The Story Begins

(AN: Hello everyone! Meredith here, and seeing as this is my first entry onto Writing.com I figured I would take a moment to introduce myself. My name is Meredith and I've been writing since I was old enough to pick up a pen. Now it wasn't very good writing, or even cohesive, but I'd like to think over the last 20 years I've improved somewhat. Anyways, this is the first 3 chapters of a novel set to be 1 in a trilogy. Chapter 1 of this story is set in in the 1950s around a name named Johnny. I designed the first few chapters to revolve around him as a man before his life completely changes...I update often and would just love reviews so I know how I'm doing and what I need to change. Thanks for taking time to read!  ~Meredith)




Chapter 1
Chicago, 1953





~*Smack.*~ The sound of flesh colliding rattled across the ring as my fist struck my opponents left cheek. He stumbled backwards slightly glaring back at me and getting a thundering applause from the audience who shook the arena with their cheers. I could hear them shouting my name.

“Johnny! Johnny!” It was a litany that empowered me to rush forward into the fight throwing left after right, punch for punch into the abdomen of the fighter against me. I had him! He was faltering, unable to keep up with my speed. We stood as two opponents, his white shorts off setting my black. It was the striking red color of our gloves that really caught the attention though. We were nearly done with the 7th round and already I was sweating so bad my brown hair was sliding into my eyes. In the bright lighting though it was hard to lose sight of the opponent.

~*Ding Ding!*~ I barely heard the bell before the referee was pulling me out of my frenzy and ushering me to my corner where Rick, my coach, waited for me. “Saved by the bell” couldn’t have been more appropriate. I grinned, backing into my corner as my opponent was helped to his own.

His name was Perry, and I’d fought him only once before now and lost. I’d been younger then, not nearly as experienced in the ring as I was now, and the loss had haunted my pride for nearly 2 years. It was no wonder I’d anticipated this match so much. Perry wasn’t an imposing man, just a bit shorter than me and narrower in the shoulders. He had short blonde hair and determined green eyes that I’d witnessed fill with rage on more than one occasion. Though I'd never been at the opposing end of them. Not when I threatened his very career. 

I was resting on my stool as I felt swabs coated with alcohol dabbing at a cut I’d barely noticed over my right eye. As Rick was shouting orders over the sound of cheering I took the opportunity to admire the crowd, but more importantly I searched for the one face I hoped would be watching. Sadly that was the only way I knew her. Her face, more beautiful than I’d ever seen in my entire life, who’s haunting golden eyes had left me breathless in dreams. She came to most of my fights and had been the object of my desires since I’d first laid eyes on her. However, all attempts to find her had come up short. Luckily, this evening she sat in her usual seat smiling ever so softly amongst the crowd. I’d never seen hair so red on a woman before and it glimmered under the bright lights, much like gold. There was elegance, an aura to her gaze that had promised me more than passionate forth-comings, so very much more.

“Johnny! Are you listening to me?” Rick caught my attention with a firm smack to the back of my head. I choked on my mouth guard and looked up to him. Understand Rick was an older balding man who stood hardly to my chest. He wore rust colored suit pants, shiny black shoes, and a plain white dress shirt, his tie askew from his nervous tugging. When he got into your face you listened. Other than that I kept forgetting he was around.

“Yes! Rick this guy won’t last another round with me. Stop worrying.” My speech sounded muffled but Rick seemed to understand as he shook his head softly.

“You’re getting too cocky. The fight isn’t over until it’s over.” How many times had I heard him say that? Too many. I swear he needed to come up with some more pep speeches. His were just getting old.

The sound of the bell had me on my feet and back into the ring. The referee motioned us both to begin the next round of the fight. This was it for us both and I had a good feeling Perry knew it as well. He punched; I dodged. I jabbed; he parried. He met me blow for blow and we moved about the entirety of the ring. The referee was forced to leap and dodge out of our way. I waited for the opening to deliver my final blow. When Perry’s shoulder dropped I wound back that hit ready to strike where Perry was weakest. To my greatest surprise though I failed to connect and my vision swirled with color as I took a rough hook to the face. My feet twisted inwards and the mat rose to greet me as I landed harshly on my side. The crowd went quiet and I felt every eye on me as the referee shouted the countdown.

“1…2…3…” I blinked a few times and the ref’s fingertips appeared in my face. “4…5…” I was shaking my head, letting my vision clear before I climbed to my feet. “6…7…”

“I’m alright!” I gasped pulling my mouth guard out.
“You ok?” The ref asked again patting my shoulder.

“I can fight.” I nodded and slipped my mouth guard back into my mouth. I could taste it filling with blood from a cut I’d received under my lip. I wouldn’t be smiling straight for awhile. Shit. I couldn’t believe it; the bastard had actually hit me. More than that! He’d taken me down! Lucky shot. He wouldn’t be so lucky again.

