Chapter 34

His mind was just as much a wreck as his body, as he walked inside the house he shared with Karl. He needed to tell Karl everything and then just tell him that they should run. Even though there was a chance that Don was just making fun of him with such a crazy plan, there was always a possibility he wasn’t joking. And that was what Francesco was afraid of the most.

His skin was clammy and his entire body hurt in unusual ways as he climbed the stairs to the master bedroom. Maybe Karl wasn’t still awake, and they would talk in the morning. Right now, he needed to sleep, and, supposedly, Don would let him say a proper goodbye to Karl before ... No, Francesco didn’t even want to think for a moment about what would come next. No, there had to be a way.

The bedroom door opened in front of him, and Francesco staggered for a moment.

Karl gave him a long look. “Done already?”

“Yeah, like that’s a thing,” Francesco replied in a hoarse voice. He hadn’t come back with Morgan, but with someone else Don had called in the middle of the night.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Karl questioned him.

Francesco walked past him into the room and sat on the bed. Fuck, he needed a shower so fucking bad. “Tonight, your daddy forced me to fuck myself with the biggest dildo ever made on the entire planet, then fucked me, filled my ass, and...” He stopped for a moment and kept staring down at the carpet. “Your dad’s off his rocker, Karl. He told me to come here, tell you we’re through, and then move in with him. Because he just discovered he’s gay and wants to marry me or some shit.”

Karl’s laughter took him by surprise.

Francesco gave him a hard look. “Yeah, what a fucking joke, right? He seemed pretty serious, though, and pulled out his favorite blackmail card. If I don’t say ‘yes’, you’re off to your buddies in the army to become their cum dumpster.”

“Hmm,” Karl said like he couldn’t care less about that. “Well, I wasn’t expecting that from him.”

Francesco tried to read his husband’s eyes, but they looked nothing short of an impenetrable wall. “Is that all you have to say? Karl, I can’t take this shit. I’m leaving, and no, not to go live with your batshit crazy dad, but anywhere else he’s not. Come with me, or stay. I don’t give a shit anymore.”

Karl moved closer until he was standing right in front of him. Francesco didn’t look up and didn’t move, either. The unexpected gentle caress on his head surprised him. “Cesco, I’m close to fucking him up. So, go live with him a little--”

“Are you fucking nuts? My ass feels like it got fucked by a freighter train! And he promised that we’ll have some really fucked up orgies. He’s bent on destroying me, don’t you get it?”

At least that seemed to give Karl a pause. His caress stopped. Then, he plopped himself down on the bed by Francesco’s side and took his hand. “I thought he’d get bored with you. I mean, I hoped. I know that it’s impossible for men who fuck you to get bored with you since you’re that good.”

“A good whore? That’s all there is about me, isn’t it?”

Karl wrapped one arm around him. “Let’s wash you and put you to bed. Since he didn’t keep you from coming here, that means that he’s sure you’ll do as he says.”

Francesco didn’t have the strength to fight him, and he needed a shower anyway, so he let himself dragged toward the bathroom.

“Back on the island, I was afraid of you many times,” Francesco said in a toneless voice, his back to Karl. “But I somehow grew out of it. I thought you loved me.”

“Loved? I love you now and always,” Karl said with a snort. “Don’t tell me you want me to say cheesy stuff just so that you can go to sleep.”

“No, you fucking moron,” Francesco continued. “I want out of this. I want to be far from your dad and you.”

He tensed as Karl remained silent.

“Well, you know that’s not going to happen. My dad will never let go of you if he’s so fucked up over you. I’m fucked up over you, and I’ve been for a long time. So, you cannot leave. I cannot let you.”

“Really? Last time I checked, I was a free man.”

“Freedom is relative, Cesco. Since we’re reminiscing, I hated you on the island because you made me fall for you.”

“I didn’t do anything. Whatever you think you feel, it’s on you.”

“Fair,” Karl admitted. “That doesn’t make it less true. So, this is what it’s going to happen. You’ll play nice with my dad. You’ll live with him and help him come out.” At that, Karl chuckled. “I wasn’t expecting him to contribute to his own ruin like this. But hell, I’ll take it.”

