Her tears fell into the sink as she took the scissors to her hair, halving the glowing auburn curtain that reached past her hips. Then she took the box of dye in hand, slicing it open with her fingernails. On the front of the box was a smiling woman with soft black hair, almost identical to the colour hers had been when she was little. She set the box back on the granite counter and slipped a pair of coloured Rx lenses into her eyes, changing them from emerald green to a cool brown. Sarai closed her eyes briefly, watching the Razi that Gibbs knew disappear, bit by bit.
Sarai gazed around, helplessly, lost in the huge, confusing town that was her new home. A young man stepped up to her, a friendly face in the crowd. “Hey. You’re looking a little lost. You need help getting somewhere?” he asked, blue eyes smiling.
She nodded gratefully. “I’m trying to get to…Well, to be honest, I’m trying to get anywhere. I’m looking for a change of scenery.”
“Oh yeah? Where are you from?”
“New York.” She replied, flushing. “Queens. I’m not used to all the space out here. I’m Kyra, by the way. Kyra Davis.”
“Alec Paxton. Well, if you just want a change of pace, there’s some places just outside Quantico that you might like. I have a feeling that anything you find here is going to be pretty different from Queens, though.”
Sarai smiled. “Thanks. Do…do you think you could give me some directions or something?”
“Sure. Let’s see, if you take Main all the way out to Carson, you should start seeing apartments and homes. You’ll probably be able to find something out there.”
“Great. Maybe I’ll see you around.”
“I hope so. Good luck, Kyra.” He gave a little wave and headed off. Sarai turned and walked in the direction he’d pointed her, and soon enough, she’d reached residential streets. Eventually, she saw a small house for rent and made note of the number.
A couple of months later, she stood in the middle of a fairly empty house, and the pain she'd been battling washed over her, a steady ache. Why had she left him? Would it have made a difference? Why had she gone in the first place? And why did it even matter anymore? She sighed, leaving the house in search of a bar. She sat down at the counter, ordering a drink and turning to the room, watching. That was what she liked to do the most; watch. Watch people, watch events, watch life as it passed her by. The bartender handed her a glass, and she accepted it, eyes not leaving the group of marines hanging out across the room. Suddenly, one of them looked up and walked over to her. “Hey, Kyra. You find a place yet?”
She smiled. “Yeah, thanks to you. I didn’t know you were a marine.”
“How’d you know?” he asked curiously.
She nodded towards his friends. “You boys aren’t exactly the suit wearing types, and they all stand like marines.” She said, sipping from her glass.
He looked amused. “I didn’t know we had that distinctive of a stance.” He joked, leaning on the bar counter next to her.
She recognized the position, one that men took up often around her. Close, but not crowding, and definitely aiming for something that she probably didn’t want to give them. Alec was more polite than others, though, so she didn’t mind nearly as much. “Oh, yes. I could spot a fighter’s stance a mile away. I like marines.” She murmured flirtatiously.
He hide his surprise better than she’d expected him to. “We’re not too bad. I could introduce you to the group if you want. They’re a good bunch.”
“Thanks Alec. I’d like that.” she finished her drink and gestured to the bartender to refill it.
Alec glanced at the glass curiously. “What’re you drinking?”
The bartender set her glass back down on the counter, full again. “I really wouldn’t ask that, if I were you.” He warned Alec.
Sarai laughed at the confusion on the young marine’s face. “He’s right. Suffice to say, it ain’t weak stuff.” She hooked her arm through his. “Come on, introduce me to your friends.”
Alec nodded, his behaviour dramatically altered by the knowledge that he had a beautiful woman on his arm and she seemed quite happy to stay there. He brought her over to his fellow marines, some of whom let out a series of whistles when they saw her. Alec frowned at the disrespectful welcome, but as Sarai shrugged it off, he didn’t say anything. “Kyra, this is Tyler Foster, Lane Parker, Ben Hayes, and Flynn Marks.” He said, gesturing to each of the men in turn. They all made various hellos, and Sarai smiled, reveling in being surrounded by the power and strength that came with the title Marine.
She nodded to each of them, eyes appraising. Two of the four men didn’t notice her surveillance, and she immediately dismissed them as useless, but Tyler and Lane were more observant and she bestowed a sweet smile on them in reward. “Hi. How’s life on base, boys?” They all glanced at Alec. Laughter bubbled from her lips, low and musical, drawing all five men’s eyes back to her. “Don’t blame Alec, he didn’t say a word. It was obvious.” Her gaze raked down Alec’s, Tyler’s, and Lane’s bodies. This last examination dropped Lane out of the competition, leaving only Tyler and Alec in a race they didn’t even know they’d entered.
