42nd & Lex (23 page)

“What’s his problem?” she asks.

“No clue. It’s as if he doesn’t like that
I’m seeing Lucan, not that he knows him or anything bad about him. I mean,
everything we found online was positive. And don’t think Max didn’t run a
complete background check on the guy either.” Max had to know about the Enclave.
That has to be what’s making him leery of my dating Lucan.   

“Well, whatever. Max can be weird sometimes
for no reason. I still think he’s dreamy and he treats you nice, right?”

“Yeah, he does. He really does.” My thoughts
drift back to Saturday night. “He’s perfect.”  

Lindsey gives an excited squeal before going
back to her office. She is such a romantic.

I have a ton of work to get to but my mind
is racing, itching to think about the last few days. My mind is performing a
play by play of the weekend now that there is no danger of my thoughts being
intercepted. I roll the idea of being Lucan’s soul mate—Sodalis, around in my
brain. Admittedly, it should freak me out that a guy I just met is calling me
his soul mate, but it doesn’t. I understand and accept it on some deep level
without question. It’s like he’s given me a word that perfectly describes my
own feelings even though I don’t really know what it means, even though I
didn’t know I had those feelings until now. It’s this last part that kinda
freaks me out, but in a good way. Fuck it. I’m committed to the ride now. I’ll
just hold on tight and see where it goes.

The paperwork from Virgil Hicks arrives via
courier just after lunch. Most attorneys fax court documents that don't require
service of process because it's faster and cheaper; but given his reputation, it
isn't surprising that Virgil Hicks uses such an ostentatious means of delivery.
It is a good way to show off his prowess and the large retainer he had undoubtedly
conned out of Mark Ainsworth to handle his case with the utmost discretion
considering the circumstances.

Mr. Hicks has filed a motion seeking the
award of Sarah and Mark's apartment to Mark alone. I need to call Sarah and let
her know what’s happening, but first I will give Virgil Hicks a call and
introduce myself.

“Good afternoon, this is Abri Cole calling
for Mr. Hicks.” I try to sound professional and detached, as if I don't know
anything about vampires or the Enclave, or Mr. Hicks' association with either.

“Hold please,” says a rather bored sounding
voice on the other end.

“Ms. Cole, it's a pleasure to speak with
you. I trust you received my delivery on the Ainsworth matter then?” Mr. Hicks’
Southern drawl is sticking in my ear like syrup on a pancake.

“You too, Mr. Hicks. Yes, I did receive it
and your motion for possession of the apartment.” Enough of the pleasantries, I
am here to talk business.

“Please, call me Virgil. About the motion,
if your client will agree to move out by the end of the month we can forego
that hearing all together. Sound agreeable then, Miss Cole?” The smugness in
his voice cuts through all of the syrupy sweetness.

“Virgil—Mr. Hicks, under no circumstances
will my client agree to move out of the apartment. Your client has wholly
abandoned living there since before the divorce action was filed and has the
immediate resources to secure other living arrangements while this case is
pending.” Although incredibly cliché, I want to add, “I'll see you in Court!”
before slamming down the phone, but I don’t.

“Very well Miss Cole, have it your way. Just
understand that I have been paid a very handsome sum to insure Mr. Ainsworth
comes out on top in this matter, and I believe he will. Your client would be
well served to take what's offered to her and go on about her life.” His tone
has changed now; he isn't threatening me so much as stating the obvious. But he
doesn’t know that I know that. Or does he?

“I will see you in Court next week then.
Have a good day Mr. Hicks.” I want to push him for more information but there
is no good way to go about that so I don’t. “Goodbye.”

“Goodbye, Miss Cole.”

I switch lines and dial Sarah's cell to tell
her about the papers. “Hey, it's Abri.”

“Hey girl. What's up? How's that hot man of
yours?” She sounds so upbeat I hate to ruin her mood.

“He's good. Listen, I just heard from Mark's
lawyer. He filed a motion to get Mark back into the apartment. There's a
hearing next week that we will need to prepare for.”

“That bastard! I'll kill him. He hasn't
shown his face here in weeks and now he thinks he can just kick me out and move
back in. He can't do that, can he, Abri?”

