The Deadliest Secret (The Deadliest Series)

by Lauren Peyton

  “I don’t think that’s a good idea, he’s been talking about our past, he isn’t shy about adding explicit details.” Gwen was trying to reason with him.

  “Fuck… Gwen you can’t shut me out like this when it comes to him. He’s dangerous.”

  “I know Torrian just give me someone else or it goes down to once a week, he has to stay seated and I stay at my desk with a hand on the alarm and you can stay right at the door.”

  “Deal. I want to be the one to deal with him if he ever tries that shit again with you.” Torrian sounded positively lethal at this point.

  “I know,” Gwen pulled her legs underneath her body, “can you hand me that pad and pen right there, and I’ll work on his notification letter.”

  “Atta girl.” Torrian praised her

  “I should probably talk to his cell mate, see what he knows. Which inmate is it?”

  “Russel Weaver.” Torrian sounded short, he obviously did not like Gwen putting herself in more danger by talking to McQueen’s cellmate, but what could she do? She had to get to the bottom of this.

  She took out her planner and started moving a few sessions around, she then called the office to inform them of the changes, and the addition of Russel Weaver to her schedule. He had to know something, and if she could contain it, even better.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  Thursday was moving at a torturously slow pace for Kody. He was in solitary confinement but with the tragedy that befell him on Tuesday was too much to be ignored. He wanted to see Gwen; it was almost time for their second appointment for the week. Kody was not granted access to a clock but he could feel it was. His body had become restless as it always did when it knew he would be near Gwen soon. He stared at the plain white ceiling; he traced the crack over and over again with his eyes he memorized each indention, each chip in the paint, and each and every speck of dirt that crowded the small imperfection. He grunted in dismay. There was the sound of a door opening in the distance, he sat up on his cot and the footsteps came closer.

  “Afternoon McQueen, you have a letter from the administration,” Torrian Ford was at Kody’s cell with a letter delivery, what kind of shit was this Kody thought, “nice face by the way, finally get tired of the piece of shit you see in the mirror every day?”

  “Fuck you, now give me my letter and take me to Gwen.” Kody’s voice was full of venom.

  “That is who this is from.” Torrian held the letter just out of Kody’s reach.

  “Give it to me or I swear to God I’ll kill everyone you love.” The threat had Kody’s lips peeling back all the way from his teeth.

  “Here asshole, enjoy your day.” Torrian flipped the letter at Kody and started to walk away.

  Kody picked up the letter and called after Torrian, “fuck-wad isn’t it time for my fucking appointment? I’ve been awake for hours.”

  “Just read the letter McQueen.”

  Kody sat and opened the letter cursing at Torrian, the letterhead was heavy and he noticed it was from Gwen’s office, her handwriting just as it was when they were in college together. He admired the script before he read the letter.

  Dear Kody McQueen,

  This letter is from G. Bjorkman the psychologist you have been seeing at McNeil Island Penitentiary. The recent incident with unwanted advances and unwanted attention was over the line of all propriety and deeply offended me. I will be taking you back down to one hour once a week for your sessions, and there will be a guard standing post at the door to ensure my own safety. If an incident like this occurs again I will be unable to be your psychologist and will either refer you to a colleague of mine or I will remove you from our program. There are no more warnings please heed this one.

  Gwen Bjorkman PhD.

  Kody read the note three times before he comprehended what it said. Gwen was taking their time away from him. She didn’t want him to see her as much. She was taking away his reason for living. He felt bile rise in his throat and his chest constricted as if an elephant was sitting on him preventing his lungs from inflating for a full breath.

  “FUCK” he growled loudly.

  Kody began to tear up the letter. He wasn’t going to see Gwen again, he couldn’t plead with her and she was so resolved against him now. He needed to get her back. He lay back on the small bed and looked at the crack again, tracing it with his eyes once more. The crack was a perfect metaphor for how he felt, he was strong on the outside, he was cold, hard, and calculating, but this one woman has gotten under his skin and would slowly destroy him from the inside out. He rubbed his chest to try and ease the pain.

