Breaking Down The Fourth Wall: Part Two
Oct 22, 2020 6:55:19 GMT
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Post by Nick Knight on Oct 22, 2020 6:55:19 GMT
September 15, 2020
Nick yawned like a cat as he unlocked the door to his motel room. Normally he would stay in a suite at the MGM Grand free of charge because of his friend Tony, but between conventions and the big fight card the next weekend the place was overbooked. So he chose to avoid the chaos of the strip and checked into a Motel Six way off the beaten path.
The place was a dump, but he didn’t mind all that much. It reminded him of where he came from, which made him appreciate how far he had come. Back then it wasn’t unusual for six or seven guys to pile into one room to save on money, because making fifty or a hundred bucks a show you didn’t have much to spend. Anyway it was better than dealing with all of the crazy shit at Lou’s house.
Exhaustion was all that he felt after six hours wedged between Larry from Louisville and Karl from Cincinnati.. He could seriously kick himself for forgetting to book a seat in business class, and even his miles couldn’t get him upgraded. This was shaping up to be a bad week and he seriously wished he could have just flown home and skipped whatever bullshit Lou had planned for him.
The only thing that made him happy about being in Vegas instead of in L.A. was the pizza from Metro Pizza that he ordered just before jumping into the shower. The hot water relaxed him and he was starting to doze when there was a knock on the door woke him up. The pizza he had been craving, a stuffed sausage, pepperoni, and mushroom, he arrived. He quickly smashed the pie and fell into a food coma.
He wasn’t sure how long he had been out when he woke up to his phone playing Rock Lobster. Grabbing it from under the pillow he hit the answer button. “Hello,” he said, sleepily.
“Hey,”Penny greeted him. “Did I wake you up?”
“Yeah, what time is it?””
“A little after midnight.””
“Shit I’ve been out for a few hours. Sorry I didn’t call you.””
“It’s alright, I figured you were a little jet lagged.””
“I love waking up to the sound of your voice.” Just hearing her made him smile. “How was your day?””
“It was good, but that’s not what I want to talk about. I want to talk about what you did to poor Gregor Winter last night. You sat that and let them throw fire in his face! Did you know that they were going to do it?””
Nick sat up in bed and took a sip of his now warm Coke. He sighed because he knew this was about to be a rough conversation. “Yes, I knew. I tried to stop it from happening, but no one will fucking listen to me. I tried to talk to Lou about just leaving Gregor alone, but he just ignores me. Then I tried to tell Gregor to just play along, but he’s a stubborn fuck.””
“You know that it’s pretty fucked up that you’re trying to play the victim in all of this. You are being treated like some sort of Christ figure and poor Gregor is probably still in the hospital. You are not a fucking victim.””
“I don’t know what I am, besides overlooked." Nick lets out a sigh. "Do you realize I haven’t had a match in over a month?””
“I guess I hadn’t realized that,"” she admitted.
“Maybe what Lou is doing to Gregor is cruel, but it’s also keeping me in the minds of the fans, which mean I’m on the minds of management. I haven’t been given a chance to do anything, so I’m making my own opportunity.””
“You know it’s wrong?””
“You're right, the actions on their own are wrong. If you look at the bigger picture, they're necessary."”
"Is that what you want to teach our son? That sometimes it's alright to do the wrong thing if he deems them necessary?””
"I'm doing these things for him, and for you."”
"That's bullshit!"” Nick could feel her rage from 300 miles away.
"Bullshit? Working for IWF pays for that penthouse apartment you like to stay at, and that fast car you love to drive. It helps pay for that expensive school JC loves and all of the baseball camps that he went to all summer. If I’m not on TV every week management will use that as an excuse to screw my on my next contract.””
"Okay, maybe you’re doing this for the right reasons, but it’s still fucked up. I mean why in the hell is your brother doing this? Wouldn’t it make more sense to a bigger name like James Gilmore or Dean Harper?” ”
“How often do you watch the shows?””
“I just catch little segments when JC is watching.”” Nick could her the embarrassment in his voice. She had been caught red handed.
“Penny it’s fine that you watch professional wrestling. Millions of people do, and a lot of them are female. I know that can be hard to believe, but I stay at the same hotels as a lot of the guys. You can sit down in the lobby drinking coffee and just watch the walk of shame parade.””
