by Chuck Buda
Chapter 32
A light fog cast a somber countenance on the property. Samantha glanced up and to the right were the sun was trying to break through in the east. She thought the weatherman had said the weekend was supposed to be nice. Samantha shrugged to herself and carried on toward the mailbox. Her slippers picked up some dew from the ground, leaving tiny wet droplets on her toes. She opened the mailbox but the mail hadn’t come yet. Samantha checked the newspaper box alongside and found the daily paper folded neatly inside. She pulled the paper and glanced at the headlines.
“Morning, neighbor.”
Samantha jumped. She hadn’t expected anyone else since the street appeared empty when she came outside. Rebecca waved at Samantha from her sidewalk. Samantha smiled and waved back, her hand over her heart.
“Sorry.” Rebecca apologized as she walked across the street to Samantha. “I didn’t mean to frighten you. The news that bad?”
Samantha wondered what Rebecca was speaking about. Then she noticed Rebecca’s eyes dart to the newspaper. “Oh. No. I just didn’t see anyone out here. So when you spoke it surprised me.” She returned Rebecca’s smile. A little nervous tickle fluttered in her belly as she recalled Holden’s suggestion. Samantha had no idea how she could even bring up such a subject to a neighbor. And so early in the morning. She decided she would worry about it some other time.
An awkward moment of silence lingered between them as they stood grinning at each other. Samantha couldn’t take the quiet so she blurted out small talk.
“How have you been? I haven’t seen you in a while.”
“I know. That’s why I poked my head out when I saw you this morning. Things have been so busy lately.” Rebecca grimaced.
Samantha laughed inside. What could Rebecca find so busy? She was a housewife for a very successful businessman. She didn’t work and probably hadn’t had a job for as long as Samantha and Holden knew her. Samantha wished she were as “busy” as Rebecca. She nodded like she understood Rebecca’s complaint.
“And Turner? Is he still traveling a lot?”
“Ugh, all the time. He leaves me home alone most of the week and then comes home...when he remembers me.” Rebecca used the back of her hand like she was revealing a secret to Samantha.
Samantha realized she had it good with Holden being close to home. She never had to worry about him flying all around the country or not being home to help out with the kids. She tried to put herself in Rebecca’s position and she didn’t like the way it felt.
“Well, Jordyn keeps me busy. She’s always got all the kids over the house or she’s running to parties and get-togethers. She’s a regular social butterfly.”
“I’ve heard the kids have been hanging around in your hot tub every weekend now. It must be a bother to have so many noisy teenagers around.”
Rebecca shrugged Samantha’s comment off. “No. They don’t bother me. As long as they aren’t drinking or doing drugs then I am okay with everyone coming over. Turner put that damn tub in so he could relax after work and he never uses it. At least the kids are getting to relax in there.” She rubbed her hands together like they were cold. She folded her arms over her chest. Samantha watched Rebecca’s full breasts prop up and spill over her arms. She must not be wearing a bra, Samantha realized.
“Well, say hello to Turner for us.” Samantha started to take her leave when Rebecca got her attention again.
“Uh, you should come over for drinks...one of these nights. We should catch up. It would be fun to host you and Holden. I know Turner would enjoy having some company since he’s always in meetings with stuffy suits. He’d love a chance to be neighborly.” Rebecca looked like she was forcing herself a bit. Samantha got a weird feeling but dismissed it. She hadn’t had coffee yet and it was probably just her need for caffeine.
“I’ll run it by Holden and see when he’s available. You know, Tommy has games and...” She ran out of excuses. It’s not that Samantha didn’t like Rebecca or want to get together. It was more an avoidance of what Holden wanted her to ask Rebecca. Samantha would rather run and hide than follow through on the suggestion. Sharing such intimate things would be inappropriate.
She started to say good-bye when Rebecca stepped closer to her. She dropped her voice and looked around like she didn’t want someone to overhear her.
