Hazard
An hour later and Chris Kane was furious. He had tried everything with this asshole, but he simply would not talk. He had taunted and jeered Jared, trying to draw him out that way, but Jared was used to taunts and jeers, had been listening to it for years so he was well used to blocking it out. He just continued to stare straight ahead, completely ignoring Chris, even when he got in his face.
He had picked up the glass of water that he knew the man had to have been longing for and very deliberately taking a long slug from the now luke warm liquid, before asking Jared if he wanted a drink. Jared hadn’t replied, instead staring resolutely ahead, showing none of the absolute terror he was feeling, and Chris had picked up the glass and thrown it in his face. Jared made no move to wipe his face, electing instead to letting the water drip down from his face and Chris could feel his temper fraying.
Bending over the table once more he spoke softly and deliberately.
“You know Dickie, there are things you don’t know about me. I’ve seen and done some things that would curdle your blood! Doc Morgan may have told me not to touch you again but you know what?“
He moved to sit on the table one leg swinging like he was having a conversation about the weather, and continued.
“I know how to beat a man half to death without leaving a mark, and I have no problem in showing you. In fact...” He shifted and bent to whisper in Jared’s ear and Jared did move this time, away from the warm breath that passed over his ear and Chris smiled at the movement. He had him spooked!
“In fact Jared...” Jared’s eyes flickered quickly to Chris’s face at the use of his first name and away again. “In fact ...Jared... I’m only waiting for an excuse to start. Just give me one excuse, come on...tell me how you didn’t murder the one person who had shown you friendship, I dare you.”
Chris shifted again, not moving from his position leaning against the table, just shifting enough to push his face into Jared’s.
“Tell me. I’m dying to know how it went down.... did you make a pass at him? Did he turn you down? Did he hurt your feelings? I’m all ears, and I’m about the most sympathetic you will get so confide in me....”
“I know” the two words from Jared actually startled Chris, they were spoken so quietly and softly. Jared had turned his head slightly to look straight into Chris’s eyes and Chris actually moved back first.
“Know what Jared? What do you know?” Chris was sneering now, mocking, but Jared never wavered in his gaze and Chris felt even more agitated; “Know what you freak!”
“You said there were things I don’t know about you, but I do know one thing....”
Chris let out a short laugh and moved away from the table, moving to stand leaning against the glass facing Jared, arms crossed in what he hoped was a bored, calm pose. But his heart was beating faster now and it had nothing to do with anger, it was fear.
“And what’s that freak? What could you possibly know about me?”
“He told me. Jensen. He told me about your argument. What you said....”
“Shut up.”
But Jared had started talking now and he knew he would pay for it but he was tired of listening to this prick talk like Jensen was his, cause he wasn’t, Jensen belonged to no one, and Jensen had loved him alone.
“He said you fought, said you confessed how much in love you were with him...” Jared stared right into the cold, furious, steel blue eyes of Chris Kane and continued before Kane reacted and shut him up forcefully.
“You told him you had loved him for years, wanted him to love you back, tried to kiss him, he was stunned, pushed you away. You got angry, said I was no good for him. Said he could do better than me, and he was curious ya know? ‘Cause no one was ‘sposed to know we were together like that, he was nervous, said you had to have been following us to know....”
Chris moved then, and like lightening he was on Jared, pulling him from the seat by his collar, table clattering as it lifted with him.
“I said, shut up.”
“He wanted to leave town. You were making him nervous, said he was worried about me, he was afraid you would do something to me...” Jared laughed then, no humour in his face. “He was worried about me. Little did we know it was him who was in danger. I should have agreed sooner, I should have left straight away.”
Jared got no more words out as Chris Kane’s fist landed hard in his stomach, doubling him over and gasping for breath, trying to take in lung fulls of air with bruised muscles. Kane’s fist raised again and met him with a short fast painful jab to his throat that had Jared choking immediately and Chris instantly calmed, sitting Jared down in the chair and straightening the table he spoke conversationally.
“That’s only a start to what I can do Jared, and believe me I will do it. Now. Shut. Your. Mouth!”
While Jared continued to choke, hand holding his throat and gasping in loud painful breaths, Chris walked sedately over to the other side of the room pulling a chair back with him and sat himself down. He laid the folder out in front of him and folded his hands neatly over it and waited for Jared to come round. He hadn’t hit him hard enough to kill, just hard enough to knock the air out of him in the most painful way possible.
