Unlimited

Darina Grotto, 2017

Summer, 2013. Moscow. Just a young redhead girl. Just an amazing and unusual meeting. The meeting which thwarted plans and dreams of the young redhead girl, Victoria. And totally untypical love that got under the girl’s skin. What if she mustn’t love? Horrifying! What if she mustn’t want? Dangerous! And what if Victoria really wanted to love? How to live when suddenly as if touched with a wand everything became unusual including the redhead girl? In a Moscow beautiful summer, one beautiful day Victoria made a mess of things that led her into apocalyptic troubles.Содержит нецензурную брань.

13

^th

November 2013 (Wednesday)

Kharon appeared in the flat when there was no one. The man fatefully leaned against the wall in the hall, out of the corner of his eye looked at the note on the table.

Victoria had left for work in a perfect mood. Certainly, when she opened her eyes, she was ready to be paralyzed and she was so surprised when having opened the eyes at the sound of the alarm clock Vic understood that she could move not only the limbs.

Being a little bit shocked and happy simultaneously she rushed to the kitchen to make delicious breakfast for her beloved, but she didn’t find anyone in the bed.

Victoria called Kharon but an automatic female voice said that the subscriber was unavailable. Being sure that Kharon stayed at his own home, Vic cooked bacon and eggs, thinking of why she was full of energy and power this time. In some time, she found an explanation for this phenomenon. They had sex at the demon’s territory in artificial place where Victoria hadn’t been able to relax completely and that’s why she didn’t give all her energy. Her subconsciousness took care if she had needed to run or even worse fight. She had to keep power at any price. That was the only one rational explanation which Victoria could provide for her unusual activity.

Kharon pulled off his shoes and came up to the table, carefully took the two-fold piece of paper.

“Сhéri,

I couldn’t call up for you, so I’ve decided to leave the note. I hope your mood is as in the groove as mine. I don’t know what happened but I’m full of strength! It scares me and it’s wonderful simultaneously. Your breakfast is on the oven, juice is in the fridge. Coffee is near the oven. See you in the evening. Madly love you.

Thank you for the night and expressed trust.”

The demon was sitting at the table and drinking coffee studying the note, imagining what a mess the girl had in her head now.

Victoria was on the train in the metro, leaned against the doors. She was in a really good mood. Without hiding the smile, she examined the dejected countenance of passengers, remembering the night.

At one of the stations Victoria noticed something unusual. In the middle of the carriage something came in. Her heart began beating with fear while she was looking at the creature coming into the carriage. Victoria didn’t understand what exactly drew her attention to it. It looked like a human. The man was of middle aged and at his face genuine indifference was to everything froze. But something wrong was with that man, something that usual people didn’t have. He was completely different… But only Victoria saw it.

Having come into the carriage the man stayed nearby the doors but then he shifted his gaze purposefully at Victoria. When their eyes met Victoria understood that he wasn’t just a human. He was looking at her straight and a cynical and presumptuous smile crawled his lips.

For counted seconds, like the 25^th frame for a second, the man turned into a black figure 2 meters and a half in high, humpbacked, bent head under the ceiling. He had wide-spread wings like wings of a bat but blacker and thicker. He had horns on his head like a Caucasian goat had. His face was mutilated but Victoria couldn’t understand with what. It looked like his skin was eaten by severe erosions and mischievous sores. There were scars, cuts, repulsive and disgusting. His teeth resembled a predator’s ones. It was huge, long fangs, jutted out in a mess in his mouth, imposing a great horror. His skin was black like that creature had come out of a burnt building.

It was big and massive. Victoria saw the monster only for several seconds and then it turned back into a usual man.

He smiled again at the scared and understanding nothing girl and headed to her.

Vic got nervous with no ideas where she should run as she saw the creature coming up to her, while in its human shape some ugly unhuman freak burst in its human shape and scared her.

The man came up to the girl. He was nearby her about 50 centimetres. Victoria felt stinky smell and instead of a human there was a smiling picture of something incomprehensible over-tall deuce or demon or something else. The human shape disappeared at all and didn’t even try to appear again.

Victoria said nothing and studied with fear in her eyes something from the infernal regions. The girl had no doubts that the creature was exactly from those regions. She heard her own heart beating in her temples, giving way to panic. Her breath was becoming heavier and fear was coming closer.

The girl heard a voice and it scared her more. The creature was silent, but Vic just knew that the voice belonged to it… Its inner voice.

‘You see me…’

The whisper was horrible and ominous, stuck between irony and fun.

Vic was looking at his black eyes. There were no neither pupils nor white but just black holes as like its eye sockets were hollow. As the girl couldn’t understand what was going on, she was feeling worse.

‘I know you see me true.’

That was the same whisper in her head, gripping her temples in a vice.

‘Abkhor! At your service!’ The creature bent its head and left the train the next station.

Victoria followed the unusual passenger understanding nothing. The only question tortured her — what was it?

The girl almost got over the diagnose of a mentally deficient and she didn’t want to whisper herself about another madness attack. She was tired of it. That’s why she thought over that had happened and tried to forget, mopping the sweat from her brow.

Having got to work Victoria stole into her office with no one saw her, that was located near Gregory’s one, and settled to her project.

She couldn’t work that day. She wasn’t just able to focus on her project. The memories of unusual nights, unusual place and the morning meeting with a monster were getting into her head.

The girl called Kharon again and two tones she heard quiet and deep voice.

‘Yeap, love,’ the man smiled, and Victoria clearly saw his smile.

