The Devil's Gate

by Rue Volley

  Friday finally came and so did the long black limo. I stood there as my reflection came into view in the dark glass as it rolled up to devour me. It lowered and Jack smiled. I missed it and him.

  “Need a ride?”

  I laughed, all of the nervous tension had seemed to dissipate just with one look at his beautiful smile. “I cost a lot of money, move along.” I waved my hand.

  His eyebrow rose as I had decided just to be myself with him after the talk his mother had with me. I would give him everything that I had to offer and we would see where it left me. Maybe he was just as curious about me as I was about him. I knew that I had nothing left to lose. So why not go for it?

  The door opened, and I got in. No worries about where we were going. It didn’t matter; I was so happy to see him. I slid across the seat and leaned in to kiss him. He stopped me and then touched my face, initiating the kiss with a little bit of aggression as the car rolled off. I guess he felt that he needed to control it. I was okay with that; his passion was enough for me. It wasn’t a loss of power that I felt with him, but more of an exchange. I liked it, much more so than I could have ever predicted.

  I leaned back on the black leather seat as his lips toyed with my own. I knew that I loved him; I could only hope that he would or could feel the same for me. His kisses slowed as he leaned back, his fingertips lingered at my throat, his eyes wandered from my lips to the soft curve of my neck. Always inspecting me, taking me in. I loved this about him.

  “I missed your face.”

  My eyes were fixated on his. The blue looked even more intense today, fiery and seductive.

  “Good.” I whispered to him.

  He tilted his head and laughed at me. “You seem different.”

  I sighed and looked around his car then back to him. “No, I just missed you.”

  “You got the email, didn’t you?”

  I grinned and nodded to him. “Yes and it was incredible.”

  “See? Trust in me. I would never do anything to hurt you.”

  I studied his eyes as he said that. I hoped it was true; I actually did—even though, to me, those words meant more than just negotiating a job. I would love the reassurance that he would never hurt me, but after his mother’s unexpected visit, I was less than optimistic about the actual endgame. But you know how you just have to have something, knowing that it may not be the best thing for you when it’s all said and done? Yeah—that’s how I feel and maybe that rush of not knowing spurred me on. I knew that I had always been driven with a competitive streak in me; perhaps this would be my greatest test to see if I could win this as I hoped that I could.

  He watched my lips as I spoke to him. “Your mother came to see me, Jack.”

  He sat back and fidgeted with his hands, it obviously bothered him. “She what?” his tone was lower, the joy left him. I felt that I had possibly made a mistake by telling him, but I didn’t want to hide it from him and have her mention it and then make me look bad. It just seemed like something that she may do.

  “Yes, she came to my apartment yesterday.”

  “What did she say to you, Abigail?”

  I paused; this could be tricky. I needed to mask it and not make it seem so harsh, but should I? What if she told him, and then what? I’m the liar.

  I went for it and just told him the truth. “She told me to stop seeing you.”

  He laughed. “And what did you say?”

  “I basically told her to kiss my ass.”

  He laughed even harder. “I would have paid good money to see that.”

  I looked out the window and watched the city go by. “Well, I’m sure that you will get to see her talk to me like that again sometime. She seemed intent on telling me to go away.”

  He moved over on the seat and took my hand into his. He stared down at it and then let his beautiful blue eyes soak in mine. My breathing slowed to match his own.

  “Why, Abigail?”

  “Because she doesn’t approve of me, Jack.”

  “Oh no, I know that. It’s a given. I mean, what reason did she give you?”

  I bit my lip. His assumption that she would not like me stung a little, but why should I be shocked? I was so far removed from their standard of living that it was almost as if I was visiting another planet when I visited their home. No—I couldn’t say that she proclaimed his inability to love me. I fell back on a partial truth to be safe.

  “She said that you are your father’s son.”

  He sighed as he reached up and touched my chin with his fingers. His touch so needed and missed. I closed my eyes as he leaned into my ear and whispered to me.

  “I am, but it doesn’t define me, now where were we, my Abigail?”

