The First Cut: A Dark Psychological Thriller (Gushers Series Book 1)

by Chuck Buda

  Ryan winced. He seemed uncomfortable with being put on the spot. “I agree. We make an example of Aiden.” He slumped his shoulders, avoiding eye contact with Aiden or Zoe.

  Zoe turned to Todd. She didn’t utter a word. She just stared at him with contempt in her expression. Todd threw his hands in the air. “This is fucking crazy.” He exhaled and ran his fingers through his hair. “Fine. Make an example of him.” Todd walked in small circles.

  Aiden felt all alone. He couldn’t believe they had all turned against him. They chose Zoe’s insanity over his right to choose. Freedom and friendship ceased to exist in The First Cut.

  Zoe looked at Leah. “You’re all that’s left. So what’s it going to be? Are you going to quit and suffer the same consequences as Aiden? Or will you condemn him to his fate and join us on this quest for higher knowledge?” Zoe’s smile darkened, looking more evil than pleased.

  “What if I choose to stay, but not condemn Aiden?” Leah glanced at Aiden. He was dumbfounded she could even consider remaining a part of this farce.

  “You will suffer the same consequences. You choose either us...or him. There is no middle ground.”

  Leah considered her options. Aiden watched her eyebrows come together as she weighed the choices she needed to make. He tried to send his brain waves in her direction, as if he had magical powers to reach into her mind and help her along.

  “From now on, The First Cut is about unity and commitment. There are no other values. It is non-negotiable.” Zoe stood with her hands on her hips, her black robe opened slightly to reveal her nudity beneath.

  Leah lifted her head. She stared at Aiden for a long moment. He felt his stomach sink as he felt he knew what she had decided.

  And it wasn’t going to be good for him.

  Chapter 49

  Leah stared into his eyes for the longest moment. Time seemed to suspend as Aiden blinked, absorbing Leah’s image in his brain. He prayed she would take his side and walk away tonight with him. But Aiden knew it wouldn’t be possible. If Leah chose to follow him, then she would suffer as badly as him. And he didn’t want that for Leah at all.

  Leah looked down at her toiling fingers. “I’m sorry, Aiden.”

  Aiden’s heart sank. Before he could process her decision to seal his fate, the back yard erupted into chaos.

  Spencer lunged at Aiden. In an instant, Aiden caught a glimmer of something metallic reflecting the reddened lighting. Whatever it was, Aiden knew it was destined for him. He ducked to the left, absorbing a glancing blow.

  Spencer’s dagger sliced through Aiden’s neck, narrowly missing his carotid artery. Aiden felt the gush of hot blood wet his shirt as he landed on the grass. Spencer straddled Aiden, holding the dagger high above his head. He meant to plunge it deep within Aiden’s chest but Todd tackled Spencer, hurling him from Aiden’s body.

  A scuffle ensued above Aiden as Todd and Spencer fought each other. Aiden’s blurry vision caught Ryan coming to Todd’s aid. He wrapped his arms around Spencer’s waist as Todd punched Spencer in the face.

  Leah shook and cried while Jordyn tried to console her. Aiden’s eyes rolled back in his skull as he tried to maintain consciousness. Never in his wildest dreams would he have imagined his friends, of over a decade, would try to kill him. He couldn’t reconcile the depths of their loyalty to The First Cut.

  Zoe dove upon Aiden and began shoving her face into the crook of his neck. Aiden felt her hot breath and what he thought was Zoe’s tongue lapping at his blood. Suddenly, her lips latched onto his wound and Aiden felt Zoe sucking the blood from his neck. He tried to scream but all that came out of his mouth was a garbled moan.

  Leah jumped into action. She grabbed Zoe’s hair and yanked her head backwards. Zoe shrieked with the pain of clumps of hair being torn from her scalp. Leah’s grip was so tight it yanked Zoe’s head horrifically to the side. Zoe rolled off Aiden and attempted to free her head of Leah’s grasp. Jordyn attempted to intervene. She slapped at Leah’s face but missed each time. Jordyn shouted for Leah to stop but it did nothing to deter Leah from defending Aiden.

  He rolled to his side and tried to use his elbow to lift himself off the grass. But the yard swam around him and Aiden dropped back to the earth, trying to comprehend the melee which swirled above him.

