Part 5

Alexandra was pacing back and forth in front of the Lilac dorm building. Far in the west, the sky was still dark and full of stars, and in the east the only sign of a sun was a thin stripe of gold on the horizon. Alexandra was speaking into her mobile phone, with a low but intense voice.

"No. You don't get it. There is still no progress. Fuck, I have to work my ass off to even keep status quo. I'm not exactly the hottest piece of ass in this town... Yeah, you could have done better."

She laughed but the expression died out immediately. "No," she said. "I'll call you."

She hung up. "Fuck! This shit is killing me." She turned and looked at the dorm building with a sigh. "Well," she said and started walking towards the dorm. "I'm in it for the cash."

Konrad was staring at the bottle in his hand. He shook it several times. "So, you are saying the contents of this bottle went yellow?"

Dawn nodded. "Yes."

Konrad swirled the bottle's contents again. "I don't understand why it's not clear now."

"You noticed that, Huh?" Dawn said and smiled at him.

He stopped shaking the bottle and stared back at her. His mouth opened and closed again without a word coming out. He swallowed. Dawn's eyes got deeper and darker.

"This bottle is old," Konrad said. "I probably need a new one." He broke the eye contact and looked up at the bookshelves. "Yellow," he continued and scanned his books. Dawn took a step back and leaned against the wall by the window, watching him with crossed arms.

"There should be," Konrad said and lifted down a large volume with shaking hands, "something in Hertzberg's Tome of Corruption."

"Uhm," said Dawn. "It's that bad, huh?"

"No, and yes. The Tome of Corruption was written in the late 18th century. Lots of things that are accepted today were counted as corruption then. Hertzberg even has a section on sex-magic... Now let's..." While Konrad was talking he was searching the index of the book. "Ah," he mumbled and flipped to the right page, read for about a minute before he slammed the book shut with a snort and looked back up at the shelves.

"I'll get some coffee," Dawn said and left the room.

Dawn found Mrs. Lamprue already brewing coffee as she entered the combined waiting room and reception. "Good," she said with a smile.

Mrs. Lamprue gave her a frown that could be considered a smile back, if one was stretching the interpretation. Dawn suspected that Konrad was putting off clients because of her, something she suspected was threatening Mrs. Lamprue's ordered life.

When Dawn returned to the office, a coffee cup in each hand, Konrad was still bent over the pile of books stapled on his desk. He was humming and flipping pages in either one book or another. Dawn gave him his mug.

"Hah!" Konrad said. "Aaidiash!"

Dawn stared at him. "Bless you?" she asked half on joke but Konrad didn't hear her.

"I think I know how to solve this," he mumbled while flipping through another book. "We need... yeah! We need to channel the energy into... Khalach Madiri... Khalach..." He reached for another book and flipped through it. "Aha, a receptacle, or does it mean bonding?"

"So," Dawn asked in a desperate attempt to get clarity. "You're saying..."

"Yes," Konrad mumbled still reading out of the book.

"What are you saying?"

"What? Oh, sorry. We need to tread very cautiously, and we need to act as cunning, no even more cunning... Oh..." he read a few lines in the book. "I think the best thing to do now, immediately, is to set a trap."

Melissa woke up with a feeling that something wasn't right. At first she didn't know what it was but as her mind cleared she realized what made her feel that way. I had sex with my roommate yesterday. She groaned and rolled over on her side, peeking over at Alexandra's side of the room. Her bed was made and she had already left. Fucking great. She asked herself if it was a good idea to have a sexual affair with your roommate? Not if you want to keep her as roommate. Melissa got out of her bed and stretched with a moan. I have to talk to Konrad.

It turned out the first person Melissa came across wasn't her therapist, but Philip, and she only needed to take one look to see something was up with him too. She sat down across from him. He was staring at his breakfast, absentmindedly poking his bacon and eggs with a fork.

"Morning," said Melissa.

"Um," he replied and kept poking the scrambled eggs.

"Everything right?"

He looked up at her and shook his head. "Everything is fucked up."

"Yeah," Melissa sighed, "I know what your mean."

"Why?" he asked and looked up again. "What happened?"

Melissa squirmed in her chair. "Well, it was... let's just say it wasn't good... I guess your mood pretty much describes my morning."

Philip put down his fork with a rattle and leaned back in his chair. He gazed at Melissa for a few seconds, making her wish she could just get on her feet and leave. "It happened to you too?"

"What?"

"Alex?"

Melissa sighed and gave in, her shoulders sloping as she did. She nodded. "It did."

"She came on to you again, and... ?"

"And?"

"You did it?"

Melissa hesitated, then she nodded.

Philip buried his face in his hands with a groan before he pushed his blond hair out of his eyes and looked back at Melissa. Melissa frowned at him. He was laughing.

"What?" she asked.

"I'm sorry," he said as he regained his control. "It's just, all last night, all morning, I've been wondering what to do... how to... well make it work with Alex... and what you've just told me, I mean it's obvious what's going on here."

"It is?"

"She's not herself. She needs help but most importantly, what she'd just done doesn't count."

"You think so?" Melissa wanted to curse her heart for sinking like a stone in her chest. I already knew she was in shock! Damnit! "What should we do?"

"We need to talk to someone, and I think I know who."

"Who?"

Philip looked up just as Dawn entered the cafeteria. Melissa followed his gaze.

"Dawn?" she asked. "What does she know?"

"I've been observing her..."

Melissa frowned. "Yeah, so what?"

