Ecstasy (5 page)

“What’s your real name, Joe?” he asks.

“Lirium.”

His gaze travels my body again, then lands on my right hand. “How’d you get the burn?”

“Same way as you, I imagine.”

He grins. “And yet, you’re working with Madam A. You’re a complicated man, Lirium.” He says this like he approves, but I’m not sure about which part.

“Look, we can exchange life stories later. Right now, I’m most interested in how we can get Ophelia out of here.” I’m assuming she can’t just walk out the front gate with me once my “appointment” with Valac is done.

“Well, that will be some trick,” he says, rubbing his chin. “Security is pretty tight.”

“There’s got to be some kind of delivery service or supplies that come in and out, right?” I ask. “If we wait until morning, maybe—”

“My sex workers don’t usually do overnights,” he says with a smile. He seems entirely too relaxed about all this.

“Well, maybe I’ll just call the police and report her kidnapped.”

He gives that no-cares-in-the-world laugh again. “The police would never touch that 911 call. Half the force is in Kolek’s pocket, and the other half are afraid of his debt collectors.”

His debt collectors… meaning Valac. “How
did
you end up here?”

“Well, that
is
an interesting story,” he says with a smirk. He glances at his palm, taps it briefly, then looks up again. “But one that will have to wait, I’m afraid. Why don’t we go see Ophelia?”

I frown. Valac was stalling for time, but not enough to convince anyone we did more than take off our shoes. “Are you this quick with all your sex workers?” I say, the suspicion creeping into my voice. “They must be very disappointed.”

He grins, climbs out of the chair, and pats my cheek as he brushes past. “Guess you’ll never know.” He pauses at the door, glancing over his shoulder before opening it. “You coming?”

I frown, but nod. Hopefully Ophelia will have some idea how to get out, once she knows I’m here to help. And Valac too. Although I’m more convinced he’ll just stand by and watch us get shot on the way out.

Valac leads me farther down the hall, away from the stairwell. He adjusts his collar and smooths back his wayward blond hair before he reaches a stainless steel door at the end. He must have a passkey programmed in his palm screen, because he simply waves his hand at the door, and it slides open. Valac strides inside, barely giving me a backward glance to see if I’m following. When I do, the door slides shut and locks behind me.

The room is expansive and filled with more of the sleek furniture I saw downstairs. The soft-white lighting makes it feel very European, and I’m guessing the Kolek mob is doing well enough to order the finest of whatever they want. Valac strides ahead to a tall, blond man fixing drinks at a bar near a fireplace at the far end. He turns, and Valac kisses him on one cheek, then the other in greeting. He hands Valac one of the drinks. They have a few whispered words before I catch up, and the man turns to me.

“Welcome to my home, Lirium.” His voice has an eastern European accent. I’m dead certain it’s Kolek, although the mob brothers are secretive, and I’ve never actually seen him before. I’m also certain that Valac has just sold me out with that kiss.

I try to keep my breathing calm. I can’t help glaring at Valac.

“Oh, now, Valac’s just doing as I asked.” Kolek’s clear blue eyes have a laugh in them as he takes a sip of his drink. “Can I make you a drink?”

“No, thank you.” My mouth is dry. “Where’s Ophelia?”

“Ah, yes. How rude of me. Ophelia, dear,” he calls to one corner of the room. “Come join us.”

I pivot in the direction he’s looking, and a door swings open to reveal a kitchen all shiny with stainless steel. Ophelia walks in, still dressed in the form-hugging dress and knee-high black boots from my apartment. Her steps are unsteady, and a purplish bruise on her face is visible even across the room. Her expression is blank, like she’s sleep-walking or in some kind of daze. She’s slowly crossing the room, but she doesn’t seem to see anything, including me. I don’t know how I’m going to get us out of this, but making a lunge for Kolek’s forehead is high on my list.

“Ophelia?” I’m hoping to shake her out of her fugue. I need to know if she can help. We won’t have much chance of escape if she can’t.

Her head snaps up, and her gaze wanders until it falls on me. She looks horror-stricken. Her mouth works. Then she gets mad. At me. “Guppy! What the hell are you doing?”

Well… at least she’s awake.

Valac gives me a derisive look, probably because of the pet name. Which I really need to discuss with Ophelia when we’re done here. She takes that moment of distraction to lunge at Valac, catching him by the wrist and yanking him off balance. He drops his drink, but the twisted look on his face isn’t from the physical stumble. She’s sucking life energy out of him.

I whirl on Kolek, planning to plant my hand on his forehead, only to find a gun pointed in my face. I freeze, hand suspended in air.

“I’d rather not waste your life, debt collector,” he says calmly. “So please don’t make me do it.”

I put both hands in the air and twist back to look at Ophelia and Valac. They’re locked in a death grip: his hands on her throat, her fingers clawing at his face. I can only imagine what’s happening inside, as they wrestle for control of their life energies. Both their faces are stricken, and they’re teetering physically. Then slowly a smirk creeps onto Valac’s face, and he bends her backward over the edge of a crisp steel-colored sofa. Ophelia’s face starts to match the color of the couch.

