The Arms of Evil
In absolute solitude she sat by the fireplace. Her dog Teddy, a golden lab, lay beside her on the couch with his head in her lap. She had grown tired of the ware and tare the city created on her soul. She blissfully enjoyed the piece and quiet. No phone, no TV, nobody knocking on her door at all hours of the night. It was just her, her dog and her laptop. Time for a little creative writing and well needed relaxation. It was a good thing because the snow fall was 34 inches and showed no time of stopping anytime soon. This was ok with her. Caitlin was in no hurry to get home.
Feeling relaxed for the first time in weeks, she began to drift off to sleep. Abruptly she heard a loud noise come from her doorway jolting her out of her relaxed state. Teddy began to bark. Was it an animal? Not taking any chances, she grabbed her rifle. She opened the door to find a man kneeling there. He was clearly in pain. Seeing the blood on his face and clothing, it looked like he had been in a gang fight. "Please...help me." He whispered as he passed out. He was now barely conscience.
She tried to lift him out of the doorway, but he was almost dead weight. She managed to drag him inside the door and close it. She took his shirt off and she could see he had a knife wound that went clean through. Was he stabbed with a sword?
"Now how did you get here?" She asked her mysterious visitor. "You probably need a hospital my friend. But since nature is unkind tonight, it looks like your survival is up to me. I need to get you up on the bed." Even though his wound was deadly, he was also in the beginning stages of frostbite and she needed to treat them both at once. She looked around the room for something to help her move and hopefully lift him. Remembering the wood cart with the hydraulic lift, she ran outside to get it. Putting her arms under his shoulders, she dragged him onto the cart. He let out a moan. "I'm sorry." She whispered trying to sooth him. She was then able to propel him over to the bed. She went around the other side of the bed lying across; she grabbed him under the shoulders. "Sorrythis is going to hurt." She said aloud. With all her strength she dragged him onto the bed, he screamed out loud in pain. "It's ok. I know it hurts and I'm sorry." She soothed him stroking his hair.
"I will do everything I can to help you, but I'm no doctor; you may need some unearthly intervention to pull through this." She continued to stroke his hair to sooth him. "How fortunate that you found your way to my door."
Laying her hands on his wounds, she closed her eyes. She began whispering. Soon a light emerged from around her slowly moving its way down her arms and into her hands. His wounds began to glow. She continued whispering and the light got brighter. He squirmed in pain, but she could see the color slowly coming back to his face. The glowing stopped and she knew he was now healed. He would be exhausted from the pain; he went into a deep sleep.
She went to the closet and pulled out several blankets putting them around him to warm him up. His body was still cold as ice. Thinking for a moment she went to the bathroom and filled two hot water bottles and put them at the foot of the bed. "You should be warm and toasty now." She told him putting the covers tightly around him. Teddy jumped on the bed and lay at his feet. "Good boy." She scratched him behind the ears.
Now that he was taken care of, she found herself exhausted. She took what was left of the blankets and made up the futon. She put some more wood in the stove, and then fell onto the futon exhausted.
She awoke with a start. She looked up and he was standing over her watching her. She pulled the covers around her not knowing what his intentions were.
"It's ok. I won't hurt you." He assured her. In her haste to get him warm and fixed up the night before, she did not get a good look at him. She could see he was very handsome, about her age, maybe a little older. He had a nice smile and soft brown eyes. "Great! Another puppy dog." She thought to herself. He took a step and almost fell over. She jumped up and helped him stand up.
"You lost a lot of blood. You really need to lie back down." She escorted him back to the bedroom. She felt his forehead and checked his tongue. "Your wounds may be healed, but you may have an infection because you are still running a fever. And you are very dehydrated." He was still naked, obviously not expecting her to wake up. He tried to cover up.
"Don't worry." She smiled. "You have nothing I haven't seen before. I'll go see I still have any men's clothes around here."
"How did you heal me?" He asked her. "Magic?"
She looked at him, smiling mysteriously. "Yes."
"Well, whatever you did, thank you." He said gratefully. "You know, you just saved my life and I don't even know your name."
"It's Caitlin." She replied. "I am Cait to most of my friends. And you are."
"Um, Scott." He replied. "My name is Scott."
"You look incredibly familiar. Do I know you?"
"No. I don't think so anyway." He answered studying her face.
"So what happened to you, Scott." She enquired. "Did you get jumped by a group of sword brandishing Huns in the woods?"