Philip gave her a long gaze. "You didn't feel that horrified when Alex came on to you, did you?"

"I felt bad since what she'd been through must have placed her in some kind of shock."

"And because you wanted it to happen?"

Melissa stared at him but before she had a chance to answer Dawn placed her tray on their table and sat.

"Hey you," she smiled and started making a sandwich. "What have you two been through?"

Philip and Melissa both jumped. Melissa shook her head. "Nothing."

"I see," Dawn said and stirred her tea. "You both seem kinda... I don't know..."

A long, awkward moment of silence followed under which Melissa tried to decide how to talk to Dawn. She hoped Philip would start the conversation but he was staring at his food again.

"You both seem like you've had a night full of nightmares, and waked up to find the hot water doesn't work," Dawn said, there was still a hint of a smile on her face but she was serious.

Melissa sighed. "You can say that."

Dawn raised an eyebrow but said nothing.

"We've had some problems," Philip added.

"Okay," Dawn said. "Maybe I can help?"

"With Alex," Melissa added.

Philip cleared his throat. "I'm not sure that really is how it was, not for me anyway... I think, maybe Alex has some problems with us."

"Oh," Dawn said and drank her tea.

"Yes, we might have caused Alex some problems."

Dawn still said nothing.

"We... kinda," Philip shrugged and stared into the tabletop.

Melissa realized she was the one that had to decide if Dawn would be let in on this or not. She had decided to talk to Konrad, but she had ended up talking to Philip and that had been good, it turned out she wasn't alone with her experience. Would Dawn have something to add? When she realized what that might imply she gasped. Please don't tell me she hit on Dawn too.

"Both me and Philip have been sexually approached by Alex," she looked over at Philip to try and read his reaction, "and at least I've had sex with her."

"Me too," Philip mumbled almost inaudible. He looked up at Dawn. "I've seen your glances at her. You know something about this?"

"What?" Dawn said but then she shook her head. She sighed and leaned back. "Okay. I know something about this."

"What's going on?" Melissa asked.

"Let me show you," Dawn said and got on her feet. "Come on."

Nicolas was watching Rachelle as she left the bathroom. She was still angry. The shower hadn't calmed her down. She rubbed her hair with one towel, the other wrapped around her chest. He stepped closer. She stopped and stared into the mirror. Her dark eyes were shimmering dangerously.

Nicolas opened his mouth.

"Don't say a thing," she interrupted. "I don't give a shit what you're gonna say. He walked away with the money, and that redhead bitch walked away with the sword, and we're just sitting here doing nothing."

"Honey..."

"Have you even considered what Mr. Harper will say when he finds out what's happened? Have you? If he wont kill us..."

"Elle, honey..."

"No! Goddamnit! She ruined it! She just... she... fuck that bitch! I'm gonna..."

"Elle, baby, calm down... We'll solve this."

"What if we don't? What happens if the sword is gone and the money too? What will Mr. Harper think?"

Nicolas gazed down into Rachelle's wide, dark eyes. He took her in his arms and held her tightly. "It will never come to that!"

"Promise."

"I promise, baby."

"Seal it with a kiss," Rachelle whispered and stood on her toes, her head bent back.

Nicolas gasped and pressed his lips against hers. Rachelle reached up to his neck and pulled him harder to her. While their tongues met in his mouth she pressed her belly and crotch against him. He grabbed her hair and pulled her back, his eyes searching into hers. There was a silent moment before he reached down to the towel around her body and tugged it free.

Rachelle's eyes closed and her mouth opened. Her parted lips shivered and when Nicholas closed his hand over one of her breasts she mewled and pressed harder against him. "Please, Nick," she whispered. "Please..."

He pulled her to him by her hair and silenced her with another kiss. His palm slid from her breast down along her belly. His hand stole between her thighs and he found her wet and hot. She started to whine into their kiss, while rocking her hips against him.

"Oh, please Nick," Rachelle said. She broke the kiss and stepped away from him. "You know what I want," she continued and backed until she felt the bed against the back of her legs. She sunk down on it, parted her legs and caressed her thighs as her gaze was locked into his. "Please, Nick, I really need this now."

Nicolas hesitated for a moment before he started to tear off his clothes.

"Oh god," Rachelle said. "You really loved forcing me, didn't you?"

"I'm not done yet," he replied with a low, rasping voice.

Rachelle slid up on the bed. "What do you mean, 'not done yet?'" She slid to the far end of the bed, then stood beside the bed and backed into the far corner. "Please Nick."

"Get back on the bed."

"No, you'll be mean to me."

"If you don't get back on the bed now," Nicolas said and started to move around the bed, "I swear to God I'll be mean to you!"

"Please Nick, think of what you're doing."

Just as Nicolas rounded the foot board Rachelle jumped up on the bed again and crawled over it. Nicolas threw himself on the bed and grabbed one of her feet just as she was about to jump out of the bed. She cried, and instead of getting the foot with her, she fell head first towards the floor on the far side of the bed. He pulled her foot hard, dampening the fall and at the same time pulling her back into the bed.

Rachelle managed to roll over on her back and just as she was about to kick at him, Nicolas caught both her feet and pushed his body between them. She reached down to her crotch and covered it with both her hands while a sob left her mouth.

"Please, Nicolas, I'm your sister!"

"So what?" he said and tried to pry her hands from her crotch. "You asked for this!"

"Please, no!"

"Shut up and stop resisting." He pulled her wrists harder, prying them apart. She tried to roll over, twisting free from him, but he pulled her arms, throwing her over on her back again.