"Great job, Jane," I scolded myself. "You just stole a book that has a total of-" I opened to the title page, "-seven words. That should get you about seven months in prison."
I was about to close the book again when something caught my eye. The pages were an aged yellow, but there seemed to be some sort of white glow from them. I leaned down and squinted. There was definitely some sort of light. I straightened and turned the book over in my hands. There didn't seem to be any place for a bulb, or even a battery.
"What in the-ah!" I jerked back and tossed the book.
It fell two feet from me onto the bed with its pages closed. The glow ceased to glow. I waited a few minutes in breathless anticipation of something happening, but the book just sat there. I tentatively reached out and tapped the cover with my finger. The book sat there. It looked plain and normal, but I didn't trust it.
I slid open the drawer to the closest nightstand, snatched the book from the bed, and tossed it into the drawer. I slammed the drawer shut and hopped back to the other side of the bed. Nothing happened. No explosion or strange light. I snuck close to the draw and popped it open. The book lay there, but there was no ominous glow.
I leaned against the wall behind the bed and took a deep breath.
"It's just your tired eyes playing tricks on you. . ." I muttered to myself.
That decided it for me. I hadn't slept enough during the day, and the hunger didn't help. A trip to the suite refrigerator was made, food was procured, and I felt better. I slipped into my nightshirt and shorts, and slid beneath the covers. Sleep came quickly to me, but I was destined for a strange dream.
I dreamed I woke up in the middle of the night. The room was lit by a strong white light. I thought I left the lamp on, so I rolled over. My eyes widened when I beheld the book laying open on the nightstand. The glow poured out of its open pages like thin, golden tendrils and spilled down onto the floor.
The covers on that side of the bed shifted and rose as the things slid up the side of the bed and beneath the sheets. They glided across the bed and over my body. I wanted to run from the bed, to scream, to do anything but lay there, but I couldn't. There was a strange lethargy over me that kept me from panicking. It was almost like I knew it hadn't come to hurt me, but quite the opposite.
The sheets rose and fell with the slithering, pulsing tendrils as they washed over me like a soft, warm wave. Their tips dipped beneath my shirt and brushed against my breasts. I shuddered and felt my mounds swell with sensual desire. My hands gripped the mattress sheet as more tendrils slithered beneath my shirt. They wrapped their lithe bodies around my breasts and slowly, gently massaged them.
I gasped. My pulse quickened. My chest heaved up and down. The sensual strands of light slid over my trembling flesh. Each touch stoked a burning desire inside me that I never knew existed. Every graze, every brush made me want more. I couldn't get enough of these sensual touches.
My eyes shot wide open when the tendrils slipped beneath the elastic band of my shorts. They stroked the sensitive nub that lay hidden in my wet, hot folds. I groaned and squirmed. This felt so wrong, and yet I knew it was right. I wanted this. I wanted this so badly that my body ached for it.
"Yes. Oh god, yes," I groaned.
The tendrils heard me and shuddered. Their warm bodies sank deep into my hot core. Each penetration was a new feeling of being reborn in a world of sensual desire. I knew only the feel of them as they penetrated me. They stretched my walls and filled me with longing for the delicious pleasure that was to come.
The tendrils pulled out and thrust back inside me. I leaned my head back and moaned. The warm strands of light penetrated me again and again. Each time was a new experience in love-making, a new sensation of lust that I reveled in. These creatures of light made me a creature of lust, and what I lusted for was their touch, their thrusts, their seduction.
Their bodies pressed close against my trembling, sweat-soaked flesh. I was surrounded by a warm heat of tension and desire. I wanted to stay in that sweet, sensual pleasure forever, to feel the bliss of sexual desire for all eternity. My body, though, craved completion. It demanded release from this delicious ache that engulfed my mind and soul. I needed release, and I needed it now.
"Take me," I moaned. My tongue flicked out and licked my dry lips. "Take me now."
They heard my pleas. The tendrils thrust faster. Their lithe bodies slid over me in a hot web of lust. I flailed atop the bed. My hands tugged at the sheets. I whipped my head from side to side.
