My Masters' Nightmare Season 1, Episode 1 (8 page)

She started kissing my ear, her
words of love taking away some of the pleasure. I closed my eyes,
hearing those words coming from another mouth, their voice deeper.
It made my chest tighten, the weight on top of me starting to
suffocate. I opened my eyes to remind myself that it was Honey
above me and not the
Padre
, the man who had destroyed my belief in a just
God. My eyes widened as I looked into the face of the man I
despised. I gasped, the shock paralyzing me for a moment. The man
moved his lips to my neck, the revulsion building up in me, making
me want to escape.

“
Stop!” I cried. “Please
stop!”

He raised his head, the look of anger
on his face making me go still. I wasn’t allowed to argue, only to
give or be taken, and if I didn’t abide by his rules, I would
suffer worse pain.

“
Mi perdoni, Padre
,” I asked for forgiveness.

He smiled, then leaned down and kissed me,
smothering me, taking my breath and self-worth away. I tried to
stay still, tried to let him do what he wanted, to get it over with
quick, but his weight and lips increased my panic, making me want
to push him away. I couldn’t be under him, I couldn’t!

I shoved at him, yelling “No!” as I
jerked and tried to pull free, desperate to get out from under him.
He went for me, making me cover my head to stop him from grabbing
my hair, which he always did when I wouldn’t co-operate.

“
Jagger, what’s
wrong?”

Surprised to hear a female
voice, I lowered my arms a little, peering out to find Honey
staring at me, her sweet face filled with concern. Confused, I
dropped my arms completely and looked around the room, realizing I
wasn’t in the one I’d lived in during my youth. Concrete walls
surrounded me, not the brightly colored room filled with the gifts
that the
Padre
had bestowed upon me. I’d loved him at first, had believed
that he was the only person who had truly cared for me, but I soon
learned it was lust and not love that he returned, the seemingly
innocent hugs and kisses he gave me quickly turning into
terror-filled nights.

The jingling of a chain captured my
attention. My gaze shot to the woman sitting by the door. Rita was
staring across the room at me, her eyes sad and full of pity, as
though she knew what had happened to me all those years
ago.

Feeling ashamed, I shifted my gaze
back to Honey, who looked both confused and concerned. She was
talking to me softly, asking questions I didn’t want to answer.
Unable to look her in the eye, I lowered my head, disbelieving that
a slave was trying to comfort me, a person who I had tortured,
tormented—doing unto her what had been done to me.

Honey took my face in her
hands, making me look at her. “Who’s
Padre
?” she asked.

I shook my head, unable to tell her,
and not wanting to either. I shouldn’t have allowed her to get on
top of me, and worse, I should never have taken drugs before seeing
her. It was sloppy as well as making me look like a weak fool, but
I couldn’t push Honey away, couldn’t punish her after saying I
loved her, it would make me look bad in front of Rita, and ruin
what I had set out to do.

“
Who’s
Padre
?” Honey repeated.

I looked over at Rita, who was listening
intently, her face taking in everything, as if she was recording it
to play back later, the woman making me feel even sicker. How could
she read me whereas Honey couldn’t?

I moved Honey away from me gently,
then got to my feet and swiped up my towel.

Honey jumped off the bed. “Please,
Mas... Jagger. Tell me what happened. Did I do something
wrong?”

I shook my head. “It was
me.”

“
Why? What
happened?”

I stopped wrapping the towel around my
hips and focused on her. “I’m sorry, I took drugs. I shouldn’t
have, but Frano...”

She frowned. “What did he
do?”

“
He reminded me of what I
am and where I came from.”

She took a hold of my arms. “You
looked scared before. Why?”

“
I was tripping. As I
said, I shouldn’t have taken the drugs. Please forgive
me.”

She looked surprised. “There’s nothing
to forgive.”

“
Grazie,
amore
.” I
took a hold of her head, giving her a soft kiss on top of it. “I
must leave now,” I said, pulling away.

Her face dropped. “No, I want you to
stay.”

Want.
Not a word she would know after
tomorrow. I shook my head. “I don’t have a choice; I promised Frano
I would do something for him in exchange for you.”

Her frown
disappeared. “Can I
come?”

“
No, you have to remain
here until I do what he asks of me. I will return for you when
everything’s finished, then we can move you into my
bedroom.”

She jumped in excitement, a huge smile
gracing her lovely features. She grabbed my face and kissed me. I
let her take the liberty, because it was the last time I would see
her.

After a little while, I finally
broke the kiss and touched her cheek softly. “I will see you
tomorrow,
amore.
”

She nodded, then hugged me.

I pulled away from her and headed for
the door, ignoring Rita, although I could see her gaze following me
out of the corner of my eye.

“
Federico!” I called out.
“Open up!”

The bolt moved across, the door
opening seconds later, revealing the grisly looking guard, his gaze
telling me that he knew what had happened in the room.

“
You didn’t watch, did
you?” I asked, concerned. There was no way I wanted my cousins
finding out what had happened.

He shook his head, although I didn’t
believe him, the slit in the door used to peer through.

“
If my cousins hear about
this,” I said, “I will know you talked and I will kill
you.”

Federico flinched, knowing it was
true. He wasn’t family, just hired help, so his loss would only
involve a job opening.

“
Buono
,” I said. “You can leave the women
together, because Rita will be staying in Honey’s chamber from now
on. Honey will be moving tomorrow, so it would be nice for her to
have a companion in the mean time.”

Federico frowned at me, what I had
said not the usual, the women never being allowed to mix, unless it
was for sexual pleasure, but if Rita and Honey talked... I smiled,
seeing a golden opportunity. I was wrong; I would be seeing Honey
again, but one last time to learn more about Rita.

