Bloodbath

by K. A. Merikan

  It wasn’t too late yet.

  Seth groaned and stood up, breathing so hard Domenico could hear it from across the pool. “I know I can, but maybe I don’t want to!”

  Domenico licked his lips and squeezed his sticky hand around the handle of his knife. The sounds of breathing were a constant hum in the air, but it still felt like he and Seth were standing alone on the edge of a cliff. And Domenico, despite such a deep affection for Seth, held his hand against his beloved’s back, about to push him.

  “Do you want me to do it?” he asked in the end, seeking the familiar warmth in Seth’s brown eyes. He found none.

  “No.” Seth frowned, and it was as if his earlier hesitation dispersed in face of shame. “I can do it. You asked me to help one last time, and I said I would, so I will. Mark’s done it, so I can too.”

  The emptiness that reflected back at Domenico from Seth’s eyes when he said it hit Dom so hard he couldn’t stay still and rushed toward him, stepping over several fallen bodies. It was as if he had tunnel vision, and it didn’t allow him to notice anything else once he closed his hand around Seth’s wrist, keeping the knife from plunging into David’s chest.

  Mark would be growing up to be a man like Domenico, but Seth had never had that in him. He’d never wanted this kind of life and had even fled it across the globe. Hadn’t Dom promised to keep him safe? What had pushed them to this point of no return where he decided to make Seth reject all the things that made him the man Dom fell in love with? And how fucked up was it that he only now realized this?

  “You don’t have to,” he said quickly.

  Seth glanced at him, but didn’t fight Dom’s hand. “How do I not have to? I need to be at your side.”

  Domenico swallowed hard, completely enchanted by the raw desperation hidden away in the depths of Seth’s eyes. His lips felt dry, and his heart rushed, punching against his breastbone as if it wanted to fly out into Seth’s arms. “You are at my side. You are my home, and you make me forget the things I want to forget. Let me do this for you,” he whispered in the end, dropping his knife to the tiles and cupping Seth’s nape with his now-free hand.

  Seth bit his lips. “I’d like that…” he whispered back, as if saying it out loud was too shameful, when in fact having Seth allow Domenico to take over was pleasure in itself.

  Domenico licked his lips, breathing faster the longer his gaze remained locked with Seth’s. He blindly took the knife out of Seth’s hand and then pushed it into the hollow under David’s throat. The soft gurgle was the only thing reminding the two of them that yet another enemy had been dealt with.

  That was how easy this task was for Domenico. And if this way he could keep Seth happy... if Seth would allow him to take care of him, Domenico would never regret a single life he’d taken. “Would you like me to do all this for you?” Domenico asked, slipping his arms around Seth. He rubbed the tip of his nose against Seth’s cheek, breathing in the scent of stress and heat. He knew it all too well, and for once he was absolutely certain he didn’t want to sense it on his husband.

  “I feel so safe when I know you’re in charge.” Seth wrapped his arms around Dom’s neck, inching closer, as if he wanted to melt into him. “I know I would do what’s necessary to keep us both safe, but I do like when you protect me. I know this makes me sound like I’m weak...” His eyes, the same ones that had recently struck Dom with emptiness, were back to looking at him with raw honesty that made Domenico physically hungry for Seth’s flesh.

  He stood still, enchanted by the man he fell in love with, who trusted him enough to express this kind of vulnerability. Long ago, Domenico would have called someone like Seth weak, but he knew better now. Everyone had their own strengths, and if Domenico’s protection was what it took to make Seth thrive, then it was Domenico’s job to give him just that. It had been a mistake to try and mold Seth into a man he wasn’t.

  “It’s okay. You’re brave. You are... beautiful,” whispered Domenico, leaning into a soft kiss. Seth’s arms closed around him, and he shut his eyes, enjoying the embrace tightening around him. “I shouldn’t have asked you to do this.”

  “I will always be on your side, but this… it was much more than I thought it would be.” Seth kissed the side of Domenico’s head, a mix of tender lips and stubble.

