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Eyes. Those dark brown eyes that could be so cold, or hold such emotion. I looked into them, they told me that she loved me. Hands. Those pale petite hands that could kill so easily roved over my body, her touch so gentle, as if she had never even been touched by death. Lips. Those soft pink lips that would just as soon tell you to “go fuck a chicken” kissed me, claiming me for her own. I was her own, gladly. I would go to her willingly. And she was my own. Make no mistake about it. She is mine. She was mine long before she ever met Jean-Claude, or Richard, damn their souls.

        BEEP BEEP BEEP. The alarm on my cell phone went off, waking me up from my day dream. Not quite a day dream, it was night outside. But I wasn’t sleeping, so the name sticks. What was Death doing day dreaming? It seemed to be against the rules, didn’t it? But for Anita, I would break all the rules.

I dialed my answering service to get the message. “Edward, it’s Anita. Olaf is in town, I might need your help. Please call soon.” Olaf. Fuck. She sounded scared. A wise emotion to exercise, when around Olaf. I used caution, myself, but for Anita fear would suit just fine. Fear would make her cautious, and keep her alive. I immediately dialed Anita’s number from memory. I memorized everything about her, least of all her number.

        She picked up on the first ring. “Anita.”

        “Edward.” There was a strained note there.

        “How do you know Olaf is in town?” I calmly asked.

        “Because he showed up here. I was pointing my gun at him about two minutes ago.” Shit. He had been in her house. “Edward?” I realized I had gone silent, lost in my thoughts of how to kill Olaf.

        “What did he say, Anita?”

        “He asked me to go hunting with him. When I said no thanks, he said he would hunt me.” Of course.

        “And why didn’t you shoot him?” Why the hell hadn’t she just shot him then? Ended it all?

        “Because he disappeared, in the span of a few seconds.” In the span of a few seconds? I could do that, but Olaf? I didn’t think him such a shadow. He wasn’t a monster, a preternatural one, in any case. He didn’t have that type of speed. Maybe he didn’t disappear as thoroughly as Anita thought he had. There was another silence, but I broke it this time. “Are you sure he’s not in the house?”

        She stopped to think. Froze, actually. I couldn’t even hear her breathing over the phone. “I think so,” she said shakily.

        “You’re not sure.” It wasn’t a question. She wasn’t sure, I could hear it in her voice.

        “I don’t know, Edward.”

        I sighed shakily over the phone. “Then just get out of the house, Anita. Don’t even try to sweep it, there are too many hiding spots. I’ve seen your house. Just get out, get into your jeep, and go to a hotel. Don’t even bother to pack. I’ll be in St. Louis in about six hours, and I’ll find you. Just hang tight.” There was actual emotion in my voice. I couldn’t hide it. I didn’t want to hide it. If even I showed emotion, then that would make Anita extra careful. She trusted me, and that would keep her alive.

        “You’re scared.” I laughed harshly. She had no idea. I wasn’t scared of Olaf, I could kill him easily enough if I could just find him. But I might have been scared for her. Might have been. I was.

        “Aren’t you?”

        “Hell yeah.” Well at least she was being honest.

        “What weapons do you have on you?”

        “The browning, firestar, back knife, and wrist knives.” Sufficient enough. I

expected nothing less from my favorite pupil. My only pupil. And the only person I had ever…loved, as far back as I could remember. I might have loved my parents once, but I didn’t remember them much. But this was different. I didn’t want to make love to my dead parents. With Anita, I did.

        I could admit it to myself now, I knew I loved her. As much as someone as dead inside as I am, can love. But I knew I wasn’t completely dead inside, Donna and the kids had proved that. Mostly the kids. But they were gone now.

        “Ok, that should be good for now. Don’t even go up to your room to get more ammo or weapons. I’ll provide toys. God, I’ll provide everything. I’m so sorry Anita.”

        “For what?” For what? For WHAT? How could she not know? If it hadn’t been for me, Olaf would have never come near Anita. I should have just shot him that first time she and he had had that stand off in the kitchen.

        “For introducing you to that monster,” I said calmly. Do you have your cell phone?”

        “In the car.”

        “I’ll call you in about ten minutes.” Ten minutes. Like I could last that long. It would be five.

        “Ok.”

        “Anita?”

        “Yeah?”

        ”I,” I paused in my words. I could admit it to myself, but not her. Not yet. “I’ll see you soon. Stay alive.”

        “Roger.”

 

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As soon as we hung up, I began to pack. Just enough for tonight, we would only be in St. Louis for tonight. Tomorrow I would take her back to Sante Fe with me. We would fight Olaf at my house, on my turf. I began to zip up the suitcase, but then threw in an extra big t-shirt for her to sleep in. I doubted she would have any clothes with her in her jeep. There was plenty of room in the suit case for weapons. I stocked it with my own, and then there was room for hers as well. I would get them past the security for the plane. I always did. How? I was just that good.

 

I waited impatiently for ten minutes to pass. I was right, I couldn’t make it to ten. I had to settle for five. I dialed her car phone number, another number I had memorized. Once again, she picked up on the first ring.

 

“Hello?”

 

“Anita, it’s Edward.”

 

        “Hi.” Her voice cracked. She was even more scared than I thought. How did I know? Because I knew her.

 

        “You sound shaky. Are you alright?”

 

        “Physically, yes. Mentally, I’m about to have a breakdown. He was in the house, Edward. He was waiting for me in my bedroom.” My suspicions had been correct. But she was safe, it didn’t matter.  “Edward?” I had lost myself in my thoughts again. About what a fool I was, to have let that monster get within 50 miles of Anita. Hmmm. I was calling him a monster. But I’m a monster too, in almost the same way he is. But maybe not; I want Anita alive. And well.

 

        “I’ll say it again, Anita. I’m so sorry.”

 

        “As long as I make it out of this alive, you’ll be forgiven.”

 

        I laughed. Short, abrubt, harsh. “I suppose that’s good to know.”

 

        “He’s already started killing people, Edward. He threw me a hand. It was small,

pale, about what my hands look like. I think he killed someone who resembled me.”

 

        “You’re probably right.” Of course he would start with other victims, that look like Anita. It would make his revenge all the sweeter, when he got to her. Well guess what. He wasn’t going to. I should have felt terrible that other girls were being killed. But I’m Death. I’m Edward. I don’t feel things for other people. Just for Anita.

 

        “Should I call the police?”

 

        “No.” That would be a nuisance. I know the cops just try to do their jobs, but they just get in your hair. Like a knot that just wont go away.

 

        “But then that hand is going to rot on my carpet. Someone will find it, and get a little suspicious.” Rot on her carpet? She wouldn’t have a carpet for it to rot on, come morning. Olaf would burn the house to the ground, to scare Anita. To toy with her. Luckily, she didn’t like that house much anyway. I knew this, she had told me once before. And I always remember everything she says. But there were two things in that house she would miss. Her toys that she had to leave behind, and her penguins. Maybe I would get her a new penguin, to restart her collection.

 

        “Anita, I doubt you will even have a house come morning.”

 

        “What do you mean?”

 

        “Olaf will probably burn it to the ground.”  She stilled over the phone, for nearly a minute. I didn’t hear her breathing.  “Are you still there, Anita?”

 

        “Yeah, I’m still here. Do you really think he’ll burn the house?”

 

        “Yes. Don’t call the cops, let them call you when they find your house in ashes.”

 

        She sighed. “I really don’t want to loose the house,” she said, almost absently.

 

        Screw the house. I wanted to keep her alive. And cop casualties down, if at all possible. That would keep them out of our hair. “It’s better than losing your life. Just think, Anita. If you call the cops, they’ll go down there, and Olaf might possibly kill them. He’ll be gone in the morning. All will be safer.”

 

        She sighed again. I hated to hear her make that sad sound. “Until he takes his next victim.”

 

        I sighed as well. There was nothing to do about that. We couldn’t exactly put up a bulletin or a radio broadcast for all petite dark haired ladies to stay inside their houses for the next few months. I doubt that would help, anyways. “I don’t know what to do about that, Anita.”

 

        “Neither do I.” There was a long silence over the phone, before I asked, “What hotel are you going to stay in?”

 

        “What what? No investigative work? You’re just going to ask? That’s almost as bad as you using a key to open a door and not picking the lock.” I smiled slightly. But Anita, I love picking locks. You don’t understand.

 

        “Please don’t push it Anita. It’s just easier this way. Do you have a hotel in mind?”

 

        “I was thinking the Holiday Inn Express.” The Holiday Inn Express? I raised an eyebrow. Hell no. What was she thinking?

 

        “No, too small. Too easy. Go for a bigger one with more security.”

 

        “Any suggestions?”

 

        “I know a place.” That place was the most expensive hotel in St. Louis, but it was the biggest, with the highest security. Olaf wouldn’t try anything there. Not tonight, at least. And that would keep my Nita safe, until I could be there to protect her personally. There are only two people in this world I truly trust. Anita, and me.

 

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As soon as I got off the phone with her I headed for the airport. I got on a plane as soon as I could headed for St. Louis, which was in 30 minutes. A fairly short wait, considering the hell airports had turned into since September 11^th. And I was all for protecting this nation. I just wished they would really protect it. They let me through security with two mini uzis, an extra berretta, a sawed off shotgun, my glock, a derringer, and several knives. If the lack of security hadn’t been so good for business, I might have said something about the lack of…skill.

 

I arrived in St. Louis, and headed for Anita’s hotel. The lady at the front desk gladly helped good ol’ boy Ted find Anita’s room. After all, Ted was very cute. Or so I had been told, by Donna. But I didn’t want to be cute. Who the hell wanted to be cute? I even hated the word. Cute. Cute. It left a foul taste in my mouth. Ted was handsome, leaking good ol’ boy charm that made people trust him. Which was useful.

 

I entered Anita’s room. I had transferred the payment for the room to my credit card, so I had gotten a key. No lock picking required. How disappointing. She had fallen asleep on the bed, on the side closest to the door. Even then, her hand was resting next to the browning. That’s my girl. She looked so peaceful sleeping there. I set down my bag, and watched her sleep. She started talking in her sleep. Something about Richard and Jean-Claude. Those names made jealousy burn in the pit of my stomach. I hated those two. I truly did. And the only reason I hadn’t killed them both was that Anita might die with them. But maybe not, she was strong. Maybe she would survive. It was certainly something to consider. An hour slipped by, before I had even realized it.

 

I shook her shoulder gently. “Anita.” Her eyes opened immediately at the sound of my  voice.

 

        “Did you just get here?”

 

        “No, I watched you sleep for about an hour. You were muttering about Richard and Jean-Claude a lot in your sleep.”

 

        “I don’t know why. They’re not on my mind in a positive way lately.”

 

        I raised an eyebrow. This was very interesting. And very good news. “Oh really?” She  nodded. “And why not?” I asked.

 

        She sighed. “Because I broke it off with both of them.” I grinned like the Cheshire cat. That was wonderful news, to my ears. Maybe I wouldn’t have to kill them after all. “This just makes your night, doesn’t it?” She almost sounded accusatory.

 

        I shrugged with a smirk. “Seeing you alive and in one piece is the best, but that news runs a close second,” I said truthfully, sitting down on the bed next to her. She scooted over so there was room. There was only one bed in the room, I guess we would be sharing. Not such a bad thing.

 

She sat up and swung her feet around the side of the bed. “So are we in for the night?”

 

“For the night, yes. But I want to leave as early as possible tomorrow morning. If you don’t get a call from the cops before 10:30, we’re gone.”

 

“Fair enough. Where are we going?”

 

“Back to my house. If Olaf wants to start this, we’ll do it on my turf.”

       

She looked up into my eyes. She had compared them to emotionless ice chips once. I knew my eyes were icy now, but not with lack of emotion. With hatred for Olaf, for daring to start this with Anita. With MY Anita. She nodded. “Sounds like a plan.”

 

        She started to peel off her various weapons, starting with the knives at her wrists. “So how are things with Donna?” she asked.

 

        My eyes went cold, this time with lack of emotion. Because I felt nothing. “She left with the kids, not long after the Riker incident. She got too close of a look at what I really am, and decided she didn’t want to marry me.” Which was just fine with me. I was really getting tired of Donna. She was a mess and needed someone to take care of her, but not me. Her new age crap was annoying, to a point where I had actually considered smothering her with a pillow once to get her to shut up. But the kids, I would miss the kids. Rebecca, who was so sweet, but so strong. And Peter. Peter was Peter, and he really was a great kid.

 

        She touched my hand. “I’m sorry.” She misinterpreted my expression. That was a first. But I couldn’t tell her Donna mean nothing to me. That would probably anger her. I didn’t need to deal with that tonight.

 

        I shrugged. “It’s probably for the better.”  Probably? It was. Wholly and totally. Now I was free to pursue the woman I truly loved. My soul mate. She nodded in agreement. “I can let go of Donna, easily enough. But I will miss the kids. Peter. Becca. Especially Becca.” She nodded once again, and squeezed my hand. I could feel the calluses on her little hands. From working out. From working. From killing.

 

        “But I suppose it’s good Donna found out what kind of a person you are, before things went too far. Imagine getting a divorce over this.” A divorce? I wouldn’t have let it go that far. I wasn’t even going to go through with the wedding. I was going to disappear for a while on the wedding date.

 

        “Very true, Anita. People like us, we don’t fit in well with innocent people.”

 

        She drew her hand away to take off the rest of her weaponry. I was disappointed. The firestar. The browning. She shrugged the straps of the long knife at her back off of her shoulders. I watched her. It was enticing to watch her undress, even if she were only taking off the weapons. The best part. “Is that all?” I asked teasingly.

 

        “I know you’re carrying more.”

 

        “Yes I am.” Hell yes I am. To protect her.

 

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I let Anita borrow the shirt I had packed for her. But she didn’t know I had packed it, just for her. I slept in boxers. Watching her out of the corner of my eye, I noticed her studying me in just my boxers. I smiled to myself. So she as at least noticing me as someone of the male sex now. That was a start.

 

        I moved Anita to the side furthest from the door. The side closest to the door was my spot, to protect her. The berretta went under the pillow. I half expected her to protest, but she didn’t. She just settled down under the covers, and fell asleep, trusting me. That was more precious to me than anything else that had happened so far on this trip. On this adventure.

 

***

I woke up before she did. I dressed in “Ted” clothes, and cleaned my berretta before she woke up, to the ringing of the cell phone she had resting on the nightstand. It was seven o’clock. She scrambled for it, and picked it up. “Hello?” I could only hear one side of the conversation. And let me tell you, it was annoying as hell. I listened with a half ear to her conversation. She would fill me in totally later.

