“Do you… think it saw us?” asked Maggie.
Cyrus snuffed the flaming log out in the sand and closed his eyes, running one hand through his hair. This morning, if one of the girls had asked him how much getting off the island meant to him, he would have given a vague answer.
It means getting back to Weston, and checking in with mom. Telling her that Darius is dead, but also letting her see that I’m still alive. Paying Jackson the last of the money I owe him.
“It didn’t see anything,” whispered Kyoko. “We’re just tiny dots, on an island that barely exists.”
“It doesn’t matter,” said Amy. “Let’s just pretend we didn’t see it, since it’s pretty clear that it didn’t see us.”
Kyoko glared at Amy, who shrugged, seemingly unconcerned with what having rescue dangled in front of them and then pulled out of reach meant to the rest.
“We’ll set up a rock signal tomorrow,” said Cyrus. “Something big, that spans the entire length of one of the side beaches. We’ll make sure that next time that they can’t miss us.”
“What are you talking about?” asked Amy. “That’s… if you do that, then…”
“Then they’ll find us?” said Maggie. “Is that what you were about to say? You’re fucking unbelievable, Amy. Maybe you aren’t interested in getting back home, but the rest of us are.”
Amy’s face shifted into a mix of anger and shame. She looked away from the others, crossing her arms over her breasts.
“Amy…” Cyrus walked over to her and threw an arm around her. “You know we have to go home eventually. It doesn’t have to change anything, though.”
Amy shrugged his arm off and stepped out of his reach.
“Really, Cyrus?” She shook her head, glaring at him. “Maybe you don’t remember just how much it sucked, but I do.”
“Don’t be like that,” he said. “Things will be different once we get back.”
Amy smiled at him, but it didn’t reach her eyes, or the grief in them.
“Maybe for you,” she said. “But not for all of us. Not for me.”
Cyrus took a deep breath and said nothing, wishing more than ever that things were as simple as they seemed.
Dinner that night was a muted affair. Maggie and Kyoko made small talk, but only with each other, both of them doing everything in their power to keep the topics of discussion light. None of them mentioned the plane or their lives back home, but it was clearly on all of their minds.
Amy was the first of them to turn in for the night, and Cyrus tried and failed to patch things up with her as she left the fire. He hung out with Maggie and Kyoko for a few minutes more, listening to them chat about an old movie that they’d seen back in middle school, before finally going to sleep.
Cyrus woke up in the middle of the night to the sensation of his shorts being unzipped and slipped down. He couldn’t stop a smile from spreading across his face, glad that Amy didn’t let the drama of the near rescue get in the way of their nightly ritual.
She took her time massaging his cock into a state of hardness, doing it through his boxers rather than pulling them off immediately. It wasn’t until Cyrus was rock hard and eager for release that she finally pulled them loose and started running her hands directly up and down his shaft.
Her touch was different than it usually was, softer and a little more hesitant, but it made sense, given their rocky night. Cyrus let out a slow moan as he felt her lips close around his erection.
Maybe she has a point. Maybe things are better here than they’ll ever be back home…
Her tongue was insistent, gently massaging and prodding the underside of his shaft as her lips worked their magic up and down his rod. She made little noises as she sucked, the noise louder than Amy typically allowed.
Cyrus opened his eyes, feeling a sudden stab of suspicion. The stars and moon offered just enough light for him to get a glimpse of the woman sucking his cock. She had black hair and almond shaped eyes, and was very clearly not Amy.
“Kyoko!” Cyrus hissed.
Kyoko pulled her lips free from his cock and held a finger up to her lips. Cyrus began another protest, but she stuck out her tongue and gave his shaft a tentative lick, swirling her lips around the tip as she finished.
“Careful,” she whispered. “You wouldn’t want Amy to wake up to this, would you? Not after the argument the two of you already had tonight…”
Cyrus gritted his teeth. He wanted to push Kyoko away from him and do everything in his power to keep her from getting what she wanted. And then, those soft lips were against the head of his cock again as her mouth began to suck, and Cyrus felt the pleasure sweep most of his anger away.
