Irma was emotional on the way home, apologizing and berating herself. Only one exchange really bothered Mary... "Mary, is Stick... hung like his father?"
"You saw it, didn't you?"
"I was busy being outraged, I'm afraid. It wasn't a good idea at the time," Irma replied.
"Well, he's a bit above average, but nothing like his father. I've seen white guys Stick's size."
"How on Earth do you compare him and Teddy? The poor boy..."
"Momma, Teddy is totally different -- that thing is so wide... Believe me, it's good, too!"
"Well, all right, Punkin, if you say so..."
Mary got her mother home and cleaned up, but she was still an emotional wreck, so she put her to bed. Her father didn't show up until almost six, which worried her, "Poppa, what took you so long?"
"Mrs. Williams came back and we had a whole new situation on our hands. It took a while to defuse that and handle the aftermath." Arthur smiled, "If your mother settles down, we may recover from getting off on the wrong foot with the Williams." 'And if she doesn't, ' Arthur thought, 'Rose expressed some interest in seeing Irma pulling a train wearing a dog collar... ' Rose had turned out to be a demanding fuck; Arthur had learned a few things -- among which was the fact that women aren't really that breakable. She'd made Thurnock watch while she gave Arthur a little bit of everything -- even anal -- but the only cum Arthur got was where it belonged -- in her pussy. That was something Thurnock hadn't done to Irma, but Rose more or less insisted, and nobody else was in a position to say no -- Thurnock because he was being punished, and Arthur because Rose wrapped her legs behind his ass and wouldn't let him withdraw! Arthur figured that years of taking an elephant dick like Thurnock's would make Rose sloppy, but she was fine and tight and Arthur had a great time! When it was over, Rose assured him that he had nothing to be ashamed of in the sex department; he'd apparently lasted longer than her husband usually did and offered a bit firmer ride. "Besides, being a bit more considerate of your partner is a good thing, sometimes," Rose had said, glaring at poor Thurnock. Thurnock ('Call me Pop') had winced at the criticisms, but, hey, Rose was punishing him wasn't she?
"Things don't look good for you and Momma right now," Mary ventured.
"Certainly, she has some explaining to do," Arthur agreed. "I'm not going to live as I have been, that's for sure! Still, maybe this incident put a dent in her behavior. We'll have to talk. Where is she?"
"In bed. She was still a little leaky, and Pop Williams was pretty rough on her physically, too!"
"That was all part of the treatment," Arthur replied. "Has she settled down about you and the boys -- or is she backsliding, already?"
"I think she's okay," Mary replied.
"Well, I probably need to consolidate things a bit," Arthur announced. "If you'll excuse me?"
"Take it easy, Poppa..."
"I don't think so," Arthur argued. "I think now is the time to see to it that she understands which end is up!"
"Well..." Mary wasn't thrilled, but this was beyond her control.
"The boys are at Frick's," Arthur added, over his shoulder. "If you're uncomfortable staying here, I'm sure they'd love to see you!"
Irma sat up in bed as Arthur entered the room. "Arthur," she moaned. Clearly, she was dreading the upcoming conversation.
"Did you enjoy your visit with the Williams?" Arthur grunted sarcastically. "I have to say that it was interesting seeing you on the receiving end, for a change! Unfortunately, you managed to publicly humiliate me in the process! Fortunately, I guess, I now have witnesses for the adultery charge... Perhaps you should tell me about Chase?"
Irma winced, for the fourth time since Arthur began speaking. "He said... he said he was going to fire you!"
"Obviously, you believed him..." Arthur replied scathingly. "I don't suppose that it has occurred to you that it is a bit odd that I now have his job?"
"Uuuhhh..." It hadn't. Irma had gotten into the habit of believing just about anything bad about Arthur -- and discounting anything good...
"Was this once, then?" Arthur asked.
"N-no," Irma replied. "He would come along a bit before payday and tell me all about how Mr. Sharp or Ms. Delaney was so much more qualified..."
"And then what would happen?"
