Disclaimer- The 'ardeur' belongs to L.K Hamilton; I'm just messing around with it. Pendergast belongs to Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child; I'm just messing with him too. Kel & Brett belong to me.
PART 2
"I hope these are what your friend is looking for," Kel said as I read the back covers of all three books.
"I do as well." I paid for the books, wondering why the FBI's database for cults was so out of date and debating on whether or not I should update it myself.
"Say Pendergast, what are you doing tonight?"
I looked up at her and low in my belly, the ardeur shifted and stirred. "Not much really. Why, may I ask?"
"Well," She smiled at me. "There's this play at the System tonight, and I promised Brett I would go. But I don't really want to go by myself and I was sort of hoping I could convince you to tag along."
I looked into her dark green eyes, Brett had said she wasn't happy, that she was lonely but she hid it too well. I could see it plain as day and- I don't know if it was my sex magic or if it was just me- but I suddenly didn't want that look to be there.
"That would be lovely," I said and she smiled brightly, she smiled a lot it seemed. Then again, maybe it was just me; I hadn't seen her smile at Brett. "When would you like me to pick you up?"
"I'll be home around five-thirty and the play is at seven. So in between then I reckon." She scrawled her address and number on a blank receipt and handed it to me. "Oh, those books aren't for a friend are they? They're for the FBI right?"
My eyes shot up from the receipt. "Yes," I said. "You're very intelligent Kel."
"I've been told as much…Ally." She frowned. "I think I like Aloysius better than Ally."
I only smiled slightly at her. "I'll see you later tonight."
"Yep, bye-bye."
….
Kellie set the black long sleeve shirt on her bed, took off her glasses and dried her hair with the blue towel. She let the towel drop a moment later, and knelt beside the clothes basket to search for her socks. She found a pair but was unsure of their color; she had to feel around for her glasses. When she turned back, her calico cat, Thing One, held the socks in his mouth.
"Drop them now fuzz ball." She ordered and the cat dashed out the bedroom door. "Hey! I need those! T.O. come back here!"
She pulled the black shirt on and chased after the cat. When she followed him to the living room she heard Pendergast knocking on the front door. "I'll get you," She warned the cat and opened the door.
Pendergast was wearing another of his black suits, his blonde hair combed back neatly and she suddenly remember her hair was still blue and sticking up in odd places if it hadn't been for her cat, she'd be completely dressed. Speaking of dressed – she still hadn't found a clean pair of jeans.
"Hey you," She said.
"Hello Kel," Pendergast said and she caught him looking at her pale legs under the long hem of her shirt. "I know I'm not ready yet, but Thing One took my socks, I've been chasing him."
He came inside and sat down on the edge of her sofa. "Thing One?" He asked.
"My cat, well, one of my cats."
"Ah, is there a Thing Two as well?"
She grinned at him. "Yep, she's an outdoor cat. I'll just get back my socks then we can go."
Kel could feel him watching her as she snuck up on the cat and snagged him about the waist, pulling the darks socks from his mouth. She kissed the cat's head and ruffled his fur. "I told you I'd get you T.O." She said to the cat. "Be back in a sec."
….
Kel had a nice little house out in the middle of nowhere; I almost hadn't been able to find it. From where I sat on her sofa I could see four doors, a bedroom, a kitchen, a bathroom and another room. Her living room was dominated by books, hundreds of them and there was a large TV in one corner with various gaming consoles sitting in front of it. I shared the sofa with Thing One and maybe thirty stuffed animals of pastel colors.
The cat meowed at me and I lifted my hand to pet him, he swatted at me and hissed. "He doesn't like anyone but my dad." Kel said and I turned to look over the back of the couch.
Her blue hair was completely dry, the ends curling just beneath her ears. She wore the black shirt she'd opened the door in but the sleeves were pushed up and she wore a heavy silver chain around her neck. Her legs weren't bare any more much to my dismay; she had that honey-and-milk skin tone that most redheads were lucky to have. Her jeans were charcoal and her shoes were neon green Converse, all in all, the look both contrasted and complimented her personality and the odd color of her hair.
"I should have left my hair pink a little longer," She said absently, almost like she'd heard my thought.
"You look beautiful." I said.
Kel shrugged her slender shoulders, she stood next to a bookcase and I suddenly realized how short she was, 5 feet at the most, 4'11" at the least, she was so willowy that her stature hadn't stood out before.
"Beautiful," She said. "Is a slinky black dress, I look acceptable. But compared to you…" She looked me up and down, grinning. "I'll make it through the door at least."
I felt my lips twitch then I gave in and smiled.
She pointed at me. "See! Now that's beautiful," She started laughing.
"I take it you've had more sugar." I said.
She hopped over the back of the sofa and landed in a pile of stuffed animals. "Yep, I know I shouldn't but my dad sent me some treats from Michigan and I couldn't wait. Anyway, I'm more fun when I'm sugar-high."
I was starting to see that, I looked back at her and saw her holding a bright red stuffed rabbit that was shaped wrong, she was pulling absently at its ears.
"Are you okay Kel?" I asked, she was suddenly silent and that didn't fit with all the hopping around I'd just witnessed.
"Hmm? Yep, I have a fast metabolism; the sugar-high will be gone in a few more minutes. It's sad that's all, I like being sugar-high."
"I can't remember the last time I was 'sugar-high' as you put it." I murmured, she had a quality Brett hadn't mentioned, maybe he hadn't thought to. She had effortlessly put me at ease and made it easy to talk to her as an equal.
"That is sad," She said. "I'll tell you what; we'll get sugar-high together sometime, with Brett too if you like. But I'm not aloud to have a lighter, just so you know."
I couldn't help it, I laughed, Thing One glared at me. It wasn't just her accent, it was the way she'd said the sentence that made it funny.
"Hey!" She tossed the rabbit at my head. "I'm being serious here Pendergast!" She said but then she started laughing too.
"I know," I tossed the rabbit back, she deflected it and it fell to the floor. Thing One carried it off and we laughed again.
"Oh," She chuckled. "We should get going now, Brett wanted to see me before the show." She rolled backwards off the sofa, landing in a crouch that made me wonder how much time she spent around her cats. I looked at Thing One; he looked back, chewing on the rabbit's ear.
