Tenants Page 5

  When the doors opened, he noticed there were lights on in the lobby, not many, but enough so he no longer needed the flashlight on his cell phone. He turned it off and tucked it into his pants pocket, waiting for his eyes to adjust. He stepped out as the elevator doors closed behind him. As he turned toward the entrance, he stopped, gasped, and jumped back, nearly losing his footing on the slick, marble floor.

  "Oh, my God, you scared the hell out of me," he said, laughing nervously.

  Next to the elevator, sitting on a wooden bench, was a woman dressed in a white bathrobe. Her feet were bare, and her long stringy hair hung down over her face, obscuring most of her features. She ignored him as if he wasn't there.

  "Laundry day, huh?" he joked. "Bummer."

  Still, the woman paid no attention.

  She creeped Lenny right the fuck out.

  "Okay then. You take care."

  The woman lifted her head the slightest bit; her eyes glinted, reflecting the yellow glare from the emergency lights.

  She hissed like a startled cat, stood, and shuffled away toward the dim corridor leading to the rear garden.

  Goosebumps broke out on Lenny's arms. He watched her silently as she turned the corner and disappeared from view.

  Her footfalls echoed hollowly off the high ceilings, followed by the booming thump of the rear door banging shut.

  Lenny hoped that when he returned, the lights would be back on. He wasn't about to let Linda and his sister see the fear in his eyes or hear the tremor in his voice. Nothing a few shots and a beer wouldn't fix.

  ***

  "He likes you, ya' know," Theresa said as she returned from the bathroom.

  "Huh? Who? What are you talking about?"

  "Lenny. I think he's carrying a torch for you."

  "Oh, come on! He's older than me... and... I mean, he's your brother."

  "Brothers have feelings, too. He talks about you all the time."

  "He talks about all women all the time. I've known him since we were kids... since he peed in the pool when I stayed over your house that one summer."

  Theresa fell onto the couch and laughed so hard that her stomach hurt. "Lenny might not be the sharpest tool in the shed, but he's a sweetheart."

  "You're trying to sell me on your brother? He might as well be my brother."

  "I'm not trying to sell you on anything, I'm saying it's an option."

  "I think I'll stay single for a while. After Christian, I've lost hope in..."

  Theresa interrupted her by holding her index finger in the air and muttering a quick 'ssshhhh.'

  "What..."

  "Quiet."

  Linda held her breath and listened but heard only the heavy drone of the rain on the roof above.

  "What are we listening to?" she whispered.

  "It sounded like a scream."

  "A scream? Now you're just messing with me."

  "Bullshit! I swear I heard a scream."

  Linda cocked her head and listened. "There's nothing there."

  They heard the soft ding of the elevator bell followed by approaching footsteps.

  "It's just Lenny," Linda said.

  The steps came closer and stopped in front of the door, but no one entered. Linda smirked, feeling that Theresa and her brother were playing some silly prank, but the look on Theresa's face said otherwise.

  After a moment's silence, there came a soft scraping at the door, as if someone was running their fingers over the old wood. Theresa looked up at Linda and shrugged, eyes wide and lips pressed tightly together.

  "You're not really scared, are you?" Linda asked. "It's just your brother being a jerk."

  "Then go check."

  Linda rolled her eyes and crossed the room, dodging open boxes and various items that had been tossed on the floor. When she neared the door, she paused and listened. There was certainly someone there... someone breathing through a wet, clogged nose. She heard them, but more importantly, she felt them. She pressed her ear to the door but quickly pulled it away. The feeling that someone else was doing the same thing on the other side was too much to bear. As she reached for the knob, she heard a sudden, slobbery intake of breath in the hall, followed by the loud patter of running feet. She opened the door and stepped out as another door banged closed at the end of the corridor.

  "Who is it?" Theresa called from the living room.

  "There's no one there," Linda replied, "but there was." She looked at the floor and saw clear, wet footprints leading from her front door to the apartment at the end of the hall. She could make out the shape of someone's bare feet, right down to the bulbous tips of their toes. Wet grass clung to the floor in several places. The gray light in the hallway made it difficult to see, but the tracks left behind were unmistakable.

