A Trial of Strength

A TRIAL OF STRENGTH - PART 339 By Rob Williams

IN THIS CHAPTER:

Grady, the heart-throb new movie Tarzan, and his Italian lover Mario, have a bitter separation. Both have had repeated sex with other men, causing a rift that is beyond repair. Bob tongue-lashes Grady; Randy rebukes Grady physically – a brutal gym-workout and a savage fuck. But Mario hurts so deeply he decides to go home to Italy. "As the plane took off Mario shut his eyes tight to hold back the tears."

CHAPTER 339 – "GRADY & MARIO BREAK UP"

************ In the previous chapter ***********

Brandon, the hero of the hour for saving Uncle Mike from drowning in the pool, had got a spectacular reward from the man he loved, Ranger Pete. Pete had bought him a leather outfit and they had gone for a bike run in the desert where they were joined by the Marine Hassan and his boy Eddie, Brandon's best buddy.

Hassan, a powerful, macho Marine captain, had felt a craving for a temporary role reversal where he himself was dominated by an equally strong man. Brandon and Eddie had watched breathlessly in the basement of the soldier's small desert hideaway as Pete had chained him up, whipped and fucked him, then made him shoot two more loads in the boys' mouths.

They had returned triumphantly to Uncle Mike's house where Brandon, now a reluctant hero, had been interviewed and photographed by the local newspaper, with his pal Eddie acting as his "press agent."

With Eddie hovering in the background, `protecting his client', the session went well. Brandon coolly described the rescue from the pool (without the melodrama Eddie had recommended) and Mike expressed his heartfelt gratitude to "this brave boy". They took several shots of Brandon alone – smile, no smile – then with Mike standing behind him beaming.

Then Brandon said, "I'd like one with my best pal Eddie, `coz he taught me practically everything I know.' (He neglected to add "... about sucking cock", an omission that made Hassan and Pete sputter with laughter in the background.) So Eddie took his place crouching beside Brandon, his arm around him, eyes sparkling with pride and joy.

And that was a picture the two best friends would keep and treasure for the rest of their lives.

Later, as Mike, the two men and their boys relaxed in the garden eating and drinking, there was a crunch of tires outside the gate and Mike grinned, "Oh, I forgot to tell you guys, we're gonna have company." The gate opened and in came the blond fireman Jason with his boy Ben, followed by young Brian in his wheelchair. There were whoops of delight from the boys who swung into an exaggerated greeting as if they had just been reunited with long-lost friends.

Mike smiled, "I've heard all about you `three amigos' and thought you should all be together, along with my nephew Brian, who I've gotta say is looking real great, kiddo – a changed man. Plus I can never miss a chance of drooling over the most gorgeous fireman on the planet. I'll jerk off looking at you later, Jason. But first, sit your butts down and eat and drink."

The conversation was raucous at first with the boys all talking over each other, but when they settled down they peppered Brian with questions about the Grady House. Brian was the houseboy there and they all wanted to hear the latest on Grady, the heartthrob movie Tarzan.

Brian was subdued and seemed reluctant to answer questions. But finally he said, "You know guys, there's a rule that what happens in the Grady House stays in the house, and we're big on confidentiality. But ... we are kinda family here and, and ..."

He seemed to fold up and his eyes filled with tears. "Thing is, I'm not sure how much longer there's gonna be a Grady House, `cos Grady and Mario have had a massive fight and they're gonna split up for good. They've quarreled before ... I mean, who hasn't? ... even split up once for a few days ... but this time it's real bad and Danny, my boss who runs the house, is kinda devastated about it. He suggested I take a few days off out of it, so I came out here."

Mike squeezed his hand comfortingly as the tears flowed. "See, guys, I don't know what's gonna happen and ... and I'm real scared. I mean, I love those guys, they're my life, and when they split up and there's no more Grady House ... I mean, what's gonna happen to me?"

********************* Chapter 339 *********************

Uncle Mike put his arm round his nephew and said, "Hey, hey, kiddo, things can't be as bad as that. Couples have arguments all the time then patch things up, especially if they love each other as much as Mario and Grady do."

"But they don't anymore, sir," Brian said tearfully. "This time they're splitting up for good."

Pete said, "Brian, I agree with your Uncle Mike. We all know the stress Grady is under with that whole movie on his shoulders, with all the press and paparazzi. Last time they fell out was because Mario felt left out, kind of invisible while Grady became this big celebrity. But they got back together pretty quick because they're crazy about each other. This time won't be any different, you'll see. I mean, what can have happened that's so bad they can't resolve it?

"What happened!" Brian said wide-eyed. "They both had sex with other guys, that's what!"

"No!" gasped the other boys in unison. "That's not possible," Brandon said ... "Well, maybe with Jamie or Lloyd or Adam or one of the other guys, but there's nothing unusual in that."

"No," Brian sobbed, "it wasn't that. It was guys outside the tribe – guys we hardly even know."

By this time tears were flowing down Brian's face and Mike took charge. "Hey Brandon, could you go and get a couple more bottles of wine from the kitchen, a white and a red, and bring some of those sandwiches you'll find in the fridge? Looks like we're in for the long haul here."

As Brandon wheeled away Mike said, "Look, Brian, if you're up for it I think it would be good for you to tell us the whole story rather have the details come out in dribs and drabs. It's not good for you to bottle all this up. You're with family here – and that's what families are for."

Brandon soon came back carrying the wine and sandwiches on his tray table. He poured a glass of wine for Brian, who gulped it down and swallowed a couple of sandwiches – the first food he had eaten all day, too upset to eat. They let him eat now, he took another sip of wine, then looked at his uncle with a wan smile. "Thank you, sir. I feel better now."

"Good. OK kiddo, in your own time, tell us exactly what happened."

Brian took a deep breath, cleared his throat and began his tale, with the four men and three boys hanging on his every word. "See, it all happened over the last few weeks though me and Danny only just found out about it. We got the story just two days ago from them separately, partly from Grady, part from Mario. They're not talking to each other and only told us, and Danny said we should keep it secret ..."

