“Um…lock him up,” she said, hoping it was the right choice. “And um, feed him on bread and water,” she added. She got an uncomfortable feeling when she saw Malik frown and shake his head.
“For trying to violate you when you were telling him no, all you wish is a stay in the dungeons? A normal punishment for such a crime would be gelding at the very least,” he exclaimed. “It is not my place to say, Mistress, but I don’t understand why you’re so lenient on this bastard.” He shook Ugger again and the other man spat on the floor and glared up at him.
“You’re just jealous, Kindred! Because the Mistress lets me play rough with her and makes you watch. Admit it—you hate it when she lets other males eat her pussy and only gives you the rod.”
“Shut your mouth,” Malik growled, his silver eyes glowing with anger. “Or I swear to the Goddess, I will end your miserable existence here and now!”
“No killing!” Nikki said quickly. “We can talk about, uh, gelding later. Just…just take him to the dungeons for now.” Speaking of which, she hoped Mistress Hellenix had a dungeon in the first place—but it didn’t seem like too far of a stretch, considering the kind of woman she was.
“Very well.” Malik tapped a button on the wall and called for two security slaves to come. They arrived at once and he handed Ugger over to them. “The Mistress wishes this slave to be locked in the dungeon and fed short rations for a time. Take him quickly.”
“Yes, Malik.” They saluted him and then bowed low to Nikki before dragging off the protesting slave.
As soon as they were gone, Malik turned back to her, his face like a thundercloud.
“I always said you were too lenient with him and allowed him too much freedom with your body, Mistress,” he growled. “And now look what has come of it! Ugger has committed what ought to be a flogging or gelding offense and your response is simply to lock him away for a time. Why do you treat him with such leniency? Is it simply to torment me? I know you like to allow some males to take liberties with you but I don’t understand this decision!”
Nikki didn’t know what to say. Apparently Ugger had “taken liberties” with Mistress Hellenix before and the alien dominatrix had allowed it. But why?
Maybe to make Malik jealous? whispered a little voice in her head. Ugger did say that she made him watch.
“I…I’m just not in a flogging or, uh, gelding mood today,” she said, trying to sound offhand and slightly irritated like the real Mistress Hellenix might in this situation. “But thank you for rescuing me,” she added sincerely. “Really, if you hadn’t come along when you did, Malik, I don’t…don’t know what might have happened.”
She shivered at the thought. Having the greasy Ugger between her thighs had been completely different from when Malik had bent to pay her his obeisance. The big Kindred’s touch sent shivers of desire down her spine—Ugger’s completely disgusted her.
“You are most welcome, Mistress.” His tone softened somewhat although there was a puzzled, almost angry look in his silver eyes. “But I worry what might happen when word gets out that you aren’t requiring slaves to pay you obeisance and you gave Ugger such a light punishment. You maintain a delicate balance between fear and defiance in this house, as you have often said yourself.”
He looked so serious that she couldn’t help being worried. But at least he had stopped shooting the miniature lightning bolts out of his eyes and fingers, Nikki noticed.
“I’m sorry if you don’t approve of my methods but I am the Mistress here, Malik,” she said, trying to make her voice as firm as possible and sound like the real Mistress Hellenix. “Which means I will do things the way I see fit.”
“Yes, Mistress—of course you will. You always do,” he rumbled, bowing his head.
“Thank you. Now let’s finish this inspection,” she said, getting out of the padded bench-bed with some difficulty, since it kept rotating. She couldn’t feel relaxed here anymore—not since the crazy attack. She just hoped Mistress Hellenix didn’t have any other sex-starved, crotch-diving lunatics running around her mansion!
“Yes, Mistress. As you wish,” Malik growled and led the way out of the relaxation grotto.
Chapter Seven
What could his Mistress be thinking? Malik couldn’t understand her today at all! First, she refused to allow the slaves to make obeisance to her—which was usually one of her favorite activities and the whole point of the inspection. Then, she allowed that miscreant Ugger to get away with assaulting her with no more than a tap on the wrist! And now she was acting as if nothing had happened.
