For The Whored: Beyond Ch. 62

Mathias noticed the glance and it was his own years of experience that kept his face from changing. He wondered if Jordan knew. Doubting it, he pressed on. "I've heard how it starts, any opinions on that?"

Confusion clouded Margaret's face. "Starts?"

"The uncontrollable lust."

Her eyes went wide. "I hadn't heard that part."

"Hm." Finding her reaction to be genuine, he stood up. "Be wary of it. So far, only women are afflicted with it."

When he walked away and disappeared into the crowd, Margaret turned to Robert. "Had you heard that part?"

"No, ma'am."

"How strange." She bit into her sandwich.

----

After lunch, Robert helped Margaret to stand. "Where to, my lovely lady?"

"Oh, I think I could use a nap. I'm a little sleepy."

"As you wish." They walked together in companionable silence.

Margaret worried about what Mathias had said about the uncontrollable lust. Could she be coming down with it, and that's why she was so drawn to Robert? She hoped to hell not. For the first time in decades, she was enjoying the company and attentions of a man, and she wasn't about the give it up for some mysterious fever.

"You seem lost in thought."

She shook her head. "Nothing, really."

"If you ever want to talk..."

She patted his arm. "You'll be the first to know."

They reached the house, and he opened the door for him. She tugged him in after her. "I thought you wanted a nap." He smiled at her.

"I do. I just wanted... oh, I don't know what I want somedays."

His grin was sly. "Me, perhaps?"

The heat rose in her face. "Maybe."

He bent down and brushed his lips against hers. "I'll always give you what you want."

"Touch me. Just a little."

Brushing the back of his fingers down her cheek, he pressed into the kiss. His free hand went up her shirt and found her breast. He cupped the breast and massaged the stiffening nipple with his fingers. She groaned and wrapped her arms around his neck. Gentle as a whisper, he danced his lips with hers. He pulled back slightly and kissed the corner of her mouth. Moving his lips, he kissed her cheek, her jaw, her neck. She moved a hand down and put it on his stomach. Still, he travelled lower. He lifted her shirt and kissed the hardened nipple.

She gasped and her eyes flew open. Running his tongue around the nipple, he teased and tormented the hardened nub. He gently sucked on her nipple, still cupping and massaging the breast. She was panting as she buried her fingers in his hair. "Ah! That's a bit... oh gods." His other hand went down into her skirt and lightly brushed against the top of her hair line. She twisted out of his grasp. "Ah! No!"

Robert hesitated, still in the position she'd left him in. "No?" He frowned. "Did I do something wrong?"

Her face was flush, and she panted as she tried to straighten herself out. "You were doing everything right, and that's the problem. I trust nothing, and no one, and I was seconds away from... Well, it doesn't matter." She straightened her clothes.

"Actually, it does matter. It matters a whole lot to me. I refuse to do anything that would upset you."

"I... I know that." Wrapping her arms around her body she turned away. "I need more time."

"Of course, my lovely lady. We move at your pace."

"I appreciate that." She sighed and dropped her arms. "Now I really do need that nap. I am exhausted all of a sudden."

"I'll leave you to it." He turned for the door.

"No, don't." Turning back to her, he stared. "Um, please take a nap with me?" She looked at him, hopeful. "You can set your gear down and curl up with me."

"Of course!" He got out of his uniform and was down to a shirt and pants in moments. Helping her to bed, he climbed in behind her. She snuggled up against him, her back to his chest. He wrapped his arm around her waist. "Sleep well. I'll be here when you wake."

Margaret nodded. "Thank you." Closing her eyes, she drifted off.

-----

She started screaming. Flailing her arms, she almost fell out of bed if not for Robert's strong grip on her waist. She continued to scream and flail, her nails catching him in the face.

"Shh, shh, you're okay. Come on, it's ok sweetheart, you're safe." He winced when she caught him on the other side of his face. "Frail cripple, my ass." He muttered. "MARGARET! WAKE UP!"

Bucking and scratching, she attempted to fight him off. "No! Not again! Never again! You won't touch me!"

"I'm not trying to touch you, honey. Please wake up!"

All at once the fight went out of her and she collapsed. Tears streamed down her face. "No more, no more." She shook her head.

Cuddling her in his arms, he whispered to her. "It's alright, you're safe now. It's ok. I swear it, no one will hurt you ever again if it's the last thing I do."

She curled up against him and went back out.

"You poor thing. What did they do to you in there?" He brushed her hair back and froze. She was burning up. "No." He whispered. "No! No, no, no, no!" He adjusted her in the bed and got on his armor. Not stopping to think, he bolted for the yard.

At the yard, Jordan was speaking with Mark when he saw Robert running full force towards him. Jordan stopped what he was doing and met Robert at the edge of the yard. "What happened?!"

"Your mother! Something has happened to your mother! I need Elunara!"

Jordan grabbed Robert's breastplate. "Tell me!"

"She was taking a nap, and I heard a scream. She... she was fighting something in her sleep. I tried to wake her, but she..." He winced as he rubbed the scratches on his cheek. "I think she thought I was whatever vexed her in her dreams. But I got her to calm down, but now she's burning up!"

Jordan's eyes went wide. "A fever?"

"Yes!"

Mark stopped beside Jordan. "Let's get Elunara." Mark grabbed Jordan's arm. "You!" He pointed at Robert. "Go back, make sure she's still safe. Jordan, come on, we need Elunara."

