I stood outside the bar smelling the air and thinking it smelled like flowers. The air was cleaner, the heat less intense, even the sounds seemed jubilant. Goddamn it was a good day to be alive.

Like all wonderful things in my life, the feeling came to a screeching halt. Roughly two hundred feet down the street were three blue cars with black tinted windows. Two sonji a piece stood outside each car. I guess they didn’t get the memo.

"Shit Bevisste. He said I would leave alive but not how alive that would be. I had a sick feeling dealing with him would be like dealing with a djinn."

"I think they are just goading you Tom. They haven’t moved even one step in our direction. You can always just walk the other way and leave."

"You know I can’t. They murdered kleens and shrugged it off as an annoyance." I could feel my blood begin to boil.

I had taken two steps when I was tackled, brought to the ground when I began to feel wet washcloths dragged over my neck. I scrambled forward and looked behind me dumbly.

Lucky smiled at me, leaned forward and licked me on the nose.

"What?" It was the only word my brain could form.

"Lucky!" I looked up at the sound of the shout.

My love, my dream woman, my reason for continuing to live ran down the sidewalk. Her blonde hair was pulled back in a ponytail, it flapped from side to side as she ran; her breasts swayed under a blue and red top, black tight shorts stopped at mid thigh. She wore the cutest blue and red running shoes.

"Hey Tom." Laetitia said coming to a stop next to me. She covered her mouth with a finger and laughed as Lucky continued to try to give me wet slobbery kisses.

"Am I dreaming?" I asked.

"If you were dreaming would I be wearing this many articles of clothing?" She laughed like an angel. "Sorry, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity for the joke."

She held her hands out in front of her helping me to my feet then embraced me in a big hug. If someone had killed me right then and there I wouldn’t have cared. My life was now complete. She pushed me back and pecked me on the cheek. It was a friendly peck without an ounce of romance. It was her lips on my skin. My life was even more complete.

"I’m happy you’re alright. I have been a wreck worrying about you since you left in the middle of the night after telling me your story. When you were not waiting on your couch when I woke up this morning I decided to go to Marland to find you."

I smiled and rubbed her arm. Lucky pushed between us and stared up at me. I smiled at the dog and scratched her head. "You are the sweetest. I don’t mean to sound like an ingrate but how the hell did you find me?"

She looked embarrassed. "Yeah...so I did not even think about that until the Tube was halfway to Marland. I immediately felt like an imbecile and told Lucky we would be turning around and going back home as soon as the return Tube arrived. Lucky here had other plans." I arched an eyebrow. "As soon as the Tube stopped and the doors opened Lucky set off. She didn’t walk all that fast just a slow methodical pace not stopping to sniff anything. She knew exactly where she was going and did not seem to care if I followed or not. I of course had no clue what she was doing at first and chased after her then after about ten minutes of failing to turn her around I decided to see where she would lead me. We’ve been walking for about two hours now and not once did she stop walking. Until she saw you looking at those cars over there. Who are they?"

It took me a second for the question to sink in. I was looking at Lucky as if she were some sort of heavenly angel. How the hell does a dog track a person down in a city it has never been in? The question finally sunk in and I looked at the cars. I looked back at Laetitia and smiled putting one arm around her shoulders and one hand on my bicycle handlebars.

"They are a worry for another day. What say you about taking the Tube back to New Hamp City? I know of this art museum I think you’ll like with the best French cuisine cafe across the street." I looked at my clock. It was still early. "If we take a taxi to the Tube station we will be able to get to the cafe in time to see the sunset."

"That would be fantastic. How did you know how much I love art museums?" Laetitia asked.

"Call it a lucky guess."