  I took a deep breath as his lips lowered to my neck and he teased me once again, a hand sliding between my legs as his moaning against my skin caused my heart to skip a beat in my chest.His words seducing me as the word my became part of the game at last.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  GLIMPSES OF THE FUTURE

  We stopped at the gates of Rose Valley and I stared down the long lane at the building I should have never intruded upon. I was kind of shocked that he brought me here, knowing how he reacted when he found out that I visited this place. It was so rude of me and I still felt awkward about it. I bit my lip as the building slowly became larger in my view. As if it were an omen in my life. I half-wished that my curiosity had not spurred me on to take this path. I could have gone without knowing, honestly, I could have. Like I said before, the past is where it should be. Sometimes digging it up only ends in destruction.

  “I assume that you have questions, Abigail. I want to offer something to you.”

  I nodded to him, looking down at my hands and then back up to him.

  He sighed as he leaned back on the seat and told the driver to head down the lane and toward the asylum. I touched his hand as he placed his free hand to his chin and stared out the window. His thoughts heavy and still keeping me on the outside and not in.

  We stopped at the long concrete steps, his eyes dull, but willing to shed some of his secrets for me. “If you want to know me, then this is where we need to start.”

  I took a breath as the driver opened his door and he stepped out. His hand reached in and I took it. His grip firm and reassuring, his words had yet to come. I had so many questions concerning Rose and that night. I had questions about what led up to the marriage and why he had actually done it at such a young age. I mean—I understand defiance. We all go through that in our teenage years, but—marrying someone out of spite was kind of dramatic. We might as well meet this head-on. He was offering, this was not my intrusion.

  We walked up the steps and then he stopped as he stared at the two large doors in front of him. He turned to me and placed his hands on my face. His blue eyes bright and clear. More transparent than I had ever seen them before. Bits of his soul seemed to be shining through.

  “I want you to know that everything that you see and hear in this place is just an echo of who I am, Abigail. But—I need for you to see the truth, it’s important to me.”

  I let the words sink into me. I needed so badly to hear them. More than I knew until he said them to me. Up until that moment, Jack almost seemed like a ghost who floated in and out of my life, leaving traces of himself behind. I wanted this, this Jack. The one who spoke to me and let me see through the armor that he seemed to always be wearing. Sure, he was a master of seduction, but I don’t think that he was a master of his emotions. I wanted to help him find his way with that, even if it was dangerous for me. I was willing to take whatever chances that were needed.

  The doors opened and a doctor stood there smiling at Jack. He reached out and the firm handshake endorsed the familiarity that they had with one another.

  “So good to see you, Jack.”

  Jack nodded to him and then eyed me. “This is Abigail, my…” he stopped as I thought the right word would roll off of his tongue, maybe girlfriend? But it didn’t. So
mething stopped him, and the doctor saved the awkwardness of the moment by taking my hand and shaking it too. I sighed and accepted what I could of it. At least he brought me here and not to a bedroom to seduce me once again. Which I would be powerless to stop in any way.

  “Is it okay if we go up?”

  “Of course, feel free, Jack.”

  We stepped into the building and I paid more attention to the details this time. It was gorgeous on the inside, not strange and daunting like you would imagine an asylum to be.

  The atmosphere was light and airy, another theme I was starting to pick up with him. It sort of reminded me of a spa more than a place that housed the mentally insane. The stark white color coming into play yet again, not so different than Sam’s building had been.

  Sam. I paused in thought about him and knew that I needed to call him soon, at least send a text to say hello and see how he was doing. I would hope that he and Liv were—well, you know. Becoming closer. As I said before, Sam deserves so much in his life. Things that I can’t possibly give to him. I was just grateful to be his friend. Honestly, I was.

  I stared up at the cathedral ceiling, criss-crossing beams held the structure together and it almost resembled a church. Perhaps it was left over from when the building had still been a monastery. The architecture was beautiful and completely mesmerizing. Large black and white photographs flanked the walls; everything looked clean and new. But is it that? Or possibly sterile in nature?