"Yeah, what happens in the Grady House stays in the Grady House," Mike shrugged. "You say all this had been building over a couple of weeks? How come?"

"Well, what Grady calls principal photography is winding down on the movie and now all the public relations stuff moves into high gear. That means a lot of quick trips all over the country, abroad too, to make personal appearances for the movie.

"The studio gave Grady a personal assistant to travel with – seems celebrities always need an assistant to stay close and take care of them. Well the guy Grady chose – I think his name is Connor – is the same age as Grady, same sense of humor. They knew each other already, saw each other on the set all the time and liked each other a lot.

"Good looking?" asked Jason.

"It seems so, sir. Grady said he has dark Irish looks – real masculine, the kind Grady goes for ... well, you know what I mean. Anyway, with all the pressures of traveling, the press, back-to-back events, Grady said he was exhausted and Connor took good care of him. Wherever they went they had adjoining hotel rooms but spent a lot of time together and ... well, it seems one thing led to another and they ended up sharing a bed ... most nights."

"You mean they fucked?" Eddie said, wide eyes gleaming.

"Yeah, and Mario knew nothing about it until ..." Brian choked up and took a sip of wine. "One night around 3am Mario was restless in his empty bed, missing Grady a whole lot, he told us, and thought he would surprise Grady by phoning him. Thought they might have phone sex, or something. But it was Connor who answered the phone. He said Grady was asleep, even checked with Grady lying beside him but Grady grunted no."

"Wow," Eddie said, deep in the drama. "So the cat was out of the bag big time."

"Yeah," Brian said. "Next day Mario called Grady, who could never lie to him, and the whole story came out. Well, of course, Mario was totally shattered ... and furious – you know that Latin temper Italians have."

"So what did he do?" Brandon asked.

"He was so dazed he kinda went on automatic, doing chores as usual. He took one of their cars in for servicing to the mechanic we always use – Rick his name is, real hot, black hair, handsome face, a bit like Mario.

"I think Rick's always had the hots for Mario and this time on the spur of the moment Mario took him into the back room of the garage and fucked him. He told us the revenge felt so good he's seen Rick several times since. And then," ... Brian teared up ... "Mario said Rick's a better fuck than Grady, but I don't think he meant it."

Tears started to flow again and Mike said, "You can stop if you want to, Brian. It upsets you, of course, we understand that. But can you just tell us how things stand now?"

"Well, when Grady got back from his trip with Connor, we heard Grady and Mario having a flaming row where Mario boasted about fucking Rick ... what's good for the goose is good for the gander,' he yelled ... and stormed out of the house. Grady shouted, and don't come back!', and they haven't spoken since. Mario's gone to stay with his old pal Jamie, and Grady told us he's gonna sell the house. And I don't know what's gonna happen to Danny and me."

"Well you don't have to worry about that last part, Brian," Pete said. "Whatever happens there will always be jobs for you at the tribe's house and plenty of places you can stay."

Even Hassan, who never did `warm and fuzzy' offered his support. "You can always stay with Eddie and me and help Tommy at Steve's house ... but that's getting ahead of ourselves. Maybe it won't turn out so bad after all."

That last bleak utterance of hope left them all gloomily sipping their wine with blank stares.

Mike jumped up and said, "Thing to do now is take it one step at a time. I gotta go and make my reappearance at the bar, `cos my bar-tender is coping with the beer bust all on his own. And I suggest you all come with me. I know Brandon and me will get a big reception – the hero and the guy he brought back from the dead – and with you guys there too there won't be a limp dick in the place.

"Now I'm not suggesting that we sweep this news under the carpet, but my advice is that we take a deep breath, try to relax and have fun at the bar. You'll all spend the night here and then go back to L.A. tomorrow to give whatever help you can.

"Sounds like a plan," Jason said, and the other men agreed. The boys, of course, circled the wagons around Brian and he realized that, unlike his former lonely life out here in the desert trailer park, he now had a family of loving friends he could turn to. And that would never change, no matter what setbacks life brought.

And so they got dressed for the bar in various leather-Levi outfits, and when they all walked into the bar a great cheer went up for Mike and Brandon, who were the center of attention for the first half hour. Then the focus turned to the leatherman Pete, the muscled soldier Hassan, and the shirtless fireman Jason, all looking as if they had stepped straight out of a porn video.

The boys were already well-known in the bar so it was a pretty raucous crowd, and for a couple of hours the drama playing out at home was pushed to the back burner, as Mike had hoped, although the boys were still overly attentive to Brian. The men too were sensitive to the boys' concerns and Jason, who felt responsible for Brian having brought him here, eventually said to the other men, "Time to call it quits, I think, guys."

They had dinner at Mike's house, joined by Mike himself after the beer bust was over, and went to bed early, with some of the couples sleeping in the garden as it was a warm desert night. There was, of course, some love-making but everyone's thoughts were still a hundred miles away on the Grady House.

In the morning they made an early start back. There were effusive hugs between Mike and his rescuer Brandon, and his nephew Brian. Mike had a quiet word with the men, wishing them luck when they got back and urging them to keep him posted on events. Then the convoy set off – Pete driving Brandon and Brian, with the bikes stowed in the back; Hassan in his jeep with Eddie; and Jason in his SUV with his gypsy boy Ben.

Conversation was muted in all three vehicles as everyone was apprehensive about what they would find when they got home.

In the Grady House, meanwhile, after Brian left it had been a quiet, cheerless night with just a gloomy Grady and his houseboy Danny. It was tough on Danny, trying to maintain a normal domestic routine in such abnormal circumstances. The absence of Mario left a huge hole in the middle of the house, which had always been defined by the love and laughter of the two lovers. Danny cooked dinner for them both but the brooding Grady ate little. Danny, very ill at ease, spoke seldom, just letting Grady vent.

"I just don't get it – Rick, the mechanic! I always knew he was hot for Mario, but me and Mario joked about it. I never thought in a million years that Mario would betray me by actually ..." he spat the words with disgust ... "actually fucking him. You've seen Rick, Danny ... do you think he's hot?"

