To Have and to Hold - 12. Chapter 12

He has inflicted pain on me, shocking, sudden, intense, but nothing lasting, nothing that will mar or damage me. He tells me that I am beautiful, that he wishes that things could have been different and he could love me, and then he hurts me. One moment crooning and stroking my face and the next lashing out, sometimes physically sometimes mentally. He has knocked me half senseless with both, but he always brings me back.

I have tried to break my bonds but there is magic in them. He is strong, maybe stronger than me and I don’t think that I can get away from him by myself. There are others in the room. Two of them are guarding Beth. She is very quiet. I don’t think she is unconscious although I can’t feel her. I think she is hiding, waiting.

There are three others too, apart from ... what is he called... ah yes, Merticus. One of them is some kind of a messenger as Merticus keeps sending him out on errands. I think he is human, I think perhaps the ones who are guarding Beth are human too, I can smell their fear, sense their revulsion. They know he is mad, they know what he is capable of, they have seen this before.

The other two are certainly not human. I don’t know what they are. They are almost reptilian with faintly green tinged skin, slitted eyes and quick, darting tongues which keep sliding out to moisten lips so thin and pale they are almost non existent. There is something about them, a cold, rotten, non human quality that frightens me. I think they are demons, some kind of snake beings.

“Are you feeling more at home now Marc? I would hate to think that any of my guests did not feel at home here. I think that I go to quite extraordinary lengths to accommodate.”

I look up at him. He is smiling in almost a friendly way but I am not a fool, I know better. He doesn’t look like a monster. In fact he looks cute, he looks... like a cocky teenage surfer dude with blonde hair and wide blue eyes.

“Yeah, sure I feel at home. I get tied up and tortured every day at home.”

“Tortured? Is that what you think I have been doing? You are obviously not familiar with the concept of torture. I have only been playing with you.”

“It’s been great fun.”

He stares at me. His innocent wide blue eyes placid and calm. I feel uneasy, there is something there, something behind the friendly openness that screams of madness.

“I think you are right. I think it is time to step things up a little. I think your friend has had enough... encouragement now. If I know Kai, and believe me I do know him... then he will know exactly where you are by now and will be on his way. I really wouldn’t want him to get here too soon and spoil the experience for you.”

“What experience?”

He smiles and strokes my face, his eyes growing misty. “He has very good taste, he always did. But I think you are possibly the most beautiful person I have ever seen. It’s not just the way you look it is the way you feel. You are truly beautiful in every way and I am going to enjoy myself enormously taking full advantage of that in any way I can.”

Suddenly I am frightened. The look in his eyes changes in an instant from open innocence to raw hunger and it makes my stomach flip with fear.

He runs his hand down over my chest, holding my eyes with his, watching my fear and horror grow, feeding from it.

“You are so soft and tight. I should have expected nothing less. Kai has always chosen beautiful boys, always wanted the best. You are stronger that you look too, you have muscles, in your body and your mind. I wish I could see in there. If what lies within is as good as what lies without then I could have the best time in there.

“But that is not for now. Who knows, maybe another time? I don’t have time to invade both today, and I am horny so I shall have to stick with the body and leave the soul for another day.”

He rests his hand on my belly spreading his fingers and revelling in the way my muscles twitch and tremble of their own accord. I tense them willing my body to be still, even though my mind is anything but. I am afraid of what is about to happen, afraid of the look in his eyes, the heat in his hand.

“You feel tense. Perhaps I can persuade you to relax a little.”

“I doubt it.”

He smiles but it is not a nice smile and his fingers dig into me until I grunt with pain before releasing me and lifting to stroke my skin with light strokes of his finger tips. I tremble again, I can’t help it and when the feather light strokes move lower to toy with my fur I have to bite my lip to stop myself from groaning.

I grind my teeth and try to press my back into the bed, to pull away from his hand. He laughs aloud.

“Don’t even think of trying to fight me. I intend to have my fun with you and there is nothing, absolutely nothing you can do to stop me.”

“Maybe so but I do not intend to make it easy for you.”

“Who says you have a choice?”

He flicks his eyes to either side and I feel movement. The two strange creatures slither forwards and look down on me with cold, dead eyes. I am suddenly frightened, more frightened than I have ever been. They grin mirthlessly at me, lips curling back to reveal needle sharp fangs. I can’t take my eyes from them. I am barely aware of Merticus’ light strokes, all I can see, all I can think of, are those fangs. I know what is coming.

