by Sam JD Hunt
Nate gathered long sticks as I hunted the clay-like mud for bait. “When I first met you, baby, I couldn’t imagine someday you’d be out here with me digging those fine nails in the dirt to find worms. I did see something, though. Strength in there, a fight,” Rex said to me. I looked over at him. His shirt was off and wrapped around his wide shoulders, his worn jeans hung low and were tucked into his signature combat boots. He had three fishing lines, from his Altoid container, tied onto hooks ready for the makeshift fishing poles Nate was bringing over.
“You said I was badass,” I said with a toothy grin.
“You were; you are,” he said before looking to Nate. “Let’s get these hooks in the water. I want to have a chat over there, where the water is nice and noisy.” Nate nodded and brought the sticks, tying Rex’s line to them before baiting the hooks with my dug up worms.
We’d caught three large fish before Rex brought up Luther again. “I think it’s time for Luther to move on. He’s healed enough—I think he’s too comfortable here with me. I’m going to make a call to his team and have them come get him.”
I pulled at my line before responding. “Listen, Rex, if this is about that thing with me yesterday, I’m pretty sure I slipped. It all happened so fast—and Luther did pull me up before we even heard Nate coming. If he wanted to harm me, why didn’t he just let me fall?”
Rex wrinkled his nose before saying, “Princess, you are not the type to accuse someone of pushing you when you aren’t sure. That was your first instinct—trust it. I know I do. This is hard for me, because Luther was once like a brother to me, but what happened yesterday is too close for comfort.”
“Too close?” Nate asked, casting his line back into the swiftly moving river.
“Years ago, when Luther and I were stationed at Fort Bragg, the squadron took a weekend trip to the Outer Banks. We all brought our wives, girlfriends, families—that sort of thing. The squadron rented a bunch of houses and it was a big party. Late one evening, we ran out of beer. We’d all been drinking, and no way we’d risk a DUI—that’s a career ender for sure. So either the party ended, or we send Luther.”
“Why wasn’t he drinking too?” I asked.
“He doesn’t drink, not a drop. I bet neither of you noticed?” Rex said with a wink.
“Uh, no, he sits out with us every night sipping whiskey. He, uh, he drinks wine with dinner…doesn’t he?” I tried to picture Luther at the dinner table.
“He has it, but he doesn’t drink it,” Rex said with a grin. “Nate, I would have thought you would have picked up on it.”
“No, I didn’t…” Nate said with a scratch of his head. “Being an addict-type, I tend to watch how much others drink.”
“Wait, I’m sure he at least drinks wine. The other night we sat out with Amber—he shared a bottle of Syrah with us.” I thought back, remembering that when we went to bed, Luther’s glass was full. At least once he went to refill, but thinking back on it, I never saw his glass anything other than full.
“He hides it for some reason. Pretends to drink. He plays along, gets everyone else nice and toasted as he sits there gathering information. Also, he’s got that pure temple philosophy going on. Luther doesn’t even touch caffeine--his only vice is Carmex, I think.”
“Okay, so what does this trip to the Outer Banks have to do with what happened to Penny?” Nate asked.
“Okay, yeah, so we send Luther on a beer run. Late that same night, Evelyn nudged me awake. I’d been wasted, so I was groggy as hell but she wanted to tell me something. That night, in the darkness, she whispered to me that she knew it was crazy, but she thought Luther tried to kill her.”
“What the fuck?” Nate was surprised, but my blood ran cold.
“Yeah, I mean she was telling me like it was stupid, like she was being irrational. We even laughed about it the next day. But here’s what she told me: Luther went to her and asked her to go with him to the store. She was surprised because she didn’t think he liked her much, but since he and I were so close, she was happy to go. Well, the liquor store was just down the street, but Luther insisted they go see some iridescent light phenomena in the Sound. Evelyn said she tried to argue, but he just drove there—thirty minutes away from where we were staying."
“I don’t find that strange coming from Luther,” I said.
“That’s not the troubling part. He got her out of the car, in the dark of course, to see these lights, and…”
“And?” Nate asked skeptically.