‘Is everything ok?’ she asked, having settled back in her chair and thrown back her head to look at the ceiling.

‘Yes, it is. Why are you asking?’

‘No reasons. There’s nothing confuses you, is there?’ the girl examined the ceiling.

‘Are you about the way you’re feeling?’

‘Yes. It’s unusual, right?’

‘It’s ok…’ Kharon came up to the window. ‘It happens when you’re in a different dimension. The body starts working different.’

‘It was an astonishing night and the dimension, indeed. You’re fantastic, Kharon!’ Vic said in a low voice.

‘I’m glad you have an ocean of genuine positive emotions and that I’m the reason of it flutters me doubtlessly.’

Her cheeks turned red and eyes closed. The girl still felt ashamed and confusion being with the demon, listening to his speech, feeling his hands.

‘The breakfast you’ve made today consists of more thanks and deification than usual, by the way. I take it for granted, sorry for it. I’ve been eating with gusto, looking back at the pictures of the depicted morning past where you were cooking breakfast, putting your soul in.’

Vic was red in the face and with an imbecilic smile on her lips. She liked the demon’s words, praise and recognition so much. She was ready to make any sacrifice to listen to them again and again.

‘You can answer me nothing,’ Kharon kept on with a smile, ‘I know all that’s going with you now and what feelings are overwhelming you. I can feel them at distance. They’re beautiful, Victoria. I’m waiting for you in the evening.’

The girl listened to the phone hanged up, finally feeling the redness go away from her face and shame weakened its clutch. From one side it was so great that Kharon was unobtrusive in comparison with other human men. But from another side Victoria needed some more intense.

Vic drew herself up and was almost about to jump in the chair because of unexpectedness after she had seen Gregory in the office.

‘Oh my God…’ she sighed out, smoothed her hair, lowering her eyes. ‘Good morning, Mr. Dogmanov. You as usual scared me.’

‘Good morning, Vic.’ The man answered.

‘Have you been here a long?’ the girl asked carefully, raising up from the chair, trying to find out what her boss could have heard.

‘Pretty enough.’ Gregory answered stiffly and went into the office, closing the door behind.

Vic was looking at him and feeling a raising shiver inside. She didn’t know what was going on with her and her emotions. It was just scared, and she didn’t feel quite herself. Gregory was slowly coming up to her, closer and closer, glancing at her worried face then at the table consistence, then at the floor.

‘Mr. Dogmanov?’ she called him quietly, trying to meet his eyes. ‘Are you ok?’

‘Victoria,’ the man stood next to her and confused the girl with it.

She wanted to go down the tube not to hear neither his voice nor his words, not to see his perplexed face and eyes which were like a tick that transmitted tick-borne encephalitis, clutched into her face.

‘This can’t be waiting anymore.’

‘Wait, Mr. Dogmanov,’ Vic interrupted, stepping back. ‘We have no scheduled meeting for today! My project isn’t done yet. Not all gaps have been corrected. Let’s leave it for Friday as we agreed.’

Gregory frowned and took a step closer to Victoria.

‘It’s not about your project, Vic. It’s not about work actually.’

‘Then what’s it about? I don’t understand.’ Vic lowered the eyes, nervously crisping her fingers.

She had no place to step back, there was a big window to the floor and the wall to the side.

The man stood at her and looked at her eyes, watching her ludicrous attempts to hide. He was in doubt silently berated himself for abortive decisions.

Victoria remained obstinately mute and waited for what would happen next. She understood well what Gregory want to speak about and that wouldn’t be a problem if she hadn’t need to answer him. She had no answers.

Before her eyes the pictures were like speedlights: Gregory and she were naked in bed. Victoria didn’t know whose room was it, but it wasn’t hers absolutely! Another picture showed Gregory stroked her thigh, kissing her hard, the light was fading away. The genital areas were smudgy as if they were censored. The third picture depicted their sex. The image was more smudgy than the previous one, but Victoria understood that there was a love-making itself. It was so dull and doleful… After she had seen the picture Vic realized that all of those weren’t her thoughts and fantasies. It was Gregory’s impure thoughts, doomed to fail, getting through into her head.

‘About what, Mr. Dogmanov?’ Victoria looked sideways at the silent man.

‘You.’ He sighed and met her eyes.

‘Me?’ the girl stared, at first from surprise. ‘What’s wrong about me?’

‘It’s not the point that there’s something wrong about you. The point is that…’ Gregory took her hand, ‘…I just wanted to congratulate you that your probationary period is over successfully! Congratulations!’

The man shook her hand and went away with rapid steps. Victoria stared after him in bewilderment and he stare fixed at the woman’s phantom.

‘Leave my son alone!’ Victoria heard a threatened whisper from another world.

‘Far be it from me to be with him!’ the girl snapped back. ‘If you need then you look after your son! I don’t care a damn about him!’

Vic was storming. Weren’t people really able to distinguish truth and lie? Was another world imperfect?

While the girl was grumbling at the ghost, she didn’t even notice a living person, not a ghost, staying in the doorway.

‘Delivery’s for you… on the first ground.’ The colleague said, having glanced at the girl curiously, and left the office, ‘Completely demented…’

Victoria heard the colleague call her demented and at the first time probably she realized difference between when you call yourself a psycho and when someone else did it.

The girl went down and met a bearded man’s eyes who looked antisocial. Her instinct told her that of all the people crowded in the lobby of the building this unattractive man was a courier.

‘Good afternoon. Are you Victoria Drache?’ he asked.

