Hunting Truth (Orion the Hunter Part Four)

by J. D. Chase

  I didn’t know whether he’d seen me but I didn’t want to draw attention to myself by attempting to run away. I decided to continue moving slowly along the wall, my back against it and I thought I’d got away with it until Hulk turned to face me and pointed at me, before pointing at the ground in front of him.

  What the fuck do I do now? My heart was threatening to jump out of my chest. I didn’t want to draw attention to myself lest Lucas see me, so I decided to walk back to him silently and obediently. I was halfway along the wall when I heard my name. Fuck! He’s seen me!

  I ignored it and walked a bit faster towards the Hulk. The next thing I knew, Scott was beside me, demanding to know what the hell I was doing there. I was so relieved. “I’ll tell you in a minute. Can you please just sign me in so that I can talk to you?” I planned on asking him exactly who it was that Lucas was embracing. Although I had a horrible feeling that I already knew the answer.

  Scott just looked at me for a second, then nodded to the Hulk who walked to the door and opened it. I saw Angel’s face flood with relief before growing wide eyed and anxious once more. I began to smile to reassure her as I moved towards her but was stopped in my tracks by a familiar voice saying my name. It was Lucas. Oh fuck!

  I turned to see a shocked Lucas with the dark-haired beauty at his side. Jealousy overtook every other emotion surging around my being and I glared at her then back to him, a look of contempt on my face. Before either of us could speak, she stepped forward, proffering her hand as she introduced herself. “Hello, Issy, I’ve heard so much about you from Lucas. He told me you were beautiful and now I see what he means. My name is Ava Caruso and I’m the manager. Lucas and I go way back.”

  “So I hear,” I said drily. I shook her hand firmly, but I was looking at Lucas. I saw him register my words when his eyes narrowed.

  “I’d like a private word with Issy. Can I use your office?” he said to Ava, but he was already reaching out for my arm to steer me away.

  I shook off his arm and he raised an eyebrow in surprise. Before he could react further, Angel asked, “Can somebody please tell me what on Earth is going on?”

  All eyes turned to her. “It’s okay, Angel. I wonder whether Scott would be good enough to give you and Chad a ride home,” I said, pointedly looking at Scott.

  He looked reluctant to say the least but was saved from having to make a decision by Angel who said, “There is no way that I’m leaving without Issy and an explanation of what exactly is going on here.”

  Once again, all attention turned to her and she stood there defiantly returning everyone’s gaze. When nobody spoke, she walked calmly through the doorway and stood at my side. Chad followed and put his arm around her shoulders.

  Lucas gave an exasperated sigh. I could tell how annoyed he was from the tension in his jaw. “Very well,” he said. “But I need to speak to Issy first. Alone. Then the rest of you can join us.”

  I was only interested in knowing what the hell he’d been doing with Ava draped all over him. I kept reminding myself that I’d jumped to conclusions once before, to my cost. And that appearances could be deceptive. But then a little voice inside told me that I was just desperate to avoid accepting the truth.

  Angel turned to me. “Is that okay with you, Issy?” Her face was concern personified. I felt a rush of emotion for my dearest friend and wanted to put her at ease.

  “It’s fine, Angel. Nothing for you to worry about. I’ll fill you in later.”

  She didn’t look convinced as Lucas took my arm and steered me away from them. He took me to a door on the far side of the room, entered a code into the keypad and the door clicked open. Lights came on automatically as we entered and I guessed this was Ava’s office. Lucas walked past the desk to a leather sofa at the far side of the room and gestured for me to sit. I perched on the edge stiffly as I turned my cell off. I didn’t want to be interrupted. “Would you like a drink of anything?” he asked as he opened a cabinet to reveal a well-stocked minibar.

  “No, thank you,” I replied tersely. “Let’s just get this over with. I think you have some explaining to do.”

  He took out a bottle of Scotch whisky and poured himself a measure. He lifted it halfway to his lips and took a slug. He stood still for a moment before coming to sit next to me. “Sit back properly, please Issy. I’m not talking to your back.”

