"Listen, Dakota. I'm not sure what's going on here, but I know you two aren't who you seem to be. Yemaya would never allow herself to get drunk, nor would you allow it."
Maopa knew Yemaya and Dakota liked Lilith but wasn't sure how much they trusted her. Not wanting to break any confidences, she knew discretion was probably a better choice. Too tired to keep up the charade, she decided to put off the inevitable until another time.
"Now ain't a good time to be discussin' this. I thank it be best if'n I jest take this un home. She's gonna be hurtin' real bad in a few hours."
"I suspect that's putting it mildly. Do you want me to call you a cab?"
"We'd appreshate it."
Maopa gave her the address of their apartment. Mari, who had lost interest in about everything but sleeping, had settled down with her head on her folded arms.
"I don't... feel so... good,"
she mumbled and suddenly felt ravenous. Popping her head up, she groaned as the room began to spin.
"I'm hungry," she said, looking at Maopa and then Lilith.
"I don't thank that be a good idee, sweetie."
"Please. It might make me feel better." Rolling her eyes, she looked to Lilith for support.
"I can get Agra to cook up a couple of hotdogs from the grill, if you think that will help."
"Hotdogs? I love hotdogs."
"Hotdogs it is then."
Several minutes later, two hotdogs arrived, fully loaded. Maopa refused hers. Mari quickly downed the first and then looked longingly at the remaining hotdog lying on the table.
"Yah gonna hate yohself fer it later but go ahead," Maopa said.
I figures it'll be the last time yah gets this drunk, anyways,
she thought.
Feeling full, Mari was more than happy to head home. The alcohol was playing havoc with her head, and she could feel the beast moving restlessly around its cave, seeking escape from the effects of the alcohol. Obviously, it didn't care very much for Royal Fucks, and the ride home in the taxi made Mari feel the same way.
Once in the apartment, Maopa decided to let Mari go straight to bed instead of showering. Only time would solve this problem.
"Thank goodness I ken holds my likker. Then agin I always could," Maopa muttered, slipping beneath the sheets and sliding next to her unconscious partner.
M
ARI FELT BAD... really bad. She opened her eyes and flinched from the pain caused by the nightlight near the bed. "This isn't good."
The room appeared to be spinning, and she swore she'd never drink another Royal Fuck no matter how delicious they tasted. Her stomach apparently agreed. Its gurgling and rumbling made her extremely uncomfortable. Within seconds, the discomfort turned into a totally new feeling, and Mari knew the bathroom was the safest place to be until her stomach settled down.
Maopa wasn't sure what woke her up, but she was immediately aware that Mari was no longer in bed. The bathroom door was shut, and a narrow beam of light shown from beneath it. A faint sound penetrated the silence and Maopa immediately recognized it. "This ain't good. Ain't good at all."
Quietly opening the door, she peeked inside. Mari was kneeling on the floor, her head hanging over the edge of the tub. The smell of vomit permeated the air. Maopa grabbed a washrag and soaked it with warm water.
"Oh, sweetie. I knowed this was gonna happen," she murmured, pushing the hair away from Mari's face. Wiping her forehead first, she switched to her cheeks and then mouth.
"I feel awful," Mari said. "What's happening?"
Before Maopa could reply, Mari grabbed her stomach and heaved several times. Fortunately, or not, she had expelled everything from her stomach.
"Yah just be sufferin' a hangover. Nothin a few hours of sleep won't cure."
"I was asleep. This woke me up. I think I've killed my daughter."
"Nah. Yemaya's a tuff one. No li'l hangover's gonna kill her. Humans, they goes through this all the time. You'll be jest dandy in a few hours."
Another bout of the dry heaves left Mari exhausted, sore, and not too sure Maopa was right. This vacation was definitely not what she thought it would be.
* * *
After sending Yemaya and Dakota off in a cab, Lilith returned to her office to work on her bookkeeping. A knock on the door interrupted the silence.
"Come in."
"I think you need to get out here," Agra said. "You have another guest."
"Who now?"
"I'm not really sure, but some of the customers aren't very happy at the moment."
"Lead on."
The sound of wolf calls and grumbling met her at the entrance to the main room. Standing next to Bertha, who for the first time looked extremely uncomfortable, was a tall, handsome man in a dark suit and flowing cape.
"Hey, good lookin'," a woman yelled from one of the tables. "It's women only, but for you I'll make an exception. You just bring yourself right over here next to Felicia and me, and we'll make you feel right at home."
"Shut up, Cracker. Maybe you'll fuck a man, but some of us don't care how good-lookin' they are. Men don't belong here."
"Yeah," another piped in.
"Meeeowwww," a voice said from across the room. "Looks like we're gonna have a cat fight, ladies."
Completely ignoring the comments, the stranger focused on Lilith and gave her an imperceptible nod.
"Ladies," she said, "I think I'll decide who can come in here and who can't. This gentleman happens to be an old friend of mine, so be nice."
"I thought you was a dyke like the rest of us," Cracker yelled.