“You really shouldn’t judge those girls for having a good time,”” Penny lectured.
“I’m not judging. I think women are allowed to have fun in the bedroom, or anywhere else, just like the guys. I’m not sure these girls believe it, because you can just see that they are ashamed of what they did the night before. It’s really kind of sad to see, which is why I’ve learned to just stay in my room until check out time.””
“Nicky, you’re getting off topic. What does Lou want with Gregor?””
"Fuck if I know. Lou has always had some sort of method to his madness, but I can't connect the dots on this one."”
"Do you think it has something to do with James?"”
"No. Gregor trained at James' dojo, but they really didn't have much of a relationship. When we were working in New Orleans, Gregor slept in my room, because he couldn’t afford one of his own. James would barely even acknowledge that the kid existed.”
"God! That makes what you're doing even worse. You aren't just attacking him, you're betraying him."”
"Gregor's a big boy, he'll get over it. Trust me I don’t think I’ve ever had a single friend that didn’t betray me at some point.. Most of them I have forgiven, and some I never will. It’s just a part of life that we all have to deal with, no matter how much it sucks.””
“I’m sorry.”” He could tell that she was crying.
“For what.”” he asked, softly.
“For betraying you.” She sniffled and Nick could feel his heart starting to break.
“You are definitely one person I have forgiven and I don’t want to talk about that ever again. I love you wildly Penny Dreadful and I always will.””
“I love you too, Nicky Nightmare.””
“Now that that’s settled I’m fucking exhausted and really need some sleep. You and Randy still coming up on Thursday for our little meeting?””
“Yeah, we’re planning being there by noon or so.””
“Good. I have a guy that’s going to meet with us about the business. He’s someone that can really help us get off of the ground and make a shitload of money.””
“How do you know someone that can help us launch a porn company?””
“I met him through Sleaze, and he is probably the only guy that knows the industry as well.””
“Nicky I’ve been in the business for twenty years. I’ve seen every single heavy hitter that there is, trust me they’ve all tried to steal me away from Sleaze.”
“Trust me, you’ve never met this guy.””
“Alright, then how the fuck do you know him?””
“He was a silent partner in xXx Wrestling.””
“Of course. Well you get some sleep and I’ll see you in a couple of days.”
September 17, 2020
The Italian restaurant was the kind of place that only a local would know about. Tucked into a strip mall far from the glitz and glamour of Fremont Street it was the perfect place to have a meeting, especially when three of the participants are famous in certain circles. Nick also liked coming to this place because it had the best chicken parm on planet Earth. The secret the owner’s wife, a beautiful woman from Thailand, said was all from using the best ingredients. All Nick knew was that it was fucking delicious.
Randy and Penny nervously argued over whether or not some actor was in the closet, while Nick sipped on a cold beer. He was going to have to do a shitload of cardio to burn off lunch so why the fuck not, Looking up Nick sees the gentleman that they are waiting for and waves him back.
“He’s here, so remember to be on your best behavior.” Nick said in his best dad voice. Nick stands up and gives the newcomer a hug. “It’s good to see you Saul.””
“It’s fantastic to see you Nicky.”” The man was easily in his seventies wearing chinos and a golf shirt. He had a full head of snow white hair that he kept slicked back and piercing blue eyes. He carried a very expensive black leather briefcase at his side.
“Saul these are my business parters, Randy Just Randy and the beautiful Penny Dreadful. Guys this is Saul Rubin.”” Nick took his seat next to Penny with a smile.
“Saul? Wait...you’re No Name Saul,”” Randy asked.
“Guilty as charged.” The old man chuckles. “I’m guessing that you’ve done a little bit of work around the office?””
“I would fill in for Wanda when she went on vacation. I’d see that name on all kinds of paperwork, but I didn’t know you were a real person,”” the big man answered.
“I like it that way. Sleaze liked to live the life of the glamour and fame. He loved his gaudy mansion and all of the half naked girls running around. That was his image and it worked for him, but I’m not like that. I’m a quite man that lives a very quiet life with my wife and kids. Porn just happens to be one of my many business interests and my involvement was purely monetary.””
“So you’re saying that I’ve made you a lot of money over the years,”” Penny said.
