Chapter 4

Alex's Story:

It was quite a shock to see a very disheveled Katherine Heigl outside of my apartment door at close to four in the morning. Her hair was a mess and it looked like not only had she dressed quickly but that tears had streamed down her face seemingly in a constant flow.

But there was something in her eyes that told me that it was important that I didn't ask questions of her as she pleaded to come in - that I simply be there and listen to whatever she had to say. When she had mentioned that she had gotten "in deep in the organization", I knew that this couldn't be a late night call for sex.

I stepped out of the way and let her into the apartment, turning on the light against the wall. As I flicked the switch, Katherine pounced on my hand, scaring me half to death.

"No! No lights! They might see me!" she said quickly under her breath as she held her hand against mine. I noticed that it was shaking. Compiling with her request, I turned the switch back off and closed the door behind her as she stepped forward a few more feet inside. I thought she was going to go further, but she simply stood there, looking around, as if frozen. The blouse she wore looked rumpled and wrinkled in the pale light trickling in through the window from the street light outside, casting weird bars across her face. I had finally started to get a real night's sleep, able to put Petty and the whole fight with her out of my mind before Katherine decided to show up. But now that she was here, I was wide awake.

I moved next to her, locking the door behind us. Standing in front of her hesitantly, Katherine's eyes locked straight ahead, she seemed to stare right through me.

"Katherine? Are you ok?" I asked. No response.

I slowly extended my arm out to her, touching her shoulder. She flinched, yanking her arm away violently as I retracted it, stepping back a bit myself. Her eyes seemed glazed over and she didn't even seem to notice who I was, let alone where she was. I wondered in the back of my mind how she had even managed to find my apartment.

Watching her for another moment, I backed away slowly towards the kitchen, careful not to turn on a light per her request as I stumbled around looking for the coffee maker and the fresh grounds that Petty had picked up only last week. Finding the bag, I held it in my hand for a moment, the painful memory of our relationship flooding back. I shook the thought away as I set the filter and switched the machine on, walking back to where Katherine was.

I was surprised to see that she had moved, like a ghost, onto the sofa in the living room. She sat on the edge of the far left cushion, her hands neatly folded on her knees as she continued that vacant stare at the wall in front of her. Not knowing what to say, I simply stood there for a long moment.

"I'm making some coffee. Is that alright?" I asked.

For the first time, Katherine acknowledged a direct question, nodding her head slowly. I stood in silence as I listened to the pot start to boil, the slow drips of the coffee falling into the pot. Soon the fragrant smell - French hazelnut - began to waft from the kitchen further into the apartment, the scent seeming to float around us in the unspoken silence.

We must have appeared to be a photograph, Katherine and I, in that position - she on the couch, her hands curled up in tight fists, me with my elbows resting on the leather chair I had bought for myself last week, it's high back just the perfect height for comfort. The pot sounded like it was close to completion in filling, and I was thankful for the break in the tension as I walked robotically into the kitchen, removing two cups robotically as I poured the steaming black liquid into them. Carrying them back carefully into the living room, I moved to the couch and set the cup on the coffee table in front of her.

"I... I have some sugar and creamer if you want it," I said, still not quite sure what exactly to say.

"I did a horrible thing tonight Alex," Katherine said finally, her eyes still locked on the wall but her voice filling with a sharp pain that seemed to well up from her throat. I felt for sure that she would burst into tears any second. Sipping from my cup, I set it down next to hers, steam wafting up from both of them as I scooted closer to her on the couch.

"You don't have to tell me anything you don't want to Katherine. But if you do decide to tell me about it, I promise I won't judge you," I said softly, watching her.

Katherine shook her head from side to side, her eyes closed up tightly as she held her tightly clenched fist up from her lap for a moment before letting it fall back. She sighed heavily, her chest rising and falling.

"No. No... I... I need to tell you. I need to tell someone. This is too much to bear alone," she said, her voice sounding distant.