  I was sure that Jack had arranged for it to be redone. I was starting to understand that about him, how he would obtain something and mold it into what his version of that thing should be. I could only hope that it did not extend to people. Even though his touch had started to change me, but not by force. I was allowing it to happen. I enjoyed the feeling of release that he gave to me. Awakening my deepest desires. Opening me up to what I could be, as opposed to what I had been.

  I also found it ironic that his home was so dark and everything he touched outside of it was light. Something that he could not hide from me. Funny how we extend our thoughts to everything around us, whether by chance or on purpose. I caught my reflection next to him and it was the first time that I could see that we were together. Not as Jack Landon and some awkward college graduate who didn’t match him at all, but as a couple, one mirroring the other as he had predicted. The thought of that left traces of sadness and joy in me. I can’t even explain why.

  I felt his hand tighten on mine as he walked me to the elevator. We stopped as we waited for it to descend. I grinned, thinking about the elevator in the Ford building. The doors dinged and we stepped on, only this time a nurse came walking in and we stood at the back as she stood in front of us with a chart in her hands.

  Jack placed his hand at the base of my back and let it lower, his thumb moving the whole way. I reached back and lifted it as he smiled and tried to fight me on it. He squeezed and I made a noise that caused her to peek over her shoulder. I took a short breath and grinned at her until she turned around. I looked up at Jack and mouthed ‘stop—now’, his eyes told me that he wouldn’t. He took a step toward me and I reached down and grabbed between his legs. He stopped dead as my grip was tight and firm.

  “Naughty,” he whispered to me as the nurse cleared her throat, but she did not turn this time.

  “Behave, Jack.”

  He leaned in and whispered to me. “All work and no play makes Jack a bad boy.”

  I laughed under my breath as he stepped toward me. Finally, the elevator dinged and the nurse left us there. I looked over as my hand remained firmly planted on his crotch and two nurses stared in as I half-grinned. They decided to wait. I would have too as Jack stared at me and completely ignored them.

  The doors closed and Jack rushed me against the wall, the kisses came hard and fast. His hands moved quickly, pressing over my breasts. He jerked on my shirt and the elevator dinged again as I pushed him back from me and adjusted myself. It was so ridiculous, like two horny teenagers unable to cope with everyday normal functions. Don’t get me wrong, I was just as much to blame with him as he was with me.

  Together we were fire, pure and red hot. Hopefully, it would never consume us.

  We stood in front of a large open space, the top floor of the building. It looked like a very nice apartment more than part of an asylum. The ceiling was made of glass as well as two sides of the large room. It had a fireplace, couches, and chairs. A beautiful red rug lay sprawled out on the floor.

  Paintings hung on the wall, but not black and white, color this time and a lot of them. In fact, if I wasn’t at Rose Valley, I would have thought that this was someone’s home. It certainly felt that way and had a familiarity to it. It helped me feel a bit less nervous about it all. Was this where Rose stayed? It wouldn’t surprise me at all. I mean—Jack bought this place and named it after her. His need to shelter her was grand in nature. I couldn’t fault him for it at all, in fact, it made me love him more.

  I heard a voice and then looked over to see a large man, built similar to Jack, but with wider shoulders, coming toward us. He held a clear glass in his hand, clear liquid, possibly vodka. Jack took a step toward him and the man stopped. He must run this place.

  “Jack?”

  Jack nodded to him and then walked up to the man. The moment drug on a bit long until finally the man hugged him. Jack slowly put his arms around him. I watched on, not understanding it at all until I heard the word come from Jack’s own mouth.

  “Father.”

  I parted my lips, taking another look around and then realizing that this was the great Peter Landon. The man who had built the Landon fortune with his own entrepreneurial spirit. By all accounts, he had died years ago in a plane crash. The body never recovered. I knew this, but had avoided the subject with Jack. I just felt that if he ever wanted to talk about his dad, then he would on his own. Like I mentioned before, I had lost my own years ago and losing a parent is a strange and painful experience. I thought that Jack and I shared that, but in a way, I guess we do, seeing that Peter Landon is here and not at home. The story behind it intrigued me, to say the least.

