Metamorphosis, p.15
Metamorphosis, page 15
“We’ll find him,” Amanda said. “If he went to the ends of the earth, we’ll find him.”
* * * *
Ciel was drifting. Scott was sitting beside him on the bed, saying his name. “I do love you,” he whispered. “I love you, Ciel. I want to make love to you. Let me, please, let me make love to you.”
“Yes,” Ciel said. “Yes.” His eyes opened suddenly as he felt a hand stroking his cock. The face swam in front of him. The gag was gone.
“I’ll make love to you, baby,” the voice vibrated in his ear. “I’ll make love to you good.”
He started to struggle, tried to propel the hands away from him as if it was a foreign object. “Don’t. Don’t touch me.”
He heard him swear. “You hate me, and I’ve done nothing to you. I love you. I really love you.”
“Please, water,” Ciel said, trying to swallow. “If you love me, give me water.”
“Just a little sip,” Gary said.
Ciel felt the water touch his lips. He gagged, then tried to force himself to keep it down. He coughed a little, then it was gone.
“A kiss,” Gary whispered. “A kiss, my beautiful Ciel.”
Ciel twisted away from him, then lay still as the man’s mouth came down hard on his. Oh, God, he was never getting out of here.
* * * *
Hunter went with Scott to the police. They had a picture of Ciel and all the information, and said they’d look into it. They didn’t seem too concerned. One officer said, “It’s seems simple. You had a lover’s spat, and he’s taken off.”
Scott was really upset when he came out of the precinct. “Come on,” Hunter said. “I’ll help you look for him. We’ll probably find him faster than those assholes.”
Amanda hired a special investigator. “I don’t care what the cost is,” she said. “Find him.”
At around nine o’clock that night, the doorbell rang. Amanda hurried to the door, thinking there was some news. Liam stood there. They looked at each. Neither one of them had anything to report.
“Come in,” she said.
“Thank you.”
“Diet Coke?”
He laughed. “Fine.”
“I was the one who brought Ciel and Scott together,” she said. She poured some Diet Coke into an ice-filled glass and handed it to him. He sat down on the sofa. “So I gathered.”
“I went looking all over for the most beautiful man, and I found Ciel.”
“Good choice. He’s gorgeous.”
“I brought him for Scott.”
“And for you.”
She smiled a little. “Yes. He was my choice, not Scott’s.”
“And they fell in love.”
“Yes.”
“And how did you feel about that?” He took a sip of his Coke.
“Hurt at first. Ciel was taking my Scott away.” She smiled a little sadly.
“But he was never really your Scott to begin with.”
She nodded.
“I think it hurt because they had found something together you wanted for yourself. Scott and Ciel could never be in love with you, the way they were in love with one other.”
She didn’t say anything.
“What are you so afraid of, Amanda?”
“Don’t lecture me like a man on my eccentric tastes. At least I have the guts to stand up and admit what turns me on. I don’t hide it.”
“That’s it? You think I’m judging you? I admire that in you, Amanda. Never hide who you are. I’ve never tried to pretend I’m a straight man.”
“You are judging me.”
“I’m not judging you. I’m asking you why you’re so scared of letting yourself be loved?”
She froze. “I’m not.”
“Yes, you are,” Liam said. He stood up, came a little closer. “Last night you felt something with me you haven’t felt in a long time. And you got scared and ran away.”
Tears ran down her face. “I don’t want to be dominated by any man. I want to do what I want, go where I want, live out my fantasies, and my … my father and my husband both tried to make me into what they wanted me to be. I’ll never do that again, Liam.”
“Good,” he said, placing a hand on her shoulders. “I wouldn’t want to be with you if I thought you’d let me mold you into someone else. Amanda, I’m in love with you.”
Her mouth fell open.