"And then we'd have sex, and he would treat me more or less like Mr. Williams did -- not quite as bad, but along the same lines."
"When were you going to get around to telling me?" Arthur wanted to know.
"I don't know!" Irma wailed. "At first, it seemed like it should be a secret; later, I was pissed that I was carrying your poor dumb ass and you didn't even notice..."
Arthur shook his head in disgust, "... Largely because that wasn't what was happening. How long?"
Irma shrugged. "Two years?"
Arthur shook his head. "Chase used people; he did it at work, and he did it outside. He got fired because he tried to run his game on someone with backbone, and the whole thing unraveled. If you had said something to me, it would have happened sooner!"
"He was... very convincing..."
"He played to your poor opinion of ME -- so you swallowed it, hook, line and sinker! The comments you make! You're unbearably embarrassing at company functions! You gave him everything he needed to know to be able to use us both!" Arthur worked up to a full rant. "So, how many times, do you think?"
"Two dozen? Visits, not acts -- he always seemed to get in more than one... He would spend his time telling me how fat and skanky I was, how lousy my blowjobs were..." Arthur displayed anger at that, so she hurried on, "how he was doing me a favor by even bothering... I think I started gaining weight to make myself less desirable, not that it worked..."
Arthur shook his head. "I don't think Chase could get Grade A -- besides, it was something else he could use against you -- your poor self- image." He eyed her. "Why didn't you recover after he left?"
"He had me thoroughly convinced that you weren't worth it -- I'd been paying for you, covering your ass for two years... The fact that he was gone just meant that I didn't have to have sex to keep you in a job -- it didn't mean you were any more worthy." Irma sighed. "If anything, it took things out of my hands; the next time somebody realized you were worthless, I wouldn't be able to fix it."
"So I didn't rate sex..."
"ESPECIALLY not THAT!" Irma replied. "Although, now that I think about it, it might have been that I felt wrong about what I was doing..."
Arthur nodded. "Maybe, if you looked at things closely, YOU didn't deserve sex..." He shook his head. "I think we can add stupid and ungrateful and untrusting to your list of issues." Irma looked like she was thinking about bridling, so Arthur added another charge, "I noticed that you had no trouble cumming while being abused and humiliated. Is that the new game, then?"
"I, uhh," Irma stammered. THAT was embarrassing! She'd even managed to cum while having a cock -- a BIG cock -- jammed up her ass!
"I think," Arthur continued, "that you've reached the point of getting off hearing about what a worthless cum-dumpster you are -- which plays into my hands, actually. From now on, you can hear all about that from ME! From now on, you're going to EARN your keep around here! You're going to keep me happy -- because the alternative is to be on the street without alimony! If you want something beyond the household budget I assign to you, you'll get my permission -- and by God you'll EARN it! And if you piss me off, you'll get punished like the cunt you are -- maybe I WILL put you out on the street to see if the dogs will sniff your ass! What do you think of that?"
"Uuuuhhh, errrr..." He couldn't be SERIOUS, could he?
"Get over here! I see I'm going to have to prove that I'm serious! Get up, get out of that nightgown so I can see your skanky ass, and blow me!"
"Arthur!"
But he had a hand in her hair, and was rubbing her face against his crotch... "Get it out! Now! You'd better hope you can coax a hard-on out of me, if you plan on eating this week!" Arthur didn't bother to mention that he'd been ridden hard and put up wet since she blew him the first time that day...
Irma found herself tearing at Arthur's belt. God! The LAST thing she wanted was to be out on the street! While it occurred to her that she was being manipulated, who had more right than Arthur? Where was this new Arthur coming from, anyway? Probably, it was just anger; all she had to do was handle his immediate anger at her betrayals, and things would level out... That sufficed to get his cock into her mouth.
