by Stella Hart
At the back of the mansion, there was a greenhouse attached to part of it (we already knew that from Dr. Fitzgibbons, but it was still useful to know exactly where it was). The greenhouse had an outside door at the back of it, and behind that there was a large walled garden. Past that was the slope heading up the back of the property, and I assumed the parts without trees were covered with lush grass when it wasn’t snowing.
As for the mansion itself, the Georgian architectural style was beautiful. The whole place looked like something right out of a home and garden magazine, even when the gardens and other surrounds were wrapped in curling blankets of fresh snow. No one would ever suspect what this place was used for, but once you knew, that bucolic beauty immediately faded away. To me, the house looked cold, hostile and ominous, remembering too many twisted, shameful things that had happened within its walls since its inception as a hive of wickedness.
It had three stories with fourteen large white-trimmed sash windows along the top two stories on the front side. The back side had the same number. The bottom story had less windows to make space for the main entrance and back doors, and the sides were narrower with only six windows on the upper stories and large terrace doors on the ground floor.
From all that, we’d figured there were five entrances to the place. There was the main entrance in the front, the two terrace doors on either side of the house, a big door in the middle of the back side, and a smaller one off to the side of that which was presumably an old servant’s entrance. As well as those entrances, there was also the door which led inside from the greenhouse.
There was a smaller outbuilding off to the right side, near the parking spaces. It seemed to be used as a garage, and also a place for the guards to live if they didn’t have their own places nearby or in the city. It was made with the same Georgian-style architecture as the house, with red brick and white sash windows.
We hadn’t just checked out the appearance of the place, obviously. We’d noted down all the daily routines, too. From certain angles, we’d been able to see through some of the windows with the high-powered binoculars. This allowed us to get an idea of how many people we were dealing with on the inside as well as the outside.
We’d been able to figure that there were around thirty kids and teens currently imprisoned in the mansion. They seemed to be allowed to wear whatever clothes they wanted, but they all had black collars with flashing amber lights near their throat. Alex said they were probably tracking devices which would alert the guards if they ever managed to get outside and run away.
They had breakfast, lunch and dinner every day in one big room near the kitchen. After that, they seemed to be allowed to wander around the house, but never outside. They went back to their rooms at eight p.m. on the dot. The only time they deviated from this schedule was when a ‘visitor’ came for one of them, aka a Circle member.
There were also twelve maids working at the mansion, and as far as we knew, they were all prisoners too. They certainly didn’t look happy, and they all wore collars as well, along with matching uniforms of black pants and white silk shirts.
That added up to forty-two people to save.
As for the others, we’d deduced that there were eight guards on the property at all times, working eight hour shifts. This meant there were twenty-four guards altogether. Every one of them had two-way radio contact with each other during their shifts.
There were always two guarding the front, two out the back, one to the left side of the house, one to the right, and one circulating throughout the house. The final one slowly patrolled the perimeter of the property in a black car, presumably checking to make sure no one was hanging around the area; hikers, bird-watchers, adventurous teenagers, and so on. The guard currently on patrol duty had driven past my stakeout place behind the fence four times today, which meant each lap of the property took about one hour.
One of the back guards also seemed to function as a driver when necessary—the same job that used to belong to Dan Vallone. Every few days he’d leave in a van and return with crates upon crates of food before hauling it all into the house. The Circle were a bunch of psychopaths, but they seemed to keep their prisoners and employees well-fed.
It was hardly a favor. They simply needed them healthy so they could keep them as long as possible. Torturing and beating a kid was fun to them, but that same kid dying of natural causes from malnutrition when they weren’t around obviously wasn’t as much ‘fun’. Hence the regular meals.
We assumed that all of the guards would be present on the night of the party on December 1st, seeing as it was going to be such a big event. That meant we didn’t have to worry about any of them getting away via pure luck of shift timing once we’d rescued the kids and destroyed the rest of the Circle.
We also knew from Dwyer’s phone call to William that there were forty-nine remaining Circle members. Seeing as Dwyer was gone now, that left forty-eight. That plus the guards meant there were seventy-two people we needed to get rid of.
Before we’d arrived at an exact number, it hadn’t really hit me just how much blood would be on our hands once we were done. Now it finally had. I knew it should bother me—seventy-two was a lot—but it didn’t. The Circle had sown a dark seed years ago, and after germinating and growing for a long time, it was finally going to bloom with fire and blood and shattered bones.
So their deaths didn’t worry me. The only thing that actually bothered me right now was the concern that we wouldn’t be able to get all the kids and maids out safely.
We had a plan, though, formulated over steaming cups of coffee and sleepless nights at our motel. Every proper circle had a beginning and an end, and we were closing this Circle for good. It was only fitting.
We packed up my stuff from my spy nook and trudged through the nature reserve to Alex’s car, which we’d parked over a mile away from the other side of it just to be safe. Then we headed back into the city; a forty minute drive from where we were.
It was shopping time.
