Cellar Door

by Suzanne Steele

  “And I won’t lie, I fucking enjoyed every minute of it,” he says as he pulls away from the intersection and shoots me a sidelong glance. “Don’t be naïve, Madonna. If you run from me, I’ll hunt you down like an animal. The hunt gets me hard. Keeping you in my grip accelerates the thrill. And taking you, over and over? Well,” he whispers as he runs his tongue along his bottom lip, “that’s just delicious icing on the cake.”

  I squeeze my legs together, instinctively trying to find the friction that will soothe the ache his words have caused. His sinister chuckle makes clear that he not only saw it, but that he’s pleased by my predicament. We both know his brand of crazy pulls me in deeper, day after day. Whether I like it or not, the things he does to me arouse me beyond anything I’ve ever known.

  I can’t help but wonder if I’ll ever be normal again. I walked around for years blissfully unaware that I was prey. The predator in Liam immediately picked up on my scent and pursued me. Stalked me. Protected me.

  With the hands of a skilled master, he has brought the darkness within me out into the light. And all because he wanted to play.

  Liam

  My gut clenches as we approach the Our Lady of Tranquility hospital entrance. I pull into a parking space near the lobby doors and have to resist the urge to back up and take Madonna home.

  The need to remind her of just how much danger she’s in overrides the protector in me. I grab her by the back of her neck and pull her in so closely that we’re nose-to-nose. “You have no idea how much I detest doing this. The thought of anyone looking at you the way he’s going to look at you, the way he’ll want you, desire you…it unleashes a rage in me I’ve never known.

  “I can’t stand the thought of another man touching you, even if it is only in his imagination. The only reason I’m doing this is because I know once you look evil in the eye, when you see it in living, breathing form, you’ll be more cautious, and you’ll be a better writer for it. I’m your biggest fan, Madonna. I want to see you succeed.”

  I don’t give her a chance to answer, I just pull her close and lay siege to her mouth—taking her in the only way I can right now. I don’t think I’ll ever get enough of this woman. I pull away from her reluctantly and make sure she’s giving me her full attention. “The man you’re getting ready to meet is evil. He has no remorse about anything he’s ever done, anyone he’s ever killed. And if he’s ever set free, he will kill again. One more thing: don’t ever forget, you were his next target. If he’d had his way, you wouldn’t be alive today to visit him or anyone else.”

  “I know. I can handle this.”

  We exit the car and head toward the entrance. Some things can’t be explained by words. Only when evil touches our life and changes it forever, do we know the true depths of its depravity.

  We check in at the front desk and follow the guard down the hallway and enter the room I’ve become so familiar with over the last three years. Madonna sits down at the small table. I stand behind her and rest my hands on her shoulders, but turn abruptly to face the guard when he grumbles, “This’ll be the last time you meet in private, bein’ as how his visitor didn’t leave me no money this mornin’.”

  “What visitor?”

  “’Bout an hour ago. That shaggy-lookin’ boy in the gray hoodie ain’t footin’ the bill for your brother no more. It costs to have privacy; he don’t pay, then The Riddler here,” he drawls sarcastically, “don’t get no special privileges. Guess he won’t be payin’ for that high falutin’ lawyer of his no more either.”

  I can see the fear in Madonna’s face as soon as he says ‘grey hoodie’. She rises from the chair and steps away from the table, but waits to speak until the guard leaves to get Lance.

  “Oh, my God, Liam -- He was here! We could have run into him on the way in.”

  “Don’t get upset, my brother will only feed off of your fear. We’ll talk about it later,” I finish quickly as the sound of the heavy metal door opening announces my brother’s arrival. Madonna looks at me for reassurance so I meet her gaze with a small, reassuring nod. But I know nothing can prepare her for this encounter with Lance.

  Chapter Forty Six

  Madonna

  My stalker was in this very room only a little while ago. He probably sat in this chair. The thought prompts me to get up and stand with Liam. I don’t know anything about Lance except what Liam has told me, but it’s enough to make me shudder and appreciate more fully the protection that Liam gives me.