But Irma was operating from a certain lack of vision; Arthur had watched a master at work on her earlier in the day, and recent revelations had exposed her as nowhere near the opponent that he had always assumed she was. Having gotten beyond her bluster and discovered that her armor was about as permeable as Swiss cheese, Arthur was declaring the new order; Irma could comply or, frankly, be replaced. The weapons he had made that a viable threat, anyway, and Arthur had recently discovered that Irma was more vulnerable to threats than previously believed. That being the case, he resolved to push wherever possible; having allowed her to absorb his semi- erect cock, he let her bathe it in saliva for a bit before reaching over her back and swatting her on the ass, "I SAID get out of that nightie!"
"Ow!" Irma stopped to glare -- and Arthur took a handful of her hair and tilted her head back so she could get a better look. "Now would be good..."
Disconcerted, Irma lumbered up, grasping the hem of the nightie; Arthur let go of her hair so she could follow through. When it was off, he grunted, "I'd say you were pretty successful at making yourself unappetizing. Suck!" He pulled her back down to his crotch. Irma shrugged to herself and re-engaged his penis, and Arthur announced, "You have thirty days to drop twenty pounds of that big ass of yours -- after that, you'll eat what I say you can, and to punish you I'll fuck that big ass of yours every night until you're one big hemorrhoid or you've lost the weight, one or the other! Understand?"
"Urk!" Lose weight? Twenty pounds? What was this?
"How many times have you had anal sex?" Arthur demanded. Irma went to back off, but Arthur had her hair again, "You can show me fingers -- it hasn't been THAT many, has it?" Irma held up one finger. "Just Mr. Williams?" Irma managed a nod. "So much the better." He cupped the back of her head, driving her forward onto his erection. "From here on out, I don't take any shit from you! You can shape up and do as you're told, or you can hit the street. And you owe me, so I'll be collecting, starting with about four years worth of sex! Understand?"
"Ulp!"
"Chase was right -- you suck at blow jobs. I think I'll ask Teddy to give you lessons -- he already knows what a slut you are..." Yeah, things were going to change around the Nally household...
The Hansens and Louise were sitting up the block from her house -- in a different vehicle, for a couple of reasons. First, Donna wanted to see this for herself; second, it was probably better not to return in the pickup, since it would be recognized. Becky whistled. "Wow! She really DID dump your stuff on the porch!"
"Why is it that you two insist on assuming that either of us would lie about a thing like that?" Mark growled.
"Welcome to the doghouse, Dad," Dwayne muttered. "Becky can tell any fairy tale she wants..."
"Enough, you two!" Donna grated. Turning to Louise, she asked, "Do you want to try again?"
"Well..." No, she didn't, but... "I will if you think I should."
"I don't think you should!" Dwayne erupted.
"You're not a parent," Donna replied. "I think you ought to give it a shot -- she's had time to cool down." Dwayne and Mark passed a glance.
"Okay." Gamely, Louise exited the vehicle and headed up the walk to her home. This wasn't going to happen, but she knew that Dwayne's mother would only believe what she saw. If it supported Dwayne, it was worth it... Gathering herself, she knocked on the door, "Mother! I'm home! We should talk!"
"Talk! I'm THROUGH talking to you! You never listen, anyway!" The door flew open and Helene stuck her head out, "You had SEX with a BOY in MY HOUSE!!!"
"Mother, I had to meet a boy, someday!" Louise countered. "No boy has ever been good enough..."
"They're animals! ALL of them!" Helene screeched.
"What am I supposed to do, then, date girls?"
"Are you into THAT, TOO? Is there no end to the crimes against God you will commit? Where did you get that outfit? Sluts are Us?" Helene shook her head. "You're eighteen -- I'm done with you! Don't bother coming back to ME when you're barefoot and pregnant and have AIDS! Take your crap and LEAVE!!!" The door banged shut.
"Mother!" Louise tugged at the door, but it was locked. She tried her key, but the deadbolt was thrown, too. She hammered on the door, "Mother!"
A front window opened and a gun stuck out. "Go away! Stop bothering me, or I'll call the police! Take your garbage and LEAVE!" The window banged shut.
"Omigawd! Is that a gun?" Donna screeched.
"Sure looks like it..." Mark agreed. "I think we can guess how THAT went..." He put the car in gear and pulled up next door. Turning to Dwayne, he said, "I imagine she needs help..." Louise, crying, was collecting an armload of her things from the porch and yard; the promised cardboard box was nowhere in sight.