Danny shrugged non-committally. "Yeah, I guess ..."

"Do you think he's hotter than me? I mean, hot enough for Mario to choose him over me? Do you think he's in love with Rick? What did he tell you?"

"Sir I ... I didn't speak much to Mario before he left to stay with Jamie and Mark, so I couldn't possibly know if ..."

Grady slammed his fist on the table. "Fuck ... fuck ... stupid asshole, banging Rick ... makes me so fucking mad. I don't wanna see him again ... ever. He can just clear out and ..." Grady was getting crazed and it scared Danny. "I'm not going to work tomorrow ... I'll call in sick."

But sir," Danny said in alarm, "you can't, the whole production depends on you."

"Yeah? Well they can go fuck themselves too, the whole lot of them." Then more calmly, "It's only one small scene anyway, they can shoot around me. I want you to sleep with me tonight, Danny. I'll show the mother-fucker I don't need him. I'm a fucking movie star. I got a whole bunch of guys wanna share my bed."

Danny had slept with Grady and Mario before but it was always light-hearted love-making, lots of fun. This was more like an order. Grady didn't really want him – just a hot body to take Mario's place.

And that was made real clear in the morning. It had been a restless night ... Grady tossing and turning, reaching out to Danny, then pulling away because it wasn't Mario. And it was fairly late the next morning and Danny was still asleep when he was woken by Grady shaking him. "Hey, kid, I got a massive hard-on and you gotta take care of it. Get on your back."

Danny knew that every morning when Grady woke he made love to Mario and Mario fucked him. It was their morning ritual. But this time Grady would get his rocks off with Danny. Still only half awake Danny turned on his back and felt his legs being pushed back as he looked up at Grady looming over him. He was frightened by the look in Grady's eyes. He had never seen him like this, this angry – crazy angry – and he screamed as he felt Grady's dick slam inside his ass in a painful dry fuck."

"No, sir, please I can't ..."

"No! You saying no to me? You forgotten who I am?" He sneered, "But you wouldn't say no to Rick, your new lover, that asshole." In a panic Danny realized Grady was talking to Mario, taking his revenge. "When I get a morning hard-on it's your job to get me off, you son-of-a-bitch. So here goes, traitor."

The fuck was fast and brutal. As the naked Grady pounded his ass Danny was in a daze of panic and pain ... and, unbelievably, lust. In his delirium he flashed on the scene in the movie where Tarzan forced himself on the servant girl, the scene Grady had rehearsed with Brian in this very bed. Now Danny was the servant boy getting force-fucked by Tarzan, this stunningly gorgeous man, eyes blazing down at him, muscles rippling in his magnificent body, his long hard rod driving in his ass like a piston.

Danny gritted his teeth and took deep breaths though his nose, staring up at the wild, beautiful eyes, as Grady leaned forward and pinned his wrists to the bed. He was forced to endure the ramrod drilling his ass and listen to the rage-filled voice.

"Is this how you fuck that grease-monkey, eh, your new lover? You hold him down like this and pound his ass? Is he hotter than me? Is he so hot you tell him you love him? So hot he makes you cum in his ass. Does he squeeze his ass round your dick and tell you he loves you? Do you feel the jizz racing up your dick? Do you watch his muscles flex, watch him shoot his load all over his gorgeous body ... does that make you bust your load like this ... aaagh, fuck you ... fuck you, man ... aaagh!"

Danny felt Grady's cock explode in his ass and, despite the pain and fear, his own cock blasted semen over his writhing body. Grady was completely demented as he stared wildly down at him ... he was in another world, a world of pain, grief and resentment. He pulled out sharply, making Danny scream again, and yelled, "Now get out ... get out and don't come back. Who needs you? Plenty more where you came from!"

Danny stumbled blindly from the room with only one thought – he had to get away. Naked, he stumbled downstairs, across the garden, opened the gate ... and fell into Bob's arms.

As Bob held him tight Danny sobbed, "I gotta get away, sir. Take me away, please."

"Sshh, sshh," Bob said soothingly, stroking the boy's head. When Danny stopped shivering Bob held him at arm's length and smiled, "Now what's this all about, Danny? Tell me what's happened."

Danny pursed his lips and looked fearfully over his shoulder. Bob frowned, "Now I know all about your vow of confidentiality here but this time you have to tell me everything, Danny. This is me, Bob," he said gently. "You know you can trust me."

The garbled account came stumbling out. "Grady told me to sleep with him, sir – kinda like taking Mario's place. But it wasn't the Grady we know ... he looked real wild. And when we woke up just now he fucked me, but he was kinda crazed, like he was yelling at Mario, punishing him, and he hurt me, then yelled at me to get out and not come back. I don't even think he knew it was me, sir."

Just then Pete's truck pulled up, back from the desert. Brian opened the door, put out his wheelchair and lowered himself into it. Pete and Brandon made moves to get out too but Bob said, "It's OK, guys, I'll take care of him. There's all kinds of shit going down here. It's lucky I came up here to talk business with Grady just as Danny was leaving. Better I handle it, but I'll make sure no harm comes to Brian."

Reassured by Bob's calm, authoritative tone Pete nodded. Brandon gave Brian a thumbs up through the window and they drove off. It was clear that both Brian and Danny were highly nervous and Brian blurted out, "I just came back to get my truck, sir. Brandon said I can stay with him and Pete. Don't make me go inside, sir, please."

Bob smiled, "Listen, boys, I'm in charge now and nothing bad is gonna happen to you, that's a promise – and I don't break my promises. I think you should both go to the kitchen and make a nice hot breakfast for yourselves. Nothing like sharing your troubles with a real close buddy, so talk it out between you, and wait `til I come back. I'm going to have a chat with Grady."

Danny bent down and hugged Brain and they went off to the kitchen. Bob sighed deeply and headed into the house and upstairs. When he opened the door to the master bedroom he saw Grady lying naked on the bed in a fetal position. Bob pulled up a chair beside the bed, sat down and said sternly, "Look at me Grady."