  Russel was enjoying his time alone, he didn’t have a cellmate and that was working for him. Kody was a pain in his ass. He always started some sort of fight or talks shit. The guard came with his usual swagger; he looked like he just pissed in someone’s corn flakes and was delighted by doing so. Correctional Officer Ford opened the bar door to his cell, this was unusual.

  “You’re coming with me Weaver.”

  “The fuck? I don’t see that shrink bitch.”

  “Tough shit you’re seeing her today.” The officer seemed to be bipolar, his mood switched from buoyant to asshole in two seconds flat by mention of that fake bitch in the office.

  “Whatever you say Officer Dipshit.” Russel put his hands behind his back and Torrian handcuffed him quickly, a little tighter than normal, payback for the dipshit comment no doubt, the two walked in silence.

  Russel had only been to the shrink doctor blowjob Bjorkman, as he liked to call her, seriously what was with the name he thought, she succeeded on having a name no one could pronounce the first time. Ford seemed anxious as they got closer and closer to the administration building.

  “Keep your dick in your pants and your mitts off the doc got it?”

  “Or else what will happen? I’ll go to jail?” Russel scoffed.

  “No you’ll get McQueen back in your cell.” Torrian lifted his brow with the threat.

  “Fuck you.” Russel countered.

  “I can do it now if you would rather have him pound your ass.” Torrian kept steady, pegging Russel with an icy glare.

  “Fine, fuck it take me to the slob on my knob bitch.” The air became charged but Russel stood his ground against the much larger security guard.

  “Do not talk about her that way.” Torrian said through gritted teeth, bingo Russel hit a nerve on the male.

  “Why you fucking her too?” Russel dug deeper.

  “None of your business who I fuck.” They were at the elevator now, the guard pushed the button.

  “So how much juice you on?” Russel said before the doors closed.

  A quick punch landed to Russel’s stomach, all the breath he thought he owned exited his body. Torrian held him up not letting his body sag down.

  “I told you not to talk about her, and you keep her name and mine out of your filthy fucking mouth or I swear to everything holy your stay here will get a lot worse.” His threat was intense; his eyes echoed the deadly promise, Russel nodded his head.

  Torrian Ford was feral. Russel had to hold his tongue in order to continue breathing. His huge fist knocked uncharacteristically light on the door in front of them. It was the shrink’s office.

  Gwen jumped when the knock came at her door. It was time for Kody’s cellmate Russel to come in and see her.

  “Come in.” She answered and she tried to keep the shakiness out of her voice.

  Torrian opened the door and shoved the prisoner in. He was not in a pleasant mood. They spent most of the night arguing about what to do with the Kody situation. Gwen had agreed to take him down to once a week and slowly remove him from the therapy program in order to prevent a huge panic with him and to keep him somewhat docile. Her Tuesday afternoons would be somewhat arduous but the rest of her week would go smoothly. She would be able to make it to Friday without more incidents and hopefully her nightmares would quell. The memories that Kody had unlocked had been plaguing her conscious and unconscious states. The o
nly thing that kept her sane was Torrian comforting her after the heinous dreams.

  “I brought your one o’clock Gwen,” Torrian had come around to calling her informally at work; she smiled at the way his lips curled around her name.

  “How thoughtful, thank you Torrian. I trust you will keep close by?”

  “Wild horses couldn’t drag me away.” This was the most comforting thing he could say, they had listened to the song many times together.

  “Very well then, I’ll see you when my session with Mr. Weaver here is complete.” Gwen gave her beau her best attempt at a dazzling smile while he worked the handcuffs off of Russel.

  Torrian left the room and Russel visibly relaxed. Gwen moved to her desk and grabbed her legal pad and pen combo. “Please Russel have a seat, make yourself comfortable. I just wanted to check on you and see how your adjustment is going with your cellmate Kody McQueen.”

  “It fucking stinks.” Russel sat down when he cursed and rubbed his wrist.

  “Why does it stink? Do you two not get along?” She inquired.

  “No it’s like Mary fucking sunshine all the time.” He snapped.

