Mackenzie Legacy, The (8 page)

“But–”

“Now you scoot, before he sees you and falls in love all over again.”

~

When she stepped back out into the casino lobby Calvin was right there, looking for her. “There you are! C’mon, let’s go eat!”

He was bubbling over with energy, taking her arm to lead her to the nearby elevators. He pressed the call button and turned to sweep her into his arms with an enormous smile. “I really think we can pull this off! I found the perfect spot you can see all the tables from…” He paused, finally noticing her serious demeanor. “Hey… You alright?”

She relaxed into his warm colors, nodding yes into his chest. The smell of him comforted her, bringing her back to reality. “Something really weird just happened.”

“Weird good or weird bad?” he asked.

Just then an elderly couple arrived on the scene, and she stretched up to whisper into his ear, “I’ll tell you at dinner.”

The elevator arrived, and when the door opened Calvin stood back, gesturing for the older couple to go ahead of them. The two men reached for the same button, and the woman smiled kindly at Caledonia.

“La Volière?”

“Yes,” Caledonia nodded shyly.

The old woman beamed at the pretty pair. “Are you two on your honeymoon?”

~

Chapter Nine

COMPED

~

The restaurant was even higher up than their room, and when the elevator door opened the view of the sun setting over the dessert was amazing. Directed to wait in a dimly lit lounge, they made their way to a quiet corner to sit side by side on a plush couch.

“So what happened?” Calvin asked.

Caledonia took a deep breath and described what she’d witnessed, and what Roxy had told her about it. The more she told him the more questions she had, and she sighed with frustration.

“Maybe there’s more than one way you can get it.” Calvin suggested.

“Maybe,” she mused, her thoughts racing. “It could be that the Athena compound is not so rare… It might exist in nature… Maybe there are a lot more people like me…”

He squeezed her hand. “There’s no-one like you.”

“She said her grandmother had it too… She called it witchcraft.”

He smiled. “I’ve always said you could do magic.”

“I wonder where she grew up. I need to go back and find out more. I need to go back and talk with her again.”

“Can I go with you?” he asked.

She nodded gratefully. Maybe if Calvin was with her Roxy wouldn’t feel so threatened. “Please. I’d like that.”

The maître‘d approached them, “Jarod Allen? Your table is ready.”

This time Calvin didn’t hesitate, taking Cali’s hand and rising to follow the man into the dining room. They were seated at a window, and now that the sky had darkened, the city of Las Vegas was pulsing with life, an oasis of light in the black desert that surrounded it. They held hands across the table and looked down at the spectacle.

“Sometimes this doesn’t even seem like it’s really happening,” Caledonia said reverently.

“I know what you mean,” Calvin agreed, and when she looked back up at him he was watching her with a goofy smile, glowing with such brilliant pink and purple love that it took her breath away. Surely he would never change, she thought… she hoped.

“I’m starving,” Calvin said. He picked up his menu, and his brows knit together in a frown. “Uh oh… It’s in French,” he whispered. “I don’t know what any of this stuff is!”

She took a look, perusing the list intently. “I can order for us if you want.”

He looked at her with amazement. “You really
do
speak French… Don’t you?”

She raised an eyebrow at him. “No… Only enough to order.”

“Are you kidding? God only knows what I’ll end up with.”

She smiled with amusement. “You can trust me. I read the Larousse Gastronomique.”

“The what?”

She turned her attention back to the menu. “It’s an encyclopedia of French cuisine.”

He snorted. “Seriously? Is there anything in the world you haven’t read?”

“Of course there is.” She looked back up to see him beaming at her and realized she was being teased.

“Does
everything
you know come from a book?” he asked.

She thought for a moment, blushing. “Not anymore.”

He grinned even wider, making her duck behind her menu. She peeked over the top, “It would serve you right if I ordered you a nice big helping of Cervelle de Veau.”

“What’s that?” he asked.

“Sautéed calves brains.”

“You wouldn’t do that to me… Would you?”

The waiter returned, and Calvin nodded towards Cali, “She’ll order for both of us.”

Caledonia smiled up at the man. “We’ll start out with the canapés le saumon fumé. And for the plat de principal… Chateaubriand pour deux… And we’ll finish with the Tarte Tatin.”

