Possessed

saw him? If there was even a person to recognize.

He glanced at Cass and watched her back arch and her head whip sharply to the side as if she’d been slapped. Something was doing this to her and if it didn’t stop, he didn’t know what the hell would happen. She was barely bigger than a girl and surely not strong enough to take on this creature she’d described.

Again Malcolm surveyed the area. Some people joined the group of gapers, others just stared at the crowd but kept on their way, and still others ignored the spectacle entirely. And one person stood behind a marble column near the entrance. Watching. His face was covered, but Malcolm could see a pair of jeans and part of his body that was covered in what looked to be an oversize sweatshirt.

Malcolm took a few steps toward the person, trying to make it seem as if his only concern was leaving.

“Hey, dude, you’re not just going to leave her, are you?” That from one of the spectators surrounding Cass.

Malcolm ignored him and headed for the figure still by the door.

“That’s cold!” someone shouted.

But he kept moving. Suddenly the figure shifted out from behind the column and spotted Malcolm coming directly at him. The hood was pulled down over the face, but Malcolm could make out a thin, pointed chin and slim nose.

The person turned and burst through the doors. Taking off at full speed, Malcolm gave chase. He shoved open the doors but stopped to try to get a sense of which way the person had fled. To his right, he heard a flurry of noise as a woman shouted.

“Rude!”

She’d been pushed to the side by someone moving fast. Malcolm turned in that direction and ran. Weaving through people making their way inside the station, he was finally clear of them and could see the hooded figure running a few yards up. Malcolm gave chase again but paused when he saw the person hail a cab even while running. The cab stopped and the person hopped inside. Malcolm could see the barest profile of a face through the window and then the cab was gone, turning the corner and merging into city traffic.

He let out a heavy breath, then turned and ran back toward the station. When he flung open the door, he saw a significant number of people still hovering over Cass.

Pushing his way through them, he could see that her convulsions had stopped. For a second, with her eyes closed and her body sprawled out on the ground, he feared that whatever had attacked her had killed her. He dropped to his knees beside her and lifted her hand in his. Her pulse was beating way too fast, but it was there.

“Please, give me some room.”

“I think something is wrong. She’s not moving. Maybe we should call 911.” This from the woman who had wanted to help before.

“I’ve got her,” he said.

“Dude, you took off.” It was the young man carrying a backpack who had shouted at him earlier.

“I was getting a cab,” Malcolm lied. He didn’t have time for lengthy explanations. At this point a security guard had come over and joined the group. He reached for his walkie-talkie at his side, but Malcolm shook his head.

“Really, it’s okay. She does this all the time. If you call an ambulance it will just be a hassle.”

The security guard seemed to waver, but Malcolm didn’t hesitate. He bent down and scooped Cass into his arms. She stirred enough to realize who was holding her and for that he was relieved. He was going on his gut that she didn’t want the fuss of an ambulance, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t taking her straight to the emergency room if she couldn’t tell him she was okay.

“Did you…?” she asked weakly.

“No. He got away,” he whispered back. “Forget about that. Hold on to me.”

“Can’t. Don’t want to touch you.”

Malcolm wasn’t sure if it was meant to be an insult or not. It didn’t matter. “Look, you’re as light as a feather, but I still have to get you out of here and down to the garage. It will be easier if you help. Now put your arms around my neck and hold on.”

Cass lifted her arms over his shoulders, then linked them behind his neck. Malcolm hoisted her up higher in his arms and her head fell to rest on his shoulder.

“Thank you, everyone, for…” Watching didn’t seem like the appropriate word, but truly that was all they had done. “Everything,” he finished lamely.

The crowd split to let him move, and he made his way to the elevators that would lead to the lower level and his car. Once he reached it, he was able to fish out his keys with one hand while she clung to him. He disengaged the locks and placed her gently in the car.

“I didn’t think you would want an ambulance, but I’m taking you to the hospital.”

“No,” Cass said. “They’ll ask too many questions. I won’t be able to answer. Please.”

“If you’re seriously hurt…”

“It’s nothing. Bruises and aches.”

He looked at her face and saw that while it was smattered with blood, her nose had actually stopped bleeding. “What the hell did that thing do to you?”

“Just take me home.”

That wasn’t going to happen. Not until he had some answers. But rather than argue, he simply circled the car, got in and left the parking lot.

Cass had dozed off during the trip, so when she felt the car braking to a stop, she had no idea how far they had traveled. She could have been asleep for minutes or hours. It was hard to tell. All she knew was that now that she was awake, she hurt. Her right side hurt so badly, it made breathing difficult and she wondered if maybe she should have let Malcolm take her to an emergency room. But the idea of a bunch of doctors and nurses standing around her and asking her who beat her up was worse than the pain.

They would suspect Malcolm, which she was sure he wouldn’t appreciate, and then they would want to call the police. It could get back to Dougie and that would be the last thing she needed.

No, no doctors. There wasn’t much they did for bruised ribs anyway. At least she didn’t think so. When the car door beside her opened, she roused herself long enough to check out where she was. She was expecting to be parked on her street somewhere close to her apartment building.

She wasn’t. She was in a garage by the look of it. “Where did you take me?”

“Home.”

Cass had enough energy left to raise an eyebrow at him. “You know I meant my home.”

“I figured you did, but I wasn’t leaving you alone tonight and that futon you have doesn’t look all that comfortable for sleeping.”

“You’re wrong. It’s quite comfortable.”

“Yeah, well, we’ll both be more comfortable here.” That said, he slid his hands underneath her and lifted her from the car seat with the ease of a man who had a great deal of upper body strength. Once again she settled against his broad chest and the impulse to rest her cheek on his shoulder was irresistible.

Cass sighed a little at the cessation of pain. This felt so good, she decided, so good to let someone else carry the load. Then immediately, she struggled to lift her head. When had she ever let someone carry the load for her before?

“I can walk.”

“No need.” He pulled out his house keys with little effort despite his burden and opened the door that led to what appeared to be a great room. It had two long, brown leather sofas, two more recliners, a large flat-screen TV and a fireplace. Along one side of the wall was a bar and adjacent to that, a pool table.

A perfect man’s retreat. Filled with comfort and toys.

Malcolm was certainly the type to have things. Looking around the room at the trophies above the mantel, the baseball that was under glass on one of the end tables and the framed picture of what appeared to be a baseball team with lots of signatures all over it, she wondered if they made him happy. His things.

He set her down on the nearest sofa, and she groaned a bit as the pressure of sitting up was too much.

“Easy. Lie down. That’s it.” He helped her move into a reclining position and then propped her head up with a few throw pillows. He grabbed some others from the other couch and eased them under her knees.

“I’ve had my ribs whacked a few times. This is usually the most comfortable position,” he said.