(The Virtuous Husband) In the name of Love

Chapter 35

Allyson

"What do you mean by marked her?" I asked coming out of my hiding place. Even though I had promised not to dwell in this mess, here I was. Everyone's heads snapped towards me. Yes, I came out stealthily but that was too much. I swear I could hear everyone's breath as it became that silent.

"I'm going to ask again, Adam," I paused. "What do you mean by marked her?" my question hung in the air and slowly everyone's eyes turned towards Adam who just stared at me before his eyes turned down to the floor.

"Answer her question," Noel snapped at him. "Explain what you just said." Christa's eyes were teary and I had no idea how she was feeling but whatever it was it wasn't less of a storm inside of her.

"You know what happens in the club, right Christine?" Christa just looked at him.

"She might know it but we don't," I snapped at him. His eyes turned to me. "If you saw it and let it happen then you should have the decency to speak it right through your lips." I could see a battle inside his mind the way his fist opened and closed before his eyes shut close turning away from me. We all waited for him to say anything as minutes passed and nothing came out.

"It's a sex club where people come to feed off their kinks through mutual consent," his eyes were making a hole in the floor as he started.

"The rules are the same for everyone," he paused breathing in. "I'm good with the owners and that's why they allowed someone like Jayce to be part of the club. He had different kinks than others and he didn't mind sharing." Adam took deep breaths.

"It was a part of the lifestyle and yes that place did have drugs but everything was on a mutual consent basis. However, in these clubs, there is something called marking which once done, he or she doesn't have much left to say. In the club, they are bound to whoever had marked them, and their mutual consent is no longer needed. In the outer world all those who knew never approached them. They were slaves to the one who had marked them," I was trying to understand what he was trying to explain. I have read so much about this kind of place but it felt like all that I knew was shit.

"All I know is that when you mark someone no one questions you what you do with them. The slaves had no right to their own bodies and the master owned them in all senses. I have always assumed it to be a kink for bdsm people or in sub-slave relationships. I have got shit knowledge about these topics. I have had my share of few kinks but this is not one of them," Adam said running his hands down his face.

"You think he marked me?" Christa asked horrified. "I know what you are talking about but he couldn't have done that to me. I don't even remember him doing something like that to me and what would that entail him after doing that? We had hardly seen each other since our break up five months back before that."

"I got no idea about that," Adam said frustratingly his hand moving in his hair and then resting on his necks.

"Even then I had rarely any idea about what shit Jayce was doing. I have barely any knowledge about much of this besides a few kinks here and there. When compared to what you know, I'm sure that even I won't know anything." I just stared at them like everyone else did.

"But you said it was before Richard's birthday. So it can't be that" I could hear the disbelief in her voice. "He hadn't marked me back then and how would have that helped him in doing that night? I just can't understand anything." I wanted to add, that neither did I. However I was sure that whatever this marking meant, Christa knew about it and she was horrified by it.

"Yes months before Richard's birthday he had asked me to help him in this marking thing. He had to talk with the owners of the club and a few more people to make it official. There was supposed to be even video evidence of the marking. He had told me to set up a meeting for the marking and I had asked my friend to set it up. I had done all of that for him and I had absolutely no idea who that girl was but it wasn't you back then Christa," the confidence he spoke didn't leave an ounce of weight to not believe his words.

"He was obsessed with marking someone and ever since your breakup things had been shaky with him. Some days he was clean and on others he was high as a kite. I barely had any idea which side of him I was going to see," he paused taking in deep breaths.

"He had this other girl who had a similar figure to yours as I think about it now." Picking his phone he scrolled through it until he came across. "Here look at it yourself," he pushed the phone towards Christa.

"All he wanted was to do was mark her and as much as I knew it messed up. He had to give evidence but the girl had been found bloodied and beat up in one of the club rooms. Jayce was high and he had gone out of control. My friend had called me and I had to do damage control back then for Jayce and the club. The girl was pressing charges against both of them. There was a list of sexual assaults and even inhumane behavior," I wanted to kill Jayce for all the horrible things he had done to that woman and also to Christa.

"And you helped him in all of this?" I asked him my eyes judging him for helping me. As he looked at me he couldn't hold onto my eyes any longer. With a defeated sigh, he turned his eyes to the floor.

"I did help him but it was more because of the club. I had brought Jayce there and my freind told that I had sort out all of the mess. I had not even take a step back in that club since then. Whatever happens now is none of my concern and as much as I know Jayce had not been around that club too," whatever he said there was no way he could rise in my eyes. All he saw was a devil lawyer who proved criminals to be innocent. Suddenly I felt a deep hatred inside of me for him but I controlled myself from taking a step towards him because I surely would have slapped him hard.

"You did it even knowing it was wrong. It speaks volume abotu what kind of person you are. No wonder you thought the worst of me after seeing me with him, Noel," Adam looked at me shockingly and his mouth open.  Noel on the other hand looked at me and then back to Adam.

"I was quick to jump on conclusions," he said seeing past me at the wall.

"But that doesn't make you any less guilty than him," I cut him off. "Save it for someone else who wants to hear."

"I still can't understand anything," Dolores spoke up pulling the phone from Christa's hand.

"When did he mark Christa and why do all of this to mess up with Noel?" She voice the question to which answer we were still clueless about. Everyone was looking at each other and then finally at Adam who just couldn't meet anyone's eyes for too long. I hoped he dorwned in a sea of guilt.

"After coming back from New york I had come to know from someone that Jayce was still part of the club and he had completed the marking process. I didn't want to involve myself into that thing again so I just didn't care. Ever since then I hadn't helped Jayce in any of it and even warned him that if he vistied that club he was on his own," he paused takign a deep breath. "But with what all you said it just clicked that he had been the one that has marked you. I don't know what it even means, do they ingrain it on your skin or something, I got no idea."

"All I know is that requires video graphic evidence and Christa could have been the one whom he had marked because of all of the fuss right then," turning towards Christa he just looked at her. 

 "I'm purely guessing it was you until there is someone else claiming it to be this person who he had marked, thats' all I know," it was the last of his explanation before he got up an went right out towards the terrace telling us that he needed some air. I just replaced his place on the close beside Christa.

"Do you rememeber anything abotu this marking? Jayce ever mentioning it?" She just stared at me and I could see from her expression that she knew something. I waited for her to reply and when she didn't I just held her hand.

"We need to know Christa," I squeezed her hand in assurance.

"He had talked .. about ...it once," her lips trembled. "He had talked about it a lot and it was one of the reason why I hadbroken up with him."

"If he has marked me then there is a high chance that we," Christa paused as if she was reeling from a shock.

"Could be married too," her words left me horrified just like she was. Married? What the hell was this marking?

"I remember signing something," she cried out, slipping her hand away from mine.