 

        “Do you have any idea who might have done this?” asked Storr. I caught that one.

 

        She looked to me for a clue. I shook my head. “No, I don’t,” she said. I wanted to keep the police out of this as much as possible. 

 

        I listened to her lie about her travel plans to the insistent sergeant. It was amusing, to say the least. She had gotten so good at lying.

 

        She got out of bed, and picked up her clothes from yesterday to change into. “I can pack some more stuff at home. Wait, I have no home!” she said cynically, as she walked past me.

 

I grabbed her arm, spinning her back around. I shielded myself so she couldn’t tell if I was angry or not. “But you’re alive, Anita. That’s worth more than clothes, or a house, or anything else.” And it meant the world to me. And I knew she could hear it in my voice, I let it out in the voice, if not in the eyes. My fingers dug into her arm, she might have a bruise later. But I wanted to make my point.

       

She sighed. “I know Edward. But it’s still hard.” She looked away from me to the ground, beginning to tear up. My grip on her arm loosened gradually until she wasn’t  in my grasp at all. She wiped the tears away. “I can’t believe I’m crying about a damn penguin,” she grumbled, heading for the bathroom to change. I let her go, but my eyes followed her as she walked to the bathroom. So she had remembered the penguins. Damn.

 

        She changed back into the clothes she had been wearing yesterday, dark blue jeans, black polo shirt, black belt, black nikes. They were her battle fatigues. And she was beautiful, even without a stitch of makeup and her hair running wild. She tossed the shirt to me.  “Thanks.”

 

        “No problem.” I wanted to raise the shirt to my face and inhale her scent that clung to the garment that she had worn all night. But instead I tossed into the suitcase.

 

        She picked up the phone, and I assumed dialed Bert’s number.

 

        “Bert, its Anita.” “I need a vacation.”  “A month.” “Yes you can.” “I make you money, Bert. You don’t want to do that.” Bert was threatening to fire her. “Then do it. I don’t care.” “No. Because I quit. Good bye, Bert. Its been semi-pleasant knowing you.”

 

        She hung up. “You just quit your job?” I asked, already knowing the answer. And I was proud of her. I know I wouldn’t have tolerated half the crap Bert put her through.

 

        “Yep.”

 

        “Why?” I wanted to know her reasoning.

 

        “Why not? Its been more of a hassle than its worth. This just seems to be the week for new starts. My house is gone. The boys are gone. My obligation to animators inc. is gone. Yeehaw. Isn’t that what Ted would say?”

 

        I raised one eyebrow. Would he? Not quite. “No.” I simply answered.

 

        “I need to go see my house. Dolph is waiting for me. Are you coming?”

 

        “Yes.” Like I would leave her alone with Olaf on the loose. I didn’t even want her to go to the bathroom alone now.

 

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We ended up taking the jeep. I had taken a cab to the hotel, so Anita was the only one with permanent wheels.

 

        Around thirty minutes later we pulled up to the house. There were two fire trucks, about five cop cars, and lots of people tramping about Anita’s crisped yard. Or rather, there had been. The fire trucks and men were packing up, the cops were standing around, finished as well.

 

        Dolph found Anita. I heard him give his condolences for her house. “I’m sorry Anita.”

        She nodded. “So am I, Dolph.”

 

        Dolph glanced at me. “Mr. Forrester.”

 

        “Sergeant Storr.” We nodded at each other.  We were being civil in front of Anita. However, I knew the sergeant did not like me, he made that quite clear. I was a bounty hunter. I bend the law. If only he knew.

 

We all looked to the charred remains of Anita’s house. In fact, there weren’t many remains at all. It was mostly just charred. But I saw her gun locker. She had gotten one of those fire proof ones. Very good, Anita. I had one too. Well, it was more like a room, actually, that stored weapons. Ha! Like my arsenal would fit in a…locker.      “And you’re sure you don’t know who did this?” Storr said to Anita, the suspicion full in his voice.

 

        “I have no clue.” She lied so smoothly. I remembered once upon a time, when quite frankly, her lying skills had sucked. But not anymore. She could rival me now. She could probably lie to me. She had probably done it before. I knew she had done it before.

 

        Dolph studied her, looking for clues that she was lying. He didn’t find any. “We’re done here, Anita. There wasn’t anything to find.” Of course there wasn’t.

 

        “Ok.”

 

        The fire trucks and police cars all left, leaving Anita and I, and her burnt house. She walked the remains of the house, I followed close behind.  My boots were perfect for this. Her Nikes weren’t exactly ideal, but they made do. She picked up some pieces of burnt stuffed penguin. I hoped she didn’t start to cry.

 

        She went to the gun locker, and opened that with a key she drew from her key ring. She drew out the sawed off shotgun, and uzi, both gifts from me. Judging by the shells here and there, the rest of her ammo had exploded. That would have been a sight to see. I had seen worse, of course. But still, explosions ARE fascinating.

 

“Ready to go?”

       

I nodded. She loaded up her guns in the back seat of the jeep, taking special care to hide the shotgun, and we returned to the hotel. I zipped up my suitcase, my weapons and hers inside. She watched me, but she wasn’t really watching. She looked numb, actually. But I supposed she was allowed that.

 

        She turned to the window, the sounds of sirens attracting her attention. “He knows we’re here,” she said, looking down at something from the window.

 

        “What?”

 

        “There’s a body down there that fits Olaf’s victim profile. He knows I’m here.”

 

        I glanced down, and sure enough. It was a calling card for Anita, left right below her window. Olaf is a sick bastard, and that thought was strange, coming from me. “Then that means it’s time to go.”

 

        I grabbed the suitcase with our weapons in it, and we headed down the stairs. I didn’t want to take an elevator, not wanting to risk Olaf trapping us somehow. Out in the back parking lot, we began walking briskly to Anita’s Jeep, when suddenly there was a giant explosion. I took Anita to the ground, shielding her with my body. The wave of heat washed over us. Shit. I dragged her to her feet, once hand on her arm and the other gripping the weapons case.  Car alarms everywhere were blaring in our ears.

 

        Olaf was watching us, toying with us. I was suddenly very glad I had put on the Kevlar vest, and cursing myself for not having one for Anita. I knew Olaf didn’t want to shoot her, he wanted to cut her up, but accidents happen. However, he probably would have no qualms with shooting me. I ducked my head, making it a smaller target. We walked to the front street of the hotel, I kept Anita between the brick building and I, shielding her tiny body with my own.

 

        “He’s watching us, trying to terrorize us. He didn’t want to kill you in the blast, but he wanted you to know he could have,” I said, walking quickly towards the main road, one hand on still on her arm. My eyes searched the parking lot, looking for more threats. Looking for more targets.

 

        “He didn’t want to kill me with the blast, because he wants to cut me up, up close and personal.” Exactly what I had been thinking.

 

        “Probably.”

 

        I flagged down a taxi. We were on our way to the airport.

 

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I had already had the return flights scheduled. At least THAT went as planned.. I had set up a fake identity for Anita. For this flight she was Katherine Schumaker. Katherine was her middle name, but that was the only similarity to her real name. Less paper trails for Olaf to follow. But surely the damn German would figure out where I was taking her. In fact, I was counting on it. But we would be playing on MY playground this time.

 

Anita gave me a funny look when the suitcase with the weapons made it through the x-rays. She was wondering how I did it. I’m just that good. She should know that by now.

 

I observed that Anita does not like flying. At all. She gripped the armrests the whole four hour flight. We flew into Sante Fe, and picked the Hummer up from air park. Some people are enthusiastic about their sports cars. Well, I loved my hummer. It was my type

of vehicle, as in I could run over anything I wanted.

 

I threw the bag in the back of the Hummer, and unlocked the doors. Inside the started Hummer, the AC came to life in cool relief. The radio turned on as well. I wasn’t sure what Anita would think about country music, much less me listening to it. She grinned. “Ted listens to country music?”

 

        I wasn’t quite sure how to play this one out. “Yes,” I simply answered.

 

        “And does Edward?” I smiled slightly. Yes I do.

 

        “Sometimes.”

 

        “And was Ted or Edward driving this thing last?”

 

        I turned to look at Anita, slightly amused that she was referring to me as two different people. Of course, I did it too. I smiled. “Edward was.” I don’t know why, but for some reason it pleased me to tell her this.

 

        She shook my head with a smile. “It is just too weird to ask you about Ted and Edward, and know I’m pretty much talking about two different people.”

 

        I smiled again. Once again, we had been thinking the same thing. “You’d be surprised, Anita. I’ve played Ted for so long, he almost seems like a part of me now. A distant part, to be sure, but still a part.” And it was true. I had worn that cowboy hat for so long, it was starting to grow onto my head, metaphorically speaking. Speaking of which, I fished in the back seat with one hand, pulling out my white cowboy hat, setting atop my head where it belonged. Where I liked it to be now, surprisingly.

 

        She nodded. I could almost hear her analyzing me in her mind. Anita always liked to know WHY things were happening. I just like to know what was going on, I didn’t sweat the why too much.

 

        I reached out to turn off the music. If  she didn’t like it, then I could always listen to it some other time when I was by myself.  But she caught my hand. Just that small touch sent an indescribable thrill right through me. “No, keep it. I kind of like it.”

 

        I nodded with a slight smile. Did she really, or did she just give me radio rights since it was my car? I put the Hummer into gear, pulling out of the parking lot. We drove down the highway a little while. I saw the exit that went up to all the new shopping centers, the sudden thought hit me that Anita didn’t have any clothes except the ones she was wearing now. “Um…do you want to go shop for some clothes or something? I don’t have anything around the house that will fit you.” I assumed she would want clothes. Of course, I wouldn’t force her to wear them, if she really didn’t want to. That was an amusing and arousing thought. I smiled slightly.

 

        She nodded, and I was glad she couldn’t hear my musings. “Yeah, that would be nice. I don’t think I can wear these for TOO much longer,” she said sarcastically, looking down at her dirty clothes.

 

        I pulled off onto the exit. We were going clothes shopping. Great. I say that unenthusiastically, of course. But Anita wasn’t like Donna, who would drag out a shopping trip until you just wanted drop down and sleep on the floor of the store you were so bored. Or shoot her. But Anita was different, I doubted she liked clothes shopping either. She would be merciful. Anita. Merciful. That was my most amusing thought of the day.

 

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Four hours later, we were done shopping. And the bad thing was, I knew Anita was going as fast as she could. And it still took four hours. But at least we had a nice lunch. I would never admit it, but I always appreciated a good meal. For two reasons. The first being eating military slop for so long had really made me appreciate a meal with actual flavor. And the second reason, I never knew if that meal would be my last. In this business, you just never knew.

 

I offered to pay for all of her clothes, since I really felt it was mostly my fault that all this had happened. But she declined. She still had her credit cards and check book with her, she had at least salvaged the wallet.

 

Storm clouds hung over head. The rain drops started to fall. It was a gentle rain, but that wouldn’t last. It would start to pour soon. And it did, as soon as we got into the hummer. “Well, I think its time to go home,” I said.

 

“Oh come on, that little shopping trip wore you out?” Little shopping trip? Damn girl, the whole back seat of my hummer was full of shopping bags. I knew she tried to keep it to a bare minimum, but still.

       

I turned to Anita, slightly smiling. “Little shopping trip? The back of my Hummer is filled with shopping bags, Anita.”

 

        She spread her hands wide. “Hey, I’m sorry, its not my fault.”

 

        Oh. Low blow. I don’t think she meant it to be, but it still was. “I guess it’s my fault then.” I turned back to the steering wheel, suddenly not in such a good mood anymore. She reached over to touch my shoulder, to turn me back.

 

        “No, Edward. It’s not your fault. It’s no one’s fault, except for Olaf’s. I didn’t mean it like that, please don’t take it that way.” I turned to study her. I felt the emotions I was feeling slip out of my eyes, almost seeming to startle her. Yeah, I guess emotions coming from me were something to knock you off your feet.

 

I nodded, once up, once down, and turned back to the steering wheel, starting up the Hummer.

 

On the road once again, the rain hit the windshield in sheets. It was hard to see, the windshield wipers could barely keep up. “This sort of rain isn’t normal,” said Anita. It wasn’t a question.

       

“True, it’s a rarity. But it happens.” We had a downpour every now and then.

 

        She nodded, curling up against the door, resting her head on the window.

 

        A pretty song came on, that seemed to be singing just for Anita. I hope she didn’t start to cry again. Because I couldn’t hold her while I was driving the Hummer.

 

*Another day has almost come and gone

Can’t imagine what else could go wrong

Sometimes I’d like to hide away somewhere and lock the door

A single battle lost but not the war,     cause

Tomorrow’s another day

And I’m thirsty anyway

So bring on the rain

It’s almost like the hard times circle round

A couple drops and they all start coming down

Yeah I might feel defeated, I might hang my head

I might be barely breathing but I’m not dead

I’m not gonna let it get me down, I’m not gonna cry

And I’m not gonna lose any sleep tonight

Cause tomorrow's another day

And I am not afraid

So bring on the rain

 

I watched Anita. A tear rolled down her cheek. Damn. I was never very good around tears. I usually just ignored them, when people cried. But I couldn’t ignore these. However, there was nothing I could do about them right now. I turned back to the road, concentrating on not crashing the hummer in this almost zero visibility.

 

        I heard the seat belt zip and move around. Anita had ditched the chest belt, just keeping the waist belt. She curled up on the seat. We glanced at each other at the same time, both of us wore the same somber expressions. She closed her eyes.      

 

        I moved my hand towards her, hovering just above her shoulder. Finally, I got up the courage to touch her, resting my hand on her shoulder. I murmured under my breath, “Don’t worry Anita, I’ll take care of you. I always do.” I didn’t know if she heard me or not. I almost wished she did.

 

 

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        We arrived at the house without further incident. I shook Anita’s shoulder gently, just enough to wake her up. “Anita.” She woke up, sitting up in the seat.

 

        “I’m awake.” She yawned.

 

        “Good. You can help me carry all these bags into the house,” I said, only part teasing. If we wanted to make it in one trip, she would have to help. The downpour had stopped, leaving the dust of the desert settled, for now. The creek bed out back might have had some water in it. It would be dry by tomorrow though, I guarantee. Water didn’t stick around for very long around here.

 

        She nodded, hopping down out of the hummer with another yawn. She reached into the back seat from the back door, and grabbed most of the bags. Damn. I didn’t mean she had to grab ALL of them. But I guess she knew no other way. There was one bag left for me, it had shirts in it. It was light. She could have left me the hiking boots, or something else a little bit heavier.