Kyoko knew how to give head. He watched her as she stroked his shaft with her lips, the movements gentle and repetitive, intoxicating in a simple, irresistibly pleasurable way. She was still fully clothed, which Cyrus hated himself for noticing and wondering about.
She’s finally making her move, after days of teaching. And I’m just letting her do it.
He set a hand on her cheek, intending to push her away. Kyoko pushed her mouth forward along his shaft, taking his hard cock deeper into her mouth and throat than Amy had ever managed. It felt so good that he couldn’t make himself stop her, not with any amount of willpower in him.
“Kyoko,” he whispered. “This… isn’t fair.”
She pulled her mouth back, which surprised him, and flashed a wicked smile.
“Does it have to be, if it feels good?”
She kissed the head of his cock with the kind of passion that only a new lover can manage, swirling her lips over it, caressing it against her cheek. Cyrus had to stifle a moan as she began sucking again. He’d already been aroused, before she’d arrived, and knew that he could only hold out for so long.
A resolute voice in the back of his head pledged to stop her from managing to properly getting him off, to put an end to the encounter before he could. Cyrus’s hands, however, were not on the same wavelength, and all he could do was watch as Kyoko sucked faster and faster, her tongue moving within her mouth, teasing and pleasuring him like a pro.
He didn’t think of Amy. He thought of her older sister, Lana, and the way his homeroom teacher’s experience had turned sex with her into something nearly transcendent. Kyoko could do it, too, and she was proving it now, with her mouth.
It feels so damn good. And it’s so wrong, to go behind Amy’s back like this.
Kyoko pushed forward, taking every inch of Cyrus’s cock into her sweet mouth, and tight throat. She held the pose like an Olympic gymnast sticking the landing, and Cyrus felt himself lose all control.
“Fuck!” he whispered. His cock spasmed inside her mouth, blasting out string after string of hot, sticky cum. Kyoko kept her mouth’s hold on his erection, sucking every drop down eagerly. Cyrus wondered what kind of woman she’d been back home.
He realized that it didn’t matter. They were still on the island, a thousand miles or more away from anything that could be called civilization.
“We’re in this together, now,” whispered Kyoko.
“You’re evil.”
“No.” She smiled at him. “Just a desperate opportunist.”
CHAPTER 27
The next few days were mostly uneventful, and Cyrus felt blessed for it. Kyoko was no different than usual, and after making up with Amy on the day after seeing the plane, all of them fell back into an easy routine.
Occasionally, while Cyrus would be helping out around the camp, Kyoko would make a power play, teasing him in a way that went further than what she’d done before. He always managed, somehow, to worm his way out of doing anything beyond what they’d already done on that illicit night, but guilt still nagged at his heart.
Things between him and Amy were stable, if a little boring. The sex dwindled from every night to once every other night. She was very open with him about her feelings and emotions, and Cyrus wished he could be as open with her about everything that was going on in his ow
n life.
Maggie slowly and surely became as much the rock of the group as Cyrus was, helping each of them out with whatever was needed at any given time. Cyrus found his eyes straying to her more often than he liked, and thinking thoughts about her, and about Darius, too. He was confused, but knew that it wasn’t something he could do anything about.
Cyrus and the others had been on the island for about two weeks when everything changed. It was late evening, and they were sitting around the fire, much as they did every night. He was looking out at the ocean, and it took him several seconds of blank staring to realize that he was seeing something that went beyond the waves and the water.
“No fucking way…” Cyrus stood up, drawing the attention of the three girls. “That’s… the raft!”
His arm was shaking as he pointed it out, heading toward them across the blood red reflection of the setting sun across the water. Cyrus felt a strange mix of emotions, excitement over having Peter and the others back intermingled with concern and confusion.
As the raft drew nearer to the beach, his fears were confirmed. There were only two people visible on the raft. Peter was there, as was Tamyra, but Aiden was nowhere to be seen. Cyrus made his way over to Amy, pulling her into a hug in anticipation of a hard oncoming truth.
