Gina's Education (15 page)

She already experienced several rooms, and Master Robert was anxious to put her into action.

*****

Drew spoke to her soothingly, though mocking her at the same time. Gina became accustomed to this, and now knew it was just part of his routine. She felt he was the only chance she had of an ally, since not another soul would speak to her but the Master and the Mistress, and that certainly wasn’t what you could call conversation. Drew talked to her and often allowed her to speak, so she felt she must try.

The pain between her legs made it difficult to concentrate, but she really only wanted light conversation. She asked him how he got into this line of work, and Drew laughed, “Just lucky, I guess!”

Then she asked, “Why don’t you ever talk to me when she is in the room?”

The light-hearted look on Drew’s face changed so quickly and so dramatically she thought something had happened that she missed. She wondered for a moment what alarmed him so, but before she could reason it out he clamped his hand tightly on her jaw squeezing her cheeks between her teeth. “That lady is your MISTRESS, and you will never refer to Mistress Rose as ‘she.’ You do not question her orders. Is that clear?”

Panic rose in Gina; there was no longer any hope of an ally, or of an escape, either. Drew drove that point home further with a snarl, “You owe the Mistress your life. If you had done to me what you did to her, we wouldn’t be having any conversations at all. You would no longer exist!” He let go of her jaw so fast her head snapped back as he spat out the last remark.

She had never seen Drew show any emotion; he always just seemed to be enjoying his work. She had no idea of his loyalty to Rose, but clearly she was mistaken in the idea he would ever be her friend. Gina sobbed. Finally broken, and in total despair, the pain in her crotch and nipples seemed to intensify tenfold. There was no redeeming pleasure coming. The anguish she now felt compounded every ache, throb and stabbing pain. She felt dizzy at the realization; this was now her life, and she didn’t even have the means to end it!

Chapter 14

“Good morning, Paul. Sit down, have some coffee.” The police chief had called early in the morning and met with Robert in his study.

“Thanks, Rob. I finally have the information you asked for, but it wasn’t easy to dig out. The man was a POW for about five years, and even when they got him back, the red tape had him tied for months. His dog tags were taken while he was unconscious, maybe mistaking him for dead, then the enemy found him…”

The Chief took a long drink of the coffee, and Robert refilled his cup. “Anyway, we now know who the parents are for sure. They lived on the poverty level for about fifteen years before he died of cancer. They said it was the cancer the Middle East vets keep getting. The mother died a year later. Doc said she died of malnutrition and a broken heart.”

Robert scanned the information the Chief handed him. “Are you sure it is the same man?” he asked, indicating another report. Suddenly his voice and demeanor changed and he said, “Good morning, Rose. Did you sleep well?”

As she entered the room, she smiled at the Chief. She knew he smoothed the way for her name change and expunged her criminal record, and she was very grateful.

Robert, still controlling the situation, continued, “Are you going for your walk before breakfast? Say hello to Paul before you go, my dear.”

Rose had long since recognized that when he called her ‘my dear,’ it was her Master speaking. “Good morning, Paul. One of these mornings you should join me on my walk. The shore is so beautiful in the morning.” She shook hands with the man and turned to Robert. “Will you join me for breakfast afterward?”

“Yes, my dear, in about an hour.” Rose left the room wondering what was going on that she should be dismissed in such a manner, but didn’t give it too much time. The brisk morning air was wonderful and she really did enjoy her walks.

*****

Rose changed from her Bermuda shorts and cotton sweater after her walk to her skirt and sweater set in a rich shade of green before she joined Robert in the breakfast room.

“Do you still have your old Gina ID? I think you should bring it with you today.”

The suggestion stunned her. He could see the questions crossing her face;
“Why? What do I need that for – and why would I want it? What am I to do with it?”
She said only, “Yes, Sir.” Truthfully, she was afraid to ask.

Robert smiled at her and said, “Today we are going to put to rest the disappearance of the girl. You two look so much alike… Well, it is clear that’s how she got away with her deception. I want you to be seen if possible going into the house.”

