Tragic Beauty

by Iris Ann Hunter

  “Step back and turn around,” he orders. “Let Red see you.”

  I do as he says, my skin burning while I spin in a circle knowing two sets of eyes watch me.

  “Have you ever seen such a gorgeous creature?” Shayne asks, leaning forward in his chair. “We always knew she was pretty, didn’t we Red? But naked—her body—doesn’t it just blow you away? I mean, she still has that small side to her, that side that makes her so sweet, so innocent, almost like a child, but then there’s the woman in her too. Those tits—carved so damn perfectly, with those rosy nipples that stand up and out, just begging to be plucked. And that ass…Turn around again, baby. Let’s see that again. Yeah. See that ass, Red? So round and tight, and I love how her waist cuts in above it. And God, look how hot the brand looks on her. It’s good and scarred up now, and I fucking love seeing that on you, Ava. It’s goes so good with those cane marks. And see Red…see how her pale skin really brings out all the bruises in such a nice way? The perfect canvas. She likes pain, did you know that? Yeah, she likes it when it hurts. Figured you’d get a kick out of that, knowing how much you like to use your knives on the girls. I cut you up too, don’t I baby? Yeah, we like blood play. Okay, now turn around, slowly. Christ, that necklace looks so good on you, especially with your white blonde hair and those eyes. Makes the blue glow something crazy, like you’re from another world or something. What do you think, Red, doesn’t it look wild on her?”

  “Yeah,” he answers, his voice tight but deep.

  The beast falls back in his chair and takes a sip of his drink. “Alright, Ava,” he sighs. “We’ve gotten a good look at you. Time for dessert.”

  He sits there with his flesh hard and veiny now, while his arm rests on the table with his glass in hand. His black eyes watch me, knowing I’ll move soon enough, and I do.

  His gaze follows me when I walk to between his legs and kneel on sore knees.

  “I want you to savor me, baby,” he whispers. “Go slow, draw it out. Show Red what a good little cocksucker you are.”

  The cut of his words slice me deep, just like he wants, and I feel the pain when I take him in my right hand and put him in my mouth. He lets out a hiss that burns my ears, while the music plays around me.

  “She can suck it, Red, let me tell you. Didn’t know much at first, but now…” He groans and pets my hair, and slowly, forcefully, presses himself deep into my throat. “She can take it all. Learned that real quick, didn’t you baby?”

  I nod.

  He finally lets me go, sits back and sips his drink again, watching while I go to work on him, doing all those things he likes. He sits quietly, except for the occasional groan or hiss, watching me with those eyes.

  “Hey, Red,” he says, “you want to see what else she can do? I’ve got her all trained up.”

  Shayne leans over, close to my ear “Come on, baby. Let’s show him what a good rider you are. Hop up and turn around.”

  My throat closes in, knowing what’s coming.

  He takes himself from my mouth, then holds his shaft upward while I do as he says. I face away from him, and hear him spit, then feel his hand on my hip, guiding me to him, while I know Red watches.

  “No, not there,” Shayne says. “You know what I want, sweetheart. My hole. That’s it. Watch this, Red. She can take it all. It takes her a little bit, but she’ll get there, won’t you, darlin’? Yeah. And I know, I know, it hurts. I didn’t get you warmed up this time, but I’ll talk you through it. I know you like it when I do that. There you go. Ahh, that feels so good. What a good girl, you are. Keep going. Keep going. All the way down now. That’s it. Work it back and forth. There you go. Oh, fuck, you feel so good. Alright, now ride me, Ava. Go on, show Red how good a little rider you are. That’s it. Awww, that’s nice. Come on. Giddy up now. Giddy up! Let’s go. Harder. Come on, harder! Oh, Christ, that’s good.

  “Hey, Red, how do her tits look? Look pretty good bouncing like that, don’t they? Awww, he’s being shy, Ava. He’s trying not to look, but I can tell he likes it.

  “Okay, now grind on me a little. Work that tight ass into me. Ohhhh, that’s good. So good. Alright, alright—hold up. Almost there. I need to feed you, don’t forget. On your knees, now. Give me that mouth. Wrap your lips around me. There you go. Ohhhhh fuuuuuck! All the way, Ava. All the way down your throat.”