  Linda jumped as the elevator motor whirred to life and the car descended to the lobby. In seconds, it was on its way back up. She stepped into her apartment and peeked around the door frame, too intent on the elevator to realize that her hands were shaking. When the doors opened, she squinted against the bright light, trying to catch a glimpse of the silhouette standing there. Someone exited the car and walked closer as the soles of their shoes squeaked on the floor. When they spoke, Linda squealed and backed away, grabbing for the door.

  "What the hell are you doing?" the voice asked.

  "Lenny!" Linda shouted. "For Christ's sake, you scared me half to death."

  "Who'd you think I was? I come with gifts," he said, holding a brown paper bag that had grown soggy from the rain. "Hurry up and take this before we have to drink our beer off the floor."

  Linda grabbed the bag and peeked inside to find two glistening six-packs of Lager bottles.

  "Were you just out here?" she asked. "Maybe standing at the door and being creepy?"

  "What? No. You saw me get out of the elevator."

  Lenny brushed past, grazing Linda's breast with his arm and immediately blushing. He entered the living room without looking back. Linda poked her head into the hall, looked both ways, and ducked back inside, closing and locking the door behind her.

  "It's raining like a son of a bitch," Lenny said, dropping a second paper bag on the counter and removing a bottle for himself. "The pizza joint was a bust. Are you sure it's open? It has 1972 written all over it."

  "Yeah, I saw the sign the other day. A tacky old neon thing."

  Lenny shrugged. "Hey, did you know the stairs don't come up to this floor?"

  "The stairs? No, I guess I didn't notice."

  "That has to be a serious safety violation," Lenny continued. "If you had a fire up here, there'd be no way down but the elevator. Seems like it runs on a generator, but still, you might want to bring this up with your landlord."

  "I'll be sure to call him first thing in the morning," she said sarcastically.

  "Who the hell was in the hall?" Theresa asked as Linda placed the beer with the other bag.

  "No idea. Could have been one of my neighbors."

  "Speaking of your neighbors," Lenny said, guzzling his beer and belching. "I think I met one down in the lobby."

  "Oh?"

  "Yeah, a real creeper. She was wearing a robe. Didn't have any shoes on either. When I tried talking to her, she hissed at me."

  "She hissed?" Theresa asked, laughing. "How many of those beers did you drink on the way back?"

  "I saw her before I left, and yes, she fucking hissed at me. Gotta be on drugs."

  "We had a visitor of our own," Linda said. "Tracked water and grass all over the hallway."

  "Might be the same girl," Lenny said as he downed his beer and reached for another. "What did she look like?"

  "I didn't see anyone, but I know they were there. Someone was standing on the other side of the door."

  "Are you kidding me?" he asked. "Is it too late to ask for your deposit back?"

  "Don't go scaring her," Theresa said. "New place, power's out, stormy night... of course it's going to be a little sketchy. Grab me a beer," she ordered. "I'm not going to l
et the little girl from The Ring spoil a good time."

  "Oh, great! That's just great, Theresa! Make it worse..."

  "Fine, I'm sorry," she laughed. "Lenny, get a beer for her, too. We have to make up for lost time."

  Once the drinks started flowing, the mood lightened, and they'd forgotten all about missing stairs and nighttime visitors. More than once, Linda caught Lenny watching her out of the corner of his eye before looking away.

  He might like me after all, she thought before brushing it off. She'd made enough drunken mistakes for a lifetime; sleeping with her best friend's brother would not be one of them, now or ever.

  As the hours passed, and the alcohol made them drowsy and stupid, they played a variety of silly drinking games, told tales of past indiscretions, and made fun of one another as only lifelong friends can. It had been a while since Linda had someone to drink with other than herself. Work often got in the way of her social life, and Christian didn't like it when she got loaded. He didn't want to be embarrassed.

  To hell with him, Linda thought. No more jumping through hoops or walking on eggshells. That part of my life is over.

