Indulgence

by Liz Crowe

  Alley pulled on my arm and shook her head. She started for the door, but Kat grabbed my other arm, and I found myself to be the human rope in a game of tug o’ war.

  “You think you’re special now,” Kat whispered through clenched teeth, “but he’ll throw you away and you’ll be down here with the rest of us. Be careful where you step.”

  She released my arm and I stumbled backward into Alley. Kat spun around and slammed through the door.

  I rubbed my hands over my face and pressed against my temples. Please let me wake up, even if it’s on the floor in Kirk’s room.

  “Just stay away from her,” Alley said. “Rummy?”

  I blinked. “Cards. Right.” That’ll fix everything. I sat down at one of the small tables in the corner near the laundry room, while Alley went off to find a deck of card. At least, I could keep an eye on everyone from here.

  She sat down and began to deal while I picked up my cards one at a time and organized them by suit.

  “Have you ever pissed one of the men off?”

  “Ross. Don’t even ask about that. But it was shortly after that Miles sort of claimed me. Which also pissed off Ross, so he’d use me or give me away just to push Miles’ buttons for a while. His attentions turned to other girls though. I think he gets bored fairly easily.”

  “Not reassuring for the new girl.”

  “Sorry.” She gave me a half smile and sat down the deck, turning one card over and putting it in the discard pile. “Miles and Kirk have managed to change a lot since then. They’re well respected, and between the two of them, have nearly as much power as Ross, simply because of their rapport with business partners. All you have to do is make it through initiation and—”

  “Initiation?”

  “That’s what we started calling it. Milo moves around the girls every few months, so every once in a while we get new girls—they’ve usually already been trained, but Ross likes to do a little extra breaking in before he deems that they’re allowed to stay. Kirk didn’t tell you about any of this?”

  “I shook my head.”

  “Just…” she looked away, “follow orders and you’ll be fine.”

  “Comforting,” I mumbled. “I’m horrible at that.”

  “Kirk and Miles are a lot alike,” she whispered, “at least they realize we’re still people.”

  I chewed on the inside of my cheek, adding “initiation” to my list of worries as Alley took her turn.

  The elevator door opened and a group of men stepped off. One of the guards pointed to a few of the tables in the middle of the room and then a string of men came in carrying boxes. My gaze locked on one of the men, as green eyes turned on me.

  Gabe.

  I panicked and lowered my head, hoping that he hadn’t actually noticed me among other girls. All of the girls started gathering around the boxes and the men, including the main guard struggled to keep them under control. It was like the first rush of Black Friday.

  “It’s a flippin’ free-for-all when they bring new clothes in here,” Alley shook her head and laid down a card. When I didn’t move, she glanced over her shoulder again. “Just stay away from him and you’ll be fine. He’s not going to try anything with everyone around.”

  I drew a card, but I was still paying more attention to keeping track of Gabe than a stupid card game.

  Three girls broke from the crowd and came our way-each had an armful of clothes.

  “Come on, Alley,” one of them said. “I know Miles buys you everything you want, but a game cannot be more interesting than free clothes.”

  Two girls grabbed her arms and ushered her over to the group while the third—a tall redhead, grabbed my hand and tugged me out of my chair.

  The tiny woman was stronger than she looked and I eventually rose to my feet. “I really don’t—”

  “You need it, new girl.” I couldn’t figure out why they’d care. Less competition seemed like a good thing, and I already had piles of clothes that I hadn’t even looked at.

  My eyes scanned the room for Gabe as she dragged me closer to the mob. She pulled me to the front of the group then disappeared. With everyone touching me and pushing past me to get to the clothes, my airway tightened.

  I couldn’t see Gabe anymore, and no one had gotten onto the elevator, so he still had to be in the room.

  My heart pounded and I fought to get away from the girls, backing across the room until I was clear of the stray hands.

  I looked around again and saw Gabe standing next to the elevator, green eyes focused on me. His mouth twisted to the side, and I slowly stepped backward.

