Descent Into Darkness (21 page)

Part 4

Ebb & Flow

CHAPTER X
LI – Bloody Aftermath

Mela stood while she was prepared for the move to the house of Mistress Jade. They had never met but she had heard a little of her from the bolder servants who chatted to her in the quieter corridors. She was much missed, and Raven was not well liked with her unpredictable whims and volatile temper.

It was Amber that still confused her. What had she meant? What idea? It had been enough though to keep Mela still and perhaps that was all it was intended to do as she was carried away.

It was Amber who now prepared her - attaching a strap here, wrenching a buckle there, taking away the possibility of motion bit by bit until Mela’s only free movement was that of her eyes.

“Open wide.” Mela immediately and naturally obeyed only to find the ball of a gag pushed behind her teeth. It was smaller than she was used to and her brow furrowed with muted questions at that simple act of consideration. Her questions would remain unasked.

== ~ ==

The images on the screen were shocking, even to someone who had seen many strange sights during her time in the manor. Mela had already been temporarily secured, held immobile and firmly in place though not yet fully ready to be moved. It had taken longer than Amber had anticipated as she’d tried to find a delicate balance between restraint and comfort to ease Mela’s final unhappy passage out of the house.

And so the dilemma presented itself to Amber. She was always thorough, always keen to finish one job before drawing a line and, content with the satisfaction of a job well done, moving on to the next. The late night security checks though were important, particularly with so many people having visited the manor that night and so, satisfied that Mela was going nowhere, Amber had headed to the surveillance room and seen the horrifying images.

The camera was positioned high in a corner of the room and it distorted the people in it a little but it was enough to understand the severity of events. On the floor lay Immelmann, though not the Michael Immelmann Amber knew. Trails of blood could be seen coming from his nose and mouth, connecting to a puddle already spread on the floor. More concerning though, he wasn’t writhing in pain. Far from it. He was still, almost deathly so and it was only the slight rising of his chest that told Amber he was still alive.

At the far end of the room, two tall figures were busying themselves over a table. Amber immediately recognised them as Raven and Red. Frowning, Amber watched, seeing a flash of something metallic in Raven’s hand. She couldn’t quite work it out – something held their attention, but it wasn’t until Amber peered closer that she realised that something was Katarina.

Amber’s breathing stalled, compelled to look in the same morbid way a train crash would fix the attention. The metal object flashed down and even though there was no sound, the immediate arching of Katarina’s body was a graphic display of what was being inflicted. Amber flinched and looked away as if that would help deny the reality of the image.

Thinking quickly, she immediately thrust aside the idea of rushing to Katarina’s aid. Much as she wanted, now wasn’t the right time, she could do little here. If they’d taken Immelmann down, she stood no chance by herself. There had to be another way.

Amber hooked a hand under an office chair and drew it closer. Sitting, she busied herself on the computer, looking from terminal to monitor and back as she worked with all the urgent efficiency she could. They were moving away now and Amber watched Katarina slide uncomfortably off the slab-like table. Moving and maybe heading her way. Amber’s inner alarm bell sounded. Her fingers danced a polka over the keyboard, ushering the now captured movie to attach to an email she had prepared.

Her fingers tapped impatiently as the image on the live feed now showed only Immelmann’s stilled body. They would pass close to the surveillance room and she didn’t have much time. “Come on. Come on!” she beseeched, willing the computer to hurry.

Red would probably come to erase all trace of their attack and Amber’s heart pounded as her fingers twitched on the mouse. Nervously she looked behind her. Were they footsteps or the phantom tricks of an anxious mind? She bobbed up and down on the chair then stood, ready to get the hell out, hunching over the screen to shield it from prying eyes.

A glance behind her was in full expectation of the door being hurled open, followed by an attack. “Come onnnnn!” she snarled, threatening the computer to defy her. Yes, there
were
footsteps, definitely footsteps, though only one set. Amber knew they belonged to Red.

Her eyes darted to the screen, then back to the door. “Fuck!” Amber’s adrenalin surged then the message flashed, ‘Upload Complete’. She dived for the mouse and within seconds had clicked send, logged out, closed the window and dumped a small program to run automatically on the desktop. She’d been told it was something that would wipe her tracks on the system – she hoped to God that was true.

Almost there, Amber hurriedly selected another camera so Immelmann was no longer on screen and snatched her memory stick from the USB. If Red walked in, she couldn’t be found looking. Amber shot to her feet and rushed toward the door.

It swung open, causing Amber to gasp before managing to fix a lover’s smile. “All in order, just going to finish up Mela.” She forced a calmness that was pure fake, her heart beating thunderously.

Red hesitated, glancing between Amber and the screen which now showed nothing of the drama Amber had watched. The computer terminal displayed a similar blank and so Red returned the smile, unknowingly and for her own reasons, mirroring Amber’s facade.