Turning to his sister, Dwayne said, "Keep an eye out, Mouth! I can trust you to yell if that gun shows up again..." Ignoring Becky's snort of outrage, he got out and went to help Louise.
"I knew it wasn't going to happen," Louise sniffled, "but your mother wanted to see..."
"It's okay, Honey. I appreciate it that you put yourself out like that. Let's get your stuff and go..." Dwayne's father popped the trunk, and they piled things in there. Again, there was nothing in the way of clothing; whatever bug that bit Helene on that subject was still in force. After they had collected everything that looked salvageable -- there were a lot of broken bits of this and that scattered about the yard from Helene's tantrum -- Dwayne and Louise re-entered the car.
"I've never seen anything like that in my life!" Donna exclaimed as Mark pulled the car out and headed it toward home. "Do you two fight all of the time, or something?"
"No," Louise sniffled. "Mother is just extremely strict. I do what she tells me..."
"... But you didn't in this case, did you?" Donna prompted.
"No. If I did what Mother said in this matter, I would never even MEET a boy, never mind DATE one! I've never been to a dance, or a party -- even the movies with friends until a few days ago! You've seen what I wear!"
"She's right, Mom! Her stuff is godawful, and she has NO social life at all!" Becky interjected.
Dwayne, seeing where things were headed, interjected, "Louise, is, well, a bit of a mouse. She does what she's told, basically all the time -- I ran into it early on. You'll notice it real quick..."
"So did you tell her to... ?" Donna pounced.
Dwayne colored. "We had a special case for that."
"I bet you did!"
"No, he's right!" Louise came to Dwayne's rescue. "Dwayne was very clear about it -- he didn't want me to ever look back on our first time and think about how I was pushed into it. I had to ask -- and I had to be very clear!"
"You didn't push her?" Donna probed.
"No Ma'am!" It was a chorus.
"Dear, why would you want to rush right out and have sex with Dwayne?" Donna inquired gently.
Louise looked puzzled. "Why would I NOT want to? Dwayne is wonderful!"
"You don't have to give a boy sex to hold onto him..." Donna chided.
"Okay..." Louise continued to look at Dwayne's mother as if she was dense.
"You don't agree?" Donna asked.
"Sure," Louise replied. "But I WANTED to have sex. And I WANTED to have sex with Dwayne!"
"EWWW!" Becky interrupted.
Louise turned to Dwayne, "Is there something wrong with you that you haven't told me about, Sweetheart?"
"What? No..."
"Then why do they act like you have some disease, or something?"
"Umm, Mom pretty much figures I've suddenly become this fanged vampire thing that molests every girl in sight. Becky -- Becky's just doing the little sister thing," Dwayne replied, grinning slowly.
Louise turned to Donna, "Don't you have sex with your husband?"
"Well, yes, but we're married!"
"Didn't you have sex before you got married?"
"Maybe we should change the subject," Donna pressed, exasperated.
"Well, this thing keeps popping up," Louise argued, "and it's WRONG! I want a relationship -- a FULL relationship -- with Dwayne. I want it ALL! Sex surfaced as soon as I realized how wonderful he is! He's had ample opportunity to make like a wolf, and he showed a lot of restraint."
Donna snorted. "Restraint! You've been dating -- what -- three days?"
Louise shook her head. "You don't get it! I'm... not very independent, and not very strong... If Dwayne had insisted, we'd have had sex Friday night!"
"What!?" Donna was nonplussed.
"I went to a lot of trouble to put myself out there for him to find -- and I was scared to death! Dwayne could have rolled right over me -- but he didn't." Louse put her hand to her boyfriend's cheek. "Last night would have been even easier -- but instead he told me that he wasn't going to push and that if and when, I had to be clear. So this morning, I was clear. VERY clear."
Mark, in the front seat, rolled his eyes, "How clear were you?"
"I got naked in the middle of the living room and asked him pretty please! All right?" Louise asked, exasperated.
