Raven (11 page)

She lifted his lips back to meet hers and pressed herself against him firmly, his smell and taste purely intoxicating. As she wrapped her arms around his neck, he lifted her effortlessly to straddle his waist and he walked with her to the back wall of her apartment.

With her backside pressed up hard against the cold plasterboard she was momentarily brought back to reality. She knew he was ready, as was she, but as her glazed eyes refocused over his shoulder, the outside world was suddenly glaringly obvious from the glass doors of her balcony.

There was nothing amiss about the dark sky, or the moonless night, or even the fog that seemed to be eating up the landscape.

No, the problem was with the dark figures she saw hovering above her balcony, dark beady eyes glinting with anticipation and watching every move she and Eilam made with an intense interest.

She screamed loudly now, for the sight scared her like no other. For the first time, she had seen evil in the species and she knew she might very well have to consider the unthinkable.

Her scream had sent the ravens flapping off into the night, but as much as Eilam tried to comfort her, she still felt rattled at their presence so close to her home. Any further romantic interludes had completely gone out the window so to speak, and Aiyana had hurried to drag some clothes on her naked body, suddenly embarrassed at her reckless behaviour and still feeling a little sheepish about it.

There was so much running through her mind, even the fact as to whether she could completely trust Eilam, despite her apparent lust for him. She couldn’t help feeling though that he was genuine with her, and she could tell that from the glaring differences in seeing him in his raven form versus the dark creatures she had seen tonight.

With this in mind she allowed Eilam to stay with her, wrapping his arms protectively around her as she slept on the fold out bed in the middle of the living room. His arms were strong, powerful and safe, and Aiyana soon drifted off into a deep slumber. It was only as morning neared she awoke with a crick in her neck from being twisted at a funny angle on Eilam’s bicep half the night. She let her eyes open slowly and groaned as she tried to move. His huge hands instinctively moved to her neck and started to rub out the tension knot that ached. After sleeping away her fears last night, she had decided that she had spent enough time in denial and was ready to face the dilemma she was in head on.

“Eilam,” she started.

“Hmmm,” was his reply from next to her.

“Why were there ravens outside of my apartment last night? Are we in danger?” she asked. She felt him tense next to her and then relax once more.

“Maybe,” he said. At this comment she sat up so suddenly that she startled Eilam so much he fell out of the bed.

“Maybe? Maybe!!” she screeched. “If we’re in any kind of danger than what are we doing just sitting here, they could be back any minute,” she exclaimed.

His face took on a lopsided grin right then, which she of course wanted to knock right off his lips. Seeing her mood darken though, he decided to take a more serious approach.     

“You don’t need to worry, I already snuck out after you nodded off and followed them,” he said.

“You did? What happened?” she asked.

“I think they were doing a bit of reconnaissance. They’ve obviously been watching you for a while and are on to the fact that we have made a connection. It’s only natural they would be nervous about you wanting to help me break the curse,” he said.

“Well, why me? They could have been watching you, you know,” she said glumly.

“Possible, but unlikely,” he said.

“And why is that?” she asked.

“Because I would have seen or sensed them coming a mile off, and they know where you live,” he said with confidence.

“Well you certainly didn’t see them coming last night, did you?” she retorted.

“That was because I was a little distracted,” he said smugly.

“Oh,” she blushed. Clearly he had been just as caught up in the moment as she had. The fact that they hadn’t got to make love made her a little wishful. “So are we in danger?” she asked again.

“Probably not; I think they are very keen to see what kind of relationship it is that we have. If we look at it from their point of view, it would be better for us to be connecting in a romantic way, it makes it less likely for you to want to kill me,” he joked.

“That’s not funny. I’m not going to kill you anyway,” she said.

He walked over to where she now stood and caressed the side of her face with his hand. Her legs instantly felt like jelly and she felt a current pass between them.

“I wish you would,” he said in all seriousness, his jaw clenched and his head bent towards hers, his voice thick with emotion.

“Well I can’t, even if you are seducing me just so it will have an opposite effect on the choices I make,” she said. He dropped his hand abruptly and a look of pain came over his face. She could see instantly that what she had said had been a mistake and she’d clearly hurt his feelings with such a remark.

“Look, Eilam, I’m sorry okay – I just don’t know what to think at the moment,” she said, almost as if offering a truce.

“I understand. Look, I think I had better go. Just promise me you’ll be careful when you go outdoors,” he said abruptly and made his way to the balcony. She wanted to say something more, something that would make everything okay between them again but she bit her tongue. She thought it was best if they had a break from each other so they could both clear their heads. She watched on in silence as he spread his muscular arms outwards right before he morphed into the raven she was so used to seeing now. He flapped his wings hard and headed off into the morning sky. The minute he left a drizzle of rain came in from the south which seemed to be set in for the day. Great, she thought, just what I need with the mood I’m in. She closed and locked the balcony door and closed the curtains too. Today she wanted to stay holed up in her apartment and ignore reality for a change. She lit some candles and then went over to the kitchenette to make a strong pot of coffee. She was sorely disappointed to find the cupboard bare and grew increasingly cranky that things just weren’t going her way today. If she was honest with herself though, she was really feeling quite miserable that Eilam had left the way he had.

Oh well, there was nothing she could do about it right this minute. She decided to get changed into a pair of jeans and an oversized sloppy-joe and head down to the corner delicatessen for more coffee and comfort food. She rode the rickety elevator down to the ground floor and stepped off as it chimed its arrival. She was nearing the exit door to outside when the door on her right creaked open. She almost had the mind to jump out of her skin but she regained her composure once she saw it was the old lady who occupied the front unit. The lady’s frazzled grey hair spiked out in all directions and her huge bug eyes stared back at Aiyana from the dark recesses of her apartment.