“What do you have on him? And you know, he’s going to introduce me to the world as his ... whatever. How does that sit with you?”

“Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me, right?” Karl replied.

“How can you be so fucking chill?” Francesco revolted. “Are we getting a divorce? A very public one?”

“No, we won’t.”

“That’s not going to fly with him.”

“It will, because he’s impatient, and I’ll refuse.”

“It doesn’t matter that you refuse.”

“You forget something here, Cesco. He’s my dad. I can play a few cards myself.”

“Like what? Are you going to cry so that he doesn’t take your toy away from you?”

“I could.”

Francesco turned toward Karl. “This isn’t the time to joke.”

“And I’m dead serious.” Karl pulled him into his arms and kissed his forehead. “It’s not so long now, Cesco. And then, we’ll be free for good.”

Karl had to be delusional. Francesco could argue until morning, but he didn’t have the energy for it.

“I miss Mouse,” he said as his eyelids grew heavy.

“I talked to him. He’ll be here in a couple of days.”

Francesco lifted his head to look at Karl. “What? Why didn’t you tell me?”

“It was supposed to be a surprise. And he’s going to be here to help.”

“So, he’s on it, too. But you still don’t want to tell me about your plans.”

“You’re the one who needs protection the most. And I cannot risk my dad suspecting that you know even the slightest thing. His eyes are on you. That gives us freedom to move around.”

“I hate it,” Francesco said. “I want to go to sleep and wake up in my shitty apartment, without knowing any of you.”

Karl laughed and kissed his forehead again. “You’re just saying, Cesco. I’m not the kind that gets his feelings hurt easily, but don’t tell Mouse anything like that. He’s going to flip a lid.”

Francesco snorted. “He’s not the same boy from the island. He’s tougher now.”

“He’s always been tough,” Karl retorted. “Just because he fell for you like a fool, he got all soft and that.”

“Fool, huh?”

“I didn’t say I wasn’t one, too.”

Francesco didn’t know what to add to that. Was it too much what Karl was asking of him? Could he do it? Or was it just better to cut and run? Not that he knew where, and a life spent looking over his shoulder didn’t sound like fun at all, but he had no real alternatives here. Don was giving him the willies, and this last encounter had left him with a deep aching fear in his bones. What kind of orgies was the fucker talking about? It couldn’t be anything good. Or normal. He didn’t even want to go there.

After a few days, Francesco was starting to wonder whether he hadn’t imagined that conversation with Don. The fucker had to be so full of himself that he believed that Francesco would just run into his open arms? He feared to guess what the hell that silence meant.

He was so caught up in his thoughts that he didn’t realize that someone was in the way as he tried to walk into the house. When he was hugged all of a sudden, his first instinct was to kick the attacker in the face and only stopped in time.

“Don’t you dare hurt my pretty face,” Mouse said with a grin and kissed him.

“So glad you’re here,” Francesco said and hugged him back. “I have no idea what Karl told you, but I’m deep in shit.”

Mouse followed him inside. “I know enough. So, you’re going to live with your daddy-in-law now?”

“He even told you that? And he didn’t care that I wanted to talk to you, too.”

“Don’t worry. I was on my way here, anyway. I wanted to see you both again so badly.”

Francesco relaxed as Mouse embraced him from behind and pushed him against the kitchen table. “Same here. How’s army life?”

“Pretty damn good. I got bent over by the captain and he gave me some pretty good dicking.”

“What? But I thought you were saving your ass for me and Karl,” Francesco joked.

“What can I say? He’s a persuasive man.”

“Really? What’s the deal here?” Francesco was no longer in the mood to take things at their so-called face value. If Mouse was here, that meant that he somehow played a role in Karl’s plan, and he didn’t like it at all.

“Didn’t I say that I missed you?”

Francesco pulled away from Mouse’s hug, as good as that felt. “Karl is planning something and keeps quiet about it. I have a feeling that you’re on it, too, and that pisses me off.”

Mouse sighed and leaned against the table. “It’s for your own good. Me and Karl, we’re made of sterner stuff, Kekko. We get caught, we say you were innocent and unaware of our plans, which you basically are. We’re doing this because we don’t want anything to happen to you.”