She doesn’t curtsy. Why doesn’t she curtsy? With how she spoke to him, I was expecting something, anything. She’s dressed the part of an older English maid yet flounces about without a care in the world. Master Richards. Is Melody actually happy with someone that’s referred to as a master? Unease gnaws at my gut. Something isn’t right here. None of this feels okay. My mind churns as he finishes dressing me; I almost don’t feel the fabric abrading my skin. After being naked for so long, the clothes feel tight, confining, foreign.
“There now.” He straightens and looks deep into my eyes. His voice lowers to a deeper timber, and I sway towards him, wanting, no, needing, to drown in the liquid warmth. “You are safe, you are secure, you are owned. No one will harm you. You are safe with me.”
“Safe with you,” I repeat back, not even realizing the words slipping from my lips.
He must be pleased with my response because he gives a nod before sliding his fingers across my cheek in a gentle caress. I pull back as if he slapped me instead of merely grazing me. Too intimate. Too soft. Fog drifts across my brain for a moment as the memory of another touch, not nearly so gentle, slams against my senses.
I choke on a sob as he continues the path up to my hair, so desperate to not show him how weak and fragile I am. He twists the damps strands into a simple bun with swift movements, securing it with a rubber band I didn’t even know he had with him.
“I want you to enjoy this reunion; do not ruin it by bringing up nonsense about leaving. Your place is here until I deem you well enough to go back into the public. You are very fragile right now. I’d hate to add to your discomfort this evening.” He pauses, bringing his fingers back to my cheek, the light tapping against the curve a warning that sends ice flooding my veins. “Be my good girl, now.”
His good girl. What does that even mean? He keeps using that phrase, but what does it mean to be good? I’m not throwing myself at him; I’ve done all he’s asked with minimal fuss. I guess that’s what constitutes as good now. The words left unsaid between us are more horrifying than any physical threat of violence. I’d rather him just cause me pain. At least with that, I’d know how to handle it.
I could escape to my happy place - drown out the agony. But this? Soft touches and sharp words? What do I do with implied violence? Nothing was ever implied; agony was always the sensation du jour.
The urge to fight him wells up within me, but I stand there silent, contemplating my options. Perhaps I don’t need to do anything; surely Melody will get me out of this. There’s no way she’d leave me here. My spine stiffens as I make my decision. I’ll go along with what he says, but only because I’m choosing to - not because he’s making me.
Now that I’m dressed, there’s nothing left to do except face my sister. That is if she’s even there. I’m still not convinced that she’s not some ploy he’s using to lull me into security. I wouldn’t put it past him. I follow his lead, memorizing every step we take. If I need to make a run for it, it’s better to know the layout now than to be so caught up in fear that I freeze.
Soft voices murmur behind a closed door, one sounding achingly familiar. Joy bursts into my heart so hard that it actually hurts for a moment. I can’t breathe as we get closer and closer. Can it really be true? My freedom is so close I can taste it in the air.
“Remember, pet, I want you to have as much time with Melody as possible. Please don’t make me cut it short.”
The threat hangs heavy in the air as he turns the knob. There’s no way he can control Melody. She may be shy and awkward, but she can also be a force to be reckoned with when need be. The burn of unshed tears snaps me out of my thoughts. This is a happy time. No tears allowed. Those can come later when I’m safe with her. It will be just like old times - her and I in a bedroom, sneaking treats while we compare notes about our parents. Though this time, my story will be much worse. I probably won’t even tell her about it. Not yet.
The door opens, and the voice is confirmed. She’s taller and much prettier than I’d imagined. The look of shock on her face makes me think she had no clue about me. Why is she here then?
“Chastity? What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be in Brazil or something?”
My face scrunches up as confusion fills my brain. Brazil? “I was never in Brazil.” I look over at Doctor Rayne. “Is that where you found me?”
“Grigori picked you up from Florida. I don’t know where you were before then.”
It was Melody’s turn to turn her nose up, her brows furrowing. “But Dad said….”
That normal frisson of anger, the one that flares every time my parents wrong us, flashes through my body, setting my limbs trembling.
“Calm.” His voice permeates my brain, short-circuiting the rage for a moment.
Blinking, I look back at Melody. “I was never in Brazil. I left with Billy. But I guess they couldn’t tell you that. Couldn’t admit their precious first-born was a whore.”