“That you have my dear, which is why I jumped at this opportunity when Nicky called me. Sleaze is dead to me, what he has done in unforgivable. However the porn industry has been very good to me, so I want to financially back your new company.””
“What’s the catch,”” asked Randy.
“No catch. I’m offering you the same deal I had with Sleaze. I loan you the money with zero interest and ten points on the back end. My name is to never be included in any official announcements, trade publications, or movie credits. I am one hundred percent a silent partner as laid out in this contract.” Saul puts his briefcase on the table and pops it open, before handing all three of them a copy of a contract. “Take it to your lawyer to have them look it over, and then decide if you like the offer.””
“I’ve already had the contract looked over by my brother’s partner,” Nick said. “He said that everything is in order with it. So we just need to decide if this is what we want to do.””
“I’ll give you kids some…””
“Let’s do it,”” Penny interrupts.
“I agree,”” said Randy.
“Anyone have a pen.”” Nick was grinning from ear to ear.
The contract was quickly signed and the new business partners enjoyed a fantastic meal together. After they at Nick took Penny back to his cheap motel and they celebrated and worked on his cardio all of the same. Twice the front desk clerk had to call to ask that they keep things down and Nick lost count of the number of times Randy mockingly knocked on the wall from his room next door. Eventually they both ran out of steam and fell asleep in each other’s arms.
September 18, 2020
Randy and Penny had to leave early to return to L.A. for a dinner meeting with a possible distributor of the movie. Which meant He could no longer put off the trip across the city to Lou’s house. It was something that he hated doing more than just about anything in the world. He loved his brother, but the things that went on inside his house were unsettling.
Parking the rented Challenger in the drive Nick walked up to the house. He could hear the screaming the second he opened the door, which meant the basement door had been left open. Taking a deep breath to steel his nerves he walked down the flight of stair into what could only be described as a dungeon.
The walls were covered by midnight colored sound proofing material and the only light came from candelabras scattered about the space. Two attractive young women were strapped to X shaped crucifixes opposite the stairs and Nick had to fight back the urge to vomit. It was only the barking of the leather clad masked mas on the floor that brought him back to the real world.
“Easy Bubba.”” He walked past the dog man and towards the screams. He steeled his courage and walked through the door. A young man, no more than twenty years old, was tied over a seahorse of sorts. Blood dripped down his back from a countless number of lashes from a leather whip.
“Reach out and touch faith, brother,”” Crosse said in greeting. The preacher was shirtless and sweat dripped down over his muscles. “I was wondering when you would be coming to see me. I was beginning to think you didn’t love me anymore.””
“I would have come sooner, but I had other work to take care of first.””
“Yes the adult film company, Grayson called me after you stopped by the office. He wanted to make sure that I approved of this business before he gave you the go ahead. Did you know that he was my very first disciple?” Nick looked at him in shock. “I thought not.””
“What did you want to see me about?”” Nick just really wanted to get the fuck out of that basement. He had seen a lot of brutality in his life, caused most of it; but the man strapped down with a back shredded was even too much for him.
“Can’t I just want to see my big brother?””
“Cut the bullshit, Lou.” Knight had always allowed this version of his brother his strange proclivities, but today he just wasn’t having it. “I’m not one of your minions that you can fuck around with whenever you have a whim. So tell me what the fuck you want of I’m on the highway home in twenty minutes.””
“I wanted to talk with you about our friend Gregor.” ”Lou led the way up the stairs and back up into a beautiful suburban home. “His lack of cooperation is really, to be frank, unacceptable.””
“What the fuck do you want me to do about it?””
“Did Penny leave you with blue balls brother?” Nick gives a burst into flames look to his little brother. “I was just asking, because you are in a worse mood than usual.””
“This might be hard for you to understand Lou, but I have a family. You know people that love me and actually want to spend time with me doing fun things like going to baseball games. I could be spending time with them instead of standing in your living room listening to you whine about Gregor Winter not cooperating.””
“If you want me to stop whining, do something about him. Nothing I’ve thought of has worked, obviously there has to be something rolling around in your sick head.””
“Let me give it some thought. I’m going home for the weekend and I’ll be back on Monday.””