  His tone was dominant—not the sexy dominant tone that gave me thrills but his businesslike bossiness. I was tempted to ignore his request but felt that would be childish given the circumstances. I complied but I didn’t turn to face him. I stared blankly at the wall opposite.

  “I see that I’ll be speaking to your profile but at least that’s better than your back,” he muttered drily.

  I could feel my irritation building. I didn’t want small talk; I just wanted to know what the hell he was doing with her. “Can we just get on with this? Please?” I turned to face him as I spoke, but anxiety caused my chest to tighten when I saw his handsome face carrying a guarded expression. I realized that he was as nervous as I was and, somehow, that made it worse. I think it confirmed my fears that he was still in love with Ava.

  He dragged his hands through his hair and gave a deep sigh. “Issy, I’ve no idea how you found out about this—”

  “That doesn’t matter right now,” I snapped. “I just want the truth. I think I deserve that, don’t you?” Even I was shocked by the venom in my voice. Lucas closed his eyes and began to rub his temples with his index fingers.

  “Okay, okay,” he muttered. “I guess we can come to that later.”

  “Perhaps,” I said, wondering how I could keep Clark and Scott out of this. Neither deserved to be caught in the crossfire. “But right now you’d better start talking. I’m only here because I made the mistake of running away and not giving you the chance to explain once before. But I’m no fool, Lucas.”

  His eyes flew open and he looked genuinely shocked. “You’re considering leaving me?”

  “Of course I am,” I spat, glaring at him. “Walking in here tonight and seeing you . . . It hurt more than I could’ve imagined.”

  He reached for me and I flinched away instinctively. He immediately stopped—hands in mid-air—looking confused. Then his impassive mask slipped back into place and his hands fell helplessly into his lap. When he spoke again, his tone had changed; it was harder—businesslike even. “I kept it from you because I didn’t know how you’d react.”

  I gasped. “You didn’t know how I’d react? Tell me, Lucas, how would you react if you were in my shoes?” I could hear the hard edge to my own tone.

  His eyes pinned mine for a second before he looked away. “I’m very open-minded, Issy. I thought you were too. I know I didn’t specifically give the nature of my involvement but I thought you were in favor, broadly speaking.”

  I stared at him open-mouthed for a few seconds. He held my gaze and I had the distinct impression that he was challenging me. He looked almost smug. I wasn’t sure what stung most—the thought that I’d condone his cheating or his attitude. Suddenly, I needed a drink. I stood and walked briskly to the minibar. I grasped a bottle of Jack Daniels and poured a double measure into a glass then knocked it back in one. The burn seeping slowly down into my chest felt good. It diverted the anger inside that made me want to throw the bottle at the arrogant cheater who sat silently on the sofa. I poured another drink, squared my shoulders and turned to face him.

  “No, Lucas. I’m not in favor. At all. And I never will be.” My voice was calm but firm. “Frankly, I’m only here because I judged you once unfairly. I thought I owed it to you to give you a chance to explain. But your belief that I’d condone it makes me realize that I needn’t have bothered.”

  He shrugged before saying, “Well, I obviously misjudged it. If it makes you so unhappy, I could always get rid I suppose.”

  I almost gasped at his nonchalance. “So you think you can simply ‘get rid’ as you so callously put it, and that will make everything alrig
ht?”

  He frowned, “Well, yes. If it’s a huge problem for you then yes, I’ll just get rid. It’s beginning to cause problems in my professional life anyway. Yes, actually it would be good for someone to step into my shoes. Perhaps the old adage about mixing business with pleasure is right. I can think of one or two who might be interested in taking over from me. I won’t let this come between us, Issy, and you shouldn’t either.”

  I could hardly believe my ears. Oh my God. Is he seriously thinking that palming Ava off onto someone else will make everything alright between us? Am I supposed to just forget about her and pretend he’s not been cheating on me? Is that what he’d want to do if we split—find me a replacement boyfriend? With a heavy heart, I realized that I didn’t really know him at all, not if he thought that I’d find his thoughtlessness acceptable. I suddenly felt cheap—disposable even. I almost laughed at my stupidity. I’d caught myself several times, picturing myself with him in our mini-Dakota apartment, all loved up and content. Well that dream had just evaporated.