The words leave my mouth, tasting like ash. The bitter anger and regret well up, but beyond that is a feeling of sorrow I can’t even put into words. If they hadn’t been so...well...them, I wouldn’t have left. If I hadn't left, there’s a good chance I wouldn’t have been kidnapped. Slim arms wrap around my body, pulling me back to the present. On a choked sob, I hold Melody tight, noting how much she grew in the years I hadn’t seen her.
“Five years. Five fucking years,” she whispers.
“Melody.”
At the warning tone, I pull back and glance at the man she came with, his posture reeking with a self-assured dominance that sets my teeth on edge. I know that type of man. If my calculations are now correct, I spent three years with that man or others like him. She pulls away and sits next to him, murmuring an apology. What in the actual fuck? This isn’t like her!
I stare at her, noting the small changes - her face, her hair. She feels more self-assured, not at all like how she was under Mom and Dad’s roof. If this man helped her get there, then he was allowed a few idiosyncrasies. She looks up at him with pure adoration, and my gut burns with jealousy and worry at her show of affection. He, too, seems smitten with her, even if a bit controlling. A simple, silver loop adorns her neck, nothing like the crazy jewelry she wore as a kid. I stare at this woman, feeling like I know her, though, simultaneously, she’s a stranger to me.
Casting a glance over at Doctor Rayne, I slide away from him and sit next to Melody, grasping her hand in my own. I have to find a way to convey my situation without alerting my new jailer. He and the fiancé move over to the side and start their own bit of chatting. I lean over to Melody, making sure they were deep into their conversation, my eyes never leaving Doctor Rayne. “Does he make you happy?”
My heart doesn’t want to hear this. I don’t want to be that person that can’t be happy for my sister, but on the other hand, it’s just too much right now. I had hoped Billy and I would be a forever thing, but I knew going into our whirlwind romance that we were just as likely to burn hot then fizzle out. It was the way of things. But we never even had a chance. That’s where Melody is at a distinct advantage. There’s a hope there that I will never have. The small smile and light blush crossing her cheeks are all I need to know.
“Would he be okay with me staying with you?” At that, she sits up straight and looks over at him, a shadow passing over her eyes. It’s only because I know her like the other half of my soul that I can even tell. Does she not want me with them? Has there just been too much time between us? “I know we have a lot of catching up to do, but I thought maybe -.”
“It’s not that at all!” She rushes in, her eyes darting between the men and us. As her tongue sweeps out to lick her bottom lip, I see the hesitation in her eyes. Not fear, exactly. But there’s something there. Something keeping her from even broaching the subject.
Again, that cold, icy finger of fear slides down my spine, rippling over the bones, making the muscles spasm and jerk. Desperation coats my tongue like bile as I scoot in even closer. Doctor Rayne hasn’t done anything to me that could be considered abusive or even mean, but he’s dead set on owning me. I can’t even fathom what that even means for me. At all. And that, that right there, the unknown when my life is already falling apart, is what drives me to act.
“You have to get me out of here. Please. I don’t have to stay with you. I’ll find something else, someone else.” The hoarse pleas fall out of my mouth in a hushed whisper as I look over at the doctor, my insides twisting up as his head turns ever so slightly for him to glance over at me. Soon, he’ll realize what I’m talking about, what I’m begging for, and who knows how badly it will end for me.
What would he do? He’s told me plain as day there will be punishment if I defy him. Shuddering, my mind goes into overdrive. Will he beat me even harder than this morning? I don’t think I could take that. Lock me away? Something tells me I haven’t even seen a blip of what this man can do, and here I am actively going against what he told me. If my sister doesn’t help, then what?
“Has he hurt you?”
Her fingers fly up to the silver band, and she begins rubbing her fingers over it, glancing over at Richards - I can’t bring myself to add the Master, even in my own brain. It’s like a worry stone to her, and the action confuses me. I’ve never known her to need something like that. I was always the “distraught one.” She was “stable” even though she was shy. What does this man have over her? Should I even tell her about the spanking? Would she listen or care? Self-preservation be damned. If that’s what gets me out, then so be it. What’s humiliation in the face of freedom?
“He - he spanked me.”
She sits back, her eyes wide. Finally, something got through to her. “What did you do wrong?”
Wrong response. I don’t know what I expected from her, but it’s wasn’t this nonchalant, let’s talk about it, attitude.
