Scent of Gardenia (Scott Tucker Series) (5 page)

Chapter
10

After
several rings, I was just about to hang up as there was no answer.

“Hello.”

“Hello
Mercedes, its Scott.”

There
wasn’t an immediate response on the other end and then, “Hi Scott. I’m glad you
caught me. Actually, I was in the shower, but I thought I heard the phone
ringing. Can you hold for a minute?”

“I can
call you back if you want?”

“No,
just hold, I’ll be right back.”

She
didn’t wait for any reply. I had seen her at the cabin after she showered. The
image had been burned into my memory for ages. She had wrapped a towel around
her, but it was way too small for the task. It wasn’t possible for it to cover
the territory.

“Hello
again, I’m back. Thanks for waiting.”

“You
weren’t gone that long.”

“Oh, I
just dried off a little and put a towel on.”

She
stopped abruptly. I didn’t comment. However, I pictured what she might look
like.

“So
Scott, you’re quiet all of a sudden. Does that bring back any memories?”

She’s
doing it again.
“Yes, as a matter of fact
it does.”

“That’s
my Scott…I can always count on your honest answers. In that case do you want to
come over and dry my back?”

I was
caught somewhere between saying I would love to and not saying anything.
“Maybe some other time would be better.”

She
laughed. “I’ll accept that.” She hesitated before adding, “Thanks for calling.
What do you have in mind?”

What
I had on my mind I couldn’t say.
“It’s
Friday and I was wondering if you had plans for tonight?”

She
again hesitated before answering. “Are you asking me out on a
date
?”

“Yes, I
guess I am.”

“You
know I’ve waited years to hear those words…however…unfortunately, I have other
plans.”

I
quickly offered, “I know it’s the last minute. I was just thinking you were back
in town and I hadn’t called earlier this week. It’s okay. Maybe we—“

“Scott,
stop. My parents are having an office party and I was invited. I was planning
on going stag, but if you wouldn’t mind being my date, we could still be
together.”

“I’d
love to. How formal is the party?”

“That’s
great. Actually it’s a beach party theme, being held at one of their new
condominium buildings in Revere. The dress is bathing suits, cover ups and clam
diggers. The party is going to be right on the beach in Revere. I guess you
still get credit for asking me out on a date.”

“It
sounds great. I like the sound of asking you out on a date.”

“Now,
you’re just trying to rack up points again. I guess I might have to start
keeping score.”

I took a
deep breath, blurting out, “Can you pack a bag? I would like to take you to the
Cape for the weekend.”

She
didn’t immediately reply. “Well mister, I can see you’re still shooting for
that Kewpie doll…and the good news is you just
won
her. Let’s skip the
party if you don’t mind and head to the Cape. I’ll call my dad and tell him the
good news. I mean I’ll call him and tell him something else has
come up
that demands my immediate attention. That’s almost correct isn’t it?”

“I’m
sure if you have your way it will be.”

She
laughed and replied, “You might take a few years to get moving, but I think
once you get it in gear you’ll be
hard
to stop. You know where I live.
How soon can you be here?”

“How
about thirty minutes?”

“I can’t
even be dressed by then, let alone packed. So tell the doorman to have your car
parked and come up to 2308. I’ll focus on packing, but I may need my back
dried. Bye.”

I could
feel my heart thumping.
I did it. I actually asked her out and even better I
asked her to go away with me…and she accepted.

Chapter 11

I packed
a soft-sided bag with what I thought I needed, but my mind wasn’t concentrating
on what I was doing. Five minutes after I started, I was hurrying out of my
apartment to my car. My car was a ’58 Bonneville convertible, although ten
years old now, it was still in fine shape. I’m glad I had it washed today, the
white paint lighting up in the moonlight. We might just ride to the Cape with the top down.

Fifteen
minutes later, I parked the car in front of Mercedes’ building and spoke to the
doorman. I told him I needed to park the car for a while and was picking up Ms.
Strong in 2308. He just smiled, saying he would take care of it. I gave him a
five dollar bill, wondering if that was too much, or not even expected. Too
late now.

I got
off the elevator and followed the room number signs. I found her room number,
knocking on the door. There was no answer. I knocked again a little louder than
the first time. There was still no answer. I checked the time, and I was on
time. I looked for a door bell, but there wasn’t any. It was probably in the
lobby area. I checked the door, finding it unlocked. I opened the door, calling
for her. No reply. Her overnight bag was standing next to the couch.

“Mercedes?”
I listened, but no answer. I could hear water running. I hesitated a second
before heading into the bedroom area, but she knew I was coming. “Mercy?” The
water stopped. “Mercy?” I heard the metallic sound of the shower door, calling
again, “Mercy?”

“In here
Scott.” I headed to the bathroom, finding her standing with her back to me,
looking over her shoulder, holding the towel with an outstretched hand. “Good,
you’re just in time to dry my back.”

I was
frozen in place studying her body. She was more incredible than I remembered. Somehow
I found myself wiping her back with the towel. My heart was beating a mile a
minute.

She put
her hands on the wall in front of her. “Oh my God, I’ve waited so long for this
moment.” She said this with such a soft voice I could barely hear her. She
slowly turned and her eyes were closed.

Her white
skin and red hair were an excellent contrast. I started to dry her off and she grabbed
the towel and threw it over the shower door and commenced unbuttoning my
clothes. I started to help her but she grabbed my hands, pushing them down to
my sides.

“No
Scott. I’ll do this myself. It’s my reward for waiting this long. I’ve played
this scene since we were in the cabin together. I think I can handle this part
on my own, but I’m going to need your help in a minute.” She took more time
than I thought was needed. “
There, now I
remember you
.”