"Take your time," I said, reassuring her. Tentatively, I reached my hand out and touched her knee, careful to let her know that I was there for her as a friend, not wanting her to turn on me as she had a few minutes earlier. She let me touch her, first the tips of my fingers, then my entire palm as I gently pressed it against her jeans, rubbing her leg softly.

Katherine moved to face me now, her face a well of emotions as she wrestled with whatever demons she had inside.

Without saying a word, her eyes now locked on mine, Katherine stood up from the couch, a little wobbly on her feet. I was more than a little startled as you can imagine, when she started to unbutton her jeans and pull them down her legs, her tucked in blouse falling over her crotch, where I saw she wore no panties. Stepping closer to me, I was confused as to what exactly she wanted me to do. Then she lifted up the blouse.

Though she pointed to the exact spot, it wouldn't have been necessary. Her finger rested slightly above her hip bone as she pointed it at a red area on her body that looked slightly scabby and a little swollen. Even in the light of the apartment, at four in the morning, I could easily make out what she wanted to show me. How could I not? It had haunted my thoughts and dreams all day long: that now familiar circle with the lines around the edges and the lightning bolt through the middle.

I stared at it for a moment, completely at a loss for words as Katherine continued to point, her hand starting to shake violently now. Glancing up at her face, I saw that her pent up tears had finally begun to fall, her beautiful face wrenched up violently in a grimace of emotion.

"They did it. They finally got me Alex. I'm one of them now," she sobbed, the words coming out of her in choked gasps as she spoke.

I reached my hand out to touch it, but then thought better of it. Instead, I took Katherine's trembling hand away from the area of the tattoo and held it tightly. I felt her fingers squeeze my own back, hard. Gently I tugged at her arm and pulled her down to the sofa once more, Katherine absently crossing her legs in front of her despite the apparent pain the muscle shifting seemed to cause. Still holding her hand, I leaned it as close as I dared to her.

"Tell me whatever you have to Katherine. I'm not angry or upset. I just want to know what exactly is going on,"

Katherine sighed, then cleared her throat, her tears still trickling out slowly. She seemed a bit more composed as she spoke, my attention to her complete now as the words began to come in a flood.

She told me about the house she had visited, how Alicia Witt and Kate Hudson had gotten her high and almost tore her clothes off right there in their lusting of her body. She told me how Eliza Dushku had put a stop to them quickly and how Eliza had explained her duties as a member of something called the Rose Petals Club. The name didn't ring any bells but I knew that if things continued down the path they were going, I would be hearing more about it very soon. I couldn't tell how much she had left out - about how willing or not she had been as Salma Hayek forced her to lay down and accept the tattoo that would brand her for life. This was the hardest part for Katherine, having to recall the pain and apparent pleasure she got as the three women ravaged her body first with their own, then with a sex toy. The way she described it didn't sound very erotic at all, at least from the condition she was in currently, but I knew that sex played a very large part in it, regardless of if I was turned on by it or not.

"Then I woke up in one of the beds in the house, dressed quietly, stopped at a diner and came here. Oh Alex, I don't know what to feel!" Katherine said, leaning into me now, her head on my shoulder as she sobbed quietly. "I got myself into this mess and the way they touched me... it felt good. But am I just a piece of property to them, just another number?"

I stroked her hair. "No Katherine, of course not. They wanted you to feel good it sounds like. They knew that if you had good memories of the incident, you'd be more willing to cooperate with them and whatever else they want you to do,"

"That's the thing Alex!" Katherine cried suddenly, lifting her head up from my shoulder and staring intensely into my eyes. "Part of me DOES want to do what they say. The entire thing was very arousing, and I'm not talking about the sex itself. I liked the idea of being in a secret club or whatever, of the power that it could yield. But the other part of me is saying, no screaming, to get away from them as fast as I can, that this isn't right and isn't going to lead to anything good. That's why I came to you. If I hadn't slipped up and told you about this world I'm now deeply in, I wouldn't have had anyone to turn to. And... and I don't know what I would have done,"

Katherine wrapped her arms around my waist, pushing her head into my stomach.