‘Yes.’

‘Delivery’s for you.’

‘But I’ve ordered nothing.’

‘I know. This is the gift from… just a second,’ the man got in the inside pocket, ‘it’s from Mr. Kharon… Unfortunately, he didn’t say his surname.’

Finally, a smile appeared on her confused face. A warm wave ran over her body. Vic could feel them one by one, running over the red-hot muscles and vessels. She felt slight shiver, poignant her nervous, fascinated the girl.

Vic took the package stretched to her and suddenly she understood that the man delivered nothing on the earth.

‘Have a good day,’ the man said having looked at the girl mysteriously, smiled and melt in the crowd.

Vic came back to her office, put the package on the table and stared at it. Having no ideas how but Vic already knew that there was a small box, the consist of which she could see unclearly. It was something globe-shaped, small and full of red colour. It wasn’t a ring.

The girl smiled and finally opened the package. Yes. It was a box of turquois colour. It was an ecrin. There was usually jewellery in the same. Despite its light weight Victoria understood this small thing was a great value.

‘Open it now!’ she ordered and opened the box.

There was an ideally cut crystal of red-burgundy colour, in size of a thumb nail. There was a real kaleidoscope of red tinctures in the middle of the mineral. The beauty and the unusualness of the gem stone consumed the girl’s perception and mind. She fascinatedly gazed at the stone glamming, as its light seemed to pull down, consume the viewer’s perception. A phone call broke Victoria’s careful gazing at the stone.

‘…I can see it, Love,’ Victoria heard the voice belonged to her beloved man. ‘It’s on your palm and you think that the parts of your skin that the stone touches are getting more and more alive, don’t you? I can see its unusual colour reflect in your eyes, the colour of the ripe pomegranate… It really does for your eyes.’

Her chest raised more often, her pulse was beyond the limits, established by WHO.

‘What’s it, Kharon?’ she whispered.

‘Painith.’

‘Pa… what?’

‘Pa-i-nith as people call it on the earth. Do you like it?’

‘I do! It’s really beautiful. I can’t tear myself away from it…’

‘I can understand you.’ Kharon smiled. ‘It’s one of the most beautiful stones of Lucifer’s collection.’

‘Is this Lucifer’s stone?’ Vic gave a shiver after she had heard the Lord of Hell’s name.

‘Well, no. Lucifer has similar and thinks it to be one of the most beautiful ones on the earth. I agree with him.’

‘Yea…’ Victoria mysteriously looked at the stone. ‘So do I.’

‘In two minutes a hopelessly in love with you man comes to you who this morning wanted to make you his obtrusive declaration of love… But he was in a blue funk.’

‘Jesus,’ Vic got upset having heard the demon’s prediction and being doomed, she sank into the chair, firmly holding the gift in her fist.

‘No, it’s not him,’ Kharon answered coldly. ‘I’m waiting for you at home.’

The man hanged up the phone and frowned at the cell in his hand. He felt bad: his body, organized in a different way, had a lack of energy. He needed to eat. He had given too much to the girl having nothing in return. He needed to get power…

He unceremoniously got into someone’s dream. Having seen the most beautiful nature of the Alps and not less beautiful girl skiing, the demon couldn’t help hiding victorious smile. The girl was alone in this wild empty place…

At a magic wand wave Kharon was at her, wearing ski suit and sunglasses, hiding the most part of his face. He held ski poles and his feet were fixed in skis.

Then the stranger looked at him, trying to see his face through the mask, dreaming about the man to take off the mask. The man, after he had read her low and brute thoughts, was slowly taking off the mask with no embarrassment. The rays of the fading away sun were lighting up his white-snow smile. His smile was so languishing, charming and confident in its own perfection.

A second later the girl contemplates his amber eyes at which the light falls so elegantly, making them more attractive. Despite the demon’s face was lighted up by the many thousand years luminary his pupils were still dilated like as if he were in the darkness.

The girl couldn’t tear herself away from the man’s eyes, asked him to touch her. Without a second thought Kharon put the ski poles and in the twinkling of an eye the girl turned out to be in his severe but gentle arms… The demon of lust didn’t need too much to make his victim lose her mind.

He was quiet asking her for permission to get into her soul, promising to give something that she would never be able to forget and, oh, stupid, hyper excited girl was whispering him sacramental yes.

In a second the location was changed. The snow-white and cold Alps faded away, falling like walls and curtains in the theatre, on the horizon. The next unplanned location was moving towards them.

It was a fireplace, blazing with bright fire, pleasantly crackling over the dry branches. The high pile carpet, covered the floor at the fireplace, was so fluffy and soft. It was as white as snow covered a mountaintop.

The ebony floor reflected everything like a mirror…was faceless and empty. The girl was on the pile carpet, hands stretched out. Her eyes were closed, a smile jumped over her lips. A blissful sigh was provoked by the demon’s lips touched beneath her stomach, carefully pulling her panties with his hands…

Suddenly the girl just disappeared leaving the arms empty as if she had never been in. He clinched his fists, the anger captured him. A growl. A wrathful one. Then a powerful hit in the floor and the man turned out to be in reality in his Moscow flat. Kharon understood clearly what had happened and doubtlessly he was mad with it. It sometimes happened… when suddenly a victim woke up due to some external factors.

Kharon was sitting at the table. The grimace of anger and fury froze on his face. He had wasted his energy again and enjoyed the benefits of none.

