Posted by RolePlay on March 20, 2005 at 12:07:46:
His watch tells him it's getting late and a glance up at the sky shows him the sun is more than half way down. He frowns in indecision. He really doesn't want to go home and have to cook just for himself since Samantha won't be over until later. But as all his business in town is complete, he decides to stop at one of his old favorite restaurants for dinner. It's been a long time since he was last there and he does kind of miss it. And maybe it will help him take his mind off of what day it is. He's been trying to forget but those little reminders keep steeling their way back into his thoughts no matter how hard he tries to keep them out.
Parking his car he strolls up to the door hoping for.... For what he isn't really sure. Deliverance? Salvation? Death? He pauses at the door and grits his teeth in frustration and curses himself for a fool. The last would be his prefered solution to this dilemma but that option is no longer available to him. He wipes his face with a trembling hand. This is his own fault and if he regrets his decision, which he does, he has no one to blame for it but himself. If he hadn't been such an obsessive fool he wouldn't be in this situation now and neither would Samantha, not that she has the slightest idea what's going on.
Then he hears faint laughter coming from, as it always does, from just over his left shoulder. He doesn't bother to look. It wouldn't do any good to look anyway. It never does. And when he reaches out to open the door he feels that old familiar presence again. It seems to be nudging him aside but he pushes back hard and holds his ground as he pulls the door open and walks inside.
She sees him as he comes into the lobby and waves a greeting at him. "Hi, I'll be with you in just a moment."
"No hurry." He answers with a smile that is not his own as she rushes past him to take a tray of drinks to a group at one of the tables in the back of the main dinning room. It only takes her a moment and she is back with him and smiling.
"Hi, I'm Amy. Would you prefer smoking or non-smoking?"
He tries not to look at her but his eyes seem to be controlled by someone other than himself. He looks at her. He can't help it. She's pretty. Too pretty and he knows what it means and why he came here. It's all happening again just like before but sooner this time. He hadn't expected this for two or maybe three more days. Too late he wishes he had never came here and even though he tries to turn and leave, his feet seem rooted to the spot and his voice is speaking before he can stop it. "Non-smoking, please. Although it wouldn't make much difference tonight, I see." His voice says in a light bantering tone and he groans inside when he sees her smile at him.
"Yeah, it's a slow night tonight, you can have your pick of tables or would you rather have a booth?" She asks as she takes a menu for him out of the rack.
"I'd like a booth, I think they're generally more comfortable than a table and they offer more of a feeling of privacy than a table that's sitting right out in the middle of the room where everyone can stare at you like you're a monkey in the zoo." He says jokingly while letting his eyes grow wide and staring like he someone doing just that.
"I think so too." She says with a mild laugh that goes through him like a sliver of glass. "And I think I know just what you would like. Will you follow me?" Then she turns and leads him into another room, just off from the main dinning room. This one is smaller and much more cozy. Each booth is lighted by a single candle and nothing else. The room itself is heavy with reds and browns and lots of deep shadows, giving it a quiet and secluded feel. Restful and intimate. There are a few other people here as well but they are all talking and eating quietly, it will be almost like he has the entire room to himself. He wishes he could. Then her hand laid so lightly on his arm sends a thrill shooting through him. Not of desire or excitement but of fear and again he groans helplessly inside wishing for the stillness of death to deliver him from his torment.
"I hope you like this room, we call it the Gypsy room. It's my personal favorite." She says, turning to face him with another smile. "You can even hear the Violins playing softly in the background. I hope it's O-k and I'll be your server."
He looks at her with dread knowing that they're being set up and knowing that there's nothing he can do to stop it. She's smiling at him and he can tell that she likes him. Already she's attracted to him. He tries to speak rudely to her or to curse her. Anything to make her dislike him and turn away from him before it's too late but he can't. It's already too late for him. It's been too late for him for so long. Even now he no longer has enough control over himself to control his speach and his mouth smiles warmly at her as words not his own flow past his lips in a warm and inviting tone that he can see hits her like an enchantment and he knows she's lost. "It's very nice, romantic too and I'm glad you'll be my server. My name's Steven."
