The Live-In Ch. 01

"Harbor State."

Jason took a longer drag off the cigar, smiling to himself.

"Fucking beautiful."

"Absolutely. So...I need to ask. Are you sure you want to go through with that plan? She is your mom after all."

"My mom died when they did. That bitch is not my mom. The plan remains the same. Every fucking day that she's there."

"Okay son. Fair enough. I'll see you at the funeral."

"Stan. One thing."

"What's that?"

"I need to watch it happen." Stan went quiet for a moment before responding.

"Are you sure?"

"Absolutely positive." Jason answered, finding the metal stamp that Jack had given to him on the desk. He picked it up by the handle and flicked open the Zippo, holding the metal part over the flame, turning the metal a bright red. He smiled at the memory of what his dad told him and repeated it out loud.

"Make your mark. Claim what's yours."

"Don't worry. I will. And I had a two way mirror put in there years ago. You can watch easily."

"Good. Talk soon." Jason ended the call but still heard the shower running. He looked once more at metal stamp, the roses intertwined together by the stem. A trademark stamp to declare something as his. A mark of his work or his ownership.

A brand.

"Claim what's mine." Jason said. A smile spreads as he heats up the stamp with the Zippo once more. When the metal is once again a bright glowing red, Jason gets up from the desk and walks into the bathroom.

"Tim. There's just one more thing to tell you."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A week and a half after their murders, Jack, Tracy, and the unborn baby were laid to rest. Jason had access to more than enough money to pay for the funeral, burial lots, coffins, and everything else, but as a gesture of sympathy, Jack's opponent in the race for governor (who won the race by default) reached out to the funeral home and paid for everything on his own dime. The newly appointed Governor James Rivers had even gone as far as to make the trip to the funeral to give Jason his most sincere condolences.

"For what it's worth, your father was a great politician, Jason. In spite of our differences of opinion, I'll even say that he would have made a great governor. But, as a human being, he was amazing. He paid for my wife's service when she passed away earlier this year, so I felt it was only right for me to return the favor." Rivers said as he shook Jason's hand after the service.

"Thank you, Governor. I appreciate the kind words...and the gesture. "

"I hope you'll continue in the family tradition, young man. I'm sure you'll do great as well."

"I intend to, sir. We'll see how the next few years go. Maybe next time, you'll be running against me instead."

Governor Rivers smiled and claps Jason on the shoulder.

"I'll be looking forward to that. Keep your chin up, and if there's anything I can do, by all means, contact me directly."

"Yes sir. I'll be in touch soon. I have one thing to discuss with you in time."

"Very well. We'll talk soon." Rivers shakes Jason's hand once more, before leaving the line of people to head towards his escort to his car. Jason smiled slightly, thinking to himself about how great of a politician his father was if even the people he ran against were ready and willing to help out and come to Jason's side. That was a huge advantage to the young up and coming politician and he knew it. He had to figure out how to keep that as the case.

As the line of people giving their condolences to Jason and Stan continued to go on and on, Jason realized how many people his father made an impact on. Many of which, he truly had no idea of who they were, but he was more than happy to find out. Several different politicians of all levels, a number of law enforcement officers, more lawyers than he could count, and a handful of judges. Jason made sure to get a business card from every single one before they left.

Finally, after what seemed like forever, Jason had a familiar face come up in line. One that he didn't expect to see, but a part of him was kind of glad to see.

"Hi Jason..."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After the news broke and she heard what had happened just a couple of weeks after she talked to Diane, Rachel had been absolutely beside herself, wrecked at the thought that even though she wasn't the one to pull the trigger, she still had plenty of blood on her hands.

Two people were dead because she made up a little lie in order to get some revenge on the woman who stole her boyfriend. At least, she thought it was a little lie. Rachel had no idea about what had happened in the office in the days since Jason's birthday, or even the couple of months leading up to it. As far as she knew, Tracy could have just been a sweet woman doing her job, only to fall for the boss's son.

In time, she would learn what exactly did go on behind the closed door of the top floor office. But, for now, she was being blindsided by the guilt she had felt in her part of the murders.

