From his hotel room at the very top of the Hilton, the man had a majestic view of Yankers. Not that any of it mattered to him. His number one concern these days was staying alive and not getting caught. But Damien had always been the best when it came to those.

With a sigh, he turned away from the window, nervously clasping his hands together.

“Something wrong, sweetie?” a gentle voice asked.

“Just a little anxious,” he told her, casting another wary glance at the door.

“You really should try to relax,” Karen said, placing a hand on his shoulder.

“No way,” Damien disagreed. “Always have to be ready.”

As if on cue, there was a knock on the door. Damien whipped out his pistol, the metal gleaming in the sunlight. He signaled to Karen, who slipped behind the door and armed herself with a baseball bat. Damien opened the door, only to have a heavy boot slam into his abdomen. He cleared five feet, crashing through the coffee table. When his attacker stomped into the room, Karen swung the bat with all her might. The wood cracked and splintered as it connected with his head, but to no avail. Karen then realized that his entire body was made of stone.

If he felt Karen’s attack, the man didn’t show it. He walked towards Damien, a frown etched on his stone face. Damien cursed and emptied a round of bullets into the man’s chest. They bounced away harmlessly. Rolling behind the couch, Damien grabbed another gun, which was concealed under the rug. The stone man paused as he saw the gun, then continued his advance. Without a hint of hesitation, Damien fired. The first bullet found its mark, and the stone man stumbled back, clutching his chest. Upon removing his hand, he found a large blood-stained hole.

That was all Damien needed. He leaped into the air, bounced off the couch, and launched himself at the stone man. The sound of gunshots filled the air as the Teflon-coated bullets pierced his body again and again. Karen could only watch in speechless horror as the stone man fell to the floor. Panting heavily, Damien stomped on the stone man’s head until he lost consciousness. Then he sighed and collapsed on the couch.

Karen ran to him. “Are you okay?”

He waved her away with his hand. “Get the bags. I have to go now.” She nodded and ran to the closet. As she searched for the bags, Damien rose and peered out of the window. He could hear police sirens in the distance. He looked at his hands and cursed himself for not wearing gloves. His fingerprints must’ve been all over the gun now. He shook his head and grabbed some ammunition from the table.

“Will you be back tonight?” Karen asked as she handed him the bags.

Damien shook his head. “Too risky. You got a place to stay?”

She nodded and looked at the stone man. “What about him?”

“Not our problem anymore,” Damien grunted, heading for the door. Karen grabbed her purse and followed him out of the room. He jabbed the elevator button and pointed his gun at the doors. A maid nearly screamed as she walked out. Damien shoved her aside and ran in, with Karen right behind him. He leaned against the wall, his red eyes on her. “You sure you’re gonna be okay?” he asked.

Karen nodded. “I’ve been on my own before. I’m a big girl now.”

He grinned and was about to say something when the elevator reached the ground floor. As soon as the doors opened, the couple fled down the hallway, heading for the main exit. When they reached the lobby, the found several police officers there. Damien growled and adjusted his bag’s shoulder strap.

The cops suddenly noticed that he was armed. Before they could reach for their guns, Karen threw a smoke bomb. The cops all hit the floor within a minute.

Damien lowered his head and ran through the gas. Karen joined him outside the hotel a few moments later. “Seeya in three days, babe,” he said, tenderly kissing her cheek. Then he rounded the corner and was gone.

Karen waited until she heard the Mustang’s tires squeal. “Stay safe, baby,” she whispered.

Goddess sighed as she slipped into the hot tub, savoring the warm feeling. “Pure perfection,” she whispered, a smile on her lips. Just as she got really relaxed, a man walked into the room.

“What is it, Earl?” she asked, not bothering to look at him.

“You have a visitor, boss. It’s Blaze.”

“Send him in and leave us,” Goddess replied, slowly closing her eyes. She waited until she recognized the slow, majestic footsteps. “Come in, darling,” she said, opening her eyes.

