Space Ghost
Chapter 31
"Well look at you!" Alexis liked what she saw.
"Thanks." Kate was dressed about as casually as she dared. A picnic in a park didn't call for a dress or high heels so this was about as good as it was going to get. "Is that makeup?" Alexis squinted and studied Kate's face.
"You can stop now." At least Alexis didn't hate her any longer. In fact she was actually being nice.
"Okay just a few things before we leave. First, this place doesn't have chickens, pigs, or cows. If it looks like fish then it's fish. Some of the other seafood items are a little more suspect. And whatever you do, if it looks orange colored even a little, DON'T EAT IT! I ended up sick and threw up for hours. Dad was thinking of taking me to the hospital but the next day I was fine. Some things actually do taste like chicken, beef, or pork but it's actually something totally different. You'll find out when we run out of Earth food.
"Also if for any reason you need the police just use one of those kiosks I pointed out last time then try not to move. They're all over the place. Someone will show up in minutes or less. You have your identification. They do know about other races so don't be afraid to tell the police that you're human and from Earth. They won't know where that is but that isn't important." Alexis squeezed her hand and took her to the train station.
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"There he is, right out front. Have him take you to that train station. You know how to get home from there by now. Have fun on your date." Alexis gave her a little wave and left to go home.
He hadn't spotted her yet so she was still free to run away and do something else. However she had agreed to this date and he was easy on the eyes. Even if his paintings were a little on the dark side.
When she got closer Kate noticed that he'd spotted her but stayed right where he was.
"Hi." Kate was actually a little nervous. She hadn't dated all that much lately. Will had chosen his job over her so maybe she was a little gun shy.
"Kate. I'm happy you came. I've got everything." He lifted his basket that to Kate actually looked like a picnic basket. "Ready to go or is there someplace you need to go first?"
"Nope, I'm all set." There wasn't anything she needed now or after this date.
"This way then." He walked off and went slow to make sure Kate was next to him.
"You know I own a gallery and I paint. So what does Kate do?" Ador inquired.
"I'm a homicide detective," Kate said even if on this planet she was basically a nobody.
"Police! I would never have guessed." He was actually impressed. That told him that Kate was different. "Do I want to know where you're keeping your weapon?" He had seen uniformed officers several times and they carried their weapons in plain view. Kate, though, did not have her weapon in plain view.
Kate decided to tease him. "Nope."
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Kate was mildly amused that he took them to a spot and stopped. They didn't wait long before what she took to be a bus arrived and he waved a pass over a panel. She was quite surprised that there was no driver. "This thing's safe?" There were other people already on the bus though only they got on at this stop.
"Haven't taken these often, I see. It's perfectly safe. It can only go where sensors in the road tell it it can. It knows where it and everything is," Ador assured her.
Kate sat down and watched where they were going. She had been in this city a few times on shopping trips with Alexis. But this bus was taking her somewhere different. Still if she really had to she could find her way back.
When he got up so did she and when it stopped they got out. The road was really busy and a little noisy. She went with him over a walkway to reach the other side. There she saw a sign.
Kirstenbosch
"It's 90 acres and full of places to go." Just before entering he stopped at a kiosk and ordered a map to be printed. He paid for it and handed it to her. Kate read about a greenhouse, a restaurant, and a nursery for green thumbs and for people who wanted to take a piece of the garden home with them.
"We're going here over this bridge," Ador pointed out and requested that she guide them there. Kate liked that he was letting her lead. She liked being in control.
They actually went up a set of winding stairs until they were literally above the tallest tree. Once up there Kate watched him walk out onto a bridge for people. It had a tight wood floor, wood railing, metal spines every few feet with netting between the spines. She paused for a second and then walked out onto the bridge. About every thirty feet or so were metal posts that went down to the ground and held everything up.
Up here they both had a perfect view of the park and all of the plants and flowers below. Both of them walked very slowly. "It's gorgeous." She saw people down on the ground as well. Up here she saw a few people coming their way and then she saw a small group far behind them.
"Wait until we get to the other end," Ador teased her.
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"Does this bridge have a name?" It certainly deserved one.
"Boomslang. My parents brought me here a lot. I used to run across the bridge as fast as I could, getting my parents to yell at me. Then once I reached the other end I would run back just as fast. It was so much fun. It felt dangerous at the time but was perfectly safe. Like it is now," Ador admitted.
Kate smiled as she imagined watching a little 5-year-old boy disregarding his parents and running for all he was worth. She could even imagine herself doing the same thing.
Once they reached the end they went down another set of spiral stairs to the ground. Kate checked her map and found that from this point there were numerous trails they could walk.
"This way." He took them down a trail that had Kate looking at her map. He was taking them toward what looked like a small lake. Then he went off the path and they made their way through trees and up a set of rocks. Once they reached the top Kate saw the appeal of this spot. It was high up and there was a small patch of grass just behind them with trees behind that. It allowed them to look out onto the lake.
"How did you find this place?" She was betting it was because he had brought other women here.
