Gypsy Vengeance

Luludja grimaced. "I'll save that for when I'm feeling better. Right now, my guts feel like they want to stage a revolt in my stomach."

He offered his hand. "My name is Vitaly Kharlampiev. I'm very pleased to meet you, Luludja."

She stared at him. "Nice to meet you, too."

"This is not my usual scene, I'm afraid."

"Not a martial artist?"

Vitaly shrugged. "There's a difference between sport tournaments and real martial arts. Most people confuse the two, but there are profound differences." He eyed her closely. "As I'm sure you know."

"Too many rules. In tournaments there are always rules, even if the venue claims that anything goes," replied Luludja.

"Exactly." Vitaly nodded. "But on the street..."

"Anything really goes. Eye gouging, groin shots, knee breaks. Whatever it takes to survive."

He smiled. "You do know. And the mental perspective is also different. Fighting for survival can never be understood by those who have never struggled for their own life."

Luludja gathered her towel and bag. "So, are you just an admirer?"

"Yes, I am."

She wiped her brow. "Do you make a habit of picking up women at martial art competitions?"

Vitaly's eyes widened. "Is that what you think this is?"

"I'm not sure yet." She hung the towel over her shoulder.

"Perhaps I might be interested in taking you out for dinner."

She smiled. "Dinner."

"To be very honest, I'm very attracted to you. Are you interested?"

She nodded. "Let me take a quick shower first. And after that, you can take me out for dinner. Then I'll see if I'm interested in more. Okay?"

"Uh...okay," he said.

Luludja turned and walked away, aware that Vitaly was standing still behind her, very much surprised by her quick decision in going out with him. Maybe she'd even take him home for a quick bout of sex.

The shower was not the kind of luxurious bath she preferred if she'd been home in Bucharest, but the hot water was good for relieving the tenderness of her sore muscles. She soaped herself up using the fragrant soap she carried with her, ridding herself of the body odor stench that seemed a fixture in gyms all over the world.

Aside from her bruised ego and the purplish welts already covering parts of her muscular body, Luludja felt refreshed when she emerged from the changing area dressed in a black turtleneck and jeans.

Vitaly lounged by the front of the arena, now almost entirely deserted except for the various ushers and cleaning crew. She could see that his breathing was relaxed and deep, and every minute or so, his head scanned the immediate vicinity.

Despite his demeanor, she knew he was completely aware of everything around him. She'd seen the same relaxed attentiveness before.

He looked up as she approached, his eyes giving her a lingering once-over. "You clean up well."

"Thanks. Are you always that blunt?"

Vitaly smiled, showing his shiny white teeth. "Are you wondering if I'm interested in taking you to bed?"

"Yeah, something like that," she said with a smile.

He led them outside, holding the door open for her. She felt the cool breeze wash over her and was glad she'd decided on the turtleneck. Vitaly guided her toward the parking lot.

"I find it easier to simply say what I think or feel, and see where it leads."

"Interesting," Luludja said. She liked men liked that. No nonsense.

He pointed at a black Mercedes S550 parked alone under a street lamp. "This is my ride."

She whistled. "Nice ride."

He nodded. "I have a weakness for nice cars. As much as I love nice cars, they can't beat the appreciation I have for the female form."

Luludja slid into the leather seat. She couldn't help but feel excited by this man. She instinctively knew sex would be great with him, and she fully intended to go all the way if he so much as kissed her. "Any other weaknesses I should know about?"

Vitaly eyed her for just a moment. "Beautiful women. Let's get something to eat. You must be very hungry after the grueling session you just had."

"I could definitely eat." She rested her head back against the cushion. "It has been quite the day."

He put the car in gear and they moved off into the traffic. At a traffic light, Vitaly turned and smiled at her.

"So where are we going? Steak? McDonald's?"

"Somewhere with a very diverse range of food. I'm not sure what you normally eat after you fight your way through a line of foes, so I thought it best to go where there is a buffet. That way you can best decide what will replace the nutrients you lost earlier."

"That's very considerate of you," Luludja said, wanting to lean over and kiss him. "I appreciate that. After dinner, you have my permission to take me to your place for the night where we can indulge ourselves in each other."

"You say what you think, too?"

"I try. Better results that way."

"I agree."