For days, Rachel stayed locked in her room at her parents' house, the shock factor and guilty feelings constantly smacking her around. She felt pain for Jason, having lost not only his dad, but also Tracy. Even though she had a deep hatred for the blonde bitch, she honestly wanted Jason to be happy no matter what. If that meant screwing the secretary, so be it. She still had a hope that over time, Jason would get tired of her and come back to Rachel.

Now, that option had been ripped away.

When she saw the obituaries online, along with a short article about the arrest of Diane Rose, Rachel decided that she was going to step up and put her own feelings on the backburner. She would attend the funeral, one combined service for both Jack Rose and Tracy Waterson, and she would offer Jason her condolences and support. Jason was alone now. He needed the support.

Selfishly, Rachel briefly considered this as an open door to win Jason back. She ultimately decided that she would not make any attempts at that for the foreseeable future.

But, she wasn't about to stop that train either. She looked through her closet and found the shortest, sexiest black dress she owned, and held it in front of herself in a mirror, modeling it.

"Yeah. That will work." Rachel said with a smile.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Rachel...thank you for coming. I...didn't expect to see you here after everything that happened." Jason said to his ex-girlfriend, after she gave him a tight hug. He couldn't help but notice her perfume and how gorgeous she looked in this dress. He bit his tongue, remembering where he was and why he was there. He offers her a smile and she gladly returns her own.

"I know, and I wanted to offer my condolences to you. I can't even imagine the pain you must be going through right now." Rachel said with a sympathetic expression on her face. Jason looked down to his feet and gritted his teeth.

"I truly do appreciate you coming out here. I needed that." Jason said.

"Jason, I'll always care for you no matter what. If you need the support, or a listening ear, or even just a distraction from all of this, I'm just a phone call away."

It was here when Jason realized what was going on. Rachel coming here, wearing that dress, the perfume that he picked out for her last Christmas, her offering to spend time listening to him or just being with him.

Jason saw right through it. Rachel was trying to win him back.

He didn't know at this point what role she had in it, but Jason suddenly considered the fact that Rachel might have played a part in the murders. He needed to find out what part that was.

He needed to make her pay.

"How about dinner tonight?" Jason asked, catching Rachel off guard.

"Tonight? Jason...are you sure?"

"Yes. I'll be working on some things at the office, but I'll order in. Swing by this evening. We'll talk over dinner."

"Ss....sure. Yeah, sounds great! 7 o'clock?"

"Sounds good. It's a date." Jason said, causing Rachel to blush a little in the cheeks. "Thanks again for coming out. I've got to get through this line. I'll see you tonight."

"Okay...bye. See you soon!" Rachel said, smiling ear to ear as she walked away. Jason looked over at Stan, who was giving Jason a look of confusion mixed with anger.

"Moving on already kid?" Stan asked, staring daggers into Jason.

"No. Never moving on. Call this an interrogation. She knows something about this and I'm going to get it out of her. And then, she's going to pay for it." Jason said, never once breaking his words. Stan looks at Jason and then slowly smiles.

"Well then. Do what you've got to do kid."

"Trust me. I'm going to. I've already got plans for her."

Jason grabbed his phone from his pocket in between people in line and sent a message to Tim. It included a picture of Rachel.

"Tim. Tonight, you'll need to be at the office. I'll be having company on the top floor. You need to make sure she makes it up, and nobody else. And, you'll need to get me a pair of handcuffs too."

"Okay Mr. Rose. No problem at all. Sounds like you've got a pretty hot date tonight."

"She's no Tracy, but she will do for now. I'll see you later on."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Immediately after the funeral service, Stan and Jason had another talk.

"Do you think she'll tell you anything?" Stan asked.

"Yeah, I know Rachel well enough to say that it won't take too much pressing and she'll crack under the pressure. She'll tell me what she knows...if anything. But, I'm positive she has something to get off her chest."

"Are you sure? What makes you think she will know anything?"

"She wouldn't have shown up if she didn't feel guilty about something. She hated Tracy, and Tracy hated her. Tracy busted her up pretty good last time they were near each other." Jason said, causing Stan to smile.

"That girl packed a hell of a punch. All those years watching UFC at the chicken wing place taught her something I guess." Stan says with a chuckle, before wiping a single tear from his eye. "Alright, so if she admits to anything, what's your plan?"

