Charlie Cain (pt 1)

The sweltering, wet summer air on Bourbon Street always hit Charlie like a kiss. The thrum of energy that pulsed at all hours stoked his smoldering excitement. For the first time tonight, he was opening here in the center of the musical universe. Charlie had practically run out of the building after the final rehearsal to get a taste of New Orleans before the night began.
Maudlin was the latest of Charlie’s bands. They had been together for two years now, and were stronger for having left New York City. For two months, they had been playing minor shows in the Big Easy, trying to get a break in any of the major clubs, or at least raise enough money to rent a warehouse where they could host concerts. Charlie had been experimenting with music for years, but somehow, Maudlin felt right. He had finally gathered the right group of people.
Unfortunately, Charlie had no one to share it all with. Most of the time that didn’t bother him; he was strong and independent. None of his friends had ever heard him pine for a woman. Any woman, let alone someone in particular. But still, after his last girlfriend had left him, stating that she would never move to New Orleans and leave her life behind for the sake of his band, Charlie wished he had someone to talk to. Someone to hold close to him while he slept. He had really believed Liza would move with him; he even had a ring for her if she agreed, but he’d never had the chance to propose. She had promptly shut him down, and not two weeks after he left, an old friend told him she was dating a drummer from a rival band.
Shaking his head slightly, Charlie looked out into the night. His brilliant blue eyes glittered with anticipation. Looking up at the sky, he smirked. Darkness hung over the city like a shroud. The stars seemed to gleam with almost desperate effort to pierce the palpable gloom. The people rushing by Charlie’s stationary form seemed unaware. This shimmering jewel of a city was a secret within a secret, helpless in the grasp of some ancient hunger.
Charlie laughed, “There I go again. I’ll write that on the list of things never to say out loud.”
And there was a list. A long one. Not that he really gave much thought to how people saw him, but there was a part of him that didn’t want to express certain things because it made him almost violently upset that so many people were blind to the world around them. Things that were so obvious to him would sound insane to the average person. Generally, humans were sheep. Americans especially. Gullible and fat. Obsessed with themselves. Charlie was anything but average, an observation that wasn’t self-absorbed in the slightest. His extraordinary nature was just a matter of fact, and humility simply played no role. He wasn’t a narcissist, he had just realized over time that he was different. Different and… superior. The part that separated him from the fascists in history who had also claimed to be superior was that Charlie kept this knowledge to himself, and he didn’t force it on anyone. The world could go on believing in itself, clinging to its mindless rhetoric and routine and he would remain on the sidelines existing on a different plane.
A ripple of blond hair caught Charlie’s eye and he turned, hands still in his pockets. In front of a bustling little bistro on the corner was a gorgeous young woman with platinum tresses that reached her waist. She was smiling slightly, and Charlie would swear there was a look of recognition in her almost colorless eyes. Almost involuntarily, Charlie walked toward her, drawn by the sense that he should know this woman, even though he was positive he’d never met her in his life. When he reached her, he extended his hand.
“Charlie,” he said, trying to keep his deep voice as quiet as he could.
“Celene,” the woman replied, her hand surprisingly cool in his as she shook it.
Charlie’s eyes searched hers. Celene looked almost concerned.
“Are you alright?” Charlie asked.
Celene nodded, “Can we talk?”
Charlie’s lips curled in a dangerous smile, “If I go with you, there’s not some guy waiting around the corner with a gun is there?”
Celene blanched, “Gods no! I… I just…”
Charlie chuckled, “Relax, I was joking, lead on.” He looked around and then followed her into the shadows, pretending not to notice that her hair and eyes were almost luminescent even in the pitch dark.
When they were in a relatively secluded spot, Charlie leaned back against the brick of a building and looked at Celene. Her face was just barely visible in the moonlight that filtered into the alleyway they stood in, between two tall brick buildings that might have been apartments or offices. Celene’s features were soft and young and Charlie would have said she was no more than sixteen if she didn’t have such ancient eyes. Her eyes were filled with such a tumble of emotions that Charlie couldn’t tell what she was feeling at any given moment.
