Bloody Sunset

by Gwendolyn Harper

  The soft whine that escaped him was the most arousing noise she’d ever heard in her life.

  “Please, Cae,” he murmured, careful not to turn his head and kiss her yet. “Darlin’ I’m…”

  “Shh, it’s okay. Almost there,” she said. “Do you want to touch me?”

  Booker nodded, nearly smacking his skull on the wall behind him.

  “How?”

  He faltered, brought to a sudden halt by too many options.

  Caitlin grinned. “Hand? Or mouth?”

  Booker sucked in air.

  “Mouth,” he said, sounding utterly wrecked.

  Tilting her head, she claimed his lips with hers, sliding her tongue inside in an almost obscene mimicry of what they both knew he desperately wanted.

  Moaning against her, Booker lifted one hand to cup the back of her neck but quickly dropped it when he remembered he hadn’t been given permission.

  Caitlin made a mental note to reward him for his efforts in the morning.

  As she kissed him, she swung one leg over his and dropped down, grinding against his thigh. Immediately Booker canted upwards, doing his best to give her the friction she needed.

  Nipping his bottom lip, Caitlin dragged it between her teeth and released him with a smirk.

  “Cae, I…” He swallowed. “I ain’t gonna last. Please…”

  Rocking her hips, she moaned.

  “Please, what?” She asked, teasing him even more with every movement.

  Forcing air into his lungs, Booker looked up at her.

  “Fuck me,” he pleaded. “However ya want, just…”

  Pulling back, she shifted her weight onto her knees and rearranged her limbs. The panic in Booker’s eyes as she withdrew instantly made her reach out for him.

  “Lie on your back,” she said, stroking her thumb under the hinge of his jaw. “I want to see your face.”

  Steadying himself, Booker did as she said, giving her space to straddle him.

  Replacing his hand with her own, Caitlin stroked him lazily, enjoying the noises he made at even the lightest of touches.

  Throwing an arm over his eyes, Booker took several deep breaths to anchor himself.

  “I love how much this turned you on,” Caitlin said, swiping her thumb over his tip. “If I’d known this was something you were into, we would have been doing it way more often.”

  Chuckling faintly, he moved his arm and stared up at her. “Honestly, I’m a little surprised myself.”

  “Guess it’s never too late for a little self-exploration,” she said, inching up higher to his hips. “Especially when it’s this fucking hot.”

  Pulling her panties to the side, Caitlin lined him up and took him to the base in one move.

  “Ah, fuck,” he groaned, tossing his head back.

  Lust and power made Caitlin dizzy, and she grinned as she watched him fight for control.

  “So good, Jack,” she murmured, running her hands over his chest. “So, so good.”

  She went slow for his benefit, knowing if he finished before her he’d feel lousy.

  And that was not how she wanted this to end.

  Caitlin continued to talk, praising every single inch of him. Every movement, every look, every breath.

  He was perfect—to her, for her, in her.

  Her climax rushed towards her as she rocked, but she held off as long as she could, eager to give him the ride of his life.

  Sweat slicked Booker’s chest and as she lifted up, her hand slipped from his pectoral to the front of his throat.

  “Shit, sorry,” she exclaimed, yanking her palm off his windpipe.

  She expected him to chuckle and tease her about literally trying to kill him in bed.

  So, when Booker instead took her wrist and placed her hand back where it was, Caitlin nearly lost her balance.

  “Jack, I… Are you sure?”

  He nodded and gently took her other hand in his, lifting it to his neck.

  “Just keep your thumbs here,” he said, guiding her. “And don’t lean all your weight on your hands, and we’ll be alright.”

  She blinked, then blinked again, expecting it to be an elaborate sex fueled illusion.

  But he was too real, too solid under her fingers to be a hallucination.

  “How… how much pressure do you…?”

  Booker covered her hands with his and pushed, indicating what he needed.

  Nothing out of a bondage film, but certainly enough to feel it.

  Caitlin nodded. She could work with that.

  To serve. To be given orders. To be controlled.

