Chapter 42


    Hunter


    I’d been painting for hours now and it seemed to me like time had suddenlye to a standstill. A few


    more strokes and I’ll go to bed, I promised myself. The thing is I didn’t want to go to bed. When I tried


    to sleep, I felt restless. I couldn’t sleep and I either ended up painting until dawn or trying to read a


    book.


    I had a car ident three weeks ago, and ording to my step-mom, I’d been in aa for five days


    straight until I finally woke up in the hospital. My memories were still hazy; in fact, I couldn’t even


    remember the past four months in my life.


    Four goddamn months with no fucking memory! How’s that for a start?


    It seemed like I’d won a lottery, and bought a home. What I didn’t understand is why I would bother


    wasting money in a big ass house when I knew I was going to live here all alone. A maid visited the


    house thrice a week for the cleaning and asionally prepared meals.


    Leslie barked looking at different corners of the house, howled so loud at night, you’d think he’d turned


    into a werewolf.


    I was missing something vital in my life. A very important part that I still couldn’t remember. The doctors


    told me that the memories coulde back eventually, some bullshit reason that it took time. Dr.


    Eugene specifically said something or someone could trigger those memories. I’d seen the way ine


    and Hannah looked at me with some emotion between pity and sympathy, I wasn’t even sure.


    Heck, I’d seen the car that I’d driven during the ident. It resembled a crunched up soda can, and I


    still couldn’t believe that I survived it. A miracle had to get me out of that alive. My memories were


    nk and no one was telling me what happened.


    It really sucked.


    I gave one look towards the painting that I’d almost finished and let out a grunt. Since the ident, I’d


    been especially inspired to paint the ocean. I picked up the bottle of Jack Daniels sitting idle on the


    table and took a swig. The liquor burned its way down my throat and that was a good feeling. It was


    surely better than feeling confused and shit.


    I felt a tug. I looked down to see the annoying brown dog pulling the end of my shirt with his teeth.


    “Les, I already took you out for a walk, I’m not doing it again.”


    Leslie bared his teeth and pulled more aggressively.


    “No more treats either,” I warned him.


    Suddenly he let go and ran out of the room, came back and threw something on the floor in front of me.


    At first, I thought he wanted to y but when I looked down, I noticed he’d brought me a pair of keys.


    I picked them up and Leslie barked running out of the room. He wanted me to follow him, so I did. He


    ran across the hallway and went downstairs. I followed him down and came to the firstnding. He


    stood right next to the locked room beside the master bedroom. Hisrge chocte brown eyes


    watched me, trying so hard to give me some message.


    I’d wondered why the room was locked, but Hannah had brushed off the issue saying that it was just a


    guest room and I’d suspected that it wasn’t. I picked up the keys, unlocked the door and walked inside.


    I wouldn’t have been more surprised if the room was filled with whips, chains or other sex toys instead


    the room was decorated with stars,s, stuffed toys sat in every corner, a child’s bookshelf. I was


    further taken aback to see the crib near the wall. If it had been old, I’d have thought it was from


    Hannah’s childhood, but this one was all new.


    As if someone had expected a baby.


    So what happened? What was it that my family was not telling me?


    By evening I was sitting alone in Lucifer’s Den waiting for Fred. He was my best friend, surely if my


    sister was acting suspiciously; I knew Fred would help me out.


    Surprisingly, the club was packed even on a weekday like tonight. The club owner, Max Lockhart was


    nowhere in view, and neither was his younger brother Phoenix which was a good thing. Not that I was


    particrly fond of the brothers, but the Lockharts moved around with the kind of superiority that you


    were bound to despise them no matter what.


    “Hey there.” A voice that seemed to be dripping in honey cooed.


    I turned to see a brte dressed in tight ck spandex dress seated on the high stool beside me. Her


    short dress rode up so high, I didn’t know why she bothered wearing it. I didn’t normally ogle women


    openly, but you couldn’t look away when a woman was practically shoving her melon sized breasts in


    your face. It was literally spilling out and she was making no attempt at being modest. “Are you alone?”


    I downed the remaining drink and signaled Alec for a refill.


    “My friend will be here soon,” I told her dismissively.


    “I’m Ivy. What’s your name?”


    “Hunter,” I answered.


    “You know...Hunter...” she said in a sexy voice, eye-fucking me and seemingpletely unapologetic.


    She leaned closer and I got a strong whiff of her perfume. “I don’t own a bed, but I definitely wouldn’t


    mind using yours tonight.” She giggled.


    Iughed because I couldn’t remember thest time any woman had tantly asked me to fuck her.


    She took that as a yes and inched even closer, she could practically be in myp. Normally I wouldn’t


    have any issues taking her up on the offer, but it just didn’t feel right. I didn’t even have a girlfriend and


    yet I had a bad feeling about this. I didn’t want to sleep with this woman.


    There was also the continuous stinging of the tattoo on my arm.


    Alec looked at us and red as he poured me a ss.


    What on earth was this guy’s problem?


    “You ever been fucked by a cactus?” I asked her in a low.


    This belongs to N?velDrama.Org.


    She frowned, so I continued, “Because my junk looks and feels like one.”


    That did it. She climbed off the stool and scrambled off so fast you couldn’t count from zero to one. I


    heard her mutter ‘what an asshole’


    “That was rude, man.” Fred pped a hand on my back.


