Unbalanced

V

Naturally, there wasn’t much chatting while they sped along the interstate, and Nic had begun to doze off. Luckily, they had reached New Orleans, and the next exit would take them right to the French Quarter.

“Hey,” Lucien hollered over the wind, “we’re almost there. You can sleep soon, but not yet.”

Shaking her head, Nic straightened up and readjusted her position. Lucien had pulled onto the exit ramp and was slowing down, which meant she was unable to justify her wrapping herself around him any longer. She did, however, decide that resting her hands on his hips was only a matter of safety. What if he took a hard turn or hit a pothole? Obviously, it made sense to keep her hands close enough to latch back on.

The humidity wasn’t any better here than it was in Florida. Seriously, why did she always end up so close to swampland? The city, however, was beautiful. Unlike any place she had ever seen in Florida, New Orleans had charm. This was a place you could tell stories about. It was also a place you could be cursed by a voodoo priestess if you weren’t careful. She didn’t get to see much of the beautiful city, as Lucien stopped outside of the first hotel she’d spotted, the Place d’Armes Hotel was only a couple of blocks from the French Quarter, on Saint Ann St. Coincidentally, this was the hotel she stayed at the last few times she had been in the city and she loved it.

Lucien parked the bike, slid off, and held a hand out for Nic. She took it and swung her leg over the seat to face him. As she lifted the helmet off her head, she grinned up at him. “How’d you know this was my favorite?” she asked.

“Is it?” he gazed up at the building in front of them, “Just got lucky, I guess. The old man was staying here last time I saw him.”

“Right,” she nodded, getting herself back on track. “How do we find this old man of yours?” she asked.

“That, we can figure out tomorrow. You need to get some sleep.”

“Wouldn’t wanna slow you down,” she quipped as she nodded her head in understanding and feigned pity.

“Fine. I need some sleep. It was a long ride and I’m beat,” he admitted.

Nic didn’t believe him. She wasn’t even sure if he needed to sleep at all, but she graciously accepted his confession and followed him into the lobby.

A few moments later they were headed into their room. Lucien had flashed that million-dollar smile at the poor girl behind the counter, as he asked if there was anything available on the top floor. She probably would’ve kicked one of the boarders out if she had to, to accommodate his wishes. Lucky for them, there was a room available facing the Mississippi river. She didn’t notice Nic until Lucien paused to ask for two beds, at which point her face fell in disappointment for a split second before she registered that they would not be sleeping in the same bed. Her excitement nearly bubbled over, then, as she peddled her tour guiding skills to Lucien and gave him her phone number in the event he needed anything while he was in the area.