Tiring of the mystery, Charlie said, “Well, Celene, what is it you want to say? I go on in about two hours and I was hoping to enjoy myself.”
Celene sighed, “You’re not going to believe me, but I have to try.”
Charlie gritted his teeth, “What is this about? I mean, do I know you? I feel like I must have met you somewhere, but I honestly can’t remember. I’m about to do a huge show and I want to have some time to myself first. So if it’s not important, I’m going to go.”
Celene put her arm out; Charlie couldn’t tell if she was trying to stop him or indicate she meant no harm, “Please, Charlie, wait. No, you don’t know me. Although, you may have seen me recently, because I’ve been following you. You see, you’re in danger, and my… employer… wanted me to keep an eye on you.”
“Someone sent you to protect me?” Charlie asked incredulously.
“Uh…” Celene sounded like she was blushing. “No, not exactly. I’m sort of… Well, I’ve basically been spying on you. In fact, my orders were quite clear that I wasn’t to interfere. If you went to them willingly, I was supposed to let you go. My job was simply to get all of the information that I could. Listen to all your conversations, relay your intentions. The thing is, I have to stop you. I can’t bear the thought of someone like you being drawn into the darkness even more. You’re brilliant. There’s still hope for you.”
Charlie looked down his nose at Celene, “Celene, I have no idea what you’re talking about. All this babble like I’m at the center of some conspiracy. If it’s true that someone hired you to follow me, you can deliver this message, ‘FUCK OFF.’ Similarly, if I see you at one on my shows, I’ll have you thrown out. I haven’t come this far to let some pretty little girl stand in my way. Clear?”
Celene looked like she was about to cry, “Just promise me you won’t go to her.”
Charlie snorted, “Go to whom?”
“Antoinette. Queen of the Bayou,” Celene’s voice broke.
Charlie felt his head start to throb, “Celene, who are you?”
“I… I can’t tell you. They’ll probably kill me just for talking to you.”
Charlie shook his head in disbelief, “I don’t believe this is happening.” He started to walk away, “I hope you’ll be okay Celene. I sincerely hope no one hurts you for talking to me, but I have a show to do. Maybe you should go talk to the police.”

Celene stood in the alley for a long time, staring at the spot where Charlie had disappeared into the crowd. She barely flinched when heavy, deliberate footsteps approached her from behind and a meaty black hand clasped her throat.
“Nice try Celene,” a haunting voice murmured, “I applaud your courage. You shouldn’t have let the Preacher use you. Now we have the perfect little greeting card to send him. It also sends a message to our people. This is what happens when you betray us.”
“Fuck you, Bayou,” Celene spat, her throat closing. “Hopefully Charlie will listen to me.”
A husky, musical laugh filled the night, “Oh, you don’t have to worry about Charlie, he’ll be just fine. And darling, you did fuck me, remember? Then the Preacher told you what a naughty little whore you are and turned you into… this. Pathetic.” The female voice became warm and flirtatious, “Marlo, do what you like with her and leave her on the Preacher’s doorstep. Then come back to me.”
Celene screamed when the mountain of black flesh behind her rumbled with laughter.

CHAPTER ONE

Charlie hissed quietly as the ice cold Aquavit scraped its way down his throat. He rubbed his eyes. The lyrics he’d scribbled on the rumpled paper in front of him were beginning to blur. He wasn’t tired. He was bored. There was a very small part of him that said that was ridiculous and that he was selfish for feeling that way. The truth was, he wasn’t satisfied. He was hungry for more. More of what, he couldn’t say. Just this taste for something raw and untamed. Something truly wild. Something free.
Charles Cain, or “Charlie” as his friends called him, was finally becoming a mainstay in the music scene of New Orleans. His band, Maudlin, had been together for three years, and had been playing in their warehouse on the edge of town for over a year now. Though they had strayed from the typical venues in the heart of the Big Easy, the crowd they attracted was perfect for the music they played. Their fans were so numerous that they never bothered with seating, and the money made from the bar alone was enough to cover the band’s expenses with profit over that. Combined with his cut of the cover charge and a cut of the merchandise profits, Charlie could afford to live very comfortably.