“No.” The word is torn from my lips without my conscious effort, I just couldn’t help it. It makes Merticus laugh. “Please... no...”

“What are you afraid of, little one? You have been fed from before. It isn’t that bad and these two have rather... special qualities. Just relax.”

“No.” Although I know it is hopeless I strain against my bonds, throwing myself from side to side, twisting away from his hand, from them, closing my eyes against the glittering fangs.

“Be still. You will only hurt yourself. Believe it or not I really don’t want to hurt you. Relax, be still.”

“NO!!”

“Marc, you will relax, you will be still. If you do not do it I will make you.”

His voice never changes, it is calm and level and friendly but now that in itself is terrifying me.

“No, please no, please don’t let those things near me, please don’t let them....”

“My dear Marc. Why on earth are you so upset? What do you have against my friends? They are hurt I am sure that you have taken against them so much. Be still and relax and perhaps I will not have to have them help you.

“No I... I can’t I....”

He strokes my hair and throat. “Relax Marc. There are only so many times I can tell you what to do before I take things into my own hands. Kai is coming for you, I can feel it and we have a lot to get through before he arrives. Hush now, relax.”

His touch only makes me more afraid, makes me fight harder. My heart is beating so fast it hurts and I throw myself against my bonds with ever increasing violence. My fear has pushed me way past the point where I can listen to anything he has to say, and he knows it. He looks almost sad but there is a gleam in his eye that tells me it wouldn’t have mattered what I did.

Again there is the briefest flick of his eyes and the snake creatures lower their fangs and, grasping my arms with cold, fingers they sink them into my wrists. There is hardly any pain, not like when Kai bit me, I hardly feel the fangs slide into me, they are like needles.

I am aware of nothing but their hands on me, their teeth sunk into me, the rhythm of their sucking, a strange lassitude flowing through me from them. This is not like normal feeding. I know that feeding has a hypnotic, almost sedating effect on the donor, but this is different. Although my body is relaxing of its own accord I am not sinking towards sleep, far from it, my mind is wide awake and fully aware, screaming with every atom of my being. I am paralysed, unable to move but every part of me is tingling, hyper aware.

This time when Merticus strokes my face it makes me tremble inside, the sensations intense. Merticus smiles.

“There, isn’t that better? I can tell you are enjoying this so much more now.” He strokes my chest with featherlight fingers and I can barely stand the intense sensations his touch awakes in me.

I feel something running down my arms, over my shoulders. I manage to turn my head, very slightly and I can see that it is blood, trickling from my wrists. I roll my eyes upwards to see that the snake creatures have withdrawn although they hover nearby, their nostrils flared.

“Now. I have told you this before and you didn’t listen. You no longer have any choice. Relax Marc, relax and let this happen. There is nothing you can do about it.” I look up at him. My vision which was dimming, clears as I blink and I struggle to keep my body from trembling. If I relax on the inside then it eases the sensations on the outside, makes them less intense.

I close my eyes and try to let go altogether, to separate my consciousness so that I am not aware, not feeling any of it. Merticus laughs.

“Oh no, not yet. I will not let you take the easy road. You will feel every moment of this, feel it, endure it, remember it. Otherwise I may as well pleasure myself with a dead body.”

I can’t help but cry out when his mind slams into me, breaking my concentration, stopping me from sliding free. The cry is harsh and weak. It is all I can manage. My eyes are wide and burning with tears that I can’t shed and they delight him.

“Good, good. You are strong. I am glad about that. I don’t like playing with weaklings, they die too easily but I don’t think you will die. I really don’t want you to die. I want you to live, to give a message to Kai for me. Oh don’t worry, you won’t have to remember it, or even deliver it... you will be it.”

The unnaturally heightened sensations are fading towards normality. They must have been caused as a by product of the feeding. When Merticus runs his hands over my chest and belly I can stand them, if only barely. Even when he grasps my shaft and runs his thumb over the tip I can bear it, although I cannot stop my body convulsing.

Merticus is delighted and he torments me for a while, bringing me almost to the point of climax and then pulling back. I am shivering, exhausted and I want nothing more than to let it all fall away from me and sleep. At this point I couldn’t care less if it was the sleep of death.

I close my eyes only to have them fly open again when my body is swept by the same unnatural sensations, the snake beings are feeding again.

Merticus kisses me. His lips on mine are cold. My jaw is clenched and so he can’t penetrate me with his tongue. I feel his anger but it is brief. He has other ways. His tongue slides down to lick my neck and it makes me shiver. At the same time his hand slides down between my legs his finger probing. I try to cry out but I can’t, I can barely breathe.

