Dark Desires: Genesis by Kourtney King

the pill to work.
    They
walked together to the counter and once she received her prescription Vlad
enquired about its effectiveness. The pharmacist told him that as long as it
was taken within seventy-two hours after having unprotected sex, that the woman
taking it had a BMI of >25 and had not used another emergency contraceptive
before her last menstrual cycle, then it would work but like everything in life
nothing is 100% guaranteed. The pharmacist also recommended that she opt for
ongoing birth control from hence forth. Val thanked the lady for her helpful
advice, breathing a sigh of relief that this was the first and only time she
would use the morning after pill. Her BMI fell into the stipulated range and it
had been less than twenty-four hours since they initially had unprotected sex.
The odds of the pill working were highly in her favour.
    As
they got back in the car, her mood did not change other than the relief she
displayed after getting clarification from the pharmacist. He started to
suspect that something had happened in the suite while he was out shopping. He
asked her again whether she was alright. Val took a deep breath and turned to
face him in the car. “I don't know who you are and I just find it unsettling
with all that has happened between us. Is Vladimir even your real name?” she
asked pointedly
    “Everyone
knows me as Vladimir.””
    “Okay
then what is your last name?”
    “What
is yours?”
    “Thusi”
she gave in answer hoping that he would offer his in return.
    “Mine
is not important.”
    “Fine,
what do you do for a living?”
    “I
told you I was a consultant.”
    Val
looked at him pointedly as the seconds stretched by; he would not offer
anything more than what he had already told her, so she may as well sop looking
for answers. He was still being illusive and vague and she was sick of it. When
the car stopped outside of her house, which Val had given the driver the
address to once they left the pharmacy, she hastily got out of the car followed
by the driver who escorted her to the door with her clothing. Vlad remained in
the car running through the questions she had just asked him, trying to figure
out what spurred her new found curiosity about his life. She gave him a quick
goodbye in the form of a half-hearted wave and didn’t look back as she entered
and shut the door behind her.
    Back
at the hotel suite he was met with silence, in the past he could say he liked
his personal space devoid of anyone’s company unless they were there to warm
his bed but he could admit that he enjoyed seeing Val in his bed and sitting on
the couch even when they weren’t doing anything. His thoughts went back to the
erratic behaviour she displayed after he returned from his shopping spree. He
couldn’t help but think that the Val he left and the Val he came back to, were
two different people and he wanted to know why. He headed to the bedroom and
bent over to pick up the robe she wore. He put it to his nose, deeply inhaling
the lingering scent of her perfume, trying to commit it to memory. He tossed it
on the bed and looked on at the room. Nothing seemed out of place. He came up
with conjectures about what she had possibly seen or who she could've spoken
to. Failing to think of anything plausible, he sat down at the work desk and
opened his laptop. Typing the password into the locked the screen, he ran the
program that gave him a live feed from the surveillance cameras he placed in
the room on arrival.
    After
fast forwarding the scenes from last night and this morning, he let the video
play normally when he watched himself leave. On camera Val was walking around
the room, opening the cupboards and then his laptop. When he saw her approach
his silver suitcase he curled his fists in anticipation, knowing exactly what
she would find if she dared to open it. Shit! How did I forget to
lock the case? He berated himself for being so careless before he
remembered that he usually kicked women out after they