The Wrath of Cerberus - Chapter 3
"Quentin!" he turned as he heard Beth's voice behind him. He watched her silently for a moment, absorbing the sight of her, alive, intact - not the poor broken thing he had found on the rocks below Widow's Hill.
Beth continued to walk toward him, her eyes wide. " HOW are you here? Only the dead can come here. Oh, Quentin, what did you DO after I appeared to you?" She looked him straight in the eyes, steadily, unblinkingly; a look he knew well. She would insist on answers and would continue in her quietly persistent way until he gave them to her. She reached out as if to caress his cheek.
"Beth, NO!" He stepped back into the curtains and away from her, pushing the door shut with his hip. "Didn't they tell you? You can't touch me! We're lost if you do!"
"Tell me, Quentin. What have you done? WHY will we be lost if we touch? I was told you were here. I was told to come to you. There's much more to it, isn't there?" She stood, hands on the hips of her navy blue frock, waiting expectantly.
Quentin nodded, his mouth opened and closed, unsure where to begin. It was like when he wanted to explain his "engagement" to Angelique. He hadn't been able to think of how to do it w/o hurting Beth, so he procrastinated to the point of catastrophe. That disaster, he realized, was the direct cause of the present one. "Mr. Best - I made a deal - a wager..." The words tumbled over each other as the normally articulate Quentin raced to explain it all before he lost his nerve. "Weren't you told not to touch me?" he concluded.
"No."
"I see," he said flatly. "That means the test has already begun."
"Do you have a plan?"
"I think so, but I don't know much more than you do about what we'll be facing." He licked his lips nervously then continued. "Beth - can you find a way to trust me? After everything that's happened? I swear I'll find a way to get us out of this and back to the land of the living."
Beth looked at him with the intent stare that Quentin always thought could see into the depths of his soul. He met her eyes squarely, hoping that she could see that there were no tricks, no lies. Of all the heedless damage he had caused, this was something he now had the power to put right, and he was determined to make it happen, no matter what it took.
"The Quentin I fell in love with I loved despite his selfishness and cruelty - but I knew I could never trust him. Since all the horrors started happening, you've been different. You care whether people get hurt. It ripped out your heart to give up Lenore, but you did what you had to do to keep her safe. " She gasped as she realized something. "And you shut me out, pushed me away, so I would leave and be safe, too. I should have realized. The old Quentin would have had no problem telling me about Angelique - he never worried about hurting any woman. He would never have mourned me, much less cried for me.
" THIS Quentin is a man I DO trust."
"Thank you," he whispered.
Beth's hand went up again, as if to stroke his hair, then froze in mid- motion.
"Remember - we are not allowed to touch. No matter how much we want to; no matter what happens. If we do, everything's finished."
"No matter what happens?" Beth echoed. "What do you expect to happen?"
"I don't know. But this is where we have to go. Take this." He very carefully handed her one of the candlesticks, then used that hand to reopen the iron door.
Beth gasped at what she saw, and turned to Quentin. "I'm frightened."
"So am I," he responded. Each saw their fear reflected in the other's eyes. "But we'll be together - as close as I can manage.
"Think of how wonderful it'll be when it's all over and we're both alive. First thing I'll do is hold you SO tight and kiss you until we both forget how to breathe." His voice became lower, seductive as he continued, "I'll take down your hair and spread it around you until you're standing before me wearing nothing but that beautiful hair. Then I'll carry you to bed and pleasure you slowly until neither one of us can move." Their mouths were now very close, eyes dark with passion from the word pictures Quentin had painted.
"Quentin! We can't touch! Not yet!"
"DAMMIT" Quentin shouted as he pulled back, slamming his fist against the doorframe. He shut his eyes and willed his breathing to come back to normal. "That was NOT one of my better ideas."
"No it wasn't," Beth replied, her expression half amused and half exasperated.
"I didn't think the danger'd start until the journey out. I didn't expect it before we left. Every minute we're here we're in more danger. We have to get moving. "
Quentin gave her a bashful little boy smile and continued. " But I will remember that thought for later. Now, though, I'd better stick to slaughtered puppies and other sickening things. Or maybe I should just pretend that you're Angelique."
Beth's face froze at the mention of Angelique.
"I wouldn't have any trouble not touching HER. And it's impossible for a man to appreciate a woman's charms when he's thinking of nothing but slaughtered puppies." Quentin winked at Beth. "That's what I was planning if I couldn't get out of marrying her. "
Beth laughed, despite the situation. "I don't know how you can joke at a time like this."
"Probably because I'm too scared NOT to." He took a deep breath. "No point in holding back any longer. Let's begin."
