Courtroom Confessions and Obsessions

Fifteen years ago, Duncan Whittaker sits on trial for kidnapping and torturing Theodore "Teddy" Scott, the chief of police's son. The courtroom is thick with tension as Teddy recounts his ordeal—months of isolation, humiliation, and psychological torment. Yet, beneath the horror, a twisted intimacy pulses: Duncan's obsession with Teddy is matched by Teddy's complicated, shameful longing for his captor. When asked if Duncan raped him, Teddy's "No" stuns the room, blurring the lines between victim and perpetrator. The trial ends in chaos when Teddy's father shoots Duncan, but the connection between captor and captive is unbroken, their fates forever entangled by trauma and desire.

Suburban Illusions Shatter

Years later, Teddy has built a "normal" life: a loving wife, Cassie, a baby on the way, and a successful law career. But the illusion cracks when he receives a call—Duncan is being released on parole. The news triggers panic and flashbacks, shattering Teddy's hard-won stability. Memories of captivity, self-harm, and dependency on Duncan resurface. Teddy's marriage, once a sanctuary, now feels precarious. The past, never truly buried, claws its way back, threatening to consume the life Teddy has constructed atop its ruins.

Parole and Unfinished Business

Duncan steps out of prison, greeted by his loyal friend Joanne and the ghosts of his past. He's forbidden from contacting Teddy, but obsession overrides caution. Duncan's mind is a storm of memories—his brother's death, the revenge that led to Teddy's abduction, and the perverse bond that formed. He tries to resume life, but nothing satisfies. Joanne offers comfort, but Duncan's desire is singular: Teddy. He violates parole by calling Teddy's home, unable to resist the pull. Both men, despite years apart, are still tethered by their shared darkness.

Stalking Shadows Return

Teddy, unable to cope, begins stalking Duncan, parking outside his house, gun in hand. He's torn between fear, hatred, and a compulsion to see his former captor. Duncan, aware of being watched, puts on a show, undressing in the window, stoking Teddy's conflicted arousal and shame. Both men spiral—Teddy's marriage suffers, his sexual desire for Cassie evaporates, replaced by intrusive memories of Duncan. The line between victim and stalker blurs, as Teddy's need for Duncan's attention becomes as desperate as it once was in captivity.

Marital Fractures, Haunted Nights

Teddy's marriage deteriorates under the weight of secrets and trauma. He's unable to perform sexually with Cassie, haunted by dreams of Duncan's domination and his own humiliating submission. Cassie senses the distance but cannot bridge it. Teddy's self-harm returns, a desperate attempt to feel something real. The past is no longer a memory but a living presence, infecting every aspect of his life. The more he tries to resist, the more he is drawn back to Duncan, the only one who understands his brokenness.

The Gun Between Them

Unable to bear the torment, Teddy breaks into Duncan's house, gun drawn. Their confrontation is electric—anger, longing, and old power dynamics surge. Teddy claims he came to kill Duncan, but his resolve falters as Duncan calls his bluff, seducing him with words and presence. The gun becomes a symbol of their twisted bond: threat and invitation, violence and intimacy. Teddy surrenders, falling to his knees, reenacting the rituals of their captivity. The encounter is both a violation and a homecoming, leaving Teddy shattered and craving more.

Surrender and Power Plays

Teddy and Duncan fall into a cycle of secret meetings, each encounter a blend of degradation and comfort. Duncan reasserts control, tying Teddy up, using him, and then offering tenderness. Teddy, despite his shame, finds solace in submission—his need for Duncan's approval eclipses all else. Their relationship is a closed circuit of pain and pleasure, each man both jailer and prisoner. Outside, Teddy's life unravels: his marriage, career, and sanity are all collateral damage in the pursuit of a connection that is as toxic as it is irresistible.

Family Ties, Family Lies

Family gatherings become battlegrounds. Teddy's father, still vengeful, threatens Duncan's life, blaming him for everything. Teddy's self-harm escalates, his sense of self-worth eroded by years of abuse and neglect. Cassie, desperate to help, is kept in the dark. The truth about Teddy's trauma, his father's violence, and the family's complicity surfaces. The cycle of abuse is laid bare—Teddy is not just Duncan's victim, but also his father's. The past is inescapable, its wounds still bleeding.

Forbidden Rendezvous

Teddy and Duncan's encounters grow bolder. They meet in public places, risking discovery. A bathroom tryst in a restaurant is both a violation and a liberation—Teddy is both terrified and exhilarated. Duncan's possessiveness intensifies; Teddy's jealousy flares when Duncan is seen with others. Their connection is now an addiction, each man unable to function without the other. The outside world—wives, friends, parole officers—becomes an obstacle course to be navigated or destroyed.

