The Virgin Vagabond

Chapter 4

”Luke! It’s me! Open the door!” said an annoyingly British female voice.

”Yes, go on, Luke. Open the door” said Kesia, mocking the female visitor by imitating her British accent. Luke rolled his eyes on her and went to open the door. The woman outside wore a tight black dress that ended right under her bottom and black leather boots that went all the way up to her thighs. Her hair was long and dark and her face was covered in too much make up. 

”Hi darling!” she said and wrapped her arms around Luke. ”And who are you?” 

She looked at Kesia like she was an inconvenience. 

”I could ask you the same” she said, ”this is my room, I think the stranger should introduce herself first.” She crossed her arms to mark her own words.

”Well, me and Luke are hardly strangers” she said with a smile, eyeing Luke in an infuriating way, ”but my name is Anne.”

”Are you sure it’s not ’Candy’ or ’Honey’ or ’Popsicle’?”

Luke tightened his jaw and looked intensely at her. She rolled her eyes, grabbed a sweater and headed for the door.

”Whatever!” she said, ”I’ll be downstairs.”

Kesia left the room and closed the door hard behind her. She stopped for a few seconds in the corridor to calm herself down. Luke had really turned out to be an ass after all. The hotel bar was not very crowded. It was scarcely lit and depressing music was playing. Most of the people seemed to be alone just like her, having a drink by the bar, curiously looking around. She hesitated for a moment. Did she really want to join the crown of drinking lonely people. Was that a club she wanted to be a part of. No. But what choice did she have? Slowly she went over to the bar and chose a stool that was available and at a small distance from the nearest person. She didn’t want anyone to try and hit on her. Suddenly she realized that she had gotten to know a a new side of herself today. The jealous side. She didn’t like it but it was necessary. The bartender came over.

”Want anything?”

Kesia thought to herself that really she just wanted to sit and sulk in peace but she probably had to order something if she was goin to occupy a seat at the bar. 

”A Cosmo, please” she said without thinking ”and some fries” she added when she felt her stomach rumble. The bartender was quick to mix her a cosmo and she drank it faster than she had planned. It felt so good in her throat. When the fries came, she just had an empty glass.

”Another?” the bartender asked and Kesia nodded. 

When Luke eventually came around she had downed her fourth cosmo and third plate of fries. He sat on a stool next to her and ordered a beer.

”You’re an asshole” she said without looking at him.

”Yes, I know. I thought about telling you before we left but then I thought that you would find out real soon anyway. I’ve always been an asshole.”

Kesia tried to keep a straight face but she couldn’t stop herself from smiling a little. 

”You could have joined us, you know” he said and bumped his shoulder against hers to get her to look at him. She snorted.

”I’m not gonna let my first time be a threesome with some cheap trash p********e!”

Luke looked at her, surprised.

”Ok, so many things to comment on in that statement” he said, ”first of all, she is not a p********e, I didn’t pay her…”

”I’m sure she wouldn’t say no if you tried” Kesia interrupted him.

”…and you’re a virgin?”

”Why is that such a surprise? Not all of us wants to give it away in some hotel room to a guy whose real name we don’t even know.”

The bartender brought over Lukes beer and he took a big sip. They sat quietly for a moment. Kesia ordered a big glass of water.

”Could we just agree on something?” she asked.

”Sure, what do you have in mind?”

”Could you just not bring girls to our hotel room?”

She looked at him for the first time since he sat down next to her and he met her gaze briefly before looking away. He nodded. 

”Thank you” she said and took a sip of her water.

”Now, you need to eat something that is not fries” he said and gestured to the bartender to come over. ”Could we have some chicken wings?”

He nodded and disappeared in to the kitchen. 

The next morning Kesia pulled the cover over her head when she woke up from the sunlight. Her head was pounding. 

”How did you sleep?” Luke whispered in her ear.

”Shut up” she replied.

”That bad huh? How about I order us some breakfast?”

He picked up the phone on the nightstand and called the front desk.

”Yes, good morning, we would like some breakfast to the penthouse. Two coffees, four croissants, some bread and cheese…”

”And bacon!” said Kesia, suddenly very awake.

”…and bacon” Luke added.

