Forward: First, my apologies to Ms. Shelley.

As always, I enjoyed this challenge from RandI1958. I would have never thought of writing a gothic horror story on my own and I’m sure, after reading it, some of you will wish it would have remained that way.

For those of you who haven’t guessed by now, this is my adaptation of Mary Shelley’s classic, “Frankenstein.” (Frankenstein meets Loving Wives.) I hope you enjoy it.

Oh, and I know a lot of my readers are sticklers for keeping things believable but please, nobody make a comment saying there’s no way this could happen.

Around the beginning of the nineteenth century, high in the hills overlooking Darmstadt, Germany, stood the imposing ancestral castle of Doctor Victor Frankenstein.

Some believe God controls the heavens but only Satan himself could conjure up the demonic cauldron of evil that was on display that night. While villagers below huddled with their spouses in fear, high in the hills above, a constant barrage of lightning illuminated the dank and dingy walls of the dungeon with blinding flashes of light. Grossly large shadows of the two men feverishly working through the night, danced to the devil’s tune.

“More power, Ygor, turn it up all the way,” screamed the young doctor. The excitement in his voice was testament to the madness of his genius.

His partially crippled assistant limped to the control board and slowly increased power until there was no more to give. “It’s up all the way,” he shouted to be heard over the crashing thunder. With his duties completed, Ygor rushed to the doctor’s side and watched as heavy gage wires lit up with fiery bolts of electricity from Mother Nature’s rage. The young doctor swore he saw a reaction as carefully placed electrodes carried the intense energy to stimulate vital organs.

Before him, strapped to a large, heavy table, was not only his dream but that of his father’s as well. For decades his dad studied the origins of life and conducted secret experiments. After finding his journal following his father’s death, Victor vowed to carry on with his procreator’s research.

The smell of burning flesh filled his nostrils as Victor Frankenstein bent down to listen for a heartbeat. “Ygor ... Ygor, I hear it! His heart, I ... I can hear it beating! We’ve done it, Ygor. HE LIVES!” he shouted, but before Ygor could even react, the faint pulse of life died out. “Damn! Damn!” His cries conveyed his anguish.

“What is it, doctor? What happened?”

“It’s gone. His heartbeat stopped. I don’t understand it,” he screamed. Victor was tired and sagged to the floor, exhausted. “I’ve had enough for tonight, Ygor. I need rest, you too. Get a good night’s sleep. We’ll figure out what happened in the morning.”

Ygor was not about to argue with him. They’d been up for twenty-six hours straight to make sure they were ready when the storm hit. Now they would have to wait for the next one.

“Victor, where have you been? I’ve been terrified with this storm.” His beautiful bride of only five weeks was cuddled in the blankets of their bed and shaking from fright.

Victory walked to the dresser and hid a large key in the back of the bottom drawer before getting undressed.

“I’ve been working, my dear. I’m sorry for abandoning you for so long but it couldn’t be helped.”

“I do wish you wouldn’t be so secretive, Victory. I’m your wife. I want to share in your life. What do you do down there all this time?”

“I am working on a great experiment, my dear; one that will make me the greatest humanitarian of all time if I am successful.” Even in the dimly lit room his eyes shone bright with pride. “Bear with me, Elizabeth. I’m close. I’m so very close,” he said while climbing into bed beside her.

She rolled on her side to face him and laid her hand on his chest. “It’s been a week since you last made love to me, Victor,” she complained.

“Elizabeth, I’ve been working for two days and nights with no sleep. It’ll have to wait,” he growled.

She rolled over on her back with a sigh, expressing her disappointment. This was not the kind of marriage she had envisioned. She married a handsome, dashing, successful, young doctor. She deserved the life-style that encompassed; acceptance in the highest of society, the finest clothes, and a beautiful home--certainly not the drafty old castle they were living in. Even his assistant, Ygor; the guy gave her the creeps—always leering at her.

