Ultimate Submission

by Cathryn Cooper

  The ropes were too thick, too tight. Struggling would be futile, he knew.

  He returned his gaze to her and tried to make sense of what he had just seen. ‘Are you some kind of witch?’

  Evelyn gave a sad little smile.

  ‘No.’

  ‘What then?’

  She looked off in the distance, staring out the window at the palm trees, their leaves tossed helplessly by the wind.

  ‘You are familiar with the bible?’

  Adam narrowed his eyes. ‘I guess. The major stuff, anyway.’

  ‘You remember the first chapter? The story of creation?’

  He shrugged.

  ‘Listen carefully,’ she said, her tone serious. ‘The bible is a document not different to a collection of fairy tales. There’s a bit of truth to it, but please believe me when I tell you that the stories are wrong. Here is how humanity came to be...’

  She took a long breath, the weight of her story heavy in her eyes. ‘God created earth, God created Adam. He designed a secluded garden for Adam to live in, but as the days passed Adam found his existence tedious without companionship. He became so distraught by the loneliness that one day he climbed a willow tree and wrapped a long vine around his neck. As he was about to hang himself, God spoke to him. “Why do you wish to die?” God asked. Adam replied, “Because life holds no joy for me. Because this paradise is empty without companionship.” God said, “Shall I give you another man for friendship?” But Adam shook his head and said, “What good would another man be? Then the both of us would sit, bored, passing our days in the same manner.” Finally God said, “I will give you a companion alike in soul but different in body. She will fill your days with pleasure, and attend to your every desire.” And Adam agreed.’

  Adam’s forehead crinkled. He was about to ask what this tale had to do with their present situation, but she continued.

  ‘And so from Adam’s rib, Eve was born. Adam was delighted by her, awed by her beauty, bewitched by her body. God told them both that paradise was theirs, but they must never eat from the golden apple tree by the lake. If they did, they would be banished from the garden for ever. They agreed, and were left to their own devices. Eve was shy and overwhelmed by her strange existence, and she turned to Adam for reassurance. He wrapped his hand round her hair and pulled her to the ground. She screamed and fought wildly, but he took her cruelly, mounting her in the mud. When he had finished, he told her, “You sprang from my body, and are my property to do with as I please. You will serve me however I see fit, and if ever you object, I will punish you until you recognize your place.”

  Eve was crying, and he sneered and left her there, and went lumbering off to bathe himself in the river.’

  Adam thought her mad - she had to be. Where on earth had she heard this story? He may not have been a church regular, but he knew the story of creation.

  ‘The days passed and Adam found great pleasure in his new companion,’ she went on. ‘He violated her body frequently, and sometimes he would beat her until she couldn’t stand, simply for the novelty of it. In the night Eve cried quietly, cursing her wretched existence. Then one day while Adam napped in the afternoon sunlight, she went on a walk down by the lake, down by the golden apple tree. Through the tall grass came a serpent, slithering up her leg, circling her waist, until it draped across her shoulders and its tongue tickled her ear. “Why do you cry?” it asked, to which she replied, “Because I loathe my existence. Because I hate this place, because I want to be free of Adam’s cruelty.” “Escape,” said the serpent. “When the night falls, flee the garden.” “I cannot,” she replied sadly. “There are walls surrounding the garden, so high one could never hope to climb them. Once when Adam was asleep, I spent all day trying to dig beneath them, but they stretch down to the very centre of the earth.” The snake turned her head toward the apple tree. “Eat the forbidden fruit and you will be free,” he said. She took an apple from the tree and sank her teeth into its flesh. Suddenly the earth began to shake, and the clouds parted. God’s voice came down and said to her, “You have eaten the fruit forbidden to you, and now you shall be exiled for ever. Flee now, or the punishment shall be death.” Eve heard the walls crumbling in the distance, and hope filled her bosom. She looked into the serpent’s eyes and smiled. “Thank you,” she said. “From this day forward my life is my own.” The serpent kissed her cheek with his tongue, and she set him upon the ground, and then sprinted toward the distance. Suddenly the vastness of the world became known to her.’

  She reached forward and tilted his cheek so that his gaze met hers.

