The Toy

by Claire Thompson

  Frank sat down near Gina, holding a glass while she sipped with a straw, gratefully drinking the cool water he offered. He stared into her pretty face, pale with exhaustion from her ordeal. He had to confide in someone, and there was no one else.

  "Listen, Gina." He paused a moment, gathering his thoughts, making up his mind. "Things are getting too weird here. It's never been like this before. I mean, we've had our differences, but no one's ever gotten between us before. They were toys. Plain and simple. We'd use them a while and then get rid of them. Set them free. Sometimes they wanted to stay, but we'd make them go. We've been together for years now, Gina. And it always worked.

  "But not anymore. Something's gone wrong with Gordon. I don't know how else to describe it. He barely talks to me now. And if I'm completely honest, something's different with me too. It isn't a game anymore. Maybe that's what it is. It isn't a game. You aren't a toy." He looked at her, but Gina had turned her head away. He was sure she was listening though. He was sure she was listening hard.

  "I know that sounds crazy. Of course none of them were toys. But to us that's what they were. Playthings to be used and discarded. But Gina, you–" He stopped, afraid to say what was in his heart. Instead, he said, "Nothing has ever come between us before, me and Gordon. But now it's as if he doesn't want me anymore. And I, well, I don't know that I want him. There! I've said it." Frank looked around, almost as if he expected Gordon to come charging into the room, to challenge him to a duel or something equally ridiculous. But Gordon didn't come.

  Frank took one of Gina's limp hands in his. "I've never felt afraid for a toy before, but I'm afraid for you. Gordon's been hurt, and he's going to hurt back. That's always been his M.O. I think he knows the best way to hurt me is by hurting you." Gina looked at him now, and he flushed, turning away.

  "What I'm trying to say, Gina, is I think I need to get you out of here. Gordon's planning a change soon; it's just a matter of time. I've tried to talk about us, his and my relationship and what's happening, but he won't talk about that either. He just gets angry and leaves. I don't know what to do. You know Gordon can be a little crazy sometimes." He smiled ruefully. Who knew better than Gina how crazy Gordon could be? What Gordon might do next was a real danger, and they both knew it.

  "Get me out?" she dared to ask. Frank smiled, relieved to hear her speak. Her face wasn't quite so pale now, and she breathing normally. He touched one of the gold loops that pierced Gina's nipple and she flinched slightly but didn't pull away.

  "Yes. I'm going to help you escape before he dumps you somewhere, bound and gagged and naked. I'm not going to let that happen this time. But then I'm going too. The game is over. I've got savings. Gordon's been supporting me for years, and I have extensive investments in my name only. I'm going to make a fresh start. I'm going to leave the country. Now, I'm trusting you with this. Gordon doesn't actually own me, of course, but I think he will try to stop me, if he suspects. It isn't even that he wants me to stay anymore, but his pride won't allow him to just let me go.

  "I have to get you out first. God knows what he'd do to you if I left you here." Gina shivered and clutched herself. Frank took her gently in his arms. "I'm going to set you free, Gina. You can go home."

  ***

  Gina sat up in her room, humming softly, tunelessly, thinking about what Frank had told her. She hadn't been able to sleep, or concentrate on anything since he left. He was going to set her free! She would see her mom and dad! She would see Dwayne. She tried to think about Dwayne, to imagine his face. She realized with a bit of a shock of horror that she couldn't remember his face. Not in detail. She knew what he looked like, but she couldn't imagine the face.

  How could she go home to them now? How could she possibly tell them what she had been through? How would they understand what had happened inside of her? Not only was her body changed – the obvious changes from dumpy to slender, with nipples pierced and bejeweled, and the less obvious changes of sexual maturity and the loss of her virginity – but also her mind and heart. She knew Dwayne would reject her out of hand for having lost her virginity, even if it was rape. He might pretend otherwise, but she knew him too well.

  But even if he took her back with open arms, even if he 'forgave' her for the sin of being kidnapped and sexually tortured, it was her mind that had been changed even more than her body. She would never be the same innocent girl who questioned nothing and accepted whatever her father decreed for her as 'God's will.' She questioned everything now. Where she used to accept everything at face value, now she was deeply introspective. She had basically lived a life of contemplation and meditation, albeit enforced, for the past several months she had been held captive.

  While her mind had stilled, deepened, her body had been awakened. She could admit now, without shame, that she loved being fucked, she loved taking a cock deep into her throat, she loved the feel of a wet mouth against her pussy. She even – dare she admit it –needed the whippings now. They were part and parcel of her sexual experience. They defined and heightened the pure pleasure of what Gordon disdainfully referred to as 'vanilla sex.' She could no more separate the experiences of pleasure and pain than she could separate her mind and body. It was all one to her now.

  Could she possibly share any of this with Dwayne? With her parents? Would they have the slightest glimmer of understanding? Of course they wouldn't, nor could she blame them. This bizarre experience was totally outside of their ken. And yet, if she didn't return to them, where would she go? What would she do? She had no money; she had no friends to speak of. She had nothing. Nothing but Frank, who said he was leaving her, leaving the country.

  She realized with a heart wrenching and sudden certainty that she didn't want to leave Frank! How could that be? She was being given the chance to escape, and she didn't want to go, not without him. But he hadn't made that offer. He didn't want her. He wanted to wipe his slate clean and start afresh somewhere far away. Far from Gordon, and far from her, the one who caused the rift between slave and master.

