by Kitty Thomas
But she couldn’t.
“Are you lying to me?” he asked, his voice going to a scary dark place.
“N-no.”
“No, what? I notice you’re avoiding addressing me.”
“I’m not avoiding it,” she lied again. It was too weird. If they were doing some dirty, kinky thing, and she was all worked up like she’d been the night before, then yeah, she thought she could play along and call him master, but there was no way here in the light of day she could just casually refer to him that way.
“That’s lie number two. Kiska, are we going to have a problem?”
“No. We don’t have a problem.” She wasn’t sure what it was about daylight that made this all seem so much more sordid than it had the night before when she’d been desperate.
“No, WHAT?” He backed her to the nearby edge of the pool and held her there. Even if she hadn’t been pinned in place by his hands, she would have been pinned there by his gaze. “SAY it,” he practically growled at her.
Annette looked down at his hands on her arms and finally said, “No, Master.”
His grip loosened. “And still, you lie to me. You were so brave last night. Did the sunlight swallow up your fire?”
He swam to the ladder and climbed out of the pool. “Come with me. I didn’t want to have to start your training with punishment, but you will not lie to me.”
Now she was legitimately afraid. In the back of her mind, she’d known he would hurt her; she’d just thought she could keep him distracted from it for a while. Maybe she still could. She knew all the buttons to push with men, after all.
She’d had no less than ten different clients within the past month promise her nearly anything if she’d just come meet and fuck them in person. Men were not complicated. Anton could be managed.
She screwed up her courage and got out of the pool. She put a sway in her hips as she slunk over to him. She was sure she could distract him from the punishment plan.
“Come on, don’t you want to do something more interesting than punish me?” Annette ran her hands over his wet skin, slipping one inside his swim trunks. She stroked his cock underneath the fabric. His hand closed tight around her wrist.
“No. I didn’t give you permission to touch me. Do you really think I can be led around by my dick and manipulated this way?”
“Ow, you’re hurting me.”
Anton released her wrist, and she fell backward onto the lounger. She scowled up at him.
“You’d better be wise and wipe that look off your face. Get up.”
Who the fuck did this Neanderthal think he was? He was turning down a fucking hand job? Who did that? When she didn’t get up, he grabbed her by the arm and pulled her up. Then he scooped her into his arms and carried her back into the house.
She smacked at his shoulder. “Put me down! I can walk!”
“You had your chance. Keep it up. Your punishment will only get worse.”
She wasn’t sure why she was so much more angry and embarrassed than scared. Her pride had been hurt, and at the moment, it was the injury that was real.
Brian sat at a table in the cafeteria eating a large sandwich. The tables had arrived that morning, along with a bunch of other stuff in large boxes. Brian had picked them up in a rented truck from another location and brought them to the house.
“I need to use one of your rooms downstairs,” Anton said.
Brian’s eyes lit up as he rose from the table. “Can I watch?”
“I don’t give a fuck. Maybe it’ll be a stronger lesson that way.”
Brian seemed giddy as he followed them through the house, past the entryway, and to the back staircase that led underground.
At the bottom of the staircase was a long stone hallway. Stone walls, stone floor. At the end of the hallway was a large solid wooden door. Lining the walls were several slightly smaller doors, each with a small window and bars. They were labeled, A, B, C…
“Use Cell A. It’s the only one I have set up,” Brian said.
Annette’s anger was starting to be replaced by fear. “Please, I’m sorry. I won’t do it again.” She could barely remember what it was she had done to begin with. Oh, yeah, lying. But it was such a small lie. Couldn’t he see why? She was just protecting Janette. It wasn’t as though she was being malicious.
“Unfuckingbelievable,” Anton said. “You still won’t address me. Who am I?” He put her down in the cell.
As soon as he let go of her, she bolted toward the exit, but Brian stood in front of the door, blocking her way and smiling like a demented maniac.
“What are you going to do to her?” Brian asked.
“I’m going to break her.”
Annette spun to face Anton. She felt the blood drain from her face. A darkness had fallen over the Russian’s features. If she’d been asked in this moment to say who was more dangerous, Brian or Anton, she wouldn’t have been sure who to pick. If she’d been told to run to the safe one, she wouldn’t have been able to move at all.
“Impressive,” Brian said. “I didn’t think you had it in you.”
“It’s the only way she’ll take this seriously and truly see herself as my slave. Right now she thinks she’s going to play me and get her way.”
Any other time she might have gotten angry people were talking about her like this, like she wasn’t even in the room, but she was too afraid to say anything.
Finally he turned his attention back to her. “Last night I thought you were serious about being my slave in exchange for your sister’s release. Have you forgotten her already? Have you forgotten I will see her every week and that me continuing to write checks is how she will eat and pay for school?”
Annette looked away, unable to bear his scrutinizing stare. Why the fuck should he look so wounded, as if she were somehow betraying him by behaving like a normal human? “No, I haven’t forgotten.”
“Motherfucking… No, WHAT?”
“M-master. P-please, I’m sorry. I-I’ll do better.” She wasn’t sure anymore if she was lying. She wasn’t sure what had made her think she could do this. Even with the insanity of the kidnapping… even with them being criminals, the way he’d been last night, she’d thought it was all just kinky games to him.