"I was still just a kid. Eleven, maybe twelve years old. My best buddy and I would slip away from our parents and go exploring. We found this spot and came here as often as we could talk our parents into coming here. Then we would find rocks and throw them out into the lake. He who threw the farthest won.
"At least until our parents yelled for us." Ador put down his basket on the grass and waited for her to join him. Kate sat down across from him. Behind him was rock. To her right were trees and to her left was the lake. "What happened to your friend?" It sounded to her like it was all past tense.
"He met a girl and spent time with her instead of me." Ador sounded sad to her.
"Girls were yucky," Kate guessed since that was what boys when she was little were.
"Yeah, little did I know he was smarter than me. I stupidly got angry with him once too often and I haven't seen or talked to him since then. I'm not proud of myself for that day or how I treated him. I've learned my lesson." Girls were far better than any best buddy he would ever have.
"Yeah, boys were jerks. My friends and I called them Batshit. It was stupid but then so were the boys. Then they got older and all they thought about was sex. They didn't even try to hide the fact.
"I was what they called a tomboy. When some boy tried to kiss me or touch me I kicked his ass. I earned a nickname for that. I was actually proud of myself." Kate actually laughed.
Ador smiled. "Now you're a kick-ass police officer. Guess I better watch my manners then." He figured he was on a date with a very potentially dangerous woman.
"Pretty much. Just tell a guy that I'm police sends them running." Kate had found that usually sent them running and the first date never turned into a second.
Ador began unloading everything from his basket. "You haven't asked my why I painted you black."
Kate thought about that. Black hair, black clothes, black wings. Yet everything was ripped or dirty-looking. "I hadn't really thought about that. I just thought it was a choice."
"No, I had a reason." He handed her a drink and finished emptying his basket. "I usually get a feeling about people. You looked dark and serious. I wanted to learn why so I asked for a date," Ador stated simply.
Kate had to admit that she was usually very serious. She hunted down murderers for a living. Or at least she used to. Now she was on forced retirement.
"May I ask a question?" Ador wanted to know something.
"Shoot," Kate teased and he smiled at her.
"If I asked you to something formal would you come? It would be very formal and you would have to dress a lot less casual than this," Ador asked her as he handed her something to eat and utensils to eat with.
"Perhaps, what is it?" Kate inquired since she did actually have one dress she could wear that Lais had gotten her.
"A few galleries are going to team up for a showing. It's a good chance for a painter to get recognized. People that won't come to individual galleries will come to this. I've been asked to participate. It's very formal," Ador explained.
Kate knew she didn't usually go for such things like this. It just wasn't part of her life. But just being a homicide detective was now on hold.
She made a spur of the moment decision. "I'd love to."
"Really? That's great. Just one more thing. Have you done any modeling for artists? If you like what I do I was thinking of painting one or two of you and taking them with me for the showing," Ador said with a hopeful look.
"Once, when I was in school," Kate admitted even if she had done some modeling for a clothing designer at one time. Though she had gotten out of it.
"Great! Can you be at my gallery in two days for the first sitting? Say at the same time as today? The showing's in another month." It might be just enough time for him to paint two paintings. "You'll need to come back every couple of days for a few weeks."
"I guess so. What do you want me to wear?" Kate asked.
"It won't matter. I'll have something for you to wear each time. Thank you." He had one or two things to take already, but he was hoping for something much better with her as his model. Though maybe she would show up wearing something he could use.
They both began to eat what he had brought and Kate was careful not to eat anything orange.
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Kate came home and found the bots were still busy working on something. Going inside she only found Lais sitting there, looking like she'd actually gotten some sleep.
"Look who's back. How was your date?" Lais was curious.
"It was nice. He…he talked me into posing for him for a pair of paintings." Kate knew she was never going to live this down.
"Did he now?" Lais was all smiles.
"Something about a prestigious gallery showing that he was invited to and he wanted to create a couple of me to take with him. It sounded important," Kate said, blushing.
"Important to whom?" Lais questioned while still smiling widely.
"I knew I was going to regret this." Kate slumped and wished she had a drink. Then she remembered that they did have some on the ship thanks to Lais or Rick or someone.
"No, no. You should definitely do it. When do you start?" Lais was willing to stop teasing her if she actually went through with this.
"In two days and every two days for almost a month at his art gallery in the city."
"Then this showing is in a month. I think I got you a dress you can wear. You are going, of course." She had to go see what people thought of what he did.
"I think so." Kate was going to have to search her room to find the dress again and finally make sure that it fit her. "Where is Rafael?" She didn't see him or hear him.
"We decided to take turns caring for him except when he needs feeding." She was breastfeeding him. "So far it seems to be working. In fact I should be sleeping while I can." Lais got up and began to make her way to their room. Only to stop in front of Kate.
"Alexis tells us that he's cute. Give him a chance. I saw the painting in your room earlier. He looks like he's talented. A little dark maybe but talented. You'll have to tell us how it goes." Lais gave her a quick hug and continued into their bedroom.
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Alexis had escorted Kate down to the train station. She showed her how to call for the train and have it stop. How to swipe her pass across the panel and then when to get off. "All you have to do is repeat for the trip home. If you're going to do this every two days you don't need me for this." Alexis stopped a few stores away.