She handed the menus back to the waiter with a sweet smile, along with a little shot of eagerness that sent him scurrying off in a hurry. She suddenly realized that it was becoming second nature for her to manipulate strangers, and Roxy’s warning rang in her ears. Her face took on a grave look, worrying Calvin.

“Well?” Calvin asked, a nervous edge in his voice.

She smiled with amusement. “It’s nothing you can’t handle.”

It only took a few minutes for the waiter to return with their first course, little triangles of toast with smoked salmon and sour cream, topped with thin shavings of black truffles.

Calvin looked at his plate suspiciously. “What’s that black stuff on top?”

“It’s one of those dirt clods I found at your Grandparents,” she said with a wry smile. “I figure I should actually try truffles in a restaurant now that I have the chance.”

He shrugged, picking one off and taking a bite. “Not bad... Tastes like mushrooms.”

She was disappointed, “I thought they’d make them taste better somehow… different. Papa used to put them in the soup all the time.”

After they finished the appetizers Calvin leaned in to inspect her face. “I’m still hungry. Seriously… Exactly what did you order?”

“Seriously?” she asked, her eyes sparkling with amusement. “Meat and potatoes with apple pie,” she said.

The main course was served on a wooden plank with great fanfare, and Calvin smiled gratefully at Caledonia, pleasantly surprised to see that it really was meat and potatoes. After dinner, she took him to meet Roxy, but by the time they got down to the little stage, the hypnotist show had been replaced by a sultry lounge singer.

Calvin looked at the show schedule that was posted by the door. “We can try again after the tournament tomorrow,” he suggested.

When they got back to the room he started running water in the giant bathtub, inspecting the content of a basket of soaps and shampoos. He poured some bubble-bath under the running tap, sending a cloud of fragrant steam into the room.

Caledonia wandered over to the window to take another look at the glorious lights of the Las Vegas strip, and Roxy’s warning about the pretty trap echoed in her mind again. She turned back around to see Calvin had already stripped off his clothes and climbed into the tub. He crooked a finger at her, “Last one in is a rotten egg!”

She smiled, coming over to perch on the side of the tub. She trailed her hand back and forth across the bubbles. “Why do people say rotten egg? Is it because they float?”

He grabbed her wrist, “Get your cute little butt in here and we’ll find out.”

~

That night they lay entwined in the suite’s huge bed, wrapped in the plush white robes they’d discovered hanging in the closet. Calvin absentmindedly toyed with Caledonia’s hair, fingers coiling in the damp curls. “This is the life,” he sighed with satisfaction. “You should have a nice place like this all the time.”

“Calvin?”

“What?” he asked sleepily.

“I don’t want to stay here after my birthday. I have to go home… I need to see it again.”

“I know, but I’ve been thinking… What if the professor comes looking for you there?” Calvin asked. “I’m not sure we should risk it right away.”

Caledonia knew he had a point, but she felt compelled, pulled by powerful forces as surely as a salmon swimming upstream to its home waters. She couldn’t really explain it, but it was strengthening, and she had no desire to resist the immense tug. She had even less desire to stay and gamble any longer than they needed to. Las Vegas held no charms for her.

“Once I’m eighteen I’m finished running,” she said firmly. “If Professor Reed ever tries to kidnap me again I’ll kill him.”

Calvin raised his eyebrows at her tone; she was as serious as she’d ever been. He couldn’t help wondering what it would be like when she no longer needed him to run with, when she chose to stand her ground and fight. He hoped she’d still want him around, because there was nowhere he’d rather be than fighting alongside her.

Caledonia realized that this room was a far cry from her parent’s little cabin in the woods. In fact, they were about as different as two places could possibly be. For the first time, she began to seriously worry about her future with Calvin. She wondered how long Calvin would want to stay with her, trying to imagine him in her little house in the woods. She feared that the quiet life she yearned for would be far too dull for him.

She fell silent for a minute, thinking. “Calvin?”

“Yeah?”

“When I go back home… I might want to stay there for a little while…Until I decide about what I should do and everything.”

“Okay,” he said.

