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Irena

By: hunterwren



"Is he your boyfriend?"

"Nope," she said. "He's my cousin."

"Your cousin?"

"He keeps the boys away."

She smiled shyly and then turned over on her stomach. Her name was Irena, and I had just met that morning when I checked into the hotel run by her Aunt and Uncle. I practically gasped when she answered the desk bell. She was beautiful, tall--with legs that went on forever--and long raven-colored hair that fell to her shoulders and olive skin. She was from Poland, and had the exotic high cheek-boned features of a model, piercing green eyes and an air of mystery in her smile. Later, when I met her at the beach and Andrew came by to hang out with us, I was sure that they were a couple. So when he left to do his afternoon shift at the same hotel, I felt like I had died and gone to heaven. Here was Irena, all 5'10" of her, sunbathing next to me, making jokes and acting as if we'd been friends for years, touching my knee, complimenting me on my hair, my body. Was she flirting with me? It almost seemed too perfect. I was glad when she finally agreed to swim with me, so I could dip my head in the cold ocean water and try to come to my senses.

I spent the rest of the afternoon hanging out with her, swimming, sunbathing, walking around town and getting ice cream at a stand on the edge of town that she swore was the best in the area. Her slight accent, easy smile and sense of humor were intoxicating and I had to restrain myself from flirting with her. She was flirtatious, challenging me to an arm wrestle on the beach (I won), and asking me personal questions that I answered cautiously. She knew that I was taking a week off and trying to relax after leaving a relationship, and I that I was taking notes for a book that I hoped to write, but I left out the gory details. Irena, on the other hand, had no problem filling me in on all of the local gossip, but mostly she talked about her Sophie, her best friend, who had just left town. Sophie and Irena had met at a local "modeling school" run by some sleazy photographer type that was more interested in Irena and Sophie's money and the opportunity to hang around beautiful teenage girls than in furthering their modeling career. After a few months of broken promises, they ditched the school and their hopes of making it big on America's Next Top Model and became fast friends. Sophie had moved out of her mother's apartment on her 18th birthday. A boyfriend was mentioned, but now Sophie had moved on, first visiting friends in Europe and then moving to Montreal with an old friend.

I had wanted to leave the city for a week and Bree suggested a small beach town on the south shore. It was cheap. The town was "dry", meaning that you couldn't buy alcohol in the town and the restaurants didn't serve any, but you could bring your own. I was coming off a relationship that ended when I found out that my girlfriend had started an affair with a mutual friend of ours, and the drama was too much for me. I knew that our days as a couple were numbered--we rarely had sex anymore and if we did, it was perfunctory, and often involved a vibrator. We had lived together for six years and when I left our apartment I was eager to start a new life. I began working out more and cut my hair very short (like Jean Seberg in "Breathless") and added blonde highlights. I began seeing Bree, a former lover; a woman with whom I had an affair with when I was in college. She was in her 30s when we met, married and extremely beautiful and feminine. She gave me a taste for some of the better things that life has to offer and we eventually began having threesomes with another married friend of hers where we would spend whole weekends in the city, shopping, dining and fucking. They brought my feminine side out, but I was still a soft butch, but one who enjoyed clothes and makeup. 

Bree was 43 now and as beautiful as ever. She was divorced and playing the field when we met for on the Upper East Side. After catching up, she suggested that we go back to her new apartment (she had sold her house in the suburbs) and catch up some more. Of course, one thing led to another and soon we were in her bedroom making love and it was intense as ever--as if the past 11 years had never happened. But I knew that this arrangement was only temporary. One night as we held each other I told her that I was thinking about writing a book about my experiences in college, about meeting her and about the whole sexual odyssey that we took. I assured her that I would use a pen name. Just talking about it made me blush, I thought that she might object, but she was just as enthusiastic and as we recalled some of the more extreme moments of our relationship, we began to kiss and play with each other, ending up in a long oral lovemaking session which ended led to very intense orgasms for both of us. 

The story that got us going was about an afternoon when Bree and her girlfriend Lauren undressed me, tied me up and blindfolded me in the guest bedroom of Lauren's apartment. I had begged them to do it. It was a fantasy of mine for them to leave me there while they went about their normal Saturday routine. First they went to the gym and when they got back they both went into Lauren's bedroom and had sex while I lay there listening to every sound of their lovemaking. Then they showered and dressed and went out to lunch and then went shopping. They even called and left a message telling me to be a good girl and not to play with my pussy. In the dark, with my feet and hands bound, and a blindfold over my eyes, I fell into a state of delirium, my pussy was so swollen and wet with desire, but I couldn't rub myself, so their was no hope of relief until they returned. Hours went by and then they returned, they were as turned on as I was. I was covered in sweat and barely able to speak. They put me on my back and untied me. Then with the blindfold still on they ordered me to suck their strap-ons and then they took turns fucking me with them, making me come so many times that I lost count. When they finally took the blindfold off, I broke into tears and as they held me and comforted me, another round of lovemaking followed. It took us days to recover. 

I called Bree and told her about my first day on the beach. I mentioned Irena. "Did you talk to her long?" She asked.

"For a while," I said. "She's really beautiful. I had to watch myself. I didn't want to come on too strong."

"Too strong for what?"

"I don't know. I didn't want her to think that I was hitting on her."

"Were you?"

"No."

"Are you going to try?"

"She's probably straight. Why waste my time?"

"How old is she?"

"Nineteen."

"You're incapable of coming on too strong." You're too shy."

"I wasn't shy with you."

"You were at the beginning. That's what made you so irresistible."

"I don't think I'm going to try this time. I came here to relax."

"Are you relaxing?"

"Mostly."

"What are you doing right now?"

"I'm in bed."

"In bed?"

"Nude, with my fingers in my pussy."

"Why am I not surprised?"

"And you."

"The same."

"Uh huh."

"Tell me about Anya and Karen again."

"What about them?"

"How you met the whole thing."

"I've told you this a million times."

"Pretty please?"

She had that breathy tone in her voice. She was probably close to cumming.

"I had heard that they were lovers, but I didn't believe it."

"This was in the dorm?"

"Yes, in the dorm, but you knew that already."

"I want to hear it from you."

"In the dorm. I could hear noises sometimes when I passed their room late at night, but I assumed that it was just one of them fucking some guy."

"Was it?"

"No."

"And how did you know?

"I walked in on them."

"In on them where?"

"The showers. I was studying late one night and I couldn't relax. I thought I'd take a shower to clear my head. It was about 2 in the morning. I put on a robe and grabbed a towel and walked into the shower room and they were in a stall together. Two tall, blonde and very beautiful nineteen year-old girls having sex in the shower. I just stood there for a moment and then they noticed me and separated. Karen let out a huge gasp. I ran out of the bathroom and went back to my room." 

"And then."

"About two weeks later I was up studying late again and decided to back in there and, of course they were in there again."

"Of course."

"And this time I just put my robe on the hook and approached them."

"That took some balls. Did they know you were a lesbian?"

"They knew. I had brought girls to my room. They saw me."

"And..."

"And what?"

"What happened next?"

"We had sex. I walked right up to Anya and kissed her. I realized that we were all about the same height. Anya was really skinny then, looked like Paris Hilton. Karen was earthier, had more curves, big breasts, long frizzy blonde hair. Anya put her arms around my neck and pulled me toward her. Karen put her hands on my ass and squeezed them and then kissed my neck. It was like we were all in a trance. Then I put my hand down to Anya's pussy and began to rub it and Karen put her arm around me and did the same to me, and..."

"I'm so close, Erin, go on."

"I turned around and kissed Karen and they made me lean against the shower wall and took turns kneeling and eating my pussy and then kissing each other...

"That's so fucking hot..."

"I came first and then I finger fucked Karen while Anya finger fucked me and then I licked Ayna's clit while finger fucking her and she practically squirted in my face..."

I heard her moan louder through the phone. 

"And then we spent a while just kissing and holding each other."

The phone went silent. We were cut off. I hung up the phone and she immediately called back. 

"You're done?" I asked.

"Yes, thanks."

"You're welcome."

"And then what happened." 

"We went back to our rooms."

"And..."

"I had sex with Anya a few times at her boyfriend's place. She used a strap-on on me. My first time being fucked like that. She fucked me up the ass as well. I didn't like that as much. Then the semester ended. Anya didn't return to school. Karen and I met in the shower a few times and then fell in love."

"You told that so well."

"It's so romantic."

"It is."

"How does Anya tell the story?"

"A little differently. Your story is hotter."

"How do you tell the other story?"

"Which one?"

"When we tied you up, blindfolded you?"

"Which one is that?"

"We went out, put in the guest room, turned out the lights..."

"When did this happen?"

"Ha ha."

