Chapter Sixteen

Earlier that afternoon

"Lauren, I know that more than likely you won't be able to call me back for a while, but I really need to talk to you... Liz is back. Dean's Liz. I really need to talk to someone removed from the situation. Please call me when you get this message. I love you. Be safe."

Lauren listened to the message then deleted it. She hit the reply button and waited as the phone rang on the other end.

Sam answered on the fourth ring. "Lauren?" he asked, his voice eager. "Is that you?"

"It's me, baby," Lauren replied. She could hear Sam's relief-filled exhalation.

"Oh, thank God. Did you get my message?"

"I did. That's why I'm calling. Are you busy? Do you want to talk?"

"Bobby called a meeting that starts in a few minutes. It can wait, though."

"What's wrong? Tell me everything," Lauren demanded. "I think there's more to it than just Liz being back. Tell me everything that's been going on."

Sam hesitated. "Everything? Are you sure I have to—"

"Everything," Lauren snapped. "And don't keep me waiting."

Sam obeyed. "Okay. Well, I hope you don't get mad. I told you that Liz is back. Apparently, she's not dead, but she is dying. It seems that the adultery curse that we thought killed her before is actually killing her now. Dean's pretty messed up about it, and there's nothing I can do to make it better for him."

"I understand. That sucks, baby. Can you think of anything else you want to tell me? Anything else about Liz?"

There was a pregnant pause on Sam's end of the conversation. "I've been dreaming about her again," he told her. "Is that what you want to know about?"

Lauren smiled. "Yes, tell me more. What exactly did you dream this time?"

There was another long pause. "Well, she came to my room wearing nothing but lingerie. I woke up right as it was getting hot and heavy." Sam gulped and waited for Lauren's response. He doubted it would be pretty, and he didn't blame her. He'd be pissed if the tables were turned.

Lauren surprised Sam. "Perfect," she replied. "I'm sorry you woke up before all the fun started."

"So you're not mad?" Sam fretted. "You know I love you and only you, right?"

Lauren laughed. "I know that, Sam. It's okay that you're dreaming about Liz. I'm a big girl who learned a long time ago how to share. Liz is very beautiful, right? I don't mind you dreaming about beautiful girls."

"You don't?" Sam asked, confused.

"No."

"It's okay with you that I dreamt about another woman?" Sam asked, his confusion growing.

"Yes, it's fine. You know what else? I think that tonight when you go to bed, you should dream about Liz again. This time she'll be naked and you won't wake up before the fun starts. At first, she'll say she doesn't want to, but you'll know she's lying and force her to. Don't worry, that's what she really wants. By the third time, she'll be screaming your name and begging for more. How does that sound?"

"What are you talking about?" Sam balked. "Liz is Dean's wife. Dean's. Dean loves her. She loves him. I would never do that to them. I wouldn't do that to Dean."

Lauren snorted. "You've got to get over that, Sammy. You were destined to be with Liz, and you will. I'm here to help you fulfill that destiny. I know you love Dean, but this is bigger than that. So, say that you'll dream of Liz regardless of how you feel about Dean."

Sam's resistance fell away. "I'll dream about Liz," he repeated dutifully.

Sam couldn't see it, but Lauren's head bobbed in approval. "Good," she told him. "As a demonstration of good faith, I think you should kiss Liz the next time you are alone with her."

"I don't understand why I have to do that," Sam protested weakly.

Lauren's voice was as hard as diamonds as she replied. "Because I told you to. The next time you see Liz, you will kiss her. You will kiss her until she kisses you back, and you won't stop until she does. Are we clear?"

"We're clear. I'll kiss Liz until she kisses me back."

"Wonderful. As soon as you hang up, the only thing you'll remember about this conversation is that I made you feel better. When you wake in the morning after a long night of wet dreams about Liz, you'll feel deeply guilty and desperately feel the need to atone. You'll call me immediately to spill your guts, and I'll give you further instructions then. Do you understand me?"

"Yes."

"Good. Now remember what I told you. Forget you had this conversation, but call me in the morning."

"I will."

"I know you will. Now tell me you love me and mean it."

"I love you. You know that I love you."

"Bye, Sam. I love you, too. Sweet dreams."

