Against The Odds (18 page)

He
held his wife, thinking that she was falling apart
and that they were all going
crazy.

It
was this image, of the two couples hugging, which confirmed Zane’s
suspicious t
hat they were a foursome. He had wanted to get a
charger for his cellphone from Clayton and saw them through the
window.
Well, I was
right
.
Why is Double J in
their cottage so early in the morning? Did they spend the night?
Why are they all hugging? Was the session over? These straight
people are too much. First they sleep with their best friend’s
partner and then they go to their own partners for comfort. It is
bloody ridiculous. All this nonsense because they have no real
issues to worry about. Should I knock and disturb the foursome, or
go away? No, I want to see what they say now that I have caught
them.

He
knocked loudly. “Is anybody home?”

“
Yes, Zane, come in, the door is opened.”

Clayton smiled. He gently pushed Rebecca to the bed,
where
Jackie and Jonathan were sitting. Jonathan turned to
her and hugged her.

“
Are you okay, Rebecca?”

“
Yes, you big lug. Thank you for everything.”

She
turned to Jackie and hugged her too, “and you too. Thank you, you
have been wonderful and brave.”

Zane’s
eyes were about to pop out of his head.
They say ‘thank
you’ afterwards? Gosh, Clayton has definitely led these decent
people astray! Poor Rebecca, she is so in love with him she will do
anything for him.

“Zane,
please, come and join us,” Clayton said.

“Are
you sure it is okay?” Zane asked. But he
thought,
they want
a gay boy now? Hell no. I don’t do that stuff, especially with a
bunch of straight people. Hell no.

“Yes, of course. I was about to make some coffee. Come, sit
down. There is a chair over there.
Rebecca, can you help
me?”

She got
up and went to him and he touched her arm, with his right hand and
kissed her on her forehead.

“Let us make some coffee for our guests. I want to go up to
San Pass today. I hear it is quite spectacular. I think we
can
have a picnic up there. The clouds are lifting nicely.
Shall we have picnic on the top of the mountain,
Princess?”

“
Yes, that would be wonderful. I need some clean mountain air
to clear my head. Come, we should all go. Let’s pack a picnic and
have some fun.”

Zane thought,
she had better get some clean mountain air. She
needs to clear her head for sure.

~ ~ ~
~

The view from the top of
San Pass was breath-taking. The air was clean and
crisp and all of them felt the power of love in the mountains. They
all walked off in different directions, silently absorbing the pure
beauty of their surroundings. It was a magical place and they were
pleased they had all joined Clayton. They ate cheese and drank wine
and huddled on blankets against the cool breeze that gently
teased them. Clayton was lying on the ground, his eyes half-closed,
next to Rebecca.

“
Clayton, this is pure magic. I want to do it here. Right
here, on this spot.”

She had
been whispering, but they all heard her.

Blake
laughed.

“She is quite the
feisty one, isn’t she? I like a
girl who knows what she wants. Wow, Clayton, that’s an offer a man
can never refuse.”

The
others had a raucous laugh, but Jonathan said seriously, “yes, she
is right. This is the place. I am sure.”

Zane was beside himself.
Jono wants to join in? Right here, in
public? He says it in public? There was no end to their
lust.

But he smiled and said nothing. Clayton did not reply. He
simply looked at her, his eyes a dark blue
color
. He looked around him.
This is the place
where our fate will be determined. We live or
die.

*****

They drove back reluctantly to their cottages. The
enchantment of
San Pass
had made them intoxicated with warmth and love. Clayton and Rebecca
were with Double J in the car and he was starting to get those dark
blue eyes again.

“
Okay, just ask, Clayton, let’s get it over with. I can’t
stand the stress of waiting to hear what you want. Spit it
out.”

“
Okay, tell me why you know this is the right
place.”

Rebecca
did not hesitate.

“Nana always said that happiness comes from living in
harmony with the environment. She applied the Chinese philosophy
of
feng
shui
to her life. She
said the key was maintaining a balance between the elements. While
we were up there, I saw what she had been telling us. We are the
balance. You, the white tiger, are a symbol of the west and Yin
energy. I, the green dragon, am a symbol of the east and Yang
energy. You can see these symbols represented by the gentle hills
and valleys and the winding road like the dragon’s tail. These
forces, opposite but equal, co-exist as a complementary duality
which is a powerful force of protection against evil. They
encourage the positive life energy. That is what this place
represents to me. A co-existence of these energies, the balance of
nature. Also, I like the open space and it makes me feel
powerful.”

“
And what else?”

“
No, that’s all.”

“
Rebecca, you are starting to piss me off. What
else?”

She was
quiet for a while, then said softly, “if we have to die, I would
rather it happened at the most beautiful place on
earth.”

Jonathan and Jackie were too stunned to comment and Clayton
simply looked out the window. Nobody spoke the rest of the
way.

It
was late afternoon when they arrived at their cottages. The other
couples were sitting in the pub, continuing the fun they had
enjoyed at the top of the mountain. Jonathan walked in and told
them that the ladies were tired and they would join them later.
Zane simply rolled his eyes.
God help us. They were at it
again.

