Fate

Fate - Chapter 8

The next morning Darious rose at his normal time. After getting dressed, he wandered down to the kitchen for his first cup of coffee of the day and some breakfast. As usual, Marcus was already up and had the coffee ready and he was cooking breakfast. Mayhem was sitting on the counter, watching him intently, jabbering away.

When he saw Darious sit down at the breakfast bar, he hopped off the counter and bound towards him. Jumping up on the breakfast bar, he sat down by Darious, tail swishing rapidly. "'Mornin' dere Bosh!"

Grinning, Darious reached out and scratched between his ears. "Good morning, Mayhem."

Normally he would be perusing the paper, catching up with what was going on in the world, but he felt the cat should be the priority. They were all still in a bit of a transitional period, something that's always stressful even under the best of circumstances. They were also trying to getting to know each other, so the more they interacted the smoother everything would run during this crucial period. Indeed, those were some of the real issues that were bound to crop up eventually and would have to be dealt with sometime in the future, but they weren't the sole motivation behind the reasoning. Since meeting the cat, he had taken a bit of a shine to him. It wasn't hard to like the animal. He was friendly and seemed to be easy-going. Nor had he shown any signs of a temperamental nature so many people attribute to felines.

Picking up the hefty animal, he put him in his lap and scratched him between the ears. "So, what have you been up to since you've been awake, Mayhem?"

Rather than give one of the standard answers, such as a brief mention of a few things or saying not much, the cat gave him a fairly detailed description of his adventures while exploring his new surroundings. His rapid-fire speech pattern coupled with his obvious excitement made Darious grin. He never knew investigating a house could be as exciting as Mayhem was making it out to be.

Stroking down his back Darious looked at him, eyes twinkling, "You've been busy, haven't you? Sounds like you've had a lot of fun as well."

Looking up at him, Mayhem nodded, "Oh yesh! Da Mayhem wuz havin' fun! Da bosh haash a BEEG houshe an' lotsha neat fings."

When Marcus put the food laden plates on the bar Mayhem hopped off Darious' lap then made a beeline straight for the food. Slapping one of his big front paws on the food he crowed, "Yoush dead!" then dove in. Darious and Marcus looked at each other and grinned before digging into their own.

After the meal was over, Darious began gathering things for work. In his study Darious did a quick check of his e-mail. Following him to the study, Mayhem hopped up onto the desk beside him, watching what he was doing intently.

Reaching out, Darious petted the cat. Normally one of his biggest pet peeves was people touching his desk, something that made him go nuclear. But, for whatever reason, he didn't mind the cat sitting there.

Purring loudly, Mayhem leaned into hand. "Ish me an' da Lady Bosh goin' to worksh wiff yoush today?"

"No, you'll be staying home. You'll be staying home most days while I work."

"Kk, Bosh."

Shutting down the computer, he grabbed his briefcase then exited the study. Putting the case on a table in the foyer, he headed upstairs.

Waking the still-sleeping Dani, he let her know he was leaving, then gave her a hug and kiss goodbye. While he put on his jacket Mayhem hopped up on the table by his briefcase. Grabbing it, Darious smiled at the cat. "Well, I'm off! See you when I get home tonight, Mayhem."

"OTay Bosh." Holding one of his paws up in the air, he said, "High five, Bosh."

Grinning, Darious gave him a high five, and then headed out the door.

After being gone, there was a lot of work to catch up on. Once Darious got through the standard morning things, he began to tackle everything else. Shortly after he arrived, an obviously upset and angry Cassandra walked into his office. Looking up, he tried to suppress a grin when he saw the look on her face.

"Good morning, Cassandra." he said pleasantly, leaning back in his chair.

There was no denying that his personal assistant was one very beautiful woman. Long, flowing chestnut brown hair hung to her shoulders, styled to perfection. Those big, sky-blue eyes of hers were stunning. She also had a body to die for, 5'11, weighing somewhere in the 130 lb range with long, toned legs. It was always her practice to wear dresses that were form fitting and revealing, making sure they accentuated her grapefruit-sized breasts.

Nyssa's conniving remark was dead accurate - she was very much a master manipulator. Although she was highly intelligent, well educated, and had a great deal of business savvy, she used every trick at her disposal to claw her way to the top. Long ago she had set her sights on him, in both a business sense as well as a personal one. Although she wanted to climb the corporate ladder as high as she could, the thought of being his wife and the money and power that went along with it were things that she wanted as well.

Grunting a curt, "Morning" back she glared at him.

