Mistress of Shadows

Chapter Two-3

I checked the GPS. Where was this place on the map? There was the dusty town and motel I had left, about seventy miles back, and the next one wasn’t due to show up for about another forty. But there wasn’t any indication of this strange formation, or even of the crossroads. I looked up, searched for a highway sign. Nothing. Could it be an unmarked county road? If so, even that would show up on the GPS. Or was this a private road? But then, where were the warning signs to keep out trespassers? And if it was a private road, then why did it cross a public highway? Usually private roads branched off from the main road, not intersect them. And it was narrow too, barely wide enough for one vehicle. Trying to get a better look in either direction frustrated me because of the sharp turns that hid what was to come. But curiosity about what was around the next bend was driven from my mind due to the hard beauty of the rocks and the clean, fresh air.

I breathed deep. Ah, yes. How odd, that so infertile a place seemed so full of life. And yet, why not? Not life like a regular garden, full of green, growing things, but life of another kind. Silent, still, and patient; like it waited for something to come along, the right kind of a catalyst to awaken it, so that it would follow its own path of existence, perhaps very different from the usual course, but just as worthy.

The serenity surrounded me, whispered of a path that few had trodden and that, if I wanted, I might follow that same path to fulfillment, but not without its own trials and dangers along the way. Yet, the quietude calmed me. Yes, danger, but also tranquility. Not even the sound of an approaching vehicle disturbed my new found harmony. Vaguely, I was aware of a suv slowing down on the private road, then stopping right next to me. Near enough to converse with the woman driver but not so close that I felt crowded.

“Are you lost?” she said.

“I don’t think so,” I replied, and ran my hand over one of the nearby rocks. So smooth and hard. Like water could run off it for centuries and yet would not ever be worn down. “Those who are never know, do they?”

She laughed, light and carefree. “That’s delightfully vague. But then, aren’t we all searching?”

I gave her my full attention. Dark, long hair framed a beautiful face that might be anywhere from thirty to fifty years of age. A silver ring shone on her left hand third finger. A wedding band? Sea gray eyes shot through with swirls of light gazed out, taking me in with a quick, incisive glance. “Yes, you have roamed a while,” she said.

I blinked. “How could you tell?”

She laughed again, but this time as if she had a secret – one that she might share, but not yet. “After a while I’m used to knowing the signs. So, where are you headed?”

“I...” I was going to say the usual generic line, “Oh, wherever the road takes me” or something like that, but it stopped dead on my lips. Something about this woman wanted the truth. And not just wanted, commanded.

“I, ah, was looking for a friend. We, well, we had an argument...”

She looked at me some more, her gaze intensified. “Honest simplicity. How refreshing.” She paused and I sensed she was coming to a decision. “Night is coming. I offer you shelter and, when the time is right, perhaps an answer to your question.”

“You’d take in a total stranger?”

“Well, not total. As for strange, who’s to say?”

Well, she did have a point there. One person’s strange is another person’s normal. So I hopped back on my bike, turned the key, pressed the starter, but the stupid thing wouldn’t start. I tried it again and again, but all I got was few a reluctant sputters, then nothing at all.

She leaned out the suv’s window a little bit with a tolerant, patient smile. “Good thing I came along when I did.”

“You got any jumper cables?” I said.

“Not with me. Besides, the type I have are for more delicate work. And even if I did, my juice would probably fry you.”

I glanced at her suv, then my bike. “Oh, I think I could handle it.”

“Really? Care to find out?”

Suddenly, I wasn’t sure if we were talking about roadside assistance or something else. Those eyes of hers were not only gray as the sea, but also full of depth. Gazing at them something told me that if I wasn’t careful, I might spiral down into an unknown world. It took an effort to break away and turn my attention back to the immediate trouble.

I glanced along the road, there was a downward slope. “I’ll try a rolling start.”

“You could,” she said. “But that wouldn’t fix the ultimate problem.”

Again, I got that feeling that we weren’t just talking about a piece of machinery.

“C’mon,” she said. “Hop in.”

“What about my bike?” I said, grasping for a last reason to refuse her help. “I don’t want to just leave it.”

“Oh, it’ll be fine,” she said, smooth and easy. “There aren’t many other people around here and they tend to leave my...property...alone.” She paused, like she was trying to find the right words to say. “I’ll...I’ll send one of my...field hands, to pick it up. Get it fixed in the proper time.”

I hesitated. Yes, it was just a motorcycle and if someone did steal the bike there would be others in the world to buy. I had the money. A material object, but it was my only way of getting around. Still, I was stuck, and I needed help. Looking back, maybe I should have been more suspicious, but keeping your guard up constantly is tiring, and sometimes one hopes to cross paths with an honestly helpful person. So I said to myself, why not?

I walked around and occupied the shotgun seat, noticing for the first time that the rear seat and far back windows were tinted black. So dark, in fact, that not only could anyone not see in, but also probably no one could see out. Once seated I turned my head around, but there was more of the opaque glass right behind the front seats, cutting off any chance of seeing into the back of the suv.

“Don’t let the windows freak you out,” she said. “I’ve got a... A wild beast back there. Keeping it in the dark keeps it calm to travel. He was wounded when I found him, but now he’s better and I’m letting him go.” She threw the suv into gear.

“Kind of like a catch and release program?” I asked.

She glanced sidelong at me. “Something like that.”

Past the sharp turn the private road widened out a bit and the rocks lessened. Beyond I could see others and wide open spaces, almost devoid of vegetation. Desolate, yes, but clean and pure. I found myself falling asleep, a light swoon that kept me partially in one world and the other. Eventually, we turned off the road onto a bumpy path and I sensed the suv stop. She got out and the vehicle shook a little as the animal in the back exited. I thought I heard her say, “Go. You’re free, but I’ll always watch over you.”

A few moments later off in the distance an engine roared to life. I hadn’t seen another car or truck nearby, but then I was halfway out of it and I could have easily been mistaken. The engine sound faded away and the woman returned to behind the wheel.

“Now, let’s see about you,” she said. “You’ve come along at just the right time. Lilith chose well. But I’ll decide about any leash.”

At least, I think that’s what she said. I don’t know, my head was really starting to spin and the next thing I knew the suv lurched forward and I suddenly realized that the woman beside me was dressed in leather. Then she faded into other vague shapes and faces that passed around me.

There was Raven, and the blonde waitress Norvin, and others too, even the faceless woman from my dreams. They all possessed a nether world familiarity with a combination of open, sincere welcome. Yet they also exuded a predatory stealth and I wanted to run – but either away or toward them I couldn’t tell. I floated and, at last, a sense of floating naked in midair overtook what little perception remained. Tender hands bound me in tight leather straps on my arms, legs, chest and head. A pair of soft lips kissed mine and then I was gagged. My soul cried out in pleasure and pain as I gave myself over to a new reality.