"Yes! Yes! Yes!" I chanted.
These tendrils were my lover, my god, my whole world. I existed only for them to have their way with me, and I enjoyed every second of my submission. My end came in an explosion of wild pleasure. I arched my back and cried out my joy to the bright world as I was swallowed by the sexual frenzy of our love-making.
When I fell back the world was dark. So was my room. My body was covered in sweat, but no tendrils. I sat up and looked around. The room was shrouded in night. There was no sign of the creatures. I glanced at the nightstand. The book was gone. I found it in the drawer, and I drew it out and brushed my hand over the plain cover, so much like me.
"Was it all a dream?" I whispered.
No one answered my question. Not even I could.
A knock at the door made me jump. More trouble had arrived.
CHAPTER 5
I threw aside the covers and wrapped myself in a robe before I went to the front door. I opened the door and found a crowd of people in the hall. Among them was the Neapolitan group, the captain, and Archer. There was also a crewman with a badge on his shoulder that resembled a police badge. The captain stood at the head of the group and the women crowded behind him.
"Miss Jane Johnson?" the captain asked me.
"Yes. Is something wrong?" I wondered as I looked over the many faces.
The women glared at me, the captain and crewman were perplexed, and Archer stood to the side with his arms crossed over his chest. There was a deep frown on his lips, and his eyes flickered to the women.
"We're investigating the disappearance of a personal item from the dining hall, and we wondered if perhaps you knew its whereabouts," the captain explained.
Renee pushed to the front of the group and stuck her face in mine. "Where's the book?"
I started back. The accusation was clear. My hands shook, so I stuffed them under my armpits. "B-book? What book?" I stuttered.
"Don't play dumb!" she snapped. "It's the book Max brought to the table! The one he was going to give to me!"
"That is my book!" Lana argued.
"It's obviously mine. He likes me the best," Alicia countered.
The captain turned to them and held up his hand. "Ladies, if you will let me handle this," he pleaded. Renee grudgingly stepped back, and the captain turned to me. "Do you know where the book is, or who took it?"
His first question told me all I needed to know. He suspected I took it, and the three women behind him believed it.
Archer dropped his arms and moved to stand beside the captain. "Is this really necessary? As I said before, it's not worth this much trouble."
The captain shook his head. "I'm afraid a theft is a theft, and if the book's as rare as you say than it might be worth more than you think."
"I would rather drop the whole matter, at least until morning," Archer insisted.
"I'm afraid the trail might get cold. I'm sorry, Mr. Archer, but this has to be done." The captain returned his attention to me. "Miss Johnson, would you mind if we searched your suite?"
I felt the color drain from my face, but there was nothing else to do. Refusal would have looked suspicious, and I didn't want to spend the rest of my vacation under a cloud of suspicion and fear. It was better to get it out in the open.
I stepped aside and gestured to the suite. "Come right in."
The group herded into the room. The captain and crewman got down to searching the place while the others stood off to my left. I nervously watch
ed as their thorough appraisal crept closer and closer to the bedroom. I jumped when someone slipped beside me, and I looked to find it was Archer. His lips were pursed and he watched the proceedings with narrow eyes.
"I'm sorry for this," he whispered.
I shook my head. "Not as sorry as I am."
Renee pointed a finger at me. "Then you did take it!"
"Aren't you jumping to conclusions?" Archer argued.
Her face softened and she wrapped herself around one of his arms. "But Maxie, darling, it's your book, and you don't even know this woman."
"That doesn't mean she should be treated with such disrespect," he snapped.
Renee winced and slid off his arm. "But Max, you heard the captain. He has to investigate everyone."
By this time the investigation took the crewmen into my room. I clasped my hands together in front of me and prayed to any god who could hear me that the book had wormed its way between the wall and the nightstand. It was a very long moment before the men emerged from my room. Their hands were empty. The captain walked up to me and bowed his head.