  ‘But,’ her voice was raw with urgency. ‘That night, as she slept cold and naked in a cave miles away, a bright light woke her. When her eyes opened an angel stood before her, gleaming with heavenly splendour. The angel said to her, “Woman made from Adam, you have been banished from God’s paradise, and now your will is your own. But because you drove Adam mad with lust, then left him in agony, your punishment shall not end with banishment. You shall be immortally cursed, unable to

  die, but bitter to be alive. Every five hundred years, you must commit the very sin that was your undoing: you must tempt a virgin, and then lie with him, or else you shall perish by the end of that year, condemned to an eternity in hell.” ’

  Adam’s mind was spinning. She’s insane, he thought. The girl’s completely nuts!

  Evelyn leaned close, so that her sweet breath wafted across his cheek.

  ‘My name isn’t Evelyn.’ She paused. ‘It’s Eve.’

  Adam would have laughed if his chest didn’t hurt so badly.

  ‘Uh huh,’ he glared. ‘You’re the first woman to ever exist. And you now happen to be a twenty-something club hopper in Miami.’

  Her eyes grew dark. ‘You don’t have to listen,’ she spat. ‘I’ll get what I need from you - whether you believe me or not.’

  ‘What do you need from me?’ he asked, dreading the answer.

  ‘Your lust,’ she said. ‘I need you inside me, need your virginity. Weren’t you listening?’

  Adam frowned. ‘So this is - it’s been five hundred years since you had sex?’

  ‘Well,’ she smiled. ‘Five hundred years since I’ve had sex out of necessity.’

  ‘Look Evelyn,’ he glared. ‘I wanted to have sex with you tonight. You didn’t have to drug me and hogtie me.’ Evelyn shook her head.

  ‘On the contrary, there are some elements of this liaison that you might object to, and I can’t have you fleeing into the night. I’ll give you fair warning: there will be pleasure, but there will also be pain. I’m no longer concerned with whether you believe my biography - in five minutes you’ll know the truth. Let’s begin.’

  ‘Wait!’ he cried. ‘What did you mean when you said there’d be pain? What the hell are you going to do?’

  She gave him an empathetic look. ‘I apologize for the pain, but there is no other way. Do you remember what I told you earlier? I won’t kill you. After this is done, I promise I’ll release you unharmed. You see Adam, even if you wanted to shout your ordeal to the world, no one would believe you.’

  She went to the kitchen, and Adam heard her shuffling through items on the counter. When she returned she was holding a ruby apple, the flesh glistening in the candlelight.

  ‘And so it begins,’ she said, a note of sadness in her voice. ‘Try not to strain yourself. Be brave, Adam.’

  ‘What the hell is the matter with you?’ he yelled. ‘Let me go you crazy -’

  He fell silent when the apple began to emit an eerie glow, subtle at first, but within seconds the light was blinding. Evelyn slit its flesh with her fingernail, and then held the fruit above Adam’s mouth. They watched as an electric red droplet of juice trickled from the fruit and dangled over Adam’s mouth.

  ‘Open your mouth,’ she coaxed.

  ‘So I can drink from a fruit that glows in the dark? Go to hell!’

  She snarled, grabbing his hair and yanking until his mouth flew open in a scre
am of pain.

  ‘I’m not going to hell,’ she hissed. ‘And tonight you’re the reason why.’

  The little drop of juice tumbled onto his lips, hitting his flesh with a sharp splat. The juice snaked its way across his tongue, leaving a searing trail as it lunged down his throat.

  ‘Be brave, Adam,’ Evelyn whispered. ‘Be brave.’

  He felt his body contort as the juice surged through his veins, twisting them like poison. A red glow emanated from his flesh; he shrieked at the sight of it. His stomach heaved and quivered, his legs thrashed wildly. His wrists twisted against the ropes like an animal caught in a trap.

  Adam’s body was too wracked with pain to notice that Evelyn had placed her hand on his forehead. By the time the convulsions had ceased his body was thick with sweat, his lungs struggling to gulp in air.

  ‘W - what was that?’ he said, his voice breaking.

  ‘Sin,’ Evelyn answered.