  The lesser seen pieces of Booker were starting to click into place for her.

  As she quickly picked up the pace, she watched with fascination and hunger as his eyes drifted shut, mouth falling open in blissful rapture.

  The thundering of his pulse under her fingers gave her reassurance as she rode him mercilessly.

  To have that much power over her lover, to be told to pin him down and choke him… It poured gasoline on her already unbearable inferno.

  With little warning, Caitlin shattered apart, crying out as she came. “Jack, oh fuck, Jack!”

  Growling deep in his chest, he bowed off their bed, clutching her hips as he found release soon after.

  Panting, she tipped her head back, ripples of pleasure still coursing through her.

  Carefully, she removed her hands from the column of his throat, tracing loving, aimless designs into his reddened skin. She continued massaging his collarbones, his shoulders, all the way down his chest and abdomen.

  It wasn’t until her mouth felt dry that she realized she was talking to him, whispering her adoration in soothing tones.

  All Booker seemed to be able to do was breathe, coming back to himself bit by bit.

  Leaning forward, Caitlin kissed a trail up his sternum and neck to the point of his chin.

  “That was…” He murmured, eyes hooded.

  Caitlin’s stomach trembled in anticipation.

  “That may well have been some of the best sex of my life,” he said finally.

  The relieved laugh that flew past her lips was infectious, as Booker started to chuckle too.

  “Don’t get me wrong,” he continued, hand running up and down her left thigh mindlessly. “There’s never been a bad time with you. But that was…”

  “What you needed,” she finished for him.

  Booker nodded, angling his head to look at her. “Thank you, songbird.”

  “I love you, Jack,” she whispered, kissing the corner of his mouth. “I never want you to feel… unsure.”

  “I don’t,” he hurried to say. “Like I said, y’tell me in your own way all the time.”

  She smiled. “Well maybe I can learn to say it more in your way too.”

  Humming low in his throat, Booker’s lips curved in a soft grin.

  “Guess next time we’ll have to do a little explorin’ for you, huh?”

  “You better get out a pen and paper then,” she said, flipping her hair off her shoulder. “’Cause my list is extensive.”

  “I don’t reckon a high school library has books on that kinda thing, does it?” He said with a smirk.

  “Doubt it.”

  “Hm. Guess you’ll just have’ta show me.”

  Kissing her sweetly, Booker wrapped an arm around her waist, holding her close.

  As the silence wrapped around them like a blanket, Caitlin rested her head on his shoulder, listening to the soft in and out of air from his lungs.

  “Cae, did you…” He cleared his throat.

  She nodded. “The revolver’s with Nathaniel.”

  Tension ebbed from his arms. “And…”

  “Yep,” she assured. “I hid my knife.” Glancing up at his profile, she added, “We’re safe. I promise.”

  Rolling them onto their sides, Booker kissed the top of her head before tucking her under his chin.

  “Thank you, songbird.”

  It was the first night in a
week Booker slept through without incident, or even stirring awake to change positions.

  And when he didn’t wake up with the sun, like Caitlin always did, she let him rest.

  Chapter Eleven

  “That can’t be possible,” Luna said, folding her arms. “Someone must be mistaken.”

  Slowing their gait, Caitlin and Booker approached the cluster of officials cautiously.

  “We’ve looked everywhere,” Steve said, gesturing to Nathaniel. “Even checked the vehicles and the playing field past the fence.”

  “Hey y’all,” Booker greeted. “Everythin’ alright?”

  Nathaniel’s expression was grim. “Donna’s missing.”

  Caitlin’s heart rate doubled.

  “You’re sure?” She asked.

  “No,” Luna countered. “Someone said they saw her yesterday at dinner.”

  “Someone thought they saw her,” Steve said. “No one has actually had a conversation with her since yesterday morning when she brought the suspicious knife and boots to Nate and Mark.”

  “Y’think she left?” Booker asked, glancing around at the group.

  “Donna cared about everyone in this camp,” Luna said. “I can’t imagine she’d just pick up and leave without saying anything. She must be around here somewhere, and we need to find her in case she’s hurt or having a medical emergency.”

