Cass's face was burning. "A-are you nuts!? We didn't do anything!"
She cackled. "Sure we did. We slept together. Wasn't it cozy? My bed is the priciest thing I own."
Cass took a deep breath then sighed.
She smirked. "What did you think I meant? That dirty little mind of yours." She tousled his hair.
"You're not mad?"
She stopped midway through getting out of bed and turned to look at him.
He continued. "Linas and the girls already left. I won't be there to look after them."
"Linas will keep them safe. Don't worry about it."
She stood and leaned over, getting close to his face. Her expression turned unusually serious—eyes like daggers. "If you get yourself hurt…I'm gonna make your life hell."
And with that, she was off to the kitchen to make some evening breakfast. Cass finally exhaled after a few long moments. It was eerily quiet in the Doxy. He stood in the doorway to take in the unusually peaceful sight then continued on to his apartment.
"I wonder if my extended break with Tindra helped some of the sorcery knowledge solidify in my brain? I should probably brush my teeth fir-?"
The door to his bedroom was locked.
"Seriously? Is this some last minute prank? Very funny, Dani."
Cass took the key off the top of the door frame and unlocked his room.
"I'll give it to her, this place does smell a lot nicer sinc-"
Cass's body locked up. There, curled up on her side in his bed, was Daniella. Her wavy, blonde hair was fanned across the pillow; dapples of waning sunlight forming an intricate tapestry with her flowing locks. Her light blue nightgown, caught in the gentle breeze from the cracked window, caressed her body with each waft. An artist could search several lifetimes for such a scene to paint and be content knowing something so perfect doesn't exist.
"Wait! What is she-?"
Just then, her eyes slowly opened. A drowsy gaze landed on Cass. As if struck by lightning, she shot up in bed—any semblance of sleepy confusion vanished from her face and was replaced with fiery determination: Destroy the intruder.
"Hi-"
"CREEP!"
A pillow came barreling towards Cass. He narrowly dodged as it slammed into the wall, causing some miscellaneous items to rattle on the nearby table.
"Damn! What an arm!"
"What the hell are you doing here!?" She snapped at him.
"Me!? I live here! What the hell are you doing!? Shouldn't you be with Linas and the girls!?"
A look of horror crept onto her face. Had she overslept? In an exasperated whisper she stammered.
"W-were you…pilfering through my undergarments!?"
"I don't know. You have anything good in there?"
Cass had lost interest in explaining himself. The accusation stung more than he anticipated.
"Ah…Misha. The few times I walked in on her, she handled it with such grace and poise. And some of those weren't even accidents."
By the late morning, they were seated around Cass's coffee table with Rudy's laugh echoing through the apartment.
"Oh buddy! You sure stepped in it this time!"
"Rudy! It's not funny! He saw me in my nightgown!"
Rudy tried to control his laughter. "Babe, you work in a brothel. Haven't you seen stuff or had stuff worse than that happen before?"
Her face turned ice cold.
Cass sighed. "Look, I already apologized. Both of us were supposed to be on the way to Weismitte with Linas and the girls. How would I even know you were here?"
She cut her eyes at him and let him linger under her scrutinizing gaze. "That's true. After all that time with Tindra, even a degenerate like you would need time to recuperate. Demon fiend."
"Whoa!? Tindra!? Nice work, buddy! Think ya can talk to her for us now?"
Daniella folded her arms.
"Really funny. I was actually trying to convince her to let me stay." Cass said.
"And it worked!?"
"Nah, she just got drunk and passed out. I hid out there until everyone left. Thank god no one came looking for me and woke her up. Someone must've covered for me…I'll have to thank them when I see them."
"Luck's on your side, buddy."
Cass continued. "I'm sure she's going to do something rash anytime now. Why else would she stay?"
Rudy looked down. "Sucks, man. I'd try to help ya talk her down…but I'd probably just piss her off more."
He chuckled as Cass stood up and smiled. "Don't worry about it, I'll handle it. You and Daniella can relax and hang out while I do."
"Going to talk with her?" Rudy asked.
"Nah, I have something else to take care of first."