And this will only complicate things further, he thought. For Peter to see that Amy and I are even closer than we were when he left.
He waved his arms as the raft drew nearer, and met Peter’s eye. Something fundamental had changed in his friend’s expression from the last time he’d seen him. It was hardened, like a clay urn after time in the kiln.
“Peter,” he called. “You’re back.”
Peter slid down the front side of the raft and motioned for Tamyra to do the same. They carried it with them, pulling it onto the sand and beaching it a short distance away from the camp. A sinking feeling settled into Cyrus’s stomach as he watched them turn their attention to the islanders and walk over.
“What’s going on, Peter?” asked Cyrus.
“Where’s Aiden?” Amy’s question was more insistent, and she wore the emotion in her voice openly.
Peter sneered and shook his head oddly, as though trying to knock away a mosquito biting at his face without using his hands.
“She’s dead,” he said. “She died.”
Cyrus took a deep breath, and despite knowing how Peter would react to seeing it, he put an arm around Amy’s shoulders to comfort her in her despair.
“Are you ready to listen to reason now, Peter?” asked Maggie. “You’re lucky that the both of you made it back, with the food and water supplies you…”
Maggie trailed off in midsentence, and Cyrus followed her eyes to what she had seen. On the raft, Cyrus could see the water barrel where it had been when they had left, but most of the food, the panther carcass and the fruit, was gone.
In its place was a bundle made from the shirt Aiden had been wearing, before the three of them had set out. Flies were thick around it, and poking out from the top was a bloody bone, the shape of which precluded it from being anything other than human.
“Peter…” Cyrus couldn’t contain his disbelief. “You didn’t…?”
“We did what we had to in order to survive,” he said. “We’ll bring more supplies with us, next time.”
“Next time…?” Cyrus shook his head slowly, noticing the salt encrusted along the rim of the water barrel. On top of everything else, the two of them had been drinking at least some percentage of salt water, losing their minds from dehydration.
“Grab her,” said Peter. Tamyra started forward immediately, as though the two had discussed what was going to happen on their arrival back ahead of time. Cyrus wasn’t expecting her to grab Amy, and reacted too slowly to keep her held against him.
“What the hell?” cried Amy.
“Peter, what the fuck?” Cyrus took a step forward, but Peter was in his face, holding one of the makeshift oars they’d brought with them.
“She’s coming with us,” he said. “We’re saving her…”
“I don’t want to go!” cried Amy.
“Would you rather stay here with him?” asked Peter. “The murderer?”
Silence hung over the group for a moment. Peter’s finger was pointed directly at Cyrus.
“You didn’t tell her, did you?” asked Peter. “You didn’t tell any of them? I suppose it’s fair, I only told Tamyra after it seemed as though we were well and truly fucked.”
“Peter, let me go!” screamed Amy.
“Tell us what?” Maggie stepped forward, her gaze shifting between Cyrus and Peter.
“What we did for Amy,” said Peter. “What we did to Doug.”
It was dark, and the street was mostly empty. Cyrus and Peter sat inside Peter’s Ford Focus, watching as the car they’d been following for hours parked in front of a modest, but well maintained town house.
“This is it,” said Cyrus. “This is where he lives.”
“You still haven’t explained to me why this guy has it out for Amy so bad,” said Peter. “Now would probably be a good time.”
“It’s complicated,” said Cyrus. “Just know that he’s a douchebag, and he needs to learn his lesson.”
Truth be told, the last thing Cyrus wanted to do was to explain the whole situation to Peter, knowing what he did about his friend’s unhealthy fascination with Amy. The man they were watching was Doug Bellsworth, the owner of Heaven’s Gallery, the pervert that had tricked Amy into posing nude and used the photos to force her to do disgusting things.
