20:20 Traction

Brutality 15

When I got to the table, I pulled out my chair; then I collapsed and everything faded to black. I dreamt that I was an Egyptian slave in ancient times. I wore nothing but a white loin-cloth as I knelt before a throne. On the throne sat Antonija in a Pharoah’s robes and head-dress; everything she wore was made of gold. She held a cobra in her right hand, she held Lenore’s severed head in her left. Two hungry lionesses lurked underneath the throne. I saw their eyes shining in the darkness. A hooded figure appeared to my left. It raised the executioner’s axe, the blade ripped through my arm just below the shoulder. It raised the executioner’s axe again…I opened my eyes. I was in Lavinia’s office, naked, laid out face-down on the floor. I couldn’t feel anything from the waist down. My heart raced as I began to panic. I looked around the room. Lavinia sat quietly at her desk watching me.

Without moving her lips she spoke, “You were bleeding out your ass. We had to get you a doctor. You‘re not paralyzed. The feeling in your lower body will come back.”

I thought, “Can I have a blanket?”

“No. If you needed it, I would have already given it to you.”

I shivered, angry that she was going out of her way to make me uncomfortable.

“Uncomfortable? Don’t you prefer to be uncomfortable slave? Are you saying that you would like to have some time to relax? Here. I‘ll teach you a relaxation technique. Close your eyes and take long, deep breaths.”

I heard someone humming an old hymnal, one I hadn’t heard since childhood. My Grandmother used to hum it as she rubbed my back and put me to sleep. I saw Lavinia’s image in my mind. She whispered softly, “Relax baby, it’s gonna be okay. Just relax.” I began to drift off. She said, “Now open your eyes.” I opened my eyes and saw Lavinia standing over me. She kicked me in the face.

My eyes watered. I tasted blood in my mouth; I felt it drip from my nose. Lavinia went back to her desk and sat down, “That’s what happens when you relax in this world. When you relax, you let your guard down. If you let your guard in this house, you will get hit. You can’t protect my interests if you can’t protect yourself.”

There was a knock at the door. Black Sally entered. She knelt down by my side and rubbed my back. “I guess the girl’s got a little out of hand. No hard feelings right?”

I answered, “No, no hard feelings.”

Lavinia spoke out loud, “As soon as he can stand up, I want you to take him back to your quarters.”

“It’s not an infirmary Lavinia.”

“I thought you were supposed to be teaching him to break that girl.”

“It will traumatize the woman to have Clarence there right now.”

“Traumatize her? That‘s what you‘re supposed to be doing.”

“I have my own way of doing things.”

“You already said that Clarence was going to help you put the girl through the process. Since you stated your case so strongly last night, I took it to be a commitment. You WILL take Clarence back to your quarters tonight. I shouldn’t have to baby sit him anyway. You’re the one who got him all fucked up like that. You take care of him.”

“Why don’t you give him a blanket?”

“He said he didn’t want one.”

Sally looked at me, “You have to try to stand up.” She helped me to my feet, took my arm around her shoulder and wrapped her arm around my waist. She walked me back to her quarters. Brianna was asleep in the bed, a large bandage covered her eye. Sally said, “Go lay down.”

“I’m not laying down next to her, I’ll wake up with a knife in my back.”

“No you won’t, just go lay down. Go to sleep.”

“Could I have a wet towel for my nose?” She went to the kitchenette, wet a towel and tossed it to me. I stood at the foot of the bed watching Sally. She said, “Why are you staring at me, I told you to lay down.”

“Why does the Gothic Girl keep bringing people to this house?”

“We need new blood.”

“So that’s what she does? She finds people and brings them here?”

“Sorry Clarence, I guess you’re not as special as you thought.”

“I heard that you two don’t get along.”

“Don’t believe everything you hear.”

I laid down next to Brianna. Sally sat down at the table and lit a cigarette, “I don’t have any problems with the woman you call the Gothic Girl. She does her thing and I do mine.”

“Earlier you said that you two were on the same side.”

“When it comes to Lavinia we are on the same side. You’ve seen what she does Clarence. We can’t have that psycho-bitch taking over Antonija’s seat. Lavinia is the number one cause of death in this house.”

“How did she get such a high position at the table?”

“That’s a stupid question Clarence. How do you think? Her only function in life is treachery, torture and murder. That’s what got her where she is now, that’s what will take her wherever she’s going.”

“It’s only a matter of time before she kills me.”

“That is correct Clarence, unless she dies before that happens.”

“Then she needs to die.”

Black Sally laughed, “Don’t get ahead of yourself Clarence. Right now you need to rest.”

I heard Lavinia’s voice in my head, “Very good slave. I want my name to come up at least once in every conversation you have with her. Tomorrow you will ask her why she doesn‘t have my seat. The next day you will tell her it‘s unfair. She’s not obsessed with power, she’s obsessed with not feeling inferior. Cater to her ego, encourage her envy. She will eventually be consumed by her obsession, you‘re there to help speed up the process.”

My mind went quiet. I wondered where Sally was going to sleep. I dozed off watching her sit in silent contemplation at the table. I woke up to Brianna screaming and kicking me. Sally jumped on top of her and shoved a pistol in her mouth, “Do you want to go back in the box? Then shut the fuck up and be still.”

I could feel Brianna’s fear. I tried to stay awake fearing that she would smother me in my sleep. I asked Sally if I could sleep on the floor. She said, “No. You two will share a bed when you’re in my quarters. That’s the way I want, that’s the way it will be. Now be quiet and go to sleep.”

The tension in the bed was too much, it was impossible to sleep. I knew that Brianna was awake on her side of the bed too. We both laid there injured, exhausted, motionless, our minds racing, filled with fear; appalled that we were being forced to sleep in the same bed. We laid there like that till the birds began to sing outside. Black Sally spent the night sitting in her chair. She didn’t speak, she didn’t move; I wondered if that’s the way she slept. I remembered Lavinia’s lesson about staying uncomfortable and keeping my guard up. I tried to get mentally prepared for day three. I had a feeling that things would get much, much worse, before they got any better.

40 40 Darlene Elizabeth Ferrin 22

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66/6

#Terminal