  It was after three when Theresa and Linda threw in the towel. They stumbled down the hall and fell into bed, Linda in her bedroom, and Theresa in the other. Lenny sprawled on the couch and watched the rain beat against the window. He'd concluded that there would never be a good time to tell Linda how he felt. She'd just gotten out of a bad relationship... she probably saw men as the enemy.

  "Better chance of her hooking up with Theresa," he slurred.

  Lenny sipped his beer as he thought of the strange woman from the lobby and how her eyes had seemed to glow. He shook his head, stood, and grabbed another bottle, peering down the darkened hall to where Linda slept. He ran a hand through his hair and sighed.

  Maybe in the morning, he thought. If I could just talk to her and see where her head is at.

  After what she'd gone through with Christian...

  It can wait, he thought. Maybe it'll be worth it.

  Linda needed a friend, not another man full of promises.

  He put his beer on the table and stumbled to the bathroom.

  ***

  Linda couldn't see much through the gloom of her darkened bedroom, but she felt the presence at the foot of the bed. It wasn't seeing the figure looming over her that made her hold her breath, it was the change in the air, the sudden shift in the atmosphere. She muttered something even she couldn't understand before clearing her throat and trying again. Her mouth was dry and scratchy, her speech nothing more than a croak.

  She watched as the shadow crept to the side of the bed and felt the mattress move as someone sat beside her and lifted the thin sheet from her bare legs. Cold fingers brushed her thigh and she jumped as her flesh broke out in goosebumps. She listened to the figure's heavy breathing as its fingers crept higher, toward the elastic band of her panties. When they slid beneath the thin fabric, she gasped and reached out to pull them away, but the hand wouldn't budge. It felt like she was wrestling a slab of concrete, a frigid stone sculpture.

  "Don't," she muttered, but whoever the hand belonged to wasn't listening. The fingers wiggled lower, through her pubic hair, and then lower still.

  She tried rolling away from the icy touch, but the hand remained, cupping her vagina and slowly working its way inside her. There was nothing erotic about that touch... it was greedy, forceful, unwanted. She tried calling out, but her voice betrayed her, exiting her lips in a quiet sigh.

  "Stop," she whispered. "I want you to stop."

  But it didn't stop. The fingers grew more persistent, exploring her against her will. Pain bloomed in her abdomen as the shadow leaned over her and pressed her to the bed.

  "Get... off," she wheezed.

  "Oh, I will," a man's voice replied. "We'll both get off."

  She knew that voice.

  How is this happening?

  "Our little secret," the voice moaned in her ear.

  "Please... don't."

  Thunder rattled the apartment, followed by a blinding white light that illuminated the entire room in shades of black and white. The pressure in her groin subsided as the figure leaped from the bed with a howl and ran into the hall. Linda found she could finally move, but was too scared to pursue. She jumped out of bed, closed her bedroom door, and pulled the covers around her body, shaking from fear and rage.

  She didn't get a look at his face, but she knew who it was, and it made her skin crawl.

  Linda listened to the toilet flush and put a hand over her mouth to stop from crying out.

  For someone who had never once backed down from anyone or any situation, she felt like a scared child hiding from the Boogeyman and waiting for her father to turn on the light and tell her it would be okay.

  But it wasn't okay... not even close, and even her father couldn't banish this particular evil.

  It was a violation, an intrusion, an impossibility.

  Bile and sour beer rose in her throat, forcing her to swallow hard to keep from vomiting.

  What the hell do I do now? she thought. Just what the hell do I do?

  ***

  Lenny flushed the toilet, washed his hands, and searched for a towel in the darkened bathroom. The blackness was disorienting. After a few minutes of blindly groping for the door, he wiped his damp hands on his pants and crept into the hall. From one door he heard his sister's obnoxious, high-pitched snore, and from the other came the quiet rustling of bedsheets. Linda's door was closed. He thought it had been open when he went to the bathroom, but he couldn't be sure. He hoped he hadn't made too much noise stumbling around in the dark.