"Is there a problem?" he asked innocently, but his eyes twinkled with mirth. There was a problem and he was well aware what it was, Dani. Someone had just dashed her plans.

Fixing him with a stare that was so full of malevolence that he should have melted or caught fire, she huffed a bit. Then, calmly, voice denude of any emotion, a dangerous sign if there ever was one, she asked, "I heard you tied the knot while out in LA."

Smiling a bit, he nodded, "For once the rumor mill is accurate. I did, indeed, take a wife."

"Congratulations!" she said with a false cheerful voice, eyes narrowing. Big, red blotches stood out on her face, marring her normal peaches and cream complexion. A blood vessel on her right temple was distended and throbbing madly.

Steepling his fingers, he nodded, a smile turning up the corners of his mouth, "Thank you." He was finding this amusing. At this point she had to be furious on many levels. Not only did he slip through her fingers, but she really outwardly expressed her anger. To do that would give away the fact that she had been chasing him. Nor could she criticize his choice of women, because she had yet to meet his wife. Rather than switch the conversation to the more neutral ground of business and move away from the awkward moment, Darious let her stew.

Trying to get herself under control, she smiled brightly, "You're most welcome. Are we going to get to meet her, or are you going to keep her hidden away?"

Grinning, he winked at her, "Oh, I'm sure you'll get to meet her at some point. As a matter of fact, she was here yesterday. Most didn't get to meet her though; I had a short day after the flight back."

Nodding, she plastered a smile on her face then handed him the files she had brought in, trying to shift the topic away.

About noon, as he sat there poring over a proposal, Nyssa buzzed him. Without moving his eyes from the page he was reading, he stretched over and hit the talk button on the intercom, "Yeah Nyssa?" he asked, distracted.

With a grin in her voice she said, tone sugary sweet, "Your lunch is here."

Looking at the intercom as though it could show him what was going on, there was a puzzled look on his face. "What? I didn't order any lunch."

"Whether you did or didn't that doesn't change the fact that your lunch is here." This time she didn't even try to hide the chuckle.

Puzzled, he replied, "Well, send it in then."

A minute or so later his office door opened and in stepped a woman in a black, form-fitting cat suit. Stepping up to his desk, she sat the container that resembled a picnic basket he had been carrying on his desk and opened it. Smiling pleasantly, she nodded, "Hello Lord Darious. Lady D made arrangements with Lady Jolene to provide you, Modega, and Nyssa with lunch every day." Pulling out the food, she arranged it in front of him. "We were having roast beef with all the fixings today for a special, I hope that's alright."

Smiling, he nodded, looking at the spread on his desk. "That's fine. Pass along my thanks to Lady Jolene, if you would please." He looked her and smiled. At this close range it was obvious she was a she-devil, probably one of the younger ones.

Smiling back, she nodded, "Will do. When you're done just put everything back in the basket and set it aside. The person that delivers your lunch tomorrow will pick it up."

"Alright. Thanks!"

Nodding her head, she replied, "You're welcome. Have a nice day!" she then let herself out of the office.

Picking up the bottle of brandy that had come with it, he grinned big. One of the very old brands, he assumed it had come from Dani's stock. Picking up his fork he dug in, making a mental note to thank Dani when it got home.

As the afternoon slowly passed, Darious found his mind wandering more and more to his mate rather than on the tasks at hand. For the first time since he had created Triple D, his mind wasn't on the business. It was also the first time that he had been a 'clock watcher', counting down the time until he could leave. The longer he sat there, the more his mind wandered to Dani.

Finally, at 3:00 he gave up and decided to go home. He had read the same document over and over for a half an hour and couldn't remember what it had said. That was his signal to give it up, that he wasn't going to get any more work accomplished. After he went over a list of things that needed done and told Nyssa who to farm some of the work out to as well as how he wanted it done, he left.

After letting himself in the front door and sitting his briefcase on the table, he slid out of his jacket. As he was hanging it up, he heard a noise that sounded like a heard of elephants stampeding across the floor then Mayhem yell, "Bosh! You'sh home!" Looking up, he saw the cat bounding out of the doorway to the kitchen and running down the marble-floored foyer. He hadn't gone more than two feet when he began sliding, unable to get any kind of traction on the waxed and semi-slick floor. Moving all four of his paws this way and that, he tried to put the brakes on or at least slow down and get some kind of control, but to no avail. All the mad scramble ended up doing was to cause him to go into a spin, sliding across the floor towards Darious like a hockey puck.

