Finding You Bk. 02: Paradigm Shift

Pick me up? Tabby wondered what Petra was planning. She tapped out her next message.

...Ok. You better not be texting and driving!...

...lol. 'course not silly! I just stopped for gas. Be there in 10...

Ten minutes was plenty of time for Tabby to get home and she tucked her phone away and enjoyed the rest of her walk. Distracted by Petra's message and by the lovely weather, Tabby wasn't paying as much attention to her surroundings as she should have been. Lost in her thoughts, she didn't notice the nondescript mini van parked across the street from her building and she didn't notice the man inside, taking pictures of her as she waited for Petra on the sidewalk.

Petra's Prius pulled in beside the curb and Tabby climbed in. "What's up?" she asked after buckling her belt.

Petra moved back into traffic and smiled brightly at Tabby. "It's been a crazy week and this is the first chance I've had to come back and see you! I've missed you, girlfriend."

Tabby laughed. "You know you could have just called right? Where are we going, by the way?"

"I'm starving and if I know you, you haven't eaten all day. I thought we could grab dinner and catch up."

Her stomach rumbled at the prospect of food and Petra chuckled when she heard the embarrassing sound. "See, I knew it. I'm in the mood for a burger. Sound good to you?"

"I could murder a plate of french fries," Tabby agreed, suddenly starving.

CHAPTER 9

The man in the van watched as the Prius disappeared out of sight. He removed the data card from his camera and plugged it into a reader attached to a laptop computer. A few clicks later, dozens of pictures of Tabby filled his screen. He selected several good shots and attached them to an email. In the body, he typed a simple message: ...What do you want to do?" and hit send.

The reply came almost instantly.

...Do nothing. Just watch for now...

