This
story
concerns adult and teenage gay
males who may be involved in sexual situations. If it is illegal for
you to
read such stories, or if you do not like to read such stories, please
leave
now.
This
story is
copyright 2006 by the author who retains all rights.
This
is a work
of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents
either are the product of the author's imagination or are used
fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is
entirely coincidental.
WARNING!!
This chapter contains a brief,
second party description of a BDSM session between an adult male and a
teenage
boy that went horribly wrong and the victim was seriously injured. The
scene
itself is not described and the injuries are not specifically detailed,
but
spoken of in general terms. The author does not condone physical
violence when
committed as part of a sexual act. The scene takes place in this story
for
character development and disposition. Whether you agree, or not, bad
things
happen and sometimes there is a lesson in the occurrence. The author
apologizes
to those who are offended by violent acts occurring in his stories and
understands if you choose not to continue following this story.
This is my
third submission to Nifty. My
previous submissions can be found in the High School section under
Kiel’s Story. Any comments or questions are
welcome at: carl_holiday@att.net.
A warm
thank you goes out to all who
write. I appreciate knowing someone is actually reading this stuff,
whether you
like it or not. I try to answer all emails, even flames. (I’m a writer,
I live
for rejection.) Although sometimes it takes a little time to get back
to
you, I do
try to answer. If I'm remiss in replying to yours, I apologize.
The Pastel Cowboy
by Carl Holiday
Chapter
5 – The Good, the Better, and the Despicable
Zach sat on the
futon calmly
listening to a string of foul words emanating from Steven’s mouth.
Mostly, it
centered around the fact there wasn’t any money.
“You could’ve least
charged
him a hundred bucks for a blow job,” Steven said sitting down on the
other end
of the futon. “Charlie is always good for a hundred bucks, he
understands this
shit isn’t free, you gotta pay the piper.”
“I didn’t do
anything to
Charlie,” Zach said. “Even when he drove me over here, I didn’t offer
to do
anything and he didn’t ask for anything. I guess I kind of felt sorry
for him.”
“You don’t feel
sorry for a
john. Hell, half the time that’s why he pays you so much. What you’re
doing
makes him feel guilty and he feels he has to pay to redeem himself.”
“But his kids
fucked him
over. They screwed with his life and we got caught in the middle. They
were
using me as much as they were fucking with their dad’s mind.”
“So, you should’ve
at least
sucked his dick to make him feel better.”
“Maybe, I’ll do
that Tuesday
night.”
“What?”
“We’re getting
together at
the condo,” Zach said, calmly.
“Why didn’t you say
that to
begin with?” Steven asked. “I’m getting mad as hell at you and all the
time
you’ve set up an appointment with him. You gotta get money out of him.
You
can’t make him think he’s getting freebies. You can’t feel sorry for
the
bastard. He’s cheating on his wife and his kids. He’s screwing with a
guy.
That’s one heavy guilt trip and you gotta let him pay you. He’ll feel
better if
he pays something. You’re doing him a service, let him pay for it.”
Zach sat back, then
looked
over at Steven. He hadn’t said anything about being fucked by Jeremy
and Paul
and wondered if he should. He felt happy about losing his cherry and
was kind
of happy Jeremy was his first, considering he was Jeremy’s first, too.
Paul was
a gift, but learning he’d come when both of them fucked him, now, that
was a
gift in itself.
He wanted to tell
Steven, but
knew he’d get yelled at. He, also, wanted Steven to fuck him right now,
but to
have that happen he’d have to tell Steven about losing his virginity.
He’d have
to tell him about Jeremy and Paul, except he didn’t really want to do
that.
What he’d done with Jeremy was special and what he’d done for Paul was
even
more special. He felt what he’d done with the two brothers wasn’t
something you
told just anyone, not that Steven was just anyone, but he wasn’t all
that
understanding. Then he felt a tear dribble down his cheek.
Steven was staring
at him. He
turned away as another tear dribbled down.
“Okay, what’s wrong
now?” Steven
asked. “Come on, tell me what’s wrong. Damn it Zach, what the hell’s
going on?”
Zach watched him
warily as
Steven stood up and slowly walked around the back of the futon.
Something
caught his attention. It was only a brief movement, an arm
repositioned. He cowered
away from Steven, raising an arm to deflect the fist.
“What the hell is
that for?”
Steven asked, quickly coming around to the front of Zach, who rolled
onto his
side balling himself up and covering his head against the coming attack.
“Zach! What the
fuck are you
doing?”
Zach watched him
kneel down
on the floor right by his head. He flinched away from the hand on his
arm. The
fist was coming, he knew it, but he couldn’t fight back. That would
only make
it worse. He couldn’t fight back.
“Come on Davey,
calm down.
God, what is this?”
He could hear tears
in Steven
voice. He felt a hand softly caress his tear stained cheek. He wasn’t
home.
This wasn’t his father.
