A Secret Man of Blood

Chapter Twenty-Two

A live band are playing in the club; music pounces on people, dragging them to the dancefloor, Sig throwing down his legendary moves with an Elf female who has a chihuahua in her bag, while Anya dances with an Elf male, and Indigo stands beside them on the dancefloor drinking a pint of water.

"How old are you?" Sig shouts to his dance partner over the music, the dancefloor gloating with light.

"Twenty-two," she answers.

Sig nods. "Twenty-two – which is the same as my age..." Everyone looks at him sceptically, including the chihuahua, "...used to be.

Katisse, a thin-looking Elf who looks even thinner and more haggard since Sig adopted him as his "apprentice" during his stay in Tyria, comes over with the drinks. Sig had sent him to the busy bar almost an hour before. The Dwarf takes his pint of whiskey and downs it in one, placing his hand confidingly on the Elf's back as he leads him to the side to talk.

Sig indicates the Elven female. "I've met a nice woman..."

Katisse looks genuinely thrilled. "That's brilliant, Sig—" Sig holds up a finger to correct him. "—That's brilliant, master." Sig nods in approval and smiles.

"Now, your master needs another drink for the young lady...how do you feel about standing in the queue for another hour?"

"Well, my doctor said I should avoid—"

"Pissing me off? Great!" Sig puts some money in the Elf's hand and waves him off. "Here, buy yourself something too."

As he moves off, Katisse checks the money in his hand. "But this isn't even enough for one drink—"

Sig laughs it off. "Get out of here, you scamp!"

Anya approaches Sig. "I'm not sure that outfit was a great idea," she says, indicating Sig's belly hanging out of his bondage-cop ensemble. "You look like an advert for gravity."

"Hey!" Sig argues. "I've received a lot of sexual advances while wearing this...some of them from women!

"It's good to see you've found someone nice," Anya smiles, indicating the Elf female.

"It's pointless," Sig shakes his head. "She's got goodness coming out of her ears and I've got badness dripping out of my—"

"Thank you!" Anya quickly leaves before Sig can complete the thought and resumes dancing with her partner.

Indigo sidles up to Sig. "I'm not sure about this...'getting myself out there' thing."

"You'll be fine!" Sig encourages. "The peacock only shows his finest feathers during the mating ritual."

"...Is that true?"

"No idea – but it sounds like the kind of thing that might be true. And if there's one thing more important than the truth, it's convenience." He claps Indigo on the back and indicates the Elf female. "Wish me luck. I hope it goes better than my last sexual experience..."

*

Sig is in a woman's bedroom, having sex doggy-style over a bedside table. He stops suddenly. "Are you feeling alright?" he asks.

"I just find it hard to relax," she replies, over her shoulder.

He smiles patiently and places a hand on her back. "It's okay. You just need to live in the moment."

"That's what I keep telling her," A toothless old woman sitting in bed beside the table agrees, a book and a set of false teeth in her lap.

"Who is that, anyway?" Sig asks the younger woman.