Chapter 5

“All of it,” the woman smiled, “With you.”

“If I say yes, will you tell me your name?”

The woman laughed, her eyes sparking, “You’re not going to let it go, are you…?”

Andi squeezed the woman’s hand as they walked through Overcreek Park, “We’ve spent so much time together, and we’ve come to know each other so well… but I still don’t know your name…”

The woman’s face became serious, and her eyes bore into Andi’s, “I can’t tell you. I’m sorry.”

Andi had to catch her breath, which was what happened every time she looked into the woman’s eyes – eyes that were beautifully mismatched: one blue, one hazel, “It’s okay… It’s just that I… um… I just like you so much…”

The woman blushed. Andi was gazing at her with such sincerity that it blazed through her. “The feeling’s mutual,” she said quietly.

Andi’s face brightened with a handsome grin, “I’ve fallen for a woman who won’t tell me her name…”

The woman shook her head from side to side, “It’s not that I won’t tell you. It’s that I can’t… I’m sorry.”

“But yet…” Andi stepped closer, “… she allows me to kiss her…”

The woman smiled and nodded her head.

Andi leaned in and the woman met her lips eagerly. When they broke for air, Andi gently tucked some of the woman’s hair behind her ear.

“If you met me in another life, another time,” the woman asked, “Would you still fall for me like this?”

Andi nodded, her lips travelling down the woman’s neck. Her hands glided up over the fabric of the woman’s dress, tenderly caressing the woman’s breasts.

“Hmmm,” the woman sighed, “Good, because I love the way you touch me…”

“I love touching you…” Andi whispered, ‘I love you…”

The woman gasped, and tears started streaming down her face.

“What’s wrong?” Andi exclaimed with concern.

“You love me…?” The woman said through wracking sobs.

Andi nodded, “I’m sorry – is it too soon? Did it freak you out? I’m so sorry…”

The woman shook her head, “No, no… just please, Andi, come and find me.”

“But I have found you,” Andi was confused, “We’re here now, together…”

The woman shook her head, “I know, but I need you to come find me… not just here…”

“Where?” Andi asked desperately, “Where? Tell me where, and I’ll do it…”

“Hurry, Andi,” the woman’s eyes gleamed with tears, “Hurry…”

“Wait!” Andi shouted as she woke with a start. She was in her bedroom and the sun was already slanting into a corner of the room. The dream was so real; the woman was so real. What started as one dream of a mysterious woman in strange room had morphed into visits to a nightly dream world that belonged entirely to the woman and Andi. It was a dream state that Andi looked forward to every night…

Andi thought back over the past month. The dream started — haltingly — in the woman’s bedroom. The woman was always nude when Andi walked in, and it took Andi a couple of nights to stay within the dream. After Andi got the hang of staying in that dream state, the dreams become more real and no longer repeated.

The dreams felt real, not least because they happened every night, but because in those dreams, the woman wasn’t just a willing lover, she was also a confidante, the two women forging a deep friendship and intimacy that Andi felt fully committed to. In those dreams, the couple poured their hearts out to each other. They talked about everything… except, of course, the woman’s name.

“And now, I need to go find her,” Andi muttered, “How the hell do I do that?”

Chapter Six — The Leap of Faith

The crunching of the gravel in the motor court below made Madame Zedecker’s heart skip a couple of beats. Andi’s here!

In the four weeks since the Phoenix crew started the project, Madame Zedecker’s optimism has inched up day by day. Andi and her team were making good progress on the grounds, and most importantly, Andi had also made it a habit to spend time with her wealthy client.

Andi was arriving earlier and earlier, ostensibly to assess how well progress was sticking. The curious quirk about the Estate was that the grounds seemed to go through ‘moods’. On good days, the landscaping work sticks. On bad days, the previous day’s work would be undone. Andi didn’t really understand it, so she started staying later and arriving earlier to try and figure out what was actually happening. All she knew was: The more time she spent at the Estate, the more good days it had.

Madame Zedecker loved it. She loved spending her days with her architect, who was consistently in her thoughts.

With a smile on her lips, Madame Zedecker swiveled her wheelchair and headed towards her bedroom door.

“Careful,” Kei Shang’s soft voice cut in, “We don’t want you to seem too eager, do we?”

“You sound anxious, Kei, which means I must be doing something right.”