The man took a deep sigh and was about to immerse into someone else’s dream, but he remembered about Victoria’s friend — Vasilisa. Many times she had sent him different messages. The demon dialled her and in couples of the longest beeps the girl answered the phone.

With no problems they agreed to meet… not far from Vasilisa’s home as the demon knew better than the girl, that in hour there would be no one at home and her mother’s big bed would be in their possession.

Only an obstacle was left and Kharon was thinking over how to resolve it and which one of the running through his head ideas was the best one.

With the graceful carriage the girl, wrapped in a scarf around her face, was walking towards him. Only her pearl grey eyes were looking at him. It was cold. There was no snow yet, but the weather was chilly and if there had been a possibility people would wrap themselves in blankets entirely and wander along the streets like resurgent mummies.

The girl’s eyes were burning with bright-yellow fire and passion and they didn’t just burn out but burnt to hell. Though Kharon couldn’t see her face but only her eyes he clearly knew the girl to be smiling and he knew the reason why she was smiling. As the demon could see all her dreams through as well as her vulgar thoughts and was ready to make them all come true… and it would cost her a pretty penny.

Vasilisa came up to the man. The distance between them was no more than fifty centimetres. They were silently looking into each other’s eyes. Kharon was glad that there was such a moment when people had no need to say and explain anything, they just knew for what reason they gathered at a certain place.

Kharon took Vasilisa’s hand, hidden in the mitten, made of Angora wool and pulled the girl to him.

‘I’m glad to see you… So much.’ He said and carefully kissed her temple, the only place where there was no scarf.

‘You’re the most mutual person in my life,’ Vasilisa answered him with a slight smile, hidden behind the cloth.

‘I know.’ He squeezed a little her hand and slyly looked at her.

‘How can you?’

‘The only organ is opened for the world, incapable of lying. It’s your eyes. To the great fortune I can read human eyes perfectly…’

‘You’ve not changed since we met last time.’

‘What does it mean?’

‘No behavioural problems have been diminished about you.’ Vasilisa smiled again.

Kharon’s paces slackened then he stopped finally, blocking the girl’s way. Vasilisa gave a shiver in front of a sudden obstacle appeared on her way. She confusedly winked her eyes, raised up her head a little, studying the demon’s serious face. Kharon was quite close to her, cutting the distance to barely existing. His hand slowly crawled through the air up and in a second with the finger he pulled off the scarf from Vasilisa’s face, showing her pale pink lips to the stepping over Moscow winter. In the twinkling of an eye the girl felt the man’s lips taste and warmth on hers, whose passion tore her apart. She kissed him back having thrown away the last picture of Victoria…

‘There’s nobody at home… Would you like to come?’ Vasya asked through the wild desire.

Kharon had been waiting for this certain question to pretend to be thinking for a while and then to agree random. It went to plan, to his plan. In ten minutes they were at the flat. Vasilisa was looking for keys jerkily, Kharon was behind her, embracing tenderly and pressing her to him.

The key clicked, the door was opened let the voluptuousness come in. Being in the hall Kharon quickly got rid of the clothes that prevented him from getting her body, and chaotically threw it on the floor. With no hurry he put away his own cover, provocatively undoing his small buttons, unlatching the trousers belt.

‘If I asked you what you would be ready to sacrifice to let me continue now, what would you answer?’ Kharon asked suddenly, gently kissing her neck.

‘I’d sacrifice my life… as I wouldn’t be able to bear such torture…’ the girl whispered with the closed eyes, digging her fingers into the demon’s back.

The man smiled and fell for her body that pulled him with for her whit her fragile but tenacious fingers. With the help of his skilful warmth, hands, tongues and the words he exorcised the arousal giving the long-awaited satisfaction instead.

He got everything he wanted to store his energy supplies but not less than fully. He needed one more maybe two women to get his best well-being.

‘What’ve we done…?’ he heard Vasilisa silently whisper.

The girl was lying curled up in bed. She felt the best in the world in a physically. She had never had such a perfect balance in her life. With every step of the second hand on the clock face made her soul be getting worse and worse. It was abominable. She was sick of herself.

‘Why?’ Kharon asked with obvious indifference. He looked at Vasilisa’s face and confused. She looked at nowhere, didn’t move, sighed quietly, a tear ran down her nose. ‘Why are you crying?’ the demon asked. ‘I don’t think you felt ill…’

‘No, it’s the other thing. The thing that was between us the best one has ever happened to me for my entire life… But we’ve betrayed Vic.’

The demon cocked his head to the left, recognizing the appearing mercy on the girl’s face. Being deprived of feelings, without knowing human emotions Kharon didn’t understand what he was blame for.

‘If you think we betrayed her then why did you let it happen? Why didn’t you think of her when you answered my call?’

‘I…’ Vasilisa was confused. ‘I…’

‘You wanted to get what your heart and mind desired for. You cared about nothing but your own yearning. Not a single second you were thinking of Victoria. So, drop it now. It’s adulteration of your feelings and mercy. You don’t believe none of them, trying to justify your so-called misstep. You’re saying so many ridiculous arguments which can’t be named arguments indeed. You’re crying. You’re crying because of your resentment against yourself as you’re not able to justify yourself. Then don’t do it! Nevertheless, people always surprise me. You are always in an attempt to destroy everything that can bring pleasure for you. You’re so stupid and ridiculous.’

Being unable to move Vasilisa silently listened to Kharon. Her tears dried having left flat traces after.

‘You,’ she whispered, ‘you literally took out my most ashamed thoughts. How did you get it?’

