CHAPTER 13

NORA MEDORA

“Hey, sexy,” Jezebel Black’s voice said through Nora Medora’s cell phone. “What’s up?”

“Mission accomplished,” Nora replied.

“Do tell,” Jezebel said.

“I shot and killed two assailants entering Brock’s house early this morning. Two more were arrested out on his property. Best of all, Malcolm Reed was arrested this afternoon on multiple charges, the most serious being conspiracy to commit murder. But as far as I can tell, Reed is unaware that you sold him out.”

“Then I’ll have to change that, my dear,” she drawled. “I want him to know I was involved.

“That might not be such a good idea.”

“He basically tried to throw me under the bus at his first trial a decade ago,” she explained. “I want him to know that vengeance is mine, says Jezebel Black.”

“Just so you know, even in prison, he can be dangerous.”

“As if he’d be able find somebody to put a hit on me after today,” she mused. “Two dead and two arrested under Malcolm’s employ.”

“True enough, but you can never say never.”

There was a brief pause in their conversation.

“So, are you still going to marry Brock Storm the day after tomorrow?” Jezebel wanted to know.

“That’s the plan.”

“I’m jealous.”

“For me or him?”

“Both,” she said before a sinister cackle. “But you’re still gonna be my girl, right?”

“We’ll see,” Nora teased. A few months ago she would have made a gag gesture in person, but now she was hidden by the phone. So she simply smirked. Jezebel, despite her wicked ways, had grown on her. Maybe it was the danger, the forbidden, or maybe Brock withholding sex. Whatever it was, she felt a strange thrill in anticipation of her trysts with the occult leader.

“Now, now,” Jezebel warned. “You’ve given yourself over to the dark one. I’d hate to think of the curses you’d face if you turn your back to it now. Especially since you’ve just been rewarded with the biggest bust of your career.”

Adrenaline surged through Nora at her words. Why did they frighten her? She barely believed in a “higher power,” let alone a devil. Yet something supernatural did seem to be going on, and it was definitely tinged with evil.

“Now that it’s over,” Jezebel asked, “will you be able spend the night with me tomorrow?”

Nora began to breath a little harder. Little did Jezebel realize that Nora wasn’t done. Not only that, Jezebel herself was her next target. Due to their physical intimacy, Nora had been given access to the house of horrors she otherwise wouldn’t have had.

Nora discovered that Jezebel’s cult was planning a human sacrifice in the not to distant future. Nora needed to get to the bottom of that. No way could she allow Jezebel to commit murder for a stupid satanic ritual. So she would in fact spend the night with Jezebel.

“I will,” Nora heard herself say.

“I’ll get you good and ready for your nuptials,” Jezebel cooed.

“I bet you will,” Nora replied with a sultry voice. She was surprised at the smile she could feel on her face. Oh well, the part of her that felt aroused only helped her seem genuine.

Nora’s phone beeped, telling her that she had an incoming call. “Hey, I’ll let you go. I have call on the other line.”

“Okay, kiss, kiss.”

“Kiss, kiss,” Nora replied, yet she rolled her eyes.

“Hello,” Nora said into her phone. She didn’t recognize the number, other than the Illinois area code.

It was the FBI. She had had a couple of interviews with them in the previous weeks about an opening at the Chicago office. The person on the phone told her that they been undecided between her and another candidate. It seemed they were both equal in experience and education.

But now they had gotten wind of the arrests that morning in the Malcom Reed case. This development had given her the nod over the other candidate. Did she want the job? She calmly told them that she did, as her toes wiggled with excitement. When they hung up, she was in disbelief. She was going to be an FBI agent!

Her mind went to what Jezebel had told her. “You’ve just been rewarded with the biggest bust of your career.”

Had Nora truly given myself over to dark forces? She shook her head no, but then frowned. If so, were they really the reason this happened? She breathed heavily with nervous excitement as she recalled being initiated into Jezebel’s coven of dark arts.

Her motives were just a ploy weren’t they? Was selling your soul a real thing? Once again she shook her head. Yet her excitement was mixed with perplexity.

BROCK

“Guess what?” Nora said as she came bouncing into my house.

She had been outside for the last twenty minutes talking on her phone. It was strange indeed seeing the joyless Nora Medora so peppy and upbeat. This day’s arrests seemed to have done wonders for her mood.

“I give up,” I told her.

“I’m most likely going to be hired by the FBI,” she said, pronouncing each letter of the acronym very slowly.

I stiffened, wondering what this meant for me and what I had confided to her about the men I had murdered.

“I’m not gonna try to arrest my own husband, silly,” she said as if reading my thoughts. “On the other hand, even though I believe justice was served by what you did, an FBI agent shouldn’t be married to an active serial killer.”

“I told you I’m done with that.”

“I know, I’m just saying,” she replied. Yet she didn’t elaborate. “Well, I gotta get back to the state capital.”

Nora looped her arms around my neck and kissed me hard. When she pushed away, she really pushed away. She struck a hand hard into my chest and hooked her leg behind mine, taking me down. She landed on top of me, laughing and kissing me hard again.