Zach didn’t know
when he
stopped crying or when Steven put the futon down so he could lie beside
Zach.
He couldn’t remember exactly at what point Steven undressed him, not
all the
way, but enough to be comfortable. He remembered the blanket being
spread over
them and Steven cuddling up behind him.
As awareness slowly
crept
back adding bits of remembrance to Zach’s clouded memories, he
remembered the
last beating, the one that put him in the hospital and his father in
jail.
Things were better after that. His father got the help he needed. What
he
couldn’t figure out was why he overreacted this time.
He heard Steven’s
soft
breathing behind him and became aware of a skinny, little arm draped
over him.
He looked down at the diminutive hand pressed against his chest.
“Stevie?” Zach
whispered, not
wanting the day to flood in upon them, yet wanting, needing something.
“Stevie?” A little
louder,
but not close to a full voice. He moved slightly hoping to waken his
friend.
“Stevie?”
“Huh? What is it?”
The voice,
still wrapped in sleep’s confusion, was straight out of West
Texas. It reminded Zach of his own intonations. It
reminded him of home, but
that was far away now in another lifetime that was cut short by a
story, a made
up story.
“Fuck me, Stevie.”
Zach said.
“Fuck me right now. Don’t think about it. Do it. Please, do it now.
Stevie?
Please, Stevie, do it now.”
Zach could hear
himself
losing it, again. He was too close to the memories of last night, last
year, an
hour ago, a lifetime past. He broke down and started sobbing. He didn’t
want
this, but he couldn’t stop himself.
“I’m sorry,” he
blubbered.
“I’m sorry. Oh, god, Stevie, I’m so sorry.”
“Hush, Davey. Come
on, Davey,
shush, now. It’s alright, Davey.”
The words barely
slipped into
Zach’s awareness, but he heard their comfort and used them as a crutch
to pull
himself back from the abyss. He rolled onto his back and turned his
face to
Steven. He stared into the blue eyes and saw concern, caring.
“I did it with
Jeremy. It was
his sixteenth birthday. I was the gift, but it didn’t turn out like
Charlie
wanted. Charlie wanted me to be fucked a couple times by all twelve
boys then
he was going to do whatever. He said it was going to be so bad I’d end
up in
the hospital. But, Jeremy and Paul outwitted him. And, then, I did it
with
Jeremy when we were alone. He’s not really gay, bi I think. I did him
then he
did me. I came when he did it. I couldn’t believe it. I didn’t even
have to
touch myself. It was beautiful, Stevie. It was beautiful.
“Later, after we
took a
shower, we went upstairs because I was supposed to sleep with his
little
brother, Paul, but we ended up in Jeremy’s bedroom. We didn’t do it,
but just
rubbed ourselves against each other.
“I slept with Paul.
He’s only
twelve, but almost thirteen. I let him fuck me in the morning. I came
that
time, too. Can you ever forgive me? I’m so sorry, but it wasn’t like we
thought
it was going to be. I’m sorry, Stevie.”
Zach pulled the
smaller body
onto his and held it tight against him. He wanted something, but he
wasn’t
certain what it was. He felt Steven pull out of his embrace and did
little to
stop him. He closed his eyes and waited for the rebuke.
After a few moments
he
thought he heard something and opened his eyes slightly. Steven was
standing at
the foot of the futon, his dick wrapped tightly in a condom. He watched
Steven
spread lube over his dick and then walk around to the side of the futon.
“Pull ’em off,”
Steven said.
There was a bit of anger in his voice, or was it disappointment? Zach
wasn’t
sure. He raised his hips and slipped the boxer briefs down to his
thighs.
Pulling his knees back to his chest, he pulled the briefs down and off
his
feet. He looked up and watched Steven kneel on the futon.
He tried to relax,
to take
his mind away from what was about to happen, but he wasn’t prepared for
Steven’s assault.
“Oh, shit!” Zach
hissed as
Steven bore into him, not stopping until he was fully imbedded in the
bigger
boy.
Steven pulled about
halfway
out then thrust back in. Not stopping, he pulled back out and came
back. The
attack was relentless, unending, nearly unbearable. Steven kept at it
as he
pushed Zach to the limit of his resistance; and, then he pushed a
little
further.
Zach couldn’t
believe this
was happening. He expected gentleness from Steven, not a brutal attack.
He
wanted it to end, yet at the same time he wanted to be punished for
disappointing Steven. He deserved to be hurt. He asked for this. This
was the
least he could expect. And, just when he didn’t think he could go
another
second he saw his cock swell as his body reacted to the engorged cock
pummeling
his ass. In less than a few seconds, his cock was fully hard and
pulsing in
tempo to his beating heart. He didn’t want this, but he was powerless
to stop
it. The feelings were so intense he felt himself falling back.
“Oh, god, Stevie!”
