Chapter 14
The plane touched down in the bright
California sun. The breeze outside was
mild and the temperature perfectly
warm, just like always in sunny
California. Austin made his way through
a private entrance of the small executive
airport. He kept his head held low, a
ball cap pushed down over his eyes, and
his Ray-Ban Avatar's on, trying to hide
himself as much as possible.
A private car waited for him at an
exclusive side entrance and Austin made
it almost to the door before the stares
started. Little side nudges caught his eye
and he knew he must hurry. He wasn't
fast enough. The pointing started, a few
fans approached him, and the paparazzi
who hung outside spotted the
commotion. Austin never stopped his
stride as he scribbled his signature on a
couple of open notebooks. He ducked
into the backseat of the waiting car
within sixty seconds of stepping outside.
It didn't matter how his driver drove,
they got surrounded almost immediately
with the cameras snapping his picture,
trying for any shot they could get. Austin
had his phone programmed to alert him
when his name was mentioned online,
and before he got out of the parking lot,
TMZ already posted their shots of him
sitting in the car.
The mellow mood of the last few
weeks was completely gone. In its place
was a deep disdain slowly grating on his
nerves. With all certainty Austin never
wanted back into this chaos. If Kitt had
any real clue what this world was all
about, he'd never again question
Austin's decision to leave.
The drive to his house in the hills of
Hollywood took longer than it ever
should have, until finally the police got
involved and escorted him to his
driveway, and even then it was a slow
drive. People would jump out in front of
the car, risking their lives just to get a
shot of him. He even spotted Rich and
Mercedes already there, cameras
snapping away. They were the two
paparazzi who had constantly plagued
him over the last ten years. They never
gave him a break and now flung
questions at him through the car's side
window, like he would ever answer any
of them. There were dozens of paparazzi
blocking his way, even as the gate
opened. A police officer stood on guard,
keeping everyone at bay as they drove
down the driveway.
Austin stayed tense and stone-faced
the entire ride. He never looked at any of
them, instead he kept his head slightly
lowered making it harder to get a good
shot. He resisted the urge to pull up
Kitt's picture on his phone for fear
someone with a great lens might catch it,
but dear God, Austin's dependent side
needed to get a look at Kitt. Kitt
represented peace, love and simplicity.
Everything that was right in his world. In
just a few days Kitt had helped to settle
his soul and center him in. Amazing how
a chance meeting could have allowed
him to meet someone who so completely
turned his world around in such a short
time. The realization made Austin wish
Kitt was with him now.
"We were quiet, no one knew, I
swear. Just me, you, and the driver,"
Seth said, meeting him at the car door.
"I know. I watched it fucking happen
at the airport."
They were in the back of the house
with high fencing and security, but who
knew who might get through, and Austin
kept his head low, hurrying into the open
garage.
"Damn, this is going to complicate
things." Seth kept up with Austin stride
for stride.
"Exactly my thought the entire fucking
drive here. God damn I hate those
mother fuckers. And those two asswipe
fuckers were right there in the middle of
it all. They had their cameras pressed
against the window. I hate Rich and
Mercedes! God Damn those fuckers
need a life." Austin raged as he stepped
inside the garage and forced himself to
calm down. After a minute, he shook his
head, forcing the images out of his mind
and concentrated on why he was here.
"How's she?" They slowed their
pace, talking quietly like it was some big
secret, and the people who worked here
couldn't possibly notice the female
spiraling out of control right in front of
them.
"Not good at all. She's got herself
locked up in the back room. She's strung
out. She's missing tapings, and they're
telling me today, if she doesn't get help,
they're publically canning her from the
film." Seth didn't mince words, he was a
straight shooter. It was one of the things
Austin liked most about him.
"Damn it! How did it get this bad, this
quick? Whatever, did you call Arizona,
get something ready for her?" Austin
asked about the rehab center they'd
discussed over the phone.
"Yes, they're waiting for us." Seth
nodded, but he was gnawing at his lip.
Austin got the distinct impression he
wanted to say more, but didn't. Austin
eyed him closely, willing Seth to say
whatever he held back. When nothing
came Austin let it go. He'd find out soon
enough, and continued on as if he hadn't
noticed the hesitation.
"Okay, let me go talk to her," Austin
said and walked through the house into
the kitchen. The driver sat at the table
waiting for his directions. His
housekeeper looked up, she didn't speak
much English, but worry was clear on
her face. Austin gave her a polite pat on
the shoulder as he walked by. He prayed
this would be an in-and-out kind of deal.
The odds of it happening seemed against
him with the worry on everyone's face.
Cara's history in this area wasn't
good. Usually when she let herself get
this far out of control, she was a raving
bitch of a nightmare to deal with. As he
got closer to the bedroom, he could hear
the loud music blaring. The temperature
in this part of the house was freezing.
The air conditioning was turned way
down.
Austin didn't knock and the door
wasn't locked. He walked straight in to
see Cara sitting with her robe open, her
body nude underneath. There were two
young men with her in the room. One sat
perched on the floor between her spread
thighs, rubbing one hand up the inside of
her leg, his other hand massaging her clit
where his head was heading down, too.