It wasn’t.
She thought she’d just play along, but he wanted obedience and servitude from her all the time. She’d had the best intentions when she’d bargained for Janette’s freedom, but talking a good game and playing it were two very different things.
“No. The only way this will be real is if I train you properly,” he said.
Annette glanced at Brian. He looked like a hungry wolf about to get something good to eat. When she turned back to Anton, he had much the same look on his face. The two of them behaved as though they were circling prey, a coordinated hunt.
“Did you have lunch, kiska?”
“Y-yes, Master.”
“Good. It’s going to be a long afternoon for you.”
He moved closer, and she backed away until she’d backed into Brian’s arms. He held her tight, and Anton leaned close to her ear.
“Pet, I will not damage you. But I will break this urge you have to control me. I am the one in control here. You will not play me again—not after today.”
Her heart felt like it was going to beat out of her chest, the walls seemed as though they were closing in, and a flush of heat moved up her neck and over her face.
All at once the tears started to fall. It was the first time she’d cried for her own predicament since she’d gotten here. Half an hour ago Phyllis had asked her to run, and they’d had the smallest window to freedom. Should she have taken it? But there was still Janette out there. If it were just her, she might have run. And now with the silver metal band locked around her wrist, it was far too late for that.
“Master, please. Just one more chance. I promise I won’t play you.”
Anton shook his head. “Sorry, kiska. How can I trust a liar? Your word is no good here, but it will be soon eno
ugh.”
Brian’s erection pressed against her hip. She could see the outline of Anton’s through the black swim trunks.
For the millionth time, she wondered why she’d played with fire at the club. Why had she said those things? Right or wrong, she was sure he never would have taken Janette if she’d acted differently. She never should have gotten on his radar. It wasn’t as if she didn’t know how men could be. She’d seen it play out over and over with work.
“What do you think I should do first? Pain or orgasm denial?” Anton asked.
“Pain,” Brian said. “It softens them up more. Make her hurt, then make her want you.”
Anton nodded. “Yes. I think you’re right.” He untied the strings on the red and white striped bikini and let it fall to the floor.
“Oh, pet, you’re trembling,” he said, rubbing her arms. She’d been too scared to notice the shaking that had started.
His concern sounded real, but she was sure it was fake. After all, if he truly cared how she felt, he wouldn’t be doing this at all. He led her over to what looked like two large wooden beams formed into an “X”. There were ropes attached to all four ends of it. Anton stretched one of her arms over the beam and bound her wrist. Brian did the same on the other side. Then they did the same with her ankles so that she stood spread-eagled.
It was too exposed. Somehow much worse than the previous night with four men gawking at her on the pool table. This time there was no arousal cream driving her out of her mind.
Anton stood back to look at her, his arms crossed over his chest. “Tell me, kiska, do you still think you’re going to play me?”
She shook her head. “No, Master. I swear.” Maybe he was bluffing. Maybe he just wanted to scare her. If so, mission accomplished.
But he didn’t untie her. Instead, he crossed the room to a large black box and started rummaging through the contents. Occasionally he said “hmmm.”
While Anton was deciding what he was going to do to her, the door to the cell opened. Annette craned her neck to see who it was. She barely glimpsed the shock of surfer-blond hair as Gabe moved into the room. He came around to the front of the beams so that he could look her in the eyes, but she looked away.
He touched her chin and raised her face, concern in his eyes. Real concern. “She looks terrified.”
“She should be. She’s being punished,” Anton said.
“For what?”
“It’s not your concern.”
“For what?” Gabe repeated, unwilling to let it go.
Of the men at the house, Gabe seemed like the most likely to help. Annette had seriously miscalculated who she should be appealing to.
“She lied to me. And she needs to be broken anyway so she’ll acknowledge who I am.”
Gabe made a disgusted face after the word broken. He seemed the least likely candidate to be part of this group of deviants.
“Lied about what?” Gabe didn’t seem convinced any high crimes had been committed. He stroked the side of her face and brushed her hair out of her eyes.
“Don’t comfort her,” Anton said. “In fact, I want you to go.”
“Brian gets to stay.”
“Brian isn’t going to argue with me about everything I do.”
Annette watched Gabe. She was smart enough not to try to appeal to him verbally, but she was doing everything she could with her eyes, hoping he would stay. Maybe he would hold Brian and Anton back.
He looked at her, then at the other two men in the room. Finally, he said, “Fine, but I didn’t sign on for this shit.”
“Oh, please,” Brian said. “You knew exactly what you were signing on for. You’re in as deep as the rest of us, so put away the fucking halo.”
“Fuck you,” Gabe said. And then he was gone.
There it went. Her only chance or hope of rescue. Even if Lindsay barged in next, she didn’t believe he’d help her.
During the exchange with the blond, Anton had selected several items from the box. He laid them all in a nice, neat row on the stone floor in front of her where she could see them all.
“Since you didn’t know what a safe word was, I assume everything you said at the club was just something you heard or saw somewhere, and you don’t know anything about anything in my world. Am I correct in assuming that?”