Jordan nodded. Both men took off for the house. At the house, Mark took over for the children, as Elunara and Jordan ran to Margaret's house. They found Robert at Maragaret's bedside, holding on to her hand, his head on the bed. When they entered the bedroom, Robert looked up. Elunara took notice of Robert's ravaged face, but Jordan did not.

Elunara approached the bed and began running her hands on Margaret's body. "Hmm."

"Help her." Robert croaked.

"It's the same fever, but not the same. Curious."

"The... same?" Jordan growled as he looked at Robert. Seeing the scratches on the soldier's face, he made his own assumptions. "How dare you touch my mother!" He summoned his sword.

Robert's eyes went wide. "No!" He dropped Margaret's hand and scooted back against the wall. "I didn't touch her! She was asleep! I swear it! Peacefully taking a nap!"

Elunara eyed the soldier. She concentrated her energy into the sleeping woman. Lightly probing her body. "I believe him. This woman hasn't had sex in a while."

Jordan turned to his wife. "You can figure that out?"

Shaking her head, Elunara sighed. "Goddess of sex, remember? I can detect things about people's bodies. She may have the fever, but she did not have sex first."

Jordan dismissed his sword. "Then what happened?"

"It's not even that strong of a fever." Elunara considered. "Tell me about her day."

Robert began explaining the day. "And then she wanted a nap, so she laid down. She went out pretty quickly, and that's all I know."

Margaret's eyes fluttered open. She looked up at Elunara. "What? Why?"

"You're awake!" Robert knelt by the bed and took Margaret's hand. Without thinking, he pressed his lips to the back of her hand.

"Thirsty..."

"I'll get you some water." Robert went for the sink.

Elunara watched the exchange with interest. "He seem odd?" She whispered to Jordan.

"He's a good soldier."

"Sure." She concentrated on Margaret. "You seem alright for now."

Robert came back with a glass of water. Gently cupping Margaret's head, he helped her drink from the glass. "There you go."

"Mm, so dizzy." She dozed off. Robert sat the glass on the bedstand and took Margaret's hand.

"I need to study her. If she was able to break the fever, and so quickly, I need to know why, it may help the others."

"Of course." Robert said.

"You know best, baby." Jordan said at the same time. He eyed Robert. Shaking his head, he turned his attention back to Elunara. "I'll go tell Mark to watch the kids for a little longer."

After Jordan walked out, Elunara turned her attention to Robert. "How long?"

"What?"

"How long have you been in love with Jordan's mother?"

Robert blushed and looked away. "I don't know what you mean."

"Rule number one, never, EVER lie to me. I will ruin your existence."

Robert swallowed hard and looked back up at Elunara. "I... well, I'm not entirely sure. Maybe from the moment I was assigned to her." He ran his hand over Margaret's pretty blonde hair. "It wasn't particularly gradual, nor was it immediate. I could have fallen for her on looks alone, there's this graceful beauty to her. However, when you spend most of your days with a person, you start to learn about them. Even when she wouldn't say a word." He sighed and stroked her forehead with his thumb. "Are you going to turn me in?"

"Did she try to get you to fuck her?"

"No. I'll swear on that. We..." The blush on his face darkened. "We were, you know... getting intimate when she pulled back from me. It hurt to be rejected like that, but I'll give her what she wants, even if it's not me."

"Are you aware of what they did to her in there?"

He shook his head. "She refuses to talk about it. I only know they did something horrible to her and that's why her leg is messed up."

"Vanessas VanCleef was her daughter."

His eyes went wide. "What the fuck?"

"I am betraying that much just so you understand. Some people never recover from that act alone, we don't know what else happened. She won't even speak of it to her son. I wish she would at least speak to me." Elunara frowned and looked at Margaret's peaceful face. "I could at least help her through it. But Margaret won't let her pride break long enough to show any weakness."

"But that's not a weakness..."

"Tell that to someone who's been tortured." She shook her head. "If you can get her to open up, if you can help heal some of those scars, I'll personally vet you to Jordan. However, if you make the situation worse, I'll turn you into a shriveled husk."

"Understood."

"Currently, I need you to think about your day. Think about her specifically. What she did, who she spoke to, who bumped into her. Anything she ate. Anything. If something feels a little off, you let me know immediately."

"Of course. I just found her; I can't lose her." He put his forehead to the back of Margaret's hand. "She made cookies this morning."

"Cookies?"

"It's the only thing I can think of that was unusual today. She made cookies before I even got here, she was pulling them out of the oven when I came in."

Elunara went to Margaret's pantry. She opened the door and frowned. "Damn it, the maids have already been by today, I have no idea what was used. Curse their efficiency." She narrowed her eyes. "Or perhaps..." Margaret stirred in her sleep. Elunara walked back over. Concentrating her energy, she was relieved to find the fever had abated. "Watch her, keep her safe. I must go interrogate some maids."

Elunara left and Robert returned his attention to Margaret. She fluttered her lashes and looked at him. "What?"

"You were having a nightmare. I tried to wake up, but I couldn't, and then you have the fever, but not for very long." He kissed the back of her hand.

"The fever? The same that everyone else is getting?"

He nodded. "According to Elunara."

"Elunara was here?"

"As was High General Jordan."

"Oh." She picked at her blanket. Looking at him fully, she finally noticed the scratches on one cheek and the bruise on the other. "What happened to you? My son didn't do that did he?"

"Actually? You did." He brushed his lips against her hand. "You're stronger than you think you are. At least in the throes of a nightmare."

"I... I'm so sorry."

"No, I'm sorry. I would fight your nightmares for you, but I don't know what they are."

She shook her head. "Not yet."

"Only if and when you want to."