“Well,” Rex said with a sigh, “that was the part she wasn’t sure about. He had her lean way forward on the edge of a sharp incline—”
“Like a cliff?” I asked, shuddering at the thought. I knew it now—Luther had meant me harm.
“Yeah, but she didn’t use that word. She said a steep drop over the rocks, but she leaned way down, didn’t see any glow, but there was a sudden push on her back from Luther behind her. She said she started to slip, regained her footing, he reached a hand to her, and that was it.” Rex looked to both of us, the look of concern in his eyes frightening me.
“Did you ever confront him?” Nate asked.
“No,” Rex answered. “She’d been drinking, just like the rest of us, and chalked it up to her being tipsy, and Luther merely putting a friendly hand on her back. Honestly, we didn’t think much about it. But now, after the thing with Penny, I’m thinking about a conversation I had with Luther a few nights before that. He asked me if I’d ever allow someone else into our bed, another man, and I got pissed off about it. I don’t know if they’re related, but it’s time for Luther to move on.”
When we returned to camp, I clasped my ankle and hobbled against Nate, just as Rex instructed me to. Amber was sitting close to Luther, talking excitedly with her hands, and passing a flask to him. I couldn’t help but remember that just a few short weeks ago she was afraid to be alone with Rex, or any man for that matter. She was healing, but her attraction to Luther made me nervous. He was listening intently, leaning in and nodding. He passed the whiskey flask back to her—this time I noticed he never drank from it. She took another long gulp before noticing us at the edge of camp.
“Back with only three fish?” she said, the lack of joy at our return undeniable.
“It’s my fault, my damn ankle is acting up. I think we might have to cut this trip short. I’m sorry, Amber, we’ll come out again soon.” I shot her my best smile, and she strained to return one. Luther turned to us, his eyes scanning us as he assessed the situation. Luther never just looked at you, he read you.
“That is unfortunate, Penelope,” he said dryly. “You seemed much better this morning as we gathered eggs together. Has anything changed?” His green eyes bore into me.
Nate spoke up, saving me. “She slipped on a wet rock in the river, twisted it a little further.”
Rex flopped the fish on a large rock nearby. “I’ll cook these up for lunch, then we’ll head back. Slide me a sip from that flask?” Luther stared at Rex for a moment, gauging the mood, before smiling and handing Rex the silver flask of whiskey.
“Thanks, bro,” he said. “I bit off that line, and can still taste the funk.” Luther smiled, like a child in adoration of a beloved adult.
“I shall clean these, Doc. Tend to Penelope’s ankle,” Luther said warmly. I looked over to Amber as Nate helped me fake a hobble to the log—I barely felt the ankle anymore. She was watching Luther as he pulled out a large knife from his pack and, with a sharp flick, deboned the fish with the same intricate precision Luther did everything with.
After eating the fish, we packed up camp. Rex, Nate, and Luther divided the contents of my backpack among theirs, leaving me with almost no weight to hike with. I felt guilty as we started down the trail—my load was light, and I was leaning on Rex as we walked behind the group. More than once he had to quietly remind me to act like my ankle hurt. As soon as we’d hiked far enough to be near a road, Rex had everyone stop for a break. “I have a signal on my phone,” he said, looking at the screen,
“I’m going to see if they can send the van from the house to come pick us up.”
Luther stared at him, then looked from Nate to me, and nodded slowly. “Wise choice, Doc. Why risk causing any further harm to Penelope,” he said, looking at me in a way that made me think he wished nothing more than for me to be further harmed. Despite his angelic features, I believed now, more than ever, that he was sent straight from hell.
Chapter Thirteen
The morning after we got back from the jungle, I nervously looked at the calendar on my phone. I was trying to remember when my last period was, and no matter how much I wanted to stay in denial, I couldn’t hide it any longer. I was two weeks late. I went to Rex in private that morning alone in the bedroom. To my relief, he wasn’t nearly as freaked out as I was.
“Listen, baby, I’ll check my calendar, but the shots have been regular as clockwork. The fail rate is very low—don’t worry. I don’t stock pregnancy tests, but I’ll have the guys grab a box when they go run errands this afternoon.”
“Can we not mention it to Nate yet?” I asked as Rex kissed me on the forehead.
