Night Prayers (12 page)

"Luci! Stop with the teasing already. You're making her nervous enough and she hasn't even started work yet."

Oh God… Miriam had been in the room all the time and while Luci was…

Allison felt the room take another turn for the worse and went along with it, sliding half-way down the wall before Luci strong-armed her back into a semi-erect posture.

"I… don't feel so good," Allison whispered, hoping they'd take the hint and leave her alone.

They didn't.

"Not to worry," Miriam said as a new set of footsteps thumped toward the dressing room, "you just need a little something. Fledgies are just like little birds… all the time hungry."

"But
I
—"

"Shush — first you eat
then
we talk."

And there's dinner now
, Luci's voice whispered in Allison's ears. From the inside.

"Knock, knock," a booming voice called from the other side of the closed door, "anybody decent?"

"Lord, I
hope
not," Luci called back. "But hang on a second, Gypsy, okay?"

"I'll hang on to anything you want, Miss Luci," the strong voice chuckled, "for however
long
you want."

"That's what they all say, right Alley-cat?"

Before Allison could answer or even move, Luci was walking over the
real
pile of clothes on the chair and digging through them. When she returned she was carrying a flame red dressing gown lined in gold.

"Here," she said, helping Allison slip into it, "you're too weak to materialize anything right now. But don't worry, baby-cakes, soon you'll be able to do this without even thinking about it. Okay, Gyp… all the, all the, outs in free! Come and meet the newest member of our little family."

Luci was still naked when the knob turned and the door swung open; but the moment the man's boot crossed the threshold she was fully dressed. If one could call a vinyl thong-backed, chain-front teddy and thigh high patent leather boots being
fully
dressed.

She looked like the "Biker Bitch from Hell"… much to the newcomer's obvious delight. Winking at Allison, she walked up to the man and laced her arm through his: Mr. and Mrs. Harley-Davidson on their Wedding Day.

"Hey, Gypsy, come say
hi
to the new girl."

Luci walked him over and he nodded. Politely. Perfunctory. Not even noticing she was wearing less than Luci.

"Hello, new girl," he said then turned back to Luci.

A week earlier, Allison would have made some kind of venomous remark about his possible ancestry and walked away.

Four
days
ago, she would have slapped his face just to remind him that there really
were
such things as manners left in the world.

Her stomach grumbled in anticipation and Allison decided it was nicer living in the here and now.

So what do you think
? Luci's voice whispered.

He's a real asshole
, she answered, almost amazed at how easy it was.
We like to call it BUTT steak
.

"Gypsy," Allison said as she took the man's free hand. "Pleased to
meat
you."

Mica checked his watch against the real Rolex the kid on the skateboard was wearing.

And frowned.

That made the fifth time in the last hour Mica checked his usually faithful time piece to make sure it hadn't suddenly started running fast.

It hadn't.

And
that
made him frown all the harder.

It'd been fifty-two minutes since he carried the red-haired woman
(who wasn't Piper)
into the dressing room and Gypsy
still
hadn't come out to compare, contrast and just plain bullshit about her.

And that wasn't like him.

Mica pulled his sleeve back over the watch and folded the arm in against his chest. It didn't help much — he could still feel the case pressing into his ribs.

Dammit, what was keeping him?

Mica nodded absently to a sweating man wearing a fake-fur jacket and tie — a true
Furvert's Furvert
— then glared back at the constant shuffle of sidewalkers. Most of them probably thought he looked as ridiculous in his uniform as they did normally.

Two men in matching silver-lame tights and fringed shirts walked by hand-in-hand… just
begging
for a lecture on their dangerous and evil lifestyle… and Mica let them walk by.

Even nodded.

Absently.

Sighing, Mica shifted the position of his arms and checked the watch for the
sixth
time. Another two minutes had ticked away.

What the fuck was Gypsy DOING back there?

And with WHO?

Gina had been on stage the last two "piss breaks" Mica had taken. The first time she'd been a black panther
— snarling and growling at the cheering fur lovers. The second time she was "dressed" as a sleek otter… squirming and wriggling across the stage in such a way that made Mica decide he'd
better
use the facilities before he went back to the streets.

And she was up there again.

