Page 103 of Dancing for the Devil

The noises became more desperate, and then she shook and shuddered, her juices flowing all over my hand as she came. She collapsed on the bed and closed her eyes. Before I knew it, she was asleep. I smiled, covering her with the blanket and went to wash my hands.

I couldn’t sleep when I returned. My erection had gone down, but I was still wired. I grabbed the sweats Nora had placed at the end of the bed and put them on. I left the room, barefoot, and wandered back to the living room. I thought I might just sit, maybe watch some TV on low volume and keep an ear out in case Nora woke up.

I found that Nora’s grandmother was still sitting there, knitting. I paused awkwardly by the door, and she looked up and smiled.

“Come in,” she said.

I stepped into the room and took a seat opposite her.

“Couldn’t sleep?” she asked.

I shook my head.

She put her knitting aside and considered me, her brown eyes opaque, unreadable. “There’s more to you than meets the eye, isn’t there?”

My eyes widened and I shrugged. “I don’t know. Is there?”

“You know I come from Mexico. I’ve seen a lot of cartels. I’ve seen a lot of men who are killers. Your eyes tell me that you know something about that.”

I blinked in surprise, not knowing how to answer that.

“You don’t have to confirm or deny,” she smiled. “Just tell me my granddaughter is safe.”

I bit my lip. “She’s about as safe as any of us are.”

She nodded. “That’s all I can ask.”

I studied her, trying to read her. She had a bruise on her hand. A familiar thing. I’d seen it’s like before. “Are you sick?” I asked.

She quirked an eyebrow in surprise. “What do you mean by that?”

“Your hand…” I pointed at the bluish looking bruise.

She looked at it in some surprise, as if she’d never seen it before and then huffed in annoyance. “It’s strange. You’ve just met me, and you noticed something about me that Nora hasn’t.”

“I expect she’s had a lot on her mind.”

She nodded. “That’s true.” She sighed. “It’s why I really insisted on closure for her. I wanted her to get over her sister’s death…”

“So she could deal with yours?” I asked in disbelief.

She remained quiet for a moment, before she took a labored breath and said, “I just wanted to die knowing she was alright.”

“Is there nothing that can be done?”

She shrugged. “Nothing that is accessible to me.”

I nodded slowly. “I know we just met but… what if I paid for it?”

Her eyes widened a bit and then narrowed. “Why? So you can bind Nora to yourself even more?”

I smiled, leaning back in my chair, and crossing my legs. “I can assure you, there is not a thing I could do to bind Nora to me any more than she wants to be. Your granddaughter is strong.”

She frowned. “Is that supposed to reassure me?”

“Probably not. But it should tell you that my motives are fairly pure. Nora needs you. I don’t think she could stand to lose another person from her life right now. So if you won’t take the offer for me, take it for her.”

“Why would you do this?”

---