Maelstrőm

by Michelle Love

“You’re right. Of course, you’re right.”

  She kissed him, trying not to throw up as she did. He lifted her onto the counter, his hands all over her. Her hands trembling, she reached for his fly – and he stopped her. His eyes were alive with victory, his smile wide and mocking.

  “No. I don’t need your pity fuck, Sarah.”

  He stepped away from her, scooped her underwear from the floor and threw it at her. Humiliation swept over her as she realized what he was doing. She slid from the counter, balling up her underwear, shoving it in her pocket. She could feel her face burning and she heard him laugh softly. Bastard.

  She moved away from him, putting herself between him and the door. She pulled a small jewelry box out of her bag, put it on the table, and slid across to him. This morning, in the shower she’d felt the ruby, blood red at her throat and had to resist the urge to tug it off and throw it away.

  “I don’t want this.” She trailed off. Dan just stood there, watching her, reading her, smirking and a flash of annoyance ran through her. “Dan, you need to go. I can’t deal with…”

  In an instant he was beside her, his hand gripping her arm and as he stared down at her, she noticed he wasn’t blinking, his pupils pinpoints. Angry. She didn’t like where this was going at all.

  “Mmm,” he ran his lips down her throat, “you know something, Sarah?” His lips were at her ear and he whispered. “I could break you, baby girl.”

  Sarah groped blindly behind her, felt the solid wood of the knife block. Her fingers felt the cold steel of a chef’s knife and she pulled it free, ready to use it. Dan gave a low laugh and she felt his hand close over hers, gently take the weapon from her. Sarah was paralyzed with fear. Dan put the knife out of her reach.

  “Sarah, come on. If it came to a fight, is that blade more likely to end up in me…or you?” His voice was a seduction, a whisper. He reached out and ran a casual finger down her stomach. He pressed his index finger hard into her navel and Sarah’s stomach muscles contracted. She gasped, unable to stop the fear overwhelming her. He smiled slowly, cocked his head to the side.

  “Shall we see, Sarah? Shall we see who would win?” He reached out and took up the knife again. Sarah’s throat constricted, she couldn’t breathe. Dan leaned in and whispered into her ear. “Here comes the horror.”

  Suddenly she wasn’t frightened anymore but furious. Incandescent. Pissed as hell.

  “Do it,” she hissed in his face, “kill me. I’d rather take that knife over and over than ever let you touch me again. You are repulsive to me, Dan. You disgust me.”

  Dan’s eyes blazed and she suddenly felt the cool steel against the skin of her stomach. She didn’t back down. “Do it, you coward, finish this.” She pressed herself onto the knife, feeling the tip slice into her skin, a tiny rivulet of blood drip down her stomach. She was amazed how little the thought of dying bothered her now. She looked into the eyes of the man she had once loved and saw nothing but bloodlust. Time froze for a second then Dan laughed, tossed the knife away.

  “Desperate to pin those crimes on me, aren’t you? I must say,” and he pressed his body against hers. “The thought of driving that knife into you is quite tempting, but it’s just not the right time.”

  Sarah pushed him away and Dan laughed. “Dan, that’s enough. I want you to leave, leave this house, the island. I don’t want to see you, talk to you.”

  “I don’t think I’ll be going anywhere, Sarah. Not unless you come with me. You don’t honestly think I’m going to leave you here, do you?” Not alive. Unspoken words in the air.

  Anger, white hot, burning anger, overwhelmed any fear she had felt. She smiled mirthlessly, looking around at the house she had shared with this man. It had been their home. She had married him willingly – happily. That was another lifetime. She reached behind her and opened the door. “Goodbye, Dan.”

  “Sarah, wait.”

  Gritting her teeth, she turned back to face him and gasped. Dan was on top of her, making it impossible for her to move. She groaned in terror as he rammed his body against hers, burying his head in her hair. His teeth nipped painfully on her earlobe as he whispered in her ear.

  “You have no idea what I’m capable of, baby girl. But I promise you this, you’re going to find out.”