‘Coincidence.’ Suddenly Kharon realized that he had overdone with his guesses and forgotten completely that Vasilisa didn’t know about his demonic being.

‘I’ll never believe in it in my life!’ Vasya closed her eyes, dreaming to get under the blanket. Some nervousness and fear were penetrating under her skin. Anxiety was a pain in the neck. Kharon set the teeth and lowered his head. ‘What are you?’ she almost silently asked, looked at his eyes apprehensively. His eyes became burgundy colour ringed round the pupils which were getting blacker. They seemed to be pulsing, tearing the eye-balls apart, surrounded them with the flame of imperfection.

‘What a question!’ he pretended to be surprised, rubbing his forehead.

Vasilisa was silent. She felt afraid while she was looking at metamorphoses on the demon’s beautiful face. Suddenly it was like a cold wind. The sepulchral one. The cadaverous wind. Slowly it was chaining the girl, paralyzing and making her be stumped.

‘What am I?’ Kharon said quietly, stooping closer to the girl’s face. ‘I am the one who saw the earth be born. The one who saw you appear in his own likeness. I saw you spawn. I am the one who held Lucifer when he shook himself free from the wrath of his father. I am the one who with Lucifer raised the goblet of the absolute power. I am the watcher who knows no rest. I am the Sovereign Legionary Demon, the Lord of Lust, the Handler of Passion.’

‘You’re insane…’the girl stammered when she understood finally her fears was for some reason in particular. Without noticing Vic tried to get up from the bed in vain as she didn’t understand that her body was paralyzed having given all its energy to the demon. She wanted to run away as far as it was possible. She had to run without turning back and begged her heart not to jump out of the chest because of fear. It had to give a little more, give her a life, a possibility to hide and escape.

‘You’re scared of me now…’ the demon grabbed Vasilisa with a slight, almost lightning-quick move of his arm, looking intently at her eyes. ‘Is madness a synonym of what for you? Ah? Oh, you’re afraid of speaking but I can hear what you’re thinking. You’re thinking about a psychopath. A serial killer. No one has ever thought about me in this way… especially women. Don’t be afraid. I’m not gonna hurt you. You are the ones who hurt yourselves. Besides you’re not just a pawn in my arms…’

Vasilisa looked at his moving lips, listened to his dizzying voice and tried to lie to herself saying that everything wasn’t real but unreal.

‘Now, Vasilisa,’ Kharon looked up at her, ‘you’ll forget this conversation as this information isn’t the one you need to know. Look at me.’

The girl lifted up her glassy stare at Kharon, being in horror she realized that nothing in the world would be able to make her forget what had happened in her flat. By looking in the demon’s calm eyes Vasilisa didn’t know her recollections were being got out of her mind by parts and shattered then with no chance to be recovered. In a few minutes of silence and hypnotized looks Vasilisa realized that several seconds ago she had had the best sex with the most handsome man in her life. She also understood that she was smothered with envy Victoria. Vasilisa was preoccupied with the only one question why was Vic with him?

Kharon unnoticeably smiled, having read little cocky ideas that he had put into Vasilisa’s mind. He liked them more than a crying lady, immorally hiding behind suddenly appeared conscience to be more deserving in the man’s eyes because she was still irresistible in her own ones.

Victoria was drawing sketches. She tried. She had to finish a sketch of advertising product but every sketch of hers was ended with appearance of a man’s picture, who held a woman. The crazy strokes, you could say absolute absurd, drew the silhouettes on white sheet. They were sharp and self-confident. She didn’t even need to erase them a bit! Yes, they were a bit chaotic, sometimes you would hardly understand where the beginning and the end were. But every stroke was in its right place. They were muddled apart, but the picture was almost finished.

Vic didn’t understand what was with her head and hands. How was that possible? She told herself to draw a square and the pencil drew proportional bodies of a man and a woman instead of a geometrical figure. Her hand drew them like if it had been sure for its life that any square looked exactly like this.

Victoria drew and drew until she realized that rebellious limb was about to fall off due to tiredness. The girl looked up the pile of drawn papers. The only thing she knew for sure was that the man she had depicted was Kharon. Victoria had no doubt it for a second. Victoria couldn’t understand who the depicted woman was. She didn’t find herself in it.

‘Well, what’s up?’ The door was adjusted a bit. Gregory came to her for the fourth time that day.

‘It’s ok.’ She answered and quickly and easily smiled, studying the manager’s face. He looked the freckle face of the red-haired girl with such kind and friendly look as if he was up to something. Then he lowered his eyes at the working table of the girl that was covered with pieces of paper drawn in pencil strokes. Vic was enveloped with a wave of confusion. The desk was full of pictures of some overs who made love with lust and lasciviousness.

‘Damn it…’ Vic swore barely audibly and burst herself to order papers.

‘What’s wrong with you?’ Gregory was surprised and quickly came up to the table, having taken pieces of sheet.

The girl’s heart was about to jump out as she was nervous. She pursed her lips and looked at the man as she was horrified to guess what her boss would think of her. But Gregory kept silence and frowned at the picture.

‘What’s it?’ he asked finally and stared at the girl.

‘Mr. Dogmanov, let me say,’ Victoria whispered in a low and squeezed voice, coughing. ‘It’s… How to put it mildly to make you understand right… I… I like graphic arts and… bodies… Yes, human bodies. Well you understand humans are organized very beautiful…’

‘Vic,’ the mad interrupted her excuses. His stare was already changed. It became kinder and softer. There was a hint at a smile on his lips.