We lifted our gloves and it was Perry who struck first, his first grazing off my glove as I lifted it to block the blow. Man when did he get so damn fast? I wasn’t sure why, but Perry moved almost blindingly fast now where before I’d been able to judge his attacks before he’d made them. What had changed? I was struggling to keep him off of me, protecting my face from his fists, as I knew another hit would almost surely take me down for good. Everything felt so fuzzy though and I felt his glove connect hard with the back of my head and send my world into darkness.

“9…10!” The bell clattered loudly as the ring spiraled back into view. My head ached and my vision swam as Rick was quickly pulling my hands from the gloves and the medics were tending the cuts on my face. What the hell? What the hell had just happened? I lay still on the mat in the center of the ring as Ring leaned over me, looking carefully at my eyes. I felt gauze grazing my forehead and could smell alcohol as they cleaned the cuts. It burned but not nearly as badly as my head ached.

“Winner, by knockout in the 8th round. Perry Goodman.” The announcer’s voice echoed loud enough to make the entire arena vibrate in intensity.

“Johnny! Can you hear me?” Rick’s voice was filled with panic as he tapped either side of my face lightly.

"No…” I choked as the mouth guard was pulled from over my teeth. It was almost soaked in red from the cut under my lip and quickly water was being pumped into my mouth to watch away the sweet coppery taste.

“You have a concussion. We need to get you to a hospital.” Rick looked worried, as if my losing the fight didn’t seem important to him, and I found that annoyed me. It was always about the win with Rick, always about the necessary victory, never about the damage it caused. Could I have possibly been that bad?

“I don’t need a damn doctor. Get these people off of me!” I felt rage seeping through me, an untamed anger that left me trembling in its wake, and the more everyone seemed to want to touch me, the angrier I got. How could this have happened? I’d had him! The fight was over and now? Now I had come out defeated again…

“It’s over Johnny. You lost.”

“No!!!” I shoved the medics and forced my way up off the mat, my bare hands clenched as I leapt onto Perry from behind, driving fists square into the back of his neck. He went down beneath me as the crowd erupted into gasps; others cheered in approval and shouted my name. I didn’t care. My only intent was pain. I wanted Perry hurt; no, I wanted Perry to suffer. I’d been shamed twice now; but not again, not ever again! I hit him over and over right into the back of his neck even after he stopped moving. It took three men to pull me away and still I struggled against them. Perry lay motionless on the mat, face down, his neck strained at an impossible angle to the side. Rick moved in front of me shoving hard against my chest.

“Get him out of here!” Rick shouted as I was dragged from the ring by the ref and one of the security guards. It was all they could do to keep the fans from leaping from their seats to touch me as we went by. The refs lead me through the halls away from the arena where two officers waited for me. At this point I didn’t struggle. I didn’t even lift my head. All I could do was stare down at their bright shiny shoes as they pressed the cuffs onto my wrists and dragged me down the hallway.

“Jonathan Jefferson, You are under arrest for physical assault. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law…” The officer’s voice echoed through my head painfully as he gave me my rights. Ironic. I was a professional boxer getting arrested for physical assault on another man. Something I did almost on a nightly basis. Amazing what a few punches outside of the ring would cost you. I sighed softly and shook my head.
They lead me out of the building and into the cool night that made me shiver against its intensity against my damp skin. Suddenly there were bright flashes of lights as I realized the media had been waiting for us just outside and now I was being dragged right through the center of them. Great…

“Johnny! Why did you attack Perry? What are you feeling now?”
“…Johnny, was it the shame of your second loss to Perry that led you to strike or was it a deeper feud between you?”

They shouted questions again and again but I never answered, was never given the chance even if I had wanted to. The officers shielded me as best they were able to from view of the press and I was forced into the back of a police vehicle. We sped away, lights flashing, sirens blaring as fast as that old girl would run.

The two officers sat in the seats in front of me, one driving the other talking quickly into a radio. I didn’t bother to try and understand him. A long silence seemed to stretch through the car as I sat, focused on the back of the seat in front of me. God what had I done? What had I been thinking? And now look where it had gotten me. Perfect, just perfect.

“You realize you’ll never fight in a ring after this.” The officer driving spoke up, looking up at me through the rear view mirror. He stared until I looked up in return. There was a sort of remorse in his hollow brown eyes. Perhaps he’d been a fan of mine…At least he had been…And the weight of his words struck me as I realized I was sure my license would be taken away from me after the stunt I’d pulled. Damnit…

“I know…”




Chapter 2





After a quick hospital visit and a diagnosis of hard-headedness, I made bail the following day with the promise of a final court date in a few weeks. They aren’t kidding when they say sitting in a cell for twenty-four hours is awful. Even now I don’t think I’ll forget just how dark and cold that God forsaken room had become. They’d been nice enough to give me a cell of my own, afraid that I might beat the shit out of the other inmates there. Given the mood I was in, I think it was a smart decision. God save the man who decided to piss me off even more than I already was. But being on my own did give me plenty of time to think on what I’d done exactly. I still couldn’t believe I’d lost myself so easily over something that now seemed so small. Another loss, I’d had plenty in the past, more losses than I could count, but why was it that Perry had been so different? Why did his victory rock me to the very core? It was something I would just never know…At least not right away. I nearly shouted out loud when an officer came to release me from my cell the next morning. I’m sure I could have gotten myself out a lot sooner, but part of me believed I deserved to sit behind those bars for as long as I did.
         
