Reunited Ch. 03

"We're here to see Todd," Lisa said, politely, but firmly. She kept things down to business on behalf of Terence, sympathetic to the fact that he had a lump in his throat from the tension of walking straight into the center of hell.

"Of course, come in!" Angela said and opened the door wide. As Terence and Lisa stepped in, Terence had a moment to look at Angela. She was still drop dead gorgeous, and a few years had done nothing to change it. If anything, one could see how money and good living had improved her. Her clothes were perfectly tailored, she was fit, her hair was in beautiful condition. Her eyes twinkled and her smile beamed. She led them down a hallway.

As they walked down the hall and the moment of seeing Todd was upon him, Terence expected something horrible to happen as soon as Todd was revealed. Something like Todd in the process of fucking some woman that Terence would be shocked to see. Or that Lisa would walk over and immediately start sucking Todd's cock. Terence braced for some kind of shock which never came. When they turned the last corner and saw where Todd was, Terence saw a scene he never would have imagined.

They came to the back of the house where it looked like some kind of garden party was underway. Terence was shocked and confused. He had expected for Todd's house to be this hive of sin, perhaps with orgies or torture racks or something. However, here in front of him was what might be a family reunion, with a range of people from kids up to grandparents, and friends of the family, all laughing and playing like they were the model group of friends and family. The children laughed and played, the adults talked and smiled. Everyone looked bright and cheerful. Terence hated them all the more for having a full and beautiful life that was fulfilling and complete, and about much more than just sex. If it were just sex, he could look down on them in some way. The way it looked, though, it was the kind of life everyone wanted.

"Wait here," Angela said, as she left Terence and Lisa standing beside the glass doors to the garden. She walked up to Todd, who was holding up a young child, about four or five years old, and laughing and playing with him. Beside him was Amy, wearing a sun dress, and looking positively radiant. Her dress was not intentionally sexy, but there was no denying her gorgeous body underneath the thin fabric. Angela came up to Todd and pointed back to Terence and Lisa as she told Todd of their presence. Todd put down the child who immediately went to Amy's side. Amy, Todd and Angela looked over to Terence, then back to themselves. Todd said something and all three laughed. Then Amy began playing with the child, Angela walked over to some other people and joined in a fun conversation, and Todd walked up to Terence.

As Todd walked up, Terence surveyed the crowd. He thought he saw Jeff, Taylor, Vicky and Kate in the crowd. They all looked healthy and happy. Terence wondered who all these people were. Did they know what kind of monster Todd was? Did they condone it? Was it a secret? Some must know, but it was hard to envision how it all worked out. All Terence knew was that somehow Todd had managed to balance everything so that he had it all. Terence hated that Todd's relationship with Amy and their child seemed to be both a positive, nurturing environment, and yet also allowed Todd to continue his evil ways.

"Hello, Terence." Todd said simply extending his hand. Terence didn't hold his hand out, so Todd simply put his down, and looked at Lisa. He didn't hide at all the fact that he stared directly at her chest, assessing the size of her massive tits underneath her plain white buttoned up blouse. "Come this way," Todd said, completely undisturbed at Terence's snubbing of his hand shake. He led them back into the house and up some stairs into a den with a window that over looked the garden party below. Todd walked over to beside the window, then casually turned around. "So, Terence, have you brought your wife to me this time? Have you finally accepted your place in the world?"

Lisa's jaw dropped. She had never before encountered such smug arrogance. Todd looked like he wasn't even joking. He looked as though Terence might seriously be bringing her here to be fucked by Todd.

"Fu..." Terence began, but then mindful of Lisa, he didn't want to be reduced to vulgarities. "No, not at all. I just came here to get some closure."

Todd laughed as if he had just heard a good joke.

"Terence," Todd said, with a tone as if he were sympathetic with Terence for making mistakes that Terence didn't understand, "you don't get to have closure unless I decide it. I can see that you've been building yourself up again. You've got a very attractive wife again. That's good for you. But don't think for a second that you are free from what I decide for you."

Terence balled up his hands into fists. Lisa could see Terence losing control, so she stood closer to him and put one hand on his back for comfort.

