The next morning after feeding Rae, Stefan put a blindfold over her eyes, suspended her from a hook in the low ceiling and left her there till noon. Her feet touched the floor, she was glad of that. And it let her skin heal; Inge felt she had been punished enough for now.
She hung quietly, her hands over her head, in the cellar listening to sounds above her. Someone in the kitchen walking around, opening the refrigerator, making breakfast no doubt.
It was generous of him to feed her first; he took care of his stock, he was a good master.
The scraping of chairs; two people having their meal together. A happy couple, that was nice.
The blindfold concentrated her senses. And it emphasized her helplessness, part of her training she supposed.
She felt the yellow ribbon around her neck; it had not come off during the night. She was proud of it and grateful to her owners for training her. It would increase her value too.
She wondered who would buy her. The obvious candidate was a brothel. Or a wealthy gentleman, a collector adding to his harem. A college fraternity, kept as a plaything. A medical school for experiments or dissection? She hoped they would use her first; it would be such a waste if they did not.
She thought about the boy Kurt; how thoroughly he questioned and inspected her after the thrashing. He was a natural master; Maya was in good hands. And that was such a clever trick with Laura on the sidewalk.
Perhaps someday she would be in his care for instruction or punishment. Say, if she needed another thrashing; her brothers might be busy and Stefan could show him how.
She would benefit from the exercise and it would "decorate" (Inge's word) her body with a new set of red marks, bold and fresh; some buyers liked that.
At noon Inge took her down to use the toilet and put her back. She replaced the blindfold and gave Rae some water from a bottle before leaving her till dinnertime when they fed her and let her lie on the stone floor for the night.
Suspended again the next day, about mid-morning she heard sounds on the stairs; people descending. Stefan removed her blindfold and she saw the boy at her old office standing next to a mature woman.
Inge arrived a moment later and Stefan introduced her to Mrs. Roos and her son Alistair. The lady was on a buying trip for a Miami "gentlemen's club" and the boy mentioned Rae to her.
Already Rae was a little excited to see him again; she had tried to tempt him at work for months but he never took the bait until he saw her on her leash naked. Maybe now, displayed before him like this she might have more luck.
She looked down demurely to hide her growing excitement when the woman told him to "try her out".
He brushed her nipples to make them rise and moved down. She began to pant. He left his hand on her belly for a moment while the other stroked her rear.
It was too much. Already tense with anticipation, she gave way and began to come even before he reached between her legs.
"That's enough," said his mother. He stepped back and they viewed her, now crying from disappointed hopes.
"We need something with a little more self-control." She turned away and the party went upstairs.
She had failed, no doubt about that. Taken by surprise and ignorant of what the buyer wanted, she disappointed everyone: Mrs. Roos, her owners, herself.
She failed again the next day when Stefan showed her to a man from Chicago. He wore a suit and was very distinguished looking with silver gray hair and a pencil moustache. Rae was a little afraid of him but put on her best appearance, standing straight and pulling her shoulders back to show off her breasts for him.
He looked her over closely and walked around her for a minute or more. But he never touched her and in the end shook his head no.
That evening, Stefan and Inge discussed the problem when they came down to feed her. They would try once more.
Inge suggested they display her in the parlor upstairs, a more attractive setting than the cellar. Stefan agreed.
As she lay on the floor for the night, Rae anticipated her third chance. She knew she would not get a fourth.
She had to succeed this time; the alternative was the garrote and the renderer. That was becoming more likely.
She began to form a desperate resolution. It might work, she had nothing to lose, she would try it. Comforted by the plan, she laid her head down on the floor and slept.
The next morning Stefan came for her in the cellar. She tried to stifle her apprehension, but without success. He noticed and patted her on the head before pouring out a bowl of feed. She was grateful to him for the friendly gesture; and something to eat - but not too much - would help to calm her for the ordeal she must undergo.
She reminded herself that she would be guided and controlled every step of the way. And that whatever happened, it would soon be over.
He led her upstairs and along a wide hallway to the front parlor.
In all her weeks as a guest here Rae had never been allowed in the parlor. It was a high-ceilinged room with tall windows, a polished wood floor, upholstered chairs and mirrors on the walls. In the center above them was a large steel hook. An incongruous sight if you looked up, it was put in last year for a girl too tall to hang in the low cellar.
Inge and Kurt were waiting for them. They suspended Rae by her bracelets and Stefan explained for the boy.