 

“Damn, isn’t that heavy? I can carry more than that.”

 

        She shook her head. “I’m fine, just open the door.” Of course she was fine. She was super woman.

 

        I opened the door, and she effortlessly carried all those bags in. “Am I in the same room again?”

 

        I shook his head. “No, I want you right next to my room this time.” If anyone tried to sneak past my room to her, they wouldn’t get very far. I knew I was being paranoid, and that she could take care of herself. But I wasn’t taking any chances. I gave her the room right next to me.

 

        We set all the bags down on the bed. “Damn. Now I have to unpack all this.” I smiled slightly, and wandered out of the room. I didn’t want to help with the unpacking and de-tagging. I had put up enough of that shit with Donna. I knew Anita wouldn’t make me do it.

 

        I went downstairs, spreading out all my favorite guns on the kitchen table. I began cleaning them. A good soldier never lets his weapons fall into disrepair. About an hour or so later, I didn’t hear the slam of drawers any more. Had she fallen asleep? God, I hoped her silence was just sleep. I drew the Berretta from the small of my back, and crept down to her room. One peek inside told me I was right.  She had passed out on the bed, still in her clothes. I briefly thought about changing her into pajamas, but over ruled it. I settled for taking off her weapons. It would suck to shoot herself in her sleep by sleeping on a gun the wrong way. I covered her up, pulling the comforter up to her chin. I would admit, it was a bit chilly. The air conditioner was running rampant again. I went back downstairs and finished cleaning my guns. After that I kept watch over her most of the rest of the night, only drifting off to sleep here and there. I probably only got 2 hours of sleep that night. It was alright though, it was more than I needed.

 

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I started breakfast around 8:30. Bacon and eggs. I hoped she liked bacon and eggs. If she did, then it would be a good meal. I knew I was a good cook. When I didn’t have to deal with that tofu crap, or those other weird “natural” foods that Donna believed in so much, that I thought were not ever really meant for human consumption.

       

At the shopping mall I had slipped away into the stuffed animal shop. Death. In the stuffed animal shop. Poetically ironic, was it not? But I picked her up a little stuffed penguin, something to cheer her up. It had a blue bow, instead of red, that I always seemed to see.

 

        She walked into the kitchen, fully armed. That was my Anita. Always armed, like me. “You’re up early.”

 

        “Early? Its 9:00.”

 

        I shrugged. “I know you like to sleep though.” I didn’t know that, but I assumed it was true since she wasn’t a morning person.

 

        She nodded, and turned to the kitchen table, where she saw her new penguin. She picked it up, with a grim smile. “Something to restart your penguin collection,” I said, my back still turned towards her. I smiled, and turned to look at Anita. My smile quickly faded when I saw she was tearing up again. Damn it. Damn it. Damn it. I didn’t want to make her cry again. “Damn, Anita. It was supposed to make you happy. I didn’t mean to make you cry.”

 

        I set down the spatula on the stove, and walked over to her. “No, I like it,” she reassured me. “I…It’s just…” She hugged the penguin to her chest. I touched her

shoulder. She didn’t flinch or pull away. So I decided to take a bigger risk. I wrapped my arms around her, and almost jumped with surprise when she leaned into me, letting me hold her as she cried. She wrapped her arms around my torso, holding me close to her. My heart thumped in my chest. We had never been this close. Not like this.

       

As hard as she was crying, I had suspicions she wasn’t just crying for herself. Anita wasn’t like that. She was crying for the others who had fallen victim to Olaf. She probably felt bad because she didn’t shoot him that first time. She had had the chance to stop it, nip the problem in the bud, and she hadn’t. But it was ok, I didn’t hold it against her. She was only human. More human than I am. And yet, less human than I am.

 

After she was done crying she lingered a few moments. But then with a deep breath she pushed away. “Thanks. I needed a good hug.” I held her arms lightly, just above the elbows, not wanting to let go. Not just yet.

 

        “Are you ok?”

 

        “For now.”

 

We sat down to eat breakfast.  I could tell she was enjoying her breakfast, which made me happy. How long had it been, since a simple thing like someone enjoying a meal, had made me happy? I couldn’t remember.

 

        Suddenly her mood changed again, she started pushing her eggs around her plate.

Jesus, was she having her period or something? I had never seen her this moody.

 

        “What’s got you down now?”

 

        She shrugged. “I was just thinking about the boys. Jean-Claude invaded my dreams last night.”

 

        Jean-Claude. I felt a sudden stab of jealousy.  Damn vampire. “I thought you had broken everything off with them.” That’s what she said, wasn’t it?

 

        “I have, I did. Through the dream.”

 

        She was having second thoughts. I sighed mentally. She always did. Didn’t she realize what monsters they were? Why was she sleeping with that which she killed? That she enjoyed to kill? It boggled my mind. “You’re having second thoughts.” She shook her head as an immediate response. I wasn’t buying it. “Yes you are,” I insisted. A thread of anger was audible in my voice. I couldn’t help it.

 

        “Not about Richard. But maybe, just maybe Jean-Claude.” Out of the two monsters, Richard was the better of the two! Why was it always that damn vampire that held on to her? He was like gum on my shoe. An annoyance, and damn hard to get rid of.

 

        I growled. “The vampire. Always the God damned vampire. The one who’s the worst of them all!”

       

She frowned at me. Standing up from her chair, she looked down at me, leaning on the table, not happy. Was she trying to intimidate me? Of course she wasn’t happy. She hated it when I lectured her on the monsters, because she knew I was right. That had to be it. I scowled, truly angry.

 

 “I’m not going back, Edward. It doesn’t matter how much second thoughts I have. They’re gone for good.”

 

        I stood as well, and leaned down so we were eye to eye. “But when you do have second thoughts, they’re always about that damned vampire.” I cursed mentally, because by the slight change of expression on her face, I knew she had seen the jealousy in my eyes, along with the anger. Jealousy. Hell yes I was jealous.

 

        “You’re not my father, Edward.”

 

        “No, Anita. No, I’m not your father. But after all we’ve been through, I would think my opinion would at least have some weight with you. After everything we’ve been through, after all the times I’ve saved your life.”

 

        “I’ve saved your life too, you know. Lots of times. Enough times that I would say we’re equals.”

       

“Equals.” That word ran through my brain over and over. Then I felt a thrill pass through me. Were we? Were we truly equals? I had to know. I just had to know.

 

 “Are we equals, Anita? Truly?”

 

        “Yes.” I could see it in her eyes, hear it in her voice. She believed it.

       

        I stared at her, taking in every bit of her. Sizing her up. But size had nothing to do with it.        “I have to know, Anita.”

       

“What?” What? Did she really not know? She had to have been playing dumb.

 

        “If we’re equals. I have to know who’s better.” My breathing had sped up with the thrill of hunting her. Hunting her, not necessarily killing her.

 

        “You’re calling out the draw down, aren’t you.” It wasn’t a question.  She knew. She hadn’t been playing dumb.

 

        “Yes.”

 

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        We went outside. “I’ll give you a fifteen minute head start, Anita. Then the hunt begins. We’ll find out once and for all who’s better.”

 

        “You’re crazy, Edward.” Was I? A little, yes.

 

        “Maybe.”

 

        With that she fled into the underbrush. I was glad she was wearing long pants. By the way she delved into the woods, she would have been cut to ribbons by all the thorned plants of the New Mexico underbrush. I would give her fifteen minutes. Then I would track her. This was trickier than when this fantasy had originated, in a day when I would have actually killed her. Now I would be trying to prove to her that I was better, without actually hurting her. Because I was better. I was Death. I was the Undertaker.

       

        I was guessing she was going to hide, and try to jump out at me. Or shoot me. Shit, that would suck. I had slipped on a Kevlar vest, to protect the vital areas. Unless she shot me in the head. But then I guess that would serve me right for starting this. And then maybe she’d shoot me in the knee or something to disable me. Fuck, that hurt. I knew, I’d been shot there before.

 

Fifteen minutes passed, and I began tracking her, moving slowly through the under brush. Her tracks led to the creek bed that was dry as a bone again, as I had predicted. I followed them through the soft gravel. This was almost too easy. I heard a twig snap beside me, and I suddenly knew why.

 

Anita jumped out at me from a cluster of yucca bushes. How the hell had she hid in there? They were so damn thorny. She tackled me, taking both of us to the ground. We rolled around on the ground, each of us trying to get the upper hand. She ended up the winner, sitting on my abs. She had drawn her knife from her wrist sheath, it rested against my throat. Similarly, at the same time I had drawn a knife as well, and held it above her ribs lightly. We had both won. We were equals. I expected to be mad. But instead I felt pride well up inside of me. She had learned well.

 

        Her lower lip trembled. With anger? “There, we both win. Happy? I could have killed you, you could have killed me. We would have died together, equals, but one big waste.” She tossed away her knife, it landed a few feet away in the sand. Her voice was sharp, she was not happy about me calling in the draw down. I still didn’t move, frozen in my thoughts. “Are you going to kill me, Edward?” she demanded.

 

        With a flick of my wrist, the knife thrummed in a nearby tree. Of course I wasn’t going to kill her. “We’re equals. Anita, I just had to know.” Now I knew.

 

        “Well now you know.” She began to stand up, but it was almost as if my body acted on its own accord. I sat up quickly, grabbing the backs of her knees so she feel back down against me. Our faces weren’t but an inch away. She didn’t jerk away, or slap me, or even ask what the hell was going on. She just sat, waiting. Her breath had quickened, though just as quickly she tried to hide it.

 

        “I’m glad you didn’t cut my throat, Anita.”

 

        “Oh really,” she said sarcastically. “And why would that be?”

 

        I leaned in, and whispered above her lips. “Because I wasn’t going to stab you between the ribs.” I pressed my lips to hers, for the first time. Her lips were so soft. It sent my senses reeling, but I drew back to look at her, to see her reaction. Her reaction was to lean into me, kissing me back. I wanted this to happen. But it couldn’t be happening. I couldn’t possibly be so lucky. And I certainly wasn’t used to it. 

 

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As abruptly as the kiss had started, it ended. I jerked back, caught off guard by my body’s actions. My body had not asked permission from my mind, before it complicated this situation further for me. I schooled my face into a blank one. But I was having trouble bringing my breathing under control. I studied Anita. Had she really kissed me back? Or had it been my imagination? It all happened so fast.

       

I stood, setting Anita down in the gravel gently. Then with a last glance at Anita, I headed back for the house, grabbing my knife out of the tree. I assumed she would follow, but I knew I couldn’t look back right then. My shoulders were tense. My body was screaming at me. You fool! Go back and take her! She wants you! But my iron mind kept the screaming voice and screaming muscles under control.

       

        She soon followed me back into the house. I avoided her the rest of the day. I needed to think. But I kept a close eye on her, all the same. Had she really kissed me back? Could I be so lucky? Did she want me? Did she love me? This was so different, I didn’t know what to do. When I had ever kissed anyone, I had been in the Ted persona, totally. It had never been Edward, not acting. Just acting on his instinct, his feelings. For the first time in a long time, I was confused.

 

        Night had fallen. She was sitting in an arm chair, I on the couch. I knew she was watching me, out of the corner of her eye. What was she thinking? Well, she hadn’t told me to go to hell yet, so I guess that was good.

       

        I got up to cook dinner. Fajitas. Soon after dinner, Anita headed to her room to sleep.  I changed into sleeping clothes, a pair of black sweatpants, but with no shirt. It was too hot to wear a shirt. I knew Anita was cold with the air conditioning, but it didn’t affect me. Such a pitiful extreme of temperature wouldn’t affect me, I had been through too much conditioning. Too much training. Too much utter discomfort. Comfort was something else I appreciated, along with a good meal. After spending most of my young life being trained and conditioned by Van Cleef…let’s just say people take soft beds and pillows for granted. And warm showers.

 

I was dressed for bed, and even laid down in it, but I knew I wouldn’t sleep. A sound caught my attention. A low voice, whimpering. Anita was talking in her sleep. I eagerly slunk out of bed, creeping into the halls. Her door was closed, I opened it quietly. I watched her from the shadows. I held the berretta loosely in one hand. She tossed and turned in her sleep, having a bad dream. Hopefully the vampire wasn’t invading her sleep again. Killing him was sounding better and better every time I thought of it. Which was often. Probably more often than what was healthy. For the vampire, that is.

 

Suddenly Anita sat up in bed, a shriek left her lips. It must have been a very bad dream. But I can’t kill bad dreams, so I didn’t know what to do for her. “Edward?” I shrunk back into the shadows further. “Edward, come back, please.” I froze. Should I go to her? There was a streak in me that suggested not, just because she wanted me to. But instead I walked forward, moving silently as a shadow. I peeked my head inside the door, to see her wearing an expression that was a cross between terror and disgust. It must have been a bad dream. I entered the room, standing beside her bed.

 

“Bad dreams?” I asked, as if I didn’t know.

 

“Yeah.”

 

“Olaf?” Of course it was Olaf.

 

“Double Yeah.”

 

I looked down at her, my face blank. “Can I help?” I asked, careful not to let any emotion slip out to betray me.

 

She let out a long breath. I noticed her breathing, the rise and fall of her chest. And I noticed her lips as she let the breath out. “Will you stay with me, the rest of the night? I…I don’t want to be alone.”

 

“You want me to sleep with you?” I meant it literally, of course. I fought not to smile. She seems to be irritated by my smile sometimes. Which was good, I meant it to be irritating. But not tonight. Because I wanted her to say yes. She nodded in affirmative.

 

 “Then move over.” I had to have the side closest to the door. It was just a rule. Of course, it was probably the same with Anita. However, she scooted over. I was actually surprised we did this without a dispute. I moved her firestar 9mm under her pillow, and put the Berretta under mine. I always have a gun, unless someone takes it away from me. Then I take it back, and kill them. Or I take theirs, and kill them.

 

I paused for a mom-ent, waiting for a final protest or change of mind. But she just sat there, waiting for me to join her. So I did, climbing under the covers, laying down on my back. She sat there, watching me. Analyzing even more, perhaps. She laid down, resting her head on my shoulder. It surprised me, I stiffened for a moment, my heart pounding in my chest. But I quickly recovered, wrapping an arm around her waist. I couldn’t believe she was letting me do this. I couldn’t believe WE were doing this. But I hid my surprise, and moved my other hand to touch her back, rubbing soothing circles over her back. I knew it was soothing to her, because I could feel her relaxing even more against me. “Go to sleep, Anita. I will protect you.” The part I didn’t say was ‘I love you.’ I didn’t know if I even could say it. It seems like such a simple phrase, but I realized I didn’t know how to let it pass my lips.

