Warning: Rape Scene

Unlawfully Yours

Chapter III



Cole and Paul found out that after many detours, Phoebe had gone back to the main road leading from Prescott to Tucson. There, they were faced with a certain dilemma.

"Which way do you think she went," Cole asked his companion of fortune.

"Well, for one thing, I doubt that she went back to Prescott… and I see no trace of her leaving the road around here…so it seems that she at least headed toward Tucson. We'll have to keep our eyes open for signs of another impromptu detour…"

"It's gonna be hard to tell…" Cole added pensively.

"We'll have to bet on luck here."

"Our luck… her bad luck," Cole went on darkly, while turning the mule in the direction of Tucson without waiting.

Paul again watched him strangely as he kicked his horse and started at a slow pace behind Cole. He wondered if their goals were not diametrically opposed at this point. He wanted to find Phoebe just as badly as Cole did, but obviously for very different reasons. Cole displayed all the signs of a man seeking revenge, but at the same time, he also seemed conflicted about it. Paul's only problem with it was that Cole had no obvious interest in the gold anymore. He wondered also if the quest for gold was truly what had motivated Cole's trip to Arizona in the first place. Yet, rare were those unseasoned visitors who came to these parts for other reasons, at the exception of some would-be ranchers. He had realized early on that Cole was very green at this nature thing. It didn't take much of an observer to see that he had probably spent most of his life in a cozy environment with all the comforts of a big city. This was not to say that he believed the man unable to hold his own… But simply that in this wilderness, sometimes it took more than guts to survive.

At any rate, he didn't know many of those infected with gold fever that would've been healed from it so quickly, no matter the motivation. So again, the question was, had it ever mattered to him in the first place; and if not, then why, Paul asked himself again? He truly wished that he knew more about his companion at this point, and would've much preferred that the man was in it for the gold. Things would've been so much easier. He sighed and figured that he'd have to take care of this problem when it presented itself. In the meantime, he would use Cole's determination at finding her to its full extent. Two pairs of eyes were better than one. When he had made this decision, he kicked the horse anew and sped up to move up front, while still carefully observing the sides of the road along the way.

Phoebe was nearing her destination with trepidation. She had left the trail about an hour earlier and led the horses through a tortuous canyon toward the gang's hideout. This of course wasn't where she'd find the money. However, she had some hope of finding Reggie there or at least an indication of where he had gone from there. That day in the desert, she had known that Lenny and Carl were going there. When she had joined his band, she had been convinced that he hid the money there somewhere, even if he said that he didn't. A few days before the coach robbery, he had caught her snooping around as he said and had gotten really angry. He had grabbed her by the throat almost with rage and she remembered that she had believed it to be the end for her. She had to beg for him to trust in her loyalty that day. In prison, she had time to reflect on his sudden acceptance of her word and knew that he had already made the decision to dump her, even as he had taken her that day. It gave their romp a whole other meaning, as did that night in the hotel. She was not ready to forgive this trickery, even though she had meant to steal from him. After all, he was a thief himself, but promised that his band was his family and as such, that they would never give each other up. However, her plan called for more subtlety than simple revenge and she intended to stick to it until she got what she wanted.

After one last turn, she found herself facing the shack she had shared with them. There were no horses or any sign of activities around. Yet, she could see fresh prints in the dust. It gave her hope that they would come back soon. She thought again of how she would remind Reggie of all he had promised her before he betrayed her; of how she had endured even molestation in prison to protect their secret. Phoebe would do anything necessary to get back into the inner circle. She left the horses at the waterhole and picking up the pack she'd stolen from Cole, she entered the shack cautiously, still unsure of what would happen in spite of her resolve. Nobody was there, but she was relieved to see that they had not abandoned the place as she had feared. There was food stacked on an open shelf, along with a few pieces of clothing piled up on a cot that she used to share with Reggie. This sufficed to convince Phoebe that they would be back soon. They were either on another scheme, or preparing one. Reassured on that point, she started a fire, and after eating some of the food, she began to warm up some water. She had wanted a bath so bad, and now she intended to relax in there for as long as she could. The next few hours or days promised to be tense.