He smiled almost sweetly as Jared finally came round somewhat, and leaned back in the chair panting hard, eyes shut tight as he fought to calm his breathing.
“Now. Jared? I need you to pay attention to me, I have something to show you....”
Jared shook his head, he didn’t want to see, he was going to show him crime photos and try and convince him it was Jensen but it wasn’t, cause Jensen was alive somewhere he knew it and they were wasting time now. They should be searching for Jensen!
Chris sighed deeply, leaned forward and spoke low and quiet, his voice nothing more than a whisper.
“Jared, you open your eyes now, and you look. You look at what you did, and you tell me how it happened and why. Tell me why you murdered Jensen! For gods sake Jared, don’t make me hurt you again, please?”
Jared heard the promise in his words and wearily sat forward and opened his eyes and looked at Chris Kane.
“I didn’t kill anyone...” His voice was no more than a soft rasp after the blow Chris had delivered to his throat and even talking was painful, but Chris had heard him.
“Ok. So tell me, when was the last time you saw Jensen? And what state did you leave him in?”
Jared rubbed tired eyes and tried to swallow , but his throat was too dry and he gagged and coughed. Chris stood and walked to the door and spoke quietly to some one outside before returning a few moments later with a fresh glass of water. Laying the glass down directly in front of Jared and within his reach he spoke again.
“Drink that, don’t worry it’s only water, your throat hurts like hell I know, then we talk.”
Jared reached with shaky hands and grabbed the glass before Chris changed his mind, and gulped down the water as quickly as his aching throat would allow. Placing the glass on the table and wiping his mouth he glanced in Chris’s direction, finding him staring intently at Jared waiting for him to speak.
“A week ago. I last saw him a week ago. He...we were down by the river just inside the woods, we...we made love, he begged me again to leave, said this town would never accept me, that I was dying slowly here and he wanted us to go somewhere else, start new, be ourselves. I had been afraid to leave...I don’t know why.” He raised his face to Chris then, his eyes pleading for understanding, “I don’t know why, but, I’ve always been afraid to leave, even though....even though I know he was right, this town, all of you people would never look past what you think you know and see me.”
He stopped then, lost in thought, lost in memories of the last time he saw Jensen, beautiful, vibrant Jensen, oh how they had loved that night, how gentle Jensen had been, how he had come hot and heavy in Jensen’s mouth before Jensen had taken him slowly. He blinked back tears he no longer wanted to shed, Jensen was alive, he had to be.
“Go on...”
Jared shook his head to clear it and glanced up again before bowing his head and continuing.
“Afterwards we just lay there on the bank and talked, made plans, I finally agreed to go and he was so happy...so pleased. He uh...he got a call, said it was you actually, that there was an incident in town with old man Murphy, he was drunk again and stripping apparently in the main street, so we parted there, he was heading to meet you and I was going home, to pack, to get ready... and thats it...”
Chris remembered the call he had made that night, and he recalled the light teasing tone in Jensen’s voice as he had answered and said he would be there as soon as he could. He remembered the burning jealousy in his gut when he had ended the call, knowing from the tone of Jensen’s voice who he was with. But Jensen had never made it, wasn’t seen again. Until two days ago, when a mans mutilated body had been found, body so badly disfigured from stab wounds and wild animals it had taken dental records rushed through to identify him.
He remembered seeing the tattered and torn uniform on the body and knowing in his heart that dental records weren’t even needed, especially after Jim had spotted the ring on the victim’s finger. Jensen’s Mother’s ring.
Clearing his throat he sat straight and opened the folder, and Jared visibly flinched backwards, not wanting to see.
“I want you to take a look at these Jared, and tell me, why.... just tell me why, if you were as much in love as you say, tell me why you did this?”
He pushed a picture forward, and Jared moved his head to the side refusing to look and Chris screamed, “LOOK AT IT!” Jared jumped and slowly turned his head and looked down.
The reaction was instant and Chris felt a perverse pleasure at the look of utter horror on the other mans face as he took in the battered and broken body, still in the deputies uniform albeit tattered and torn with holes from the dozens of stab wounds and the gaping hole in the victims face and neck. He pushed another photo forward and another and another, shouting every time Jared looked away, forcing and threatening him until he looked again and again.
Jareds whole body felt weak, bile rose in his throat and he swallowed it down, so much blood, oh god...Jensen...please no...not Jensen... not him too...
Chris’s head snapped up at the mumbled words tumbling from the stricken mans mouth.