Vitaly parked the Mercedes and they both got out. The front of the restaurant proclaimed that it served pizza, wings, hamburgers and an assortment of other American food items, all written in English. Luludja's mouth watered at the thought of a plate full of wings. But she thought it might be better to stick to something less messy. Nothing said impressive on a first date than sauce smeared all over your face.

A line of motorcycles that had been decked out with detailing and every latest gizmo available dominated the area immediately outside the restaurant. At least ten of them vied for space in what should have only accommodated half that.

She whistled. "Nice bikes."

The waitress inside greeted them. As Luludja looked the place over, rock music was playing, but not too loud. Diner-style booths with bright red cushions and laminated tables reminded her of the 1950s-style.

The hostess led them past a bunch of tables packed with Russian teens adorned with tattoos, body piercings and colorful spiked hair. She felt their eyes roam her tall, muscular body and now wished she'd worn something less clinging than she had on.

More than the way they looked at her, though, she was surprised by the way they checked out Vitaly. Several of them shifted in their seats, and she felt her own instincts buzz. Were they going to jump them? And if so, why?

"Luludja."

His voice brought her back to reality. He smiled at her and she smiled back.

"Forget about them. They're just low level thugs who are used by the Mafia for intimidation. They extort money. Some of them run small-time prostitution rings or sell drugs on the side. And tragically, most of them are dead before they are twenty."

"That's terrible," she said. She'd seen enough of youth involved in crime to know the statistics could be devastating.

"More likely it's stupidity," Vitaly said.

A waitress came up to their table. Luludja opened the menu and ordered a large burger.

The waitress smiled. "What you like on that?"

"Lots of cheese, lettuce, ketchup, mustard and mayonnaise. No onions. Oh, and I'd like a large glass of cold water."

Vitaly ordered a plate of wings and a beer. "I come here for wings and a Budweiser beer."

Their food arrived sooner than she would have thought. After checking her burger for any sign of onions, she took a huge bite. Tasting the juices and melted cheese run into her mouth, she moaned. "This is incredible."

"It's better with onions," Vitaly said with a mouthful of wings.

"No chance. I don't want my mouth smelling when I kiss you," she said. "You've got sauce on your face." Luludja washed down her bite with a long sip of water.

He wiped his mouth. "If I have some remaining after I'm done, you can lick it off." He took a long swallow of his beer and then devoured the rest of his plate as if he hadn't eaten in a long time.

She devoured her burger and found her fries just as tasty. She and Vitaly ate in relative silence for the next few minutes until at last, she leaned back, wiped her mouth and sighed. "That was a great meal. Thank you."

He finished his beer and motioned to the waitress. He glanced at her. "How about a beer?"

"Sure." She normally didn't drink alcohol after a fight, but she was full and relaxed and eating with a handsome guy. One drink wouldn't do her any harm.

He held up two fingers and then turned back to her. "So you're okay with me taking you home and just have my way with you?"

A shiver of pleasure went through her. "Yes. I like you so I won't mind you taking charge."

The waitress brought their beer and Vitaly lifted his in Luludja's direction. "I've never known a woman like you who fights for hours and then agrees to go out on a date with a stranger and is totally fine with going to bed with him."

They drank together and then he rested his glass on the tabletop and leaned forward. "Besides, you're gorgeous. And you do your best in the ring. I can only imagine how good you are going to be in bed."

She didn't have sex that much, but when she did, it was only to satisfy the itch she rarely got. Her training took up too much of her time. She was sure that sex with Vitaly would be the best. She could just sense that. "You are an interesting guy. Anyone ever tell you that?"

"Just a beautiful martial artist."

"Have you known many?"

Vitaly finished his beer. "Just one."

Despite the rising tension, she smiled. She saw the waitress start to approach their table, but Vitaly glanced at her and signaled for the bill.

"Let me just say that you've been a most enjoyable date for dinner this evening," he said.

The thugs had finally made a decision and were sliding out of their booths, making their way toward them, with Vitaly still seeming entirely unfazed by the thought of what was evidently going to happen.

The young man that Luludja picked to be the leader swaggered toward them. Vitaly kept his eyes on her and his hand on his beer glass.

The thug glanced at her and then Vitaly. He barked out a quick sentence to him, who simply sighed. "My friend doesn't speak Russian. Why don't you be polite and speak in English? I'm sure she'd appreciate it."