Like he had just woken from a nightmare Grady jerked his head up, startled, and stared blankly at Bob. He opened his mouth to speak but Bob took the initiative. "Grady, I'm not here to get involved with your feelings for Mario. That's for you to work out. I'm not here as a friend. I'm here, first, as Randy's lover and second as your business manager. Are you listening to me?"

The cold anger in Bob's eyes was even more frightening than Randy's blazing fury and made Grady pull himself together and say meekly, "Yes, sir, I'm listening."

"Good. First, and most important, there are two boys downstairs who are frightened out of their wits, boys who idolized you and devoted themselves to taking care of you. One of them you as good as raped, the other one, the boy in the wheelchair, thinks his world has been shattered. He's in danger of regressing to the scared, depressed young kid he was before he met you.

"I said I was here as Randy's lover because I know how he thinks and feels, especially about men who mistreat boys. If Randy were here now instead of me he'd be thrashing the shit out of you. I'll give you the benefit of the doubt and assume you did not intentionally hurt the boys, so when we're finished here you will come down to the kitchen with me, get on your knees and beg their forgiveness.

"Now, as your business manager I'm wondering why you're not at work at the studio right now."

"I called in sick," Grady said sullenly, "and I'll do the same tomorrow. They can all go fuck themselves."

Controlling his anger Bob said coldly, "You mean all the crew, the cast, the hundreds of workers whose paycheck depends on that movie, people you called your friends? They're the ones who can all go fuck themselves?"

"I'm in no shape to work, after the sucker punch that prick gave me when he betrayed me ..." he was shouting now ... "having sex with a fucking grease monkey!"

"Be quiet!" Bob snapped. "I told you I'm not involved in your love life, or lack of it, but as your business manager it's my duty to protect your financial security. And that means your job. OK, today I suggest you spend the day pulling yourself together and making amends to those two great kids down there. And early tomorrow morning you will be in the gym at our house for your daily workout with Randy – and whatever else you two do down there."

"I'm not gonna workout again. No point. I did it mostly to look good for Mario but now the asshole's got a new lover I ..."

"You might want to reconsider that, Grady. Like I said, I know Randy and all his moods and if you don't show up he'll come up here and give you the kind of workout you don't want. Trust me, I know. It won't be pretty – and neither will you. So you will get your ass down to the gym, then you'll go to work and earn the money to pay for this lifestyle and this house."

"I'm selling the house," Grady said defiantly. "I want my old life back, that little house in Laurel Canyon where no one depended on me and I had no damn lover who'd stab me in the back."

"Fine," Bob barked, losing his patience. "I'll put the house on the market right away. As for tomorrow morning, I'll leave that one to Randy. Right now you're coming with me to convince those boys they have no reason to feel as scared and desperate as they do. Put your shorts on." When Bob laid down the law men obeyed. He was such a commanding alpha male, and Grady had always loved and respected him so completely that he now meekly followed orders.

A few minutes later Bob knocked on the kitchen door and went in, followed by Grady in just his shorts. The sight of the boys shocked him. They were sitting at the kitchen table eating breakfast and when they saw Grady they recoiled, with fear in their eyes. Grady could never have believed these two wonderful, loyal kids, his good buddies, could shrink from him in terror.

"No," he said, a sob in his voice. "Please don't be scared of me guys." He walked forward and fell on his knees before them as they remained seated, and stared at them pleadingly. "Guys, I've been a total asshole to you and you've always been so good to me. I got lost ... I mean, so much has happened ... and I took it out on you. Especially you Danny this morning in bed. But I never meant all those things ... never meant to hurt you."

His eyes brimmed with tears. "I love you guys, you know that. Please, can you forgive a total dickhead for losing his mind? Please don't leave me. Can we spend the rest of the day together and make up and maybe laugh a little like we always did?"

The tears were flowing now and he buried his face in Brian's lap. Danny raised his hand, hesitated and looked at Bob. Bob smiled and nodded and Danny stroked Grady's tousled hair. "It's OK, sir, we'll stay with you." He looked questioningly at Brian who nodded eagerly. "Goes for me too, sir. Would you, er, like some breakfast? There's plenty here and you haven't eaten in a while. We've been keeping track."

Grady looked up at their gentle faces and then at Bob. "I don't deserve them, Bob."

Bob smiled and shrugged. "Whether you do or not, Grady, you've got them, and you're a lucky man. Enjoy your breakfast, guys." On that he left quietly. Outside the door he heaved a big sigh, smiled and murmured to himself, "It's up to you now, Randy."

While Danny had been spending his fitful, nervous night with Grady, Mario's own desperation was finding solace in Jamie and Mark. Jamie was Mario's first friend when they met at the hotel he worked at, a friendship that blossomed as time went on. So it was natural that he would take refuge with the blond surfer and his cop when his world fell apart and he left the Grady House.

At first Mark and Jamie had let him simply vent. "All this time when he travelled with Connor as his personal assistant they were sleeping together! Disgustoso! Incredibile! While I was at home making the house and garden perfect for him he was shacking up with this guy. I was so freaked out when I discovered the truth my only thought was la vendetta – revenge. That's why I had sex with Rick ... and went back for more."

He sobbed as he fell into Mark's arms. "I can never forgive Grady. He obviously doesn't love me anymore. And I can't love him. I can't go back to that house, can't stay in this country. I'll go back to Italy to my family, to people I can trust."

Mario was falling apart, in desperate need of comfort and love. He held on tight to Mark, felt his warmth and strength and, like a man clutching a lifebelt said, in his delirium. "Don't let go ... please don't let go, Mark. Hold me, love me, make love to me." He looked desperately at Jamie. "Is it OK, amico? Will you let us?"

Jamie smiled at Mark, then at Mario's tear-stained face. "Buddy, it's exactly what I need when I'm in trouble. Nothing like a gorgeous cop to hold onto."

Mario needed desperately to be touched, held, loved. His pride and self-esteem had taken a beating. The love he thought was eternal had been wrenched from him and he needed reassurance that he was still loved ... by someone. Frantically he stripped naked and fell on the bed looking up at Mark with pleading eyes.

