Sold (Keeping her in the Dark)

by Sansom, Leslie

  they were both in agreement that my idea was a good one. Rosa

  called the family, and I made Gerald a list of groceries. I wanted to go

  to the store myself, but thought I shouldn’t push my luck with having

  my own driver.

  When Liam came home, we were all outside on the patio. I

  met him at the back door with a beer and kiss.

  “How was your day, dear?” I joked. He looked around. Gerald was manning the grill, Rosa was setting out a few side

  dishes and paper items, Lina and Raymond were sitting on the

  wicker couch holding baby Josefina, Sofia and Nathan were out

  walking just past the trees and Carlo and Lorenzo were both sitting in

  chairs drinking a beer. He nodded and said hello to everyone. I could

  tell he was shocked and it might not be a good thing. I took his hand

  and asked him to come inside with me while I finished up the salad.

  “I wanted to do something nice for you. It’s just a cook out.

  Are you angry?” I started chopping the tomatoes. Rosa and Gerald

  had been so nice to me. They reminded me of the parents I never

  had but always wanted. Liam told me he lost his parents at a young

  age, so Rosa and Gerald were the closest thing to a family that he

  had in his life. I thought maybe the reason he hired an entire family

  to work for him was because he longed for a family of his own.

  “No, not at all. How did your appointment go?” he sounded

  impatient. “I thought you would call me when it was over.” He

  crossed his arms over his chest. “It went fine. I’m very healthy. He gave me the shot. I got one

  today, and don’t have to go back for three months.” He moved his

  hands to his hips.

  “What do you mean, ‘he’?” Oh shit, I knew this was going to

  be an issue. I rolled my eyes and walked to him.

  “Don’t roll your eyes at me, please.” I assumed this was a

  respect issue.

  “Okay, don’t freak out, but you made the appointment with

  Jake Goldrum, not Jane Goldrum. They’re husband and wife and

  work together in the practice. He said I could reschedule with her if I

  wanted,” and before I could finish that sentence he jumped in.

  “Why didn’t you?” he snapped.

  “Are you mad about this?” I shook my head at him.

  “I wanted you to be seen by a woman, for your comfort and

  my,” I jumped this time. “Caveman issues?” I put my hands across my chest. “You’re

  jealous that a doctor was examining me?” I went back to chopping.

  “Trust me there was nothing sexual about it, Liam. I was fine. Thank

  you for being concerned. But when I go back next year, I will make

  sure I make the appointment with her, if that makes you happy.” He

  came up behind me and pulled me to him, resting his chin on my

  shoulder.

  “Yes, that would make me happy. I’m sorry I’m such

  a…..caveman, as you put it.” He kissed my neck. “I really like what

  you have done here. You seem to have made yourself at home quite

  nicely.” He grabbed a grape from the table and started to walk out.

  “And I do like the way you said, ‘next year’, little one.” I rolled my

  eyes. “I know you’re rolling your eyes, Norah!”

  Chapter thirteen

  Will sat in Liam’s office tapping his foot nervously while Liam

  finished the call. Will was given a tip that Jane had been spotted in

  town and asked Liam to follow up on it. He didn’t think he would be

  able to control himself long enough to get any important

  information. Will sat impatiently and listened to Liam ask questions,

  write down information and tap his pen on the desk. He jumped up

  when Liam went to the computer and started typing.

  “Is that where she is?” he asked in a quiet voice. Liam

  gestured for him to shut up and sit down.

  “Well thank you, sir. And please if you see her again, call me

  right away. She is sick and needs her medication.” Liam hung up the

  phone.

  “Well? Where is the bitch?” Will asked. Liam got up and

  rounded his desk to sit beside Will. “The man only told me he had seen her several times in the

  same café. She was talking with another woman, and looked fine,

  according to him. He said, he saw a young man on the corner giving

  out flyers with her picture and a reward?” Liam crossed his legs and

  leaned back in the chair. “Will what are you doing? You can’t put out

  flyers for a person you bought illegally, what are you thinking?”

  “I’m thinking I want her back! You don’t know, Liam, you still

  have Norah. I’ve never had a slave run from me before. I’m sure they

  wanted to, but they never did!” He got up and walked to the

  window. “I don’t know how I fucked this up so badly? How did I miss

  read her? When we start the trust stage I only believe about 20% of

  what they say, and as time goes on the percentage grows. I learn to

  read them better, and can tell when they are trying to save their own

  ass, or have real feelings.” Liam stood up and walked to Will.

  “You have to stop with these stages, Will, it doesn’t work.

  Well first of all, you should stop buying women, that doesn’t work

  either!” Will looked at Liam. “How did you do it? If you didn’t use my stages, then how did

  you get Norah to want to stay with you?” Liam smiled and walked to

  his desk.

