Chapter 24

Why was she always naked in these dreams with Undertaker?

Brooklynn sighed, once again drawing the black silk sheet up to her chest, but this time, she wasn't scared out of her mind like the previous two times. She could feel him, sense him and touched her throat, remembering the first dream where he'd throttled her. The second one he had promised to never hurt her and that was all Brooklynn had to go on. Those venomous green eyes glowed in the darkness at her, the room itself lighting up in a dark purple hue, along with his imposing figure.

"Hello, Undertaker." She greeted softly, trying to keep the fear out of her voice and felt the bed dip, her eyes not leaving him.

"Lynn…"

He was suspicious. Some people could actually control their dreams, or project themselves astrophysical. He had done it in his youth. He was now kind of old, being locked away for almost two decades. She had wanted this, he could see it as she stared at him. "To what do I owe the pleasure?"

His eyes raked over her, taking note that tonight she was not begging to wake up like she had the last time. For the most part, she didn't seem overly afraid, she wanted him here. Well, that would have been a nice thought if not for the fact that, whenever Lynn wanted him around, it was to fight for her.

One of the main differences between Mark and Taker was what they called her. Taker always called her Lynn while Mark stuck with Brooklynn. "I should be asking you that since you're somehow invading my dreams lately." That made his brow quirk and Brooklynn frowned, seeing the suspicion and confusion in his acid eyes. "This isn't because of you? It has to be…you're the one who has powers unless…"

Was Mark right? Was Undertaker dead? Was he reaching out to her the same way Julia did?

"Are you…dead? Bastet was murdered, so…that would make sense since she kept you dormant all these years…"

His eyes narrowed at the thought. "I don't know, am I?" He mused, holding out his heavily tattooed arms and studied them thoughtfully before looking down at himself. In these dreams, he looked like he had during the years he had been active and Mark dormant. Inky black hair that hung down to his elbows, a goatee, pale, piercings… "Can I die that easily?" He was asking himself, frowning.

Maybe Undertaker didn't have the answers. He looked…sad, in a way and it did something to her heart. "I don't know..." Hesitantly, she reached out to touch his shoulder and those eyes snapped to her, making her hand instantly drop. He no longer had the long Satan beard, but there was a piercing in his right brow. "Do you know what happens to a Familiar when it dies? Is the entity it's keeping dormant released or…does it die with the Familiar?"

Understanding dawned in his eyes and they turned venomous, his hands moving to her bare shoulders and shoved her back violently onto the bed. "You want to make sure I'm gone forever, that's what this is about." He snarled, anger and hurt lacing his tone, the purple beginning to change to something poisonous as the fog began swirling about the floor of the bedroom. He was over her in seconds, kissing her brutally, pouring all his anger, hatred and despair into it. "You WANT me gone, Lynn!" The one thing he and Mark did share: their love for her, and he KNEW she wanted him gone because then she never had to worry about Mark leaving her.

"No! No, that's not why I'm asking you this!"

Granted, life would be a lot easier if Taker simply disappeared and never returned. His volatile nature terrified her, and her lips hurt from his bruising kiss as tears stung her eyes, her breathing turning ragged from how fast and hard her heart thumped against her chest. Brooklynn had to regain control of this situation somehow, had to prove to him she didn't want him to die because he was part of Mark. What would happen to Mark if his counterpart died?

She didn't want to find out, it was too much of a risk, so did that mean Mark was keeping Taker in check himself since Bastet was gone? Gripping the back of his neck, her fingers buried in his hair as Brooklynn crushed his mouth to hers again, knowing this was the only way to get him to calm down or at least not hurt her. Her mouth opened for him, giving Taker complete access and moaned as soon as their tongues touched, the kiss switching from brutal to passionate and heated.

"Does this…feel like I want you to die?" She murmured against his mouth when the kiss finally broke, trembling from head to toe in fear from his outburst and desire.

"It feels like you're whoring yourself out because you want something," He growled darkly, the acid muted as lust took over. "You don't want ME, Lynn, you want Mark." Bitterness laced his tone because they both knew it was true. "You're afraid for him." Groaning, he pushed himself upright, straddling her, and stared broodingly down at her naked form. "Be honest, Lynn, what do you want? Or what is it you want to know?" Taker demanded finally, deciding if this was how it was… they could bargain.