Jumping out of the way, so he wouldn't be knocked over, Darious tried to grab hold of the furry projectile, but missed. A split-second later the cat slid into the front door going at a pretty good clip. A loud thud was heard at the impact, causing the door to vibrate a bit. Mayhem ended up with his head and front shoulders flat on the floor with his back flat against the door, rear legs dangling downwards. Hurrying over, Darious picked him up, concerned, "Are you OK, Mayhem?"

Looking dazed and a bit wobbly, the cat shook his head, trying to clear the cobwebs, "I'm find dere Bosh. Jusht put me down and point me in da right direction, den I'll be good ta go!"

Grinning and shaking his head, Darious replied, "I don't think so Mayhem. Let me check to see if you're hurt first. He began feeling the cat's bone structure to see if he could detect any broken bones.

"Hit the door, did he?" Dani said, walking towards them.

Darious looked at her and nodded, "Yes, he had a pretty good head of steam when he went into it, but I think he's OK. Nothing's broken as far as I can tell, so he should be OK."

Taking the cat out of Darious' arms, she stood on her tip-toes and gave him a kiss, then chuckled as she stroked the cat's back, "Welcome home. He's done this before, several times. Luckily he's pretty resilient and doesn't get hurt." Leaning over, she put the cat down, "Go finish your food Mayhem, but WALK this time - no running."

Shaking a bit, trying to get rid of the last remnants of the fuzziness he felt, he looked up at her and nodded, "Will do, Lady Bosh!" Then he took off towards the kitchen, walking very carefully.

After his rear end disappeared into the kitchen, she looked back at Darious and winked, a grin spreading across her face. "Don't worry; he's a bit clumsy and accident-prone. Take my word for it; he's crashed into worse things than a door before. Whoever said cats were graceful never told that to Mayhem."

Putting an arm around her shoulders, he pulled her close then gave her a soft kiss. "I was worried; I thought he might have done some damage, as hard as he hit it."

Wiggling her eyebrows, she grinned bigger, "It's the door you should worry about, not him."

Later that night, after supper, the two of them settled themselves in the living room to watch a movie. Sitting in his chair, with her in his lap, they talked a bit. After discussing some things she wanted to do with the house she looked up at him, "That reminds me. What's behind that locked door on the 3rd floor? You didn't show it to me or tell me what was in there when we did a walk-through of the house."

A huge grin spread across his face then he winked at her, eyes bright and twinkling, "I forgot to show it to you is all. It's my dungeon."

Quirking an eyebrow, a small smile turned up the corners of her mouth, "A dungeon? What kind?"

Chuckling deeply, he winked at her again, "What kind do you think? A playroom of course, one dedicated to the exotic reaches of sexuality."

"With you, one never knows. It could have been a place you take kidnapped Christians and torture them until they do your bidding." she replied, sticking her tongue at him.

"Indeed there have been a great many Christians tortured there, but they were more than willing to let me. In fact, one might say they were very eager to have it done."

Patting her on the ass, he had her slide off his lap, and then stood up. Taking her hand he said, "C'mon, I'll show it to you."

After checking on Mayhem, they headed upstairs. After unlocking the door, he held it open for her, gesturing for her to enter. Indeed, it was a dungeon, one that was better equipped than most professional clubs dedicated to BDSM were. Implements of torture were hung on the walls, a huge X cross was in one corner and a horse in another. Chains hung from the ceiling with various types of cuffs attached to him.

Wandering around, she examined everything, touching some of the implements. Leaning on the doorjamb, arms folded across his chest, he watched her, smiling. When she stopped to look at a variety of bottled lotions and oils, he walked up behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist then brushed her hair over one shoulder and kissed her neck. "So, are you still interested in the exotic arts, or is it something you aren't interested in anymore?"

Giggling, she looked back over her should at him, a mischievous look in her eyes. "But of course! It isn't something you suddenly decide you no longer like; once you go there, it's in your blood and never goes away."

Nuzzling his face into her hair, he asked, "Would my Kat like a bit of 'playtime', as Mayhem says?"

Making a noise that was the human equivalent of a purr, she leaned back against him, "But of course! When have I ever turned down an offer from you to pursue a bit of rough play?"

"Never, to my knowledge." he chuckled. Letting loose, he took her hand and led her over to a chair in the corner. Sitting down, he pulled her into his lap then wrapped his arms around her once again. Giving her a tender kiss he then said, "Let's lay down the ground rules and such so I don't or won't go somewhere you don't like, then we'll begin."