  “Tell me about it.” Gwen pushed.

  “He’s fucking in love with you did you know that?” He countered her question with one of his own.

  “Excuse me?” Gwen stammered.

  “You heard me, he’s fucking in love with you to the point of making everyone on the block sick.”

  “What has he said?” Gwen tried for more information, she flipped a page, and this one was going to be personal.

  “He fucked you a long time ago. He spent like two fucking weeks on that drawing of his. He wanted it perfect then one day after an hour with you he came in and ripped it up. He went fucking bat-shit.”

  “Did you believe him?”

  “I don’t give a fuck who you fuck is who you fuck, I told him you probably had half the men here balls deep.” He laughed as if he was visualizing it, her palm twitched she wanted to slap the taste out of his mouth for his comment.

  “Did he detail these sexual encounters with you?”

  “No but he beat off to them enough times to make his dick chafe.” Russel’s attitude was getting worse.

  “You two fight a lot.”

  “Captain obvious strikes again.”

  “No need to be rude,” she tried to calm him so she could get more information, “I am just trying to understand everything, I could put in for a cell change for you if it becomes too much of an issue.”

  “Whatever you want Blondie.” He said shortly.

  “You do not like coming to therapy, this will be the only time I call upon you, but if you want additional help you can have the guard bring you to me.”

  He looked spooked, as if the thought of being near the guard was painful. “No I’m good.”

  “What other things can you tell me about your cellmate?” She inquired again.

  “He’s an asshole, he is violent, gave me a week in the infirmary. He’s a fucking psycho. If I were you I’d be pissing myself. He’s fixated on you.”

  “You would say I am in danger as his therapist?”

  “After his last meeting with you he went off the deep end. You pissed him off. I keep my mouth shut to him because we share a cell. He has made a lot of enemies but no one will touch him because this fucker is insane. He doesn’t have a soul.”

  Gwen was thinking when he finished his explanation, if that wasn’t hitting the nail on the head. Kody was a dangerous killer. He deserved a needle in his arm but Gwen had spent time loving him and in her heart she wanted to save everyone when she was younger, to rehabilitate them, but she has learned to keep herself distant and that you can’t fix someone so damaged. They had to fix themselves otherwise they would never change. Kody was one that would never change; he was cunning as he was handsome and evil. He could manipulate anyone he met into doing his bidding. He had an uncanny ability to force his will on others.

  “I will take what you say under advisement.” Gwen tried to sound distant as if she wasn’t truly afraid of the male.

  “I’d be on the next boat out of here and the next plane to some fucking place different away from his grasp. He runs some shit.”

  “Thank you for your concern Russel.”

  “Yeah whatever bitch.”

  “Anything else he tells you that you want to tell me?”

  “Other than he said how you like it from behind no.”

  Gwen felt her face get hot from embarrassment and anger. “He is quite delusional.”

  “Whatever not like I fucked you, but if you are fucking us to keep us docile sign me up.”

  “Another sentence like that and I’ll have your balls served to you for dinner.” Her tone was sharp and cutting, the man in front of her recoiled.

  “I’m done here then.”

  “Very well then.” Gwen reached under her desk and pressed the button, Torrian was at the door in a matter of split seconds.

  “You buzzed.” Torrian gave her a crooked smile that made her heart swell, the breaking held off by his perfect white teeth shining under his soft lip.

  “Yes Mr. Weaver is done talking to me and is ready to go back to his cell. He was most cooperative.” She nodded to Russel then looked at her paperwork.

  “Yeah get me away from this crazy hoe.” Russel interjected.

  “Prisoner rise.” The shackles went back on his wrists, Russel winced and Torrian towered over him.

  Torrian escorted Russel’s disrespectful carcass out of her office. She was so glad that this interview was over. She had only two more patients to see today and she was off for the rest of the evening. Her and Torrian were getting off at the same time. She only had one more day till the weekend and normally she could knock off early on Friday’s. Tomorrow they were having dinner with her parents again. Her father had taken quite well to her suitor.