“Unless you can convince me to stay the night,” she cooed. “I actually don’t have to be back until first thing in the morning.”

“Look, Nora,” I said. “In forty-eight hours, we’ll be married.”

“Party pooper,” she said, and for the first time that I had ever witnessed, Nora Medora pouted, even if it was in jest. “We’re gonna need to make up for lost time as soon as we say I do.”

“Believe me, after the last couple days seeing you in your tiny robe, I’ll be more than ready.”

“It probably didn’t help kissing your little porn star either.”

“Former,” I corrected.

“Or the glimpses I’m sure you caught of your ‘former’ porn star in her cute but tiny nighty.”

I didn’t reply. Nora smirked, winked, and kissed me one more time.

“I’ll see you this weekend,” she said and promptly left.

In some ways, it seemed like a blink of an eye later when Nora and I were standing and facing a Bible-wielding Captain Kirk. We were dressed in regular church garb rather than wedding gear. I wore tan Dockers and light blue polo, while Nora wore her typical tan cop skirt and a white blouse. Destiny stood to the left of Nora and Jacob Weston flanked my right. Mary Gold Weston, Bentley Bonnano, and the pastor’s wife were the only other people there.

To be honest, I was so tense, nervous, and apprehensive that I didn’t hear much of what the pastor was saying. Then he had Nora and I turn to face each other, taking hold of each other’s hands. Captain Kirk began speaking again. Instead of a look of love and affection, Nora wore a look of determination. Even though I felt something like dread come over me, I smiled as the queue to recite my two words in our simple union came about.

“I do,” I declared.

Nora’s expression suddenly fell and a look of confusion crossed her face. When Captain Kirk gave her the queue a moment later to say her vows, she began to pant like she had been running. Her eyes looked frightened as she glanced from me to the pastor and then back to me.

“I can’t,” she said instead of saying ‘I do.’ “I’m sorry, Brock.”

“Oh my,” Mary Gold gasped, yet she looked pleased. Captain Kirk kept a mostly blank face; yet I saw a twitch of a smile play at his lips. Dee’s eyes widened and her mouth opened in surprise. Then she meekly bowed her head, but it looked like she was repressing a grin. Jake looked at me with raised eyebrows and then shrugged. It fully hit me just how much my closest friends didn’t want this to happen. Only Bentley looked disappointed as he shook his head sympathetically.

I was truly taken by surprised. Then I was overwhelmed with a variety of feelings. The main thing I felt was relief. But I also felt disappointed that we wouldn’t be making love in a little while. My felonious past also arose to haunt my thoughts. Two days previous, Nora had said she wouldn’t arrest her husband, but now I would not be her husband.

“Can we talk in private, Brock?” Nora asked.

“Of course,” I replied as we went outside and began to walk down to Cotton Cove Creek.

“I’ve been thinking really hard the last couple days,” she said as her eyes filled with tears. “This whole thing with the FBI made me realize something. Not only am I already married to my career, but also you deserve a normal marriage. You know, white picket fence and all.”

“You know as well as I do that’s not possible,” I said.

“Why’s that?” Nora asked as if she didn’t already know.

“I can’t marry anyone with the blood I have on my hands.”

“I thought you said you were done with that?”

“I’m absolutely done with that.”

“So move on.”

“I have,” I insisted. “But I can’t undo my past. Now that we’re not marrying, I have no security that you won’t arrest me one day.”

“Is that why you were going to marry me?” Nora asked as she crossed her arms.

“It did supply me with a sense of security,” I replied and then put a gentle hand on her cheek. “But I was going to marry you because we’ve already been together, for the most part, for six years. Plus, I truly do love you, Nora. Even though we do have, or have had an unconventional relationship.”

She put a hand over my hand that was on her cheek as tears leaked from her eyes. This was a rare sight indeed. She kissed me softly on the lips.

“I truly love you, too,” she said just above a whisper. “And because I love you, I’m going to tell you something. I need to set you free. You and Destiny should be together.”

This surprised me, as well as made me uncomfortable. The way Nora Medora was looking at me reminded me of the time my mother confronted me with an erotic magazine she had found in my bedroom.

“What makes you say that?” I stammered.

“I’m a trained detective, and the chemistry between you two is combustible. Plus, you two have the same religious beliefs. And with her porn background, she should be sympathetic to your murderous background.”

“Nora, what I did was so twisted that you’re the only woman I would feel comfortable yoking up with.”

“So that is why you were going to marry me,” Nora said with a smirk as she crossed her arms again.

I cupped her face in my hands and kissed her lips softly.

“Do you not get that I really do love you, Nora Medora?” I asked her.

“I do,” she barley whispered.

“Oh, sure, now you say I do.”

She laughed, and then she took hold of my hands. “I think you can trust Dee with your background.”

“What if you arrest me someday, though?”

“Listen, Brock,” Nora said as her eyes turned cold and hard in the way I was used to seeing them. “I’ll share something with you that I really shouldn’t.”

Her eyes bore into mine with an intensity that matched anything I’d seen in her windows to the soul before. She didn’t say anything, though, and it was as if we were having a stare down all of a sudden.

“What gives, Nora?” I finally asked, not wanting to play any games.