The man read it and pressed delete. He didn't know what his employer's intentions were for this young woman, but he had a feeling that things would be getting much more interesting in the future.

~~~~~~~~~~

Gerald Moran stared at the pretty face of the fucking cunt who'd robbed him of his manhood. He traced a thick finger over her image on his computer screen, this one was taken a week after he had to disappear. It showed the lovely black eye he had gifted her with and his anger rose hot and vile inside him. He should have hit her harder, knocked her out first. If he had, he might have avoided the crushed testicles, broken nose and broken wrist she'd given him.

He wriggled the fingers on his right hand, extending out from the plaster cast that immobilized his injured wrist. Having to wait for the bones to heal filled him with violent rage, but cool sense had forced him to see that he needed to be whole if he wanted to get his revenge.

The man he'd hired to monitor the bitch had sent him hundreds of photos. He scanned through them, letting his anger turn vicious with the need for payback.

Soon, you miserable little cunt. We'll be seeing each other very soon and then we'll finish what we started a month ago. The promise warmed him with pleasure and he smiled happily.

The toilet flushed in the bathroom of the rundown motel room the prostitute had rented for the night. He'd made sure to give the woman cash for the room so that no trace of his presence would exist - if nobody saw him, there wouldn't be any witnesses to tip off the cops when his handiwork was discovered tomorrow. The last thing he wanted was for someone to give the cops his description and tip the miserable bitch off that he was still in town.

When he met up with his former employee, Jerry wanted it to be a surprise.

The door to the bathroom opened and the woman half walked and half staggered over to him. He shut the computer's lid and eyed the whore from her bulging fake tits to the tight scrap of skirt that barely covered her snatch.

Maybe this bitch would be able to get his dick up. She'd better, he thought cruelly, or else he'd have to take some of his frustrations out on her. He laughed inside his thoughts, even if she did, he still intended to vent a little stress on her, and it would only add to the fun for him.

"What'll it be today, honey?" she drawled, her voice slurring from the Jack she'd guzzled before going for a piss.

"Get naked," he commanded.

Stupid bitch! He'd purposefully left the spiked whiskey on the vanity by the bathroom, knowing that the whore wouldn't be able to resist the liquor. She'd chugged the whiskey without ever stopping to consider the possibility that it might not have been safe for her to drink. Which, thanks to the GHB he'd put in it earlier, it wasn't.

He watched in disgust, as she swayed around the room, teetering on her high heels and removing her clothes. She climbed onto the sagging bed, trying to imitate a sexy crawl that failed miserably.

Jerry almost laughed aloud at the pathetic woman and thought that he was actually going to be doing her a favor by helping her to leave her miserable life. He reached out a hand to grab at her huge tits, but she pulled back, almost toppling over.

"What the fuck?" he snarled at her. "You playing me, bitch?"

"Sorry, baby, but I need the money 'fore we start."

Jerry pulled his wallet out and handed over the hundred they'd agreed upon when he'd picked her up. She tucked the bill into her purse and dropped the heavy bag on the carpet beside the bed.

He didn't care about the money; he'd have it back in his pocket, plus whatever she had on her, in a few hours anyway. As soon as the bill hit her palm, the look on her face changed from mild distaste to a cheaply affected, porn-star wannabe mask - as if his money had switched her on into the role for which he'd paid her to assume.

He was already naked so she began fondling his inert cock, attempting to suck, stroke and tease it to some semblance of hardness, but nothing happened. It lay as limp and lifeless as a deflated balloon, just as it had since the day that miserable little cunt had kicked him in the balls.

Jerry's anger made him snatch the woman by her hair and he wretched her head up, forcing her to stare with frightened eyes at him. "I ain't paying you for nothing, bitch. Get me hard or you're going home empty handed."

"I'm trying, lover. It ain't working," she whined, too stoned to really comprehend how much danger she was in.

Jerry let go of her hair, squeezed her mouth open and fed his limp dick into her mouth, holding her tight against him until she was pushing frantically to get away.

"You bite me and I'll fucking kill you!" he threatened, choking her with his cock until he felt her muscles losing strength.

She continued to struggle weakly, eyes bulging from lack of oxygen, but her attempts to escape his hold were ineffectual, as the GHB finally kicked in. The drug drained away the strength she needed to fight him off and replaced it with lassitude until she went limp in his arms.

The fiasco with Tabby had taught him a valuable, if painful, lesson. A little GHB made playing with these stupid cunts way easier and less of a risk of injury to himself.

He threw her aside and she landed heavily onto the mattress, sucking in gasping breaths like a fish dying on a beach and stared at him with glazed, terrified eyes, unable to move. He laughed at her and slapped her hard across the face. She let out a pathetic whimper that made Jerry laugh even harder. She must have had a high tolerance for the drug because she was still clinging to consciousness, aware enough to be afraid, unlike the others that had passed out by this point.

He was actually kind of glad, having her feel and know what he was going to do her made this so much more interesting. It was just a shame that he'd have to silence her so that her screams didn't give him away and spoil his fun.

