The Life of Ian Devure: P.I.
Ian was in over his head. Things had been getting sticky on his present-case, and there were more people involved than he felt comfortable with. This tight-little dame named Maessa Grant, had hired Ian at a welcoming wage, to find her missing husband. He wasnât kidnapped, that was disproved by the bank accounts being empty the day he skipped town. He left behind a grief-stricken wife, and a beautiful daughter. Ian had sunk a few leads, one of those that took him to El Paso, a province of Mexico. He found nothing but dirty trails of where Mr. Grant had been, leaving behind a path of drugs, prostitution, and more drugs for the hell of it.
Gayla paged him on the speakerphone.
âMr. Devure? Mrs. Grant is on the phoneâŠâ her voice was smooth and clean.
âThanks, Gayla.â he replied before cutting her off and picking up the other line. âThis is IanâŠâ
âMr. Devure?â the voice was young and soft.
âYeah?â he wasnât sure who it was, but it wasnât Mrs. Grant.
âThis is LexiaâŠMaessa Grant is my mother?â she was waiting for him to acknowledge her.
âUhâŠokay. What can I do for you?â he replied.
âI know we havenât really spoken before, and I hate to do this butâŠI need a ride home from schoolâŠand I canât get in touch with my momâŠâ he could hear her smiling. Maessa had told him before, amidst mild socializing, that her daughter was eighteen, and he wondered why the girl didnât have a car of her own. He thought about it briefly, and sighed into the phone. She heard this sigh and replied to it.
âIâm sorry, Mr. DevureâŠlook, Iâll give you some gas moneyâŠâ
He laughed and rubbed his eyes. âNo, that wonât be necessary, Lexia.â
She smiled on the other line and he continued.
âWhich school is it?â
Clinton Memorial High, on the outskirts of the city, where mostly rich kids attended. Ian pulled into the parking lot in his craft, as a flood of kids were coming out of the building. Everywhere around him there were soccer moms, and beautiful teenage girls. He felt like a creep, waiting in the parking lot for a completely unrelated young girl.
A tall girl came walking towards his car. She had long, straight-blonde hair, and her eyes were lean and mature for her age. Her skin looked soft and full of color, and her jeans hung down around her hips, and there wasnât enough shirt to cover her belly button.
Ian coughed violently when he saw her approaching the car, stunned by her beauty.
She leaned down and looked through the opposite window.
âWhats your name?â she asked.
âUhâŠIan..DevureâŠâ he replied strangely.
Without speaking she opened the door, and sat down in the seat next to him, placing her knapsack in her lap. He looked at her silently, as she stared back with a faint smile.
âIâm Lexia.â she said, and held out her hand.
He shook it slowly and grinned.
âOkayâŠwhere to?â
âMy house.â she answered. âYou know where that is, right?â
âYeah.â he replied, and sped out of the parking lot.
âSo what, your like a real private investigator?â she inquired, looking him over.
He thought about his answer before delivering it.
âYou could say that, yeah.â he answered, not looking away from the road.
âYou find my dad yet?â she asked, and he felt awkward.
âNo, not yet.â he answered, and glanced over at her.
âI hope you donât. Heâs a prickâŠâ she replied, looking down at her bags. Her shirt was a pink tank-top, and her bra straps were exposed on the shoulders. The straps were red. Ian loved red underwear. And she was wearing that glossy lip-balm---shit makes their lips look luscious. Her breasts were small, but they hung-off of her tiny frame nicely.
âThatâs what your mother tells me, anywayâŠâ he mumbled and she laughed.
Then she looked at him with a different composure.
âHow old are you, Mr. Devure?â she was cute as hell, and he hated telling her that he was old.
âIâm thirty-nine years old.â he sighed, looking out of his window casually.
She didnât seem phased.
âWere you in the war?â
âYeahâŠyeah I was.â he answered quietly, and his voice was rugged and cold.
âWas it as horrible as they say?â she was intrigued now. Ian paused for a good ten seconds before answering her.
âThat all depends on how well you handle warâŠâ it was the right answer for a man like himself. She thought it to be profound, and a show of strength within him. He was a gorgeously-rugged man, and his eyes showed echoes of pain that had been overcome but never extinct.
âAnd you handled it well?â she asked, and her voice was sassy now. She was beginning to grow comfortable in his presence.
âI donât talk much about it. But Iâm here, and Iâm alive.â he replied, and she smiled.
âDo you mind if I throw my bag in the backseat?â and she was already turning around to throw it back.
âGo ahead.â he mumbled, and looked down at her waist, for as she twisted around, it pulled up, showing a large portion of her toned stomach. There was a white anarchist symbol on the top of her pelvis, a novelty of tanning.
âYou a practicing anarchist?â he almost laughed.
She smiled coyly, and sat forward once again. Then she pulled her shirt up to her ribs, and looked down at the symbol Ian to the liberty to catch another look as well.
âOh noâŠthatâs just for the hell of it.â she giggled and caught him staring at her stomach before she pulled the shirt down. He quickly looked away and lit a cigarette. She watched it with pleading eyes.
âUhâŠcan I have one of those?â she asked quietly. He frowned his eyes towards her.
âNo. Theyâre shit on your healthâŠâ
She laughed at this and moaned, âPleaseâŠIâve been needing a cigarette really badâŠâ
âWhat troubles do you have?â he scoffed.
âWhat troubles? Iâm eighteen. This is the pariah of life, Mr. Devure. Its horrible. Iâm about to be tossed into the real world, fresh out of the closure of high schoolâŠâ
He laughed. She was intelligent for her age.
âYou should be anticipating the leapâŠâ he replied.
âHell no. Iâm dreading the hell out of itâŠâ she was certain and stern in this.
âYou shouldnât. Youâre young and beautiful. Youâve got life ready to lie down for you alreadyâŠâ he replied, and she watched him closely. She liked his remark, especially the beautiful part. Even before she met Mr. Devure though, she had always hated guys her age. Not saying she necessarily liked Mr. Devure, but as far as attraction went, it was certainly there.