  Todd accidentally caught Ryan with a punch, sending Ryan into a rage. Ryan suddenly changed allegiance and went after Todd. Todd worked hard to fend off Ryan’s attacks, leaving Spencer unmolested. Spencer saw the opportunity and he returned to Aiden. His dagger was missing and it looked like he tried to locate it before giving up. He kicked Aiden in the ribs and then punched Aiden’s face several times. Somebody knocked Spencer off Aiden but he couldn’t tell who it was. His left eye had swollen shut from one of the unblocked punches.

  Aiden heard Ryan puking in the bushes. From the sounds of the arguments around him, Todd must have scored a blow to Ryan’s balls. The hit had been hard enough to force Ryan into losing the contents of his stomach. Todd shouted something at Spencer and Aiden heard the boys scuffling, no longer punching each other, but definitely still engaged.

  Zoe commanded Jordyn to hold Leah down. Aiden wished he could summon his legs to pick himself up so he could carry Leah out of the yard. He heard Zoe calling Leah all kinds of names and the sound of several loud slaps echoed off the fence around the yard.

  Todd picked up Aiden and then dropped him to the ground. Aiden heard Todd throwing Zoe and Jordyn off Leah. He screamed about how things went way past the limit and he urged it to stop immediately. The others must have taken his warning because the back yard fell silent. Only the sound of crying and gasping breath remained. Ryan seemed to be finished puking.

  Aiden felt an arm scoop under his neck and lift him up. The grip wasn’t as strong as Todd’s and the arm definitely wasn’t as muscular. Leah had come to Aiden’s rescue. Aiden smelled the shampoo musk in her hair, listening to her sob as she helped him to his feet. She cursed at the others through broken sobs and dragged Aiden to the gate. Leah fumbled for several eternal seconds to unlatch the gate and carry Aiden through. He heard the gate slam shut behind them.

  Leah lowered Aiden to the grass while she took a breather. He felt the dew soaking through his shirt. Although, it could have been the blood leaking from his neck. At this point, Aiden didn’t really care. He would be happy slipping away into the darkness of death. Anything to remove him from this horrible night.

  Leah kissed his cheek and lifted Aiden up. She begged him to help her. She asked him to try to use his feet as best he could. Otherwise, she didn’t think she could get him across the street to her house.

  Aiden wanted to protest going to her house. He knew her parents didn’t like him anymore after what he had done to Leah. His thoughts swarmed, trying to recall if they knew what had happened or if they just knew Leah had been upset with him.

  He felt the asphalt beneath him as they stepped off the grass into the street. Aiden tried to open his eyes. The left one was sealed shut and it felt like a huge pillow was stapled to his face. The right eye felt open but all Aiden could make out was shadows and blurry splotches. The fear he had gone blind danced across his mind, creating a momentary panic. Then he settled himself. At least he was alive. He could deal with blindness, Aiden soothed himself.

  Leah slumped Aiden against the porch railing. He heard her open the door and step inside the house. Aiden worried she had left him outside, under the bright porch lights. But she had gone inside to check on the possibility of bringing him in undetected. Apparently, her parents were upstairs. Leah grabbed Aiden with a grip which shocked him. The adrenaline of fearing discovery must have increased Leah’s strength tenfold. He lifted off the porch and felt Leah rush him through the doorway. She dragged him up the stairs using a choke hold around his neck. He gasped for air. Leah told him to be quiet. She wanted to ensure he didn’t bleed all over her parent’s floors.

  Aiden gave in and allowed Leah to manhandle him up the stairs and down the hall. S
he lowered him to her bedroom floor and she folded up a bath towel underneath his head. Aiden heard Leah shut her bedroom door and switch the lock.

  For the first time since he entered Jordyn’s backyard, Aiden sighed relief.

  Chapter 50

  Zoe licked her lips. The salty taste of Aiden’s blood made her tingle with excitement. Everything she had planned went sideways. But she could salvage the evening. And turn it into more wins for herself.

  Todd rushed over to Zoe after Leah dragged Aiden through the gate. “This is fucking bullshit, Zoe. You’ve gone too far. This was supposed to be fun for us. Not turn us against each other.” His breath came through in erratic gasps.

  Zoe glanced over Todd’s shoulder at Spencer. He grinned at her. She saw his nose bleeding profusely. It dripped onto his bare chest. Spencer must have felt her eyes on his nose because he pinched his nostrils together to stem the flow.

