Simon Burke worked at an auto repair shop. He was a mechanic and as expected of someone in his line of trade, he wasn’t afraid to get his hands dirty. He was nearing his fortieth anniversary, was married to science teacher Beverly, and had two young daughters. Mary was the oldest, a Spring child who had turned ten a week earlier. As for Ella, she was six years, seven months, and twenty-two days. The youngest of the family had recently developed a passion for keeping time, and she was always accurate to the tee. Whether it was a short-lived phase or a prelude to a beautiful mathematical future remained to be seen.
Before settling in on his current job, Simon had tried his luck at many different professions. He had worked at a fast-food chain to help pay for college; he had been a postman, a chauffeur, and even a security guard at a football stadium. It was his brother-in-law who first recognized his skills with a torque wrench and a spark plug gapper, and offered him a position in the family business. The outcome couldn’t have been more satisfactory for both. Every new vehicle offered a new set of challenges and tackling them all gave him an unprecedented amount of joy. It was great.
However, in the years between starting college and meeting the love of his life on a busy sweet station, Simon had also been something else: a writer of strange erotic tales who penned his work with the initials of his given name. The first of such stories was written in answer to a challenge by a friend but soon became a forbidden passion that grew with the discovery of his kinky thoughts. Most of his literary escapades were short and to the point with no hidden meanings or preachy messages. They were jerk-off material for lonely guys desperate for the erotic thrills they couldn’t get in life. 
There were exceptions, of course. A handful of successful tales inspired sequels and alternate takes on the source material, creating connected universes where once there was nothing but a chaos of words and sounds. Suddenly, there was a plot beyond engorged cocks and shaved pussies being worshipped in the dead of night, and that surprised him. He kept going for a few years but the moment Beverly came into his life, his priorities changed. He no longer wanted to be a dreamer but a doer and build himself a new life where everything he desired was his for the taking. It was the best decision he ever made.
With his past life now behind him, he forgot the stories and everything in them, distancing himself from ideas that no longer suited him. He never told Beverly he had written them and hoped he didn’t have to. As far as he was concerned, his alias was dead and buried.
And then, the rumors started, whispered tales in the night about a dangerous woman with hypnotic violet eyes, the embodiment of true seduction no man could resist. The urban legend shifted and developed over the years, flooding forums and dark corners of the web with contradictory information. In some versions, this irresistible seductress was just a woman with the power of technology by her side, but she could also be a vampire or an alien who had been living in disguise on the planet for hundreds of years. Sometimes, she ensnared men who played a certain video game, but there were also variations where music was the key or even a mesmerizing kiss. His character had become an almost mythological figure that couldn’t be stopped or contained.
As more time went by, the discussions concerning the original storylines began to fizzle out and were replaced by this new multi-layered meta-narrative that transcended both Space and Time. People from all over the world now had something else to believe in, and the fantastical echoes multiplied beyond control. Simon knew then that he had created a monster. It was like a hydra whose heads kept on growing.
The stories became witness accounts and now people were claiming they had seen her and that she had probed their minds, hellbent on controlling them. She was nowhere and everywhere, haunting dreams and deserted streets, in underground dungeons or the highest of skyscrapers. By the time her plans came to fruition, past, present, and future would be written in her colors.
Simon followed the craze for a couple of months but never dug deep into it. The truth was still clear in his mind, and he had his family to look after. The legend could go on without him, and it was for the best it did so. His involvement was no longer welcome.
And so it came to be that, years later, he was a content man living his best life, enjoying the pleasures of marriage and bringing new life into the world. One smile from his offspring was worth all the fortunes in the world. The only story he wanted to write was the story of their lives, and nothing or no one could take away that blissful feeling... until Jeremy came barging in.
He was at work, inspecting the brake line from a 1969 Chevy Camaro, a classic in every sense of the word when his brother-in-law Alan came to him and muttered,
“Hey, Simon. Someone’s here, looking for you.”
“Who?” he asked, touching his safety glasses with a greasy hand.
“Some guy from a magazine. His name is Jeremy... something... I think he wants to interview you.”
“Me? You’re joking, right? Why would anyone want to do that?”
“It’s not a joke, and I don’t know. He didn’t say what it was all about, only that it was important to talk to you. It seemed serious, and so I came here to get you.”
“Hmm... that’s odd. Where’s this guy now?”
“Right outside the workshop. Shall I tell him that you’re coming or do you want me to blow him off?”
“You already told him I’m here, Alan,” Simon shrugged. “I might as well see what he wants and then I’ll send him away.”
“Right... How’s the job coming along?”
“I’m almost finished here. Call Mrs. Harris and tell her she can come to pick up her four-wheel baby in the morning, okay?”
“Will do. Nice work.”
“Thanks.”
Simon headed to the back of the workshop to wash his hands and change his dirty shirt and then moved at a snail’s pace to the other end, assessing the strange visitor from a distance before meeting him face-to-face. Jeremy had a friendly yet inquisitive face and the eyes of a man who didn’t want to be there but had no other choice. His credentials appeared legit even if he didn’t recognize the magazine at all. This was either going to be super interesting or the most boring experience of his life.
“Mr. Burke?” the reporter queried, turning to look at him. He was wearing jeans and a striped black shirt. “My name is Jeremy Winters, and I work for Signs and Wonders. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
“I’m not sure if I can say the same just yet, Mr. Winters. May I ask why you’re here?”
“Of Course. I’ve been tasked with writing a story about something you’re familiar with. I apologize for tracking you down but I couldn’t think of a better way to start my investigation into these matters. Can we go somewhere else to talk? I promise I won’t take much of your time.”
“Only if you tell me what is this matter you believe I can help you with.”