"Jeezus! Really?" Becky wanted to know.
"Really! Now leave him alone!" Louise ranted.
"Well, I never..."
"You would if you loved him!" Louise retorted hotly. Then her eyes popped and she covered her mouth. "I mean..."
Donna frowned. "It's a bit early for that, isn't it?"
"Yes," Louise turned her head. "I... misspoke. I was talking kind of generally..."
Donna eyed her for a moment, then turned back around to the front without saying anything. Becky was snorting, trying to contain laughter. Dwayne murmured, "Thanks..."
"I'm sorry! I was trying to help!" Louise whined.
"I know you were, Honey. But it'll take a bomb or something to get them to lay off..." He rubbed her shoulder. "Don't worry about it." He eyed her, "What about the other thing?"
"I got carried away," Louise replied, poker-faced. The LAST thing she needed was to scare him off with wild love noises! Dwayne eyed her dubiously, and she continued, "That's my story, and I'm sticking to it!"
Dwayne glanced around, got the all-clear, and leaned in to kiss her. Louise took it on the lips and let them flower open, going for a real kiss, not just a peck.
Becky, of course, detected it within seconds -- and was disgusted. "EWWWW! Get a room!"
Dwayne broke it off, but he didn't go far. As Louise turned her head back to the front, his breath warmed her ear, "Liar."
"Yes." She blushed hotly while his hand squeezed hers.
"Awright!" Roland grunted. "Le's get this thing cleaned up -- I'm gonna go tell DiAngelo he's got another winnah..." They were back at the loading dock at the Wilson warehouse, the run completed. "How ya wanna handle the other bullshit?" he asked Nate.
"We can tell DiAngelo -- but I'll pass the details to my connection. Boss should know what's goin' on, though."
"Awright. Back in a bit." Roland wandered off while Nate and Draper got into rain gear and washed the truck.
In a few minutes, he was back. "Awright, DiAngelo says drag your shit around tomorrow an' he'l put ya on the payroll for part-time, Draper. I wouldn't do it now; Stella ain't worth a shit with cum rollin' down her leg -- shit she's bad enough when she's concentratin'!" Roland chuckled and turned to Nate. "Y'all told him 'bout Stella, right?"
"Yeh." Everybody chuckled.
"I told DiAngelo you guys got some idea what the fuck is goin' on wit' the stockin' an' he'll wait ta hear somethin'. Cool?"
"Cool." Nate nodded.
"Awright. Later, then." Roland wandered off.
Nate and Draper cleaned up, Nate clocked out, and they headed for the car. Once they were on their way, Draper asked, "What's Nora's old man gonna do 'bout this?"
Nate shrugged. "Can't even guess -- but it'll be sneaky..."
"Yeh, I bet."
Twenty minutes later, Draper was home and Nate was pulling into the drive at the mansion. Jorge took the car, something that never failed to give Nate a chuckle -- it was a total waste of garage space. Nora was waiting inside the door; one kiss and he backed off, though, which surprised her. "Your Daddy around? Or that Jason guy?"
"Both, I think. Why?" Nora asked, surprised.
"Saw something today he's gonna want to know about." Nate pulled his notes out of his pocket.
"Okay..." Nora was puzzled, but if Nate thought it was important...
Ten minutes later, they were all in the study. Armand was poring over Nate's list of characters. He called Witherspoon. "I've got a list of names -- drug dealers, small-time ones. I need to know if they're Rodday's people."
"Okay. Want to fax it?" Two minutes later, Witherspoon came back, "No connections we're aware of."
"Get me Rodday's office number." Witherspoon did so, and Armand made another call...
Rodday wasn't in a good mood. Half his lieutenants had something or the other broken, and the other half were spooked. Several of the girls were acting up, too. "Yeah!"
"Armand Wilson, here."
Rodday stifled the urge to hang up. "What now? I'm not bothering you..." '... for now... '
"I have a peace offering, of sorts. Care to listen?"
Rodday counted to ten. "All right."