None of this boded well for her, as he well knew. If the rank and file slaves—almost all of whom hated her passionately for her cruel treatment of them—started to get the idea that their Mistress was going soft, a rebellion wouldn’t be far behind.
Malik had seen such things happen at other Yonnite Mistress’s domiciles but he had never expected to have to worry about it here. Mistress Hellenix was usually so stern that if a slave even breathed wrong, she had him up on the punishment cross or tied to the whipping post in a heartbeat. But now she seemed completely different.
It wasn’t just her attitude about obeisance and punishment that had changed, either. She seemed surprised at things in her own home. Things that she had previously taken for granted or even been bored by—such as the living jewel ceiling in the relaxation grotto—now delighted and impressed her. Previously she had been extremely difficult to please—now she seemed thrilled just to be in her own mansion. How could that be?
Maybe she really did hit her head and it truly changed her personality, Malik thought, watching her as they walked down to the end of the hall to the slide room to conclude the tour. He had heard of such things happening before, though he had always taken such stories with a grain of salt. How could a simple knock on the head produce such extreme results?
He didn’t know and there was nothing he could do at the moment but just keep watching to see how else his Mistress had changed.
They walked into the slide room, which held the end of the vast glass tubing that ran the length of the entire upstairs hallway. There were a set of steps which led up to the mouth of the tube and an attendant standing by. He dropped to his knees respectfully when Mistress Hellenix came in and started to crawl towards her but Malik stopped him.
“The Mistress is not receiving obeisance at this time, L’rn,” he told the slave.
“She isn’t?” The slave looked up, an expression of confusion on his face. “Then is my Lady here to take a slide into the dreaming pool?” he asked, looking at their Mistress.
Mistress Hellenix’s face broke into a sunny smile Malik had never seen before. It made her haughty features positively beautiful, so much so that he had to look away. He was conflicted enough in his feelings for her—hating her personality and desiring her body. He didn’t need to start having feelings that were other than physical for his cruel Mistress.
“Oh—like a waterslide!” she exclaimed, looking up at the tube. Then she must have seen Malik frowning because she made a visible effort to straighten her features and said, “Um, maybe later when I have my suit on.”
“Your suit, Mistress?” L’rn, the attendant, looked confused. As well he might since Mistress Hellenix never wore any kind of suit to swim in. She preferred to be naked, saying that it allowed the healing waters of the dreaming pool to better penetrate her pores. It also allowed her to flaunt herself to the male slaves—something she loved since she was an avowed exhibitionist.
“Yes—you know, a bathing suit?” she asked now, frowning. “I mean, the, uh, outfit I wear when I go swimming. You know what I mean.”
“No, he doesn’t Mistress since you prefer to swim in the nude,” Malik said flatly.
“I do?” She looked surprised. “I mean, of course I do,” she added, clearly trying to sound self-assured—which was something the old Mistress Hellenix never had to work at a bit. She was the very definition of arrogant self-certainty. Why had she chan
ged so drastically? And how could she forget that she liked to swim in the nude?
“You do,” Malik reminded her, frowning. “You enjoy showing your luscious bare curves off to the pool attendant slaves who are never allowed a release unless you give them the order while they watch you swim.”
“So they jerk off to my naked body while I’m swimming?” Her face went crimson which was another surprise. The old Mistress Hellenix was so jaded nothing in the world could make her blush. This new Mistress seemed easily embarrassed—it was so strange, Malik thought.
“It is the only release they are allowed, Mistress,” he reminded her. “You control the orgasms of every male here.”
Her eyes widened. “Every male here? All seventy of them?”
“You own one hundred and twenty-five slaves, Mistress,” Malik said blandly. “And none of them is allowed to come without your say-so.” He looked at the slide room attendant. “L’rn, when is the last time you had a sexual release?”