"Good luck, have fun." Alexis left Kate behind and went back to the train station.
It was an easy walk and Kate was there in no time. She was dressed simply in blue jeans, a top, and tennis shoes.
Stepping inside she actually found him showing someone around so she wandered around the gallery until he was ready for her. Kate watched the pair walk out without buying anything. She assumed that was just how things were. People either liked what they saw or didn't.
"You made it." He was happy to see her. "My assistant will take over the shop. Please follow me." He went to a door in the back and Kate followed him through.
Once in the back she saw a room that was open and had boxes of things all over. There was an area that she recognized as being a place for her to sit; he already had a blank canvas set up and paints close by.
"Please, have a seat." He stood in front of the blank canvas as Kate got comfortable. "This is going to be only your face so you're wearing is fine for now. That may change for the next one. Let me know if you get uncomfortable and need to move or have me stop. Restroom break, perhaps."
"I'm fine." Kate didn't need to do anything.
"Talk about anything if you wish. I'll ask you to stop if necessary." Ador didn't mind. In fact he wanted her to talk. He wanted to learn more about her.
He never actually seemed to paint anything for a while as he got set up and then he picked up something and started drawing. He had something in his head and he needed to see it on canvas and if his chosen canvas was large enough.
"So tell me what you do. If it isn't a secret." He had never dated a police officer so this was all new and a little exciting.
"There's really not much to tell. I get a call that there's been a murder and I arrive at the scene. I examine the body and try to understand how he or she was killed. Then search where he lived and talk to all of his neighbors. Find out more about the victim. What his life was like. Did he have any enemies."
"So you don't actually ever shoot anyone?" He wasn't sure just how a murder worked. He was thinking it was done in public and she had to chase the person down.
"No, typically the victim's already dead. Now finding who killed him or her is where things can change. Most killers don't want to be caught and think that killing the police that show up will somehow save him or her from paying for their crime," Kate explained.
"You must work at trying to stay in shape." She was clearly very athletic if maybe not just a little too thin.
"I work out when I can. I run a lot when I can. Then I do some sparing when I can find a partner," Kate said.
"You mean like fight with a person?" He was starting to think that her job really was different. Dangerous and exciting.
"Punches, kicks, throws, yes. It usually doesn't get too excessive but it can. You need to know how to fall or you can really get hurt.
He had asked enough questions and she had a few of her own. "Have you always been an artist?"
"I discovered I had a gift when I was in my late teens. At first I thought what I was seeing or feeling was something I was dreaming up. Imagination. Then I took a class in drawing and learned that I loved it. And if I took what I was dreaming I could apply it to the canvas," Ador explained.
"So what do you see when you see people and is it all people?" What he was talking about sounded like magic or fantasy. Though she'd learned not to dismiss things she didn't understand so quickly.
"Mostly it's a feeling. Only a few people actually radiate who they are inside. Maybe it's more what the person feels that they are." Ador shrugged. "It's hard to explain."
"So do you see auras around a person?" Kate had heard of such a thing and naturally had dismissed it then. However, she was now more willing to believe.
Ador chuckled. "No, nothing like that. I don't actually see colors. Mostly just black and shades of gray. The blacker the person is the blacker that person looks."
"Then what do you see when you see me? That painting you did was a lot of black and everything was in tatters or damaged." Kate was curious as to why he had chosen her for this.
"You're very dark. Just not an evil type of black or at least that's not what I feel. Learning that you're police suggests that you've killed people and doing that has darkened your soul. Not evil per se, just dark and hurt."
"My first time was an event. It was me or him so I killed him. I've heard that some people throw up and quit the job since killing was more than they could handle," Kate shared with him.
"But not you." Yes, she was dark but it wasn't really a darkness that was inside her. It felt more like a coat that she wore.
"No. …Is that bad of me?" Did he hate her now and was no longer interested in drawing her? She really did want to see what he saw and was willing to help him with his showing.
"No. Your darkness feels more like something you're wearing. What I don't know is if you're wearing it to hide and if you are, what are you hiding from?"
My walls, he sees my walls. She never really thought of her walls as being that dark.
Kate shut up and let him draw in silence.
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"We're done for today." He pulled a cover down so that she nor anyone else could see it. "I think I have what I need. You're sure this time isn't causing you any trouble?" He didn't want to take her from her job. Though as dark as she was maybe she only worked at night.
"No, this isn't interfering in anything. I have the time." She actually had nothing but time. Maybe that was why she was so willing.
"Come back in two days and we can do this again. …Can I interest you in another date?" He really wanted to learn more about her. There was something there he just couldn't see what it was and that might be what was drawing him to her.
"I…sure. Give me a heads up and I can decide what to wear for it. May I bring some friends to this gallery showing of yours?" Kate was betting her friends would be interested.
"Of course. Just tell me how many the closer we get and I'll get them some passes to allow them in." He was happy to hear that she had some friends. Maybe she actually took that black coat off from time to time. He was dying to see what she looked like and felt like when she did.