"Okay. In the first place, Flood's manhood is in one piece. I was going to get around to telling you that, anyway -- we just faked it. The other, more important item concerns your other business -- the one I don't approve of."
"I'm listening..."
"Do you know these people?" Armand rattled off a half-dozen names.
"Yeah."
"They buy from you?"
"No."
"Do you know who their supplier is?"
"No."
"I do."
"So?"
"I can let you cut them off, and maybe make a profit out of the deal -- or I can let the cops do it." Armand offered.
"I'm guessing that you like the supplier less than me." Rodday murmured.
"Something like that," Armand agreed. "You aren't in competition with me -- he is. I'm willing to let bygones be bygones; if you hijack one or two of his shipments, I don't think he's got the wherewithal to do anything about it. Since he's theoretically legitimate, he can't squeal too loudly; he'll probably quietly drop out of the business, leaving you with more customers."
"Why not do the cops?" Rodday asked.
"There are people in his supply chain I'd prefer not to see get caught. If he runs into trouble, they'll jump ship -- but if the police are involved, they'll get smeared, which will be ugly. I just want the thing to fall apart." Armand replied.
"What if he starts some shit?"
"I will lend you resources," Armand replied. "I'll see to it that he gets cut off close to home."
"Sounds like a plan. What am I looking for?"
"A meat packing truck," Armand replied. "Some of the contents will be meat, but a significant part of the load will be pharmaceuticals. The driver knows the difference -- but it would add insult to injury if your people tore up the whole load, looking..."
"Sounds simple enough," Rodday grunted. "Good damned thing -- I ain't got much in the way of manpower right now."
"Regrettable," Armand replied, "but you weren't responding to other forms of persuasion. Perhaps I could offer you a couple of professionals up front? I think we have about a week..."
"Awright. About Tabitha..." Rodday pressed.
"Ms. Adams will be setting up her more lavish business as discussed. I'd like to see an attitude of cooperation fostered there," Armand replied. "You will maintain the streetwalker franchise; she will work a series of upscale shops with more in the way of services and physical plant. You will be king of your domain, and she will be queen of hers. Is that a problem?"
"Nah, guess not. Where's she gonna get girls?" Rodday asked.
"Many of yours would be... unacceptable, due to their personal history and their involvement with your other business," Armand replied smoothly. "She will probably be recruiting elsewhere, unless you have some cast-offs that meet her standard..." Armand replied.
"I'll let her know," Rodday replied. "I'm plugged into some out-of- town supplies. Maybe there's a finder's fee?"
"Perhaps." Armand agreed. "Rodday..."
"Yeah?"
"If she is unduly hassled and I find out that you are pulling the strings..."
"Yeah, yeah, yeah..."
"I'll be in touch."
Rodday hung up the phone. "Smug bastard! Get Flood in here! Tell him he still has his balls! I need to talk to him about a job!"
Nate murmured, "Do you trust him?"
Armand shook his head. "No. But we have him under surveillance. I'll know if he starts something." He smiled. "This was excellent work, Nate! It will benefit all of us! I will not forget this!" He sat forward, "I assume that Draper made the payroll..."
"Yes, Sir."
"He'll receive a nice little 'signing bonus' with his first paycheck, then, for his part in this. Is there anyone else who should benefit?"
"Well, Roland, the driver, listened to us and altered his route so we could watch the whole thing go down. A buck or two wouldn't hurt him..."
Armand eyed Nate. "In his paycheck? Or cash?"
"He gets it all if it's cash, right?" Nate replied warily.
"So he does, so he does," Armand smiled. "When do you go back?"
"Tuesday."
"See Jason before you go. He will disburse some funds for you to deliver. I was thinking something on the order of five hundred..."
Nate nodded, "Sounds good."
"As for you..."
"I owe ya," Nate stated flatly.
Armand nodded. "True. But this goes above and beyond. There will be some form of compensation, perhaps based upon the benefit we derive directly. You have proven yourself to be highly resourceful, Nate -- other opportunities will come along." Armand looked at his watch, "I think they're holding dinner in the kitchen..."
