Out of the Dark by Sharon Sala Page A

almost translucent appearance. As soon as they reached New Orleans and got settled, she would find the health department and make him get a checkup.
    Satisfied with her decision, she looked back out the window, only to realize they were coming into the outskirts of another city. Then she saw the city limits sign and started to smile.
    New Orleans.
    They were almost there. She grabbed Raphael’s arm and shook him awake.
    “Rafie…wake up. We’re here.”
    Raphael stifled a groan as he sat up. He combed his fingers through his hair and rolled his head on his neck, trying to stretch out the kinks.
    “I’d give a lot for a shower and a bed,” he said. “How about you?”
    Happy that he seemed more like his old self, Jade forgot about health departments and doctors and threw her arms around his neck.
    “It’s raining, Rafie.”
    He threaded his hands through her hair and then curled them into fists, as if trying to draw energy from her vivacity. Then he grinned, knowing she was waiting for him to finish what she’d started.
    “And rain washes our troubles down the drain.”
    “Yes, yes, yes. All our troubles. Down the drain.”
    A short while later they were at the bus station retrieving their bags, along with one long cardboard box containing a few small paintings and what was left of Jade’s art supplies. But walking to search for lodgings in this weather with all their belongings would have been difficult if not impossible. Either they stayed in the bus station until the rain let up, or splurged and took a cab.
    Jade took one look at the weariness on Raphael’s face and suggested getting a cab. To her surprise, he didn’t argue.
    A short while later they were loaded up and on their way to a hotel suggested by the janitor at the bus station. Raphael was only vaguely aware of the water running wildly through the streets and the sodden streamers of Spanish moss hanging far too low to the ground. Instead his gaze was centered on Jade, who was staring out the window. Her nervous, almost fearful, expression was focused on the faces of the people huddled in doorways and standing beneath porches.
    But Raphael knew it wasn’t curiosity that made her look.
    No matter where they went or how far they’d come, she was convinced that one day she would come face to face with one of the abusers from her childhood. He knew the odds of that happening were small, yet he had long ago accepted that if it did, he would have to kill the man. She would expect it of him as he expected it of himself.
    A few moments later, the cab driver stopped at a red light, then looked up into the rearview mirror and caught Raphael’s gaze.
    “You people just visitin’ or you plannin’ to stay?”
    “If everything works out, we’ll probably stay,” Raphael said.
    The old man nodded, then scratched his head before glancing back toward the light. It was still on red. He looked up again.
    “Son…you and your lady look like real nice people, and if you don’t mind my suggestion, you might want to try a different hotel.”
    Suddenly Jade was in on the conversation. She grabbed hold of the back seat and leaned forward.
    “Why? What’s wrong with it?”
    The old man glanced over his shoulder, his dark eyes reading something on Jade’s face that he seemed to recognize.
    “Ain’t none of my business,” he said, in a slow, southern-sweet voice, “but the place we headed to does business at night that you might not want to be ’round, if you know what I mean.”
    Raphael put a hand in the middle of Jade’s back. It was just a touch, but enough to settle her anxiety. Although their life had been anything but sheltered, they’d never sought out the lifestyle of the people who lived on the streets—just tried to survive it.
    “We appreciate your opinion,” Raphael said. “If you have a better suggestion, we’re listening.”
    For the first time, the driver smiled, wreathing his cafe au lait face with time-weathered wrinkles.
    “My sista