Zach
moaned as his orgasm swept him over the ledge, plunging him down, down,
falling, down, down. He opened his eyes and stared up to Steven. He
raised his
head just enough to get the first burst on his forehead. The second hit
his
partially open mouth.
“Jeez, Davey,
you’re doing
it!” Steven whispered. “Oh, man, you’re so tight!”
Zach felt Steven
swell inside
him as Steven’s own orgasm shuddered through his small body.
“Oh, Davey, you’re
so good to
me,” Steven whispered as he lay down on Zach’s body.
It was well past noon when
Zach finally opened the door to his
dorm room.
He’d planned on being back sooner, but making up with Steven took all
morning
and he wanted to be certain every thing was okay between them before he
left.
Steven was still a bit upset, but nothing like he was when Zach first
arrived.
The first thing
Zach did was
peel himself out of the tight jeans and then removed all his other
clothes. He
didn’t know why, but he wanted to be naked and alone. Definitely,
alone. He
knew he’d taken a couple big steps, plus a pretty big stumble, too, and
he
wanted to lie down on his bed and not do or think about anything for a
long
time.
He was surprised he
had been
capable of willingly going along with Steven to sell his ass; and, then
when it
was all over, to make up with Charlie and offer himself to be used by
Charlie.
He remembered the slap Charlie gave him at the beginning and knew he
could
expect the same or more on Tuesday night. Though Steven hadn’t said
anything,
Zach suspected Charlie was very much into domination. He was that kind
of man.
What scared Zach was that he knew he could accept that kind of love,
even
though he said it he didn’t want anything rough. Yet, thinking about
Charlie
hitting him before he fucked him made him hard, but now was not the
time for that.
He picked up his
cell phone
and checked his voice mail. There were three messages.
“Hey, Zach, this is
Jerry. Wow,
Bruce is so neat. You know I said you were the best, but Bruce is
catching up
to you. Man, he’s great. We’re going to be studying and doing shit
together all
this weekend. I guess I won’t be able to see much of you. Just wanted
to let
you know so you won’t worry. Talk to you later.”
Zach felt a tear
come to his
eye and wondered if Jerry and Bruce were really studying or if there
was something
more. He didn’t know either of them that well, but Jerry did kind of
turn him
on. He could imagine doing lots of things with Jerry’s body, even if he
had a
little dick, but that would come later after they got to know each
other. Was
Bruce pushing the envelope or was Jerry into doing gay stuff a lot more
than he
implied. Zach wiped his eye with the back of his hand and listened to
the next
message.
“Zach, this is
Sara, call me
as soon as you can. I’ve got something important to ask you.”
Well, she didn’t
sound like
she knew what happened. He wondered how she would take it knowing he
was the
gift, he was the whore Daddy bought for Jeremy. There was only one way
to find
out. He entered her speed dial number and listened to the ring tones.
“You stupid fucker,
get out
of here. Hello?”
“Sara?”
“Yes?”
“This is Zach. Is
something
wrong?”
“Oh, Paul, just
being an
asshole.”
“Sara, the
language. I’m
surprised. I thought you were a nice girl.”
“Not when my little
brother
walks into my room when I’m, well, I’m not wearing, uh . . .”
“I’m talking to you
and
you’re naked?”
“Nude. Girls are
nude. Boys
are naked.”
“Good, because I’m
naked
right now. We should make a nice a couple. Of course, we can’t go out
in public
that much, but at least we like the same lack of clothes.”
“Cut out the humor,
Zach.
What do you want?”
“You called me. I’m
returning
your call.”
“Oh, yeah, uh, my
brothers
Jeremy and Paul are going to be home alone tonight and I was wondering
if you
might consider taking them instead of Jerry. Do you think he’d mind?”
“No, actually, I
got a
message from him saying he wasn’t going to be able to make it. So you
have
brothers?”
“Yeah, two. Jeremy
is sixteen
and Paul is twelve, he’ll be thirteen next week. Maybe you can come to
his
birthday party.”
“I don’t know, but
I guess
it’ll be okay if they go to the movie with us.”
“Great, I’ll tell
them. See
you at seven?”
“Yeah, if I get
lost trying
to find your place, I’ll call.”
“Good bye, Zach.”
“Yeah, good bye.”
She didn’t know.
Zach was
glad about that, but taking her brothers with them to the movie
presented a bit
of a challenge. He wasn’t certain they could keep their mouths shut or
their
hands off him. He wondered if he could keep his hands off Jeremy, but
he mostly
wondered why Jeremy wasn’t going to be with Derek.
He checked the last
message.
“Zach? This is
Bruce. Hey, I
got your number from Jerry and I just want to say I appreciate what
you’re
trying to do for him. He’s a real sweet guy. Yeah, I think we’re
falling for
each other. Sorry. I hope we can still be friends. I don’t want you to
think
I’m stealing him from you, but he’s so nice. I’ve never met anyone like
him
before. See you at lunch on Monday, okay?”
