Lazy Days (48 page)

Roth returned to his hotel room and started to
slip his keycard into the slot, then noticed a slight crack between the door
and the frame. He pushed the door and it opened. His heart hammered as he
stepped inside the room. "Rainey!" She didn't answer. He looked down
and saw papers scattered on the floor. Bending to retrieve one, he stood and
cursed profusely in his native tongue. Rainey had disobeyed his orders and
sneaked out of the room.

Slamming the door, he stalked to the stairs and
hastened to the lobby. After scanning the room, he approached the desk clerk
and made a casual inquiry. The clerk explained he'd just come on duty.

Feeling frustrated and angrier by the second, he
left the hotel and entered the hustle and bustle outside. After walking a few
blocks, he ducked into an alley. Soaring above the buildings as Rainey's eagle,
his keen eyesight searched the city. After an hour of canvassing he still
hadn't located her. The thought that she'd been kidnapped lodged uncomfortably
in his mind.

A bright color below captured his attention—a
street vendor waving a royal blue cloth for a customer. Roth zoomed in on the
customer—Rainey. Relief and anger vied for control of his emotions. Circling,
he watched her haggle with the vendor. After much debate, she finally handed
over a bill. From the smug expression on her face, she'd knocked a home run on
the price of the scarf. Roth watched her drape it over her head and shoulders,
tying it into a knot at the base of her neck. She looked upward and her mouth
fell open. He continued circling and her gaze never strayed from him. He dove
low so she could see him better and then streaked skyward, out of her sight.
Banking and returning to the earth he landed behind a dumpster and shifted.

Running toward the bazaar, he reached it within
minutes and brushed past vendors hawking their wares and customers looking for
deals. He found the place he'd seen Rainey. Turning in a circle, he searched
for a blue scarf. The second time he circled, he glimpsed a spot of blue
disappearing into the crowd. He followed the color. When he came within twenty
feet of the scarf, he saw Rainey still looking skyward and bumping into people.

He heard her repeat, "Excuse me. Excuse
me."

Moving in an arc around the crowd he walked a
few feet in front of her and then turned around. She bumped into his chest.

"Excuse m… Uh oh. Hi, Roth."

"Jeez, Rainey, imagine finding you shopping
when you were given explicit instructions
not to leave the hotel room!"

Rainey looked upward. "Roth, I don't have
time to argue with you."

"Why do you keep looking at the sky?"

"I saw an eagle."

"Rainey, eagles do not fly in the
city."

"I know, that's why it's so weird. I think
it's my…"

"Your what?"

"Forget it. You wouldn't believe me."

Roth placed an arm around her shoulders and
guided her through the throng. "We're going back to the hotel,
now
."

Back in their room, she walked to the window and
drew open the drapes, gazing skyward.

"Will you
please
stop searching the
sky!"

She closed the drapes. Turning around she said,
"I wish you could understand…"

"What?" he prompted.

"Forget it."

* * *

Roth stared into the darkness above his head.
His mission to protect Rainey had taken a shocking twist. Since Rainey's mother
was a shapeling, it meant Rainey was half-shapeling. Roth had never experienced
the "knowing" around Rainey or her father that alerted him to the
presence of another of his kind. Perhaps her father had once been a shapeling
and chosen to change his genetics, like Endesha. Whether natural human or
changed, why would Stella marry him? Was it for love or something more? Did
Rainey have latent shapeling abilities?

He heard Rainey's bed squeak and watched her
dark figure move toward the window. She cracked the drapes and stood gazing
upward. He listened to her soft breathing. He heard a sniff and then a
strangled cry.

"Rainey?" he said softly.

She didn't answer.

He rose from his bed and walked to stand beside
her. He whispered her name again, "Rainey?"

She sniffed again.

Gently palming her chin, he turned her to face
him. Tears glistened on her cheeks and fell in a steady stream. The loneliness
in her eyes touched his heart in ways he'd never felt. Unable to stop himself,
he said,
"Soiuer,"
and gently lowered his mouth to hers. She
didn't pull away. He moved his hand to cup the back of her head and she moved
closer to him. Feathering his lips over hers, he offered comfort. Little by
little she accepted his comfort and allowed him more access to her mouth.

She lifted her hands to his bare chest, stroking
him. Moving her hands outward, she grasped his shoulders. His hands strayed to
her sides, her back. Pulling her tightly against his body, he captured her
mouth and invaded it. She reached to cup his face and then the back of his
head, pulling him closer. Her moan sent his blood to boiling. Passion took hold
of him: body, soul, and spirit; leaving nothing of his existence untouched. He
whispered the same word over and over in her ear.
"Soiuer…Soiuer…Soiuer"

Walking her backward, he gently lowered her to
the bed.