Soon the tub that they kept near the fireplace was filled with delightfully warm water. She stripped down quickly and entered the water with the sensation that her lover was enveloping her. She sighed of contentment, determined to forget about the possible danger to her, as the water caressed her skin. It had been over a month since she had such a luxury. As she began to relax, her thought wandered back to the man who had taken her out of prison. Ever since she had left him, the memory of his taut body had come back to haunt her many times, making her feel a want that even then caused an arousal to her as her hips moved back and forth slowly, allowing the water to caress her loins deliciously, while she imagine that he was inside her, filling her. In her mind's eye, she was watching his face tensing from the pleasure she gave him. But then he opened his eyes and looked at her with hatred. It broke the moment for her, as she painfully remembered that he must want to kill her, not pleasure her after the way she had treated him. She had been so distracted by her fantasy that she had lost track of time, and even of her surroundings. This is why when a hand plunged in the water and grabbed her loin brutally, she screamed in surprise. She opened her eyes to find Carl there with a cruel smirk spreading over his lips.

"Well, well, well," he said then, even as his grip tightened painfully on her groin. She groaned in pain this time, as she tried to push him away.

"Let go of me," she uttered between clenched teeth, even as she felt his rough fingers plunging inside her.

"Oh come on, Phoebe. You always liked it rough. Reggie told me," he said hoarsely as he grabbed her wrists with his large hands and rudely pulled her arms over her head.

"Reggie's gonna kill you if he finds out you touched me, Carl," she uttered again, while trying her best to hide how scared she truly was. Carl was crazy, and also frustrated in her idea. She'd seen him naked and frankly, she thought that all his obvious anger must have come from a complex due to the ridiculously small size of his manhood. Where he couldn't perform and give pleasure to a woman however, he took his own pleasure by inflicting pain on them, as she'd been witness to his nauseating idea of sex.

"Reggie is not gonna be here until tomorrow, Phoebe. And frankly, I think that he'd want me to put a bullet between your eyeballs. So if I were you, I'd count myself lucky that I've always wondered how it would feel to nail you…"

Phoebe tried to close her legs and retreat away from his painful grasp, but he pushed harder, causing her to let out a loud scream of pain as it felt like he was driving his whole fist inside of her. The pain had been so intense that she fainted. He saw her relaxing and used this time to let go of her wrists and pull down his pants. When she came to, he was again holding her wrists and he was shoving his shaft toward her face. Phoebe reacted by taking him into her mouth and biting as hard as she could.

Carl's agonizing scream was very satisfying to her as he let go of her and finally removed his filthy hand from inside her. She hurried out of the tub, even as she saw him looking down at his shaft in horror, as if he feared she'd bit it off. She tried to run to the door, but before she could reach it however, he ran to her and grabbed her hair. Then he threw her back on the hard floor of the shack. She passed out again when her head hit hard on the wooden surface.

"You bitch," Carl growled, while he was massaging his groin with a grimace of pain. "By the time I'm done with you, you're gonna beg me to kill you…"

Cole and Paul had been riding for hours and met only a few travelers along the way, but of Phoebe, they could find no trace. Cole was actually starting to wonder about the futility of searching for her in this vast expanse On one side of the road, the desert went well beyond his range of vision. On the other side, the road was lined up by a small range of mountains, cut in places by narrow gorges. Paul had gone ahead a few hundred feet and while alone with his thoughts, Cole was also pondering whether he was still angry or simply eager to find her. His conflicted feelings about the girl had been torturing him ever since this fantasy he had in the desert. By moments, he saw himself dragging her by her hair all the way back to Prescott and throwing her back in the cell, while he would laugh at her misfortune. But however satisfying the thought was, he couldn't help also imagining what it would be like to taste her fair skin, and to feel her mouth on his, fantasizing as he was that she'd want it as much as he did, as they shared the ultimate thrill. Even as he looked down a particularly tortuous gorge for signs of her passage, he felt the pants tightening from his arousal and almost begged for release, while at the same time raging against himself for the character flaw he thought this was. How could he hate her so much, and yet want her so bad? No matter how many times he'd asked himself this question however, no answer had been forthcoming. He had almost given up on that particular gorge when the sun reflecting on something shiny caught his attention.