"If I want to fuck your wife, I will," Todd continued. "If I want to torture you, I will. I think you're wife is already thinking about fucking me. She's looking at my cock right now and wondering how it could be so powerful."

Terence quickly looked at Lisa to see if that was true. Lisa immediately looked up at Terence and said, "I was not!" She said it as much to Todd as to Terence.

"It's okay, Lisa," Todd said. "Some women are scared at first, but they can't help it. You can sense how other women have become a slave to my cock, and you can't help but wonder what it is they're getting that you're not."

"It's not true!" Lisa said, getting completely flustered. Terence could see that Lisa was losing control and Todd was beginning to dominate the interaction, so he decided to interrupt.

"Todd, you don't have power over me anymore," Terence said. "I have found a higher power. One you could never compete with."

"Oh, you've found religion," Todd said as if it were only as meaningful as someone taking up golf. "That's nice. I wonder how your religion can explain how my life is so great compared to yours."

"Your life is hollow," Terence said.

"Really?" Todd asked. "Look out there. Does that look like a shallow life? Many of those people I met at our church. Does that surprise you Lisa? You should come and see God's real plan, not suffer alongside people like Terence."

"Shut up!" Terence said, raising his voice. Then he regained his composure. He looked at Lisa who looked completely at a loss for how to react. "All that, that party down there, it's all just a show. There's no way you can be doing what you're doing and be truly happy. All the lies and cheating will come back and ruin you."

For an answer, Todd looked out and scanned the party, and then when he found what he was looking for, he pointed down in the direction of Angela.

"See that guy standing beside Angela, with his arm around her?" Todd asked, looking out the window. Terence leaned just a little toward the window so he could see a reasonably good looking man, with dusty brown hair beside Angela. The way he was standing, he wanted to be closer to her, but was being a little restrained, like someone on a first date, not sure how familiar they can be. "He and Angela have been dating a while, and he loves her deeply. He's got a poetic streak and likes to write her long love letters. We fuck while she reads them to me. He's actually pretty good. He really conveys he sincere love really well. We're hoping he'll propose to her, because we thought of this great way we can set it up so that he'll be holding the ring in his hand while I'll spray cum all over his face."

Lisa's eyes widened, and she looked back and forth between Terence and Todd. She was in complete shock.

"Does it surprise you that I can talk about such things in such a casual way while living such a happy life otherwise?" Todd continued. "What you don't get is that people like me live by different rules than people like you. You can't see how it all works because it is outside your imagination. You tell yourselves tales of morality to make yourselves feel better about the lives you have, because you can't have the life that I have."

Todd paused, and looked directly at Lisa.

"Well, Terence can't have this life," Todd said, "but you, Lisa, can be a part of it. Why don't you let me show you?"

Terence looked at Lisa hoping for a quick and immediate "no", but she looked confused, as if his words were getting to her. Terence nudged her to shake her back to reality, and she looked to Terence as if coming out of a dream.

"No," Lisa said, a little weakly. Then, building her resolve as she spoke, she went on. "Sex is something that has twisted you up so much you don't even see the evil of your ways. I'm just not interested in what you offer."

"You don't know that," Todd said. "Unless you've tried."

"That's ridiculous," Lisa said. "Those are just words to try and trick me into bed with you."

"Of course they are," Todd said. "But it remains so. It's just like why Terence is here to face me. He's actually here, doing it, confronting what he is afraid of. But you, you have never been fucked by me. You have no idea what it is that makes all the other women bow down before me. I offer you this deal. Let me fuck you once..."

"No!" Terence interrupted. "Shut up! No way!"

"It's okay," Lisa said calmly. "He has no power over me, Terence." Terence calmed a bit and Todd continued.

"If you let me fuck you once," Todd said, "and you can walk away, back to Terence, then not only will I let Terence live out the rest of his life in peace without me stealing his women, but in fact I will shake his hand, admit that he has finally won, and even transfer some money back to pay back some of what he lost when I destroyed all his investments."

"If you honestly think that Terence would let me sleep with you just to win some money, like it were a bet..." Lisa said, but she stopped, because she looked at Terence who was biting his lip and thinking. "Terence? You can't honestly be considering that?"