‘Yes?’ Victoria lowered her eyes. She felt hurt so much that she wanted to cry. She sniffled trying to hold tears. She felt like a teenager boy whom mother had caught him while he was masturbating.

‘I have nothing against graphical arts and human bodies… You shouldn’t worry about it as if you had pictured something immoral. It’s a pile of drafting strokes.’

‘A pile of drafting strokes?!’ the girl exclaimed being unable to believe her ears. She glanced at the sketches and sank down into her chair because of the suddenness. All the papers were stroked in different directions. There were just strokes. They meant nothing and looked like nothing. There were pictures of psychopath.

‘I didn’t mind insulting you…’ Gregory apologized with surprise in his eyes looked at Victoria’s face and mad worry on it, who was pottering in drawn pieces of paper.

‘Are you ok, Vic?’ he asked mysteriously handing the paper in her hands. ‘You look strange.’

‘Do I?’ she asked.

Her voice was almost hysterical. Something played bad tricks on her. Was it her consciousness or imagination? Victoria was fed up with looking like a fool who was incapable of controlling herself. She got used to everything… But every time something could happen that threw her off her stride. She clearly saw the drawn couple making love and now she had a pile of drawn in pencil paper.

‘Wait,’ Gregory took hold of her trembling hands trying to calm nervous tremor, trying to calm the girl down. ‘Don’t litter sheets of paper. Calm down, Vic. Calm down! It’s ok. It’s ok.’

He stroked her hands and the girl who could hardly hold tears back. He looked at her eyes as he wanted to understand if she was calm.

‘Damn it,’ Victoria whispered again and sobbed.

‘Come with me,’ Gregory opened the door and gave a peremptory nod toward the doorway. ‘Come.’

He walked ahead carefully listening to the steps behind him. Victoria walked quickly after him, being a little bit distracted from her work of art. Gregory took the girl in some ordinary but cosy café, sat her in an arm-chair and ordered two fresh drinks.

‘Tell me what’s happening to you.’ The man sat before her with a sigh, doing up his trousers. He did not take his eyes off the sad girl.

‘I don’t know,’ she answered and covered her face with her hands. ‘I just don’t know.’

‘Hey,’ he carefully took off her hands from her face. ‘It’s ok. You shouldn’t be nervous. You can be yourself with me… We’re here not to speak about work…’

‘I think I’m going crazy…’ Vic looked up at her boss.

‘Why? What’s wrong? Can I help you?’ Gregory made a shower of questions.

‘No, no, it’s ok. It’s just little weakness.’

‘Are you sure? In your office you seemed to have been about to go crazy…’

‘No, I’m fine.’ Victoria smiled, ‘I don’t wanna you think that a psycho or idiot working for your company.’

Gregory grinned.

‘You know every man has his hobby-horse and bad mental thoughts. You’re not an exception. I just wanted to tell that if you need any help, moral or financial, you can always come to me at once. I’m your friend.’

Victoria silently listened to the sentences about friendship, pretended to be smiling. But there were still pictures that she had drawn before her eyes. She felt tired. All that mess of hell representatives drove her mad. Victoria was sure that it should have been enough to give Lucifer her soul and then rejoice at free life with Kharon. She didn’t expect Lucifer’s mark to have provoked issues with her body and mind.

‘I remember that day when I saw you for the first time ever.’ Gregory dreamily closed his eyes. ‘I was on my way to my office and you were with marketing managers, smiling and twittering about something. Then I thought: “What a cheerful girl!”. It was some time ago. Then something started happening to you. You were darkening, growing dim and the smile more seldom came to you. I’m speaking about your genuine smile but not about the one which you cover yourself with, saying that you’re ok. I don’t believe you, Victoria. You’re not that girl who you were before. You’re worrying about something and no matter how you try to hide from people, it’s still obvious.’

‘Humph, it seems that I have no chance to hide anything from you.’ The girl sighed.

‘I know that I have no sort of rights to ask you such things. Business custom and so one… But I took you here on purpose to help you relax and distract from everyday care. Here is no place for business custom and style.’

‘Do you care of all the employees of the company in such way?’ Vic glanced at the manager.

Gregory was silent. Unexpected question confused him a bit despite that he, at his position on in the company, had heard more terrible questions, and he had always slyly answered them.

‘No, actually.’ He was honest.

‘Why did I deserve such respect?’

‘Victoria,’ Gregory grinned, realizing that Victoria was trying to drive him into a corner. ‘You’re treating the situation in a wrong way.’

‘Why?’ All her shyness and bashfulness disappeared. Vic was fed up with that that she couldn’t understand. ‘Mr. Dogmanov, I just wanna sort out and get why you are so tender with me. You’ve come to me this morning… What did you want to speak about? Don’t lie please. My probationary period has nothing to do with what you wanted to say, did it?’

The man was serious. His Adam’s apple nervously spasmodic moves and that was the only part of his body which moved in any way.

‘Your sudden changes sometimes throw me off my stride. Honestly. A half an hour ago you were about to cry but now here is a cocky and fearless girl. You surprise me.’

Victoria cast down the eyes. She gave a little time to herself to calm down. Due to the fact, that she didn’t understand herself, aggression appeared which Vic forgot to control completely. Why the hell did she decide that the country manager had to answer to her?

‘I’m sorry.’

‘Oh no, don’t be! This is not what I wanted to hear.’

‘Really, I’m sorry. It’s true something happens to me sometimes and I become unbearable.’