Charlie knew he was lucky. Not every musician did so well for their first year in a new city with so much competition. He told himself he wasn’t unhappy, there was just something missing. He loved his music, and he knew it wasn’t that he was getting tired of it… was he?
“Fuck,” Charlie nearly knocked over his barstool as he stood. He grabbed his long black coat and stepped into the cool spring night. He breathed deeply, enjoying the rich, mixed bouquet of scents. His little piece of the city was right on the edge of the bayou, close enough to the brackish water that the smell of the city mixed with the sickly sweet smell of water plants, and the rich odor of the water. He smiled and slipped his coat on.
With his dark hair and his long black coat, Charlie blended easily into the hazy twilight. His coat was open to reveal his tall, muscular form, modestly dressed in a sober gray pullover and black pants. His heavy black boots were quiet, and his blue eyes were emotionless as he stared into the mist. He hadn’t bothered to bring a flashlight, but he didn’t need one; he knew this part of the world better than anybody. For the past year, he’d paced this stretch of land over and over, thinking about life and his music and the dark questions that cascaded through his mind. He’d come out here to smoke, but he’d never brought anyone with him. He enjoyed the solitude. It was the balance he needed to offset all the noise.
Lost in thought, Charlie cursed loudly as he tumbled over something large and soft in the gloom. He realized it was a dog when it yelped and scrambled away from him.
“Argus?” a voice called.
Charlie stopped, his hands frozen as he brushed himself off. That voice. His heart pounded in his chest, listening hard.
“Hello?” he called.
The jingling of dog tags was getting closer, so he pulled out his cellphone to light up the area. He took a step back when he saw an enormous black dog approaching.
“Don’t worry!” that voice called again, “Argus won’t hurt you!”
“Argus, eh, boy?” Charlie held out his free hand to the huge dog, who sniffed it politely and then started inspecting his boots. Out of the corner of his eye, Charlie saw the dog’s mistress coming toward him and stood up straight, his breath catching.
It wasn’t that Charlie hadn’t seen beautiful women before, he was no stranger to female flesh. The woman before him was nothing like the vivacious little girls he’d had before. Her thick, wavy hair fell past her broad shoulders, and even in the dim light of his cell phone he could see that she was solidly built. Not stocky, but definitely strong. Wide hips balanced an ample chest that his eyes couldn’t help but linger on for a moment too long. But her face, and those eyes. Even in the darkness, her eyes were alive, like pools of fire. Charlie had to remind himself to breathe.
“I’m sorry,” the woman said, “I didn’t realize anyone else used this path. Otherwise I would have put Argus on a leash.”
“A leash on that thing?” Charlie blurted, “He’s as big as a bear.”
The woman laughed, a musical, throaty laugh that made Charlie want to button his coat so it covered his groin.
Charlie recovered and said, “Not that I doubt you could handle him. What is he, exactly?”
Those radiant eyes devoured his face for a moment, “What does he look like?”
Charlie raised his cell phone to see the dog more clearly. Golden eyes peered out over a long black muzzle. Huge ears perched on top of his head, and Argus’ neck disappeared inside a thick black mane of long, coarse hair. A powerful body sat on four sinewy legs with immense paws, and a thick bushy tail whipped the night air with languid grace. Charlie swallowed hard.
“He’s a wolf,” Charlie rasped. He looked between the dog and the woman. “He’s a wolf?”
She nodded, “Best I’ve ever had.”
Charlie remembered his manners and said, “I’m sorry I didn’t see him. I must’ve stepped on his paw or something. I honestly wasn’t paying attention. I’ve never seen anyone out here before.” He extended his hand, “I’m Charles Cain.”
When the woman’s skin touched his, Charlie inhaled sharply as a little jolt shot up his arm, “I’m Toni Laveau,” she said. “You live around here, Charles Cain?”
Charlie nodded, “That’s my warehouse at the end of the path. I live upstairs. I don’t know if you’ve heard of my band, Maudlin? We play there a few nights a week. The rest of the band lives in town.”
Toni smiled, “I’ve heard of you.”
Charlie waited for her to say more, but she just smirked at him, “Well, uh, I’d love to have you at a show sometime,” he said, “bring your friends. First time you come, cover and drinks are on me.”