  He takes my head in both hands and shoves me down the length of him, until my nose is buried deep in that dark pelt of hair. His warm seed bursts into my throat, over and over, dripping down my insides. He holds me in place, silent and straining while he feeds me. When he’s empty, he lets me go and slumps back in his chair. His meat slips from my mouth, wet and spent, while my head falls against his thigh. I can still feel him sliding down inside me.

  “So fucking good, Ava,” the beast sighs, petting my hair.

  I sit there with my eyes closed, unable to do anything but lose myself in his soft touch.

  He’s still stroking me, when he says, “Hey, Red, you’ve been like a brother to me all these years. Only real friend I’ve ever had. How about I let you give Ava a second helping of dessert.”

  The beast is still touching me, watching me as my eyes open and a tear bleeds onto his jeans. That’s when I hear the screech of Red’s chair. My stomach starts to hurt when I think he’s setting up for me, but instead…

  “That’s it, Shayne,” Red says. “I’m done. I’m fucking done with this shit.”

  “Alright, then. Have it your way.” The beast still touches me. Still strokes me. “Send Rex and Pete up then, will you? I know they won’t mind sticking their cocks in her mouth.”

  “Damn it, Shayne! What the hell! This is messed up. So fucking messed up!!”

  The beast chuckles and looks to Red who’s standing in the kitchen now. “Oh, come on. We’ve shared girls before. Plenty of them. And all of them blonde with blue eyes, so we could both pretend we were getting inside our little Ava here.” He strokes my cheek, running his fingers over another tear, and starts petting my hair again.

  “Hey, Red, remember that first girl? The first girl we took? We were what, almost eighteen then, and both virgins? Can you believe that, Ava? I was a virgin then, well sort of. Because I was waiting for you. But we hadn’t made our deal yet and I was starting to think we might not happen, and my balls were getting so blue I was feeling like one of those Smurfs. And I knew Red over there was a virgin too. He didn’t have the looks, you see, and he’s always been so damn shy. So I picked you up, didn’t I Red? Said we were going to get some that night.

  “We ended up driving to that dive bar up in Santa Maria, and you were all worried we wouldn’t get in because we were underage. But we got in, didn’t we?” he says with a chuckle, leaning forward to refill his glass. “Yeah, just like I said we would. They didn’t care, it was so damn crowded and they were making money.” He settles back, takes a long drink, then gets to stroking my hair again. “Anyway, I’d grabbed us a couple beers and we were standing off to the side watching the dance floor. That’s when we saw her at the same time. She was older and not near as pretty as our little Ava here, but she was close enough. Had that tight body, the long, blonde hair, and the blue eyes. When she caught sight of me watching her, she left that guy she was dancing with and pranced right up, didn’t she? That was back when I was pretty though. That wouldn’t have happened now.”

  He pauses to adjust my hair, pulling it back off my breast, then strokes my face.

  “Anyway, I didn’t barely have to say two words to her when she asked if I wanted to get out of there. She had no idea what she was in for. You did though, Red. I know you did, because I’d said our names were Mike and…Alex, I think. Or something like that. So we went back to her place, a little dump of a house hidden back in the trees that she shared with another girl, who was traveling or something.

  “So we had her all to ourselves, didn’t we, Red? Remember how mad she got when I came up behind her, pulled the straps down off her tank top, letting her tits out,
then called her Ava. Boy, she got fired right up. But that was nothing compared to when I had you toss me your knife. She realized right quick what she’d gotten into, and got to squirming so hard, trying to get away. But all it took was that knife to her throat and she got real quiet.” He stops and chuckles. “When I had her point to which bedroom was hers, her hand was shaking like one of those machines that mixes up paint. You know what I’m talking about? Anyway, I started pushing her that way, while you were taking a seat on the sofa and turning on the television, knowing it would be a while. And it was, wasn’t it? I was in there for a good couple hours, working out my frustrations over Ava here.”

  He takes in a long breath and slowly lets it out, then starts running his hand over my hair again. “By the time I left her, she was lying face down on the bed, with barely any life left in her. But there was just enough. Just enough for you, Red. And when I came out and collapsed on the sofa next to you, I could see you were struggling with it all. You were staring at that open door, looking like it was some big black hole. That’s when I nudged you and said, ‘Don’t be a coward, Red. Gotta happen sometime.’ Remember that? Oh, you hated being called a coward. Still do. But you made me proud, didn’t you? You walked in there and spent a good bit of time on her, yourself.