"I'm sorry for the intrusion, Miss Johnson. It seems we've made a terrible error," he apologized.
Renee's mouth dropped open. "Error? Didn't you find the book?"
The captain shook his head. "No, ma'am. That being said, we must now search the rooms of the others who sat at the table."
"What?" Renee shrieked. Her girl friends behind her paled.
"Search us?" Alicia yelped.
"This is profiling!" Lana argued. "You can't search our rooms just because we sat at the table!"
"That is as much evidence as we had against this young lady, and she obliged without complain," the captain pointed out.
Renee stamped her foot on the floor and balled her hands into fists at her side. "I won't stand for it! No one is going to paw at my precious jewelry and clothes!"
Archer placed a hand on the captain's shoulder. "This is getting out of hand, John. I think you should call of your search. I can afford the loss of the book, but I don't think you can afford the bad publicity in searching every room on the ship."
The captain pursed his lips, but sighed and nodded. "Very well, but I'll need you to fill out a report."
Archer smiled and patted his friend on the shoulder. "Gladly."
"Then. . .then our rooms won't be searched?" Alicia wondered.
The captain shook his head. "No, but I would like all of you to submit a short statement of when you last saw the book."
"Of course, captain," Renee obliged.
"But tomorrow. I think we've all lost enough sleep for one night," Archer spoke up.
The captain tipped his hat at me and left the cabin. Alicia and Lana followed, but Renee held back. That's because Archer stepped up to me and smiled down at me.
"I'm really very sorry for the trouble," he apologized.
I smiled and shook my head. "It's not your fault, and it isn't the captain's, either. He was just doing his job."
"Maxie! Are you coming?" Renee whined.
He frowned and glanced over his shoulder. "You don't have to stay." Renee glared back and stomped from the room. He turned his attention back to me and his smile returned. "I hope this nightmare doesn't mean you'll stop coming to our table," he commented.
I blinked at him. "But-then. . .then you still want me at the table?"
He chuckled. "Why wouldn't I?"
I blushed and squirmed beneath his steady, innocent gaze. If he only knew what I knew.
"I-I guess I will," I agreed.
"Excellent! Then I'll see you at breakfast which should be-" he checked his gold watch, "-in about four hours."
I looked at the floor and nodded. "I'll be there."
"Good. And goodnight," he added as he stepped backwards towards the front door.
"Don't you mean good day?" I teased.
"Not until I see the sun," he quipped.
He tipped his head to me and slipped from the room. The latch clicked shut and I breathed a sigh of relief. They were gone, and my secret was safe.
But how was it safe?
I locked the front door and hurried into the bedroom. Something made me stop in the doorway. There on the nightstand, where even a blind man could find it, sat the book. My book. Its shimmering cover smiled back at me as I strode up to it. I brushed a hand across the book and furrowed my brow.
"How did you do it?" I whispered.
There was no response.
CHAPTER 6
I went to bed for the last time, and awoke at the sound of a heavy knock. My eyes creaked open and I saw the time was eight. It was four hours after the unwelcome intrusion. I sat up and rubbed the sleep from my eyes. There came another heavy knock, but it wasn't your typical knock.
Knock knock knock knock. Knock knock.
I frowned. It sounded like a tune. I threw on my robe and stumbled to the front door. The sound was just repeating when I opened the door. Archer stood in the hallway with his knuckle held up to the door. The man was impeccably dressed and as handsome as ever. He sheepishly smiled at me and lowered his hand.
"Yes?" I asked him.
"You promised me a breakfast," he reminded me.
I wiped away some eye boogers and sighed. "Right now?" I wondered.
"The breakfast is best when it's hot," he advised.
My shoulders slumped and I sighed. "All right, just let me get dressed."
I had meant to shut the door and leave him in the hallway, but he slid past me and sauntered over to the couch. "Then I'll wait here," he offered as he plopped down on said furniture.
I raised an eyebrow and closed the door. "You're really bold," I commented.
He lay an arm over the back of the couch and smiled at me. "And rich which is part of the reason I'm so bold," he explained.