"Paul," he called loudly, while already directing the mule toward the narrow passage.

Paul stopped and sighed, while wondering if this was again one of Cole's wild goose chases. Many times since this morning, he had gone and explored his companion's sightings. They had even lost over an hour following the tracks left by a lone horse, in spite of Paul's assurances that Phoebe most probably still had the second horse with her. Indeed, they found that a hunter was responsible for those tracks and had to turn around. When Paul looked back, he realized that Cole wasn't waiting for him this time, and he hurried back.

Phoebe felt the pain in the back of her head first, and then a chill coursed through her as she became aware of a breeze on her bare skin. She tried to bring her arms over herself only to realize that they were tied up behind her head. When she tried to move her legs, she found that her ankles were also restrained by ropes that tightened as she tried to pull on them, while they painfully bit into her skin. Frightened, she opened her eyes and found herself looking up at the darkening evening sky and by turning to the side she could see the sun going down behind the nearest mountain. Underneath her was a hard wooden surface and she realized that she was lying on the cot that had been inside the shack before. The mattress had been removed however and as she struggled to break free, splinters entered her buttocks and back painfully. The pain was nothing in the face of her growing fear however, as glancing on the other side, she saw Carl coming out of the shack and heading toward her with a knife in his right hand.

"What are you doing," she asked in a trembling voice, as she tried again to loosen her bounds but without success. The more she struggled, the tighter they got.

Carl seemed amused at seeing her so frightened, and for a long moment, he only watched her without a word, while waving the knife slowly in her field of vision.

"Are you cold, baby? Don't worry, I'll warm you up," he finally said, and Phoebe had to repress a scream of fright, as she was unwilling to give him any satisfaction. He put the point of the knife near her throat and pushed on it until she thought he drew blood; then he began trailing it toward her left breast, and then went on painfully tracing a line around her nipple. Phoebe bit her lips to keep in the groan of pain that she felt coming.

"Oh the brave little girl," Carl mocked cruelly, as the knife went down toward her belly, still causing a searing pain all the way down. As the knife went even further down, Phoebe's thighs began shaking on their own, as she anticipated the horrible fate he had in mind for her. She tried to close them together, but Carl grabbed the inside of one and pulled hard, opening her for the knife to slide between the labia and touch the most sensitive part of her body. This time she couldn't repress a scream and Carl laughed crazily at this.

"Yeah, you like it don't you," he said then as the knife was pulled away only to be returned immediately on the flat side of it. He began stroking her with it, the cold metal painfully rubbing against her already hurting clitoris while the sharp side of it appeared to cut into the labia. It might as well have for Phoebe as the pain was becoming unbearable and she wished that she'd faint again. What made things worse was that she knew he was only getting started, and when he spoke, Carl confirmed it.

"Now baby," he said as he removed the knife, which she had feared he'd shove inside her, "you don't want me to give you pleasure with my hands, and you almost bit off my dick, so I thought that something bigger and hotter might satisfy you."

She opened wide eyes at this, experiencing a horrified anticipation, as Carl walked back toward the shack. When he came out, she understood that things were even worse than she had imagined. He held a thick stick in his hand and this one was glowing like amber.

"No, "please Carl, no, I'll do anything, I'll do anything you want but don't do this, please don't," she begged with a teary voice, as she struggled crazily against her bounds. However Carl didn't stop and soon he was waving the stick over her face.

"What should we do first? Maybe put a little color in that pretty face of yours? Won't be so pretty anymore now will it?"

Phoebe again tried to dissuade him:

"Carl, please, let me give you pleasure hey? Like you never had in your life… Come on, you know I'm good at it. You don't wanna hurt me."

Carl chuckled crazily as he moved the stick slowly down her belly, close enough for her to already feel the burn on her skin.

