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Teaching her a lesson 092
At least it allowed me to let that grimace out. Man, that notification sure had touched a nerve. I wondered why -- not like she hadn't been laughing and smiling at my story of this morning's fantasy antics. Nor was she a fan of Taylor. Hell, she'd tased her out of raw spite. Hmm. Ah well. My hands, programmed by the engineers of Apple, opened the text of their own accord. There was a pic of Taylor. She looked to be standing in Megan's living room. Her shirt was drawn up over her breasts. She was still wearing the bikini from earlier, technically, but it was pulled down beneath them. There was a message accompanying it. abbie said to send this, so... your welcome. I admired the picture for a moment. You're*, I replied cattily. I know. She also said to misspell it so you could get that grammar-correcting high. I listened toward the kitchen, but this time, their voices were too low to overhear. I hoped I hadn't somehow spoiled the mood. Was it simply getting a text at the table? Some
Teaching her a lesson 093
"Tell you what," I said, smiling. "Why don't you go give Isa a hand, and while you're at it, find something sexy to put on, too? That way you'll look like a proper couple." Candy looked up. "Oh, I don't think little old me is going to hold a candle to our girl. Now seriously, if you don't pick up that fork soon, I'm going to think you're trying to hurt my feelings." I disregarded her goading. "Do I have to beg again?" I made the same prayer gesture as I had to Isa. "Didn't we toast to juicy secrets? Give me something to keep my mouth shut about. Please?" Her eyes narrowed for a moment, but finally she set down her fork and removed her napkin from her lap with a curt smile. "Oh, I suppose it couldn't hurt. But when we get back, I want a report on that gravy, Mister. And then, if you've been a good boy, maybe we'll give you your dessert a little early. OK?" "Race you!" I scooped a huge bite of the garlic mash, gravy dribbling down the sides. "You're on!" Candy giggled and darted ou
Teaching her a lesson 094
Shantel... could that be her lab buddy? It would seem so -- at least someone who'd given them insights into Serenex's workings. No going back? So it was permanent, then. That was simultaneously comforting and yet confusing. How had Isa and Candy gotten out of it, then? Candy shrugged. "Oh, who cares. The whole point of this is to neuter the sick fuck, isn't it?" Oh FUCK let that be metaphorical. "After what he's done to those girls, I could give two shits if that's because we tell him to leave them the fuck alone or we turn his ass into a vegetable." "We're not having this pointless discussion again. We'll do what we have to, what we can do, and then we'll figure out how to fix the girls and that neighbor lady of his. But you know I have to keep the sonofabitch safe." "His 'protector' to the end, eh," grumbled Candy. This was protecting me?! "I don't have a choice. I didn't give you shit about fucking Abbie Stern." "Yes you did! You so did!" "Well, not for very long." She shrugg
Teaching her a lesson 095
So maybe this level of deception, that goddamn mystery gravy, made some sense at least. Still, what I couldn't wrap my mind around was the happiness clause. There simply wasn't any way one could think that tricking me, drugging me, ending my sex life and stealing my Serenex would make me happy. The command had to have been working, right? She'd been so free with her nudity, seemed so preoccupied with pleasing me. Had that all been an act? My capacity to read body language seemed to dull when the body was gorgeous and naked, it seemed. I thought back to what they'd discussed earlier, about seducing me into giving up the Serenex. Not how someone who was trying to make me happy would describe it at all. But that made no sense. I'd seen her standing there slack-jawed beside Megan and Cassie when I ran into my yard that day! She'd sat while I programmed her and Megan for hours, glassy-eyed and barely responsive... With the same exact expression I'd had when they found me, supposedly full
Teaching her a lesson 096
"All right. Now it's moment of truth time. Into the kitchen, asshole," ordered Isa. The two of them followed me in. I thought of the big gob of drug-laden potatoes in the trash and hoped they'd buried it under their own leavings. Isa's arms were folded behind her back; I didn't know if she had the taser with her or not. Candy squeezed past me and opened a cabinet next to the microwave. The lower section contained a spice rack, its contents neatly organized save for a few bits still sitting out on the counter. The upper shelf held cooking sprays, wooden skewers, baking soda, a plastic bottle of honey shaped like a bear, and, buried in the back, my canister of Serenex. She had to stretch to pull it down, but she managed. The two of them drew close, pinning me between them right up against the sink. I read the room. They'd gotten what they needed out of my Serenex, neutralizing me completely. Nothing left for them to do now but deprive me of the rest of it. Shit, these bitches were goi
Teaching her a lesson 097
During the summer months, it was easy for a single teacher's house to transition from a comforting retreat into a self-imposed prison. On the weekends, I still got out to see my friends, and otherwise there was the occasional errand to run, but as time passed, time increasingly lost meaning. Grocery shopping was as likely to happen at 3 AM as it was during daylight hours. It was liberating, in a sense, but simultaneously disorienting. One year I had managed to land a summer school position to help keep me grounded, but the others, I had needed to adapt on my own. One of those adaptations had been Baxton Park. It was a decently sized public park, mostly a softball field and open grass but with a few pavilions and a wooded area at the east end. Squirrels and birds were in abundance, along with the occasional sighting of a raccoon or a hawk. One day, simply to be out of the house for a while, I took my lunch there and ate it sitting on a small grassy hill overlooking the field, leaning
Teaching her a lesson 098
Come on, come on, pick up pick up pick up! "Hello?" "Candace! Oh thank-" "What in the name of all that's unholy are you calling me for at this hour, Canon?" "Look, I know it's late, I'm sorry, but-" "Late? Christ, it's after two! You have some nerve." "I really am sorry, I swear. Now just shut up and listen to me - there isn't much-" "Did you tell me to shut up? Don't youdare tell me what to do, buster! After what you pulled, you're lucky you aren't on your way to prison. Believe me, if we could have found a way, you would be." "Yes, you made that very clear earlier, and I didn't mean to be rude, but please if you'll hear me out for just a-" "Great, now you woke Isa." Her voice through the phone was suddenly muffled. "No, mama, it's that asshole again... Idid have it on vibrate, but he must have called a hundred times... We can't tell him to go fuck himself, because he might actually try to do it... I know you meant it metaphorically-" "Figuratively," I mumbled. " -but mayb
Teaching her a lesson 099
Candy returned. "We're handling this. You stay wherever the fuck you are, hear me? So help me, if you already found a way to slither out of this, I won't be able to rein Isa in next time. I don't think I'd even try." "Paranoid much? God, Candace, I... ya know, fine. I won't call again, but keep me in the loop, OK? I'm halfway to shitting myself over this. Promise me you'll tell me once everything is under control." "We're going to get them back under theirown control, Canon. Don't you worry." "I don't care about any of that any more. I just don't want anyone to... crap, I'm repeating myself. Let me know? And... you know. You two be careful too." "Yeah." The phone went dead. Minutes passed like hours. Candy had said don't call, but she hadn't said don't text. I could still do that without letting her know her plan had failed as badly as mine. I know you said not to call, but... anything yet? Don't be a little bitch. Candace is seeing if they're parked on the street. Might be l
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