The slave dropped his eyes to the throbbing erection which poked from his leather trousers.
“It was six solar months ago when my Mistress was feeling generous,” he said softly. “She allowed me to remove the stay-hard band from my shaft and look at her lovely naked body while I stroked myself to completion at her feet. Then she went swimming in the dreaming pool,” he added, looking up again.
“Oh my…” Mistress Hellenix’s voice sounded faint and her blush had gotten darker so that her pale cheeks glowed with it. “I…I don’t…” She cleared her throat. “I don’t remember that at all.”
“I am but an insignificant slave among many, Mistress,” L’rn murmured. “It is not surprising that you should forget me.”
“Well, I don’t want you to feel like you don’t count,” Mistress Hellenix said earnestly. “And you look like you’re in, uh, pain.” Her eyes flickered to the slave’s throbbing erection and away again. “You have my permission to, uh, relieve yourself,” she said.
“Oh, thank you, Mistress!” L’rn grasped his shaft in a loose fist but Mistress Hellenix put out a hand to stop him.
“Um, wait until I leave, please,” she said politely.
L’rn frowned. “Then…you do not wish to show me your body as I stroke myself?”
“Show you my…” Mistress Hellenix coughed, her voice coming out somewhat choked. “No,” she said at last. “No, I’m sorry but…you’ll have to manage on your own.”
Then she fled the room as though she wished to get away before L’rn started pleasuring himself again.
Malik shook his head as he followed her. Previously allowing a slave to bring himself to completion while she let him admire her body had been on his Mistress’s short list of favorite things to do. Especially since she often let a slave get right to the edge and then forced him to stop before coming.
Gods, how often had she done that to him? Malik couldn’t even count the times. She liked to keep her slaves sexually hungry for her, even though they hated her. It was a bizarre and unhealthy relationship—one he couldn’t wait to be away from. But he had to use her to get access to Uriel Two before he could leave. Which was never going to happen in her current, timid state.
It was like she had become a whole different person. Malik wondered again if she had somehow been replaced by an imposter. But how was that possible?
He had to find out what was going on.
A thought suddenly occurred to him as they neared the bathing suite. He wanted to see how far he could push his new Mistress—wanted to test her boundaries. He needed to know what he was working with, now that the rules of their private, sadistic little game had apparently changed. And he needed to know if he was still dealing with the real Mistress Hellenix or not.
* * * * *
“Time for your pre-dinner massage, Mistress,” Malik said as they came up to the bathing suite again.
“What? No—I told you, I don’t, uh, want a massage right now,” Nikki protested nervously.
The big Kindred frowned at her.
“Mistress, I am beginning to wonder about you. First you refuse to let the slaves to make obeisance, then you allow Ugger to get away on a gelding offense with no more than a gentle reprimand, and now you are refusing your pre-dinner massage which you always have! It’s almost like you have become a different person since your rejuvenation treatment this afternoon.”
Nikki felt as though an icy hand was squeezing her throat. He’s on to you, whispered a little voice in her head. He knows! Quick—do something to convince him that you’re the real Mistress Hellenix.
“Oh, you don’t have to worry about me,” she said, trying to sound calm and failing miserably, she was afraid. “And you’re right—I do want my regular massage. I just…” She cleared her throat. “I don’t really want, uh, strangers—strange slaves, I mean—putting their hands on me. I’m just…not in the mood for it now.” She nodded at the bathing attendants—all muscular males dressed in white trousers and nothing else—with huge erections sticking out of their pants.
“You need have no fear of that,” Malik said calmly. “I am the one who always administers your massage, after all. You always prefer me to do it.”
“Oh, of course I do.”
