Kristin's Demotion

by Lorenzo Marks

  The morning wore on. He kept checking his cell phone to see if he’d missed her call. Outside, the sky darkened and rain drops smacked against the windows.

  He wondered what she was doing, what she must be thinking. She was so proud, so arrogant, that the thought of giving in to someone she regarded with such disdain, must be unthinkable. He was suddenly gripped by the notion that she may have committed suicide and in panic, he picked up the phone, found her number, and then put it down again. If he called, it would destroy the impression he had created that he was not bothered whatever she decided to do. He wanted her to feel worthless and insignificant, so phoning her was out of the question.

  Midday came and went. He couldn’t eat. He wanted a drink but decided it would be better to stay sharp. He went out to the front porch and watched the rain. No sign of her car or of any police cruisers coming to arrest him.

  He wondered if she was testing him, waiting him out to see if he would really do it. Maybe she was gambling on his sense of loyalty to Brian, knowing that the company could collapse if he blew the whistle.

  He went back into the living room and sat down in front of his laptop. His anticipation began to turn into anxiety. Surely the haughty bitch hadn’t outsmarted him again?

  Henry gazed at the opposite wall where she had been standing in her raincoat, pointing the pepper-spray with a look of horrified disbelief on her face. He had been so close.

  He leaned back, stared up at the ceiling and his phone rang.

  Henry lurched forward, snatched it off the coffee table and looked at the display. It was her! He resisted the urge to answer it straight away. He had to make her wait. What was she going to say?

  Nervously, Henry pressed the receive button.

  “Yes?” he said as calmly as possible.

  He could hear her breathing on the other end.

  “Are you there?” he asked.

  “Okay,” she said in a quiet voice.

  “What was that?”

  “I said, okay. I’ll do it.”

  Henry stood up, his heart pounding. Holy shit, he thought, she said she’s going to do it!

  “You’re agreeing to my proposal?”

  A pause, then, “Yes.”

  “No caveats?”

  “I have no choice.”

  “No, you don’t.”

  She waited silently.

  Henry’s mind was racing. This was unbelievable! Kristin Hartman, the company vice-president! The knockout career girl who everyone fantasized about! He had her, and now he needed to act before the moment passed.

  “We should start by establishing some ground rules,” he said finally, trying to inject an authoritative tone into his voice. “I’m not going to tell you over the phone, so you will come over here.”

  “When?” she asked.

  “Now, of course.”

  “Right now?”

  “Do you have other plans? If so, then I guess our agreement is terminated already.”

  “No, I… it’s just that…”

  “Just what, Kristin? The deal is that you obey my instructions without question. I’ve just told you to come over to my place. Did you understand that?”

  He could only imagine what she must be thinking.

  “Yes.”

  “Good.”

  Then he had a delicious thought.

  “And come dressed exactly the way you were the day you fired me.”

  There was a puzzled silence at the other end.

  “My office clothes?”

  “The pencil skirt, the stockings, the sheer blouse. Remember?”

  “But today’s Saturday.”

  Henry grinned to himself. He could never have dreamed that he would be having this conversation with Kristin Hartman.

  “I don’t care what day it is,” he said. “That is what I want you to do. I expect you here within the hour.”

  He hung up before she could answer and his own voice betrayed his sheer sense of jubilation. Then he ran upstairs, took another shower and shaved. He dressed in a crisp white button-down shirt, gray slacks and his office shoes. He regarded himself in the mirror, considered putting on a tie but decided against it.

  Downstairs again, he poured himself a neat Scotch and waited. Even though he was still having difficulty accepting that this was really going to happen, his dark side, this other Henry, was already visualizing what he intended to do. What he had in mind was to recreate their meeting in Kristin’s office, but with a decidedly different ending. That crushing humiliation on that final day had been smoldering relentlessly away inside him, and Henry hoped that if he could inflict the same kind of shame upon her, it would be exorcised. There was far more to this than simple revenge of course, and he was afraid to allow his imagination to run away with itself. He still had no clue as to how far she was prepared to go, but he intended to find out.

  At five minutes before four o’clock, exactly as ordered, Kristin’s red Mitsubishi pulled up outside. He watched her crossing his lawn, a pink umbrella above her head, and he tried to convince himself that he wasn’t dreaming.

  She rang the doorbell and Henry decided to let her wait to see what she would do. It was a gamble. She might leave. But after a few apprehensive seconds, she rang it again. How different from the impatient Kristin he had known in the office!

  Henry opened the door and, looking thoroughly miserable, Kristin followed him into the hallway.

  “Hang your coat on the hook and come inside,” Henry said curtly.

  He went into the living room, sat on the sofa and tried to get a grip on himself. This was role play, and it was vital that he maintained a dominating presence. He couldn’t afford to display any weaknesses.

  When she came into the room, he was delighted to observe that she had followed his dress instructions to the letter. She had even put on the black push-up bra, plain to see under the thin fabric of her blouse. He did note that she had buttoned the blouse all the way up, but this feeble attempt at modesty only served to arouse him more. The rest of her outfit, the tight skirt, the stockings and the high heels, were all exactly the same. The only difference was that she had tied her hair back, but he would allow her that oversight.