A couple of hours later, the room was filled with the smell of sex. It seemed to hang over everything like a thick cloud, mixing with the smell of sulfur and brimstone. Groaning, Darious stretched his wings straight out behind him before rolling off her, lying by her side on the thick, soft mat. Shutting his eyes, he panted heavily trying to catch his breath, body slick with sweat.

When his breathing had returned to normal and his heart rate dropped, he sat up and looked down at her, then froze. Slowly, a look of abject horror spread over his face as he looked at his handiwork. Her face was a bruised mess, both eyes blackened and a handprint on one of her cheeks. Instead of being blonde, her hair was a deep, red color from blood, and he could see a couple of bald patches that looked raw. It seemed that her whole body was either covered with blood or bruised.

The fact that she looked this way because of something he had done made his stomach clench into a cold, tight knot and a wave of self-revulsion surged through he body. Yes, she was always someone who could push him to the edge of his self-control, but he had been able to maintain it, a source of pride to him. Now, from the look of her, it was obvious that he had lost that legendary control and let his bestial instinct take over. It was the realization that he had lost it that sent a surge of an emotion he had never felt before throughout his body, making him feel like shit. On its heels, his mind began racing to figure out a way to make it up to her.

With a grunt, she rolled onto her side, facing him, and then rested her head on his huge thigh, smiling up at him. Purring, she said, "Mmm… that was fantastic, Darious! You are, indeed a master of what you do."

Those words made him feel worse than he already did. Stroking her hair, he shook his head, "I'm sorry Kat, I got carried away. I most certainly didn't intend for it to go as far as it did."

Shooting him a quizzical look, she shook her head. "Do you hear me complaining? No, I liked it. There's nothing to be sorry about."

Swallowing around the huge lump in his throat, he just shook his head but didn't say anything more on the topic. Instead he stood up and stretched. Holding out his hand to her, he forced a smile, "Let me help you up, then I'll draw you a bath so you can get cleaned up to better assess the damage."

Sitting up, she took his hand then tried to stand but couldn't, plopping back down onto the mat. Giving it another try, she still couldn't quite manage getting herself into a standing position, her legs and hips protesting loudly and painfully, refusing to co-operate with the instructions her brain was giving them. Shaking her head, she looked at him, "No go. You're going to have to give me a hand."

Feeling sick to his stomach, he knelt down so she could put her arm around his shoulder then stood up, helping her rise.

Once upright, her legs and hips were both screaming in agony, still refusing to function properly. Leaning against him, she wrapped her arms around his waist to hold on so she wouldn't fall. Shaking her head again, she looked at him, "This isn't going to work either. I think one of those last hard thrusts you did broke something in my pelvis. I'm pretty sure I felt it go. So, walking right now is out of the question, I'll just end up flat on my face if I try."

Nodding, he plastered a fake smile on his face, "No problem, I'll carry you." Picking her up, he could hear and feel some of the bones in her pelvis grind a bit, telling him that he had broken something just like she said. That knowledge sent more thick waves of self-loathing through him. Holding her close, he grabbed a towel from a nearby table and covered her with it before walking out. After shutting and locking the door to the room, he turned around and saw Mayhem sitting at the head of the stairs, watching him. Smiling at the cat, he gave him a cheery, "Hey Mayhem! What are you up to?" There was no hiding Dani's injuries, so he was convinced the cat would be upset at him for hurting his 'Lady Bosh'.

Cocking his head side to side, Mayhem looked at Darious, then Dani, and then back to Darious.

Darious waited but said nothing, wanting to see the cat's reaction before deciding on a course of action on how to handle the matter.

"Yoush an' da Lady Bosh had shome playtime!" he said, head cocked to the side.

Smiling in relief, Darious nodded, "We sure did."

"Dat'sh kul."

Looking at the cat, Dani smiled, "Hey, Mayhem."

"Hey dere, Lady Bosh!" The cat crowed happily, body shaking a bit as his tail swished rapidly. "Did ya have fun, Lady Bosh?"

"I sure did!" she said, looking up at Darious, winking.

Relieved, Darious relaxed a bit, "Can you do me a favor please, Mayhem?"

Bouncing onto his feet excitedly, his whiskers poofed out, tail going a mile a minute, Mayhem looked intently at Darious, "What do ya need for da Mayhem to do dere, Bosh?"

"Go find Marcus for me. Tell him I want him to clean the dungeon."