She lowers her eyes shyly at the way he's looking at her. It's rather direct and bold and it makes her glad that she takes the time to take care of herself because he seems to see and take note of every last detail about her. Usually such an unapologetic appraisal would make her uncomfortable but in his case she finds that she really doesn't mind, especially since he obviously likes what he sees and he's kind of good looking too, in a rugged sort of way. He's about average height and husky, with fairly long dark brown hair and gray eyes. And he's got a great smile and seems to smile easily. She would like to get to know him better and hopes that he might feel the same way about her. And isn't that a strange thing for her to think? She's usually very shy, especially with someone she's just met but with him she doesn't feel shy at all. Just the opposite, in fact. With him, with this Steven she feels... anything but shy. In fact she feels... dare she even think it? With Steven she feels wanton. And that thought almost makes her blush for an instant.
"I'm glad to meet you, Steven." She says softly and she puts some real feeling into the casual greeting as she turns her head up to look into his face again eager to see if she could be right about him. "Would you like anything to drink while you look over the menu?"
"Yes, thanks. Just a beer, Miller, if you have it on tap." He says softly as he slides smoothly into the seat at the booth without taking his eyes off her for an instant. But inside he wants to scream.
"I'll have it for you in just a minute." She says instantly then she turns to go but before she's taken more than a few steps she turns her head to smile at him over her shoulder as she walks away.
"She's nice, isn't she?" He hears the faint whisper breathing in his ear as he watches her go. "That is a very beautiful woman, Steven. Short, voluptuous and incredibly sexy, just the way we like them. Take your time and get a good look at that absolutely perfect body of hers and that beautiful sensuous face. Have you ever seen more beautiful dark brown hair and such bright sparkling eyes too? And catch the way she wears her hair, shoulder length and tousled... it's very sexy. She is totally hot! Doesn't she turn you on?" Breathes the soundless voice like they were pals out for a night on the town. But Steven merely grits his teeth to hold back an angry retort. Here is not the place to get into another useless argument. He closes his eyes as he tries to calm himself then flips the menu open to study it.
But Amy is true to her word and she is back with his beer and an openly inviting smile before he has time to look over the first two pages.
"Here you are." She says sitting his beer down within easy reach of his right hand as she slides into the booth opposite him with her notepad in her hand. "Are you ready to order or would you like more time?"
Laying the menu aside he looks at her sitting across from him smiling eagerly. Despite his efforts not to like her he can't help it. Even now he feels his interest in her growing so fast. It's like watching a flower bloom in a time lapse movie. She is beautiful too, he was right about that. Just like he always is. Of course they are all beautiful even though they are all different. Some short, some tall. Some petite some statuesque. But all of them are beautiful, each in their own way not that it would make any difference if they weren't. It would still be the same in the end.
But this Amy, there is something about her that is different from all the others. Something that stands out and sets her apart. What it is he doesn't know but it's there even so. Almost it drives his fear away and in the place of that fear she gives him... dare he even think it? Is it hope that she makes him feel? He can't be sure. It's been so long since he has felt hope that he's all but forgotten what it feels like. Maybe it's just that she is so beautiful.
And she is beautiful, perhaps more beautiful than all the others. But it's more than that too. There is something about her that reaches out to him, that captivates him. And the way that she's smiling at him. It makes his temperature rise. He likes her smile, it makes her look so innocent and sweet and he likes to see her smile at him. It's like coming out of a cold dark room into the brightness and warmth of the summer sun to see her smile at him like that. And it really looks like she is being more than just professionally friendly to him. He likes that too.
But he's allowed himself to become distracted. That was foolish of him. He knows what's happening. It may be happening sooner than before and it might be stronger than before but it's still the same thing and he remembers what it portends and he tries to stop it. He tries to deny the feelings growing inside himself for her but he can't. They're not really his feelings and the matter has already been taken out of his hands. Right now he can no more control his feelings than he can control his body which goes on looking and moving and talking without any input from him at all.