He laughed softly wincing in pain. "I'm not really sure what happened. I remember some guys were chasing me and I don't remember much after that. When I came too, I had been stabbed. I heard them coming back, so I climbed into a truck trailer to get away. I must have passed out again. When the truck stopped, I woke up. I wandered into the blizzard and after a while I saw your lights on."
"Well, I'm glad you're ok." She looked at him curiously. "Do you even know where you are?"
"No." He answered her a little puzzled. "I'm afraid I am at a disadvantage."
"You are near Albany. You sure came a long way. It is a miracle you survived."
She went in the kitchen and brought him some broth and bottled water. She took a cold cloth and dabbed his forehead.
He looked at her intently. "Are you a doctor?"
"Not really." She answered thoughtfully. "I mean, I don't have a medical degree, but I run a clinic in the city. There are those that call me a witch doctor."
"In the city?" He asked intrigued. "Where in the city?"
"Brooklyn." She took a sip of tea.
"Um, you don't look like a girl from the Brooklyn." He tested her. "You look very well bred; more like a girl from the Palisades."
"Very good." She replied impressed by his linguistics skills. "Ok, you caught me."
"You can take the girl out of Palisades, but you can't take the Palisades out of the girl. Did you leave your silver spoon at home?"
She giggled. "My father yanked it out of my mouth the day he kicked me out. He didn't understand my gift."
"Why is that?"
"When I was 16, my mother was dying of ovarian cancer." She recalled. "I went into her hospital room and was kneeling over her bedside to say goodbye. I was crying and I started saying a prayer. My tears spilled onto her and when they hit her they began to glow. The harder I cried the brighter they glowed." Her eyes became sad. "A few minutes later her eyes opened and she sat up. My tears had healed her."
"Did she live?"
"Yes, she did. She was not afraid of me. My father was terrified. He made me leave." She blinked back tears. "But my mother set up a trust fund for me so I could take my gift to those who need it. So I went where people need help but don't have money or decent medical care."
"Brooklyn." He said replied.
She nodded. "Brooklyn. So, what about you, Scott. What deep dark secrets do you have lurking in your closet?"
He tried not to choke on the water he was drinking. "You want to know MY secrets? I don't know. Some things are just best if they remain a mystery."
"A man of ambiguous character." She smiled a little flirtatiously. "Now I am intrigued."
"There is really nothing to tell." He lied. "I grew up in Manhattan, my father was a lawyer, my mother was a homemaker and I am an only child. I do a lot of traveling, but other than that, nothing exciting."
The zipper on her sweatshirt was zip just low enough that he could see the curve of her cleavage. He found himself wanting to see more.
"What are you looking at?" She asked him. "You keep starring at me."
"You are a very pretty girl. I'm a guy. What do you think I'm starring at?
She was flattered and maybe even a little aroused by his checking her out. But he was sick and he needed to rest.
"I think you are getting delirious from the pain." She walked over and put the blankets back over him. "Why don't you get some sleep?"
"So where did these men's clothes come from? A boyfriend? A husband?"
"Are you in any pain right now?" She asked him.
"I don't think so." He replied. "You fixed me up very well. But you didn't answer my question."
"I heard you. I'm just ignoring you. You get some sleep." She walked out of the room, turning off the light.
Her evasiveness amused him. He had to admit he was intrigued by her. He was unable to tell if her power came from the same type of genetic markers as the others. He didn't even know if the power to heal would be something he was interested in. Maybe in light of the last few days it was time to lay low and go into hiding. Perhaps this pretty lady could offer him shelter for a while.
From the crack of the door he could see her in the other room sitting in front of the fireplace reading a book. He thought she looked about 25, maybe a little older. Her hair was reddish-brown hanging just past her shoulders and she had gentle brown eyes. She was on the tall side and he could scarcely tell she had a really nice body under the loose clothing. He had not been with a woman in a while. He was in too much pain and feeling too sick at the moment, but once he felt better, perhaps he would take advantage of the opportunity.
He heard her start the shower down the hall. "Great!" He thought to himself. "Now she's naked." He pulled the covers over his head to put the impure thoughts out of his head and soon went to sleep.
A few hours later he woke up. He could hear her working on something in the kitchen area. "I think I'll go join her." He said aloud to himself. He was still sore from his wounds and still felt weak, but he was going crazy laying there.
She saw him slowly walk out from the bedroom making his way to the couch. She stopped what she was doing and went to help him.
"It's ok." He stopped her. "I got this. I'm doing much better."