Toni stepped a bit closer, “That’s very generous, Puppy. I’ll be sure to come.”
Charlie shivered pleasantly at the nickname, half of his brain trying to kick him before his lust made him look like an idiot.
Toni stepped closer, “How long has it been?” she asked.
Charlie gulped, “What?”
Toni chuckled, “I asked when the next time you play is.”
“Oh,” he stammered, “we play again tomorrow.”
“What time?”
“We start at six.”
“What should I wear?”
“What?” Charlie could feel his self-control slipping. “Wear whatever you want.”
Toni cocked her head to one said, “Of course, but, I want to wear what you’d like to see.”
Charlie could tell she was watching him as he undressed her with his eyes. So far, she wasn’t complaining. He imagined her naked, but, of course, she couldn’t show up naked to the warehouse. There wasn’t a dress code; it was his club after all, but he didn’t want anyone else to see her naked. Not until she belonged to him. Charlie shook his head. What the fuck? He chastised himself.
“Wear something light, it gets hot in there,” he heard himself tell her. “Black if you have it.”
Toni nodded, “Until tomorrow night, then, Puppy.” She turned and whistled for Argus. The wolf trotted up to Charlie and licked his hand before running to catch up with his beautiful mistress.
Charlie winced, his hand was burning. He looked at it in the cell phone light but suddenly the screen went black, the little red battery light flashing for a moment.
“Damn it,” he whispered.
With one glance behind him, Charlie walked back to the warehouse, feeling excited for a show for the first time in months.

The next morning, Charlie woke up with a start, his heart still pounding in his chest. Fuzzy images from the dream he’d had slowly trickled from his mind. Golden eyes, watching him, and soft, auburn hair touching his skin. He could barely recall the dream, but the throbbing erection pushing the sheet up between his legs made him wish he could remember.
Dropping back on to his pillow, Charlie tried to conjure an image from his dream, but all he could picture was Toni. In his mind, her supple body was pinned to the bed, her skin marked by his teeth. She wore nothing but the shark tooth he’d seen on a rope around her neck, and she cried out his name over and over as he spilled into her. Gasping, Charlie came all over his stomach, wrenching spasms from the deepest part of his being.
“Holy fuck,” Charlie panted, sitting up again. He threw the sheets off and walked into the bathroom.
Barely glancing in the mirror, Charlie stepped into the shower, flipping on the water until a cool stream rushed over his skin. Closing his eyes, he imagined Toni’s body again, wondering how she would taste. He’d barely caught a glimpse of her in the dark last night, but there was no doubt that he wanted her. On some level, he knew he would wait as long as it took. There was something about her. It didn’t make him fall in love. It was more than that, something other. Something unexplainable.
Opening his eyes to turn off the spray, Charlie noticed a strange mark on his hand. He blinked the water away and looked at it. Stretching from the first knuckle on his index finger to the base of his thumb was a mark. At first glance, it looked like a bruise, but when he moved his hand, the light refracted off it in the same way sunlight is captured in oil spilled on asphalt. A sort of iridescent shine coated the purplish shape on his hand. Almost as though it was the combination of a bruise and a scar.
“How the hell did that happen?” he wondered.
The shape was vague, but the mark on his hand looked like a crescent moon stretching towards his wrist. Charlie pressed it. No pain. Instead, he felt a flash of awareness, almost as though he was exposed, but it was pleasant rather than threatening. He shook his head and turned off the water.
As he dressed, he could hear the band coming in downstairs, getting ready to begin the day’s rehearsals. It was unlike him to spend much time getting ready, but he lingered in front of the mirror for a moment, feeling like a different man. He was excited for tonight. He could feel the anger boiling in his blood, ready to thrash the crowd like a bull whip. His eyes were dark blue and hungry.
Turning away from the mirror, He pulled on a shirt and headed downstairs. He almost stumbled over his manager, who was on his cell, apparently waiting for Charlie.
“Rick,” Charlie said, “just the man I wanted to see.” He smiled thinly.
Rick glanced up the stairs, “You’re alone?”
Charlie frowned, “Yeah, why? Not that it’s any of your business.”
