Page 3 of Girls Night
The clanging of metal on metal jars me out of an uneasy sleep filled with dreams of being suffocated, and I look up to meet the cold steely eyes that match the bars of my current home. The sense of suffocation remains as surely as if he were wrapping his hands around my throat and strangling the life from my body. I realize how close I am to breaking. I don’t want any of this, but victims don’t get to choose their fates, and my future is more bleak and hopeless than most.
The disgust for me is prevalent in his eyes. I almost want to snort at the irony of the situation; in his eyes, my sexuality means I’m unfit to be in society, yet I’m good enough to fuck in front of his daughter.Is she the one being taught the lesson, or am I?I know what he hopes to achieve with these lessons, but this isn’t something that can be conditioned out of her, and even if it could be, she would never be happy.
I’m jolted out of my thoughts by the clicking sound of the tumblers turning in the combination lock. I automatically back away and shrink into the far corner, watching fearfully, but I already know what’s about to happen. Farren isn’t here, but sometimes sessions begin without her. After all, I’m here and conveniently ‘full of holes to use’, as he so eloquently puts it. I already feel sick, and he’s not even opened the cage door and come inside yet. A frightened whimper slips free as he enters, and a vile smirk spreads across his face when he hears it and takes in my cowering demeanor.
He inhales deeply and begins stalking toward me. It serves me no benefit to flee, all it does is feed into his fury, allowing him to make it even worse when he catches up to me. I’m trapped anyway, so what’s the point in letting him play his game?
More and more of me is being shredded with each passing day and every lesson taught. It pains me to know how close they are to destroying me. I may not have been broken just yet, but there’s so little of me left to break it’s only a matter of time.
The sound of footsteps on the stairs catches my attention, and he uses my distraction to strike. I shriek as I’m dragged off my feet by my hair and pushed down into a kneeling position in front of him. I clamp my teeth together when he rubs his clothed cock against my pursed lips and gag at the mere thought of what he no doubt intends.
“Mmm, I think we can work on this today. Farren is going to need to learn this skill. There’s no point in a woman who can’t give good head. While it’s so fucking hot to choke a girl with a cock, it’s even better when she can take it. I suggest you get that little mouth of yours nice and wet, but either way, my cock’s going in there.”
I choke on a sob, wishing I could stop breathing and die. When I feel soft skin stroke against my cheek and catch sight of his cock out of the corner of my eye, I flinch. Clenching my teeth together so tightly they ache and pressing my lips firmly shut, I refuse to open even when he rubs against them, smearing precum over my mouth.
“Open up, girl. You’ll only make this worse for yourself,” he threatens, and I shake my head.
I barely catch sight of the flash of rage flitting across his face before a blinding pain shoots through my head, making me dizzy as I’m shoved roughly away. A sharp blow to my abdomen follows, winding me, and I gasp raggedly as I try in vain to breathe through the pain.
The sound of the basement door being thrown open reaches my ears, followed by the gruff voice of the man standing above me and Farren’s soft, feminine reply. I can barely see who’s in front of me now, but the faint shimmer of gray eyes swims across my vision as I lose consciousness.
Chapter Four
Farren
Lying in bed, my heart twists when I think of the woman locked in the cage in the basement. It gets cold down there, and she’s got nothing to keep her warm. The only concession my father has given to shield the woman from the cold is to lay a sheet of wood across the bottom of her prison to stop her freezing on the icy floor.
Guilt pricks at my conscience as the blankets above me cocoon me in their warmth. I can’t sleep. The sight of her wide and fearful eyes and the sound of her pain keep circling around my mind. I let out a heavy sigh and restlessly kick the bedcovers off. Slipping out of bed, I grab one of the heavy woolen blankets and sneak out of my bedroom, past the room where my father is sleeping. I loathe him for what he’s doing, and every time I’m made to watch the horrifying sexual displays, I feel my hatred growing for him far beyond the limits of what I ever thought possible.
I move more quietly past Tucker’s door; he’s a light sleeper, and if he hears me sneaking around, he’ll probably try to stop me. I used to believe he didn’t like what was happening here, but the more our father imposes his will on him, the further away Tucker seems from the loving brother I grew up with. I’m losing him, and even the conflict that used to shine so brightly in his eyes is dulling into something else.
When I finally reach the first floor, I heave out a sigh of relief, but don’t allow myself to become complacent. If I’m caught trying to visit her in the middle of the night, then our fates could become something else entirely. I’m not even sure why I’m taking such a huge risk, but something in her eyes and the way she responded to me earlier has stirred up feelings I can’t quite decipher.
The basement door is only bolted shut, not that she would be able to escape the cage anyway. The top stair creaks when I put my weight on it, and I wince, pausing to listen for any sign I’ve been heard. My heart thunders in my chest while I wait for my father to come down and punish me for my defiance. I nervously fiddle with the blanket, threading my fingers through the crochet-woven holes.
Upon hearing nothing, I close the door behind me and switch on the light before continuing to make my way down into the basement. I shiver when my bare feet leave the wooden steps and hit the cold concrete floor as I inch my way over to the cage.
Dark, haunted eyes set in a pale face stare at me, and plump lips cracked from cold and dehydration are pressed together into a slight frown. Her slim naked body is curled into a fetal position, no doubt in an attempt to conserve what little warmth she has. I draw nearer, until finally I’m standing right in front of the cage.
Her eyes track my movements, and when she sees what I’m holding they widen hopefully before narrowing with suspicion. I feed the blanket through the gap in the bars and let it drop to the floor of her prison. She doesn't move to take it, and her eyebrows are now drawn into a tight frown.
“It’s for you. I-I know how cold it can get down here. I’m Farren, but I’m sure you already know that.”
I look away, feeling the heat rise in my cheeks when she sits up and snatches the blanket. I’m just as sick as my father, attracted to the helpless woman locked in our basement. Only I don’t want to hurt her, I want to help her, but I don’t know how. Glancing back at her, I work to control my breathing as she wraps the warm wool around her naked body, and I try to ignore her pale, soft breasts in the harsh light before they’re covered. She’s still shaking, but she already looks more comfortable than she did a moment ago.
“When they come down, hide it out the back of the cage in the shadows where the light doesn’t shine or we’ll both be in trouble. I’m not supposed to be down here,” I whisper, glancing furtively toward the closed basement door at the top of the stairs.
She hasn’t said a word yet, and even though I should go, I’m still not ready to leave. I look at the padlock and sigh. Only Father and Tucker know the combination, he changes the numbers after unlocking it and has Tucker secure it once I’ve finished cleaning her after each lesson. My stomach tightens when I think of the lessons, and no matter how hard I try to blot them out, the images are still excruciatingly vivid in my mind. I sit down on the hard concrete floor and hug my knees with my head resting on them.
“What’s your name?” I blurt, suddenly desperate to hear her voice.
I should know the identity of this woman, whose life is tied to my obedience and willingness to accept the harsh lessons and rules being enforced in this house.
“Violante.” Her voice is so quiet I’d have missed her answer had I not been waiting to hear it.
“It’s beautiful, just like you,” I say softly, and she gets a strange look in her eyes at my words. Before I can stop myself, I lean forward and wrap my hand around the bars. My voice cracks, and a tear slips out. “I’m so sorry. I never wanted any of this to happen. I’ll try and find a way to get you out of here.”
My breath catches when a cool hand wraps around mine, and I look up into her eyes. Reflected in the blue depths, I see the same pain and fear I’m so used to feeling each day, and it shakes my soul to know it’s there because of me. I may not have been the one to trap her or abuse her, but my heart’s desires have sealed her fate.