"She's going to feel a fraction of the pain she caused us. I'll make sure of that. I let her believe that I want her to come around, and knowing her, she probably thinks this is her time to win me back and make a life with me again. So, I'll get what I need to know from her and then I'll use her feelings against her. She'll leave with her regrets, but when it's all done, I will have her in my grip. You'll have your chance with her soon." Stan nods at this.

"Fair enough kid. Fair enough. Now, what's the plan for this afternoon? Still the same?"

"Yes. She's being transferred this afternoon. You call me when you catch wind that she's there. I'll come out and get myself set up. Then, when the time is right, you and Kurt go get her and give her your best welcoming party."

"You're sure you want to watch? It's your mom...things could get pretty ugly for her..."

"Good. Make her regret everything instantly. Get rough with her. She's not to have any pleasure from this at all. I want her screams. I want her tears. I want her in pain. I want her fearing for her life every FUCKING day. When the time is right, I'll allow her to end it. But until then, she suffers every single day. So, make sure to get it up when needed."

"No worries there kid." Stan smiles. "Still got a damn good flow going down there. She never wanted to take it anywhere except her mouth back when I screwed around with her and your dad. She won't have any say in the matter when Kurt shoves his cock down her throat and I ram mine up her ass." Jason felt his cock twitch a little at the thought of what Stan had just said, allowing a smile to spread across his face.

"Good deal. Kurt is on board?"

"Absolutely. He hasn't had any action in a while and he loved Tracy like his own kid. He wants revenge just as much. He'll be more than willing to help."

"Good. Then the plan is set. And Stan..." Jason says, placing a hand on Stan's shoulder as he looked him in the eye. "...She gets no pleasure from this. Even if you want to, do not put it in her pussy. From the sounds of it, she's not a fan of anal. Make damn sure she's not." Stan smiles, his own cock now twitching a little bit.

"Don't worry kid. She won't like this one going up her ass at all. It's going to hurt." Stan said, trying not to smile too much as he talked to Jason about sodomizing his mom. Jason simply smiled.

"Good. Call me when you're ready for me. I'm going back to the office for a bit to try to find more on her laptop." Stan cocked his head to the side upon hearing this.

"Her laptop? You got that? How?"

"I went to the house a few days ago to grab some things before crashing at your place. They weren't done at the office yet, so the one officer stationed at the house let me in to grab some things before the crime scene techs showed up. He did that off the books, so don't say a word." Stan shakes his head, and Jason continues. "I almost walked out without it, but I grabbed it last minute. That's how I found out..."Jason stopped himself.

"Found out what?" Stan asked, yet Jason didn't answer. "Found out WHAT?!"

"She had a camera planted. She was spying on dad." Jason said looking at the ground as Stan drew in a breath. "She caught dad and Tracy in the act. She told me that she was pregnant and we decided we were making things official between us. She was going to tell dad because...well..."

"She was screwing your dad. Then, you came along..." Jason nodded. "Oh good God, you two did her together?!"

"Yes. First time on my 18th birthday. A few times after that." Jason said, almost embarrassed to tell Stan what they did with his daughter. Stan just shook his head and laughed.

"God, that girl got her mom's wild side apparently." Stan said, looking at Jason. "More reason to give it to your mom then." Stan said, making Jason smile.

"Fair enough." Jason said. "But anyway, yeah. I've got her laptop. Luckily it's not locked by a password or anything, so I can get in it easy. I'll see if I can dig up anything else to use against her before I turn it over to the proper authorities. I'll go do that today while I wait for your call."

"Okay kid. I'll keep you posted and tell Kurt we're on. You do the same." Stan said, opening his arms and offering Jason a hug. Jason accepted and returned the hug. Both men let go of each other, then reached down and grabbed a handful of dirt, dropping the dirt on top the coffin of Tracy 6 feet below in the ground.

Stan left, and Jason went to his father's grave to repeat the act of tossing a handful of dirt on his father's coffin. Jason grabbed some dirt and crouched down closer to the ground, looking directly at his father's coffin down below in the earth.

