From the Vault: U for Unsuitable

Every writer practices, and every writer has a scene vault filled with their practice. Most of the time the scenes and stories sit there and collect dust. I've decided to bring mine into the light of day.

This scene is something I wrote as part of a freewriting challenge among friends. We set the timer for half an hour and just wrote. Then we traded docs and edited each other's work to another 30 minute timer. Here's what I ended up with!

It was hard to focus with how off she felt with a dress on, but Mara finally spotted the police captain she was targeting at this stupid spring picnic. Keeping a coy but playful smile on her face, and starting a game of eye contact and subsequent giggling, she kept sipping on her lemonade and talking to the other girls sitting at the table. Clearly the tactic worked, because it didn’t take long for him to approach her.

The captain was bold, indicated by him putting one hand on Mara’s shoulder. He kneeled so as to put their faces level and just held eye contact, watching her face go red, before saying, “This music is too nice to leave it with no dancing. Wouldn’t you agree?”

“I was hoping you’d ask, even if you are a cop,” Mara responded. The captain took her hand with a chuckle.

“I’m not sure if that’s flirting or treason.” This was said with no warning in his voice, which was unusual for Mara. Cops always spoke to her with a warning in their voice. Today was different though, she looked like she was middle class, and was at a middle class social event. Seeming to be accomplishing her goal too, the next step was to get him to invite her to his place later. She at least needed him to ask to see her again.

Not to let him catch on to her line of thinking, Mara looked down at their slowly shuffling feet, then back up at the captain through her eyelashes. “You’ll have to decide that for yourself, officer. I’ll let you in on a little secret though, I don’t normally flirt with law enforcement.” It was hard not to add any sarcasm to the phrase “law enforcement”, but somehow she managed.

“You may act shy at first,” he responded with a chuckle, “but I’m glad you aren’t. You’re very ballsy. What’s your name sweetheart?” As the captain asked this, his arm went from resting on her hip to venturing around her waist, pulling her closer to him.

I can do this, thought Mara, I can make him think he doesn’t disgust me. I have to. “I’m Mara. What can I call you? I doubt your name is Captain, and I want to be able to get your attention in the future.”

With a smile, a dip, and an inappropriate hand to Mara’s chest, the captain answered, “I’m Derek.” Derek huh? This wasn’t a captain then, this was the local chief. A whole step higher in the food chain. Brian would be pleased when she told him about her catch. Mara was just pleased that she was clearly doing so well at making Derek think she liked him. “Mara, you aren’t young enough to have a curfew are you?” Ugh, what a line, and what a perv.

“Not at all. I might even pass as age appropriate for you.” Another glance through her eyelashes and Mara saw Derek bite his lower lip. Self confident men were so easy to reel in.

The next morning found Mara naked in Derek’s bed. She felt like she had caught whatever sliminess that leads people to become part of such a corrupt mercenary group as the police force, but she had accomplished her goal. This man laying next to her not only liked her, but had brought her to his actual home instead of the police department offices as she was told to expect by other girls who’d attempted the exact same thing she had. Trust was tenuous though, and Mara knew that, so she’d have to build it up some more before she risked rifling through Derek’s things. This kind of infiltration would take time, but would be invaluable to the resistance. Laying in this bed that had an actual mattress, under blankets that actually kept her warm, with a real pillow, strengthened Mara’s resolve to support the resistance. No one she knew, none of the people in the area she grew up in, slept in a bed with pillows and blankets. They slept on the floor, under rags and old clothes that had been sewn together. Most of the time they were sewn together by Mara’s mother, her neighborhood seamstress.

Thoughts interrupted by Derek groaning next to her, Mara put on a less angry face. He rolled to face her, putting an arm over her to pull her into him, and opened his eyes. “Good morning.” Responding with an indistinct groan of her own, Mara stared as softly as she could manage into his blue eyes. “Please tell me you have nowhere to be today, because I don’t want either of us getting out of bed.”

On her leg, Mara could feel why he didn’t want her leaving. He wanted more of what they’d done the night before. “If I give you too much pleasure now, how will I convince you to invite me over again?” As she said this, she pushed Derek onto his back and straddled him. “I want to leave you missing me.” She leaned down and kissed him, getting another groan and his hand on her neck.

A knock was heard. The sound brought frustration to both Mara and Derek’s faces, though for different reasons. “Duty calls. I’ll be right back up though, don’t be sneaking out the window.” He kissed her one last time before moving her off of him and climbing out of bed. Another knock. “I’m coming!” Pants were thrown on and he left the room. Mara opened the window to try and eavesdrop. While she could hear voices, she couldn’t tell what they were saying. How disappointing. Guess she’d just have to wait until Derek came back to find out what the visitor was about, so she sat on the corner of the bed.

It was only a few minutes before Mara’s host returned. He immediately noticed the open window and asked, “Eavesdropping are we?” With his eyebrow raised and his voice playful, Mara couldn’t help but think that she could have some real fun with this guy if he were in a different line of work. They might’ve actually become friends.

“I tried,” she sighed, “but it was unsuccessful. I’m really hoping it wasn’t something that requires us to be up for the day though.” Her antics earned her a chuckle.

Derek sat next to her on the bed and put an arm around her shoulders. “Actually it does. I seem to be trading my day off for another time. I can arrange for someone to take you home though.”

“Unnecessary.” Mara responded. “I wouldn’t want to risk someone telling you how my mother reacted to me staying out all night, especially if I’m escorted home by a cop instead of one of my friend’s servants.” Derek nodded his agreement. They both got dressed, and even though there was an officer still at the door, Derek gave Mara a kiss before she walked out.