Drew drove them to the residence where he found the girl who claimed to be Gina Perry. Rose wanted to scream, but in her best control asked, “This is where you found her?” Drew nodded.

“Yes, my dear. This is the house you grew up in, isn’t it?” He knew the answer. He knew the imposter had bought the house at auction through an agent for a fraction of the money she took when she remortgaged it using the stolen ID and moved right in.

Rose’s face was flushed and she was shaking. “Try to calm yourself, my dear. We are going to get to the bottom of all of this, and I am confident you will find it an interesting story.”

He squeezed her hand and she willed herself to submit to Robert’s order. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. “Look at it this way,” he continued in his smooth tone, “You will finally have the deed to this house again.” That did the trick. Finally able to put a smile on her face, they left the limousine.

They waited in the car long enough for several window shades to be disturbed. It wasn’t every day there was a limousine on this street! They stepped out, Rose in a $300 garnet wool dress and Robert in his Brooks Brothers suit and entered the front door. The eyes behind the curtains became more obvious, trying to get as much information with that look.

As they entered, Rose realized that the girl had kept the furnishings pretty much as they had been. A flood of memories of growing up in this house hit her. She looked at the couch where she and her stepfather would talk while they waited for dinner. He always wanted to know how her day went and helped her with any troubles on her mind. She remembered her mother making the best dinners and her grandparents visiting often. Tears were starting to threaten.

As she looked around the room, she became agitated again, and fairly shrieked, “Where did she get the portrait of my father?” She had taken the portrait of her father in uniform with her and safely tucked it away in her room at the manor. Anger took over. There would be no tears!

That one sentence confirmed what Paul had told Robert. It was the same man, and he was pretty sure neither of the girls knew.

“It would seem that you weren’t just an opportune target, Rose. I think the girl targeted you – wanted to BE you.”

Rose sat on the old familiar sofa, near tears and visibly shaking. Pretty clearly Robert was right, “but why?” she asked.

“You never told me, my dear, about your father.”

Rose took a deep breath, trying to regain some self-control. “I never knew him. All I know about Stephen Perry are the memories my mother shared with me after my stepfather died. My father was the love of her life. Mom and he were engaged when he had to ship out. They were going to be married as soon as he returned. Mom never even got to tell him about me—he was shot down only a week after he went overseas.”

“That’s what I thought,” he said. “Now, I want you to go to the computer, get an idea of her writing style from her sent messages, and send a message to her usual contacts that you – Gina – are now living the life of luxury in the country and indicate you have no more need of their friendship.”

As Rose absorbed this plan, she began to smile.
‘The way this man’s mind works is fascinating,’
she thought. She had no trouble achieving that goal, and soon they were done.

“Is there anything here you want to bring with you, my dear?” She went straight to the wall and took down the picture.

When they got back to the manor, Robert ushered Rose into the study. Drew brought Gina to them, and when she stood there not knowing what to do, Robert barked, “Present!” She dropped to the floor and assumed the position, knees apart, hands clasped behind her, eyes down.

Rose could contain herself no longer and crossed the room with the picture in hand. “Where did you get this? Why do you have this picture?” Her voice had a raw edge that Gina had never heard before and it unnerved her. She looked up, even more puzzled, and said, “My dad? That’s my father’s picture…”

“Liar!” Rose shrieked, hovering over the girl menacingly.

Robert took her arm and ushered her to the chair beside his desk. “I have to talk to you about a lot of things. Drew, would you please take the girl to her room?”

Drew only nodded, and waited for her to crawl away. Gina couldn’t understand anything that had just happened, and wanted desperately to ask for the picture. Seeing her father’s picture made her predicament so much more difficult. She crawled up the stairs leaving a trail of tears.

“Rose, I had the Chief of Police do some checking into the girl’s background, and into yours.”

Trembling with fury at the girl’s answer, Rose was taken aback. “Why mine, sir?”