 

The last words she said before falling asleep again were, “I know.” And I knew she knew. A long time passed. Glancing over at the clock, I saw it was 4:07 in the morning. I was still awake, I was enamored by her sleeping body in my arms. Her breath against my collarbone was intoxicating. I usually listened to things stop breathing, I never spent time listening to them alive and well. Only Anita. She looked so…I didn’t have the word. And I hate to use this one, but I will any way. Sweet. She looked sweet and innocent, when she was asleep. It was like the killer in her subsided, and there was only innocent Anita left. I had watched her sleep before in her room. I had watched the illusion shattered when her hand slipped under her pillow to touch her firestar. But her hands didn’t stray away tonight to fondle a weapon. They stayed on me, one on my chest, the other eventually moving up to rest in the bend of my neck.

 

Then something even more interesting. happened. Her body convulsed in my arms, bowing against me. She kicked out, landing the ball of her foot in my shin. Damn, that would leave a mark. I fought not to curse out loud, I didn’t want to wake her. Then as suddenly as it had started, it ended. She had been dreaming. Then her grip tightened on me, pulling us even closer. “Edward,” she murmured, talking in her sleep. I think I stopped breathing for a minute, so I could listen to her. She had said my name in her sleep. And just what did that mean? A lot, I hoped.

 

I fell asleep eventually myself. But I woke around 7:00. It was light outside, Anita shouldn’t be scared anymore. I almost got up, but I didn’t want to leave her, didn’t want to let her go. She had turned around in my arms, now I spooned her small body from behind. And another thought occurred to me. I was probably the first human that she had ever woken up to in the morning. I knew she didn’t do casual sex, so the werewolf and the vampire were probably the only ones. I knew she had slept with her “fiancée” in college, but that didn’t mean she woke up next to him. In college, I highly doubted it. So I was probably the first. That should be something for her to remember. I stayed.

 

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She woke up, much later. It was nearly 11:00. I knew it when she woke up, her breathing changed, and so did her body. Relaxed when she was asleep, as soon as she was awake she was alert. Her hand moved down to mine that rested on her stomach. I thought she was going to move my arm and get out of bed. But instead she took my hand, lacing her fingers in mine. I almost sighed with relief. She turned her head back to look at me. God, I loved her eyes. “Sleep well?” I asked. I assumed she did, except for that kicking spell. I could feel my shin throbbing from that one.

 

“Um hmm. Thank you.”

 

”Don’t mention it. Did you know you kick in your sleep?”

 

She smiled. God, I love her smile. “No, but it doesn’t surprise me.”

 

“I’ll be carrying that bruise for a while,” I said, teasing. I didn’t want her to think she really hurt me.

 

“Sorry.” Nope, she wasn’t worried about it.

 

“You’ve been awfully loose with the pleases and thank yous and sorries lately.”

 

“Oh. Ok. Um…you bastard, I hope you carry that bruise until the day you die,” she said sarcastically in a dry tone. “Better?” Well, it certainly sounded like her. A lot. I raised an eyebrow.

 

“It sounds more like you.”

 

She nodded. “I guess it does.”

 

“You also talk in your sleep.”

 

“What did I say?” I shook my head, not telling. I smiled, the irritating secretive smile. She called it the “I know something you don’t smile.” I guess it was a good description. It was a secret I had, that I could keep. I loved secrets. She thought it was a power thing. And maybe she was right. “You wont tell me?”  I shook my head no. “Why not?”

 

“Because it’s another secret I can keep from you.” She smiled then, and pressed her lips together, trying not to laugh. “What?” She shook her head, not going to tell me. She tried to get out of the bed. Oh no, not yet. I tightened my grip around her waist, pulling her close again. She wasn’t going anywhere just yet. She tried to look innocent, but the small smile was still there. Innocence was not a look she did well. Not if you looked into her eyes. I tried again. “What is so funny?”

 

“I’m not telling. You wouldn’t like it.” How could I not like it?

 

“How do you know?”

 

“I just do.”

 

“Why wont you tell me? It’s not like I’m going to shoot you, at this point.”

 

“Because it’s another secret I can keep from you.” Hmmm. Feeding me my own words. Low blow. I didn’t like this game, when the roles were turned around. I raised an eyebrow, but loosened my grip on her waist. She could go now, if she wanted. She slipped out of the bed. How disappointing. She walked into her bathroom for a shower. I watched her go, and seriously contemplated joining her.

 

When she walked out of the bathroom in just a towel, I had gotten out of bed too. I was standing next to the window, looking out at the yard that looked so dry, even though we had just gotten that downpour two days ago. Oh God, she was in just a towel. Hmm. I was suddenly regretting keeping towels in the bathroom at all. Her hair was even darker wet, the ultimate contrast to her pale skin. I crossed my arms, watching her from the corner of my eye. I suddenly wanted her to know what she said in her sleep.  “My name, Anita,” I said quietly.

 

She looked to me, confused. I didn’t turn to look at her just yet, I wasn’t sure if I actually trusted myself. Death, losing self control. How rich was that? It should have been, but it wasn’t.

 

         “What, Edward? What about your name.”

 

        “That’s what you said in your sleep. My name. Edward.” I turned to look at her then.

 

        “Oh. I did?”

 

        “Yes.”

 

        I walked to her, quietly, like I did when I was on the hunt for something. “Why would you call out my name at 4:07 at night, Anita?” I almost whispered, my tone hushed. I wanted to know. I wanted to know what she had been dreaming.

 

        “I must have been dreaming.” Yes, Anita, I know that. But I didn’t pry further. “4:07? You were still awake?”

       

“Yes.”

 

“Why?” Why? Because I didn’t want to miss a single moment of holding her, if it was the last time I got to do it. But I couldn’t exactly say that, now could I? I racked my brains for something to say. Witty repartee I could do. Talking to Anita about this was different, and more difficult. “I was listening to you breathe,” I answered in a whisper. And I wasn’t lying, now was I? I exited the room. I walked past Anita. Just one tug on the back of that fluffy white towel, and it would fall to the ground. Perish the thought, Edward. Bide your time, Edward. I settled for running my finger across her bare back. It was still slick with water, my finger slid across her skin.

 

I headed to the bathroom for a quick shower. I dressed as Ted, because I wanted to go out for lunch. We needed something to do, because I didn’t think I could loiter around the house one more day and just watch her. Dark blue jeans with a white button down shirt sufficed. I routinely hid my weapons. Even if someone watched me hide some of them, they wouldn’t be able to retrieve them. Why? I was just that good. I put on the worn leather hiking boots. I liked these boots, they were comfortable, and could go anywhere. Like my hummer. I smiled at that thought.  The last part that was really Ted, a dark brown leather belt with a medium sized belt buckle. It was gold and silver, with a flying eagle in the middle. How patriotic. I would grab my hat in the living room, on its hook.

 

I headed down to the living room. I leaned on the wall, waiting for Anita. I didn’t have to wait for long. Another good thing about Anita; even when she was dressing up it didn’t take her any longer than 20 minutes to get ready. I could remember waiting three hours once for Donna to get ready. And it was her stupid little dinner with her little new age friends. And her psychic friend, who said I have an old soul Funny, that. I didn’t think I even had a soul. And if I ever did, Van Cleef ripped it out and tossed it away.

 

Anita smiled, trying to not burst out in laughter. But she lost the battle, a little bit of a laugh escaped her. What did she find funny this time? One never knows with her.

 

        I furrowed my brow. “You know, for someone who’s the target of a psychopath who wants to cut you up, girl, you sho’ you laugh a lot.” I put the southern drawl into it, playing Ted. She smiled, probably at the extreme accent.

 

 “Well, I’ve already cried enough, don’t you think? Besides, why shouldn’t I laugh? I’ve got death on my side, he wont let Olaf kill me.” Death on her side. Yes, she did. And by hearing the confidence in her voice, I hoped I wouldn’t fail her. But of course I wouldn’t. I was the Undertaker, with a perfect record. I didn’t intend to start losing now.

 

        “Do you want to go to lunch?”

 

        She nodded. “Food sounds good.” Sounded like she was as hungry as I am.

 

        “Then let’s go.” Of course, we weren’t going to go quite yet. Anita had some hiding to do with the guns and the knife sheaths at her wrists. She nodded, starting for the door. I cleared my throat, and then she realized what needed to be done.

 

        She growled, and headed back for her room. As she passed me she grumbled, “Now I have to change my whole fucking outfit because of this God damned New Mexico heat.” Yeah, its hot here. Get used to it. Her being here certainly didn’t help the heat, on my part.

 

(())(())(())<<>><<13>><<>>(())(())(())

 

I gave Anita a choice between Mexican food, or American, not knowing if she liked spicy stuff or not. She chose American, so we went to a little restaurant just outside Sante Fe. It was a smaller part of town. The people who owned the restaurant knew Ted on sight.

 

Halfway through our meals, Anita spoke up.  “Olaf knows where your house is. What makes us so safe there?”

 

I smiled the Ted smile. We were in public, I had to be Ted. I had been Ted for so long now though, it was just like a second nature. If Olaf was stupid enough to continue the hunt down here on MY turf, I wanted to have every advantage possible. And knowing the land and people was one of them. “Well, I know Sante Fe better than St. Louis. It’s an advantage. If and when he comes to town, we can get rid of him here.”

 

“Yeah, great. I wonder how many more women will die until we can get this resolved.” She hung her head, resting on her hands, elbows on the table.

 

“No more have died, since we left St. Louis, Anita.” And it was true. I had my ways of knowing. Informants that are scared shitless of you come up with a wealth of information.

 

“How do you know that?”

 

“I have my sources.” I smiled. It was closer to my own smile, and not the lazy Ted’s. 

 

“Ok, you have everything under control. Good to know, as usual. So what about Itzpapalotl. We haven’t heard a peep out of her. I thought we’d hear something, I kinda invaded her turf uninvited.” I smiled again, a little wider this time. She didn’t know Itzpapalotl was dead, and that I had killed her. And something else she wouldn’t mind knowing, was that her vampire Jean-Claude had paid me a pretty penny to do it.

 

“Itzpapalotl? What Itzpapalotl?”

 

She raised an eyebrow. “You killed her?”

 

I took a sip of water coolly. “Let’s just say I’ve started a butterfly collection.” I looked at her over my glass, triumph showing from my eyes. I didn’t really keep the trophy, that was evidence. But Obsidian Butterfly was dead all the same.

 

 “An illegal butterfly collection.”

 

“Maybe.”

 

“And how much were you paid for that butterfly?”

 

“Enough,” I simply answered. By your ex-boyfriend. Maybe I should tell her. It would make her angry at the vampire again. I’m not sure why it would make her angry, but I just knew it would. I never paid too much attention to the why, as long as I knew the what.

 

Paying for the meal, we went outside. Everything was quiet. Too quiet. A single man brushed past Anita, my suspicions were immediately up. My hand immediately touched my gun. “Excuse me,” he was quick to apologize. But then I saw the flash of silver in the sunlight. I immediately pulled Anita back, and fired. I killed him, but not before he slashed a line on my upper arm, level with my shoulder. It wasn’t deep, but it was deep enough. She drew her gun, but kept it trained on the ground.

 

Suspicions now up, both of us looked around for targets. And plenty showed up. Too many. 20 men, all clad in black. Shit. We couldn’t kill all of them before they rushed us. They made a wide circle around us, and back to back Anita and I started towards the hummer.

 

“It’s a little hot for that monochromatic scheme, isn’t it?” she said loudly. They ignored her. “We can’t kill all of them before they rush us,” she whispered. My calculations exactly.

 

“I know.”

 

“So what do you suggest.”

 

“I would suggest we get in the car, NOW!”

 

We sprinted towards the hummer. I hit the button on my key chain to unlock the driver’s side door. She got in, scooting over to her side. I got in, locked the doors, and started up the Hummer. We ripped down the street, and the guys in black jumped out of the way. So they weren’t suicidal in trying to stop us. Which meant they probably had a backup plan.

 

“Now who else is trying to kill us?” she growled, buckling her seat belt. “And buckle up,” she demanded. I did, because I didn’t want to argue, and because it wasn’t that bad of an idea. I could see three black cars coming up behind us in the rear view mirror. This was going to turn into a high speed chase. Goody.

 

“You want to know who else is trying to kill us?”

 

“Yes.”

 

“Well look behind you, because we’ve got company.”

 

She looked back to see the three black cars. One pulled up to the side of us, it wasn’t that big. But it rammed the side of the Hummer, and we were almost pushed over into the concrete barrier, because I didn’t fight back just yet. But if this little car really thought it could push us around in this thing, then it was sorely wrong. I turned the wheel sharp to the right, pushing the little car off the side of the road. It hit a telephone pole, totaling the car.

 

“One down, two to go,” I said under my breath, still concentrating on the other cars. They had both moved up, one behind us, one to the side. We were “trapped.” I had a solution for this.  “Have you ever been four wheeling, Anita?” We had to get off the road, there were two more cars behind the two that flanked us. If we could get out to the desert, the hummer could go, and the cars wouldn’t be able to follow.

 

“Edward,” she said, a warning tone in her voice. What, she didn’t want to jump off of the five foot raised highway? Oh come on, Anita. It’ll be great fun. I smiled at that thought.

 

“Hold on.”

 

“I think this is a bad idea, Edward,” she said, but obediently grabbed the door handle. 

 

“I think it’ll be fun,” I said sarcastically. “Watch this,” I said under my breath.

 

I put on the brakes, hard, but not quite stopping. We smashed into the car behind us, and the one to the side zoomed ahead, just as planned. That was our window. I hit the gas, and jumped the hummer off of the road. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Anita’s eyes widen, but she didn’t scream. I didn’t think she would.

 

We landed with a huge bump, but the shocks held out. The hummer was fine. We would be a little sore when we got home, but ok.

 

She let out a deep breath as we sped across the desert. “Damn,” was all she said for several minutes. “Who were they?”

 

“I have no clue,” I answered. And right now, I didn’t. Was it someone trying to kill me, or Anita? Probably Anita, the guy with the knife had been going for her. Never a dull moment.

 

“Were they after you or me?” she asked

 

“Well, the guy tried to stab you. By the way, there’s a first aid kit under the seat. Could you do something about this arm for me?” She nodded, getting out the first aid kit. “It couldn’t be Olaf,” I reasoned. “He works alone. He wants to kill you up close and personal, not in a fiery crash or walk by slashing.” She nodded, tightening a bandage on my arm. “Riker’s gone. Itzpapalotl’s gone. And then…” My voice trailed off. Could it be? No. God, I hope not. I knew Van Cleef wanted Anita, but I didn’t think he wanted her dead. But this could have been a warning, or a calling card. But…it just didn’t make sense! Why would he want to kill her, if he wanted her to work for him? Was he just testing her?