  I set my glass down and jutted out my chin. I decided I’d walk out of there with my dignity intact but first, I thought I should set him straight.

  “Lucas, I have news for you. If you think that I can just forget about you and Ava then you are very much mistaken. This may be my first real relationship but I believe in monogamy. I’m appalled at your attitude towards Ava and even if I could forgive you, I tell you now, I will not stand for a similar attitude towards me. I’m not going to stand by, waiting for the day I become an inconvenience and you decide to get rid of me . . . and the final insult—finding someone to take me over. You are without doubt the most arrogant, deluded man I’ve ever had the misfortune to sleep with. So you may as well hang on to Ava if she’s stupid enough to put up with your infidelity, but if it’s all the same with you, I’ll find my own lover.”

  I squared my shoulders and headed for the door with as much dignity as I could muster. Just as my hand closed over the door handle, I felt his hand close over mine. Fuck! Just when I thought his silence meant I was going to be able to simply walk away. I took a deep breath and let it out in a rush, conveying my annoyance at being intercepted. I considered attempting to force the handle and escape him but I knew it was pointless to attempt that. He was too strong for me to be able to force the door open against his wishes and, even if I managed it, the security in that place was so tight that I knew I wouldn’t be able to make it out of the building.

  We stood there for what seemed an age. When I felt my tense frame begin to sag and relax in acceptance of my inability to escape him, he finally spoke. “Issy, I may be arrogant and deluded but I honestly have no idea what you are talking about. There is nothing going on between myself and Ava—not in the way you’re thinking, anyway. She’s the manager of this place, that’s all.”

  “I guess that’s what you would say when you’re caught red handed. So tell me Lucas, why was she draped possessively all over you?”

  “She was upset. She’s having a difficult time here at the moment and we’re friends.” I could hear the annoyance in his voice.

  I’d given him the opportunity to tell me about their past relationship and he’d chosen not to. What else is he keeping from me? I decided to show my hand. “You used to be more than friends didn’t you? And now you’re just friends . . . friends with benefits?”

  “I’ve just told you there’s nothing going on between us,” he snapped. I heard him take a sharp breath in and expected him to continue speaking but he seemingly changed his mind. After a few seconds, he continued in a much more relaxed tone. “Yes, Ava and I have history. We had a D/s relationship.”

  “Ava was your sub?” I said, trying not to form mental images of them together. I tried to decide whether I believed him when he said they were now just friends but Lucas interrupted my thoughts.

  “Yes. In fact she was my last. I let her down badly. I was her Dominant and I couldn’t give her what she needed. It’s a Dominant’s responsibility to give their submissive what it is they need. That’s essential for a submissive to submit themselves fully and for any D/s relationship to succeed. You embark upon a journey together, initially finding out what each other needs and then, providing those needs are compatible, it’s the Dominant’s role to figure out how to advance the relationship successfully and safely. I failed her. That was the reason I turned my back on the scene.”

  His voice had grown steadily quieter until it was barely a whisper. He sounded so miserable. I knew that he didn’t like failure, he was a successful alpha male after all, but I sensed that it was more than that. He’d let Ava down. He’d failed her as well as himself and that was what had hurt him most. I suddenly needed to know why.

  “How did you fail her? Am I permitted to ask what it was that you couldn’t give her that she needed?” I whispered. I thought there was a good chance he wouldn’t tell me—it was likely to be something very intimately personal, perhaps a sexual act or fetish that he wouldn’t or couldn’t perform.

  I felt tension in the hand that covered mine and, although that was the only part of his body in contact with mine, I literally felt his whole body tense.

  “I couldn’t dominate her in the way she needed,” he said, eventually. I waited to see whether he was willing to elaborate. My patience was rewarded when he continued, “She’s a masochist. She craves pain as part of her submission. She longed to be restrained and seriously whipped, flogged and caned amongst other things and that’s something I just couldn’t do. I still can’t. I tried—for her sake, but I felt like a lowlife afterwards. My style of dominance is far gentler although the idea in principle appeals to me. But when it comes down to it, actually inflicting physical pain on a woman is something that I simply cannot do. So you see, Issy, there is nothing sexual between us. Ava is one of the few people I can call a friend. There is nothing more to it than that. She’s a very tactile person and feels very comfortable around me. It’s not something that I actively encourage but it happened naturally as our relationship turned into a purely platonic one. If it’s a problem for you then I’ll have a word with her.”