I lived in a small house in the suburbs right outside of downtown Chicago. I was still close to all of the action, but far enough away that my family could have some peace. After all I didn’t want my little girls living around all of the violence. Hell I hadn’t even let them come to any of my matches. Probably a good thing, given the ass I’d made out of myself the night before. Perfect.

“Daddy!” Those first steps into my house and the cry from my youngest daughter brought a joy into my heart that would never be matched by anything else this world could have given me. She came squealing from the kitchen covered in white soot, handprints on the front of her short red dress and dotting her rusty colored hair much like the color of my own, though her green eyes were all her mother’s.

“Hi honey.” I forced a smile dropping the small bag that held my belongings and picked her up.

“I knew he’d come home! Sal and Nana didn’t believe me but I knew.” She threw her arms around my neck and for a moment I choked back the sobs that threatened to spill over and ruin the moment.

“Is that right?” I set her down as Sally came from the kitchen, her hands squarely on her hips glaring at me with those fierce emerald eyes. I knew that look, her mother had often given me that glare when I’d done something wrong. It made my heart ache seeing so much of Sue in our daughter’s eyes.

“What? What did I do now?” I shrugged slightly and moved closer to her. She jabbed me suddenly with her finger square in the stomach.

“You know exactly what you did! We watched it, Nana and me on the television.” I cringed as she convicted me. Only she, my seven year old, could have made me feel so small. I instantly regretted ever buying that stupid machine.

“Did you now?” I looked up towards the kitchen as Mary appeared in the entryway, wiping the same white flour from her hands with a towel.

“Yes we did. Girls, your father and I need to chat.” The look she gave me was one my own mother had often captured me with, that look that warns you you’re about to get a talkin’ to for something you already know you’ve done wrong. I sighed as she took my daughters upstairs to their room I could only guess and made my way into the kitchen. The smell of freshly baked cookies was just too much to resist. I had made my way over to a pan that lay on the counter reaching out to swipe one when I was made acutely aware of just how hot they still were. I don’t think I’ve ever jerked my hand quite so quickly before.

“What were you thinking?” I looked back up then, my burnt finger in my mouth as Mary made her way into the kitchen grabbing a spatula and carefully pulling the cookie from the pan, setting it onto a plate for me.

“All I wanted was a cookie, Mary…I didn’t realize they were still so hot. Thank you.” I grinned and took a bite. After the hell I’d been through the last few days that cookie was the best damn one I’d ever had.

“Stop it Johnny, I’m trying to be serious.” She narrowed her eyes, hands setting onto the countertop beside me.

“Don’t talk to me like I’m a child, Mary.” I was not in the mood for her nuances. All I wanted to do was crawl into bed and sleep.

“Then explain to me how what you did wasn’t childish? Were you even thinking about the consequences? When you go to prison where will your daughter’s go? A foster home?”  Her voice drew weathered and weak as she drew some of her silver hair out of her eyes. She was right. I knew she loved my girls and the thought of losing them seemed as devastating to her as it did to me just then.

“My trial is months away. I’ve made more than enough money to support little Sue, Sal, and you until I get out. I can always send more from jail if there isn’t enough.” I could hear the edge of anger in my own voice now. This was not the conversation I had wanted to have with her, not right now.

“You’re missing the point. The girls have already lost their mother, Johnny. How do you think this will affect them? To them you’re leaving, just like their mother did.”

I let her words sink in and instantly my resolve shattered. I’d never felt more regret in my entire life. It hadn’t hurt this bad since the doctors had first told me Sue was gone. The woman who’d brought so much love and joy into my life had died giving birth to our youngest and everyday there after had felt so hollow. And now they were taking me away from my daughters too.

“I’m so sorry Mary. I can’t begin to tell you how much I regret it all. I’m not sure what to do…” I leaned over the counter in the kitchen and buried my face in my hands. I wanted to cry, wanted to scream, but there was nothing…I’d been unable to cry since Sue had died. It was my curse. Mary touched my hand and I let her wrap her arms around me. I’d always loved Mary. She and my mother had been schoolmates and the best of friends all the years of my childhood. She’d never married and been unable to have children of her own so naturally she’d been very active in my brother’s life and mine.  After my mother had died Mary and I grew very close and she insisted on taking care of my family when I’d lost Sue. I’m not sure I’d have survived the last five years without her.