  Caitlin frowned. “Was she sick?”

  “No, but she has chronic asthma,” Nathaniel said. “Said she kept it under control for the most part but if she had an acute attack without access to her inhaler…”

  Shifting his weight, Booker planted his hands on his hips. “Y’all, maybe we oughta let the others know. ‘Bout everythin’.”

  Luna gaped at him. “We can’t.”

  “People should know, Luna,” Steve interjected.

  “It would start a panic,” she said. “First telling them we might have a violent sociopath in our midst, then announcing Donna is missing? We’d have a terrified mob in less than thirty seconds.”

  “But we need an organized search for Donna,” Nathaniel said. “And we can’t do that without informing people of what we’re dealing with.”

  “And we need everyone to stay sharp,” Caitlin added. “We still don’t know who this person is, or what their next move might be. We need all eyes and ears on the lookout.”

  “That would just tip them off,” Luna said, pushing her hair out of her face. “If we announce it to the group, then we’d be announcing it to the person we’re searching for too.”

  “Deadly rock, deadly hard place,” Booker said.

  “Exactly,” Luna agreed with a nod. “Either way, we’re screwed.”

  Waving his hand in a placating motion, Steve said, “Okay, maybe we should call in the other officials. Maybe even Max and Sister Agnes for added perspective. This isn’t a decision we can make on the fly.”

  “And what about Donna?” Caitlin asked. “The longer we wait, the more trouble she could be in.”

  Turning to Nathaniel, Booker jerked his chin at him. “You ever a part of search ‘n’ rescues in the fire department?”

  “Yeah.” Nathaniel nodded. “All the time.”

  “Could put together a small search party, lay out a grid, really check this place top to bottom,” Booker offered. “That way we ain’t gotta waste anymore time lookin’ for her but it won’t be as obvious somethin’s wrong.”

  Nathaniel and Steve looked to Luna expectantly.

  “Okay,” she relented. “But please try to keep the suspicions to a minimum. We already have the rumor mill pumping out enough worried gossip as it is.”

  Nodding, Nathaniel faced Booker. “I’ll grab my stuff and pull Alonzo and Edward off their work details. Meet you in the teacher’s lounge twenty minutes?”

  “You got it.”

  As Nathaniel took off, Luna and Steve dispersed to find the other officials, leaving Booker and Caitlin alone in the hallway.

  Crossing her arms, Caitlin looked up at Booker. “I’m trying not to be offended by how obviously I wasn’t included in this boy’s club search party.”

  Running a soothing hand down her bicep, he said, “I think Nate just ain’t used t’workin’ with you on a team.”

  “Yeah, well…” She refused to sulk. She was better than that.

  Leaning down, Booker pressed a kiss to her hairline. “You’re on my team,” he murmured. “So I’m includin’ you.”

  Smiling despite herself, Caitlin said, “Thank you. I appreciate that.”

  After a moment of thought, she added, “I’m going to let Nicole and Scott know. Maybe they’ll be able to help too.”

  Booker nodded. “I’ll meet ya in the lounge.”

  With their small group gathered, Nathaniel doled out assignments—explaining how to mark each place they’d searched and how they were to check in every hour.

  Everything was done by the book.

  Methodically and patiently, each team of two combed their sections of the school and the surrounding land.

  It took them the rest of the afternoon, sniffing out clues or signs of life like blood hounds.

  By dusk, they were all exhausted and even more concerned than they had been before.

  Nothing. Donna was nowhere to be seen.

  Seemingly vanished off the face of the earth.

  Her small collection of belongings kept in a backpack at the foot of her sleeping bag was a haunting signal fire that she hadn’t run away, hadn’t simply left.

  At dinner the elected officials made the announcement.

  Donna was missing and they had reason to believe something malicious happened to her.

  * * * * * * *

  Caitlin couldn’t breathe.

  She was drowning, struggling for a single gulp of air, surrounded by darkness.

  “Cae!”

  Through the endless night, she reached for him.

