Return of the High Fae (Vegas Fae Story Book 1) (5 page)

"Alicia DeVries at
Darlings
? You bet, hold on a
minute." She reached down and opened a drawer and pulled out her rolodex.
Hailey was as computer literate as anyone, but some things would never change.
The rolodex was one of them. If you were important to her, or ever had been,
you were in there. The names in her list were priceless. She started going
through the cards. "Yeah, here you go," she replied, writing the number
down on a card and handing it to me. "What you got, or are you just going
for the show?"

"Don't you wish," I chortled. "It's just a
locate. Rich kid's dad is sick and mom wants her to call."

"Boring… just make sure you let her know first. You
know how she can be about her girls."

"Yes, mom, I know. She's just like you," I
quipped.

Hailey just gave me a good bye wave. "Go back to work,
I got things to do!" She'd acted gruff; but I could tell by her smile she
approved of my use of the word mom.

With my evening's locate planned out, I spent the rest of
what was left of the workday running computer searches and talking to people on
the phone. The immediate cases were filed and the reports written. Those that
could be sent electronically went by email. The others went into envelopes for
the morning's mail. Invoices printed out and accompanying the reports, my
office workday was over. I looked up at my retirement clock on the wall. It was
5:30 p.m. Wow, I thought to myself, nothing weird had happened to me in a good
6 hours. That was a good sign.

Before I left for the day I called Alicia and set up an
appointment to see her. I told her what I had and she confirmed that the girl
was working tonight. Then she told me to be there at 10:15 p.m. and to call her
when I was on my way. I hung up the phone and headed home, stopping at the
market for Charlie's bone. I mean, you never know, right?

I pulled into the driveway and tried to get out of the
car, but Charlie beat me to it. He was in my lap as soon as the door opened.
After a minute or two I was able to get out. They say you shouldn't let your
dog jump on you, but let's be real. He knows who the boss is, and besides, it'd
break his heart. I grabbed the bone, still wrapped in butcher paper, out of the
trunk and he froze. He eyed the package, his tail wagging at 90 miles a minute.

"This what you want?" I asked, holding up the
giant bone.

With a bark he rushed to my feet and sat, remaining
perfectly still.

Believe it or not, he did have some training when he wanted
to remember it. I unwrapped it, gave it to him and breathed a sigh of relief as
he took it and headed toward the backyard. That was a load off of my mind. I
hadn't heard a word, only a bark. Maybe I wasn't going crazy after all.

Placing my keys and wallet on the counter, I kicked off my
shoes and started the coffee. As I reached for a cup from the cupboard, my
stomach reminded me I hadn't eaten all day. Settling on a
Piedmont Airlines
cup, I fixed a sandwich and waited for the coffee to brew. When it was done,
with food and drink in hand, I sat down at the kitchen table and thought about
the day.

It hadn't started great, shocking computer files and all,
but at least the remainder had been quiet. I still hadn't figured out Milagre's
"what are you" act, but there had to be a reason for it. Maybe I just
hadn't seen it yet. For a moment I tried to convince myself that it was just
the ramblings of eccentric rich folks, but I didn't buy that one either.

I finished my sandwich and refilled my cup, then plopped
down on the sofa to see what was on. I'd missed the local news, so I surfed for
a few minutes, but like it's been said, all those channels and nothing's on.
Giving up, I set the timer on my phone and took a short nap. I still had to go
out tonight and who knew how late I would be.

It was 9:30 p.m. when the alarm sounded so I cleaned up my
dishes and set the pot for the morning. I grabbed a clean shirt and headed out
the door, telling Charlie to guard the house. I waited a moment at the door and
relaxed when all he did was sit at his spot by the sofa. No requests, a good
sign.

I was halfway downtown when I remembered to call Alicia.
"Alicia, Robert Hoskins here. I'm on my way."

"Thanks for the heads up, baby. Where are you, by the
way?"

"Just got on the freeway, I should be there on
time."

"Great. Oh, Robert, can you do me a favor?" That
wasn't a good sign, but what was I gonna say, no?

"Sure, Alicia, what do you need?"

"Can you stop at Walgreens and pick me up a box of
tampons?"

"Tampons?" I asked reluctantly. "You're
kidding, right?" I hadn't bought tampons since before my kids were born. I
had to move the phone away from my ear, her response louder by several
decibels.

"No, I'm not kidding. Some dumbass took the last box
out of my storage locker and now the vending machine is empty. I'll never hear
the end of it if I don't have some available."

"Ok, ok, I'll pick them up. You need me to
investigate the theft as well?" I asked, sarcastically.