“We’ll pull through, Johnny. One way or another we will survive. We always do.” She whispered patting my back soothingly.

“Those girls are my life. You and they are all I have.” I actually choked softly letting my eyes fall closed.

“We’ll be here when you come home, Johnny…”

~*~*~

Perry was released from the hospital over a week later and I was stripped of my boxing license a few days after that. It seemed he suffered severe nerve damage and would never be able to fight again. Hard to fight when you couldn’t move your right arm. The news had been a terrible blow and I had tried again and again to reach Perry since then to apologize. Nothing. I’d hit a dead end unable to climb out.

The day of my trial grew closer and I treasured the evenings I could spend at home with my girls. I wanted always to remember them this way, young and innocent before the world could get its hands on them. I promised myself I would rip through hell and whatever force that threatened to take them from me…

I knew the moment that I woke that morning though that everything was going to be different. I could feel it. There are days when a man can feel a change coming. And I had a very good feeling about it. I was coming downstairs for breakfast when Mary informed me I’d missed a call and was urged to respond immediately.

“From who?” I ran a towel over my damp brown hair as she set a telephone number down in front of me.

“He didn’t give a name, just asked you to call this number as soon as you woke.” She shrugged and left me standing there to return to the kitchen where she was busy making my girls breakfast. I could hear Sue and Sal laughing together. I turned the small sheet of paper over in my hands before I lifted the phone and spun the wheel on top, dialing the number slowly.

“Hello?” It was a man who answered.
“Yes, my name is Johnathan Jefferson. I was told someone from this number was trying to reach me.”
There was a short pause…

“I hear you’ve been trying to get a hold of me. I thought I might like to hear what you have to say…” I was stunned by the man’s response as realization hit me.
“Perry?” I asked though I already knew the answer.
“Who else? Listen, if you’re wanting to talk then we should chat over a beer or sumthin. I realize you’re going to trial in a few weeks and I wouldn’t mind seeing you face to face before you go. Besides, if you can convince me, maybe I won’t even press charges.” Perry’s voice was calm, amused even. It surprised me.

“Yeah, ok. Where, when?” I felt my mouth going dry.
“There’s a bar near the river on Jackson. You know the place?”
I thought for a moment. The only bar I knew out there was Brino’s.

“Yeah, I know it.”
“Be there around 7. I’m having dinner with my wife, so you’ll have to pardon if I’m late. See you then.”

And the phone went dead. I hung up the phone slowly and sank into the chair beside me. Finally a chance to make it right. A chance to convince him not to send me to prison. I thanked God quietly as I looked around the room. There was finally hope after all. And maybe, just maybe I wouldn’t be forced to lose what family I had left.




Chapter 3





Brino’s was one of the craziest bars I’d ever set foot into. Rick had insisted I come here after my first victory. It was safe to say it was what we now call a gentlemen’s club. Everyone who enjoyed a long night with a pretty woman came here at least once. Not really my kind of place.

The sun was just setting in the distance as I pulled up in my Cadillac. The wind blew cold at the back of my neck forcing me to pull the collar of my leather jacket up over my skin. I scanned the doors for Perry but saw no faces I even recognized. Not surprising. This after all wasn’t my side of town. Reluctantly I approached and made my way inside.
         
The bar was packed almost completely to the front door. I had to maneuver my way through the people until I found a vacant space at the bar. With the dim lighting I wondered how Perry was going to find me in here.
         
“What do you want?” The tender paused in front of me wiping a glass. He looked for a moment as if he recognized me, but didn’t act on it. Probably the smarter thing to do.
         
“Just a beer.” I replied not really caring what it was.
         
“I’ll have one too.” Perry’s voice came suddenly enough to make me jump and I turned to face him as he approached. He wore a black suit with white pinstripes, one arm out of the sleeve and bound in a sling on his right side. His black suit coat hit it almost completely from view.

“Hello Johnny.” He said calmly as he took a seat beside me at the bar.
         
“Perry.” I frowned looking from his face to the mangled arm. It had been over two weeks and his face didn’t even have a scratch, while mind was still bruised.
         
“Thanks.” The bartender set down two beers in front of us and Perry quickly swigged his down straight from the bottle. I stared at mine anxiously.
         
“So they revoked your license.” He said leaning on his good arm his green eyes almost brown in the darkness.
         
“Yeah, for life.” I felt so angry inside. I’d thrown my entire future away for a cheap shot.
         
“Seems you and I are in the same boat. Though under different circumstances. I’ve greatly been debating what to do though.” Perry sighed taking another drink.
         
“What do you mean?” I couldn’t help myself. I saw a flicker of hope that Perry might not send me to jail.
         
“My wife found out two months ago she’s pregnant. We’ve been trying for years and finally, we’re going to have a baby.” I saw him smile, much as I had when Sue had first told me she was pregnant.
         
“Congratulations.” It was all I could bring myself to say.
         