“Nothing!” I hiss, darting my glance back at Doctor Rayne. He’s watching me now, that immaculate eyebrow raising up at the first sign of “hysteria.” Breathing deep, I force my voice to be calm, even. I can’t alert him now. Not when I’m so close. “I didn’t do anything. He just hauled me over his lap and started spanking me.”
That’s a lie. I know it is, but my cursing was justified. That niggle of guilt, the one I hate so much, creeps into my brain. It could have been worse. He threatened much worse. I wish my brain would just shut up. The last thing I need right now is to be thinking about his dick. It doesn't help that every time I’ve seen him, he’s been hard as a rock. I don’t know how he compares to my captors, but he looks big. Too big.
Another reason I have to leave. I’m sure I’ll curse again, and that monstrosity will be forced into my mouth. Too big. Way too big. My vision blurs for a moment, just on the outside, like a haze in the late summer afternoon. A shimmer on the blacktop. Melody and I playing tag as hot, sticky sweat rolls down our necks. Collapsing into a pile on the sweet, freshly-mowed grass.
“Chastity? Chastity!”
Strong hands grasp my shoulders, shaking me awake, bringing me back from wherever it was I went. How I long to go back. The smell of summer still teases my nose as the room comes back into focus. Everyone is staring at me, and I can’t understand why. What just happened?
“You were on the verge of fainting.” Doctor Rayne’s strong, even voice permeates the remaining fog.
I’m still here, still trapped with him. The summer is an illusion. I see that now. Sorrow burrows its way into my chest, threatening to crack it open and spill its contents over the floor. Melody looks at me with those large eyes, so full of fear and pity. Will she believe me now? Will she understand that this is the best way? I have to get out of here. She can leave me at a bus stop for all I care.
Richards wraps his hands around her arms, pulling her back against his hips. She sighs and leans into him, perfectly content to be in his space. She does seem truly happy. The phantom giggles of youth-gone-by echo in my ears. Much fainter now. Further away. She’s no longer the little girl that begged me to put her hair into braids after she showered so she could have crimpy hair. She’s no longer the little girl that looked at me with awe and wanted to be just like her big sister. No. She is an adult in her own right. Ready to get married. Ready to leave childhood behind.
A lone tear slips over my cheek as I watch the happy scene. How I wanted that. How I craved that. And now? Now, I’m just a husk of a woman. Bitterness and anger intertwine, burning my gut. Bile rises up in my throat, threatening to choke me. When did she become so strong?
“As you can see,” Doctor Rayne continues. “It’s best she remains with me. Her mind is fragile. I will take on the responsibility that’s demanded of my station.”
Everyone freezes. It’s like they’re having a whole different conversation than what I’m not privy to. Even Melody’s lips thin as she looks between the two men. What am I missing? I know it’s important. It involves me.
“Are you saying you’re claiming her?” Richards’ voice is a smooth baritone as he sits there all smug, his lips quirked up in a semblance of a smile.
“For the near future. Yes.” Doctor Rayne sounds so sure, so finite.
Melody gasps, and my throat tightens. Claiming seems bad. I don’t want to be claimed!
“And the ceremony?” Richards continues as if the world hasn’t already shattered
Doctor Rayne’s fingers curl into my shoulders, the grip menacing even though he keeps it light. I can feel the proverbial talons digging into my skin, that hint of a threat laced through his touch. He could rip the skin off my bones, and no one would stop him. The tremor that races through my body causes him to tighten that grip even more, arresting the breath in my lungs. “She’s nowhere near ready. I hope you would understand that.”
The two men stare each other down. A world of communication passing between them in a silent tirade. I want to shout, to fill the silence. I desperately want to hear something other than the macho breathing of two men sizing each other up. Melody’s eyes glitter in the soft light. Is she about to cry? What are they going to do to me?
“I understand. That sounds perfectly reasonable.”
Reasonable? What sounds reasonable?Richards squeezes Melody’s shoulder before motioning for her to get up. Wait. They’re leaving? They can’t! They can’t leave without me! Please, no! Don’t go! I want to scream and yell, but I can’t. Not with the firm grip Doctor Rayne keeps on my shoulder - a warning, silently implied so no one else can hear.
“Wait, we can’t take her with us?” Melody looks at me, her gaze full of sorrow and regret. She’s trying. I know she is.
“No, Mouse. You heard Andrew. She’s safer here with him. He’s claiming her, and you know exactly what that means.”
But I don’t! Please, someone, tell me what this means.