"No, but thank you for offering. That one I can
handle myself," she countered with a hint of anger in her voice.

"Any particular kind?" I asked, not wanting to
get her riled up. She was doing me a bigger favor after all.

"Just get a box of regular." I heard her say and
then she hung up.

Like I said, house mothers take care of the girl's needs.

15 or 20 minutes later I pulled into the
Darlings
parking lot. I threaded my way through the throng of cars to the side alley,
then navigated my way to the back. Pulling my car into an empty space, I cut
the ignition and dialed Alicia. "I'm in the back," I announced when
she answered.

"I'll open the door."

Picking up my recent purchase from the passenger seat, I
got out of the car and walked towards the back of the building. Like most
businesses, the back was utilitarian and ugly. Unlike the front of the club,
here there were no fancy statues, no full size photos of scantily clad women,
no neon signs beckoning all to enter. Just steel doors, and loading docks and
naked bulbs to break up the darkness.

A light appeared, and a door on my left opened. The shadow
of a woman's figure, framed by the light, called out my name. "Robert,
over here baby!"

"Here," I answered, and walked towards her, the
box, still in its plastic bag, held up before me.

"You're a doll," she whispered as she took the
bag and motioned me in.

As I strode through the doorway, I found myself in what
can only be called a large dressing room. There were two long rows of
countertop, back to back, with mirrors and tools of the trade on top. A variety
of make-up, panties, G-strings, tops, the occasional corset and other
accoutrements of the profession dotted the landscape. Several scantily clad
women were vigorously applying lipstick, eye shadow, and various other powders
to their faces. One was doing the same to her nipples. No one bothered to look
up as I entered the room.

"This way," I heard Alicia say, as she grabbed
my arm and led me into a small office down the hall from the room. A slim,
attractive woman in her late 30's, Alicia was dressed in blue jeans and a pink
silk top. "Thanks," she said, holding up the shopping bag as she
gracefully slid into the chair behind her desk.

"No problem," I answered, taking a seat in front
of the desk.

"Give me a minute," she muttered, as she opened
the box of tampons and grabbed a handful. Then she opened the top drawer of her
desk with her other hand. "I'll be right back, gotta fill the vending
machine," she said, grabbing a ring of keys and walking out of the office.
"Tiffany!" I heard her yell.

I could hear her talking to someone in the hall. Then
there was silence as the voices faded.

I changed my focus to her office. It was small, the desk
half the size of mine. The walls were covered in glossy photos. People she'd
met; celebrities, porn stars maybe, judging from the outfits. I didn't recognize
half of them, but I wouldn't expect to. There were also several of her when
she'd been younger. She'd been beautiful, not that she still wasn't, just
older. But in this game, youth is everything.

Her office made me sad. It wasn't because of her profession.
We all have to survive and make money. It just seemed as if I was surrounded by
faded dreams. It was as if one could see time ticking by, its force reducing
the dreams to nothing except what was left on the walls and small desk, leaving
only memories. Alicia's voice brought me back to the here and now. Damn, I'm
getting morose.

She sat back down behind the desk and gave me a smile.
"Essence is on the floor at the moment. She should be done in a few."

"Essence?"

"Shit, Robert. Wake up, baby. Essence is the girl
you're looking for."

"Oh, sorry," I laughed, feeling silly. Of course
she would use a fantasy name.

"She knows why you're here. She isn't happy about it,
but I told her you were only the delivery boy,
and
that you weren't here
to take her back. That's still true, right?" she asked, eyeing me warily
for a moment.

"Yes. Of course." I pulled the letter the girl's
mother had given me out of my shirt pocket and unfolded it. I held it up and
waved it at her. "I told her momma I would find her and deliver the
message, that's it. I'm not here to kidnap her."

That said, she relaxed and we shot the breeze for a few -
she, asking me how Hailey had been doing and I, asking her how business was.
About 10 minutes later, a young woman, blonde, robed, and wearing altogether
too much makeup, peeked through the doorway. She pointed at me.

"This him?" she asked.

"Essence, this is Robert Hoskins. Robert, this is
Essence, also known as Victoria Reynolds," Alicia responded, introducing
me.

I started to stand up, but the girl held her hand out and
waved me to sit.

"Just tell me what she wants."

I started to hand her the envelope but she snatched it out
of my hand. "Your dad's sick. Your mom wants you to..." She never let
me finish.

"Fine, anything else?"

Alicia looked at me, I shook my head. "No, Essence.
Thank you," she said.

The girl turned around and left without saying another
word.

"Well," I mused. "I take it I won't be on
her Christmas card list."