“I knew we were perfect for each other the moment I saw you—because, Amanda, I too, don’t want to be with someone who expects me to change. I want to be with one person, but someone who enjoys men the way I do, who will be turned on by watching me with other men … but at the end of the night, when everyone goes home, I want to crawl in bed beside you. I want to wake up in the morning beside you. I want to grow old with you. Amanda, marry me.”
Her mouth stayed open.
He laughed. “Are you trying to catch flies?”
“I can’t believe you…” She stopped. “I think … I might be falling … I love you, too,” she whispered.
His face broke into a smile. He pulled her close, kissed her passionately on the mouth.
She touched his hair, shook her head in wonder. “You said we were soul mates.”
“Yes,” he said softly. “We are.”
“We’re both strong-willed people. We could end up killing each other.”
“As long as I die in your arms,” he grinned. “Now that that’s settled, and I can breathe again, let’s help Scott find that man of his, shall we?”
* * * *
Hunter was searching desperately for Scott in a bar called Rough Riders. They’d split up about twenty minutes before, both equipped with photographs of Ciel, trying to find someone who had seen him. Hunter had finally hit gold.
The guy’s name was Rico, and he was more than a little stoned, but he told Hunter some interesting things about Ciel being in that bar and going off with some guy a few weeks back.
When Hunter spotted Scott at the bar, deep in discussion with the bartender, he sighed with relief. “Scott,” Hunter said, pulling on his arm. “This is Rico. Rico, tell Scott what you told me.”
“Hey, baby,” Rico said. “You and your friend here got it going on? Hot! This must be my lucky night. You guys wanna…?”
“Never mind that shit,” Scott snapped. “What did you tell my friend here?”
“Okay baby, take it easy.” He put up his hands. “That guy in the picture, he was in here one night a few weeks back. I wouldn’t forget him. Not many guys come in here looking that good … one hell of hunk. He’d had a few. Guys were cruising him, but Gary got him. Had a good time, too, ’cause I got some pictures of him on my hard drive.”
“You have Ciel’s pictures on your hard drive?” Scott blinked. “What kind of pictures?”
“Naked pictures. Gary was bragging about it to everyone … how he’d had this hunk in his bed. Come back to my place, I’ll show you. I have one of those pictures on my monitor. Keeps me up, if you know what I mean.” He winked.
Scott clicked his tongue with disgust.
“This Gary guy,” Hunter probed. “What’s his last name? Where does he live?”
“I don’t know,” Rico shrugged.
“Take me to your place,” Scott demanded. “Show me this picture.”
“Sure thing, baby. It’s worth the trip.”
* * * *
As it turned out, Rico didn’t live far from the club. As they walked along the darkened streets, Hunter took out his cell phone.
Amanda picked up on the second ring. “Where are you?” was her first question.
He knew she’d be worried. “We’re on the corner of Seaman and Cumming.” He suddenly realized how ridiculous that sounded.
“Where? Be serious.”
“I am. That’s the name of the streets. We may have something,”
“What? Wait a minute.”
Amanda placed her hand over the phone. She was talking to someone.
“Amanda?”
“We’re coming. We’ll meet you there.”
“It’s okay. You don’t have to. Just keep that PI handy. We’ll need to find a guy that Ciel might have gone home with.”
“Where are you right now?”
“We’re entering this dumpy apartment building.”
“What’s the address?”
“I don’t know, but it’s on the corner of those two streets I won’t mention again.”
“We’re on our way. Is Scott okay?”
“He’s very stressed and upset.”
“Stay close to him. And don’t go anywhere without us. I’ll call the private eye guy on the way there.”
“Okay.” Hunter hung up and followed Scott and Rico up a narrow flight of stairs.
* * * *
Liam drove fast toward the Village. Luckily, the traffic was light. Amanda spoke with the private detective she’d hired, and he would meet them there. When she finally got off the phone, she smiled over at Liam, whose gaze was fixed to the road. “You didn’t have to do this, Liam.”
“Yes I did. If I’m going to be part of your life…” He paused and glanced at her. “—and I do want to be part of your life, Amanda—I might as well start now.”
