“You are a vessel for pleasure.”
I winced, trying my best to hold the spell of his words at bay. But this Devil, the one with the slippery tongue, had a way into the dark recesses of my thoughts. He was all around me, invading in stereo as I stood blindfolded amongst the others.
Owned. Release…Daughter.
The words flashed neon white inside my head.
I was here. But I couldn’t quite remember where here was.
My name?
I tried to conjure the thought.
What was my name?
“You are hunger and need in the flesh.”
I was fighting the allure of release, kicking against the current that pulled me under. My body trembled. My thoughts clawed, desperate for a hold against the overwhelming urge to just let go.
“Don’t fight it.” The Devil murmured, his voice so smooth it was barely there. “This is your purpose.”
A shiver raced along my spine. I clenched my fists.
“You’ve each been paired with the Daughter next to you. Allow them to touch you. I want you to give into the sensations, feel the warmth of their hands, lips, tongues. Let them wash through you and take you away. Forget your inhibitions. This is your purpose. You exist for this sensation and this sensation alone.”
My breath caught. Touch me? The only people in the room this time were us…the Daughters. I waited for the soft touch of a woman, fighting the overwhelming urge to tear the blindfold free and make a run for it. But I knew what had happened the last time that I’d tried that.
You are nothing but my entertainment.
Those words resounded.
And the events that followed slipped in.
Repeat after me…I won’t tell anyone about what we do.
“I won’t tell anyone about what we do.” The words seemed to spill from my lips of their own free will.
“That’s right, Helene.” The Devil whispered in my ear. “Nor will you have anyone else touch you. You’re mine.” Then loud enough for the rest of the room to hear. “Focus on the sensation of my touch, whether it’s pleasure or pain. Let it move through you.”
I waited…
Waited while my trapped breath burned in my chest.
“Are you ready?” He whispered, his breath warm against my ear. “You didn’t think I’d let anyone else enjoy you, did you?”
His big hand cupped my breast, his fingers pinching my nipple. I flinched under the touch.
“Uh-uh,” He purred in my ear. “You will forget yourself. You exist for my pleasure alone.”
My breaths sped with the lull of those words.
“And everything I’d ever dreamed of doing with you.” He tugged the strap of my bra down. “You want this…you crave this.”
A tiny shake of my head was the only defiance I could manage.
“No?”
“N-no.” I whispered. “I want…I w-want…”
His hand slipped down, cupping my sex. “Look at you so warm and wet at the mere sound of my voice. You were so bold before, now you stutter and trip over your words. Go on, fight against the allure.”
I squeezed my eyes closed under the blindfold and reached up to grasp his arm, those powerful muscles I’d felt before.
“What do you want, Daughter?” He urged, his breath coming faster against my ear as he pushed between my legs. “Do you want to sink to your knees in front of me? I can tell you right now, you have never been more beautiful than when you are staring up at me with your eyes watering and your mouth full of my cock.”
I shook my head.
Still, that voice.
That slithering, spelled serpent’s words invaded, slipping into my head. My hold on his arm eased.
“That’s it.” He murmured. “Give all the way into me.”
He pushed down, those big fingers curling as they rubbed the outside of my pussy.
You are nothing but my entertainment.
Nothing.
Nothing.
Nothing…
I jerked my hand away and reached for the blindfold until my wrist was caught. My muscles strained, pulling against him.
“You’re a strong one, aren’t you?” He roared. “There is always one who fights the programming. That’s enough, everyone! You can remove your blindfolds.”
My hand trembled as I tore the covering free. I scanned the room to find Daughters kissing Daughters. One had her hand buried in another’s hair, her hand moving between her legs. Heat rushed to my cheeks, making me look away.
This wasn’t me.
None of this was.
But the current of this place was far too strong and as I lifted my gaze to the Devil in front of me, I felt my hold slipping. The crook of my arm stung with the mark of a fresh needle. I didn’t know when it had happened, only that it had.
“Walker.” The Devil called and from out of the darkness came the guard. “Take them to their rooms. Make sure they’re fed, but they’re to be isolated until tomorrow.”
“Will do.” He muttered, then took a step toward me.
“No.” The Devil stopped him. “Not this one. She’s with me.”
I jerked my gaze to his, fighting the haze of distortion. His face blurred, then sharpened. Light green eyes shimmered as they fixed on me. There was a scowl before those eyes widened. “That’s all.” He murmured.