“Thank you. Anyways, ever since Evelyn has been hassling me to quit fighting.” He actually laughed finishing his beer and waving the empty bottle towards the tender who came and fetched it. For the first time I looked down at my own and took a sip as Perry was brought another. It tasted bitter and made my stomach summersault uncomfortably. Damn I must have been nervous, especially if beer had lost its appeal.
         
“The doctors say I’ll never have full mobility in my right arm again thanks to you. You had a real future in boxing. Pity you let it go.”
         
“I can’t begin to tell you how sorry I am Perry, and how much I regret it-“ He silenced me though with a raise of his hand.
         
“I know, Johnny. And that’s the reason why I’ve decided to drop the charges against you.” There was no amusement in his face now. My heart stopped.
         
“W…what?” I stammered over my words unable to keep the look of relief off of my face. He wasn’t sending me to prison, he wasn’t sending me away from my girls.
         
“A man like you doesn’t belong in jail.” He stood then and I with him smiling gratefully.
         
“Thank you, Perry. God bless you.” I shook his hand before he turned to go waving over his shoulder slightly.
         
“I’ll be seeing you around.” I heard him call back over the outrageously loud music that thundered through the room. I couldn’t respond, too overwhelmed by joy and shock that I couldn’t find breath enough to speak. I was free. Thank God. I was free. I lifted that bottle to my lips and downed the entirety of the contents in one large gulp before throwing down some money on the bar and rushing for the door. I had to tell my family, had to assure them I wasn’t leaving.
         
It was completely dark outside when I emerged from the bar. I was struggling to move around those waiting to get inside with quickly whispered ‘excuse-mes.’ Once free of the crowd I stepped into the parking lot, my car just in the distance. Something, however, made me stop. I paused, car keys in hand scanning the darkness. If there was one thing I knew it was that nothing in life was free. I was cautious reaching my car, opting to jump into the front seat through the window.
         
I barely felt the first hit to the back of my head forcing my face to smash into the steering wheel. It was the second one that made me cry out in pain as the numb shock subsided, and finally the third that knocked me completely unconscious.
         
I woke sometime later as two men I didn’t recognize were dragging me down a dark alley. Their torn blue jeans dragged along the wet street over their shoes as one man wore only a sleeveless black shirt; the other’s was covered in a brown jacket. My head ached worse than it ever had and I could tell by the way my vision kept slipping in and out of focus that some serious damage had been done. My legs refused to cooperate, or respond at all for that matter. Fear struck me, as I knew there was no walking away from this. These men meant to kill me.
         
“Well look who decided to wake up finally.” To my horror one of them looked down at me his lips twisting into a smile that revealed one of his golden teeth. This one was bald while the other had thinning black hair and an obscenely crooked nose. Both looked like they could have kicked my ass with their eyes shut. Shit…
         
“So it would seem. Where are we going ladies?” I clung to my sarcasm. It was all I had left. My comment earned me a rough kick to the side as they threw me up against a wall both coming towards me for retribution.
         
“Gail! Jim!” I told you I wanted him alive!” Perry strolled out from the darkness still wearing his suit though the coat no longer covered his injured arm.
         
“But he is alive.” Gail shrugged withdrawing from me and standing carefully straight out of my reach.
         
“And in pieces!” Perry shouted his eyes narrowing in anger, deadly enough to make both men step back even farther.
         
“Way to go, Gail-y boy.” I laughed closing my eyes against the pain that threatened to sweep me away.
         
“Shut up!” Gail shouted and for a brief moment I thought he was going to jump at me. Perry however gave a warning glance and Gail said nothing more.
         
“Hello again, Johnny.” Perry knelt in front of me, his one hand reaching out to grab my head and jerk it upwards forcing me to look at him. His fingers forced my right eye open and he frowned. I’d lost vision out of it already so I couldn’t tell what had happened.
         
“You know, it’s really hard to miss someone if they don’t leave you the fuck alone.” It was too good to be true. I knew Perry hadn’t been seriously offering my freedom. He didn’t strike me as the kind to forgive so easily. Perry smiled slowly, sadistically.
         
“You know why I brought you here, Johnny?” My vision swam and I leaned my head back against the wall behind me.
         
“Does it really matter?”
“Oh, for your sake I think it does.”
I sighed. “My guess is to kill me.”
“I always thought you were smart Johnny. Especially the first time I fought you. You remember? I knocked you out in the third round, and you did the one thing rookies never do. You stayed down.” Perry moved around me. I could hear his voice on either side and in my injured state keeping my eyes open only made my head spin. Was I dying?

“But now? Now I’m afraid you’ve lost my high opinion. And for what? A cheap shot. You RUINED ME! I was the BEST! And I would always have been the best if it wasn’t for you, you little shit.” He hit me hard enough I heard my neck pop as my head whipped to the side. The image of my girls kept coming to mind and I clung to the happier moments to help me through, but even their smiling faces were beginning to fade.
         