Information from him… his eyes narrowed in on her heaving chest, the corner of his mouth curving wickedly. Honesty was the best when it came to dealing with Taker. He could tell when someone wasn't being truthful with him, especially her.

"Yes, I am. You and Mark are one in the same, so if something happens to him, if he dies, so do you. I'm afraid for him in general and that includes you, whether you like it or not." Brooklynn's hands were pressed against his chest and they hadn't moved, her eyes locked with his. "And how can I whore myself out to my husband? You ARE married to me, just like Mark is, again whether you like it or not." That got a derisive snort from him in response. "The darkness is coming…we're in trouble and Mark thinks something happened in your past when you had full control, that is coming back to haunt us now. Bastet was strictly targeted by some evil, sinister magic, and that same magic is threatening us…threatening Mark, you, me and Claira…" That made his eyes glow a dangerous green at the mention of their daughter. "You're coming to me in my dreams for a reason. You're managing to get through my subconscious like Julia did, but the difference is you're not dead and she is."

"Have you ever thought that maybe I AM dead, and this is my idea of HELL?" He demanded, not believing the audacity of her, trying to manipulate him with her words about them being married. Brooklynn didn't give two flying fucks about HIM. Only caring about him to the extent in which it would affect Mark. "And if I decide to tell you what I may know, what do I get out of it, Lynn? Besides caged. How many years have gone by? How long have I been gone?"

"You will LIVE, don't you understand that?! If Mark dies, so do you! And the only reason why you're caged is because of WHO YOU ARE. You're evil, manipulative, mean and you don't care who you hurt, as long as you get what YOU want!" Brooklynn snapped, tempted to claw his eyes out because of how stubborn he was. This was the side of Mark that enraged her. How she ever managed to fall in love with him being Taker was beyond her understanding! "What do you want from me, Taker? I'm trying to keep you safe, both of you, and you're fighting me about it. You don't make a lick of sense!"

"You just don't get it, Lynn." Taker shook his head, amused by her outburst. "I'm dead anyway. What do you think I'm doing when I'm locked away, hmm? I'm asleep. I have no idea how much time passes, nor am I aware of what is going on until I wake, and even then…" Comprehension dawned slowly on her face. "So, why should I CARE about whether your darling Mark lives or dies? This is the closest to being free and alive I've been in nearly two decades." To him, death would just be sleeping again and, when asleep, people had no consciousness. They didn't know if they were dead or alive. For all intents and purposes, sleeping was a mini-death. "Like I said, Lynn, I'm already dead… all you're doing is trying to save Mark and put me back into that grave."

"You selfish son of a bitch! Die then! I hope to hell you ARE really dead, just so we don't have to worry about you anymore! I'll never love you! NEVER! Mark is the one I love and there's nothing you can do about it! I WILL NEVER BE YOURS! STAY THE HELL AWAY FROM ME AND OUT OF MY DREAMS, YOU MONSTER!"

Brooklynn slapped him as hard as she could across the face and gasped out when his hand wrapped around her throat, squeezing. He promised to never harm her and, yet, here he was choking the life out of her! Her nails clawed at his arm, trying to stop him and soon her body went limp, eyes closed and body completely still.

He had actually choked her to death!

Waking up violently, gasping for breath, had startled Mark out of his wits. Brooklynn coughed, shaking and crying, covering her face with her hands. She jumped upon feeling a hand on her shoulder and snapped her red-rimmed eyes up to meet soft emerald green. Instinctively, her hand rose to clutch her throat as the tears kept falling and Mark hesitantly pulled her into his arms, Brooklynn clinging to him for dear life. Never again, she NEVER wanted to see Undertaker again as long as she lived. Hoping, praying, he was truly gone with Bastet and Mark wasn't holding him back.

She wasn't sure if Mark was strong enough to hold back that kind of darkness.