  “So, come on, Red. Sit back down and take this as a gift. I’m feeling generous tonight. After all, you sold your soul for her, the same way I did. And she’ll take care of you, I promise. Isn’t that right, baby? You’ll do anything I tell you to, even this.”

  I nod my head against his leg, feeling the wet stain of tears on his jeans.

  “Besides, Red,” he goes on. “I know you don’t want Pete and Rex anywhere near this girl. And if that doesn’t beat the coward of you…then…well, I might just stop paying on that pretty house your momma’s living in. I know I don’t pay you enough to keep her set up like that. Southern California’s such an expensive place to live and all. But I do that as a bonus for you, because you’re my best friend. And she’s doing so good now, got a job and everything. But how long you think it’ll be before she starts using again and whoring herself out once she’s back in that sorry ass trailer park you grew up in. Now come on. Be a man and sit your ass back down.”

  I hear the slow footsteps, hear the wary creak of the chair.

  The beast leans over me and says, “Go on, baby. Go take care of Red. And how’s your hand? Think you can crawl to him?”

  I nod while the bourbon on his breath sizzles my lungs. Slowly, I leave the beast and crawl across the floor, using the weight of my wrist to protect my hand. When I get to Red’s chair, I sit there kneeling, naked, and staring at the rug through a blur.

  Tears begin sliding down my cheeks and I hear the beast say, “You got to take yourself out for her, Red, remember? She can’t do it with her messed up hand. And don’t worry, Ava. Red never touches a girl without a condom, kind of a fanatic about it, so I know he’s clean. Aren’t you, Red?”

  From the corner of my eye, I see Red nod and begin to undo his pants, when the movement of his thumb catches my eye. It’s a thumb with a scar…a thumb I’ve seen before.

  He takes himself out and shifts awkwardly in his seat, the red pubic hair and limp flesh poking out of his jeans.

  “Go on, Ava,” Shayne says, the tone of his voice a warning. “He’s probably going to need a little help getting started.”

  I’m not sure which hurts worse—that the beast would share me, or that I’m about to pleasure a man I grew up with but barely know.

  It doesn’t matter I guess. There’s still only one path before me.

  I lean forward, close my eyes, and take him in.

  He tastes different and smells different than what I’m used to. When I begin working him in and out of my mouth, and running my tongue over him, Red groans and grows hard real quick.

  The beast sounds again. “You know, I’m feeling so generous tonight. Say, Red, why don’t you bend her over the table and see how her pussy feels.”

  I choke from his words, and a fresh set of tears spill down my cheeks. Red’s hard now, and I don’t hear him protest. But I can see bits of his face, looking tight and conflicted, almost helpless.

  “I’ll even let you take her bareback, Red,” Shayne goes on. “Consider that another gift. And don’t worry, she’s clean, and protected too. So we can all feel good about this. Alright darlin’, go on, get up. Get over the table and let him inside you. But not my hole, the other hole. The one you gave away before me.” I don’t miss the change in tone on those last words.

  When I stand, I don’t look at Red, I don’t look at anything. I just bend over the edge and close my eyes, trying to focus on the ache in my hand instead of the ache in my heart.

  After a moment, he’s in me. His grunts are soft, his hips jerky. He’s not as big as Shayne, but he’s long, and it’s still painful, in my heart and in my mind, just like the sadist wants.

  “Awww, you look so pretty when you cry, baby,” the beast says. “And I know you’re trying hard not to like it, Red, but I see you looking at her ass and grabbing her waist. Why don’t you give her a spanking? She deserves it after all. And she’ll like it too. Go on. Do it, Red. Do everything I say, or you know what’ll happen. Ha, there you go! Again. Again! Harder! That’s it. This is a bonding moment you two are having. Shit, are you coming? Oh well, that’s alright. But hey, you were supposed to feed her, remember? She made this nice apple pie here, but we ate it all. But I’ll bet you can get there again though. Slide down, baby. Give him another chance. He won’t let you down this time.”

