Chapter 3

Cherie questioned me, “How is that even possible?”

Jenny spoke, “That was the first time he ran away.”

Cherie’s eyes widened, “How many times did he run?”

I quelled that, “As many as it took. As for how it was possible, I was always treated differently than the other children. They went to fancy private school; I went to public. They got driven around; I took the bus. They had rooms and seemingly limitless cash flows. I slept on a cot in the maid’s room. She took care of me; cooked all my meals, calmed my fears, and all the things a child would expect a mother to do. It shouldn’t surprise anyone that I called her ‘Mama”

Jenny waved her hand dismissively, “Like you couldn’t see her skin was the wrong color..., but then again it appears you like that.”

I angled the shotgun, so it was aimed at her and Silver Fox pulled his weapon, “One more comment like that and he won’t draw fast enough to stop me.”

Her face crunched and she nodded at the old man and he reholstered his weapon. I moved the shotgun, so it was facing a ‘safe direction.’ Safe meaning it would break the car’s axle if I squeezed the trigger of course.

“So, when they fired my mama, I was angry that they wouldn’t let me go with her. So, yes that was my first escape. They locked me in what would become my bedroom and I went off the balcony, down to the fence line, up a tree and over. Got to town. Got directions and found her. The buttonmen showed up an hour later and I got my first trip to the dungeon.”

I flashed back on the past. A middle-aged black woman standing over me, “Oh, baby. You need to go back. I’m not your mama and your father is tired of me. He won’t let you go, not till he’s done with you too.”

“But I love you.”

“I love you too, baby. You can’t stay with me. I’m going to have to call them to come get you. You can’t come looking for me again. It’ll just get us both hurt.”

I shook it off, as Cherie shook her head, “By dungeon you mean?”

“A dungeon. Not the freaky kind, but literal cages, wooden x-shaped crosses to crucify people on, torture equipment. It wasn’t about fun, just sadism. Medieval torture kind. I think they may have used it for kink too, but I was only brought down there to get beat on.”

Jenny seemed to have a moment of compassion, “How many times did you get stuck down there?”

I snickered, “How many times did you.”

She looked at the floor of the vehicle’s hideous burgundy upholstery, “Twice.”

“What for?”

“ ... I went out with a boy Dad didn’t like and...”

“Just say it, Cherie will hear it all from me anyway and Silver Fox is under NDA.”

She hesitated, “When I fought him the first time, he brought me to bed.”

Cherie gave a literal gasp, “Your Dad? He molested you?”

Jenny fired back with a cold edge to her voice, “No. It’s what our family does. Starting at 15 ... we serve the lord of the manor.”

“And the shitstains that you call brothers. Not to mention the clam diving.”

“Fuck you.”

“Sorry, I don’t go for family or useless sluts.”

Cherie objected, “She was raped.”

“The first time, pretty willing participant after that. Slobbering on the knobs of your brothers, father, and all any business associate he wanted to impress is a small price to pay for billions.”

Cherie fidgeted in her seat. She was anxious and a bit pissed at me for not caring about Jenny’s emotional state, “Just answer her question. How many times did you get thrown into the dungeon?”

“I don’t know. 30? 40? By the end I could just zone out. Nothing pissed our father off more than me laughing at his attempts to torture me, but you can’t use pain as a weapon and expect it to work forever. I think the longest was after Francis. Kept me down there a month. Then two weeks under the care of the concierge doc. Had to do rehab cause my muscles had atrophied.”

Cherie asked, “Francis was your brother?”

“One of them. Francis was the oldest, then Junior, then there were the twins. Officially, they were in two tragic accidents; unofficially one died after being served up to a business associate as a party favor and he got a bit rough, and then when the other reacted daddy dearest took her to the dungeon and things went too far. Ellie was next; she was the only one of them I can stand. Then me and lastly Jenny here.”

I could sense she wanted to know what I’d done to Francis and a thousand other questions were gnawing at her. Cherie really couldn’t comprehend what she was dealing with and I suspected she realized she should have run when I told her to. I watched the dismay flash across her face, “Your sisters? Your father killed one of them.”

“The twins were fraternal, Mark and Micca. Mark was the party favor. Micca ... well, I never really knew her.