  In most any situation, when someone draws the purse strings closed, the dynamic between all parties involved changes. According to the guard, Lance’s fanboy was not only paying his legal fees but was also paying for Lance to have private, unrecorded visitations too. If he was paying for that, he was probably paying for other things too, like commissary privileges. If his financial support has been cut off, I wonder what impact that will have on Lance’s view of the situation.

  I keep my eyes rooted on the tile floor until his footsteps stop in front of the table, directly across from where I’m standing next to Liam as he leans against the wall. He refused to sit for some reason when we were shown into the room.

  The guard fastens Lance’s restraints to the metal hooks in the floor, then leaves the room to assume his post just outside. I release the breath I hadn’t realized I was holding and raise my eyes to meet his gaze. The resemblance is truly stunning; his face so precisely mirrors Liam’s handsome features, except for the eyes. The shape and color are the same, yes, but that’s as far as it goes. Lance’s eyes would be emotionless if it weren’t for the contemptuous glare he’s shooting in our direction. I deliberately keep my expression neutral. Liam’s right; Lance will feed off of my fear.

  “Well, well, it’s easy to see why you snatched this one, Liam--”

  “I’m with him of my own free will,” I interrupt, suddenly feeling terribly protective of Liam.

  “No, darlin’,” Lance drawls, leaning back in his chair and resting an ankle on the opposite knee. “You think you’re with him of your own free will. You’re not. Just try to leave him and see what happens. The beast that lives inside him will rear its ugly head and all hell will break loose. It’s in our genes; we take what we want. Isn’t that right, Liam?” Though his final remark is directed at Liam, his eyes never leave my face.

  “She’s well aware of what she’s dealing with.”

  Now they’re both looking at me. Great. ‘What’ she’s dealing with? Why not ‘who’?

  “She has no fucking idea what she’s dealing with. And she’ll continue to have no idea until she crosses you; then she’ll see the real you. All that pompous, professional bullshit the outside world sees?” he says as he shakes his head. “Not the real you. The dark, depraved beast you’re trying so hard to hide is the real you. One day soon, people will see you for who and what you really are.”

  “Sounds like you’re trying to convince yourself more than me, Lance.”

  “No, brother. I’m trying to look out for this sweet little tart of yours. You may have her believing you’re protecting her from the big bad wolf, but you’re the one she needs to be protected from.”

  I ignore him. This isn’t why I’m here. Liam and I came here to talk to him about the man who tried to kill me. The authorities won’t do anything until you get hurt, or worse. I want a name so I know who and what we’re dealing with.

  Liam crosses his arms over his chest. “Whether you like it or not, Lance, you have no one left but me.” He seems to take an educated guess and improvises, “It looks like your groupie isn’t enamored with you anymore. I hear he’s cut off all support for you. The gravy train has left the station, I guess. Do you know what’s really happened here, Lance? He’s gotten a taste of blood, he doesn’t need you anymore. Tell. Me. Who. He. Is.”

  Lance’s sadistic cackle makes my skin crawl. “Now why in the world would I play my ace in the hole? I have something you want. To me, that’s fucking priceless.”

  “Maybe telling the
police who he is could shave some time off your sentence.”

  “Nice try, brother. I’m a fucking serial killer; there won’t be any breaks for me.”

  “No, but it could ensure you’re more comfortable. Perhaps with more privileges, even a few luxuries, seeing as how your, um, minion protégé has flown the coop and taken his largesse with him.”

  Lance directs his attention back to me. “Listen to this fucking guy – ‘largesse’. I have never understood why he can’t talk like the rest of us. He goes out of his way to talk so educated. All it is, is a way to be a pompous asshole. He thinks he’s so much better than the rest of us who live in the real world.”