“You never know what could happen in the hot tub. Hm? A couple drinks and the hot bubbles hitting all the right spots.” She elbowed Samantha in a friendly way.
Samantha almost gasped at Rebecca’s words. Her face must have shown her feelings because Rebecca became serious.
“I mean, after a few drinks and the romantic hot tub, you’ll have Holden melting in your hands once you get home.”
Samantha was relieved. She thought Rebecca was coming on to her or asking for something more... She left the thought and took a chance. After all, Rebecca brought it up, not her. So she could wrangle her way out of it as a joke to counter Rebecca’s comment.
“Rebecca?” She stopped herself upon further reflection. Maybe it wouldn’t be a good idea.
“What, sweetie.” Rebecca caressed Samantha’s arm as if to say it was okay to confide in her. Samantha drooped her shoulders.
“Nothing. I had a stupid question. Never mind.”
“Samantha, you can ask me anything. What are neighbors for?”
Samantha took a deep breath. She figured she was here now and the situation was weird enough, she might as well spit it out and get it over with.
“You ever do things to spice up your...you know? Sex life?” Samantha bit her cheek, embarrassed once the words were out there.
“Like anal?”
Samantha gasped and laughed into the newspaper. “Rebecca!”
Rebecca giggled. “Marriage is tough, sister. We both know it. There’s nothing wrong with trying new things. You wondering about toys? Like vibrators or dongs?”
Samantha took a step back with her hand over her chest. She couldn’t believe how easy it was for Rebecca to talk about such things. She shouldn’t have been surprised that a woman as beautiful and built as Rebecca would be so experienced and worldly.
“I was thinking more along the lines of exhibitionism than...that other stuff.”
Rebecca laughed. “Oh, sorry. I didn’t mean to mention those things.” She held up her hands indicating it was no big deal. “Turner and I have made our own videos. But we never shared them with people. You looking to swap videos?”
Samantha picked up on the ease with which she could talk about such private matters with her neighbor. Rebecca seemed willing to share sex tapes which made Samantha blush. Her and Holden had never taped anything before. She became a bit curious to see Rebecca’s videos though.
“Not exactly. I’m sorry. I was goofing around since you mentioned relaxing in the hot tub. I’m not very good at making jokes.” Samantha tried to dismiss it as nothing serious.
“Turner and I have talked about having sex in front of other people but we didn’t know who to even talk to about that. It’s too strange sharing that with people we know.” Rebecca rested her hand on Samantha’s arm.
Samantha felt more relaxed. Maybe this could happen. Her stomach somersaulted at the prospect of doing stuff with other people around. But she wanted to make Holden happy.
She loved Holden more than anything. And she was willing to do whatever it took to make him happy. Even if she was scared.
Chapter 33
Holden sipped his coffee, burning his tongue. He liked his coffee with cream and sugar but today he changed it up and served himself black. Every once in awhile, Holden liked to throw himself a curve ball to keep things interesting. The kitchen was empty. He heard Samantha putzing around before he made his way downstairs. But he didn’t know where she had gone.
As Holden sat down at the table to flip through some work he had brought home, he decided to take a break from business life. He had been putting in some extra hours and handling paperwork on weekends. This morning he to
ld himself to forget work and spend more time with the family. Holden rarely made a conscious effort to focus on the family. Not because he was too self-centered. He just lost track of everybody else with his own problems.
Leah shuffled with lazy feet into the kitchen. Her hair was full of static and her eyes were half open. Holden recalled his father characterizing it as eyes that look like “two piss holes in snow.” He chuckled to himself about his father’s one-liners.
“Good morning, honey. How was your party last night?” Holden sipped more black coffee.
Leah shot him a dirty look and snapped at him. “It wasn’t a party. It was just our friends hanging out.” She slammed the cabinet closed after retrieving a box of cereal and a bowl.