"You should've thought of that before." He said as the stick was now hovering over her midsection. Meanwhile, he pushed down his pants and began stroking himself as if the sight of her fear was most exciting. Phoebe regretted not to have bit harder then, even through her abject fear.

When he was hard and fully aroused, he let go of his shaft and again grabbed her thigh, pulling hard as she felt the heat from the stick increasing. She was sure that it was the end for her when the loud report of a gun shot resounded in the gorge.

Suddenly, Carl lifted the stick away from her and looked up in surprise while she saw a blood stain enlarging rapidly on his shirt at chest level. Then without a single scream he fell backward and out of her sight.

Phoebe was now shaking all over and didn't know if she should be relieved or still scared to find out who was coming. If it was Reggie, he might just decide to put her out of her misery. Then a voice she never thought she'd hear again called her name and even if she thought that he must also be angry with her, she felt that he would never hurt her.

"Phoebe," Cole was calling as he approached her with a horrible feeling of helplessness, and indeed saw that this was Phoebe. He feared that it would be too late for her until she gazed back at him with what he thought looked like gratitude. Hurriedly, he picked up the knife that Carl had apparently dropped to the ground by her side and he cut her bounds, even as Paul was coming toward them, still holding the gun that he had used to kill the rapist. He had tried to keep Cole from running to her just in case more had been lurking about but there was no holding him back.

As soon as Cole had freed her, he tried to help her up. However, rather than accepting his assistance, she pushed him off, grabbing the knife suddenly, and without a word, going toward Carl's inert form. She bent toward him and grabbing his still erect shaft firmly, she cut it off in one swift move, and then shoved the bloody remains deeply down his throat. Phoebe then looked at her handy work with a single regret… He had not felt it and Phoebe so wished that he had.

"Now you truly are dick less," she growled before letting herself fall on her knees, shaking anew from the shock and the cold.

Her two rescuers watched this with a mixture of understanding and uneasiness, until Paul finally went inside the shack and came back with a thick blanket that he wrapped around her shoulders.

Then, Paul and Cole encouraged her to come inside where she sat near the fire without a word for what seemed like an eternity to the two men. Neither one of them could find anything to say to her, so they kept silent.

Meanwhile, Paul had gone back and carried Carl's body some ways from the shack, and then thrown a few rocks over him… even if he had considered leaving him for the coyotes. The only reason he didn't was that it would only bring them too close to their location and endanger their mounts. When he had returned, Cole had shaken his head dejectedly at his silent question when Paul saw Phoebe still unmoving. Much later she finally spoke, startling the both of them.

"I need a bath…"

She turned her head toward the tub, but even if the water had still been hot, she'd never had climbed into it.

Cole hesitated only a moment before rolling the tub outside and draining it. Meanwhile, Paul began warming up water and used the time to speak to her privately.

"Phoebe, I'm sorry for what happened…"

Phoebe looked up dubiously.

"Thanks for killing him, but don't bullshit me with your compassion, Paul…We both know you only want one thing. I won't spill the beans if that's what you're afraid of. I don't know either why he's here… And I'm sure as hell you didn't risk telling him why you are…"

"Fine…as long as we understand each other. It's also in your best interest, Phoebe…"

She almost told him off, but Cole was coming back in and they stopped talking. Cole watched them curiously for a moment, but then he shrugged it off and set the tub back where it was, helping Paul fill it for her.

Once it was ready, Phoebe curtly demanded to be alone. They didn't protest and went out of the shack in the now dark night. Paul started a fire outside and they waited for another long time in silence.