 

“You know who it is, don’t you?”

 

“I have an educated guess.”

 

“Who.”

 

“Not telling yet.”

 

“Damn it, Edward!”

 

“I said YET. Don’t get your feathers too ruffled.”

 

 “Where are we going?” Ah, change of subjects.

 

“Back to the house.”

 

“I take it you know a back way.”

 

“Yes I do.”

 

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We made our way back to the house using the back way. The back way involved driving over lots of brush and wilderness desert. Which was fine, it meant other little weenie cars couldn’t follow. I doubted there was anyone in the house, but just to be sure we swept the rooms. We found no one.

 

“Where’s your first aid kit?” was the first thing out of Anita’s mouth as soon as the coast was clear.

 

First aid kit? Oh yes, for the arm. I had almost forgotten about the little wound. It was almost deep, but it was nothing to other things I had endured. “Under the sink. Why?” I leaned against the kitchen table, watching Anita retrieve it from under the sink. God, her every movement fascinated me.

 

“Because we need to really bandage that arm, and not just throw a cloth over it.” There was some wisdom to that, I suppose. It wasn’t very serious, but it would suck if it got infected.

 

She opened the kit next to me on the table. She took the bandage off my arm, and began to clean the cut.  “The cut isn’t that bad,” I pointed out as she put butterfly closures on my arm, and wrapped it with fresh gauze.

 

“It’s bad enough,” she said. “You didn’t have to step in front of me, I would have gotten out of the way.” I felt my stomach do a belly flop. Didn’t she realize what could have happened? The cut on my arm was at the same height as her throat. I saved her from that. I cringed at the thought of that happening to Anita. MY Anita. Killing who ever had ordered this done was sounding better and better.

 

“And what if you didn’t?” I demanded, my heart thumping in my chest with the thought of having to bury her. But I forced myself to calm down, outwardly. “My shoulder,” I said softly, and reached out. I traced a line across Anita’s neck, where the dagger would have sliced. “Is at the exact same height as your neck, Anita. I can take this deep of a cut in my arm. You can’t in your throat.”

 

She frowned, still convinced that she would have gotten out of the way. “I would have gotten out of the way,” she insisted. Maybe she would have. This was Anita. In fact, I was probably worried too much. She probably would have, with her nine lives. But I just didn’t want to take the chance.

 

My hand moved to touch the side of her face. “And what if you didn’t?”

 

She sighed. “I would have, Edward. I always do.”

 

“What if?”

 

She reached up to touch my face, one hand on each side. “Don’t what if me, Edward. I get enough of that with Richard at home.” I furrowed my brow. Richard? What the hell does Richard have to do with anything. Even now, she was bringing up the furball. I hate that furball. I grasped her wrists, pushing her hands back down to her sides.

 

“Don’t compare me to the furball.” I looked into Anita’s eyes, and I was suddenly softened. Her brown eyes had widened, almost as if she was afraid of me. I shook my head. “I’m not angry, Anita. Please don’t look at me like that.” I didn’t want her to be afraid of me. Cautious, maybe. If we were indeed equals, I had to keep her on her toes, if even for just the fun of it. But maybe I could still win this. I couldn’t kill her, but I could dominate her.

 

“Why? So you won’t feel guilty?” she asked, a note of irony in her voice.

 

I leaned down, resting my forehead on hers. “Because I might do something like this,” I answered, pressing my lips to hers. She didn’t fight, but she tried to get closer, trying to raise up on her toes to me. I almost let her, but then the slightly mean, mischievous streak in me told me no. So I held her fast to the ground, leaving me in control of the kiss. It was a slight revenge for not winning the draw down. I was proud that we were equals, but there was a part of me that just couldn’t believe I wasn’t the best, the better of the two.

 

And being Anita, she couldn’t just stand there and let this go. I didn’t expect her too. And it wouldn’t be any fun if she didn’t fight back. She bent her knees, knowing I couldn’t hold up her full body weight standing like this, making me lean down further. Oh no, Anita. I smiled at her, and swept her feet out from under her. She hit the kitchen floor, but I knew she wasn’t hurt. I was still holding her, I wouldn’t let her hit full on.

 

I straddled her, leaning over her. “I knew you couldn’t just stand there,” I whispered, delighted that she had made this interesting.

 

She smiled as well. I felt the jolt hit me, all through my torso. I loved her smile. I loved it when she smiled at me.  “You aint seen nothin’ yet,” she said, flipping us over. I didn’t know how she did it, but I suspected it had something to do with her Judo. Once again she was sitting on my abs, leaning over me. “Equals, remember?”

 

Equals. I ran it over in my head again. Maybe. But this wasn’t over yet. But despite of it, I left her there, sitting up. I pulled her closer with hands behind her knees. Our eyes met. I wanted her so badly right at that moment, and I knew she knew.  Then I noticed her eyes roaming over the rest of me, almost inspecting me. Was she comparing me to her two monsters back home? I know I’m good looking, I even tried to tone that down when I worked under cover so I wouldn’t be noticed. But I wasn’t perfect like Richard or Jean-Claude. I didn’t find it a flaw. But she might.

 

“What are you staring at?” I asked softly, not wanting her to think I was angry at her. I wasn’t. But I was curious.

 

She touched my eyebrows, smoothing them down with her thumbs. “You have hat head, a scar on your hairline, and one of your eyebrows is slightly higher than the other,” she said with a gentle smile. I was suddenly confused. The smile told me she wasn’t mocking me. But…what was she leading to? I opened my mouth to protest comparing me to the perfect monsters, when she hushed me with fingers on my lips. She was the only one I would ever allow to do that. She continued, “And I cherish that, Edward. You are so human, and I cherish that.” There were tears glittering in her eyes, not yet fallen. Relief washed over me.

 

I grasped her around the waist, holding her close to me. “You have been hanging around the monsters too much, Anita,” I murmured into her hair.

 

“But I’m back now, Edward. I’m back.”

 

Thank God she was back. It was about time. For a long time I had thought she was lost. “You have been gone so long, Anita. Its about damn time you’re back.”

 

She laughed, and it turned into a sob. Oh no, Anita, please don’t cry. She seems to have been crying a lot, being around me. I pressed my lips to her forehead. “Shhh, baby, don’t cry. It’s alright. Everything will be alright.”

 

“I’m not crying,” she insisted, wiping the tears away from her cheeks and eyes.

 

“So can we kill the monsters now?” I asked, hopeful. It would make everything easier.

 

“No.” Damn. Please? It will be fun!

 

“The vampire?” Say yes. Say yes. Say yes.

 

“No, Edward. I would die too, remember?”

 

“I don’t think you would, Anita.” And I honestly didn’t think she was. She would survive. She might go through some pain, but she would pull through. And she would be a whole lot safer. Suddenly her expression changed. She was surprised about something, looking off into the distance. She wasn’t focusing on anything.

 

“What, Anita?” 

 

She shook her head. “Nothing,” she insisted. I let it go. Probably some mystical stuff I wouldn’t understand. No matter. If it was that important, I would find out about it later. But we had other stuff to do. And as much as I wanted to stay at the house the whole rest of the day and hold her, we had to leave soon. I had high suspicions that the MIB would be at Ted’s house soon for a check up.

 

“Anita.” Her attention turned back to me. “As much as I would love to stay here like this,” I kissed her lightly. “We have to pack.”

 

She raised an eyebrow, surprised. “Pack?” I nodded. “What now?” she asked.

 

“We’re going into hiding again. I have a feeling those guys in black know where Ted Forrester’s house is.”

 

“It’s YOUR house, Edward.”

 

“You’re right. It is my house. And I bet they know where it is. But they probably don’t know where my secluded mountain cabin is,” I said. Oh, I do love a good secret. The IRS didn’t know where it was either.

 

“How many different hideouts do you have, Edward?” Nita, Nita. I couldn’t possibly tell you that. That would take all the fun out of it.  I smiled secretively, letting her know that I wasn’t going to tell my secrets.

 

We stood. Shame, that. Anita put away the first aid kit. Touching my arm, she said, “Thank you, Edward.”

 

“You’re welcome, Anita.”

 

Then we packed. Four suit cases all in all. Two for clothes, two for weapons, mostly mine. I took along all the important stuff from my arsenal. The good fire power, you know. We packed the suitcases into the hummer, that was parked in the back of the house. We had to walk through the under brush to get to it.

 

Just as we were ready to go, it was late afternoon. Four black cars we had come to know too well pulled into my driveway. We watched from the under brush. At a closer look not going at 60 miles an hour, I noticed they were those little BMW z3 things that seemed to be so popular with rich people. All I could say to that was, HA! My hummer is better.

 

I nodded my head towards the hummer, gesturing for Anita to get in. We watched from the windshield, barely able to make out the silhouettes through the brush. Which was a good thing, it meant they couldn’t see us either. I started up the hummer, and we pulled away, starting towards the highway.

 

Anita broke the silence. “What what? No guns, no shooting, no defending of the territory?”

 

I smiled and shrugged. I suppose she would expect me to kill them all, then drive away. But that would require a clean up crew. “Can’t leave too many bodies behind, now can we? We’ve got places to be. Besides, they wont hurt the house too much. I think they’re looking for you, not me.”

***

We drove a few hours towards the mountains, still on the long highway in the desert. Darkness fell. Anita laid down on the seat and drifted off beside me. Not long after she fell asleep her arm twitched, turning my attention to her. Had she hit someone in her dream? I noticed that even in her sleep she was frowning, her head turning from side to side. Just as I was about to shake her shoulder to wake her, she darted awake on her own accord, sitting up on her elbows.

 

“Bad dream?”

 

“Oh yeah.”

 

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“Olaf again?” I asked.

 

She shook her head negative. “No. Jean-Claude.”

 

I glared at the open highway. There was this twitching in my trigger finger to kill Jean-Claude. “So can we kill him now?”

 

She sighed. “No, Edward.” Of course she would say no. Again. My life is ever disappointing. There had to be some circumstances that I could kill Jean-Claude under. I would find them. Time is all I need.

 

“I had to ask.”

 

“I know.” Then there was a long silence, that only the sound of the hummer’s engine filled. But Anita finally broke it. “So Jean-Claude was the one who put out a contract on Obsidian Butterfly?”

 

Hmmm. She and the vampire had talked about a lot. “Yes,” I simply answered.

 

“He was hoping she would win, you know.”

 

“I know. And she didn’t win.” Of course Jean-Claude was hoping she would win. He would just love to have Anita’s little sociopath out of his girlishly long hair.

 

“You know?”

 

“Of course. The vampire wouldn’t care if I died. It would just be one more nuisance out of his hair. One less man to be jealous of.”

 

“You knew he was jealous of you?”

 

“Of course, Anita.”

 

“How?” Because I can read people. Even Jean-Claude. Even Richard. Its my job. Besides, they had a reason to be jealous, didn’t they?

 

“It’s common sense. Richard too. Because when you’re in trouble, who’s always there for you? Who are you almost always with?”

 

“You.”

 

“Exactly. Wouldn’t you be jealous if you were them?”

 

“I guess. It’s white knight syndrome. They want to be the white knight, but instead they have to watch you ride to the rescue time and time again.” White knight syndrome. Very good, Anita. She understands guy psychology more than she realizes. Probably because she’s closer to being one of the guys, than a girly girl. Like Donna. That’s another reason why I love Anita. She’s not a pink girl. And it was hard to believe that she had ever been.

 

“You’re beginning to get guy psychology, Anita.”

 

“I think I should be scared.”

 

“Probably. So why can’t we kill Jean-Claude again?”

 

“Because I said no.”

 

“Ah, but he wanted to kill me. So that’s self defense, isn’t it?” Say yes. Say yes. Say yes.

 

“Edward. No. You won, Obsidian Butterfly is dead.” Damn it.

 

“Yeah yeah.”

 

“So what’s the plan? How are we going to get rid of Olaf and the guys in black?”

 

“I’m going to run my lines and try to find out who these MIB are, and Olaf’s where abouts. He hasn’t killed anyone lately, so either he’s gone back to Germany, or he is keeping a low profile.” I was hoping he had given up and gone back to Germany. But I knew I couldn’t be so lucky.

 

“But I’m the bait, right? And if no one knows where this cabin is, then how are we going to get Olaf?” I hated the idea of using Anita for bait. Because if one little thing went wrong, then it could be the death of her. That thought made my blood run cold.

 

“I want to get rid of the BMW men in black first. Then Olaf. We’ll try to take it a step at a time.”

 

“Ok.” Silence again. “Will catching Olaf include using me as bait?”

 

I sighed, glancing over to her. As I said before, I hated that idea. But it was the best way to flush Olaf out into the open. “Probably.” She nodded, but said nothing. “It’ll be alright, Anita. I wont let him hurt you. You know that. He wants to kill you up close an personal, and that gives us an advantage. True?”

 

“True.”

 

“How much longer of a drive?” she asked.

 

“About three more hours. You can go back to sleep if you want.”

 

“No, that’s ok. I think I’ll stay awake until Count Chocula goes to sleep.” Count Chocula. That’s good. She was pissed at Jean-Claude, and I was loving every minute of it.

 

“That will be dawn.”

 

“I know.”

 

(())(())(())<<>><<16>><<>>(())(())(())

 

We approached the old cabin, driving through the gate with the elk skull hanging above. My Grandpa Forrester had shot that elk up in Montana. The shadowy outline of the old cabin and metal corral sent a chill through my body, of both dreaded memory and excitement to be home.

 

We pulled up to the cabin. I grabbed two of the bags, and started for the house, assuming Anita would follow. I stopped to look up at the house, another chill ran through me. The outside of the house looked old and worn, but I had kept the inside in good condition.

 

We walked inside. I flipped a light switch. Anita seemed confused by the presence of electricity, she hadn’t seen any power lines. Because there weren’t any. “Generator,” I answered.

 

“Oh.” I walked to the refrigerator, filling a glass with ice water. I watched Anita out of the corner of my eye. A drop of sweat ran down the side of her face. It was hot in here, the windows had been closed. The heat of the day made the house into a furnace, but the cool of the night hadn’t been allowed in to cool things off. It was cool in the mornings, sultry in the day, and sometimes downright cold at night.

 

“God, Edward, its hotter than hell’s mouth in here.”