* * *

Rainey felt wonderful. Not yet fully awake, she
stretched and allowed visions of her dream to replay itself like a movie: Roth
standing beside her at the window, Roth touching his lips to hers, Roth holding
her, Roth doing delicious things to her body.

Her eyes shot open! Roth sat bare-chested across
the room watching her. She turned scarlet.
It wasn't a dream. Oh. My. God.
.

He continued staring at her. Finally, he said,
"I'm taking you back to the U.S. for reasons I can't explain. I think it's
for the best."

Rainey's mind couldn't grasp his words because
the visions in her mind wouldn't stop
.

"Rainey, did you hear me? I'm taking you
home."

She nodded like an automaton; her voice wouldn't
work. Just when she got the silent "X-rated" movie in her mind under
control, the audio kicked in. What she heard made the color of her skin change
from scarlet to fuchsia.

Roth stood wearing only low riding Levis. Rainey
couldn't remove her eyes from his body. She wanted a repeat of the night
before.

When he walked to the foot of her bed and sat on
it, she had a sudden inclination to thank God for making wishes come true.

Far from granting her wish, however, he took a
deep breath and broke her heart. "Rainey, last night was a mistake. When I
heard you crying, I just wanted to offer comfort. I didn't mean for things to
get out of control. There can never be anything between us, so I don't want you
to think there's a possibility. I'm sorry about last night."

Rainey blinked quickly to keep tears from
falling. She would not become a victim of her own heart.

Roth stood and walked to retrieve his shirt. She
held the bed sheet around her naked body and slipped out of bed. Quickly
grabbing clothing from her bureau drawer, she entered the bathroom and allowed
her tears to stream along with the water from the shower. She would permit
herself one good cry for what might have been, and then harden her heart
against her bodyguard. Turning off the shower, she stepped out, ready to return
to the United States and continue her work.

* * *

The Lear flew high above dark clouds while a
storm raged below. A storm also raged in Roth's heart. Hank had sounded
thrilled to have his daughter returning home and immediately chartered a
private jet from one of his companies based in France. From Cairo they'd flown
to London to refuel and begin the long flight back to the States. He glanced
down the aisle at the back of Rainey's seat. She'd only spoken to him in
monosyllables since his apology, and she rarely looked directly at him.

Again, Roth wondered for the thousandth time if
he had made the right decision in bringing her home. However, if a rogue
shapeling had wanted to harm or kidnap her, it could have been accomplished
long ago. Also, Rainey's escape from the hotel had solidified the fact that she
would do it again. Cairo was not the place for her to test her freedom, and
staying with her 24/7 was not an option for him. He might not be able to keep
his hands off her, even though he'd promised. Back in the States, he could
return to shift work with the other bodyguards.

Rainey removed the meager items from her
backpack. She gently unwrapped the crystal shard she'd taken from Crystal
Mountain. Its beauty mocked her misery, forever a reminder of her
adventure.
Next, she picked up the trashy novel the clerk had shoved in her face in Bawiti
and smoothed her fingers over the title,
TAMING THE BEAST.
She chucked the book at her nightstand.
It missed and fell on the floor. A paper slipped from between the pages. She
reached to retrieve it. It was the fishing trip email from Endesha. Roth had
shown her how to decode it. She lay back on the bed and pieced the words
together again.

 
Amun, Lord of
silence, without mother, without father, being everything, creates nothing.
Mut, Lady of Heaven, without mother, without father, balances everything with a
feather. Khonsu, great snake, son of Amun and Mut, fertilizes the cosmic egg with
disharmony to create.

Frustrated with the nonsensical words, she
stuffed the paper back in the cheap novel. Exhaustion soon claimed her body and
she dreamed.

Surrounded by a void, she heard only silence;
deafening and penetrating. She longed for movement, sound, anything but the
lightless void. Who was she? What was she? Where was she? Unanswered questions
trickled at first and then gained speed. Did she exist? Did anything exist? How
could she exist? The questions accelerated inside her mind but never touched
the void. Her mind wanted to explode!

Panting, she opened her eyes and bolted upright,
every impression and feeling in the dream shrouding her in a garment of
expectation.

Slowly, her mind and emotions reeled in.
What
a strange dream!

 She glanced at the clock; almost six. Her
father had welcomed her with a hug and kiss and then insisted she and Roth rest
after their long flight. He'd said they would meet for dinner. Rainey groaned
and entered the bathroom to freshen up. She hoped Roth would oversleep. She
despised him for taking advantage of her at a low point, but hated him for
apologizing for what had happened between them. His apology had lodged like a
spear in her heart she couldn't pull out.