We talked for a little more, with Bree getting me all sexed up all over again, telling me about the love affair her new girlfriend Sydney had with a cute little blonde cheerleader in college. Apparently this girl was as insatiable as they come and later dropped out of college to become a dominatrix. I wound up having two orgasms while talking to her, finally hanging up the phone at one in the morning. 

Women as uncommonly beautiful as Irena tend to get their way. So I didn't object when she knocked on my door early the next morning and told me that I should move to a more spacious room on the fourth floor for no extra charge. 

She was flirty. All I could think about as we moved my stuff to the new room is how much I wanted to have sex with her. I asked her to dinner that night and she accepted immediately. She said that she was going to be out for the afternoon so I wouldn't see her at her usual spot on the beach. I was relieved, since the tension would be too great. We exchanged cell phone numbers and we made plans to meet that evening in front of the hotel. We said our goodbyes and I shut the door and took off my clothes and lay down on the bed. For some reason the air conditioner was on. I got up and turned it off and opened the nearest window, letting a cool ocean breeze come in the room. I lay back down and rubbed my pussy until I had one of the most explosive orgasms that I had had in a long time. When I was done, I put on my bathing suit and shorts and walked to the beach. Andrew was there and we talked for a while, and then I took a swim. I felt like I was sleepwalking through the afternoon. I went back to my room and tried to read, then tried to write. All I could think about was having sex, remembering memorable sexual encounters with beautiful women that I had met through the years. I masturbated again and fell asleep, waking up just in time to get myself together for my dinner date with Irena. 

So, where to begin? She was wearing a beautiful white cotton summer dress that fit her gazelle-like body perfectly, and complimented her dark tan and her hair, which I'd mostly seen wet or in a ponytail, was newly styled and fell down to her shoulders. Her makeup looked like Anya had done it, and she was wearing high-heeled sandals. I swallowed hard when I saw her. We kissed each other on the cheek and as we walked down the street together I could feel the stares coming from all directions. "You look gorgeous," I said.

"So do you."

The rest of the date was a blur. We got to the restaurant and were quickly escorted to a seat. It turns out that Anna used to waitress there and everyone asked about her. I was beginning to think that choosing this particular restaurant was a mistake. We ordered wine and I finally began to relax and Irena asked me a lot of very personal questions. I didn't even have to tell her that I was gay, I just told her about the relationship I had just gotten out of and she talked about Sophie and all the crazy stuff that they had done together. We ate quickly and decided to leave the restaurant and take a stroll along the boardwalk. Irena got a text and she apologized for answering. It was Sophie. She frantically texted back and then took my hand in hers and drew me close to her side. My heart was pounding. "What are you thinking about?" She asked me.

"I don't think you want to know."

"I think I know."

"You do?

"I can tell when a man or a woman wants me."

"You can?"

"I'm beautiful. I get propositioned all the time."

"I haven't propositioned you yet."

'Yet."

I laughed. "You're pretty sure of yourself, aren't you?"

"Most beautiful women are Bi, right?" She asked. 

"Most of them, yes."

She pulled me to her and we kissed. She was a good kisser. I put my arms around her neck and opened my mouth wide and deep kissed her back. I saw a few people in the distance walking toward us so I made us stop. 

"What are we doing?" I asked her.

"Kissing."

"I'm not sure I'm ready for this."

Her phone went off again. It was another text from Sophie. She texted back and looked up at me and frowned. Her beautiful green eyes looked sad. "What's wrong?" I asked.

"She can be such a bitch sometimes."

"Sophie?"

She nodded.

I took her hand and we walked towards the hotel.

"Maybe we're not ready for this."

"No?"

"You scare me."

"I do?"

"And you seem to be having an argument with Sophie."

She looked down and nodded, "Yes."

"Why don't we call it a night," I said. "We'll be more lucid in the morning."

"Lucid?"

"We'll be able to think clearly."

"But I like you."

"I like you too, Irena. And I'm in heaven right now just being with you, but I don't want one of us to get hurt."

"Okay."

She laughed and told me that I was a real grownup. I took it as a compliment and squeezed her hand. 

We walked back to the hotel and gave each other a good night kiss. I went back to my room and tried to calm down. My nipples were as hard as rocks and my pussy was drenched. I took out a bottle of vodka that I had stuffed in my bag and made myself a large drink. Somehow I was able to calm down and fell asleep.

At about midnight, my cell rang. It was Irena. She sounded upset. I told her that she could stop by if she wanted to and within minutes, just long enough for me to put on a robe (I sleep nude), she was knocking at my door dressed only in a tank top and a pair of pink boxer shorts. She was crying and I quickly shut the door and took her into my arms. "What's wrong?" I asked. 

"Sophie," she said. "I just got off the phone with her. She wants me to come to Montreal or it's over." 

"What's over?"

"Us, everything. Sophie was my girlfriend, Erin."

"I had a feeling," I said. "But I didn't want to pry."

"She wanted me to come to Montreal. Drop everything. It's so stupid. I think she's into some bad things. I think she's taking drugs again. She's working at a strip club. She began to cry again, even more hysterically than before. I took her hand and brought her to the bed and held her and stroked her hair. 

"Before this week, she was everything to me," she said.

"What's changed?"

"What changed is that I met you."

"And how has that changed things?"

"I love being around you. And you so smart, and fun and so beautiful."

"I like being with you too."

She sat up and looked me straight in the eye and touched my cheek. "I think I'm falling in love with you."

She pulled me toward her and kissed me. I kissed her back and soon we were all over each other. I pulled her off the bed and untied my robe, letting it fall to the floor. I pushed her down on the bed, pulled off her boxer shorts and ground into her as she wrapped her legs around mine. "I'm a little nervous." She said.

"Don't be. I'll take care of you."

"I want to eat your pussy," she whispered, between kisses. "I want to make you cum."

She got up and pulled my legs to the edge of the bed and then spread them apart and kneeled in front of me. I pulled off her tank top and took her face in my hands and kissed her. 

"Kiss my pussy," I said.

She smiled and kissed my belly and then kissed my mound and then my pussy lips. I was so wet at this point that I barely felt it when she put one then two fingers into my slit and started fucking me as she kissed and licked my folds, lightly sucking and kissing as I began to breathe deeper in anticipation. She definitely knew what she was doing and soon my impression of her as an innocent 19 year-old girl faded and was replaced by that of a beautiful gay woman who was an eager and expert lover. She looked up at me and smiled, taking her fingers out of my pussy and then gliding her hands up my thighs as she licked me and caressed my clit with her tongue. She batted her eyes at me and I smiled at her. "You're so good at this," I whispered. "How did you get so good?"

"Making love to women."

"Uh huh."

"I've fucked a few boys, but girls are so much better."

"Yes they are."

"I guess I'm a slut."

"You're my slut now."

"I've been wanting to make love to you since I first saw you." 

She buried her face in my pussy and my body began to shudder.

"Make me cum," I said.

She looked up at me and I stroked her hair and pushed it back so I could see her licking my pussy. I began to cum and I let out a moan and bucked under her. When I was done she came into my arms and kissed me. "You're mine now," I said.

We rolled around the bed and then I pinned her down and ground my pussy into hers. I was in control now and wanted to take advantage of this beautiful girl. She moaned loudly and I put my hand over her mouth. We kissed and held each other for a while and then Irena suggested that we take a shower together. I put on my robe and gave her a towel and we tiptoed down the hallway. "Are you sure this is okay?" I asked.

"There's only one other person on this floor right now and she's slightly deaf."

"I know, but..."

She squeezed my hand. "We'll be fine."

Irena put a chair in front of the door just in case. I took off my robe and then grabbed her, letting her towel fall to the floor. She put her arms around me and we kissed. I turned on the shower and we kissed again moving our hands down to caress each other's pussies. She put two fingers deep into me and fucked me, then pulled them out and made me suck them. Then I sucked on her tits, taking her nipples in my mouth and slowly licking and sucking them. We soaped each other up and rinsed off. I put my hand down the crack of her ass. 


Irena



"I want you to have your way with me," She told me. "Do whatever you want with me." I turned her around and crouched down, gliding my hands down her back and ass. She spread her gorgeous legs and put her hands on the wall of the shower stall and gasped as I began to lick her asshole, reaching around to rub her clit until she came. 

The next morning we had sex again and then Irena had to work her shift. When she was done we met at the beach and swam until we couldn't stand it any longer and then returned to my room a whole evening of lovemaking. The next morning I had to leave and our goodbye was surprisingly emotional for me. I found myself close to tears and fought the urge to tell her that I was in love with her. While on the train I tried to read a book. Irena texted me a sexy message and soon we were going back and forth, recalling our lovemaking and what we were going to do to each other when she came to visit. 

When I got back to the city, I called Bree and told her everything. She didn't seem phased by my story. I asked her why. "Because you're a beautiful woman," she said. "And I had spotted her when I was out there a couple of months ago. I thought you might get along."

"I don't believe you," I said. 