Mica didn't need to check personally, he could tell by the music. Luci preferred sixties Hard Acid Rock while Gina only danced to African music — full of bells and whistles and pounding drums and things that didn't have any meaning for Mica but still made him all nervous inside just from hearing it.

And it was
that
kind Mica heard pouring out of the club.

Again.

Which meant Luci was back with the red-haired woman
(not Piper)
, too.

Also.

Still.

With Gypsy.

Maybe that's what they were doing. Since Gypsy had been a music promoter in one of his "past lives" it seemed reasonable that Luci would have asked him to help decide what kind of music the
woman-who-wasn't-Piper
would use in her act.

(for a FULL HOUR?)

At the Pit.

Mica felt his belly drop into his shorts just imagining what she'd look like under the spotlights, prancing around in little more than a transparent layer of fur… showing off her private parts to a bunch of screaming men who probably did unspeakable things to their teddy bears as children.

Maybe she'd dress as a long haired orange tabby cat. With a big pink bow.

Mica's belly moved into
the. front
of his shorts.

"Lord," he said closing his eyes, "it's not what You think. I'm just concerned, that's all. It's been…" Mica opened his eyes and checked the watch again, although he knew the Lord had no need for such primitive methods. "
Shit
… excuse me, Lord, but it's been over an hour, Lord, and I was just wondering what might be keeping my friend, that's all."

Mica didn't like to lie to the Lord, but knew the Lord would forgive him when he asked later on that night… once Gypsy'd come out and explained his long delay.

In the dressing room.

With Luci and… the
other
one.

And Mica knew Gypsy was still back there because he'd asked the assistant bartender the
last
time he shoved his way to the "Little Furvert's Room". The man had nodded his stylishly moussed head back toward the dressing room and, even though Mica suspected him of being a homosexual, rolled his eyes and licked his lips when Mica asked if the redheaded woman was still back there as well.

"Oh, yeah… I would have noticed if she'd come out. Shit, did you see the legs on her? Damn! What'd they feel like when you carried her in?"

Mica had held himself back from punching the man's lights out right then and there. And actually felt bad about not having done it. Turning the other cheek was one thing, but the man needed to be taught a little respect for others with the proverbial jaw bone of an ass… this time with
him
being the ass and Mica's fist being the jaw bone.

It made Mica angry again just thinking about it.

"Show him the Truth, Lord," Mica whispered as another Furvert, this one in outdated Disco clothes, hip-hopped into the club. "Show him the only things he should really want to feel are Your Love and Forgiveness."

Her legs had been cold. As cold as if shed just stepped out of a refrigerator.

Mica exhaled loudly and tried to shake the lingering sensation of her cold flesh off his arms. It wasn't as if he'd been lacking in opportunities to have his arms around beautiful women. He saw beautiful women every day, and Luci herself had made it resoundingly clear she'd be
more
than willing to stop over sometime and look at his religious etchings…

… but there was something about the red head.

Something.

"Lord," Mica said quickly, "You've got to stand by me on this one. It's more than just the way she looks
—"
like Piper
"— and You know that because You can see into my heart. But I feel there's
something
deep inside her that longs for the Knowledge and Understanding of the mysteries that surround her."

I should be taking notes

Allison smoothed the red robe over her knees and tried to look completely at ease with what was taking place in front of her; although she'd never even
rented
anything stronger than a "R-rated" video before this. But here she was, calmly watching a live sex show…

… or as
live
as sex between a Breather and a Vampire could get.

Will you pay attention
, Luci's voice whispered in Allison's head.
Creating a Watcher isn't just like feeding… it has to be done slowly and carefully or you end up with something like Big Mike. Gina just got carried away on that one. Are you watching
?

Allison nodded although she doubted if Luci was in any position — physically or otherwise
— to have noticed. Luci had been between the big man's legs for the last five minutes… her head pumping up and down like an oil well.

"Yeah… I'm watching." Allison said out loud — just to be different. Watching the Watcher being watched. What fun.

Hang on
, Luci whispered,
the REAL fun's about to start
.

With a loud
smack
as she pulled away, Luci suddenly collapsed to the floor next to the jeans bunched around the man's ankles — panting, shoulders heaving, her face glistening with sweat.