“
I will return tonight,” I
said to Federico. “Rita can be moved while I have some alone time
with Honey, then she can be returned and the two can spend the
night together until Honey is released tomorrow.”

“
Why is she being
released?” Federico asked.

“
Because she is mine. Now,
unlock Rita so she can roam the room freely.”

Federico’s frown deepened, probably
because he’d been told that Honey was flying out to Spain, but
instead of contradicting me he nodded.

I patted his arm, then ascended
the staircase, knowing that Federico was probably watching me. I
headed for my room, needing another shower. After a quick clean, I
climbed into bed and closed my eyes, wanting to escape into
unconsciousness. But my mind wouldn’t stop working, the acid
kicking in even more, taking me to places I didn’t want to go,
seeing things that horrified me, and the people who’d tormented me:
my mother, Alberto, Frano, the dead body of my first lover ... and
the
Padre
. My eyes widened as the black robe of terror descended
upon me. He wrapped his arms around my body, overpowering me: my
master, my nightmare, the man who called me his Angel Gabriel—and
the demon who’d ruined me:
Father Michael
, the brother of the Donatelli
don.

6

Rita

With the shackle now gone from
around my waist, the
guard having freed me, I went over to the woman
called Honey. What had just happened totally floored me. Not
because Jagger had called me by my name, which was a simple
shortening of Margarita, but because of his actions: the way he’d
made love to the blonde woman, his panic attack, his pleading words
for the woman to stop, as if he was being assaulted, then that one
name he’d uttered in fear:
Padre
. It didn’t appear an act, it was all too real,
Jagger had lost control, something that contradicted everything I’d
read about him, and even more, the arrogant act he put
up.

I sat down next to Honey, who I knew
as Sarah Phillips from the photos I’d been given back at the unit.
“Has Jagger been abused?” I asked, not bothering to introduce
myself, my need for information more important.

“
I don’t know,” the woman
said, looking at me suspiciously. “What’s your name?”

“
Margarita,” I replied,
not believing she could be so oblivious to Jagger’s state of mind.
I barely knew the man, yet I could clearly see that something
traumatic had happened to him, his actions speaking for themselves.
“You said you love him, he said it back, so how can you not know
when it’s obvious to me?”

“
He’s never done it
before.”

“
Done what?”

“
Acted like that or allow me to
take control. But he said he loved me, so I thought it was alright
to do. I didn’t mean to upset him, he’s always so sure of himself.
I’ve never seen him look scared. Never. Maybe it was the drugs
causing it.”

“
They might have brought things
on, but his behavior still reflects an abuse victim. I’ve seen...”
I stopped myself just in time, realizing I’d almost blurted out
that I’d dealt with abuse victims, which Jagger clearly was. “I’ve
seen a couple of my students act strangely,” I said instead. “I
eventually found out that they had been abused at home, which is
why I believe something has happened to Jagger. He called out the
name
Padre
, which is Italian for father. Maybe his father abused
him.”

She shook her head. “He said his father’s
dead, that he died a long time ago. He said it in anger once when I
cried out for my father. He told me that my father won’t save me,
like his didn’t save him.”

I wondered whether I should tell her about
how her father was trying to get her back, and how her husband wept
alongside him. But after seeing the way she acted with Jagger, I
knew it could lead to my exposure.

“
So, you’re not going to
be sold,” I said, still surprised at Jagger’s declaration of love
for the woman. She was stunning, her features picture perfect. But
regardless of what she looked like, the way she’d kissed and held
Jagger was genuine, plus he’d been gentle with her, looking
embarrassed when she’d called him Master. Did he have a heart after
all, and it was sitting here right next to me? That thought made me
feel uncomfortable, his fear adding to my confusion.

The woman smiled. “I’m so relieved that
I’m not being sold. Master, I mean Jagger, said the man I was meant
for is cruel, way crueler than he could ever be. But Jagger’s not
cruel. He tried to make me think he was, but he’s a beautiful man,
both inside and out. It’s his cousin’s fault. The don forces him do
things. Jagger beat me real bad once, then broke down and begged
for my forgiveness, telling me he was told to do it, that he had to
prepare me for worse. He is forced to do this, like we are forced
to be here.”

My frown deepened, her words fitting in
with his behavior. “Has the don touched you?”

She shook her head. “I haven’t met
him.”

“
So, you’ve seen no one
but Jagger and the guard?”

She screwed up her face, looking like
she was going to cry, her reaction making me nervous, the fear in
her eyes speaking of someone else.

I placed a reassuring hand on her
knee. “Has someone hurt you?”

She nodded.

“
Who? Because I need to
know, they might come for me too.”

“
Alberto. He always comes
when Jagger isn’t here. I told Jagger, but he can’t stop him,
because Alberto is second in command.”

“
Did Alberto help Jagger
kidnap you too?”

She nodded. “I was waiting for a client to
show up, but they never did, so I thought I’d just have a drink
then go home. Jagger was in the bar. I couldn’t help but stare at
him, because he’s so beautiful. The next thing I know he was next
to me, touching my leg and asking if I wanted to go to his room. I
told him I was married, but it didn’t put him off. I tried to
ignore him, just wanting to finish my drink and to get home to my
husband, but I think my drink was spiked. I started feeling
lightheaded, then before I realized what was happening, he had his
hand up my dress. I slapped him and left, going into the women’s
restroom, where I threw up what I’d drunk. I think I blacked out in
there, then the next thing I know Alberto’s helping me walk,
pretending I was his drunk wife. I blacked out again, then woke up
in a van.”