Cyrus had asked for Peter’s help out of desperation. There was only so much he could do on his own with no car, and a rather average physique. Peter, tall, muscular, athletic Peter, struck a more intimidating figure than he could ever hope to. And Peter trusted him enough to agree to help without hearing the full story, something that made Cyrus feel deeply conflicted, overall.
“Come on,” said Cyrus. “We have to confront him now, just in case he’s expecting anyone at the house later.”
Peter nodded and climbed out of the car. Cyrus grabbed the baseball bat out of the backseat, though he didn’t expect to need to use it. Doug Bellsworth paused outside of his car, and then walked past the front door of his house, heading around into the backyard.
Cyrus frowned. That hadn’t been part of the plan, though, of course, there was really no plan. He wanted to give Doug a good scare, make him aware of the fact that the people he took advantage also had people on their side.
He glanced over at Peter, who didn’t seem to care much either way, and then started after Doug. He’d left the gate leading to the back yard open, and Cyrus and Peter were both able to slip in without making any noise.
A medium sized shed sat in the back of the yard, and they saw Doug disappear through the front door of it. Cyrus and Peter followed after him.
Doug was sitting in a chair in the corner, one sleeve rolled up and a needle in his other hand, when they came in. The look of surprise on his face gave Cyrus a thrill of satisfaction. He shut the door behind him.
“Hey, what the fuck?” Doug looked at both of them and shook his head dumbly. “Get the fuck out of here!”
With no direct neighbors and nobody home in the house, there would be nobody coming to Doug’s aid, even if he managed to scream up a storm. Cyrus took a step forward and pointed the baseball bat at the man squarely.
“Do you know who we are?” he asked.
“I have no fucking clue,” said Doug, through clenched teeth. “But I’m going to find out. And I’m going to send my stompers after you, you little bitch motherfuckers.”
“Cyrus…” Peter shook his head, frowning at the reality of the situation. “I don’t know about this.”
“You’re blackmailing a friend of mine,” said Cyrus.
“Fuck you, I’m blackmailing a ton of people,” said Doug. “It’s pretty much my job.”
Cyrus stepped closer, clenching his teeth in anger.
“Am
y White,” he said. “The girl you tricked into becoming one of the dancers at your shitty club.”
Doug laughed.
“Amy,” he said. “Okay. Yeah, yeah, I remember her.”
He grinned at Cyrus, the expression full of hate and illicit knowledge.
“You’re going to let her go back to her old life,” said Cyrus. “Or else.”
“Or else what?” Doug was still smiling. “You ain’t going to do shit, kid.”
Cyrus hesitated, and knew that in doing so, he’d made a crucial mistake. Peter glanced over at him, the worry on his face growing by the second.
“Oh yeah, I know Amy,” he said. “Man, she’s a hot little thing. I had some serious fun with Amy.”
“Shut the fuck up,” said Peter.
“Nah, I don’t think I will,” said Doug. “What are you two, her boyfriends? She’s got some nice tits on her, doesn’t she?”
“Don’t say another word!” said Cyrus.
“Oh, and such a nice mouth,” said Doug. “She was so worried about those pictures getting out. Good thing she had that nice, hot mouth on her. I made her go slow, made her take her-“
Cyrus swung the bat. He’d meant to strike Doug in the mouth, knock a few of his teeth out and silence the man from saying anything else. The bat was longer than he’d expected, and it hit the man squarely in the temple. He didn’t shout or cry out as he fell to the floor of the shed. He just dropped.
Peter walked over to Doug before Cyrus could say anything. He brought his foot up over the man’s head and stomped down hard. Doug’s head made a sickening noise, and a dark crimson pool began to spread out on the concrete floor underneath him. Peter stomped again, and again.
“You. Fucking. Bastard!” he screamed.
“Peter…” Cyrus’s fingers were still clutching the bat. He still felt angry, but the situation had turned so quickly, sobering him to the fact of what they’d done.
“Bastard!” Peter stomped one more time and then staggered back, shaking his head. “…That fucking bastard.”
Survival Island: Last Man Standing Page 16
