Fatal Attraction Ch. 05

Vanessa was waiting on the front porch, her red hair glowing eerily in the dark, her arms folder below her breasts, her face impassive. She stood up as soon as she heard the engine droning in the distance.

She waited for the two riders to dismount as Christian finally caught a glimpse of her and shrugged gesturing towards Duke as he smiled.

Duke pulled off the helmet from his head, his back to the man he had just helped escape; standing motionless for a few seconds as if contemplating what to do next.

Christian suddenly burst out cheekily, "Jesus BadgerKing, that was one hell of a ride!"

Quick as lightning, Duke spun around and slapped him hard across the face. Vanessa's jaw dropped. Christian recoiled as the right side of his face stung and he immediately lifted his hand to his cheek.

"Why did you come back?"

One question; one question asked by the hapless hacker; one question that took Christian a few moments to absorb and understand.

Christian bit his lower lip hard as he looked at the pained expression on his assailant's face, as those seeking eyes that glowed pleadingly in the dark ripped a scar across his heart.

"Why did you come back?" Duke asked once again, softly this time, his voice trembling as his body shivered, "Why did you come back that night to the bar to save me?"

The emotions that washed through Christian rendered him speechless. He lowered his head to stare at the ground, unable to look into Duke's eyes. Duke's eyes that did not despise him for cheating him, eyes that showed no hatred for leaving him in the lurch, eyes that did not question him for confusing him and then leaving him all alone, but eyes that pleaded to know why he had returned after stabbing him in the back.

And Christian had no answer.

The blood rushed to his cheeks as they turned an angry red, and then to a deep scarlet, barely visible in the soft moonlight, but he could hardly feel the pain on his cheek in comparison to the ache he felt in his heart.

And in those moments Christian's life ran in front of his eyes as snippets and flashes; an incomplete childhood, the feeling of being a champion and then that being snatched away, the feeling of helplessness and of going astray; and they all led right to this single moment, as the hurt man in front of him pleaded silently with his eyes; a young man who shook his very foundations. And in those flashes Christian's determination grew strong as he resolved to treat this young man differently; a reaction that arose from the deepest recesses of his heart.

He lifted his face and tried to smile. "Is this going to be like last time? I mean I remember what happened after you hit me the last time."

Christian faked a chuckle as he inched slowly towards Duke and extended his hand towards the tense shoulder. Duke resisted, still shaking and then finally let loose, his shoulders slumping as he did. Christian took that as a sign and stepped forward as he embraced the hurting man; the young man who had caused him many sleepless nights.