"I know what I want." He hears himself say. He tries to say it harshly, to put her off, to offend her and make her loose interest in him but he can't, he's not the one in control here. The choice has been made and he's traped. The process has started again and all he can do is ride it out helplessly like a passenger trapped on a never ending rollercoaster ride. And while he rages against it inside, outside he goes on speaking to Amy warmly while caressing her with his eyes. "I'll start with a salad, Caesar. Then the Manicotti and make sure they put plenty of sauce on it." Then he flips the menu closed and smiles very warmly back at her. He smiles warmly at her when what he wishes he could do is scream at her to go away! To tell her to run and to never come back! To flee before it's too late. He might as well wish for the Moon as that though. If he wished for the Moon there might actually be a chance that he would get it. With this there is no chance, no chance at all. But he doesn't do any of that, instead he keeps smiling warmly at her as she sits there gazing hopefully at him completely unaware of the war being fought because of her just inches away inside his head.
Her eyes are bright as she sits across from him and her lips slightly parted like she is hoping for something as she sits there looking at him and the words come out of his mouth despite his efforts to keep them back.
"And your company will be better than any dessert. As you are not too busy tonight, I hope you'll visit with me as much as you can." He says in conclusion and feels both delight and despair at her reaction.
She blushes a bit at his invitation but her blush doesn't hide her delight and her excitement. It doesn't even come close. She is glad he made the first move, that he is interested enough in her to make the first overture. Although she surely would have if he hadn't. And that's not like her at all. It puzzles her why she's acting this way but at the moment she doesn't waste any time wondering why she's behaving so unlike herself. She wants to get to know this man. There's something captivating about him. Something exciting and maybe just a little dangerous. She feels drawn to him and it's a feeling she's never felt before, not like this. It's a great feeling and she doens't even try to fight it.
"Well, thanks. I was planning to do just that." She admits candidly and throwing caution to the wind she does something she's never done before. Boldly she reaches out a hand and lays it on his hand for a moment as it lays on the table so close to hers. The feel of him is intoxicating, like a jolt of strong whiskey on an empty stomach and it fills her head with a wild daring, a boldness that turns a friendly touch into a daring intimacy. She definitely wants more and she takes her hand from his as she stands to her feet and comes closer to caress his cheek. "Yes, I was planning on doing that very thing. Let me put your order in and I'll be back as soon as I can."
* * *
She hasn't been able to get him out of her mind all the rest of the evening. Even now at the end of the shift, as she's wiping down the tables she sees his face in the polished wood before her almost as clearly as if it were a mirror. And tomorrow she'll see him again. He told her as they talked throughout his meal that he's a painter and was going out by the Lake tomorrow to paint a scenic of the sailboats in the afternoon sun for a commission and would she like to come along? It sounded like fun and she was only too glad to agree. She's never seen a professional painter at work before and really, it was just too good of an excuse for her to be able to spend some time with him and get to know him better for her to pass up.
He's a very interesting man and there's something about him that puts her at ease and makes him easy to talk to while at the same time exciting her like no one else she has ever known. Maybe it's just that he seems to be genuinely interested in listening to her and that's a rather difficult thing to find in most men now days. And then there's that sense of excitement that he stirs in her too. A thrill like electricity that makes her tingle when he looks at her and even more when he touches her.
But then she stops for a moment wondering. This is so unlike her. He's nice yes and fairly good looking but he's not that nice or good looking. And yet he turns her on like he was the hottest man she's ever seen. And even if he were she's been burned enough times so that she's learned to be careful and take her time with a new guy. But with Steven it's everything she can do to control herself. It's like something has reached down inside her and flipped a switch and turned her into a panting ravening slut. While he was here she stayed with him to the point of ignoring her other customers and she could hardly keep her hands off him. She remembers thinking as she sat across from him how she wanted to... But the thought of that makes her blush.
"Amy, are you about ready?" Comes the call from the front counter making her jump. She was so lost in her reverie that she forgot what she was doing.
She answers without bothering to look as she moves on to the next table.. "Almost, Debbie. Only two more tables."
"Good." Comes the quick response. "I'm not walking two blocks alone in the middle of the night with that psycho running around loose. With my luck he'd grab me by the neck just as I was unlocking my car door and that would be the end of me."
She laughs at Debbie's remark. It's funny even though it's not funny. The whole city is in a panic about these monthly killings. It's gone on for months and no one has a clue as to who is doing it. Everybody is baffled and no matter what they do it doesn't make any difference. Each month a new victim is found. It's not funny but still they make a joke about it. Since nobody is able to stop these killings humor seems to be their only defence.
