by Alan Wild
Smiling, Noah couldn’t shake the horrible feeling that something was wrong. The decision to come clean and talk to Ajay didn’t come easy. Talking wasn’t Noah’s talent. “Ajay, I am worried. I’ve never had a boyfriend, been in a relationship, or gone on a date. Oliver came along and didn’t give me a chance to run. He held on and refused to let me go it alone. I love him. I can’t shake the feeling that it is all going to end. I can be a handful. I get sick of myself. I can understand if he wants to walk away.”
“That’s what I wanted to talk to you about. See, Oliver is kicking himself and is on self-destruct. He is going to need some space. I don’t want you to take it personally if he doesn’t come by the hospital to visit. He is hurting, and instead of pulling us close, he is pushing us away. On the bright side, you have the rest of us. I am a little more difficult to get rid of. I guess it is good that I kind of like you.”
“Where is Oliver at now? There is no way in hell my family is going to let him self-destruct. My sister, NelDean will drive him crazy until he talks to her. I tried to warn him about the dangers of living with my family, but he insisted they stay.
Chapter 31
Noah Blain
“That was the longest four days of my life. I swear to god, if someone else poked me or woke me up to retake my vitals, I was going to cut a bitch,” Noah said as he crawled up the stairs. He mumbled under his breath, something about the food, and snapped at Oliver, who tried to give him a hand. Making his way to the bed, Noah said, “I am sorry I’m a bitch. I think that I need to take a nap, then I should be fine.” Oliver offered Noah one of his prescription pain pills. Noah snapped at Oliver again and apologized again, then asked for the over the counter stuff.
Sleep came fast, as did the dreams. “Tied to a chair and unable to move, panic sets in. Trying to scream, and nothing comes out. He is silenced, unable to move or make a sound. The laugh comes from somewhere in the room, and it is bouncing off the walls like echoes in the Grand Canyon. Shaking, trembling, and sweat building on his brow, the laugh comes closer. The knife is shining and reflecting the light he couldn’t see. Noah felt the man’s presence, it was familiar and haunting. The man Noah knew as Salvatore Petrelli flew forward, driving the knife into Noah’s chest. Screaming, crying, and trying to catch his breath, Noah was calmed by his boyfriend, who, five minutes earlier, was sleeping next to him.
Looking at the clock, Noah asked, “How long have I been sleeping?” Kissing Noah on the forehead, Oliver said, “You have been sleeping for ten hours so far. Moaning and rubbing his hands over his face, Noah said, “I only wanted to take a nap.” Rubbing Noah’s neck, pulling him closer, Oliver kissed him softly, pulled back, and said, “You need to rest. We have been to hell and back in the last couple of weeks. We both need to recuperate. Plus, my beautiful partner, we have a big day tomorrow.” Rolling over and scooting into his lover’s furry embrace, Noah allowed himself to be spooned. After they let silence take over. Noah knew by the way Oliver was breathing that he was not sleeping. He said, “Oliver, are you okay?” With tears falling, Oliver said, “I have you, I am better than okay.”
Noah turned back over, facing Oliver, “Do you want to talk about it?” Again, silence, even being so close to each other, Noah felt as though they were miles apart. “Please talk to me, Oliver.” The sound of his lover's voice sent his emotions into overdrive, the anguish forming in the pit of his stomach. Oliver said, “I am so sorry! I am sorry, do you hate me?” Weighing his words carefully, Noah pulled Oliver closer and said, “How could I ever hate you? I love you. You did nothing wrong.” Noah gently wiped the tears away, leaving his hand on his lover’s face.
Oliver asked, “How can you ever trust me again?”
“I trust you, that isn’t even a concern for me. I’ve never had a relationship before you. I can’t identify and label all the emotions I feel for you. I do know that I trust you. I can’t say that I understand what control that Anthony has over you. Even lying in the hospital bed feeling like shit. I noticed the change in you. He assaulted you, Oliver, it is called rape. Did you enjoy it?” asked Noah.