Alicia broke out in a giggle. "Fraid not, baby. She's
a tough one. Hates the world and despises her parents." She rolled her
eyes, her grin fading. "I'm not sure why. Never could get her to discuss
it. You know how it is." She shrugged her shoulders. "I'll talk to
her later. Maybe I can at least get her to make a call."

"Thanks for that, and getting her to see me."

"Sure, gotta take care of my friends. Never know, I
might need you myself one day." Her smile returned and she stood as I
readied to leave.

One more task completed on my to-do list, I thought to
myself, as I stepped out of her office into the hall.

I saw the Faerie, or Elf, or whatever she was made up to
be walking down the hallway. Talk about special effects! She was maybe 5'
2", with long, straight blond hair that hung down below her waist. Totally
nude, she embodied perfection. Exquisite breasts and a perfectly proportioned
body that moved with a grace I would not have believed possible. She looked up
at me for an instant, her blue eyes sparkling, and my body froze as I watched
her go by.

But it wasn't her beauty that stopped me, or even her
nudity. It was her wings. I'd never seen anything that looked so real. They
sprouted out of her back, flowed upward a foot above her head and then downward
to her feet. Light, wispy, gossamer wings attached I do not know how. I
watched, breathless, as she continued down the hallway. I turned around to look
at Alicia still in her office.

"Holy shit!" I stuttered. "
That
is
the most realistic costume I have ever seen! How did she do that? The wings,
they're incredible."

She gave me a funny look. "Wings? We don't have
anyone wearing wings. What are you talking about?"

"That girl," I pointed. "The one that just
went down the hallway."

Alicia stepped around me and walked down the hallway. I
followed her to the end, where she pulled the curtain aside to look. We were
behind the stage. She let go of the curtain and turned towards me. "She
doesn't have any wings. What have you been smoking?"

"What? No, no, no. Here… let me take a look."

Walking closer, I slid against the wall next to her and
pulled the curtain aside. I stared for a moment, dumbfounded, and took it all
in. There on the stage was the girl I had seen. Only it wasn't her. Gone were
the ears, the wings, and that vision of perfection I had just gazed upon. I'm
not saying she wasn't beautiful. She was, and she was still graceful. But it
was like I had glimpsed her true self a moment ago, and now I was looking at
her through glasses that weren't in focus. Not wanting Alicia to think I was
nuts, I let go of the curtain and turned to her.

"Sorry. You're right. I… uh… must be seeing
things." I stuttered, suddenly feeling foolish. "Who is that?"

"Oh, that's Trixie." Alicia peeked through the
curtain again. "She has quite the following." She turned and gazed at
me. "She got you in her spell, too?"

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know what she's got, but she's got
something. The guys go nuts over her. She only dances a couple sets a night and
she still makes more money than any of the others."

I opened the curtain again. Trixie was still on stage.
There was something special about her. Even if she wasn't the Nymph I had
envisioned, she was still something more. I moved my eyes to the audience. I
could tell they were enthralled with her performance. Then I realized something
wasn't right. They were way too interested.

The other dancers were moving about the crowded club and
everyone had stopped paying attention to them. The men in the audience were all
watching the stage, or to put it another way, they were all watching Trixie,
enthralled. I could see the girls eyeing each other, some of them shrugging,
one rolling her eyes. They did not look happy. I had no idea what this girl had
that they didn't, but Alicia was right. She did have something.

"You see it too," she declared. It wasn't a
question.

"Yeah, I'm guessing she isn't so popular with the
other girls."

"No, she isn't. But management fired a few that said
something a while back and nowadays everyone keeps their mouth shut," she
said, as she turned and walked back down the hallway.

With a last look, I let go of the curtain and followed her
into her office. "What do you know about her?" I asked, as I parked
myself back in the chair in front of her desk.

"Oh, Honey. She is so outta your league," she
replied with a shrug.

I might have blushed. "No. Sorry. I didn't mean it
that way."

She laughed, and then continued. "Not much. She comes
in, does her sets and then she leaves. Never says too much. Only thing she's
ever asked for is some special bottled water, so I keep that in stock. As a
matter of fact, there she goes now." Alicia tilted her head up as if
pointing out the door.

I turned to look, but she had already gone. "Well,
that's my cue," I said. "Thanks Alicia, I appreciate your help
today."

As she stood, I extended my hand to shake hers, but she
came around the desk instead. She reached for me and gave me a hug.

"Don't be a stranger, baby," she whispered in my
ear. She took my hand, led me out of her office and back to the exit, which she
opened. "And tell Hailey hi for me."