  Chapter 7 – The Beginning

  Frank bided his time until Gordon's upcoming business trip at the end of the week. It would last three days, and that would give Frank time to do what had to be done. While doing the grocery shopping earlier in the week, Frank had been to his bank, where he had closed his account and withdrawn several thousand dollars.

  At home, he began to pack the things Gordon wouldn't notice were missing, like his own financial statements and records, and some of his off-season clothing. They both kept a packed bag ready at all times, since one never knew when they would have to escape. They were, after all, criminals, kidnappers, always living on the edge. The place and everything in it were rented. They went from location to location, and Gordon always had work, since he was a consultant to investors who liked how he tripled and quadrupled their money with his skill and attention to the market. He didn't need a set location to do that in; just his laptop and his brains.

  The day Gordon said goodbye, barely glancing at Frank, he wasted no time. All he planned to take was his clothing and a few books and CDs. He would start new wherever he ended up. His first ticket would be to Winnipeg, Canada, where he had family. He would decide from there what to do.

  But Frank's heart was heavy. While he felt no misgivings at leaving Gordon, who had been his partner, if you could call him that, for the last seven years, he felt deeply saddened at the thought that he wouldn't see his Gina anymore. No, not his. She had never been his, never been there out of her own free will. It was just a game they played. You could never truly own another, certainly not by force. They could only belong to you if that gift was offered freely. He and Gordon had been thieves for years. Stealing other people, treating them like objects and then dumping them. But Gina was real, and Frank was going to give her the best gift he could by letting her go; setting her free.

  Surely she would run and never look back. She would probably call the police in, or certainly her parents would. Who could blame th
em? He knew Gordon would leave as soon as he realized what had happened. He probably already had another location in mind; he was always a step ahead, which was one reason they had never been caught.

  When Gina awoke that morning, she saw something by the door. Clothing! It wasn't the clothing she had had when they kidnapped her. The old shapeless dress and practical shoes were long gone. Instead, there was a pair of soft denim jeans and pink sweatshirt. There was also a large leather bomber jacket, lined with fleece. And next to these items was a pair of silky underwear that was nothing like the waist high cotton briefs she used to wear, a pair of socks and some white sneakers.

  Gina fingered the garments for a few moments, wondering if she dared to put them on. This must be the moment! Frank was going to release her. She felt her heart start to thump with excitement. It was really going to happen! Quickly she pulled on the panties, the pants, which fit perfectly, and the oversized sweatshirt. The fabric tickled her sensitive nipples, still bearing their gold hoops. It felt so strange to be wearing clothes after all this time! She would have to get used to it again. She put on the socks and pulled on the new sneakers, just her size. The shoes were perhaps the hardest thing to get used to; they felt like blocks of cement on her feet. She held the jacket in her lap and sat down to wait.

  Nothing happened. An hour passed. Two hours passed, and no Frank! What was happening? Had Gordon come home unexpectedly? Would he burst in at any second and beat her within an inch of her life for wearing clothes? When was Frank coming! What would she do?

  She stood and paced, her brow furrowed with worry, her hands clenched with nervous energy. If only he'd come open the door! The door. She approached it slowly, as if it might reach out and grab her. Slowly, slowly, she extended her hand, and touched the shiny knob. It turned. She pulled and the door opened. She forgot to breathe as she looked out into the hallway that had defined her universe these past months.

  She listened for a sound, some evidence that there were other people in the house. Silence. "Frank," she called, but it came out as a whisper. She stepped out a little into the hall, alone for the first time outside of her room since her captivity had begun.

  "Frank," she dared, a little louder. No answer. She didn't call for Gordon. If he was there without Frank, her life was as good as over anyway. Carefully she tiptoed out of the room and ventured toward the living room. No one. Slowly she walked toward their bedroom. The door was ajar. The bed was made and everything looked in order as far as she could see.

  "Hello?" she called, still terrified of being discovered out of her cage and fully dressed. Several minutes later she had combed the small house and there didn't seem to be a soul there except for her.

  "Oh God, what do I do?" She remembered Gordon's warning that they were in the middle of nowhere. Where was Frank? He had said he was going to take her away, set her free, not leave her here! She looked out the kitchen window on an impulse and that's when she saw the taxi.

  Its engine was running and there was a driver inside. Turning the knob of the kitchen door, hands shaking, she ventured out into the cold winter air, pulling her jacket close around her.

  The driver saw her and opened his door, startling her. "Hello, miss," he said, smiling pleasantly. "The gentleman said you'd be out by and by. I didn't mind waiting, seein' how he's paid me so well. Where do you want to go, ma'am?"

  Gina stared at him. The old gentleman didn't look like a madman, but rather like someone's grandfather. This was the 'getaway.' This was how Frank was setting her free. He had deserted her. Numbly she climbed into the car. The driver climbed back into his seat and eased the cab out of the driveway. It was surreal. She was free!

  "Where to, young lady?"

  Somehow Gina found her voice. She was dazed and could barely think. She said, "Do you know where Hampton Hills is?"

  "Oh sure. Nice area. You want to go there?" Numbly she nodded and stared out the window. She slipped her cold hands into the deep pockets of the lovely jacket Frank had left for her. There was something there. An envelope. She pulled it out and opened it with trembling fingers.

  Inside she found a one-way plane ticket to Winnipeg, Canada. There was a phone number in thick magic marker on the envelope, and several hundred dollars, in twenties, tucked between the onion thin pages of the ticket itself.

  "Excuse me, sir? I've changed my mind. Take me to the airport."

  Finis