"Promise me you won't leave me, not without helping me decide what I need to do. Promise me you'll be there for me and help me if I want to get away or get them or something. Promise me that Alex,"

This was a big request on Katherine's part, I knew. I was just on the edge of things I felt, and if I stepped forward more on the path, the way out might become harder and harder to find later on. But I knew deep down that I couldn't just turn away or throw her out or do anything of the sort. I had already gone too far, learned too much and had lost too much as well in the form of Petty to just call it quits here. Salma, Eliza, Willis... they all had to be retributed, if not for what they had done to Katherine and taken control of her life like this, then certainly to prevent them from getting to anyone else.

"Yes Katherine. I'll help you," I said, rubbing her back with my hand as she continued to cling to me like a frightened child. I held her like that for a few minutes, listening to her breath and gasp as her tears finally began to subside, neither one of us saying anything in the silence of the room. I could see through the blinds that daybreak had started to come. It was another day in Los Angeles, and who knew what was in store.

I had thought Katherine had fallen asleep on my lap for a moment, but seemingly in answer to this thought, she slowly lifted her head, pulling herself away from my body slightly. She propped herself up on the couch, her eyes down cast as she looked at nothing in particular. Raising her eyes, Katherine stared at me again for a moment before slowly moving her face towards mine, her tear stained cheeks now dry despite the rivulets that they had cut through her makeup. I felt her breath on my upper lip as she pushed her lips against mine, her soft and full and warm lips touching my own suddenly, first slowly and then with a hurried pressure as she pushed her mouth against mine.

Climbing onto her knees, Katherine leaned against me, pushing me back on the couch more as she kissed me, her body heavy and warm on my own. Her tongue moved into my mouth and at first I simply lay there, not quite sure what this kiss meant. But as I felt her small tongue probing my mouth, her eyes closed as she kissed me, I began to return the kiss in earnest, our mouths wrestling with one another in a quickly growing frenzy.

Katherine slid her arms to my shoulders and I felt my own hands move automatically to her back, where I touched her now not as just a friend but as a lover. Her nipples hardened against my chest, though from the way she was kissing me I could tell it wasn't from arousal - more of a desire to be touched, to be held. A need.

I slid my hands up the back of her blouse, feeling her smooth skin beneath my touch. She seemed oblivious to my touch however as I moved upwards to her shoulders and neck, massaging it slightly with my hand. I lifted my hand away from her as she lifted herself up slightly from my stomach, her lips seeming to fight the desire to leave my own. I had enough free room to maneuver my hands now, and I was very soft and gentle as I moved them to her breasts, squeezing the heavy orbs in my hand as Katherine laid back down on me, my hands crushed between her body and my own. My palms rested squarely on her nipples as Katherine pushed her shoulders back and wiggled the blouse off of her shoulders, leaving her bare skin there for my touch. We kissed again as I squeezed her tits firmly, her body becoming excited by the arousal in spite of itself. The urgency of Katherine's movements let me know that though she wanted to be touched like this, she more or less needed it instead, wanting to perhaps find some way to make sex pleasurable again without the tainted memories of the previous day clouding her feelings.

Truth be told, as I pried my hands away from her chest and lifted them to her shoulders, pulling the blouse off of her completely now, I too could feel this sense of urgency taking me over. This wasn't just sex - this was two people needing each other, needing someone, to make the problems they faced go away. Katherine with her troubles with the Rose Petals and me with the loss of Petty. We both needed, I now knew, to find comfort in the body of another.

Her blouse fully removed, Katherine again broke the kiss and sat up, working quickly to get me out of my boxer shorts (all I had put on before greeting her at the door). As they slid down my legs by her nimble hands, Katherine pushed herself back on me, her skirt now hiked up around her waist as she placed her cunt atop my prick. She didn't allow it to enter - not yet - but instead just let it become more and more aroused by the second as the wetness between her legs grew and her arousal became stronger. I was now painfully hard due to the pressure of her body, and knew that if I didn't find release or something to divert my attention soon, I was apt to shoot my load all over myself.