Zach sat laid down
on his bed
and stared at the ceiling. Did he care that Bruce and Jerry were
getting close?
He thought he didn’t, but there was something about Jerry. Maybe he saw
the
sweetness in the boy, too. Jerry was nice. Oh, well, he had Steven. He
was a
bit older, but he was nice in his own way.
Except, at that
moment Zach
felt very alone as if he were the last boy in the world. He thought of
being
with Jeremy, seeing him again. Was it right for him to become involved
with a
kid still in high school? He wanted to think it was possible, but there
was
Derek to consider. That boy was involved with Charlie; and, if Charlie
was into
domination, maybe Derek didn’t have any choice in who he messed around
with. He
wondered about Tuesday night and whether Charlie might have Derek there
to make
it a threesome, to get what they wanted Saturday night, but with Derek
there it
couldn’t be the same as being alone with Charlie. Maybe being with
Charlie
wasn’t a good idea.
He looked around
the room and
saw his books. He had a paper to write, a ton of reading to do, and
less than
six hours. He wiped his teary eyes with the back of his hand and went
over to
the desk.
When Zach stopped
his pickup
in the porte cochere at the McDonald’s he sat a moment collecting his
thoughts.
If the boys were decent about this, Sara might never know he was the
guest of
honor at Jeremy’s birthday party. She knew there was going to be a
guest of
honor, that was why she hadn’t been there, but what would she think, or
say, if
she knew the truth. Zach felt that familiar queasy feeling and brushed
the back
of his hand over his eyes even though there weren’t any tears, yet.
There was nothing
to do
except go to the door and steel himself against Sara’s vicious rebuke.
He
walked up the steps as if he was a condemned man climbing to his noose
hanging
before those massive oak doors. He looked for the doorbell, but the
door
opened. Paul stood there staring as if he wanted to jump into Zach’s
arms.
“Hi, you must be
Zach,” Paul
said, making a not too subtle show of not knowing who was at the door.
“You must be Paul,
is Sara
ready?” Zach asked. He wanted to take the boy in his arms and hug the
life out
of him.
“How should I know?
She’s a
girl, they’re never ready.” Paul ran off yelling, “Sara! You’re date is
here!”
Jeremy walked out
of the hall
leading to the kitchen. Their eyes met and Jeremy looked at the floor.
It
looked as if he’d been crying. Zach wondered if Daddy had Derek for the
evening.
Just as Jeremy
walked up to
Zach, Sara came down the stairs. She was wearing faded blue jeans and a
black
over red North Park jersey. She was so at home
relaxed she
looked more
like fourteen or, maybe, thirteen, a perfect little girl.
“Did Jeremy
introduce
himself?” Sara asked, looking at her brother.
“No, but that’s
okay,” Zach
said. “Hi, Jeremy.”
“Hi,” Jeremy said,
looking at
the floor. The tension between him and Zach was almost palpable. Both
felt it
and kept their eyes diverted lest Sara pick up on their feelings for
each
other.
Paul came bounding
down the
stairs like the little boy he still was.
“So, what are we
going to
see?” Zach asked.
“Finding Nemo,”
Paul
said, matter-of-factly.
“Oh, not that,
again,” Sara
said.
“You haven’t seen
it,” Paul
said. “So, why are you complaining?”
“It has that woman
in it,”
Sara said.
“It’s a cartoon,”
Jeremy
said. “It’s just her voice.”
“She’s a lesbian,”
Sara said.
“You know how I feel about . . .”
She stared at Zach,
her mouth
ready to say the word, the word that would stop the night from
happening.
“So, Sara, how do
you feel
about homosexuals?” Zach asked, not wanting to let it go, but wanting
to get it
out in the open. He couldn’t stop himself. If anything was going to
occur in
their relationship, this had to be decided right now.
“I, well, you know,
I used to
hate them, but I’m not like that anymore. I just forget, sometimes.”
“Yeah, it’s hard to
be good
all the time,” Zach said.
“Zach? I’m sorry,”
Sara said.
She walked over to him and took his hand in hers. “I’m sorry, okay?”
“Okay, I know
you’re trying.
So, what’s this movie about?”
“I don’t know,
we’ve never
seen it,” Paul said.
“Zach? Can I ask
you
something?” Jeremy asked. His voice was almost a whisper.
“Well? Are we
going?” Paul
said.
“Wait, Paul, what
do you want
Jeremy?” Zach asked.
“What do you want
to ask
him?” Sara asked. “You don’t even know him.”
“What are you guys
talking
about?” Paul asked.
“Not here, come
with me,”
Jeremy said, turning and walking toward the kitchen.
“Must be important,
whatever
it is,” Zach said. “Be back as soon as I can.”
Zach wished they
were going
off somewhere to have a quick kiss, but Jeremy’s subdued demeanor
suggested
something less pleasant. His first guess was Derek. He followed Jeremy
into a
small alcove, then through a small door into a large storage closet and
through
another small door into a large pantry. Jeremy went back and shut the
doors.