"Think about it. Why did I suggest you go there for the week?"

"I don't know."

"You needed time to get acquainted. A weekend wouldn't have done the trick. She's very shy."

"And?"

"There's a lesbian club in the next town. Sydney and I met her and her girlfriend."

"This is too much, Bree. Did you sleep with her?"

"Of course not. "

"But you wanted to."

"I wanted her for you."

"There's no escaping you, is there."

"I guess not."



Irena Goes to Market



Irena was cold. She was so cold that she felt as if her bones had been glazed in ice. She stumbled and almost fell into a ditch on the side of the road, but managed to steady herself in time. Her jeans were soaking wet to the knees with slush and her shoes squelched with every step she took. She had been so stupid. She could be in the limo with Soto right now, speeding through the countryside back towards his estate. Instead she had decided to argue with him. She had wanted to stay at school for winter break, to party with some of her friends. He had said no, she was going to come home with him right then and there. He missed her. He had caressed her thigh then, sending shivers up and down her body. That had just made her angrier. In the months that they had been apart she had begun telling herself that he had too much of a hold on her. Nonetheless, he had coaxed her into the limo. A part of her had even wanted to go. 

They had passed the first couple hours of the ride in silence but then he had said, "I think it would be better if you don't return to this university next semester."

Irena felt as if someone had slapped her. "What?"

"Your grades have been suffering. And I don't like the sound of those people you hang around with now."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"It means that if you spent less time drinking and smoking weed with those friends of yours, you would actually be living up to your potential in your classes. You've been on the Dean's list two semesters in a row and now you're failing half of your classes."

Irena blushed. It was true. She was failing some of her classes, geology and comparative economics, but she didn't even care about those. And yes, she did spend a lot of time now smoking and drinking, but that was just part of life. School wasn't the only important thing. She had never had real friends before and the chance to stay with them over winter break had been keeping her going all through the hell of exam week. Now exams were over, she was exhausted and cranky at having to go back with Soto, and on top of that he had the nerve to tell her that she couldn't come back to school. 

"Why can't you let me live my own life? You don't own me."

Soto raised an eyebrow at her. "Really? You don't happen to remember that paperwork your father signed over to me do you?"

"You can't own another human being. It's sick!"

"I seem remember that you enjoyed being owned by me quite a lot, once upon a time." His voice had not risen, if anything, it had grown quieter, but Irena could tell that he was starting to get angry. She had grown adept at reading his body and voice during the times they had been together. She had only seen him truly angry a few times. One of those occasions had been when he had caught her going through his private papers, searching for the documents which bound her to him. He had said nothing then, simply grabbed her roughly by the arm and thrown her out of the office. She hadn't seen him at all for three days and then one night she had woken up to find him kneeling over her in her own bed, the one she slept in when she didn't share Soto's. She had drawn breath to scream, but he had covered her mouth with his hand. Then he had ripped off her nightgown. Soto was a master at the arts of pain, but he was almost always a considerate lover. Not on this occasion. He had drawn her across his lap and begun to spank her hard. He usually stopped when her cries grew frantic, but this time he didn't stop until Irena was sobbing, her breathing frantic and her buttocks and thighs purple with welts and bruises. Then he had fucked her, not nicely, not tenderly. He had ravaged her, bringing her to two thundering climaxes before spending himself violently inside of her. He had collapsed on top of her for a moment, breathing hard, and then he had left. She hadn't seen him for another two days, but then there he was at dinner again, talking to her as if nothing untoward had happened. He hadn't made love to her for another week, and Irena had been glad of that because it took about that long for her to be able to sit down without wincing. The tone Soto was beginning to acquire now was the same one he had used to her that night he had surprised her in bed. 

"I just don't think you should push me around like I'm a little kid. I'm twenty years old now, remember?" She couldn't look at him, so she stared out the window.

"Yes, and still remarkably like a child in some ways." He sounded amused, condescending. It infuriated her.

"You know what, fuck you!"

"There's no call for language." His voice had gotten even quieter.

"I'm not going to let you take me out of this school."

"You can't stop me, Irena. I'm the one paying the bills."

"You're just like my father!"

He snorted. "Hardly."

She hated the smug derision in his tone even more than his condescension. She began tapping on the barrier between the front and back of the limo. "Pull over," she said to the driver. "Pull over, I'm going to be sick." Soto made move to stop her. They were on an abandoned stretch of road, so the driver just pulled off onto the shoulder. Irena burst out of the car, but she did not get sick. What she did was say, "Ok this is it. I'm not getting back into that car."

Soto looked blank, then amused. "Stop being childish, Irena."

"I'm not going back with you."

"Yes you are."

"You're going to have to come out here and physically force me back into that limo, Antonio. Do you want to make me your prisoner again?" Soto's face bore no expression whatsoever. "No Irena, I don't want a prisoner. I want my slave." He caressed those last few words with his voice, and just hearing them sent a throb of desire through her. She ignored it.

"Well I'm not going to be that anymore either. Drive away. I'll find somewhere to go. Someone will give me a ride."

"Fine," Soto said, and shut his door. Irena looked at him, a bit taken aback. She hadn't been expecting him to back down so easily. He rolled down his window and said, "I'm going to keep driving. When you get tired of walking, give me a call on my cell phone and I'll come back to get you." He gave her a look then that made her stomach clench. "We are going to have a very long discussion about his when we get home, Irena."

She felt herself go bright red. "Fuck you," she said. He rolled up the window and a moment later the car sped off, leaving her standing alone on the road. She started walking in the opposite direction of the limo thinking that she would somehow find her way back to school. She'd had a vague idea of walking to the nearest town and using the money she had in her wallet (about sixty dollars) to get a bus ticket back to campus, but then she had passed a road sign and discovered that the nearest town was twenty miles away. She had almost taken out her cell phone and called Soto then, but her pride hadn't let her. She had kept walking and the cold had set about finding its way into her bones.

She hadn't seen a car until about half an hour later, and although she knew that what she was about to do was incredibly stupid, she stuck out her thumb in the hitchhiking gesture. The car passed her without slowing. The next five cars had done the same. Now, two hours later with night starting to come on, she barely even bothered to glance at the car which she could hear coming up behind her in the distance. What made her turn around was the sound of the car first slowing down so that it cruised along beside her at walking pace. The driver rolled down his window and said, "Good evening young lady. What in the world are you doing walking down the side of the road on a night like this?"

"I had a fight with my boyfriend," she said, greatly simplifying her relationship with Soto. "I told him to stop the car and I got out." She bit her lip. She was already beginning to feel quite stupid about her decision to storm out on Soto. What exactly had been going through her head? She should have talked to him rationally, not thrown a temper tantrum like a spoiled toddler. 

"I see," the driver said, his voice giving nothing away. Irena looked at him carefully. He seemed harmless enough, an elderly man with wispy grey hair that floated around his bald head like dandelion fluff. He looked rather frail and Irena was pretty sure that if it came down to a fight she would at least be strong enough to incapacitate him long enough for her to make an escape. "Well, I can't stand to see a girl as young as you all alone on the side of the road. Hop in and I'll give you a ride to town." He smiled at her and she could tell that he wore dentures. He reminded her of her grandfather a little. This was probably going to be the best ride she could hope for if she didn't want to call Soto and beg him to come pick her up.

Irena walked around to the car's passenger side door and opened it. She looked inside the car before getting in, and seeing no weapons, drugs, or other warning signs, she slipped in to the heated interior. "Thank you so much," she said, holding her numbed hands out to the car's heating vents. "I don't know what I would have--" That was as far as she got before a damp cloth was clapped over her nose and mouth. A horrible acrid smell invaded her nostrils. She had time to think, looks like I fucked up big this time, before she was dragged down deep into chemical darkness. 

******************

In the limo, Soto tried to read his newspaper but he wasn't having much success. Why had he allowed Irena to storm off like that? He should have dragged her back into the limo rather than allowing her to wander off on her own like that. He should have kept his temper and punished her in the safety of his playroom rather than allowing her to learn her lesson by wondering down a freezing road in the middle of the night. He had instructed Frank, his driver, to pull off of the road at a rest stop a couple miles from where Irena had left him. He had decided that they would wait there until he received a call from Irena asking him to come and pick her up. There was no way she would be able to make it all the way to the nearest town on her own and he was certain that she wasn't stupid enough to try and hitchhike. 

However, two hours had passed and he still hadn't heard for her. Enough was enough. It was time for Irena to swallow her pride and come home. He pushed the button that allowed him to communicate to the driver. "Frank, let's get out of here and pick up Irena. I'll drag that girl back into this car if I have to."

"Will do boss," said Frank, and a moment later the limo pulled back onto the road. Frank began retracing their route and Soto kept his eyes trained on the shoulders of the road, looking for the dark silhouette of his troublesome little ward. Soto pulled out his cell phone and punched in Irena's number, intending to tell her that she was to stay put and wait for them to pick her up. The phone rang once, twice, three times, and then somewhat to his surprise it was picked up.