”And pancakes!”

”…and pancakes. Of course. Yes, that’s all, thank you.”

He hung up the phone and got out of the bed. 

”I’m just gonna take a quick shower” he said and went into the bathroom. 

Kesia slowly sat up in the bed and moaned at the pounding head. She reached for the glass of water on the nightstand and drank it all. Then she laid back down in the big, soft, bed. The sound from the shower mixed with the distant sound of the streets outside filled her ears when another sound suddenly cut through the others. It was her phone. 

”Hello?”

”Kesia? This is Cornelia. How is everything going?”

”Hi Cornelia! Everything is going ok I think. We have figured out what the next destination is.”

”Oh, marvellous! Is Luke there?”

Luke just came out of the bathroom and Kesia gave the phone to him.

”Hello Cornelia! Do you miss us at home?”

He was quiet for a while and Kesia tried to hear what Cornelia was saying in the other end.

”Mhm” said Luke, followed by an ”Uhu”.

Eventually he hung up and Kesia looked at him, thinking he should tell her what Cornelia had said. But he didn’t. He was just quiet.

”What did she say?” Kesia asked after a while.

”One of the teams withdrew.”

”Ok. What does that mean?”

”I don’t know but she told us to be careful.”

”Didn’t she say anything else?”

”Just that the game leaders are being really secretive about why they withdrew. They are not giving out any information.”

Kesia thought for a while. A smell reached her nose and she realized that the breakfast was coming. She got up from bed and wrapped herself in one of the bathrobes. 

”Let’s talk about it over breakfast” she said and went into the living room just in time for the knock on the door. Luke opened the door and the valet rolled in a little wagon filled with breakfast for two. Luke tipped him and then he left them. Kesia had already started on the bacon when Luke sat down next to her on the couch. 

”What do you want to do today?”

”Can we go outside?”

Luke hesitated for a moment.

”Kesia, we’re not here for the sightseeing” he said.

”I know, but maybe we can du just something. We could have Mike take us to one place, one really touristy place. Please!”

She looked at Luke with puppy eyes and eventually he yielded.

”Ok, Fine! One place.”

”Yay!”

They were interrupted by a knock on the door. It was the valet again.

”Sorry to disturb you sir, but this is for you.”

The valet gave Luke a little thing that sort of looked like a phone. Luke tipped him and closed the door. He started the little device and the display lit up.

”It’s password protected” he said.

”Try ’Assisi’.”

Luke wrote the word and a message appeared on the screen. It said ’Well done. Your next destination is Assisi. You will be picked up at your hotel Wednesday morning at 6am.’

”That’s tomorrow so then we have all day in Cape Town.”

”Yes. I’m thinking when Mike has taken us to that one thing we can have lunch and then rent a boat and go out on the water for a bit. That’s pretty safe.”

”That’s good. I like to be safe.”

”Extremely so” Luke murmured.

”What’s that?”

”I just can’t get over the fact that you’re a virgin.”

”How is that any of your business?”

”It isn’t I just… I mean…”

”What?”

”It’s really hot, that’s all.”

He looked at her and their eyes met. Kesia looked away. 

”Maybe, I don’t know.”

”Do you want to remain a virgin?”

Kesia didn’t know how to respond to that question. She was startled by it, then insulted.

”What is that supposed to mean? Do you think that I am a virgin involuntarily? Like no one wants to have s*x with me?”

”No, no! That’s really not what I meant!”

Kesia had already got up from the couch and took a croissant with her into the bathroom where she had the shower running for a few minutes before getting into it to wash off the conversation she had just had with Luke. 

Freshly showered, Kesia felt a little better. She chose suitable clothes for the small excursion they were going on. Jeans and a sweater felt like the right choice, she didn’t have anyone to impress anyway. The jeans were quite worn but they were her favorites so as she put them on she smiled a little. She hadn’t worn them since before she started working for Cornelia which suddenly made her sentimental. As she took up her phone to catch up on the messages she realized that it was weirdly quiet in the room.

”Luke?” she said but did not get an answer. 

