Restrained Recovery
By owelpost (drakkar@rogers.com) and windrider (chelm@netwalk.com)

Part Nine

– x –

Locating the cyber caf was harder than Alice had at first expected. She ended up driving a block too far, having to park and go hunting on foot. The caf itself was located underneath a few street level shops and Alice found that she had to go down a creepy set of narrow concrete stairs, clutching the sketchy metal railing, to get to it. She wondered how the place managed to do any business with that sort of entrance. As she pushed through the door, she figured out the kind of business they were in.

Darkness caressed every corner. Every pair of eyes swung in her direction as she allowed what little light reached the dank enclave in through the door. Most quickly took stock of her–Alice had on a pair of khaki pants and a blue t-shirt with large white Hawaiian flowers printed across the breast–and passed her off as one who had mistakenly took a wrong turn and wouldnt burden them for long. Others studied her, assessing her threat level. Apparently they judged her not to be a threat, because most returned to what they were doing after a few moments.

Alice quickly shut the door behind her. Feeling more than a little out of place, she tried to look around without seeming obvious. One entire wall was lined with computer terminals. Separating each terminal area were thick dividers, offering minimal privacy from neighboring systems. Only a handful of these stations were currently occupied. The table closest to her, tucked into the corner of the caf, was covered in books. Alice could barely make out a mop of reddish hair hiding behind a particularly large pile of books.

Overwhelmed, Alice decided the best way to find out what she needed would be to ask. She found a very bored-looking clerk with his feet up, flipping through what appeared to be a ***** magazine, behind a counter at the very back of the caf. She leaned over slightly and cleared her throat.

Youre in the wrong place, honey, the kid said, without even bothering to look up.

Excuse me?

You dont belong here, he said.

Alice felt her face go red, this last said loud enough to be heard even over the din. It was obvious he would not depart with any information regarding his clients, so Alice switched tactics. Are you refusing me service? she asked, patting the laptop case she had slung over her shoulder.

Finally the clerk looked up. His chair slid back and his feet hit the floor with a resounding thud. He stood up and peeked down at her laptop case, then allowed his eyes trail up her body to finally settle on her face. You want half an hour?

Ill pay for what I end up using, Alice said. She would much rather have liked to get out of the dingy hole in the ground, but instead she squared her shoulders, set her jaw and committed herself to trying to find out what she could. Someone had hacked her site from this caf and she was determined to find the hacker. In the back of her mind, though, she wasnt entirely sure she really cared about the answer that much.

Fine, he said, but there isnt much point in using less than a half an hour, because thats what we charge you for.

Whatever, Alice said, adopting his seemingly disinterested tone of voice. Just hook me up.

Sure, he said, directing her to a table opposite the one she had observed earlier, covered in books. He handed her a LAN cord and pointed to the network outlet in the wall. Youre on.

Thanks, she said, then added, for nothing! when he was out of earshot. Alice felt off balance as she sat down and opened her laptop. She had no intention of connecting to the internet in this place, because she didnt trust anything on her computer to become available to any of her current neighbors. In an effort to keep up appearances and not stick out any more than she already did, Alice plugged the LAN cord into the wall outlet, ran it to her computer and then very gently plugged it into the back of her system. She made sure the cord wasnt connected properly before opening up her word processor and loading her latest article.

After twenty minutes of listening and watching, Alice still hadnt learned anything. Most of the conversations she overheard had nothing to do with hacking and everything to do with things she didnt care about. She groaned as her stomach growled from lack of nourishment. Her bladder joined the protest. Alice decided that she would pack up her things and head to the bathroom, and then get the ***** out of dodge. It was becoming painfully clear that she really needed to leave the detective stuff up to Shane.

Alice packed up her things, while looking around for a bathroom. She located a short corridor just beyond the clerks desk and decided that must be the place to go. Slinging her equipment over her shoulder once more, Alice headed there. As she gently pushed open the door to the ladies restroom, she couldnt help but overhear the conversation within.

You belong to me, Rae. Alice heard the controlling, yet seductive overtones in the speakers voice. There should never be any doubt in your mind. Alice wasnt sure, but she thought she heard a slight whimper from whomever the woman was speaking to. Alice waited a beat, to see if they had noticed that she had entered, but they continued to speak as though no one were around. Alice, intrigued, peaked around the corner to see if she could spot them.