  “If you don’t like it, Todd, then I suggest you follow your little friend Aiden. Maybe you can both fuck each other until graduation.” She giggled and licked the blood from her upper lip.

  “You’ve lost your fucking mind.” Todd shot a dirty look over his shoulder at Spencer. “And your fucking pet is going down the same black hole you are.” Spencer chuckled behind Todd. He muttered, “Pussy.” Todd ignored the comment and continued to focus on Zoe.

  Jordyn stepped next to Todd. She appeared to have been crying. She laced her arms through Todd’s left arm. He jumped for a moment until he realized Jordyn was attempting to cuddle him. “I’m with Todd. Tonight was fucked up and we need to re-think where it’s all going.” Jordyn rubbed the side of her head into Todd’s muscular arm.

  Zoe grinned and laughed. “I’m surprised how weak you all are. This has the potential of changing our lives and you want to throw it all away?” Her voice reached a crescendo as her ire spiked.

  “I think you should leave. Tonight.” Jordyn hid her face in Todd’s arm as she requested Zoe go home.

  Todd nodded at Zoe. “You heard, Jordyn. Take your fucking scary sideshow outta here. Before I’m forced to move you myself.” Todd turned and faced Spencer. “That includes you, asshole.”

  Spencer laughed and gathered his belongings. He searched around for the dagger. After a few seconds of looking, Todd took two steps toward him. Spencer stopped his search and stared back at Todd.

  Zoe glared at Ryan. “What about you? You with us or them?” Her words sounded harsh in the still air.

  Ryan glanced between Zoe and Todd. He appeared to weigh his allegiances between his best friend and the girl who gave him everything he wanted. Zoe waited impatiently for Ryan’s response. If he chose Todd and Jordyn then Zoe would cut him off completely. And add him to her sacrifice list.

  Ryan cleared his throat and responded. “I’m with you, Zoe.” He avoided Todd’s stare.

  Zoe cackled in Todd’s face. “Well, there you have it. The three of us will continue on with The First Cut while the rest of you wish you had the balls to achieve a higher level of enlightenment.”

  Todd inched closer to Zoe’s face. His words were immediate and final. “Get the fuck outta here. Now.”

  Zoe smiled at him and walked toward the gate. She shot a self-righteous look at them before passing through to the front yard.

  As she made her way to her car, Spencer and Ryan walked ahead of her in silence. She didn’t want the night to go to waste. She had drank plenty of Aiden’s blood. And she felt wet with excitement from the chaos. Zoe grabbed Ryan’s crotch and stroked it while she whispered in his ear. She felt him grow hard immediately. Ryan swallowed loudly and nodded at her.

  Zoe turned to Spencer. “How about you, Spencer? Wanna fuck the shit out of me and keep this party rolling?” Spencer grinned at her. He stepped closer to Zoe and slipped a finger inside her wetness through the opening in her robe. His hot tongue drank the blood from the back of her mouth. After kissing her, he licked the blood drop from her neck and chest. Zoe moaned under his touch.

  “I’ll take that as a yes.” Zoe grabbed Spencer’s cock in one hand and Ryan’s in the other. She tugged them both to Spencer’s car.

  Spencer opened the door and slid into the driver’s seat. Zoe climbed into the passenger seat. She remained on her knees and began deep-throating Spencer’s cock while he started the car. She wished Spencer would jam his erection through the back of her skull and make her gag. She waited for Ryan, who seemed to be standing outside the car. Zoe continued to suck Spencer’s dick while she used one hand to flap the robe up over her back, revealing her gaping holes in Ryan’s face. She slipped several fingers inside herself to entice Ryan to action.

  It was all it took. Ryan climbed into the passenger seat. He slammed the door shut and began tasting Zoe’s ass as it stuck up in the air.

  “Drive, motherfucker.” Zoe begged Spencer to take off. She felt the car move beneath her. She heard Spencer groan with pleasure as she licked his balls and jerked him off while he drove.

  Ryan climbed up and shoved himself inside Zoe’s wetness. He moaned with delight as he slid all the way in without any hesitation. Zoe giggled with happiness as she pleased and felt pleased. She wanted to end the night on a high note. And taking in the sex made her head swim with higher emotions. She almost felt dizzy like she were drunk.