“But it isn’t anything like this back home… It’s not nice– I mean, I think it’s nice, but in a different way. I don’t think you’ll like it very much…” She paused to collect her thoughts, “I want you to know that you don’t have to go with me… I mean, if you’d rather stay in the city I’ll understand.”

He tensed up. He’d given lots of girls this kind of talk before, and he knew what it meant. It sounded to him like she was slowly backing out, easing away from him. “Don’t you want me there?” His voice cracked a tiny bit, betraying his fear.

“No!” she protested, looking over to see him projecting a sickening apprehensive green. She didn’t understand. “I mean… Yes! I mean, I only want you to know that it’s not going to be like this at all.”

He rolled onto his side, looking into her eyes intensely. “Stop it. I’d rather sleep on the ground in our
stupid little tent
with
you than anywhere else in the world
without
you.”

“I know you think that
now
, but if you change your mind–”

He spoke urgently, wanting to make himself perfectly clear, “I’ll go anywhere you want– Do whatever you want me to do… I just
wanna
be with you, okay? I won’t ever change my mind.”

“How do you know that?” she whispered, in awe of his blazing colors.

“Easy.” He leaned in to kiss her softly on the forehead. “I love you… And I’m gonna love you forever.”

~

Chapter Ten

LEAVING LAS VEGAS

~

Calvin took his seat in the tournament while Caledonia found the best possible position among the spectators. She broadcasted a back-off blue to anyone who took a spot on the rail near her, intent on getting through this final ordeal without incident. She was determined to win the tournament and put the casino life far behind her.

Hand after hand was dealt, and the stacks of chips in front of Calvin piled higher and higher. Caledonia grew fatigued as the games dragged on, and by the time they reached the final round, her head was spinning. Calvin won, flashing a jubilant smile at her before rising to shake hands with his fellow players.

She waited on the rail, her shoulders drooping with exhaustion. She watched as a man from the casino pulled Calvin aside with a friendly smile and a manipulative grey-blue aura. Calvin grew increasingly excited as the man spoke to him, shaking his hand enthusiastically before rushing over to her with his eyes on fire.

“You’re not
gonna
believe this!” he was thrilled. “He wants to move us to the presidential suite tonight!”

She looked at him wearily. “We already have a room.”

His face was glowing with excitement, “He’s going to comp us a voucher for a private helicopter tour of the Grand Canyon! This is
gonna
be so awesome– We can go on your birthday!”

She was suddenly filled with dread, feeling the walls of another cage rising up all around her. “What does he want in return?”

He pressed his lips together, looking at her hopefully, “There’s another tournament in a few days– And this time they’ll pay our entry fee… We won’t even have to risk anything! It’ll be easy money!”

“This was supposed to be the last time.”

“It’s just two more days,” he cocked his head with his usually irresistible charm.

Her voice rose, exasperated, “You said we could leave!”

“But Cali…” he said pleadingly. He looked back towards the man nervously. “I told him I’d give him an answer…”

She was tired and irritable, “First you go and blow all of the money on a truck, and now you’re letting them suck you into this… this…” she looked around the room with a shudder, “This place!”

He looked wounded. “I thought you liked the truck… I got it for you.”

The hotel’s representative approached them, a predatory smile on his face, “You’re absolutely going to
love
the suite… Shall I go ahead and book it for you?”

Calvin looked up nervously, “Uh…
Uhm
… We haven’t decided yet.”

“Why don’t we discuss it while we collect your prize money?” the man gestured for them to follow him to the barred window of the cashier.

Calvin took Caledonia’s arm to bring her along but she yanked it back bitterly. “C’mon Cali,” he said, his voice lowering, “Please?”

She glared at him, standing her ground. She had a terrible feeling that if she gave in now it would be too late to turn back, and they would be lost, every bit as doomed as Roxy and her magician boyfriend.

“No,” she said, folding her arms across her chest.

“Wait right here, alright?” he pleaded under his breath. “I’ll be right back.”

People started milling around, and Caledonia didn’t spot the two men who sidled up to flank her until it was too late. A beefy hand clamped down on each of her slender arms. “Congratulations. Looks like your boy won!”