Nick spent the weekend hanging out with JC at the apartment. They watched movies, played videogames, and even spent some time at the beach. It was an awesome father and son weekend and Nick was sad when he had to take his son home. The fact that he couldn’t even risk seeing Penny just made it an even shittier night, which is why he decided to drive to Vegas overnight to beat traffic.
September 21, 2020
It’s four o’clock in the afternoon and Nick is sitting in Lou’s living room eating a ham sandwich and waiting for Sacrifice to begin. IWF had been nice enough to send out a camera man to record them live and everything was set up in the basement. Smartly Lou had put away all of his toys and left Bubba the dog man in charge of security. He could not remember being this nervous about cutting a promo, well ever.
“Penny for your thoughts,” Crosse said, startling Nick out of a stupor. “Or are your thoughts on Penny?””
“I don’t know how much longer I can do this shit, Lou. You get off on torturing people and turning them into what you want them to be. That’s not me at all. Hell most of the time anymore I don’t want anything to do with people, let alone changing them.””
“Jesus Christ had his moments of doubt and look at the church they built around him.””
“Yeah, but I really don’t want to be crucified.””
“Well if you change your mind, I can help you with that.” Crosse gives his brother a wicked grin. “I’m thinking a crown of barbed wire would be more appropriate for you that thorns.””
“Probably. Let’s go get this over with before I lose my courage.””
8:00 PM
Nick is on the highway back towards Venice Beach when his phone rings. He hits the button to answer it using his hands free, his music automatically muting.
“Hey sweety,”” Penny greets him.
“Hi.””
“What’s wrong?””
“I’m just having my doubts about a lot of things.””
“Is there a problem between us you want to talk about?””
“No, You and JC are the one thing in my life that I am one hundred percent sure about. Starting the movie company has me worried simply because it’s the unknown, and all this bullshit with Lou is getting to me.””
“What do you mean?””
“He has these people really believing that I’m some kind of messiah. I go to restaurants and get my food for free because the waiter is a member of the Church of Crosse. Women are literally throwing themselves at me because they want to fuck the Unholy Son. It’s really starting to fuck with my head.””
“Alright, so what are you going to do about it?””
“I’m going to disappear for a few days. If it’s an emergency I think you’ll know where to find me.””
“Yeah I know.””
“Alright. I love you.””
“I love you too.””
Nick yawned like a cat as he unlocked the door to his motel room. Normally he would stay in a suite at the MGM Grand free of charge because of his friend Tony, but between conventions and the big fight card the next weekend the place was overbooked. So he chose to avoid the chaos of the strip and checked into a Motel Six way off the beaten path.
The place was a dump, but he didn’t mind all that much. It reminded him of where he came from, which made him appreciate how far he had come. Back then it wasn’t unusual for six or seven guys to pile into one room to save on money, because making fifty or a hundred bucks a show you didn’t have much to spend. Anyway it was better than dealing with all of the crazy shit at Lou’s house.
Exhaustion was all that he felt after six hours wedged between Larry from Louisville and Karl from Cincinnati.. He could seriously kick himself for forgetting to book a seat in business class, and even his miles couldn’t get him upgraded. This was shaping up to be a bad week and he seriously wished he could have just flown home and skipped whatever bullshit Lou had planned for him.
The only thing that made him happy about being in Vegas instead of in L.A. was the pizza from Metro Pizza that he ordered just before jumping into the shower. The hot water relaxed him and he was starting to doze when there was a knock on the door woke him up. The pizza he had been craving, a stuffed sausage, pepperoni, and mushroom, he arrived. He quickly smashed the pie and fell into a food coma.
He wasn’t sure how long he had been out when he woke up to his phone playing Rock Lobster. Grabbing it from under the pillow he hit the answer button. “Hello,” he said, sleepily.
“Hey,”Penny greeted him. “Did I wake you up?”
“Yeah, what time is it?””
“A little after midnight.””
“Shit I’ve been out for a few hours. Sorry I didn’t call you.””
“It’s alright, I figured you were a little jet lagged.””
“I love waking up to the sound of your voice.” Just hearing her made him smile. “How was your day?””
“It was good, but that’s not what I want to talk about. I want to talk about what you did to poor Gregor Winter last night. You sat that and let them throw fire in his face! Did you know that they were going to do it?””