“He can, but he won't win. Judge Michaels
doesn't look too kindly on wealthy men that try to kick out their spouses. You
won't have to move. I’ll have plenty of ammo against him at the hearing.”

“Good! In the meantime what do I do?” Sarah
asks, her voice cracking. Damn, I’ve ruined her good mood.

“Just relax. I know it's hard, but you
should just try to keep to your normal routine as much as possible. And don't
let Mark in the apartment. No matter what.”

“Okay, thanks Abri. You are a lifesaver. I’m
glad we are friends again, even under these circumstances. Tell Lover Boy I
said hello. I want to meet him soon, okay. Well, I’ve met him before at a
benefit, but I mean really meet him.” At least Sarah doesn't stay down too
long.

“Soon,” I promise. “Take care and call me if
anything comes up.”

“I will. Bye!”

“Bye.”

As he pretended to work on a new design project,
Mark’s thoughts wondered to whether or not Virgil Hicks knew that he was not
entirely a vampire. Mark’s phone buzzed with a call. Speak of the devil, Mark
thought, it was man himself. He just wanted to let him know that the papers had
been filed and they had hearing for next week to determine who would get use of
the apartment during the divorce.

Mark wanted to protest that he didn’t want
to kick Sarah out of the apartment, but he’d already made that plea to Serge
and the attorney with no avail. Serge wanted the nice digs and Hicks wanted to
spend Mark’s money the best way he could— in a nasty court battle.

Maybe he should call Sarah and explain
himself. He owed her an explanation for his behavior as of late, even if Serge
had threatened to kill him if he did. Mark wasn't entirely sure that Serge had
the balls or the ability to kill him since he’d become a Halfling. Plus,
without Mark, Serge lost his link to Abri Cole. Mark disliked what Serge had in
mind for her; after all, she was Sarah's friend and probably a decent human
being.

Human. The word made tears fall down his
face for first time in months. Surprisingly, they weren’t red with blood but
still looked like normal, watery tears. He picked up the phone to dial Sarah's
number.

“Hello?” Her Texas twang was a welcomed
sound to Mark's now hypersensitive ears.

“Sarah? Sarah, it's Mark. Please don't hang
up.” He tried to talk fast in case she hung up. “I’m sorry Sarah. It's not what
you think. I'm not a drunk or a cheat or whatever else you think I've been
doing.”

“Mark, you asshole. You pick now to call me
after you lawyer just filed papers trying to kick me out of my own house?” Sarah
was seething mad. “I don't know what your excuse is, but that's all it is, an
excuse. Don't call me anymore. Just have your lawyer call mine. It’s too late
for apologies now.”

With that, Sarah hung up. Mark tried to dial
her number again but tears and a red rage welled up inside him and blurred his
vision.

Damn you Serge!

Mark picked up his coat and left his office,
telling the receptionist he was going for a late lunch even though he had no
intention of coming back today. He’d only been back from his leave of absence
for a week and already it was proving to be a bad idea. He staggered downstairs
and hailed a cab. Mark tried to keep himself together for the ride back to the
hotel.

He didn’t want the cab driver to freak on
him and dump him out; he was in no shape to walk all the way uptown. While they
were waiting for a particularly long light, Mark spotted a butcher shop in the
next block and knocked on the plastic partition to get the driver’s attention.
The driver pulled to the curb with a puzzled look on his face. Mark was well
aware of how strange his request sounded given that he’d asked to be taken to a
hotel but he didn’t care.

“Wait here and I’ll tip you fifty,” Mark
barked at the driver as he climbed out. Inside the butcher shop, Mark ordered
ten pounds of hamburger and a rather large roast. When the butcher pushed the
heavy packages across the counter, Mark tossed a hundred dollar bill at him and
staggered back out to the waiting cab.

“Here.” He shoved the wadded up bill through
the grate for the driver. “Now go.”

Mark had recently discovered that his mental
clarity improved greatly if he had a steady diet of raw, bloody meat. His body
still craved regular food but the raw meat affected him like he assumed blood
did a regular vampire. He guessed it had something to do with being somewhere
in between human and vampire, or maybe all vampires ate raw meat and he had no
idea. Serge wasn't the best teacher and Mark had a pretty steep learning curve
to overcome. Whatever it was, he was glad to have found it.

