Page 96 of The Phantom's Vice

I open my mouth to speak and find it sewed shut, the thread a glossy red hue that matches the river running down my chin.I want to,I try to scream.It’s all I’ve ever wanted.

The woman’s smile drops, and a sadness replaces the playful glint from moments ago. She looks over her shoulder, her eyes seeing more than just the building covered in red. And that sadness grows.

Suddenly, the woman jerks, her mouth opening with a silent scream as the tip of a silver dagger appears in the center of her chest. A swirl of black smoke appears behind the woman, growing from a whisper to a dense fog in moments. And as the lifedims from the woman’s beautiful blue gaze, another appears behind her, hand wrapped around the dagger piercing the beautiful woman’s heart.

And it is the Madam’s cruel green gaze that pierces my soul. The same one I see the moment I wake, heart pounding and clutching Brett to my chest like my embrace alone can prevent what I just witnessed. What will be a reality if I don’t act.

For the next few hours, I lie in bed counting Brett’s breaths, watching the way her lips twitch as she falls from one dream to the next. For the next few hours, I memorize the way she feels in my arms, the weight of her against my chest. I count her lashes, the freckles across her nose, and follow each dip and curve of her spine until I know how many millimeters are between each vertebra. But when the dawn light peeks through the curtains, and Brett begins to stir, I know it’s not enough—will never be enough—except it has to be.

Because today, I am going to die.

The morning goes by as usual, with Brett suspecting nothing of my plans. EvenRupert and Venom are on their best behavior, allowing Brett to relax for the first time since I’ve known her. That evening, Brett and I are sitting in the library. She’s reading, and I’m watching the way her lips twitch at every funny piece of dialogue. I try to lengthen the seconds between her blinks, wishing I could live in this space with her forever. The last moments of peace before the battle, the quiet before the storm we’re about to face. I don’t know how many more of these moments I will get, and I regret not savoring the previous ones as much as I am now.

“You’re not reading your book.”

Brett’s melodious voice startles me from my thoughts, and I offer her a small smile. “I like to watch you read. Far more interesting.”

Brett crinkles her nose, waving me away as she picks up on the paragraph she left off on. I stand from my armchair and glide toward her, prying the book from her hands and snapping it closed.

“Hey! I didn’t leave a bookmark!”

“I remember where you’re at, darling,” I murmur, placing the book onto the side table and hoisting Brett into my arms. My hands explore the soft skin of her shoulders, traveling over her collarbone and cupping her full breast. Brett moans as Itake her nipple between my fingers and twist, and I capture her with my mouth.

“So beautiful,” I murmur, nipping her bottom lip before nursing it with my tongue. Brett’s breath catches as I throw her over my shoulder and head out of the library, a protective hand on her ass to keep her in place.

Brett rakes her nails up my spine, and I shiver as electricity shoots through my veins, causing my cock to jump. I rush into the bedroom, wasting no time tossing Brett onto the mattress and climbing on top of her. Her chest rises and falls with increasing speed, and she takes her lower lip between her teeth, letting it out slow and teasing me.

“Fuck, darling,” I murmur, palming my cock as that hooded look does something strange to my head. “I love when you look at me like that.”

“Like what?”

“Like you’d doanythingto have my cock inside you,” I murmur, reaching up to the top corner of the mattress and pulling out the first of four restraints. Brett licks her lips greedily as she hoists her arm up to make it easier for me to strap her in, and an appreciative hum sounds in my chest. Once her wrists are secure, I move down to her ankles, pulling the straps extra tight so she’s stretched just to thepoint of discomfort. Brett lets out a little whine as I trail my lips up her thigh, stopping at the crease between her pussy lips.

“You smell heavenly,” I groan, fighting the urge to lash my tongue against her. I lose the battle a second later, and the room spins as my tastebuds are coated with Brett’s arousal. I lap at her core, trailing my tongue through her folds and toying with the hard little nub at the apex of her cunt. When it throbs, I pull away to Brett’s whines, the lower half of my face slick with her juices.

She gulps as a slow smile spreads across my face, and I step away from the bed toward the golden dresser, pulling a few pieces from the top drawer. I stalk to the head of the bed, running a hand over Brett’s beautiful black hair as I show her what she’s going to be wearing. Brett’s eyes widen at the large red ball gag, but she otherwise makes no complaints.

“Open,” I command, pressing the bright red ball to her lips. She swallows hard, then obeys, and my cock jumps in appreciation. “Good girl,” I murmur, slipping the straps over her head and positioning the leather blindfold in place.

“You are not allowed to come. If you do, we start over from the beginning. Understood?”

She nods dutifully, her thighs shaking slightly with anticipation. I run my hand down her leg, loving the trail of goose bumps left in the wake. When I make it to her ankle, I stop, attaching the first end of the spreader bar to her ankle. A muffled moan works its way past the gag as I attach the other side and Brett realizes she can’t close off from me. My mouth salivates as I take in the sight of her dripping pink pussy, the folds spread open like the most beautiful orchid.

“Fuck,” I groan, palming my hardening cock through my pants. Fighting the urge to just take her, I grab the special TENS unit from the foot of the bed and plug in the attachments. Turning it down to the lowest setting, I place the small pads on either side of her pussy, then start the machine.

Brett lets out a yelp as the electrical current flows through her, causing the muscles in and around her core to contract against their will. Her squeals are replaced with moans as the current pulses through her, reaching the deepest, most needy parts of her and bringing her to the edge. Just when she’s about to come, I turn the unit up, causing a yelp of pain to fall from her gagged mouth.

“Do you want to come, darling?”

She mumbles something unintelligible throughthe ball gag, and I lower the settings, returning her to the pleasurable thrum. We play like that for what seems like hours, me bringing her to the edge just to rip her pleasure away as Brett is slowly driven to madness by the sessions and desires flooding her mind.

“Mmph!” she breathes, wriggling against the large puddle growing between the legs. Her movements grow desperate, spreading a wicked grin on my face.

“I don’t know if you deserve it,” I coo, turning the setting up higher than it’s ever been, causing Brett to scream in pain and pleasure.

“Mmph!” she squeals, her body shuddering. A trail of drool pools from the corner of her mouth, dripping down to her chin as her head arches back.

“You’re lucky I’m feeling generous,” I murmur, thinking of all the twisted things I want to do to her as I lower the voltage, intently watching the way Brett unravels as her orgasm courses through her.

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