But it's no joke. Debbie really does seem to have the worst possible luck and if anybody's going to be this killers next victim, it's probably going to be her. But Amy takes it in the spirit that Debbie intended it and throws it back to her.
"Oh, don't worry, honey. Do you know what the odds of that happening to you in a city this size are? Beside, with your luck, he's probably already waiting for you in your back seat right now."
Debbie squeals in mock terror at the thought of that. "No! Don't you even think such a thing! Now I won't be able to drive home tonight without looking over my shoulder all the way! And that will probably cause me to have an accident and get killed even if the killer doesn't get me!"
* * *
Steven's home later that evening. The full moon rises over the tops of the trees shining brightly down all around him. It's a beautiful romantic sight or it used to be. Now days however the moon holds no beauty for him. And the romance of it, the mystical sensuality of the full moon, the lovers moon, has long ago faded into corruption and horror. But looking at it as an artist he can still appreciate it's beauty even though it's a beauty that he knows won't last.
Even now from the west a mass of dark thick clouds is moving in rapidly. The wind is picking up too and he can hear it starting to rattle the chain on the flagpole in his front yard and he knows that soon the moon will be covered by them but for now the moon still shines in all its pale splender. He shakes his head in the ghostly light. Once he thought it was a beautiful sight. Once. But now the moon shines only horror down upon him. It light fills him with nothing but self-loathing and dread. He hates the sight of the full moon.
Nor does he want to look at it any more. He turns away. He doesn't want it's light touching him so he walks slowly across the yard heading for the line of trees and the dark shadow they cast in the night. Their shadow will hide him from the loathsome light of the moon and give him some peace so he can think. That's why he came out here anyway. He'd just come out for a short stroll and to take the night air while he thought about the day's events and what's about to happen next. Maybe there's something that he's over looked, some way that he can stop this that he hasn't tried before but the sight of the moon reminded him that it's hopeless. The die has already been cast and he no longer has a choice in the matter.
Then he feels that presence again. It's never far from him but on the night of the full moon it seems to hang over him like a shroud suffocating him as it waits for what it considers to be just the right moment. A moment that he knows has now come. It's happening again, just like it has before, just like it did earlier today with Amy. He knows that it's going to keep happening too, over and over with no end in sight. He never wanted this. He didn't know it was going to be like this. How could it have all gone so wrong, so horribly wrong! He's so sorry and he would give anything if he could prevent it.
Anything? Yes! He would give anything! Then he laughs. A rueful bitter laugh that has nothing of humor or joy in it. And he shakes his head in reproach. It's just that attitude that got him in this situation in the first place. Wanting something so badly that he would give anything to get it. Not counting the cost, not even caring what the cost was as long as he got what he wanted. Now he's got it and he wishes he didn't. Now he wishes he could give it back, he would give anything to give it back.
Amy. She is such a beautiful girl. One of the most beautiful young women he's ever seen. She's several years younger than him and she has such a shy, endearing sweetness to her. An innocence and a sincerity that makes him want to protect her and cherish her. He likes her, he can't help it and he thinks she likes him, although it may be that the matter has already been taken out of her hands too. She's being manipulated he knows, just like all the others. She's been selected and now she's being groomed for her part in this whether she will or not. But he can't help but think that she would like him any way even without his interference. She certainly seems to and what he would give to be able to find out. Of course that's not possible.
Still... he likes her. He has chosen someone very special this time and he would like her no matter what. He can't help but like her and he knows that he's going to come to like her more and more in the days ahead. God, how he wishes he had never met her. How he wishes he could hate her or at least not care! It's all happening again, just like last month. Just like every month since he made that damnable bargain and it's going to end just the exact same way. Just like it's going to end tonight with Samantha. He's sick to death of the whole deal. Surely there must be some way to get out of it, to cancel it. Some loophole somewhere. But so far, everything he's tried has been nothing but a waste of time.
And thinking of Samantha... This is Samantha's night. This is their last night. If she only knew, if only he could tell her. If she knew she could run away and save herself before it's too late. Then he sighs and hangs his head. It's already too late for her. It was too late the night he first meet her at the party. Just like Amy now Samantha had been selected and from the very moment they had looked upon one another her fate had been sealed.