Rick shrugged, “Listen, we have kind of a problem. There’s a rather large party coming here tonight that says you told them they could get in for free. Now, I told them that isn’t your style, but the man on the phone insisted that his boss talked to you last night and arranged the whole thing. I’ll have a talk with the bouncers but I just wanted you to know –”
“This man you talked to,” Charlie interrupted, “his boss wouldn’t happen to be Toni Laveau?”
Rick scowled and looked at his day planner. His eyebrows snapped together, “Laveau, Limited. How do you know her? This isn’t exactly the kind of place Antoinette Laveau comes to. I assumed it was a prank, or someone dropping her name to get in for free.”
Charlie rubbed the light scruff on his chin thoughtfully, “I ran into her last night while she was walking her… dog. I invited her myself. Did she say how many people she’s bringing?”
Rick looked flustered, “Uh, her assistant, a Mr. Jonas, said she’d be bringing some business associates tonight.”
Charlie nodded, “That’s fine. Don’t hurt yourself Rick, I did invite her to bring as many of her friends as she wanted.” Rick opened his mouth to speak but Charlie said, “Free of charge.”
Rick looked like he wanted to argue, but he just pursed his lips and nodded. Charlie clapped him on the back and walked into main room of the warehouse. His band mates were already assembled there, tuning there instruments and chatting, laughing and smiling. They were a good group. Compared to the way some of his previous bands had gotten along, they were extremely amiable. Charlie smiled and pointed to Ben, in the sound booth.
“Morning, Ben,” Charlie called, “start us up.”
“All right kids,” Ben said over the p.a. “Let’s settle down and get to work, eh?”
Everybody groaned comically, smiling, and took their positions, nodding to Charlie as he hopped onto the stage and settled behind his drum set. Charlie grabbed his favorite sticks and started the beat.

Four hours later, Charlie was standing outside the warehouse when a sense of déjà vu hit him. The spring air was much cooler, but with the sweat pouring off of him from rehearsal, it felt just enough like summer. Like the night he’d met that blond, who’d tried to warn him about something.
What was her name again? It slipped his mind.
Charlie took a sip of water from the bottle in his hand.
Simone? No.
Sabrina, maybe?
What was it she’d said again? Oh, yeah, that she was spying on him for her “employer,” whoever that was. Charlie vaguely remembered that this elusive employer was supposedly protecting him, but he couldn’t remember from what.
Celene! He remembered.
Celene, the little blond spy.
“… Antoinette. Queen of the Bayou…” Celene had said.
“Antoinette…” Charlie muttered to himself. “The Antoinette, I wonder? Ms. Antoinette Laveau? My mysterious guest?” Charlie chuckled to himself.
If it was anyone else, Charlie would have shied away from the drama of the double identities of powerful women who went around introducing themselves casually in their slinky nighttime jogging gear, only to reveal themselves as one of the most powerful gurus of the city. In this case, Charlie was sure there was a good reason for her double nature. The woman intrigued him. If nothing else, she incited a powerful physical attraction he was eager to explore. He wondered briefly what she would be wearing to the show.
Dusk was settling over the city, and fog rolled in off the water in blankets, making the streetlights look like lighthouses in the dark. The first of the cars were rolling up to the warehouse, and Charlie turned to go back inside. Rick was standing by the door with a couple of bouncers.
“Don’t forget what I said,” Charlie told Rick.
“Yeah, I got the message, boss,” Rick rolled his eyes.
Charlie smirked and went upstairs to change his clothes before the concert. His blood started to pound in his veins. He could hear the traffic being directed downstairs and the dull roar of people talking as they walked inside. Charlie opened the window in his loft that looked down over the stage and smiled. Ben had the purple lights on tonight, with some dim follow spots shining out into the audience. The regular ambient lighting in the room was hazy at best. The only real light in the place at this point was right at the edge of the stage and behind the bar.