“You drinking beer, Kyra?” asked Flynn, finally realizing that he’d lost her attention.
She raised an eyebrow. “It look like beer to you, Lance Corporal?” she asked dryly. The other men laughed and smacked Flynn on the back as he was shot down.
Her eyes widened in surprise as Tyler leaned over and plucked the glass out of her hand, tossing some of the liquid back. He glanced down at the glass in his hand, laughing. “The woman drinks bourbon.” He chuckled. “And she knows a Lance Corporal when she sees one. How much time do you spend with Marines, Kyra?”
She tipped her head to the right slightly. “Not much.” She teased. “I spend more time with the boys in the army yard. They’re not nearly as good. Too reliant on their toys to be much fun.” She reached out and took her glass back, tossing the whole thing down her throat easily.
Flynn and Ben whistled, clapping. “You’ve got that right.” Laughed Ben. “Marines use their hands.” Lane was laughing so hard at all the double entendres, that tears formed in his eyes.
Sarai pressed her back into Alec, glancing up at him with a smile. “Don’t I know it.” She said huskily.
Alec flushed and dragged Sarai away from his friends’ bawdy whistles and calls. “Sorry about them.” He muttered apologetically. “I guess they’ve had a few too many drinks. They’re not usually like this.”
Sarai looked up at him sadly. “You’re very sweet, Alec.” She said softly, touching his cheek. “Too sweet. Don’t get yourself involved with me.”
“Why not?” he demanded, annoyed. “Because you could have the pick of any guy here and I’m not good enough?” She dropped her hand into her lap and he seemed to regret his words. “I didn’t mean it like that.”
She smiled weakly at her lap, avoiding his eyes. “I know you didn’t. You’ll make a wonderful match for someone, but it won’t be me. I’d still like to be friends though. I do like you, just not like that.” She glanced up, a question in her eyes.
“Sure.” He replied, disappointed. “Yeah, that sounds good.”
She leaned up and kissed him softly on the cheek. “Thank you, Alec. I owe you a lot. More than you could imagine.” A timid small crossed her lips before she left the counter, drink in hand.
The bartender approached Alec with a fatherly attitude. “She’s a bit of a femme fatal.” He said, sympathetically.
Alec groaned. “Just my luck. I find a pretty girl who likes me, but she’s too noble to give me a shot.”
“You weren’t here earlier.” Commented the bartender. “She’s drinking out of grief, that one. Probably just lost her husband.”
Alec snorted, watching as Sarai flirted with his friends. “She doesn’t look too grieved to me.”
The bartender shrugged. “She’s looking to get laid, thinks that’ll make her feel better. But she would feel guilty seducing you when she’s sure you’re not after sex. I see it all the time. Stick with it though, after she’s healed a bit, she may come back to her dear sweet friend.”
Alec glanced at the man behind the bar, curiously. “You sound like a psychologist.” He muttered.
“Honestly, buddy, with the stuff people tell me while they’re sitting there, I feel like a shrink. Sometimes I wonder if I ought to start charging for advice as well as drinks.”
Sarai stood in the centre of the crowd, reveling in the attention. She never allowed herself to be widely noticed, and she was enjoying the freedom that she allowed herself. Flynn had refused to give up on her attention, and now he came up behind her, drawing her close. “Where’d you come from, Kyra? How’d Alec get a hold of you?”
She grinned, hips swaying against him. “I showed up on a broomstick.” She joked, feeling a little tipsy. “And Alec was kind enough to help me find a place to stay.”
“Yeah, but where were you before you moved here?” asked Ben curiously.
She shrugged, pulling herself away from Flynn’s chest. “Here, there, everywhere. I travel a lot, and sometimes I can hardly even remember where I’ve been. I think I was in Queens last.”
“Think you’re going to be here long?” Tyler finished his last drink, cutting himself off. It would probably be a good idea for her to do the same soon, before she lost her mind again like before.
“Maybe, maybe not.” She murmured noncommittally.
“You ought to stay.” Ben told her. “It’s a great place, lots of things to do, people to see.”
Sarai smiled. “I’m sure it is, and I’ll stay while I can, but I won’t make any promises.” She grimaced as she felt her phone vibrating in her pocket. “Hey, I’m going to have to take this, do you mind?” No one did, so she stepped into a corner, flipping her phone open and putting it to her ear. “Davis.” She answered quietly.
“Where are you? I’ve been trying to reach you for a while now. I had to call Jen and get this number.”
Sarai rolled her eyes. Poor Papí, she thought to herself, dryly. “I’m in Virginia. Back near Quantico.”
“Why?” the one word held more meaning than most people could realize. “Why would you go back there?”
“Because it’s home.” She replied tartly. “Whatever happened here, it will always be my home.”