Walker turned and motioned in the air.
The guards came again.
Like they always did.
How many times? I was fighting the delirium, kicking against that dark, seedy undercurrent that was wrapped around my ankle like a stone, pulling me all the way under.
Fight.
The word roared inside me.
But I couldn’t quite remember what I was fighting for.
I shook my head, watching as those wide eyes of the Devil grew wider. He jerked his gaze toward the edge of the room, then jerked his gaze back and moved fast, surging forward to grab my arm.
I stumbled forward under the force. Panic surged as I glanced toward the edge of the room where he’d looked a second ago. Something was happening. Something that made my stomach clench with fear.
“You want to ruin this completely?” He hissed, those green eyes growing darker. “Move…I said, move.”
My feet didn’t work like they should. My knees buckled, his vise-like grip around my arm the only thing keeping me upright as I was taken away from the others and shoved across the expansive room. Only, I didn’t quite remember how I got here…or where I was?
“Wait.” I whispered, wrenching my gaze over my shoulder.
The rest of the Daughters were gone, ushered through the doors on the other side of the room.
“I increased your goddamn dosage and still you continue to fight me.” He seethed. “You’re one fucking speech away from ruining everything, you know that?”
He jerked that savage glare my way as we disappeared into the gloom. He shoved heavy black curtains out of the way and slammed his hand against the lock.
Beep.
One shove and we were through. But the moment we were out, I was yanked backwards and spun around.
“You were the one who wanted this, remember?” The Devil stepped forward.
There was nowhere to go but backwards until my heels hit the wall.
“You wanted this. You begged for this,” He snarled.
I shook my head. The fog inside my head was so thick. “No.” I whispered.
You were the one who wanted this.
His grip around my arm eased, leaving the throbbing marks of his fingers behind. “Your mind is shattering and remolding into someone else. We tried to warn you this would happen. But you wouldn’t listen, Helene. You put your sisters above your own sanity.”
Helene?
Was that my name?
I tried to remember.
“My sisters?” I whispered.
The faint sound of voices drew his focus. His jaw clenched before he stepped backwards, dragging me with him. “Come with me. I need to push you harder. I need to make sure you can withstand this.”
My head snapped backwards with the sudden jerk. I staggered forward, dragged along as he turned and took me along a corridor. “Withstand what?” I urged, trying my best to yank my hand from his.
He didn’t answer, just pulled me through one more set of doors toward a door at the end of the corridor. There were no overhead lights down here, just faint white floor lights to illuminate the way.
“Withstand what?” I said louder as he opened the locked door and shoved me through.
I stumbled into the darkness. The slaps of my bare feet were the only sound, until they too were gone. There was nothing but total darkness and that chilling sense of eeriness…just like the blindfold.
The click of the lock sounded far too loud, making me jump before that low, throaty rumble came. “No one can hear you here. But they can see you.”
I spun around, searching for him in the pitch-black dark. “I can’t see…”
“It’s called a sensory deprivation room, designed to limit stimuli from the normal world. Everything in here is…heightened.”
I spun around, searching for him in the dark. “Where are you?”
“Here.” The whisper was in my ear.
I turned, swinging out my hand, and found nothing but air.
“I tried to program you along with the others, but you are determined to fight me every step of the way, aren’t you?”
My pulse was booming. Panic surged with every whisper. “Who are you?” I searched the room. “What is this place?”
“You know where we are, Helene, and you know why you’re here.”
But I didn’t…I didn’t know—
I was grabbed from behind and pulled backwards until I slammed against his warm, hard chest. His hand wrapped around my throat. “I never understood desire until I felt my hands here.” He murmured. “Every session we had, I envisioned it, and now…now, I can’t seem to get it out of my head.” He shifted, his other hand rising with a small remote in his grasp. “Now, you remember what I said. They can see you, but they can’t hear you.”
He pressed a button and a tiny red light came on in front of me.
From the washed-out blood red light, I caught sight of a camera. One that was pointed at me.
“You don’t have to smile.” That soothing voice murmured, his breath warm against my neck. “But you need to play along. After all, this is what you wanted, wasn’t it, Helene? For your sisters. You remember your sisters, don’t you? Ryth and Vivienne. You want to protect them. You want to keep them safe and far away from this place, don’t you? This is why we’re doing this.”