Nikki couldn’t help thinking she was really making a mess of this. She hoped that Mistress Hellenix was doing a better job passing herself off as Nikki than Nikki was doing at passing herself off as the alien dominatrix. As though in answer to her question, she had a brief mental image—almost a flash—of Mistress Hellenix glaring coolly at Missy Cannon and then turning to charm Mr. Ray at Rosy Ray’s Realty with a cruel smile. Then the flash was gone and she was on her own again in her evil twin’s lair.
“You know,” she said, trying to make an excuse. “That knock on the head I took earlier in the bathtub—I mean the blood tub—really seems to have scrambled my memory.”
“That much is obvious,” Malik said shortly. “Come, Mistress—shall I clear the bathing suite of the rest of the attendants so that we can have privacy for your massage?”
“Oh yes—yes, that sounds like a good idea.” Nikki nodded eagerly. At least she wouldn’t have an audience while he rubbed her down. And since Mistress Hellenix apparently enjoyed letting her slaves jerk off to the sight of her naked body, Nikki was twice as glad he was clearing the room. The thought of lying bare on a massage table while strange men stroked themselves and watched her was creepy beyond words.
With a wave of his hand, Malik dismissed the other slaves who left speedily, emptying the massive bathing suite so that it was just the two of them.
Nikki looked around. To the right was the hot tub and the sauna. To the left was a private alcove with the massage table, padded in black and draped with a crimson sheet.
The space was suffused in soft, golden light from intricate-looking golden wall fixtures set into the corners but the red sheet made Nikki think of the blood bath she’d taken earlier too. Somehow the effect managed to be both inviting and foreboding at the same time.
Much like Malik himself, she couldn’t help thinking.
“Now, Mistress,” he purred, turning towards her with a strange light in his silver eyes which made Nikki feel rather nervous. “May I undress you as I always do, and get you ready for your massage?”
“Um… I guess so.” It seemed like there was no getting out of being topless around the big Kindred, Nikki thought nervously. It was a little better now that there weren’t a bunch of strange slaves standing around watching, but she couldn’t help wondering exactly how far Mistress Hellenix usually went with her primary bodyslave. She seemed to remember her doppelganger declaring that she would not allow any male to penetrate her but did she and Malik have some kind of special arrangement?
Before she could wonder anything else, Malik was slipping the revealing red dress from her shoulders and kneeling before her to remove her panties.
“Oh, do…do I have to be completely naked?” Nikki asked breathlessly. She always kept her underwear on
during her yearly massage back home.
“Naturally, Mistress. How else can I reach your more delicate areas otherwise?” Malik murmured, looking up at her. Although he didn’t have to look too far—he was so tall that even kneeling they were almost eye-to-eye.
“I, uh…okay.” Nikki knew she wasn’t projecting the confidence her evil twin no doubt had in spades, but she couldn’t help it. She and Gary had started dating in high school and had married in college. He had taken her virginity on prom night in senior year and in all their time together, she had never been with another man—or let another man see her naked.
Well, I’m not going to be with another man now, either, she told herself firmly. Just because she was going to let the huge Kindred undress her and rub his big hands all over her body, didn’t mean she was going to do anything else. And anyway, even if she did, she was practically divorced at this point—so it wouldn’t really be cheating. Not that anyone would blame her for cheating considering what Gary had been doing…
“So beautiful, my Mistress,” Malik murmured, breaking into her endlessly circling thoughts as he pulled down her panties. “How I love your lush, full curves. You are what my people call an ‘Elite’—a female whom the Goddess has blessed with extra bounty. Have I ever told you that before?”
“Um…if you have, I don’t remember,” Nikki said carefully. At least the weird rejuvenation treatment she’d gone through had somehow erased the stretchmarks on her tummy from her two pregnancies, she reflected. How in the world had the strange combinations of fluids managed that? Maybe she didn’t really want to know…
“Mistress, if you don’t mind me saying, it seems that your mind is far away,” Malik murmured, frowning a little. “Are you having trouble staying in the moment with me?”
Twisted: Brides of the Kindred 23 Page 9