Free The Department of Hate - A Love Story by Anthony O'connor

tried to collect his thoughts - but he was so tired.
    "We'll figure it out. There must be something we can do." Cassandra stretched up towards him and kissed him lightly on the lips. He returned the kiss. They lay there together holding each other and eventually they fell asleep. Jarrod's last conscious thought was
    "Well, no one gets forever but maybe just a day."
     
    They woke up some time later. It must have been at least several hours, possibly longer. Some light was coming in from somewhere so it must be daytime again – or whatever passed for day down here. Jarrod lay there quietly, unwilling to move. It occurred to him that it must be Sunday Morning, still very early. No clocks though – no alarms. They didn’t need them here. Cassandra stretched and got up onto her feet. She walked around the apartment looking for food. She found a large jug on a bench. It was filled with some kind of thick dark liquid, still warm - coffee?  There were also several thick loaves of bread. She had no idea how it all got there. She grabbed some mugs, put everything onto a large tray and then took it back with her into the other room. Jarrod had finally sat up. She placed the tray onto a small table and called out
    "Breakast!" Jarrod moved over to the table and sat down with her. He was also hungry. Without saying anything more they both started eating and then washed it down with mugs of whatever it was. Jarrod looked at her with a pained and surprised expression, pointing to the jug on the table, then vaguely around the room
    "You know how absurd this all is?" Cassandra looked back at him, replying
    "Utterly!"   After breakfast Cassandra stood up. She went to a chest of drawers on the other side of the room and grabbed her old clothes – the ones she had been wearing before. Jarrod hadn’t noticed until then that she was still wearing the long red gown. Her hair was messed up and the gown was creased and yet standing there in it she was even more beautiful than before. Radiant! He stopped himself from staring. Cassandra said
    “I have to change. This dress is too awkward.” Jarrod jumped to his feet
    “Oh I see, all right. I’ll just go into the other room.” Cassandra smiled
    “No, it’s OK, I will .” She left quickly. She was pleased by his politeness. The little things – they added up. She went into the other room and came back in the jeans and blouse she had been wearing before. She folded the gown as best she could and then placed it onto the chest of drawers. Then she walked back towards Jarrod. He sighed. She was just so amazingly beautiful!
     
    He had moved back to the couch. She sat down next to him, slightly apart. Jarrod was still trying to figure it all out - he faced Cassandra. He was puzzled by something. He asked her bluntly
    "We both know why I'm here. But why are you here?  That crap Abaddon was pushing about you have to be a Christian. That has to be rubbish. Demons lie. But what did you do? Did you kill someone, trade arms or drugs, or maybe even run a bank?” Cassandra laughed
    " No. None of those!  I taught visual arts to autistic children. I did some paintings too." Jarrod stared back at her, incredulous
    "So what are you doing here?" Cassandra smiled darkly
    "Well, I really, really enjoy sex? If I have a few drinks I'm a fun girl to be around." This time Jarrod laughed
    "Hmm, thanks. good to know. I’ll remember that. But surely that's not it." Cassandra sighed
    "No. Probably my second job, I was a dominatrix in Sydney. I worked at the House of Pain - on the North Shore ." Jarrod was shocked
    "What!" It occurred to him that this is what Abaddon had been referring to in the foyer to the Great Hall. At least that now made sense. Cassandra raised her eyebrows
    "Is this moral disapproval?" Jarrod replied quickly
    "No, of course not. I'm just surprised. You don’t seem the type ." Cassandra challenged him
    " And What type would that be?" Jarrod was floundering, he managed to say
    "Well clearly I