Jealousy and Manipulation

Duncan manipulates Teddy with threats against Cassie, demanding total loyalty. Teddy, desperate to protect his wife, bargains his body and soul. Duncan's jealousy is boundless—he wants Teddy to himself, no matter the cost. Teddy's own jealousy surfaces when Duncan's old flame appears. Their relationship is a battleground of possessiveness, each man testing the other's limits. The stakes escalate: Duncan threatens violence, Teddy contemplates murder, both trapped in a dance of mutual destruction.

The Spiral of Control

Duncan re-enacts the rituals of Teddy's original captivity—tying him up, denying him, making him beg. Teddy, both repulsed and aroused, submits, finding a perverse comfort in the familiar dynamic. The illusion of choice is shattered: Teddy realizes he is as much a prisoner now as he was fifteen years ago. The outside world fades; only Duncan's approval matters. Their love is a sickness, but it is also the only thing that feels real.

Breaking and Belonging

A violent confrontation with Teddy's father at the old cabin leaves both men wounded and Teddy's father dead. Teddy is shot, Duncan kills to protect him, and the cycle of violence claims another victim. In the aftermath, Teddy confesses the depth of his dependency—he stayed with Duncan because he needed him, even after being set free. Duncan admits he let Teddy go because he could no longer bear to hurt him. Their bond, forged in trauma, is now unbreakable, but the cost is everything else: family, career, and self-respect.

Hospital Walls, Hard Truths

Teddy wakes in the hospital, his father dead, his marriage over, and Duncan back in prison for parole violations. Cassie reveals she was planted in Teddy's life by Duncan's associates, shattering any remaining illusions of normalcy. Teddy's family abandons him, blaming him for his father's death. Alone, ostracized, and publicly shamed, Teddy realizes that Duncan is the only constant in his life—the only one who has ever truly seen him, even if through a lens of obsession.

The Price of Obsession

Duncan, facing years in prison, tries to push Teddy away, believing he is poison. Teddy, having lost everything, refuses to let go. He visits Duncan, declaring his love and commitment, no matter the consequences. Both men accept the reality of their bond: it is not healthy, not redemptive, but it is real. They choose each other, not in spite of their darkness, but because of it. Their love is a wound that will never heal, but it is also the only thing that makes them feel alive.

Prison Promises, Twisted Valentines

Separated by prison walls, Teddy and Duncan maintain their connection through visits, letters, and illicit encounters. Their relationship, now public, is dissected and condemned, but they no longer care. On Valentine's Day, they reaffirm their twisted devotion—Teddy wears a necklace made from the bullet that once wounded Duncan, a symbol of their shared pain and survival. They dream of a future together, knowing it will never be normal, but it will be theirs. In a world that cannot understand them, they choose each other, again and again, for better or worse.

Characters

Duncan Whittaker

Duncan is a man forged by loss and violence. The death of his brother at the hands of Teddy's father sets him on a path of revenge, leading to Teddy's abduction. In Teddy, Duncan finds both a project and a soulmate—someone to control, punish, and ultimately, need. His love is possessive, manipulative, and often cruel, but it is also the only thing that gives his life meaning. Duncan's psychological complexity lies in his inability to separate love from domination; he is both jailer and savior, unable to let go even when it destroys them both. His development is a slow, painful recognition that his obsession is both his curse and his only salvation.

Theodore "Teddy" Scott

Teddy is introduced as a victim, but his journey is one of complicity and transformation. Years of isolation and abuse leave him dependent on Duncan, unable to find satisfaction or meaning in a "normal" life. His marriage to Cassie is an attempt at healing, but the scars run too deep. Teddy's psychological struggle is between self-loathing and longing—he hates what Duncan did to him, but craves the intensity and belonging only Duncan provides. Over time, Teddy accepts his own darkness, choosing Duncan not out of weakness, but as an assertion of agency. His arc is a descent into, and acceptance of, a love that is as much about pain as it is about pleasure.

Cassie Scott

Cassie is Teddy's wife, a symbol of the normalcy and healing he desperately seeks. She is supportive, nurturing, and forgiving, but ultimately powerless against the pull of Teddy's trauma. Her patience is tested as Teddy withdraws, unable to reciprocate her love. The revelation that she was planted in Teddy's life by Duncan's associates adds a layer of tragedy—her love, though real, is tainted by manipulation. Cassie's arc is one of heartbreak and self-preservation; she leaves Teddy, recognizing that she cannot compete with the darkness that binds him to Duncan.

Chester Scott

Teddy's father, Chester, is a man consumed by rage and guilt. His son's abduction and subsequent trauma are wounds he cannot heal, leading him to violence and ultimately, his own downfall. Chester's inability to accept Teddy's truth, and his insistence on control, mirror Duncan's possessiveness. His actions—shooting Duncan, tracking Teddy, and ultimately dying in a violent confrontation—are the tragic culmination of generational trauma and toxic masculinity.

