Fire In The Night Ch 06

Caitlin had known that making love to Jack would be perfection -- she wouldn't have given him her virginity otherwise. But she was completely unprepared for his gentle tenderness, his selfless devotion to her pleasure, his passion that seemed to be more than physical. Before making love, she'd had no expectations for a relationship with Jack, and she had been simply living in the moment, consumed by the erotic nature of their situation. After seeing his concern for her, his caring sweetness, she found herself putting complete trust in him.

'I've been duped by my share of boys before,' she thought ruefully as she lay next to him in bed, recovering from their passionate lovemaking. 'But I somehow can't believe that the way this man treats me is an act.' There was just something about him that rang true to her. He made her feel safe, protected, and cared for. He'd said, "I just want to know you." There was something so simple and straightforward about this statement that she felt more at ease with him than she ever had with a man. His quiet confidence and mature demeanor impressed her like no boy her age could. She was beginning to suspect that the reason she had never wanted to have sex with any boys her age was because of how irresponsible, immature, and arrogant they all seemed. Jack was like a completely different species compared to them. It was for these reasons that she decided to trust him with her story.

She opened her mouth and began to speak. "I don't really know how to tell this story. I've never told it to anyone before. So if you could just...listen...and try not to interrupt...that would really make it easy for me." Her voice was quiet, hesitant.

Jack stroked her bare shoulder softly, sending warm, pleasant tingles throughout her body. "I understand," he answered. Somehow, she felt that he truly did.

And so she began.

***** Caitlin's Story *****

When she was just over seven years old, her father took her to the zoo as a surprise after school one day. Instead of wandering around the zoo, exploring all the different animals, he walked her to the administrative building. With wide eyes, she clung to his hand as he marched in boldly, flashing a badge at any security personnel who gave him a second glance. She followed him through a maze of endless hallways, looking around at all of the zoo personnel with wonder and amazement, gripping her daddy's hand tightly. Finally, they passed under a sign which read "Medical Unit." A tall man with white hair and a grandfatherly smile greeted her daddy and led him and Caitlin into a small room. "Exam room three," her small voice read aloud, studying the sign on the door. When the tall man closed the door behind her, she looked around the room and was struck dumb with shock.

A full-grown lion lay on a large examination table in the center of the room. He was completely still, but his gigantic size was breathtaking. His paws were the size of her head, his head the size of her body, and his golden mane flowed over the edge of the table. She froze, terrified, unable to cry out or even gasp. Her daddy knelt beside her and wrapped his long arms around her.

"Do you know what that is, Caitlin?" His voice was quiet and gentle.

She nodded her head mutely, bright red curls bouncing, green eyes wide with fear.

"He's asleep, sweetheart," her daddy said. "This lion doesn't feel very well. The doctors made him fall asleep so that they could figure out what was wrong with him and make him feel better. He's dreaming right now, and he won't wake up."

Her wide green eyes studied his face to see if he was playing a trick on her. He held up three fingers together solemnly. "Scout's honor," he swore.

Caitlin's eyes moved to the giant, almost mythical creature lying motionless on the table. She still couldn't find her voice.

"Do you want to pet him?" her daddy asked.

Uncertain, she just kept staring at the beast. Her daddy took her hand and walked her next to the table, where there was a chair for her to stand on. He lifted her up on the chair easily. She put her left hand timidly on the metal examination table to keep her balance.

"Come on, sweetheart. Just like this," her daddy explained, reaching over and running his hand along the lion's mane. With great caution, she reached over with her right hand, just barely brushing the lion's fur with the tips of her fingers.

Her father and the tall man chuckled. "Here, sweetheart," her daddy said, taking her hand. He moved her hand along the lion's mane, making her pet him as she would a kittycat. Her green eyes were so wide that they appeared to take up half of her little face. Realizing that she was holding her breath, she let it out slowly. The lion's fur was rougher than she had expected, and she was fascinated by the texture of it. Her daddy moved her hand down the giant cat's nose, petting between his eyes gently. He encouraged her to touch the lion's whiskers, and even had the tall man lift the lion's lip so she could see his enormous teeth. She petted the lion's ears, and jumped back slightly when the cat's reflex caused his ears to flick forward. By now, a smile lit up Caitlin's face as she was fascinated with the massive feline.