"Irena?" he said. There was a fraction of a second's pause then a muffled exclamation cut off by the drone of the dial tone. Soto hung up and frowned down at his phone. The voice on the line had been barely audible but it had not sounded like Irena's. He dialed the number twice more but both times the phone rang until it was picked up by the voicemail. He stowed his phone back in his pocket, his worry slowly beginning to transform into fear. He was sure Irena was safe. She was a smart girl. But that voice on the telephone had made him deeply uneasy. He massaged his temples with his hand. Irena had probably just hung up on him the first time and then refused to answer his calls afterwards. 

"Boss?" Frank's voice sounded from the intercom. 

"I don't want to worry you, but I just thought of something."

Soto's stomach cramped. "What is it Frank?"

"They're holding the market in Monroe this year aren't they?"

"Oh god, Frank," Soto groaned, "Please don't tell me that the market is tonight."

There was a pause and then reluctantly Frank said, "Actually it is. They were going to hold it in Mechanicsburg last month but the guys renting them the space backed out."

"I can't believe that I forgot!" Soto said, slamming his fist into the seat beside him. "They always do it around here this time of year. How could I have been so stupid?" He felt himself becoming both panicked and incredibly angry, which was not a good combination. He had been fighting this ridiculous market system for years and had become so discouraged that he had cut himself off from anything to do with it, including the society of which he was supposed to still be a member. Luckily Frank still troubled to keep up to date with the Society's schedule. 

"She's probably still walking down the road, Sir. We'll find her." 

Soto didn't respond. He returned his attention to the sides of the road, scanning the darkness for Irena's familiar form. He didn't see her. When they reached the Monroe city limits Soto had Frank turn around so that he could do another sweep of the road. Their second lap was just as unsuccessful as the first. 

"What now, Sir?" Frank asked over the intercom. 

Soto thought for a moment before answering. "Let's go to Monroe. We'll rent a hotel room somewhere. I need to get to a computer."

"What did you have in mind, Sir?"

"Irena doesn't know this but that phone I bought her is equipped with a GPS tracking system. I never used it before because she's so touchy about her privacy." Soto looked out the window again at the frigid windswept road. "However, I think that now she would forgive the intrusion. She's in some kind of trouble and whether or not she's found her way to the market, I intend to get her out of it." 

******************

The first thing Irena became aware of when she awoke was that she had been hogtied. It was a sensation that she had become familiar with in the two years she had spent as Soto's ward. The second thing was that she was blindfolded, and the third was that she was completely naked. None of these circumstances would have been good but the fact that they were combined made Irena's stomach cramp with terror. She tried pulling against the ropes which bound her legs and ankles together but they didn't budge. Her head ached horribly, presumably from whatever chemicals had been used to knock her out. She must have been here for awhile, wherever "here" was. Irena forced herself to remain still, to give no indication that she had awoken. She listened as hard as she could, trying to get a sense of her surroundings. 

There was the low rumble of many voices coming from all around her. It was hard to tell because almost everyone seemed to be talking at low volume, but she thought that there were quite a few more male voices than female. The sound echoed and bounced off the walls. That and the incredible number of people she thought were surrounding her led Irena to believe that she was in a very large room, maybe something like a warehouse. She began once more to pull experimentally at her bonds. The knots binding her ankles were secure but she thought that she could detect a slight looseness in the knots holding her wrists. She began to rotate her wrists in small controlled circles. In the past few months Soto had not only educated her in the pleasures of being bound but also in the skills of escaping from such bindings.

"There's always the chance that you might get into some trouble, Soto had said, "And knowing how to slip out of a sloppily tied knot is an excellent way to get out of it." Then he had kissed her and laughed. "If you ever manage to get out of one of my knots I think you'll be ready to escape from just about anything." She hadn't managed to slip out of Soto's careful knots, but she had gotten close, and the ropes now binding her hadn't been tied with anywhere near Soto's skill. She felt like she could shake loose of them in ten minutes or so if she was left alone to do it.

Just as she thought this, a hand came down hard on her ass. She yelped, startled. Unthinking, she jerked against her bonds and they began to tighten. She forced herself to lie perfectly still again. "Don't even think about trying to get out of those ropes, bitch," said a voice from beside her. The command was followed by another sharp slap. She held still this time and didn't cry out at all. It really wasn't that hard of a slap, just a way of telling her that someone else was now in charge. "We've got security all over the place. You wouldn't get far and then they'd send you over to the punishment tent, and trust me, that is one place that you want to avoid." The voice was deep, roughened by smoke and tinged with a little of the Bronx. Not the man who had kidnapped her. 

"So, how much are you going to give me for her?" There he was, the kidnapper; the old man who had given her the ride. He sounded both excited and anxious.

"Depends," said the Bronx voice, considering. Irena heard the click of a lighter and then smelled the rich tang of cigarette smoke. "Where did you find her again, Bruce?"

"She was just walking down the side of the road. Said she'd gotten kicked out of the car by her boyfriend or something. I was on my way back from dropping off that last group of girls to you and there she was. I could tell she was pretty, so I thought, 'why waste an opportunity?'"

"Well, I'll give it to you that she's pretty. She's probably the best-looking girl I've got right now. But she's wild. Fresh off the road. She could cause me all kinds of trouble before the Market's over. I only pay top dollar for girls who've got basic training."

"Yeah but you know some of these guys will pay more for the wild ones. They like the challenge."

"I'll give you six thousand for her."

"Do you think I was born yesterday Bennie? Nine thousand or I walk with her right now. I guarantee you that Lila would pay me at least twelve for a specimen like this." A leathery old hand traced the ridge of her spine and Irena shivered. That must be Bruce. His hand stopped just short of her ass and then he was no longer touching her.

"I'll give you seven."

"Eight."

"Seventy-five hundred. That's my final offer Bruce. If you want any more than that you can go and try to sell her to Lila. See if she'll give you even half that much."

There was a brief pause and then Bruce said, "You drive a hard bargain Bennie, but I guess I'll take it. Seventy-five hundred." Irena heard the soft clap of their palms as they shook hands and then she heard the footsteps retreating a short distance away. 

"Victoria," Irena heard Bennie say in his cigarette roughened voice. "Go fix up the new girl. She's awake."

"Yes Master," came the reply, pitched so low that she almost couldn't hear it over the noise of the crowd around her. The voice had been a young woman's, very sweet, a few feet to her right. She had had no idea that there was anyone there. A moment later she felt hands touching her head, and then her blindfold was removed. Irena had to blink against the sudden onslaught of bright light. When her vision returned to her she saw that she was indeed in what had to be an abandoned warehouse. Stalls like those usually erected by street peddlers had been put up in rows throughout the entire building. Some of these stalls sold things like whips, paddles, and floggers. Some looked as if they sold lingerie and leather. Most seemed to be selling people. Men and women, young and old, plain and beautiful were tethered everywhere, most of them naked. The stall vendors fussed around them, securing ropes, fixing hair, guiding bound limbs into the perfect positions. Irena realized that she was only one of a row of about a dozen young girls in a vendor's stall exactly like the others. All of these girls were naked, just like her.

The difference was that only Irena had been hogtied. These girls stood with their hands clasped behind their backs and their breasts and hips thrust forward. The only thing securing them to the spot was a long rope that had been threaded through the loops of the thick leather collars each of them wore around their necks. Irena wondered why they didn't try to run away. They could have escaped easily. Another naked girl moved to stand in front of her. She was very tall and pretty with olive skin and long chestnut hair. Her breasts were large and round with coral colored nipples, and she had shaved her pubic hair almost entirely away except for a small brown patch just above her clit.




Irena Goes to Market



"I'm Victoria," the girl said, and Irena thought that she was only a couple of years older than herself. "My Master has asked me to prepare you for display, and you will cooperate or suffer his displeasure."

"What are you going to do?" Irena asked. Victoria slapped her face hard. She stopped herself from crying out but only barely. She glared at the girl, who seemed completely unmoved by Irena's discomfort. Her face as entirely blank. It was as if Irena had just been slapped by a robot.

"You will speak only when spoken to," Victoria said in a dull monotone. She didn't actually sound angry or even irritated. She was just following orders. Irena had been trying to keep herself from panicking, but Victoria somehow terrified her more than the men she had heard bickering over her. The girl was not very intimidating in herself; she was frightening because someone had made her the way she was. Someone had trained all of the humanity out of her, leaving a pretty puppet girl who moved and spoke only at her master's direction. Irena started to wonder what it would take to do something like that to a person, but thinking like that was a good way to get herself into a state of panic. That was the last thing she needed right now. 