  Domenico rested his head on Seth’s shoulder. “I’m sorry. I should have left you outside. This whole thing has been too much for you, hasn’t it? That won’t happen again.” Domenico considered himself good at reading people, and yet sometimes Seth was his one blind spot. They were so close that sometimes he forgot Seth wasn’t actually a part of his body. That Seth wasn’t like him.

  Seth nodded quickly, but he was choking up. “At times, I didn’t even know who I was anymore.” His embrace tightened, but no matter how much Dom would like to enjoy it, other things needed to be dealt with as well.

  Given enough care, Seth would be himself again, and it was Dom’s job to take all his burden away. “All you need to know is that you’re mine.”

  Seth’s heart thudded in his chest, and allowing him to be this way felt so much better than trying to push him into something he never really wanted. “I am. You have every last piece of me,” he whispered with such intensity Domenico could melt against it. If this was what Seth would make him feel till the end of their lives, then he wouldn’t regret drowning the world in blood in exchange for such happiness.

  “Rest. There’s this big guest bedroom upstairs in the villa. It has been waiting for Raul Moreno, but it will serve us. Go all the way upstairs, and it should be the first one on the right when you enter Toro’s apartments. Wait for me there, and you can use the water from the taps there. Dana told me.”

  “Are you sure?” Seth’s gaze searched for any flicker of hesitation, but there was none to find in Dom. Just a shiver of excitement that the sense of power brought him. He was sure he could handle everything on his own.

  “Absolutely. I will be tired when I’m done, but if you wait for me, it will be all I can possibly want.”

  And there it was, that beautiful, slightly shy smile on the face of the most handsome man Dom knew. All for him. This was the way it had looked when the first sparks of true love had flickered between them. The tiny smile Seth had for him when he thought Dom wasn’t looking.

  “I’ll wait.”

  Chapter 25 - Seth

  When Seth first found the grand guest bedroom, he couldn’t gather his thoughts and just sat on the bed, watching the dark clouds move across the sky outside. He felt numb, as if he’d dived in freezing cold water and sunk all the way to the bottom of the sea, letting the tide carry him away. But time passed, and his senses finally started waking up from the stupor, his body getting restless.

  He didn’t try to count all the rooms in Toro’s apartment, but there were many, all decorated in the same pompous style the man seemed to favor. They were surprisingly neat, all things considered. Sure, Seth spotted an open safe behind a fallen bookshelf, and some clothes lying on the floors of the two bedrooms—one of which was clearly Dana’s—but Toro must have been ready to run at any moment. It wouldn’t have surprised Seth if a man as obsessed by security as Toro kept suitcases packed in case of a situation like the one unleashed on him.

  Too bad he hadn’t recognized the snake in his nest.

  Seth silently walked through the apartment, entering each room to collect decorative candles for illuminating the guest bedroom. There were some in Dana’s bedroom as well, but he felt weird about accessing her private space. She would likely return here, and as little sympathy Seth had for her, she deserved some consideration for saving their lives tonight.

  It was a relief to come back to the bedroom Domenico chose for them, and Seth gladly locked himself inside, even though he knew he was relatively safe with all the others taking care of the bloody business that he chose to have no part in. Guilt was still tugging at his heart, but at the end of the day, it was Domenico who invited Seth’s decision.

>   It was still hard to comprehend all the comfort that conversation gave him. Domenico’s words made him feel as if he was something so precious, that Dom wouldn’t mind polishing it every day just so that its surface shone back at him.

  The space was grand like a presidential suite at a top hotel, with its double doors opening up into a balcony, a canopy over the king-sized bed, and extra space for a sofa and two armchairs in front of a mock fireplace. He couldn’t believe there were even magazines stacked by the flat screen television, and a whole platter of fruit on the coffee table. The serenity of this space felt perverse when Seth thought back to the carnage that was unfolding everywhere else.

  This would be the only room not dripping with blood.

  He was hesitant about relaxing, worried he might have to leave this place with as much haste as Toro had just an hour before, but in the end, he decided to put his trust in Domenico and took off his shoes, stepping onto the soft beige carpet with a strange sense of relief.