‘Victoria, please…’

‘We should go, Mr. Dogmanov. We both have to be at work. I’d like to finish my sketches… actually, to start them. And… Forgive my provocative behaviour. I must learn to control my emotions.

The girl rose up, Gregory jumped up at once. He didn’t want to finish the conversation, but he couldn’t make her. Doubtlessly he was glad that Victoria came to herself finally. Gregory didn’t have any ideas that Vic had some intentions to blub with him but the meticulous spirit of his mother, demanding to leave her son alone, annoyed her totally.

Victoria liked speaking with Gregory indeed. What was special about it? He was an intelligent and clever man, who was always good-looking and smelled cool. He was sometimes unobtrusive and even a little bit shy. His speech was good and grammatically right. Victoria didn’t miss any minus while she spoke to him but only the one. That exact morning Gregory came into her office and started talking incoherent nonsense, Vic suspected that their friendship wasn’t the topic of the conversation. But what could she do? To dismiss? She didn’t like it. She decided not to think about it and put the things into her head when they came. Until Gregory annoyed her, she could say that all of it was about friendship.

Victoria was walking with lowered eyes, being afraid of seeing something unusual and strange. She didn’t want to see anything like this. She hated all the mysterious and mystical, that had attracted her before. Sometimes it was unbearable. But she still kept on considering Kharon to be from another world was the best and the strangest that could have ever happened to her. That wouldn’t be a problem if now Victoria admitted that the attendant circumstances were really complicated.

Vic was on her way to the metro, pressing the red package firmly in her hand. It seemed to her to be radiating the warmth of her beloved man and she could feel him at whole. She thought about nothing but walked aloofly to the entrance to the tube.

People went towards her whom Vic tried not to see. Obviously, people didn’t want to see her neither and in several seconds someone pushed the girl. Victoria in her fright jumped away and stared at the offender indignantly.

‘It’s a really small world.’ She said in surprise looking at the man.

‘Vic?’ he smiled. ‘What a meeting! How on earth did you get here?’

‘Hi, Daniel. I work here. What’re you doing here?’

‘Business.’ He answered modestly, carefully studying the girl.

The dark-olive eyes were looking at his face and the recollections of the time Daniel and she had spent together were streaming through her memories. It was a great time! Victoria lifted up the corner of her lips, feeling her memory digging the past, bringing in sentiments. Smiles. Laugh. Night walks. The first love confession. His love and cares. Worry. Tears of happiness and grief. Meeting with parents. Confusion and shame. The first sexual experience. Suspiciousness. Victoria stopped smiling. Remembering her bed scenes with Daniel she understood those two years had been so dull and languid. She remembered Daniel being awkwardly selfish in bed. He was just pathetic.

The breeze, coolly, touched and made a mess with her hair, without caring the girl’s attempts to order the curls. She screwed up her nose, twisted around trying to catch the direction the wind was blowing in. She pursed her lips and narrowed the eyes but kept on staring at Daniel.

‘Why are you looking at me like this?’ Vic asked, hooded the head.

‘It’s been a half of the year passed, hasn’t it? You’ve been changed so much since I saw you last time, like it’d been past several years…’

‘How can you say like this?’ Vic smiled.

‘How?’ the young man smiled back. ‘I got used to see you to be so… modest, perhaps shy and now I see a very self-confident girl. Ambitious and cocky…and beautiful.’

Daniel got confused not understanding why he spoke all those things, but he was telling the truth.

‘Well, that’s a good change,’ Vic took a sigh, ‘Ok then, Daniel, it’s nice to meet you but I’d like to go home. I’m tired a bit.’

‘I wish you hadn’t been in a hurry,’ Daniel said sorrowfully and took the girl by the hand.

The darkness hit Vic’s eyes, making them close and her hand instinctively squeezed the man’s one. The smell of alcohol, spirit. Cigarette smoke. Tears. Terrible male tears. Desperation. Self-reproach. A woman. Another one. Some unfamiliar faces. Fuss and fuss around. Work record was at home in dust. Hopelessness. All the faces were tuned away. They were laughing. The car was sold. His mother. Her warm hands and invaluable help…

‘You’ve been dismissed!’ Victoria whispered hypnotizingly still holding the young man’s hand.

‘How did you get it?’ Daniel shouted in his fright and pulled his hand.

‘What?’ Vitoria came back to reality from her uncontrolled state.

‘The last time you were telling me about the woman who I saw almost for the first time in my life. Now you’re telling me about my work which you’re not supposed to have known about!’

‘I gotta go, really!’ the girl quickly took steps forward, having realized that she had made a mistake again.

‘Vic!’ Daniel called.

But the girl intently rushed forward having no wish to speak with anyone. She heard her name for several times, but she didn’t turn to him.

Being on the moving stair Victoria, lost in the crowd, desired for getting home quickly, unexpectedly found herself in a man’s arms. She felt a relief when she understood her be in Kharon’s ones.

‘It’s been a horrible day,’ she sighed with a smile on her lips, pressing herself to the man. ‘What’re you doing here? We agreed to meet at home, didn’t we?’

‘Aren’t you happy to see me now?’

‘You know the answer.’

‘I do, that’s why I’m really surprised why I see astonishment and even the touch of rebuke, as you get used to speak, instead of enjoyment?’ he smiled, taking the girl aside. ‘I’m here because I’ve been worrying that I would see you not as soon as I want.’

‘Why?’ Vic was surprised again.