Back at the hotel, Mark used his short fangs
to tear into the roast like a rabid dog. When that was gone, he ate the
hamburger like fists full of popcorn. It was a rather messy and disgusting
sight, one that Mark was glad he could accomplish in private. Feeling almost
back to his old, human self, Mark flipped on the TV and vegged out until Serge
came home from work.

I have never been so glad to see a Friday. Lucan
insisted we spend every night this week at my apartment since Mark had no way
of knowing where I lived. Last night I persuaded him to go back to the Chrysler
for the weekend. Safe or not, my apartment is too small for two people. Lucan
is still leery of Mark coming after me again, but like it or not, I am going to
have to face him in Court next week.

Virgil Hicks will have to put on testimony
from Mark about why he deserves to have the apartment over Sarah during the
divorce. There is no way to win otherwise. I have my doubts that Mark wants the
apartment for himself; he hadn’t looked like he wanted much when I saw him. Well,
except maybe a fresh brain to gnaw on. I don’t need mind reading capabilities
to know Lucan is planning to come to court with me. He hasn’t said anything
yet, probably because he knows I’m not a fan of the idea. His mind reading
capabilities have more than informed him of that.

Even though it’s Friday, I still have a ton
of work to do to get ready for the hearing. I should be working late but Lucan has
a meeting with the Council in the morning so I will have a few hours to while
he’s gone.

“Max?” I call over the intercom. “Can you bring
me the Ainsworth file?”

“Sure. Are you going to take it home over
the weekend?” he asks.

“Nah. I will probably come in tomorrow and
work on it. I hate going in the file room alone on weekends. It’s creepy in
there.” Actually, I plan on coming down to get it tomorrow morning and working
at Lucan’s.  

“Okay. I'll be in there in a second. Lemme
go find it.”

Max delivers the file a few minutes later
while I’m in the process of shutting down my computer. He has that look on his
face that can only mean one thing—he has something on his mind that can’t wait.
“Can I ask you something, Abri?” Bingo!

“Sure. What?” I reply, trying not to sound
expectant.

“Has Lucan told you what he does yet?” Now
Max and I have known each other since I was a law clerk, I can tell when he is
beating around the bush.   

“Sure, he runs a charitable foundation.” I’m
going to make him work for this.  

“Um, yeah, right, I knew that.” Max is
hoping for a different answer. “Hey, did you ever ask him about that calling
card?” Max is fishing now.

“No, I haven't.” It was the truth. I figured
it out myself on our first date.

“Okay. Well, here's your file. I'm going to
be up here tomorrow doing some drafting if you need anything when you come in.”

Shit, now I am stuck working on the file in
my office. I’d already told him I wasn’t taking the file home with me tonight.
If I changed my mind now he will think I am avoiding him. And if it is gone in
the morning, he will be worried something happened to me since I certainly
wouldn’t cab it all the way over here to get it and leave again. “Great! I'm
going to come in around ten, I think. What about you?”

“Same. See you then, Abri. Have a good
night.” Max gives me a worried smile and walks out. I hate to keep secrets from
him, or at least withholding confirmation of what I am sure he already knows.

“'Night, Max.”

I manage to call the up elevator before anyone
else leaves the office so I don't have to fake going downstairs first. I jump
in and hit the button for sixty-six. I am becoming an old pro at this elevator
thing even when Lucan isn’t with me. There is more to this than just overcoming
a fear of a broken cable. I know Lucan will never let me fall.  

“Lucan, are you home?” I call as I chug the
last few yards up to the apartment. It is a nice bonus that he can hear me
anywhere in the apartment without yelling. But once the elevator clears the
floor above, he can hear my thoughts as well— not always as nice a bonus.

“Yup, just waiting for you, love.” I can
hear the anticipation in his voice, as if the last eight hours have been a
lifetime apart.

Lucan comes into view and my heart flutters
a little. I realize the last eight hours have been a lifetime. Damn vampire sex
bond, you do crazy things to me and I like it. “Good! Wow, you look amazing.
What's the occasion?” I ask as he pulls open the grate and gives me a kiss.