Vanessa watched silently as the two embraced in the soft moonlight, Duke's leather jacket gleaming as his head lay buried in Christian's left shoulder. The taller man stroked his hair softly, muttering how sorry he was into the shorter man's ears.

~~~

"Ok, so what exactly happened back there on the Nebressa?" Christian questioned as he settled onto a sofa opposite Duke as Vanessa pulled up a chair. The three sat around the unlit fireplace as dawn broke and a faint pink glow in the atmosphere signaled them of the rising sun.

"Well, everything was going along perfectly," Vanessa started, "A little too perfectly and we separated on E-deck and I easily managed to penetrate their security systems and we looked like we were going to be just fine. There were no security guards around or anything"

"Uh-huh," Christian nodded as she continued.

"Till I spotted him," Vanessa gestured towards Duke, "on the surveillance systems and my blood froze. My eyes nearly popped out of my head then he entered the control room and it was all just a big haze. He did convince me to get out though, ensuring that he would get you out. He told me how to exit the ship without getting caught."

"Ok." Christian nodded as both turned towards Duke to hear his side of the story.

Duke swallowed before he began. "I found out your whereabouts from Zelderman and knew the job you were trying to pull off."

A dozen warning chimes went off in both Christian's and Vanessa's head, but they let him continue for the time being.

"So I came over to Mali and hacked into the private dock area servers; only to find that something was really really wrong. Everything had been set up. The entire dock area was rigged. You both had been set up. I mean all the security patterns had been changed and everyone's schedules were on high alert after midnight. Their patrol patterns had conspicuously been changed to clash with the Nebressa; but what really set the alarm bells off, was me finding that the firewalls around the servers had been recently de-activated; even the surveillance equipment was rigged."

The two nodded as they thought over how the job had seemed surprisingly easy till the pivotal moment. They should have guessed earlier.

"So then I overwrote the security schedules, re-deployed their security systems and around mid night set up a false alarm to go off in the vicinity and that's why the attention was shifted and the guards were delayed; otherwise you would both be cooked geese by now."

The two absorbed the news, unable to argue. Duke was right. A trap had been laid out and they had walked into it blindfolded. If it would not have been for Duke, they would have been behind bars by now.

Duke sneered as he put on Christian's deep tone of speaking, "Apparently, we'd not perfected every routine."

Vanessa smiled as Christian chose to ignore the last comment, so Duke continued

"And you don't need to worry about the cameras and tapes and all, I took care of all that long before."

"So what's going to happen with the Stevenson deal?" Vanessa suddenly turned towards Christian and asked who shook his head sadly to imply he had no idea.

"Who's Stevenson now?" Duke questioned, a little irritated that his limelight was suddenly snatched away from him. The two had hardly thanked him for all his efforts.

"He's the big-guy who set up the job. That painting we were trying to steal was to be delivered to him today."

"So you two gonna be in shit for that now?"

"Neck-deep shit." Vanessa stated.

"We'll be happy to live after he finishes with us."

"And Zelderman?" Duke asked.

"She had very little to do with this deal, mainly she presides over the dealings in the pirate terrain area."

Duke nodded, not really wanting to know what that meant.

"Though you said you managed to get to us through her," Christian interjected. "How did you do that?"

"Oh, it's due to my uncanny abilities of persuasion." Duke stated matter-of-factly, waving a hand dismissively in the air.

Christian suddenly put on a suggestive tone, "So you wanna show me some of those mysterious persuasive powers in private?"

Duke raised his eye-brows at the abrupt change in mood, but he wasn't one to back down. "Sure, where do you wanna see them?"

"In the shower nutcase! You stink!" Christian bellowed as Duke's face fell. "I mean, jeez, I was practically clinging on to you the entire time on the bike and boy, could I smell your sweat and god knows what else even through that leather jacket. You simply reek of perspiration man!"

"Well, I didn't find a place to shower yesterday," Duke admitted sheepishly. "And it was hot riding under the sun in all these clothes, maybe I do smell a bit funny."

"A bit?" Christian snorted. "We could use you as a skunk-cover if we got caught back then. I'm sure no security would have approached us if they took one whiff of the air around you!"

"So are you coming?" Duke stated suddenly rising from the sofa.

"Where?"

"To the shower; to behold my powers of persuasion!"

Christian's face broke into an evil grin as he rose to his feet. "Only if I get to shampoo you!"

"Ooh, my personal slave!" Duke shot back as they both burst out laughing, Duke realizing that in all the time he had spent with Christian, this was the first light moment that they had shared. They made their way towards the bunk rooms, Vanessa a little irritated at all the overflowing testosterone around.

Duke was in the tub a few minutes later, the clear water cascading around his body as he sat towards the edge. He had been a little hesitant when he entered the bathroom along with Christian; but after Christian used the conventional 'What you ashamed of? There's nothing I've not seen before' line, Duke stripped down to his birthday suit and stepped into the water.

He sat with legs folder in the middle of the bathtub, his back towards Christian as the taller man changed from his black tight suit and pulled up his sleeves as he knelt down at the edge of the bathtub.

"You're not going to join me?" Duke asked, hoping he would.

"Nah!" Christian stated chidingly. "We're gonna get you all cleaned out first."