Far too quickly, the tall man told them in a gentle voice that their time was up, and he had to tend to the sick cat. Her heart pounding, she leaned over the huge beast and gave him a kiss on his furry forehead. Her daddy helped her off of the chair, and led her back through the administrative building to their car. Caitlin was quiet the entire way, reliving the awesome experience over and over again in her mind. When they got into the car, her daddy didn't start the engine immediately. Instead, he turned to face her, his expression solemn.

"Caitlin, sweetheart, I know you enjoyed petting the lion. And I'm glad that you had fun. But I had another reason for sharing this with you today."

She looked up at her daddy with her bright emerald eyes, confused at his serious look.

"Caitlin, sometimes, even creatures who seem mighty, who seem so powerful that they could never be weak or vulnerable...sometimes, these creatures lose their strength. Just like the lion today. You were so scared when you first walked in, because we think of lions as awe-inspiring, fierce creatures to be feared. But this lion...he was sick, and the doctors had to make him fall asleep. So when he lost his power, he became even more vulnerable than you, a little girl."

Caitlin was perplexed by this speech, and her daddy could tell. He sighed. "Caitlin...animals aren't the only ones who appear all-powerful, strong, and fearless. Some people appear that way, too."

Suddenly feeling on safer ground, Caitlin perked up. "Like you, Daddy?"

Her father winced as if in pain, and Caitlin became worried again, but he agreed with her. "Yes, sweetheart...like me. But those people who appear fearless, who appear strong...sometimes they can become just like that lion. They can lose their strength, and become as weak as a little girl. Do you understand, sweetheart?"

Cautious, Caitlin replied slowly, "Yes, daddy."

Her daddy seemed relieved and turned forward, starting the car. "Good," he muttered under his breath. "Good."

Caitlin felt like something important had just happened, but she wasn't completely sure what. Until about a week later.

That's when her father left her forever.

*****

Jack felt sorrow welling up inside him that little Caitlin had had to undergo such a heartbreaking experience. 'Every little girl should have a father to raise her, to teach her and guide her,' he thought sadly. He held Caitlin in a tight embrace, kissing the top of her head and rocking her back and forth. Tears had begun to slip down her face.

"We can take a break, if you want," he said, his voice hesitant. "I can get you something to eat, or drink..."

Caitlin considered this. "I could probably use more wine to tell this story, to be honest," she admitted.

Jack kissed her quickly, threw on his boxers and went into the RV's kitchen to get Caitlin some wine. Watching him leave, she wondered if she was doing the right thing by telling this whole story. 'What if he doesn't understand?' she worried.

Jack came back with two glasses and two full bottles of wine, making her laugh. "Perfect," she smiled at him.

He gave her a sexy grin and settled back into bed with her, pouring each of them a glass of wine. With his free hand, he stroked her fiery red curls gently, easing her worries and making her feel safe and comfortable again. With a deep breath, she continued her story.

***** Caitlin's Story *****

When her daddy left, Caitlin was alone with her mother, Anne, for several years. They did not get along -- Anne was very distant from her daughter, and spent a great deal of time away from home. When Anne would come into her room to kiss her goodnight, Caitlin could almost always smell some kind of alcohol on her breath. For the first couple of years, Caitlin spent most nights crying herself to sleep because she missed her father so much. Anne would never explain why Caitlin's daddy left, but before too long Caitlin realized that it was something her mother had done. One Christmas, after Caitlin was already in bed, she heard her mother and her aunt shouting at each other downstairs after they had both been drinking for most of the night.

"You're so goddamn stupid!" Caitlin's Aunt Rachel shrieked. "You had the perfect life -- a husband who gives you all the money you want, a beautiful little girl, a house with a white picket fence -- how could you have been so goddamn stupid?!"

"Shut up! Shut up!" Anne shouted back. "You don't know how it was; you don't know what I went through!"

"Oh, sure." Aunt Rachel's voice was laced with scorn and disgust. "I'm sure you had it so hard, playing Susie Homemaker while your rich, good-looking husband spoiled you and your precious daughter rotten. It must have been so tough for you! So tough that you just had to stumble into the arms of your husband's brother, and then be so stupid as to go and get caught fucking him while your daughter slept in the next room!"