Puffing up, the cat nodded, intent look on his face, "Will do, Bosh!" he shouted then took off down the stairs, yelling for the big werewolf.

Carrying her to the bathroom off his room, he gently set her on the toilet and began to run the water. When it was the right temperature he picked Dani up and held her tightly then stepped into the sunken marble tub. Grabbing the hand-held sprayer, making sure it was on the fine mist setting, and then began to spray her down, trying to get most of the blood off. Once that was done he engaged the plug and switched it back to faucet, starting to fill the tub. Sitting down, he stretched out and held her close as the warm water began to rise around them.

Using a gentleness he didn't know he was capable of, he started washing her off, cleaning up any of the remaining blood on her skin. Also, he was doing an inventory of just how much damage he had caused, trying to gauge what should be done. The more damage he saw, the worse he felt about it, a sick feeling gnawing at him. While he wanted to express to her just how sorry he was and how bad he felt, he didn't seem to have the words to say it, unable to formulate it in a way to get the point across.

Shutting her eyes, she rested her head on his shoulder and shut her eyes. "Mmm… that feels good." she said, smiling.

Kissing her on the top of the head, he smiled a bit, "I'm glad you like it." he said, that rotten feeling still gnawing at him. From times past, he knew she healed fairly quickly, almost like regeneration, however all he had seen was cuts and such, nothing big like broken bones, so he wasn't sure about the healing rate for those. Glancing down, he wasn't surprised to see that the bruises already had changed colors, showing the signs of healing and that the cuts seemed to be shrinking. "Kat? How long will it take for the bones to heal? Or do you need to go see someone to get them treated?"

"Probably only three or four days until they are completely healed. They'll have knitted together enough by tomorrow that I'll be able to walk fine, but will probably be limping a bit. Within a week's time you won't be able to tell I was hurt."

Once they were done with the bath, he carefully dried her off and began dressing her wounds, even though she protested that it wasn't necessary. When that was done, he wrapped her up in his fleece robe, the one he always had hanging on the back of the bathroom door, then carried her to the bedroom, gently laying her on the bed.

Pulling on a pair of sleep pants, he was rummaging through the drawers, looking for her nightclothes when Mayhem bound in and hopped onto the bed. Snuggling up to her, he began jabbering away. A few seconds later, Marcus stepped in. Looking at Dani, noting her battered face, his eyes hardened then he nudged Darious, "I need to ask you something."

"Sure," Darious nodded, "what's up?

Tugging him out into the hall, Marcus glared at him, "What the fuck did you do to her?" he hissed, eyes blazing.

Normally, he wouldn't have allowed the big werewolf to talk to him in that manner, but he was feeling like a complete and utter jackass over what he had done so he let it slide, "Nothing she didn't want. I lost control and things got out of hand. Don't worry; it won't happen again, that you have my word on." Darious replied, shrugging.

Blinking, Marcus was taken aback. Normally, Darious would have snarled at him for the comment. This was the first time since being with him that he explained his actions. Clearing his throat, Marcus changed the topic, "I've got most of the blood up, but I'm going to have to toss a couple of the mats in the wash. Even then I'm not sure if the blood will come out."

Nodding, Darious looked at him, "Alright. Good job." Peering back into the bedroom to see if Dani was listening at all, he saw her talking to the cat. Turning back to the werewolf he lowered his voice. "Is there anything out there that will help speed up the healing process?"

Without even having to think about it, Marcus replied, "Sugar. Anything with lots of sugar will speed things up."

Nodding, Darious replied, "OK, good. I'll get a list of some of the foods and drinks she likes and have you pick some up for her."

Later that night, all three of them plus Mayhem were sprawled out on Darious' big bed, playing a board game with the cat, having a good time. While the cat might be a bit goofy, and seem to be scatterbrained, he was actually quite good at it. Much to Darious and Marcus' surprise, he could count and read the instructions; he just needed help moving things, since he couldn't grasp things.

The bed was littered with junk food wrappers and dishes. Marcus had gone out and returned with a junk food feast they all worked their way through as they played. When they all began to get sleepy, they put the game away and sprawled out on the bed to watch a movie on the TV Dani had bought for the bedroom earlier in the day. Eventually, sleep crept up and they all dozed off, Dani curled up to Darious, her arm draped over his chest, head on his shoulder. As he usually did, Mayhem fell asleep on the pillow her head was resting on, curled up, head resting against hers. Behind her, Marcus had dozed off, his chest against her back, arm draped around her waist.