"Tristan!" Eddy yelled, leaning over the bar. "Whiskey, straight!"

"I heard you, bitch!" Tristan yelled back, clearly flustered. "Can't you see there's a shitload of people in front of you?!" He could kill Hunter. He said he'd only be gone for a few minutes, where the fuck did he go?

"I'll pour it myself," Eddy said, grabbing a bottle of Jamison.

"HEY!"

"Sorry, I'm just like, SO nervous," she said, chugging the whiskey and pouring another.

"You? The Dyke of Steel?" Tristan scoffed, pouring a vodka cranberry. "I hate to meet the lesbo that would make YOU shake in your stilettos."

"She's this chick I met leaving a client meeting. Big ol' bitch."

"Bigger bitch than you?"

"Yeah, actually. Maybe that's why she intrigues me. And scares the fuck out of me."

"Ah, the excitement of first love," said a hot woman with badly bleached hair and a passing resemblance to the actress in the Transformer movies. She raised her glass to Eddy and winked.

"Whoa, let's not go nuts," laughed Eddy.

"It's always the best at the beginning, though, isn't it? A hand grazes a thigh, a naughty whisper becomes a playful nibble of the ear."

"I don't know about all that," Eddy chuckled uncomfortably. Her phone vibrated with a call from Heather. She set her drink down and walked away from the bar.

"Hey," Eddy said, answering her phone.

"Hey, I'm so sorry!" Heather said on the other end. "I'm just leaving the office now. I'll be grabbing a cab in a few."

"Cool. But if the girl you steal THIS cab from is hotter than me, I'll kick her ass."

Heather laughed. "Whatever, Edds. See ya in a few."

Eddy planted her palm firmly on her face. What the fuck was that awkward shtick? What was this chick doing to her? Heather was majorly fucking up her game and she didn't know if she liked it or hated it. An almost empathetic chuckle came from behind her.

"That was cute," said the badly bleached blond, carrying her drink in one hand and Eddy's whiskey in her other as she approached.

"I'm sorry you had to witness that," Eddy blushed.

"It's alright," said badly bleached blond, handing Eddy her whiskey. "Gives me better insight."

"On what?"

Badly bleached blond smiled. "Nothing." She raised her glass to Eddy. "To new love." They toasted and drank.

The next thing Eddy remembered was rolling onto a floor from the backseat of a car.

What the fuck?

She tried to open her eyes but they felt like lead. A blinding light from a street lamp outside the car showed them passing Ashland and Belmont. She groaned, trying to fight the impending black out.

"Looks like someone's awake," came a voice from the driver's seat.

Eddy tried to push herself up and realized that her hands were handcuffed behind her. She panicked and began to jerk around but the drowsiness was falling on her again. She tried to keep her eyes open but they kept forcing themselves shut.

"Why... is it... so dark... ?" Eddy managed groggily.

"That's the thing, isn't it Eddy? It's always darkest before... "

And Eddy blacked out.

###

Glad to be back for Volume 4! Just joining us? Catch up now:

Volume 1 -
Week One, Week Two, Week Three, Week Four, Week Five

Volume 2 -
Week One, Week Two, Week Three, Week Four, Week Five

Volume 3 -
Week One, Week Two, Week Three, Week Four, Week Five

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