Nick sat up in bed and took a sip of his now warm Coke. He sighed because he knew this was about to be a rough conversation. “Yes, I knew. I tried to stop it from happening, but no one will fucking listen to me. I tried to talk to Lou about just leaving Gregor alone, but he just ignores me. Then I tried to tell Gregor to just play along, but he’s a stubborn fuck.””
“You know that it’s pretty fucked up that you’re trying to play the victim in all of this. You are being treated like some sort of Christ figure and poor Gregor is probably still in the hospital. You are not a fucking victim.””
“I don’t know what I am, besides overlooked." Nick lets out a sigh. "Do you realize I haven’t had a match in over a month?””
“I guess I hadn’t realized that,"” she admitted.
“Maybe what Lou is doing to Gregor is cruel, but it’s also keeping me in the minds of the fans, which mean I’m on the minds of management. I haven’t been given a chance to do anything, so I’m making my own opportunity.””
“You know it’s wrong?””
“You're right, the actions on their own are wrong. If you look at the bigger picture, they're necessary."”
"Is that what you want to teach our son? That sometimes it's alright to do the wrong thing if he deems them necessary?””
"I'm doing these things for him, and for you."”
"That's bullshit!"” Nick could feel her rage from 300 miles away.
"Bullshit? Working for IWF pays for that penthouse apartment you like to stay at, and that fast car you love to drive. It helps pay for that expensive school JC loves and all of the baseball camps that he went to all summer. If I’m not on TV every week management will use that as an excuse to screw my on my next contract.””
"Okay, maybe you’re doing this for the right reasons, but it’s still fucked up. I mean why in the hell is your brother doing this? Wouldn’t it make more sense to a bigger name like James Gilmore or Dean Harper?” ”
“How often do you watch the shows?””
“I just catch little segments when JC is watching.”” Nick could her the embarrassment in his voice. She had been caught red handed.
“Penny it’s fine that you watch professional wrestling. Millions of people do, and a lot of them are female. I know that can be hard to believe, but I stay at the same hotels as a lot of the guys. You can sit down in the lobby drinking coffee and just watch the walk of shame parade.””
“You really shouldn’t judge those girls for having a good time,”” Penny lectured.
“I’m not judging. I think women are allowed to have fun in the bedroom, or anywhere else, just like the guys. I’m not sure these girls believe it, because you can just see that they are ashamed of what they did the night before. It’s really kind of sad to see, which is why I’ve learned to just stay in my room until check out time.””
“Nicky, you’re getting off topic. What does Lou want with Gregor?””
"Fuck if I know. Lou has always had some sort of method to his madness, but I can't connect the dots on this one."”
"Do you think it has something to do with James?"”
"No. Gregor trained at James' dojo, but they really didn't have much of a relationship. When we were working in New Orleans, Gregor slept in my room, because he couldn’t afford one of his own. James would barely even acknowledge that the kid existed.”
"God! That makes what you're doing even worse. You aren't just attacking him, you're betraying him."”
"Gregor's a big boy, he'll get over it. Trust me I don’t think I’ve ever had a single friend that didn’t betray me at some point.. Most of them I have forgiven, and some I never will. It’s just a part of life that we all have to deal with, no matter how much it sucks.””
“I’m sorry.”” He could tell that she was crying.
“For what.”” he asked, softly.
“For betraying you.” She sniffled and Nick could feel his heart starting to break.
“You are definitely one person I have forgiven and I don’t want to talk about that ever again. I love you wildly Penny Dreadful and I always will.””
“I love you too, Nicky Nightmare.””
“Now that that’s settled I’m fucking exhausted and really need some sleep. You and Randy still coming up on Thursday for our little meeting?””
“Yeah, we’re planning being there by noon or so.””
“Good. I have a guy that’s going to meet with us about the business. He’s someone that can really help us get off of the ground and make a shitload of money.””
“How do you know someone that can help us launch a porn company?””
“I met him through Sleaze, and he is probably the only guy that knows the industry as well.””
“Nicky I’ve been in the business for twenty years. I’ve seen every single heavy hitter that there is, trust me they’ve all tried to steal me away from Sleaze.”
“Trust me, you’ve never met this guy.””
“Alright, then how the fuck do you know him?””
“He was a silent partner in xXx Wrestling.””