"Ah," Todd said, as if he knew everything. "You have it wrong, Lisa. It's not the money that Terence cares about. There's nothing he would like more than for me to concede defeat to him."

"You're just lying anyway," Terence said. "Just like you made me... you make me do things and then you go ahead and do what you wanted all along anyway."

Lisa looked shocked. She couldn't believe that Terence was arguing not about the idea itself, but whether or not it could be done.

"Think about it," Todd said. "This time, I couldn't change things. If she wanted to be with you after being with me, then that itself is the indication that you have won. Neither of us care about the money, so I would just do it precisely because it wouldn't matter to you. If you won, it's precisely because I couldn't take anything from you, no matter what I lied about."

Terence furrowed his brow tightly as he struggled with what to do. He knew he didn't want to let Lisa sleep with Todd, but he wasn't sure if it was because he didn't want to play Todd's games, or because he was scared he would lose that bet. Lisa looked dumbfounded. She was about to make her own objections when Terence cut her off by speaking first.

"No," Terence said. "No games, no manipulations, no lies, no more of any of it. I came here to say one thing, and I'm going to say it, and then we're going to leave." Lisa looked relieved, and strengthened, and looked at Todd, standing firmly by Terence's side.

"Todd," Terence said, "I forgive you."

Todd burst out laughing. However, Terence and Lisa didn't falter. They stood strong, knowing that the Lord of Lies would behave in any way possible to eat at their resolve.

"Sorry," Todd said, trying to calm himself. "That's very big of you Terence. I guess you really have moved on."

Terence and Lisa looked at each other, and they both knew that they had got what they came for, and they needed to get out. Somehow, the place felt more dangerous somehow, as if they had suddenly revealed themselves to be missionaries right in the middle of hell itself. When they came in, they were tangled in the world of evil, lustful games. Now they were of a different world, they didn't belong here, and they needed to leave.

"Thank you Todd," Terence said, as if he were reading quickly from a script. "We'll be on our way now. I don't expect we'll have any need to speak to each other again, so best of luck and goodbye. We'll see ourselves out."

Terence and Lisa turned to rush as Todd watched them, very much amused. Just as they were stepping out the door, Todd spoke.

"Lisa," Todd said. Lisa stopped for a moment. Terence stepped ahead, and didn't realize Lisa had paused, otherwise he might have stopped her from hearing any more. "When you admit you need to know, you can come to me any time."

Lisa froze, not sure if she should react with words or not, and Terence grabbed her as they rushed out. They didn't look back or see anyone as they hurriedly walked to the front doors, down the steps, got into their hatchback car, and drove off.

They were dazed and didn't speak until they felt safe by being clear of the expensive houses and in an area of town a little more in their social class.

"I..." Terence said cautiously,. "I'm sorry, Lisa. I was tempted. I have to admit, I felt the sin of pride in me when I thought for a moment that there was a way to make him tell me I had won. Of course, I would never let him have his way with you, that wasn't even an option. I just... fantasized a moment. That's all."

"It's okay," Lisa said. "It's not the temptation that's the sin, it's giving in. If we were never tempted, we would never have the chance to prove ourselves by resisting."

"Thank you Lisa," Terence said.

"I..." Lisa said, just as cautiously, "I was tempted too."

"What?" Terence almost swerved off the road he was so surprised.

"No! Terence! No!" Lisa hurriedly explained. "Of course I don't want to sleep with that awful man! I just mean, I wanted to prove to you, and to myself, that I am genuinely bound to you and not him. His words where he said that I wasn't as strong as I claimed to be because I didn't really know... that... bothered me. That's all."

"Lisa," Terence said, "Please, tell me in no uncertain terms that you do not want to have sex with him."

"Terence," Lisa said slowly, "I do not want to have sex with that man."

Terence calmed down. He felt his adrenaline running, and thought that this was no time to be really analyzing the situation. She said what he wanted to hear, and given all the tension and meaning behind what they had just done, he should be happy with that.

They drove a little way in silence. Then Terence noticed that Lisa was crying.