"Thank you, Sir." Nate backed out of the room, past a glowing Nora.
Armand nodded at his daughter, smiling, and Nora followed Nate out. When they were out of sight, Armand turned to Jason, "A car, I think. Nothing too ostentatious, but something they can be seen in in both his neighborhood and ours..."
"Insurance?" Jason queried. Nate's rattletrap probably cost more than it was worth in insurance, since he was under 25. A more expensive vehicle meant more insurance...
"It will be a company vehicle," Armand replied. "Insure it as such. It appears that the driver on these drug runs handles large quantities of cash -- since we're going to be providing manpower for the first raid, see that they confiscate it and that we retain a portion adequate to support the transaction."
"Sir." Jason smiled his Death's Head grin.
Leticia, finally released from her punishment, was basically hiding in her quarters. The last couple of days had been fairly traumatic; peace and quiet and a bit of relaxation were in order. Maybe she would go down and soak for a bit in one of the hot tubs... She smiled, remembering that Boris called them the baths...
Putting on her bikini was out; the slit in the panty for the tail was too much of a reminder of recent tortures. Leticia slipped into a white one-piece -- with any luck, she would be alone and could go without. Towels were downstairs, too; she let herself out of her room and padded off toward the sunroom.
All was quiet when she arrived. She pulled the cover off the first tub, started it bubbling, and headed for the showers, where she pulled off the bathing suit, wet herself down, grabbed a couple of towels and returned to the sunroom. Settling into the tub, she sensed a change, but couldn't put her finger on it. Well, she was in no danger... She relaxed, closing her eyes, and let herself drift.
"Is good, nyet?" a VERY familiar voice sounded behind her.
Leticia jumped about a foot, "Oh!"
"Sorry." It wasn't clear whether Boris was really sorry or not; now that she thought about it, she figured that he probably wasn't. After all, this had been one of his little solitary pleasures... Boris circled around before her -- predictably naked -- and looked in the tub. "I can open another."
"That would be a waste." Leticia waved an arm and the big bear settled in across from her, making a production out of settling himself and making himself comfortable.
"Is perhaps better not to be alone. Safer," he observed warily.
"Yes..." Leticia left it at that.
Silence reigned until the timer clicked off, stopping the jets. Boris looked up, "You will do sauna?"
"Should I?"
"Da. Cleans the pores. Then shower, then another soak in bath," Boris affirmed.
"All right." Boris rose and exited the tub, then put out a hand to steady Leticia as she made her exit. Curiously weakened by the soak, she found herself grateful for it. Boris led her to the sauna, where he placed his towel on the seat and settled himself, again naked. Leticia thought about it for a moment, decided that he'd seen her before, and duplicated the action.
Again, silence reigned; Boris got up once to pour water on the heater, but otherwise, his only comment came as he was rising to leave. "Heh, you look good sweaty." She did, too, her skin glistening with the moisture. Not having a response, Leticia merely smiled.
Boris beat her back to the tub, silently watching as she padded back across the floor from the shower room, dripping. Neither of them had taken a lot of time in the showers, but Boris was an old hand at the procedure. It wasn't lost on Leticia that Boris had taken a seat that gave him ample opportunity to watch her approach; was it lust, or mere wariness? With Boris, it could go either way... This time, she settled across from him, instead of vice-versa. "We go shorter, this time," he announced. "Less endurance."
Silence again. Leticia relaxed, but watched him. Boris didn't move. He seemed to be... Waiting! THAT's what he was doing! The insufferable bastard was waiting for her to make some overture... What kind of an idiot did he take her for, anyway? "What are you doing?"
"Eh? Resting."
"Waiting, more likely. Do you think if you just sit there long enough I'm going to fall into your arms or something?"
"Eh, perhaps not," Boris muttered nonchalantly.
Leticia became infuriated, "I'm not your slave!"
"Not today."
"Not ever again!"
"Perhaps." Boris eyed her. "It is a matter of what you want -- and what you will do about it. You will decide this."
"You're damn right I will!" Leticia stormed up -- and collapsed into the tub with a splash.
