Fifteen Years Later

***

Verchiel walked through the door of their latest den, to find the front room empty. He paused and sniffed. He could smell Kateesha, deeper in the house. An image flashed through his mind of her sprawled across the bed, her dark skin contrasted against the white sheets; a lovely surprise for his homecoming.

Not that he'd been gone long. A trip to the market had taken an hour, perhaps, but the night was still young. He'd been ...