  They continued in the same positions until Spencer arrived at the park, the same place the friends liked to meet. She pulled forward so Ryan slipped out of her. Zoe pushed Ryan to move to the back seat. He slid over and tilted back with his head resting back. Zoe climbed over the seats, Spencer following her after turning the engine off.

  Zoe began sucking Ryan’s dick while Spencer tried to insert himself in her from behind. She grunted, “Uh-uh.” And yanked Spencer’s arm to her right. Spencer plopped on the back seat next to Ryan. “I want to suck you both off first.” She jerked Spencer’s shaft while she worked her mouth up and down on Ryan. Both guys moaned with pleasure.

  Zoe was very happy with herself. A much lesser woman would have fallen apart under the weight of such a large responsibility. But not Zoe. She knew she could handle anything. There was a reason she was in charge of The First Cut. She was the queen, meant for this new world order. And she would prove everyone wrong about the importance of her leadership. This was her secret society. She smiled to herself that all great organizations needed to pare down in order to rebuild and move forward. Tonight would just be a speed bump on the road to greatness. She was still the master of this.

  Zoe felt the first burst of Ryan’s orgasm in her mouth. She cooed and drank it up, working Spencer more furiously in her hand.

  She loved this. Zoe was very happy. And she would be happier when she made this group the best it could be.

  Zoe finished Ryan and dove upon Spencer’s lap. Her work wasn’t yet done.

  Chapter 51

  Aiden kept his eyes closed. He was afraid to open them again. The fear of blindness was better kept at a distance. At least until he could figure out what the hell happened tonight.

  How was he supposed to get home? Could he fake a call to his parents that he was sleeping over Ryan’s house? Or Todd’s? And then what would they say when he showed up either tonight or tomorrow with a bloodied face? And a hacked open neck? What kind of story could be woven to cover the real reasons he had become battered?

  Leah wiped his face down with a warm washcloth. The warmth soothed his skin even though it caused his eye to throb harder. Leah must have read his thoughts because she placed the zipped up baggy of ice back on his face. Aiden winced when the coldness met his skin.

  “How am I going to get home?” Aiden mumbled the words which sounded far away.

  “You’re not going anywhere tonight. You’ll stay here where I can take care of you.” Leah’s breath brushed his ear as she coddled him.

  Aiden wanted to cry. Her tenderness was so welcome and he needed her love right now. But he staved off the tears so his eyes wouldn’t have to experience more trauma.

  �
�But my folks are expecting me. Maybe I can call them and tell them I am staying at somebody’s house.” He tried to force himself to sit up but Leah held him down.

  “Relax, will ya? Where’s your phone?” She searched his pockets so he wouldn’t even have to move. He enjoyed her hands rooting through his shorts, and he appreciated not having to work at all.

  Leah located Aiden’s cell phone. She asked him for the pass code. Aiden whispered the code to Leah as if someone might overhear his private numbers. Leah got into the phone and sent a text message to Aiden’s mother. She placed the phone on his stomach and attended to his wounds.

  “What did you do?”

  “I texted her as if I were you. Said you were doing a late night movie marathon at Ryan’s and you would be home extremely late or early in the morning.”

  The phone vibrated on his belly. Leah picked it up and read the response from Aiden’s mother. “Thanks for letting us know. Love you.” Leah giggled.

  “What’s so funny? That my mommy loves me?” Aiden tried to make light of his situation.

  Leah didn’t answer his question. She checked the slice mark on his neck. “You know, you’re really lucky Spencer didn’t get your carotid artery. You’d be dead right now.” Leah placed the gauze over his neck again.

  “How bad is it?”

  “It’s bad enough you won’t be able to hide it from your parents or kids at school. But you’ll live. I don’t think you’ll need stitches. It stopped bleeding already from the pressure and the first aid cream. I’d say the cut must have been the very edge of the knife.”

  Aiden recalled how he had ducked and fell to the side as Spencer came at him with the knife. He realized how lucky he had been because Spencer clearly intended to hurt him badly. Of all his friends, Aiden would have expected Spencer to be the last person to hurt him. Todd and Ryan were tough and liked to rough house. He imagined they would hurt him physically, long before Spencer ever would. The guy was a genius and a book nerd. Not a killer.