The next day Victor couldn’t help showing his frustration from the day before. He awakened before his bride and closed himself away in a deserted area of the castle to study his father’s notes again. There had to be something he’d missed.

Elizabeth was extremely disappointed to find her husband’s side of the bed empty once again. In the five weeks since their marriage they’d made love only four times. Doctor or no doctor, she was starting to feel like her marriage was a mistake. She thought back to Marek, the boy she left behind. He was nothing but a poor farmer, but he was also her first love. She had many fond memories from up in the hayloft.

Thinking back to those days, Elizabeth closed her eyes and reached down, under the covers to pull her nightgown up to her waist, uncovering her neglected feminine charms. Her mound of curly black hair tickled the palm of her hand as she reached down toward her pleasure zone. She gasped in a short breath as her middle finger almost imperceptibly met with the delicate nib at the top of her slit. Her breathing was already becoming shallow in anticipation of the gratification she knew was only a few minutes away.

She could feel herself getting wetter as she slid her finger further down into the folds of her lips and found the entrance to ecstasy. Slowly she pushed the surrogate cock deeper and deeper until she could go no further then backed it out again. She threw her head back and moaned as she added a second finger. It wasn’t her spouse but it was better than nothing and she needed something.

Faster and faster she moved her hand as her excitement built until her toes began to curl and she climaxed with a stifled scream of euphoria.

While recovering from her self-imposed erotic high, she was completely unaware of the watchful eyes spying on her from the other side of the wall. Ygor had to muffle his own cries of rapture as he hunched over with his dick in his hand and spewed his seed on the dirty floor of one of the castle’s many secret passageways.

His only experience with sex was when he had the money to pay a prostitute in the village, but they didn’t look anything like his master’s wife. One of these days, he told himself; one of these days he planned to have her for himself. He had no idea how that would happen without Victor hanging him from the tower but he knew if he stayed vigilant, some day it would happen.

Elizabeth was in the kitchen when Victor got hungry and descended the stoned step, spiral staircase to see what there was to eat. “There you are,” she said as he entered.

Victor forced a smile. “I’m not being much of a husband, am I.”

“No, you’re not, if you must know,” she snidely responded. “I’ve barely seen you since we’ve been married. When are you going to start paying attention to me?”

“Elizabeth, I’m right at a break through. I can’t stop now. As soon as I’ve completed my work, I’ll make it up to you. We’ll ... we’ll go on a trip, I promise.” He made himself a sandwich and returned to his father’s notes, leaving his beautiful bride alone again.

I’ll be damned if I’m going to sit here all day, she told herself. There were shops in the village where Victor had accounts. Maybe a new hat or better yet, a new dress would make her feel better. While she was at it, she’d stop by her friend’s house and see if she could come along. She hadn’t seen Adele since the wedding.

Victor sat near a window, pouring over his father’s notebook. About the only thing he was able to determine was that his own experiments had already surpassed his dad’s and he was closer to creating life than his old man ever was.

After several hours of racking his brain, he decided he needed a way of sustaining the electrical power for a longer period of time. Even though, with the help of the storm’s lightning, he was able to generate the power needed to jolt the creature to life, it didn’t last long enough. More work was needed.

Victor left his sanctuary in search of Ygor.

“So how’s married life? Pregnant yet?”

Elizabeth chuckled at her friend’s inquiry. “Pregnant—I’ve got to get him to stick it in me first.”

“What, oh come on, don’t tell me...”

“I’m not kidding, Adele. So far being married to Victor is like not being married at all. He’s got some secret project that he’s always working with that little creep, Ygor. I don’t know where they go or what they do. Victor says it’s something that will make him famous. He’s up at the crack of dawn, disappears for the day, and doesn’t come back to bed until the wee hours of the morning. By that time he’s always too tired to try and make a baby.”

“And it’s been like that since you got married?”

“Exactly. He says he’s getting close, whatever that means.”