"Speak for yourself, Cracker," a woman answered back. "No one said this was a fuckin' dyke club. It's a women's club. Besides, ain't you the one trying to put the make on this guy?"
"Enough!" Lilith glared at the two women and then glanced around the room. Immediately things settled down, although she heard a few grumbles about some people having more privileges than others.
Deciding it was time that everyone understood she set the rules, Lilith snapped her fingers loudly and then signaled Mudada and Bertha to remove the complainers.
"Let's get one thing straight in here, ladies. This is my nightclub. I make the rules, and I expect you to obey them. If you don't like them, feel free to go elsewhere, but never, and I mean never, ever challenge me again. Now, for all of you who have so kindly decided to stay, the next drink is on the house."
A loud cheer drowned out the whining of the two dissidents as they were escorted to the door and ordered off the property. Two young women, who had been standing in line waiting to get in, pushed their way in after their I.D.s were checked by Bertha.
Lilith walked over to the man and smiled. "This is an unexpected surprise. What's so important that you would leave your sanctuary to enter a women's only club?"
"I've missed our talks."
"Uh huh. Let's go back to my office, and we'll see what's really behind the visit. As pleasant and enjoyable as our chats have been, I doubt you would come here just to talk."
Not wanting to disturb him, Lilith didn't say anything as the dark figure paced back and forth. He would speak when he was ready. His unexpected visit to her nightclub had caught her by surprise, as well as her clientele. "Lilith's Den" was a "women only" establishment. Most of her customers took the restriction very seriously. Seeing a man strolling in as if he owned the place (no matter how handsome he was) didn't make them happy. Of course, it didn't help that most of the clientele were lesbians. A knock on her office door interrupted her musings.
"Enter," she said.
Kali walked in, carrying two glasses filled with ice and two cans of soda. "Here's the Cokes," she said, laying the tray on her boss's desk.
"Thanks, Kali. That's all for now. I'll be tied up for a while, but call me if you need me."
Kali backed up a few steps, abruptly turned, and departed.
"She doesn't like me," Intunecat said. He walked over and picked up his drink. "I don't know what it is about this stuff, but I find it interesting— almost addictive, if such a thing were possible."
"Anything is possible."
"So I'm beginning to believe."
"Why are you here, Intunecat?" Lilith asked quietly. "The mortal world isn't exactly you favorite haunt."
Intunecat lowered his long body into the chair next to her desk. "I'm a spirit, not a ghost," he said with a chuckle.
"Oh, right. I forgot," she teased. "So, back to my question."
"Well, you visited me in my realm. I thought I'd just return the favor."
"Uh huh. Like I really believe that one."
"I think you have the wrong impression about me. I have been here many times. Mortals fascinate me."
"That I believe. Still, you never come here except on business, so what's up?"
"Do you know an entity called Saira?"
"The Traveler. I met her once. A rather interesting female. Why do you ask?"
"She visited me a few days ago... uninvited."
"I imagine it was rather disconcerting having her show up like that. She definitely comes and goes at will, although I'm surprised she found her way to you."
"Apparently she found me through Mari, or should I say, those threads
she follows. Seems no one can hide from her if she finds one of those connections."
"I know. Too bad we can't see them. Imagine all the things we could achieve."
"Or the damage that could be done."
Lilith thought about his words and had to agree. Anyone capable of returning to the past could easily alter the future. "It would be chaos, wouldn't it?"
Intunecat rubbed his chin. "Maybe that's why Saira is the only one of her kind. At least, I hope. Too many Travelers would disrupt the fabric of time. As it is, she's created enough disruptions already."
"True," Lilith said. "Do you think she's aware of what she's really doing?"
"No, and maybe that's a good thing. If she realized she changes things every time she comes in contact with someone or something, it would probably destroy her."
Lilith turned the idea over in her mind. "I'm not so sure of that. Saira has been around even longer than we have. I can't believe she isn't aware of the impact she has on lives. No one is that innocent."
"Innocent? No. More naïve. She calls herself a Traveler and describes time as if it were a giant web. For us and the mortal world, time only goes forward and backward. For her, time isn't linear. Instead it goes in all directions, giving her opportunities to see things no one else can see, and yet she has never seen what is always in front of her."
"Does anyone? We all go about our lives not noticing the effect we have on others and not caring. Why should she be any different? Saira is compelled to find answers to questions. She follows these threads to their source, believing her trips have no effect on the lives or the threads she touches, not realizing she is changing both. In a way, it's almost as if she were a spider checking every strand in her web, making sure everything's okay."
"That's a huge leap, from time traveler to spider," Intunecat said and chuckled. "Still, you have a point. All of us serve a purpose. Perhaps she's right. What if time really is a giant web, something that's continually growing larger and larger, and what if her sole purpose is to travel its strands, making sure there aren't any weaknesses?"
"It would be a lonely job, and exhausting, don't you think?"
"For you or me, but not for her. Think about it. Infinite questions lead to infinite possibilities. She could go on doing that forever."