Phoebe climbed uncertainly in the tub at first. She kept her eyes wide opened for all the time she was in, not feeling any wellbeing at her ablutions this time. She still felt pain in her loins but that didn't keep her from rubbing it vigorously, as she couldn't help imagining that his filth still dirtied her. After long minutes of this, she began examining herself and saw that the knife had not broken her skin. However she could see the red mark of its passage all the way from her breast to her lower abdomen. She wondered absently if it would leave a scar, but that wouldn't have been the first one. Even if it had been her most horrible experience, she had seen some tough times before. Men were often violent with her. They probably thought that a street rat like her wasn't worth their respect; and frankly, she had always returned the sentiment. This was why she had been so surprised by the horrified expression on Cole's face earlier. He had seemed genuinely pained for her. And this in spite of the fact that he must have despised her. Although, this gesture was little comfort, it still mattered somewhat to her and helped her putting this horror behind her at least for the time being. Phoebe got out of the tub slowly and after drying herself, she quickly put on some of Reggie's clothes before going out. She owed them a warning about Reggie and besides, it could help if she had some back up she had finally decided. If nothing else, her ordeal had taught her that.

Cole and Paul immediately turned toward her when they heard the door.

"Hey," Phoebe said then…she paused at length, then she came closer, sitting on a stump before speaking again.

"I've got to warn you that Reggie's gonna be here sometimes tomorrow. At least that's what…" Phoebe stopped, unwilling to mention his name. "He said…" she trailed at last.

"Well, we're not unprotected," Paul replied, while indicating the gun by his side.

"Yes, but if he finds you here, I'll never get him to tell me where the money is…"

Cole looked up in astonishment:

"You can't mean that."

"What?"

"I mean, you can't actually want to go and rejoin with this bandit. Not after what his accomplice did to you…no amount of money is worth that risk."

"Frankly, that is none of your business. And what do you care anyway. You probably think that I deserved it."

Phoebe didn't know why she was so harsh. Probably because she still couldn't believe that he sincerely had cared.

Cole was so floored by this that he couldn't think of anything to tell her, which seemed to confirm Phoebe's suspicions. She looked away from him and continued:

"You two should stay out of sight, and be careful because Reggie is pretty smart. He won't be fooled easily."

Paul turned to her dubiously:

"Which brings to mind…how are you gonna fool him?"

"Not that I really have to explain anything to either one of you, but anyway…what just happened may have been a blessing in disguise…"

Again she saw Cole reacting negatively at her comment, but he still didn't say anything.

"I'll tell Reggie that I got raped in prison and threatened to squeal to the judge. There may not be much of a law around these parts, but raping a woman's still badly regarded by those pricks from the city. They prefer to keep it under wrap and Reggie will believe me when I tell him that they let me out for that reason."

"He still won't trust you…"

"I'll tell him that they were trying to make me talk…I'll show him…He'll probably take me back just to piss them off. He always had a weakness for me… even after he thought I betrayed him."

Cole had just about enough of this and he stood up and walked away. Phoebe frowned at this, unsure of anything at this point, but she wasn't going to let him or anyone hinder her resolve.

"If he can't cut it," she told Paul, "maybe we should find a way to ditch him again…"

"Now wait a minute, Phoebe…if you expect me to play this little trick on him with you, you got something else coming to you…"

Phoebe made an impatient gesture before answering:

"I didn't mean that! I mean, he's not cut out for this stuff. He's not like us…"

Paul cast a wondering look the way Cole left then.

"I don't know. He went after you in the desert, naked, with no food and hardly any water just so he'd get back at you. That sounds pretty determined to me…and also just as crazy as we are…"

Phoebe seemed genuinely surprised at this. When she had seen him with Paul, she'd assumed that Paul had found him either at the waterhole or on his way back to the main road.

"How long…"

"How long he'd been in the desert? Hours, babe… I could tell just by the blisters on his butt…"

The faint remorse that had been bothering her returned at this, but she didn't let Paul see that.

"If he was idiot enough to do this, it was his own damn fault. I told him to go back…"

"Well," Paul said with amusement, "he mustn't be very good at following instructions. You should know the kind." Paul added more seriously.

"I told you that I didn't do it on purpose. I tried to dissuade Reggie from attacking there, but he wouldn't hear it. He must have smelled a trap…"

"Well, next time, I hope you'll be more convincing." Paul simply replied. "As far as Cole is concerned, I'll take care of him. I'm sure he can hold his own. I just wish that I knew what makes him tick…I mean besides you…" he added with another mocking smile.