When he sat down he looked at her and his jaw nearly hit the floor. When he saw her this morning he could tell she had not showered in a few days and wasn't expecting any company. Her hair was messy and she probably hadn't brushed her teeth. But now she was wearing a pair of jeans that showed off the form of her legs and butt perfectly, a v-neck red sweater that hugged the curve of her breasts. Her hair was down and had a little natural curl to it. And she smelled much better than she had before she showered.
"You clean up nice."
"Thanks. I bet you do too."
"Do you mind?"
"If you feel up to it, it's all yours. Theres some towels in the closet in there and I'll put a change of clothes in there for you."
"Are you ever going to tell me where your endless supply of men's clothes comes from? Are you the Gap, or do you have a collection of naked men locked up in the attic?"
She laughed. "Well, I don't have an attic, so I guess the former must be true." She looked up from what she was doing and looked at him slyly. "Or maybe I knew you would be coming."
"I would believe that." He smiled as he went off to take his shower.
As she heard him shut the door, she let out a heavy sigh. Even though he was a little beaten up and looked like he hadn't shaved in weeks, he was the most attractive man she had ever met. She just knew when he was showered and clean, she was going to want to rip his clothes off.
"Contain yourself Caitlin. You're acting like you're in high school. You don't even know the guy. It's the isolation and the fact you haven't had sex in over a year that is making you crazy. Yes, he is hot, but what do you know about him? He might have assorted social diseases; he could even be an ax murderer!"
But try as she might to put it out of her head, with nearly 5' of snow on the ground neither one of them were going anywhere. She knew how this night was going to end. She as attracted to him, he appeared to be attracted to her; a recipe for an evening of sweltering hot sex.
She went to get a change of clothes for him and put them in the dressing area outside the bathroom. He was standing in there buck naked. She covered her eyes and shut the door quickly. He poked his head out the door.
"Hey, this morning you saw me naked and you didn't even flinch." Goading her. "But now you're acting like a school girl. I thought you said I don't' have anything you haven't seen before."
"This morning you were a patient. Now you're the tall, dark, and naked guy in my bathroom. A lot has changed." She turned and walked away.
Laughing at her insolence, he shut the door.
Moments later he emerged, cleaner, shaved and by far the most fine-looking man she had ever seen. He was wearing a pair of jeans and a black long sleeved shirt. She wanted him badly, but she needed to play it smart.
"You look human now." She said keeping her depraved thoughts to herself. "Feel better?"
"Much better." He said sitting beside her. "There is something so re-humanizing about a shower."
"I hope you're hungry." She said motioning the food she had put on the coffee table."
"Starving." He replied.
"I'm not much of a cook, but give me a can opener and a microwave and I'm Rachael-freaking-Ray." He laughed out loud.
"It's not bad at all." He looked at her. "Thank you for taking care of me. I owe you." He poured them both some wine. "I assume you want some?"
"Of course." She replied taking the glass. "In my line of work, drinking is a necessity."
He held out his glass. "To new friends." He smiled. She clinked back.
"Cheers." She smiled back at him.
"So you never told me how a beautiful girl from the Palisades ended up in Brooklyn." He asked taking a sip.
"Well, I have been given a special gift and I wanted to share it with the world." She said taking a bite of a cracker. "I wanted to go where people who could not afford medical care could be healed."
"You said you have a clinic." He said thoughtfully. "I may know it."
"I doubt it." She replied demurely. "It doesn't exactly say 'Medical Clinic' on the front door."
"What does it say?" He enquired.
"Your not a cop, right?"
"No. I'm not a cop and I'm not going to call the police."
"It's called 'The Healing Room'." She said matter of fact. "It is a tea shop. My clinic is in the back."
He nearly dropped his glass. "Wait a minute! I know that place! Are you the lady that works behind the counter?" He replied shocked.
"That would be me." She answered.
"I didn't even recognize you! You wear those god-awful glasses, your hair is always pulled away from your face and you wear some really ugly clothes. You don't look like" he motioned to her. "this!"
"It's called trying to fit in." She laughed. "And by the way…thanks."
"It is a complement, believe me." He replied.
"So, you've been in my shop?" She asked puzzled.
"Yeah, I used to go there all the time. You have the best blend of Earl Gray." He said.
She looked at him a little skeptically. "I recognize all of my customers, but I don't remember you. If you came into my shop, I would remember you."
"I don't always look like this." He countered. "My shop was a few doors down."
"What do you look like?" She challenged him.
"I usually wear glasses."
She studied his face for a moment then stood up. "Oh my GOD!!! I knew I recognized you! You're that watchmaker!"
"You figured me out."
