye on him, she walked to the crowded bar to order a cocktail.  Once the man saw her in the queue, he asked politely, “What would you like?”
Seconds later she sipped from the drink.  It tasted good.  The bloke she fancied saw her, while she stared from afar.  He smiled.  This looked promising.  Using her finger she signalled him over.  He came quicker than she’d expected.
Once he was inches from her, he said nervously, “Hello, my name is Graham.  What’s your name if you don’t mind me asking?”
“Mary.  Where do you live?” she replied, brushing her hair.
His eyes sparkled, knowing he’d already pulled.  “Wouldn’t you like a dance first, and a couple more drinks?”
“Yeah.  What’s the hurry,” she answered.
For the next hour they danced.  The place was heaving.  Most people were wasted.  Claudia now wanted to leave.  She turned to him.  “Come on, let’s go.  I can’t wait any longer.”  She got hold of his arm pulling him towards the entrance, he seemed happy by this.  Once outside, he took her by the hand and both proceeded to his place.  She couldn’t wait.  When they’d finally arrived, he opened the door to his posh flat which was on the 2nd floor.  “Are you coming in?” he said, giving her a wink.  Claudia entered the room, then closed the door to the outside world.  She wanted him all to herself, no one else disturbing them.  
“I want to see you naked right now,” she said.  “Take your clothes off slowly with your back to me, and I promise you, you’re in very good hands.  I’ll teach you things you have only dreamt of.”  He must of liked the sound of that, as he turned away from her while taking his shirt off quickly.  From her bag she pulled out her beloved toy.  They were going to have so much fun tonight.  Her heart raced with anticipation.
She couldn’t wait any longer.  It was time.

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Early the next day while it rained heavily, Claudia caught the bus.  There wasn’t many people on it, which she didn’t mind.  With her bag by her feet she closed her eyes for a nap.  Twenty minutes into the journey the vehicle came to a halt.  From the front, she could see a little girl wearing a school uniform coming towards her.  The child no older than eleven sat on the seat next to her.  Claudia felt a little uncomfortable.  In the corner of her eye she could see the girl peering at her inquisitively.  Then the child said, before giggling, “Oh, hello.  So what’s your name?”
All she wanted was a bit of peace, but she couldn’t be rude to her.  “My name’s Claudia.  Are you going to school?”
The girl shuffled with the bag on her lap, before answering politely, “Yes I am.  Mum says I’m old enough now to go to school on my own.  How old are you, Claudia?”
“Too old,” she said as she laughed.  The child seemed to find this amusing.  
“I think you’re pretty,” was all she replied.  “Some people at my school say I’m ugly, and sometimes that makes me cry.”  With that sadness came over her young face.
Claudia felt sorry for the child, knowing children could be very cruel.  “You’re lovely looking, don’t listen to what other people say.  Honestly, you have nothing to worry about.”
The child cheered up instantly.  “I like you.  You’re very kind.”
Claudia thought back to last night.  Slight regret was felt.  “Thanks,” was all she said.
The bus began to slow down.  “This is my stop,” said the girl.  “Hope to see you again.  She got up from the seat and made her way to the front.
Claudia watched her with interest.  The girl waved at her, she waved back.  A moment later the vehicle proceeded up the busy road.  She wiped her eyes with a tissue.  Looking out of the window, she could see tall buildings which reached the dark heavens above, and with it came loneliness from somewhere deep down inside.  

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After many hours and three buses later, Claudia was finally at her new destination.  The first thing she did was checkout the hotel.  The outside of it looked better than the last one.  Like usual she went to the reception to get the keys, then using a lift made her way to the room.  Inside was a single bed.  By the window that overlooked the car park was a nice sized TV.  Good.  She had the whole day to explore.  Tonight she would work.  The funny thing is she didn’t no any different, because she’d been doing it for so long.  She knew it was a sad way to lead her life, but it was the easiest way to make money.  Because she was always on the move, she had no other choice but to live like this.  Or maybe she did have a choice, and was too scared to change it?  Instead of dwelling on things she decided to wear her nice clothes, and head out for some lunch.  It seemed a good idea, as she had hours to kill.  Sorry, Graham.

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Seven days had gone by.  Claudia was beginning to feel restless again, it was time to move on.  She counted the money she’d made in the week, not bad.  Tonight she was going to have a night off.  She had enough money to head to a nightclub, and hopefully pick up some younger man.  Well, she deserved it.  If the truth be told it was her only guilty pleasure.  As usual she got ready about eight in the evening.  Finally when she was ready to leave she stared at herself in the bathroom mirror and thought of her dad.  Hatred was felt.  It was time.