In bed, covers pulled up to her chin, fourteen-year-old Caitlin gasped in shock. Uncle John? Her mother had slept with Uncle John?!

"You just mind your own fucking life, Rachel!" Caitlin's mother spat. "You don't know anything; you live in your own little dream world when men take care of women and spoil them and don't make any demands for themselves! Well, you'll get your wakeup call, just like I got mine! Men are more demanding then you think, and sometimes they make demands that you just can't meet, and then you're forced to choose between who you are and who they want you to be! And if you can't be who they want you to be, they leave you all alone, a single mother struggling to raise a daughter in a world where you can't count on anyone or anything!"

"You're pathetic," Aunt Rachel said coldly. "You're going to play the victim because your husband left you after you slept with half the town, including his brother? It sounds like you're the one who needs to grow up, Anne. There are plenty of men out there who will be more than happy to give you whatever you want because they're so fucking desperate for easy pussy that they'll take whatever they can get. Just pick one of those, and they'll close their eyes to your motel escapades, and you can have any kind of life that you want, as many men as it will take to satisfy your sickening lust."

Caitlin struggled to understand the implications of Aunt Rachel's words. She was making her mother sound like she was...addicted to sex. Could that be true? Was that why her daddy had left them? Horrified at this discovery, Caitlin pulled on her headphones and played Aerosmith as loudly as she could to drown out her mother and aunt.

Within two weeks of this devastating night, Anne brought one of her boyfriends back home to meet Caitlin for the first time ever. His name was Stanley, and he was a meek, nervous, unattractive little man. Caitlin was horrified by this man who seemed the very opposite of everything her father had been. When Stanley left, she tried to talk to her mother about this, and Anne became furious with her.

"Listen here, princess," her mother snapped. "I don't particularly like the 'middle-class' living we've been suffering through ever since your arrogant father left us on our own. So if I need to find a guy to help support us, I'll take whoever I can get. Stanley doesn't complain or question me or my time. He's a very wealthy stockbroker, and he's a nice enough man. So just keep your goddamn feelings to yourself."

Caitlin nodded miserably, knowing that her mother was so very different from herself. Her mother needed the superficial niceties, the security that lots of money brought. With a sick feeling of dread, she realized that Anne had every intention of marrying Stanley just to live the life of luxury that she so desperately needed.

Within two months, Stanley and Anne announced the engagement. And perhaps this tale would end here, with no happily-ever-after, but at least a mediocre-ever-after. Anne would have what she wanted -- a rich man who showered her with gifts and closed his eyes to her late nights out. And Stanley would have what he wanted -- a nymphomaniac wife who was willing to have sex whenever and wherever he wanted. Yes, it would have ended here...if it weren't for Stanley's son, Billy, who moved into Caitlin's home with Stanley after the wedding.

*****

Caitlin's breathing had quickened as she reached this point of her story, and Jack took a moment to silence her with soft, gentle kisses. She smiled as he soothed her nerves with his tenderness.

"I'm here, baby, you're safe now," he whispered in a steady voice, even as his heart pounded with dreaded anticipation of the next chapter in young Caitlin's life. He was surprised at his overwhelming desire to protect this young woman from any kind of harm. He suspected that she needed someone like him, someone older, even twice her age, who could always make her feel safe.

Caitlin took a few more swallows of wine and resolved to get through this as quickly as she could.

***** Caitlin's Story *****

Caitlin had naïvely hoped that the marriage to Stanley would calm her mother's insatiable lust, but such was not the case. Within a few weeks of taking vows, her mother went back to her lengthy disappearances, from which she returned with the stink of liquor on her breath. Stanley was so meek that he never questioned her, and Anne made Caitlin swear never to tell Stanley where Anne really was. Stanley exerted his power in his own way, by demanding that Anne satisfy him whenever he wanted, whether Caitlin was in the next room or even beside them on the couch. Caitlin got used to putting blinders on, trying to concentrate on a television program while her mother was on her knees in front of her stepfather on the couch, bringing him to a swift and quiet climax. Terrified of becoming like her mother, Caitlin avoided all contact with boys at school, and was a quite innocent young teenager.