She brushed her hair to the nape of her neck and
secured it with a clip. To think she'd even considered going to a spa and
getting a makeover made her cringe. She would not change herself for Roth.

Pulling on a fresh pair of slacks that now hung
on her because of the weight she'd lost during her forced adventure, she looked
in the mirror and shrugged.
So I'm thinner, so what; doesn't change who I
am.
She buttoned the last button on her plain grey blouse and left her
bedroom.

In the dining room, her father stood at the
fireplace mantle. Roth leaned against it, his legs crossed and his lean body
the image of perfection. His blue gaze traveled from her head to her feet. Her
heart whacked her chest. She quickly glanced away.

"Rainey, did you rest well?" asked her
father.

"Yes, thanks Dad."

"Come on, let's dine. I want to hear what
happened in Egypt. You're not still angry with me, are you? I only sent you
away because I wanted to protect you."

Roth drew her chair out. She sat to the right of
her father. Roth sat across from her.

Before she could answer her father's question,
he lifted a bell and rang it once. Immediately, two servants brought dinner out
on carts.

Laughing, Hank said, "I asked Beth to
prepare your favorite meal." He looked at Roth. "Of all the exotic
dishes in the world, Rainey's favorite is the unoriginal macaroni and cheese
with breadcrumb topping. Did you know that Roth?"

Unoriginal like me,
thought Rainey.

Roth replied, "No, sir, I didn't"

"What's your favorite food, Roth?"
asked Hank.

"I like the Egyptian dish
kurshari
."
He looked at Rainey.

She remembered the restaurant near Luxor.

Roth continued, "It sounds exotic, but it's
actually quite common in Egypt."

"So, you're both simple, down-to-earth
folks." Her father laughed and winked. He kept the dinner lighthearted.
Moving to the drawing room for dessert, Beth served coffee and cheesecake. She
gave Rainey a pat on the head. "We've missed you. Your father moped around
until he had me worried about his health."

Hank cleared his throat. "Thanks for that
tidbit of information, Beth."

The cook looked at him and shrugged, "Well,
it's true."

When Beth left the room, Hank said, "She's
incorrigible. Always says whatever she wants. I'd have fired her years ago if
she wasn't such a damn good cook." He laughed. "Seriously, she took
Rainey under her wing from a young age. Do you remember how old you were when
she started working for us, Rainey?"

"I think I was about three."

Roth smiled at Rainey. "So, she helped your
mom keep you out of trouble. With your inquisitive mind, I imagine they both
had their hands full."

She was saved from having to respond when her
father answered for her. "Rainey's mother is not what you would call the
typical soccer mom."

Roth looked at Hank with an expression
encouraging him to continue.

"I've always called Stella my butterfly.
She flits from place to place. We've been married a long time because I knew
the only way to stay married was not to net that butterfly. I've never wanted
any woman but Stella, and she's made me very happy and blessed me with
Rainey." He paused and studied his daughter. "I've tried to explain
Stella to Rainey, but she harbors resentment for her mother's absence."

"Father, I don't think Roth needs to know
all this."

"I disagree. He's your bodyguard and needs
to know everything in order to do his job well."

Although Rainey did not counter her father's
assessment, she stood to leave. "I'm still recovering from jet lag. I'll
see you in the morning, Father." She walked to his chair and kissed his
forehead. Moving past Roth, she ignored his presence.

* * *

Back in the kitchen, Beth dried a plate and put
it in the cupboard. As fine a specimen as Roth was as a human, she could only
imagine him as a shapeling. He would be—she searched for words—resplendent,
imposing, magnificent, glorious. Would Stella's revelation—confided to Beth in
a moment of weakness years ago—come to pass? The thought sent shivers down her
spine.

* * *

Rainey dreamed again. She was back in the void,
only this time her arms were stretched out from her body, palms upward. In each
palm rested a feather. Again, thoughts raced through her mind, slowly at first,
and then speeding up until they blurred together. The void allowed no release
of the thoughts trapped within her.

She snapped her eyes open. The soft glow of the
nightlight brought her back to reality.
What is this crazy dream? The
translation of the hieroglyphs has planted something in my mind.

Rising from bed, she opened the door to her
balcony and stepped into deep night. Cricket sounds greeted her and a warm
breeze blew her gown against her body, caressing it. Not wanting to, but unable
to prevent it, she remembered Roth's caresses.

Looking skyward, she searched for her eagle.
Muted illumination from a half moon played lover to the tops of trees while a
gentle wind bent leaves and branches to its will.

She did not see her eagle. Disappointed, she
returned to bed and dreamed again. Only this time, Roth haunted her night
visions. Roth above her, Roth trailing kisses from her temple to her neck, and
lower. Rainey moaned and tears leaked from her eyes, following the same path as
Roth's dream kisses.