“I may need your help with something,” she stated, completely business now. “As a matter of fact, I’m sure I will need your help with a case.”

“I’ll do what I can,” I replied cautiously. “What do you need?”

“Promise me that you’ll keep this to yourself.”

“Promise me that you won’t arrest me someday.”

“How about I’m ninety-nine point nine percent sure I won’t arrest you someday?”

“How about ninety-nine point nine, nine, nine?”

“Fine, ninety-nine point nine, nine, nine,” she said with exasperation at my lighthearted request. “I’ve been under cover with Jezebel Black’s occult group.”

“What?” I interrupted, shocked and disappointed, yet refraining from using profanity due to spiritual development. “You’ve been corroborating with the enemy?”

Nora closed her eyes and put out a hand, suggesting I should stop.

“Listen to me, Storm,” she said as her eyelids lifted. “I’ve been able to uncover several illegal activities that this occult group has been involved with, as well as future planned activities. The most serious is that Jezebel Black plans on a human sacrifice! Not only that she wants her youngest sister for this satanic ritual.”

“What?” I barked again. “Why would she kill her own sister?”

“Because Jezebel Black is a sick, twisted individual who also happens to be deluded with grandiose illusions that the devil, or whatever dark forces she adheres to, will bless her if she performs a human sacrifice. The most desirable being a young, female virgin.”

“How young?” I wanted to know.

“Eighteen.”

“I’m surprised that an eighteen-year-old sister of Jezebel Black’s would be a virgin.”

“Well, she’s not quite eighteen, and she’s also a half-sister. Jezebel Black has two half-sisters with different fathers, but the same mother. This youngest sister was mostly raised by her grandfather. The grandfather died recently, and now she’s living with the middle sister, who happens to be a stripper. This stripper sister apparently wants this younger one to follow suit, but she doesn’t want to. It seems she had a somewhat decent, respectable life with Grandpa and is freaked out by the idea of getting naked in front of men for a living. But her stripper sister has pretty much bullied her into following her career path. Ironically, Jezebel is having her delay this endeavor, but the stripper sister doesn’t know about Jezebel’s plan to murder the other sister in a ritual.”

“Crazy,” I mumbled as I tried to get my head around this.

“If you only knew,” Nora said quietly, her face looking strained.

“So what do you need from me?” I asked.

“You’re specialty,” she said with a smirk. “Protection.”

“Like what we just did with Dee?”

“Not quite,” Nora said, shaking her head. “This would be low-key compared to Dee’s situation. I was thinking when I roomed with Dee that it would be a perfect place to hide this kid out while I worked on taking down Jezebel Black.”

“Are you saying you just want her to stay with me?”

“Yes, but you’ll need Dee to stay with you, too. I don’t expect a teenage girl to stay with two men, one of whom is a little bizarre and weird.”

“Do you mean me or Bent?”

“You, of course,” she said with a wink. “Plus, if she were to room with Dee, I was thinking Dee could help her stay away from the sex industry.”

I nodded dumbly as I was torn about Dee staying with me for who knew how long. I loved the idea of her companionship, but I dreaded catching glimpses of her in her nightie now that I would be attempting celibacy for the indefinite future.

Fifteen minutes later, Nora was gone and I found myself alone with Destiny in the church foyer. She approached me meekly with her fingers interlaced in front of her.

“I’m so sorry, Brock,” she said softly as she winced.

My mind was so preoccupied about Nora going undercover in a satanic cult and this girl we might be protecting that I said one of the stupidest things in my life.

“About what?” I asked with arched eyebrows.

“About what?” Destiny laughed awkwardly as she tucked a strand of honey blonde hair behind an ear. “About Nora, um, you know… Leaving you at the altar.”

I could feel my face redden with embarrassment. I was, after all, just stood up at the altar like she said. Thankfully the people in attendance were in the single digits.

“Oh, you mean Nora deciding not to marry me.” Now I laughed awkwardly. “To be honest, I feel more relieved than disappointed.”

“Oh,” she said, wide-eyed. “It’s just that you had such a pained expression on your face just now.”

“Oh, I was thinking about my talk with Nora. She might need my help with a case.”

“Huh?” Destiny replied with a frown.

“Yeah,” I sighed. “This might have been one of the strangest runaway bride situations ever. Instead of focusing on our relationship and why we weren’t getting married, we mostly talked about a case she’s working on.”

“Really?” she replied, incredulously.

“Really,” I chuckled. “Nora Medora is truly married to her career. I now fully realize that I’ve just been her paramour for the last six years.”

“Do you mean like a male mistress?” Destiny asked with a grin.

“Exactly.”

“So what’s this case that she needs your help with?”

“She wants me to keep it to myself for now. But I can tell you this much. She also wants your help, Dee. It involves a teenage girl who is being pressured by her sister to become a stripper. The sister already is a stripper. Nora thinks you would be able to advise her. She was thinking that you two could share your room if I end up protecting her. ”

“I’d be glad to,” Destiny responded eagerly.

“Her life is also at risk, but I can’t tell you about that just yet.”

Little did we know then that this next adventure would be more dangerous than the last.