Memories collided.
Faces that should be familiar.
Deep brown eyes that looked like mine, blazing with anger. That rush inside me took flight, racing and running. The boom…boom…boom of my pulse was a panicked thing as the familiar brown eyes were replaced by others. Only these were the sad, washed-out green eyes of a young woman who was pregnant.
A woman I called. “Ryth.”
“Yes.” He murmured, his grip tightening around my throat as we faced the camera. “You wanted this, throwing yourself to the wolves in order to keep them safe.”
My body trembled. I knew this man…I knew his voice. “Kane.”
“Yes, sweetheart. It’s me.”
I closed my eyes. “Doctor Kane Cruz…brother to The Principal, Riven Cruz. My primary target.”
He stiffened, then chuckled, dragging his finger down the slope of my neck. “Yes, I suppose he is. We had to drug you like the others not to arouse suspicion. But we’ve kept you close.” That touch carried down. “Although not as close as I’d like. Are you going to play the game now, Helene? Are you going to be our little sparrow?”
He dropped his hand from my throat and cupped my breast.
“After all…you are dressed in red.” I stared into that camera as he tugged the strap of my bra lower until the lace rubbed my nipple. “Do you see your sisters, Helene?”
They were all I could see. “Yes.”
“Say it, say what you’ll do to protect them.”
“Anything.” I whispered.
“Would you let me fuck you?”
My core clenched, my breath deepened. The image of him and me was inescapable. “Yes.”
He let out a low growl and cupped my breast. My nipples tightened. Desire exploded inside me.
“Would you let my brothers fuck you?”
I closed my eyes as their faces burned bright. Those dark eyes I knew so well. My spine bowed, my body warming with the memory of his savage hunger. Tell me. His voice filled my head. Tell me you’re mine.
“I’m yours.” I whispered, the frantic sound of my breaths filling my ears.
“We could take turns, all night and all day. Fill your pussy until you overflow. Would you let us stretch that tight cunt of yours?”
I moaned with the words.
It wasn’t just what he said, but the way he said it. I parted my lips as he unhooked my bra, letting it fall to the floor.
“Now, hands behind your back, Daughter, and on your knees.”
The back of my hand brushed my thigh as I obeyed instantly. My knees buckled, easing me to the floor.
“Knees apart, Helene.”
I did, pushing them wide as he fisted my hair and tugged it backwards. Deep green eyes stared down at me. “You exist for me.” He murmured.
That voice. Depraved and aching, slipping inside until it filled me. I stared into his eyes as he reached all the way down. His fist in my hair was the only thing holding me upright.
“Now, let’s play nice for the camera. After all…my brothers are watching.”
The thought of that made me tremble. His fingers skimmed the outside of my panties, pressing the lace against my flesh.
“Look how wet you are. I’m going to treat you like a possession.” He rubbed my slit, working my desperation until I moaned, then he grasped the edge of the elastic and with one savage yank, tore it. “A quite valued possession.”
I grasped his arm again, only this time it was in desperation.
Corded muscles flexed under my grasp. His fingers sank in, stroking, thrusting.
“That’s the way.” He urged. “Give them what they want.”
I turned my head, finding that blinking red light.
Heat rushed to my cheeks. I looked away.
“No, don’t look away.” He groaned, his voice husky. “You look perfect like that. Look down. Look at where my fingers sink into your perfect pussy. Christ, I want to fuck you.”
My knees inched open as that need rose inside me. His fingers came away shining.
“That’s the girl. That’s the good fucking girl.”
I moaned and grabbed his arm tighter. That delicious hunger mingled with the allure of his voice. I drove his hand down harder, forcing his fingers all the way inside.
“Look at me, Helene.” He commanded.
I jerked my gaze to his.
“You belong to me.”
There was no battling those words anymore, no fighting against the current. There was only him…and this.
“I belong t-to y-you.” I croaked as my pussy trembled, clenching tight around his fingers. “Oh, God. Oh…God. I belong to you.”
His fingers moved in a frenzy. “Come for me, Helene. That’s it…come.”
I cried out, grasped his hand, and forced it still…
MINE.
OWNED.
RELEASE.
DAUGHTER.
And with a low, husky moan…I slipped into the undercurrent of these men and was swept away.
