Characters belong to DP Bellisario A Big Mistake

Part Three

Three days later, sitting in Abby's apartment with Tim, I decided that this was the weirdest relationship I'd ever had. Tim and I sat together in the spare room, a monitor in front of us and two sets of earphones. We were going to hear everything. As disturbing as that sounded, it was what we were there for. Tim had planted bugs next to the bed, in the kitchen and in the den and tiny cameras were situated in prominent areas of the rooms. If Chris did admit to raping me, McGee was going to run out of this room and arrest him like the hero I already thought he was. It would all be on tape and the nightmare would be over.

That was the plan.

It wasn't how I'd imagined our second date to turn out but my life rarely seemed on track these days. Maybe this was the best I could ask for.

Not only were there black curtain against every window, hardly needed now since it was night, there was black furniture in all her rooms, some with red cushions completing the Gothic style she obviously loved. And then, of course, there was the bed. The coffin, to be exact.

Abby's obsession with death was more entertaining than frightening. In another life she could have been a witch. She was utterly cool and confident but at the same time if you didn't know her you might think she was just outright crazy.

I wiped my hands together and looked at my watch. The plan was that Abby intended to bring Chris back here by nine-thirty. She predicted the whole evening would be over by eleven.

Tim and I listened to her prediction earlier that day with non-plussed expressions. I could hardly believe I had agreed to any of this. As it was nothing to do with NCIS, Tim swore Tony to secrecy and just the four of us knew about it. Abby was actually quite excited telling us it wasn't often she got to carry out some really frightening-for-some sex acts with a guy who liked it rough. Tim seemed a little hot under the collar and I just wanted the whole evening to be over.

"It'll be fine," he reassured me.

"I hope so. It's the weirdest evening I've ever had."

He nodded. "For me too."

"But I thought you and she had….you know…together?"

"Yeah, we did. But it wasn't, you know, weird."

He emphasised the word 'weird' with a little rise of his eyebrow, which made me smile. He seemed as uncomfortable as I was.

"You're okay with her seeing other guys?"

"Generally, although tonight is a one-off. The guys she's attracted to are not usually rapists." I shuddered at his words. "I'm sorry," he said. "I didn't mean that to sound so cold."

"You and she are really good together."

"Abby and I aren't an item anymore, we are just really good friends. I would do anything for her and she would for me."

"I suppose this would be one of those things she would do for you, huh?" I asked. Tim smiled. "A little above and beyond the call of friendship though, wouldn't you say?"

"Abby's like that. I think she is doing it mainly for you though."

"Because you like me?"

He didn't answer immediately. His eyes smiled first and then his lips followed suit until they parted. "Because I've liked you for a very long time, Emily." He leaned over and kissed me softly. Just as I began sinking into his touch, Abby's key pushed into the lock.

"Oh, God, it's beginning," I gasped.

"It's okay. Just relax and let's see what we get.

Tim looked at the monitor and nodded then swallowed. He switched off the lamp by him and we sat in darkness with just the light of the monitor to illuminate us. He donned his earphones and gave me the other set.

Abby walked into the den backwards, pulling Chris towards her by a scarf around his neck. They were both giggling. As soon as I saw Chris's face, I put my hand over my mouth to suppress any noise that might escape. It was the first time I'd seen him since that dreadful night. Tim looked at me and covered my hand with his. He mouthed 'Okay?' and I nodded. We went back to the screen.

Abby seemed to be enjoying her role in this, enticing Chris towards the camera for our benefit.

"So how do you feel about getting down and dirty?" she asked in her gravely voice.

"With you, honey, I'll do just about anything you want," he told her, then added, "and maybe a few you don't!"

I swallowed. Maybe this wasn't going to be quite so difficult as I first imagined. Chris seemed to be falling for it.

"You want a cup of coffee or something?" Abby offered.

"Not unless you're going to use it."

"I was going to drink it, actually."

Chris tipped his head from side to side, seemingly disappointed.

"But instead of coffee, I could use these." She pulled him into the bedroom and leaned to the side of the bed taking out a pair of handcuffs from the drawer. "I use these all the time, how about you?"

Chris's face lit up straight away. "I get to use them on you first," he told her.

"No, no," she giggled cheekily, "they're mine so I get to use them on you first."

This was all moving way too quickly for me. What ever happened to chatting over a cup of coffee? Maybe I had taken a trip to the wild side somewhere along the lines and I wasn't altogether sure I was equipped to deal with it. I watched the screen with my mouth open, as did Tim I noticed.

"You've got a fantastic place here, Abby," Chris told her. "I've never met anybody quite like you before."

"And you won't again," she said crawling onto the bed on all fours and then kneeling upright. "Come here."

Chris did exactly what she told him to do.

"Now lie down and raise your hands." He did. She cuffed him and ran her fingers up and down his legs, teasing him. He responded quickly, if the bulge in his jeans was anything to go by. I looked at Tim uncomfortably but he didn't take his eyes from the screen. "I'm going to make you suffer," she smiled, straddling him fully clothed.

"I like suffering," he told her.