The second man sat behind her, with her
sitting on his lap with her legs spread
open, straddling his parted thighs.
Clearly his dick was inside her as he
rolled his hips back and forth at a
slightly awkward angle. One of his
hands held the crack pipe she smoked
from while the other rolled her nipple
between his fingers. Cara was so stoned,
her eyes weren't much more than slits as
they looked over at him. She sucked in a
breath, held it and let it go never
acknowledging he walked into the room.
"It's good, isn't it?" The man in front
of her never heard Austin come in the
room, but the one behind her had no
problem seeing him, and he panicked,
trying to get her off him, but she dropped
the pipe and rolled her head back falling
straight back on the man, making it
harder for him to get out from under her.
Cara's body was completely bared to
them all. She rocked her hips into the
penis slipping in and out of her and
wrapped her long legs around the man in
front of her, ignoring the one behind her
trying to get away.
"Fuck me… He won't fuck me
anymore…" She moaned, reaching her
hands up around the neck of the guy
behind her trying to hold him in place,
trapping him there.
"Cara." Austin's only word came out
in the despair he felt so deep in his soul.
The sight was pathetic, crushing his
heart, and he couldn't believe they were
here again. The guy between her legs
whipped his head around, seeing Austin
for the first time, but she tightened her
Pilates strengthened thighs around him,
not letting him move. The guy underneath
her finally broke free, rolling as quickly
as he could away from her. Austin
didn't pay him any attention as he moved
across the room to turn the music off.
"Noooo, don't stop. Austin, come join
us… Where's Seth? Austin, make him
come in here and fuck me! He won't fuck
me anymore. Austin…" Tears sprang to
her eyes and she dropped her legs,
letting the second panicked man free. He
too darted up, making a wide dodge
around Austin, and moved fast to get out
of the room. Austin didn't care about
either of them. His only concern was
Cara and he went straight to her.
"Baby, you have to stop this…" He
covered her with her robe before
picking her up and moving her up on the
bed.
"No! Austin, no! Don't make me stop
it. I love it! It makes me feel alive…"
Cara jerked herself from the bed,
moving erratically. She slung her body
around as she spoke until her robe fell to
the floor. She grabbed her silicone filled
breasts, crushing them together. "Take a
hit like the old days and come fuck me,
Austin."
Her step forward had her tripping and
she fell to the floor, splayed open before
him, exposing everything to his view.
"Make Seth come in here and make love
to me. I miss him, Austin. He'll do it
again if you make him."
"I'm not doing that, Cara," Austin
said. He reached down to pick up her
robe, before bringing her back up to her
feet. She swayed and he caught her
easily before she fell again. "We've got
help ready for—"
"I love him. I wanted to marry him,
and have babies with him, and live a
normal life, like normal people, and he
won't because of you," Cara said, her
eyes sliding closed, but opening again
after a few seconds. "I love him and he
won't…"
"I'm going to get you help, Cara,"
Austin said, scooping her up again. She
was no help, but almost dead weight on
his arms.
"I don't need help. I need Seth." Her
eyes closed as she passed out.
Tucked in bed, Cara finally slept it
off. Austin sat beside her, watching her
sleep as he weighed his options. He
could load her up now and take her
straight to rehab, which would get him
back to Texas in the next few hours. Or
he could let her sober up, allow her to
walk into the center on her own two feet.
Damn it! He knew the right decision he
needed to make, but it meant longer than
he ever expected before he got back
home. Even in all this chaos a smile
spread across his lips as he realized he
already thought of Texas as his home.
Cara had definitely overdosed. Since
the world knew Austin was home, they
were all holed up in the house. He'd
contemplated an emergency room, but
Seth arranged for a physician to treat her
at home to help keep things on the down
low. Austin stayed by Cara's side the
entire time. Seth stayed even closer to
her. By the time the doctor left, Seth had
stationed himself in a chair close to
Cara's head. Worry was clear on his
face, and Austin grabbed a trash can,
beginning to go through everything she
owned, throwing away all the alcohol
and anything else that could possibly be
construed as a drug or drug
paraphernalia.
Once he went through her room, he
went through the rest of the house
looking for anything and everything she
may have stashed. When he made his
way back to Cara's bedroom, Seth was
still under his constant vigilance, not
having left her side.
"How long's it been going on?"
Austin asked without malice, just
concern in his voice.
"Not long. It was an accident. I
should've told you," Seth said, never
turning his gaze away from Cara.
"Was it serious? Because it was to
her." Austin kept his tone quiet, standing
at the end of the bed, running a hand over
her leg covered by the bedspread.
Austin loved Cara. She'd been with
him for the long haul, and it wasn't too
many years ago that he'd been right there
with her, drugging himself to keep the
facade in place. If he hadn't cleaned
himself up, there was no question he'd
have been right in the middle of those
boys, doing it all with her today. Being
clean and happy was such a better way
to live your life. He hated seeing her like
this.
"I don't know. Everything here's so
fragile. You were leaving, she was
worried about you. She's a beautiful
person, inside and out, and so alone…
And yeah, it meant something. Too much,
we knew it then. It still means something
now." Seth finally turned away from
Cara and looked Austin straight in the
eyes.