‘Well you’ve had meetings with your worshippers the whole day. The blonde guy, your ex-lover, who has realized only today the loss of you. Your man whom you always go to cafes with and who’s always sticking in your office and he has barely beaten off his tongue, begging himself not to kiss you.’

‘I know nothing about it.’

‘I do.’

Vic looked at him. There was a smiling face covered with a malignant mask. His eyes were empty and overwhelmed with indifference. The girl took a sigh when she understood that the demon still had no feelings. He did his work in a cold-mind way.

‘You’re squeezing the stone so strong. Can’t you really hear it screaming with pain? I didn’t think you’re so heartless!’

‘What’s screaming? The stone?’ Vic asked and unclenched her fist.

There was a red, cut stone on her palm and nothing more. It was just a stone and the carats were the only thing that made it different form others.

‘Yes,’ the demon nodded and took the mineral with two fingers and put it on his palm. ‘It’s hurt.’

‘It’s a stone! How can it be hurt?’

‘People can’t feel and hear any pain but their own. This is what Lucifer tried to prove to his father. And then his father told: “I’ve created them in my own likeness and if they are not able to behold pain of other then give them more time, my son”. Has enough time passed, Victoria?’

The girl looked nowhere still trying to realize and believe that stones could feel. The man touched her gentle cheek mysteriously studying her eyes. He smiled so mean and foully but at the same time his smile was unbelievably beautiful… the smile of the angel, mudded with black.

‘Hey, love?’ he asked, ‘why are you silent? You still can’t hear, can you?’

Vic shook her head. She didn’t still hear. She didn’t believe! Stones couldn’t cry!

‘You’re so hopeless!’ Kharon accused. ‘And I like it. He doesn’t, but I do!’

He pressed his lips against her greedily, immersing them into silence and peacefulness. The destroying bee noise was gone. People groaning from life were gone. The world went on its fascinated life but without dully surrounding. Kharon’s touches were what Victoria had been waiting for. So had Kharon…

The sun. The warm, gouache yellow sun was in the clear azure sky. The noise of water. The songs of Paradise birds, which to be honest couldn’t sing at all. The breeze. The smell of the sea water. The sand under the feet. It was heated by the glaring sun and its farsighted rays. It was so pleasant.

Victoria knew exactly that she was on a beach. It was deserted and free completely. There was just a unique music of nature and Kharon. He was massaging her hand. Pleasure… He pressed some trigger areas that brought more pleasure. He stroked her hands and didn’t stop massaging her thumb base. Victoria looked up at the sly and naughty smile wandered her face.

‘What a perfect illusion!’ Vic whispered and closed the eyes.

They were too hurt to look at the azure sky lightened by the sun. Besides Kharon worked wanders more and more. She just wanted to close the eyes.

‘Come with me,’ Kharon whispered and took the girl into his arms.

He was coming into the water, tendering him with its foam. Victoria, arms extended, was on his arms and enjoyed the moment. In such a quiet, bohemian place with the man of her dream Victoria forgot about her worldly experiences and worries. Fuck Gregory. Fuck the ghosts and their desires and threats. She didn’t care about anything. Vic just wanted that moment to be never ended.

Kharon gently put the girl into the water. It immediately took possession of her docile body, enveloping it with the warm waves. Impudent fishes curled around her feet, tickling skin with its fins. The water as clear as glass. The soft sand on the bottom let the feet immerse in, covered them with its small grains of sand. The girl smiled and looked up at Kharon. He examined her face, perceiving her reaction. Victoria stood up on her toes and kissed the man. His hand, alien to the earth and water but so cognatus already, embraced the girl not giving her a chance to escape.

While they were melting in passion kiss none of them notice a playful wave coming from behind. A few seconds later the wave covered the two of them who were so irresponsibly thought of nature power. Sea salty taste was on the lips, slightly pinched micro wounds that had been given by the coming frost in Moscow. They want to erase the water and they like that solitude with nature. Kharon came to rescue with kisses.

Slowly almost without moves he drugged them both under the water.

‘I can’t…’ The girl tried to refuse.

‘It doesn’t matter…relax.’

Water covered their heads and the sea calmed down, having come back to breeze. Under the water surface, still hugging they both plunged not just into the depth of the sea, they plunged into each other again and again studying what a chain of trust between a man and a woman meant. What was the price of this trust? Kharon wasn’t preoccupied with questions. He perfectly knew the price of his every step, breath, movements that he made on the Earth, in the human world. Having dove into a tremendous storm of emotions and feelings, having tasted what ordinary people would never taste, Victoria opened the eyes: she was in the hall at Kharon’s flat. He was behind and hugged her, pressing out the rest of the energy.

‘Hum,’ the girl grinned, stroking Kharon’s hands. ‘I’m on my feet again after sex with you! It can’t be… It means we had no sex and you just sent us into a beautifully fictitious country.’

The man let her go and with a smile began to undress. He slowly put off the coat, shoes, Victoria watched him with the greatest gratitude on her face and respect in her soul. Following his example, she undressed too and went to the room.

‘I’m so tired!’ Vic said and fell on the bed.

Kharon smiled wider feeling the rise of energy in his body.

‘I have to change,’ Vic said with no desire, getting up from the bed. ‘I’m hungry by the way. Let’s order pizza, my love?’

The girl smilingly looked at Kharon and pulled out the jacket. The small grains of white sand spilled out from under her bra. Victoria frowned and looked at her body. There was beach sand on her belly and the stone of divine beauty was on her neck.

‘Kharon!’ Vic exclaimed, having realized that all of that meant.

The demon only smiled slyly in reply and left the room.