*.*.*

We never
made the Cape and to be more precise, we never left her condo. She made me feel
so wonderful. We filled a long-time void. I wondered now why I waited so long
to call her. She shared her thoughts and I shared mine. I told her how much fun
Lisa and I had together and how much I missed her. We laughed and cried
together. It was interesting to hear her view of our time at the cabin. What
she had done on purpose and what my reactions had been.

Our love
making was at times; exploratory, one-sided, then heated and passionate, slow
and deliberate, but always rewarding. I had resisted her for so long that when
the dam broke it broke with a flood of emotion. I was happy, I was sad, but I
felt our being together was so right. Lisa would even be happy I had found
someone to make me happy that I was still alive.

Mercedes
and I tried to focus on other things such as making something to eat. However,
one thing or the other would eventually lead to a pleasant distraction. For
example, on the second night, she pulled the drapes back and we viewed the Boston skyline, only to have it shortly interrupted with a study of each other.

*.*.*

It was
soon Sunday night. I was getting ready to leave. The weekend went so quickly.
Things had changed so much. The future would never be the same for either of
us. We had both opened a door to find something much more incredible than we
ever expected.

I picked
up my car keys. “You know I really have to leave this time.” I looked at her
leaning with her back against the table in front of the open curtains and the Boston skyline behind her. I remembered a similar pose at the cabin years ago. “I really
have to leave.”

“I know.
So leave. You’re not tied up any longer. You’re free to go. Just let me know
when I can see you again.” She turned, looking out the large window.

I went
over and put my arms around her. The scent of Gardenia immediately poisoned my
actions. I kissed her on the nape of the neck. She turned and we were kissing
passionately again. Very soon I could feel the tears running down her cheeks.
Moments later I was carrying her to the bedroom.

Her
alarm woke me the next morning. We made love again and then had breakfast.
However it was interrupted. Then we showered and made love in the shower, and
we made love again trying to get dressed.
I guess I’m going to be late, and
will have to buy the doughnuts. I’ll gladly buy the doughnuts every morning
from now on if the nights are like this.

It was
hard saying goodbye in the hall. She was waving goodbye but all I could see was
red and white. I hoped nobody else could see her. “Please give my best to Paddy
and Mike.”

She
really knew how to make an entrance…and now my exit. Images that would keep me
warm all day.

*.*.*

When I
arrived at the office, I was greeted by laughter from both Paddy and Mike. Mike
broke his laughter with, “You look like you need more than one coffee this
morning. Make those doughnuts tomorrow jelly-filled, okay? Welcome back to the
real world. I take it you had a pleasant weekend.”

“I
called Mercedes.”

Paddy
responded, “I can believe that, but judging from the look on your face—you must
have…well…talked to her in person.”

“You
know guys; I should have gone into some other line of work.” I paused trying to
think of how to say it, then added, “Working with detectives is like living in
a glass house…you have no secrets. Mercedes’ hallway image came to mind, “Oh by
the way, Mercedes did ask me to say hello to you guys.” I smiled, remembering
her image and headed for the coffee.

Chapter
12

She went
into the house to take a quick shower to wash the perspiration away. She
thought about not doing that and just seeing the men this way. Ten minutes
after she was with them she would be all sweated up anyway. However, the cool
shower heightened her anticipation of meeting with the men. She thought about
the men she had recently killed. They had served her purpose and despite their
begging for their lives, there was a special thrill having the ultimate power
over life and death.

She replayed
the killing of each of those earlier men and tried to recall the others she had
tortured. It was either those thoughts or the pulse of the water, or both, that
weakened her knees. She put one arm against the wall for balance and let her
body respond.

*.*.*

She
studied her reflection in the full length bathroom mirror. The sun was coming
in the open ocean window and it lit her body with an early morning glow. The
water droplets beaded on her body from her forehead to her feet.
Maybe the
sight of me like this will make the men ravish me without my urging.
She had
seen what the image of her naked body did to the men, despite their attempts to
control their bodies’ reaction. She just loved the feeling she got when they
could no longer control themselves.

Only one
man had ever gotten away from her clutches. She was so close to satisfying her
need. He was extremely reluctant, but was coming around with her expert touch. She
closed her eyes and remembered him naked and defenseless. Now, he had become
her fantasy, which she hoped to fulfill. These other men were her attempt to fill
that void. She forced these men to tell her the truth. They would suffer the
consequences if they lied.

Her
excellent contingency planning allowed her to build this wonderful facility. A
few additional and necessary changes smoothed the transition. The supplemental
income provided by the sale of their yachts helped some, but it was not her
main support. The dive business helped immensely.

She put
her face close to the mirror, studying her face like she had never seen it
before. It’s new, but not that new. The London plastic surgeon did an excellent
job...he should have, based on what it cost. However, she got the money back. He
was an incredible lover for several days. He allowed her to tie him up. That
was all she needed to get her money back. She showed him what a scalpel could
do when in a novice’s hand. She turned her head and watched her long red hair
cascade over her breasts. Her smile was much more beautiful, and an excellent
lure.

She
slipped a sundress over her still damp body and headed to the basement. It
still surprised her how quickly she could get excited and how many times. She
could feel the cool sand between her toes as she walked along the narrow hall
leading to each of their private cells. At least one light was on, enough to
light her way.

Shit.
In all her excitement she forgot to make
breakfast for them.
Oh well, they’ll just be that much happier to see me
tonight.
She could feel the cool temperature of the chamber despite the
warmth above. She heard the clank of a chain, wondering if one of them heard
her coming. She stopped moving, noticing her excitement as she looked down at
the front of her sundress. That’s good. One of them will see that too. I have
to make one of my first decisions of the day—who will be first?
I’m coming,
and soon you will be too. This is all practice for the day I see you again…and
I’m positive I will. You will come to me…to complete what was started years
ago.