Mark had just come home from work, still in his police uniform, and he now smiled down at Mario, unbuttoned his shirt and took it off, then pulled his T-shirt off over his head. "I know just what you need, Mario." He unzipped his pants, pulled out his cock and lubed it up from the lube jar that was always by the bed. He knelt between Mario's legs and pushed them back.

"Mario, whatever else happens in your life you know you will always be loved by Jamie and me. We'll do whatever it takes to protect and comfort you. Are you sure you want this?"

"Yes please, sir, if ... if Jamie's OK with ..."

"Mario," Jamie said softly, "it's just what you need. I should know. And I'll be right here with you too."

He smiled and nodded at Mark who eased forward, pressed his cock between the cheeks of the Italian's ass, and pushed it in ever so gently. Mario made whimpering sounds like a lost puppy and pressed his fingers into the slabs of Mark's chest, needing the touch of warm human flesh. He gazed up into the gentle blue-gray eyes of the handsome blond cop and let himself float on an enveloping cloud that carried him away from his pain and despair.

His mind shut out everything else except for the eyes smiling down at him and the exquisite sensation of the big cock making love to his ass. And just when sadness pushed its tendrils in and threatened to taint his euphoria, Jamie knelt beside the bed, leaned forward and kissed him. Mario ran his fingers through Jamie's tangled blond hair and rested his other hand on Mark's thigh, feeling his hard muscles ripple under the black surge of his uniform.

He was safe, he was loved ... and, as proof, the cop's rod was moving rhythmically inside him, caressing him. His mind flashed on making love to Grady but he instantly banished the image and the sharp stab of pain it caused. Aware of the jolt Jamie pulled off his mouth and said, "Sshh ... relax and feel the joy. We love you, amico, and I know just how good my master's cock feels in your ass. Do you want to feel his juice inside you?"

Mario glanced at Jamie, then stared up at the Greek God face smiling down at him and spoke as if in a dream. "Si ... lo voglio molto. Per favore, signore. Please, sir."

Mark ran a hand over the square cut features and said, "Such a beautiful man. It's a pleasure to cum inside you, Mario. I love you, man ... aaahh ..." He sighed and flooded Mario's ass with his semen, a healing balm that soothed his body and drove the anguish from his tortured mind.

Mario heard laughter above him and saw his friend, the tanned blond surfer, stroking his cock. "Cum for us, Mario," Jamie laughed. "Show us there's still hot Italian blood pulsing through your veins. Show us you love us too. I'm gonna shoot, amico. Here it comes ... I love you, man ... I love you ..."

Jamie sprayed semen all over the beautiful naked Italian, joined by Mario's juice as his own cock erupted all over him. He held his arms up pleadingly and Mark and his boy fell into them and held tight to their troubled friend.

The next day had a strange feeling of unreality to it as the dust settled and both Grady and Mario found some solace in nurturing friends. At the Grady House, after Bob had forced Grady to make his peace with Danny and Brian, the boys turned with relief to doing what they enjoyed doing most – taking care of Grady.

They felt it was not their place to judge him – they would leave that to others. Judgement was replace by love and loyalty as they watched and cared for Grady, who moved around the house in a daze, his mood a toxic mix of anger, resentment, melancholy and a deep sense of loss.

Down at the tribe's compound Mario's mind was similarly filled with the same confused emotions. He had spent the night sleeping in Jamie's arms as Mark had gone to confer with Randy and Bob and had spent the night with them. In the morning Mario tried to drown his sorrows in work. "I'm going to do some gardening, Jamie," he said. "There was so much landscaping to do up at ... at that house ... that I have neglected Bob and Randy's garden."

Jamie put in a few hours work in the office and his heart broke as, from the office window, he watched the solitary Mario hacking at the ground, wrenching up weeds, taking out all his anger at Grady on the innocent soil of the garden.

That night both ex-lovers slept alone in their separate houses. Mario told Jamie he wanted to be alone to think things out, and Jamie respected his wishes, though he slept right next door, ready to offer support if needed. Grady did the same, spending the night in his big lonely bed, with the boys sleeping together next door, on the alert for any signs they might be needed.

An ominous silence settled over both houses, a knife-edge apprehension of what came next.

That silence was shattered for Grady early next morning by the insistent ringing of his bedside phone. He woke in a daze. Drained of energy he had not even thought of going to work. His mind was so exhausted, he was so lethargic that he couldn't possibly concentrate on work. Fuck the movie. Fuck them all.

He looked blearily at the clock. 6am! He picked up the phone and was blasted by Randy's gravelly voice. "Where the fuck are you? You know I always insist you get here on time."

"I, er, I'm not coming. I can't ... too tired. I'm not going to work anyway, so I don't need it. I'm gonna stop working out altogether so I won't need a trainer anymore."

"Are you fucking firing me?" The noise was so loud Grady jerked his ear from the phone. "Now listen up, dickhead. I signed on to keep you in top physical shape for this damn movie, and I intend to do that. Fuck feeling `tired.' I never took you for a wimp, asshole. Now, you get your fucking ass down here. If you're not here in twenty minutes I'll come up there and give you the kind of workout where you'll never work in front of a camera again. Nobody'll want you!"

The phone went dead. Grady was suddenly wide awake. It was not only that Randy had scared him – he had a talent for scaring guys. It was the hard-on he gave him! Whatever else Grady was, or had become, one thing was constant. He loved to get fucked in the ass. And no one – no one – fucked like Randy. It was why Grady worked so hard in their grueling workouts – so Randy would reward him by shoving his monster dick up his ass, as he did most mornings.

In automatic obedience he stumbled out of bed, pulled on his shorts and sneakers and ran downstairs to his car. As he started it up Danny and Brian came out to see what was up. "Gotta go, kids," he shouted from the car. "Randy ... workout ..." He roared away and the boys smiled at each other. It was the first sign of real life they had seen in Grady for days.

Randy had spent a lot of time the previous day talking to Bob and Mark about the situation roiling the tribe. Actually Bob and Mark had done most of the talking. Randy just listened, wrapped in his own world, his own standards of right and wrong. Randy didn't deal in the niceties of speculation and what-ifs. His innate masculinity made him strong and direct. He always knew what he had to do. Didn't stop to think about it ... just did it.