  I had no idea where Alley had gone and most of the other men were paying more attention to the girls fighting over clothes, or slipping off their clothes to try on their new acquisitions.

  I felt a door behind me and shoved it open.

  A stairwell.

  Oh, god, I thought, I’m dead one way or another. I couldn’t go back or they’d know, and I knew that almost anything moving forward would get me caught. But I ran anyway. Putting as much distance between me and Gabe as possible

  Flight after flight, my heart beat out a tense chorus as I waited for either a door above or below me to open.

  And then, it happened. As soon as I neared the third-floor landing, the door opened. I pressed myself against the wall and attempted to creep back up without being noticed, but my breath came in loud huffs and I knew I was anything but discrete.

  Footsteps came from above, and I froze. My palms grew slick as I held tight to the railing behind me. A tanned figure rounded the staircase below me.

  Miles.

  He crossed his arms and stared up at me. He didn’t even seem startled to see me, which meant he was probably looking for me.

  He also didn’t seem eager to grab me. I stepped away from him and looked up. A tattooed forearm appeared just above the railing.

  Kirk slowed his pace as he descended the last flight. He knew I was pinned. I looked from one man to the other, then dropped my head, and sank to the floor. Surrender was the only choice that might keep me alive long enough to explain.

  “I’ll meet you in the basement,” Kirk said to Miles.

  Miles nodded, looked us over once again, and disappeared the way he came.

  Kirk lifted me to my feet. His tight jaw moved, but he didn’t say anything. Silence was more terrifying than threats or violence.

  “Please, don’t kill me,” I whispered, on the verge of letting the tears break free. “I—god, I didn’t mean to—I freaked.”

  “You didn’t mean to run. Seems like quite a feat to happen by accident.”

  “I saw Gabe. I panicked.” Please understand, I silently begged.

  Chapter Nine

  Never Go Back

  Kirk took me by the forearm and dragged me down the last two flights of stairs and through the door to the first floor.

  He’d told Miles that he’d be in the basement, so I assumed that meant he’d be doing something with me first.

  Then, I saw the door we were approaching. He shoved the door open and pulled me out on the catwalk.

  Miles and Ross were waiting at the bottom of the stairs and my guts turned to stone. “Please,” I mouthed.

  At the bottom of the stairs, Kirk shoved me forward. “On your knees.”

  I fell to my knees in front of them. Trying to hold back the flood of tears—all the while wondering if they’d do me any good. At least crying would show my remorse.

  “She said she saw Gabe and panicked,” Kirk said.

  “Where’s Alley?” Miles asked.

  Oh no, I shook my head. “They brought in clothes, two girls dragged her off and I lost track of her. Gabe saw me and… I didn’t know the door led to the stairwell.”

  “But you thought once you got there you may as well run for it.”

  Ross shoved his hands in his pockets and turned away. “You really think she’s worth the trouble.”

  Kirk groaned.

  Please. Plea
se, say yes. At least say maybe.

  “She will be worth it.”

  “You’ve yet to show any evidence of that.”

  Ross grabbed my hair and jerked me back—straining my neck to an unnatural angle. “Are you worth it?”

  “No, but I want to be.”

  “Prove it.” He leaned forward putting his face in mine. “Show your Master you can do something productive with your mouth. Keep your hands laced behind your back, and stay on your knees.”

  I shuffled over to Kirk lacing my fingers beyond my back. Staring at the crotch of his pants, I wasn’t sure what I was supposed to do. I glanced up at him, but he didn’t make a move to unbutton or unzip his pants.

  I took a deep breath and went for the button with my teeth. I was glad he wasn’t wearing a belt.

  Finally, I got it to pop open and I managed to get the zipper with my teeth and slide it down. By the time I was done, his bulge was pressing against the thin material of his underwear making it slightly easier to free.

  I took his head in my mouth, flicking my tongue over it then rubbing my tongue against the base. Swallowing, I took him slightly deeper. Then, I moved my mouth up and down the shaft licking and sucking as he grew harder in my mouth.