Lauren hung up the phone and heaved a sigh. "I don't know what we're going to do. I can't go back there, and the spell's getting weaker. He's never questioned me like that before."

The man with her started rubbing her shoulders. "You know what I keep coming back to? The part where he said he needed to talk to someone removed from the situation. It's a statement so rich with irony that I can't help but want to laugh."

"You're not being helpful," Lauren replied with a huff.

"You want me to be helpful, huh? Good to know, Lauren."

Lauren glared at the man. "Don't call me that, Tom. You know I hate it."

Tom laughed. "You're right; I do know that."

Lauren slapped Tom's hand away when he tried to grope her. "Focus, why don't you? We've got a serious problem."

Tom walked his fingers up her arm, and she slapped them again. He laughed amusedly. "Okay, fine, you win." He put on a stuffy-sounding British accent. "Marisa, darling, what is it you wish for me to do?"

Marisa glared at him. "Well, right now, I wish for you to go to hell, asshole."

Tom dropped the voice. "Fine, Marisa, what is this big problem we suddenly have?"

Marisa looked at him as if he were a small, idiot child. "Oh, I don't know. Just this little thing where I can't go see Sam because Liz'll know who I am. We're screwed. Two years of work down the drain. You know as well as I do that the spell begins to weaken the longer he goes without seeing me. I can keep him dragging along by speaking to him, but that only works for so long."

"Take a breath, Risa. You're getting worked up over nothing." He tried to cup her face, but she jerked away from him.

"Nothing!?! Don't patronize me, you jerk. This is not nothing."

"Sweet, little 'Lauren', there's nothing to worry about. Everything is in place to work out just as we want it to." Tom tugged at Marisa's shirt. "Come on, let's go celebrate in bed."

Marisa cocked an eyebrow and crossed her arms across her chest. "Lauren only sleeps with Sam. Maybe next time you'll refrain from calling me that."

Tom pulled on her shirt again. "Oh, come on, Risa. You know I was joking."

Marisa stepped away from him. "I don't know that," she insisted. "I'm stressing about a major problem, and you don't even seem to care."

Tom rolled his eyes. "Are we still discussing that? I told you that everything's taken care of. I guess I should have told you sooner, but I like watching you get worked up. You're going to have Sam come to you."

Tom could see that Marisa's curiosity was getting the better of her. "But what about Liz?" she finally asked. "There's no way she'll let Sam be stupid enough to leave the old man's property."

Tom had a smug grin on his face as he replied. "Liz has been taken care of, too. We've nothing to worry about."

"And Dean?"

The grin became a scowl. "Sadly, no. I admit the plan's not perfect, but I'm confident that Dean'll make himself vulnerable at some point. We'll capitalize on that moment." He shook his head. "I still don't know how the old man got that charm into the jail. They're more resourceful than I gave them credit for. But, they do have a fatal flaw."

Marisa was entranced. "What's that?" she asked dutifully.

Tom smirked. "They trust people. It'll be their downfall." He pulled Marisa onto the bed. "Now onto other matters. First, I'll take care of all our plans; then, I'll take care of you."

He kissed her, pulling away before it got too heated, and grabbed a small microphone from his nightstand. He pushed a button then talked into the mike. The sound went over an intercom system. "Jason, come to my bedroom. I have something I need to discuss with you." He tossed the headset back onto the nightstand and turned to Marisa. "Okay, your turn."

Marisa's eyes gleamed with excitement. "Come and get me."

Tom smirked. "Happy to oblige," he told her and grabbed her by her hair. He crawled on top of her and pulled her shirt off her body.

Jason knocked once and entered without waiting to be acknowledged. Tom and Marisa were writhing on the bed together, and Jason quickly averted his gaze and blew out an annoyed breath. "Could you not have waited two minutes to call me?"

Tom ignored the question as he finished. He rolled off of Marisa, ignoring her protests at being left unsatisfied, and walked over to Jason fully naked. "You're hilarious," he deadpanned.

Jason kept his gaze averted. "Want me to get you a robe?" he asked uncomfortably.

Tom smirked. "Why? It's not like you haven't seen everything I've got and vice versa. Come on; come to bed. Marisa's close as it is, and we have things to discuss."