The thug frowned and glanced at her again before looking back at Vitaly. "You don't give me orders." he said in English.

Luludja almost laughed out loud. Despite the thug's insistence he was in charge, he had already obeyed Vitaly without even realizing it.

Vitaly lifted an eyebrow at Luludja. "Is there something I can do for you?"

"You're sitting in our booth," the thug said.

"Really? That's funny. How come you weren't sitting in it when we walked in? After all, you've been here far longer than we have," Vitaly replied.

"You're in our booth." The thug put both hands on the table and leaned over Vitaly. Luludja could see his shirtsleeves inch up, exposing the beginnings of tattoos that covered his arms.

"You're not the tough guy you like to project. And furthermore, it might very well mean you aren't Vory v Zakone at all, just a poser."

Her eyes widened. If the tension hadn't been palpable before, it was now at the point where she could cut it with a knife. The thug backed up in total surprise that Vitaly would say something like that to him in front of his group of followers. The loss of face was great.

If we had a chance to walk out of here before, she thought, it's gone now.

The thug recoiled just enough to draw his arm back, reach into his pocket and draw a switchblade. He stabbed it right at Vitaly's heart.

Vitaly simply leaned back and let the knife go past him. Then he grabbed the thug's wrist with his right hand and tugged him forward. It happened so fast that the thug stumbled and lost his balance. As his face came toward the tabletop, Vitaly lifted his left hand and slammed the beer glass into the thug's face.

Glass shattered as Vitaly slammed the glass bottom into the thug's nose. Luludja heard the cartilage break. Blood flowed, running down the young man's face.

The thug slid to the floor, but as he did so, Vitaly took the knife away from him.

There was a moment of stunned silence as the gang looked from Vitaly to the floor where their leader lay. Then one of them gave a loud cry, and all hell broke loose.

When she blinked, she almost missed Vitaly kick at the next closest target, catching him in the groin. He used the kick to cover his slide out of the booth. Luludja wanted to help him, but was unsure about what she was getting herself into. The last thing she needed was to be on the wanted list of Russian mafia in Moscow.

Vitaly seemed to have no care about doing so, however. Luludja watched as he deftly evaded every strike and kick aimed at him by the gang members. One moment they would seem locked on him, and the next, their strikes would pass through empty air. Vitaly would have somehow managed to get behind them or toi their side and simply apply a few key strikes to take them down.

She watched one of them sneak up from behind and try to stab Vitaly in the back. She was about to shout a warning but as the stab came in, Vitaly sidestepped and the blade passed through air where his kidneys had been a second before. He moved back and effected some sort of strange arm lock she had never seen before. In an instant, the thug was airborne, crashing into a group of other thugs, sending them sprawling across several booths and tables.

Vitaly had somehow managed to contain the mayhem to the corner of the restaurant. Luludja was aware that the rest of the crowd sat riveted by the action.

Vitaly surveyed the scene. A quiet hush broken only by the low moans of the thugs he'd beaten up fell over the restaurant. He stepped up to the leader he'd dispatched first. "Just as I thought. Nothing but a bunch of punks."

He stood and looked at Luludja. "Well, now I suppose we should leave."

She shook her head, trying to clear the images that had played out before her. "Are they dead?"

He chuckled. "No. But I imagine they will be sore for a while."

The waitress came up and gave Vitaly the bill. He glanced at it and took out his wallet and removed a enough money to pay for dinner and the damage that was caused, and handed it to the waitress. "We better get going."

Luludja followed Vitaly outside. The cool air felt good on her skin. For some reason, she'd felt amazingly energized by watching the fight transpire. She'd wanted to join in but had held herself back out of fear of jeopardizing Vitaly. Somehow that sentiment seemed crazy now. He had handled himself unlike any fighter she had ever seen. She briefly wondered if she could beat him.

"Vitaly. I'm sorry if I led you on, but..."

"It's okay. I understand. I don't know you, you don't know me."

"You're a great guy. Maybe some other time."

Vitaly turned the Mercedes down another side street. "We're almost there."

"Almost where?" She glanced out the window. He could see she had no idea where they were. He knew trying to gauge location at night in a foreign city was a daunting task.

"Your hotel, of course."