"I'll bet you do. How about others? Do you like to make them suffer too?"

"Oh yeah, all the time," he admitted.

"Bad?"

"Real bad."

"How bad?" She pushed. "Tell me how bad you like to make others suffer?"

"I hurt them," Chris said.

"How?" She unfastened his shirt slowly, watching him writhe beneath her.

The view the camera gave showed them side on. Abby opened each button delicately then thrust the shirt open revealing Chris's chest. She pinched his nipples hard and listened to him moan.

"Like this?"

"Oh yeah!" he hissed.

"That hurt?"

"Don't stop!"

Abby laughed, watched Chris's eyes close and looked into the camera grinning.

I bit my lip at that moment, she was enjoying it! I looked at Tim's face and he was smiling back at her as if she could see him, like he was enjoying a really good movie. It was slightly voyeuristic but in a good way, a revengeful way.

"Tell me about other girlfriends you've had, Chris. What did you do to them to hurt them?"

Chris opened his eyes for a moment.

"For real?"

"Oh, yeah," she grinned. "Definitely for real. Doesn't do anything for me unless it's for real."

"Sex fantasies," he hissed again, reacting to her touch.

"How nasty?"

"Real nasty."

"For you or for them?"

"This one girl I saw," he told her willingly, "was too cute for words."

I listened with interested. It might have been me, it might not. This was the point of the evening though, I told myself. I was going to hear some horrible stuff but I reminded myself that Tim was next to me the whole time and he wouldn't let anybody hurt me again.

"Oh yeah?" Abby enticed him. "Go on, I want to hear everything. Did she scream?"

"Hell yeah!"

"Cry?"

"Yeah!"

"Cool, what the hell were you doing to her?"

Enjoying what Abby was doing to his lower half too much, he began telling her the story.

"She was this cute thing. Totally naïve, perfect. I held her down. She yelled no but I carried on."

"Rape fantasies?" Abby asked, egging him on. "Ooh, I like!"

Then Chris laughed, eyes still closed. "'Cept I don't think she was fantasising!"

"What was her name?"

"What?"

"Her name," she slapped his chest hard, "I want to know her name!"

Chris opened his eyes and stared at her. Abby kept up the act and slapped him again.

"So are you going to tell me or am I going to have to slap it out of you?"

"Her name, right," he grinned. "It was Emily, I raped Emily!"

I felt giddy, as though I was watching some kind of sick movie and I was the star! It was as incredible as it was perverse.

"Tell me what you did next?"

"It's turning you on?" he asked.

Abby quickly grinned for him, "Oh yeah, it's totally turning me on, Chris."

"She wouldn't stop struggling or screaming so I held my hand over her mouth to shut her up. She was suffering alright."

"You think she was scarred for life over it?"

"Yeah, for sure."

"Tell me her last name," she sighed. "I just need to know her last name."

"Trent," he gasped getting close to his climax. "I raped Emily Trent."

"Yes!" Tim stood to his feet quickly, pulling off the earphones. He threw open the door and ran into the bedroom just as Abby was dismounting.

"You sick bastard!" she slapped him again, this time across his face.

"What?" Chris lay there, handcuffed and vulnerable and losing his impending climax rapidly.

Tim rushed up to the bed and read him his rights.

"What the hells going on?" Chris yelled.

I walked out of the spare room and into the bedroom. I looked down at the pathetic man lying on the best and I smiled.

"Remember me, Chris?"

The look on his face resembled that of a deer in headlights.

I knew it would take me a long time to get over the assault but knowing that Chris was going to be behind bars while I did so was a huge load off my mind.

Maybe I could get on with my life now.

Abby hugged me as Tim re-cuffed Chris with his own cuffs and removed Abby's, handing them back to her.

"You did great there, Abby," he smiled.

"I'm glad I could help."

"Me too," I hugged her again. "I can't believe it's over."

"It's a long time from being over," Tim told me. "But at least your scars will begin to heal now."

---

A few days later, on Friday, Tim came to my desk. I was about to get off a few minutes later so packed up my stuff and he walked me to my car.

"How do you fancy a quiet night in?" he asked as I opened my car door, threw in my jacket and bag and closed it again.

"Yours or mine?"

"Why don't we try the 'mine' thing again? I have a cool new computer game to try and maybe we could get a Chinese take out and look at it together?"

I smiled. "A bottle of wine, maybe?"

My life was a lot different these days. Half a bottle of wine wouldn't make me go search out Tim's gun again. I was pretty sure he'd moved it now anyway.

"Yeah, sure, why not," he grinned. "Let's push the boat out.

"Sounds like fun," I told him. "In fact, I can't wait."

"Me either." He leaned forwards, cupped my chin and kissed me. "Things are going to be different this time, Emily, I promise."

He had a knack of changing his tone of voice in a single moment, enveloping me into a different mood. It really was seductive.

Things were different already. I hadn't even thought about anything bad in over twenty-four hours and I wasn't about to let it in now, not with Tim this close to me. His body held me protectively against my car as I looked up into his grey-green eyes and nodded

"I know, Tim," I smiled, "I know."

11