“I didn’t lie when I said you didn’t belong in jail, Johnny. But you do deserve to rot in hell. Pick him up.” Gail and Jim were at my sides instantly and they lifted me up off the ground. My head fell forward and I opened my eyes to look down the barrel of the gun Perry held to my face. My eyes grew wide but I lacked the energy to do much else.
         
“Been nice knowing you. But it’s truly a pleasure to have killed you. Goodbye Johnny.” Perry smirked and I watched him lower the gun to my stomach.
         
God forgive me…

The gun thundered, but there was no splitting pain, no gut wrenching agony. I opened my eyes and there was no bullet wound that marred my jacket or my shirt. I looked up and Perry was gone altogether. The place where he stood was completely empty. My gaze rose higher as I looked towards Gail and Jim whose eyes had gone completely slack. It was as if there was no life in them. They simply stared forward into the darkness. I couldn’t help but look as well, knowing full well whatever had saved me lay inside. However, the figure that emerged was not what I had expected.
         
“Good evening boys…” It was her. She was my angel, my goddess amongst my fans. And she’d never looked more beautiful. Her voice swam thickly with a foreign accent. French was my guess and it drew the attention of Gail and Jim, their eyes captivated. I could feel an otherworldly charm to her words as if they were controlling.
         
“Put him down.” She motioned downwards with the tip of her finger as her hand slid out of the black cloak she wore across her shoulders. They dropped me just at her feet and I couldn’t keep myself from looking up at her. Her legs were bare and she wore only a small pair of red heels. Her black skirt lay high on her thigh, higher than most of the woman I’d seen wear them. I could see little else of her there in the darkness save those brilliant golden eyes that looked down at me. There was sympathy, worry even. But more I felt the emotion in her, unlike any I’d ever felt before.
         
“Close your eyes.” She spoke to me now and before she’d even finished I felt myself rest my head on the pavement and close my eyes. I didn’t fight the allure of her voice, only let it embrace me.
         
The silence was broken by screams, horrified screams of agony. As much as my consciousness wanted to look I couldn’t. She’d cast some sort of spell on me! I could hear flesh tear and blood splashing onto the street around me but not once did I look. I couldn’t.
         
One body and then two fell to the ground nearby and I felt a pair of cold hands lifting my head from the street. It hurt, everywhere, and my ears echoed as if they were filled with fluid.
         
“Johnny, look at me.” Instantly, the spell was broken and I opened my eyes. At a distance I had thought her beautiful, but up close? Her fiery red hair brushed over my skin like silk and it soothed me.
         
“You’re dying, Johnny. You have internal bleeding from the hit to the back of your head.” I felt her gingerly opening my blind eye, examining me expertly. I knew right away that she had medical training of some kind.
         
“Are you an angel, then?” I couldn’t help but ask her. I felt my life slipping away slowly, but being held there in her arms it made death seem less frightening.
         
“Of death perhaps. I’d had other intentions for you this night, Johnny, but it seems the circumstances have changed.” She lowered her lips to mine, her warm breath brushing over my cooled skin and she kissed me. I could feel whatever little heat I still had rushing all through my body. It was a kiss unlike any other I’d experienced, that left me breathless and wanting more even as injured as I was.
         
“Forgive me…”

There was a sudden pain as I felt her teeth pierce into the flesh on my neck, but it suddenly vanished as sheer ecstasy surrounded me. I’d never felt more pleasure in my entire life and the worry of everything seemed to fade. It was indescribable, the ultimate relief. Every worry, every pain, every fear I’d ever had seemed to no longer exist and in that moment there wasn’t a thing in the world not even my end that could have ruined it.  Perhaps this was what death truly felt like. I wondered numbly to myself as my mind went dark.
         
“Sleep…” 





Chapter 4







It was quiet, and I’m not sure how I knew but the moon was full and sat high in the night sky. There are a few moments someone experiences a sort of confused euphoria when they first wake up. This was a lot like one of those times. Everything felt so foreign I wasn’t even sure I was still alive. It took a few minutes for my eyes to adjust to the thick darkness that blanketed the room, but slowly I began to make out the shapes of a nightstand beside me and a tall closet door against the far side of the room. Every wall appeared draped with heavy dark curtains making the absence of light even more apparent. Where the hell as I? And more importantly what happened last night. I sat up rubbing my forehead trying to remember. I’d spent the morning with my girls until school…Mary was out spending the afternoon doing whatever Mary did. And I had left the house after dinner to meet Perry. I felt a surge of anger at the mere thought of his name. Perry! We’d had a drink at the bar. One beer wasn’t enough to fuck me up and forget the entire night, was it? I’d left the bar…and two guys had beaten the shit out of me. I reached up then and felt at my head pressing here and there. No pain. What the hell? How long had I been out? Maybe one beer had been enough.

