Author's Note: There's supposed to be a chapter between this one and the last, but that one couldn't be published here. I made a small alteration to this one so it connects to the last chapter.
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When Alice opened her eyes, she took a while to realize what had happened was a dream. She was lying on a couch. Darren had apparently removed her from the doll. Part of her was embarrassed for having such an erotic dream, and most importantly, she had enjoyed herself in that dream.
She glared at Darren. It was his fault. He had did things to her tonight that never occurred to her in her wildest dreams. It would change her fundamentally. There would be no turning back after this.
Darren savored the look of hatred and fear in her eyes. Alive, he thought. She's alive now. He had seen some of his victims hide in their minds after a while. It was their way of coping with what happened to them, of protecting themselves. It wasn't good for him though. He much preferred them to struggle and fight back. Yes, some of them did fear and hate him in the end. So what? He did not find it annoying. It was an inevitable result.
He narrowed his eyes, his jaw locking. "Don't look at me this way. You love me, didn't you? If you've forgotten, I can remind you, little Alice."
He licked the shell of her ear, staying away from the sweet sticky remainder of jam on her earlobe. "I could remind you if you've forgotten." His words were a whispered threat that had her freezing, her fingernails digging bloody holes into his forearm.
He tightened his grip around her neck. It took everything not to fight back. Instead, she shut her eyes for a few seconds and tried to summon the naïve puppy love she had harbored for this man. Then, she opened her eyes and uttered softly, "You're out of your mind."
He stared right in her eyes for a while more, until she thought she was going to faint, before he released her. She fell on the ground, inhaling large lungful of air. When he reached for her again, the trembling of her body increased. Her body was physically rejecting him, as was her mind.
He didn't care. He saw her as nothing but a toy which he could elicit the responses he wanted from her. If one method didn't work, then he would switch to another.
Darren Romero looked down at his watch. It'd be daybreak in another hour or two. There was no time to waste.
"Come. Get to your feet. I'm sure you'll like to wash yourself."
She nodded primly. "I'd very much like that."
She followed behind him, putting a respectable distance between them. He led her back to the elevator, noticing she entered the small space with him reluctantly.
=/=
In the confined space of the lift, Alice found herself calming down, as though clarity had suddenly pierced through the sexual haze which had held her in grip tonight.
The things Mr. Romero had put her through was unforgiveable and would have traumatized anyone. It amazed her how capable he was at teasing out her orgasms, rousing her pleasure and fanning to unimaginable heights. Perhaps it was because she had trusted him wholly before he revealed his darker side, but Alice reflected upon herself and realized she still do.
The thin frail connection between two acquaintances who had come from different world would have snapped after tonight, but it now grew stronger, as though Mr. Romero taken the slim thread and wrapped it with bands of steel. He would have been right. There was no question as to whether she would forget about him. He had pounded himself into her very core, branded her soul, marking her.
She was like Alice in Wonderland. She was shown another world, a world which had been closed to her because of the morality, preservation and youth, a world where nothing existed other than sexual pleasure.
He had taught her what it was like to have multiple orgasms, that her body had the ability to climax under any circumstances. He had dragged her into it, her kicking and screaming, and she had adapted like a fish to water, as though she had been mired in it. Was it true? What they say about those people who were naturally inclined towards sexual excess? Was she one of them?
Alice had so many questions, she didn't know where to start. Would it be worth it to take his offer of heading to the big city? Did she have the courage to explore a foreign world?
She didn't ask. She didn't dare to. She was only a toddler standing at the edge. The pleasure beckoned her, lulled her senses, but she still clung to the conservative attitudes imposed upon her by family, took comfort in the morals society placed on her. Better than drowning, she thought. She had a feeling that one misstep and she would never been able to get out again. It was different having the pleasure forced upon her and her choosing to give up to it.
She wrapped her arms tightly around her, lips set in grimly. He walked before her, and the distance between them, though deliberately maintained by her, reminded her of the difference between them. He had been on the pedestal before tonight, now, he dominated her senses. Still beyond her.
They walked down a short corridor and he opened a door to reveal an inner courtyard. She blinked at the crispness of the air against her body. Here, winter meant putting on an extra jacket or a thin coat. There was never the festive snowscape that accompanied Christmas where the town was located. Still, she paused at the doorway. She was bare as the day she was born. The modesty that had been driven into her by family and society told her this was wrong.
"Don't just stand there. Come here." Mr. Romero arched a brow and beckoned her forward with a hand. "You want a shower, don't you?"
Yes, she wanted a shower. A normal person might have led her to the bathroom. There must have been some in the huge mansion. But Mr. Romero had proven he didn't observe the usual standards of normalcy. How could she expect anything else from him? None of the things he had done tonight were within her expectations. Far from it.
She shuffled over to him. He was standing next to a fountain, one foot dipping into the water. The fountain was the only thing in the courtyard. She had never seen this area of the mansion before. There was obviously plenty she didn't know about it. The sound of the splashing water calmed her down slowly. She stared into the sunken pool. It didn't look deep at all. Probably up to her knees. Hopefully, he wouldn't want her to shower in it.