Thankfully, Katherine's animal instincts took over as she scooted up further along my stomach then pushed back, causing my dick to raise up just enough for the had to be battering at her hole. With only one final moments hesitation, Katherine pushed back against me and I felt my prick slide into her channel completely, her outer lips loosened from the night before. Her hands on my chest, Katherine slid backwards on my cock, raising it up inside of her as she sat contentedly on my lap. It wasn't long however before she began to grind her hips against me, rotating them in small circles as my prick bounced around inside of her, caressing the slick smoothness of her tight inner walls.

She began to raise and lower herself atop me, pressing her hands and nails into my chest as she allowed the shaft of my dick to leave her opening only for a moment or so. Katherine would grunt every time she landed back down, fully impaled, atop me. Her blonde hair swayed gently behind her head as she thrust up and down, my hips now finding the same rhythm of her own as I pushed in and out of her, raising my ass off the couch. Pushing my cock deep within her by grinding her hips against me, she propped herself up over my chest, her long hair hanging along the sides of her face as our eyes locked.

Neither one of us said anything as Katherine began to move faster, trying desperately to scratch that itch that had overtaken her, the lust that had transformed her almost instantly into a woman with a strong desire. I placed my hands on her supple ass cheeks and held them tightly as I helped guide her along my shaft, her aroused and slightly swollen clit rubbing against the top of my shaft with each bouncing move.

I moved my hands up towards the cleft in her ass, tracing a finger down her asshole and along her cunt, stopping at the bottom to wet the tip with her juice before sliding it back upwards, rubbing over her pert little hole with the tip of my finger. She moaned loudly as I caressed this part of her body, gently pushing upwards on a downstroke in our love making, the forces of gravity allowing the tip of my finger to slide into her anal opening slightly, working in the first two segments of my digit inside her tighest of holes.

This seemed to encourage her further as she picked up the now frantic pace of our fucking, my finger now moving along with my cock, in and out, the pressure from her body as her brown eye opened and closed around it quite erotic. We were both animals now, fucking without abandon, each lost in the world of pleasure that we brought each other. With every stroke, the problems of the world seemed to grow further and further away, sending me to a distant place where only bliss could follow. Katherine cried out loudly atop me, an almost earth shattering scream that would surely wake up the neighbors as her orgasm hit, the finish line of sexual bliss overwhelming her as the race neared completion. She came atop my prick, her asshole tightening incredibly around my finger as the moment arrived, her body focused only on releasing the valve of sexual pressure that had been building in her.

I was right behind her, not even having time truly to feel the orgasm in my balls shoot forth. It seemed to just happen by it's own accord, with a quickness that was both staggering and amazingly strong, the cum spewing from my prick in against her pussy walls as I came very hard. My legs twitched and both of our bodies shuddered slightly from the release, Katherine's own orgasm ending seemingly at the second that mine started. I thrust into her deeper and deeper, my prick battering against her cervix as the last load of cum arrived, firing boldly into her as I felt my dick twitch out the final load before beginning to soften slightly. The storm had passed.

Katherine collapsed atop me, her chest heaving with sweat and exhertion as I too breathed heavily, enjoying the feel of her hair against my cheek as I plucked my finger slowly from her ass and traced it up her back, placing my hand between her shoulder blades as I held her tightly against me. Her breathing began to ease up a bit and within seemingly moments, Katherine was fast asleep atop of me, her body unable to take any more without some kind of rest.

Laying there as my panting subsided, I glanced over at the living room window, watching as the sun slowly began to rise over the hills of Hollywood, daybreak bringing an end to the very long night. I closed my eyes just for a moment to rest, but before I knew it I too was asleep there on the couch, our bodies still held together by the bond that had united us in the first place: the burning desire for the loving touch and caress of another person.