“Ah, yes...” Jeremy lowered his voice to shield him from prying ears. “It’s about The Black Queen.”
“Who?” Simon shook his head but there was nothing believable about his body language.
“Please don’t try to deny it. I know for a fact you’re the original creator of the stories that took the Internet by storm. I’m writing a piece about the legends that were created around them over the years, and I want you to play a part in it. I promise to keep your real name and other details private, so if you’ll be kind enough to indulge me...”
“I don’t understand. How the hell did you find out who I am? It’s been ages and you’re the first to do so!”
“Perhaps people weren’t looking for you at all. Nowadays, it’s almost impossible for things to stay hidden, Mr. Burke. An associate and close friend of mine discovered a plethora of information about you from the old e-mail address you used to send your first drafts. You should have deleted it a long time ago.”
“Yeah, I suppose I should have... Fuck! I don’t want anything to do with that world anymore, so I’m afraid I’ll have to turn down your request. Write whatever you want but keep me out of it.”
“I wish it were that simple...” Jeremy pursed his lips and sighed. “But we all answer to someone, and my boss wants me to come up with the best piece ever about this curious construct of yours and how it has taken a life of its own. I need a human element to start things with and you’re it, the elusive author known as...”
“Don’t say it!” Simon shooshed him, his dark green eyes sparkling with anger. The broad-shouldered man who was going bald with each passing day clenched his teeth and growled like a rabid dog about to strike, “I mean it, don’t you dare say that alias out loud! It’s gone, you hear? I killed it!”
“I understand, Mr. Burke, and I don’t want to do this any more than you do,” Jeremy said. “However, this is too important for me. My job is on the line if I don’t perform to expectations, and you started this whether you like it or not. If you hadn’t written those stories, I wouldn’t be here today.”
“I wrote three stories with her. Three! And then I got bored with it and did something else with my life. I had nothing to do with the nonsense that followed. You’re barking at the wrong tree, Mr. Winters.”
“No, I’m not. This is how it must be. Nothing I write will sound credible without your input. I intend to explore all the madness that sprung from the things you wrote, but I need the genesis. What drove you is as important as what followed. Your unique insight will elevate my words above mere speculation. I need this interview and I’m not in a position to accept a no for an answer."
“Your job woes are none of my concern, Mr. Winters. I’m not obligated to talk to you or entertain your boss and your readers.”
“You’re right, you’re not. I’m asking you to do it nonetheless to help me out. I want to do the right thing and I hope you do the same, otherwise...” Jeremy waved a black plastic folder before his eyes.
“Otherwise what?”
“The information my associate uncovered includes a ton of unsavory details about your college years and what happened after you graduated. Some of it is sensitive and surprising and it would be a shame if the info leaked out somehow...”
“You’re lying!”
“I’m here talking to you, Mr. Burke. You were found, so lying about this now would be nonsensical and a waste of time. I don’t care about this shit but I do care about my mortgage and having food on the plate every day. Let’s not play stupid games and get this done with so we can all go back to our lives, please!”
“You’ve got some nerve to blackmail me!” Simon snarled. “If that’s how you expect to win me over, forget it!” 
“This is not blackmail, only a Hail Mary in case we don’t come to a mutual understanding. I don’t want this and I apologize for what I said. Please, Mr. Burke, let’s talk for a bit and I’ll get out of your hair as soon as possible. You’ll never hear from me again, I promise.”
“You’re not going to let this slide, are you?” Simon bit his lower lip, his mood deflated for the first time in years.
“No. I need to protect myself as much as you do. Can we do this now?”
“Can’t it wait until my shift is done?”
“I suppose, but the quicker you answer my questions the faster I’m out of your life. I’m sure your brother-in-law won’t mind.”
Simon noticed the quick family mention, a clear sign Jeremy had done his homework. He thought about punching him in the face for everything he had said and done, but a random act of violence would only make things harder going forward. Despite his gentle smile, the reporter had the resilience of a cockroach, and if one could survive a nuclear blast, then perhaps so could he. There was no easy way out of this unfortunate mess.
“If I agree to do this,” he said, “I don’t want to see my name anywhere and no pictures of me or my family. You talked to a ghost, do you understand?”
“Of course. This is not my first rodeo. and you won’t be the last confidential source I’ll talk to. Your secrets are safe with me.”
“We’ll see about that,” Simon concluded. “I’m going to let Alan know. Stay here, Mr. Winters.”
“Don’t worry about me. I’m not going anywhere.”
“Unfortunately...” Simon walked away from him and back to the familiar smells and sounds of automobiles in need of repair. Machines were better than people, and easier to understand, too. The last thing he wanted was to be dragged back into a world of past kinks but he couldn’t deny the truth. Yes, he had started it all. Part of the responsibility fell on his shoulders. He found Alan looking under the hood of a brand-new Porsche 922 and said,
“Hey, I need to go away for a while, if that’s okay.”
“Why? What’s going on?”
“I’ll explain later. For now, I need to deal with this a.s.a.p.”
“Is everything okay, Simon? This doesn’t sound like you at all.”
 “Just a minor nuisance from a time long gone. Trust me on this.”
“Always. I’ll ask Carl to finish working on Mrs. Harris’s Chevy but I expect you here tomorrow, first thing in the morning.”
“I’ll be here. Sorry about this.”
“Do as you must and good luck.”
“Thank you. It will be most welcome.”
Simon retreated into silence and grabbed his black leather jacket on his way out. It still looked good on him. Jeremy had his car parked around the corner and was waiting for him to come out.
“Hop in, Mr. Burke, and let’s find a nice place to talk.”
“We could do it right here...” Simon suggested.
“I have somewhere else in mind.” Jeremy opened the passenger’s seat door and said, “I hope you like beer.”´

((to be continued))