  I tasted the first drops of pre-cum on the back of my tongue and picked up the pace. Bobbing frantically against him. Lick, suck, swallow.

  A hand grabbed the back of my head, nails digging into my scalp and forcing me to take Kirk’s cock deeper. His hair tickled at my nose and his tip pressed down my throat cutting off my airway. I clenched my hands together behind me and concentrated on keeping them there and not biting down. I glanced up, silently pleading for air, but it wasn’t Kirk holding me there.

  My body jerked, and Ross jerked me back, then pushed me forward again, forcing me to take Kirk’s cock down my throat repeatedly before he got bored and released me. I coughed, wanting to curl up on the floor, but I took his cock again, knowing that if I didn’t put on a good show this time, I wouldn’t get another chance.

  Kirk took the sides of my head, holding me steady as he took control of the thrusts. He pushed deep, but his motions weren’t as violent. Leaving me room to breathe and calm my aching chest.

  His hands dropped away, but I continued.

  Lick. Suck. Swallow.

  Taking him as deep as I could without gagging, I looked up, his hands were fisted at his sides and after looking down at me for a brief second he closed his eyes and put his head back.

  Kirk grunted, I could feel his orgasm begin in the tightening of his muscles. Then suddenly hot cum shot against the back of my mouth. I concentrated on trying to swallow, breathe, and milk him dry.

  I licked up the rest and sat back, keeping my gaze on the ground. I hoped that no one expected me to put it back and zip up his pants with my mouth, but soon that fear was quelled as Kirk stuffed his cock back in his pants and zipped them up.

  “That’s quite a show from someone who nearly refused to strip a few days ago. But she still has to pay for running. Twenty lashes, then throw her in lock-up until you’re sure she’s learned her lesson. I’d love to stay and watch the rest of the show, but I have a plane to catch.” Ross brushed passed us.

  “Stand up,” Kirk said.

  I pushed myself to my feet but kept my head down. Then, he spun me around.

  “Take off your shirt and shorts.”

  My back was toward them, but I felt my skin burn as I stripped then Kirk pushed me over, so that I was at a ninety-degree angle. “Hold the pole.”

  I wrapped my fingers around the iron pole of the stairs. Digging my teeth into my bottom lip, I braced for whatever was going to come.

  “Here,” I heard Miles voice behind me, and then the sound of him removing his belt. For an instant, I thought that would be what Kirk would use on me, but he folded it up then lifted my chin.

  “Open your mouth.”

  When I did, he shoved the thick leather between my teeth. I dug my fingers into the pole as tight as possible.

  As soon as the whip came down on my back I screamed into the belt, struggling to fill my lungs as the next lash connected. After two, I was ready to collapse. I had eighteen more to go.

  I squeezed the pole as hard as I could, fearing that my hands would snap under their own strain as the next three lashes came.

  My muffled screams turned into steady sobs as I felt the tears dripping off of my face and forming little puddles beneath me.

  Six. Seven. Eight.

  My chest shook with each breath, and I fell to my knees. The crack of kneecap against concrete was nothing compared to the fire eating my back.

  “On your feet,” Miles said. He lifted me up and braced me there for a second while I locked my knees.

  The next two strikes came in rapid succession. Halfway there.

  I thought I was going to pass out. Or throw up.

  Kirk gave me a few seconds to catch my breath, but the radiating burn didn’t let up. Snot and saliva clogged my throat and nose, making it hard to breath.

  I wished he’d just get it over with.

  I braced myself again, and five more streaks were added. I heard a hoarse scream with the fifth, and it took a second to realize that it came from my own throat.

  My knees landed against the concrete again and my vision clouded. I cried out again, just knowing that there were five more to come.

  Miles lifted my head, but it was only to shove the belt back in between my teeth. I shook my head, silently pleading where words failed me.