He can't bare to think of it. He tried to leave, to get away even though he knew he wouldn't let him. But he had to try anyway. He came out here to buy more time and maybe it did give him a little. Give her a little. But the waiting is over. He's put it off as long as he can and he knows that no more delay will be allowed now because that same loathsome voice is back whispering over his shoulder again.
"It's getting late, Steven. I think you should be going back inside now. Samantha is waiting for you."
He likes living here in the country. Close enough to the city to enjoy all its convenience but far enough away from the pressure and rush and clutter to be able to ignore it or even forget it for a time, especially like now under the moon and stars. Even the homes here are few and far between. In the still of the night it can feel like you're all alone out here and it's peaceful and relaxing. That is something he needs more than ever these days. The quietness gives him a sense of peace or at least the illusion of peace and that is something that he needs desperately now days.
"Yes, I know." He answers softly as he turns to look back at his house wishing for all the world that he could be anywhere but here tonight. "Please don't make me do this again, not Samantha."
"It's part of the deal. I've been keeping my end of it and I expect you to keep yours." Says the voice quietly. It has been talking to him more and more lately and he has begun to have a few suspicions about it, thinking that it's not been telling him the truth. Maybe it's never told him the truth.
"I said it's time to go back in now. Samantha is becoming impatient and frankly, so am I." It goes on interrupting his thoughts.
Turning, he sees one of the curtains pulled aside and Samantha standing there looking out into the night, looking for him. She probably can't see him wearing blue jeans and a dark shirt like he is and shielded from the moon's light by the line of trees directly behind him.
"Steven! If you don't go now, I'll... "
"Shut-up!" Steven growls, more than tired of listening to the voices prompting. "Why don't I just go away? I could get in the car and just drive far away." He says, his voice full of anger that overwhelms his regret and pain.
But his anger doesn't impress the voice at all and it goes on in it's quiet velvety way. "It wouldn't do any good, I think you know that."
"Maybe but I love Samantha. I don't want to do this. I don't want you to do this and I'll stop you if I can."
The voice just laughs. "Your love for her is irrelevant and besides, we have an agreement. I've fulfilled my stated obligations and now it's time for you to fulfill yours. You must honor the contract."
"No." Steven says and means it. He doesn't know what will happen to him if he breaks the contract but he doesn't care any longer. He's not going to do it and damn the consequences to himself. Better him than Samantha. Better him than Amy.
It seems that the voice sighs. "Steven, let's not fight about it. That just makes things more difficult. Just relax and let me take care of it. I had thought that you would be enjoying it by now."
"Fat chance of that!"
"Steven, I can make you, you know that."
"Then you had better make me."
Steven stands there looking back at the house, looking at Samantha standing in the window looking so enticing in her pale green nitie. He watches the curtain fall back into place and hardly realizes he's even moved when he finds himself opening the door and going in. She must have heard him coming and stands there waiting for him. She's wearing only a thin pastel green negligee that hangs about her like a mist, glowing softly in what little light filters in through the curtain and she looks so beautiful and feminine standing there that it hurts.
"I've been waiting for you, Steven. I don't like to be kept waiting." She says in a smoky whisper full of invitation but which carries a hint of ire in it as well.
Steven wants to scream, to shout at her. He wants to tell her to run, to get in the car and drive away as fast as she can but just like before he finds himself pushed aside into some small cubby hole in the back of his mind where he can only watch while that 'other' has full control of his body. Even its words come out of his mouth with his own voice.
"Sorry, I had some thinking to do." The voice says through his lips.
Steven feels its eagerness and tries to take control again but all his strength is like nothing against the 'other'.
She comes up to him and puts her arms around his shoulders and holds him tightly for a moment while the scent of her perfume wraps itself around his head and makes him dizzy. Or maybe his struggles are having some effect after all. Or maybe not. Then she pulls back and looks at him seriously.
"You've been melancholy the last few days. Something's bothering you, tell me what it is, Steven."
He sighs then reaches up and strokes her long, dark hair that in the darkness of the night looks like a mass of gently flowing shadows billowing about her shoulders. "There's a full moon tonight."
"The full moon was made for lovers." She says with a touch of playfulness.
He smiles and gently brushes her lips with his. "That's true but lately it also means there will probably be another woman murdered tonight."
