Free Spawn of Hell by William Schoell Page B

much money just so she could have a one-night stand with the likes of him. Not that it would make much of a dent in her income. Still . . . it was nice.
    He went into the bathroom and washed up a bit, sloshing around toothpaste in his mouth with his finger. Like the hospital, the hotel supplied small little tubes and bottles of assorted toiletries. He was splashing water on his face when he saw her in the mirror, standing by the door, absolutely naked and beautiful. She smiled when she saw that he had seen her.
    “Good morning,” she said, one hand on her hip. “When you’re through, we’ll go down for breakfast.”
    A momentary panic seized David in its grip. Breakfast in this joint would cost a pretty penny, and he didn’t have much on him, and couldn’t spare any of it to begin with. How much longer could he mooch off her? If only she had added “on me.” Maybe he should just tell her that he had an early appointment and had to split. He dried his face with a towel and went back into the bedroom. No. He wanted to spend more time with her, to get to know her better. He would order coffee (probably $2.50 per cup in this place) and hope that breakfast was dutch.
    “I’ll only be a minute,” she said, stepping into the bathroom and closing the door. She kept her word. She came out only minutes later and went to the chair where they had piled their clothes. She slipped into her jumpsuit while David checked how he looked in his wrinkled outfit in the large mirror over the dresser. It would have to do.
    He noticed that she was wearing none of her Exclusiva cosmetics and she looked just as lovely without them. He saw a small patch of freckles under her eyes, barely visible on the pale skin. Her eyes were a magnificent shade of blue. Her body—now covered—had been breathtaking. He had felt positively ugly next to her. Stone-cold sober he would never have been able to make love to her. He would have felt like the beast molesting beauty, Quasimodo ravaging Esmeralda. He knew he wasn’t unattractive, but he also knew that she had made love regularly to a husband who was built like a Greek god. Yet, she had seemed to enjoy his ministrations during the evening; he knew he had enjoyed hers.
    “Ready?” she said. He nodded and they stepped out into the corridor. David realized that neither of them was saying very much, but somehow it seemed perfectly natural and comfortable, at least to him, as if they were old friends who didn’t find it necessary to converse every single second. He liked that.
    Waiting for the elevator, she turned to him, and brushed a piece of hair back up off his forehead. “Do you have a busy day ahead?” she asked.
    “Not really. I have a few things to do.”
    She consulted her wristwatch. “Well, it’s 10:30. I hope you didn’t miss anything.”
    He couldn’t help but laugh. “It wouldn’t have mattered if I had. I’ve been having a wonderful time.”
    “Me, too.” She kissed him lightly on the mouth. “David.”
    He smiled. It was nice that she had remembered his name.
    “Do you have a busy day?” he asked.
    She bit her lip and thought for a moment. “Nothing today, really. An appointment at three.” Before she could continue, the elevator came. They got on, managing to stay together despite the fact that the car was packed. David noticed a few people staring at Anna, having recognized her. Two middle-aged women began whispering.
    The car opened again at the lobby floor, and they disembarked; Anna led him to a small coffee shop located at one end of the lounge. A waitress showed them to a table, and handed them menus. “This is on me,” Anna said. “Have anything you like.”
    “Well—that’s very nice of you,” he said, feeling relief. He was very hungry, but didn’t want to take advantage. He decided on some bacon and eggs and coffee, which was reasonably priced, if nowhere near as cheap as in most restaurants.
    Anna had the same. As she sipped her grapefruit juice,