We slept for a few hours in that same position, my now soft prick managing to work itself free of her vice like cunt. Laying there, I could see outside that the sun had risen quite far, almost at the midpoint in the sky as the lazy sunbeams and the familiar sounds of traffic managed to filter in through the drawn blinds and thick window panes. My awakening must have stirred Katherine as well, for she lifted her head from my chest and, smiling at me, slowly lifted herself off of my body, moving very slow as she knelt on the back cushion of the couch. She yawned as she patted my leg with her hand, leaning back against the couch, her head resting on the back as her hair draped over the edge.

"Good morning," she said groggily with a sigh, her eyes closed as she lay there on the couch. I lifted myself up slightly on the couch, laying my head on the armrest as I looked at her. Her legs slightly spread and her body still naked save for the rumpled skirt she wore, I could see that a lot of the redness had started to fade around her newly added tattoo. It was still slightly scabbed over, but it didn't look quite as bad as it had even in the late night light of the apartment.

"Morning," I said with a smile, now lifting myself up proper to join her on the couch. Stretching my arms over head, I ran my hand through my hair and stood up, grabbing my boxers from the floor on the way. I cracked my back and re-awoke my body to the world of the living as I yawned again.

"Would you like some breakfast?"

"That would be wonderful, thank you Alex. Do you happen to have any of Petty's clothes by the way? I really need to take a shower,"

"I think so. Try looking in the closet. The shower is right in the bathroom in the bedroom, so make yourself comfortable while I get breakfast going,"

Katherine smiled and stood up from the couch, pulling her dress down now over her legs but choosing to leave her blouse off. She walked a little hesitantly towards the bedroom and disappeared from my sight as I moved to the kitchen to start breakfast.

She emerged 15 minutes later wearing an oversized sweatshirt and one of Petty's pair of old jeans. Perhaps it was the fond memories I still held about Petty in such casual wear, but Katherine looked amazingly sexy in the clothes as she moved to the kitchen table, taking a cup of coffee I had already poured. I set down some eggs and hash browns on the table for each of us and we ate in silence for a few moments, Katherine practically devouring her food immediately, while I found myself to be quite hungry and was quick to follow her.

After finishing her eggs, Katherine sipped her coffee and spoke.

"Thank you for last night Alex. For everything,"

"Not a problem Katherine. I'll always be here to help you out whenever you need it,"

"I know," she said, smiling shyly at me. That was the look of hers that I liked the best I decided - a subtle, innocent looking smile.

"So now that we have both gotten some sleep, I was thinking in the shower about what we should do,"

"What do you mean?"

"About Antamount and the Rose Petal business,"

"Oh yes, I had managed to put it out of my mind for a minute there,"

"I wish I could say the same thing, but unfortunately it has been eating away at me since I've been awake,"

I said nothing to this, but encouraged her to go on. "What do you think we should do?"

"Well, here's the thing. We are both in very different situations here. I'm much deeper in and know far more than I probably even want to, while you are still pretty deep in this whole fucked up scheme, only from a different perspective,"

"Right,"

"But the thing is, even though we are looking at it differently, we still have a lot of common problems. Namely, how to deal with the people involved, the people who are our bosses, in a world where relationships and connections are king,"

I nodded.

"For me, it won't be impossible to manage. I've been stuck in this sub-servant role for a while now and I can hold my own, barring nothing strange coming along. You however, really don't have any chips to maneuver with,"

"I could just not be involved in the movie anymore,"

"I don't think that is a good idea. It's too risky, sends too many signals,"

"I've already told them that I didn't want to be involved any more. They even sent Monica Bellucci to... convince me otherwise,"

"Well then that is your in. You could use that to say that your decision was based on what Monica wanted you to do. And I don't even think I have to ask how that Italian succubus tried to 'convince' you,"

"Point taken. I still don't know... it will be really damn hard to look them straight in the eye when I know so much. They might catch on,"

Katherine stared at me hard, a look of determination in her eyes.