“And what if they’re still there, my dear?”
Sarai paled slightly, but otherwise remained calm. “I shall care for that problem when it arrives. Until then, I’m staying.”
Eli sighed. “You always were stubborn. Alright, just be careful, please?”
“I will.” She said softly. “I always am, to the best of my ability.”
“Good girl.” He hung up, and she shook her head. Her father had never been one for sentiments. She put her head against her hand for a moment, breathing deeply.
“You okay?” asked Tyler, coming up behind her.
She looked up. “Yeah, yeah, I’m fine. I, uh…Did you want something?” she didn’t bother to explain, and was grateful that he didn’t ask.
He shrugged. “Just you.” He replied easily.
A ripple of something like attraction ran through her, and she clarified the statement, mouth dry. “Are you asking me on a date?” she asked carefully.
“Yes I am.” He put her arms around his neck. “What do you say?”
She twined her fingers together behind his neck, gazing at him curiously. “Sure. I’d like that.” She gave a small nervous laugh. “Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Because I want to kiss you.” He said quietly, and her breath caught in her throat, the ache pulsing in her body only partly from desire. “I really want to kiss you.”
Sarai flushed, suddenly unsure. She’d been in many relationships, all of them manufactured, at least on her part. What was she supposed to do? Tyler wasn’t someone she was seducing to get nearer to her goal, he was just an ordinary man, and with him she could just be an ordinary woman. But if she had no objective in sight, no end result she knew she was reaching for, then how was she supposed to know what the right choice was? Suddenly, life had given her an opportunity to make a decision, a real decision, and she didn’t know how to handle it. But he’d taken her lack of objection as an agreement, and she was relieved that she wasn’t going to be responsible for the choice. He leaned his head down to hers, and she was truly hesitant as she let their lips touch. She pulled back slowly. “I…I don’t know what to say, or what to do.” She admitted, anxiously. “I don’t know how this is supposed to work. Dating, I mean.”
He laughed, and oddly enough, the sound comforted her. “That’s good, because it isn’t supposed to work any specific way. We just make decisions as we reach the crossroads. You’re just supposed to do what feels right to you.” He told her gently.
“But…What feels right…it’s entirely different from everything my brain has to say.” She protested, confused.
“When it comes to things of the heart, our brains are the only things that keep us from doing the right thing. When you try to reason your way through love, you wind up heartbroken.” He said, arms around her waist. “What does your heart tell you to do?”
“It says…” It said that she shouldn’t be here in Tyler’s arms right now, she should be making her way back to DC, back to the man who could destroy her in a second if he wanted to. Her heart was telling her to go back and tell him everything, stay with him, never lie to him again. To let there be one person in her life, one that she loved, who knew everything, who would hold her and tell her it was alright, that he’d protect her. She swallowed and looked back up into Tyler’s brown eyes, drastically different from the bluish gray ones she wanted to be looking at. “It says to kiss you.” She whispered. “Is that alright?”
“Absolutely.” She stood on her tiptoes, Tyler being an easy three inches above her own five foot eight, and closed her eyes. She could fell his warm breath on her lips when she felt someone nearby. Her eyes flew open, her lips a hair’s breadth away from his.
Lane tapped him on the shoulder. “We’ve got to go, Ty. Come on.” He turned away from them, but Sarai couldn’t get back the feeling that had urged her to kiss Tyler.
She stepped back, unlocking her arms from him. “I’ll see you later.” She murmured, her head turned away in embarrassment.
He tipped her chin up, forcing her to look at him. “I’ll meet you at Kalso’s, across the street, tomorrow at five, okay?” She nodded, and he pressed his lips to hers. Her world stood still for a moment, everything revolving around the simplicity and trust in that kiss. She stared after him, dazed, as he walked away, slipping into his coat. Then she noticed that Lane was still standing nearby, watching her. For some reason, the look in his eyes frightened her. It wasn’t cruel or malignant, it was very simply calculating, and she wondered if she’d been right to dismiss him so quickly. A phrase that her mother had drilled into her since she could speak ran through her mind as Lane turned and followed his friends out of the bar. Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer.
Story Notes:
The sequal to Suicide Alley: Unforgettable, but it should be pretty safe to read them out of order if you want to. Remember, my stories are always changing, so please tell me if there's something you think I should keep in the stry line. By the by, email me, because I don't know how to acces my comments
Author's Chapter Notes:
Sarai is running again, this time from the man she loves. Her new life is less than perfect, but the longer she stays out of the family business, the safer she feels.
Chapter End Notes:
The sequal to Suicide Alley: Unforgettable, but it should be pretty safe to read them out of order if you want to. Remember, my stories are always changing, so please tell me if there's something you think I should keep in the stry line.