"I'm going to make them all pay, dad. I swear to you. I'll avenge you, Tracy, and the baby. Take care of them for me." Jason whispered before standing up, extending his hand out, and releasing the dirt onto his father's coffin. He stood back as the grave diggers came over to bury Jack and Tracy in their final resting places.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Jason spent the afternoon in the office, looking through his mom's laptop, checking her Google search history, different websites she had visited (where along with several sex toy websites, Jason discovered where the camera came from), and checked her Facebook profile and messages. He was combing through his mother's digital life trying to get some kind of information on his mom. Trying to figure out if she roped anyone else into this web she made. He was met with several dead ends. His mother hadn't been planning this out or keeping any secrets as far as he could tell. In his frustration, he slammed the laptop shut. He was startled by the sound of his cell phone ringing. He picked it up and didn't recognize the number displayed on the screen, but chose to answer the call anyway.

"Hello?"

"Hey, is this Jason Rose?"

"Yeah. Who the fuck is this?"

"Jason, it's me. Nathan Turner. The uhh...officer who was on duty at your house before the techs showed up." Jason's tone changed immediately, remembering the younger officer. He was a couple of years older than Jason, but close enough in age to click with and form a friendship of sorts.

"Hey Nathan. Sorry about the rude greeting. It's been a hell of a day."

"No worries at all Jason. I understand. I hope the service was nice."

"It was as nice as a funeral can be I guess. What can I help you with?"

"Okay so, it's not really a favor or anything like that, but I do have a question for you."

"Yeah, go ahead. I'll help as best as I can."

"Okay, so...we scoped out the house, trying to find anything we could to help out on the case. Tried finding any papers or a computer or anything..."

"Shit. He knows I grabbed the laptop." Jason thinks to himself, focusing on Nathan's words as he continued.

"...long and short is, we've discovered nothing to let us believe this was premeditated. She wasn't planning this."

"So, this was just a case of her coming unglued?" Jason asked, keeping his lips tight in regards to his mom's motive that he saw on film on her laptop.

"Well, we were kind of thinking that, but then we found her cell phone. She had received several calls from one number in particular. A California number."

"California? What do you mean? Like, a insurance company or something?"

"That's what we thought at first, but...this number left a voice-mail with their last call. It was a male by the name of Robert Stark. He...well, he was asking your mom about money."

"Money? Like, was he selling something to her or something else?" Jason asked as he scribbled down on a Post-it note:

Robert Stark California Money?

"Well, based off his voice-mail, it seems like your mom and dad had been paying this man for a while. And, it's been...a lot."

"How much? And for how long?"

"We're not sure how long it's been going on, but we're going to look into it. They've been paying him $250,000 every year though."

Jason's eyes grow wide and he sinks back into the chair he's sitting in. This wasn't money for a job or anything like that.

This was "hush money". This guy had something on his parents.

"Jason? Are you there?"

"Yeah, yeah...I'm here. Just trying to think if I know this guy or not. I don't remember ever hearing of mom or dad talking about this guy."

"Okay. That was my question for you. But now, I've got another one."

"Okay, go ahead." Jason said, still trying to wrap his head around everything.

"So, we don't know why your parents were paying this guy, or how long. We also don't know if he is expecting more from you or what the hell his connection is to your family, or if he had anything to do with the murders. But, we don't want to run the man off in case he can give us something to work with."

"So, spell it out for me Nathan. What do I need to do?"

"Well...I'm not gonna tip toe around this. I'm making the move from patrolman to detective. I was holding off for an opening, but with this case involving a high ranking politician in our state, they called for all hands on deck. So, I got promotion early. They assigned me to this case."

"Congratulations for the promotion...Detective Turner.."

"Please. I'm still Nathan with you."

"Very well, Nathan. You're asking for a favor. Let me help. What can I do?"

"Okay. So...if you're willing...I'd like to bring your mom's cellphone to you. I'd like you to call Mr. Storms and try to figure out what I'd going on here. I'll be there to record the conversation and listen in. If he's got anything to do with this, we'll make the trip to California and arrest him. If not, the recording will be erased, his name will be cleared, and life goes on. Are you okay with this?"

"Absolutely. How about...tomorrow morning, 9am sharp? You can meet me at Rose Tower in the office."