Luludja frowned again. "You know where I'm staying?"

"Of course."

She turned and Vitaly could see her hands bunched up, almost as if she thought he might attack her. He held up his hands for a brief moment, risking taking them off the steering wheel for effect.

"I'm not following you, Gypsy. If that's what you're thinking."

"I am thinking that, yes." She kept her hands bunched up.

"You're cautious. I can surely appreciate that. I try to be that way myself. Especially when I travel"

"So you understand why I'm about to get out of this car and never see you again."

Vitaly pulled over to the side of the road and unlocked the doors. "You can go. In all honesty, I wished you'd stay."

She relaxed visibly. "You've had me followed since I landed?"

He took a breath. "Honestly, much longer than that."

Luludja frowned again. "Just how long have you been following me?"

"Would you believe months."

"Prove it."

"You are a very aware woman. But even those who think they are aware usually have gaps in their defenses. Those gaps can be exploited. In this case, it enabled me to remain invisible despite your attentiveness."

"How?"

"Let's take your most recent activity. Miroslav. You killed him. I saw you squeeze the life out of him."

"You were there?" Luludja shook her head. "I don't believe this."

Vitaly smiled. "Don't get me wrong. You're good."

"But you're better. Is that it?"

He held up his hands. "I'm on your side. I want to see guys like Miroslav taken care of."

"Yeah. Well, we'll see. Why don't you take me to my hotel? I could use a good sleep."

He pulled the car away from the curb, relieved to have seemingly defused any suspicion that the Gypsy woman might feel toward him. In her place, he might have reacted more aggressively, taking out the potential threat rather than allowing it to continue to exist in case of compromise.

But the Gypsy was not like him. And that was why he felt sure she would be the perfect person to aide him in his quest to hunt down criminals like Miroslav. Her knowledge and skills would keep them in good stead.

And he also liked how very beautiful she was. What he liked the most was how unaffected she was by her natural beauty. Briefly, he wondered if she might think him handsome. Just as quickly, he pushed the thought out of his mind. He needed to stay focused if he had any hope of her helping him.

They pulled up to the hotel and Vitaly put the car into park. She sat facing him.

"Vitaly, you seem like a nice enough guy. But I don't know if I can trust you with my story. I don't like the thought of tangling with the Vory v Zakone or even wanna-be Vory v Zakone. If they're interested in you and I'm around, that will make me a target of opportunity, as well."

"You don't strike me as being averse to danger."

She placed on hand on the door handle. "I'm not really averse to much. But I'd be a fool if I took all of this at face value." She shrugged. "You may not want to talk about it right now. That's fine. It's late and we're both tired."

"Thanks..."

She looked at him. "But we will talk about this. I you want to help me with my mission, then you're going to tell me exactly what the hell is going on here. Otherwise, I will disappear and not even you will be able to find me again."

She opened the door and strode off to the hotel entrance. Vitaly sat still in the car and then after another minute smiled slowly. Luludja, he thought, you might just be my dream woman.

Luludja decided to take a long, hot soak in the deep tub. She walked into the bathroom and turned the tap. A rush of hot water streamed into the tub. In seconds, steam filled the air and she realized she was overdressed.

Outside in her room, she stripped down. With her pants and turtleneck off, she ran her eyes over her skin, doing a basic damage inspection from the tournament. Anatoly's kicks and punches had left some nasty bruises. She could see purplish bruising above her ribs and on the backs of her legs. His hits had left some colorful souvenirs. She frowned. Someday, she'd get him back. And the idea of him flat on his back while she stood over him as a proud victor definitely appealed to her. She would have to train harder, drive herself harder in order to get better so that she could beat him.

She walked into the bathroom and stepped into the blissfully hot tub of water. Gritting her teeth, she wanted to enjoy the hot water but also aware that it felt as if she were burning her skin off.

She withdrew her leg, drained out some water and then added cold water. After another minute, she tried getting in the tub again and this time found that she could stand the heat.

As Luludja sank into the tub and let the water come up to her chin, she closed her eyes and tried to breathe deeply, allowing the stress of the day to melt away. She was tired and the steamy heat made her feel even more so. As she replayed the day's events, she found herself thinking about Vitaly. She lightly circled her nipples with her fingers and they peaked and grew hard instantly.