I inspected the rest of my body checking for injuries and quickly discovered my lack of clothing. Well that was new. Maybe last night hadn’t been as bad as I thought. I dragged my tongue over my lips in an attempt to moisten them, the action drawing a sweet coppery flavor into my mouth. It was different but not unpleasant. I rolled the sensation through my mouth until it completely faded.
Movement. I felt a hand slide hotly across my knee and it almost made me jump completely from the bed. I lifted the thick silk comforter up as a woman snaked upwards forcing me back onto the pillows behind me. Even in the darkness I saw the faint glow of her golden eyes sweeping over me. And here I thought she’d been merely a dream.

“Hi there.” I said as suave as I was able given I was naked and laying beneath her.
         
“Bon soir.” Her voice was merely a whisper as she leaned upwards the sheets falling away to reveal her nude form as well. I had seen women, had experienced the thrill of admiring them, but never had I been struck with desire as quickly as I had just then. I felt my body grow painfully hard and the hunger swelled with lust. I needed her, needed to feel her wrapped around me, and I didn’t even know her name.
         
“Shh.” She reached out a fingertip and pressed it to my lips though her eyes could hardly contain the delight that ran through her at my reaction. It took every ounce of willpower I possessed not to take her, though something told me I couldn’t have done it by force.
         
“Who are you?” I spoke, my breath rushing around her finger.
         
“In the alley, you called me your angel. I would like to keep to that misconception.” She smiled and just the subtle curves of her lips made me want to kiss them, drink that smile in until it consumed me. It didn’t even occur to me exactly what she’d said until a long moment of silence had passed between us.
         
“The alley? So that bastard did attack me, and it was you and your magic that saved me. Wasn’t it?” I felt mesmerized by her, awed by her very presence.
         
“Magic? I am no sorcerer, Johnny.” She leaned back onto her knees then pulling us both out from beneath the blankets. I laid back still and watched her admire me. The lust in her gaze made my body ache in anticipation.
         
“Then who are you? What are you if not a temptress?” I sat up, reaching for her and drawing a few of her fiery red locks into my hand, rolling the strands between my fingertips. She was soft, like silk.
         
“My name is Nicolette Anna deSoir.” Her thick accent rolled over every syllable dragging them out to perfection. Everything about her was sensual, even the way she watched me. “But you may call me Nicca.”
         
“Nicca. I owe you one. I’m not sure what happened in the alleyway that night, or how I’m even alive but I’m grateful. Eternally.”
         
She gave me the faintest smile of amusement as she slid off of the bed and made her way across the room. “Don’t be thankful for eternity. You may just have received what you wished for.”
         
I contemplated what she had said to me as she slid a long sheer black robe over herself. Even in the darkness it did little to hide her sleek form from me.
         
“So where am I?” And more importantly where were my clothes? Even though she wore a robe now it did little to cause my arousal for her to wane.
         
“My haven. I brought you here to ‘recuperate.’” There was something about the way she said ‘recuperate’ that made me truly wonder how long I’d been there. “I’m surprised you’re even awake now. Most humans it takes two or three days for the conversion to complete. You were unusually fast…”
         
“Conversion?” That I really didn’t like. “What conversion?” And why did she mention humans as though she wasn’t one. She made her way towards me again standing beside the bed, the amusement in her golden eyes completely gone.
         
“What do you think I am, Johnny?” She asked me, reaching a hand to touch the curve of my neck. I shivered.
         
“Beautiful…” There wasn’t another word for her. She leaned in closely to me and I watched her golden eyes spiral and the appeal they had always had seemed violent, horrifying even. She emanated ferocity unmatched by any other person I’d ever met. “And terrifying.” I wanted to recoil from her, but her hand sharply on my arm stopped me. I felt inside something snap in response, like a demon lay deep within her and it threatened me. I felt my own leaping out to protect me and I jerked her, hard. She fell against me as if she weighed nothing and I quickly pinned her down beneath me, snarling. Dominance, everything within me cried out to control her. Nicca hissed, struggling under the strength of my hands that held her arms and my body against hers. She had tested us, and the demon cried out in fury. My eyes took her in, struggling wildly, and all at once the hunger sprang to life again. She was merely prey and still I couldn’t find myself looking away from her neck. Her pulse beat made her skin leap and I pictured myself swallowing it whole as if it lived. I lowered my head to her and she went very still. I heard her soft laughter but ignored it. All I cared about was this living beating thing beneath her skin. I nuzzled her neck until it grew flush. She smelled…fresh. I dragged her scent into my nose and fresh was the only word I could put to it. I wanted to devour her until there was no room left between us. She was…
         
“Mine…” My teeth ached and I felt fangs drawing downwards into my mouth. I couldn’t keep myself from burying them deep into her neck and lapping at the hot blood that spilled into my mouth. It was an addiction, a sweet and spicy craving that no matter how deeply I drank refused to be sated. The demon inside me demanded satisfaction and I could do little but relent to his will.
         