"Quentin!" he turned as he heard Beth's voice behind him. He watched her silently for a moment, absorbing the sight of her, alive, intact - not the poor broken thing he had found on the rocks below Widow's Hill.
Beth continued to walk toward him, her eyes wide. " HOW are you here? Only the dead can come here. Oh, Quentin, what did you DO after I appeared to you?" She looked him straight in the eyes, steadily, unblinkingly; a look he knew well. She would insist on answers and would continue in her quietly persistent way until he gave them to her. She reached out as if to caress his cheek.
"Beth, NO!" He stepped back into the curtains and away from her, pushing the door shut with his hip. "Didn't they tell you? You can't touch me! We're lost if you do!"
"Tell me, Quentin. What have you done? WHY will we be lost if we touch? I was told you were here. I was told to come to you. There's much more to it, isn't there?" She stood, hands on the hips of her navy blue frock, waiting expectantly.
Quentin nodded, his mouth opened and closed, unsure where to begin. It was like when he wanted to explain his "engagement" to Angelique. He hadn't been able to think of how to do it w/o hurting Beth, so he procrastinated to the point of catastrophe. That disaster, he realized, was the direct cause of the present one. "Mr. Best - I made a deal - a wager..." The words tumbled over each other as the normally articulate Quentin raced to explain it all before he lost his nerve. "Weren't you told not to touch me?" he concluded.
"No."
"I see," he said flatly. "That means the test has already begun."
"Do you have a plan?"
"I think so, but I don't know much more than you do about what we'll be facing." He licked his lips nervously then continued. "Beth - can you find a way to trust me? After everything that's happened? I swear I'll find a way to get us out of this and back to the land of the living."
Beth looked at him with the intent stare that Quentin always thought could see into the depths of his soul. He met her eyes squarely, hoping that she could see that there were no tricks, no lies. Of all the heedless damage he had caused, this was something he now had the power to put right, and he was determined to make it happen, no matter what it took.
"The Quentin I fell in love with I loved despite his selfishness and cruelty - but I knew I could never trust him. Since all the horrors started happening, you've been different. You care whether people get hurt. It ripped out your heart to give up Lenore, but you did what you had to do to keep her safe. " She gasped as she realized something. "And you shut me out, pushed me away, so I would leave and be safe, too. I should have realized. The old Quentin would have had no problem telling me about Angelique - he never worried about hurting any woman. He would never have mourned me, much less cried for me.
" THIS Quentin is a man I DO trust."
"Thank you," he whispered.
Beth's hand went up again, as if to stroke his hair, then froze in mid- motion.
"Remember - we are not allowed to touch. No matter how much we want to; no matter what happens. If we do, everything's finished."
"No matter what happens?" Beth echoed. "What do you expect to happen?"
"I don't know. But this is where we have to go. Take this." He very carefully handed her one of the candlesticks, then used that hand to reopen the iron door.
Beth gasped at what she saw, and turned to Quentin. "I'm frightened."
"So am I," he responded. Each saw their fear reflected in the other's eyes. "But we'll be together - as close as I can manage.
"Think of how wonderful it'll be when it's all over and we're both alive. First thing I'll do is hold you SO tight and kiss you until we both forget how to breathe." His voice became lower, seductive as he continued, "I'll take down your hair and spread it around you until you're standing before me wearing nothing but that beautiful hair. Then I'll carry you to bed and pleasure you slowly until neither one of us can move." Their mouths were now very close, eyes dark with passion from the word pictures Quentin had painted.
"Quentin! We can't touch! Not yet!"
"DAMMIT" Quentin shouted as he pulled back, slamming his fist against the doorframe. He shut his eyes and willed his breathing to come back to normal. "That was NOT one of my better ideas."
"No it wasn't," Beth replied, her expression half amused and half exasperated.
"I didn't think the danger'd start until the journey out. I didn't expect it before we left. Every minute we're here we're in more danger. We have to get moving. "
Quentin gave her a bashful little boy smile and continued. " But I will remember that thought for later. Now, though, I'd better stick to slaughtered puppies and other sickening things. Or maybe I should just pretend that you're Angelique."
Beth's face froze at the mention of Angelique.
"I wouldn't have any trouble not touching HER. And it's impossible for a man to appreciate a woman's charms when he's thinking of nothing but slaughtered puppies." Quentin winked at Beth. "That's what I was planning if I couldn't get out of marrying her. "
Beth laughed, despite the situation. "I don't know how you can joke at a time like this."
"Probably because I'm too scared NOT to." He took a deep breath. "No point in holding back any longer. Let's begin."