I whip back to Kolek. “Call off your dog!”

“And why would I do that?” he asks, as if genuinely puzzled. “You come into my house and try to steal her away from me. Surely you didn’t expect me to allow that?”

I turn. Ophelia’s eyes are starting to glass over. I look back to Kolek. “Call him off and I’ll…” I swallow. “I’ll stay with you.” That was always a possibility. I knew that coming here was potentially a one-way ticket for me.

He arches his eyebrow. “You didn’t expect me to let you leave, either, did you?”

“I’ll work for you,” I say. “Willingly. But only if I have Ophelia by my side.”

Kolek rolls his eyes to the ceiling, and tips his head back and forth, as if saying “eenie, meenie, miney, mo” in his mind. Then he shrugs. “Valac!” he calls.

Valac is still draining Ophelia of life.

“Valac, let the girl go,” Kolek says in a bored voice. “You can play with someone else later.”

Valac drops Ophelia. She falls limp on the couch. I want to run to her, but Kolek’s voice stops me. “Debt collector,” he says, quietly. “I want you to understand that if you ever pull a hand on me again, I will shoot you, then let Valac have what’s left. Are we clear?”

I manage to nod, even though every part of my body is screaming with the desire to launch myself at him, just like Ophelia did to Valac. But she’s alive, and I’d like to keep her that way. I stumble to the couch where she’s lying, still as death, but Kolek’s soft voice follows me.

“Valac, show the boy what I mean.”

Before I can shrink away, Valac has a hand on my neck. I immediately feel him pulling life energy straight through the point of contact. My heart contracts, seizing with the feeling of death. I twist around, trying to get out of his grasp and reaching for his head, but I can’t do either. Darkness is closing in on my mind.

Any skin-on-skin contact
, Ophelia’s voice reminds me. I claw at Valac’s hand on the back of my neck, getting solid contact with his wrist. I close my eyes to concentrate; my vision is fading anyway. I feel him like a malevolent cloud in my mind. I push back against it and reach through my hand… his wrist… feeling my way into his life energy. I’m draining something from him, which slows the loss a little, but not enough. I’m drawing a trickle; he’s super-flushing the life force from me.

I hear Kolek’s voice, but I can’t make sense of what he’s saying. He repeats it over and over, and finally Valac’s hand wrenches free from my neck. I nearly fall over, but manage to stay upright until I reach Ophelia on the couch.

Valac and Kolek are having a conversation, but I can’t focus on that. I hover over Ophelia, afraid that it’s too late, that Valac drained her too far. I can’t tell if she’s breathing or not. I gingerly reach for her. I can give her a little, keep her alive. As soon as I touch her, she moans and moves away.

“It’s me,” I whisper, and gently place my hand on her forehead. I give her a small boost, and it feels light, almost like no transfer at all. Her eyelids flutter, but don’t open.

“Guppy.” She barely has enough air to make sound. “You’re… an idiot.”

I smile. “What are you talking about?” I push a little more life force into her, even though I’m not sure I can spare it. A warm glow starts to form in my chest… I’m giving her a mercy hit. I brace my hand against the back of the couch, feeling dangerously weak. “I planned it this way all along.”

Her lips quirk in what would be a smile, if she had any energy to spare.

“You’re… a screw-up. Need… a mentor.” Even though she labors for the words, they make me smile harder.

My smile fades fast when Valac’s presence looms over us.

“All right, kids,” he says, “party’s over. Stand up.”

I glare up at him, but he’s serious. His skin is radiant with the life he’s drained from Ophelia. And me. I would lunge for his throat if I didn’t have the strength of a half-drowned kitten. I’m tempted to do it anyway.

I struggle up and help Ophelia roll over and off the couch. Valac continues in his life-hit-cheered voice. “A valiant effort, my friend! Entirely stupid, of course, but still a very nice try.” He looks in my eyes once Ophelia and I are both standing. “You can’t say I didn’t warn you, Lirium. That altruistic side will get you killed one day.” He cocks his head, and there’s something in his eyes I can’t quite identify. Something like sympathy. Which only makes me want to drain the life energy from him even more.

“Enjoy your rest, Lirium.” Kolek raises his glass to me, as if he’s giving me a toast. “We’ll discuss your duties tomorrow.”

My arm is under Ophelia, holding her up as we limp ahead of Valac’s bouncy step. Her knees buckle, and I bend down to lift her up. I barely avoid tumbling us both down to the plush white carpet. Ophelia’s half-dead in my arms, and I’m not far behind.

And now we’re both collectors for the mob.

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The Debt Collector Serial

EPISODE 4 –
Broken

Available 4.17.13

Lirium’s tries to free himself and Ophelia from the Kolek mob, but Valac has other plans for him.

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