  He’d told Domenico of his shameful fears, admitted how deeply he craved Dom’s protection, and it had been met with acceptance. As if he didn’t have to play up the brutal side of himself anymore to appeal to his husband’s sense of masculinity. For the first time since the Villani family came back for him and took him away from his life in the US, he really felt he was allowed to let go, and the relief was immense, as if he’d been holding his breath for all this time and only now could inhale fresh air.

  As minutes passed, he was starting to feel more comfortable, and even a particularly bad copy of a famous rococo portrait hanging across from the bed couldn’t spoil his mood. It was like recovering from a hit to the head, and now bit by bit he was beginning to recognize the world around him again. He couldn’t just sit here while Domenico worked his ass off making sure they’d all be safe in the morning.

  His husband would be exhausted once he came back, and that thought spurred Seth into action.

  He carried some of the candles into the en-suite, which wasn’t even a bathroom but a bathing room, where the huge freestanding tub didn’t even take up that much space. Everything was set up in a kind of beige-ish boudoir style, but Seth thought the fresh flowers standing in two large vases were a nice touch and made the space smell pleasant.

  As he lit the candles by the sink, his gaze caught his own reflection, and he scowled at the bruises left behind by Toro and his men. He didn’t like the smell of himself either after all the stressing, and running, and fighting...

  Seth sniffed his armpit and groaned in distaste at the sharp stink of stale sweat. He needed a thorough wash before Dom came back.

  Not to waste time, he used the shower, already planning to run a bath for Dom who would surely enjoy a good long soak. All the dirt and the crusted blood went down the drain, as if that were all it took to wash off what he’d done. But there was no point in lying to himself. He’d never be able to wipe away all his sins, but it still felt good to have warm water help him imagine he was in fact somewhere else. Somewhere safe and clean.

  Despite all the bruises on his body, once he was done with the shower, he felt like a new man. He pulled his jeans back on, for a moment wondering whether he should bring all their stuff over, but he quickly dismissed that idea. He wasn’t ready to step outside the pristine apartment and walk the blood-soaked grounds just yet.

  Domenico had offered him this relief by removing the burden resting on Seth’s shoulders and taking it on. There would be time for chores tomorrow. Tonight, they would rest, and yet thinking about it was like an injection of pure energy in his veins. He rushed back into the bedroom with an amount of vigor he could hardly comprehend after all the pain and misery of the past day.

  He sat down on the comfy sofa by the coffee table, and laughed at the little knife resting on top of a stack of plates. A knife that would be used for peeling fruit, not killing people. He missed cooking so much.

  The air was a bit stale, and Seth wanted to start the air conditioning, only to remember that the electricity was off. He ended up opening the window before he put two candles on the table in front of him and started working his way through the fresh fruit in the bowl. This was good. Just him and the sensation of the soft peach exploding with juice when he cut into it. He could almost pretend like he was home—wherever that now was—and he relaxed further, somewhat sad there wasn’t any cinnamon to sprinkle over the plate of fruit, but he knew Domenico would enjoy the taste anyway. He drizzled it all with fresh, gooey seeds of a passion fruit instead.

  A series of gunshots erupted in the garden, making Seth jump and cut his finger by accident. He watched a speck of blood melt over the ripe flesh of the apple in his hand. Was he tempting fate by sitting here in just his jeans? Should he get dressed and ready after all? Then again, no screams followed, no one was rushing around. And he’d hear it through the open window of the balcony. It must have been an easy kill then.

  For some time, Seth stood there in the middle of the candle-lit room and listened, but in the end, he walked off to the bathroom to find a band aid for his finger. With all the injuries to his body so far, a little cut couldn’t faze him, but there was no point in staining the carpet or the fair upholstery of the sofa.

  In the bathroom, he turned on the water in the large bathtub so that it would start filling now, before Dom even got here. Domenico took on so much burden for him, that Seth wanted to return the favor in what little ways he could. Once the fragrant bath oil turned the water a nice milky shade, and the tub was full, all that was left for Seth was wait. His heart was beating faster as he leaned his head against the edge of the tub and smelled the musky scent of the water, enjoying the warm steam heating up his face.