This place was obviously some sort of modern day slave market but it didn't seem to be open for business yet. However, judging by the bustle of the merchants and their human wares, that would soon change. She needed to get out of here before the market opened for business.

"Hurry up Victoria!" barked Bennie, who Irena presumed to be the owner of this particular stall. "I want this bitch ready for sale in twenty minutes." He slapped Victoria's ass hard, leaving a vivid red mark on the soft white flesh, but the girl didn't even flinch. If anything, she seemed relieved at having gotten off so easily. 

"Please accept this slave's apology Master," she said, and then the girl got down on her knees and kissed the man's boots. "She will not take so long to obey your orders in the future."

"Then get on with it," Bennie snapped, pushing her away from his shoes when she tried to kiss them once again. "I want her wet as Niagara Falls by the time the market opens." When she heard this, Irena's entire body stiffened and she jerked against her bonds as if Bennie had slapped her again.

"Yes Master," said Victoria, rising to her feet once more. "This slave promises that she will do a good job." Even through her fear, Irena felt herself becoming indignant at the way the girl continued to refer to herself in the third person. She had been objectified so completely that her master had even denied her the privilege of using the personal pronoun when addressing him.

Victoria disappeared from Irena's line of vision. She tried craning her neck to see where the girl had gone but the ropes securing her wouldn't allow it. A moment later she heard the clinking of chains and felt a tugging at the ropes which bound together her wrists and ankles. A cranking sound came from somewhere to her right and then she was being hoisted into the air until she dangled about four feet above the ground. The ropes were tied in such a way that her weight was distributed evenly, so she wasn't exactly uncomfortable but she had never before felt so well and firmly trussed.

Irena realized that she had been in a state of half shock. Up until now nothing had felt real. A part of her had been convinced that this was nothing more than a particularly vivid nightmare but now that her helplessness was complete it became impossible to deny that this was really happening to her. She was about to be raped in front of a warehouse full of strangers. Irena began to struggle, useless as she knew it to be, and tears started to leak out of her eyes. She was powerless to stop herself from crying, just as she was powerless to prevent Victoria's fingers from spreading the lips of her pussy. At first the girl only ran her fingers up and down Irena's slit, tracing her labia and circling her clitoris while never actually touching it. By the time two of her fingers broached Irena's opening she was already starting to get wet. She was as powerless to stop her body from responding as she was to escape the ropes which bound her.

She had learned a lot about herself in the past two years and one of those things was that her body responded to being made helpless. When control was taken out of her hands it was like her body belonged to someone else, somebody who reveled in being taken and whose body craved the stinging of the lash like a kiss. Her mind was harder to reach, she hoped. Soto had done it. He had gained her trust and she had given all of herself to him. She could reconcile the differences between her body and mind when she was with Soto. But Soto wasn't here to soothe away her conflicting feelings. She was growing wetter and wetter as Victoria's fingers glided in and out of her pussy and as much as she hated it, she also couldn't deny that her pleasure was intensified by her helplessness. She already felt as if she were on the verge of coming. She gave a helpless sob and tried to squirm away, impossible as she knew escape to be. 

That just caused Victoria to hold Irena more firmly in place with one hand and to use the other to press three fingers firmly against her throbbing clitoris. She began to move her hand in a series of rapid circles, rotating the stiff bud of flesh until Irena's entire body went stiff and she cried out helplessly, poised on the very brink of orgasm. Then the hand was withdrawn and Irena jerked against her bindings, unable to suppress a groan of bitter disappointment at being denied release. 

"You're not allowed to come," Victoria said in her monotone. "If you do, Master will make me take you to the punishment tent. You're only allowed to come if a Master or Mistress gives you permission." 

"Please stop," Irena said, her voice pitched as low as she could make it and still be heard over the rumble of the market. "Help me. I already have a master and he's very rich. He can get us both out of here. Please just help me get to a phone." Victoria said nothing and then she was back in front of Irena, staring down at her. There was an expression of hope mingled with distrust on her face for the barest moment and then it was blank again, as expressionless as that of department store mannequin's. The girl turned and lifted something off of a nearby table. Then she held it up in front of Irena's face. It was a bright red ball gag. Irena cursed herself for trying to reason with the girl. She hated ball gags more than almost any other form of restraint because of the way in which they completely robbed her of all dignity. She despised how they made her drool all over herself and how they made it impossible to muffle even the slightest cry. She clamped her mouth shut and began shaking her head back and forth in wild negation. 

"Open your mouth," Victoria commanded, pressing the ball gag against Irena's lips. Irena only glared at her and clenched her teeth even more firmly. "Open," Victoria repeated. Irena could tell that she was trying to sound imperious and commanding, but it wasn't working. She just sounded tired. The girl leaned down and whispered in Irena's ear. "Please," she said, and now her tone was entirely different. She sounded miserable and afraid. "Please just do as I say. Master is watching and he'll make me punish you." She paused, panting slightly, perhaps in fear. Her breath was hot in Irena's ear. "He'll punish me too." 

As much as Irena would have like to remain defiant, she couldn't in the face of such a plea. Logic also demanded that she comply. There were worse things than a ball gag, and Irena was sure that the people who ran this market knew most of them. Slowly, she opened her mouth and Victoria slipped the rubber ball inside, buckling the straps together at the back of Irena's head to keep the gag in place. Then she moved out of Irena's line of sight once more. A second later there were fingers on her pussy again, spreading her wide. The fingers were followed by a skillful tongue. Irena closed her eyes, trying to stop herself from sobbing because the ball gag would make such a display look absolutely ridiculous. She tried to imagine that it was Soto's tongue lapping hungrily at her clit, Soto's fingers probing and thrusting inside of her, driving her ever closer to orgasm. The illusion couldn't last. It was unquestionably a woman who was pleasuring her. Only a woman knew so instinctively exactly where to touch and how much pressure to exert. Irena tried to fight against the waves of pleasure building inside of her but she couldn't. The sensations were too acute, and combined with her fear it was only a matter of time before she would go soaring over the edge. But just as she began to cry out over and over, thrusting her hips against the ropes in the first throes of climax, Victoria pulled away from her. Irena groaned and slumped within her ropes, her breathing coming in harsh gasps against the gag.

"Bring her to the brink one more time and then call it good, Victoria. The market opens in ten minutes." That was Bennie's voice. Irena had almost forgotten about him. 

"Yes Master," Victoria said, and Irena's torture began once more. The girl sucked and licked and caressed until Irena's pussy was so wet that drops of moisture began to collect on the floor beneath her spread legs. The sight made her flush with shame, and made the tears, which had begun to abate, start to flow again. What a little whore she was. How could she be so aroused in such a situation?

"That's enough." Bennie said and Irena heard a smack followed by Victoria's soft yelp. "I don't want her coming. Go stand against the wall until I need you." There was the sound of a crank again and then Irena was being lowered to the ground. The hook that had been supporting her was removed and the bindings securing her ankles were unwound. Irena was jerked to her feet, her wrists still tied behind her back, and she fell directly against Bennie's chest. He pushed her roughly away. "Stand up straight bitch," he said. "Let's see if Victoria followed instructions." He thrust a hand between her legs and parted the lips of Irena's pussy. He began to work his fingers in and out, making no attempt to be gentle, but Irena was so wet that she took him quite easily. "Looks like the slut did her job for once." He curved his fingers upwards and gave several vicious pumps against Irena's g-spot. Moisture cascaded over Bennie's hand and Irena cried out, almost collapsing into him. "You horny little slut!" He cried, shaking the excess moisture from his hand. "You're loving this aren't you?" He thrust his fingers inside of her again in an upward curve, crushing them hard against her g-spot once more. Irena cried out even louder this time, the sound made ridiculous by the ball gag. It took every bit of Irena's force of will not to come all over Bennie's hand. He withdrew his fingers a second later. "What a tight little pussy I've got here. I'm going to have to think of a special price for you, girly. You're more responsive than half of these bitches and they've all had at least a year's training."

He turned and said over his shoulder, "Victoria! Get the new girl a collar and tie her up to the display post. She's going to be my main attraction this year." 

*****************

Soto adjusted his coat so that its collar hid his profile from view. He pulled the hat he was wearing down low so that it threw his features into shadow. It wasn't that he was banned from the market so much that his presence there was severely frowned upon. He had once been a member in good standing of the ancient organization which ran the market but just lately he had good reason for not wanting to be recognized. Three years ago, right before he had met Irena, Soto had quarreled with several prominent members of the Society. He had wanted to put a stop to the trade in flesh which the market had allowed to flourish since the organization was founded in the Middle Ages. There were enough people now who chose the lifestyle of a slave to provide playthings for every Lord and Lady. The profit that came from kidnapping and selling women and men from the streets, however, was too much for many members of the organization to want to give up. Soto had distanced himself from them when he realized that his colleagues were going to continue to trade in innocent lives. That was why he had not known that the slave market was occurring so close to his estate this year. He maintained ties to a few of his closer friends within the organization but none of them had much to do with the market anymore either. It had come a long way from what it was intended to be. 