And so Amber squeezed past, hands on Red’s hips with a smile of familiarity.  She moved down the passageway to where she would put the next phase into play of a plan that out of necessity was evolving and changing as it went.

== ~ ==

A foot on her butt prompted Katarina to crawl further forward. The pain in her nipples was intensity itself and with every movement her naked breasts swung beneath her, bringing tears to her eyes.

The symbolism of the cage she approached struck home immediately. It was not her usual cage to the left of the bed. This one was to the right, formerly the nocturnal home of Mela and its emptiness clawed deep to scratch Katarina’s soul.

Mela had gone. Strung up like prime meat in a butcher’s shop and salivated over by the hungry dogs that were Immelmann’s guests. Sold at auction. Katarina couldn’t even begin to imagine the fate that Mela had been sold into but she knew that it rested now on the whims of the striking woman in green. She had been bold to take on Raven, and that couldn’t possibly bode well.

“I believe you’re aware of your morning duties already, my pretty whore.” Yes, Katarina knew. Mela was gone and she was taking her place. She would comply and hoped that her Mistress would enjoy the wake-up call. She would endure it to survive.

== ~ ==

It didn’t take long as Red navigated through the hard-drive. She had worked in IT in her previous life and rifled back and forth with the practiced skill of the professional she had once been.

She knew the impact her looks had with her nerdy co-workers. She’d been a red-haired rose amongst bespectacled thorns but lost in her work and fuelled by a driving desire to succeed, relationships had come and quickly gone. Commitment had therefore largely passed her by, causing a naivety that had allowed her to fall head over heels for the wrong man.

That was well behind her now and she had found her true calling. “Funny how things worked out,” Red observed silently, manipulating files to protect both her Mistress and her future.

The surveillance footage showing their attack on Immelmann was cut from the files and moved to an encrypted private folder. Maybe they would use it later to humiliate him but for now it was safe. She had done it and she knew Mistress Raven would be pleased.

== ~ ==

Stilled and silenced, Mela could only stare straight ahead as the high leather collar fastened her neck and held her head high and mockingly proud. The warm breath cascading over her bare shoulder caused a shiver before a voice whispered beside her ear.

“Take this message to your new Mistress please Mela.” The politeness and use of her name compelled attention. Mela dutifully listened and memorised the message.

CHAPTER X
LII – Multimedia

The morning was one of those wet and miserable ones that marked the transition of seasons and Jade woke after the inadequate refreshment of a disturbed sleep. Her adrenalin still seemed to flow hours later, the events of the previous evening tumbling around and around in her head.

“One hundred thousand.” No matter how she said it, the number didn’t get any smaller. Parting with that cheque had signalled a real risk to her future. She had to do it though, she just had to. The anonymous note meant she had no choice. She had felt compelled to act on it and with no more than a deep breath, she had done.

The description of the girl had been good though Jade had been surprised it hadn’t referred to the collared young woman that kept close to that bitch, Raven.

It was the
silent plea in her eyes that lured out Jade’s natural desire to help. It was the submissive in her, that and a maternal need to protect and nurture. Even now it quietly nagged away and Jade’s curiosity would not wane, spooling up her mind to chivvy away any chance of more sleep.

“Adrenalin hangovers are the worst,” Jade mumbled to nobody, throwing down two paracetamol and chugging back a glass of water to try to ease the pounding in her head. She sighed deeply as she leant on a worktop in her kitchen, willing the painkillers to kick in.

Her morning routine could now start. Coffee first. Jade set up the machine, grabbing a banana before crossing to where her laptop was charging and firing it up for her e-mail fix.

There, buried between the daily dose of penis extension offers and requests direct from the Nigerian Minister of Finance, sat an email that called for her attention.

The subject line read, ‘Help please Jade’ and she recognised the sender’s email address. It had been included in the scrawled note that had told her of the desperate need to save the elfin girl. Taking a sip of too hot coffee, Jade drew her chair forward, leaned closer to the screen and clicked.

== ~ ==

Katarina’s dreams were confused, and the nearby ticking of a clock didn’t help. In more normal times, she revelled in the visions that visited her but those of the previous night had been full of turmoil.

Her first, she vaguely recalled, had centred on a representation of Mistress Raven, yet it wasn’t quite her. This version was softer, more considerate and Katarina pictured herself happily serving and gratefully treasured. That was nothing more than fantasy, she reminded herself, as the woman on the bed above shifted position, revelling in dreams of her own.

The second dream was more of a surprise, yet no less alluring. Though the whys and wherefores were unclear, Katarina could sense that in it she held some kind of position of power and looked down from what she realised was her throne. Beside her, propped up on one arm, long legs curled under was a leather clad woman. As the woman looked up, the face was framed by Amber’s perfect blonde hair.