Phoebe shrugged and then only added:

"I'll bet he'd like to know what makes you tick…"

Paul smirked but said nothing as they both began contemplating the fire, lost in their own thoughts.

Cole walked away distractedly for a while before he finally stopped in the almost total darkness. What was that woman's problem, he wondered then? Was she so shallow that even what she'd just been through didn't make a dent in her? He couldn't understand this. All the women he had known in his life would've been crushed and defeated by such a horror. They most certainly wouldn't have asked for more punishment. And all of this for what? Money…? He couldn't wrap his mind around this. What bothered him the most however, was the fact that he still cared. "Why," he asked himself for the umpteenth time. She's not worth it… On the contrary, maybe she had it right…maybe she deserved it…

As soon as the idea had formed in his mind he felt noxious for even thinking it.

He had to swallow hard a few times, and then the disturbing thoughts came back.

"What am I doing here? Was it all so worth it? They were right; I'm not cut out for this…"

His train of thoughts was interrupted by the chilling call of a coyote, and then another, a little too close for comfort, even if still a ways from him. His hand went to his belt, but he remembered with a chill that he didn't have his gun anymore. A faint sound ahead startled him and he finally deemed more reasonable to turn back. He spotted the weak light of the campfire, while wondering how he could have gotten so far, and began walking slowly, very alert to his surrounding now. In spite of that, he still started when Paul called to him.

"Hey, Cole! It's not very bright of you to go so far alone in the dark…"

Cole had to admit that Paul had only echoed his very thought, but he didn't let him know that. He searched the night until he saw the vague form of his companion, more like a darker spot than the surrounding.

"I'm old enough to take care of myself…"Cole then said, "I don't need a babysitter, even though you and that broad seem to think so…"

Paul understood that it was pride talking again, and in a way, he could empathize with the man. He wondered how he would feel, himself, in the jungle of a big city. He didn't want to imagine having to rely on a perfect stranger for his every need. Yet he had to make sure that Cole wouldn't get in too much trouble.

"You could take care of yourself closer to the fire…" he chuckled then. "We actually have a few things to discuss and even more to do before the morning…" He added more soberly.

It was obvious that Paul had seen through him, but Cole was grateful that he offered him a vague compromise. Cole started back toward the campfire, but at first, he still tried to look around for any sign of what he heard earlier. He almost mentioned it to Paul, but since he could hear nothing moving and saw even less, he finally dismissed it as a figment of his imagination. He wasn't about to provoke another round of mockery…

Back at the shack, Cole went inside immediately to find the pack she took from him, as he had spotted it earlier. She had put the gun in it and he felt much better the moment it was back on his belt. Then Phoebe's voice startled him. He turned abruptly to find her watching him curiously.

"I was wondering when you'd check it. You're money's still in there, don't worry. I only used some of it… but if you think that I'm gonna apologize…"she trailed.

He was watching her in silence and she suddenly felt somewhat self- conscious.

"Hey, about yesterday, I didn't mean to…"

Cole interrupted rudely:

"Don't bother…I think we both know what you meant. Besides, I don't need the reminder."

The hardness in his voice only deepened Phoebe's certainty that she had been mistaken about his compassion.

"You should've done what I told you. You only got yourself to blame for whatever happened."

"The nerve of you…If…" Cole added threateningly but didn't finish.

However, Phoebe wasn't going to let him get away with it.

"If what? If you got something to say, go ahead. If you feel like hitting me, well you're welcome to try… but I make no guaranty that you won't embarrass yourself more than you have already…"

"Bitch!" He couldn't help exclaiming, even though he made no move toward her.

Phoebe chuckled unhappily when she saw that he was restraining himself.

"Well, at least you won't hit a girl who's down. I guess that it makes you something of a gentleman, doesn't it?"

"Don't count on it," Cole growled as he quickly passed her toward the door and slammed it behind him.

Phoebe started at the loud noise, and for a long moment, she stood there, wondering why she was so disappointed.

Only the sight of the tub and the reminder of her ordeal pulled her out of it. She frowned angrily and turned toward the door herself, while vowing never to let a man delude her again.