The next few days were a bit of a blur. Thanks to Alice's expertly rearranging all of my court dates and meeting schedules, I eventually got back on track with work. I was winning arguments and cases with little or no effort on my part. It was all easier than I thought it would be. Don't get me wrong, it was still long, endless, and tireless work; but, I went through it without breaking a sweat.

  I don't know what had happened to make it seem so much easier and I wasn't about to start complaining. Why would I? Things were starting to work out great. I even got the insurance company to pay out on my insurance claim and got myself a new car.

  A client and a few of her friends were going out to celebrate the prodigious win I had just acquired for her. It was a huge settlement over a contract dispute and subsequent litigation. I absolutely hated it when a big corporation thinks it can just flaunt the law to suit its own ends while screwing over the little guy... and I love it when I can get that little guy some payback of their own.

  I was happy enough that I actually accepted Sharon's invitation to come along instead of gracefully declining it like I usually do. She said she would call me with the details later and where to meet. I made it back to the parking garage of the building where I work just in time to see Alice next to the elevator talking to some strange guy. Alice noticed me and said something I couldn't hear, and the guy stiffened like someone had struck him.

  I frowned a bit at that analogy. Why did I think of it like that? I shook my head and drove to my recently acquired designated parking spot. You have got to love the perks of the job. I parked my car, got out, and took my briefcase with me. I didn't need it tonight, so there wasn't much point in leaving it in the car. When I got to the elevator, Alice was there waiting for me.

  I asked her about the stranger when we got into the elevator and all she said was that he was just some guy trying to hit on her while he asked her for directions. For some odd reason, that didn't strike me as truth; but, I didn't want to pry into her personal life. If she didn't want me to know who the guy was, that was her choice. We got off the elevator on the floor our business was on and went to the office. Alice sat behind her desk in the waiting area and I went into my main office.

  I left my briefcase on the floor next to my desk and started in on the mound of paperwork. Even winning takes paperwork to finalize. I did what I had to do, essentially just signing my name to everything Alice put in front of me. I got a call from Sharon Smythe just before I was about to leave. She told me the name of the bar where I was to meet her and the rest of the girls.

  I got home in record time and got a shower, then dried off and changed into what I had thought was party clothes. When I looked in the mirror, it completely disagreed with me. Cerberus put in his two cents by pulling on the end of my skirt and tearing it. I tried to complain that he had ruined it, but he shook his head at me and I smiled. He was right, the skirt sucked and was no big loss.

  Now that I had his full attention, I dove into my closet and threw out everything that he growled at and didn't like. There wasn't much left. The business suits and skirts I didn't even contemplate tossing, since they were for work and not play. What was left besides that wasn't great. The baby blue chemise wrap, top and shorts set was nice... but nowhere near what you could wear out to party. On the other hand, if I wore just the top with my short black a-line skirt, it might just work.

  I put on the appropriate undergarments, an under-wire lace bra and undies, and then the outfit. Both the mirror and Cerberus agreed that I looked good. I nodded and Cerberus barked. I ruffled the fur on his head as I passed him and grabbed my clutch purse. It was black so it went with everything and I tossed in the essentials and headed out to meet the girls at the bar. The Playful Tides, here I come!

  I arrived in the area of the bar and parked a couple of blocks away. I figured there was no way that anyone was going to get a parking spot close to any bar at this time of night. I didn't have a jacket with me because it was so warm outside, so I just grabbed my purse and locked the car. It seemed like a nice enough neighbourhood; but, I kept my eyes peeled for any unsavoury characters just in case. You never knew when your self defense training would come in handy.

  I got to the bar and waited outside for Sharon and her friends to show up. Luckily, I didn't have to wait long. A taxi pulled up in front of the bar stuffed to the roof with women. I wasn't sure how, but six girls got out, and as they gathered themselves up to go into the bar Sharon stepped out of the crowd and gave me a hug.

  “I'm so glad you came!” Sharon said as she let go of me.

  “Me, too. At least I am now. We'll see what the night brings.” I said and we both laughed.

  “Come on, girls! Hunks await!” She said to her friends, and we all entered the bar together.

  We were carded at the door, of course. I laughed when the bouncer asked me for ID. I showed it to him and told him that I hadn't been carded in years. He had to do a double take when he saw my age on the license. He looked surprised as he passed it back to me and smiled. I smiled back and he ushered us through the door and into the waiting throng of post-pubescent boys waiting for the next big challenge.

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Interlude

  Colin Marsh didn't like all the noise here. It hurt his ears. He winced and cringed and whimpered at every beat of the music. He shook his head several times but just couldn't get used to the noise. Andrew Williams on the other hand, loved it here. It wasn't the music or the booze, since he had almost as much trouble with loud noises as Colin did, and he couldn't get drunk like he used to.

  It was the people that he liked. All different shapes and sizes, all coming together to just have fun. His predator instincts kicked in once and a while and he followed potential targets as they moved about the place. But it was just for fun. He would be killed if he hunted here. Plus, why would he ruin a good thing? If he hunted here even once, he'd never get to come back.

