Page 1 of Ruining Vanessa

1

VANESSA

“Hey, girl,” Slayer says in a faux gentle voice. “We’ve got a guest today. Are you excited? Want to wag that little tail of yours?”

No. No, I don’t want to wag that tail. I want out of the dog crate he has me in. I want to be out of sight, out of mind, even left alone in my pathetic little room in Ntimacy. I’m beyond humiliated, and it doesn’t help that Slayer keeps circling the dog cage to take pictures of me from every angle.

The dog ears, the butt plug the tail is protruding from, the mitts on my hands to mimic paws, the collar… All of it adds up to so much humiliation that I feel like I’m going to die from it. No one can withstand this level of embarrassment and still survive.

I shake my head slightly, closing my eyes and trying to curl up in a ball in the crate.

“I’m gonna give you so many treats. And you’ll show off all the tricks I taught you,” Slayer says, grinning widely.

I don’t want to show off any tricks. But I don’t fail to notice how he didn’t ask me—he stated it as fact. He knows I’m going to cooperate because I don’t have a choice.

The doorbell suddenly rings. Slayer stands up, clapping the top of the dog crate. “There’s my guest now.”

He grabs the leash from the hook on the wall, the sight of which has tears threatening to spill all over again. It’s stupid, but I guess the plug in my ass is worse. Everything they’ve done to me is worse. Yet I don’t want to crawl at his side like a dog, to be that complicit in my own humiliation.

Slayer opens the crate door and slaps his thigh. “Come on out, girl.”

I look at him through tear-filled eyes. Now that I have a chance to leave the crate, I don’t want to.

Well, that’s not quite accurate. I’d just rather stay in here than go meet his guest. Giulio or Damien, most likely—probably the former, because Slayer and Damien don’t get along. And Slayer had said guest, so it probably isn’t both.

I guess I have to be grateful for small mercies.

I slowly crawl out of the cage, my limbs shaking a little as I finally get to stretch them out. I don’t know how long I’ve been in the dog crate this time, but it was long enough to make my muscles cramp.

Slayer hooks the leash onto the collar, then ruffles my hair, careful not to jostle the dog ears. “Good girl. Now heel.” He doesn’t even look to see if I’m going to obey, immediately walking toward the door—and tugging on the leash.

If I don’t follow, I’ll choke.

I wish I wasn’t so familiar with this routine, but Slayer’s kept me here for the past few days, “training” me. He’d said something about giving Giulio more time to calm down, but I don’t believe him. He just wants to break me.

We walk through his apartment, which is smaller than Giulio’s, and stop in front of the front door.

Blushing furiously, I try to pull back, but Slayer puts more pressure on the leash, which puts more pressure on my neck. I gag, then reluctantly edge forward. He opens the door with a wide grin, opening it in full—and we’re in a goddamn apartment complex, where anyone could look through the door and see me. With my luck, it’s a pizza delivery person, and Slayer’s just screwing with my head.

I’m confused and borderline panicked when the first thing I see is, in fact, a pizza box… but a glance up shows that Giulio’s carrying it.

“Took you long enough,” Giulio says, stepping inside. “I almost thought you’d gone out.”

“Yeah, yeah. I was in the other room.” Slayer closes the door and locks it. “Please tell me that’s a normal pizza.”

“It’s a perfectly normal pizza, with white sauce, pesto, grilled chicken, sun-dried tomatoes, and spinach.” Giulio goes to put the pizza on the kitchen counter, completely ignoring me.

I’m not sure if I should be grateful or hurt.

“That’s not perfectly normal, man,” Slayer protests. “That’s some bullshit artisan pizza. Normal would be pepperoni, maybe some sausage. We both know you like some sausage.” He leers at Giulio, and I feel strange, like I’m witnessing something I shouldn’t be.

Giulio grabs a slice and starts eating it, meeting Slayer’s eyes. “I told you, if you want me to… partake of your sausage, you gotta return the favor. Until then, I’m sticking with the artisanal stuff. Like Damien’s cock.”

“Damien does not return the favor,” Slayer huffs, but he grabs a piece of pizza. “Damn, I’m hungry.“ Despite his protests about the fancy pizza, he eats it anyway, for all that he makes a face.

I feel weirdly alone. The two of them are ignoring me, and only the tight pull of the leash against my collar reminds me that Slayer is even aware of my presence. Giulio still gives me zero consideration, chatting with Slayer like I’m not even there.

“Damien absolutely reciprocates when you aren’t there.” Giulio reaches for his second slice. “Fuck, this pizza is good though. I’m glad I stopped when I saw the sign. And it’s on your way to my place, so you could…”

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