On every side of him naked slaves were tethered. To his right a pretty girl with long red hair and very white skin had been bound to a heavy wooden wheel. As the wheel spun, a man in leather lashed her with a bullwhip, paying no attention to her cries of pain. He brought the wheel to a stop when the slave girl's head was pointing to the ground and fumbled at the fly of his leather pants. He presented his erect cock to the girl and she opened her mouth obediently. Soto walked away, looking closely at each stall he passed. He hoped that he would not find Irena here. He hoped that he would get a phone call several hours from now saying that she had made it safely back to school and that he was acting like a controlling asshole. But he had this feeling. A lone girl wandering down the side of the road would have been the perfect target for any of the kidnappers who were in town to supply the market. Soto was just about to turn down the next row when a voice he hadn't heard in three years said, "Antonio Soto. Where have you been hiding yourself?"

*****************

Irena wasn't sure how long she had been standing there chained to the post in front of Bennie's stall. He had made Victoria blindfold her after he had caught her trying to figure out a way to undo the lock which secured the chain threaded through her collar to the post to which she had been leashed. Her hands had been bound behind her back in such a way as to make her breasts stand out, and strange hands touched her as people passed among the stalls looking at the wares. A few times her nipples had been harshly pinched and her breasts and belly slapped. Bennie allowed some of this to pass unmentioned but if the hands began getting overly familiar he would shout "No money, no fun!"

Every now and again Irena would get the feeling, even through her blindfold that someone was standing in front of her, inspecting her. These occasions frightened her more than the casual groping she had been steadily experiencing for the last hour. The men who stopped in front of her wouldn't touch, at least not at first. They'd call to Bennie, enquire calmly about Irena's origins (which Bennie fabricated), ask what training she had already experienced, and casually drop the question of how much Bennie was planning on charging for this reluctant little slave girl. Irena had strained her ears to listen to these encounters, her heart thudding and her stomach cramping into knots as she wondered if this would be the one who would buy her. What would she do if she was sold? Maybe she could manage to somehow overpower her new owner and find her way to a phone. The price Bennie was asking seemed to be too high for these men, however. After some haggling they had all walked away from the stall, most of them them making sounds of exasperation at Bennie's stubbornness. Irena considered herself lucky that Bennie seemed to be shooting too high. Perhaps no one would buy her and he'd just turn her loose in disgust.

Just as Irena began to immerse herself in that comfortable fantasy, she sensed one of those presences before her. Someone was standing right in front of her, staring at her. In the darkness she fancied that she could almost feel eyes boring into her. A voice, softly accented by some Eastern European patois said, "This one looks like she's a step above your usual selection of meth heads and street whores, Bennie. Where did you find her?"

"Yuri!" Bennie cried, his voice all delight. "I haven't seen you around for awhile!"

"I've been obliged to be out of the country on business."

"Getting ready to bring in a fresh crop of devushkas for the next World's Market, huh?"

There was a moment's chilly silence. Irena frowned. What the hell did that mean? "You're just as discrete as I remember." said the man in front of her, sounding a bit disgusted. 

"I'd just like to see a piece of the action if what I hear about your overseas ventures is true."

"And what do you know about my business ventures?"

"Enough."

"We're going to have to discuss this matter privately in the near future, Bennie. What I'd like to enquire about now, however, is how much you're asking for this pretty little thing." A hand, warm and dry with long tapered fingers stroked Irena lightly, caressing between her breasts and gliding briefly over her nipples. She flinched, goose flesh rising wherever his hand had been. Her nipples were pinched hard, first one and then the other and she groaned, unable to help herself. Her body had been denied orgasm over and over, so at this point any touch, no matter how unwelcome, was almost more than she could bear. "She's quite responsive." The hand glided over her belly and then dipped between her legs. A finger broached her opening for the barest second before being withdrawn. Nonetheless, when that single finger touched her Irena jerked against her chain as if she had been electrified, the barest breath away from coming. She managed to stop herself from crying out, but it was a close thing. The man in front of her gave a delighted laugh. "What a hungry little thing you are." Irena's cheeks flushed bright red and for the first time anger began to eclipse her fear. For some reason this man was worse than all the others. Out of all of them he was the only one who seemed to approach this whole thing as a joke.

"Fifteen thousand US. I know you like the raw ones Yuri. This little girl is completely untrained." There was a pause and then Bennie lowered his voice conspiratorially. "To tell the truth, a contact of mine picked her up off the side of the road about three hours ago. If you're looking for fresh, this is as good as you're going to get."

"I'll give you eight thousand."

"Not a chance. Twelve thousand, firm."

"Thirteen thousand, but I get to sample her first. If I'm satisfied I'll take her, if not, you can try to pawn her off to someone else at that ridiculous price.

"I'm not going to let someone fuck the merchandise before it's paid for. Hands and toys only."

"Then you can forget about it. There was a girl at Abdul's stall I liked better than this one anyway." She heard the sound of footsteps beginning to walk away and relaxed. 

"Wait!" Bennie cried. "You can take Victoria while you play with the new girl. She's well trained. She'll do whatever you want."

"Which one is Victoria?"

"The one standing against the wall with the long brown hair."

There were several moments of considering silence. Irena couldn't bring herself to breathe. At last the man said "She's pretty enough. And I can do whatever I want to her?"

Bennie gave a short laugh. "Just as long as you don't put her in the hospital Yuri. I know your reputation."

The potential purchaser also gave a laugh, a single sharp cold bark. The sound of it made Irena's body temperature plummet. He said, "I think I can manage that."

"So, we have a deal?"

"It appears that we do."

There was the sound of palms slapping together, Yuri and Bennie shaking hands. "You've got an hour," Bennie said. "There's a tent set up in the back. Everything you need should be in there."

*****************




Irena Goes to Market



Soto turned around and came face to face with a woman he hadn't seen in ten years. "Ophelia." He said, taking care to keep his voice devoid of all inflection. He felt both hot and cold and knew that his cheeks were coloring. He hadn't seen her in a decade but the sound of her voice still had that much of an effect on him. She was the only woman who could make him feel like that. His feelings for Irena were deeper and more intense than those he had had for her, but was that really any surprise when their temperaments had turned out to be so incompatible? Ophelia was the woman who had introduced him to what it was like to be a Master and she had done it by showing him how to be a slave. She had been his Mistress, the first to educate him in the arts of pain and pleasure. Their relationship had ended two years after it began, when it had become impossible to ignore the fact that Soto's nature was far from submissive. Their love making had become a battle of wills and eventually they had both come to the decision that it would be best to end it.

"Is that any way to greet an old friend?" Ophelia said, wagging a finger at him.

"I'm sorry," Soto replied, the color in his cheeks deepening. "I have a lot on my mind right now. If you'll excuse me, I'd love to talk later." He fumbled through his pockets, extracted a business card and handed it to Ophelia. She took it, glanced at it, and then let it fall to the floor. 

"Since when have you been so rude? We haven't seen each other in ten years and you brush me off with a business card."

Soto stopped and took several deep breaths to calm himself. He wouldn't do Irena any good by going around in this frenzy. He also owed his mentor a good deal more than a brushing off. Who knew, she might even be able to help him. Ophelia had once been very important to the Society. After he deemed himself sufficiently composed, Soto straightened up and faced his former Mistress. The years that had passed seemed to have sharpened her beauty rather than dulled it. Her face was lined now, it was true, but that simply gave her features greater depth of expression. Her long black hair was streaked with silver in places but she obviously had no need to dye it. It had been wound into an elaborate knot at the top of her head as Soto had seen her wear it a thousand times before. Her eyes were the same too, a strange hazel color that shifted from brown to green with her changing expression. A single look from those eyes had once had the power to stop him in his tracks. 

"Please forgive my rudeness. I'm not in my right mind at the moment."

"Well, that's obvious. What's the matter?"

"I'm going through something of a crisis." Soto wondered for a moment if he should tell her about Irena, thinking that perhaps Ophelia would be jealous, but then he dismissed the notion. They had been separated for ten years and Ophelia was not the type of woman to pine for impossible loves. "I've lost my ward."

"Your what?" Ophelia raised one perfectly shaped eyebrow at him.

"Would you mind if we talked somewhere more private?"

"They have a bar set up in that corner," Ophelia said, gesturing towards a red and white striped tent nearby. "We can have a drink."

Soto glanced at his watch. Most of him was of the opinion that he should just blow off Ophelia and go on frantically searching the stalls for Irena. But there were hundreds of them. She could be anywhere, and he was no longer familiar with the market. He didn't know the reputable dealers from the criminal ones, the kidnappers, but perhaps Ophelia did. 

"One drink," Soto said, heading for the tent. "I think that I need your help."