Kei Shang’s mouth twitched with displeasure, “Don’t. Be. Insolent. Andi’s here only because of the work you hired her to do, not voluntarily. And I haven’t heard any declarations of love lately, have you?”

Yes I have, actually… just not in this version of reality… “You really do sound anxious, which means you know there’s a possibility you can lose this bet…”

Shang’s eyes hardened with hate, but he didn’t reply. Zedecker swiveled her wheelchair and tipped the joystick forward, a small glint of victory in her eyes.

Andi heard the power wheelchair approach the solarium. She smiled to herself; the lady of the manor was proving to be exceedingly good company and they’d been spending a lot of time together. Truth be told, the Phoenix crew was at the top of its game and the work was pretty much taking care of itself. Andi initially showed up because of her contractual duties, but more and more, the Estate was pulling her in… as was its owner.

“Good morning, Madame Zedecker,” Andi looked up happily.

“Ms. Zhao,” Zedecker inclined her head just slightly, “You’re early today.”

Andi shrugged, “I like being here… I think your house is talking to me.”

“Oh? What is it saying to you?”

“I don’t understand it… yet… ” Andi smiled.

“I hope you figure it out… What shall we tackle today?”

The two of them had been going through different parts of the massive house, purging old trinkets and junk, as well as noting areas that needed attention and upgrading.

“Lead the way,” Andi said, holding the door open.

The two of them wound through a number of corridors before Madame Zedecker came to a stop. Andi twisted the knob of a heavy oak door, and they crossed the threshold into a bright and spacious library.

Andi laughed, “Wow. This was not what I had in mind when you said ‘study’.”

Madame Zedecker blushed. She cleared her throat, “Da-… um, Damian spent a lot of time in here. He was always an engineer at heart. I suppose it’s a little bit of an understatement to call it a study. I didn’t come in here a lot.”

“What’s through there?” Andi pointed to a set of double doors.

Madame Zedecker shrugged, “That opens into the garage — it was his part of the house… as I said, we didn’t come in here a lot.”

Andi remembered a huge underground basement in the mansion’s blueprints, which sat under a three-car garage. She pushed the doors open and gasped.

“Wow,” Andi said again. From the outside, the ‘garage’ looked like any other large two-story structure with three retractable doors. Inside, it was part lab, part man-cave, and what looked like a super-sized car lift.

Madame Zedecker saw Andi’s eyes light up and found it adorable.

Andi trotted over to the car lift, “May I? I’ve always wanted to check out one of these.”

“Knock yourself out!”

There was a set of stairs next to the car lift and Andi peered down with curiosity, “Holy crap, how many cars do you have down there?”

“Damian was a car nut…” And one of them was supposed to be for my birthday…

“May I try and put one on the lift?” Andi leapt down the stairs two at a time once she got a nod. Madame Zedecker heard a muffled, “Holy shit!” and smiled to herself. Deep in the belly of the underground garage, an engine started and the squeal of tires followed soon after.

Andi soon trotted back up the stairs and headed for the LCD panel on the wall. The lift whooshed and cranked to life. Both women watched in fascination as a massive steel cage ascended and a bright red muscle car appeared.

Two pairs of eyes admired the classic car in silent awe.

Suddenly, the side door to the garage was thrown open and Stewart Bromley tumbled through, breathless with concern. When he saw Andi and Madame Zedecker though, he let out a sigh, “Oh, it’s you two. Okay.”

“Have you been taking care of Mr. Zedecker’s collection?” Andi asked.

Stewart nodded, “I have two guys from headquarters come once a month to tune up the fleet.”

“They’ve done a great job, this one was purring,” Andi pointed to the car.

“Let’s take it out for a drive,” Madame Zedecker said impulsively.

Stewart’s eyes widened, “But…”

Madame Zedecker held up her hand, “Fifteen minutes, Stewart. I promise. Come on Andi, get me out of this thing.”

Andi blinked. This was not what she expected to unfold, “You trust me to drive that… that VERY expensive car?”

A wisp of a smile crossed Zedecker’s lips, “Scared?”

Andi nodded, “That thing’s got a price tag with many, many, many zeros on it. Damn straight I’m scared.”

“Me too,” Zedecker pointed her joystick forward, “But I might be dead soon. Come on, Andi.”

Andi opened the car’s passenger side door and hesitated. Madame Zedecker lifted her arms and raised her eyebrows.

