FSE

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_Author's Note: Finally finished chapter 8! It's been giving me a hard time, but I was able to figure it out. I'd love to know what everyone thinks. As Always, Read, Comment, and Vote. You guys are the best and just for reading you all get 5 points! - AK _

I couldn't believe what I had just heard. Sam was Mr. Cunningham's son?! What the hell? I mean seriously, what the hell?

"He told me about how he controlled you." Michelle said. "That you would do whatever it took to buy me from Andrew's family, but I would have never guessed he was your son."

"I tried to b-buy you, n-not because I wanted to b-break up y-your family, Andrew, b-but because I-I had to. B-but your father s-said no. He s-said...and I-I think this is important...he said t-that you ha-had grown up with M-M-Michelle an-and h-he wanted to g-g-give her t-t-to you o-on your w-wedding day."

"He told me that last night." I said.

"Yes, b-but he also s-said that Y-you and Michelle are very c-close and he d-didn't want t-to s-s-separate you. Unders-s-stand I didn't want to even ask, I h-had to."

"I'm so sorry, Mr. Cunningham." I said.

"D-don't be. Sam is m-my son a-and I shouldn't h-have spoiled him s-so much. J-just promise m-me you'll k-keep it quiet."

Michelle and I both nodded and we turned to leave. Mr. Cunningham got into his car and drove off leaving me very confused. What the hell was going on? Michelle and I started walking back home.

"I still can't believe Sam is Mr. Cunningham's son." Michelle said. "They seem so...different."

"Neither can I, but it makes sense." I answered. "I mean it explains why he's always got that mightier than thou attitude."

"Yeah. If I was with Sam, I'd probably be even less free than I am now. He'd be a worse master than your father, no offence."

"Absolutely none taken." I said.

We walked together, talking about this and that, just like a normal couple. I enjoyed every second I spent with Michelle, regardless if I was supposed to be spying on her. The more I thought about it, the more I kicked myself for not realizing it sooner. I looked at her, and I couldn't help but smile. She was beautiful in every way I could imagine, and for some reason she loved me. The most amazing girl on the planet loved me.

Michelle had to walk into the house, well ahead of me. I wanted to create the illusion that I actually spied on Michelle. I walked in the door about 5 minutes after she did. I was glad when I finally walked into my house, it was freezing outside.

My father and Mr. Harding were still in the living room, talking about something business related.

"Well," Mr. Harding asked when he saw me, "anything?"

"Nothing." I said.

"As I said, Stephen," my dad said, "you have nothing to worry about."

"You may have been lucky this time, Robert. But I am telling you, it's only a matter of time."

"Mr. Harding," I said, "I'm pretty sure Michelle won't be doing anything to hurt me anytime soon."

"But you can't be sure of that, can you Andy?" He answered.

"Of course I can. Michelle and Lisa have my complete faith."

Mr. Harding grimaced at me, and then forced a smile.

"Well, for you and your family's sake, I hope you're right."

I gave a polite smile back and went back to my room. The more I interacted with Mr. Harding, the more I didn't like him; and I was pretty sure he didn't like me. I could tell that when I was dating Marie. He probably felt like I was good enough for his daughter. And now it was probably because I was defending Michelle and Lisa. I chuckled to myself as I thought about what Mr. Harding would do if he found out about me and Michelle; he'd probably be sick.

I didn't do much for the rest of the day. I ordered books online for the classes I was going to be taking at my new college. I doubted it could be any worse than where I was right now, and as long as I got to see Michelle every day, I'd be happy. I wondered how Michelle would be in college. She always out performed me when we were tutored, so I think she'd have done well if she were allowed to go. I was taking a couple of different classes. Luckily for me, my credits transferred over so I got to pick most of my classes. As I clicked the send button on my order, a knock came to my door. My dad opened the door.

"What's up?" I asked him.

"Mr. Cunningham just called." He said. "He was wondering if you could help him with something after dinner. He said it was important."

"Sure." I answered. "What does he need me to do?"

"He didn't say. But he asked that you meet him at the park at around five."

"Ok. I'll go after dinner then."

"It's odd." My dad said. "I wonder why he asked you to help him rather than Michelle or Lisa."

"Who knows?"

"I think I do, but don't worry about that. If you want, I can give you a ride to the park."

"No it's ok. The walk isn't that bad."

"Alright. Then I will see you at dinner."

My dad left and I read some news stories online. It looked like anthros were making the news a lot recently. In California, anthros were asking the governor to allow laws against excessive beatings, which the governor denied out right; however the same proposition was being considered extensively by the governor of Alabama. If Joshua Black wanted to get attention for his cause, mission accomplished. Anthro rights was quickly joining the ranks of same-sex marriage and abortion as one of the most talked about issues in the country, the only difference being that the battle lines were far less clear.

Before long, dinner was served. I finished quickly and actually took my plate from the table.

"Why are you doing that?" asked my mom.

"I have to tell Lisa and Michelle something. Just a small request for when I get home."

I heard my mother whisper something about 'backwards' to my father as I walked into the kitchen. Michelle and Lisa were still there eating a much simpler meal than the one I just had. I was going to tell Lisa that the food was excellent, as it always was, but I figured it wouldn't be right.

I walked over to the sink and began to wash my dinnerware. I saw Michelle beginning to move from her seat.

"Don't think about it." I said. "I can wash a dish."

"Yes, but you're using hand soap instead of dish soap."

