Page 7 of Fear and Desire

Dan tried to keep the frustration from his voice, always aware that there were ears tuned to his every word. “Has he processed her already?”

It didn’t surprise him that Marco kidnapped someone while Dan wasn’t around to observe.

“Yeah. He sneaked her in just a little while ago without letting me know, either. He also punished her for kicking Harry in the balls.”

That almost made him grin. Harry, Master 5, was an idiot, and any woman who got the drop on him had Dan’s full approval.

“Is she in the cell?” At Josh’s nod, Dan clicked on the camera. It was the middle of the night, but enough light remained on to monitor the large room. It had three concrete walls and a barred front, and held twelve narrow beds. One wall had a door to the bathroom. The cell faced a large open area. A hall off to one side led to small rooms, and beyond another locked door lay Dan’s office and the men’s dorms.

Right now, all the women were locked to their beds with short chains attached to their collars. The only one sitting up was Claire, who held the new woman in her arms, her tear-stained face hidden, but her bottom clearly visible with fresh cane marks. Claire rocked her back and forth, shushing her, letting her cry, while the other women stared silently from their cots. Dan always marveled that despite their own circumstances and fear, they were always willing to comfort one another, and they were at their unhappiest when a new woman joined them in their hell.

I’m sorry. But you will be free again,he promised the figure.

5

Laura:

Therewerenomoretears to cry. Claire had told her everything she knew, which was little, and all the rules, of which there were many. The tall woman, with dark red hair and pale skin, could not offer a single piece of comfort save her arms. Claire had been there for two months. Most of the women had been there longer. Occasionally, one was sold and would disappear.

Claire answered Laura’s questions before she even asked them. Yes, they had tried to escape—from time to time someone would make the attempt, and the punishment was severe. Deep woods surrounded the compound, and somewhere out there was an invisible fence. Any woman who got that far found herself flat on her back after being shocked into temporary paralysis by her collar contacting the fence.

Master 1, who ran this place, was not too bad, and Master 2 was harsh, but reasonably fair for a slaver. Master 3, the man who had kidnapped Laura, was a bastard. There were rumors he wanted to take over. He was a sadist, Claire warned her. Try to stay out of his way and be very obedient around him. He and Master 5 were buddies, and they liked to torment the women for no good reason. Master 4 and Master 6 were not too bad. There were other men around, big men with lecherous, hungry looks. They were guards and didn’t take part in the ‘training,’ and they weren’t allowed to touch the women.

“But why are we here?”

“There’s a big auction coming up in a month. We’re going to be sold.”

Laura stared at her, the words as shocking as when Master 3 had uttered them the first time. “But—but—this is the twenty-first century! They can’t do that!”

Claire gave her a tired smile. “I didn’t believe it, either, when I arrived. I’ve been here long enough to realize that those who are stronger can always do what they want to those who are weaker. And sex makes men do horrible things.” She sighed. “You won’t understand this for a while yet, but most of us have stopped fighting, for now. Not just because we get punished if we do, but because it’s exhausting to fight all the time when there’s no hope of winning. We have to wait for a better opportunity.”

“So in the meantime…” Laura prompted, not really sure what she was asking.

“In the meantime, we train. To be pleasure slaves.”

Laura shook her head. “No. No. They can beat me all they want, but I’ll never be a pleasure slave.”

“They’ll beat you, yes, if you fight and disobey. But what Master 2 will probably do first is give you an hour or two of continuous orgasms. And then he’ll turn around and get you so aroused you’re desperate to have another one. It’s—well, it’s addicting, and frankly, confusing. It didn’t use to be. Some of the other women who are gone now said it was really awful when they arrived. They were just beaten into submission until they were broken. When Master 1 and 2 came along, everything changed. They started giving us pleasure, whether we wanted it or not. And they started teaching, really teaching, how to do things like deep throating. Or they use plugs to gradually open us up to take a cock, instead of just shoving one in there. Some women are training in massage, others in cooking; there was even one woman who painted. They insist we take care of ourselves and eat enough and keep ourselves clean and groomed. I understand now that our price has increased quite a bit.” Her face twisted in an ironic smile.

“So, are you training in something?”

Claire chuckled once. “Piano. Believe it or not, I was pretty good in my previous… well, before this, and so they gave me a piano and ordered me to practice every day.”

Laura shivered. “Really? But—don’t you hate piano playing now?”

“Surprisingly, it’s the one time of the day I feel like a real person. They let me play whatever I want. I wouldn’t give it up for anything. It holds me together when I want to come apart.” She paused. “Sometimes Master 2 comes in to listen. He never interrupts, and he always compliments me after I’m done. I enjoy playing for him, even if he’s one of the men who is keeping me here.” She shrugged.

“But you all get punished,” Laura prompted.

“Yes. When we disobey, we get punished, and it’s awful. We also get lessons on how to handle the pain. They’ll start off slowly and gradually build up and encourage us to breathe and not tense. They insist we not fight it, that we accept the pain. They tell us it’s part of our new identity and we can’t avoid it. We can make noises and cry out, but we’re not allowed to plead for them to stop. When we do, especially at the beginning, they start the lesson all over again.” She looked down at the floor. “That’s the worst part.”

The door banged open and they jumped. “Bed time for little girls,” Master 3 announced. He re-locked Claire’s chain and grabbed Laura by the arm, dragging her over to an empty bed. He fished a chain out from under the pillow and locked it to a ring on her collar. “Any more talking and I’ll whip you good. Go to sleep.” He turned and left.

She stretched for the one blanket that was folded down at the bottom of the bed, but the chain was too short, and it was tucked too tight to pry loose with her toes. Eventually, she gave up and curled onto her side, her naked body trying to warm itself as the tears started again, this time quietly. At some point, her exhaustion won out, and she drifted off to sleep.

Josh:

Josh stopped outside the cage, watching the new woman’s quiet breathing, and noting she hadn’t pulled the blanket up. Marco delighted in petty torments, and had probably chained her before she could get to it.

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