 

Yes, and not just from the physical heat, I thought to myself. Walking over to Anita, I set my glass down, fishing out a single ice cube. I traced the ice over her lips. She sighed, standing completely still. She closed her eyes as the cold water from the melting ice ran down her skin. I watched it drip down her jaw line, fascinated by the lines of her body. A sudden inspiration hit me. And I hoped Anita wouldn’t kill me for it. “Chill out,” I whispered above her lips. I smiled slightly, not able to refrain from it at the thought of what I was about to do. I dropped the ice cube down her shirt, I knew it would get stuck in her bra.

 

She squealed. Anita actually squealed. I was losing a battle not to laugh, so I kissed her, muffling her squeal, that turned into a moan. Her hands still fumbled to remove the intruding ice cube. I caught her hands in mine, pulling her closer. The dominance game was still on. She squirmed as the ice cube pressed into her skin from the pressure of our bodies. But then she leaned into me as we kissed. And it was killing me that I couldn’t let myself completely go. That I couldn’t just scoop her up and take her to the bed room, and make love to her all night. Maybe I could have. Maybe she would let me. But that worm of doubt was what kept me in check. I pulled away when the ice cube had completely melted. I was shaking on the inside, but I controlled it so it would show on the out. I smiled as she swallowed, hard. “That was mean,” she managed to get out.

 

I chuckled. “Maybe. Shall we open some windows?”

 

She nodded, once up, once down. “That might cool things off.”

 

“Maybe,” I answered. I kissed her forehead, and wandered back outside to get the rest of the bags.

 

Back inside the cabin, I pulled out my laptop. I would check my lines with the FBI first. To see if they knew anything about the men in black. I honestly had no idea who they were. And that irritated me.

 

Anita wandered back into the living room to get her bags. “Good night, Anita,” I called as she exited the room.

 

“Good night, Edward.”

 

Was it just me, or was she more tired than usual. Since we had gotten to Sante Fe she had slept more than what I had seen her sleep in the five years I’ve known her. Maybe she was just catching up on sleep Bert had deprived her of. But I doubt it. Could this be something else I get to blame on the vampire? Oh goody. Let’s blame it on the vampire.

 

I checked my lines with the FBI. Nothing new. Nothing new with the CIA either, that was of much interest. But I still had other lines to check in Sante Fe. I dialed one such number into the phone built into the laptop. A mousy voice answered, “Hello?”

 

“Mitch the Snitch, how has business been going?” I asked, but not really caring.

 

I heard the audible gulp over the line. “Hello Ted.” His mousy voice had taken a higher pitch.

 

“I’ve got some questions for you.”

 

“Ted, you know I’m trying to cut clean. I don’t do the information business anymore.”

 

“Don’t give me that, Mitch. I know better.”

 

“No, really Ted. I’m serious.”

 

“So am I. I’m about 10 minutes away, Mitch. Don’t make me come down personally.” That was a bluff. We were hours and hours away. But Mitch was scared enough of me, that he would believe just for caution’s sake.

 

“Ok, ok. What do you want to know?”

 

“I want to know if there’s anyone new in town. With lots of money. The flunkies all wear black, and drive BMWs.” There was silence over the phone. He knew something. “Tell me, Mitch.”

 

“Ok, but you didn’t hear it from me. He’s dangerous, I don’t want to be caught up in the middle of it.”

 

“Of course, Mitch. I just want to know who he is, and where he is.”

 

“His name’s Riker. He’s a new pot hunter in town.”

 

“Riker? Riker’s dead.”

 

“I know. But it’s his brother.”

 

“Brother, huh? First name?”

 

“Xander.”

 

“And where is he in Sante Fe?”

 

“He took over the old Bonfaire mansion.”

 

“Lots of money?”

 

“Yeah. He inherited the late Riker’s fortune, along with his own.”

 

“Why’d he come to town, Mitch?”

 

“I dunno. Out to make a living like the rest of us, I guess.”

 

“Thanks, Mitch. See, that wasn’t that hard. I’ll be sure to leave you something in the mail box.”

 

“Thanks, Ted. Bye.”

 

Mitch hung up. So it was this Xander guy. But why was he trying to hurt Anita? Probably a simple revenge plot. Well then, I had some revenge of my own to exact. He messed with the wrong people. Must be a family trait, that.

 

I took my suitcases into my room. I changed into my pajama pants and shook out the sheets. I looked down at the bed. It was too empty. I didn’t want to sleep here, and I knew why. I slipped into Anita’s room. I watched her sleep, for the better of 20 minutes. I wanted to crawl into bed with her, but there was that damned note of uncertainty, that kept me out. She stirred. She knew I was here. I waited for her to tell me to go back to sleep. But instead something better happened that made my heart leap. She held out her hand to me, inviting me to lie down next to her. I gladly took the invitation, crawling into bed behind her, I slung one protective arm around her waist. She fell back asleep almost immediately.

 

***

 

I woke up before Anita. I climbed out of bed to take a shower and get dressed. I wanted to stay with her, but I needed to get up. I rarely could lounge around in bed in the morning. I made coffee, the real coffee that Anita likes. I took a sip. It was black, the way I liked it. I glanced out the screen door that led out to the porch. I could see the corral, and part of the barn out through the door. I walked out to the porch, not able to stop myself. I leaned on the railing, and looked out over the whole yard. The corral gate was hanging funny. One of the hinges was broke. I would have to fix that. So many memories returned to me from this place, both good and bad.

 

My parents had lived and died here. The horses had come and gone. I remembered my first and favorite horse. His name had been Trouble. He had been a handsome horse, that deep chestnut brown color, with a shining black mane and big brown eyes. We had had an understanding, that horse and I. I was the only one who could ride him, he would throw any one else who tried.

 

I heard Anita walk out onto the porch with me. She rested against the railing next to me. She looked out to see what I was staring at. “There used to be fifteen,” I said, still looking out at the corral.

 

“Fifteen what, Edward?”

 

“Horses. Fifteen horses. Out there, in the corral and stables.”

 

“Do you like horses, Edward?”

 

“Ted does.”

 

“Do you?”

 

I paused. Do I Edward like horses? Yes. But did I want to tell Anita? “Yes. I shouldn’t, they’re just animals. But THEY never broke me of that. They tried. They would punish me when they caught me drawing them on scratch pieces of paper. But they never broke me.” They was Van Cleef and his lot. I hated that man more than anyone in the world. But I revered him as one of the best. He was the best, until I came along. I think he resents that.

 

Anita looked up at me, I followed her movement out of the corner of my eye.

 

“Who are THEY, Edward?”

 

“Van Cleef. Van Cleef and his camp. His school.”

 

“Tell me about it, Edward. Tell me about Van Cleef. Tell me why there aren’t horses here anymore.” I kept looking straight ahead. Could I really come out and tell Anita everything? I had had my secrets for so long, I didn’t know any other way. She set down her coffee and hopped up on the porch railing so she could look me in the eye. “Tell me about the Undertaker, Edward.”

 

The Undertaker. That nickname had come back to haunt me, since we went into Riker’s home to get the kids. I turned to her, I knew my eyes were intense. I moved to stand in front of her, leaning in so her legs straddled me. I leaned in so our faces were close. “If I tell you, Anita, I can never take it back. You’ll know, and you’ll be in danger if any one else ever knows that you know. Do you still want to know how I came to be like this, Anita?”

 

She looked me straight in the eyes, and answered, “Yes.” She was confident in her answer. If she had been anything else, I wouldn’t have told her.

 

I looked over her shoulder, back out towards the stables. “Then I’ll tell you. Listen carefully, because I don’t want to have to repeat any of this. I told you about the horses that used to live out there. All of this, used to be a horse ranch. I lived here when I was little, with my mother, and father. My mother was petite, like you. And she was dangerous. Like you. They called her the Angel of Death. She was an assassin, the best money could buy, for a long time. Sometimes on a rare occasion when an assignment was especially dangerous, she worked with her brother, Otto Van Cleef. They both worked for the CIA mostly. Not officially, but they were the first ones called when there was a job to be done. Mom enjoyed her job, and was happy killing. Until she met dad. Then she wanted out.

 

“She and Dad got married, and moved out here. He was a New Mexico native, he grew up on a ranch. It was his dream to have his own horse ranch, so he and mom started up one. She had the money, and he had the know how. In 1968 there was a son born.”

 

I looked back to Anita. I had just essentially told her my age, something else I had never disclosed to her. She did the math in her head. “You’re 34 years old.”

 

“Yes, I am. We lived in this house, my family and I. We ran this small horse ranch, there were rarely more than 15 horses, sometimes only ten. But we all loved it, it paid the bills. See, Anita? I had a normal life once. We were the happiest little family in New Mexico. We were happy, until Van Cleef got malevolent. He didn’t think it was right for one of the most dangerous women in the world to play Susie homemaker.

 

“He had always been bossy, in control. He demanded that mom leave us, and go back to killing with him. She refused. So he came to the house, with some of his best students. He had just started a school for assassins in the military. They were the first graduated class, the cream of the crop. They tried again to get mom to go back to her dark life, one last chance. She refused, but made a proposal. A draw down between she and Van Cleef. It had been one of his fantasies, for as long as they had been in the business of death. If she won, then she would be left alone. If Van Cleef won…well, you get the picture. I remember the look in her eyes when she put up the idea. She was confident that she could win. That her life would be hers.

 

“Van Cleef accepted. But fearing he would be killed, right before the time for the draw, he signaled one of his men to shoot my mother in the back. Then they shot my father. Both of my parents were killed before my eyes. I was nine years old. I remember looking up at Van Cleef from the dust. I couldn’t get up, they had broken one of my legs. There was nothing I could do, I was helpless, and I hated it. I vowed never to be helpless again, if I survived that day.” I did survive. And every single one of those graduates that had come to my house was dead. Van Cleef and I were the only ones left from that day.

 

“Van Cleef almost killed me, but then decided to keep me. To put me in his school, to make me a tool for the government. He tried to break me, in all those years. But I rose above it. I became his best student. I became his worst enemy. I went through the early years with zeal and determination, because I knew if I became the best, then this would never happen to my family, to my loved ones. But then slowly they killed me inside. They killed my emotions, they conditioned me into a killing machine. As dead on the inside as my targets. I became the Undertaker in the school. And when I left to live outside the school in the outside world, I became Death. So here I am.”

 

Her eyes were wide with shock. I expected no less. “So Van Cleef is your uncle?”

 

“Yes.” Cowardly bastard.

 

“What is your real name, Edward?”

 

“Edward Forrester, call me Ted.”

 

“But people know you as Theodore Forrester around here.”

 

“Yes, they do.”

 

“So you just legally changed your first name?”

 

“No. I had to set up a new identity for myself. Van Cleef totally erased my existence. My birth certificate, all traces of identity. So that was the name I chose for myself. Van Cleef laughed at that. That I wanted to go back to who I was, when I had become a totally different person. He laughed even more at Ted, the persona I chose to adapt. Do you know why I chose Ted?” She didn’t answer. “Because Ted is who I would have been, had there been no Van Cleef. I didn’t do it consciously, but I’m just now beginning to understand why. I never sweat the why, Anita. But here I am, analyzing things.”

 

“Sounds to me like Van Cleef needs an ass whoopin’.” An ass whoopin’. How well put. I would do worse than that though, someday. I didn’t think I would ever go after him without another provocation. But Van Cleef is the type of person that just can’t leave things alone. He would press my buttons again, and then I would kill him.

 

“If he ever tries to harm me or mine again, that is what he will get.”

 

“Why haven’t you done it already?” Good question. I didn’t really have an answer to it.

 

“I don’t know.” I smiled cynically. “I guess I don’t want to kill him until I absolutely have to. He comes in useful every once in a while. Like getting rid of Riker’s house. That would have been a terrible mess to explain to the police. True?”

 

“True,” she agreed. “How can you stay in this house, Edward?”

 

I shrugged. Why not? There were more good memories than bad. Even though mom and dad were killed here, they wouldn’t have wanted me to stay away from the ranch. “Some of the best times of my life were here, Anita. When the biggest thing I had ever killed was a coyote, that was terrorizing the horses. When the worst scar I had was only about a few inches long on my back, I got it from falling off of a surly mount, and landed on a cactus. I love it here, even though…”

 

“What is your worst scar?” she asked. That was a tough one. I took her hands, placing them at the small of my back. I guided her fingers to the beginning of the jagged scar that started at the small of my back, and let her follow the rest. I closed my eyes as her gentle hands followed the scar.

 

 “How did it happen?”

 

“Long story short, I got thrown through a window.”

 

“How old were you?”

 

“Fifteen.”

 

“I’m surprised you let someone do that to you.”

 

I opened my eyes, smiling with that memory. I had had a hell of a lot of stitches in my back. But it was worth it. “The graduates tend to get pissed when you dislocate their knee.” It had been one of the graduates that had helped kill my parents. His name was Terrance. We were sparring, Van Cleef deliberately put me up against him. He had been the one who broke my leg. So as the first round started, I dodged his swing and dislocated his knee with a kick. He picked me up, and tossed me through the observation window. I landed on the ground, on my back, slicing it to ribbons. Van Cleef stared down at me, laughing, asking me what I was going to do next with his eyes. I heard Terrance shout out as he put his knee back in place.

 

I knew he would come for me through the glass, and try to kill me. And I was on my own, Van Cleef would just watch, no matter what happened. When Terrance did come through the window and lunged for me, I cut his throat with a piece of glass. I still remember the surprised expression on his face as he choked on his own blood. Van Cleef laughed as he died. “If you let a boy kill you, Terrance, I don’t know how you graduated,” Van Cleef had said. I had gotten stitches and medical attention as a reward for making my first kill. Medical treatment at that place was a reward, not a given.

 

Anita kissed my forehead. “I’m sorry you had to go through all that.”

 

I sighed, an un-repressible tremor running through me. “So am I,” I answered truthfully. But with Anita I had a chance to start over again. I would never have a normal life. But neither would she. But we could have each other.

 

(())(())(())<<>><<17>><<>>(())(())(())

 

Nearly a minute passed in silence, our eyes locked. Neither of us said something, and for the first time in a long time, I wanted to break the silence. I thought of something to say that would irritate her. I like to tease Anita. Does that make me a bad person? Probably. That’s what makes it fun. “I found out who the MIB are,” I said.

 

 

“Who are they?” I smiled slightly. She knew what that smile meant. I wasn’t going to tell her. I would take Riker out myself, I didn’t want to have to worry about her. I know I don’t have to worry about Anita, but…I would now. “Oh hell no, you are going to tell me.”