Suddenly there were hands on my jaw, massaging the muscled until I felt them unhinge and sheer strength alone separated us. I felt the cloud of violent hunger seeping slowly away and my conscious thought resurfacing.
         
What the fuck just happened?
         
There was blood everywhere. Nicca was drowning in a sea of red that poured freely from the horrible gash on the side of her neck; the jagged wound I’d put there.
         
“Oh God. Oh God, Nicca!” I touched her face, it slick with crimson from her blood. I expected anger, expected pain, but what I didn’t expect was the look of delight that crossed her eyes.
         
“Shh, Johnny. Perfectly executed. Like a predator, skilled and deadly.” She laughed softly and I found myself mesmerized by her all over again. “Lick the wound.” The compulsion in her voice drew me closer to her. It seemed perfectly logical, completely sane regardless of how insane I wanted to perceive it as. I nuzzled her as I had before and dragged my tongue along the full length of the wound. It wasn’t until I head her sigh softly did I realized exactly what I was doing.
         
“Oh my God. What did you do to me?” To my surprise the skin on her neck had healed, perfect and unflawed as if the entire encounter hadn’t even happened. The only evidence that lay behind was the smell of blood.
         
“I saved your life. I prevented the final death from taking you. Unfortunately, new life comes with a price; though the benefits I assure you are quite rewarding.” She looked up at me as the gold in her eyes had begun to fade. Her skin was nearly translucent and I ‘felt’ her growing weaker. “You’re a creature of the night, undead.”
         
“A vampire?” I wanted to laugh. Wanted to believe her insane. There were ‘cults’ and ‘demon worshippers’ who believed they were vampires, right?
         
“Yes a vampire.”
         
“Are you fucking crazy? I could have killed you just now. And you’re running around actually believing you’re some crazy undead vampire? You’re insane, beautiful, but absolutely insane.” I crawled off of her and began to search for my clothing. This bitch had seriously lost her mind. I wasn’t about to stick around.’
         
“How do you eat your red meat Johnny? How do you crave it?” Her voice lured me into listening and I stood quietly in the darkness and thought about it.
         
“Well…no med-…hrm. Rare.” Anything over rare made my stomach turn. I’d never eaten steak less than well before but suddenly I craved it warm and tender.
         
“Rare and bloody.” I murmured and all I could picture in my mind was the smooth length of Nicca’s neck beneath my lips.
         
“Or is it just the blood you desire? Warm and still beating with life.” She still lay on the bed smiling up at me as she whispered quietly into the darkness.  I felt sick all over again. God she was right. Why was she so right? Why couldn’t I think about anything but feeding? I could feel my inner demon smirking. He had me, and he knew it. Nicca stood and came towards me, the folds of her robe left open leaving her completely bare in the darkness. She was a succubus, and her lust called to my own even when my eyes weren’t on her.
         
“No stop it! Stay away from me!” I had to be rid of her, had to be free of her darkness. I moved to the wall yanking hard on the curtains until they fell in a heap about my feet. Moonlight spilled in through a set of glass doors that lead out onto the balcony. I nearly broke the handle as I ran naked into the cool night air looking over the banister down over the expanse of trees that surrounded her home. In all the years I had lived here in Chicago never had I seen a gathering of trees like these? I looked at the moon, entranced by its fullness and bathed in its light. I felt oddly comfortable, accepted and calm in the empty expanse of the night sky. Home even. My God what had I become? A monster?  A demon? All my life I’d been a strict catholic, my mother’s influences of course. And now I represented everything I’d frown to find blasphemes. I’d fallen from God’s eyes and now I knew there was no forgiveness for my soul.
         
“Johnny?” I felt her hand on my arm and it nearly made me jump. I hadn’t even heard her approach me. Slowly I turned to face her; afraid of her overwhelming presence, afraid she would swallow him. But what I saw was not the succubus with her entrancing aura of her dominating personality. Instead she was just a woman with an elegant face, whose eyes had watched me from a far for years. Like a veil had been lifted a sort of magic spell that demanded the attention of all she encountered. I smiled despite the desire to turn and run.
         
“These were never the plans I had for you Johnny. It had never been my intentions to turn you. But when I saw you lying there in the alleyway, those humans making your death insufferable, I did the only thing I could to do save you.” She seemed so fragile as she stood there, those honey eyes filled with sadness and a loneliness that surpassed the empty existence I’d lived with when my wife had died. Regardless of everything she had saved my life and I knew in that moment the only thing I could offer to repay her. Companionship.
         
“I’m grateful, Nicca. Without you I would have painfully died on the street. For that you will have my eternal loyalty as long as this un-life should last.” I turned to her, resting my hands on her shoulders and looking down.
         
“Then I have one final gift to give you.” There was something in the way she smiled that made my body ache all over again. She took my hand and I was unable to do more than follow her back through the glass doors of her haven.
         
God this was going to be a long night…