Taken and Misused.

The rest of the car ride Vaughn just talked to me, he talked about his golden retriever named Glory, I could tell he had a really strong connection with his dog, the way he smiled when he told me about the time Glory got his first hair cut and went nuts when the razor sounded. Still, he didn’t delve deep into his past, I only got conversation history. You know; the kind you have when you first meet someone and you are not a very open type of person, it was all mostly things anyone would know about him. His love for cars, his dog, New York. They were all very obvious after that car ride.

I fiddled with the hem of my navy blue dress, inside his car it was warm and comfortable, the hot air blew over me from the air conditioning vents in front of me and the heat almost lulled me to sleep. I leaned my head back against the head rest and sighed, closing my eyes. I was absolutely exhausted but the idea of seeing a secret in Vaughn’s life kept me from drifting off to sleep. I lifted my head up and watched the cars slip by us as Vaughn drove smoothly through the New York City streets, even though they were not filled to bursting with the characteristic traffic of New York, these streets looked like they were abandoned. A sign read that a mall would be going up on this strip, but construction wasn’t due to start until next year. Why we were driving deeper into this deserted area made me curious and nervous even though I had a slight trust for Vaughn.

“Now, don’t get nervous, and don’t deny it, I can see it on our face” he said, looking pointedly at me when I tried to say I wasn’t. “What me and my friends do isn’t favored by law enforcement but we don’t snap any morals, we’re just a bunch of delinquents” he said with a soft chuckle, I could see the truth in his eyes, which he kept glued to mine the whole time he had spoken.

“Keep your eyes on the road Vaughn” I said, pointing out the windshield.

“Do you believe me?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Yes Vaughn, I do” I said, wanting him to keep his focus on the road ahead of us.

“I don’t think you do, Elisabeth” he said, mocking me in a teasing sort of way.

“I really do” I said slowly, it seemed to convince him and myself because I breathed a long sigh of relief when he finally turned back to the road.

"Good" he said with a triumphent grin.

After a while he spoke up again; and I had to admit, his question did seem very out of place after what we were just talking about.

“Are you allergic to dogs?” Vaughn asked me out of the blue, we were stopped at a red light and he had just told me we would be there in about five minutes give or take.

I looked over at him and he seemed to be contemplating something. That was another thing I had figured out about him. He never said something before thinking it over thoroughly. “No, I don’t have any allergies I think” I said, trying to think of any but none came to mind. I had never been allergic to anything.

“That’s good, you should come to my place one day” he said, then looked like he was in thought once more but he didn’t say his thoughts, just looked back at the road when the light turned green.

“I think I’ll take you up on that offer, after everything I’ve heard of Glory I’d like to meet him” I said, chuckling when a small laugh bubbled from Vaughn’s lips. It was like his laugh had been contagious, like a yawn.

“I do talk about that dog too much” he muttered, a laugh curling around his words.

“You’re the dog equivalent to a cat woman” I said with a smile. For some reason my words made Vaughn laugh harder, I hadn’t thought that was that funny.

“It’s a cat lady, not woman. Cat woman is the super hero, or villain, actually I’m not really sure” he said, motioning with his hand as if he were trying to pull the answer to him, he waved the thought off. “But nice try” he added with a grin.

“It’s no difference between woman and lady” I muttered, annoyed that my comeback had been ruined.

“Whatever you say Princess” he said, slowing down as he approached a back street that led back behind an old strip of unused warehouses.

Behind them could be considered anything but dark, dank, and old; which was what I had been expecting. Behind those warehouses was a whole new world, and it made my eyes widen.

“I thought stuff like this only happened in movies?” I questioned, looking over at Vaughn.

“Not true Princess” Vaughn said with a grin.