He feels her tense up and puts his arms around her to comfort her as best he can.
"I'd forgotten about that." She whispers, holding him tightly again. "I'm glad you're here with me, Steven. I'd hate to be all alone with that murdering psycho out there."
It makes him want to scream. He feels everything, he sees everything, he knows everything and experiences everything that his body does, even though he has no control over it at all.
"How do you know it's not me, Samantha?" Whispers his own voice quietly in her ear to tease her playfully but the words only mock him and humiliate him. To her it's only a joke and she laughs even as his voice goes on. She doesn't know. She has no idea but he does. To her his words are nothing but play but to him they are cruel and brutal. "After all, you've known me for what, almost a month now? How well do you really know me?"
"No! I won't let you!" He cries out desperately in the silent depths of his mind but the other only laughs at him while Samantha chuckles and nuzzles his cheek as he holds her so close in his arms.
"I know you well enough to be sure that you are not the kind of man that goes around strangling women every full moon." She says with absolute trust and confidence.
He sees her face through his own eyes and feels his hand gently cup that sweet face that he has come to love so much. "Don't be too sure of that, my dear. The full moon is well known to have some very strange effects on people. Look at all the legends of Werewolves that have been around for centuries. They always strike on the night of the full moon it is said. There must be some basis in fact for all those legends and stories."
Then his hands slide down her face very fast and take her by the throat. He shakes her but not hard. "And I must admit," His voice begins to say, speaking low and intimately but heavy with implied threats. "With that beautiful face and perfect neck of yours, that there is nobody I would rather strangle to death than you."
She laughs, making a feeble attempt to pull his hands from her neck as she makes choking sounds and sticks her tongue out at him. "Why, thank you, I think." She adds, rolling her eyes.
He begins to force her slowly backwards now, towards the hall leading to the bedroom, his hands still around her neck. "I could choke you and strangle you all night long and love every second of it." He says, his voice hot and husky. "Your throat is so very slim and so incredibly soft and warm. I can't tell you how good it feels in my hands. The feel of your throat in my hands is so erotic! It excites me and thrills me. It makes me high! I've wanted to strangle you ever since I first saw you and tonight I'm going to."
With her hands still on his wrists she chuckles softly while a mischievous smile plays upon her lips "Ooo, that sounds really kinky and bizarre, I might like it." Then she rips his hands away and backs up, never taking her eyes off him but her smile is now wide and inviting. "But first, you'll have to catch me!" Then she darts to one side going past him and out of his reach before he can grab her.
Turning he sees her standing behind a chair using it as a shield to keep him away while laughing all the while. For the next several minutes he chases her around the room both of them laughing as they jump over and dodge around much of the furniture. He almost catches her several times but she's too fast and he's really not trying very hard.
Finally she rushes down the hallway to the bedroom and tries to close the door on him to lock him out but he catches it before she can close it and slowly he forces it open against all her efforts and comes in after her.
She backs away from him slowly breathing hard and still laughing. He laughs too and makes several feints at her which make her jump. Then he makes a long lunge for her and she steps back quickly to avoid his grasp only to fall atop the bed. Then he is on her pinning her beneath him with his hands around her throat before she can stop him.
She runs her hands up his arms to his shoulders as she lays there smiling up at him. "You're going to kill me now, aren't you, Steven? You're going to strangle me to death."
He gives her a mournful look and his hands tighten around the wonderful softness of her neck just enough for her face to turn a bright red. "I'm afraid so, Samantha. I'm awfully sorry about it but I can't help myself. It's the full moon you see. It turns my blood to fire and fills my head with wild crazy thoughts and desires that I just can't control and... " He stops and looks at her lying there beneath him and he lowers his face until it's only a few inches above her own. "And you are so beautiful and your neck is so soft and hot and it feels so good and thrilling in my hands that I just don't want to let go of you!" He says and his voice is a low deep growl as he shakes her and bounces her head up and down on the bed a few times making her laugh some more.
"I understand." She says softly when he stops and lets a sad smile play upon her lips now. "I really do. If I have to die, that's O-k." Then she lowers her eyes and takes a deep sad breath before making her last plea. "I know it's just the moon that drives you to do this but before you kill me, I want you to make love to me one last time. Let me die in your arms and breathe my last breath into your mouth."