  Then, abruptly, he was gone. She moved, still half winded, and practically threw herself against the door and locked it. She darted around the house, making sure all of the windows and doors were locked and wondered how many times recently she had felt safe. Not many.

  It wasn’t until she was sure the place was secure that she gave into the shock, the fear, and the utter, utter relief of being free of him.

  At least she knew something for sure now. Dan wanted to kill her. He had made that clear – but not in any way she could prove. Damn it.

  Sarah lay on the floor of the kitchen, wanting to feel the slate tiles beneath her cool her body and calming her mind. Her plans, her life, her marriage were in tatters and now she knew, it was time to regroup.

  Pushing the thought of Isaac to the back of her mind, she went through the house methodically, scrubbing every trace of herself from it. She wanted out of that life for good. She knew she could stay with Molly until she figured out what to do. Maybe she’d leave the state for a while, go down to Portland or San Francisco.

  There wasn’t much of her stuff left – she was clearing some photos of her from the living room when she saw it, leaning against a dark corner of the room. Her portfolio from college – from the first failed attempt when she had been studying architecture.

  College. Her plans for her new start had been so far from her mind lately. She picked up the portfolio and opened it, smiling to herself at the sketches and diagrams. Maybe when this was all over, she’d get back on track, take up her place at college. She zipped up the portfolio again and then stopped. She reached into the corner and pulled out a cardboard tube. Pulling out the paper, she unfurled it across the top of the piano. It was the blueprint of the house. She looked it over, remembering why she loved architecture so much, the structure, the details of each corner and nook and…

  When the thought came to her, it hit her full force. Her body started to tremble and she ran into the kitchen, flicking on the lights to the basement and pulling open the door to her cupboard. Hesitating a second, she grabbed a flashlight and headed down the stairs. The basement itself was brightly lit and had a slight smell of damp. She rarely came down here but it wasn’t a dingy space. But she headed for the far wall and pulled the cupboard away from it.

  The door to the crawlspace was loose. She tugged it off and shone the flashlight into it, listening carefully. Nothing. She stepped into the partition. The house had crawlspaces in the walls, running all over the house. She and Dan had discussed blocking them up, for insulation more than anything but had never gotten around to it.

  Now she shone the flashlight around the space. It was wide enough for her, even wide enough for a large man like Dan. She was still shaking and the light danced along the dark wall. She moved through the passageways. It was in the space behind the living room she found it.

  A sleeping bag. Newspapers. An empty scotch bottle. She let out her breath in a rush, her heart thudding. Dan hadn’t been missing at all. His paranoia and controlling had been worse than she could ever have imagined. This was worse than she could even fathom.

  He’d been living in the walls of the house.

  Isaac pushed his way through the throng of reporters outside the apartment building and let out an annoyed growl as he finally managed to shake them off. He walked – he didn’t know where he was headed – but he just walked, the rain-slicked streets of Seattle mostly empty of people.

  Fuck. He shouldn’t have let Sarah go like that. Let her walk out of the door. It was just…the thought of her being screwed by Dan Bailey, that she’d gone along with it, even under those circumstances. She was scared of Dan, he reasoned, it would have been easier to go along with it, especially if she were upse
t or, as she thought, was drugged.

  Isaac stopped, realized he was down on the waterfront. He walked slowly along to one of the piers with seating and sat down. Twilight had fallen over the city and the restaurants along the boardwalk were getting full. Across the water he could see the lights of the island. Had she gone back there? He could call Molly but then, if Sarah hadn’t gone back, she’d be worried.

  Jesus, man, you’re a fucking billionaire, an expert businessman and yet you can’t figure this out. It’s easy. Forgive. Go get your girl and keep her safe. Isaac stood and went to the sidewalk to hail a cab. Just get this done. Stop fucking around.

  Go get her back and never let her go.

  Nausea screeched up inside her and Sarah swallowed, trying to stop from throwing up. Fear. Anger. Horror. The sheer violation of her private space, her life.

  “Motherfucker.” She whispered. She knelt and picked up the papers. Different dates, all over the past two years “Jesus. Jesus.”