“What’s wrong?”
Zach asked.
He turned and was surprised when Jeremy wrapped his arms around him
into a
tight hug. Zach put his arms around Jeremy and felt a slight quiver in
the
younger boy’s body.
“Derek is with
Daddy
tonight,” Jeremy said. “They’re up in Daddy’s rooms right now.”
Zach felt the boy’s
body
shudder as sadness overpowered him.
“Hey, come on, it
can’t be
that bad,” Zach whispered. “You’ve got me to hold onto.”
“Daddy laughed at
me. He said
I was being silly to think you’d like me. He said you were on drugs
last night;
otherwise, you wouldn’t have done it with me. He laughed at me, Zach,
right in
front of Derek. Daddy laughed at me.”
He was sobbing now;
and, Zach
held him tight. He thought of his own father hitting him. He wanted to
cry when
that happened, but didn’t have a friend to run to. Last night, Jeremy
seemed too
old to be crying like this; yet, being raised in the city and not
having to get
up in the middle of the night to hurry into the storm cellar because
there was
a tornado warning or having to watch where you walked out in the
pasture when
looking for a newborn calf because there were rattlesnakes might make a
boy
soft. Or, was it something else? Maybe, Zach thought to himself, maybe
it was a
greater sensitivity to emotions. He cried now when he’d never cried
before
meeting Steven. Did you have to fall in love to be able to cry, again?
Did
Jeremy think he loved him? They’d had sex only twice. Was that enough
for love?
“Come on, Jeremy,
it’ll be
okay,” Zach whispered. “Be thankful he didn’t hit you. It’d be a lot
worse if
he hit you.”
“Were you on drugs?”
“Did I kiss you
like I was on
drugs?”
“I don’t think so.”
“Here, try this,”
Zach
whispered, pulling Jeremy’s chin up and pressing his mouth to boy’s,
ignoring
the slime on Jeremy’s upper lip. Holding the boy’s head with one hand,
he moved
the other down to the boy’s ass, grabbing a firm hold on a cheek with
his
fingers, pressing in through the loose material, and probing for that
sensitive
area. The kiss was hard and long and he felt Jeremy’s cock begin to
press
against his.
“Does that feel
that it did
last night?” Zach asked, breaking their kiss. “If I remember right, I
might
have been a little more into to it last night, right? Jeremy? Come on,
talk to
me, whisper sweet nothings in my ear. Come on, lover, stop crying or
you’ll
have to suck my cock and we don’t have time for that.”
“Hey! Are we going
to a
movie, or not?” Paul asked. He was standing in the doorway leading into
the
kitchen.
“Get out of here,
now!”
Jeremy hissed. Paul turned and shut the door behind him.
“Wow! You’ve got
him trained
pretty good,” Zach said. “I was never able to get my horse to respond
that
quickly.”
“What?” Jeremy
looked up into
Zach’s eyes. They were red from crying, but the moment had passed.
Sadness
still filled his face, but the worse was over.
Zach knelt down and
unzipped
Jeremy’s pants. He pulled out the boy’s erection and put his mouth over
the
swollen head. While using one hand to massage the boy’s scrotum and
perineum
and the other to stroke the rock hard shaft, he worked his moist lips
and
tongue over the head. He was in a hurry and Jeremy responded just as
quick to
the overwhelming sensations. Zach felt the testicles pull up and the
cock
swell. He slipped his hand further between the boy’s legs and pressed a
finger
to that most sensitive spot pushing firmly against the tight muscle.
“Oh! Fuck! Zach!”
Jeremy
hissed, trying to hold his voice in check as the orgasm swept through
his young
body.
Zach swallowed
quickly,
trying to keep up with the tartly sweet come spewing into his mouth. He
removed
his hands from the boy, but kept his mouth over the cock as Jeremy
slowly came
back from that blissful place. There was an unopened box of tissues on
the
shelf beside him and he took out some and wiped Jeremy’s still firm
cock.
Grabbing a few more, he stood up and began cleaning the tears and snot
from the
boy’s face. He handed a few to Jeremy.
“Blow your own
nose, I’m not
sucking that,” Zach said.
“You’re funny, you
know
that?” Jeremy said. “That’s what I like about you most. You always try
to find
something funny to say.”
“Look, I know your
father is
an asshole. He proved that last night. Maybe, just maybe, he’s got
Derek by the
balls and Derek doesn’t know how to say enough is a enough. Maybe he
just can’t
say no to your father. Maybe he doesn’t care for you as much as you’d
like. I
don’t know. All I know is I like you an awful lot, but I also know I’m
a bit
older and you’re still in high school.”
“You’re only a year
older
now.”
“And, I’ll be two
years older
in October.”
“I liked it when I
was in
you.”
“I liked it a lot
more, but
it’s going to be hard. You’ve got all those other boys to be friends
with.