Katarina’s heart raced even in recollection of the dream. She wanted it to be recurring so she centred the image in her mind, reaching out as it slowly dimmed before spinning away as the second alarm sounded.

Jarred back to the present, Katarina blinked to try to clear her head. She knew what she had to do and taking a deep breath, tentatively pushed on the door of the cage which, unlatched when the alarm had sounded, allowed her exit.

Slowly she unfurled cramped muscles and stretched herself out of her night-time confines. With her mind still scrambling to fix the image of Amber, Katarina climbed onto the bed to wake Raven in the way that was expected.

== ~ ==

It was the way of things, Murphy’s Law and all that. Jade glanced at the Wi-Fi box to check that it was still active as her laptop thought long and hard about opening the email. A sip of hot java and she stroked the side of her laptop as if to encourage it to follow her instructions. It seemed to take an eternity.

At snail’s pace, the screen changed as it started to render the message it had finally prized open. She would have to get a new one, but with all the fuss setting it up would take, she never quite got around to it. It seemed an affront to her faithful laptop anyway. It’d served her so well, albeit in its own sweet time.

Empty. No text, just empty. Jade frowned at the screen. Another visit of the coffee cup to her lips and the thought to scroll down emerged in her sleep-dulled head.

There, at the foot of the blank email, was an attachment. She was by no means a computer expert but Jade recognised the file extension as one for video. Clicking on it, she settled back, cradling the precious coffee cup in both hands while waiting for her laptop to download the file and wrestle it open.

== ~ ==

Amber’s sleep had been beyond restless as her mind tussled with the events she had set in motion. The sense of betrayal was overbearing and her conscience fought itself at a standstill. Common decency told her that what she had done was right and the pride in despatching Mela to her new, safer owner reaffirmed this.

It was her sense of loyalty that was killing her though. She had committed to live the life fully, immersing herself deeply in it alongside Red and now, at the first real hurdle, she had spun on her high heels and walked away from that commitment.

What a hurdle it was though, her mind shot back. Abduction, torture, even rape was the bedfellow of that commitment to Raven. She hadn’t known it would be so nasty and had stumbled into it hand in hand with her girlfriend as a giggle, something to do. She couldn’t just sit by and let it all happen, not to anyone and especially not to Katarina.

Katarina. Amber repeated the name to herself; it provided the focus she needed to see this thing through. She had risked everything but in repeating that name Amber knew what she was doing was right. Mela would already be safely at the home of her new mistress and to that thought Amber drifted back into a sounder sleep.

== ~ ==

For the
four minutes twenty three seconds of the video, Jade watched with mouth agape, unable to tear her eyes away from the apparently lifeless body lying at the bottom of the screen. “It’s finally happened,” she whispered out loud. She was barely able to process it but deep down had known it was always coming. Raven had snapped and taken Michael down.

During the third loop of the video, Jade finally managed to force her eyes away from the man she loved. A naked woman lay on the table between Red and Raven, the girl Jade had first thought was the one to rescue.

The time stamp shown at the bottom of the screen placed events immediately after the ball. Jade had seen some commotion but, lost in the moment of her purchase, she had not really paid due attention. She now realised that commotion had been centred on the girl who had been by Raven’s side.

Who would now moderate Raven’s dangerous excesses? In respect to the one she instinctively knew was already dead, Jade resolved to get involved once more. With a sip from the remains of her coffee, she played the video through again, watching with freshly analytical eyes to ensure she missed nothing that could help.

== ~ ==

In her crate, Mela’s mind cavorted wildly as she waited. If the message wasn’t bizarre, then the originator was. What was Amber doing? She had always been the gentler of her handlers but why the tenderness now?

Mela recited the message to make sure it was still remembered. Sure enough, word for word, it was there. Of course it was. How could something like that not lodge firmly in her head?

Light cracked in and edged further across her until the lid was levered free. Gentle hands under Mela’s arms guided her to unfold her legs and as she rose, the surprising warmth of the smile that greeted her was that of the woman in green whom she knew as her new owner.

Mewling into her gag and mouthing around it, Mela tried to form words. She needed to convey the message quickly, wanting to scream it out loud. With an appreciative urgency, fingers worked the strap free. The gag popped out of Mela’s mouth and bounced to rest around her neck, saliva stringing down to it.

“I have a message from Amber, Mistress,” Mela blurted, scurrying through the words as if her very life depended on it.

“Je connais ma petite…..I know,” soothed Jade. Her spoken English was edged with the lilt of a French accent as delicate as the lace from her hometown of Chantilly. Guiding Mela gently by the elbow, the two women sat as equals and started to talk.