“You’ve got it,” he said softly. I had no idea then how that one decision would compound with many others that summer to tear the three of us apart.
It was mid-afternoon of that same day when I heard them yelling at each other. I’d been working out with Nate, but felt a little queasy and left our gym to take a shower. As I opened the back door to the side of the house, I could hear Rex howl, “I don’t believe you! Why are you trying to fuck with my family?”
“I remember a time when I was your family. And Evelyn…” Luther said, hurt and anger mingling in his voice.
“I don’t even know who you are anymore, Luther.” Rex was angry—deadly angry.
I crept closer toward them, frightened by the intensity of Rex’s tone.
“Okay, okay, Doc, I am sorry. I just wanted to protect you—you know, watch things. I did not mean to overstep—”
“Overstep? Luther you fucking put cameras in our bedrooms! Did you think I wouldn’t see? That I don’t know what you do?” Rex was seething.
Cameras? Luther was spying on us, watching us?
“I was simply trying to monitor the actions of Nathaniel. I believe that he is not a positive presence in your—”
Luther was cut off by a loud popping noise, followed by a booming thud. A sickening gurgling noise followed, and I ran to them. Luther was on the ground, Rex on top of him, Rex’s knees boring into Luther’s chest as Rex choked him. Luther’s strong arms were fighting for his life—he slammed both fists into Rex’s right elbow, breaking the chokehold long enough for him to attempt to roll away from Rex. Before he could get away, Rex grabbed him from behind, rage and something deeper, pain possibly, surged from Rex as he held onto Luther. I screamed at Rex to let him go, to stop, but he was too far gone to listen. In a sudden jolt backward, Luther slammed his head into Rex’s face. Rex fell to the ground, blood gushing from his nose as I ran to him, I yelled for Nate, screaming for help. Luther’s cold green eyes found mine, imploring and desperate.
“Get out,” Rex hissed through the blood flowing down his face, “Get the fuck out or I’ll kill you.” Rex stood up, crimson blood dripping from his face onto the bamboo wood floor.
Luther stood in front of us, an ugly red bruise forming around his neck. His voice was strained from the violent choking, but his words chilled me to the bone. “You will regret this, Doc,” he said barely above a coarse whisper. “I found you again, after so long, after so much pain…I shall go for now, but I will be back. I cannot bear to be without you for long. We are joined, you and I.”
As Luther turned to go, Nate appeared behind him in the doorway, his eyes going from Luther to the bloodied Rex. “What happened?” Nate asked, scratching his head.
“Luther’s worn out his welcome,” I answered, glaring at Luther. A wry grin wiped across his lips as he turned to Nate.
“Indeed, Nathaniel, I am sorry you had to see this. I overheard Rex and Penelope discussing a secret pregnancy and plotting to raise their child together alone, and when I merely asked how you played into their plans, Rex attacked me.”
I bolted toward Luther, screeching, “You liar! Rex tell him, it’s not true!”
Nate looked to Rex, who stood still, mute. “Luther put a camera up there, in the recessed light in the ceiling. Rex saw it and—”
Luther stood to the side, blood running down his face. Nate looked from Rex to me for an explanation. “Is Penny pregnant?” Nate asked, his voice gritty. Nate took a deep breath as I wrapped myself around his stoic body, uselessly trying to use my body as a shield against Luther’s poisonous lies.
“Well, it didn’t happen like that! I went to Rex because I was late. The rest is a lie,” I sobbed into Nate’s ear as he finally wrapped his arms around my back. “I came in as they were fighting—”
“Enough,” Rex interrupted. He walked toward Luther, and calmly said one word, “Go.”
It was another five minutes before we heard the door alarm signal that Luther was gone. Rex called the guards at the front gate and instructed them to take Luther to Major Nelson in Bogotá, or to the airport, if that was Luther’s choice, but not let him back on our property. I was silent as I clung to Nate on the buttery-soft leather sofa, his body sweetly smelling of sweat—he hadn’t changed from his workout clothes. I never wanted to let him go, but dreaded the conversation the three of us were about to have. It was my fault—I was the one who didn’t want to tell Nate about my period being late.