He left her on the bed, drooling into puddle of spit and blood from her split lip, got up from the bed and slid out a couple of cable ties that he had stuffed under his pillow.

Stupid, useless bitch.

The truth was, she disgusted him...hell...all women disgusted him. They were only good for one thing - well, two if you counted dying - and he was glad that he'd decided to give in to the sadist urges that had plagued him all his life. He could thank the cunt for that, if she hadn't crippled him, he would never have had the balls - no pun intended - or the rage to embrace his dark side.

The whore let out a weak whine, refocusing Jerry's attention back to present and he grinned at the nameless prostitute on the bed, imagining that it was Tabitha lying there waiting for her comeuppance.

God he loved GHB! It made playing with these women a piece of cake. Not only did it make them easy to handle but it also removed their will to fight back, making them the perfect playthings for him. It wasn't until he really started hurting them that their crippled survival instincts stuttered back to life...unfortunately for them; it was always way too late in the game to save their worthless skins.

He grabbed the semiconscious woman by her hair and hauled her limp body up to the top of the bed, discarding her head onto the pillow as if she were a sack of garbage. She barely moved, just fluttered her eyelids, moaned pathetically and tried to thrust her pelvis up in a sad attempt to grind on him while he straddled her in order to tie her down. He sneered down at her, encouraging her efforts by rubbing his groin over her to distract her from what he was doing.

As if that could save her now, he snickered to himself. The drug had made her so confused that she'd completely forgotten her fear and the fact that he'd remained impotent. He couldn't have penetrated her with his useless cock even if he had wanted to, but the drug had numbed her mind to the point where she kept trying any way. She was close to passing out from the effects now and it took no effort for him to bind her wrists to the headboard, even with his broken wrist making things awkward.

Once he had her bound, he got off the bed and walked over to a black duffle bag that was waiting for him on the dresser. From inside it, he pulled a harness and fitted an obscenely large, metallic dildo on to the front of it. Next, he withdrew a roll of duct tape and then pulled the leather belt out from his pant loops. The woman let out a slurred whimper from the bed and he looked over his shoulder with an evil smirk on his face, her eyes were half closed and she was nearly out of it completely. He grabbed a washcloth off the dresser and tossed the roll of tape playfully into the air, giddy with anticipation. He knew from previous experiences that he'd still get a few good screams from the bitch when he tore her up with that dildo, but a convenient gag would ensure that their privacy was not disturbed.

No...he might not be able to have the cunt that had crushed his balls yet, but that didn't have to stop him from practicing what he was going to do to her when he finally got his hands on her. His dick might not work - he flexed his left hand and grinned with evil anticipation - but his fist? Well, his healthy fist worked just fine, thank you very much.

He'd be long gone by the time the housekeeping staff found the mess he intended to leave behind. Just as he had done twice already, because as the old saying goes: Practice makes perfect, doesn't it?

He chortled with glee at the thought. "You ready for me, baby? It's time for Daddy to come play," he sing-songed as he turned and strode back to the helpless woman tied to his bed.

CHAPTER 10

"Where are we going anyway?" Tabby asked, looking out the side window and enjoying the ride.

"The Sandpit. It's close by and I'm starving," Petra replied. "Plus, it's a great place to sit and chat."

She seemed unusually chirper, and for Petra, that was saying something. Her best friend was acting weird and Tabby didn't miss the furtive, sidelong glances she kept sneaking her way. Something was obviously on her mind because Petra rarely looked nervous about anything, let alone a simple meal with her best friend, and Tabby got a funny feeling that she had an ulterior motive for their impromptu get together.

Tabby was just about to speak up and ask her what was going on, when they arrived at the restaurant, parked and hurried to the entrance. The greasy smell of fried food stopped Tabby in her tracks at the door and she froze with her hand on the door handle, her heart racing a mile a minute while the blood drained from her head. Petra placed a warm hand on her arm and gave her a little squeeze.

"It's okay, Tabs. He can't hurt you anymore," she said quietly.

Tabby focused on her breathing, tightened her fingers around the brass knob and turned it in slow motion. Every instinct told her to run away, that it wasn't safe, but she knew that it was only her fear talking. They were just going into a regular restaurant, like normal people did all the time; there was no reason for her to panic. The panic attacks had lessened, but occasionally, something she didn't expect would trigger one and take her right back to the awful night that her boss had tried to rape her.

"I know, Pet, but sometimes my head forgets that it's safe, you know?" With shaking hands, Tabby pulled the door opened and stepped aside so that Petra could go in before her.

With a kind smile, Petra took the door from Tabby and ushered her inside the restaurant. "You're doing great," she whispered.

They had arrived before the dinner rush and the restaurant wasn't too busy. The hostess greeted the two women and led them to a cozy booth in the corner. She took their drink orders then departed, leaving them the menus and giving them time to decide on what to eat.