It was only a few months after the wedding when her life went from miserable to horrifying. It was the night of her fifteenth birthday when she awoke at night to the feeling of a heavy body on top of her. Her senses hazy with sleep, she thought at first that it was her mother, leaning over to kiss her goodnight. In the moonlit darkness, she opened her eyes to see Billy kneeling above her. She gasped in shock, and in a flash, he covered her mouth with his hand. Billy's dirty brown eyes stared down at her earnestly as he held her silent.

"You looked so beautiful at your birthday party tonight, Caitlin," he whispered, his whiny voice high and urgent. "So beautiful that I just had to see what a young woman you're becoming."

Caitlin's green eyes were wide with fear. Just a year older than her, Billy had inherited much of his father's genetic material, but he was significantly chunkier than his father. His weight pressed down on her, making her feel smothered and claustrophobic. She knew that he could easily overpower her, and she shuddered with the thought of what he could do to her.

Billy had pulled the sheets down low on the bed, revealing her in her silk nightie that barely covered her thighs. Her mother had always bought her clothes that revealed a sexuality Caitlin didn't possess, and she now wished desperately that she had chosen to throw those clothes away and wear a t-shirt and sweatpants to bed. Billy's eyes were round with amazement and lust as he drank in Caitlin's young, innocent body. He ran his hand up her arm to the straps of her nightie, and slowly pulled it down, revealing one of her breasts. Caitlin whimpered with fear and misery, and Billy hissed at her, "Shut up! Just let me look at you."

Caitlin closed her eyes and tried to block out the experience as Billy ran his hand along her collarbone to the other strap of her nightie, pulling it down to her waist. He shimmied the nightie down her waist and legs until it tangled around her knees. He was breathing hard, and she could feel his erection pressing hard against her thigh. His hand still over her mouth, he worked her panties down to her knees to join her nightie. Tears slipped out of Caitlin's eyes as she tried not to cry out loud. He wiped her tears away hastily, looking confused.

"Don't cry, Caitlin. You're so beautiful. I just want to see how beautiful you are," he said in a soothing voice.

Suddenly, they both heard a sound from the hall. Billy jumped off of Caitlin's bed, throwing the sheet over her. "We'll finish another night," he explained, and before she could blink, he was gone.

Caitlin lay there, shuddering and crying as quietly as she could, still confused as to what had actually happened. The next day, Billy acted completely normal around her, and she began to doubt her own sanity -- had it been a dream? After several sleepless nights with no Billy coming to visit, she began to think she had imagined the entire thing. She finally began to fall into an uneasy sleep at night.

About a week later, she awoke to the feeling of weight on top of her body again. Unable to bear going through this a second time, she opened her mouth to scream...and realized that he had duct-taped her mouth shut. Her green eyes opened wide as her breathing quickened to the point of being painful. Billy smiled down at her reassuringly.

"This way, I don't have to hold your mouth shut," he explained in a matter-of-fact voice. Terrified, she began to struggle against him, trying to throw his heavy weight off of her, and he slapped her hard.

"Don't make this difficult, Caitlin," he frowned down at her. "I'm your brother now, I have a right to know what my sister looks like. I need to know what I should protect from other boys. How can I protect you from your lustful classmates if I don't know what I'm protecting?"

Horrified and terribly frightened, she remained still. This time, Billy stripped off her t-shirt with quick movements, and yanked her sweatpants and panties to her knees without hesitation.

"This isn't as attractive as your nightie," he reprimanded. "You should really care more about your appearance, Caitlin. You want to be an attractive young woman, don't you?"

She moaned with misery, but he ignored her as his hungry eyes drank in her body. "I think I need to touch you, Caitlin," he said thoughtfully, more to himself than to her. "I think if I'm going to protect you, as a big brother should, then I need to know exactly what you feel like. I want to be a good big brother to you, Caitlin."

The horror that filled her with his words was indescribable. She closed her eyes tightly, trying to take her mind anywhere but where she was. For some reason, the lion that her father had taken her to see appeared in her mind, and she struggled to remember every detail of that day, reliving it over and over as Billy touched and pinched and stroked her body. When his fingers probed into her young pussy, she struggled to remember exactly how the lion's fur had felt under her fingertips, the precise texture and color.