“Too? Jared!” He quickly moved to the mans side as Jared collapsed from the chair, cuffed hands over his head as he rocked and mumbled incoherently.
Words tumbled from his mouth in a fashion that terrified Chris as he tried to straighten the man up, but Jared was too far gone, too lost in his own head, in memories buried and long forgotten, all meshing together with the events of the last week confusing him and he fought Chris with a strength borne from terror and a wish to flee, but he had no where to go, no where he could go and he keened high in his throat trying to push the visions of blood and screams and begging back from his mind.
Jim Beaver burst into the room and together the two men fought to control the now thrashing Jared, who was pleading like a child.
“No...no....Jensen...no...please not Jensen, don’t take Jensen too... Dad...Jeff!”
Sobs wracked his body as he lost the battle and exhaustion took over and a shell shocked Chris met Jim’s eyes over the now still body.
“Jim? What the fuck was that about?”
Jim Beaver took a shaky breath and looked at Chris.
“I don’t know Chris, I just don’t know”
As both men released Jared from the cuffs tying him to the table and half dragged him to a holding cell, Jareds head rolled on his shoulders and he moaned low in his throat. Settling Jared on a cot in the cell they moved to leave but the sound of Jareds voice stopped them in their tracks.
“I did it.... I killed him, he is dead and it’s all my fault”
Looking back at the man thrown on the cot, who was staring in wide eyed shock at nothing in particular, Chris Kane felt nothing of the pleasure of a job well done.
He had his confession, but all he felt was sick.
****************************
Two hours later, in an old house an hour out of town , well hidden by trees, one that looked homely and lived in from the outside, but was well out of earshot, a man pulled up.
Five minutes later, he opened the door to the basement, causing bright light to flood the floor below. He trudged slowly down the steep steps, eyes still adjusting to the dim light left after he had shut the door behind him. He walked up to the bars of the cage he had erected there and met the cold , green eyed stare of the man within.
He smiled as he regarded Jensen, god he was beautiful, even sitting there in the old sweatpants and sweater he had put on him after he had drugged him a week ago. He sighed contentedly and Jensen’s eyes narrowed.
“What the fuck have you done? Where’s Jared?”
The man just smiled serenely and Jensen lunged for the bars, just longing to put his hands around his throat and choke the life out of the sadistic bastard. But the chains that gave him just enough room to move around the small cell, but preventing him from approaching anywhere near the bars yanked him back forcefully.
“I swear to god you sadistic fuck, If you do anything to harm Jared, no chains and no bars will keep me from ripping your throat out with my bare hands!” He growled as the man only smiled and spoke for the first time in a week.
“Oh I don’t need to touch Jared my beautiful Jensen, he has just done the work for me...”
Jensens blood ran cold, Jared wouldn’t be so rash, no, Jared wouldn’t....god no....
The man’s smile widened as he caught the look of dawning horror on Jensens face and realised what he thought.
“Oh no....no Jensen he hasn’t committed suicide! “
Jensen sagged with relief, Jared must be going out of his mind with worry. He had to get out of here and back to Jared....
“See, he was shown the photos today...”
“Photos? What fucking photos?” Jensen was pissed and tired of playing this game already.
“The photos of your body of course!” He continued completely ignoring Jensen’s gasp of outrage, “Seems you were stabbed to death Jensen, and poor Jared, suppressing all those memories, they must have brought something back to him, he had quite the episode, thrashing and moaning and screaming your name.”
Jensen paled, oh dear god, Jared thought he was dead, thought he had been stabbed to death, Jesus Christ just seeing those photos must have been enough to bring it all rushing back...
“Yup, I can see what you’re thinking and you are right, it was beautiful! He has confessed Jensen, he has just confessed to stabbing you to death!”
“You sick twisted bastard! You better fucking kill me you sick fuck cause I swear to you, I will kill you with my bare hands when I get out of here.”
The words were growled out and Jensen radiated rage. He had always been a strong person and no cage was gonna keep him here, he knew that. He knew he would get free eventually cause that’s who Jensen was, he was a cop and he would get free and he would take this bastard apart, piece by fucking piece!
“Oh I will kill you. Eventually...But I kinda want to have some fun with you first gay boy, you’ve been flaunting your tight little ass for far too long and pretty soon you’re gonna be mine.”
The man shoved a tray of food far enough into the cell for Jensen to reach, and smiled again.
“I just need Jared taken care of first”
Chapter 4