He looks at her for a moment and time seems to stand still as Steven gazes helplessly on wondering in horror what the other is going to do. Will he kill her now as he has before or will he wait?
It seems to take forever until he hears his own voice speaking in a soft breathy whisper. "I will grant your last request." Then Steven himself cries out in despair in some far off unknown place. What was he thinking? Whether he kills her now or later she's still going to die. Better for her to die quickly now than to linger until later. Better by far to do it and get it over with than to enjoy her one last time and then kill her slowly after a night of pleasure. Then to his dismay he releases her neck and takes her in his arms saying, "Yes, I will grant your last request."
* * *
It's nearly dawn and Steven has lain here wide awake for hours just holding Samantha in his arms touching her and caressing her as she sleeps. They have made love three times this night to his great sorrow although Samantha, not knowing what lay ahead for her at the end of it had reveled in it. He had never seen her so excited. She had clutched him feverishly in her passion and screamed in ecstasy each time she came and she had came more times than he can remember. He had literally worn her out although it hadn't really been him and now she sleeps in bliss using his shoulder for a pillow.
For hours Steven has lain there holding Samantha wondering when the 'other' would finish what he has started. The waiting, the not knowing is almost as bad as the deed itself and even though he hates himself for thinking it he wishes he would just do it and get it over with.
Then he hears a dark chuckling and feels himself pushed aside once more, back into that dark little room where the other keeps him when he takes control of his body. The time has come at last and Steven watches in dread as his body rolls out from under Samantha and reaches over and switches on the light. Outside he hears the sound of rain and wind blowing hard. He listens to it for a moment then he looks at the beautiful woman lying beside him in his bed.
"It's been fun, hasn't it, Steven?" Says that voice from deep inside of his head in a tone of utter finality. "Samantha has been a good friend and a good companion but, well... a man's got to do what a man's got to do." It says with a mocking little chuckle as it seems to grab him in a grip like a vise and shakes him hard.
His body is no longer his own. Once again, like so many times before he can do nothing but watch as this "other" controls him like a puppet on a string. He watches helplessly despite all his struggles to regain control. He watches as he sits up in bed. He watches as he pulls the covers off her. Then it seems that the "other" turns to him with a mocking, evil grin.
"Beautiful isn't she? Don't you just love the sight of her laying there in that rumpled nitie stained with the sweat of long love making? She's so beautiful. So innocent looking and so vulnerable and so helpless. It seems a shame to wake her just for this."
He won't let him do this to her. He won't! But he can't stop him. All his struggles are no more effective than would be the efforts of a child to push a parked truck out of his way with his bare hands. His efforts aren't even laughable and the other ignores them completely.
Gently, tenderly even, he reaches down and lifts her head to remove the pillow and toss it aside. She moans at his touch and begins to stir. Quickly now he straddles her, pinning her under him and reaching out once more he takes her neck in his hands and lifts just slightly so he can get a good grip and also to expose the sensuous line of her neck. She really does have such a beautiful neck. Then her eyes open and she smiles up at him.
"Good morning, Steven. What are you doing?" She asks trustingly as she rubs the sleep out of her eyes.
The only answer he gives her at first is to let his eyes slowly become an empty and frightening black. Not a trace of white remains, only a total and complete black that sucks all light and warmth down into their depths where they vanish without a trace. They vanish like they had never been and they pull even the memory of them down into the darkness where they are lost and forgotten.
But Samantha now... her eyes grow wide in fear as a nameless dread clutches her heart and his hands begin to tighten, to tighten hard. She gasps for air and begins to struggle as her face quickly turns a darker red and slowly deepens to a dark purple.
"Steven, that's too tight, you're choking me!" She manages to say as his hands continue to grow even tighter and each breath comes with greater difficulty than the last and her face becomes a dark grayish purple as her sight begins to blurs with tears.
"Yes, I know." Is his casual reply as she begins to struggle in earnest now, desperate to pull his hands from her neck. Desperate for air and barely able to breathe and her vision starting to grow dark.