We had a lot of things to buy for our plan, but we couldn’t get them all at the same store, or else we’d raise suspicions, given the nature of some of the purchases we needed to make. We were disguised, so no one would know it was us, but still, we didn’t want to make anyone’s hackles go up for any reason. As far as they would know, we were just a happy couple picking up some bits and pieces we needed for our new home.
Most of the things we needed could be bought at hardware or home improvement stores. We didn’t go to the one I used to work at, even though it was one of the biggest and best stores in the city. As good as my disguise was, I was sure my old workmates would still eventually recognize me if they stared long enough.
My wig might make me blonde, and my eyes were a different color with the lenses, but no amount of makeup could alter my features to the point where I was a completely different person. Contouring slimmed my nose and gave me higher cheekbones, but it was still my face. Those who knew me and looked long enough would know that.
I missed my friends and old work colleagues deeply, but I couldn’t return until Alex and I had eliminated the Circle. Until then, no one could know I was alive. The Circle thought I was dead, thanks to Dwyer, and we needed to keep up that lie for now. And so I had to remain in the shadows, letting everyone who ever knew me think I was gone forever.
Alex dumped three bags of ammonium nitrate fertilizer near the checkout of the final store we visited. We already had rolls of cotton wool, stacks of newspapers, a basil plant, and diesel fuel sitting in the trunk of our car, among other smaller bits and pieces from a tech store.
“I’m glad you used to work at a place like this,” he murmured with twinkling eyes as we waited for a staff member to serve us. “You know all the good tricks. Like this.” He gestured at the fertilizer, then went on. “And how to poison people with cockroach baits when they piss you off.”
My heart lurched and my stomach knotted with horror and regret. “I’m sorry,” I whispered, not
meeting his eyes. “I wish I never hurt you like that.”
The memory of him writhing in agony on the shelter floor as he tried to speak hit me like a tidal wave, and something suddenly occurred to me. The words he’d been trying to get out that evening must have been: Kill me if you have to, but please stay here. It’s not safe out there. And he was right. He’d only ever cared about my safety, even back when I’d wished nothing but pain and death upon him. He would’ve willingly sacrificed himself if it meant that I got to live.
Alex’s brows furrowed. “Oh, angel,” he said softly. “That was a poor attempt on my behalf at a joke. I should know by now—I’m not very funny, am I?”
I looked up and gave him a faint smile. “Maybe it will be funny in a few more years, in a really morbid way.”
He reached out and gently pushed a strand of fake hair away from my eyes. “I didn’t mean to upset you, honestly. It’s all in the past. I know why you did it, and you’re a hundred percent forgiven. I’m sorry for even bringing it up.”
I swallowed hard. “Thank you,” I murmured. “For forgiving me. I don’t deserve it.”
“Of course you do,” he said, entwining his right hand with my left. “You forgave me, didn’t you? For the things I did when I took you.”
I nodded. “Yes. You did what you felt you had to at the time.”
“Well, there you go. You did exactly the same thing.”
My shoulders relaxed. “You’re right. Sorry. I’m just nervous about everything and it’s making me feel weird,” I said, my smile widening a bit as I looked into his eyes.
“Yeah, I get it.” He smiled back, then shook his head. “No more joke attempts from me. It’s clearly not my style,” he added. Then he pressed his lips to mine in a brief peck. “I adore you, Celeste,” he murmured gruffly. “Don’t ever forget that.”
The checkout operator arrived before I could reply, and he gave us a hesitant glance as he saw what we were buying. “You two work on a farm or something?” he said, one brow arched. “That’s agricultural-grade stuff.”
Alex and I pasted on our ‘innocent friendly couple’ expressions. “We’ve just finished building a giant greenhouse on our property,” I said. “We want to grow all our fruits and vegetables from now on. Save the environment and all by producing our own food.”
“We also want to stick it to all those asshole supermarket CEOs,” Alex added with a wry grin.
The guy nodded and finally smiled back at us. “That’s cool. So with the greenhouse, you can grow stuff all through the winter, huh?”
“Yup.”
“Nice.” He was relaxed now, unsuspicious. “Hey, depending on where you are, there’s a farmer’s market in East Liberty that I go to sometimes. It’s great. If you end up growing too much, maybe you could sell some stuff there. No waste then.”
“Great idea,” Alex said affably.
“Cash or card?”
“Cash.” Of course. No electronic trail for us.
“Good luck, you two,” the checkout guy said when our transaction was complete.
If only he knew what we really needed luck with…. That’d wipe the smile right off his face.
I helped Alex haul the fertilizer out to the car. He handed me the key once it was all in the trunk. “Get in and keep yourself warm with the heater. I’ll be back in a second.”
He went back into the hardware store and returned five minutes later with a big plastic bag. When he dumped it on the back seat, I turned and curiously poked through it. It was filled with ropes and thick black cable ties.
“Do we need that for what we’re going to do?” I asked, brows knitting as I turned back to face Alex. A lot of the main plan had been based off my ideas, and I couldn’t remember anything about tying anyone or anything up.
He chuckled. “No. They’re for you.”
“But I… oh.” It finally dawned on me what he meant.
“We need to have some fun while we do all this shit,” he said, squeezing my hand with a lusty gleam in his eyes. “Or else we’ll go crazy.”