  “Cae, c’mon!”

  Her throat burned, and she tried to yell back.

  “Caitlin!” Booker yelled.

  Something shook her, and the darkness fell away.

  “Wake up, darlin’, c’mon!”

  Gasping, Caitlin bolted upright.

  Her eyes burned and she still couldn’t breathe.

  Disoriented, she flailed her arms, searching for Booker.

  “Jack?” She coughed as smoke filled her nose and throat. “What’s happening?”

  “Buildin’s on fire,” he said, hoisting her up by the elbows. “We gotta go.”

  She blinked, tears already starting to well from the thick, noxious cloud.

  Their room was enveloped in a blanket of deadly grey.

  “Grab your gear,” Booker told her. “Make a run for the nearest exit.”

  Snatching the rucksack she never unpacked and her shoes, she covered her mouth with the crook of her elbow, trying to gain some relief from the smoke.

  “Booker, where—”

  “I dunno,” he said, grabbing a blanket off the bed to cover them with if necessary.

  Testing the door handle, he found it wasn’t hot, and opened the door, another billowing cloud of fumes rushing in.

  Caitlin could hear the screams.

  Chaos had taken over the hallways. People scrambling to gather what they could and get out. Several were yelling, asking where the fire was coming from, others giving orders.

  “Caitlin?!” Nicole’s voice cut through the noise.

  “Over here!” She yelled, breaking into a cough, chest tight from lack of fresh air.

  Booker guided her through the smoke towards the side exit.

  Trying the knob, he cursed. “It’s locked.”

  “What?”

  Caitlin tried it herself. It didn’t budge.

  “Shit.” Covering her nose and mouth with the sleeve of her shirt, she turned. “We have to go out the front.”

  Something—someone—collided with her in the haze.

  “We can’t figure out where the fire is,” Nicole said. “It mi
ght’ve started outside.”

  “Well we ain’t stayin’ in here to find out,” Booker said. “C’mon.”

  Gripping each other’s hands tight, they ran together towards the lobby of the school.

  “Where’s Scott?” Caitlin asked, trying to see through the smoke.

  “Trying to save as many medical supplies as he can,” Nicole said. “I can’t leave without him, Booker.”

  “And I ain’t lettin’ you die of smoke inhalation,” he snapped. “We’ll getcha outside. I’ll come back for Scott.”

  Caitlin dug her nails into the back of his hand. “Jack—”

  “’S alright,” he said, forcing himself to seem calm. “We’re gonna be fine, I promise.”

  Terrified throngs of people were running towards the same door, crowding it.

  “Everyone, stay calm,” Nathaniel shouted over the panicked yelling. “Single file, run for the parking lot and stay as far away from the building as possible.”

  “Nate!” Booker called. “What caused it?”

  “I have no idea,” Nathaniel replied, helping people through the door. “We can’t even figure out where it’s coming from. It’s all smoke right now.”

  Caitlin knew the old adage was true—where there was smoke, there’d be fire. But if they couldn’t find the flames, they couldn’t save their home.

  As they got closer, Nathaniel took the duffle bag he held off his shoulder and passed it to Booker.

  “I grabbed our weapons and ran,” he admitted. “Figured that’s the necessity we can’t live without now.”

  Clapping him on the arm, Booker nodded. “Good man.”

  “Head for the parking lot,” Nathaniel told them. “I’ll stay here as long as I can.”

  Reaching into the front of her bag, Caitlin took out a handkerchief and pushed it into his hand as they passed.

  “Here,” she said. “To help with the smoke.”

  Nathaniel gave her fingers a quick squeeze. “Thanks.”

  The frigid Kansas night was a shock to her system as they jogged across the short lawn towards the expanse of asphalt.

  Vaguely, Caitlin realized she hadn’t put her shoes on.

  Huddled together in one large mass, their group stared up at the school in terror.

  Children’s fearful cries were soothed by Sister Agnes as she corralled them near the curb.

  Booker dropped the duffle bag at his feet and bent down to check what weapons they had.