  Lenny returned to the living room, trying his best to navigate the obstacle course of boxes and household items that lay scattered across the floor. The rain still hadn't let up. He crossed the room, grabbed his bottle, and stood in front of the window, watching lines of condensation run down the glass. He looked out and down, wondering if he could see the ground through the darkness and fog, but was surprised to find a covered balcony running along the back of the building.

  "Hey! You know you have a porch out here?" he asked.

  No one answered.

  He set his bottle on the windowsill, undid the latch, and raised the window. After a few drunken maneuvers, Lenny was able to squeeze through. He reached for his beer, turned, and looked over the edge.

  "Woah, buddy," he said, "that's an accident waiting to happen."

  He grabbed the banister, laughed, and stared off into space. With no lights from the building, or the others surrounding it, it was impossible to tell how far he was away from the ground. It was still humid, but the air had cooled and a light breeze blew his hair from his forehead.

  "You did good," he said, referring to Linda's decision to rent out a place in the Blackridge. "Even if it is a safety nightmare."

  "Do you always talk to yourself?" a voice asked.

  Lenny whirled, lost his footing, and grabbed for the railing. His beer slipped from his hand and fell to the ground below. He waited for the inevitable, loud crash, but it never came.

  "Grass," the voice informed him. "The balcony overlooks the garden."

  He saw a white blur twenty feet to his left. One of Linda's neighbors was obviously a night owl as well.

  "What are you doing out here?" he asked. "It's four in the morning."

  "I could ask you the same thing," the voice replied.

  Soft. Flirtatious.

  "I was drinking my beer, but it seems to have gotten away from me."

  "I have beer," the woman said. "Come on over. No one ever comes out here anymore; we have the entire balcony to ourselves."

  Don't do it, you stupid, horny idiot.

  His feet carried him forward.

  The white blur grew brighter. After a few more steps, a woman appeared out of the dark, holding an icy bottle of beer in one outstretched hand. Before Lenny had a chance to ask if she was the woman he'd seen in the lobby, she answered his unspoke
n thought.

  "We met downstairs," she said. "My name is Audrey."

  "Audrey," he repeated. "Nice to meet you again."

  "I'm sorry if I scared you," she said. "I'm not very comfortable around other people."

  "You... hissed at me," Lenny blurted.

  Audrey laughed and tucked her hair behind her ear with her middle finger. She thrust the beer toward him and held it there until he grabbed it from her hand. "Sorry," she repeated. "You caught me on a really weird day."

  Now that his eyes had adjusted, he saw she was still clad in the same white robe she'd been wearing earlier. She looked down at herself, smiled, and shrugged.

  "All my clean clothes are in the laundry," she said. "My shirts, my pants, my bras... my panties. Either I wear this or I walk around naked, and if I'm not mistaken, there is a dress code in this building. In the public areas anyway."

  "Right," he said, nodding. He held up his bottle, toasted silently, and drank. It was so cold it hurt his teeth.

  "Cheers," she said, returning the gesture. She drank deeply and placed the bottle on a small, plastic patio table.

  "So," he cleared his throat, "you live next door then?"

  "I do. Are we neighbors now?"

  "Oh, no. One of my sister's friends is renting the place. I helped her move in."

  "That's a shame. It would have been nice having a handsome young man right next door."

  Lenny sipped his beer nervously, careful to keep the cold brew from touching his front teeth. "We've known each other for years. It only seemed right to lend a hand."

  "Sure," Audrey said. "You have a thing for this girl?"

  Lenny didn't catch the condescending tone but felt the need to squash the insinuation.

  "No, of course not. She's just a friend."

  "So it didn't cross your mind to sneak into her bedroom? Maybe get in bed with her... touch her?"

  "No! What?"

  "Did you think about touching me?"

  Lenny was caught off guard by Audrey's blatant sexuality. "What kind of guy do you think I am?"

  "I don't know. What kind of guy are you?"

  "Not that kind," he replied.

  "What if I wasn't wearing this robe?"

  Lenny stepped back, not quite sure what response was warranted. He chose to go with humor.