Charlie had designed the space himself. There were lights on the stage of course, because the band was the main event. He’d learned quickly though that his guests needed light on the merch in the cases behind the bar, and of course on the alcohol, so he would make more money. It worked like a charm. As for the dim lighting on the audience, that was more for privacy than anything. His shows had become known for a don’t ask, don’t tell policy as far as drugs and intimacy went. Good music and lenient rules were rapidly making Charlie and his band mates wealthy. Of course, if someone caused a scene, they were forcibly removed to make an example, but that rarely happened anymore. Charlie found his following was loyal enough to the whole process at this point that it was the fans who usually weeded out the trouble-makers before the bouncers had to intervene.
Charlie took the back stairs behind the stage and went to the control room. The monitors were alive with activity. There. There she was.
Antoinette Laveau looked stunning. Charlie had been attracted to her in a jogging suit, so it didn’t really matter, but damn. She cleaned up well. Her long auburn tresses were a coiled mess of braids that she had somehow managed to make elegant. Her incredible eyes were ringed in black, and even on the screen, Charlie could tell it made her face look amazing. Hanging from her neck was a mass of sailors’ knots in black cord, complete with the shark tooth she’d been wearing the night before. A silver, strapless dress hung from her ample breasts, cinched with boning on her ribs to flow out into strands of silver and black fabric that hung over her hips and thighs. Charlie couldn’t tell if there was anything underneath it but he hoped she planned to dance.
Peeling his eyes away from her, Charlie looked at the mass of deep brown skin and sinew standing next to her. An immense black man with pale eyes loomed over her like a shadow. He didn’t seem tense, but it didn’t look like he needed to be, either. No one in this crowd posed a threat to him.
A plump redhead with blue streaks in her hair sat next to Antoinette on a barstool, chatting and smiling with the small group that was clustered around them. Charlie could see she was beautiful as well. He wondered where Antoinette found such stunning people.
Charlie glanced at the timestamp on the screen. There was enough time to say hi before the show. He walked through the door and into the crowd, nodding politely and excusing himself as he made his way through the excited throngs of people towards the bar. Antoinette lifted an eyebrow when she saw him and smiled. She whispered something to the tall black man who nodded, looking at Charlie. The guy must be her body guard or something.
“Will you excuse me?” Antoinette said, standing and walking to Charlie.
The people around her looked surprised, and they all stood blinking at Charlie for a moment before resuming their conversations.
“Hello, Puppy,” Antoinette purred, standing a little away from everyone.
“Antoinette,” Charlie returned.
Antoinette frowned, her eyes flashing, “Damn that Dax! If he wasn’t so useful, I’d feed him to the alligators.”
Charlie chuckled, “Don’t hurt him too much; it was actually my manger that told me a bit more about you. Apparently Antoinette Laveau is quite a force in this town.”
“Names are powerful things, Puppy,” she told him, her voice low and husky, “I introduced myself the way I did for a reason.” Then she smiled, “No matter. What’s done is done.” She cocked her head to one side, “You look delicious.”
Charlie smirked, “You look divine as well.”
Antoinette’s eyes smoldered, “That’s because I am.”
Charlie felt his blood surge, and he barely kept himself from blushing as he remembered his vivid fantasy from the morning. Antoinette seemed to know exactly what he was thinking, her eyes boring into his as she stepped forward. Charlie licked his lips, wishing very much that they were alone.
Antoinette stood on her toes to whisper in his ear, “I’m taking advantage of you now because I have no doubt we’ll be fighting for the upper hand from now on.”
And then, Charlie’s mind exploded with light as she kissed him. It wasn’t just as kiss. She bit his tongue and sucked it into her mouth. He grabbed her face and kissed her back with bruising force. She tugged his hair with one hand and reached up his shirt to rake her fingernails down his back. He tried to bite her lips but she pulled away. Altogether, the kiss had lasted about twenty seconds, but Charlie felt like they’d been lip-locked for an hour. He was panting and he had an erection throbbing in his pants.
“I think I’m going to enjoy these battles,” Charlie rasped.
Antoinette bit her lip and smiled, “Oh, you will.” She made a shooing motion with her hand. “Go play. No one will remember that we kissed.”
Charlie looked around and realized no one was looking at them. Weird. He walked back to the stage.

Source: reddit.com/r/eroticliterature/comments/jt1pom/charlie_cain_pt_1