Blaze stopped at the edge of the hot tub. “We have to talk.”

“I’m listening,” she said.

“You should have told me Damien was back in town,” he growled.

“I told Goth. That’s always been enough, hasn’t it?” Goddess asked.

Blaze arched an eyebrow in disbelief. “You told Goth that Damien was back?”

She nodded, wondering what he was so upset about.

“And it never occurred to you that he might just run off and try to kill the guy? Geez, Goddess, what were you thinking?!”

“Don’t yell at me,” she said sternly.

“Whatever,” Blaze muttered, pulling a cigarette from his coat pocket. Then, realizing he didn’t smoke, he tossed it into the hot tub.

“Hey!” Goddess shouted angrily.

“Shut up,” Blaze snapped. “If you see Goth or Karen in the next few days, I want you to keep them here and call me. Understand?”

“Fine,” she said. “But the least you could do is get that nasty thing out of my hot tub.”

Blaze stepped forward and started to reach for the cigarette, but paused when he noticed the look on her face. “Nice try,” he said, standing back up. “By the way, you should do something about the lighting. It almost looks like you’re naked in there.”

Goddess smirked. “Trust me, honey, it’s not the lighting.”

She enjoyed the way his face lost some of its color.

“Care to join me?” she asked. “There’s not enough beer in the world to get me that drunk, girl,” he said, casting a wary glance at her.

Goddess pouted pitifully. “If I didn’t know you and your code of honor so well, I’d be insulted.”

Blaze remained silent, keeping his gaze elsewhere.

“What’s the matter? Don’t like what you see?” Then, with a smile, Goddess added, “Or maybe you’d like to see more?” She slowly rose out of the water.

Blaze’s head snapped around, effectively keeping her out of sight, but nearly breaking his neck. “Are you crazy?!” he shouted.

“No,” she said breathlessly, “just desperate. It’s been so long since I’ve had a man.”

Blaze tried to run, but his feet wouldn’t obey. He realized it was Goddess’ doing. “Let me go!” he yelled.

“That’s no way to talk to your best friend,” she whispered.

Blaze broke out in a cold sweat. “Don’t do this, girl. Please!”

“We both know I could easily turn your head, with my powers,” she said. “I could make you stare at me, if I really wanted to. I could make your eyes wander over every inch of my body.” Then she sighed. “But I could never make you want me, could I?”

“You can only control the bodies of men, Goddess,” Blaze said. “You can’t control their minds.”

“Answer the question,” she said flatly.

“You know what I’m going to say,” he replied.

“Yeah, I guess I do,” she admitted.

They stood there in silence for a few minutes. Goddess reached for a towel and wrapped it around herself. “Are you mad at me?” she asked.

“Not really,” Blaze said. “Just very surprised.”

“I guess the least I could do is slow your heartbeat back down ,” she said with a grin.

“Thanks,” he said as his breathing returned to normal.

“Still love me?” she asked hopefully.

“What do you think?” he shot back.

“Okay, dumb question,” she said, picking the cigarette out of the hot tub.

“Since we’re still friends and everything,” Blaze said, “I was wondering if you’d let me go now?”

“What?” she asked. Then the realization hit her. “Oh, you still can’t move, can you?”

“Come on, girl. I have to go see my sister tonight.”

Goddess walked towards him, her feet padding softly on the floor. “You know my policy,” she said simply.

“Yeah, I know,” he said. “No one leaves without hugging you. But I can’t do much of anything right now.” He sighed in relief as he felt her control slip away. He was about to thank her when she cut him off.

“Shut up and hug me,” she demanded.

Blaze grinned and wrapped his arms around her. Goddess sighed happily in his arms. “Don’t get too comfortable down there,” he warned.

She glanced up. “Y’know...that sounded wrong,” she said.

They both laughed. Blaze leaned down and kissed her cheek. “I’ll be back later tonight.”

“Okay,” she said brightly as he walked away.