What’s going to happen when they find out you’re dating me, instead of
some
girl at school?”
“I go to an all
boys school.
There aren’t any girls. Besides, I called Roger this morning and
apologized for
what Daddy did. He asked me if I was gay.”
“What’d you tell
him?”
“I asked him if
he’d hate me.
He told me Johnny, his younger brother, was gay. He said we could still
be
friends, but I couldn’t kiss him. We laughed. I’m beginning to think
Roger is a
better friend than Derek.”
“Sounds like it to
me. Come
on, let’s get out of here and go to that movie with the lesbian in it.”
“It’s a cartoon!
It’s just
her voice.”
“Well, what was
that all
about?” Sara asked when they returned to the foyer. “I was beginning to
think I
was going to have to watch a video or something.”
“Guy stuff,” Zach
said.
“What do you mean
guy stuff?”
Sara asked.
“Well, if you need
to know.
Jeremy is having problems with his penis. Nothing serious, mind you,
it’s just
that when he comes . . .”
“Stop! I don’t want
to hear
about it. It’s not something he should see a doctor about?”
“No, he could have
asked his
father, but I guess that isn’t an option in this house.”
“No, Daddy isn’t
someone to
ask,” Sara said.
“Isn’t that the
truth!” Paul
and Jeremy said, almost in unison.
“Come on, guys, and
girl,
let’s get to the movie with the lesbian,” Zach said.
“It’s just her
voice!” Paul
exclaimed.
Finding Nemo was better than Zach thought it would be. He
was
expecting a little kid movie with lots of silly songs, but was
surprised he was
able to get into the storyline and actually felt kind of bad for Nemo’s
father.
He figured the others were also seeing a father could be good and could
care
about his children.
After the movie,
Zach
followed Sara’s and Jeremy’s conflicting directions down to Burger
Master for
one of the best chocolate milkshakes he’d ever tasted. All in all it
was a
rather pleasant evening out and Zach hoped there would be many more. It
felt
good to be around regular people for a change. He was beginning to
wonder if
there were more people in the world who didn’t hate him because he was
gay.
When they turned
the corner
and headed down the hill toward the McDonald house, Zach had that
queasy
feeling, again. There were flashing red and blue lights all over the
place, but
most of them were inside the wall around the McDonald house. A cop
stopped them
at the gate.
“What do you want?”
She asked
when Zach rolled down his window.
“I’m bringing the
kids home
from a movie, they live here,” Zach said.
“Let me check,” she
said.
Then she was talking in her radio. She walked away from the truck,
toward her
car.
“What’s going on?”
Paul
asked. He sounded as worried as Sara and Jeremy looked.
Zach was about
ready to get
out when the police officer walked back to the pickup. From the
streetlight,
Zach could see she was having trouble keeping the stern, don’t take
this
personal, look on her face. She motioned for him.
“I think she wants
to talk to
me,” Zach said, undoing his seatbelt. “I’ll be back in a minute.”
“I’m coming with
you,” Sara
said.
They got out
together and
went over to the police officer.
“What’s wrong
officer?” Sara
asked. When the officer looked at her like she might be too young to
participate in this conversation, Sara added, “I’m eighteen. I’m the
responsible party here.”
“Okay, Miss
McDonald, I’m
Officer Graham, and the situation is this: your father has been
arrested for
sexual assault on a minor, plus a few other charges. The victim is
being
readied for transport to the hospital. I guess their taking him to the
burn
unit at County General.
Your grandfather has instructed the, I
guess,
butler, a Mr. Chambers I believe, to pack clothes for the three of you
and for
you to go to your grandfather’s house. But, first, I need you to stay
out here
until the ambulance has departed.”
“It’s Derek, isn’t
it?” Sara
asked no one in particular.
“Yes, I believe
that was the
boy’s first name. Do you know him?”
“He’s my brother’s
best
friend.”
“Was your brother’s
best
friend,” Zach said, for no other reason than to try to keep Jeremy out
of this.
At that moment, a
police car
with Charlie sitting in the backseat came out the driveway and turned
up the
hill. From what Zach could see, he wasn’t wearing anything above the
waist.
Sara must have seen the same thing, but she didn’t say anything.
“Would either of
you, or your
brother, know how to get in touch the boy’s parents?” the officer asked.
“Yeah, Jeremy knows
where
they live,” Sara said.
“Could you get it
for me?”
“Sure, I’ll be
right back.”
When Sara got in
the pickup,
the officer turned to Zach and said, “Know anything about BDSM, young
man?”
“Yeah, a little, I
had a
feeling Charlie was into that kind of stuff.”
“Charlie?”
“Yeah, that’s the
name he
uses when he hires someone for companionship.”
“In the business?”
“No, I know someone
who knows
about Charlie. I guess he hasn’t hidden much from his kids. They think
he’s
practically worthless as a father.”
“What about the
mother?”