Wiping the tears, Oliver said, “No. not in the least.” Moving the hair from Oliver’s face, Noah said, “You can say he raped you. He hurt you again, Oliver, he is lucky that I wasn’t able to walk in that room. He would have required medical attention. There is one thing I want to know; I just don’t understand. Knowing Anthony like you do, and knowing how he treats you, why did you go with him?”
Oliver tried to answer the question. The answer that came to his mind wasn’t one that made sense. Noah grew tired of waiting and said, “Just say it. Say what you are thinking, please.”
Shaking his head, Oliver said, “It just doesn’t make sense.” Inhaling deeply, Noah said, “Try me, please, give me that much credit.” In a low voice, Oliver said with tears falling faster, “He owns me” Noah sat up so quickly it caused pain internally and from the stitches. “Ollie, no fucking way! No! He doesn’t own you; no one owns you. Please tell me you don’t believe that he owns you. Why would you think that?”
Breathing in deeply, Oliver said, “We need to get some sleep.” Noah shook his head and said, “No, I want to hear you say it. I need you to say that he doesn’t own you.” Oliver pulled back and stiffened a bit and said, “You wouldn’t understand.” Noah began to get up slowly and said, “As long as you refuse to explain it, you’re right. I wouldn’t understand.” Noah painfully started for the door, turned, and said, “All my life, people have treated me like I was simple. They assumed that because I was quiet, I was dumb. I thought that you would be different.” Noah made it to the stairs, and Oliver caught up with him and said, “Please come back. I will tell you everything, just don’t leave.”
Laying back in bed, Noah was rigid and tried to avoid Oliver’s touch. Oliver began, “I told you how everything ended between Anthony, right? Well, here is the part that I left out. When I was being terminated, Anthony thought that I would go away silently. I found out about his plan a month in advance, and I collected enough information to secure more money than he was willing to pay. I blackmailed him. I threatened to tell his wife about us, and in exchange for my silence, I received 14.5 million dollars. Anthony told me all the time that he owned my ass. He treated me like I was property, His property. I guess after a while, I started to believe him. When he had me in that room, it was like I was back in California again. He was forceful and demanding. I guess it was his payback.”
“Now, you must really hate me,” Oliver said. Shaking his head, Noah said, “I didn’t hate you before, and I don’t hate you now. I would have demanded more than 14.5 million. So, Oliver, I am still here, and I still need to hear you say that no one owns you. I do not own you, and Anthony sure as hell doesn’t own you. But you need to say it, more importantly, you need to believe it.” Oliver said, “No one owns me” Noah moved in closer and said, “Now, I need you to believe it.”
“So, can we talk about what happened when Sal had abducted you and had you tied up?” Asked Oliver. “I understand if you don’t want to relive it, but you have to talk about it with someone.” Noah knew this time was coming, and he said, “I wanted to survive so we could be together. I have lived alone for so long. When you have nothing but work, TV, and radio, you spend time thinking. I had time to think, contemplate, plan, and fret. I watched a lot of talk shows, movies and I thought about what I would do during an apocalypse, during a robbery, and if I was ever tied up and kidnapped. I had every scenario planned. I never really felt that it would happen to me. It did happen to me, and I was ready. Until I thought that you were dead, then I gave up, I was in despair. Sal was disgusted that you survived his attack. He said that you were wheeled into your house, Once I knew you were alive, it was game on. Sal punched me in the face, he swung again, missed my face, and hit my shoulder, dislocating it. That gave me enough room to pull my hands free. Someone was beating at the door, so he left me.
I managed to untie my feet. I found a lamp
, and when I had the opportunity, I hit him with it. I knocked him out, I climbed on top of him and poured the crap he used to knock me out on his face to make sure he was out. I was about to finish what he started when you and Nora came in.
The entire time he had me tied up and tortured, my body went into survival mode, thinking of things I would do differently if I made it through the ordeal. I guess you can say that I went from having hope and despair and back to hope. I went through the full circle of emotions.
You know what, though? If I had met Sal before all of this, I would have felt sorry for him. There is a reason that he believed his father. The man is evil, and he used Sal for his own revenge. He had to know that there is no possible way he would ever get any money. It was all a lie. Alvatore was a master at manipulation.
After a few minutes of silence, Oliver asked, “Do you feel sorry for me? I fell for Anthony’s manipulation.”