"If they do, they do. Now look, I will also keep up my role in the Rose Petals. Maybe I can learn more about them, what the flaws in the organization are and who wants out. I mean, a secret society can't stay secret forever,"

We sat in silence for a moment, letting the whole thing sink in.

"Then what? How long do we wait, how long do we play by their rules?"

"For however long it takes I think. These people are serious as a heart attack Alex. They won't hesitate to kill you and to make me disappear by smearing me in the tabloids. It's best not to fuck around with them until we have an out, a plan of action,"

"And what exactly are you thinking in that regard Katherine? How the hell do we try and hurt an organization where the only way to tell the members is by seeing them naked?"

Katherine looked down at the table in thought, finishing the last bite of her eggs. Sipping her coffee, she finally looked up at me, her eyes glittering with possibility.

"I know someone who might want to help us. Give me some time to set things up with him and then let's see what his take on this thing is. If we can get his help, then we might stand a chance,"

Willis' Story:

Straightening my tie, I cleared my throat as I rested my hands on the heavy oak board room table.

"I'm glad you are all here gentlemen. You are obviously anxious to find out the status of our organization, where we stand in regards to the inroads we have made into the Hollywood star system, and I won't keep you long. I have a lunch date with a future prospect to attend to any ways,"

The table seemed to nod their heads in unison. They were a well dressed and unthreatening looking group: aging business men, a few going completely bald atop their heads while others simply seemed to age with dignity, a few wrinkles not with standing. They were the backbone of my organization, the life blood that helped get it off the ground and what kept it flowing even right now. They had kicked in money from off shore bank accounts, personal checks and ambiguous company write offs. Collectively, these twenty men represented some of the most powerful business and political interests around the world. Their companies and own organizations spanned four continents, and the heady rush at speaking to a room like this was a bit intoxicating.

Taking a sip of water from a glass on the table, it's sweat leaving a slight ring on the expensive wood, I walked over to a white board behind me, reaching into my pocket to pull out a remote for the projector.

"As you can see by these figures, our year end goals have more than been met. We have successfully reached out to the top talent in the fields of film and television completely, are making great progress into the world of music with Antamount Records and by years end we hope to start capitalizing on the growing women's sports field. There do remain a few hold outs in the Hollywood system, some of the bigger paycheck pulling women like Roberts and Diaz but we are working our hardest to bring them into our fold," I said, pointing to pie charts and bar graphs on the projected screen behind me, the only sound in the office the hum of the projector itself and some muffled sounds from outside the conference room.

"Now, clearly having control over the talent in the entertainment industry is important. But what we hope to achieve in our three-year prospectus is nothing short of positioning our representatives inside of the five big studios and entertainment companies, where they will undoubtedly ascend the corporate ladder and act in our interest. This will require quite a bit of press unfortunately, but with the Los Angeles media on our payroll, and unfortunate squabbles will be relegated to the back pages of the paper," I continued.

"Once we feel confident that our interests are being met in North America, I personally feel that it will be apt time to expand abroad. The European market is always steady, and with Latin America simply ripe for the picking and Asia on the rise in their tough economic times, this should not be too difficult. Our coup de tas in the world of entertainment should go off without a hitch, if our current projections are to be believed," I finished, pausing once again to sip some water. "I will now open up the floor to questions,"

A row of hands were raised around the table and, so as not to play favorites, I chose the one closest to me.

"Yes, Mr. Eisner," I said, pointing at him. The head of the Mouse empire stood up, straightening his tie as he began to speak in that somewhat raspy voice of his.

"With all of this talk of expansion, I want to know what is being done internally in the studio system. You mentioned that Ms. Roberts is a current priority, but is it conceivable that we can hope to limit the power of the female players in the Hollywood world anytime soon?" he said, his gray eyes staring at me hard.