“I guess that’s what you get for falling in love with a rich, handsome, doctor,” Adele chuckled.

Elisabeth looked at her. “Love, what’s that?”

“The reason you married him, silly.” She looked over at her friend. “You do love him, don’t you?”

“I thought I did. I mean, you’re right, that’s why I married him but now—I’m ... I’m not really sure anymore. All this secrecy—I’m wondering if he’s really the man I thought he was.”

“He still loves you--right?”

“I think so but I’m beginning to wonder. I’m afraid of Ygor, that assistant of his. I don’t trust him. I’ve told Victor about the way he looks at me but he just scoffs at me. I’ve asked Victor to get rid of him but he refuses. He says Ygor’s invaluable to his experiments. How that little creep can be invaluable for anything is beyond me, but it’s obvious that whatever he’s working on is more important to him than I am.”

“I’m sorry, Elizabeth. I really thought you had struck gold when you married him,” sympathized Adel.

“Well, I’m hoping things change when he finally finishes this big project of his. Oh well, for right now,” she said as they approached the dress shop, “let’s go spend some of Victor’s money.”

While the two ladies were busy trying on dresses, the doctor was diligently going over his equipment with his assistant. “Ygor, check out the wiring over there on those conductors, I’ll check out the generator.”

Upon inspection they both found several component failures. “That’s it, Ygor. That’s what happened. The circuits weren’t strong enough to carry the load of the lightning.”

“Doctor, it’s the same over here,” revealed Ygor from another area of the lab.

“Damn,” he thought out loud. “There’s nowhere around here I can get what we need. I’ll have to go to Munich.”

Ygor immediately seized on the idea of being alone with the doctor’s wife. “How long will you be gone, doctor?”

“I don’t know. It depends how long it takes me to find what we need, four or five days I would imagine, maybe longer. I have to pack. Go tell Elizabeth to make me something to eat then prepare the carriage. It’s a long ride. If I leave now I should be there by morning.”

“Yes, doctor,” replied a gleeful Ygor. Four or five days alone with Elizabeth, he couldn’t wait. Several times, while spying on her, he had seen her naked as she undressed and bathed. Each time it acted to increase his desire to feel her flesh and hold her beneath him as he plunged his hard cock into that bushy cunt of hers. It was okay if she fought him. In fact he preferred it. He would hold her down and dominate her body until she submitted to him. From then on she would be his, he knew it. They’d just have to hide it from Victor.

He searched the castle for the victim of his carnal cravings but found her nowhere. He checked the carriage house and discovered her buggy, missing. He found Victor in his bedroom packing and reported her absence.

“Damn it, she must have gone into the village. Well I can’t wait for her. I’ll leave her a note,” Victor bitched while closing his case. “Ygor, take this to my carriage while I get some food for the trip,” he barked.

As Ygor carried out his instructions, Victor grabbed a quill and some paper to compose a quick note for his beloved.

Dear Elizabeth, I have to travel to Munich. I will be gone four or five days. Ask Ygor if you need anything. Love, Victor.

Quickly he went to the kitchen where he got some food for the trip then made his way outside where Ygor had his horse and carriage harnessed up and ready to go.

“I will return as soon as possible, Ygor. Make sure no harm comes to Elisabeth while I’m gone,” he said before cracking his buggy whip above his steed’s head to signal their departure.

Ygor’s evil delusions didn’t include harming the beautiful woman--well, unless she wouldn’t submit. Now alone in the large castle with nothing to do, he retired to his room and lay down. As he closed his eyes he could see Elizabeth standing naked in front of him. It won’t be long now, he told himself.

The sun was starting to go down by the time Elizabeth returned. The castle seemed even creepier than normal as she entered. It was cold, dark, and eerily quiet. None of the fireplaces were lit nor were any candles. She checked the kitchen and found embers still burning in the stove. She started a reed and used it to light several candles before starting the fireplaces.