"Stev... ples... I can't... brea... I... can'... " But she can't finish, his hands are too tight and her strength is fading fast. Her sight is watery and fades in and out as a high pitched ringing and a frantic pounding fills her ears. She feels her body tingling now even as her face and hands become numb.
Everything he told her last night was true, of course. He could have choked and strangled her all night long and loved every second of it. In fact that is precisely what he had planned on doing but she made a request of him and for whatever perverted reason he had, that other chose to honor it. Two requests actually and since he honored the one he really should honor the second as well.
Of course he shares the whole experience with Steven and revels in his horror every bit as much as he revels in Samantha's terror. "Look at her, Steven, look at her! Enjoy it, let the thrill of it wash over you and fill you! Look into her eyes while your hands are locked around her neck. Look into her face, so beautiful and filled with a dark and sensuous desperation. That is what turns the blood to fire, not the moon. Feel her neck in your hands, so slim and so incredibly soft. Doesn't it make you want to scream in ecstasy? Enjoy the way she struggles for each shallow breath, knowing that you control each one and can cut them off with just a little squeeze. Her very life is in your hands and it's like electricity surging through you, isn't it? But we must be careful not to end it too soon. We want to enjoy this for as long as we can. We want to make each moment count. And soon, Steven, yes, soon you will come to revel in this. The day will come when you will no longer fight me but you will be my willing servant and will enjoy the entire affair as much as I do."
Returning his attention to Samantha, he continues to choke her slowly, slowly, until she is just about to pass out. Then he loosens his grip just enough to let her catch her breath, just a little. Then when she has recovered a measure of strength he tightens his grip again once more robbing her of all breath. She struggles for a moment but it doesn't last long before what little strength she had managed to gather in those few seconds when she could breathe drains away leaving her weak and helpless. He strangles her slowly, deliberately until she lies there only seconds from death then he loosens his grip on her throat so she can catch her breath and recover a measure of strength again. And when she does, just like before he strangles her again. Over and over again it goes, like the hills of a rollercoaster, up and down and up and down but even the longest rollercoaster must eventually come to an end.
For the last time he lets her catch her breath. She is completely exhausted now and barely has the strength to lift a hand. With his hands still around her neck, he steps over her and onto the floor at the side of the bed where he kneels beside her. He changes his grip from the front to the side and pulls her over to the edge of the bed with her head just hanging over the edge. She looks up at him dazed and weak and not understanding why he is doing this as his hands tighten about her neck for the last time. She struggles, if you want to call her feeble efforts that. She struggles as he strangles her tighter than he has before and slowly her struggles begin to fade and her eyes begin to flutter and close as her face grows darker than ever. She gasps silently for even the smallest breath that just won't come. Then he bends down and kisses her. It's her other request. To breathe her last breath into his mouth. It's a long and deep kiss, one of the very best he's ever had and he kisses her like that until her lips grow cold beneath his.
She lays there silent and unmoving and he releases her. Standing now he looks down and caresses her cheek. Then he turns away. Steven is devastated and in no condition to resume control just now so he goes and showers and shaves for him while Steven gets a grip on himself. A short time later he sets down to a hearty breakfast and thinks about the commission and Amy. Amy, he's looking forward to getting to know her better. He's had his eyes on her for a long time now and has been eagerly awaiting the day when she would be ready for him.
His mind is absorbed with thoughts of her when he feels Steven trying to regain control.
"Ah, feeling better, I trust?" He says brightly.
"Damn you!" Says Steven both angered and horrified at what he's been forced to witness, again.
"Tut, tut, Steven. Such language." He says as he steps aside and lets Steven resume control. Then in parting he says, "I felt how much you enjoyed it this time, Steven, so don't bother trying to deny it. Soon now, soon you will look forward to these little monthly get togethers just as much as I do and when we are finally working together like we should be, then we can really have some fun."
"That's a lie! I'll never work with you, never! And I didn't enjoy it, I didn't! I hated it! Do you hear me? I hated it!" Screams Steven at him over and over or is he talking more to himself? He doesn't really know anymore. He gets no answer, not even a laugh and assumes the other is gone, gone back to wherever he spends his time when he isn't tormenting him. He wishes the other were still here though so he could scream at him some more. It probably wouldn't help but it might make him feel better to scream at him but it seems he has really gone, for now and has left only a thin empty silence behind him.