  “I don’t know, my friend. It was different with her. Not just

  because I bought her and felt sorry for her either. But being with her

  didn’t feel like being with my other submissive’s. I liked to punish

  them, I wanted to hurt them. From the very beginning it was about

  sex and a lot of it. I never forced them, of course, but the kinkier, the

  better.” He ran his hands through his hair. “But it wasn’t like that

  with Norah. From the moment I saw her, I wanted to make her

  happy. Why else would I spend 1.5 million on a woman I had never

  met? It wasn’t about the money, or the thought of fucking her

  senseless, it was that she was sad, and I wanted to make her happy.”

  He went to his bar and made himself a drink. “I tried to go through

  your stages, and was successful in some areas. But when I wanted

  her to fear me, she didn’t, and when she did, I just wanted to tell her

  I wasn’t going to hurt her.” “I freaked out when Jane ran from you, I did, I really did. I

  locked her back up, I was so scared to lose her.” He turned Will to

  look at him. “Me, scared of a woman leaving me. It was something I

  had never felt before. Usually when my subs left me, I was ready,

  and eager to move on. Even when Natasha said she was leaving me if

  I didn’t give her more, I didn’t care. I realized I had just kept her

  around because I was too lazy to find someone else.” He touched

  Will’s shoulder. “But the thought of Norah leaving me, makes me

  crazy.”

  “Then you should understand why I have people passing out

  flyers for Jane. I’m going crazy, Liam. I want her back. I want to make

  that bitch pay for leaving me.” Liam shook his head.

  “There’s the difference. I love Norah. You just want revenge

  with Jane. If Norah wanted to leave me, and to
ld me she was going, I

  wouldn’t want her to, and I would try to make her stay, but I would

  let her go, if that was what she really wanted.” “Does she know you didn’t know it was an illegal auction?”

  Will asked. Liam shook his head. “Do you think if she found out she

  would be upset?” Liam shrugged his shoulders. He knew this was a

  conversation he would have to have with her. “So if she doesn’t

  know that you intended to purchase a voluntary slave, and she

  herself didn’t volunteer for this life, how would she know that

  leaving you was even an option?” Will took the drink out of Liam’s

  hand and took a sip. Liam looked at the floor. “Think about it, Liam.

  She doesn’t know leaving you, without running is an option for her.

  Maybe she tells you she won’t run because she thinks her life would

  be worse if she runs and is caught and then brought back to you.” He

  crunched a piece of ice. Liam knew that part was true. Norah had

  said that herself. “But if you told her she could leave you if she

  wasn’t happy, and you would let her go, help her pack, even pay for

  her flight back to the states, do you think she would still stay with

  you?” He crunched another piece of ice. “I don’t think your relationship is nearly as honest and loving

  as you pretend it is, big guy. I think you haven’t told Norah, she isn’t

  really your slave because deep down you know she would leave

  you.” He put the glass on the table and started to walk out of Liam’s

  office. “And I don’t want Jane back just for revenge. I did care about

  her.” Liam stood at the window looking out. Was Will right? Would

  Norah leave him if she was given the option? He had told her she

  could go to the wedding alone, wasn’t that giving her a chance to

  leave if she wanted to? But then again, she called him on his game.

  She knew he would never let her go without him. Liam had let Norah

  out of her room, out in public, gave her a driver, and a phone. He

  told her she was free to go anywhere she wanted as long as she was

  home when he got home and answered the phone when he called

  her. But was he still holding her hostage? Was she really free? Did

  she just fear that the consequences of running and being found

  would be worse than living this life with him? Liam turned back to his

  desk and grabbed his phone. “Hello?” her voice was so sweet. Liam leaned back in his

  chair.

  “Where are you?” he asked. He knew he sounded a little

  frantic.

  “I’m in the kitchen, why?” she sounded a little confused.

  “Where did you go today?”

  “Umm, I went to get a manicure, but that’s it. Why? Do you

  need me to do something for you?” she still sounded so sweet, was

  it real or just an act for him? Liam clenched his eyes shut and leaned

  his head back.

  “No. I was just wondering where you had gone. You don’t

  have to stay home all day, you know? I told you could use the car as

  much as you want.”

  “I know. I guess I’m still a little leery about being out for too

  long. I get nervous around people, and reach for you to calm me, and

  you’re not there,” she laughed. “I love you, Norah, you know that right?” Liam hadn’t said he

  loved her since the evening in the tub. He knew he did love her and

  he had done things to show he loved her, but he hadn’t said the

  words again.

  “What’s wrong with you?” she asked. He smiled knowing she

  could see right through him. It was like she had the key to his soul.

  “Nothing. Will came to see me today. Someone saw Jane in

  town and he wanted me to call around about it, that’s all. He was

  going out of his mind, and it just made me think,” he trailed off.