Against the wall stood the most beautiful blonde woman Alice had ever seen. Her hair looked to be long, but was now gathered haphazardly behind her head, stray ends sticking out wherever they pleased. She wore a light colored sundress, the straps falling away to expose gorgeous shoulders. The womans expression was one of fear. Pressed against her was a shorter, far more–Alice hated to think of the stereotype–butch-looking character. This one had no hair, not even the gentle fuzz of a shaved scalp tentatively growing back. Black leather pants were painted over her butt and shapely legs and her shirt was more of a vest thing, laced expertly closed in the back. Alice couldnt see both her hands, but one held a lit cigarette, the smoke trailing lazily up from the cherry.

Lee please, the blonde one gasped.

Lee moved back slightly and Alice discovered with a distinct feeling of shock that her hand was wrapped tightly around the blondes slender neck. Alice almost gasped, but bit down on her tongue just in time.

Please, what? Hmm? You were my gift, Rachel. She gave you to me. Do you understand what that means?

Rachel attempted to nod, her face becoming steadily redder. Her eyes bulged. Alice watched Rachels hands, which were pressed flat against the wall behind her, saw one clench into a tight fist. Lee must have decided that any more pressure would have killed the woman, so she eased up a bit. Rachel seemed as gratified as she could be while being bodily pressed against a wall with someones hand wrapped around her neck.

Lee stuffed her cigarette in her mouth and sucked, leaving her other hand free to trail up Rachels arm, coming to rest on her shoulder. She peeled her the hand away from the blondes neck and Alice watched a relieved look dance across Rachels face. It was fleeting–gone within seconds. Alice found herself hoping that the aggressive little woman hadnt noticed.

Ill show Susan, Lee muttered, and Alice felt the shock of alarm smash her body at the mention of the name and the sudden recognition it ignited. She swallowed hard as Lee continued speaking, she was so right to give you to me you were nothing before me. You will be nothing after me.

Lee pulled the cigarette out of her mouth and leaned forward once more, brushing her lips against the hollow of Rachels neck, in the most tender advance that Alice had yet to see from the hard woman. But the kiss did not remain gentle as Lee opened her mouth wider and clamped her teeth around the soft flesh of Rachels neck. Rachel groaned, a guttural noise of pain and pleasure mixing into one. Alice was disgusted by the trickle of blood that flowed from the bite wound, but she was even more unprepared for what happened next.

Lee deftly popped several of the buttons on the front of Rachels dress, pulled the fabric out of the way to expose Rachels chest. And before Rachel had a moment to react, Lee crammed the burning ember of her cigarette into the flesh, grinding it angrily out, as though Rachel was a living, breathing ash tray. Rachel screamed, but Lee had clamped her other hand over Rachels mouth and the noise was muffled.

Alice felt bile rise in the back of her throat. She covered her own mouth and turned away from the scene. She had seen far too much already. Hoping she was as silent as she had apparently been on the way in, Alice cut a hasty exit. She needed to get out of the caf. She needed sunlight. She needed sanity.

– x –

The wall behind the couch was bathed in the cooler light of late afternoon slanting through the windows when Dana woke up. Came to might be a more accurate description. She sat up groggily, her head still thudding though not nearly so hard or thickly as this morning. She glanced at her watch.

Oh *****! she practically yelled, realizing shed missed meeting Lara by several hours. *****, *****, *****! she muttered as she fumbled for her cell phone and speed-dialed Lara. There was no answer. Danas heart lifted. Maybe she was still at the Planet, talking to Alice and Shane, or Marina. A special early bird version of Radar would be in full swing already, and Lara was so much more comfortable in social settings than she was.

Please, oh, please let her be there, she prayed as she stood slowly, tested her legs to see if they would hold her up and let her walk without visible wobble. She made her way upstairs for a quick, hot-as-she-could-stand-it shower, only a little light makeup since she no longer looked like a dead woman walking, and picked out a nice indigo silk blouse to go under the jacket of her white pantsuit. She liked the way it felt on her skin. It reminded her of.

Oh stop it! Youre starting to act like a horny teenager, she lectured herself as she headed down the stairs, grabbed her purse and cell phone, and hurried to her car. She should have noticed the Mercedes convertible parked two doors down, and a service van just behind that. She should have noticed that as she pulled off, the convertible followed. A minute later, a tall man with a trim mustache and a smile that never reached his ice-blue eyes stepped out of the van and whistled something in a minor key as he strolled up the front walk of Danas house, tool bag in hand.

– x –

End Part Nine