*** Nate's a corporate downsizer whose personal passion is exploiting people at their most vulnerable.
Proudly bisexual, fiercely manipulative, and an unrepentant sociopath, no one's safe from his personal brand of coercion.
But when Nate chooses to not only fire, but humiliate a salesman with fetishes arguably more perverse than his own, a fierce battle erupts between the two, escalating out of control as two equally morally bankrupt men seek to break each other using every weapon they can lay their hands on. ***
* * * * * Fair warning: This episode is gay male non-con with a touch of (gay/bi male) love story. Other episodes in the series are male-male & male-female. * * * * *
This chapter: Unable to cow Nate, Colin throws him to the wolves. But with Nate's self-control slipping, things soon spiral out of control, prompting Colin to give Nate a glimpse into Alec's progress at the home.
*****
Burro shook Nate awake. "Get up,
esé
, it's time."
Nate groaned. "Time for what?"
"Soon, that
hijo de la puta
will want to talk to you. Tell him how bad it was,
esé
. For your sake."
Nate swung his legs off his bunk and put a hand to his chest. God, it hurt. He didn't even want to know what was under his shirt, but it felt as though his mending ribs had been seriously unmended.
Before Burro could say any more, the guard slammed his baton against the metal door.
"Contra la pared!"
Nate picked up his water from beside the bed and took a mouthful. He really didn't want to leave his cell.
Twenty-eight days to go.
Deprisa!
The guard shouted.
'Hurry Up?' Nate wondered. He made a note to compliment Colin on Málaga II's language immersion programme.
"Dos momentos!"
Burro shouted back.
Burro stood in front of Nate. "Sorry
esé
, I have to go now. But I'll be there when the others have their turns. I'll take care of you,
chico
."
Nate got to his feet as the guard wrenched the door open and gestured for him to get up against the wall.
"Frente a la pared!"
Since there was no 90's Australian pop band in his cell, Nate figured 'Frente' meant 'face', just this once.
He faced the wall and put his hands behind his back, turning to Burro as the guard snapped handcuffs around his wrists.
"See you soon, I guess."
* * * * *
Colin was waiting for him in the mess hall.
The guard undid Nate's handcuffs and pushed him into a chair, cuffing the back of his head for no apparent reason other than he felt like it.
Nate shot him a dirty look. Burro's brother or not, the guy was climbing up his shit-list.
Colin eyed his captive thoughtfully. "You look almost restored this morning. Did someone feed you?"
Nate shook his head. "All I've had is cock."
"You must be hungry, then."
Nate smiled. "That depends on what's on offer."
The big man gave him a cold look, clearly not liking his change in attitude.
"Do you want breakfast or not?"
Nate gave a light shrug. "Feed me, don't feed me. If your cum's in it, I'm not touching it."
Colin's eyes darkened. "Is that a challenge?"
"Why not just cum in my mouth like you're dying to? Get it over with?"
Colin's eyes darkened. "Do you really want to be beaten, lad?"
"Maybe," said Nate. "Maybe it's better than twenty-eight more days of eating food garnished with your sadness and self loathing."
Colin's eyes narrowed. He glanced up at the guard, who stepped forward and smacked a hand across the back of Nate's head.
Nate shot him another dirty look and mouthed
'Hijo de la puta'.
The guard scowled.
Colin sat down opposite Nate. "Let's recap last night, shall we?"
The big man scrubbed through the video until he reached the part where Burro entered Nate's cell. He skipped through, frowning at the screen as he tried to make out the details that Burro had done his best to hide from the camera.
Nate caught the moment the other man reached his post-coital expression of joy.
"Thanks for sending him to take care of me, by the way," said Nate. "Burro has the
most
amazing cock. You should try it. I think you'd like it—"
He broke off as Colin slammed the laptop shut.
For a moment Nate thought the Mancunian might have an actual stroke. And then he remembered that he still didn't know where Alec was. Unless he pulled back on the attitude, there was a good chance he'd never see his lover again.
The big man shifted in his seat and rested his arms on the lid of his laptop.
"I'm not sure why you'd want things to get worse for you. Or perhaps I do. As near as I can tell, your ego's always done the talking for you." He leaned forward. "So after your morning servicing of the residents, I shall let you see what your lovely lad is up to."
Hardly much of a threat,
thought Nate. Except Colin's smile suggested otherwise.