She was upset. Where was Victor and why did he allow the fires to go out? She carried her packages to their room hoping to find her husband but no such luck. She assumed he and Ygor were still working somewhere in the castle.

The thought of her new dress put her in a better mood. She removed it from the box and held it up in front of her while dancing in front of the mirror.

Ygor, who had just awakened from a nap, stumbled down stairs and saw the fireplace burning brightly. That could only mean one thing, his master’s wife was home. He crossed the room to the bookcase and leaned his body against the side of it. Slowly it slid in the opposite direction, revealing one of the many hidden openings that led to the secret passageway travelling throughout the castle. His heart pounded with desire as he watched the lady of the house from the obscured hole he had cut in a worn part of the stone wall. He grinned with anticipation and rubbed himself as Elizabeth danced around, holding the dress in front of her.

As she skipped along like a little girl, her eyes fell upon the paper lying on the desk. She read it and gasped as she realized she was alone with Ygor. Maybe her husband trusted him but she sure didn’t. A twinge of fear went through her spine. She would make sure to lock the bed chamber door at night before retiring. Unfortunately, she was hungry and would have to go to the kitchen for something to eat.

Ygor watched as she left the room. He needed a plan. He couldn’t just rip her clothes off and stick it in, what if she told Victor? Still, with at least four days and nights alone with her, he knew an opportunity would arise. All he had to do was watch and keep tabs on her. Sooner or later it would happen.

Unaware of his presence, Elizabeth did not see Ygor all night, but did have an uneasy feeling of him being near as she stoked the fireplaces before going to bed.

The next morning she awoke with the sun. She was determined not to spend the day alone with Ygor. She would spend the day in the village again but Victor only had accounts in a couple of the shops and she already patronized them the day before. This time she would need some money. Victor always kept some in his dresser drawer. She hoped he hadn’t taken it all with him.

Under the concealed, watchful eye of her predator, Elizabeth threw the covers to one side and slipped out of bed. In her ankle length nightgown, only her bare feet were exposed. She walked to the dresser and opened her husband’s drawer. Normally she was not allowed to go in there but surely he would forgive her under the circumstances. So far, in the short marriage, he had not refused her anything—except of course, his company.

As her fingers fumbled for some monetary paper she heard clanking. She lowered her head to see better. It was a large iron key. She picked it up and looked at it. This must be what Victor hides in here every night, she thought. It had to fit whatever was at the bottom of the stairs her husband used to disappear for hours at a time—the experiment he’s always talking about. She walked over and sat down on the edge of the bed just staring at the answer to Victor’s vanishing act.

If she only knew where Ygor was. She hadn’t see him at all the day before. Maybe he was in the village. Was it possible that Victor gave him some money so he could go fuck one of his favorite whores?

She wrapped her fingers around the key and opened her door a crack to peer down the hall. She listened for any sounds but heard nothing. She left the bed chamber door open while she cautiously crept down the corridor, looking around. Her beautiful blue eyes saw nothing, no sign of life. No sign of Ygor. What to do? Victor would probably get really mad if he knew she was sneaking around his experiment but damn, she might never have the opportunity again. She really wanted to know what was so damned important that he couldn’t spend a little time with her. It wasn’t good for her ego. Hell, it was downright embarrassing. She tiptoed a little further down the hall, listening as she proceeded.

By that time Ygor had moved to another area where he could observe without her knowledge. He watched as she looked around. Her behavior told him she was up to something. He had to push his head against the brick wall and get as far to one side as he could to keep her in view as she retraced her steps back the way she came. He hurried back to his lair adjacent to the bed chamber but she was not there.

Curiosity had taken over her fear of discovery. Elizabeth felt her heart pounding as she skulked down the stairs that had taken Victor from her so many times. The cold, clamminess of the stone steps against her bare feet got worse as she descended further down into the bowels of the old structure. A massive wooden door awaited her. She took the large key and inserted it into the lock. With just a minor degree of difficulty, it turned and she heard the locking device clunk open.

