Panthera Spelaea

“How far away is home,” I asked her as I walked hand-in-hand with her out of the hotel bar.

“It’s west of the hospital near the Mitino Landscape Park. It’s a twenty-minute drive, but I have to make two bus changes to get there, and they don’t run as often late at night.”

“You don’t have a car?”

She shook her head, no. “Having a car in this city is expensive, but the buses and subway are good. It only takes me thirty minutes to get to work.”

We reached the entrance to the hotel. “And how long to get home by bus?”

“Fifty to seventy minutes with the route changes. That’s why I need to leave now.”

“That’s not acceptable to me.” I waved over one of the taxis waiting nearby, and when it stopped, I held the door open for her. She was hesitant. “Пожалуйста. Please.”

She looked at my face and smiled. “спасибо, Джон (thank you, John).” When she got in, I followed behind her as she slid over on the seat. “What are you doing?”

“Seeing my date home safely while getting another twenty minutes with her,” I told her quietly as I took her hand. “Give the driver your address.”

She spoke in rapid-fire Russian, and the driver pulled into the street. “You didn’t need to do this.”

“I wanted to. Now, why don’t you tell me about the town as we drive?” With the Moscow Canal and the park, there was no direct route back past the hospital. We drove south for a bit, then turned northwest and skirted the south end of the park and past her work. The taxi took us for another ten minutes along the highway, passing a big intersection before returning to a city street. “What is that,” I said as I pointed at the dark expanse of trees and grass on the south side of the road.

“The Mitino Landscape Park,” she told me. “It’s a big park, close to my apartment building, with lots of trails and ponds. I run there, and I like to watch the swans and ducks.” The taxi turned off the main road, stopping a minute later outside a ten-story, non-descript building. “This is it,” she said.

I paid the driver, then opened the door and helped her out. We walked together to the entrance and went up the stairs to the second floor. “My roommate and I didn’t have the money for the apartments with the views, but this is close enough and clean.” She opened the door to 212 and walked in. “анна я дома (Anna, I’m home).” A beautiful brunette walked out of the bathroom wearing only a too-short towel. Anna yelped and ran through a door, yelling in Russian about something. I could only pick up a few words out of it. “I should have warned her I was bringing a man in.”

“Tell me about your roommate,” I said.

“I met Anna during the interviews, and we hit it off. When we both got hired, we agreed to be roommates. She works nights in the intensive care unit, and I work days, so it’s almost like being alone here.” We sat at the dining room table, talking for ten minutes while we waited for her.

Anna came out wearing a gold party dress and heels. She was what I called a “short stack,” just over five feet tall with lots of curves. “мне жаль (I’m sorry). I didn’t mean to startle you.”

“It’s all right. I wish Svetlana had warned me she was bringing the famous John Cantwell home. I recognize you from the news coverage.” She extended her hand to me. “Anna Kovalenko.”

“Pleased to meet you, Anna. I’m trying to learn Russian, but I’m not very good at it yet.”

“You caught me just in time to see me before my friends arrive,” she said. “Clubs await.” Anna hugged Svetlana, then walked to the door. “I’ll be back late unless I get lucky,” she said. “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”

Svetlana snorted, and I could imagine why. “Happy hunting,” Svetlana replied as she watched her roommate leave. “Anna is a party girl. That’s one reason she likes working the night shift. She can party until daylight, and it doesn’t mess up her sleep.”

“You don’t go with her?”

“I’m quiet and romantic. I prefer to sit on the deck with a good book.” She poured us each a glass of wine, then took my hand and led me through the small living room towards the sliding door to her small deck. There was a comfy-looking mesh lounger there, along with a folding chair. Svetlana had me sit in the lounger, then she sat between my legs and leaned back onto my chest. “Nice view, right?”

“If you look up high enough,” I responded. The building was only twenty or so feet from a three-story retail space, and we were on the backside facing the loading docks. Looking up, I could see a three-quarter moon between high clouds. “Or down.” Her scrub top was hanging loose, giving me a birds-eye view of her ample breasts in a black lace bra.

“Naughty boy,” she said, but she didn’t do anything to stop me from looking. Instead, she wiggled against me with a sigh. I’m sure she didn’t miss the hard rod poking at her back.

We talked and finished our wine, and I caught her yawning. “When do you get up for work?”

“Four-forty-five,” she said.

It was past eleven already. “I should be going, then.”

She sat up, turning in the chair until she was straddling my waist. “I’m so glad I tracked you down,” she told me as she leaned forward. Our lips touched, and my hands moved to her back and pulled her to my chest. She moaned as the kiss deepened. My hands moved down to the perfect spheres of her ass, and I could feel the heat from her core as she rubbed it along my rock-hard length. I could smell her arousal, and I wanted her, but she deserved more than tonight.

Keeping hold of her, I put my feet down and stood up, letting her wrap her legs around me as I stood. “If I don’t leave now, you’ll get no sleep at all, Svetlana.”

“I can make do,” she said softly.

“Tomorrow is another date, and you have four days off.” I set her down by the sliding door, and she walked through it. “I want our first time to be as special as you are.”

She pulled me into another kiss, then led me to the door. “You better go, then. Thank you for a wonderful evening.”

“It was my pleasure. Sweet dreams, Svetlana.” I kissed her soft lips again before walking out the door.

I knew I’d done the right thing, just as I knew Svetlana wouldn’t be sleeping well tonight. My mind and heart were spinning, and I needed to take some time to think. I didn’t head back to the bus stop or look for a cab. Instead, I went across the busy road and into the landscape park.

I picked a trail and started walking in the moonlight. Much of the park was open grass, with trees and shrubs along the many trails. I kept going towards the clumps of trees I could see in the distance. The smell of the pond and the birds got stronger. I’d noticed my hearing and smell seemed sharper than before but had no good way to test whether it was a result of my injuries. The woods were alive with the sounds of birds and animals.

I was starting to sweat, and I didn’t know why. I made it to the pond and felt the need to hide. I walked off the trail, heading into a clump of trees and shrubbery. I was feeling hotter by the second, and my head started to hurt. I could feel something moving inside me, and I pulled off my shirt to look for it. The pain and the heat kept getting worse as I stripped naked, then ran for the cool water of the pond.

The pain spiked as I hit the water, and the last thing I remembered was landing face-first in the shallow, muddy water.