  Something in his voice told me it was painful for him to recount his issues with inflicting pain on women. I thought it was an admirable quality in a man but I knew that the world of D/s was a complex one and one I had little knowledge of. Unexpectedly, I felt a rush of sympathy for him. I turned my head in an effort to see his face. Immediately, his hand loosed mine and he turned away. I didn’t even consider bolting through the door. Instead, I turned and slipped my arms around him from behind. I rested my cheek against his back and just held him, not saying a word.

  I replayed the conversation with Lucas in my head. I couldn’t believe that I’d got it wrong again. Damn Scott for putting the wrong idea in my mind, although I could see how he’d get the wrong impression, what with Ava being so touchy feely. No wonder Lucas had looked so confused. Wait a second. If Lucas wasn’t talking about him and Ava, what did he think I was going on about? What hasn’t he told me? What do I need to be open-minded about?

  I opened my mouth to ask him but I didn’t get chance because a loud, insistent knock on the door startled us both. Lucas turned and pulled away from me. He grasped the door handle and pulled the door open. I noticed he was stony faced before my eyes flicked to the man on the other side of the door. It was Carter. I wondered what he was doing there but then reasoned he was either staying close to Lucas or was following Scott. Lucas promptly stepped outside and closed the door firmly behind him.

  I heard Lucas tell Carter to follow him and then it went quiet. I debated whether to wait for him to return so that I could ask him what he was hiding from me that required me to be open-minded or whether to go back to Angel and Chad. I knew Angel would probably be frantic by now, wondering what was going on. Since I had no idea how long Lucas would be, I decided to return to the reception area and put Angel’s mind at rest that I was okay.

  I opened the door and made my way back
to the exit. My heart sank when I saw that the Not-So-Incredible Hulk was blocking it with his massive frame. Intuition told me that I wasn’t going to be allowed to leave—presumably on Lucas’ instructions. Indignation flared inside me at the mere thought of it. I marched up to him and demanded that he move out of my way and allow me to leave before I called the cops. He didn’t even appear to register my request. He just stood motionless and impassive. I looked around for the door release button, fully intending to give it my best shot when I heard a girlish giggle coming from somewhere behind me. Unless my mind was playing tricks, it sounded like Angel.

  I spun around and sure enough, there she was. I think my jaw hit the floor when I saw her swinging to and fro, wearing just her underwear, seemingly without a care in the world, on a swing that I’d seen being put to a very different use by a couple when I’d visited previously. Then I noticed poor Chad, looking distinctly uncomfortable as he tried to coax her down, and saw Scott sitting nearby in uncontrollable laugher. A small crowd had gathered and was cheering and applauding her. I shook my head, wondering whether I’d transgressed into some parallel universe. I mean, Angel! Meek, introverted Angel . . . up there in her underwear, with spotlights trained on her! I closed my eyes and shook my head again but when I opened them, she was still there as large as life.

  I found myself walking toward her, absentmindedly wondering whether I should pinch myself—just to be sure I wasn’t dreaming. As I neared, Chad saw me and relief flooded his face. “Oh thank God! Issy, please help me get her out of here before she decides to take any more clothes off!” he begged.

  “What’s gotten into her? Has she been drinking?” I asked, failing to hide my smile as I watched her swinging away.

  “Scott told us what goes on in this place over a drink or two, but she’s not had enough to make her behave like that. I don’t know what’s gotten into her, Issy. She was so embarrassed when the big guy told us to make ourselves at home when you and Lucas disappeared and she saw what was going on all around her. Then, as Scott explained the different relationships and that they were all consensual and immensely pleasurable, she seemed to relax and lighten up. That was fine, until this drag queen came up and asked her if she wanted to dance.