So this was where Victor spent so much of his time. It was depressingly dark and damp. She felt a chill from a cold draft and a foul smell hung in the air. As her eyes adjusted to the dim light she saw what looked like a human form lying on a table in the middle of the room. It was surrounded with a maze of wires and instruments she’d never seen before. Cautiously, she approached. Is this his secret experiment; a male cadaver? She wondered.

It was strapped to a solid, wooden table. She wondered about the restraints. Why would they be needed? She’d witnessed dead people in coffins before but had never seen a body like this. Even in the prone position she could tell the man was taller than her husband—taller and much more muscular. She was scared but even more curious. As she tentatively moved closer, light streaming in from a window high above, allowed her to see more clearly. His entire body was covered with scars. She wondered what had happened to him. Had he been in some terrible accident? Taking a better look, she noticed some of the scars were fresher than others. The most recent looking one was along his forehead, just under the hairline. Luckily his thick black hair hid most of it. Other than that, his face was unmarked and quite handsome looking.

She reached over and felt his cheek. The bluish skin was cool to the touch. She allowed her fingers to travel over the jagged roughness of his wounds. As she lingered, her eyes worked their way down the naked corpse until they fell upon a very impressive cock.

It lay over his leg, but even in its lifeless form it was longer than Victor’s and had more mass. She couldn’t help herself. She gently rubbed it back and forth with the palm of her hand. This is loathsome, she admonished herself; feeling a dead man’s cock—despicable, but she found it difficult to stop.

Suddenly she jumped back in surprised fear. She had to catch her breath as she stared at the phallus in shock. She could have sworn she felt it twitch. That’s impossible, she told herself. She looked to the dead man’s face for a sign of life but saw none. Slowly and warily she moved closer and touched the large sex organ again, and again pulled her hand back. There was no doubt about it this time—it twitched. Could this have something to do with Victor’s experiments, she wondered. Had he discovered someway a man could make love to his spouse ... even after death?

Mustering her courage, Elizabeth wrapped her fingers around the base and started to stroke it vigorously. The more she worked it the harder and bigger it became. Soon it felt like steel in her hand.

My God, she thought, my husband is a genius. She knew no women had been in the castle except for her. That meant as of yet, no one had had the opportunity to test to her husband’s discovery. She would be remiss in her duties as a faithful wife if she didn’t support him in his work. Excitedly, she lifted her nightgown and climbed onto the table. She scooted her dripping pussy up until it hovered over the skin encased iron rod. It seemed warmer and more alive as she slowly lowered herself down.

Oh, oh, take your time, she told herself as her vaginal lips spread further than ever before. Gently, she allowed more and more of Victor’s experiment to fill her up. Oh, God, she moaned as she bottomed out with a squishing sound. She just held herself in place for a minute as her love tunnel slowly conformed to the sizable intruder.

When she was ready she slowly lifted her hips then brought them back down. She closed her eyes and lifted her chin as the rapturous feelings filled her body with warmth. My husband wasn’t kidding when said he was a humanitarian, she thought. As Elizabeth became more comfortable, her actions became more rapid and harder. She could feel the carnal bliss building from her toes, up.

Ygor was getting frustrated. He had waited several minutes for Elizabeth to return to her bed chamber but after a while, started to search for her using the elaborate labyrinth of sequestered passageways. He had covered almost every room but could not find her anywhere. He finally stopped to think. The last he saw of her was at the end of the corridor between the bedroom and living area. The only other room was Victor’s study and he’d already checked there, unless...

He couldn’t imagine she’d be foolish enough to disturb his master’s laboratory ... would she? It was the only thing that made sense. Hurriedly, he followed one of the lesser used subterranean shafts. He cracked the hidden door just enough to get a good view. He was not prepared for what he saw. She was sitting on top of his master’s research, arching her back with her hands behind her, supporting herself on the monster’s thighs. Her head thrashed from side to side as she screamed in climatic ecstasy.