  “Why did you bring me here, man?” Colin whimpered.

  “What? I thought you'd like it. This place is great!” Andrew responded.

  “What's so great about it?”

  “Look around! Where else can you see all of this, pick someone and follow them around, and not be considered stalking them?” Andrew laughed at his own inside joke.

  “Yeah. Whatever, ma... huuuurkk!” Colin choked out.

  “What is it?” Andrew shouted and started to stand. Colin reached up and grabbed Andrew's arm and hauled him back into his seat.

  “Don't. Move.” Colin whispered. “Don't you feel that?”

  “Feel what?” Andrew said.

  “Oh, man... how can you not feel that? You're shielding too much!” Colin shook his head.

  Andrew let his guard down enough so that the music started to hurt his ears and then he felt it.

  “Whoa. Is that for real?” He whispered.

  “Geez, I hope not! If it is, we've got some serious trouble on our hands. We have to report this.” Colin said.

  “Not yet.” Andrew said. Colin had a look of outrage on his face before Andrew could explain.

  “Think about it. What's the first thing they're gonna ask us?”

  “What was it?”

  “Right. We can't just say there might be something here. We have to find it first.”

  Colin nodded to his friend. They got up from the table and started to search through the bar and dance floor. Unfortunately, they couldn't pinpoint the location. They met up in front of the booths section and they both felt it at the same time. They turned and saw a large group of people crammed in and around one of the booths. They leaned close to one another and discussed what to do next.

  “Go ahead and take a picture. There's too many of them too close together to sort through them all tonight.” Andrew said.

  Colin took out his phone and pretended to not get a signal. He turned around and held the phone out at arms length, got just the right angle for a full view of the booth, and took the picture they needed. He nodded at Andrew and they both left the bar. Once outside, they decided that now was a good time to call and report what they had found.

End Interlude

  Sharon and her gaggle of girls, myself included tonight, made our way over to the bar and bought some drinks. Mine was non-alcoholic since I was driving. It was the first and only time during the night that a woman ever bought her own drinks. If I had thought ahead I would have gotten a taxi like the other girls; but, I haven't done anything like this in a long time. We talked for a bit about normal things and one of the girls recognized a friend of hers. It was a male friend, and of course he had a bunch of his buddies with him.

  I rolled my eyes at the obvious setup, but I was still in a good mood and Sharon and her friends didn't take long to convince me to join them. The booth at the back of the club was small, especially with all of us crammed in together. At least the guys were nice enough to let all the girls sit down. We all talked, and danced, and had a good time. I was propositioned a few times and some of them were quite good come-ons; but, I was not having a one night stand. That was where I drew the line while having fun. I had higher standards than that.

  So, at the end of the night I was out the door by myself, while the other girls had found rides home on their own. I walked down the street towards where I had parked my car. It was pretty late at night; but, I wasn't worried, because there were lots of people leaving the bar at the same time and there were quite a few walking as well.

  I got about a block away from the bar and I noticed that it was really quiet. I looked around and I didn't see anyone else on the street, which was odd, since there was just people around. I kept walking towards my car and I could see it in the distance a block or so away, so I made it my mission to get there without panicking.

  I sped up my walking and you could hear my heels clicking loudly on the concrete sidewalk. My steps sounded like gunshots as they echoed from the nearby buildings and I started to get nervous. The car was a block away, then it was half a block, then thirty feet. Twenty feet. Ten. I dug out my keys and dropped them on the pavement. I huffed in frustration and bent to pick them up. That's when something tackled me.

  I hit the ground on my back with a resounding thud and with my attacker on top of me. I quickly put up my knee and hit him in the gut as I let his own force and weight do the work for me. His sound of pain was almost as satisfying as when I flipped him over my head in a classic judo throw and heard the crash when he hit the nearby storefront's pane glass window.

  My elation was short lived because when I stood up to see the damage I had done to both him and the store, I saw that he was standing, too... and looked right back at me. My eyes widened in surprise as he just stood there and stared at me but didn't attack. I was about to egg him on when the migraine hit. It wasn't as bad as it was the last time, although it still hurt. I reached for my head with one hand and then he made his move. I saw him and kicked out with my right foot and turned it sideways so I didn't break my ankle.

  Just like my instructors taught me, I aimed for two inches past the point that I wanted to hit, and my foot connected with his chest. I heard something snap and he recoiled away from my blow. I pulled my foot back and went down on my knee to check my ankle. I knew that I heard something break, then I was shocked to discover that I was fine. I looked up to see if it was my attacker that was hurt and no one was there.

  I got in my car and made it home without any further incidents. Cerberus nearly tackled me again when I came in the house; but, I easily sidestepped him this time and went to my bedroom. I changed out of my party clothes and got ready for bed. Cerberus followed me around until I got into bed and he snuggled down onto the floor. I patted the side of the bed next to me, and he hopped up without a sound and lay down next to me.

  I decided to wait until the morning to report the assault and drifted off to sleep with Cerberus' comforting warmth at my side.