Duke relaxed in the midst of the warm water which began its therapeutic effect almost instantly as Christian poured a mug of water over his head and started soaping his back. Duke let out a long breath as his overwrought muscles relaxed.

"So you always this dirty?"

Duke replied not missing a beat, "More so since you left me, Chris."

Christian's eye-brows immediately shot up in surprise. "So you do know my name then."

"Yes, Mr. Christian Steele. You were born on December 16th, 1983. Raised by a single mother, an accomplished gymnast and a brilliant academician and considered a complete genius till you tested positive for tetrahydrogestrinone in 1999 and were banned from all sport activities. Your mom died shortly after and you disappeared only to re-appear much later as Scott; one who seduces broke hackers and steals for a living."

Christian fell silent as the vanilla description of his life unfolded from Duke's mouth. Duke felt the hands soaping his back fall slack and immediately felt guilty for being insensitive. Clearly, Christian's past was not a merry topic for discussion.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have..."

"No, its fine." Christian cut him off. "And completely true; so can't say anything about that."

The air around them fell silent again as Christian resumed soaping Duke's arms, upper back and neck, Duke sighing in response. Finally the clothed man broke the silence.

"Back when I was sixteen, I really did feel like I could own the world. Mom's health was improving, our financial condition was turning stable, I loved the mat and the bars, and I was good at them, and I had met what I thought was the love of my life, his name was Martin, though everyone called him Marty."

Duke listened silently as Christian spoke with no feeling in his voice.

"Then came the final annual athletic meet, the one before high school ended, and the world was waiting to see me perform. My fiercest competitors knew of my prowess in the acrobatic field and I was touted to slice through all the competition from the other colleges, but it seemed some were too envious of my abilities."

Christian leaned forward as he glided the soap along the front and back of Duke's arms, massaging them ever so slightly.

"To cut a long story short, I failed the doping test just before my stint at the athletic meet, the board charged me with the use of anabolic steroids and I was to never participate professionally. When an athlete's career is killed like that, it almost ends his life. And the entire deal was due to a case of jealousy. My arch rival, a Dominic Paige, got me drunk in the name of camaraderie a couple of days before the big event and injected me with the drug, or so I have surmised"

Duke swallowed as he heard the aloof voice carrying on with the story.

"But it didn't end there. Marty turned against me, told the rest of the guys that I'd forced myself onto him. I got gay bashed badly once and was hospitalized. Mom slipped down a flight of stairs and joined me in the hospital too, I couldn't give my high school exams and couldn't clear the rest of the semester. Mom died shortly after due to a heart attack."

Duke gulped silently. His life hadn't been pretty either, but it was nothing like the one he was hearing of.

"I literally came onto the streets and hustled for a few weeks until I got into some bad shit. Stevenson pulled me out of all that, he knew of my talents. He caught hold of me and send me off to train in martial arts and combat. That's where I met Vanessa and we've been together for more than five years now."

The area was plunged into silence once again, save the minimal sound of water swishing against the tub edges as Christian guided the soap bar towards the front of Duke's neck. Finally Christian spoke again.

"So anyway, where did you learn to drive your bike like that? The air-force?"

"Nah." Duke stated softly, acknowledging the fact that Christian wanted to lighten the mood.

"You saved me back there with your crazy driving; I guess that makes us even."

"Even?" Duke questioned, his head turning sideways.

"Yeah, I saved you once and you returned the favor."

Duke did not reply, feeling empty that this was the conclusion, that the man he had been mad on in every possible way, wanted to reach.

Christian leaned in closer as he started soaping the front of Duke's torso, rubbing along the chest contours and his abs as his stubble brushed along the back of the latter's neck.

"So where do we go from here?"

Duke kept silent. Christian closed in as he whispered in Duke's ears, tickling him with his stubble.

"I mean, here we are, you an unemployed programmer and me an unsuccessful professional thief who's in a fine mess by now, so where do we go from here? You want to run away and get married and have six or seven kids?"

"I don't know." Duke stated as he turned around slowly, the water swishing as he did and looked into Scott's brown eyes. He sighed at the beautiful face in front of him, the one that had caused him so much anguish. And he lifted his hand as he stroked his cheek before he closed in and their lips met.

They kissed gently, gliding their tongues against each others, relishing each moment as the first rays of the sun streamed in through the small wooden windows. Christian clasped the back of Duke's head, sliding his fingers up and down the velvety curls as he closed his eyes and savored the taste of his lover. Finally they drew apart, but only for a moment to catch their breaths, and their lips returned with the same tenderness; no hurry as their passions peaked ever so slowly.

"So you wanna take this into the bedroom?" Christian gasped as Duke bit his lower lip and gently tugged at it.

"You still owe me a shampoo," Duke muttered between mouthfuls.

Christian giggled as he stretched an arm beneath the water, under Duke's legs, and the other arm below his upper back as he stood up slowly, lifting up Duke's naked and highly aroused from the water that ran between them, dripping onto the floor, never breaking the kiss once.

He walked them into the adjoining room Duke giggling into the kisses as they collapsed together on the bed.