  She clambered out of the crawlspace into the basement and moved swiftly around, gathering every flashlight, hurricane lamp, anything she could find that would light up the passageways. She moved through the space placing a light wherever she could. Then she went back into the main house and switched off every ceiling light, table lamp she’d put on earlier and stood back. The evening had settled in now and it was pitch black.

  Except the thin streams of light that flowed from the peepholes Dan had drilled in every wall. They were all bored in such a way that a casual observer wouldn’t see them.

  Sarah, anger having completely overtaken any fear she felt, moved from room to room, the rage at the abuse of her privacy, every scenario Dan could have witnessed running through her mind. The kitchen where she spent the most of her time, the living room. The bathroom where she bathed, where she was at her most vulnerable. The bedroom where she and Isaac had made love all so many times. She went back into the bathroom and this time, she did throw up. Throwing the switches on around the house, she grabbed her phone and went back to the crawl spaces taking photos as best she could before lugging everything she’d found to the kitchen. Underneath the sleeping bag, she found a mp3 player and frowned. She scanned the walls and saw wires leading up to the wall behind her bedroom. She switched the mp3 player on, smiling grimly, already knowing what she was about to hear.

  I got the joy, joy, joy, joy, down in my heart…

  “Fucking motherfucking cocksucking asshole!” She screamed it now, her fury red hot. She started to kick at anything she could, blindly raging.

  Dan had deliberately tried to make her feel like she had been going crazy. Sarah shook her head, catching her breath. She wondered how far he’d gone. She knew the answer of course. Drawing in a great lungful of breath, she carried the rest of his camp to the kitchen. She pulled her cell phone from her pocket just as it rang. Finn.

  She told him everything she’d found and heard his angry hiss.

  “Darlin”, we’re on our way. Stay inside the house.”

  Isaac pulled the car off of the ferry and headed into town. As he pulled up to the Varsity he saw Finn’s police cruiser outside and inside, Molly and Finn stood, listening to whatever Sarah was saying. God, look at her. His stomach disappeared when suddenly Molly noticed his car and pointed it out to Sarah. She turned and their eyes locked. Like a robot, Isaac got out of the car and walked to the coffee house door, pushing it open. Sarah stood, and now he noticed, she was trembling. She didn’t move as he walked towards the trio. He nodded at Molly who smiled, and Finn, who nodded stiffly.

  Then he looked down at Sarah. Her dark hair was messy, clouding around her head, falling down her back in chestnut waves. Her big dark eyes were swimming with tears, her face flushed pink. He reached out and placed his palm against her cheek and she leaned into it.

  “You and me forever,” he said softly and pulled her into his arms as she began to sob.

  She related everything she’d told Molly and Finn to an incredulous Isaac and afterward, they all sat in silence. Finn sighed and ran his hands through his hair, frustrated.

  “For fuck’s sake. I just wanna arrest the son of a bitch, throw his ass in jail.”

  Sarah took a deep breath in. “You can’t, Finn. We can’t prove anything, he’s too careful. There’s no way he’ll risk exposure. Unless….”

  Isaac, his arm locked around Sarah’s waist, looked as confused as Molly and Finn. “Unless what, sweetheart?”

  “Unless he’s provoked”

  “No! We are not going to use you as bait. No way, Sarah, not gonna happen.”

  Several of the customers looked over as Isaac banged his fist on the table. Sarah jumped. Isaac looked around, his face grim. He spoke again, lowering his voice so only she could hear him. “Do you honestly think I, or Finn, or Molly would let that happen? No.”

  “Agreed.” Finn was stone-faced. “Jesus, Sarah…” He put his head in his hands. Sarah reached over to grab his arm.

  “Okay, okay, I’m sorry, I’m sorry.”

  Finn gripped her hand for a second then let go. “Dumb idea. Dumbest I ever heard.”

  “I know. “

  Isaac laughed softly and they all looked at him in disbelief. He smiled, holding his hand up. “Sorry, it’s just…Saul was trying to sell me on the theory that Clare was somehow responsible for all of this. Guess this blows that idea out of the water.”

  Sarah put her head on his shoulder. “Guess so.”