He licks at the blood from my arm and lifts his head to look at me, his lips smeared with my blood, his fangs lowered. “Do you feel like screaming Marc? Do you?” I can’t answer him and he never expected me to. “How about now?” He plunges his finger into me, as deep and as hard as he can and I all but pass out. He won’t let me escape. His mind thrusts into me as violently as his finger and he draws me back against my will, fighting him all the way.

“Go ahead. Scream...” he laughs. “Oh, that’s right... you can’t.” Then he bites me. It is swift and unexpected, shocking and I make a sound in my throat that would have been a scream if I had been able to scream but which came out as a whimper.

Between the snake people and Merticus, it is not very long before I begin to feel myself sinking. I recognise the feeling from the last time. I am being drained. I am more frightened than I have ever been but the sensations he is awakening in my body sweep even that aside. I am shaking uncontrollably and with every thrust of his hand my body convulses bringing me closer and closer to the edge of consciousness.

Suddenly realising what he is doing Merticus raises his head and withdraws from me, wiping my blood from his lips. With a flick of his hand he sends the snake creatures skittering back away from me.

I am barely aware of any of it. I am drifting and there is nothing he can do to bring me back this time. I close my eyes and my body seems to sink into the bed. I hadn’t noticed before how soft it is. I can hear Merticus calling my name, it is coming from a very long way away and not even he can cover the distance now.

Something warm and soft it pressed over my mouth. Oh no he doesn’t. I will not drink. I would rather die than to allow him to violate me again. I will not drink. But there is blood trickling into my mouth, making it tingle and my stomach cramp. My body is taking over and there is nothing I can do to stop it. I am too depleted. I have no control. I fight with myself, trying to stop the inevitable but I can’t. Of their own volition my fangs descend, I bite and I drink.

After what seems like the longest time I open my eyes and shock hits me again. I had thought that I was feeding from him... from Merticus, but I am not. It is Beth. She is staring at me, silent, her eyes wide and soft. There is no pleading, no horror, no pain, only understanding. I feel sick and I tear my head away a horror so deep it is painful burying itself in my heart.

Merticus is laughing, it has an almost hysterical edge. I look up at him and I am horrified to see the red flame in his eyes. He has been aroused by watching me feed from Beth and he is almost beside himself.

My anger turns swiftly to fear although the repulsion remains unchanged. I am surprised when at a nod from their master the two snake creatures release the bonds which bind my arms to the bed and then do the same with my feet. I am free but still helpless. I am so weak I cannot move, not at all.

Merticus makes a strange sound, animalistic and fearsome. It scares me more than I have ever been scared before. I anticipate that something very bad is about to happen but there is nothing I can do about it. Suddenly, something that has been niggling at the edges of my consciousness comes into sharp focus. It is Kai... he is here, he is close. I am so tempted to call out to him but I can’t I can’t let him see my fear, my panic, my pain... or he will run to me and he will run straight into a trap.

I am so distracted by thoughts of Kai that I have forgotten Merticus. Fortunately he is so distracted by thoughts of what is to come that he does not notice. I am shocked yet again by hands, grabbing me, pulling me, turning me face down and holding me. I have my face pressed into the pillow and I can’t breathe. I struggle but it is no good, I am held too firmly. Someone climbs onto the bed and straddles me. Cold snakelike fingers entwine in my hair and yank my head backwards so hard and so far that I feel my spine will snap but at least now I can breathe. Merticus leans forwards, leering into my face. I am panting, struggling with pain and breathlessness and it seems to delight him. He reaches round with one hand and cups my chin pulling back my head even further then leans forwards to kiss me.

As a gentle sucking from my wrist releases more of the snake demons venom into my veins Merticus enters me... hard, fast and unexpectedly. I feel flesh tear as he rips through me and there is nothing that anyone can do to stop the screams, mental and physical, pouring from me.

My head is released and I fall forwards. My face is pressed into the pillow to stifle the screams and sobs. I can’t bear it but I can’t fight it. He rams into me harder and harder while one hand pushes my head into the pillow. I can’t breathe and this time I don’t struggle. I allow myself to be smothered, the pain in my lungs so much less than that in my body and in my heart.

Just before I pass out I hear screams. Shrieks of anger, terror and pain from somewhere outside the door and a great animalistic roar from Merticus as he thrusts one last time and ejaculates within me. Then there is just a strange rushing sound like a river that carries me away and I know no more.