  She stood awkwardly as he perused her.

  “You can remain standing,” he said.

  He detected a flash of venom in her eyes, but she remained where she was. So far, this was working.

  “As I explained on the phone, there are going to be some rules which you must remember. I’m sure a smart executive like yourself shouldn’t have too much trouble doing that.”

  Again, a brief expression of resentment, but she managed to stay composed.

  “First, there is the question of how we communicate. From this moment on, you will address me as ‘Master’.”

  In spite of her predicament, Kristin let out an involuntary snort of laughter.

  “Excuse me?”

  Her reaction infuriated and embarrassed him. Clearly she hadn’t yet grasped the fact that he was serious about this.

  “Are you hard of hearing?” he said. “Or are you just being dense?”

  Kristin wiped the look of amusement off her face and said, “It’s just that…”

  “The second rule is, you never talk unless I instruct you to do so,” Henry snapped. “Understood?”

  His abrupt tone seemed to take her by surprise.

  “Yes.”

  “Yes, who?”

  He watched her closely. There appeared to be some kind of internal wrestling match going on in her head. Her cheeks reddened, and then she said “Yes, Master.”

  Henry could have whooped with delight. If the guys in the office could only see him now. He continued with his stern demeanor.

  “Excellent. Now we’re making some progress. Third, and most important, you will immediately obey my every instruction, without pause or comment, no matter what. If you fail to do so, you will be punished.”

 
; Kristin opened her mouth to speak, and then closed it again. Henry guessed she wanted to know what the punishment would be.

  He got up off the couch, came around the coffee table and stood in front of her. They made brief eye contact, and then she looked down. She visibly stiffened as he studied her closely. She hadn’t applied as much make-up as before but she still looked absolutely stunning. In such close proximity, it was hard for him to keep his breathing level. What a shame, he thought, that she turned out to be such a snotty cow. Then again, maybe not.

  “Now we’re going to put this to the test,” he said. “I want to see how much of this you have taken to heart and how serious you are about staying out of prison.”

  Hearing the word ‘prison’, she flinched and looked at him.

  Now comes the moment, thought Henry. Now I find out exactly how much of a hold I have. If she’s ever going to back out and make a run for it, now will be the time.

  He braced himself and then said, “Take off your blouse.”

  She must have been prepared for something like this because she didn’t shout or scream. Instead, she blushed beautifully and let out a low, quivering breath.

  “I can’t,” she whispered.

  This was better than Henry could have hoped for. If she had ripped off her blouse and stared at him defiantly, it would have been a disappointment. This coy, almost childlike Kristin, that he had never seen before, was much more thrilling.

  “You can’t or you won’t?” he asked.

  “I can’t,” she repeated.

  “Why can’t you?”

  Again she breathed deep, her full breasts rising and falling.

  “Not here,” she said. “Not in front of you.”

  This was exactly what Henry had wanted to hear. Kristin had reached her crossroads. Even though she knew her life would be destroyed, she simply could not bring herself to expose her body to him. It was time to raise the game to a whole new level.

  He let out an exaggerated sigh.

  “Well in that case, you’d better go home.”

  He saw the relief visibly wash over her.

  “Do you mean it?” she asked.

  Henry shrugged and nodded.

  “Sure. If you can’t do it, you can’t do it.”

  A nervous smile played across her lips.

  “I can go?” she asked.

  “I’m not stopping you.”

  Kristin stayed where she was, a slight look of confusion flickering across her face.

  “Is there anything else you want me to do?”

  “Nope,” Henry said, heading back to the couch.

  Kristin hesitated, watching him open his laptop,

  ‘So… I’ll be going then,” she said.

  Henry didn’t answer, so she turned uncertainly towards the hallway.

  “By the way,” Henry said. “You can expect the FBI’s Computer Hacking and Intellectual Property Unit to be paying you a visit sometime on Monday.”

  He looked up and saw that Kristin had stopped in her tracks. Slowly she turned around and looked at him with wide eyes.

  “What?”

  “Well, the deal’s off, isn’t it?” Henry said matter-of-factly.

  “But I… I came as you asked. I dressed like this for you…”

  Henry looked at her, his face blank.

  “I tried to do what you wanted. Really I did,” Kristin said, her voice rising.

  Still Henry didn’t respond.

  “I can’t do it. I can’t undress for you,” she repeated.

  “Well then, best of luck. You tried, I guess.’

  She looked at him with an expression of utter disbelief.

  “Are you really going to do it?” she asked.

  “I told you I would,” Henry replied. “It was you who broke the agreement, not me.”

  Chapter Six

  Kristin stood in Henry Shepard’s living room, overwhelmed by a mixture of anger, fear and confusion. The rotten bastard had tricked her! She was willing to go along with his sordid little game to a certain degree but surely even he must have known she was never going to remove her clothes for him. What would he expect next? Did he think she was some kind of slut?