Henry's apartment was sweltering. All the unique odors were magnified to a gut wrenching level.
"Nothing beats a pounding headache and the smell of a garbage dump!"
An adult film was blaring on the tv. Cass would've turned it off, but he couldn't find a remote; and it looked like something was moving near the TV—-he wasn't eager to learn what it was. Henry was on the floor, scrawling some new runes onto one of the few areas free of trash.
"Nailed it!"
He looked over his shoulder, sweat coating his greasy face, and smiled. Cass couldn't hide his disgust at the sight.
"Is that what I look like when Daniella comes home and sees me on the floor?"
"Ahh…wanna try some tonight?" Henry pulled out his zyme and waved it back and forth.
"No. Thanks."
"Suit yourself. You gotta actually use sorcery if you wanna learn, Cass."
"I'll remember that. Say…you know those girls you slept with at the Doxy?"
"Huh? Hell yeah! How could I forget? Ol' blondie and the one with the great ass! Good times!"
"Right…Have you seen Rachel lately? The not blonde one."
"Nah, man. Haven't seen her since that night."
"All these missing people lately has everyone at the Doxy on edge."
"Bummer. Welp, you're free to search my place!"
Cass raised an eyebrow.
"I get a little blasted when I party, so I might've taken her home with me and not even remember. She might be passed out around here somewhere."
He laughed and inhaled some zyme. Cass took him up on the offer and looked around, preparing himself for the filth. Surprisingly, the other rooms of the apartment were pretty clean. More importantly, there was no sign of Rachel.
"Find anything?"
"No."
Henry sighed. "Look man, don't sweat it. I like to flaunt a little cash to impress the ladies." He smirked. "She asked me how I made so much and seemed pretty eager to get a little piece for herself."
Cass folded his arms.
"Don't worry, I didn't tell her about the factory or anything. She probably just went off to find some better work. Or maybe I ruined all other guys for her. It's happened before."
He snapped his fingers and did a hip thrust. Cass was speechless. Henry began gyrating around and activating the runes. Cass sat down and began taking notes.
"Might as well get my money's worth…That might become my new mantra."
When Cass returned home, Daniella and Rudy were playing Nobility, a popular board game, and listening to the TV.
"Welcome home!"
"Wow, a warm welcome for once. Rudy's the best."
"Your food order arrived, it's over there."
"Food order?"
"Dani and I stopped by the Surfside and got some burgers, so don't worry about us."
"Lo mein from The Red Dragon, huh? Some of the best in town."
Cass broke the chopsticks and sat down at the table with Dani and Rudy. It was strange—usually he'd be agitated if he wasn't studying his sorcery, training, or working at the Doxy. This time he found himself quite content just sitting and chatting with Dani and Rudy, eating his lo mein at a leisurely pace…It was enough to let his persistent thoughts of revenge slip to the wayside. At least until he heard Cadeyrn's name from the obsequious new anchor. It even got Rudy to turn around, but his expression was much different than Cass's.
"Man! I'm jealous! Think the girls will be there long enough to catch the wedding?" Rudy's voice was wistful.
"That's over a year away. I highly doubt it." Cass said.
"I can't even imagine what a sight it'd be. Lady Islay's already stunning. Gettin' all dolled up for her wedding…whoo boy! And all those noble women will be there. Ah! Life's rough sometimes!"
Cass glanced at Daniella who didn't seem to react.
"What was that about ME not understanding women's feelings?"
"But I think the one that takes the cake is Lord Cadeyrn's mom, Lady Branwen."
Cass choked on his noodles. "What!?"
Daniella and Rudy looked at him.
"You alright, bud? Just thinkin' about her got ya worked up? M–an, those curves, buddy."
He smiled and nudged him. Cass turned his head and frowned in disgust.
"Rudy…you ruined my lo mein. And right after I praised you earlier. Clearly you've never met Misha."
Cass drank some tea and composed himself. He was getting ready to explain Rudy's folly when a loud voice rang out from a megaphone, piercing the relative peace of the apartment.
"Cass. This is Detective Karsten with the Ebonheart Police Department. We know you're in there. Come out with your hands up."