Rolling her eyes, Nic followed Lucien into the room and plopped down on one of the beds. He sat down across from her on the other bed and ran his fingers through his hair, causing her to chide herself for noticing how often he repeated that gesture. For a moment, she empathized with the hotel girl and sighed in disappointment that this room had two beds. Deciding it was a side effect of the bone deep exhaustion she was experiencing, she peeled off her jacket, kicked off her shoes, and crawled under the covers. She gallantly avoided looking in Lucien’s direction the whole time and was asleep within minutes.

~~~

She was hunting in the dark alleys behind the Quarter. The wraith she followed had headed in this direction; she was sure of it. A few more steps into the shadows and something heavy slammed into her back, right between her shoulder blades. Stumbling a couple of steps, she spun to face her opponent and slid her trusted blade into her grasp. She smiled as she lunged for the monster and caught him by surprise with a boot to the face that snapped his head back. The black of his pupils bled out to fill the rest of his eyes and Nic could feel that irrational fear start to build in her chest. Taking deep even breaths she lunged at the wraith again, only this time he was prepared for her assault. He dodged to the left and let her own momentum carry her into his reach. Grabbing her wrist, he knocked the blade out of her hand and pulled her against his chest in one move. Not unlike the way Lucien had yanked her against him in the other hotel room. Before she had a chance to fight against the hold, the monster placed his foot in front her hers and knocked her off balance with his weight. She hit the ground hard, barely inhaling before the breath rushed out of her and she felt the beast land on her back. She fought with every bit of her strength but could not get herself out from under him. She had only managed to turn herself onto her back and wonder how she had let him get her in this position when the blackness started to recede from the corners of his eyes. She watched as his stormy blue eyes were revealed and flinched back. Were his eyes blue before? She didn’t think so. She blinked away her confusion and looked at the wraith again, only this time she didn’t see an enemy. It was Lucien pinning her down in that dirty alley, and suddenly Nic couldn’t breathe. She didn’t know why she was so much more afraid of Lucien than the other wraith, but her heart was trying desperately to pound right through her chest. He smiled at the fear he could see in her eyes and leaned down, his hair falling over his brows and lightly brushing her face. As she prepared herself for imminent death, she closed her eyes and waited for him to make his final move. Then she felt his weight shift on top of her and his lips press firmly against her own. She gasped in surprise and felt his tongue dart inside her mouth. Her fear vanished like it had never been and she kissed him back hungrily. When Lucien released his grip on her wrist, she wrapped her arms around his shoulders and plunged her hands into his messy hair. Her desire was building fast, and she could feel his arousal against her thigh as he pressed himself against her. Lucien pulled away to look down at her, and she was startled by the glittering black of his eyes. Just as the old fear bubbled up inside her, Lucien lunged for her throat.

“Lita! Lita!” Lucien repeated as she bolted upright on the bed. She instantly recoiled from Lucien and registered the moment the shock was overshadowed by hurt as he pulled away from her.

“I’ll give you a minute,” he whispered as he stood and headed for the balcony.

Nic flopped back onto the bed and covered her face with her hands. She was torn between the dregs of fear sparked by her dream and guilt for the hurt she had put in Lucien’s eyes. Groaning, she slid off the bed and headed for the balcony.

“Hey,” she said as she looked out toward the Mississippi.

Lucien didn’t respond.

“I’m sorry,” she started, “it was just a bad dream. I didn’t mean to..” She trailed off unsure how to finish that sentence. She didn’t want to make things worse by suggesting that she hurt his feelings. “Just, I’m sorry,” she finished lamely.

Lucien sighed, “It’s okay. I know how you feel about wraiths,” he snarked as he turned and stepped back into the room.

Nic stood there, watching the city below, for a few long moments before she decided to go for a walk. She sat on the bed and shoved her feet back into her boots, then she walked out of the room without saying another word. New Orleans was a popular city for monsters of every kind. There was a reason this place was featured in so many novels and movies. Sometimes, she wondered if those writers actually knew about the hidden world under the surface. Maybe, if she got lucky, she would find something to kill and ease the tension gripping her chest.

Not that she knew what she felt so badly about, anyway. She had just had a nightmare and woken up to find the subject of said nightmare leaning over her. Not to mention that he’s a wraith! Why should she feel bad? Anybody would have reacted the same way, wouldn’t they? Besides, what does he care how she feels about him anyway? It’s not like he cares about anything more than avenging his fallen friends. If that story of his was even true. It wasn’t long before she found herself in the network of alleys between the main streets. It was her usual hunting method. Wraiths tended to pull their victims out of highly visible areas. Unsurprisingly, it was only about ten minutes before she found what she was looking for.

“Hey! Ugly!” she yelled at the wraith pinning a young woman to the side of a brick building.

Instantly, she felt the fear rise inside of her. The bastard was hoping she’d save her own skin and keep walking. “Ooh, sorry. That trick doesn’t work on me,” she quipped.

Well, that got his attention. The wraith stepped back from the co-ed and she took off, without looking back. Smart girl.

“I love a feisty meal,” he drawled.

“Good,” Nic replied as she picked up speed and ran to meet the monster in the alley. She launched herself upwards as she reached him, flung her arm out to wrap around his neck, and flipped herself around his back pulling him down as she landed behind him. Wraiths were strong; she learned how to use her momentum to help balance the playing field. The wraith was on his back; she was poised above him, with her knee on one shoulder and her knife raised for the killing blow when she heard the footsteps behind her.

“Well, well, well. Look who’s returned to our beautiful city,” drawled a voice she’d never forget.