"You called me in here for a threesome?" Jason balked.

Tom shrugged. "You've never minded before."

Jason looked over Tom's shoulder at Marisa's prone body. She was staring at him in breathless anticipation. He rolled his eyes. "Fine," he said and jerked his shirt over his head, tossing it carelessly to the floor. He left his pants on as he walked to the bed.

Marisa rose to meet him and eagerly went to work undoing his bottoms. When she had them undone, she bent and took him into her mouth. Jason stiffened and cleared his throat. He gritted his teeth and forced himself not to react when she scraped her teeth against a particularly sensitive spot. He cleared his throat again, desperately trying to get her attention. His hands were shaking as he tangled them in her hair and tried to pull her away. She pressed her teeth down, and he froze.

Marisa looked up at him then pulled away. "What's the matter?" she asked, wiping her mouth. "I was trying to help you get into the mood. You don't seem that into it."

Jason pushed her so she was lying on her back. He kicked off his jeans then crawled on top of her. "Well, I'm at attention now," he said dispassionately, "so I'd like to hurry this along if we could. Ginger had a rough night with the baby last night."

Marisa stopped Jason when he tried to kiss her. "Tom gives you the privilege of screwing me, and you want to rush through it and get back to your wife!?! What kind of gratitude is that? I just don't understand you, Jason."

Jason shoved the hand that was blocking him out of the way. "Of course you do, Marisa," he said as he thrust into her. "Of course you do. I'm the guy who has to do what you say, and it drives me crazy, you stupid bitch."

When Jason had satisfied Marisa, he tried to sit up, hoping that he could make a hasty retreat. That was not to be, however. Tom appeared beside him and pushed him back down. Jason didn't react as Tom kissed the place where his shoulder met his neck. There was a time when he would have, but that time was long gone. Tom pulled Jason into a kiss, and he let him, even going so far as to open his mouth and tangle their tongues together.

Marisa was bored at being left out and pulled the two men away from one another. She pulled Jason into a kiss, which made Tom's eyes flash angrily.

"Marisa," he warned, "the rules for this game are very clear."

Marisa pulled away from Jason with an innocent look. "Oh, I'm sorry. Is there something the matter?" she asked with a laugh.

Jason rolled his eyes. "While the two of you bitch this out, I'm gonna go see if Ginger needs anything."

Tom smiled, but there was no warmth to it. "No, you're not," he told Jason. "You're going to finish this and then you're going to go pack."

Jason was a pro at looking nonchalant. "Pack?"

"Something's come up, and I need you and Ginger there with me."

"Anything in particular I should pack for?"

Tom shrugged. "No. It shouldn't take more than a day or two. Jessica'll watch your kids while you're gone."

"You've never asked for Ginger before. What's going on?"

"I may need her…talents."

Jason's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "We might be torturing someone? And it's a surprise who? Must be someone big if you're taking us both."

Tom looked smug. "It is," he said. He sat back on his heels with a sigh. "Tell me again how you got Liz out of hiding. I do so love hearing about it."

Jason could feel himself starting to sweat. "I told her you had Lily hostage, and she fell all over herself to help me out."

Tom smiled proudly. "Nice one, Jay. No one is quite as good as you at manipulating Liz. I'm glad you've had another reason to remind me why I've kept you as my right hand man."

Jason forced himself to remain nonchalant. "I guess. She makes it a little too easy for my tastes."

Tom nodded his approval. "You're right. There really isn't much challenge anymore to getting one over on Liz. Still, I do appreciate how easy you make it seem. Your approach is beautiful in its simplicity."

"Can I go?" Jason wondered. He indicated Marisa on the bed. "It seems like you're done with me here."

"Yes. Go collect your wife. I have things to attend to."

He was having sex with Marisa again before Jason had pulled his shirt back on. Jason quelled the disgust he felt and left the room as soon as he had redressed.

He went straight to Ginger, who was washing the night's dishes. He kissed her shoulder and took the rag away from her. "I need you to pack a bag and say goodnight to the kids."

Ginger wrinkled her nose. "And I need you to take a shower. You smell like bitch."