"What's the matter?" Terence asked with deep sympathy. "Dear? What's wrong?" He put a hand reassuringly on her thigh and tried to look at her without taking his eyes off the road too long.

"I," Lisa started, and then reconsidered. "I'm just overwhelmed. You told me what you went through, but I've never felt anything like being there in that room with such... a man who was so... evil. I think I'm a little overwhelmed."

Terence thought for a moment about how the things that happened between him and Todd were extreme, and a person like Lisa, who had grown up surrounded by loving people and safe environments, could only be shaken to her core by being exposed to such intense evil. Terence nodded sympathetically.

"Is there anything I can do?" Terence asked.

"I think I need to be away from you for a bit," Lisa said. "I love you, but, you come from a past that is more than I expected, and a part of me is frightened by it. I need to calm down."

"Oh," Terence said, obviously disappointed. He had hoped that in this time of drama, she would want to console herself by being with him. At the same time, it didn't surprise him. "Where will you go?"

"I think maybe I'll go talk to the pastor," Lisa said. "I'm not sure. I need to come to terms with all this."

"Okay, but," Terence said, "please do me one favor and don't tell the pastor or anyone the details of what Todd did to me. I don't want everyone to know. It's too embarrassing."

"I won't," Lisa said. "Don't worry. Your secrets are safe with me. I just need time to process it all."

"Okay," Terence said, reluctantly.

They stopped at Terence's apartment, where Terence got out and Lisa then took her car and drove off. Terence went inside and sat for a while on his tiny cot for a bed. The contrast between where he lived and where Todd lived really struck him. On the one hand, it bothered him. On the other hand, he really did feel like he had been through something and that this room represented him hiding away from his past. Now that he had confronted that fear, he felt he deserved better again. He would rise up and take his own life back.

He vowed that when he saw Lisa again, he would ask her to marry him, and that would be the first step in renewing his life.

The idea energized him, and as time passed, he found it harder and harder to wait. So he called Lisa, because he became determined that he had to propose that night. She wasn't answering her phone, though.

Perhaps it was just the proximity in time to having seen Todd, but Terence began to get extremely worried. He called again and again. The more she didn't answer, the more panicked he became.

As the time went late into the evening, he resolved that he would have to find her. He decided to go straight to her house. He had to catch the bus, which took forever to arrive. Then it moved agonizingly slowly through the city. Finally, he reached Lisa's house, where she still lived with her parents.

The lights were on, but it was close to bed time. Terence came up and banged on the door. Her parents would just have to deal with it.

Lisa's father answered the door, with Lisa's mother in the background looking concerned.

"Terence?" Lisa's father asked when he opened the door. He was still a little stern, but less so now that he saw it was someone he knew. "What on Earth are you doing here this time of night?"

"Is Lisa here?" Terence asked. Lisa's parents looked at each other confused, and Terence felt his heart sink.

"It's okay, dad," Lisa said, coming down the stairs. She was in a bathrobe, looking like she had just showered and was heading to bed. Terence let out a huge sigh of relief.

Lisa's parents left to go to their bedroom, and Lisa and Terence spoke in the living room on the couch.

"I tried calling you, where were you?" Terence asked.

"I turned off my phone, I'm sorry." Lisa said, looking down. Terence tried to hold her chin to get her to look up, and that's when he saw her eyes closely and noticed they were red and puffy, as if she had done a lot of crying.

"I'm sorry to have put you through that this afternoon," Terence said. Lisa began to cry more. "But, I think we really did cross over something today. I feel like a new man. Don't you feel different?" Lisa began to cry much more at that statement.

"Yes," Lisa said, "things are different now."

"Exactly," Terence said, and he slipped down off the couch and got on one knee. "I'm sorry I don't have a ring for you right now, but I think now is the time. You've helped me move on from the past, and I want to go into the future with you. Please, Lisa, will you marry me?"

Lisa burst out crying, but it wasn't tears of joy. She seemed to be torn up with all sorts of feelings. Terence wanted to ask what was wrong, but he didn't want to ruin the moment of having asked the question. It took a long time, and Lisa's facial expression changed many times, as if with any one of them she might have given a different answer. Then she looked down and seemed to focus, to find some resolve.