 

“I am?” I asked, laughing.

 

“I should think so.” She glared at me. I loved it when she looked at me like that. My smile widened in response.

 

I leaned into her, I could almost feel her heart beat speed up. That within itself made my senses reel; that I had that effect on her. “Are you going to make me?” Oh yes, Anita. Please make me.

 

“Maybe.”

 

“How?” I whispered. I could think of a hundred and one ways she could convince me.

 

“I have my ways,” she whispered back. Oh do you, Anita?

 

“Oh really? I never thought you much of one for torture.”

 

“I dabble here and there.” For some odd reason, I doubted her brand of torture involved knives, like mine usually did. But I didn’t have bamboo slivers. I would have to look into that, Anita had recommended them once.

 

“You’re going to torture m—” She kissed me gently, interrupting my sentence. Her fingers ran through my hair, my scalp felt as if it were on fire. I reacted, leaning into her. But she leaned back, away. That wasn’t playing fair, Anita. But who wants to play fair? That’s no fun. Now winning; that’s fun. I leaned in more, trying to capture her lips with mine once again. She moved her whole body back, and tried to hop off the railing backwards. She would have easily landed on her feet, and been out of reach. Oh no, that wasn’t going to happen. I placed my hands on her thighs, keeping her from hopping off the railing. My fingers dug into the denim of her jeans slightly. I could feel her muscled toned leg underneath the fabric, underneath my fingertips. I wanted to touch her without the barrier of cloth between us. But that would have to wait. If it ever happened at all.

 

So instead of hopping backwards, she jumped down towards me from the railing. I let her. Backwards was forbidden, but who was I to tell her she couldn’t jump closer? She took a step forward. Our bodies were almost one line. There was tension thrumming concealed inside of me, to reach out, to crush her to me. But I suppressed it, standing completely still. I had had lots of practice over the years.

 

She stood on tiptoe, so our faces were close once again. Close, so close. But not close enough. By her mischievous smile, I could tell this had turned into a dominance game again. We were having fun, and I was game. I still wanted to win this.

 

“Tell me,” she demanded in a hushed whisper.

 

“No,” I answered. It was harder than it sounds. “Kiss me,” I demanded in the same tone, mocking her, but still hoping she would comply.

 

“No,” she answered. Of course she would say no. It was one of her favorite words. And I didn’t think she would give in this quickly. And that’s what made it fun.

 

She licked my lip, one quick flick of that slick pink tongue. And then she left, walking into the house. Hell no. I couldn’t take this. But I had to make her break first, because my ego couldn’t take losing again. This wasn’t just a game of dominance now, but a game of control. We were playing to see who broke first. One of us would break eventually. Then we could play the dominance game again. I was looking forward to it.

 

I followed her into the house. How could I not? She turned around to face me, I was standing in front of the screen door. She smiled innocently, a good ten feet away. “Is it just me, or is it hot in here?” she asked flippantly, slipping off one of her knife sheaths from her wrist. She tossed it away, it landed a few feet away from her.

 

I smiled lazily, my good ol’ boy smile. Not my innocent smile, I didn’t have on of those. She wanted to play the undress and see who breaks first game? I could play that. “You are so right, Anita. It is getting very hot in here.” Even though it was a good low 60 degrees in here from the cool morning air. I slipped out of the shoulder holster, setting it down on the nearby table. She pulled off her other knife sheath, dropping it to the ground next to the other one. I watched her eyes as I pulled my shirt over my head. They slightly widened, and not with shock. I had seen mirrors before. I knew what I looked like. I knew that keeping conditioned to stay alive had other benefits. “In this sort of heat, I certainly don’t need that.” I couldn’t hide the humor from my eyes. Humor, and other emotions I knew Anita would recognize, that I had hid for so long. But she could see them now, I didn’t care. I wanted her to see in my eyes how she affected me.

 

Her mouth opened to a small “oh.” I watched her lips. Her mouth seemed to move in slow motion as she wet her lips with her tongue. She quickly recovered. “Good point,” she agreed, shrugging off her shoulder holster. She slipped her shirt over her head, and it was my turn to watch appreciatively. Appreciatively. That word did not sum things up. But to say I watched like a hungry animal wasn’t right either. But I was hungry. I was hungry for her. For her touch, for her body. For Anita.

 

The bra was black lace and under-wire. Her skin was so pale, there was no swimsuit line. Just bare skin. The black was so contrasting against her skin, and so flattering. So Anita. Black was one of my favorite colors on her.

 

I walked towards her, stopping a foot away. “After all, it’s nothing either of us haven’t seen before. We managed to behave ourselves then,” she said. I could tell she was digging for something to say, so she wouldn’t loose her cool.

 

“Maybe,” I said, the playful note cut from my voice, a torturous memory returning to me. “But you didn’t want to touch me like that then.”

 

“You didn’t want to touch me either,” she said, running the tips of her fingers over her chest. She was teasing me, daring me to touch the soft mound of skin that peeked from the black bra. From the tone of her voice, she actually believed what she said. Oh Anita, you are so wrong.

 

“Are you so sure, Anita?” I knew my eyes and the tone of my voice betrayed my seriousness. “I know that for the longest time this has all been platonic for you. But do you remember the time you were bitten by the lamia? Right before Richard picked you up for your little date? You stood in front of me in just your jeans and your black bra, and it almost killed me. I had to sit there, and act like the most beautiful woman in the world was NOT standing in front of me without a shirt on. I had to act like I didn’t care, because…because I did.” That day had been…it had been terrible, to say the least. It was to the point where I just had to freeze and watch her, or else I very well may have lost it. And what was even worse, was that I had to answer the door when Richard showed up, when she was in the bedroom. I had to introduce myself as just a friend. It was fun as hell to mess with the werewolf’s mind, to make him wonder. But it hurt to know Anita would leave with him, and trade kisses with him, and he would get to touch her. But I was just her Death, her partner, her shadow. I didn’t get to kiss the executioner. Kill her maybe, but not kiss. But that was no more.

 

“I’m sorry, Edward. I didn’t mean to tease you like that. I didn’t know—”

 

I shook my head. It was in the past now. “Don’t be sorry. I didn’t want you to know. There was no way you could have known. And if you had somehow figured it out by some flaw in my acting then, I probably would have been angry.” I know I would have been angry, if she had somehow figured it out, before I was ready for her to know. In fact, it would have pissed me off, if she realized I loved her, before I did.

 

I took another step forward, towards Anita. I reached out for Anita, my hands hovering a quarter inch above her skin. I knew she could feel the heat from my hands, but I wasn’t touching her. I might be torturing her, but not touching her. I hadn’t lost yet.  My hands moved up her waist, my eyes locked on hers. They moved over her breasts, on the line of where fabric met skin. She closed her eyes, sighing softly. I was breaking her down. A thrill ran through me from head to toe, from seeing her react like this to my touch.

 

She suddenly stood on tiptoe, leaning against me. She kissed me gently. I won. I was allowed to touch now.  My hands moved back to her waist, kneading into her skin. It was so soft, but the muscles underneath were so strong. “I win,” I whispered, smiling slightly.

 

“Congratulations,” she whispered back. “You will receive your prize in the mail within 5 to 10 business days,” she said sarcastically. I couldn’t help but smile wider. In the mail? Hell no. I had everything I had ever wanted right here with me.

 

“In the mail? But I have my prize right here,” I pointed out, pulling her against me. From the waist up, except for the bra, it was her bare skin on mine. My knees were actually going weak. I could feel my arousal growing. My hands slid down her torso to her belt, unbuckling it. “But it needs to be unwrapped,” I said quietly, drawing the offending article out of its belt loops. I dropped it to the ground. My thumbs slid inside the waistband of her jeans, tracing around her waist. I could feel the top elastic of her underwear. It would be black, to match the bra. I closed my eyes, letting out a slow breath. She rose up to meet my lips again, kissing me, tracing my teeth with her tongue. She nibbled gently at my lower lip, and gently sucked on it.

 

My hands moved on their own, traveling up her body. She gasped as my thumbs brushed against her nipples. It aroused her, even through the fabric of her bra. I bent down to nibble at her neck. I sucked at the soft flesh. There would be a small mark. My mark. “Your prize needs to be unwrapped where there is a softer horizontal surface than a hardwood floor,” she said, voice gone husky.

 

I certainly couldn’t argue with that. I scooped her up, carrying her to her bedroom. I sat down on the edge of the bed, kneeling in front of her. I placed one arm on either side of her. My body was thrumming with excitement. But I had to make sure, one last time. Because after this, there would be no going back. “Are you sure you want this, Anita?”

 

She reached out to me, tracing her fingers over my collarbone and down to my abdomen. Her fingers felt like fire on my skin. “I want you, Edward.”

 

Those were the words. Those were THE words I had wanted to hear, for so long. For so damn long. I closed my eyes, taking in a deep breath. I took in her sweet scent. I didn’t know how to place it. She smelled good. Everyone has their own unique scent, and Anita just smelled like Anita. “I have wanted to hear that, for so long, Anita. I have wanted you to feel this way, for so long.”

 

She kissed my forehead. “I’m sorry that I didn’t before, Edward. But I do now. And I’m not going back. I’ve been places I shouldn’t have gone, and I’m not ever going back.” She was talking about the boys. The monsters. Damn right she shouldn’t have ever gone. But that aside, it was in the past. I shouldn’t have been with Donna either. But it was too late to do anything about that now. I smiled slightly, hopeful.

 

“So can we kill the vampire?” I took one foot in my hand, removing her nike, waiting for her response.

 

She smiled at my persistence, watching me remove her shoes. “No, Edward.”

 

Damn it. “Later?” I took off the other shoe without looking. The socks went next.

 

“No.”

 

Double damn it. “Damn it. But I really would like to.” Really would like to is putting it lightly.

 

“Me too sometimes. But as of now the answer is no.” Oooo. This was interesting news.

 

“Ah. I’ll ask again later.”

 

“How much later?”

 

I pretended to think. “Oh, in about an hour or so.” I stood, kicking off my own shoes. I looked down at her, sitting on the bed. Anticipation thrumming in my bones, I picked her up, moving us to the center of the bed. I leaned over her on all fours. “Or maybe. In about. 30 minutes,” I said between intervals of kissing her. She was like a drug. I couldn’t stay away.  “If I can catch you at an opportune time, you might finally say yes.” I knew I wouldn’t ask her then though. At the time when I could ask her anything and she would say yes, Jean-Claude would be farthest from my mind.

 

She reached for my belt buckle. “Maybe.” She unbuckled the belt, tossing it away. She unbuttoned the top button of my pants. “Maybe not.” Her fingers moved to the zipper, slowly carefully drawing it down. She pushed the jeans down my hips to leave me in just my boxers. Now it wasn’t hardly fair that I was the only one in their underwear, was it?

 

I ducked down, kissing the hollow of her throat. I moved down between the valley of her breasts. It was an incredible feat to leave them and continue down ward, I am a only man, after all. My touch as light as a butterfly’s kiss, my lips traveled down her skin to the top button of her jeans. With only my teeth, I dislodged the top button. I unzipped her pants with my hands, and dragged her jeans down her hips, and finally off of her legs. I tossed the jeans over my shoulder. They landed in an insignificant heap on the floor.

 

I ducked down again, licking a light line over the tops of her panties. They were black, as I predicted. She gasped under my attentions. I turned my eyes up to look at her, my chin resting so low on her abdomen that I didn’t know if abdomen was still the right name for it. This was what I wanted. To feel her react to me, as I touched her. And to see that light in her eyes. Her eyes could be so cold, like mine, but not now. They may have been brown, but they held heat of love and passion as well as any red could. I watched her lips, and had to have them. We had all day, I would return to where I was. I would pay special attention to every part of her, we had the time.

 

I crawled up her body, and leaned down, claiming her lips for my own. I ate at her mouth. My tongue tasted her lips, her tongue, her mouth, her. I nibbled gently at her lips. When I tried to draw back, she whimpered in protest, throwing an arm around my neck, pressing my lips back to hers. This time she explored me, her teeth and tongue taking me. And I yielded to her, willingly and gladly. I tried to move away once again to move down, but she bit my lower lip, keeping me in place. We both opened our eyes at the same time to look at each other. We both had playful light in our eyes, along with the meaningful darkness of what we were about to do. I raised up, Anita had no choice but to let me go, or draw blood on my lip. She chose to let me go with a protesting whimper.

 

“Shhhh,” I whispered, nibbling on her ear. Her hands moved to each side of my face, trying to move in for another kiss. I grinned, pinning her hands above her head. “No no, Anita. Be patient.” She stuck out her lip, pouting.

 

“I’m not a very patient person, Edward. You know that.” She tried to free her hands, but I leaned in, putting my full weight on her hands.

 

I grinned. “Then you’re going to love this.” I moved to her neck. I could see the red mark that I had made earlier. I ran my tongue over the still smooth skin, very slowly. She let out a long breath, closing her eyes. Then my lips closed in on the mark, working the skin between my lips. The mark would be a deep red, the next time she looked in the mirror.

 

I released her hands, running my hands down her arms. I sat back, kneeling, looking down at Anita. God, she was beautiful. She was the most beautiful woman on this earth, to me. No one even came close to measuring up. My hands moved to her bra. She arched her back to allow me easy access to the clasp, that I undid expertly, drawing the black bra off of her. She looked up at me, a little nervous. I could see it in her eyes. I shook my head. “Don’t be nervous, Anita. You’re beautiful.”

 

She smiled, the uncertainty gone. I brushed the rosy tips of her breasts with my fingertips, and the smile quickly faded, her lips now half parted, her eyes closed. It moved me to see her react to my touch like this. I leaned down, supporting myself on my arms. I settled my lower body down, resting between her legs. I ran my tongue over one pebble hard nipple, tearing a gasp from her lips. I took her breast into my mouth, swirling the nipple with my tongue. With one last gentle bite, I moved to the other breast. I used more teeth on this one, grating the hard nipple between my teeth. She let out a sharp gasp when I bit down. I didn’t bite down hard, but hard enough to all but leave a mark.

 

Anita raised her hips up, pressing into my pelvis. “Please,” she pleadingly whispered. I knew she could feel my arousal through the boxers and paper thin panties. She had no idea how hard it was to not just take her right then and there, without any more ado. But this was the first time. The first time I got to really touch her, and I wanted to enjoy it to the fullest.

 

“Patience,” I reminded her, raising her hands over her head once again. She laced her fingers in mine, watching me. Holding her two hands in my one, I leaned to the side of her. I traced my fingertips down her side, her toned stomach muscles. Her skin was so soft, but so muscled. Her abdomen twitched. The executioner was ticklish. “Did that tickle?” I asked, amused.