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The nightclub was packed full of drunk idiots, which she preferred as no one would remember her.  In this situation she would try to stay as low key as possible, this way no one would ever know she was there.  Over the years she’d got good at this, keeping her face in the shadows, or approaching the bar when it’s extremely busy, that way even the people serving wouldn’t remember you.  Straight away a man with dark hair appeared to her with growing interest.  She licked her lips thinking of the fun she was going to have with him later.  She couldn’t wait.  It was a game to her.  Tonight she was a predator seeking victims to devour.  After a few minutes the bloke who was no taller than five foot eight noticed her, while he sipped his lager.  He seemed stressed.  Maybe he was shy?.  He was no older than thirty, to her this was perfect.  As she wanted to teach him a few things about life.  Her father entered her mind.  Anger was felt, but she did her best to ignore it.  She needed to stay focused.  The moment he looked up again, she signaled him over.  Reluctantly he made his way towards her.  They chatted for a little while.  He seemed nice, genuine.  The problem was, she still had a plan for him.  
“So, are you going to take me back to your place?” she asked while they danced.
“Okay,” he said unconfidently.
She watched him as he collected his coat, but something didn’t seem right.  Maybe it was just nerves?  Most blokes would be over the moon that they’d pulled so easily.  
A few moments later he was back.  Brushing a hand through his hair, he said, “Let’s go.”
At long last, she thought.  “Okay,” she replied.  She got hold of his hand.  He seemed surprised by this.  “I’ll show you things you’ve only dreamed of,” she whispered in his ear.  Still he came across as agitated.  What the hell was his problem?  She’d done this countless times before, and she’d never had a reaction like this.  It’s like he was scared of her.  Well, she was leaving here tomorrow, he’ll do.
Both left the building hand in hand.  For the first time in a while Claudia felt excited.  From all around the lights from many windows looked mesmerising.  And above, shone a full moon in a clear sky.  The game was finally afoot.  And she couldn’t wait.

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They’d climbed some stairs, when finally he got his keys out.  “I live here,” he said nervously.  He unlocked the door making his way to the sofa, where he took his coat off.  “Would you like a drink?”  He turned to her hesitantly, waiting for an answer.
For god sake, she thought, why was he acting so weird?  It was time.  “I want to see you naked right now.  Take your clothes off slowly with your back to me, and I’ll promise you, you’re in very good hands.  I will teach you things you’ve only dreamt of.”  Surprisingly enough he turned and began to take his shirt off.  Something about him made her nervous, but it was time.  Watching him made her think back to her father who’d molested her as a child.  She hated him so much.  I hate you, I hate you, daddy, she kept thinking, as she took a couple of steps towards the man.  From her bag she pulled out her beloved toy.  The blade glistened from the ceiling light.  He took his pants off, then said, “What should I do now?”
“Stay where you are, as something truly wonderful will happen very shortly,” she answered.  She raised the knife up, ready to stab him with it.  Still the memories of her daddy raced through her fragile mind.  A metre from him, she was ready.  Suddenly something unexpected happened.  The door to the room burst open and many policemen rushed in grabbing her.  Pinning her to the floor, she screamed not knowing what the f**k was going on.  “What are you doing?” she yelled.  She bit someone's hand , blood trickled down her face.  “F**k you, daddy.  You’ll never stop me.”  Then she remembered her mother one day leaving the house, knowing what her husband had done to their child.  She was never seen again.
The handsome man who she’d picked up earlier appeared above her.  Using a tissue he wiped sweat from his forehead.  She noticed he was still naked.  “By the way, creep.  You couldn’t screw anything with that pecker.”
He looked angry as hell, before shouting, “After all this time we have finally caught you.  Do you even know how many you’ve murdered?”
Confusion came over her.  What did they mean?  Then the tears came.  “I didn’t mean it.  I didn’t mean it.”  She lost the grip on her beloved toy, it fell to the carpet.
The four policemen picked her up, dragging her out of the room.
The young chap in his thirties put his clothes back on, a mirror nearby caught his reflection, and dread was felt.  Deep down he felt sorry for her.  As he made his way down the stairs the dreadful thoughts of his own childhood entered his already fragile mind.

                           The End