Ophelia trailed after him, looking curious. "This has certainly turned out to be an eventful day. You were the last person I was expecting to run into here." She paused and then said pointedly, "You're not exactly very popular anymore."

"How would you know?" Soto asked, ducking through the opening of the tent and taking a seat at a vacant table in the very back. He gestured to the barmaid, a naked slave girl with dark brown skin and black hair so long that it fell to her hips. "Two Patrons on the rocks please. With salt." The girl bowed and went off to get their drinks. 

"You remember what I like."

"You were the one who taught me how to drink tequila, remember?"

Ophelia laughed and the sound of it took him back ten years. "I'm sorry that I haven't made more of an effort to keep in touch," she said. "I've been busy for the past decade." She laughed again and the barmaid returned with their drinks. Ophelia traced her finger around the rim of her glass and then licked away the salt that had collected there, sucking at her finger. It was a consciously sensual gesture, meant to entice him. She wanted to see how he would react. If the truth were told, he did feel a fleeting lust, but it was erased almost immediately by his concern for Irena. He loved Irena. It was not a word that was spoken often between them, but he had never felt as strongly and as passionately for anyone as he did for Irena. He would protect her if it cost him his life. 

"Don't worry about it," Soto said, keeping his voice nonchalant, bland, letting her know that her little test had failed to arouse him. "I wasn't exactly hounding you, myself. Sometimes people just drift in their own separate ways." He took a sip of tequila.

"And sometimes they run into each other again when they least expect it." Ophelia clinked her glass against his and took a long sip. "Now, what is it that you think you need my help with?"

********************

Irena had been led, still blindfolded, into what she could only assume to be the tent which Bennie had spoken of. Then she had been left there alone, presumably while Yuri did whatever it was he thought necessary to prepare himself for the activities ahead. She felt numb. Her mind had gone into self defense mode and she had come a long way towards convincing herself that all of this was just a vivid nightmare like those which had plagued her when she first arrived in Soto's household. Soto. She had never wanted to see anyone so badly in her life. Their argument had been petty, stupid, but now all she wanted was to be in his arms again. However, that didn't look like it was going to happen. She was on her own. She had no idea where she had been taken, so how was Soto supposed to find her? What if he didn't even try to find her? 

Someone came into the tent. She heard the rustle of canvas as the flap was pulled back and then sensed someone standing before her. The blindfold was removed. Standing before her was Victoria, with a look of carefully controlled terror upon her face. "He'll be here in a few seconds," she said, her voice low and urgent. "Please don't fight him. I've heard Master Bennie talking about this man. There's a rumor that he once punished a slave so badly that she ended up in the hospital for a month."

Irena tried to say something, forgetting that she was still wearing the ball gag, but before she could begin to make herself understood, the tent flap folded back once more and a man stepped through it. He was very tall and although he was wearing a dark tailored suit, his muscles were clearly visible through the thick material. He looked like he was about forty years of age, but he had silver hair, cropped close to his head, and his face was very handsome, the lines on it making him look severe and dignified. His eyes were a blue so pale that it was almost grey and they looked at her with an expression of satisfaction. 

"Hello, devotchka," he said. His voice was low, but she could hear it quite well even over the rumbling of the market outside the tent. Victoria was standing next to her, entire body rigid, eyes pointed resolutely at a spot a few feet to the left of Yuri's head. He strode over to where they stood and, acting as if Victoria weren't even there, he cupped Irena's chin in his palm, raising it so that she was forced to look into his face. "What a pretty little thing you are. If I take out the gag, are you going to be quiet?" Irena gave no indication that she heard him, but her heart was hammering so fast in her chest that she wondered if he could see her pulse leaping. Yuri smiled and released her chin. Then he reached down, and folded the slick mound of her vulva into his palm. Irena jerked, tried to back away from him, but her curled an arm around her waist and pulled her close. His breath whispered against her cheek as he said, "I'm going to take out this gag now because I want a look at your mouth. If you speak without permission I will punish you." There was no threat in his voice, but it was the voice of a man who was unaccustomed to being disobeyed. Irena forced herself to hold still as he reached behind her head and unbuckled the gag. Despite her fear, the sensation of finally being able to close her mouth was wonderful.

She thought about shouting at him, about telling him that she already had a Master and that if Yuri so much as touched her, Soto would tear him into a million pieces, but she kept her mouth shut. Shouting would get her nowhere. Not when her hands were bound and several people were available to overpower her should she decide to start a physical struggle. To compromise, she glared at him, putting as much of her anger and loathing into the expression as she could manage. Yuri laughed. "You're furious, aren't you?" He gave Irena's ass a resounding smack. It startled a cry out of her and she tried to back away, only to feel her back press up against the soft swell of Victoria's breasts. The girl's hands first steadied her and then gave her a gentle shove back towards Yuri. 

He pulled her against him so that her breasts pressed against the fabric of his sports coat. His hands glided down her back and then he was cupping her buttocks, squeezing and pinching them as if testing her flesh for tenderness. Then he brought his mouth down on hers. The kiss made no attempt at finesse or seduction. It was as if he were tasting her and claiming her at one in the same time. His tongue roughly stroked hers, and swirled around the inside of her mouth, leaving nowhere untouched. Irena tried to pull away, to fight, but she was trapped between Yuri and Victoria and the best she could do was squirm ineffectually. The hell of it was that despite its brutality and unfamiliarity, the kiss was acting on her in a very primal way. Victoria had aroused her body so thoroughly that it was impossible for it not to respond to what was being done to it. Her body yearned for the kiss just as her mind rebelled against it, and it was this opposition more than anything else that made her begin to cry again. Yuri broke the kiss and brought a finger up to brush away the tears as they fell. "Don't cry, devotchka. I'll take good care of you." There was a pause and Irena got the feeling that it was deliberate. "Unless you misbehave. If you do that I'm afraid I might have to do a lot more than make you cry." He reached past Irena and touched Victoria on the shoulder. "Girl. Go get some toys for me to use."

"What would you like, Sir?" Victoria asked, her voice once more devoid of all inflection.

"It doesn't matter. But bring me a paddle." Victoria bowed low to show she understood and then went to fish around in a large wooden chest at the back of the tent. She returned with two paddles, one leather and one wood. She also had brought two dildos, both of them glass, both of them larger than any toy she and Soto had ever experimented with. Irena felt herself break into a sweat as she looked at the toys even as her pussy gave a throb of desire. Yuri picked up the wooden paddle. "I think that this girl needs some softening, don't you, Victoria?"

"Yes Master."

"Bend her over for me. Make sure that she doesn't squirm too much." 

"Yes Master."

Yuri let go of Irena and pushed her towards Victoria, who caught her and then applied gentle pressure at the nape of her neck. Irena bent, knowing she had no choice. She could feel Yuri's eyes on her, taking in this new angle. "What a sweet little pussy." He reached out and stroked the body part in question, circling her clit with one finger and then plunging inside of her. He pumped his finger in and out a few times and then laughed. "Bennie wasn't joking when he said you were fresh. Very tight, and you're so wet already. Have you been having a good time?" Irena moaned in answer. It was all she could do. Yuri's caresses had sent her to the brink of orgasm once again. Another stroke of his finger across her clit was all that it would take to send her over the edge. But then he removed his finger and Irena moaned even louder. "Hold her steady," Yuri said, and he shrugged off his suit jacket. "I want to see how much pain she can take."

Victoria tightened her hold on Irena and a few seconds later she felt the first blow of the paddle. The beating went on for a long time. Irena had always had a high tolerance for pain and no matter how much she writhed, how loudly she sobbed, Yuri seemed to intuit exactly how far she was from breaking point. As the smacks grew faster and harder and her sobbing metamorphosed into broken screams, Irena marveled that anyone could have so much strength in their arm. He stopped only when she was past the point of screams, past the point of struggle, when she could only lie there with her head cradled between Victoria's breasts and sob. He delivered one final hard smack and then she heard the sound of the paddle being put down. He stroked her ass gently, tracing the welts, and even that light touch made her flinch. "A very high tolerance for pain," Yuri said, musing. "My kind of girl. Now, let's see how you deal with pleasure." 

The cold glass tip of one of the dildo's pressed briefly against Irena's opening and then it slipped inside. It was big, so big that it stretched her to the point of pain, but still the pleasure was there, and as Yuri began to work it in and out she couldn't help but moan and wriggle her hips. "Mmm, you like this, don't you girl?" He worked the dildo faster. Irena could feel moisture beginning to drip down from between her legs. "Girl," he said, addressing Victoria. "Come kneel in front of me."