Burly arms collected her and raised her head above water. "Parts of you are relaxed," Boris chuckled. "The spirit is fiery, but the flesh..." Leticia started scrabbling around furiously, and Boris reminded her of his superior strength by shaking her until her teeth rattled. "Stop being a fool! Move slowly. Get your feet under you. Get your balance!" He held her up until she did as she was told. "Now, slowly go to the edge and climb out. Things will be worse on the outside for a moment; take your time."
Boris was right; Leticia barely had the energy to stand outside the tub. Leaning there, wasted, she nonetheless pressed the attack, "What do you expect me to do, anyway? Come to you and abase myself? For what?"
Boris shrugged. "You know what you want. You know what you will do to get it. If you want it badly enough, you will do what you must. If you don't..." He eyed her for a moment. "It is not up to me. I am not the only source of that which you desire. But I am a PROVEN source of ALL that you seek -- this you know!"
"You're insane!"
Boris spread his palms. "I have asked for nothing! This is YOUR problem! I but sit here!"
"Well you can STAY there!" Leticia staggered off.
Boris shook his head. Women. Negresses -- black women -- in particular! It was not for him to come begging to her to spread her skinny legs for him to plant his seed between -- that was not their roles! The planting was not enough; it was not ALL that she wanted! No, she wanted to be mastered, and one did not master her from a position of weakness. Therefore, he would wait -- she would come... He hauled himself out of the tub and covered it, then shambled off to his shower. This time you did a good job -- got clean...
Leticia was standing under her shower, crying. Damn him! He just sat there, like Budda, waiting for her to -- what? Ask him to fuck her? That was the least of it; besides, the last couple of days had seen more sex than the previous year. No, it was something darker, deeper -- and she knew what it was, but couldn't put words to it. Boris's wild idea to grow her breasts by making her pregnant was close enough to bother her -- it was doing the right thing for the wrong reasons...
If Mr. Wilson had capitalized on the feelings and desires he'd awakened in her, she wouldn't be in these straits -- but he hadn't been interested, except peripherally. Boris got it right; Mr. Wilson had too many women available to him, and she wasn't a favorite -- but there WERE other men -- even in-house! Jason... No. She shuddered to think of it; how Inez put up with him was beyond her. Charles... He seemed to treat the Wench well, but there was something cold and distant there. Phillippe? She could get sex from Phillippe, but the other things -- things she couldn't seem to name -- he didn't seem to be able to provide. Ed? Ed had Velma, apparently -- and being cantankerous wasn't on her list of requirements. Jorge? What a joke! In the first place, he was Puerto Rican or some damned thing -- and in the second, he was the next thing to queer! That was it, in house... Nate didn't count -- too young, too in love with Nora, and -- mostly -- too black... THAT prejudice hadn't gone anywhere; in some ways, it had been reinforced! But it had been brought home to her that she was in no way Nate's superior.
And that brought her back to Boris. Boris, who could apparently take her or leave her -- and who could discuss her faults quite dispassionately, (why was that a good thing?) Boris, who took to commanding her like it was the most natural thing in the world. Boris, whose 'go to Hell' sexual style set her off in ways she couldn't EVEN remember getting elsewhere. Boris, who had said, "Maybe I will breed you, if you ask nice." Damn him! He seemed to know ALL about her -- and could push ALL of her buttons, effortlessly!
So what was the problem? Well, THAT was the problem, oddly enough -- the fact that Boris seemed to have all of her keys! If she went to him, he would take everything -- he'd settle for nothing less -- and her days as an independent woman would be over! Of course, part of the problem was that it wasn't clear to her why being independent was preferable... Was it fear? Inertia? It was instinctive, whatever it was. No doubt she would be waddling around with a basketball-sized tummy in six months, too -- again, something she wanted, but paradoxically didn't want. It had to be RIGHT -- she couldn't give up her freedom to be abused all the time! But Boris didn't strike her as the torturing type, either -- he might punish her, but he would also protect her. Maybe she could negotiate SOME kind of guarantees...