  The next day after work Torrian was driving his baby up I-5 towards Gwen’s parent’s house. The drive was mostly freeway and pretty easy. Her father had mentioned wanting to see his car the last time they had talked so he took it up so her father could drool along with him. The men left for a drive while the women cooked and undoubtedly clucked like hens in a henhouse. Torrian liked Gwen’s parents, Marie was such a free spirit and fun but Steven kept her grounded and was serious most of the time just like Gwen.

  The weekend passed too quickly, before she knew it Torrian was slapping the alarm clock that chimed above them, he had been spending every night with her recently and it helped her so much. He kept her grounded; he kept his arms wrapped around her.

  “Think it would be suspicious if we both called in sick today?” He chuckled.

  “Yeah, what would we both have?”

  “Umm, we both have need-sex-now-itis” He laughed.

  “Oh that sounds dirty, I mean serious.”

  “It is I think I need to see a doctor.” His smile was infectious and had Gwen laughing.

  “It’s time to shower and get dressed.” She got her naked ass out of bed, Torrian reached to smack it, he couldn’t get enough of her and his cock sprang to life watching her walk away.

  Monday was always his longest day. He had to do security meetings, updates, and files, move prisoners, clean his weapons, and of course deal with the general population. He also had progress reports with the other guards to see what they have learned or heard in the general population. This place was full of men pretending to be hard but really the gossiped like catty old women at a salon. Torrian guessed that would be true wherever you went humans craved drama and attention even if they were convicted criminals.

  Torrian was forced to deal with McQueen again. He had been transferred back to the main block. Torrian could only roll his eyes at the order to bring him back to general population. He took his time with his other duties in the morning; he wanted to make McQueen wait for all the drama he put Gwen through. The most recent kiss pissed Torrian off. Gwen was spoken for, even if not officially at work h
e wanted to claim her as his. The fact that McQueen had her in the past was something he wished he could erase for her so she didn’t have to worry about McQueen telling the warden or any of the other staff, a rumor like that would circulate at warp speed.

  By the time Torrian was done with his primary duties it was nearly 5pm, he was getting overtime for today so he didn’t really care. He just wanted to be back in bed with Gwen, she would be seeing McQueen tomorrow and Torrian was nervous for her. He hit the bars of the cell with his nightstick.

  “Wake up shit for brains.” Torrian could not be nice to the boy that was in there.

  Kody McQueen looked groggy. His pain medicine must have been administered recently. The venomous thought of giving him extra just to overdose the piece of shit. Let him die choking on his own vomit. Torrian shook the thought from his head, he was being overly protective of Gwen. They just needed to follow the rules and move Kody back to the main block.

  “Time to go back to general population.”

  “Huh?” Kody was out of it; whatever they were giving him had to involve some tranquilizer.

  “Off your ass and you get cuffed we’re taking you back.” Torrian’s voice was filled with disdain.

  Still somewhat shocked Kody backs up to the door for the usual cuff routine. He moved slowly. Torrian slapped the cuffs onto Kody’s wrists then moved to the door to unlock it; he jerked Kody by the arm out into the corridor and began their move to Kody’s regular cell. The groans were already filling the air.

  “Not Mr. Popular are you?” Torrian scoffed.

  “Same question dick.” Kody was finally waking up.

  “Hell no I’m not but I wouldn’t want to be popular in here, that would mean you had sweet cheeks that spread easy.” He challenged Kody; he wanted Kody to react so he had a reason to put the prisoner on the ground.

  “Whatever.” Kody replied and made it was obvious all he wanted to do was sleep.

  Torrian called for the cell to be opened, he pulled the door back, then pushed Kody into the small room with the other prisoner, Russel Weaver. Torrian watched the other male suspiciously. He hadn’t had a chance to ask Gwen about what she learned or if there was any credible threat to her job at McNeil with McQueen being here, and if any rumors had started with the prisoners about Gwen’s standards concerning the men here. He knew he would kill any of them that dared touch her, but the rumor could destroy her job. He closed the cell and sauntered off towards the security offices. He was done with his tour. Only two hours after Gwen had left for the day.