And now, in the gym, he got things ready for a special workout. He knew Grady would come – he was used to men obeying him. And when he heard footsteps on the stairs down to the gym and Grady burst in breathlessly, Randy made no reference to anything other than the job at hand. Simple and direct.

"OK, we got a late start so only a short warmup on the treadmill. Grady stepped on the moving belt and walked slowly, attempting the near-impossible task of slowly shaking off his lethargy. But Randy was having none of that. "Shit, man, is that all you got?" He reached over and adjusted the setting to a much higher speed, forcing Grady to run ... fast. Then Randy jumped on the other treadmill beside him, set it to the same speed and ran alongside him.

Grady thought his legs would cave in, but he looked at Randy running strongly beside him, staring straight ahead, his stubbled jaw set in determination. He looked magnificent as always, wearing only gym shorts and sneakers, his muscles rippling as he ran, his long black hair swirling across his face, a light sheen of sweat already shining on the slabs of his pecs.

Grady was seized with a desire to please this man. So he ran step for step in sync with him, elated by his closeness, by the virile brotherhood of men testing their physical limits.

And so it went on for the whole, hour-long workout. Making up for lost time Randy reduced the rest periods between sets and moved Grady from one exercise to the next with military precision. There was scarcely time to breathe, certainly no time to think about anything other than keeping pace with Randy, obeying his orders, pleasing him.

Randy had never pushed the actor's body so hard, barking the count for each exercise, more reps than ever before, more intense than ever before. Grady lost all sense of time or place, grinding through a macho world of sweat, grunts and muscle wrenching pain. He howled obscenities and hopeless protests... "Fuck you, man ... no more ... I can't ... bastard ... I'm finished, man ..."

But he was not finished ... Randy wouldn't let him finish until he had driven him to muscular and mental exhaustion. At last he pushed Grady in front of the mirror and said, "That's it, man, look at that fucking jock, pumped to the max. Best you've ever looked ... hottest fucking Tarzan ever to hit the screen.

Suddenly Randy yanked down Grady's shorts and dropped his own. He picked Grady up bodily and sat him down on a waist-high bench, his legs hangin over the end of it. He pressed his hand on Grady chest and shoved him onto his back. Grady stared up at the wild gypsy and knew what was coming ... what he had longed for.

"You done good today, man," Randy said, spitting on his palm and rubbing it over his long, thick cock, hard as a steel rod. "You deserve this." Standing at the end of the bench he grabbed Grady's legs and pushed them up high so his ass was level with Randy's cock ... waiting for it. This is what you've wanted all along, right?"

"Yes, sir, thank you, sir." The handsome jock, movie heartthrob to thousands, now buck naked, was totally in thrall to this swarthy muscle-god with the wild black hair and hypnotic blue eyes.

"OK, here it comes, stud." With no hesitation, no foreplay, Randy rammed his massive pole deep inside Grady whose screams bounced off the gym walls. "No, man, I can't ... it's too ..."

"Fuck you, man," Randy's eyes flashed. "No one says no to me, least of all a pretty boy like you who's been craving my dick since he walked in. You earned this, asshole, and you're gonna get it."

The fuck was ferocious – Randy at his most savage. He knew it's what Grady wanted, what he needed ... the only way to blast him out of his self-pitying lethargy and jump-start his life. And he knew the man could take it. As always Randy had an instinct for a man's limits and took him right up to them, and then for an instant just a bit beyond.

He was right. As the initial stab of pain wore off and Grady gazed up into the electric blue eyes he fell once again under the spell of the savage gypsy. Randy hooked Grady's legs over his shoulders, leaned forward and pressed his hands against Grady's biceps, effectively pinning him to the bench, his captive. "You're mine now, stud, helpless, and I can do what I damn well want to you ... and your ass."

Grady surrendered totally to the rugged construction boss and to the pile-driver pounding his ass. His body was alive, burning hot, his mind conscious only of the man dominating him. He wanted it so bad ... wanted more ... "Yeah, more ... gimme more ... fuck me, sir, pound that ass. Shit, it feels so good ... it's making me ... I'm gonna ... fuck, fuck I can't stop. I'm gonna cum ... aaagh."

He shot a massive load over the gym-pumped muscles of his chest and abs and braced himself to feel Randy's cum filling his ass. But that didn't happen. Randy kept fucking, keeping up the insistent rhythm of his shaft as it pistoned deep inside him.

"No! I just shot my load, man ... it hurts now. Finish me off. I can't take any more ... I'm begging you ... cum in my ass!"

"Fuck you, stud. No man tells me when to cum. I tell you ... and I'm telling you now. I'll fill your ass with jizz when I see you bust another load."

Grady's face crumpled in pain. "No, sir. I can't ... not again ... I'm drained, finished."

"I'll tell you when you're finished, boy. Look at me. Look in my eyes ... look at me ... look at me." The deep voice seemed to come from far away ... mesmerizing ... and the pale blue eyes hypnotic. He heard himself say, "Yes, sir ... fuck me, sir."

A slight smile crossed the dark, square-cut features and the voice said. "You're mine now, Grady, and you're gonna do what I say. I'm gonna take your ass, harder than ever before and when you cum again I'm gonna bust my wad in you. It's what you want, right? Tell me, man. Tell me you want it, tell me you'll cum for me."

The pace quickened, the force increased until the gypsy was jackhammering the jock's ass harder than ever before. Grady was reaching his ultimate pain threshold and Randy knew it. He stared into his eyes, pounded him savagely and, for an instant, took him beyond his physical and mental limit.

"No!" Grady screamed. "Please, sir, I give up ... I submit ... aaagh ... aaagh!" His body shook, his muscles flexed, his tortured face thrashed from side to side ... and his cock exploded again, seconds before Randy's huge dick emptied its load deep inside his ass.

The muscular young jock, the new Tarzan, was now a shuddering wreck, his body jerking in spasms, arms hanging limply over the sides of the bench, eyes staring dazedly at the savage gypsy who had just demolished him.

