Raga Six (A Doctor Orient Occult Novel) by Frank Lauria Read Free Book Online

said, setting the bag down next to the wall, "he gets violent."  
    "Then it’s settled." Joker headed for his room. "I got some business tonight so I’ll see you in the mornin’."  
    Sun Girl followed him to the door. "Give me sheets and a couple of pillows," she called after him.  
    She came back to Orient and took his arm. "You do want to stay, don’t you?" she asked quietly, studying his face with her large eyes.  
    "I guess I’d be proud, ma’am," Orient smiled.  
    Sun Girl giggled and put her head against his chest. "Easy now, stranger," she said, "there isn’t room in this drugstore for two buckaroos."  
    Joker came out budding a wide leather belt studded with coins over his hips. He had changed into another version of the shirt he’d been wearing earlier; silver velvet embroidered in white with the familiar eagle design. He took the sheets and pillows he was carrying under his arm and threw them at Sun Girl.  
    She caught them in midair and went to work stripping the cover off the mattress and spreading the sheets over it.  
    "You’re in good hands, Doe," Joker said, running a comb through his hair, "so don’t worry about nothin’. Tomorrow we’ll have a long talk about things." He stopped combing and looked at Orient. "I got a funny feeling we got lots to talk about."  
    Still combing his hair, Joker went back into his room. A few minutes late he returned carrying a suede portfolio. He opened the pouch and took out a small bank envelope similar to the one had given to Ralph when he delivered Orient’s suitcase. "This one’s for you," he said, tossing the flat envelope with an expert twist of his wrist so that it sailed across the room and came to rest against Orient’s bag, next to Sun Girl’s feet.  
    "How was that?" he said, heading for the door.  
    "Show-off," Sun Girl called over her shoulder as Joker left.  
    Orient stood for a moment trying to gather his thoughts. Apparently his fate had guided him well. But he was still unsure. He watched Sun Girl tucking the sheets under the mattress. "You don’t have to go to the trouble of making my bed," he said finally.  
    Sun Girl stood up. "You mean our bed, don’t you?"  
    Orient looked at her. She was poised like a deer, ready to take flight at the slightest unfamiliar sound. He smiled and nodded slowly. She smiled back at him. "That’s what I thought," she said. She finished arranging the sheets, then went to the door to Joker’s room.  
    She paused, her hand on the knob. "I’m going to take a shower," she said softly. "Why don’t you get some rest?"  
    Orient sat down on the edge of the mattress and began taking off his clothes. His twill trousers were torn and his light-colored jacket was smudged with grass and dirt stains. His Battaglia loafers were scuffed and dusty.  
    He realized he was exhausted. The sheets felt stiff and clean against his bruised skin. He stared up at the ceiling, his head resting on his palms.  
    He heard the door open behind him: Sun Girl padded across the rug wrapped in a towel. She went to make sure that Julian was covered, kissing his tiny hand gently before crossing the room and clicking out the lights.  
    He heard the sound of her bare feet come close to the bed and a soft rustle as the towel dropped to the floor.  
    She slipped under the sheets and he felt her skin cold and damp against his. His hands moved over her body as a rush of recognition ignited his desire. It had been a long time since he’d held a woman. His mouth found hers and she became a wriggling, restless warmth beneath him. She whimpered as he entered her, her voice a moist whisper against his ear that rose to a small moan as they found their rhythm, until there was nothing else in the universe but her warmth and her cries and his body arching to meet hers like a bow that had suddenly found the itching purpose of its design.
     

 

 
     
    CHAPTER 4
     
     
    The first thing Orient saw when he opened his eyes was a small naked