Chapter 14
Eli
I have no idea what’s going on. Nothing about the scene playing out below makes any sense. Even the blood staining the snow to form a surreal pattern seems out of place outside the cabin where Cesar and I have led such a peaceful existence for what feels like weeks.
But one thing is certain, whatever’s happening below is not right. Cesar killed those men to protect me, and he doesn’t belong on his knees, twisting in pain. He deserves so, so much better, and while I know he would want me to run, I can’t leave him like this.
In one quick move, I slide down the roof like snow sports are in my nature. All I can see is the gun pointed at Cesar, and the monster who’s turned my man into a helpless creature. So what if Cesar is a beast too? He’s my beast.
When I drop to the ground, my fall is cushioned by snow, but my barely healed ankle gives way with a nasty crack that makes bile rise in my throat. Heat shoots to my face as I stifle a cry of pain, stumbling toward a catatonic Cesar and the man watching him with strange satisfaction.
My heart thrums like an engine at full throttle, and I’m spurred on by the memories of Cesar smiling at me when he showed off his first Christmas paper craft.
The guy turns his gaze to me in shock, and he’s in the process of aiming his gun my way, but he’s too slow. I’ve come at him out of nowhere, and I might not have skill, but I have a hammer, and surprise is my only advantage.
I slam my weapon right between his eyes with all the force I can muster, and when bone breaks, he collapses like a puppet dropped by the hand holding its strings.
There’s a dent between his brows now, where the claw of my hammer head went in, and when I rip it out, he makes a strange noise, shaking like a fish out of water.
But as erratic as the bastard’s acting, he is surely stronger and more capable than me, so I don’t waste any time and bring the hammer down once more.
I’m in a daze, and right now, he’s not human. He’s a cockroach I need to exterminate. His limbs twitch a few more times, but once he stills, I freeze with the tool raised over my head, and only now sense sticky heat on my skin. I must be covered in blood.
I’m heaving as I look around at the five dead men, their blood coloring the snow like wine spilled on a pristine tablecloth. But then my attention turns to Cesar, still on his knees as if he hasn’t even noticed me. He’s rocking back and forth, making the tiniest little whines and covering his head.
I don’t know what to do.
This must be some extreme PTSD or a panic attack of some sort.
I kneel right next to him, unsure if I should touch him right now, but I place my hands on his arms. “It’s okay, it’s okay, you’re fine,” I say, even though nothing is fine.
This is a catastrophe. There’s five dead men in our yard, my ankle’s so numb I can barely feel it, and the one person I can trust acts as if I’m not there.
“Cesar, it’s me, Eli. They’re all dead, you’re safe,” I try, rubbing his shoulders, which are now covered by blood-soaked fabric. I should be disgusted. I should be afraid, but Cesar’s safety takes precedence and I attempt to hug him.
Again, no reaction.
He’s shaking like a terrified puppy, and dread creeps deeper into my heart. Because what if I can’t wake him up from… whatever state this is? I’m not strong enough to carry him inside, I would have to drag him. At this rate, he might just freeze to death or fall seriously ill.
I’m so overwhelmed and out of my depth stupid tears form in my eyes. I rub them away because there’s no time for feeling sorry for myself. I started the chain of events that led us both here.
“I love you?” I whisper with a heavy heart, looking into Cesar’s vacant eye.
It’s as though he’s staring through me.
My heart shatters into a million ice shards.
I take a deep breath of air that smells of pine and blood, trying to think of something to help Cesar, other than my pathetic confessions. I remember that the guy who made Cesar fold to the ground said something to him. Instead of using his gun, he fiddled with some piece of paper.
On hands and knees I shuffle in the cold mud to reach the dead body.
I don’t have time to be frightened when Cesar’s life is on the line.
The guy is still squeezing the small card in his cooling fingers.
I rip it out, but of course, I’m so nervous, and my fingers tremble so much it falls.
I grab it in panic to save it from soaking.
Something on this short list of sentences forced Cesar into the state he’s in now, and I have to work out the solution to whatever mind game is still in progress. At the top of the card is a three-line list of words with no obvious connections, below it, a single sentence.
To end: ‘Good dogs get their treats.’
My mouth dries, and I look up, taking in the dead bodies, and all the red stains on snow that used to be so pristine, but they offer no answers. The only clue I have is that ratty piece of paper, and when Cesar squeals, I turn on my knees to face him and read the last sentence out loud.
“Good dogs get their treats.”
My tongue feels like a piece of wood, so very stiff in my mouth, but while Cesar remains in place, his shoulders relax and he lifts his head to glance my way.
Tears have cascaded down his cheek, washing away some of the blood left behind by the four kills he succeeded at before the final thug brought him to his knees. He’s still not fully himself, but there’s a person watching me now, and I almost bawl with relief.
But it’s like he doesn’t fully see me despite looking straight at me.
“Cesar? What is all of this about?” I ask, tucking the paper away as I crawl toward him.
He blinks, and this time, there seems to be more thought behind his glossy eye. “E—Eli?” he asks, as if he isn’t sure he remembers my name correctly.
“Yes. Yes, me, Eli,” I utter and cup his face to grab all his focus. His eye shuts, as if there was no greater relief than my touch, and he turns his face to lick my blood-stained palm.
“I’m your weapon…”
I gasp, my eyes growing wider. “No, no, no… I love you. That’s what you’re for. For my love. It’s all okay, we’ll work out whatever happened here.”
The handsome face relaxes, and a low hum leaves Cesar’s mouth as he pushes his face against my chest. The cold air stings my skin, but when I feel him breathe me in, heat spreads all over my body, all the way to the toes.