  I take a chance that he’ll be more responsive to me. I step away from Liam and sit down on the metal bench across from Lance. His chains clang against the metal table as he straightens slightly, his eyes narrowing. Even more than their arguing, the metallic sound resonates within me and almost makes me feel sorry for him. I’ve been in chains – recently, actually -- so I know how helpless it can make you feel. I’ll never tell him that, of course. But for a man who prefers to kill as a way to get and maintain control over women, it must be agony.

  “Ignore him, Lance. Talk to me.”

  “Now, that I can do.” He leans in and slides his tongue over his lips, his gaze wandering over me. “You sure are easy on the eyes, girl.”

  “Isn’t it only fair I know who my predator is?”

  “Your predator is right over there, leaning against the wall.”

  “I need to know if I’m correct that the man who visited you an hour ago is the man who tried to kill me. If he is, then I want his name and I want to know if he’s the man dumping bodies all over Louisville. Does this fan of yours really have it in him to do such horrible things?”

  “If I was a betting man, young lady…I’d bet my life on it. You should be careful,” he says solemnly. “If he ever gets the chance to kill you, he will. He wants to one-up me and you’re the perfect way to do it. You know, we’re star-crossed, you and me. You’re the one that got away, and nothing would please him more than to get to you because I couldn’t.”

  Even though Liam and I have always known the hooded man was the killer, for some reason hearing it from the man who’s the reason he ever started killing in the first place, is unnerving.

  I’m leaving here with a steely resolve to do whatever it takes to rid my life of this madness. I look back at Liam, who gives me a nod that it’s time to go. When I stand, Lance says something that makes me stumble as I push away from the table.

  “You know, rumor has it they might have locked up the wrong brother. My brother and I look so much alike, you see. Just think,” he says eagerly as he leans forward, rests his chin in his hand and bats his eyelashes at me. “You could be living with a serial killer. It’s not as farfetched as you may think. We look so much alike that I even had the pleasure of fucking a few of his women in the past. They never suspected a thing, other than wondering why the sex was suddenly so much more satisfying.” He looks me up and down insolently. I immediately want to take a shower to feel clean again when he purrs, “Mmmm… Oh, Madonna, how I would love to be a free man again…just for one night.” The bastard winks at me, like it’s our little secret.

  “Enough, Lance!” Liam barks as he moves away from the wall and takes a step toward the table.

  “Ooh, my, my, I do believe I’ve hit a nerve.” He leans back in his chair and returns his sultry, heavy-lidded gaze to me, murmuring, “Yes, you should be very careful, Madonna…very, very careful. My brother and I found each other late in life, but we do enjoy being twins and using it to our advantage. You could be nothing more than a pawn in our sick, fucked up games. As much as we despise each other, he and I are still very much twins. You, my dear, could very well be living with the evil one.”

  At that, I just want to wipe him off the face of the earth. Liam’s goal may have been to show me evil up close and personal, but I don’t think it was to do what he’s unwittingly done—awaken the evil within me.

  Chapter Forty Seven

  His Hidden Treasure

  I take a long drag off my cigarette as they exit the hospital. I’m hiding behind the large trunk of a tree next to the parking lot, but knowing I was with Lance only moments before they arrived is thrilling.

  Those two are up to something and I’m beginning to wonder if I’ve underestimated them. Maybe I’ve been spending too much time savoring my bloodlust to realize I have enemies trying to stop me from reaching my full potential. I simply can’t allow it.

  My eyes rake over the beautiful brunette with him. Yeah, Madonna should be with me; caged, of course, and naked…right up until I kill her.

  If he thinks I won’t try to go after her again just because he has her at the moment, he’s mistaken. Competition only makes the hunt more exciting. Outsmarting both brothers will be a dream come true.

  I still can’t figure out why they haven’t told the authorities who I am. Maybe they aren’t completely convinced I’m the one doing it. That must be it; I need to work harder to prove myself worthy of being considered a true serial killer.

  I step away from the tree with a new resolve. I’ll find another whore tonight. They’re so careless, it shouldn’t be too difficult. They’ll get into anyone’s car for the sake of the almighty dollar. How do they convince themselves it will be alright, that nothing bad will happen to them? I wonder how the whore who gets in my car tonight will lie to herself that she’ll make it home safe. One thing’s for sure: it will be the last lie she ever tells.