“Good morning ma’am,” nodded Aiyana politely and then moved to continue on her way. Speed out of nowhere though, she had snatched out her bony old hand to grab Aiyana’s arm and held her firmly in place. Aiyana gasped at the pressure the little old lady was exerting on her grip of her.

“Ouch, could you let go please,” she said, trying not to startle the old dear too much. The old lady smiled and showed her visibly decaying mouth - teeth were missing everywhere and the only thing absent was a wart on her nose. Aiyana tried not to show physical revulsion and continued to smile at the woman, nodding at her grip on her arm indicating that she would like to be let go. The woman still held on with one hand, but pointed a very bony forefinger at her as though to emphasise some point.

“They’re coming you know,” she hissed in a wheezy voice.

“Who are?” she replied.

“Them birds, seen ‘em everywhere I ‘as,” she said, little bubbles of spittle forming on the sides of her mouth.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” said Aiyana, although knowing full well exactly what the woman was referring to.

“You see you stay well away missy, big trouble is brewing,” she wheezed, the bony finger still stabbing the air that lay between the two of them.

“Okay, I’ll see I do,” she replied, giving her arm a final tug from the woman’s grip and then hurrying out of the front door. She could hear the woman’s cackle still floating behind her as she stepped out into the rain. Talk about crazy, although Aiyana couldn’t help feeling like there might be some truth to the woman’s predictions. She cursed that yet another moment had ruined her day and she stomped heavily down the street in quite a funk towards the deli.

Despite the rain, there were people milling about everywhere. The lower shop fronts had signs out indicating they were open for business and people came and went about their daily life as if completely oblivious to the outside doom and gloom. It had been dark and rainy for so long, she had almost come to believe that people had finally accepted that this was the way their life was going to be like from now on. She wondered if they didn’t dream of a day where they might come to enjoy the sunshine once more. Aiyana remembered the sunshine. As a child her parents used to take her and Cybele on holidays overseas – anywhere but here to get a glimpse of the rays. She had vague recollections of feeling the sun warm her cheeks so hot that she felt flushed before her mother would aptly put a sunhat on her. She longed for that sun to break its way through the fog and clouds and light up the coastal town once more.

As if in an obstinate refute of her childish daydreaming, a loud crack of thunder broke overhead and released a new torrent of rain along with it. She quickly pushed between the people on the sidewalk and made a mad dash for the door of the deli. She made it inside without the rain penetrating her outer raincoat and she stood a minute to let the water drip off her before venturing further in.

There was no one else in the store but her. She could see the outside world still buzzing beyond the glass walls of the shop, yet in here, time seemed to stand still. She couldn’t even see Vincent, the store owner. This place was kind of like the last of the Mohicans – nowhere else on the coast could you get food like this, and you certainly paid handsomely for it. Every couple of days Vincent would have a shipment of produce come from all over Europe to stock his store with all manner of culinary delights. Plump black and green olives along with exquisite cheeses adorned his refrigerated display cabinets. Salamis and cured meats hung from the ceiling with twine from another era. His shelves were stocked with only the finest coffee beans, pastas, biscuits and sauces – enough to make any man’s mouth water. But her favourite foods above all the rest were the Greek desserts and French pastries that filled the woven baskets along the counter.

The selection was endless. Baklava, Turkish delight, orange semolina syrup cake, chocolate and almond Croissants – the smell that wafted towards her nose was enough to make her drool on the spot. She grabbed a basket and started filling it heartily with goods that would see her through her comfort eating binge and she added a large bag of freshly ground Italian coffee for good measure. Once filled with as much stuff as she could carry she went to wait by the cash register until Vincent returned.

She imagined he probably was out the back bringing in some extra stock for the front of the store. Her thoughts were confirmed five minutes later when a rather round and robust man walked through the back entry way with arms laden with long crusty baguettes.

“Miss Aiyana, so sorry to keep you waiting,” he apologised with a cheerful grin on his face.

“No problem, Vincent, I wasn’t in a hurry,” she said, feeling instantly brightened by his mood. He put down the bread and hurried over to ring up her order on his antique cash register. It was one of those old things that had a gold outer shell with beautiful filigree design stamped into the metal and huge big white buttons that you pressed to tally up the amount. She loved the whole feel of his shop – it was like stepping back in time.

He handed her change to her and slipped her a couple of Belgium chocolates in for good measure and offered her a wink as she left.

“Thank you Vincent, I’ll be back soon,” she promised.

She left the cheery brightness of the store only to be welcomed back into the dull grey morning that was waiting outside. The rain had abated a lot, however the continuous cloud hung low and threatening. She hurried back on down the street towards her apartment complex when she got the distinct feeling she was being followed. She slowed her pace a fraction before whipping around and scanning the area behind her. Nothing seemed out of place, just the bustling of people still going about their business.

She shrugged and continued on only to have the same unease creep back again. It was like she could feel eyes boring into her back. She was sure someone was watching her. She decided to play it cool and stopped to look in a bay window of a book store. The side panelling of the glass allowed her to see the foot traffic behind her. She was sure she caught a glimpse of a tall man with dark hair, but she couldn’t be sure.

Was she just imagining it after all that had gone on lately?
She looked harder, picking off people as she checked over them to see if they were a threat to her. The drizzle of rain on the window pane didn’t help much; it kind of distorted some of the images in the reflection.