She didn’t say anything. She just sat back in the leather-padded seat and closed her eyes. Could she allow a man to come back into her life again? Granted, this was one of her choosing, not her father’s. This was an exciting man who had enough money that he wasn’t interested in hers and who wouldn’t cramp her style in any way. But marriage … that was a little too much for her. She wondered if he’d considered just living together for a while … a trial, to see if it would work. God, was she in love? She looked over at him, his hair blowing in the cool night breeze, and she decided that yes, damn it, she was. She was in love with Liam Dunn, and if they could just find Ciel, maybe she could sit down and seriously consider what she was going to do about that.
* * * *
Scott stood over in the corner of the room as Liam, Amanda, and some stranger hovered around this guy Rico’s computer. Hunter was trying to reassure the guy that they weren’t up to anything weird. “We’re just trying to find out where that Gary guy lives,” Hunter told him. “We’ll be out of your hair soon.”
Scott put his face in his hands. Had something happened to Ciel? Had he met some creep and… Suddenly, something dawned on him. “I saw him,” Scott shouted out. “I saw the bastard. He came up to me … Amanda, you were there, that night at the dance studio place.”
Everyone was looking at him, including the blue-suited man fiddling on the computer.
“That creepy guy. I remember,” Amanda said.
“What did you say this Gary guy looked like?” the detective asked Rico.
“Not tall, light-skinned … like him.” Rico pointed at Scott.
“Biracial?”
“Yes.”
“Okay, we have his description,” the detective told Amanda. “And I have all the information I need to find his home address.”
“How long before you have it?” Amanda asked.
Hunter walked over to Scott and placed an arm around him. Scott leaned on him gratefully. He felt as if he were going to pass out.
“Twenty-four hours,” the PI said. “Now I suggest you all go home. I’ll call you as soon as I have it.”
* * * *
“Twenty-four hours.” Scott sighed. They had gone back to Amanda’s, and he was pacing the living room. How in the hell am I going to survive twenty-four hours?”
Liam glanced at Amanda. He took her arm and led her down the hallway. “I’m going home now. I’ll see if I can speed things up a little.”
“How?”
He smiled. “Just let me worry about that. I’ll call you soon.” He kissed the top of her head.
Amanda watched him go and then closed the front door. She walked back into the living room. It was almost three in the morning. She looked at Hunter and Scott, who sat huddled together on the sofa. It was going to be a long night.
* * * *
“You’re not getting any water. Nothing,” the voice said. It sounded like a child’s voice, a child in the midst of having a tantrum. It wavered in and out of his brain. Ciel fought to open his eyes, but he was drifting away. His mouth was so dry. The pain was intense now, cramping mostly, deep in his gut and in his arms and legs. He felt sick. He wanted to throw up, but he couldn’t. He was going to die here. Please, don’t let me die here.
“You don’t love me … love me … love me … you used me that night … you don’t love me … I love you, Ciel … I love you … love me … love me … you don’t…
I do love you, Scott. I love you more than heaven and earth and the sky and … Scott … God, we could have been so happy together. Why didn’t you let me help you? Why didn’t you let me hold you when you were sad … you could have told me why. What happened to you? Why didn’t you trust me? Scott, where are you? Where…
* * * *
“Have they found him yet?” Jacques asked Liam as he came through the door.
Liam was surprised to see that Jacques was still up.
“No,” he said. “What are you doing still awake?”
“I couldn’t sleep.”
“I know some people who can find him faster, maybe. I’m going to make a few phone calls.”
“Good idea. I can give you a few names as well, but it won’t come cheap.”
Liam shrugged. “It doesn’t matter.”
“You know, I was thinking,” Jacques said, following him into the other room.
“Thinking about what?” Liam asked, picking up a small notebook he kept beside the phone on the table.
“About us.”
Liam paused. “Us?”
“Yes, when we first met.”
“Ah.” Why in hell would he be thinking about that?