The last time she heard that voice it was a cold night in the cemetery, and she looked up, reeling back with surprise to see the man that she’d last seen beating Calvin mercilessly. Caledonia had chased him away after pulling a knife on him, and by the way his fingers were digging into her arm, she knew that he remembered his humiliation.

“Take it easy Blondie,” he growled in her ear, his breath reeking of cigars. “Or this time your boyfriend won’t get away so easy.” His eyes were hidden behind dark lenses, and she wondered how on earth he could possibly know to wear them.

 
“When I heard my old friend Jarod was signed up to play some big-time poker… Well, you can imagine my surprise. I came early just to see him in person. But whattaya know… It’s not Jarod! Wasn’t till I saw
you
with him that I put two and two together.”

“Gotta hand it to him, the kid must be a real good card player.” He looked her up and down lasciviously, “And this time, there’s no way you’re packing a knife in
that
dress.”

She tried to wrench her arm away from him, but he clenched her tighter, his voice low and menacing, “If you have any bright ideas about making a scene, I’ll let the hotel in on your little secret, and trust me, they don’t take too kindly to liars in this town. One peep outa you and the casino guards will be all over us… He’ll lose all that money he just won… You wouldn’t want to do that to him now, would you?”

“What do you want?” she asked through gritted teeth.

He laughed, relishing her predicament. “Jarod and me have a score to settle, and since I can’t get to him, I’ll just have to take it out of your hide. Your boy over there just made some serious bank. I want twenty large or they’re gonna find out he’s not who he says he is.”

She tried to repulse him with a cold blast of fear, but she couldn’t see his eyes behind the dark lenses. She suddenly realized that he was wearing them to conceal his identity from the surveillance cameras inside the casino. She looked over at Calvin, standing at the cashier cage.

“Don’t do anything dumb, Blondie. We’re going up to my room, where we can make our transaction in private.” He turned to the man on the other side of her, “Bring him up after he cashes out. Go ahead and take your time… Blondie and I have some catching up to do.”

She glanced over to see that Calvin was still too busy to notice what was happening. Once he did, she knew he would be unable to stay calm. If a scuffle broke out inside the casino it would be spotted immediately, and security would be on them in a flash. Not only would they lose all their money, but she might also be exposed as a runaway. Either way, both she and Calvin would be in big trouble.

“Alright,” she agreed, already planning her attack.

He steered her to the elevator without releasing the tight grip he had on her arm, leaning in to spew hot breath in her ear. “Your boyfriend won’t mind if you entertain me while we wait… If you’re nice, I might just let him keep some of his money.”

The elevator door slid open, and he escorted her inside, pressing a button for the floor just below theirs. Caledonia tensed, ready to spring on him to knock off his glasses. She knew that once she made eye contact she could incapacitate him, but just as she was ready to pounce, a couple with a small child rushed in, smiling at her apologetically.

She checked herself, thinking that it would be best to disable him in the room anyway; there were surveillance cameras in the elevators and the hallways, and if they picked up something suspicious, they’d send out security in a flash. She thought she had more to fear from the casino guards than she did from the stupid thug that was trying to rob them.

She was wrong.

The instant she entered the room he clamped her in a bear-hug from behind, marching her directly to the bed. “Wait!” she cried, trying to spin around so she could make eye contact, but he shoved her onto the mattress and fell upon her with his heavy bulk.

He planted one of his knees squarely in the center of her back, immobilizing her and knocking the air out of her lungs. His arm pressed down on the back of her neck, forcing her face into a pillow. She gasped for breath, trying to strike him but unable to land more than a few glancing blows. A rough hand pulled up the back of her dress, and just when she felt like she was about to black out, the pressure eased off her neck, allowing her to turn her head to the side and catch a single breath.

She started kicking, her heels pounding into his back, her shoes flying off her feet and across the room. Angered, he grabbed her by the throat, growling into her ear, “You like it rough? Or are you gonna be nice?”

She stopped struggling, nodding and gasping, “Okay… okay… Whatever you want.”

He was momentarily distracted as he fumbled with his zipper, and he eased off her back just enough to allow her to twist around. His glasses had come off in the struggle, and when their eyes locked she put every last ounce of effort she had into sending him a tremendous blast of stupefying yellow.