Randy yanked his cock out and towered over him. "That's what you needed, stud, and I'm the only man who could give it to you. Now get up."

"No, Randy ... I'm done." Now that the adrenaline drained from him, all the misery and frustration over Mario flooded back and his despair returned. "I gotta go home ... can't work ... fuck the movie."

"I said get up!" Randy grabbed his wrist, yanked him to his feet, then twisted his arm behind him in a half-nelson and forced him to look at himself in the mirror. He hissed in his ear from behind him, "Look at that fucking loser, man. You can't work eh? Not like all the other working stiffs who drag themselves to work each day, like all the guys down there at your studio ready to work, just waiting for `the star' to appear, the man who all their jobs depend on.

"What about all our own boys, getting up ready and eager to work, some of them catering to your needs? They work damn hard, like my construction crew and millions like them. All except you, the big stud movie star." He sneered. "No, he's gonna crawl back to bed cos he's depressed cos he's had a fight with his boyfriend. Well la-di-fucking-da. Shit, if Bob and me missed work every time we had a fight we'd be dirt poor by now."

He released Grady, shivering with fear and shame, and threw his shorts at him. Now put these on, and your shoes, and this." He tossed him one of his old tank tops from a pile of dirty clothes in the corner. Grady hurried to obey him and allowed himself to be dragged upstairs and out to Randy's truck.

Randy threw him in the passenger's side, slammed the door, got behind the wheel and the truck peeled away with a screech of tires. It wasn't long before they were speeding through early-morning Burbank and approached the main gate of Warner Studios.

"Now I'll only say this once, boy. I've given you all the juice you need to pump you for a solid day's work. So when we get there you're gonna walk in there as if nothing happened, and you get in front of the cameras and act, or swing from the fucking trees or whatever the hell it is you do in there. I'll have one of the boys pick you up this evening and you report to me. And if you tell me you worked good I'll fuck you again. If not, I'll wash my hands of you – no more workouts, no fucks, no more tribe."

They pulled up at the gate, Grady turned and gazed into Randy's eyes. A smile crossed Randy face and he said, "Go get em, Grady. Knock em, dead."

Grady squeezed Randy's arm, then jumped out of the truck, his old vigor and charm fully restored, and ran to the gate where he was greeted effusively by the guard and the group of workers clustered there. Randy grinned, shook his head, and drove away muttering, "The things I do for these guys."

At the house he was met by an anxious Bob and Mark. "What happened?"

"Ah, nothing much. I put him through a tough workout, fucked his ass, threw him in the truck and took him to the studio. He's real stoked, he'll work good today ... could be the best scenes in the movie. Now where the fuck is breakfast? I'm starved."

"Coming right up, sir," laughed the twins, appearing with trays of food. While they fussed over him, Bob and Mark grinned at each and said in unison, "Son of a bitch."

And so the tribe had rallied to protect its own. The three masters had, each in his own unique way, calmed the troubled waters. Bob, with his cool, steely authority had restored peace between Grady and his boys; Randy, the rugged man of action, had whipped Grady into shape physically and mentally; and Mark and Jamie had projected their own deep love onto Mario, showing him that he too was loved and protected.

But while they had all combined to bring some semblance of peace to the situation the problem at its core was still unresolved. Even though the dust of the initial eruption had settled, Grady and Mario were still consumed with anger and resentment toward each other. Both had the firm conviction that the twin acts of betrayal had shattered the love they once shared. It was irretrievably lost.

In the next few days they took refuge in work. Grady was shooting the final scenes of his movie, to be followed by the imminent prospect of more publicity trips. Mario worked on the garden, under Jamie's watchful and troubled gaze. But despair gnawed at both men, the ache grew worse, and separately they came to a decision on how to handle their anger and grief.

Mario's solution was the most drastic and he shared it only with Jamie. "I cannot stay here, amico. Too many memories, too much hurt. I have to shake it all off, make a clean break. I am going home to my family in Italy." Jamie heart lurched and he started to protest but Mario held up his hand.

"No, Jamie, my mind is made up. I don't know how long I will stay there, maybe for good. I will leave quietly as I don't want to stir up any more trouble, so I am telling only you. You will tell Mark, of course, but please don't tell the other guys. I have already made an airline reservation for Alitalia's afternoon flight to Rome the day after tomorrow. I will take only the few clothes I need, and leave my stuff here for you, amico, to use as you please."

Jamie threw his arms round his friend, and they hugged long and hard, both of them in tears. But Jamie knew he should not try to dissuade Mario. He could only imagine the heartache he was feeling and knew he had to take whatever action he felt imperative, no matter how drastic.

Meanwhile, Grady was on his way up into the hills to consult with Doctor Steve. The tribe's therapist (and Randy's brother) was the first member of the tribe he had met, except for Lloyd, his gym buddy, who had referred him to his lover Steve all that time ago.

Steve, of course, knew all the details of the drama that had consumed the tribe and welcomed the opportunity to offer whatever help he could in his professional capacity. An expert in human nature he knew that passion had two equal but opposite faces – passionate love and passionate dislike. When a relationship went bad, the stronger the love had been the stronger the resentment that resulted. The intensity was equal – and the love between Grady and Mario had been very intense.

Steve gazed with sympathy at the tormented man sitting restlessly on the couch facing him and, like any good therapist, listened without interruption while Grady poured out his troubles.

"No one knows what it's like, doc, when I travel on those publicity trips – the back-to-back interviews, smiling, turning on the charm all day, trying not to make a mistake and say the wrong thing. Everyone wants a piece of you – the studio execs, the press, the foreign PR guys who talk to you like they own you. They've all got their angle to work, but there's no one really looking out for me. It's totally exhausting and sometimes reduces me to tears when I finally get back to the hotel room.

"That's why they let me have a personal assistant whose only job is to support me. I chose this guy Connor from the PR department, a guy I already knew. We got along well, had the same sense of humor. He's real bright and did a great job, always pulling me away from the crowd when he could see I was exhausted.