  “You’re almost done,” he whispered, helping me to my feet again.

  Almost done, but I wasn’t really. Five more strokes and Kirk would be done. The pain wasn’t going to end just because the strikes had stopped.

  I dropped my head, my legs quaking beneath me.

  “Silver.”

  I felt like every structure in my body shattered into a thousand pieces at the sound of Kirk’s voice.

  “Stand up.”

  They both lifted me to my feet, but my legs were useless under my weight. Miles held me up, while Kirk’s fingers slid through the hair at the top of my neck. I waited for him to jerk my head back, but he leaned down and whispered in my ear.

  “Don’t break, Sugar. Push it away. Focus on something else.”

  I locked my knees and braced my head on my arm. One, two, I counted my breaths, three, four….

  Crack.

  Just keep standing.

  Crack.

  Air in. Air out.

  Crack.

  The darkness began closing in.

  Crack.

  I could still feel the intolerable burn, but it didn’t seem connected to my consciousness.

  Crack.

  Kirk and Miles each took an arm, pulling me upright. Lava poured down my back. And I shuddered as my hair fell over my shoulder brushing one of the welts, every movement, even the touch of air, adding to the fire.

  Kirk twisted my hair and pulled it in front of my shoulder, then he and Miles guided me back a few steps, so I could sit against the table. I didn’t want to remember the table. There wasn’t any more room in my head for torture, even if it was just a memory.

  The door at the top of the stairs opened, but I kept my eyes on the floor in front of me until I heard a female gasp.

  Alley.

  “Please, Master,” I whispered, looking from him to Miles and back again. My voice was hoarse, and it was painful to talk, but I needed them to understand. “It wasn’t her fault. She didn’t have anything to do with it. Please, don’t punish her too. Please.”

  Miles shot up the stairs taking them two at a time.

  “Please don’t hurt her,” I breathed. My voice was almost gone.

  Kirk wiped the tears from my cheeks but didn’t say anything. It broke my heart to think that Alley might get the same punishment because she’d been assigned to keep an eye on me today. The guard who had walked in with Alley walked down to us, followed by Miles and a tearful Alley. The guard move
d to take my arm, but I jerked away without thinking.

  I didn’t want anyone else touching me. I’d had enough of people touching me. Every subtle sensation rolled through my body superheating the burn on my back.

  “Take Alley to my apartment,” Miles said, handing the guard a key, “let her in then wait outside of the door until I get back.”

  The guard nodded, taking Alley up the stairs while Miles and Kirk took my arms to support me. They pulled me up the stairs and through the side door at one edge of the catwalk. It led through a back hallway to the elevator. They took me up to the tenth floor.

  My only sense of relief came from the fact that Ross had probably already left for his plane. We walked down the hallway, past the two rooms I knew until we reached a large silver door. Miles pressed his thumb to a keypad and the metal door opened. Inside, there were four identical metal doors.

  Using his thumbprint again, Miles opened one of the doors and they led me into the small room. It was empty except for a small cot in the corner, and a small toilet and sink.

  They laid me down on the bed, on my stomach.

  “I’ll bring her some water,” Miles said.

  Kirk nodded and crouched in front of me. As Miles left, Kirk lifted my chin, forcing me to at least look in the direction of his face, even if I couldn’t focus on it. He rubbed his thumb over my lips.

  I waited for the next chastisement. His reminder of why I was in pain. Anything but silence, but as soon as Miles returned and sat the bottle next to me then they both left me, locking the door behind them.

  I was lost in my own mind, running from the pain.

  *****

  As the pain began to recede, it made room for the panic to set in. What if Gabe found out where I was? Would anyone try to stop him here?

  The door clicked and I jumped. My body tensed, preparing for the worst.

  Then, I saw Kirk’s face. He leaned against the wall across from me and let the door shut.

  “What do you want, Silver?”

  “To live. To not hurt this badly. I’m scared,” I breathed, and it was like blowing oxygen into the fire on my back. “I panicked.”