  Molly had been silent, watching them, her eyes hooded and tired. Sarah looked over at her. “You okay, Mols?”

  Molly tried to smile. “I’ll just be glad when all this crap is over.”

  In the motel room, Caroline lay naked in Dan’s bed, smoking and sated from an evening of screwing. Dan was in the shower. She sat up and checked he was still in the bathroom then darted over to his closet. She opened the door and rifled through his stuff. She found his gun, his wallet – her eyes lit up when she saw the amount of cash in there – and a plane ticket. A plane ticket. Single.

  “Find what you were looking for?”

  She started but then anger took over. “Going somewhere?” She waved the ticket at him. He smirked.

  “No Caroline, I thought, after I kill Sarah, I’d stay and enjoy the fishing. Maybe take up golf.” He took the ticket from her and shoved it back into his jacket. She gaped at him.

  “What about me? What about us?”

  “Us?” He looked bored

  “Us. I love you.”

  He gave her an incredulous look. “Caroline, I doubt you’ve ever loved anyone but yourself.”

  “Bastard!” She started to hit him. He laughed and easily pulled her off of him. She started to cry. “What about our child?”

  He shrugged. “I don’t know that it’s mine.

  She changed tactics. She put her hands on his chest. “Dan, I do. I love you. And I had thought, especially after everything I’ve done for you, that I’d earned your trust. Your love.”

  Dan was silent, studying her for a long moment. She was beginning to feel uneasy when he smiled, his whole face softening. “You’re right. Of course, forgive me, darling, I was thoughtless.

  He pulled her down onto the bed with him and kissed her.

  “Listen,” he said, “You once told me that you’d do anything for me, help me hurt Sarah for betraying me. Did you mean that?

  Caroline beamed at him. “I did. So what are you waiting for? Finish the bitch and we can get out of here, wait for our child to be born free of this goddamned place.”

  Dan smiled. “Patience. It’ll all be over soon.”

  Molly had gone home by the time Sarah locked the Varsity. Isaac and Finn were still talking. Sarah joined them and Isaac took her hand.

  “Come home,” he said simply and she nodded. Finn smiled at her.

  “I’ll see you later, bubba. Isaac.” He shook Isaac’s hand and then they were alone. Isaac wrapped his arms around her.

  “Sweetheart, let’s go home, and for a few ho
urs, just think about us. You and me.”

  “Deal.”

  The doorman smiled at them both as they returned to the apartment building. In the elevator to the penthouse, they didn’t speak, just held each other. Inside they went to straight to the bedroom and undressed each other slowly. Sarah was hesitant at first, not knowing how Isaac would react, knowing that only twenty-four hours earlier, she had been having sex with Dan.

  God. Even the thought of it made her feel sick. Isaac tilted her face up to his and searched her eyes, his own green eyes soft.

  “I know what you’re thinking…don’t worry about it. You and me, that’s what matters here, whatever has happened… I love you.”

  He lowered his lips to hers and kissed her softly at first then as her fears fell away, the kiss deepened and his fingers twisted in her hair, holding her tightly. Delicious sensations ran all over her skin as Isaac moved his lips across her throat, downward, taking her nipple into his mouth and teasing her into a frenzy. He picked her up and she wound her legs around him as he carried her to the bed and laid her down. Sarah lost herself in the feeling of the weight of his body on hers, feeling a frantic pulse beating between her legs, her cunt swelling and ripening for him. She took his cock into her mouth, flicking, sucking until she could taste the pre-cum on the smooth head, the veins filled with blood, becoming heavy and engorged. He pulled away and moved so he could kiss her mouth. She moaned as he slid two fingers, then three into her aching sex, his thumb strumming a rhythm on her clit, almost overwhelmingly sensitive now, her legs hitching themselves around his hips, the tip of his cock nudging at the entrance to her cunt.

  Agonizingly slowly, he entered her, grinning down at her as she wriggled with anticipation, begging him to please fuck her now, fuck her hard but he held back, pushing slowly, inch by inch until he filled her completely, his cock swelling further as he began to slide in and out of her.