"We had separate hotel rooms but he spent a lot of time with me after the day's work. I needed someone to care for me, to hold me, to help me relax before the whole circus started up the next day. It was great when he slept with me, holding me and ... well the inevitable happened and we started having sex regularly. I guess I wasn't thinking straight. Mario was thousands of miles away ... this was like a whole other world, separate, nothing to do with life in L.A.

"Well one night Mario found out in the worst way. He phoned me at three in the morning, but Connor was in bed with me and he answered. The shit hit the fan and I confessed the whole thing. I thought he would understand."

His voice rose in anger. "But instead, Steve, he went right out and punished me by having sex with our garage mechanic Rick. I mean, the guy is real hot and I guess Mario fell in love with him, or some shit like that, and saw him again and I guess he still is. Damnit, Steve, it makes me crazy thinking of him fucking that guy. It's over, doc, I can't see him again – ever."

There was a long silence as Grady stopped, fighting back tears. Then Steve spoke. "Grady, I understand your need for a personal assistant on these trips and you've explained why you chose Connor." He fixed him with his intense blue eyes. "But why didn't you choose Mario?"

Grady looked as if Steve had slapped him. "Mario?!"

Steve shrugged, "Sure – Mario. Seems like a natural choice to me from what you've just said. You need someone who'll look out for you and protect you ... has to be someone you get along well with, someone bright, with the same sense of humor, someone who'll hold you at the end of the day, give you a shoulder to cry on ... even, it seems, someone you want to share your bed with and make love to. Like I said, there seems to be one obvious choice."

"But ... but Steve I could never ask Mario to be my `personal assistant.' He would have found it demeaning. I mean he already felt kind of overlooked, living in the shadow of me and my damned celebrity. I couldn't have asked him that even when we still loved each other. He'd have been insulted."

"Hmm, are you sure about that, Grady? I've always found that if love between two people is strong enough, like yours used to be, you can ask each other anything." Steve shrugged. "Well, I guess it's a moot point now. Too late for that, especially now you've broken up. Anyway, you've already got Connor. You're right – probably wouldn't have worked."

Just then there was a tap at the door and Lloyd poked his head in. "Er, sorry to interrupt, guys, but there's a phone call for you Steve, and I thought you should take it. Line one."

"Thanks, buddy. Do you mind, Grady? Sounds important." He picked up the phone ... it was Jamie, sobbing. "Sir, I need to see you ... I don't know what to do. I can't get a hold of Mark and I'm so sad. See, Mario's told me he's going back to Italy ... he's leaving us. He's going day after tomorrow – he's booked and everything, afternoon flight to Rome on Alitalia. He told me not to tell anyone but I thought it would be OK to tell you, you being a private shrink and all."

"Jamie ... take a deep breath and try to relax. I'm with a patient right now, but come up here in an hour and we'll talk, OK?"

He put the phone down and sighed. He looked at Grady and came to a decision to break his vow of confidentiality. "Well, Grady, that's it, I guess this whole session is moot now. Problem solved. Seems Mario is leaving town, going back to Italy."

"What?! Are you sure?"

"Oh yeah, it's not just talk, it's definite. He's already got his reservation – Alitalia to Rome, day after tomorrow."

Grady's mind was racing. "Doc, could I use your phone? Make a couple of calls?"

"Sure help yourself, Grady. I'll leave you alone." Steve left the office, not at all sure how this would all play out.

It was surprising, given how news spread in the tribe, that this particular secret was kept between so few men. The day came, an afternoon where all the other men were at work. Only Jamie and Mario were at the house, two close friends locked in a tearful farewell and promises from Jamie that he would go visit Mario in Italy. "Oh, sounds like my cab," Mario smiled through his tears. "No more stretch limos ... those days are passed."

On the drive to the airport Mario kept his eyes mostly closed, not wanting to be reminded of places in the city that reminded him of his former life with Grady. At the airport he lined up to check in and looked over at the almost empty line at the First-Class check-in desk, which he and Grady always used in the old days.

He sat in the departure lounge trying to make his mind go blank. For a moment he flashed on those corny final airport scenes in romantic movies where at the last minute the lover comes charging through the airport yelling, "No, wait, it was all a mistake. I love you. Don't leave."

Not this time, though. And he didn't expect it ... didn't want it. This was the clean break he needed. They boarded, he made his way to the back of coach class and took his seat. There was the usual pre-departure stuff, they closed the doors and the plane pushed back from the gate. As it taxied he let himself look through the window to get his last fleeting look at L.A.

The pilot announced they were next for take-off, the engines roared and they sped along the runway. As they lifted off Mario felt he was leaving a whole chunk of his life behind, a life where he had found friendship, joy, laughter and love. Yes, he had been loved. He inhaled sharply so he wouldn't cry, leaned his head back and closed his eyes, hoping sleep would come.

It did, of sorts, though the dreams of half-sleep kept haunting him. He had finally dozed off when he felt a nudge at his elbow. He opened his eyes to see the Italian flight attendant smiling down at him. "Scusi, signore, but could I please see your ticket?"

Confused he fumbled for the ticket and gave it to her. She looked at it and smiled again. "Bene, I have the right passenger. Would you kindly follow me, signore? You have been upgraded to first class."

He struggled to his feet in a daze, thinking there must be some mistake. He grabbed his backpack and followed the flight attendant up the whole length of the plane and through the curtain into the opulent hush of the first class cabin.

She stopped, looked back with a smile and pointed to the front row. "Here you are, signore. This is your new seat."

Mario looked down ... and saw Grady staring nervously up at him, with an empty seat beside him.

TO BE CONTINUED in "A Trial Of Strength" – Chapter 340

Hey guys, this is Rob Williams. I hope that chapter got you off, and I welcome your comments and suggestions, which can be very helpful in planning future chapters. E-mail me in confidence at rw6789@aol.com.

ALSO, I invite you to visit my Web-site www.atrialofstrength.com. You can read the whole story, all the many chapters, with extras, including pictures and biographies of all the characters. Click on the `Our Story' tab to read the current chapter, or click on the green button to browse all the chapter synopses. Enjoy