This mission was a success. Not only did Mara manage to win the affections of a police chief, but she’d managed to get a plan from him to meet up again. Brian was going to be so pleased.

“You didn’t learn anything?” Brian was angry. His long dirty blond hair was up in its usual braid, brown eyes dark with fury. The scowl on his face made his freckles less endearing than usual. It was not uncommon for him to be angry or scowling, but Mara was surprised with how much worse it was when it was directed at her. “You spent the whole night, even got a few minutes alone there, and you learned nothing.” Even though she was back in her trademark cargo pants and tank top, she was very uncomfortable in her skin right at that moment.

“Can I explain the thinking?” Mara asked. She knew that Brian was a reasonable person, and would want to know why the decisions he disagreed with were made. That way he could either show how the thinking was flawed, or update his own thinking.

When he nodded in agreement to her request, Mara started, “I want this to be a long term advantage, which means I have to build real trust. He has to trust me enough to tell me about things so we can gum things up more effectively and make more of a difference. He’s a chief, if he trusts me enough he might even tell me about the transports of prisoners.” A glare told me that I hadn’t won his agreement. “Think about it Brian, if I had been caught going through his personal stuff, I’d’ve been arrested or kicked out and everything would be over. This way he thinks I’m only into him which means he might even try to pursue a relationship, turning this into a potentially life long gig of firsthand information.” The wheels in his head were turning.

While he thought, Brian put his hand on top of mine. It was a gesture he’d done a thousand times before, a sign of affection. Mara thought about it, and how he’d been against her being chosen as a “sleeper” agent in the first place. A few people had been, since she was better at fighting and flying off the handle than dealing with people. Multiple people had protested by correctly pointing out that she was known for her inability to keep herself composed. “Alright, I get it. I don’t like it though.” Brian sat in one of the chairs around the meeting room, pulling Mara into the seat next to him and holding her hand in his lap. Another gesture he’d done a thousand times. “Did you set up a second meeting?” Mara nodded. “Good. Let’s get you ready for that.”

“But first,” Mara blurted out, “I feel icky, dirty even. I’ve bathed and scrubbed but the feeling isn’t going away, and I want to feel normal for a little bit before I go back.” In response to this Brian smiled. It was a fairly rare sight, and usually reserved for his little sister, but it was something that Mara had seen often enough.

Leaning in towards her, Brian asked, “What did you have in mind?” Mara shrugged her shoulders. How do you get rid of the stench of sleeping with the enemy? “Do you want to reset your slate? I’ve got some time if you do.” Yet another affectionate gesture. Sleeping with a friend just might make her feel normal, too.

“So you aren’t mad anymore?” Brian pulled her onto his lap facing him. Putting her hand on his freckled cheek he kissed her, which answered her question, and she kissed back, answering his.

For a few minutes after the palate cleanser they just laid there, on the floor of the meeting room, holding each other and catching their breath. “Feel better,” Brian asked, panting. Mara moaned her agreement, still feeling a few lingering tendrils of pleasure, and not wanting to scare them off. “Good.” He looked over at her. “Do you remember the first time we did this?”

With a soft giggle, Mara nodded. “It was the first time for both of us if I remember right.” Brian agreed. “I’d just completed my first successful mission, and you’d just secured a position running intel operations.”

“What was that mission? I don’t recall.”

“It was my job to distract the guard of a holding camp. The pedophile almost got to me before you did, but we released so many people that some of them had to live in hiding for months before they could be relocated out of the city.”

Their reminiscing was cut short by someone charging into the room. It was Danny, a tall, blond, blue eyed new recruit that Mara had made quick friends with. “Oh, god guys, get dressed,” he requested putting a hand up to block the view of the barely post coitus pair while simultaneously looking away.

“What’s up Danny?” Brian asked, looking around for his clothes and pulling them on as he found them. Dan said nothing, just waved at him. Once both Mara and Brian were dressed, Brian tried again. “We’re decent, what’s up.”

Still unable to bring himself to make eye contact with either of them, Danny answered, “Mail search brought up the date of a slave auction. A couple weeks from now. That means there will be more police raids right? To get the number of prisoners to sell up?”

“Or the cops are confident that they’re about to have a high ticket offering,” Mara countered. Maybe that’s why Derek had been visited about work on his day off. She’d have to figure out how to get him to tell her about it. “Either way, we all need to be extra careful.”

Brian nodded in agreement. “I’ll have to put a stop on all the passive operations, but you’ll have to continue yours, it’ll look suspicious otherwise.”

With a face full of discomfort, and red as Mara had ever seen it, Danny chimed in, “Are you sure? Because it seems quite normal to stop with someone after sleeping with them. Especially if it’s the first time.” His awkwardness was adorable, and showed just how sheltered and innocent he was. That he hadn’t been acclimated to nudity and sex was a feat though because he was very good looking. If he had the social skills he could win over anyone he wanted.

“No, if she backs out now it’s going to be a lot harder to rekindle the connection and we lose a valuable source of information.” Danny accepted the explanation from Brian, who then turned to Mara and put a hand on either shoulder. “Are you sure you don’t feel icky anymore?”

After a moment of thought, Mara answered, “Yes. Much more normal, thank you.”

“Anytime,” Brian promised with a wink. “Okay, let’s start talk about flying farther under the radar than usual. We need to get some other leaders here first though. Danny, you tell your contacts in the operations branch, Mara go with him. I’ll start contacting some of the other leadership.”