  Jack stepped back and Peter eyed me. He lifted his glass to me and half-smiled. “I would offer you a drink, but I’m afraid that tonic water is all they allow me to have these days.”

  I smiled at him; he was pleasant, not unsettling or even subdued like Rose was. Why was he here? The questions started to rise as I gazed at him.

  I stood my ground as Peter walked toward me. He stopped, only a few feet in front of me and then held his glass out, moving it around as he spoke. He used his hands; I do the same. I could relate.

  “So, young lady. Jack must care for you a great deal to bring you here to see me. What is your name?”

  I was taken aback by the words. It meant so much to me to hear them. I had no idea how much until Peter spoke them, and my heart wrapped itself around them for warmth. Jack slid his hands into his jacket as he stared on from behind him.

  I spoke, but the words came out softer than I meant them too. “Abigail Watson, Mr. Landon.”

  “Mmmm—submissive,” he said to me as he took a drink. Jack took a step toward us and spoke as Peter’s look changed from that of soft to harder. Was he predatory just like Jack’s mother? It certainly seemed that way.

  “Father, I brought her here so that you could tell her the truth—about us, about me.”

  “Oh,” Peter said as he looked me over. “Well, what exactly do you want me to say, Jack? This one seems intelligent enough to understand that she is in a fucking asylum.”

  I hated the words this one; it wasn’t the first time I heard them spoken to me.

  “Abigail is special to me, don’t be rude or I will leave.”

  Peter sighed as he walked to one of the couches and sat down. He stared at the fireplace as I watched him. I blinked when Jack took my hand into his and led me to the sofa that sat across from his father. I sat down as Peter eyed me. His look was still a bit harsh. He had chang
ed in an instant, and it was still bothering me.

  “Clearly, I am not on a sabbatical here.” He laughed as he took a drink. He was a striking man, strong jaw, great hair, peppered with white, but mostly black in color. It made him look like some superhero on a vacation of sorts. He was just as stunning as the rest of his family. I could see where Jack got his good looks and icy stare. It sat right here in front of me.

  “What truth?” I asked as Jack held my hand and moved his fingers inside my palm.

  Peter smiled, leaning back on the couch and extending an arm out. He tapped the white leather and looked around the room.

  “I always wondered how I was able to do the business that I did so well. I could step into a room and command it like that.” He snapped his fingers, making me blink. He looked at his hand for a moment and stretched his fingers, then continued on. “They call it borderline schizophrenia mixed with some bi-polar and manic depressive states. Evidently, I prey on people and it only got worse as I grew older.”

  “I—I’m sorry.” I paused, not knowing what to say.“You seem fine.”

  “Am I,” he screamed at me as he leaned forward. I leaned back, jumping next to Jack as he held onto my hand. He tried to reassure me, but Peter’s outburst rattled me to my core. I swallowed hard as my heart thumped in my chest. Peter was breathing hard and then tilted his head at me. His eyes shifted from soft to hard. A stare that could turn my blood ice cold in my veins.

  “So, do you like to be spanked, Abigail? Tied down and forced to take a cock inside of your beautiful lips, sucking hard until the juices flow down your throat?” his voice went higher for a moment, “no, Daddy! Don’t make me swallow your come, I’m not ready!” His voice lowered again as he stared a hole right through me with such disdain, “…but you lie. You all lie, you want it so badly it makes your nipples hard and your pussy ache. Cheap, like the clothes you are wearing today. Tell me—how does your pussy taste? Is it sweet and virginal? My son loves to seek out that type of slut, someone who wants to give it up so easily, to be gagged and fucked in the ass until they pass out.” He paused and licked his lips. His eyes lowered to my lap. “Oh yes—I can smell you, tight and begging for a huge cock to loosen that up. Would you like to sit on my lap?”