, "if they only knew!" She had denied it to even herself until she was fifteen, but her total lack of interest in boys, and let me tell you, they were...definitely interested in her, and her seeming attraction to members of her own sex only confirmed what she had been feeling since she five years old! "What a laugh," she thought again, "all those do- gooders and the right wing Christians feeding the public the old line that "gays are made not born", well she was here to tell ya they were full of. I darted back into the alley and rolled the man lying on the ground onto his back and started rifling through his pockets. In one pocket I found a thick roll of bills and a switchblade knife. The knife I discarded, the money I handed to Gabriel. I stuck my hand into his other pocket. Nothing. I opened the leather jacket and felt the lining. Finding the little bulge I was seeking. I dug my fingers into that pocket and extracted the small plastic bags of coarse brownish powder. I rose to my feet. “Would you please bend over the stool?” The instruction was given so politely Miles had to stop himself from answering with, “With pleasure”. “Miles felt the deep pile of the Chinese carpet under his feet as he approached the leather-topped piano stool. It was awkward getting into the correct position; not quite high enough. “Stand up again, please,” came the polite instruction. “I’ll be right back.” Miles was aware that Mrs. Dupree was looking at his penis as she spoke. When she had left. " "Got'cha." He nodded to himself. The answer was obvious. She couldn't go home because an abusive family member was waiting there. I can still fix her. She isn't completely gone yet, but she's close. Too close. This job is going to be a bitch, but I can do it. The Alchemist placed his hands on her naked shoulders. She tensed under his palms, but of more interest was that her aura and energy was so low, there was a chill to her skin. Softly, gently, he rubbed while projecting calm and safety.