"Hello there, sweetie," a cool and malevolent voice reverberated throughout the room.
Why oh why did Kristia had to walk through that door?
What kind of business do these three have?
A surge of anxiety rocked through my body. Out of all four, Kristia, Nivia, Dahlia, and Mia, I always felt that Kristia was the worst. Even though I have had the least amount of interaction with Kristia and Nivia, Kristia proved to be the greater evil, followed by Mia.
Kristia kept reminding me how she could not wait until she had me all alone to herself. I remember when Mia and her spoke in the cafeteria about making a deal. Could this be it? Had the time finally come? I do not suppose somebody will come save me from this. Luck is rarely on my side.
"Long time no see." Her eyes held a fiendish glint, and her smirk confirmed it. "Last I saw you, you almost died on us. I got sad because I was afraid, I might have lost my chance at revenge."
I forcefully swallowed the lump that had formed in my throat at her last word. This is it. There is no more avoiding it. I hope I am ready for whatever she has in store.
I must remind myself to do whatever she wants. Obey. I cannot lash out. I cannot fight back. I just have to take it and go, survive another day.
Survive today, escape tomorrow.
I must give in.
Kristia walked closer to us until she was in between Mia and Cleary.
My body was wracked with adrenaline. I was in fight or flight mode. Both of my thumbs were rubbing hard against the outside part of my index fingers. My hands were at my side, fidgeting with themselves in an attempt to dissipate the anxiety from my body. I was shaking like a leaf but trying to hide it. My trapezius muscle was stiffening.
"Aw, why are you so tense, Keira?" Kristia ridiculed me, but I did not want to provoke her by answering. Instead, I gave her three short and quick shakes of the head while looking at the floor. "You don't have to be scared; we're going to have fun. Well... I know I am."
"A deal's a deal, Kristia. Pay up!" Mia demanded.
"Yeah, yeah. Here, take it," Kristia replied as she took out something from her pocket. I briefly looked up to see a wad of cash.
Everything indeed has a price. How foolish of me to think I would be any different. I chuckled at my elementary thoughts.
"And what seems to be so funny, pet?" Cleary piped up.
I froze, not realizing I had reacted audibly.
"When I ask you a question, you had better answer!" Cleary lambasted.
Before I could even look up and answer her, she had jammed the electrical prod into the side of my stomach and had discharged. This time, she laughed as I fell to my knees uselessly trying to endure the pain that made my muscles spasm.
My body was growing exhausted, pained, and tense. I do not know how many more shocks I can take today, and the sad thing is that it still was not lunchtime.
"Whoa! Mistress Cleary don't tire her out just yet, I want to have my fun and enjoy my time," Kristia interposed, laughing at my crumpled heap.
All three of them stood by while I was fighting the waves of pain dispelling from my side. I hugged the corner in a worthless attempt to distance myself from them. My jagged breathing was soon returning to normal. I did not even wait for them to tell me to get up to rush to my feet.
"I am going to ask one last time, and I had better get an answer. What was so funny, pet?" Cleary demanded.
I inhaled deeply and closed my eyes, suppressing the want to tell Cleary off. "I laughed because I stupidly thought I would never have a price." I answered them truthfully, no point in saying otherwise.
Cleary hummed in satisfaction at my response but was unable to answer back as Kristia had taken a step forward to invade my personal space.
Kristia's right hand rose to cup my left cheek, while her left hand was placed against the wall, next to my face, caging me in. Her body was pressed flush against my own with her right knee in between both of mine, the hand on my cheek forcing me to reluctantly look up at her. I was still shaking but pressed my lips together and gulped.
Her head lowered next to my right ear. "Everybody is worth something. You were just two full days' pay. A little expensive if you ask me, but I am going to make you worth it."
The hand that had been on my cheek slowly trailed down my neck, past my chest, until it found the hem of my shirt. I had turned my head to the left to face the wall. I did not want to look at any of them, nor give them any reason to inflict any more physical harm on me. Kristia took that as a cue to attack my neck, making me gasp audibly at the sudden invasion. I closed my eyes tightly and curled my lips in to stop myself from reacting in any way. My arms were still holding stiff at my side.
As Kristia started to suck and nibble on my neck, the hand that had reached the hem of my shirt had slipped underneath and found its way to my left breast, kneading the soft skin forcefully. Her finger gently teased my nipple until it hardened. Her right thigh was pressing up against my center, but I still was not reacting to her assault.
I was determined to get through this as unscathed as possible.