Holden stared at Leah. She didn’t typically give her parents attitude. Leah was much better behaved than other people’s children they had heard about. She was respectful and polite. And she didn’t throw the temper tantrums that most teenagers fell prey to. So her response this morning troubled Holden.
“Something happen last night you want to talk about?” He felt proud of himself for giving his daughter a shoulder to cry on.
Leah glared at him while she poured milk into her bowl.
Holden raised his eyebrows. What the hell happened? Did she have a fight with one of those pretentious rich girls she hung out with? Did somebody she liked hurt her feelings? Holden searched his thoughts before realizing he had no clue if Leah had a crush on anyone or if she was even interested in boys. Leah and Samantha cooed over Hollywood heart throbs like anybody else. But she never came home from school swooning over the latest boy in class who spoke to her or winked at her in the hallway. Holden wondered if he should encourage her to take a break from her little group of friends. Maybe they stifled her ability to meet nice boys and date like a regular kid.
Maybe one of the boys in the group was her crush. And all along she had been seeing the guy under the guise of the group. Right under their noses. The idea bothered him.
“Did Aiden do something to you? Because I will flatten him if he did.” Holden joked about her wholesome buddy. He figured using a safe friend as a way to trick her into revealing her problems would be a softer approach.
Leah dropped her spoon in the bowl. Milk splashed up on the counter. She glowered at Holden with daggers in her eyes. He noticed her eyes filling with tears.
“Don’t...mention...Aiden.” A tear streaked her face as she continued to glare at him.
Holden got up from the table. He approached Leah. He suddenly felt bad he had used Aiden as a fulcrum to get info. What could have happened between the two of them? They were good friends for years and if anyone would be a good match for her, it was Aiden.
He tried to put his hands to her face to wipe the tears away. Leah backed away and started to leave the kitchen.
“Leah. Please talk to me. I might be able to help you.”
She spun around and squinted her eyes at him as if to say, “Nice try.” Leah opened her mouth to speak and then closed it. She stormed off. Holden listened as the sound of her feet pounded the stairs on her way to her room. He thought of following her and decided it would be better to leave her be. She would eventually calm down and apologize to him for being so emotional. He hoped.
Samantha would be better suited to helping Leah. If it were a feminine issue then Samantha would definitely help more than he could. He scratched his face.
Samantha.
Where was she? She was in the kitchen before and now she was gone. He called out to her but no response returned. Holden went to the door to the garage. He opened it but the garage was dark. So she hadn’t gone out to look for garbage bags or anything. Maybe she had gone back upstairs and he had missed her without knowing.
He went to the front door to get his newspaper. Holden thought reading the horrible news would be lighter fare than dealing with Leah right about now. As he reached for the knob, he saw Samantha at the end of the driveway. She had his newspaper under arm.
And she was with Rebecca.
What the fuck?
Holden’s stomach churned. Seeing the two women together made him nervous. What if Rebecca told Samantha about their affair? What if Samantha suspected their affair and grilled Rebecca to try and trip her up? He tried to shrug off his paranoia. But he had too much to lose. And he didn’t like this feeling.
Holden felt sickened enough with his cheating. He couldn’t help himself for being so weak, a slave to his baser urges. But hating himself internally was completely different from watching the whole affair teeter on the brink of destruction.
Samantha and Rebecca.
Holden wished he could be a fly on the mailbox, instead of the wall. He was dying to know what they discussed. Was it him? Was it typical neighbor babble? Was Rebecca up to no good? She had a wild side and maybe it was getting further out of control. Did she have a mean streak? He didn’t think so. Nothing he had ever experienced with her had indicated as much. But how well did he really know her? They didn’t spend much time talking. Only fucking. And when they were together it was always a good time. A REALLY good time. He realized he didn’t know Rebecca’s character well at all.
The calls at work and the texts.
She had been getting more careless lately. He tried to avoid her contacts and he liked to throw in little reminders when they were together to stick to their coded signals rather than real contact. Anything in writing could be discovered. Sent to the wrong person. And calls could be traced. Listened to. Recent calls tracked. Their system of signals was much safer. Only known by them.