    “Have any better ideas to ward off unwanted female attention?” I asked him sarcastically.


    He grinned, “I’m sure you’re acquainted more in that department. You told me it was urgent. What’s the


    matter?”


    “Let’s go outside,” I said. “I’ll go deaf if you keep screaming in my ear like that.”


    “Fucking shameless!” Alec muttered under his breath, wiping a highball ss with a towel.


    I stared at him for a long time, wondering what had warranted him to say that.


    “Did I unknowingly ran over your dog?”


    “I did warn Blue that you weren’t the type to remain loyal in a rtionship, let alone a marriage,” Alec


    said. “There’s a limit, you know. You promised her you wouldn’t look at someone else. If she was my...”


    I couldn’t hear the rest of his yelling because of the loud music. But I did hear the word “marriage.”


    I turned in time to see Fred who kept mouthing “cut it out” to Alec with a shing movement of his hand


    to the neck. When he noticed that I saw him he stopped and gave me a nervous smile.


    Something wasn’t right.


    “Who is Blue?” I asked Alec.


    Blue. That name sounded familiar. Funny thing that I couldn’t remember. By the looks of Alec’s outrage,


    she had to be someone important.


    “Dude, are you fucking kidding me?” Alec spat angrily, “How does a man forget his wife?”


    “Whoa! Slow down. I have a wife?” Iughed because this was fucking hrious. I never got into a


    steady rtionship, marriage was off the charts. I didn’t know if there was even a woman who would


    want to marry someone like me.


    I looked at Fred asked, “Is this guy crazy?”


    Fred didn’t respond which was a clear indication that something was definitely wrong.


    I downed thest drink. “Come outside in the parking lot. We need to talk.”


    Once outside, I bombarded my friend with the question. “What was Alec talking about?”


    Fred shrugged, “You know how Alec can get. He was probably just messing with you.”


    “Fredricko, you’re like a brother to me, man...” I said looking straight into his eyes and noticed how he


    was avoiding eye-contact. “If you were in my situation, and you would have forgotten important things


    from your life, I would do my best to tell you the truth. I wouldn’t hide anything from you. If I have


    forgotten my wife...if she’s left me for whatever reason, you have to tell me, man. Please. I’m begging


    you. I’m a dickhead, I probably hurt her....right? And then I had an ident. Whatever this is, it’s killing


    me.”


    Fred looked guilty. “I promised Hannah I wouldn’t say anything.”


    I showed him the underside of my hand, “I have this weird tattoo that I don’t remember getting. It stings


    sometimes. I wake up during odd hours at night and I get glimpses of the ocean. Just waves and I feel


    this weight on my chest like everything’s wrong.” My eyes were stinging now, I didn’t even know why I


    was crying but here I was acting like a damn pussy for no apparent reason. The tears trailed down my


    cheeks. I swiped at it with the back of my hand, “is she dead? Is that why you guys are hiding it from


    me? Did shemit suicide? I have to know, man. If I married a woman and if she died because of


    me...”


    “Hunt...” he began.


    “I deserve to know goddamnit!” I yelled punching the nearest wall with my fist.


    “Hannah said that if I break my promise, I’d have to swallow needles.”


    I stared at him.


    “Guess I’ll just have to swallow needles then.” He smiled. “Let’s sit in the car and talk.”


    I couldn’t even wrap my head around it.


    “You’re saying my wife is a mermaid?” I asked.


    Fred nodded. “That’s God’s truth.”


    “Do you know how crazy you sound? You’re saying I married a half-fish woman and you want me to


    believe it.”


    “As far as what I’ve known, you two were pretty taken to each other. Literally in love, it was disgusting


    to see you be a lovesick puppy but I can’t say I hated it. It changed you, she changed you.”


    I remained silent because it was all so hard to process. Now I kinda wished I’d never pushed Fred to


    tell me the truth.


    “Your wife is really a mermaid, and when you woke up from the ident in the hospital, she was gone.


    Hannah thinks that Blue probably got really scared of the ident and decided she was better off living


    as a mermaid in the ocean.”


    “I won’t believe this unless I have proof because you literally sound like you’ve fallen off your rocker.”


    “You can think what you want to.” He said, “But if you don’t remember it, I think it’s best you try to look


    into your house, she must have left her things, probably hidden them somewhere. If you manage to find


    her belongings, you might remember.”


    I nodded. “Guess that’s what I’ll have to do.”


    “I’ll help you.” He said.


    “Why is there a crib in one of the rooms?”


    Did I have a child? She did take the baby away from me? Suddenly the thought of a wife that I didn’t


    remember and a child that I didn’t even remember putting inside of her was bing very important to


    me.


    “There was no baby. I heard that you guys were trying really hard for it.”


    I sighed. I just couldn’t see myself devoted to someone to want to marry them, much less buy a house.


    I was probably dreaming, and when I woke up I’d realize that there was no ident and no wife.


    “This sounds insane man,” I said rubbing my head. “What if she files for a divorce and demands


    money? Do you realize how much money I’m going to lose? She would most likely ask for the house in


    the settlements. I fucking hate this.”


    Fred shook his head. “You sound like the same selfish asshole that I used to know before she came


    along. I just told you your wife left and you’re worried about the money you’re going to lose if the


    mermaid files for a separation.”


    “Well, one thing is for sure. If she doesn’t file for the divorce, I sure as hell will.”