I tried to imagine myself somewhere far away from here, somewhere that had given me happiness. I found myself thinking of being at the beach with my mother and father, before he passed away. The beach always brought forth happy memories of being with my family, having a picnic, building sandcastles, burying my dad, collecting seashells, and looking for sea glass. It was such a pure memory, one that I would treasure forever.
I was lost in my thoughts, dissociating from whatever it was that Kristia was doing to me, until I felt her fingers touch my clit. I jumped at the sensation and instinctively put both of my hands on her arm to pull her hand away from me.
Everything went from zero to sixty. Kristia straightened to her full height, Cleary got her prod ready, and Mia took an offensive stance. I looked up at all three of them, who were ready to strike.
"What do you think you're doing?" Kristia growled in a serious tone.
"I-I'm sorry. I just reacted, but please don't do this. I'm begging you." My voice almost broke at the last sentence. Not this again.
"I told you I was going to have fun with you. I already paid, and I will get my money's worth. Besides, this isn't even the worst part."
"Can't you just go have sex with a willing partner?" I tried to reason with her.
"And miss out on making you miserable for having me demoted? I don't think so. Now, take your hands away from my arm before I tie them behind your back," her stern tone and unwavering stare bore into my eyes.
I did not answer her verbally, instead, I complied with her demands. I kept my arms rigid by my side, bunching up the fabric of my shorts. I tried closing my eyes and turning my head away from her, but this time Kristia took the hand that was on the wall and with it, she grabbed the angle of my jawbone to lift my head upwards. She was not careful about tilting my head up as it hit the wall behind.
"Look at me," she growled lowly.
I hesitated for a second until I felt her grip tighten down on my trachea, forcing me to look up at her. Her lustful, evil eyes made me squirm in discomfort.
She smirked as her hand snaked its way under the waistband of my shorts and reached my clit again. She drew circles on it and around it, then teased my entrance. One finger would occasionally slide down my slit and would come back to play with my folds. She did this for a while.
"Really, nothing yet? You're as dry as a desert. That's no fun," she protested irately. "Fine, if you're not getting wet for me, then you will just have to please me."
My breath hitched. She let go of my neck and took a step back, looking at me intently.
"On your knees," Kristia spoke commandingly as she placed her hands on her hips.
My knees shook, battling against giving in to her order.
"Now!"
I flinched at her yell, then reticently got on my knees.
Kristia's hands moved from her hips to her belt.
My heart started to beat so hard and fast that I am sure that if I looked down at my chest, I could have seen my shirt moving.
Kristia undid her belt.
My breath became fast and shallow.
Kristia's hands moved to undo the Velcro on her pant's crotch.
I was visibly shaking. My breathing was becoming more erratic by the second. My eyes were darting frantically, looking for an exit.
Kristia unstuck the opposing Velcro strips from each other.
I felt like I could not breathe, like I was choking. My hands were clammy and sweaty.
As Kristia started to lower her pants, I felt an intense bout of nausea rise. One arm quickly gripped my stomach while the other shot to my mouth, sealing it shut. I gagged and felt the metallic backwash as the mid-digested contents from breakfast rose to the back of my throat.
Thankfully, I managed to keep it down.
She must have seen my sick face because she stopped abruptly.
"Damn it, I can't have her throwing up on me like that!" Kristia protested angrily as she was redoing everything she just undid, ready to jump back at a moment's notice.
They had all taken a step back in case I did vomit.
"I guess I'll have to take her another time," Kristia sounded deeply annoyed as she sighed heavily. "On your feet!"
I was not listening to her or anybody for that matter. I was too out of it, trying to calm my stomach and get a breath in. My chest was heaving and expanding, but I did not feel any air reach my lungs.
"Jeez, did you get hit on the head again? Calm down! I said, on your feet!" Kristia was bending down at the waist, this time with both her hands on her hips.
"Not again! She's not going to calm down just because you tell her to, Kristia." Mia let out a frustrated groan.
"What do you mean?" Kristia inquired.
"Look at her, isn't it obvious? She's having another panic attack," Mia responded.
"Another? You mean she's had them before?" Kristia asked.
"Yeah, before she was branded. Dahlia managed to calm her down," Mia answered.
Kristia kneeled in front of me.
I was looking at the ground, breathing erratically. Beads of sweat were dripping down the side of my face. I could not think straight. My mind was going ten thousand miles an hour. I could not focus on a single thought, but the sense of impending doom. My hands would not stop shaking. The corners of my vision were beginning to darken.
Kristia's hands were grasping my shoulders. She was shaking me. "Keira, breathe! Focus!"
I was gasping loudly. The muscles on my neck were beginning to ache.
"Keira! Look at me!" Kristia shook me forcefully.