Surprised, I shuffle back toward the cabin, but then my back hits the lowest step, and he has me trapped, kissing his way up as if he needs closeness. “You are mine,” he rasps and licks me through fabric.
“Y-yes. Yours,” I utter, my heartbeat quickening.
Dead bodies lie a few feet away, we’re both stained with blood, and I should probably reject his touch, but I’m not reasonable when it comes to Cesar.
And it’s not just about his looks, or the way he takes care of me.
I feel a spark between us that is irrational, rooted in the fury inside me that only he understands.
I want to be his.
Whatever he is. Whoever he is.
As he glides up the length of my body, he captures both of my wrists and brings them above my head.
I shiver, stretching when he drags my chin up with his head, and then presses our mouths together in a shockingly chaste yet exciting kiss.
No one before has ever had this kind of effect on me, and I doubt anyone else ever will.
We’re like two sides of the same coin.
“You said however and whenever I want?” he rasps, meeting my gaze.
“Yes.” I don’t hesitate, because it’s my biggest fucking turn-on to be desired like this. I plunged a hammer into a man’s head, and he still wants me. My toes curl as I realize how much I’m into whatever he wants to do to me. I saw him kill four people, and I’m not afraid at all.
I spread my thighs, in a state of complete surrender, and he likes it. I can see it in the raw desire blooming on his features.
“Mine,” he whispers and leans in for a kiss, his hands cradling my head while his tongue goes in deep, penetrating me as if he wants to show me I have no way out. But why would I ever want to run from someone who needs me so desperately?
I rock my body against his, using his knee to tease my growing cock, but I know we will not be making love for hours. Not in the cold mud. Raw sexual energy sparks in the air, and I am more than ready for it.
A gasp tears from my lips when Cesar flips me over, so I now face the porch, my elbows resting one step below it.
There are only a couple of steps between us and the warmth of the cabin, but who needs comfort when I can be ravished by this beast of a man, right after he’s saved my life from those strangers.
If this is what he needs now, a fuck after a kill, I’ll give it to him.
I don’t know if it’s a kink, or if I’m just that much of a pleaser, but this is exactly how I want to be treated.
He can bring me a cold compress and marshmallows later, but while we’re having sex, there’s nothing I crave more than to be his possession.
I’m already hard as I offer myself to him, pushing back my ass and rubbing it against his groin.
Take me, I’m wordlessly saying, use me. I’m your prey, so hunt me down and satisfy your hunger.
He’s quick and to the point about pulling my pants down. The air might be cold, but my face is on fire. We fuck around so much I always have lube on me, so I pass him the packet, panting against the step of the porch.
I’m happy to let him take his satisfaction inside my body, and know he’s that bit more peaceful thanks to me.
He bites my shoulder blade through the top I’m wearing, but while it stings, there’s a flash of pleasure in it too, and I lean into his touch listening to the quick slurp of lube. I know it’ll happen very soon. I will have him inside, and it will burn, and I will love it.
“You need me,” Cesar whispers, teasing my ear with his breath, but then his cock parts my ass cheeks, and I whine, pressing my face to the cold wood.
He’s such a fucking stud. I knew he could break me in half even before I saw him kill four people, but he won’t hurt me. I’m his precious possession. “Yes,” I utter as he makes a quick jab with his hips, pushing his cockhead in.
There’s some pain, but most of all, I feel relief. As if we’ve slotted back together after the horror laid bare in our yard. He grabs my sides with such possessiveness my heart melts a little.
All my life, this is all I’ve wanted. To belong with someone.
“I need you,” I add, unashamed of my desperation, and I spread my legs as wide as the jeans pooled at my knees allow. “Come inside.”
The sound coming from his lips sounds almost like an expression of pain, but I understand, because when he drills his way inside me, embedding his long cock in my hole, I too can’t hold my voice in.
My cry is loud, effortless, and I don’t even try to bother stifling it, because anyone who could possibly overhear it lies dead.
“And I need you. I’m yours completely,” he whispers in a trembling voice and wraps me in a tight embrace, with one of those wonderful hands resting on my throat.
Each thrust takes my breath away, and while the friction feels almost like too much, I don’t want him to stop, or even slow down. I want him to jab into me just like this until he’s so spent he can barely move.
I want to be his peace. His solace. This scary wolf’s beloved bitch.
Is it messed up? Sure, but I don’t care. No one needs to know. No one would understand this murder bond we share anyway. For any outsider, we’re two monsters mating like we’re animals.
His dick feels so good inside me. I love being under Cesar. I become Jello, my thighs tremble at each of his thrusts, and my own cock pulses with heat and desire to be touched. But my man comes first. That’s the natural order of things, and he is not holding back.
Teeth and lips trail over my neck, nipping, licking, sucking, until I’m breathless with need, but then he’s coming, and blood rushes to my face when I feel him pulse inside me.
There has never been a better feeling.
Nothing can compare.
“You smell so good,” Cesar mumbles as his cock retreats from my body with a wet slap that makes me rock against him. When he licks my nape, it’s like a spark of lust going straight to my cock, and I feel so needy I’m making incoherent, whiny noises.
“Please…?” I utter helplessly. I could jerk off, yet it feels like he’s in full control of me and has to allow it. My face is hot, my bloodstained hands are sweaty, and I’m in a whole new universe with Cesar.
But instead of granting me permission, or even sucking me off like he sometimes does, Cesar pulls me into his arms and gets up. My dick is still hard, I’m probably dripping his cum, and he carries me like that to the cabin, leaving the massacre behind.
I don’t even look back at the carnage, focused on Cesar’s flushed face instead.
I have never seen a more handsome monster.