 

“Maybe,” she answered, eyes closed.

 

My hand moved down, sliding inside of her panties. My fingers brushed against her clitoris, and she spasmed beneath me. “Did that tickle?” I asked, a small smile spread on my lips.

 

“Maybe,” she still answered, her hand clenching mine almost painfully. I reached down further, sliding a finger inside of her. Her hips bucked forward and she shouted, “Oh my GOD Edward!”

 

I laughed. “Did that tickle?”

 

“Yes!”

 

I released her hands, and moved down her body, trailing lips down her soft skin. Hooking my fingers in the straps of her panties, I drew  them down her hips. I spread her legs again with my hands. I let out a long breath, I knew it caressed Anita’s skin in places my fingers had just been. She looked down the line of her body to meet my eyes again. My eyes never leaving her face, I flicked out my tongue, a short quick stroke against her clitoris. Just that small touch made her shriek, tipping her head back. I took her with lips and teeth and tongue, until I brought her. I smiled, triumphant. I won again.

 

My head was spinning as I crawled up her body. I hovered over her, hard and ready, trembling with anticipation. I watched her eyes as a I slid inside of her, slowly, savoring every moment of becoming one with my soul mate. Even if I couldn’t tell her I loved her by words, I told her with my eyes, with my body. I drew out of her slowly, and pushed back in, several times. I wanted this to last, but my control was only so much. Our breathing had become quick and haggard. She urged me on, pushing forward with her hips. I slid in an out at a faster pace, rolling my hips against her.

 

I could feel the tension in my back, my shoulders, and the rest of my body to speed up, to take her as fast as I could with every muscle in my body. I finally caved into that tension, losing control, taking her hard and fast. Anita cried out in her orgasm, her nails digging into my back. But the pain only furthered my pleasure, pulling me over the edge. I came inside Anita, crying out her name.

 

I collapsed against her, my lips next to her ear. When I gained the ability to partially speak, I whispered, “I…” but I still couldn’t finish the phrase. I didn’t know why I couldn’t say it. But I just couldn’t. Even though I loved her with every bone in my body, I couldn’t say it.

 

“Shhh,” Anita said, stroking my hair. She kissed my cheek. “I love you too.” And at that moment I knew she understood. Hearing her say that out loud, I was suddenly ready to go again. Rolling over, hands on her waist, I moved her on top of me. She let out a surprised yip, and then laughed. I loved the sound of her laugh. She smiled, sitting on top of me once again, her hands on my chest. She ran her nails lightly over my nipples, making me gasp. “Do I get to ride again?” she asked, laughter glittering in her eyes. She was so beautiful.

 

“Oh yeah,” I answered, returning her smile.

 

***

 

We made love the whole rest of the day. She fell asleep in my arms. I laid there for an hour, but then got up out of bed. I had work to do. I took a shower, and packed a quick bag. Mostly weapons. That’s what I would need, up against Riker. I was going to go eliminate him, quickly and efficiently. He was a threat, and couldn’t stick around. It wasn’t allowed. Then next would be Olaf. We could go back to my house for that though. We needed to bait him in anyways.

 

I left a note on Anita’s nightstand. It simply said “I’ll be back in two days. Be careful.” I left her a new Seacamps .32 as a gift. I knew she liked mine, so I ordered her her own. I quietly slipped out of the house, and started up the hummer. I started out for Sante Fe again. Anita would be safe at that house. Olaf didn’t know where it was. No one knew where it was, it was forgotten. But the what ifs spun around my mind, and made me step on the gas pedal even more.

 

<<>><<>><<17>><<>><<>>

 

I had driven most of the night and day. It was almost noon. The road stretched on, with no sign of end. That was the best and worst part about Forrester Ranch. It was truly in the middle of no where, miles and miles away from everything. I became very bored driving. I decided to play with some of the gadgets I had in the Hummer. “I wonder where the boys are,” I said aloud in a sing song voice, punching a button on the console of the Hummer. Just below the radio, a plastic panel lifted up to reveal a satellite location system.

 

The red dot on the screen was a tracking device on Richard’s Mustang. It looked like he was at home. The blue dot on Jean-Claude’s airplane wasn’t moving either, sill docked in St. Louis.

 

I smiled to myself. There wasn’t really any particular reason for tracking Anita’s boys. I just did it because I could. It gave me a sense of power, I suppose. What ever it was, I still liked it.

 

Then I noticed another bleeping dot. It was green, and moving. I pressed a button, zooming in on the US map, then on the state it was in. It was in New Mexico. I realized it was me. There was a tracking device on my hummer, and my system was picking up the signal. Someone had been tracking me, without me knowing it. That pissed me off.

 

Careless, Edward. Careless. Olaf. It must have been Olaf. He had been tracking us all along. He knows where the cabin is. And he knows I left. Anita was back at the Ranch with just her weapons. I had been careless, and left her unprotected against something like Olaf. Fuck. If he hurt her, I would never forgive myself. I was numb to some things, but not to Anita.

 

I immediately turned the Hummer around, squealing tires. At a complete stop, I quickly got out and removed the honing device. Stupid, Edward. Stupid. It wasn’t that hard to find, once I actually looked for it. I left it on the side of the road. Olaf would think I had reached my destination. He wouldn’t know I was coming.

 

I floored the Hummer to 140 mph. It was late afternoon on a deserted highway. At this rate I should get back by nightfall. Eleven hours worth of normal driving into six. Good thing I filled up my gas tank.

 

***

 

I swept the house, gun in hand. Olaf wasn’t there. But neither was Anita. Shit. I got into the hummer, and followed Olaf’s tracks in the fading sunlight. The led into the desert. I had an idea where he went. Here’s to hoping I wasn’t too late.

 

Full dark had fallen. I stopped the Hummer out of hearing distance of their spot. I could see Anita and Olaf through my night-vision goggles. She was tied up. He was struggling with something attached to his leg. A snake? I hurried and got out my sniper rifle form under the seat of the hummer. Climbing up on top of the Hummer, I set up the rifle. When I looked through the scope this time, Olaf had become very clumsy.

 

He stumbled towards the table, grabbing a knife. I jacked a shell into the chamber. Olaf lunged for Anita, and I fired, taking him full on in the chest, knocking him backwards. He teeter tottered on the edge of the ravine that I knew was there, trying to keep from falling. Anita kicked at him, but not him. Probably gravel. On that kind of a balance game, a handful of gravel is all it would take to push him over. And he fell. I watched Anita cut her bonds, and stagger a little. Her feet had probably fallen asleep. Then she kicked the table of knives into the ravine, her fists clenched and shoulders tense. Then she plopped down in the dust, hugging her knees to her chest, waiting for me. She knew I was the one who shot him.

 

I got down from the roof, put away the rifle, and got into the hummer. I pulled up to the spot where she was waiting. I jumped out of the hummer, and rushed over to her, dropping to my knees. I pulled her to me in a tight embrace. I took a deep breath, inhaling her scent. Never was there a more heavenly smell.

 

She threw her arms around my neck, holding on to me like I was the last sane thing in the world. “I’m sorry Anita, please believe me.”

 

She pulled back to look at me. I thought she would be frowning, but instead there was a good humored smile on her lips. “For what? Saving me?”

 

My eyes went wide with surprise. “I was almost too late!” I protested. She was almost gutted by Olaf! And it would have all been my fault.

 

“But you weren’t,” she countered. “I’m alive. That’s all that counts.” I knew she was lying to me. She was smiling so I would feel better, but I could see the weariness in her eyes. She was shaken from this. She couldn’t lie to me well enough to hide it in her eyes.

 

I sighed, letting out everything. I kissed her on the forehead. “If you say so.”

 

“That was a good shot,” she said, leaning her forehead on mine.

 

I shrugged. Of course it was. I made it. I smiled slightly, my “irritating” smile. “Thanks,” I said, standing, drawing her to her feet.

 

“Let’s go home, Edward.”

 

She was calling my house home. Nice. It would do, for now. “I assume you mean my house?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

I nodded. “Then let’s go get the bags, and get gone.”

 

We could go back to Sante Fe, take care of the new Riker, and then…I didn’t know what next. I would just have to wait and see.

 

<<>><<>><<18>><<>><<>>

 

We arrived home around 11:00. You wouldn’t really think it, but driving for long periods of time can be actually exhausting. Anita went straight to bed. But never mind my fatigue. I still had work to do.

 

I suited up, visited my arsenal, and started up the hummer. I didn’t turn on my lights until I was out of the driveway. It wouldn’t do to wake Anita up. I was going to pay the new Riker a visit.

 

///

 

I waited patiently for him to return, standing in the shadows of his office. It was so easy to sneak in. There was barely any security at all, unless you count those ridiculous men in black, who “patrolled” around the house. They were worthless. There wasn’t even a guard at the door. I slipped into the room when Xander left for the restroom. He practically bumped into my hiding place in the hallway, but never noticed me.

 

Finally, the annoying man returned. He was very obese, he waddled as he walked. I waited for him to sit down behind his desk, before I revealed my presence, by locking the door. The loud click made the bloated man turn his attention back up to me. God, he was worse than his brother. What’s the phrase? More chins than a Chinese phone book?

 

“Xander Riker. How unpleasant to meet you.” The Berretta was trained on him. He knew it, his eyes wide with surprise. I didn’t normally engage in dialogue with my targets, but for this scum I would make an exception.

 

“Who the hell are you?” he demanded. He tried to glare at me, but when he squinted, the folds of fat closed over his eyes.

 

“I’m Death,” I answered truthfully. I pulled up a stool from the bar, perching upon it nonchalantly, the gun still trained on Riker. I made sure his hands stayed in sight on the desk. If they slipped away I would shoot him immediately. “Now, I’m curious. What in the world would possess you to try and kill Anita Blake?”

 

“She killed my brother.” There was a cold bitter regret in his voice. He had truly cared for his brother. Lucky me, I’m a sociopath. I could care less, about him. Because he dared to mess with MY Anita.

 

“Are you sure?”

 

“I’m positive. I can feel it in my bones.”

 

I raised an eyebrow at this. “I’m surprised you can feel anything at all,” I remarked. “But you’re wrong, you know.”

 

“What?”

 

“I killed your brother. And I would have left you alone, but…you started it.” My eyes went empty, cold as winter skies. I could see the fear on Riker’s face. “There’s a saying…Don’t ever start anything you can’t finish. You’re finished.” I shot him, twice in the chest. He slumped forward on the desk. There was a slight thrum of pleasure in the pit of my stomach from having eliminated an enemy, but for the most part, I felt nothing.

 

I slipped out of the building, unnoticed. I drove home, with no further events. One of the flunkies would find their employer dead in his office. One of them might even get blamed for the murder. But not Ted Forrester. He had an alibi, I thought, slipping into bed with Anita, holding her to me. Ted and Ed were with Anita, all night.

 

She snuggled closer in her sleep. “Edward,” I heard her murmur under her breath. And I treasured that more than anything in the world, besides Anita herself.

 

<<>><<19>><<>>

 

Anita wandered into the kitchen, drawn once again by the smell of my cooking bacon and eggs. I left the chilies out of the omelet this time. I remembered she didn’t care for it too much last time I served chili omelets.

 

“So who the hell are the men in black?” she demanded as soon as I sat down across from her.

 

I smiled secretly to myself. Should I tell her? I should I keep my secret, like I always do. It’s always so fun to keep the secret, to drive her wild with the want of knowledge. “They worked for Xander Riker, Riker’s younger brother,” I found myself saying. “He wanted you dead, because he believed you killed Riker.”

 

“So when are we going to go get him?” she asked, taking a sip of milk.

 

“I’ve already taken care of it.” I popped a bite of egg into my mouth.

 

She raised an eyebrow, suspicious. “When?”

 

“Last night. But Ted was with you, if anyone asks.” I smiled at her from across the table.

 

She shook her head, trying to hide the smile. “Awww. I didn’t get to play.”

 

“I thought you don’t do murder, Anita.”

 

“It would have been self defense. He was trying to have me killed, remember?”

 

“What ever you say.” I smiled as I took a drink of milk. It would have been self defense, I totally agreed with her. But I had to tease her, it was part of my game that I played with her.

 

We sat in silence for a few minutes, enjoying the meal. Damn, I am a good cook. There were peppers in my omelet. Anita broke the silence. “Well, Olaf is dead. Riker #2 is taken care of. This is usually the part where I go return to the safer home front.”

 

“Do you want to go home?” I asked.

 

She shrugged. “I don’t want to leave you. And I don’t really have a home, per se, in St. Louis, anymore. But I need to tie up loose ends with the triumvirate, and the Pard. And I’ll bet the cops are missing me. Lord knows what cases I’ve missed, being gone this long.”

 

“You’ve been on the squad so long, you’d think that they’d be able to solve a damn case by themselves.” I found myself suddenly irritable with the thought of Anita leaving.

 

She frowned at me. “You’re mad. What gives, Edward?”

 

I shrugged, and went back to my eggs, pushing them around my plate. She sighed, standing from her seat, and walking over to me. She kicked my chair, pushing it around to face her. She straddled my lap, and kissed me gently.

 

I wrapped my arms around her waist, pulling her closer to me. I buried my face in her hair, inhaled her scent. “I don’t want you to leave,” I murmured into her hair. It was soft, but I knew she still heard me.

 

“I don’t want to leave either. But I’ve got stuff to take care of back in St. Louis, before I can come back down here.”

 

I pulled away to look her in the eyes. “Did you say come back down here?” She did, didn’t she? God, please say she did.

 

She looked away. “I’m sorry, it was assuming. I didn’t mean—”

 

I shushed her, placing a finger over her lips. “I want you to come back, Anita. If we have to live miles and miles away for too much longer, I might go insane.”

 

She smiled. God, she was beautiful when she smiled. “Well, we can’t have that.”

 

///

 

Anita stayed for three more days. We spent the whole time together in the house, mostly in the bedroom area.

 

She kissed me farewell at the airport, but not goodbye, with a promise to be ready to move back down in a month. I wondered how the boys would be taking THAT news. It would have bee fun to see the looks on their faces. Maybe I could persuade Anita to take a Poloroid…

 

And as I exited the airport, that’s when the first one struck. I killed him first, simply being the faster draw. I had noticed the movement of the gun barrel in my direction, and the rest was all secondary reaction. He had been an assassin, after Ted Forrester. Another tried again, this time at my house. He failed as well. Who would want to kill good ol’ boy Ted Forrester? Who indeed…

 

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