  She fetched a knife from the kitchen and began to cut the clothes from his body, careful not to slice the ropes. Adam continued to cough and shake.

  ‘I like you, Adam,’ she said, slicing the denim from his legs. ‘I’m not just going to use your body tonight - not like the others. You’re a good man, and for that reason I’m going to make love to you.’

  As the stabbing pains in his abdomen began to ebb, he cast his eyes upon his captor, and was surprised to find Evelyn unzipping her dress. The slinky fabric tumbled down her collarbone, sinking to the floor in a rush. The soft curves of her breasts caught the moonlight as she took a step forward, standing before him, presenting herself. His eyes darted to the dark triangle below her navel, as black as her hair, gleaming with the smallest amount of moisture. Pained though he was, he couldn’t help but acknowledge her beauty, his eyes combing over her curves with a sense of awe.

  But he had little time to marvel at her body; she was already climbing on top of him, her pale thighs straddling his torso. He flinched as she leaned toward him, and her sex rubbed against his, leaving a warm, wet trail as it glided forward. Her breasts hovered so close to his mouth that he could see his breath warming her nipples, prickling them into tautness.

  His head was swimming by the time she placed her hand on his chin, tilting his head back so that she could look into his eyes, an epic sadness in her face.

  ‘I wish.I wish it didn’t have to be like this. Please don’t hate me, Adam.’

  He saw a tear glistening in the corner of her eye.

  ‘I don’t hate you, Evelyn,’ he whispered. ‘A moment ago I thought you were crazy, but not now.’

  She managed a weak smile. ‘Are you ready?’

  He was surprised to find that he was not only ready, but willing.

  ‘Y - yes,’ he said softly. ‘Will there be much more pain - like before?’

  Evelyn nodded. She brushed her lips against his, and he found himself stifling a low moan. His lips parted, welcoming the wetness of her tongue, the heat of her kiss.

  He strained his neck against the ropes, tasting as much of her as he could.

  When at last she pulled away Adam gasped; her skin was illuminating: an electric, rosy glow. His eyes darted to his own flesh and he found himself in the same state.

  ‘What’s happening?’

  ‘Don’t be afraid, Adam.’

  She bent down and her nipple slid between his lips. Before he could think, his tongue was swirling around the tip, his lips sucking in her sweetness. Every time his tongue lapped at her flesh, he felt tiny prickles, as if there were an electric charge coursing through her. It became so strong that he began to wince, but he refused to part with her, licking and sucking until he felt himself grow weak.

  When she guided his head back against the slab, her breast wet with his saliva, she had a serene expression. Her look was infectious, and despite himself, Adam felt his lips mirror her smile.

  With their bodies lighting up the room like pale stars, Evelyn eased herself backwards until her sex hovered above his own. He was frightened, yes, but now he was consumed by another kind of pain. Her eyes shifted to his hardness, and as she began to ease her hips down toward the source of his aching, a tiny drop of her moisture tumbled down, trickling across his manhood - he groaned at the warmth of it - until he bit his lower lip to stifle a whimper.

  ‘Ignore what you see,’ she whispered. ‘Ignore what you hear. Look at me, Adam. Keep your eyes on me.’

  She tilted her pelvis until she was pressing against him, and she began rubbing herself back and forth, painting him in her wetness. He felt his body melting into the cold stone.

  ‘Oh, God - Evelyn.’

  Her eyes were sparkling with something that almost appeared to be adoration. Cupping his cheek in her palm, she dipped her head low, and her lips brushed across his forehead.

  Then she pressed her body to his, coaxing him deep inside. He could feel her heat even before she engulfed him, taking him in slowly, letting him savour her inch by inch. When he felt himself completely encased by her she was still for a long moment, eyes half-closed, relishing the weight of him inside her. She looked down at him-a fallen angel-her hair pouring like a river over her shoulders, brushing against his chest.

  The story she had told him earlier began to flash through his mind, and suddenly he was picturing her pressed against the dirt, her nails digging into the earth in terror, as she was taken without love, without the slightest tenderness. And now Adam wanted to take her in his arms and cradle her to him, to take her slowly and gently, to stroke her hair and let soft words waft upon her ears. But he felt the ropes rubbing against his flesh and the thought faded from his mind.