“Of course. Well you get some sleep and I’ll see you in a couple of days.”
September 17, 2020
The Italian restaurant was the kind of place that only a local would know about. Tucked into a strip mall far from the glitz and glamour of Fremont Street it was the perfect place to have a meeting, especially when three of the participants are famous in certain circles. Nick also liked coming to this place because it had the best chicken parm on planet Earth. The secret the owner’s wife, a beautiful woman from Thailand, said was all from using the best ingredients. All Nick knew was that it was fucking delicious.
Randy and Penny nervously argued over whether or not some actor was in the closet, while Nick sipped on a cold beer. He was going to have to do a shitload of cardio to burn off lunch so why the fuck not, Looking up Nick sees the gentleman that they are waiting for and waves him back.
“He’s here, so remember to be on your best behavior.” Nick said in his best dad voice. Nick stands up and gives the newcomer a hug. “It’s good to see you Saul.””
“It’s fantastic to see you Nicky.”” The man was easily in his seventies wearing chinos and a golf shirt. He had a full head of snow white hair that he kept slicked back and piercing blue eyes. He carried a very expensive black leather briefcase at his side.
“Saul these are my business parters, Randy Just Randy and the beautiful Penny Dreadful. Guys this is Saul Rubin.”” Nick took his seat next to Penny with a smile.
“Saul? Wait...you’re No Name Saul,”” Randy asked.
“Guilty as charged.” The old man chuckles. “I’m guessing that you’ve done a little bit of work around the office?””
“I would fill in for Wanda when she went on vacation. I’d see that name on all kinds of paperwork, but I didn’t know you were a real person,”” the big man answered.
“I like it that way. Sleaze liked to live the life of the glamour and fame. He loved his gaudy mansion and all of the half naked girls running around. That was his image and it worked for him, but I’m not like that. I’m a quite man that lives a very quiet life with my wife and kids. Porn just happens to be one of my many business interests and my involvement was purely monetary.””
“So you’re saying that I’ve made you a lot of money over the years,”” Penny said.
“That you have my dear, which is why I jumped at this opportunity when Nicky called me. Sleaze is dead to me, what he has done in unforgivable. However the porn industry has been very good to me, so I want to financially back your new company.””
“What’s the catch,”” asked Randy.
“No catch. I’m offering you the same deal I had with Sleaze. I loan you the money with zero interest and ten points on the back end. My name is to never be included in any official announcements, trade publications, or movie credits. I am one hundred percent a silent partner as laid out in this contract.” Saul puts his briefcase on the table and pops it open, before handing all three of them a copy of a contract. “Take it to your lawyer to have them look it over, and then decide if you like the offer.””
“I’ve already had the contract looked over by my brother’s partner,” Nick said. “He said that everything is in order with it. So we just need to decide if this is what we want to do.””
“I’ll give you kids some…””
“Let’s do it,”” Penny interrupts.
“I agree,”” said Randy.
“Anyone have a pen.”” Nick was grinning from ear to ear.
The contract was quickly signed and the new business partners enjoyed a fantastic meal together. After they at Nick took Penny back to his cheap motel and they celebrated and worked on his cardio all of the same. Twice the front desk clerk had to call to ask that they keep things down and Nick lost count of the number of times Randy mockingly knocked on the wall from his room next door. Eventually they both ran out of steam and fell asleep in each other’s arms.
September 18, 2020
Randy and Penny had to leave early to return to L.A. for a dinner meeting with a possible distributor of the movie. Which meant He could no longer put off the trip across the city to Lou’s house. It was something that he hated doing more than just about anything in the world. He loved his brother, but the things that went on inside his house were unsettling.
Parking the rented Challenger in the drive Nick walked up to the house. He could hear the screaming the second he opened the door, which meant the basement door had been left open. Taking a deep breath to steel his nerves he walked down the flight of stair into what could only be described as a dungeon.
The walls were covered by midnight colored sound proofing material and the only light came from candelabras scattered about the space. Two attractive young women were strapped to X shaped crucifixes opposite the stairs and Nick had to fight back the urge to vomit. It was only the barking of the leather clad masked mas on the floor that brought him back to the real world.
“Easy Bubba.”” He walked past the dog man and towards the screams. He steeled his courage and walked through the door. A young man, no more than twenty years old, was tied over a seahorse of sorts. Blood dripped down his back from a countless number of lashes from a leather whip.