“I am sorry that he hurt you. You did nothing to deserve that. That was assault, it goes way beyond manipulation. He doesn’t own you, and he never did anything to deserve you.”
“The entire time I was being beaten and called every unimaginable name out there, one thing kept me holding on. That was you, Oliver. See, I remembered Nate and Ray giving you a hard time about the surveillance video. He said something about you dancing naked to Dolly Parton. That is what I held onto. The picture of you dancing naked to Dolly Parton. I had hope that I would survive to see you dance. Oliver pulled his man in tight and listened as sleep reclaimed him.
As he laid there, willing himself to sleep, his mind kept drifting back to the situation with Anthony. “Everything about the man was the same. I allowed myself to go back in time. He said the two words, and I just fell into place, obedient and compliant. Sure, I said no at first, I paid the price for that before so the longer I refused, the worse it would be.
Noah pities me, Ajay is pissed off at me. Ray looks on like it’s a three-ring circus and I’m the damn clown, I am just a fucking joke. What am I supposed to do? They all wanted me to report it as rape. I am 6’4” 235 lbs. To Anthony’s 6’1” 190 lbs. How is that rape?”
“Shit, I don’t deserve Noah. He sees me for who I am, quirks and all, and he stays around. It gets tiring, always having to be ‘on,’ to be the funny guy, the one that brightens everyone’s day. I feel like I want to hit the road again, I don’t know why I didn’t discover anything the first time. Yeah, I met some great people, I learned that I could become a great chef in time, I am a good cook already. What good does that do? I am still me. I do love this man in my arms, he says he loves me too. I hope that love is enough.” Oliver closed his eyes and practiced breathing exercises. Finally, the man found sleep.
Morning came faster than Oliver expected it to. Feeling like he just fell asleep, he pulled himself out of bed and padded to the shower. He noticed that the shower was wet, and he thought, “Noah must already be downstairs. I hope he makes coffee.” With shampoo in his hair and his body washed, Oliver rinsed off. The smell hit him first. The smile crept on his face, and he flashed his brilliant whites. “Oh my God, I love you. Thank you for the coffee. That is Amazing. Noah stood with coffee in one hand and two doughnuts on a plate in the other. Noah said, “Good morning Mr. Hunky. Everyone is ready to go; we are just waiting for you.”
Chapter 32
Jake, the realtor, arrived before anyone else. He saw the SUV pulled in and held up the keys with a smile on his face. Noah reached over, grabbed Oliver’s hand, and asked, “Are you ready for this? It’s not too late to back out.” Oliver said, “Are you kidding me? Never. Let’s go check it out. The designer will be here at 11:00 AM, so we have time for all of us to pick our offices. I have a surprise for you.” Walking into the building that is the home to 5280 investigations, Oliver grabbed Noah by the hand and pulled him to an office. Noah said, “I don’t remember seeing this office.” Oliver said, “I know, I kept it a surprise. So, here is the office we share together then we each have an office of our own that is connected to our shared office. That way, when you get tired of me, you can escape.
Nora walked in and told the boys, “So everyone has their offices picked out. I am taking the last office to the right. It has a great view.” Oliver looked at Noah, and they both were speechless. Noah moved closer to Oliver and asked, “What in the hell did you do?” Oliver shook his head and said, “I have no idea what is going on. I am innocent here. It is your family.” Nora spoke up and said, “What is it that you gays say? Bitch, please! When you marry one, you get the whole family. Oliver just shrugged his shoulders and said, “I have no complaints.” Noah asked, “And exactly what are you going to do in that office?” Nora shrugged her shoulders and said, “you first baby bro.” Tell me, how is it that you can afford this building? It must be, what? Six or seven million dollars, right? Oliver said, “Oh, wow, look at the time. I really need to go.” NelDean walked in along with Nellie, their mom. NelDean said, “Oh, hell no, you aren’t going anywhere. You are a part of this family too.”