“Living with her
boyfriend in
Switzerland.”
“Sounds like a
screwed up
family.”
“Yeah, except for
the kids. I
kind of feel sorry for them.”
“Have a good
father, do you?”
“No, mine kicked me
out
because someone told him I was gay.”
“Oh.”
Sara came back as
the aid car
pulled out of the driveway and turned on its siren. She handed a piece
of paper
to the officer.
“Can we go up to
the house?”
Sara asked.
“Yes, Miss
McDonald, I’ll let
them know you’re coming,” the officer said.
There were four
more police
cars, plus a van, at the house. Sara directed Zach back to the garage
where
there was only one police car, with the officer standing beside it.
“I guess I’d better
go,” Zach
said when he stopped.
“No, I want you to
come in
with us,” Sara said. “I’m going to need you to take one of the boys
over the
grandfather’s, probably Jeremy as he knows the way. My Miata only has
two seats
and there definitely isn’t any room for bags.”
“Okay, whatever you
say.”
The police officer
ignored
them as they walked toward the service entrance. Chambers was at the
door
waiting for them. He looked worried. Three large duffle bags were lined
up
against the hall.
“What happened?”
Sara asked
in a stern, business-like voice, an employer to servant voice.
“I was out since
Saturday is
my day off,” Chambers said. He sounded scared. Did the police ask too
many
pointed questions? How long was this going on? Where was he? How long
did he
listen to the boy scream before calling for help? Were there any other
boys?
Questions that were meant to unnerve, make answers waver, cast doubt.
“When I returned, I
noticed
Mr. McDonald’s car in the driveway. He told me he was going to the
condo, so I
was surprised he was home so early. I went into my rooms and turned on
the
television. I heard a scream, not too loud, not too long, more of a
screech
from a sudden shock. I knew Derek was with Mr. McDonald, but I make it
my
business not to know what has been going on between them. I do not pry
into my
employers’ lives.”
To Zach it sounded
like a
practiced speech. Chambers wasn’t so much sounding innocent, but more
like
protecting his butt. He had a job to make sure everything was
hunky-dory in
this house and it went to hell in his absence.
“There was another
scream.
This time it was someone in extreme pain; and, the screaming continued.
It was
horrible. I could hear agony in the scream. I went upstairs, following
the
sound of the unabated screaming. They led Mr. McDonald’s rooms. They
were in
there, your father and Derek. There was the pungent smell of burned
flesh in
the air. Once you’ve smelled it, you can never forget that smell. When
I was a
boy my brother got burned when his pants leg caught fire on a campout.
You
never forget that smell. Mr. McDonald was wearing black leather chaps.
That was
all. He was just standing there staring at Derek who was on the floor,
naked.
He was writhing in pain. I called 9-1-1
and told them what I saw. The woman on the line told me what to do to
help
Derek. Mr. McDonald went over to the sofa and sat down. He was there
when the
police arrived.”
“What happened to
Derek?”
Jeremy asked. It sounded almost as if he didn’t want to hear the answer.
“Mr. McDonald had
been using
a red-hot poker from the fireplace,” Chambers said. “I don’t know what
they had
been doing, but Derek had a dog collar around his neck and there was a
leash. He
was badly burned in his groin on his legs and, well, in between, and on
his
buttocks. I’ve never heard of someone purposefully doing something like
that to
another human being, especially a young boy like Derek. I’m sorry Miss
McDonald, but I can’t work here anymore. I have advised your
grandfather of my
resignation.”
Zach was watching
the tears build
up in Paul’s eyes. He went over and put an arm around the boy. He
wanted to cry
himself. Then he felt Jeremy wrap his arms around him. Suddenly, he had
a
couple scared boys hugging him and fighting back tears. Zach thought of
Tuesday
night and his offer to be with Charlie at the condo. Was he that much
of a fool
to invite himself to a fling with a sadist? And, what about Steven?
Steven
never mentioned anything like this. Was Charlie very selective with his
victims? Or, was Derek special, so special he had to be branded? Zach
broke
from the boys and found the toilet. He vomited.
Later that night at
the
McDonald house on Foundry Ridge—where houses weren’t so much houses as
small
castles, where old North Park money was made and wasted, and where
people like
Charlie grew up to become movers and shakers of their community or,
like
Charlie, moved away to hide their dirty little secrets—Zach settled
Paul in his
room on the third floor, the children’s floor, as it was called in the
house.
The room was spartan in furnishings, but, at the same time, was
definitely a
little boy’s room. It was always Paul’s room whenever he stayed with
his
grandparents. Paul was still tearful as Zach tucked him in and bent
down to
kiss his forehead.
“I wish you were
staying with
us,” Paul said. “I know I’m going to have night horses.”
“Nightmares,” Zach
said,
smiling. “They’re called nightmares. I tell you what, I’ll tell Jeremy
that you
might come and sleep with him if you get scared. Okay?”