“Maybe we already are crazy,” I said softly. I had to admit, it had crossed my mind once or twice over the last week, especially when it occurred to me how little I cared about all the death and destruction we were going to cause shortly.
Alex frowned. “Do you think we are?”
I hesitated, chewing on my bottom lip.
What we were planning was against the law, obviously. Murder would never be considered okay in a legal sense. But in an ethical sense, I actually felt it was okay. The people we were targeting were the absolute scum of society. In fact, they didn’t even belong in any sort of functional society at all.
I didn’t think everyone in the world should have free rein to turn vigilante, but in our case, it felt right. Not crazy.
I finally shook my head. “The only thing I’m crazy about is you.”
11
Celeste
The world had gone dark.
My eyes were covered by a black makeshift blindfold. My hands were tied behind my head, the rope used to bind me attached in hardy knots to my motel room’s bedhead.
I squirmed, moaning. My chest rose and fell in harsh, needy breaths, wanting Alex to dull the aching and burning deep within. With my vision blanketed in darkness, my other senses were heightened, and I could feel his breath somewhere near my right thigh like a whisper against my skin.
He’d been teasing me like this for what felt like forever, and I could feel myself dripping all over the bed in desperation. I needed release so badly, but it never seemed to come. It was torture. Sweet, sweet torture.
Then his hands were finally on me, spreading my legs wide, and his mouth was on my folds, sweet little caresses as his tongue explored me from my clit to entry, up and down, slow and fast, hard and soft. I bit down on my bottom lip to stifle my whimpers as he sucked on my clit before circling it with his tongue in slow, pressured strokes.
A lightning bolt of pure pleasure shot up my spine, and I jolted on the bed and cried out. “Please!”
“What do you want?” Alex murmured against my needy pussy.
“You,” I managed to gasp out as he licked my clit again, more vigorously this time. I was a quivering mess already. I loved it when he went down on me, but it wasn’t enough right now, not after all this teasing. There was a deep yearning in me today, and it could only be sated with Alex’s hard body against mine, filling me like only he could.
“What part of me?”
“Your cock,” I breathed.
He drew back, and I immediately ached for his touch again. “So show me how bad you need it. Beg for it.”
I groaned and struggled against the ropes, wishing I could reach down and grab his cock. “Please, sir, fuck me! Fuck me hard. I want it right now. I need it,” I moaned. With his hands and mouth no longer on me, I could move my legs however I wanted. As I begged him, I spread my legs as wide as I could, putting myself on full display for him. “See?” I whimpered. “Look how wet I am. Look at what a whore I am for you. For your cock.”
“That’s right,” he said, his voice soft yet dangerous. “My little slut.”
He must have taken his cock out, because I could feel him dripping pre-cum on my bare stomach now, hot sticky little droplets that felt like a brand against my skin as they hit me. Then the head was against my entrance, and I let out a long moan of relief and bliss as he pressed inside me.
My pussy clenched as he filled me to the brim, and he growled against my ear, fucking me hard and furiously. “So. Fucking. Tight,” he said, pinching my nipples into stiff, painful peaks.
One hand came to my throat, closing around it, silencing my moans. He pulled out of my pussy, then shoved back in roughly, so roughly my wrists began to sting with friction from the rope as my body bounced back and forth beneath him.
“You want this?” he growled.
I nodded, barely able to make a sound. “Yes,” I managed to choke out. “I love it.”
It w
as the truth. I loved the mixture of pain and pleasure coursing through me, loved feeling so far out of control while I let Alex take over. When we were like this, I didn’t have to worry about anything, because it was all up to him. Every choice, every movement. Up to him to decide, and up to me to take. Somehow, that was more freeing to me than being out there alone, fending for myself and never quite knowing if I was doing the right thing. I trusted Alex, and I knew he’d never steer me wrong or take it too far. All I had to do was submit, and endless pleasures were mine.
I whimpered as he kissed me hard, sucking my bottom lip into his hot mouth. He pounded into me, raw and urgent, a man possessed. He used my body, abused it, and I wanted more and more.
Earlier, I was desperate to have him inside me. Desperate to come. Now, I was struggling to keep myself balanced on the very edge of my orgasm, wanting to draw it out as long as possible. But Alex had other plans.
“Come for me,” he muttered in my ear, his voice harsh and demanding. “Now.”
I had to do as he told me. So I let go, let the pleasure take over. My brain went fuzzy and my legs shook as my climax slammed through me, and a tear slipped down my cheek as my emotions got the better of me.
“I love you,” I sobbed.
“I love you too,” he muttered back, pumping into me at the same pace. “You’re mine forever.”
“Yes. Yours,” I murmured, my mind slipping into a sex-drunk haze. I felt light as air as I came apart again, another orgasm rippling through me and spreading pleasure like wildfire.
“What do you want now?” Alex growled through the haze.
“Your cum. I want that.” I barely registered the words spilling from my lips; I was so high on him.
Alex slowed his movements, and then he came, jerking deep inside me, filling me with hot stripes of cum.