  I get in my car and toss a half-empty water bottle onto the passenger seat, grinning from ear to ear. Now that gives me an idea…

  Chapter Forty Eight

  Liam

  I don’t say a word as I lead her over to the wall. I take my time, leisurely tucking her hair behind her ear and tugging softly on her ear lobe as I whisper instructions. “Keep your back straight and that gorgeous head of yours held high. Don’t speak. Don’t move. Just give yourself over to me.”

  I pull her arms behind her back, gently bending them at the elbow so that each hand is clasped on the opposite forearm. “There’s a reason why I place you in positions that go against your body’s natural alignment, why I stripped your clothes as soon as I closed the front door. These things force you to concentrate, to put your mental focus where I want it to be—on me. For example, right now, you’re paying attention to every move I make. You’re listening, your body is trembling, and you have no idea what’s coming next. It’s all about mindfulness, Madonna.”

  I close my eyes, breathing in as I savor the delicious sensation of the blood rushing to my cock. My hands slide up and down her upper arms, stroking and soothing. “Do you know what a master is, Madonna? No? Well, a master owns his woman, a master controls his slave. The concept sounds demeaning to those who don’t understand the beautiful simplicity of dominance and submission.”

  I slowly trace my fingertips down her backbone to stroke the two sexy dimples on her lower back. It’s one of my favorite parts of a woman’s body. My fingers travel lightly down her side to her lower abdomen and beyond, where I slide my fingertips slowly through her slit.

  “Now, the real question is…why does it make you so wet? I have the answers to all your questions about what’s going inside of you—why your body reacts to the things I do to you, why you want the dirty, filthy things you don’t think you should want. Simple, really. You’re perfect; you were made for me.

  “You could go to the ends of earth and I’d still be inside your head. I love having you at my mercy. There is no other intoxication quite like absolute control. I’m going to tap into your innermost darkness, and that is how I’ll set you free.”

  “Liam?” she asks in a questioning tone.

  “Did I give you permission to speak?” She shakes her head. “I didn’t think so. You’ve assumed a classic submissive stance. You didn’t even know that and yet your body responds perfectly. You’re mine
, Madonna, and I don’t mean just your body, you’re mine here--” I murmur as I nuzzle her hair and breathe her in, “yes, here in your mind. You’ll think about me whether you want to or not because I’ve tapped into your darkest desires. What my brother said? It’s true, you could be living with a killer. Would you stay if you found out I was a serial killer?”

  “I don’t believe that about you, Liam. You’re not a monster.”

  “That’s it… Lie to yourself but it won’t stop that nagging fear in the back of your mind. It’s true, what he says about me having twisted sexual needs. I guess you could say he and I do have a love-hate relationship. You can’t grow in the same womb of a woman and not be connected. Perhaps that’s the reason we both harbor such dark secrets.

  “I won’t defend myself from what Lance said. I will, however, feed on your fear, your doubts, and I’ll prey on your vulnerabilities.”

  I smile as I stroke her clit in deep, smooth glides of my finger and reach up with my free hand to palm a breast, smirking as a fresh surge of her arousal flows over my fingertips. “But while I feed off that fear, I’ll be fucking you senseless. I’m sure you won’t mind…”

  Madonna

  It’s never the same with him, the sex. When he brings me to this sensuous, erotic place in my mind, this subspace where the only thing that’s real is his touch, only one thing is ever predictable: Liam’s need for control. I am more than willing to fulfill that need in him because I have become addicted to the submission that fuels his sexual appetites.

  “Where are you, off in your head somewhere? Tsk, tsk.” He pulls my arms up by my crossed elbows just enough to cause me to cry out in a mixture of fear and pain.

  “Why does rough sex turn you on, Liam?” I can hear my own breathing and it’s heavy with need—need for him.