"Wait a minute." She started to get angry. "You said your father was a lawyer. Your father was a watchmaker, you liar!"
"Now hold it right there." He walked towards her. "Have you been completely honest with me about who you are? You hide behind a mask, just like I do. Are you being honest with yourself?"
She looked at him confused. "What are you talking about?"
"You're getting angry with me for lying to you about who I am." He spoke slow and soft. "You're the little rich girl from the good side of town, but every morning you get up, put on your frumpy clothes and pretend to be one of them, when you're not. Does anybody in the neighborhood even know who you really are? I don't' know where you live, but I bet it is not in the middle of Brooklyn! So before you go calling me a liar, take a long hard look in the mirror and ask yourself if you are being honest with yourself!"
She stood up and walked towards him, arms folded.
"Don't EVEN think about chastising me, you jerk! You lied about your father being a lawyer!"
"Is that what this is really about?" He asked skeptically. "That I told you my father was somebody he really isn't? Or is it because you want me so bad right now it is making you crazy?"
She reached out to slap him, but he grabbed her arm. "Nice." He smiled arrogantly. "But I can see right through you." Slowly he pulled her toward him. Taking his index finger he slowly stroked her neck running his down to the opening of her sweater. She began to breathe heavily, her eyes closed. He started to let his hand wander under her sweater.
He must have begun to get too confident because she was able to pull away and punched him causing him to fall over. He grabbed his wound and moaned in pain.
She ran to help him. "I'm so sorry! You're still in pain." She bent down to help him. He grabbed her and pinned her to the floor kissing her passionately. She tried to fight him off, but he was too strong. After a moment, he released his grasp on her allowing her an out if she wanted it. She didn't want to. She pulled him down returning his kiss with fire. He reached under her sweater pulling it off of her. She wasn't wearing a bra, so he immediately began to softly kiss her breasts letting his tongue run across her nipples. She pulled his shirt off pulling him back on top of her. He sat up and unbuttoned her jeans, pulling them off of her. She was wearing a black thong. "My God she's hot" he thought to himself. He pulled her panties off and took his fingers feeling inside of her. She began to moan softly. Again he kissed her, moving his fingers a little harder. He could feel her tighten up and a look of pleasure came across her face. He smiled and began to kiss her again. She sat up and started unbuttoning his jeans. He got on his knees to make it easier for her, she pulled them off. She laid him back on the floor and climbed on top of him, helping him ease inside her. She saw him close his eyes, with a look of sheer ecstasy on is face.
He let her take the lead this time. He sat up and kissed her letting his hands stroke her back and breasts. He leaned her backwards lying on top of her. It as all he could no not to release until she was ready. Feeling her muscles tighten up, he moved faster and heard her moan softly, finally he released himself moaning loudly. He collapsed against her breathing hard. She smiled stroking his hair. He looked at her and softly kissed her.
"That was pretty damn amazing." She smiled.
"That…" he responded "was momentous!"
He lay back pulling her into his arms. She pulled a blanket off the couch, tucking it around them
"So what is this?" Asking her thoughtfully as he held her.
'This?" She repeated. "You mean us?"
"Yeah?" He asked softly.
"Well, this is incredible, toe-curling, mind-boggling, amazing sex." She stoked his face, kissing him softly.
"After we go back to our lives, am I ever going to see you again?"
She closed her eyes in deep thought. "I don't know how I feel about you, Sco…Gabriel. I know you have taken my breath away and you're so handsome that I die a little more every time I look at you. But I don't know if it is just the two of us being here together that has me feeling this way, or if it is love. I have to go back to my own life to know how I really feel." She sat up and kissed him again.
"And what if we get back to our real lives and discover this is real?"
"If it is meant to be, we will find each other again."
They spent the night immersed in deep passion unknown to either of them before.
In the morning he woke to sunlight. Remembering her words from last night, he knew she was right. The world thought he was dead and it was time to move on. Perhaps start a new life.
She had a power; a power as wonderful as she was. But he would not kill her. How could he? No matter what she said, he knew a part of him loved her and probably always would. Maybe he would see her again. He knew where to find her. But for now he left her in the moment, sleeping peacefully. He kissed her forehead, took one last look and left.
Teddy bounded up to him wagging his tail, trying to get him to play. He smiled and scratched him behind the ears. "Take care of her for me, ok boy?" He looked through her closet again and found a parka and a few changes of clothes and a pair of boots. He never did find out where the clothes came from and he probably never would.
They both had their secrets and it was best to just leave it that way.