by Sherri Hayes
Before I could go further with that thought, the alarm went off. I turned it off and made my bed before getting dressed in the clothes Master had laid out.
After a quick clean up in the bathroom, I walked out into the main room. I’d expected Master to be upstairs in the gym waiting on me as he usually was, but instead he was standing in the living room talking to someone on the phone.
I wasn’t sure what to do, so I slowly walked into the room toward him. Thankfully, he saw the movement and looked up. My momentary good mood faltered when he didn’t return my smile.
Master asked the person on the other end of the line to hold on before addressing me. I was trying very hard not to let my nerves get away from me. “You can go on upstairs and get started, Brianna. I’ll be up shortly.”
He went back to his phone call, and I hurried past him and up the stairs to the gym. I had no idea who was on the phone, but Master was obviously not in a good mood this morning.
Almost twenty minutes passed before he joined me. The look on his face told me nothing. He walked over to the mats and began stretching without glancing at me.
It was another ten minutes before his eyes met mine. They were guarded but not angry. I took a deep breath and relaxed a little. Whatever it was, it didn’t appear to have anything to do with me.
We finished our workouts and went downstairs for breakfast. Master was quiet until we sat down at the table. “My aunt called this morning. That is who I was talking to when you came in.”
I didn’t comment or react in any way. I just waited. His mouth went hard as he said the next words. “Diane has invited some friends to join us.” At his words I dropped my fork, and it made an awful sound as it first hit my plate and then bounced to the floor.
Master picked up my fork, wiped it off, and then laid it on my plate as if nothing had happened. “Although I’m not thrilled about it, it’s not my decision. I’ve asked Diane if I may invite Logan and Lily along, and she has agreed.”
Then he stopped and reached for my hand. I hadn’t realized it was shaking until he held it in both of his. “You’ll be fine, Brianna. Nothing has changed. You will be perfectly safe inside the house.”
I didn’t move or even know how to respond. Today I would not only have to face his uncle again, his uncle who didn’t like me, who’d picked a fight with my Master, but I was also going to meet people I’d never met before.
The knowledge that Lily would be there was comforting, but what would these new people be like? Would they be nice? Or would they hate me? I was a slave after all. Or was I? Why did this have to be so confusing!
Suddenly I wasn’t in my seat anymore. I felt him pick me up, and then I was sitting in Master’s lap. As his arms surrounded me, my breathing became easier. I leaned into him and felt his lips brush against my hair.
“Are you all right?” he asked.
I nodded. “Yes.”
His hand ran up my arm before coming up to cup my face. He turned my chin so that I was looking at him. “I know the news was unexpected, but why did you start to panic, Brianna?”
I swallowed. “What if they don’t like me?” I whispered.
Master’s eyes widened at my question. “Why do you think they won’t like you?”
Without thinking about it I looked down, and I immediately felt his hand tighten. My eyes snapped up to meet his again. Instantly his grip relaxed.
“Your uncle doesn’t like me,” I stated.
He closed his eyes briefly before meeting mine again with a sad look. “Richard doesn’t dislike you,” he sighed. “He’s worried about you.” Then his hand came up to brush through my hair. “He wants to make sure that I am taking care of you.”
My brow wrinkled in confusion. This didn’t make sense. Master was so very good to me. How could his uncle think that he wasn’t?
My thoughts came up short as he asked, “Would you be willing to talk to him? Without me in the room?”
I swallowed hard and knew my face had to show the apprehension I felt. “If that’s what you want me to do, Master.”
He sighed again, but this time it was in frustration. “Brianna, this is not an order or a command or even a request. It is a question. I think he might feel better about things if you were to talk to him, but I will not force you into that situation if you do not wish to do it.”
So many thoughts ran through my mind as I considered talking to his uncle. He had been nice when he’d examined me. But Master had been right outside the door then. Would he be the same if we were completely alone? Did I want that?
Master must have seen the confusion in my eyes because his hand found my chin again, and he made me look at him. “You don’t have to decide right now. Think about it, and you can tell me your decision once we reach the house, okay?”
I nodded. “Thank-you, Master.”
He smiled and patted my thigh. “Now get back in your chair and finish your breakfast.”
For the rest of the morning I couldn’t think of anything else. A part of me wanted to talk to Master’s uncle. I didn’t want to cause problems between the two of them.
But I couldn’t shake the fear. No matter how much I tried to convince myself that I shouldn’t be afraid, I couldn’t make it completely go away.
We pulled up to his aunt and uncle’s house at twelve forty-five. Master shut off the car but didn’t move to get out. Instead he continued to look ahead and asked, “Have you made your decision, Brianna?”
I took a deep breath, closed my eyes as tightly as they would go, and said the words, “I will talk to him, Master.” I paused. “If . . . he wishes to speak to me.”
Master didn’t comment on what I’d said. He just nodded and got out of the car before walking around to open my door.
We walked inside just as we had two weeks before and headed straight for the kitchen. The only difference was this time a deep voice I didn’t recognize stopped me in my tracks halfway there.
Master noticed that I was no longer moving and walked back to me. His free arm circled my waist, and his lips brushed softly against my forehead.
