Stacy Has Much To Ponder

She bathed herself more or less on autopilot as her mind raced. Could she really be a member of a merciless international cult, as Jacob had called it, like the Dark Blade? She didn't want to believe that she was that sort of person, but she supposed it would account for her skill in unarmed combat.

But had Jacob been telling her the truth? How likely was it that a member of a cult like that would be reduced to mugging? She'd expect him to be engaged in "superior" - for want of a better word - types of crime to that. Of course, judging by the man's babblings he had either been high on drugs or insane, and perhaps either a developing drugs habit or a mental breakdown had led to him dropping out of the cult?

Regardless of whether Jacob had told her the truth, she was sure that if he was ever to see her tattoo he would kill her with as little compunction as he had shown to the mugger. And she had another problem. By now, she might well be wanted by the police as an accessory to murder. Jacob had shot the man in broad daylight in a New York walkway and though - not surprisingly - nobody had tried to intervene, there must surely have been witnesses, maybe even mobile phone photos or video footage. She couldn't understand why Jacob had thought that they could just check into a hotel as if nothing had happened.

She decided that, once she had finished her bath:

1. She was going to make a run for it, and try to get far away from Jacob and the jurisdiction of the NYPD. He had left two bodyguards on her door, she recalled, but she could tell them that she was going to Reception for something.
2. She would speak to Jacob. She wouldn't tell him about her tattoo, of course, but perhaps he would explain why he thought he could kill a man in New York in plain view and apparently not fear being arrested.
3. To order a meal from Room Service. Surprisingly, given what she had been through, she felt hungry.
4. But her train of thought was interrupted by spotting another, smaller, tattoo on the inside of her thigh. She recalled that Jacob had said that gang members had additional symbols hidden somewhere less obvious, signifying rank and function.
5. But her train of thought was interrupted by someone knocking on the outer door of her bedroom. She supposed it was likely to be Jacob - unless it was the police.

Add New Option

Go Back

View Forward Story Tree
View Back Story Tree