"Just let her pass out," Cleary sneered. "She's worthless."
Kristia ignored Cleary's comment, still devoting her attention to me. Kristia slapped me, hard. "Keira! Snap out of it! Listen to me! Breathe!"
Kristia's words were not getting through to me. The edges of my vision were so dark by now, that I could only see out of a small dot in the center.
In one final desperate attempt, Kristia crashed her lips onto mine.
Mia and Cleary let out a gasp but did not comment.
Kristia's hands were now on either side of my cheeks and neck. Her thumbs were wiping away at my tears as she deepened the kiss. Her tongue reached out for mine.
I flinched back at the kiss, completely taken by surprise at her actions, but not entirely understanding what had just happened.
Kristia still had not broken away from me. Her tongue was flicking mine and exploring my mouth.
Since I was breathing through my mouth during my panic, I could see how her cheeks would puff out as I exhaled, and then pucker in as I inhaled.
I was slowly comprehending what was happening to me and around me. My hands weakly found her elbows and tried to push her off me, but that made her press her body more against mine.
I was caught between Kristia and the wall with no possibility of escape.
Surprisingly enough, my breathing was beginning to slow down and the darkness in my vision was dissipating. I was so exhausted and feeling dizzy at this point because of my hyperventilating, but Kristia was not budging. She was not letting me go. My mouth was held captive by hers.
My breathing was finally settling back into its normal rhythm. My heart rate was decelerating. My shaking was slowing. My eyelids were starting to feel heavy and almost impossible to maintain lifted.
I tried once again to push Kristia off me. This time she grabbed both my wrists and pinned them to the wall on either side of my head as she kept her lips pressed on mine.
If it weren't for Kristia holding me up, I would surely be slumped on the ground. My body was on the verge of giving up in utter exhaustion.
When my breathing finally normalized and my beating heart had reached a normal pace, Kristia finally broke the kiss, but did not let go of my wrists.
My head drooped in fatigue, slightly bobbing up and down, trying to keep my posture erect.
Kristia released my wrists, but her hands quickly gripped just under my rib cage, effortlessly lifting me up to my feet. Since my balance was wavering, she switched her hands to my upper arms and kept me steady.
"I don't want you fighting me anymore, especially when I am trying to help you. Is that clear?" Kristia spoke sternly.
Fighting her? When she is trying to help me? She caused this! She was just trying to rectify her actions!
I felt two slaps on my left cheek. They were not meant to inflict pain but get my attention.
"I said, is that clear?" Kristia reiterated.
"Yes, ma'am," I responded weakly and barely audible.
"We are going to go somewhere else. At least you'll be going in a wheelchair, but I don't want to hear a single peep from you. Got it?" Kristia warned.
"Yes, ma'am," an even weaker response escaped my lips.
"Before we go, let me dress her burns. If anything happens to them, or they get infected, Raven will not be happy about it." Cleary spoke up. "Mia, fetch the wheelchair in the meantime."
"Right away, Mistress Cleary!" Mia answered.
Kristia was still holding on to my arms. She walked backwards to sit on the bed, I was following in tow. She sat on the bed, grabbing my arms while I remained standing, placed in between both of her thighs, half leaning on her. Kristia was strong, since she did not have a problem supporting me while Cleary gathered the supplies.
Cleary lifted my shirt and told Kristia to hold on to it so that Cleary could work on my back. At this point, I was already slumped over Kristia's right shoulder. Her right hand was holding on to my arm to keep me from falling sideways, while her left arm was lifting the back of my shirt.
Cold antibiotic was smeared on my burns before fresh bandages were applied.
Mia entered the room with the wheelchair.
Once Cleary had finished working on me, Kristia let go of my shirt and stood. My face was now resting on her breast.
Mia wheeled the chair behind me, and Kristia lowered me down into it. Once seated, Kristia grabbed my left arm, while Mia grabbed my right and both secured my wrists to the armrests. They both worked to strap me to the chair. They secured a belt across my chest, my hip, and my ankles. I did not even find the strength to squirm. I was feeling numb and defeated.
"Open your mouth, Keira," Kristia ordered.
I did, just barely. She shoved a gag in and tied it behind the back of my head. I did not question it, fight it, or reacted to it. Soon, a hood was slipped over my head and my vision was blinded. Someone, I am going to guess it was Kristia, lifted my head and tied a belt on my forehead to keep my head from sagging.
"All right, time to go. Remember, Keira, do not make a single sound or your punishment will be even worse." Kristia reminded me.
I cannot believe it was not over. My body was so done with today. I just want to sleep and never wake up.