“It’s fine,” he whispered and waited for some of the tension to leave my body.
I took a deep breath and let the scent of Master relax me. He didn’t move or say anything more until I had once again calmed down.
“Are you ready?” he asked.
“Yes,” I said, remembering not to call him Master. He stepped back and squeezed my hand before walking again.
Once we entered the brightly lit kitchen, it took everything I had not to run from the room. There was a man standing by the counter a few feet away from Diane, and he was huge, at least twice the size of Master. He was laughing so hard it shook his entire body. It was only the smile on Diane’s face as she talked to the man that kept me from running in the other direction.
I stepped closer to Master and gripped his hand tighter. He seemed to know how nervous I was because he didn’t try to move away from me to greet his aunt. “It seems I’m missing out on a good joke,” Master said with a chuckle.
The large man turned his attention to us. A grin lit his face as he strolled over. I stepped back and angled myself behind Master.
Before I knew it, the man had Master wrapped in a hug.
Although Master was enveloped in an embrace that looked almost painful, he never let go of my hand. I was very grateful because the feel of his hand in mine was the only thing keeping the panic from taking control of me.
Then the man turned in my direction. He moved toward me. Master stopped him and the man looked puzzled.
Instead of answering his expression, however, Master said, “When Diane called to tell me they were inviting friends for dinner, I had no idea it would be you.”
The man laughed again, appearing to forget his confusion from a moment ago. “Good to know I can still keep you guessing, Stephan.”
Master laughed this time, too.
“So do I get an introduction to the girlfriend?”
&nb
sp; That was when a blonde woman I hadn’t noticed walked toward us. She extended her hand to my Master. “Maybe if you weren’t so excited to see Stephan, you wouldn’t have scared the girl half to death, Jimmy.”
The man, Jimmy, looked hurt for just a moment and then laughed. The woman ignored him and turned to Master. “How have you been, Stephan?” she asked with an air of formality.
“Fine,” he answered her with the same overpoliteness. “And you?”
“Can’t complain,” she answered with a smirk. Then her eyes fell to me. “Do we get an introduction?”
He turned a little to look at me and tugged on my arm slightly, bringing me more to his side. “Brianna, I’d like for you to meet Jimmy and his wife, Samantha. We went to high school together.”
Be polite. Be polite. “Hello,” I said sheepishly.
“Oh and she’s shy,” Jimmy commented and then laughed, causing me to cringe against Master again.
Samantha just shook her head. “Please excuse my husband. He’s a little overexcited today. He’s not normally this . . .” She seemed to be searching for a word. “Insufferable.”
“Hey!” Jimmy acted offended, but just as quickly he pulled Samantha into his arms and kissed her soundly.
When they broke apart, the doorbell rang. “That must be Logan,” Jimmy said as his excitement from earlier returned. I watched as he hurried past us in order to greet the new arrivals.
Logan and Lily followed Jimmy into the room along with Richard. Logan greeted Stephan and me before turning his attention to Diane and Samantha.
Master kept hold of my hand as we all stood around talking for several minutes before Diane began handing plates and bowls to everyone for the dining room table. I was handed a beautiful bowl filled with mashed potatoes.
As we all took our seats, I realized what had been bothering me since Lily and Logan had arrived. Lily hadn’t said anything. Not one word. She’d smiled at me briefly when Logan and Master had been talking with Jimmy, but she wasn’t her normal energetic self.
Now, as I watched her take a seat beside Logan, I noticed that her demeanor hadn’t changed. Something was wrong.
The food was passed around the table, and I put food on my plate as Master handed me each dish. My eyes never left Lily, though. Twice Logan had not handed her something going around the table. Instead he had given the bowl to Jimmy who was sitting on the other side of her.
My confusion continued as everyone started to eat. I waited for Master to begin before I did, as usual, but noticed that Lily also didn’t start to eat until after Logan had taken his first bite. What was going on?
Most of the conversation throughout the meal was directed toward Samantha and Jimmy. Apparently they had been living in Boston near her family but had decided to come back to Minneapolis so he could start his residency. He was training to be a surgeon.
I was only half paying attention because of what was happening just across from me. Every now and then Lily would glance up at me, but she never spoke. About halfway through dinner Diane asked if everything was all right, and Logan had just said that her throat was bothering her and she was resting it. Then when Richard offered to take a look after dinner Logan waved his hand and said he was sure it would be fine by tomorrow.
After that Master changed the subject. The dinner continued with Lily still not saying anything, and my worry was increasing. She just wasn’t being Lily.
When Diane disappeared into the kitchen Master leaned over to whisper in my ear. “What’s troubling you, Brianna?”
I turned my head so that I could speak to him quietly without anyone overhearing. “I’m worried about Lily. She isn’t acting like herself.”
Master glanced quickly to where Lily and Logan were sitting and his lips turned up in a smirk before he turned back to look at me. “Lily’s fine. I will explain later if you wish.”
I looked over at Logan and Lily myself and then nodded to Master. “Yes, please.” She was the closest thing to a friend I’d had in almost a year. Lily wasn’t being Lily, and I wanted to know why.