  I’m between his legs, taking him in again. It takes only a minute before his hand is on my hair and he’s coming down my throat with a grunt. He stays in my mouth, pulsing out last little bits of come over my tongue, then gently pushes me back. He’s fumbling to get his pants closed, when he says under his breath, “Sorry, Ava. I’m so fucking sorry.”

  I guess if I had to choose, I’d rather have done all this to Red than those other two. It still doesn’t soften the blow. Doesn’t soften the feeling inside me that makes me want to curl up and die.

  The beast chuckles. “Knew you’d be quick, but damn, Red. Figured you’d at least draw it out some. Especially after all these years of hurting for the girl.”

  “Shut up,” Red says, reaching for his glass and downing the rest of it.

  I don’t want to be near the beast right now, because I know it’ll hurt, but being where I am hurts worse.

  So I make my way back, crawling to the monster where I kneel at his side. He pets me, places a kiss on my hair, then leans his broken cheek against my head, just resting it there. For a moment, the sadness creeps in, coming from him, from the way he holds me to him. Just holding and holding, and that strange feeling comes back, even after everything he’s just done to me and just made me do. I don’t like feeling this way. I don’t like it at all. It hurts. It hurts so much.

  It hurts even worse when he lifts me into his lap, cradling me against his chest while he downs the rest of his glass, then leans back in his chair and nestles me in his arms. Despite my aching hand, and my naked body that he just gave away, I find myself curling into him. I don’t know why I do that. I don’t know why I breathe him in either, and close my eyes.

  “Red won’t say it, baby,” he says, placing a tender kiss on my hair, “but I know you’ve made him so happy. He’ll be rubbing one out for years on what you just did for him.”

  “Shut up, Shayne!” Red’s voice blasts through the room. “Shut the fuck up!”

  “What the hell? What are you so torn up about? I just had Ava give you the time of your life. Well, maybe not exactly. I know I had to force that on you at first, but…come on now. Don’t get so bent out of shape. You know that’s not the worst thing you’ve done, now is it?”

  Red gets quiet. The room gets quiet, except for the song still playing.

  Then the beast says, “What do you think, Red? Should we tell her?”

  CHAPTER
TWENTY-FIVE

  Ava

  I stare at a button on his shirt, knowing something bad is coming.

  Red shifts in his chair. “Don’t say it, Shayne. Don’t you—”

  “Why not? Figured you’d want her to know what you did for her.”

  “No. I don’t. I don’t want anyone to—”

  “He killed a man,” Shayne whispers in my ear. “Well, I guess I should say, we killed a man. For you, Ava.”

  “Motherfucker,” Red mutters.

  My eyes blink, my ears ring. Then I remember. I’d let it slip, with so much else going on. But, I remember now.

  I’ve killed for you before…

  Shayne sits forward, taking me with him, pours himself another glass, and slides the bottle down the table. “Go on, Red. Drink up. Looks like you need it.”

  Red stays quiet, but I hear the sound of bourbon pouring.

  The beast leans back in his chair, settling me into him again, and takes a sip. “Remember that guy, Ava?” he says soft in my ear. “The one that got you down in that ditch?”

  My mind jerks back to a sunny afternoon a long time ago.

  “That’s right. I know you remember. Didn’t you ever wonder what happened to him?”

  He lets the question hang.

  Shayne chuckles. “Your daddy was driving around all weekend, like a drunk bat out of hell in that piece of shit truck, never knowing me and Red already had the sucker in the ground. Wasn’t hard, you know. As soon as I got wind of what had happened to my girl, I went straight to Carson and got the description you’d turned in. When I found out he was a drifter, one of those homeless fucks, I had a good idea of where he’d gone.

  “I’d come across an old run down cabin some time before, when I had to go searching for some strays that had broken through a fence. It was set way back deep in the hills, and I could tell it’d been used quite a few times. Even had a small trail that led to it, and onto the Upper Valley. Figured things like that spread around, you know, from drifter to drifter, and sure enough, he was there, hiding out. Had to chase him down though, didn’t we Red? He’d heard us coming through the brush and was already running up the trail when we saw him. But he didn’t stand a chance. I was like a shark smelling that drop of blood. I was on him so fast, tackling him to the ground. And fuck, he stank. Bet that’s something you remember about him, isn’t it baby? God, he was rank.”