Holden gripped the door knob. He thought about strolling out there to join them, maybe break it up.
But he feared his face would reveal too much. Or the shakiness in his voice.
Holden rested his head against the front door and prayed this wasn’t the end.
Chapter 34
Aiden stared at the wall next to his bed. The day had progressed into the afternoon and he hadn’t bothered to get up yet. He fended off his parents who both tried, several times, to check on him or ask him to come down for breakfast. Aiden lied and said he wasn’t feeling well. Which was partially true.
He felt sick to his stomach about all that happened last night. Drinking blood. The sex. The nudity.
Leah.
Leah made him feel the worst out of all the reasons. But it wasn’t her fault. It was his own. He had betrayed her. Left her to be consumed and molested by the guys. And the girls. He had to remind himself her rape was more than a consequence of boys. Zoe and Jordyn had technically had their way with her, too.
Aiden couldn’t reconcile Leah’s involvement though. She had characterized last night as being raped or molested. But she was grabbing dicks. And she was kissing the girls. And she didn’t try to stop anyone.
She knew what she was doing.
The eyes. Staring at him while she sucked.
It didn’t lessen his guilt any. Aiden felt directly responsible for what had happened to Leah since he stood by and did nothing. Not a goddamned thing. He had promised her not long before the meeting, to protect her and walk out if it got to be too much.
Instead he shoved his dick inside Jordyn. No hesitation. As soon as he felt her slippery skin brush against him and felt the opening slit...
Aiden rubbed his eyes. He had no more tears left to give after crying most the night. His eyes burned and he was sure they were bloodshot like a drunken bum.
He had tried calling Leah on her cell phone all night. Every hour or so. He wanted to begin the process of begging for forgiveness. And he needed to hear her voice. To know she was okay. As okay as she could be. Aiden wished he could hold her in his arms.
The text messages hadn’t gone through either. He could see by the side of all his messages that she hadn’t read them. He figured Leah had shut off her phone after the first few attempts so she could get some rest. Or did she stay up all night crying, too?
He needed to make things right somehow. Aiden
spent several hours trying to come up with an action plan which would allow him to get out of the group and solve his problem with Leah. One stroke. But every idea he came up with either worked for getting him out of The First Cut or earning Leah’s forgiveness. Not both. Aiden wouldn’t be able to spend time with any of his friends anymore. He would be the new pariah. Relegated to an outsider looking in. Once the group discovered his feelings for Leah and his desire to leave the secret club, they would admonish him and probably do stuff to him publicly to save their own faces.
Leah was another concern.
His only way back into her good graces would be to stand up to the group publicly. Todd would beat his ass badly. Ryan would probably do the same. Aiden was afraid of how Spencer would respond. Spencer had always been the smart one and always willing to let Todd and Ryan have the limelight with the girls. But lately he had turned into something...sinister. Aiden couldn’t put a finger on his feelings about Spencer. There had definitely been something to make him fear Spencer. Was it the shaved head? The alliance with Zoe? Or just all the weird shit he seemed to know and worshiped in front of them all?
Aiden knew Zoe didn’t care for him so that wouldn’t be a big loss. She didn’t really care for anyone but herself. She was a bit scarier lately too, though. Zoe had always been a control freak and the dominant one for being the center of attention. But since they formed the little secret society, she had raised her perceived power over them exponentially. It felt like they were all in awe of her these days. Aiden knew HE was in awe of her.
Jordyn was another one who probably didn’t give too much of a shit about him. She had always been nice to Aiden and included him in all group chats and activities. But Jordyn was all about Jordyn. She was stunning and she knew it. Zoe tried to put her in her place. Jordyn was crafty about brushing Zoe aside, at least until the secret club. Jordyn had taken a bit of a back seat to Zoe lately, too. But she wouldn’t care one way or the other if Aiden were involved.