The big man leaned back in his chair. "It's a terrible thing, isn't it, when you realise someone's gotten under your skin? Especially the first time. I fell in love with Ellie the moment I met her. She was nineteen and I was twenty-five. Not much different to you and the lad."
Colin stroked a hand over his stubble.
"In every way she was exceptional. Lively, bright; the promise of summer on a cool winter's day."
He dropped his gaze and stroked the lid of his laptop.
"She was a wonderful wife. Loyal to me all these years, supporting me when I doubted myself." He glanced up. "And yes, I've had my moments of doubt, lad. No one's immune. Not me, not even someone as deeply damaged as you. And instead of loving her in return, I chose to feed my hunger for power. I chose to feed my ego. Fed it with women, money, with things no one could ever know I had but me."
He slapped his hand against the lid of his computer. "You know what we have in common, you and I?"
"We both love cock?"
Colin gave Nate a small, frustrated shake of his head.
Nate thought for a moment. "We've both fucked your wife?"
He regretted it the moment the words left his mouth.
Why can't you shut the fuck up?
Maybe Colin had a point about his ego doing the talking.
Colin gave him a smile that held a hint of murder. "No, lad. What we have in common is that we don't love well, you and I. We don't do right by those who give us their all."
As someone who'd drugged his boyfriend and left him terrified and alone in a sex club, Nate couldn't argue with that.
Colin rolled back his shoulders. "After I finish with you, I'm going to make things right with Ellie. I've taken care of her for twenty-seven years. I'm going to convince her to take me back. But you... you've nothing to offer the boy but heartache. I'm going to get him cleaned up. If you know what's good for you, you'll stay away from him."
Nate shook his head. "Fuck you, Colin, just let him go. He's already clean. He doesn't need his brain washed by a bunch of cultists."
"Didn't look clean at that disgusting filth-hole you took him to. They had to resuscitate him twice on the way to the emergency room, did you know that?"
Nate went very still inside. "He didn't take anything," he said quietly. "I gave it to him. He doesn't take drugs."
Colin shrugged. "Makes no difference. He's in a safe place, now. He'll be well cared for."
Nate looked up, his eyes bright with anger. "You think telling him he's broken is keeping him safe?"
"As I said, after you perform your morning duties, I'll let you see him for yourself. I've an idea that might help you understand why you should leave him be."
He got up and fetched a tray of microwaved slop from the counter at the front of the mess hall and dropped it in front of Nate as he slid back into his seat.
"I'd advise you to eat. You won't get anything else."
Nate picked up his plastic fork and put one hand on the side of the tray to hold it still, calculating his odds of success if he attacked the man.
The guard was at least two feet behind him. So far, Nate hadn't noticed guns on either man. If Colin was carrying his, it had to be in his pocket or in a concealed holster—either way it would take him time to get it out. If Nate attacked and kept moving, there was no reason why he couldn't get Colin down, then use him as a hostage to get himself the fuck out of this place.
He scooped up a forkful of the creamed potatoes and put it in his mouth. It was cold. This time, Colin had left his personal garnish pooled on top.
Nate swallowed, fighting back nausea. "This is fantastic. Did you save all that up for me?"
Behind him he heard the guard gag. That moment of distraction was all he needed.
He flipped the tray up, sending its contents flying into Colin's face, then threw himself over the table and punched Colin as hard as he could while the other man frantically tried to wipe slop from his face.
A bullet tore a chip out of the edge of the table in front of Nate.
Both men froze.
The guard levelled his gun at Nate and gave him a truly unpleasant smile. "Stay."
Colin punched Nate.
Nate's ears rang as he connected with the floor. His eyes lost focus as Colin leaned over him.
"Did I not mention that Enrique has my gun? I thought you might be getting close to pulling something stupid. Desperation will lead a man to do stupid things, and you were born desperate."
He pulled Nate to his feet and shook him. "Say something smart." His lip curled in a snarl. "Go on! Say something fucking smart and give me a reason to punch you again!"
Nate's head was filled with static. Maybe he should have just taken the protein. He was far weaker than he'd realised. Felled with one punch. Jesus.
Colin gestured Enrique over. "Take this little shit to the showers. The lads can sort him out."
The guard didn't bother to cuff Nate, instead training the gun on his back as he forced Nate to walk ahead of him through the corridors that led to the bathroom block.