Beau and the Beastess

Chapter Eight - Beau

Walking from the en suite after his shower, Beau felt decidedly refreshed. He'd slept like a baby, rather than a man who'd been taken off the street by his home, and woke feeling optimistic.

He felt as though he'd seen another side of Annabelle the night before. She had many layers to her story, and he was a curious enough person to want to dig deeper. There was a softness to her that he was sure most people didn't get to see.

Then there was the reaction that his body had whenever their skin touched. Beau wasn't sure what to make of it, but he needed to learn more.

Was it a chemical reaction, or something deeper?

He intended to find out, hopefully today.

Beau finished dressing and was about to exit his room in search of breakfast and Annabelle, when the door opened.

"Hello?" he called, but didn't receive an answer. Beau could tell by the person's smell that it wasn't Annabelle, it was more masculine, and oddly familiar.

Before he could say anything further, Beau was grabbed and lifted forcibly, until he was once again hanging over someone's shoulder.

"What is this? Put me down?" he yelled to no avail.

He was jostled as they went outside and down the stairs, then he was thrust into the back of a car once again. The odor of the interior alerted Beau to the fact that it was the same car he'd been taken in before, but he still felt around for a way out.

The car started and took off down the lane, and Beau tried once again to get a response from his captor.

"What is going on? Where are you taking me now? Where's Annabelle?"

Nothing.

Twenty minutes of silence from The Driver, while Beau asked questions and tried to find a way out without causing an accident.

When the car stopped, Beau braced. The door opened and a hand reached in to help him out of the car. Once on the sidewalk, Beau could sense The Driver moving away, so he reached out his hand and grasped on to the man's sleeves.

"Please, tell me what's happening."

"You've been returned. No harm...best of luck to you."

The Driver tried to move, but Beau held fast.

"Wait," Beau cried, pulling on his sleeve. "What about Annabelle?"

"Sorry, bloke, you'll never see hide nor hair from her again. Now, let me go."

After a slight struggle, The Driver got free and left Beau standing on the sidewalk.

He knew instinctively that he was back where they'd started, on the walkway in front of his apartment building.

"Excuse me, sir?" a voice called from next to him. "I think you dropped this."

Beau reached out his hand and felt a small business card being placed inside.

"Thank you," he told the stranger, but didn't move from his spot on the sidewalk.

And as he heard the car driving away, listening until the sound got more and more faint, Beau wondered why he wasn't happier to be free.