Noah crossed his arms, stuck out his bottom lip, and said, “Fine! You want to do this now; we can do this now. Grandmother’s last husband was very wealthy. Grandmother left me everything. I had been investing every cent that I earned from high school on, and I did very well for myself. My net worth when I turned 25 was 18 million, thanks to bitcoin. Before you start bitching at me, I will show you the will. More importantly, I decided to not follow Grandmother’s wishes. I have split the inheritance in four ways. After taxes and penalties, we each should have around 30 Million. You can decide if you want to live on the interest or if you want to cash out. I have it all invested right now.”
NelDean said, “Fuck, I need to sit down for this.” The office was empty, so NelDean chose the floor. Once she was comfortable, she said, “Continue on bitches” When no one spoke up, Noah asked, “So what are you going to do in that office you have chosen Nora?”
Shaking her shoulders like she was going into a fight, Nora said, “International security contracts. You’re going worldwide.”
Noah said in a snide voice, “Oh, how cute, and what makes you qualified for this position you have chosen for yourself?” Nora moved closer to Noah with her arms crossed, and her eyes squinting. Oliver said, “Woah there, no fighting. She is qualified and hired. Nora, your brother, just got out of the hospital. NelDean had an incredulous look and asked Oliver, you knew too?
Oliver smiled, “Ah, yeah, I am an investigator, nothing gets past me. Plus, I read her email from over her shoulder when we were in the safe room.” Nora popped her knuckles, looked at Noah, and said, “He is safe for now.”
NelDean laughed once and asked, “What kind of a Ninja Spy are you if you have to beat up on someone that just gave you 30 million dollars? Time to spill your secret sis.”
Nora said, “Fine, I am a CIA agent. I was anyway. I was fired because of all the shit that went down here. It doesn’t look suitable for the CIA when an agent is on the scene and as uninformed as I was. Plus, when we moved to Florida, my supervisor changed my employment from full time, I became contract labor. They severed all ties with me two days ago.
Noah picked his jaw from the floor and said, “Fine, I expect to see a detailed business plan in a week. You can also explain in the proposal about how you are going to manage your position from Florida. NelDean laughed and said, “She didn’t tell you, did she? Shocker. She thinks we should move back. All our friends are here, and she said the bugs are too fucking big in Florida. Noah put on his best performance and said, “Just fucking great” As he turned away, the smile on his face could not be hidden from Oliver.
Nora asked Oliver, “Are you sure I can’t at least knock him on his ass?” Oliver just crossed his arms, moved in front of Noah, and shook his head. NelDean clapped her hands and said, “Too bad, we don’t have popcorn. This shit is golden. Who else is keeping secrets?” NelDean looked directly at her mom and said, “Oh, that is right, mother, you are.”
Nellie rolled her
eyes and said, “If I didn’t give birth to you, I would swear you were adopted. It is alright with me if we do this here. Do you have your tissues, NelDean?”
“Hey, I am not the one with secrets.” NelDean said, “I have absolutely nothing to hide. I am the only one that is truthful.”
Nellie said in a low tone, “Not for long.” Nellie said, “Well, if I must. Nora is only your half-sister. Your father was in love with a man. I was in love with the same man, and they both loved me. Our relationship was unheard of back then, and we were young. Nora’s father had a fight with his family, this was an ongoing battle he fought every time he visited them. They didn’t approve of our relationship. They wanted him to cut it off with your father and marry me. His mother continued to tell him, ‘it’s the right thing to do now that Nellie is expecting a child’ He was driving upset and was in a fatal car accident. Your father and I were devastated. We wanted the man we both loved dearly to live on, and we needed to be reminded that he loved us too. Your father named you NelDean after the two people he loved most. Me and Dean. Noah, you are also named after him. His first name was Noah, and Dean was his middle name. Your father and I married after Noah Dean died because I was pregnant with Nora.”
NelDean was digging in her bag for tissues. “Damn family secrets, when were you going to tell us this information mom?”
Nellie said, “Oh, I wasn’t going to tell you at all. This is my secret. I loved two men, and they loved me back. When I was in the assisted living home, I ran into Cynthia, Dean’s sister. The bitch thinks she is entitled to know Nora. They caused Noah Dean’s death; they don’t deserve to know Nora. I have no idea what that vile woman will do, so I needed to tell you before she did.”