“Yes, Master.” She didn’t dare lie to him again. Not now. He would know.
Now that he’d been paying far closer attention to her reactions to things, he seemed able to tell when she was lying—a gift that wouldn’t do her any good. Why did she have to be held captive by the one man who could tell if she was lying? He may have fallen for it once at the club, but it was unlikely he would let his guard down with her again.
Anton pointed at each item in turn. “Flogger. Single-tailed whip. Riding crop. Nipple clamps. Paddle. Knife.”
She would have rolled her eyes. She knew what a paddle and knife were. But she was too afraid of what he planned to do with that knife to make any comment.
“Let me… oh, please let me,” Brian said. He was bouncing back and forth from foot to foot like a kid at Christmas.
“No!” Annette hadn’t meant to say it. It just slipped out. She hadn’t meant to say anything at all.
“No?” Anton said, one dark eyebrow raised in mock surprise. “I don’t believe I heard you right. Yes, Brian. Go ahead. Since my little pet thinks she’s in charge, it can be another lesson.” He dragged a chair over from the corner and sat in front of her.
“Let’s blindfold her,” Brian said.
“No, I want to look at her.” Anton crossed his arms over his chest and leaned back in the chair, his legs sprawled as if he were settling down to watch a good game. “And more importantly, I want her to look at me.”
Annette craned her neck to try to see what Brian was doing behind her, but he was careful to remain out of her line of sight.
“I still vote for blindfolding,” he said.
“No,” came the Russian’s flat answer.
She thought about trying to reason with Anton, but the expression on his face was so resolute that she was afraid whatever was about to happen would only get worse if she tried to negotiate.
Brian came around in front of her and picked up the knife. He picked it up slowly, a smile spreading across his face as his eyes met hers. It was a rather large knife with a sharp edge on both sides. The handle was made of a shiny black stone with a dragon carved into it. He held the knife in his hand as if testing and feeling its weight. Then he moved back behind her.
“Master?” Annette tried to keep the hysteria out of her voice. What? Was he going to just let this psycho cut her?
But Anton’s only response was another raised eyebrow.
She jumped when she felt the flat of the cold blade resting against the center of her back.
“We’re going to play a game,” Brian said. “It’s called Truth or Bleed. I will ask you a question, and if your master thinks you’re lying, I will cut you. Sound fair?”
“No, it sounds psycho,” she said.
Maybe it wasn’t the wisest response, but Brian only chuckled behind her.
“First question. Did you think you were going to manipulate Anton and get your way in this house?”
Annette sighed. “Yes.” What else could she say? She had thought that. And before this moment, she’d still held out some hope that she could manage him somehow.
Anton watched her intently, but there was no need for him to scrutinize because it was an obvious question with an obvious answer. If she’d said no, no one in the room would have believed it.
“At least she’s not testing you,” Anton said.
“She’s smarter than she looks. Second question. Before last night, how many men had you been with?”
There was a pause while she tried to decide the best course of action. Two was the truth, but it didn’t sound true. She thought about lying with a higher number, but if she did that, and Anton could tell she was lying…
; “T-two.”
Another raised eyebrow from Anton. “That’s the story you’re sticking with?”
“It’s the truth,” Annette said. Why the fuck would she lie about something like that with a knife blade at her back? If there was any chance Brian would honor the rules of this stupid game, she wasn’t about to give him reason to start slicing her skin into ribbons.
“Well?” Brian said. “What do you think? Is she telling the truth?”
Annette held her breath while the Russian contemplated. He stared at her so long and so intently she thought she might catch fire from it.
“Yes, I think she is.”
She let the breath out.
“Question three. Are you attracted to your master?” The point of the blade pressed lightly against her skin as if Brian was sure he’d get to start cutting now.
She was quiet for a long time. She couldn’t even look at Anton. Was she attracted to him? After this? How the hell could she be attracted to him now?
“You will give us the truth or you will bleed,” Anton said. His voice was calm. “I don’t care what the truth is, but you will give it to me, and you will look at me when you say it so I know if you’re lying or not.”
“Well?” Brian said. “Tick tock. Three seconds or you forfeit that question and we count it as a lie. Three, two...”
“Yes,” Annette blurted out.
“Truth.” A dark smile spread across Anton’s face.
“Dammit,” Brian said.
“See?” Anton said, “She can tell the truth when properly motivated.”
“Okay. Question four. What about the rest of us? Are you attracted to us?”
“In what way?” Annette asked. “I find you repulsive.”
Brian laughed. “Yes, but do we get your motor running? Are you physically attracted?”
“Yes,” Annette said, barely above a whisper.
“Truth,” Anton said.
Each time she answered a question, she tensed, afraid that Anton would call her a liar or that Brian would just disregard the rules. He buzzed with a malevolent energy. She could feel that he was itching to do her damage.
“Last question. Do you want Anton to set you free?”
The correct answer was Yes. It was the sane answer. It was the expected answer, and again she worried if she didn’t give that answer that Anton would think it was a lie, some kind of flattery, and Brian would finally be able to use his shiny new knife.