  “Don’t let him get in your head, Liam. We aren’t them,

  remember that! I’m not Jane, I’m not.” She took a deep breath. “Are

  you going to attack me tonight and lock me away again?” she was

  joking but neither laughed. “Well I might attack you, but I’m certainly

  not locking you away, Norah. I never want to do that again. I want

  you to know that,” he paused and took a sip of the melting ice in his

  drink. “You’re with me, and,” he paused again. “And you’re with me,

  too. Now stop worrying so much, finish up your work and come

  home. I want to feel those big arms around me.” Liam wanted to tell her that he didn’t own her, not anymore

  anyway. He wanted to tell her she was free to choose. But deep

  down he thought Will could be right. He was scared that if Norah

  knew she had a choice, she wouldn’t choose him. Why would any

  woman choose to be with a man that had kept her locked up, and

  forced sexual acts on her? He still wasn’t 100% sure she really loved

  him. Maybe his charming ways were just that good. Maybe he had

  made her think she loved him. But given the choice she would see

  she didn’t. He wasn’t ready to find out the answers to any of those

  questions.

  He walked up behind her in the kitchen.

  “Let’s eat out by the pond tonight.” She turned and kissed his

  neck. “You’re being very romantic, what’s gotten into you?” He just

  smiled. “I’m just thankful after everything that has happened before

  you were with me, and even the things I have done to you, that you

  can still be yourself.” He paused playing with her hair that she had

  braided. “I want you to talk to me about anything and feel safe here. I

  know after what you have been through it is hard to trust anyone,

  but you can trust me, Norah.” Liam knew after doing some research

  that some women after being sold into sexual slavery never

  recovered. Others had a long road to recovery. They didn’t trust

  people, didn’t like to be out in public, didn’t like to touched, and

  never spoke. Norah had only been in this life for a short time,

  thankfully, and she seemed to recover pretty quickly. She was still

  very submissive and he liked that, but she also talked to him, and

  move around the house as if it was hers. She was becoming more

  comfortable with leaving and going out on her own, and while he

  worried about where she went, he was happy she felt comfortable

  enough to go outside on her own.

  They ate quietly by the trees. Norah brought a book she was

  reading and started to read from it while Liam stroked her hair. He

  watched her face and tried to read her body language. She looked so

  relaxed, so comfortable with him. He wanted to believe she really

  loved him, that he hadn’t manipulated her feelings. He wanted to believe if she knew the truth about him that

  she would still choose him. There was so much at stake in her

  knowing the truth. He knew it wouldn’t just be about him and her.

  She was from a different country, had a family, and a completely

  different life. She had never been exposed to dom/sub relationships

  and certainly not master/slave situations. She had become a good

  little submissive, but she hadn’t really seen his depraved side, yet.

  He didn’t know if she knew the truth about the things he liked to do

  in the bedroom, if she would stay or run.

  Nor
ah leaned against the tree and continued to read out loud

  while Liam packed up the dishes and left over food. He closed up the

  basket and turned on his knees to look at Norah. He thought this

  could be a good time to tell her the truth about herself and him too.

  Then Norah raised her knees and her shorts parted just a little bit.

  Liam could see her red underwear. The horny man in him took over.

  They hadn’t made love last night, waiting for the shot to be in full

  effect so he wouldn’t have to wear a condom. He laid on his stomach and moved his hand up her leg. She

  sucked in a breath when his fingertips touched her inner thigh.

  “Mr. Hastings, I don’t think you’re listening to my story,” she

  said. He moved his finger over and ran it down the lace fabric

  covering her. “Oh, I’m listening…..green pastures, horses, and kites in

  the air…..I got it.” He knelt between her legs and pulled her shorts

  off. She moved the book from her face, and narrowed her eyes at

  him. “I thought you might be more comfortable this way…..please go

  on,” he smiled. He leaned down and lightly kissed her stomach right

  at her panty line. He ran his hands over her sex, and then moved his

  fingers under the lace. His fingers felt her slick folds. Then he

  inserted his finger in her. She took another deep breath but

  continued to read. He moved his finger in and out, then inserted

  another, but kept up the motion. Norah’s reading started to become

  very breathy and he liked it. “I hope you’re paying attention, sir.

  There might be a quiz later,” her breathing had picked up. He took

  his free hand and moved the lace over. “The guy in the hat is watching the girl with the ring. Then he

  met the other guy with the briefcase on a bridge….I’m with you, go

  on.” He lightly touched her clit with his tongue. When she responded

  by moving her hips up to meet his mouth, he licked harder. His

  fingers moved faster and his tongue went deeper. She dropped the

  book and put her hands on the back of his head. She started to moan

  and pull at his hair. He took his mouth away but placed his thumb in

  the same spot. “Now how will I know how the story ends?” he asked.

  “They made it into a movie, I’ll buy it for you tomorrow,” she panted.

  He moved his mouth up her body and sucked on her nipple through

  her shirt. He opened his eyes and saw three men from the yard crew