Jason looked stricken. "Tell me how to get out of it, and I'll gladly do it. It's not like I ask to have sex with Tom and Marisa."

Ginger glared at him. "I hate that whore. Every time I see her, she rubs it in my face that she's screwing you."

Jason wrapped his arms around Ginger and hugged her to him. She struggled to pull away from him for a moment then surrendered and leaned into him.

"I hate them both," she insisted, angry tears coursing down her face. "I hate them. I won't help them. Not anymore. Not again. I won't. I'm done."

Jason kissed the top of her head. "You know that's not an option. Pack a few days worth of clothes. I'm not sure how long we'll be gone. Jessica is going to watch the kids while we're away."

Ginger pushed away from Jason. "Tell him to get someone else," she said moodily. "I'm tired of being their puppet."

Jason sighed. "As much as I'd love to humor you, Ging, Tom specifically asked for you. You have to come. It wasn't a request. So, please go pack your stuff and kiss the kids goodnight for me. I'm gonna go take a shower because I don't want to smell like Marisa any longer than I have to."

"They can't make me come," Ginger insisted.

"I get it. You think I don't, but I do. I'd love to tell Tom where he can shove his little errands he assigns me. I'd love to, but I know I can't so I don't."

Ginger looked defeated. "That son of a bitch does everything he can to keep us at one another's throats."

Jason nodded in agreement. "He does, but we let him get away with it. So go pack your bag and get ready to leave. I'm going to go take a shower and try to wash Marisa away."

"If only it were that easy," Ginger said forlornly.

Jason kissed her forehead. "I'm sorry, Ging. I really am."

Ginger nodded sadly. "I know you are. Just go take your shower. I'll pack your bag for you."

"Pack the black slacks that I like if you would."

"I always do."

Jason showered while Ginger packed. The children were in bed by the time Jason was finished dressing, but he went to tell them goodnight anyway. He got Ginger, and they went to find Tom and Marisa.

They found them at the spot they were supposed to meet, groping one another like teenagers. They were standing behind a van that had its back doors propped open.

Ginger cleared her throat to show her annoyance at the display. "There'd better be a good reason I'm having to leave my kids and go off with you," she said.

Tom broke his attention away from Marisa long enough to answer. "There is. Now get in the van and shut up. I'm not in the mood to deal with you right now."

Ginger waited expectantly for Jason to say something in her defense. When he didn't, Ginger huffed angrily and climbed into the vehicle.

Tom smirked at him. "You should get a leash for your bitch," he said. "That mouth of hers is going to get her into trouble."

Jason shrugged. "It definitely keeps things interesting, though," he replied and followed Ginger into the back of the van.

Ginger and Jason waited silently while Tom shut the doors behind them. The engine started after a moment, and Ginger waited until the vehicle was in motion to speak. "I know I don't make things easier on you, but the least you could do is be on my side."

Jason sighed. "I am on your side, Ging. You're just too caught up in pissing Tom off to see that."

"How are you on my side?" Ginger wanted to know. Her voice became shriller the longer she spoke. "Explain to me please how standing by and watching what happens to me is being on my side!"

"I'm trying to protect you!" Jason insisted, voice rising to match Ginger's. "All Tom needs is a reason, and not a very good one at that, and he'll be more than happy to make our kids motherless."

"Bullshit," Ginger spat at him. "You're just afraid to be a man and stand up to him. You're too busy being his fuck buddy to take up for me."

Jason reeled back as if he'd been slapped. Ginger clapped her hand over her mouth, a look of horror on her face. "I'm sorry, Jason. I didn't mean that. I'm sorry. I swear I didn't mean it. You know I didn't. I'm so sorry."

When Jason responded, it was with an icy calmness. "If I come to your rescue, he'll think I love you. If he thinks I love you, at some point it will amuse him to kill you while I watch. He's particularly fond of raping a woman and letting the adultery curse finish her. You know how when we were kids we all wondered if the adultery curse was even a real thing? I can assure you it is and that it is a particularly unpleasant way to die."

Ginger looked contrite as she watched Jason. "So where are we going?"

Jason shrugged. "I don't know."

Ginger looked alarmed. "Tom didn't tell you where we're going?"

Jason shook his head. "I guess we'll find out when we get there."