She did as he asked, releasing Irena and moving to get on her knees in front of Yuri. Irena remained as she was, paralyzed by the pain/pleasure being inflicted upon her by the dildo. She craned her head and saw Victoria unzip the fly of Yuri's pants. She fumbled with his underwear for a moment and then pulled out his half-erect cock. It was perhaps not as long as Soto's but it was incredibly thick and it came to life as Victoria began to stroke it. "Don't just play with it silly girl, Use your mouth." Victoria did as she was told. She took the head of Yuri's cock into her mouth and began to suck it. In response, the speed and ferocity of the dildo inside of her increased. Yuri moaned softly. "Bennie trained you well, girl." 

As Victoria's head bobbed back and forth over Yuri's cock he continued to fuck Irena with the dildo, every now and again slowing its movement until she moaned and raised her hips instinctively, begging for more. It fit quite easily now. The pain had been surmounted by the pleasure. Even the throbbing of her bruised and welted ass could not overwhelm the sensations going through her. The dildo was removed, only to be replaced a second later by two of Yuri's fingers. He curled them upwards in a come-hither gesture and began to move them rapidly up and down. The gesture hit her g-spot in just the right place and Irena gave a cry of helpless pleasure. "I want to feel you come all over me," Yuri rasped, his voice labored now under Victoria's continuing ministrations. "Show me how hard you can come, devotchka."

Irena had no choice but to obey him. She felt her insides begin to tighten and coil and then everything exploded. As his fingers ground against her she began shudder and jerk. She screamed, a broken, desperate wail of mixed pleasure and despair. Her inner muscles contracted wildly around his fingers and she felt moisture squirting out of her and pattering on the floor. Soto had been working with her on learning how to squirt and now it was working. She hated it, hated that she couldn't stop the rush of fluid that made it impossible to hide her pleasure. When the orgasm had finally tapered off into aftershocks Yuri removed his hand. Irena sank to her knees and then curled up on the floor, wrapping her arms about herself to try and stop the sporadic waves of pleasure that were still pulsing through her. She watched as Yuri tangled his hands in Victoria's hair and began to push her head back and forth until she was sucking him at a speed which suited him. He forced her to take all of him into her throat, pushing until she gagged, giving her a temporary reprieve and then sheathing himself in her once again. He moaned, gasped, seemed on the verge of coming, and then pushed Victoria away. The force of the push sent her to the floor and she cried out softly. "Good girl," Yuri gasped, grabbing his cock and stroking it a few times with one of his own hands. "Thank you for getting me ready for the main event."

"What do you mean sir?" Victoria asked, her voice shaking.

"I'm not spending money on this girl until I see how she fucks. Now move her into position." 

"But Master Bennie said—" 

Yuri raised his hand and cut off the rest of her sentence with a hard smack on the ass. "I don't give a damn what your Master said, girl. Do as I say."

"But—" There was another resounding smack and Victoria yelped. 

"Get her on all fours, girl, or you're going to have a lot more to worry about than Bennie's temper."

"Yes Sir," Victoria said, her voice muted and reluctant. She crawled over to where Irena lay and whispered in her ear. "I'm sorry. I can't stop him. Please just cooperate and it'll be over soon." Irena could only lay there, her arms curled around herself and her legs drawn up to her chest. She didn't resist as Victoria began to unwrap her limbs. The girl was right. If she didn't fight it would all be over soon. Her tears returned. She had learned to revel in being made helpless, but this was different. This was not her will, and her body didn't seem to care.

"Hurry up," Yuri said. Irena allowed herself to be coaxed into position on her hands and knees, legs spread wide apart. Yuri walked over and stroked her clit. His cock brushed against one of her thighs and she jumped. She began to cry harder. "Don't worry devotchka," Yuri crooned, stroking her hair. "I'm going to give you the ride of your life." 

"No, you're not." A voice sounded from the entrance of the tent. It was pitched low, but it carried perfectly. It was a familiar voice, a beloved one, but now it was full of the blackest rage, carefully controlled. "Get the fuck away from her Yuri."

**************

Soto had to stop himself from reaching into the breast pocket of his suit and using the .45 he had there to put a bullet through Yuri's skull. He had not really expected to find Irena in the market, but now that he saw her like this, naked, humbled and trembling at the hands of another man, his rage could barely be contained. Ophelia had been quite helpful. She had known exactly who to investigate because in recent years she had been made head of a task force in charge of weeding some of the corruption out of the Society. This was the third stall they had come to, and Soto had almost believed the proprietor when he had said he hadn't seen a girl matching Irena's description all day. Almost. There had been a flicker in his eyes that Soto hadn't trusted. It had taken him only a few minutes to get the truth out of the man. He was a coward and Soto was very good at the arts of persuasion. The stall owner, who had said his name was Bennie, was now in the custody of Ophelia, who had some very pointed questions to ask him about his business ethics. 




Irena Goes to Market



He had pointed Soto to this tent and said that he had just sent a girl matching Irena's description to it with a prospective client. Approaching the tent, images of Irena being raped and beaten assailed him and he was infuriated beyond reason to discover that his fevered imaginings had been so close to the truth. At least he had arrived on time to prevent the bastard from fucking her. There was that much to be thankful for. 

"Antonio Soto," said Yuri conversationally, tucking his cock back into his pants as he turned to face the tent's entrance. He rested a hand on Irena's bent back and Soto wanted to knock it away, but he stopped himself. She didn't seem to be hurt badly, although her ass was so severely welted that the skin had broken in a few places. 

"This is rather an awkward time to renew our acquaintance, don't you think."

"I am not renewing anything. Take your hands off of that girl."

"But I'm not finished with her yet."

"Yes you are."

"What claim do you have on her, Soto? Do you happen to have your owner's papers with you?"

"She's mine."

"Not anymore. I've taken a fancy to her, Soto." Yuri grinned, the same infuriating grin he had always used when trying to enrage his business opponents into doing something they would later regret. He remembered it well from when they had once done business together but Soto did not allow it to get to him. "I struck a deal with Bennie. The girl is as good as mine. All I have to do is sign the papers."

"I'm not yours." It was Irena's voice, low and strained, but full of that same stubborn courage that he had always loved. "Antonio Soto is my rightful master. You're just a criminal. And a rapist." She shot to her feet suddenly as if she wanted to run to Soto, but Yuri grabbed her by the hair and pulled her back. She screamed. Before Soto realized what he was doing, he pulled his gun out of its holster and pointed it at Yuri's face. 

"Get your hands off of her Yuri. I'm not going to ask you again." 

"You're really serious, aren't you?" Yuri looked from Soto's face to the muzzle of the gun, which was still pointing at his forehead.

"Yes."

"Well, no piece of ass is worth a bullet," He turned and stared down at Irena and the hungry expression on his face when he did so made Soto want to pull the trigger. "Take her if she means that much to you. There are other girls. This one for instance." He gestured to a girl Soto had barely noticed and who was now crouching terrified in the corner of the tent. "She has quite a skillful mouth." 

"No." Irena said. She wrenched herself away from Yuri and went to stand by Soto's side. Even in her distress he could not stop himself from marveling at her naked, vulnerable beauty. "Please Antonio," she said. "Let's take Victoria with us."

"Who?"

"The girl. She was kind to me. We can't leave her here."

"Irena—"

"Please. We have to help her." He looked into Irena's wide blue eyes. Then he looked over at the girl. She was staring at him with the expression of doe when it is caught in the headlights of an oncoming car. He took in the faint scars which marred her back and breasts, legacy of too many floggings. She was one of those girls who had been broken. Pity ate at him. 

"Alright, Irena. We'll find a place for her. Now let's get out of here." He lowered his gun and Yuri stepped back, looking at them through narrowed eyes.

"I'm not going to forget about this Soto," he said, and there was no humor in his voice. Without another word, Yuri turned on his heel and walked out of the tent. Soto stowed his gun back inside of its holster. 

"I'm sure that you won't," Soto said softly, and he took off his coat, draping it around Irena's shoulders. "Come with us Victoria," he said, offering the girl his hand. She stared at him for a moment as if afraid that he would suddenly pull back and hit her, but then she placed her hand in his. "Is there anything you can wear?" he asked gently. 

"Master Bennie keeps some costumes in that chest." Soto walked over to the chest in question and pulled out a long black cloak. He draped it around Victoria's shoulders and the expression of gratitude on her face when he did so made it clear that she hadn't been allowed the luxury of clothing herself for a long time. He turned back to Irena. He simply looked at her for a moment and then folded her into his arms. She collapsed against him, beginning to cry very softly against his chest. He stroked her hair softly and kissed the top of her head. 

"I'm sorry," Irena said. 

"For what?" Soto asked, leading her out of the tent with Victoria trailing behind them.

"For walking out on you."

Soto had almost forgotten about their argument. He kissed Irena once more. "Don't worry about it."

"I love you," she said. He kissed her again.

"I love you too," he replied. He held her close against him knowing as he did so that the events of this day had changed their relationship forever. Right now he didn't care. Right now it was enough to be able to hold her in his arms again. "Let's go home."

The End