I walked over to the couch and frowned down at him. "Being rich doesn't mean you should be pushy," I scolded him.
Archer's smile faded and he stood. His expression turned to a more serious look as he studied me with his handsome eyes. "I can see I've offended you. I can leave if you want-" I held up a hand with the palm towards him and sighed.
"It's fine. I think I'm just a little tired from this morning," I told him. "Just give me a few minutes and I'll be ready."
Archer plopped himself back on the couch and smiled at me. "I'll wait for as long as you need, but don't waste so long that the vultures get me," he teased.
"I'm not that type of girl," I promised him as I walked past him.
"I wouldn't expect any different from you," he returned.
I paused in the doorway and looked back at him. His back faced me, and he was engrossed in the complimentary tourist magazine offered by the ship. The way he phrased his words almost made me wonder if he didn't know me better than he let on. Still, we'd only just met the day before, so I shook off the feeling and hurriedly dressed.
I was ready in five minutes and presented myself in almost my most casual. My most casual would have meant remaining in my robe and bunny slippers.
"You know this ship pretty well, don't you?" I asked him as I walked past the side of the couch.
Archer tossed the magazine onto the coffee table and jumped to his feet. He plastered a serious look onto his face and saluted me. "Yes, ma'am."
"At ease, soldier. I just wanted to know what activities are the least crowded," I told him.
He dropped his arm and a grin slipped onto his face. "How's your shuffleboard skills?"
"About like my society skills. On life support," I quipped.
He laughed and we walked shoulder-to-shoulder to the door. "Those sound like mine, minus the society skills, but if what you're looking for is a nice, quiet time then I recommend the pool before ten in the morning and the tennis courts after ten in the evening."
"So what am I supposed to do in-between?" I asked him.
He opened the door and swept his hand towards the doorway. "I'll think of something, but first, breakfast."
"That's what I'm afraid-"
"Maxie! Maxie, there you are!" Renee called from across the hall. She closed her door behind her and walked over to us. The woman had only eyes for Archer as he stepped into the hallway and closed my door behind him. "Did I hear you say something about breakfast?"
"We were going to get some," he explained. I noticed he didn't append that comment with an invitation. Unfortunate, that didn't slow her down.
"Then I'll come with you! I'm just starving!" she offered.
Archer plastered a tense smile on his face and bowed his head. "That would be great."
"Oh, but let me tell Alicia and Lana where I'm going to be. I promised to have breakfast with them today," she told us.
She hurried over to the middle door of their three and knocked. "Alicia? Alicia, it's Renee." Renee waited patiently for ten seconds before she glared at the door and knocked harder. "Alicia, can you hear me?" Again there was no reply, so she tried the door. It was locked. "Alicia! Open up! This isn't funny!"
She pounded harder, and the noise caught the attention of my best friend from yesterday, Stuart. He strode down the hall and met us at Alicia's door.
"Is something wrong?" he asked us.
"My friend won't answer!" Renee nearly screamed.
"Could you please open the door for us? We think there might be something wrong," Archer explained.
"Of course," Stuart obliged. He inserted his master key card into the slot and swung open the door.
We were greeted with what resembled a trailer park after a double-tornado storm. The furniture was overturned and broken. The stuffing had been torn out of all the pillows and strewn about the room. The kitchen cupboards were all open, and the entirety of their contents mixed with the stuffing to create a post-apocalyptic world.
"What the hell happened here?" Renee whispered.
Max strode into the room, and Stuart and I weren't far behind. "Alicia? Alicia?" he called.
There came a groan from the closed bedroom door. The men rushed forward and hurried inside. Renee and I reached the door and gasped. Alicia lay on her stomach with her arms dangling over the edge of the bed. The sheets beneath her were tattered, as was much of Alicia's golden silk nightgown.
"Help me get her back onto the bed," Archer requested of Stuart.
The two men together grabbed an arm a piece and pulled her onto the bed, and onto her back. She groaned and her eyes fluttered open.