“Okay. How could
Daddy do
that to Derek?”
“Your father is a
very sick
man who needs a lot of help.”
“You don’t think he
was just
being mean to Derek?”
“Oh, he was
definitely being
mean, but to do that a boy, someone would have to be sick.”
“Crazy, you mean.”
“You said it, not
me.”
“Daddy laughed when
I fell
out of our apple tree last year and broke my arm. He was laughing so
much Sara
had to take me to the hospital. Yeah, I guess Daddy is sick. Sick in
the head.
I hope I never see him again. Ever.”
“Now, don’t start
thinking
like that. There has to be some good in everyone.”
“Even people who
hurt kids?”
“Well, I didn’t say
it would
be obvious. Even my father, who was mean and despicable to me, gave me
extra
money to come to college. He didn’t have to do that, but he did. I’m
not saying
he was good all the time. A lot of the time he was downright mean, but
he could
be good, too.”
“I’m sorry, Zach,
but I can’t
forgive Daddy.”
“You get some
sleep. It’ll be
better in the morning.”
“You’ll talk to
Jeremy?”
“I’ll tell him
you’ll be over
in an hour or so.”
Zach closed Paul’s
door and
went across the hall to Jeremy’s room. It was almost the same
décor, but had
posters of Swiss ski resorts on the walls. Zach wondered if they were
presents
from Mummy. Jeremy was naked, sitting on top of his bedcovers, slowly
stroking
his erect penis.
“And, what would
you say to
Sara if it was her instead of me?” Zach asked, sitting down next to
Jeremy and
adding his hand to the action.
“Tell her she can’t
suck my
cock,” Jeremy said, giggling. “Do you want to?”
“Not with Sara
still up.”
“She won’t come up
here.
She’s talking to grandpa. They’ll be at it all night.”
“Yeah, well, I’m
not taking
any chances. Listen, Paul isn’t doing so good and might come over here
to sleep
with you. Is that okay?”
“Yeah, he does it a
lot. He
says the night horses are after him. Will you kiss me?”
Zach leaned over
and their
lips met. He opened his mouth, inviting Jeremy’s tongue to a little
party. He
took his hand off the boy’s dick and found a nipple to rub. Neither boy
heard
the door open.
“What the fuck are
you doing
to my brother?” Sara asked. “Jeremy? Why don’t you have any clothes on?”
“Oh, fuck off,
Sara! What’s
it look like we’re doing? Never seen foreplay before?”
“Jeremy! What’s
gotten into
you? And, Zach what are you doing here?”
“Actually, I came
to say good
night, but Jeremy had other ideas.”
“But, he’s still a
little
boy.”
“Well, technically,
I am too.
Sara, please calm down. Come over here and sit with us. Come on, I’m
sure
you’ve seen him naked before.”
“Not for a few
years I
haven’t. Cover yourself up, brother.”
“Okay, but it was
my idea,
not Zach’s.”
“You were the guest
of honor
last night, weren’t you?” Sara asked, looking at Zach.
“Yeah and I found
out Jeremy
likes boys, but he also likes girls, too. He gets to have fun no matter
who
he’s with.”
“Always a joke.
Don’t you
ever stop?”
“Sara, please,
Jeremy and I
are, well, close. We’re not boyfriends, if that’s what you’re thinking,
but we
like each other a lot.”
“I love him.”
“You’re too young
to fall in
love,” Zach and Sara said almost in unison. They looked at each other
and
started to laugh.
“Okay, Jeremy,
under the
covers and close those beautiful eyes,” Zach said, standing up and
holding out
a hand to Sara. He helped her up and he put his arm around her waist.
“You’ve
had your kiss and a little more. I’ve got to get home, myself. It’s
been a long
day.”
“Will I see you
tomorrow?”
Jeremy asked.
“No, I have to
spend the day
with a friend, but I can see you Tuesday night, if that’s okay?”
“I’d like that,”
Jeremy said.
“I’d like that a lot. Oh, why don’t you tell Paul to come on over. I
think I’d
like him in bed with me. I think I’ll need some company.”
“Good night,
Jeremy.”
“Good night, Zach.”
“You’re falling in
love with
him,” Sara said as they descended the broad staircase to the second
floor. “I
can tell.”
“It’ll be hard.
He’s still in
high school.”
“It’ll be harder
because we
don’t know where we’re going to end up. Mummy might have Jeremy and
Paul join
her in Switzerland.
You might not see Jeremy for years.”
“He likes Switzerland,
doesn’t he?”
“Yeah, he had a lot
of fun
over there, but he’s made a lot of friends here since Daddy brought us
back.”
“Sara, if you need
anything,
anything, give me a call. If the boys need something, call me. Okay?”
“You’re good, you
know that.”
“Yeah, people keep
telling me
that,” Zach said, thinking of Jerry and Bruce and what they might be
doing at
this moment. “One of these days, I might start believing it myself.”