~~~

A polished black van made its way upslope as it ascended the hilly terrain. Dawn had broken in some time back and now the birds were cooing and chirping as the sun shone a brilliant red along the horizon, rising ever so steadily. The engine of the van droned against the emptiness of the scenic beauty that the southern foothills were.

There were 5 men in the van in total, all dressed in an identical manner. With black woolen suits and their pristine shirts, they screamed money, or at least class. Two of them had shades on which were of course black as well. And all of them had pinstriped black and white ties on.

As they made their journey upslope, a wooden cabin on stilts, a lone sign of civilization came into view as the driver, one of the black suited men grimaced; they had almost reached their destination.

~~~

Vanessa sat in front of the empty fireplace. Her face bore an expression of irritation mixed with a tinge of helplessness, and a little bit of anger as well.

She stood up from the sofa and looked around, wondering what she should do. She had a good mind to interrupt the boys' session, and maybe even mess it up real good. She thought for a moment what it would be like intrude the room where the two were obviously having a good time. At last she shook her head deciding against it and slumped back into the sofa again.

She was angrier now. Christian having a fling once back in the town of Salvia was ok, but this was developing into something serious.

And she did not approve of it at all.

It was in the middle of her thinking stupor that she heard the sounds. The sound of a car door sliding shut, a noise accentuated in the midst of the idyllic sounds that surrounded the atmosphere in the hills, and she rushed outside to see what it was.

Her blood froze when she peered out of the window. A black van was parked below on the stone pavement and five men made their way out of it as they scurried towards the long winding staircase that led up to the cabin.

~~~

Duke couldn't keep himself from giggling as the grainy stubble tickled his pubes. Naked as a buck, he lay back on the bed highly aroused with his legs spread apart as Christian crouched over and finally swallowed his dick, after teasing him for what seemed like an eternity; and Duke continued sniggering, flailing his head about on the bed as Christian tried to go all the way to his pubes.

Finally Christian broke contact and sided up next to his face, his body weight pinning Duke firmly underneath. "Why are you giggling?"

"Don't know." Duke replied between giggles as Christian leaned in and bit an ear lobe.

Duke squealed as gasped and finally burst out into fits of laughter. Christian pulled apart once again and stared at him with a cross look on his face.

"What?"

And a few seconds later, he joined in the infectious laughter, both men cracking up over something only shared between them as tears accumulated in the corners of their eyes, Christian tickling Duke asking him to beg for mercy, making him laugh and cry at the same time.

Suddenly Christian smashed his mouth over Duke's, kissing him ferociously as Duke's giggles were captured by his mouth, till they ceased and finally faded. Duke felt the hot tongue invading his mouth as he tugged at the shirt Christian was still wearing. Christian struggled, sliding it off breaking the kiss for all of one second as Duke ran his hands hungrily over the muscular torso, ultimately holding him by the sides as he flipped them over, their teeth clashing before Duke balanced himself with his knees on either side of the man below him.

He sat up, staring at the body beneath him; the sinewy sun kissed skin stretched over the beautiful frame of hard muscles and sharp definitions, the perfect ups and downs and the round brown nipples, just the color of his eyes and hair, and the beautiful face, with a tiny dimple on the left cheek that Duke had never noticed before. Duke realized that the man was more beautiful than anyone he'd ever seen, resetting his scales of comparison to a new high, the heavy muscular arms leading up to prominent shoulder blades, and a face that could stop anyone dead in their tracks.

Christian was drop dead gorgeous; Duke knew that; beautiful but lethal at the same time.

He slowly stretched out both his hand towards the round nipples as Christian stared deep into his eyes and moaned as they were tweaked.