“You’re in love with Amanda Martindale, aren’t you?”
“I’ve asked her to marry me, but I doubt she’s going to.” He busied himself searching for a number in his phone directory.
“It’s serious, then.”
Something in the tone of his voice caused Liam to look over at him. “Yes, Jacques. It’s serious.”
He nodded silently. “I’ll leave you to it,” he said, with an elegant wave of his hand. “If I can be of assistance, let me know. I do have some contacts. Please keep me informed.”
“I’ll do that,” Liam said and picked up the phone.
Chapter Fourteen
The doorbell rang at twenty after six in the morning. Amanda blinked open her eyes and groaned. She was still sitting in the chair in the living room. Hunter and Scott had fallen asleep together on the sofa, Scott’s head on Hunter’s chest. She stood up, stretched her aching limbs and padded to the front door in her bare feet. The maid had arrived and was already at the door. Amanda was a little surprised to see Liam walking down the hallway toward her at this time in the morning. It was obvious from his appearance that he hadn’t slept. “We got him. We found Ciel.”
“Oh thank God,” she gasped, clutching the material of his shirt. “Let me tell Scott and…”
“Wait,” he said, placing a hand on her shoulder.
“What?” Amanda’s heart sank. “He’s all right, isn’t he?”
Liam shook his head. “No, but he’s alive.”
Amanda walked further down the hall with him, away from the living room. “What in hell happened?”
“He was taken hostage by some weirdo. He wasn’t given any food or water for days.”
“Oh my God.”
“The bastard is in custody. I called the police, and he was arrested. Scott’s boyfriend was suffering from severe dehydration. Another ten hours and he would have been dead. He’s at the hospital, in intensive care.”
Tears ran down Amanda’s face. “Who would do such a thing?”
Liam shook his head. “Makes you wonder. The guy is real nut job. He kept going on about how he loved him … Yeah, he loved him all right—he almost killed him.”
“Is Ciel going to make it?”
“They’re hopeful.”
“How did you…? Were you there when…?”
“It wasn’t exactly by legal means, so I won’t go into it too much. We broke in, overpowered the guy, and found Ciel tied up in the bedroom. I called the ambulance, and the police, and had the psycho arrested.”
Amanda hugged him. “Thank you, Liam.”
“Go and wake Scott up.” He smiled. “I’ll take him to the hospital now. Do you want me to tell him, or…?”
“No, I’ll tell him,” Amanda said. “I’ll call the detective and tell him it’s all over. Go into the kitchen and have some coffee. I’ll come get you when Scott’s ready.”
* * * *
Scott was now spending every day at the hospital with Ciel, who was getting stronger all the time. At least that was one thing off Amanda’s mind, but she was feeling the pressure as the date approached for the upcoming fund-raiser. She hoped Hunter would be ready to face his father.
Liam was coming over tonight and on his own this time. It would be just the three of them. She was looking forward to a little stress relief.
At about three o’clock that afternoon, she walked out onto the patio to find Hunter dancing with himself. She held back a smile. At one point, he came close to falling into the swimming pool, but he was doing well. When he saw her, he grinned. “Hey, woman, you be spying on me, then?”
“The grammar coach told you not to talk like that,” she pointed out.
He put out his hand as if waiting for a slap.
She pushed his hand away. “How are you really feeling now about the big event?”
“Fine. In fact, I can’t wait to see the old man’s face. I feel confident. Talk about ruining a dude’s evening!”
She smiled faintly. “It’s ‘man,’ not ‘dude,’ and it will serve him right.”
“I don’t want to spend my life trying to get back at him, Amanda. This is a one-time deal, right?”
He looked so serious all of a sudden. Amanda sobered. “Whatever you want, love.”
“I can talk politics with the best of them now. I can dance all these silly dances. I know the ending to My Fair Lady … God, I practically fell asleep, but I held on. That’s one long movie…”
Amanda giggled.