He hadn't had any idea why she had been having nightmares, but now, after what she had said earlier about Julia and that warning, he got it now. Mark wished he could stop them, and he hesitated again. "Darlin', I know some ways of warding off nightmares." He offered softly, his hand moving to pry hers off her throat. "Do you want to tell me about it, Brooklynn?" He asked, not surprised when she began shaking her head. Whatever she had dreamt about, it had scared her; he could still feel those hot tears of hers beating down on him.

"W-Water…"

God, it still felt like his hands were wrapped around her throat and she could barely breathe! Brooklynn knew it was only a dream, but somehow, she had a feeling if Taker ever managed to free himself and take over Mark's body again, he would kill her. He didn't love her and he wouldn't help them – lesson learned. She took the glass of water he came back with and downed it, pulling back gasping for air. Mark took it from her and she immediately tossed her arms around his neck, hugging him as tightly as she could, needing to feel his body against hers. It was so strange since Mark and Taker were the same, only with different appearances, so she should've been petrified of him.

There was a fairly fundamental difference between him and his counterpart: he walked the line between good and bad. Taker danced in the evil area with a smile on his face. Mark tended to be aware of consequences and repercussions while Taker didn't have any remorse or conscience. About the only thing he figured they'd agree on would be Brooklynn and Claira; he was going to get a headache thinking about it. He got Brooklynn her water, frowning as he watched her down it like she was dying from thirst and went to refill the glass.

"What did you dream about, darlin'?"

Did she tell him about being choked to death by Undertaker in the dream or keep it to herself? The last thing Brooklynn wanted to do was hurt him, even if it was words only. She took the glass of water he handed her, this time sipping it and felt his arm wrap around her shoulders, her head resting against him.

"It was Him, again. I asked him about Bastet, about Familiars dying, if he was dead along with her. He kept spewing bullshit about being trapped, locked away and said he didn't care if you lived or died because he was already dead being locked up." She sniffled, her hands shaking to the point where she had to set the glass of water down before she dropped it. "I screamed at him that I didn't love him, that I'll never want him and there's nothing he can do it about it. I told him to die and I meant it. I hope he's gone and we never have to deal with him again or worry about him escaping." Something told her they couldn't get that lucky, however. "I pissed him off, basically, and he…he choked me to death, Mark…" Now Brooklynn was crying again, burying her face in her shaky hands. "H-He killed me…I-I couldn't breathe…and he killed me with his own h-hands…"

"No, I don't. Look, I'm going to the library tomorrow, all right? I'll be back before Claira gets out of school." Just in case Brooklynn spent another day at her laptop, oblivious to everything around her again. "I'll see if I can find some answers, darlin', I'm… curious," Morbidly so, actually. "About what happened to Him… Maybe He is dead. That would explain the dreams."

"Okay." Swinging her leg over his lap, Brooklynn straddled him and captured his mouth, cupping his face in her soft hands. "I love you, Mark." She murmured, showing him with actions she wasn't afraid of him, not in the slightest. "I need you to do something for me." At his arched brow, she pulled back and removed her nightgown before unclasping her bra, letting both materials fall to the floor, kissing him harder and more passionate. "Make him go away. Make me forget about him and that awful dream." Her mouth moved down his jaw to his neck, suckling on his skin, but not to the point of leaving a mark. "Fuck your wife…"

Apparently, being choked to death had gotten Brooklynn's engine revving. Taker filed that one away for a later date. Not that he would actually choke her to the point of death, but a little strangulation during sex usually heightened the sensations.

"I'll fuck you, Mrs. Calaway." Mark rumbled, gently but firmly grasping the back of her neck and pulling her head away from him, just so he could begin trailing kisses down her cheek, her jawline, to her own throat. "You won't remember anything but me…"

There was a difference between being choked to death and throttled during sex to heighten everything. Brooklynn had been strangled during sex before and loved every second of it because she trusted Mark completely. He would never intentionally hurt her and only wanted her to feel the maximum pleasure during their sessions. Her head lulled back, eyes drifting shut and let herself be swept away by her husband, climbing heights only they could reach together. Somehow, they managed to keep the volume down, though a pillow buried in her face helped that since Brooklynn screamed his name until her vocal cords hurt. Collapsing on the bed, she passed out from the exertion of their intense bout and the dream, her limp body being pulled and spooned by her husband.