She checked the balcony and every other space she could think of in the penthouse but he was nowhere to be found. She sat on the couch wondering where he could be. He wouldn’t leave without saying anything. Beside her in the couch she suddenly saw a piece of paper that hadn’t been there before. She picked it up, it had an adress on it. Kesia felt confused. Was she supposed to go there? The note said nothing else. What if they had taken Luke and were holding him there? Quickly, she finished getting dressed, put on her shoes and hurried out through the door. Right outside of the hotel she found Mike.

”Mike! Can you take me to this adress?”

”Sure, ma’am, get in.”

He opened her door and she got in. Sitting in the backseat of the car, she tried to catch her breath and calm herself down. Everything was probably ok. They drove for a few minutes but the place didn’t seem to be very far away because Mike pulled over.

”This is it, ma’am” he said and got out of the car to open her door. 

”Thank you, Mike” she said and payed him.

”You don’t have to do that, ma’am, I have an arrangement with your boyfriend.”

”Oh, he’s not…” Kesia stopped herself when she realized that it didn’t really matter. ”Ok” she just said instead. Mike got back in the car. Kesia looked at the piece of paper and checked the building, it was the right adress. She put on her hood and a pair of sunglasses before she carefully opened the door and went inside. There was a big hallway and a corridor straight ahead. She started walking slowly and quietly, looking to the sides as she moved forward. The electricity in the house seemed to be turned off and it smelled like mould, the place was probably closed down, awaiting demolition. Kesia could hear a distant sound of dripping and wind going through the broken windows. All the doors along the corridor were open and all the rooms empty. Her heart was pounding and she did everything in her power to control her breath. As she looked inside one of the rooms she finally saw Luke. He was sitting on a chair, hands tied behind his back and with a gag on. She almost screamed but he looked at her really calmly and shook his head slightly. Kesia eyes had gotten used to the dark by now and suddenly she saw two other people, standing right behind him, with masks on. She immediately realized that this was their seekers. Of course it was in their interest to hide their own appearance. One of them stepped forward and removed Lukes gag. He gasped like he had not been able to breathe properly.

”Kesia, you shouldn’t have come” he said without looking at her.

”Of course I had to come” she said, ”you were just gone.”

One of the masked men grabbed Kesia and pulled her closer to Luke. The other took out her phone and snapped a picture of them together. After that, they disappeared quickly through the back door. Kesia hurried to untie Luke. 

”Damn” he said while rubbing his wrists. ”They decided to play dirty right away. Most seekers get this violent when they get desperate. We got some aggressive ones this time I guess.”

Kesia didn’t say anything. She was still in a bit of a chock. Luke looked at her.

”Are you ok?” he asked and put a hand on her shoulder.

”I was just not prepared for this. You were abducted, Luke. I didn’t know what to do.”

”I know, it can feel scary, but they would never hurt me. If the seekers hurt the hiders or the other way around, you immediately get disqualified.”

He hugged her.

”You never have to worry about me, I can hold my own.”

”I know! I’m not worried about you I’m worried about me! What if they do the same in Assisi but with me?”

”We are just gonna have to stick together” Luke said and took her hand. They started walking towards the door.

”We’ve  been sticking together. We can’t go to the bathroom together.”

”That’s true. We’ll figure it out.”

Mike was waiting for them outside and opened the car door as soon as he saw them.

”Are you okay, sir?” he asked.

”Yes, thank you Mike, I’m quite alright.” 

”There is one very positive thing about this you know” Luke said when they sat down in the backseat.

”Oh yeah? What is that?”

”We don’t have to worry about them for the rest of the day. We can enjoy Cape Town without having to worry all the time.”

Kesia tried to smile but she couldn’t fight the unsettled feeling.

”I don’t know if I can enjoy myself after what happened.”

Luke smiled at her and moved a little closer.

”You are so cute when you worry” he said and kissed her forehead.

He put his arm around her and Kesia realized that she liked it, even though he acted kind of patronizing, treating her like a little child. She pushed him away.

”Keep your distance mister! I might be your junior but I’m not your daughter.”

Luke laughed and moved back to his half of the backseat. Mike turned the car around and took them back to the hotel. 

”Let’s rest in our room for a bit before we go to lunch, ok?” suggested Luke. ”Besides, there is something I have to show you.”