Joanne

Joanne is Duncan's steadfast ally, maintaining his house and affairs during his imprisonment. She is both confidante and enabler, facilitating Duncan's obsessions and manipulations. Her loyalty is unwavering, but she is ultimately sidelined by Duncan's fixation on Teddy. Joanne represents the collateral damage of Duncan's single-minded pursuit, a reminder that even those who love him are ultimately expendable.

Jerome

Jerome, Duncan's brother's friend and employer, offers Duncan a chance at reintegration and redemption. His presence is a contrast to the darkness of Duncan and Teddy's relationship—a symbol of what could have been. Jerome's own struggles with identity and acceptance mirror the broader themes of the novel, but he is ultimately peripheral, unable to penetrate the closed world of Duncan and Teddy.

Clive

Clive, Duncan's cousin, inherits the criminal empire Duncan leaves behind. He is pragmatic, loyal, and less emotionally entangled than Duncan. Clive's role is to provide continuity and stability, allowing Duncan to focus on his obsession with Teddy. He is a reminder of the world Duncan is trying to escape, and the cost of leaving it behind.

Cam

Cam, Duncan's young cellmate, is a mirror of Duncan's own past—violent, manipulative, and seeking connection. His presence in prison is a temptation and a threat, a reminder that the cycle of abuse and obsession is never truly broken. Cam's interest in Duncan is both a source of jealousy for Teddy and a symbol of the ever-present danger of repeating old patterns.

Teddy's Mother

Teddy's mother is a background figure, her passivity and inability to protect Teddy emblematic of the family's dysfunction. She is caught between her husband's violence and her son's suffering, ultimately powerless to intervene. Her grief and silence are a quiet indictment of the systems that fail to protect the vulnerable.

The Parole Officer (Patrick Trombley)

Patrick is the embodiment of the system—strict, rule-bound, and skeptical of Duncan and Teddy's relationship. He is both an obstacle and, at times, a reluctant ally, recognizing the depth of their bond even as he condemns it. His role is to enforce boundaries, but he is ultimately unable to prevent the inevitable collision of obsession and love.

Plot Devices

Dual Narration and Shifting Perspectives

The novel employs a dual narrative, alternating between Teddy and Duncan's perspectives. This structure allows for a nuanced exploration of memory, trauma, and desire, revealing the unreliability of each man's account. The shifting viewpoints blur the lines between victim and perpetrator, love and abuse, truth and manipulation. The reader is forced to inhabit both men's minds, experiencing the push and pull of their obsession from the inside.

Trauma Bonding and Stockholm Syndrome

Central to the story is the concept of trauma bonding—Teddy's psychological dependence on Duncan, forged through isolation, abuse, and intermittent kindness. The narrative interrogates the nature of consent, agency, and survival, refusing easy answers. Stockholm Syndrome is both a diagnosis and a metaphor, capturing the way love and violence become indistinguishable in the crucible of captivity.

Symbolism of White and Branding

The recurring motif of "white"—the color of Teddy's prison, his food, his clothes—symbolizes both purity and erasure, the stripping away of identity. Duncan's branding of Teddy is a literal and figurative mark of ownership, a wound that never heals. These symbols reinforce the themes of control, submission, and the impossibility of returning to innocence.

Cycles of Violence and Repetition

The narrative is structured around cycles—of abuse, reconciliation, and relapse. Each attempt at normalcy is undone by the gravitational pull of the past. The repetition of captivity, escape, and return underscores the futility of resistance and the inevitability of surrender. The story's structure mirrors the psychological reality of trauma: time is not linear, but circular, with old wounds reopening again and again.

Foreshadowing and Irony

From the opening courtroom scene to the final prison rendezvous, the novel is laced with foreshadowing—hints of violence, betrayal, and the impossibility of escape. Irony abounds: the victim becomes the stalker, the rescuer becomes the abuser, the marriage meant to heal is itself a manipulation. The reader is constantly wrong-footed, forced to question their own assumptions about love, justice, and redemption.

Analysis

"Be Mine, Twisted Valentine" is a harrowing exploration of trauma, obsession, and the blurred boundaries between love and abuse. Gianni Holmes crafts a narrative that refuses easy moral judgments, instead immersing the reader in the psychological labyrinth of two men bound by violence and need. The novel interrogates the nature of consent, the legacy of generational trauma, and the seductive power of control. It is a story about the impossibility of returning to innocence, the futility of seeking normalcy after profound violation, and the ways in which love can become indistinguishable from captivity. The relationship between Duncan and Teddy is both a cautionary tale and a dark romance, challenging the reader to confront uncomfortable truths about desire, agency, and the human capacity for self-destruction. Ultimately, the novel suggests that healing is not always possible, that some wounds become the foundation of identity, and that, for some, the only way to survive is to embrace the darkness within.

Last updated: November 1, 2025