“Reach out and touch faith, brother,”” Crosse said in greeting. The preacher was shirtless and sweat dripped down over his muscles. “I was wondering when you would be coming to see me. I was beginning to think you didn’t love me anymore.””
“I would have come sooner, but I had other work to take care of first.””
“Yes the adult film company, Grayson called me after you stopped by the office. He wanted to make sure that I approved of this business before he gave you the go ahead. Did you know that he was my very first disciple?” Nick looked at him in shock. “I thought not.””
“What did you want to see me about?”” Nick just really wanted to get the fuck out of that basement. He had seen a lot of brutality in his life, caused most of it; but the man strapped down with a back shredded was even too much for him.
“Can’t I just want to see my big brother?””
“Cut the bullshit, Lou.” Knight had always allowed this version of his brother his strange proclivities, but today he just wasn’t having it. “I’m not one of your minions that you can fuck around with whenever you have a whim. So tell me what the fuck you want of I’m on the highway home in twenty minutes.””
“I wanted to talk with you about our friend Gregor.” ”Lou led the way up the stairs and back up into a beautiful suburban home. “His lack of cooperation is really, to be frank, unacceptable.””
“What the fuck do you want me to do about it?””
“Did Penny leave you with blue balls brother?” Nick gives a burst into flames look to his little brother. “I was just asking, because you are in a worse mood than usual.””
“This might be hard for you to understand Lou, but I have a family. You know people that love me and actually want to spend time with me doing fun things like going to baseball games. I could be spending time with them instead of standing in your living room listening to you whine about Gregor Winter not cooperating.””
“If you want me to stop whining, do something about him. Nothing I’ve thought of has worked, obviously there has to be something rolling around in your sick head.””
“Let me give it some thought. I’m going home for the weekend and I’ll be back on Monday.””
Nick spent the weekend hanging out with JC at the apartment. They watched movies, played videogames, and even spent some time at the beach. It was an awesome father and son weekend and Nick was sad when he had to take his son home. The fact that he couldn’t even risk seeing Penny just made it an even shittier night, which is why he decided to drive to Vegas overnight to beat traffic.
September 21, 2020
It’s four o’clock in the afternoon and Nick is sitting in Lou’s living room eating a ham sandwich and waiting for Sacrifice to begin. IWF had been nice enough to send out a camera man to record them live and everything was set up in the basement. Smartly Lou had put away all of his toys and left Bubba the dog man in charge of security. He could not remember being this nervous about cutting a promo, well ever.
“Penny for your thoughts,” Crosse said, startling Nick out of a stupor. “Or are your thoughts on Penny?””
“I don’t know how much longer I can do this shit, Lou. You get off on torturing people and turning them into what you want them to be. That’s not me at all. Hell most of the time anymore I don’t want anything to do with people, let alone changing them.””
“Jesus Christ had his moments of doubt and look at the church they built around him.””
“Yeah, but I really don’t want to be crucified.””
“Well if you change your mind, I can help you with that.” Crosse gives his brother a wicked grin. “I’m thinking a crown of barbed wire would be more appropriate for you that thorns.””
“Probably. Let’s go get this over with before I lose my courage.””
8:00 PM
Nick is on the highway back towards Venice Beach when his phone rings. He hits the button to answer it using his hands free, his music automatically muting.
“Hey sweety,”” Penny greets him.
“Hi.””
“What’s wrong?””
“I’m just having my doubts about a lot of things.””
“Is there a problem between us you want to talk about?””
“No, You and JC are the one thing in my life that I am one hundred percent sure about. Starting the movie company has me worried simply because it’s the unknown, and all this bullshit with Lou is getting to me.””
“What do you mean?””
“He has these people really believing that I’m some kind of messiah. I go to restaurants and get my food for free because the waiter is a member of the Church of Crosse. Women are literally throwing themselves at me because they want to fuck the Unholy Son. It’s really starting to fuck with my head.””
“Alright, so what are you going to do about it?””
“I’m going to disappear for a few days. If it’s an emergency I think you’ll know where to find me.””
“Yeah I know.””
“Alright. I love you.””
“I love you too.””
Well howdy there pardner.