  Sure, he could take down two men from a sniper rifle if he had to, but he’d much rather just sit here, take in the smell, pretend he was waiting for Dom to come back from a shopping trip on their exotic holiday in a luxury spa. He smiled to himself, ignoring the slight pain it caused his bruised face, but a slow knocking made him jump right back to his feet.

  There was silence, and for a moment he wasn’t certain if he should move. Was it one of theirs, or an enemy? But all worry was gone when the next round of knocking came in the melody of a popular Italo disco song from the 1990s. Seth’s fingers tingled for Domenico’s touch as he unlocked the door and opened it wide.

  A red-spattered face with black hair hanging in damp streaks around it stared back at him. It would have frightened him any other time, but his Domenico was finally here, and nothing could stop Seth’s heart from leaping in his chest.

  The scent of blood was quick to invade his senses, and even though Seth knew all along it would be coming, he didn’t expect… so much of it. Half of Dom’s face was stained red.

  And yet, Seth hugged Domenico tightly, stroking the hard body that was still tense after the hunt. He was the only one this beast of a man would allow so close. “Are you okay?” he asked but wasn’t worried for their safety anymore. Domenico was here, and he’d even playfully announced his presence by knocking. All had been dealt with.

  Domenico smirked and trailed a warm, crusty hand down the center of Seth’s chest. It felt dry and yet so immensely satisfying in its warmth. “I know they always say it in the movies, but the blood isn’t mine,” he said and stepped inside with a small smile.

  “None of it? You sure? I heard gunshots.” While being a frantic ball of nerves, Seth had forgotten to appreciate the confident way in which Domenico moved or the elegant shape of his profile, but now, here he was, admiring his man in a whole new light, even if Dom’s face was smeared with blood.

  Domenico hummed in agreement. “Dana needed to shoot two fugitives from afar. It wasn’t anything major,” Dom said, locking the door and quickly toeing off his shoes as he took in the guest room. “I like the candles. Nice touch.”

  “It’s not to be romantic. There’s no electricity,” Seth said, slightly embarrassed. He couldn’t help but feel that something had changed between them now that he allowe
d himself to let go. To roll over and show Domenico his throat in a display of weakness. “But I do like to think it’s romantic too,” he added in a whisper.

  Domenico smiled, and the red smears on his face made him look like a self-satisfied vampire after a feast. “Of course. You just create a nice atmosphere in passing. Can’t wait until you make those lemon cupcakes for me again.”

  “I will. As soon as it’s possible. I will treat you, Dom.” Seth needed to put that point across. He wouldn’t just take. He would feed his panther, pet it, sharpen its claws, and brush its fur. “I ran you a bath, if you’re up for it.”

  Domenico exhaled with something akin to a purr. “Oh, yes. I think I stink. This guy woke up when I carved into him, and his damn aorta spat all over me.”

  Seth grabbed Dom’s hand and pulled him into the bathroom. “Let’s clean you up then.” He smiled, hardly believing how light his heart was, how it fluttered in his chest like a happy bird, no longer shaking like a rabbit about to get eaten.

  Domenico grinned at the tub. “I need one like this in our own en-suite. The shape is great,” he said, quickly peeling off the stained T-shirt. His smile didn’t seem to stop, as if the killing spree that left visible traces all over his body had somehow reloaded his batteries.

  Seth couldn’t explain why he was so attracted to danger when it came in Domenico’s form. Maybe because it was the kind of danger he could toy with yet never actually die from? Domenico was like a flame Seth could approach, enjoying its heat without getting burned. So he touched.

  He put his hands against Dom’s stomach with a sigh of pleasure. The muscle underneath Dom’s skin was so sturdy, and yet all of his body was so touchable Seth could knead it like bread. “Are you hungry?” He slid his fingers lower and started unbuckling Dom’s belt.