“I wasn’t sure, but after watching her for a while, I wondered what possessed her to pursue you to such lengths. I suspect she was drawn to you, somehow. It may have been a chance encounter, but the girl became obsessed with you. That part is obvious, even while you train her.”

Robert handed Rose the reports, and continued, “You see, Rose, you both have the same father. As you said, he never knew about you. After being rescued from the prison of war camp, he spent a long time in the VA hospital. He married one of his nurses and they had a daughter – another daughter - and that girl eventually found you.”

Rose scanned the papers, tears making it hard to see. “He wasn’t dead? They had nothing. They lived from hand to mouth until they died,” pity shading the tone of her voice.

“From all accounts, though, it appears they were a happy family. That’s the picture their neighbors paint of the three.”

“How? How could they be happy when every day had to be a struggle?”

“Rose, you know better than that. Is money what makes you happy?”

Her face softened, and she smiled. “No, Robert, you make me happy.” It was the first time she called him simply by his name, and he surprised her by smiling back and hugging her.

“What are you going to do about your sister?”

“My sister!” Putting things into perspective, that’s what Robert does. Rose still looked stunned at the words. “Let’s go talk to her.”

Rose took a robe from her room and went to the attic. She had allowed Gina a bed after the rope session with Drew. She could see the girl had finally been broken that night, and she finally behaved. Rose wanted to encourage her to keep behaving – to keep earning privileges.

To have this discussion – to talk about the fact that they were sisters – Rose felt the girl ought to be clothed. Since she got there, she’d had nothing on her body besides a towel, ropes or clamps. Rose handed her a robe, and the portrait of their father, and released her shackles.

She sat on the bed indicating to the girl to sit beside her. Gina looked shocked, but did not speak. She was overwhelmed to have the picture of her dad back, and dying to know what had happened.

“Master Robert tells me that this is indeed your father.” The look on Gina’s face asked why she doubted it, but she held her tongue. “I was upset and thought you were lying because,” she looked away for a moment and wiped a tear, “because, this is also my father.”

Gina’s mouth fell open and she gaped. She did not know! Rose had thought maybe she had.

“I never knew him,” she continued. “I hope you will tell me about him.” Both the young women were too overwhelmed to continue. Gina reached her hand out on the bed, just close enough to touch the side of Rose’s hand. Rose took her hand and held it, neither of them daring to do more.

After a few minutes, Gina said softly, “I will enjoy telling my Mistress anything she wants to know about our father.”

Robert smiled from the doorway; the Mistress and her slave were finally bonding.

Chapter 15

Gina woke early with the morning light just dawning. She snuggled into the sheets and stretched as far as her shackles allowed. Even being chained to the beam in the attic ceiling no longer bothered her. Comfortable for the first time in over a month, she slept like a baby on clean fresh sheets, and with a blanket! It was the first time she wasn’t cold and uncomfortable all night since she’d arrived.

She thought about how she‘d gotten here – her own all absorbing greed drawing her into a trap of her own making! “I used to be smarter than that,” she thought. “This time I out-smarted myself!” She pondered for a while the virtue of being smart versus being clever. It seems she should have remained smart – and kind! After all, she had been bought up with good values. Greed. That was the problem. And look at what it had gotten her.

Her mistress had left her the robe the night before, and the girl felt the satiny smoothness under her hand. She appreciated it even more because it was her mistress’ own, and she’d told her she could keep it.

She now felt that her mistress had every right to take away her pay whenever Master Robert gave her an appointment to entertain one of the frequent paying guests at the manor. She remembered the first time she’d gotten paid. Humiliating. It also made her feel like she could get out of this situation, for about a minute. No, there would be no chance to hire a lawyer and get back at these two for this humiliation. Master Robert paid her, but she had to take it in her teeth. Then she was ordered to crawl to her mistress and make a payment on what she owed in reparation. She remembered feeling exhilarated and defeated within two seconds! It made her head spin! Even then, she knew it was right, though. She knew she should be made to pay, even while she continued to fight.