Sure enough, the hand soap dispenser had a small trickle of soap coming out of it. Boy did I feel stupid. Lisa tried to suppress a laugh; Michelle failed to. I quickly corrected my mistake and continued with my dish.

"So, did you hear I'm helping something Mr. Cunningham with something?"

"What?" asked Michelle.

"I don't know. All I know is I'm meeting him at the park."

"Think it's got something to do with what we talked about?"

"What did you talk to Mr. Cunningham about?" Asked Lisa.

"Just the fact that Sam wounded him pretty badly."

Lisa shook her head.

"I understand that Sam wants to be free, we all do, but doing things like that are giving the rest of us a bad name. It's causing everyone to be paranoid."

Quietly, I thought to myself that Lisa had no idea just how free Sam was. I dried the dish, but since I didn't know where it went, left it on the counter.

"Do I get to see you when I come back?" I asked as I walked over to Michelle.

She giggled.

"Of course, provided you're not too late."

I bent and gave her a kiss and I gave Lisa a hug. I left the kitchen, threw on my coat, and started walking to the park. The sky was just beginning to darken around me, but the streetlights weren't on yet. There was a cold chill in the air. I pulled my coat closer to me and walked a little faster until I got to the park.

The park felt huge, but it wasn't big in reality. The bare branches of the trees stretched out and pierced the sky. I looked around for any sign of Mr. Cunningham or his car, but I couldn't see anything. I quietly sat on a bench I could find and tried to focus on something besides freezing. After a few minutes I heard a voice.

"Good, you came."

It wasn't Mr. Cunningham's voice, but I turned anyway. It was Sam.

"Where's the car?" I asked.

"Not taking it. It was me who wanted to see you. Would you mind walking? I don't do well sitting down."

I stood up and began to walk with Sam through the park. I was on my guard. I knew what he could do if he were to get angry, and I'd rather not spend the rest of my night in a hospital bed.

"So what do you want?" I asked him.

"You always seemed nice, sir." He said, still trying to keep the standard he was expected to. "And you seem like you have a good heart. Perhaps you know, but my master tried to buy Michelle from your family."

I nodded and let him continue.

"The reason for that is, that I, well this is hard to say, sir, but over the years I've always loved her. I would be forever in your debt, if you could somehow convince your father to sell her."

"Sam," I said. "Let's stop this charade, alright."

"What are you talking about?" he asked me.

"I know everything. I know what you told Michelle and I know who you really are. So no games, Mr. Cunningham."

Sam looked at me, and showed his teeth in a grin.

"Figured it out, huh?"

"Yeah. I also know what you did to your father because he didn't buy Michelle."

"All the more reason for you to listen to me, isn't it? After all, imagine what I 'd be willing to do to you."

My eyes darted to his claws, which were probably razor sharp. Not to mention the row of sharp canines that dotted his mouth. Still, nothing was going to make me budge.

"I don't really give a damn what you're willing to do to me, or what you will do to me. Understand this; Michelle is not, nor will she ever be for sale. You can threaten me, attack me, whatever. I am not going to convince my father to sell her to you, or anybody else for that matter. She's staying with me, where she wants to be."

"I thought you were smart enough to be reasoned with. I guess I'll have to try another way."

Sam grabbed me by the collar and lifted me up with no effort and slammed my back against a tree. I winced in pain. When I opened my eyes, Sam was maybe an inch away from me and was still holding me against the tree.

"Listen to me, human," he growled, "I don't care what she wants or what you or your father have to say about it! Michelle will be mine, no matter what I have to do to get her, and if I can't have her, no one can!"

"And you listen to me, you mutt," I yelled back, "you'll have to go through me to get to her and I swear to God that you will never lay a hand on her. And should you try, I will make sure you pay for it! Mark my words. I promise you that I will do whatever it takes to keep her safe and away from you, no matter what you do to me."

Sam looked at me for a moment, angrier than I had ever seen anybody before. However, to my surprise, he put me down and walked a few steps away from me. He let out a cold chuckle.

"I see." He said coldly "you care about your pet a lot."

He chuckled again and I clenched my fist, ready for a fight.

"Perhaps a bit too much. Keep her safe for me. I'll be coming to get her real soon."

"Don't bet on it." I said as he turned and walked away.

I cringed in pain again. That shot to my back must have hurt more than I thought. I guess I was so angry that I just ignored the pain. I could tell someone about what had happened, but I decided against it. Mr. Cunningham would simply cover for Sam. Besides, after what I said, and Sam's reaction, it was a safe bet that at the very least he knew I had feelings for Michelle. I didn't want that to get out, because it was a safe bet she'd be punished, even if the feeling were thought to be one sided.

I sighed and tried to ignore my back as I walked h and threw myself on my bed gently. By now the sky was pitch black. Not even five minutes after I was in my room, Michelle walked in.

"So how did it go?" she asked.

I told her all about my little tussle with Sam. She put her hands to my face.

"Are you ok?" she asked earnestly.

"I'm fine. I just wish I could kill the bastard."

Michelle kissed me deeply.

"Thank you for standing up for me."

I grabbed her close and kissed her forehead.

"That's what I'm supposed to do. I love you so much."

"I love you too. I love you more than anything in the world."

I threw my arms around her and held her close and she snuggled up against me. This was worth anything that Sam could throw at me. To have Michelle close to me was the greatest thing I could possibly think of. I would do whatever I needed to make sure she was safe and to make sure that she felt as loved and as happy as I was whenever I was with her.