Chapter Twenty
Laid Bare
The softball coach beckoned Dinah to follow. And despite every part of her brain telling her that it was a bad idea, Dinah followed.
Lilith led Dinah further into the depths of the Brotherhood stronghold, taking them down a hallway behind the main staircase. Dinah kept some distance, her eyes laser-focused on her guide's back. Much of it was exposed thanks to her backless dress and Dinah watched as the toned muscles worked and shifted beneath her smooth skin. And lower, Dinah noted how pleasantly the red silk conformed to the firm swells of her hips and ass.
Every woman the Brotherhood ensnares looks like a goddamn supermodel...
They continued down the hidden hallway. It was dimly lit by candles held upon sconces, every flicker of those tiny flames causing the shadows to waver and contract. It made Dinah feel like she was surrounded, thin figures of darkness hidden in the walls, waiting for their moment to strike. The portraits that lined the walls didn't help things, either.
They were paintings of men, Dinah noted. Some were old, with weathered faces and wrinkled hair. Others were grown men, with hard, masculine features. But they all possessed the same kind of eyes: Hungry. Ambitious.
Possessive.
Like they owned everything in the room... And
everyone
.
Some of the paintings looked to be pretty old. As in,
last century
old. The implication of that did not sit well with Dinah at all. Barbara had told her that the Kingston Brotherhood was long-lived as a secret boys' club. But the blonde brawler hadn't paid that any mind at the time. Now? Every step she took further into the Brotherhood's shadow made Dinah grow that much more anxious.
Finally, Lilith brought Dinah to a black-painted door. The Brotherhood thrall threw Dinah a warm smile and opened it... revealing a bedroom. Same as the hallway, it was candlelit and cast with a warm but dim glow. But the candles were not what caught Dinah's eye.
The blonde's focus was drawn to the bed. Not the bed itself - though it
was
an impressive four-poster with pink silk drapes hanging from its wooden canopy - but rather the clothing that was laid out upon it.
Dinah stared at the garb that sat waiting upon the bed. The blonde tried to think of something snarky to say, to even have a thought of defiance. But there was nothing but numb resignation. This was happening. This was
real.
The sound of the bedroom door closing shut took Dinah by surprise, making her flinch. She felt a heat burn across her cheeks, some of it from embarrassment but mostly from anger at herself. The Black Canary was the hardest, toughest honey in Gotham. And she had almost squealed like some bimbo in a cheap horror flick.
Lilith came around and stood by the bed, still smiling. Dinah was starting to get sick of the smiling.
The softball coach gestured towards the clothing on the bed, but kept her glazed-over eyes locked on Dinah.
"Tonight, you will dress as Brother Reston instructs you." The other woman spoke gently, pleasantly. She was
happy
to lead Dinah into servitude. It was not her fault. Dinah knew that. But the blonde still felt the urge to knock some teeth loose. Lilith took a moment to glance at the outfit Reston had prepared. "I must admit, he has impeccable taste."
Dinah stepped up the foot of the bed, staring down at the lingerie Matthew Reston had all but ordered her to wear.
A black lace strapless corset. Black lace thong. Fishnet stockings. Black knee-high boots, with a glossy shine and heels. A black band choker. And a black, cropped leather jacket - from the looks of things, it would only go down to her ribs.
Scanty it certainly was. But that wasn't what gave Dinah pause. She'd worn sexy outfits for the pleasure of male company before. And she'd done the same to distract male targets. What set off warning sirens in Dinah's brain was that she'd been wearing her own variation of the lingerie set for years. It wasn't just a sexy get-up that was laid out on the bed.
It was a kinky version of her Black Canary outfit.
Dinah didn't feel shame. Nor did she feel angry. What she did feel was a jolt of fear. White hot lightning striking at her heart. She cast wide eyes towards Lilith, who stood with her hands clasped behind her back.
"Tonight's theme is
superheroines
." The other woman said, giggling. "Isn't that fun?"
That kept Dinah from panicking. But it did nothing to rid her of the sense of dread that coiled in her belly, in her bones. It slithered just under her skin and burrowed deep. She couldn't fight it. And she had come too far to turn back. The only way through was to keep going until the end.
Dinah breathed in deep. Then she reached out and plucked the lace thong from the bed. As she held it up to look closer, she saw that some of the fabric in the intricate pattern was sheer. The damn thing would actually cover even
less
skin than it appeared to.
The Black Canary... Badass superheroine... Turned into some punk teen's sexpot dress-up doll...
The blonde couldn't even muster enough fiery spirit to scowl at the lingerie set out for her. She sighed and tossed the thong back onto the bed... And warily noted that the enthralled softball coach still stood at the bedside, leaning against one of the wooden posts. The woman had her eyes locked on Dinah. Before, it was creepy. But now the brawler was starting to get annoyed.
"Do you mind?" Dinah asked pointedly.
But rather than look bashful or shamed, Lilith only laughed. It was a warm, rich, lovely sound. And Dinah hated it. She knew it wasn't really Lilith. It was a juvenile sex fantasy of Lilith. The same as it was with Helena and every other adult woman at this fucked up school.
The other woman took on an amused expression. She pushed off from the bedpost and moved in close, deliberately taking some of Dinah's personal space. Dinah caught the scent of perfume, sweet and heavy in her nostrils. It was almost dizzying. Then Lilith's hands were at the front of Dinah's waist, slender fingers undoing the button and zipper of her pants. Dinah stepped back, but Lilith was in step with her. Before Dinah could even register what was happening, the brunette was kneeling, tugging Dinah's jeans down her toned, shapely legs.
Perhaps Dinah was too shocked to argue or fight back. Or perhaps she simply had too little fight left in her to waste on Lilith. But the woman was taking liberties that the Black Canary would have broken bones for. And Dinah just let it happen. Obediently, Dinah used her feet to slide her shoes off and stepped out of her pants when they bunched up at her ankles.
She stood there, silent, sullen, and half-naked. Lilith rose to her feet then, humming pleasantly as she took Dinah's hands in hers.
"Weren't you listening, love?" The Brotherhood thrall hummed sweetly. She stared into Dinah's eyes, her own gaze alight with excitement and flirty zeal. And it was then that Dinah could see just how complete and total the Brotherhood's dominion was. Lilith's lips curled into a smirk, her voice lowering into a purr. "I'm here to lend new girls like you a helping hand."
Then she was pulling Dinah's hoodie up, drawing the sweater over her trim belly, her bust, then finally up over her head. Again, Dinah did not struggle or fight back. Just as with her pants, the blonde raised her arms up and allowed herself to be disrobed.
Lilith held the hoodie for a moment, tittering. Like she was amused at Dinah's choice of wardrobe. The softball coach reached down and scooped up Dinah's discarded jeans as well, rolling them both up in her arms... And tossing them away into the far corner of the room. The message was clear, not just in her actions but in the woman's eyes as well:
You won't be needing those dull threads ever again.
Dinah stood, unmoving and unflinching. Now clad in only a simple white bra and matching panties, much of her body was exposed to the cool air. The candles that lit the room did little to provide any sense of warmth. Goosebumps prickled up her arms, her back, her neck. But if Lilith could sense her discomfort she didn't show it. The brunette closed the distance between them, slinking forward while wearing an infuriatingly pleased smirk.