  He looked into her violet eyes, not daring to blink, as she began to rock her hips. His wrists strained against the bonds. He arched his back, stealing as much contact as he could.

  Adam could hear the pants that came in a rush from her lips, could see the beads of sweat gathering on her forehead. But he became aware of another sound - a low, almost inaudible hiss - that was echoing like a choir around him. It was getting louder.. .closer. He broke away from Evelyn’s gaze, and what he saw made the blood freeze in his veins.

  From all corners of the room they were pouring down -serpents with scales as sharp as knives. They were plummeting from the ceiling, coiling in piles, slithering over the furniture and across the carpet.

  He opened his mouth to scream, but Evelyn covered his lips with her hand, whispering quickly ‘Don’t look, Adam. They won’t harm you. Don’t look at them - look at me.’ She was grinding against him faster, moving her hips in frantic little circles. He swallowed a moan and tried to ignore the writhing creatures surrounding them. But by this point there were hundreds of them, and now they clustered around the slab; he felt one of them brush against his torso, dragging its scales slowly across his flesh, and his eyes clamped shut as he waited for the creature to slide away.

  There was a piercing crack - like lightning - from above. Adam’s eyes flashed open and flew to the ceiling. He screamed. A swirling red cloud hovered over them, crackling and churning in a fury of light.

  The hysteria in his voice cut through the roar of the cloud. ‘Evelyn!’

  She ignored him, thrusting faster. The wind beating down from above whipped her hair into a dark frenzy. ‘Evelyn!’ he screamed.

  ‘It’s alright,’ she called. ‘No harm will come to you!’ Adam gritted his teeth. He felt the pressure below, felt the ache in his groin reaching a fever pitch. Evelyn grunted with determination; she seemed to sense how close he was to exploding. Around them the hiss of the serpents became deafening, rattling the walls and shaking the slab. Her breasts were bobbing up and down so frantically that the nipples became a rosy blur, her thrusts unrelenting. He felt himself start to twitch, and Evelyn felt it too. She plunged down with a force so violent that he could feel the orgasm being sucked from his body. His skull dug into the slab. A howl echoed from his throat and the walls rumbled with his scream.

  Evelyn’s head shot backward. Her eyes
slammed shut. She clenched down, squeezing out every droplet from deep inside of him. He felt a wave of electricity tearing through her body - a jolt of pain so profound that she began to sob, her shoulders heaving uncontrollably. She tried frantically to steady herself with her legs, and for a moment she seemed so weak that she would fall to the floor in a trembling heap. The bellowing cloud above them exploded in a deafening burst, smothering the room in a crimson fog as the snakes rolled onto their bellies, twitching and screaming in a shrill chorus.

  Adam felt a stabbing pain inside his chest, as if his bones were unhinging within his body, then a jagged pressure inside his throat-something burrowing its way toward his mouth. His jaw opened wide. He coughed and retched until he felt the hard object tumble from his mouth, landing with a sharp thud on his chest where the pain had originated. He stared incredulously at the rib, sticky with his saliva.

  The red mist was dissipating. Adam’s eyes darted to the floor, relieved to find that the serpents had vanished. He took a deep breath.

  ‘Adam?’

  Her voice was uneven, scratched. He looked up to see her eyes stained with tears.

  ‘Are you okay?’

  He nodded.

  She dabbed at her eyes with her fingers. Then with shaking hands she took the rib and held it close to her face. She seemed lost in thought, eyes cloudy for a long time before she finally spoke again.

  ‘It’s over now,’ she said. ‘I’ll untie you.’

  He felt himself sliding out of her warmth, her wetness. She knelt beside him and wiped the sweat from his brow.

  ‘I’m sorry, Adam,’ she said. ‘You don’t deserve such pain. I wish I had chosen someone else-some muscle-covered jock with a contemptible personality. I‘ve never done this with anyone like you.’ She gave him a smile tinged with irony. ‘They say you always remember your first.’

  ‘I - I feel so weak.’

  ‘It’ll pass,’ she assured him.

  She kissed his cheek.