Here goes nothing! Andi leaned forward and scooped up her client. Andi had to reset her hold because Madame Zedecker turned out to be heavier than her frail frame suggested.

“Too much for you?” Madame Zedecker whispered wickedly.

“No! Not at all! I—”

Madame Zedecker threw her head back and laughed.

Andi loved hearing it. She loved the soft vanilla scent of the woman in her arms. She shifted her weight a little, “Stop laughing, I might drop you…”

“Chivalry is a lost art,” lamented Zedecker.

“Well, ma’am, I shall endeavor to prove you wrong,” Andi grunted as she lowered her client into the car, “Your chariot, my lady.”

“I bet you say that to all the girls,” came the dry riposte.

Andi grinned at her client, “No one’s had a chariot quite like this one…”

Stewart marveled at the banter between the two women. Most of the staff at the Estate had noticed the blossoming friendship, and each of them had begun to hope that it promised an end to Kei Shang’s insidious tyranny.

When Andi shifted the car into first gear, Stewart opened the garage door and waved enthusiastically.

“Wow,” Andi felt the car pulsing with horsepower.

“If I’d known you were this easy to please, I would’ve have promised you a drive in this car instead of paying you cash for the contract!”

Andi glanced over and grinned, “I’m pretty sure I would have taken you up on it! This. Is. AWESOME.”

Kei Shang watched the car do a loop around the motor court before accelerating off property. He clenched his fists in anger. That bitch is going to pay for this.

Madame Zedecker let out a massive scream of defiance as they drove through the front gates.

“Why fifteen minutes?” Andi asked as they sped through the empty roads of Harrier Ridge.

Her client’s smile faded, “It’s complicated.”

Andi slowed down and pulled over to a stop. She switched the engine off and turned to her frail passenger, “I have time.”

After a long pause, Madame Zedecker whispered, “I can’t tell you. I’m sorry.”

Andi blinked as those words came out. First the woman in her dreams… and now Madame Zedecker… Another person who can’t tell me what’s going on…

Andi breathed out slowly, “Okay. I won’t push. But something’s going on, right? Kei’s behind it, isn’t he? I think you think I can help… but I don’t know how.”

Thankful for the mask of her sunglasses, Madame Zedecker tried to keep her tears at bay. She desperately wanted to blurt everything out. I need you to fall in love with me and promise to stay with me… It sounded ridiculous even thinking about it.

Andi tried again. She took Madame Zedecker’s hand and squeezed, “I really want to help.”

Tears started falling from behind the sunglasses, “Andi, do you find me ugly?”

Andi was so surprised by the question her mouth dropped open.

“Never mind,” Madame Zedecker said quietly. She regretted the question immediately because she didn’t want to know the answer, “We’d better get back.”

Andi wished she had a handkerchief or a piece of tissue to offer. She stretched out the cuff of her sweatshirt sleeve and wiped away the tears, “I’m sorry…”

“It’s fine,” came the defeated reply, “Come on, Andi, let’s go home.”

“Andi, I’m fine. We don’t have much time, let’s go back.”

“Okay,” Andi turned the key and shifted the car into gear, “I don’t find you ugly, by the way. And about Kei Shang, you can always talk to me, you know?”

“Not for this, Andi, I’m sorry.”

The drive suddenly wasn’t so light-hearted anymore. Andi couldn’t figure out what was causing the reticence. After all, they’d been talking about everything else like old friends. The sadness of the woman next her just about broke her heart.

Stewart was waiting anxiously in the garage for their return. Andi could almost see him sigh with relief when she pulled in.

“I’ll bring this back down to the basement, Andi,” Stewart said when she stepped out, “Good drive?”

Andi nodded, “This car is spectacular.” She walked around to the passenger side and opened the door. As Andi lifted her up, Madame Zedecker rested her head on Andi’s shoulder. Andi gave her an affectionate squeeze before gently lowering her into her wheelchair.

“It was my pleasure,” Andi said earnestly. Is it weird that I think she smells amazing? Andi immediately tried to push away that thought. Instead, she stretched and looked around the massive space again. Her eyes followed the stairway down to the basement, and then all the way back up to a mezzanine above them, “What’s up there?”

Madame Zedecker shrugged, “No idea. Go on up and see if you want.”

Andi made her way up the stairs and opened the door to what appeared to be a brand-new apartment with all the amenities kitted out. She poked her head back out, “It’s an apartment.”