I started to explain as Rex slid his phone into his pocket and collapsed into an overstuffed leather chair across from us. Nate stopped me, “Penny, it’s fine, don’t worry about it.” The flippant sound of his voice terrified me.
“Luther has been trying to tear the three of us apart since he arrived, now that he’s gone we can get back to normal,” I begged, trying to convince myself.
“Luther has?” Nate said flatly.
“Yes!” I argued, my fingers grasping at his, as if I touched him enough it would heal the wounds.
When he finally spoke, Rex’s voice was low, his words carefully chosen. “Penny came to me this morning and said her period was late, and she was worried. Stan was going into town today to run errands, and I asked him to bring back a pregnancy test. That was all that happened. The rest Luther twisted into something sinister. He knew about our conversation because he put a fucking camera in your bedroom—in all of our bedrooms. I found two more after this one.” Rex held up a tiny device that he’d ripped from our ceiling. “That’s how he knew about Penny. The rest was a lie; there was no discussion about leaving you out. No plot. He’s a liar and a manipulator.”
“Why didn’t you two tell me about Penny right away? You said late—how late?” Nate’s lips were pursed into a sneer.
“I was supposed to start before the jungle. I-I should have told you, Nate, but I knew you’d be pissed, and it’s probably a false alarm… I’m sorry,” I said, reaching for him.
Nate took a deep breath and said, “Well, I guess we’ll know soon enough then. Won’t your dad be happy; he finally has the breeding farm of his dreams.” Tears stung my eyes, overflowing down my cheeks.
“Nate, it’s not like that. Rex keeps the calendar on his computer so he can order and give me my birth control shots. That’s why I went to him—I wanted him to check the calendar. I’ve always been regular as clockwork, and he explained that the shots can cause irregularity over time. It’s not a big deal.” His fingertips wiped the tears from my face as Nate’s steel blue eyes met mine.
“I wish you’d have told me Penny, but I’m not angry. It hurts to be informed by Luther but I want more than anything for you two to be happy.”
“For us three to be happy,” Rex interjected, his eyes leveled at Nate’s.
“I guess,” Nate answered.
Rex slid to the floor and crawled over in front of us, resting his head on Nate’s leg, the dried blood
from the blow to the nose he’d received from Luther still coating his skin. “I love you Nate, with everything inside of me. I don’t want anything without you. Do I someday want to have a child of my own? Yeah, I’ll admit I do. But more than anything, I want the three of us to spend our lives together. Nothing else matters if we’re not okay,” Rex said, his eyes meeting Nate’s.
My heart fluttered as I waited, the three of us hovering on the edge of disaster. Nate’s head cocked to the side, and with a squeeze of my hand he said to Rex, “Prove it.” Nate’s lips turned up at the sides in a devious smile as I returned his hand squeeze. Rex looked up to Nate, confused.
“Like on one knee?” Rex asked, “Legally?”
Nate chuckled and shook his head. “What I meant was do that thing you always refuse to try,” Nate said with a wink. As the realization of what Nate wanted set in, Rex fell back onto the floor dramatically, and with a big sigh said, “Okay, but I might need more Listerine, but if it’ll show you how much I care, I’ll do it.”
“Oh calm down, it’ll be fine. You might even enjoy it,” Nate said to Rex across the bathroom as I prepared the area.
“Are you sure it’s sanitary, Penny? Maybe some bleach before we—”
I threw my hands up at him. “Oh my God you are such a freak! It’s fine.” I leaned down to get the oil and added, “Get undressed.”
Rex stood there staring, glancing longingly toward the corner of the marble room. “I can shower afterward, right?” he asked, looking to Nate for the rules.
Nate shook his head. “No, showering us off of your flesh is not proving your undying devotion, my love.”
Rex began to undress slowly, as if he were losing a game of strip poker. Nate walked over to him, pulling at Rex’s belt and letting it fall to the floor. Rex’s bare feet stepped out of his jeans, and as usual, he’d skipped the underwear that day. Even flaccid, his thick cock was impressive. At least four metal piercings running along his shaft shone in the bright light of Nate’s luxurious bathroom as I turned off the faucet.