Tabby scanned the offerings and finally settled on a Caesar salad and a side of fries. She didn't really want the salad but felt guilty just ordering the fries, which was what she really wanted.

Petra called her on her dubious food choice right away. "Token greenery?"

Tabby laughed. "You got me! Maybe the lettuce will offset the empty carbs."

"Yeah, and maybe the lettuce and tomato on my bacon cheeseburger will make it a health food."

Tabby joked with her friend for a few more minutes, but the feeling that Petra was hiding something was getting worse. "Everything okay, Pet? You're giving off some weird vibes tonight. What's up?"

Petra blushed and looked shyly at Tabby. "You always could read me like a book. I need to ask you for a huge favour and I'm hoping that you'll say yes."

"Go for it. What do you need?" At this point, Tabby was willing to do anything for her to pay her back for saving her butt and giving her a place to live. "I've got a kidney that's in pretty good shape if you need it!"

"Ha! No, thank god, but I'll keep the offer in mind, just in case. It's nothing quite as dire but I'm not sure if you're going to go for it, but I really, really need you to say yes."

"Well, spill it then. I can't say yes if you keep beating around the bush."

"Okay, it's something much more fun than surgery and I know that it's short notice, but there's this party on Saturday and I'd really appreciate having some company," Petra blurted out without taking a breath.

A party? That's what she's freaking out about? Tabby looked at the super cheery smile on her face and suddenly got suspicious. "Where is this party, exactly?"

Petra's sunny expression fell and she suddenly looked worried and mumbled her reply. "Elysium."

Her sheepish reply made Tabby's eyes widened in surprise. "Come again?"

Petra grimaced. "You heard me, it's at Elysium"

"Elysium...as in the ultra-private, kinky sex club?"

"Um...yeah...that Elysium. Come on, Tabs, it's their 10^th anniversary party and Diego's going to be busy for most of it, leaving me hanging around twiddling my thumbs, watching everyone else have fun while I'm bored and lonely. Please say you'll come, Tabby, and keep me company."

Tabby leaned across the table and lowered her voice. "But it's a SEX club, Pets. What am I going to do in a sex club?"

Petra gave Tabby a mischievous smirk. "Besides the obvious?"

Tabby gaped in surprise. "Petra!" she said in a low whisper. "Seriously though, what would I do there? I've never been to a place like Elysium."

She shuddered as a sudden realisation arrowed through the jumbled mess of her nervous thoughts, towing a sensual heat behind it that flowed into her veins, raising her body temperature and making her flush.

Marcus.

He owned Elysium.

If she agreed to go with Petra, how would she avoid him? Could she avoid him? She'd tried for a month to ignore the bizarre attraction she had felt for him, an attraction that she didn't understand or want. They were too different and too much had happened in Tabby's life recently that she was still trying to get past. Marcus would only complicate her already screwed up life and Tabby couldn't cope with the added stress.

Then there had been the way he had made her feel, as if molten lava flowed in her veins whenever he had touched her and the way his voice had instantly soothed away her fears, calming her when all she wanted to do was scream. She remembered how safe she had felt in his arms, a stranger's arms, yet familiar and comforting at the same time, and a part of her desperately wanted to feel that again.

She had ignored his calls, his attempts to see her but the attraction hadn't died down. She had tried to wipe him from her memory because thinking of Marcus invariably led to remembering the reason why he had entered her life and she did not want any reminders of that horrible night haunting her.

She had spent the last month trying to erase everything associated with that night, but the one thing she couldn't erase was the way Marcus that had burned away the horror with only a smile and a kind touch. She also couldn't forget the way her traumatized body had responded to him, defying logic.

She had pushed him away when everything in her body screamed to pull him closer.

He stopped trying to contact her a week ago; maybe he'd finally given up and moved on. What would he do if she suddenly appeared in his club with Petra? What would she do if she could have just one glimpse of him again? Just the thought made an explosion of butterflies take flight in her chest.

Was she brave enough to find out?

Petra saw the conflict play out on Tabby's face and knew exactly what she was thinking. "Why don't you want to see him, Tabs? He's so into you and going by that blush, you're into him too. It doesn't make sense that you keep refusing to see him."

Tabby sighed. The conversation that she'd been trying to avoid having, had finally arrived and Petra had her cornered. She couldn't evade her friend's honest question without looking like a jerk.

"You wouldn't understand, Pet," she mumbled dejectedly.

"Try me, sweetie. Let me help."

She started slowly as if she was opening a box full of cobras, afraid that her words would turn on her and bite her. "I like him too. A lot. But I feel like...I dunno, I feel...damaged in some way, you know? I can't shake off that scared, humiliated feeling that Jerry left me with...like he left a dirty stain on me that everyone can see and won't go away. Plus I still haven't found a job. How can I face an accomplished man like Marcus in this state? He's rich, gorgeous and successful and I'm broke and sponging off of you..."

"Let me stop you there," Petra interrupted, real anger making her irises spark with indignation. "You are not sponging off of me. I invited - well...kinda bullied you, if I'm being honest - into moving in with me and I love having you live with me."