They met
Jonathan at his cottage, where they made their plans. It was
decided that it would be done the next night, since the other
couples would have left and Rebecca wanted one night alone with
Clayton. They would leave a little early and stay at the top until
it was late. Jonathan and Jackie went to join their guests for
dinner and told them that Clayton and Rebecca were too tired and
would see them in the morning.

Clayton
sat on the edge of the bed. “Rebecca, you need to be more open with
me. I don’t want to have to extract your thoughts and feelings from
you. I need you to tell me, trust me, okay?”

“
You are starting to behave like my parents. Before I say
something, you already know or suspect. I do not like it. I don’t
want you in my head.”

“
Why not?”

“
Because some thoughts are my own, Clayton. They are fears or
insecurities or the like.”

“
Princess, you do not understand. You must trust me with your
life, your fears, insecurities and the like. We can’t do this
tomorrow if you have doubts. It is too dangerous.”

“Clayton, I do love you with all my heart. But I can’t help
but think that if you die, then I would have caused it. I would
have to live without you. I think about it and then I think it is
easier simply to live with the damn thing. Are you so sure, that
you have no doubts, no fears?”

“I
have the same fears and doubts. What if we are not strong enough?
What if we are too strong and hurt each other? Your father tells me
that it is about balance. We don’t know what that is. I have never
had balance in my life. Everything has always been too much or too
little. He says we must trust our instincts. Until a few weeks ago,
I did not believe I had instincts.
But Rebecca, the thing
that makes it okay for me is knowing that I love you.
I know that if I have to die so you can
have the ‘normal life’ you so desperately desire, then I will die,
gladly. I love you and that keeps me going.”

“
Oh Clayton, you make it sound so easy.”

“
That’s because it is. Listen to your father. He had told us
over and over. It is the power of love. If you still don’t
understand, come here and I will show you.”

She slid
onto the bed next to him, but he jumped up, his eyes glazed and
moved to the door. “Rebecca, get down over there. Stay there until
I call you.”

H
e opened the
door and she heard it. It was still some distance away, but Clayton
had already sensed its presence. He stood outside, his arms
stretched out before him. It had just arrived and realized he was
outside. He roared loudly. It squealed and scurried away. Clayton
stood there, his body tense, ready to pounce. It was gone. He
slowly relaxed and went inside.

“
I am going to get that bastard. How dare he come to my woman?
I am going to fry him.”

He was
agitated and pacing.

“Rebecca, it has got to go. I have had it. That’s
it.
Whatever the cost.
I
am going to get it.”

She was
sitting on the floor, hiding her face and he realized that he was
frightening her more with his raving. He bent down and pulled her
up.

“
Come, it is okay now.” He held her and she
relaxed.

“Clayton, I love you so much. I can’t bear you going
outside to that
thing!
I was so
scared, the way it shrieked.”

“
Rebecca, are you feeling tired?”

“No, not this time.
I think you got it before it had time to get to my
energy. Thank you Clayton.”

“
Come let’s go to bed. We are going to need all our energy
tomorrow.”

“
Okay, but Clayton, I want you to make love to me tonight,
just in case....”

“No,
Rebecca, do not think about that. I will make love to you because
you are the most beautiful woman in the world. That’s all. Not just
in case things go wrong. I don’t want to be loved by you out of
desperation. I want your desire and tonight, we will make ‘normal’
love. I promise I will not shock you. You want normal, I am going
to give you normal.”

He went
over to his bag and pulled out a Band-Aid.

“
There. Put that on my hand so there will be no shocking.
Also, we need to save it for tomorrow.”

She
laughed. “So normal love making means you will wear a
Band-Aid?”

“
Yes, my sweet. Now come, let us finish what we started before
that rude interruption.”

Their
love-making was bitter sweet, both knowing that this might be their
last night together.

~ ~ ~
~

They drove up the long, treacherous road up
San Pass talking about work and
the things that happened that weekend. They gossiped about Blake
and Chad and their jealous rages and made other small talk. It
could have been any trip made by a couple on a pleasant afternoon.
Jonathan and Jackie had insisted on coming, but they refused. What
if something went wrong and one of them was hurt? They would never
live with the guilt. Jonathan had been frantic. The road is long,
winding and treacherous. What if it rained? They would never be
able to drive back. It would be dark. What if they could not see
clearly? It was pitch black in the night and the road was a death
trap in daylight hours. Clayton had brought his four-wheel drive
vehicle, but Jonathan knew that he abused it and drove through
horrendous conditions all over. He had never really cared for any
of his cars and this one was no different. What if something went
wrong with his car? What if they were injured and could not drive
back for help? What if one of them needed medical attention? They
were going to a spot at the top, about two hours from their
cottages. What if they needed help? Clayton and Rebecca had flatly
refused. They were not prepared to take the risk.

When
they got to the top, Clayton sat on the grass and Rebecca sat in
front of him.

“
Clayton, I don’t know what to say. I love you, whatever
happens.”

He
kissed her neck.

“
What will happen is that you will reward me later. I like the
smell of jasmine on your skin. It turns me on.”

His cell
phone was ringing. “Hello, Jono, what do you want now?”

“
Just checking in. What are you doing?”

“
I was about to kiss her before you interrupted.”

“
Save you energy, for God’s sake. You will need it. Phone me
as soon as you can.”

“
Okay.”

He hung
up the phone.

~ ~ ~
~