"Obviously it does. I'm just glad you
admitted it. If you care about her, when
she wakes, we need to double team her
and be ready to get her out the door. No
hesitation. I'm going to put this place up
for sale. Get her out of here. I want to
call and pull her from the movie. I'll pay
whatever the fines are, but she needs to
heal from all this. I can bring her to
Texas if she wants."
"You're already in a better emotional
place, Austin," Seth said and moved his
eyes back to Cara.
"I feel normal again. After she gets
out of rehab, maybe you two can come
together to stay in Texas with me for a
while. If she's strong by then, we can
plan for the future. If she wants to keep
acting, we'll get her something healthy to
work on." Austin sat on the end of the
large bed. They were talking quietly, but
nothing disturbed Cara as she slept her
high off. Seth watched Austin for a
couple of minutes and narrowed his
eyes.
"He means something to you." It
wasn't a question, but a statement of
fact. Since Austin Grainger was more of
a corporation than a person, he knew
everyone got the security reports. Kitt
had to be mentioned in them, and
wouldn't his almost boyfriend just love
knowing that little piece of information.
"Yeah, he does. I… He's… yeah, it's
strong. He doesn't know that yet, but I
do. You can meet him when you come
out." Austin never faltered in his
declaration, and that said a lot for a man
who hid so much from everyone.
He was proud of Kitt, proud of the
normal life he found. He'd only had a
beer or two, maybe a glass of wine here
or there since he'd left California. He
didn't even have the need for anything
more, and he knew that was due to Kitt
being in his life. Kitt made him want to
be a better man.
"Okay," Seth said after only a slight
pause. He'd thrown Seth with what he
said. Hell, it threw him off, but that
didn't change the facts. Austin wanted
out of this crazy house, this crazy world,
and back inside Kitt's sane, normal,
everyday life as soon as humanly
possible.
"Then go pack your bags. We need to
be ready when she wakes. I'll call and
find out what she needs and pack her
up," Austin said palming his phone.
"They said just clothing and minimal
toiletries. Easy wear clothes like
sweaters and yoga pants, things like
that," Seth said keeping his eyes locked
on the sleeping Cara. It took a minute,
but he finally rose, and did as Austin
asked. He only left Cara's side long
enough to pack before he came back to
hover and stay by her side until she
woke.
Austin went to Cara's closet and
grabbed a tote to pack her a few things.
As he went through the motion of loading
her bag he palmed his phone again. He
ignored all the alerts from Google and
Twitter that let him know his name was
being posted about every twenty
seconds, and instead went straight to his
text messages. Kitt wasn't responding to
him. Austin had sent five or six
messages in the last few hours and gotten
nothing back. He figured Kitt was
shutting him out. It seemed like Kitt's
way of things when Austin wasn't right
there, face to face, pushing at him to
open up.
Frustrated, Austin tucked his cell back
into his back pocket and packed for Cara
in earnest. He chose several pairs of
jeans, some random shirts and sweaters,
trying not to let it bother him how easily
Kitt could let him go, and keep him at a
distance. Not more than twelve hours
had passed since he'd seen Kitt, but
technically, if he were home right now,
they'd be together, having dinner, maybe
making love. Okay, probably making
love before they ate dinner. They never
could seem to make it through the door
without hitting the floor, clothes
abandoned, and one of them on their
knees sucking the other off.
The thought caused desperation to
form and well up inside Austin's heart.
Kitt had been very clear with Austin last
night. He thought Austin would
eventually bolt, but he'd be in the
relationship for however long Austin
wanted him. Distance had to be a selfpreservation
deal for Kitt. The problem
was Austin seemed to have a constant
need for validation from Kitt who was
so clearly not in an emotional place to
give it.
After another minute more of shoving
a handful of panties and socks in the bag,
Austin reached for his phone again. He
typed out a quick message. He didn't
monitor his words or play the game of
"if-I-say-this,-hopefully-he'll-say-that"
he just typed what he felt.
'I'm not sure if you're getting my
messages, but Cara isn't good. I might
be a day longer. I need her to sober up
before I can get her to help. I'm not
liking that I can't see you tonight. I
need you to respond to this message.
Please don't leave me here hanging
without a word from you.' Austin didn't
even give himself a read through he just
sent the message.
'Are you okay?' Kitt texted
immediately back. Austin guessed three
words were better than no words.
'I'm worried.' Austin typed back.
"I'll call. It'll be late, after 10. Is
that ok?'
'Call whenever, it doesn't matter the
time.' Austin found himself wanting to
ask why it would be so late. If he were
home they would be together. He never
thought to ask Kitt if he'd made plans.
Why did he just assume Kitt would be
there waiting for him? Wait, Austin
never assumed it. He feared Kitt
wouldn't be waiting. How did he not
know what Kitt had going on?
'Alright.' Kitt replied in his one word
text, and Austin felt better after talking to
him. It wasn't a huge conversation, but
with Kitt they rarely were. Austin kept
his phone close, making Kitt's photo his
screen saver as he went to Cara's office
and began the process of sending emails
and messages to everyone letting them
know she was coming to spend time with
him for indefinite amount of time.