As the human tore off into the shadows, Manuel rose to his full height. "I need to turn this weapon in to the police."
Then he just looked over at her.
"It is all right, Manuel. I can take care of my presence with the guard so naught will be known. Do what you must."
On a nod, he took out a small phoning device, opened it, and hit a few buttons. Putting it up to his ear, he said, "Yeah, my name is Manuel Manello and I was held up at gunpoint in my vehicle? I'm at the Tricounty ..."
As he spoke, she looked around, and thought she didn't want it to end like this. Except ...
"I have to go," she said as Manuel hung up. "I cannot ... be here if there are going to be more humans. It will just complicate things."
His phone slowly lowered to his side. "Okay ... yeah." He frowned. "Ah, listen ... if the police are coming, I need to remember what just happened or - shit, I've got a gun in my hand for no reason I can give them."
Indeed, it would appear that they were trapped. And for once, she was grateful for an imprisonment.
"I want you to remember me," she said softly.
"That wasn't the plan."
"I know."
He shook his head. "You are the most important piece in all this. So you have to take care of yourself and that means wiping me - "
"Dr. Manello! Dr. Manello - you okay?"
Payne glanced over her shoulder. The first human male they had seen at the desk inside was running across the lawn in a panic.
"Do it," Manuel said. "And I'll figure something out - "
As the scampering guard came up to them, Payne faced the new arrival.
"I was on my rounds," the man said, "and when I was checking the offices at the other end of the building, I saw you through the window - I ran as fast as I could!"
"We are fine," she said to the guard. "But would you look at something for me?"
"Of course! Have the police been called?"
"Yes." She touched below her right eye. "Look at me, please."
He was already locked on her face, and the extra focus just made her work easier; all she had to do was open the way into his brain and put a mental patch over everything that pertained to her.
As far as the human knew, her surgeon had come and gone alone.
She kept the man in a trance, and turned to Manuel. "You need not worry. His memories are so short-term, he will be fine."
From far off, a howling sound rang out, high-pitched and urgent.
"That's the police," Manuel said.
"Then I shall go."
"How will you get home?"
"In the same manner as I got out of your car."
She waited for him to reach for her ... or say something ... or But he just stood there with the cold, silent night air between them.
"Are you going to lie to them?" he asked. "And tell them that you scrubbed me?"
"I do not know."
"Well, in case you need to come back to do that, I'm at - "
"Good night, Manuel. Please be safe."
With that, she raised her hand and quietly, inexorably disappeared.
Chapter Forty-three
As tricks went, this one was f**king weird. "So where's your friend at?"
Karrie Ravisc, a.k.a. Kandy on the streets, had been doing the whore thing proper for about nine months so she'd seen a lot of shit. But this ...
The huge man by the motel room's door spoke softly. "He's coming."
Karrie took another toke and thought, Well, at least the one in front of her was hot. And he'd also paid her five hundred and set her up in this room. Still ... there was something off here.
Weird accent. Weird eyes. Weird ideas.
But very hot.
As they waited, she lay buck-ass naked on the bed with all the lights off. It wasn't totally dark, though. This john with the heavy wallet had set up a big boxy flashlight across the room, over on the cheapie dresser. The beam was pointed so that it shone on her body. Kind of like she was onstage. Or maybe a piece of art.
Which actually was less weird than some of the things she'd done. Shit, if prostitution didn't make you think men were nasty, sick bastards, nothing else would: Aside from your run-of-the-mill cheaters and the types who were on power trips, you had f**kers with foot fetishes, and those who liked to get spanked, and others who wanted to get pissed on.
Finishing up her White Owl, she stabbed out the stub and thought maybe this spotlight thing wasn't so bad. Some jackass had wanted to eat hamburgers off her two weeks ago and that had just been gross -
The click of the lock turning into place made her jump, and she realized with a start that someone had somehow arrived without her knowing it; that was the door being locked. From the inside.
And now there was a second man over by the first.
Good thing her pimp was right next door.
"Evenin'," she said, as she stretched mechanically for both of them. Her br**sts were fake, but they were good fake, and her stomach was flat even though she'd had one kid, and she was not just shaved, but electrolyzed.
All of which was how she got to charge what she did.
Man ... another big one, she thought as the second guy came forward and stood at the foot of the bed. Actually, this f**ker was huge. Absolutely mammoth. And not as in fat and sloppy - his shoulders were so square they looked drawn on with a ruler, and his chest formed a perfect triangle into his tight hips. She couldn't see his face, given the light that streamed from behind him, but it didn't matter as the first john stretched out on the bed next to her.
Shit ... she suddenly found herself turned on. It was the size of them and the danger of the darkness and the scents. Jesus ... they smelled amazing.
"Roll onto your stomach," the second one demanded.
God, that voice. The same foreign accent as the guy who had set this up, but so much deeper - and there was an edge to it.
"You really want to see my ass?" she drawled, as she sat up. Cupping her DDs, she hefted them and then squeezed them together. "Because the front of me is even better."
With that, she stretched one breast up and extended her tongue downward, licking her own nipple while her eyes went back and forth between the men.
"On your stomach."
Okay, clearly, there was a pecking order here: The guy lying next to her was sporting a tremendous erection, but he made no moves toward her. And Mr. Do-It-Now was the only one talking.
"If that's the way you want it."
Pushing the pillows off the bed, she made a show of the roll, twisting her torso around so that one of her br**sts was still showing. With her black fingernail, she ran circles around the tip as she arched her lower back and stuck out her ass -
A subtle growling weaved its way through the stale, still air of the room, and that was her cue. Spreading her legs, she curled the lower halves up, pointing her toes and arching her spine again.
She knew exactly what she was showing the one at the end of the bed - and his growl told her he liked what she had. So it was time to take it further. Looking back at him, she put her middle finger in her mouth and sucked on it; then she shifted her weight up and took it down to her sex, rubbing herself.
Whether it was the weed or ... shit, something about the men ... she was really frickin' horny all of a sudden. To the point where she wanted what was about to happen.
As he loomed over her, the one in charge put his hand to the front of his hips.
"Kiss her," he ordered.
She was so ready for that, even though she didn't normally allow it. Turning her face to the other one, she felt her mouth get owned by a set of soft, demanding lips ... and then a tongue entered her -
Just as big hands latched onto her upper thighs and spread her farther apart.
And another set of hands went for her br**sts.
Even though she was a professional, her mind went on a little road trip, all the shit she usually preoccupied herself with while she was doing what she did fleeing - and taking with it things like, where were the condoms? What were the ground rules?
Buckle. Zipper. And then the sliding sounds of pants going down and the bucking of the mattress as something heavy got up on it.
Dimly, she wondered whether the c**k that had been sprung was as big as the rest of the man behind her - and if it was, she thought, hell, she might be willing to give them a second round for free. Assuming they could go that long -
A blunt head pushed into her as hands lifted her hips off the mattress and got her on all fours. God, he was huge - and she braced herself for a hammering as a palm rode up her spine and fingers threaded through her short hair. He was going to yank her head back, but she didn't care. She just wanted even more of him inside -