After dessert, we all sat around the table talking. Well, everyone except Lily.
Somewhere along the line, Richard and Diane got up and disappeared into the kitchen. Master told me he’d be right back and followed them.
I tried not to be nervous as I awaited his return. Logan asked me if I was getting excited for school to start, which brought on more questions from Samantha. The more I talked, the easier it was. But still Lily didn’t say anything.
Master returned, but instead of taking his seat again, he held out his hand and helped me to stand.
“Excuse us,” he said politely to everyone sitting at the table. I heard Jimmy mumble something, but I couldn’t make out what it was, and Master chose not to acknowledge it at all.
With his hand on the small of my back, Master ushered me down the hall to his uncle’s study. We paused outside the door, and he looked down at me, his eyes searching mine. “I will be just in the other room should you need me,” he said as he leaned down to place a kiss on my forehead. “Richard won’t hurt you, I promise.” He pulled back and took one last look at me before walking down the hall and back into the dining room.
I stood staring at the door in front of me, knowing that eventually I’d have to go inside. He’d offered me a choice. Why had I agreed to do this again?
With a shake of my head, I pushed all the questions aside. I knew the exact reason I’d said that I would talk to Richard. This was something simple that I could do for my Master, and I would do it.
Slowly I turned the doorknob and pushed open the only thing separating me from Master’s uncle. There standing across the room was the man I was to talk to.
His eyes were very different from Master’s. They were softer and seemed to hold so many questions. There was also uncertainty in them. That was something I’d never seen in Master’s eyes.
“Hello, Brianna,” Richard said, breaking me out of my musings.
“Hi,” I said meekly.
Richard motioned to a set of chairs over by the window. “Will you come in and sit down?” I hesitated, taking one last look out into the hallway before taking the final steps into the room and closing the door behind me.
He moved slowly as he took a seat in the chair farthest away, allowing me the one closest to the door. I was trying to stay calm. To remember that if I yelled, Master was close enough to hear me. Master had assured me that I was safe with his uncle, and Master wouldn’t lie to me.
Finally I sat down on the edge of the chair. The panic was pushing forward, but I was doing everything I could to push it back. My hand came up to touch Master’s collar. I am always with you, Brianna.
He was always with me. I could do this.
It was Richard’s voice that brought my head up. He cleared his throat, and I met his eyes.
“Thank-you for agreeing to speak with me. I know you must be nervous, but I assure you that I mean you no harm.”
I wasn’t sure how I should respond so I just nodded.
Richard cleared his throat again and leaned toward me. Instinctively, I pulled away. He seemed to notice my reaction and sat back in his chair. “I believe Stephan has told you that I’m concerned for you. He tells me that he is not being inappropriate and that he is treating you with care.”
He ended there, leaving his words hanging in the air. I realized he was waiting for me to comment. I briefly debated how I was to refer to Master in his uncle’s presence, but then realized that Richard knew what I was, so I didn’t censor my words. “Master takes very good care of me.”
Tilting his head, he looked me over very carefully. “I know this is going to sound like an odd question, but I feel I need to ask it. Are you and Stephan having sexual relations?”
My head fell. “No, Sir. Master doesn’t require that of me.”
“Are you happy, Brianna?”
That brought my head up again. “Yes, Sir. As I said, Master is very good to me.”
He nodded.
When he didn’t immediately ask another question, I decided to take a chance and ask one of my own since I was told I could speak freely. “Will you be nicer to Master now?”
Richard looked surprised, but he didn’t answer right away. Instead he gave me a searching look. “I am concerned about you, Brianna. I am not sure that Stephan is what’s best for you.”
His words upset me. It was a mixture of panic and wanting to defend my Master. “You don’t understand. Master saved me! He took me from that awful place,” I said, feeling the memories and the panic once again beginning to rise.
I brought my knees up to my chest and tried to force the things I was seeing from my mind. Ian couldn’t hurt me anymore. He couldn’t hurt me.
Stephan
Ever since I’d left Brianna with my uncle I couldn’t concentrate. I was largely unaware of the conversation around me.
Diane had brought Lily a cup of tea to help “soothe her throat” while trying, without success, to include her in a discussion she was having with Samantha. Jimmy wanted a day of fishing out on the lake with Logan and me. He’d tried to engage me in the conversation, but was having about as much luck as Diane was with Lily. After I’d given him nothing but vague noncommittal answers a few times, he just carried on the conversation with Logan and left me out of it.
It had only been fifteen minutes, but I had to force myself to stay in my seat and not go and hover by the door. I kept looking at the clock on the wall every thirty seconds.
Then I heard Richard call my name. It wasn’t panic filled, but I knew that something must be wrong.
I didn’t bother to excuse myself or acknowledge anyone at the table before taking my leave and hurrying down the hallway to my uncle’s study. What I found there wrenched my heart.
Brianna sat in one of Richard’s high-backed chairs with her knees to her chest, her arms wound so tightly around her legs that her knuckles were white. She was chanting to herself something that sounded like he can’t hurt me in a barely audible voice.