He came up onto his knees, uncertainty and confusion setting in on his thick features. She rolled onto her back and drew her legs into her chest in one fluid motion, lashing out to deliver a powerful kick aimed directly at his groin. His eyes rolled back in his head as he went flying onto the floor. She got up to stand over him with shaking hands.

He was curled into the fetal position, moaning in pain. She stooped down to look at his face, her lips curled back in disgust. Caledonia thought about how he had relished beating a helpless Calvin with a sudden surge of rage; it occurred to her that she would enjoy seeing him suffer.

“Look at me,” she commanded.

She took a moment to gather her strength, and summoned a massive color bombardment of the blackest soul killing despair she could manage, dragging the depths of her grief and pain to inflict the most powerful misery she could possibly muster. It spewed out of her, leaving her drained, and she backed up a few steps, groping behind her for the edge of the bed.

~

“Congratulations!” the cashier smiled at Calvin. He insisted on taking all of his winnings in cash, and she carefully counted out stacks of hundred dollar bills, packing them into a pouch and handing them over to him. “Are you staying in town?” she asked hopefully.

He muttered something about having to go, tucking the pouch securely into his leather jacket. Calvin shook the hotel representative’s hand, taking his business card and telling him he’d get back to him about the tournament. He looked over to the brass railing to see that Cali was gone.
 

His first reaction was fear, remembering the look in her eyes when he told her about the next tournament. He knew that she hated gambling, but he never expected such an angry reaction. He was only trying to insure some comfort and security for both of them, and he felt sick inside, realizing what it must look like to her.

He’d been so blinded by the prospect of more easy money that he hadn’t really considered what she wanted, and he wondered if she was mad enough to leave him, a little trickle of fear coursing through his veins.

He went to the lounge where the magic show was scheduled to begin in an hour, but she was nowhere to be seen. Now he started to panic. He returned to wait in the card room for a while, making small talk with some players while keeping an eye on the ladies room door. He finally asked a waitress to look inside for her, disappointed when she came out shaking her head no.

Stalking through the casino anxiously, he scanned the crowds of people with mounting apprehension. He scoured the lobby, looking in the lounges and shops, his chest tightening with fear. Finally he waited for the elevator, standing with his heart pounding in his throat, hoping she would be in the room when he got there. A man with a pock-marked face approached him with a confident strut.

“Looking for your girl?” he asked sarcastically, “Jarod?”

When he looked into the eyes of the smiling, gloating man, he knew they’d been found out; he just didn’t know by whom. The blood drained out of his face. “Where is she?”

“I’ll take you to her, but it’s going to cost you…
Jarod
.”

“Where is she?” he croaked out, his stomach lurching with fear and anger. His first impulse was to jump on the man and beat it out of him. He clenched and un-clenched his fists, trying to think straight.

“Hey– Hey… Take it easy… She’s waiting for us with an old friend of yours… Now, don’t do anything stupid, or we’re going to let the casino in on your little secret.” A bell rang, an elevator opened before them, and the man gestured towards it, “After you.”

The seconds ticked by like hours, and their elevator seemed to stop at every floor on the way up. Calvin’s heart went cold with fear as he imagined what was happening to Cali. When they reached the floor he followed the man into the hall, a trickle of sweat running down the center his back.

The room door opened to reveal Caledonia sitting on the bed, looking up at them with enormous shocked eyes. The big goon from the cemetery was doubled over on the floor, sobbing and heaving as he clutched his crotch with both hands. The man next to Calvin stood dumbfounded, lifting his sunglasses to get a better look at the scene laid out before them.

“Cali!” Calvin cried out, rushing in to her side.

Caledonia looked up at him, her hair wild and her cheeks flushed. She smoothed the skirt of her dress, stood and walked calmly over to the man at the door. She looked into his eyes, and he found that he could not look away. Calvin saw his eyes glaze over and his face slacken.

Caledonia spoke to him like he was a dog, pointing to the bed, “Go sit. Stay in this room.” She stepped aside to let him pass.

“What happened? Are you alright?” Calvin asked, taking her by the arms and steadying her.

“I don’t know,” she answered, walking numbly out the door into the hallway.