  She was tempted to leave right there and then, but the dismissive way in which he had stopped playing with her was extremely disconcerting. It was as if he had suddenly lost all interest. She wanted to reason with him, tell him that she was prepared to do certain things if he wanted, but he just seemed to have switched off.

  If she walked out now, she realized, it was all over for her. The nasty creep really meant it. On Monday, she would be facing the music big time. Of that, she was in little doubt. She thought about how shocked and hurt Brian would be, not to mention the employees huddled in whispering groups as she was led away in cuffs.

  Henry was now tapping away at his laptop, seemingly oblivious to her presence.

  “What are you doing?” she asked.

  “E-mails,” he said. “I’m uploading your files.”

  Even though she had this axe hanging over her, Kristin had somehow believed that she might get a stay of execution, a time-lapse during which she could negotiate. But the clock had stopped ticking. It was happening now!

  “I’ll do it!” she said, the words coming out in a rush.

  Henry looked up at her.

  “Pardon me?”

  “I’ll do as you asked. I’ll…I’ll take it off.”

  She reached up and undid the top button.

  “It’s too late,” Henry said.

  Her hand dropped away.

  “Huh?”

  “My enthusiasm has gone. You came here and told me you’d accepted my proposal with no stipulations, but in reality you’re setting conditions as you go. That wasn’t the deal.”

  “I know. I made a mistake.”

  That drew a humorless grin from Shepard.

  “Kristin Hartman admits to making a mistake? Wow.”

  He turned his attention back to the monitor.

  “Look, let’s start over,” she said hurriedly. “Come over here and I’ll undo my blouse for you. I promise.”

  Shepard looked at her and shook his head slowly.

  “I don’t think so,” he said. “This just isn’t working, is it?”

  He got up and headed out towards the kitchen. In panic, Kristin followed him.

  “What are you going to do?” she asked.

  “Get a beer,” he said, opening the fridge.

  “I mean, about me?”

  Henry popped a can open and brushed back past her.

  “You? You’re going to jail.”

  “But why?”

  “Because,” he sighed, settling back on the couch, “you don’t know how to obey simple instructions. How many times do I have to repeat this?”

  “But I will,” Kristin said, her voice becoming a whine. “I’ll learn. I’ll try.”

  Henry sipped his beer and watched her thoughtfully.

  Finally, he said, “Alright. One last chance, Kristin, and this really is the last one. Every command, and I mean every one, you will obey without hesitation. If you start making provisos, or try to talk me around about anything, it’s over, once and for all, and you’re on your own. Do you understand?”

  “Yes,” Kristin said. Thank God, she thought, I’ve regained my lifeline. Now she could play along with him and buy time until she could figure a way out of this. Clearly though, she would have to be much more careful in future. Shepard was not messing around.

  “Yes, who?” Shepard asked wearily.

  “Yes Master!” Kristin blurted out. Damn! she thought. She needed to stay alert. This was proving to be a lot more difficult than she had anticipated.

  Once again, Shepard came and stood directly in front of her. She couldn’t look directly into his gray eyes so she settled upon the spots of beer foam on his chin.

  “Look at me,” he said.

  Kristin
did as she was told.

  “Now take off your blouse.”

  Her lesson well and truly learned, Kristin quickly unbuttoned herself. She tugged the garment out of her waistband and slipped it over her shoulders.

  “Throw it on the ground,” Shepard said.

  Kristin dropped the blouse and stood before him with her hands clasped in front of her.

  “Put your hands by your sides.”

  She complied and Shepard looked down, his eyes wandering over her flat torso and then resting upon her considerable breasts. She was acutely aware of how her bra was pushing them up.

  “What size are they?” he asked casually.

  What nerve! Kristin thought, feeling herself coloring up again.

  She gathered herself and replied. “Thirty six.”

  Shepard nodded. Although he was trying to act cool, she could sense his arousal.

  “Now the skirt,” he said.

  With a knot of dread forming in her stomach, Kristin unpicked the buttons and allowed her skirt to fall around her ankles. Now all she wore was her black lace underwear, stockings and shoes. She tried to keep her breathing under control but this was all happening very fast.

  “Very good,” Shepard said condescendingly. “Now go for a little walk around the room.”

  Feeling more than a little absurd, Kristin stepped out of the skirt and went towards the kitchen door. She was conscious of his eyes on her as she walked. Ordinarily, she took pride in having men drool over her, but this was an entirely different experience.

  “Over to the window now.”

  She walked back across the room, trying not to sway her hips. The drapes were open which meant that any passer by could freely observe her parading around in her underwear, but to her relief, nobody was watching.

  “Back over here,” said Shepard.

  Kristin returned to the center of the room and stood before him.

  “Put your hands behind your head.”

  Kristin almost told him to go to hell, but caught herself in time and did as she was bade. Shepard noticed the look in her eyes and said, “Don’t worry, in time you’ll get used to it.”