Jealousy raced through his veins. Making love to her husband was one thing. He could do nothing about that but this ... this ... this ... thing--a thing that he helped create. “How could you?” he screamed, charging out from his lair. “Get off of him.”

Elizabeth screamed with fear as Ygor yanked her down. She had no idea where he came from. “Get away from me,” she screamed. She twisted her body to break his grip but he was not about to let her go. This was what he’d been dreaming of. He finally had her in his arms.

“Stop struggling,” he demanded. “I love you,” he professed. He tightened his grip and pulled her closer as she fought harder to break away from him.

“You’re hurting me. Let me GO!” she yelled at the top of her voice. “I’ll tell Victor!”

“No, you won’t,” he scoffed. “If you do I’ll tell him what you were doing down here.” He grabbing the top of her nightgown and ripped it, exposing her right breast passed the nipple. She tried struggling harder but Ygor was strong. He grabbed her by the hair to keep her head still.

Her eyes grew wide with fear as he moved in to kiss her. Just as their lips touched he froze at the unearthly sound of a wounded animal. It was unlike anything either of them had ever heard before. It echoed off the stone walls like the cries of Dante’s inferno.

Ygor first caught the movement out of the corner of his eye. “Christ!” he yelled, letting go of Elizabeth and moving backward. Stumbling on his bad leg, he fell to the floor; his face was a mask of fear.

Elizabeth looked over her shoulder to see what was making her tormentor so scared. She gasped as the breath left her lungs. Her short time lover was struggling against his bonds. His jaw was clinched tight and the anger behind his eyes was unmistakable.

“Run, run, it’s not safe. Get out!” Ygor struggled to his feet and hurried backward toward the hidden door in the far corner.

Seeing how terrified Ygor was, she wasn’t sure what to do. “Easy, easy,” she said as she laid her hand on his arm. Her touch seemed to immediately calm him down but she was still nervous. He looked incredibly strong and could probably tear her apart if he desired. “I ... I’d better go,” she said. “I don’t think Victor would like it if he knew I was down here.”

As she spoke, the creature strained against the brace that held his head so he could turn and look at her. Elizabeth watched the anger in his eyes morph into sadness. His mouth moved but his voice was weak, probably strained by his outburst and she couldn’t understand what he was trying to say. She no longer believed he’d hurt her but the whole situation was overwhelming. A man who she had thought sure was dead suddenly comes back to life, Ygor and his aggressive behavior, not knowing what her husband was going to do about it all...

It was too much. She had to get out of there and think. “I ... I really have to go. I’ll come back and check on you though.” She smiled and ran her fingers through his thick, black hair. “Get some sleep or something, okay?”

He fought to tell her something as she turned but could only grunt. He watched as she disappeared behind the large door. Once Elizabeth was back in her room she locked the door then sat on the bed to think. She had so many questions; who was that in the dungeon and why was he down there? Why did he appear to be dead at first and where the hell had Ygor come from? She knew he didn’t come through the door and she looked around when she first went in there and didn’t see anyone except Frankie ... yeah, that’s what I’ll call him, she thought, at least until I find out his real name ... Frankie.

But how will she find out his real name? She can’t tell Victor she was down there, but then Ygor will probably tell him anyway.

The more she thought about things the more questions she had and the more nervous she became. And then there was the matter of Ygor. For a small guy with a limp he was damn strong. She could outrun him but she couldn’t fight him off, he already proved that to her. If it hadn’t been for Frankie he’d have raped her, she was sure of it. She shuddered at the thought.

A hundred feet away, Ygor closed himself up in the small room he considered home. It wasn’t much and it was isolated from the main rooms of the castle but no one bothered him while he was in there and he had access to the secret passageways through a false section of wall behind his bed.

His body trembled. He’d never been so scared in his life. For three years he’d worked with his master. He’d done terrible things; stealing body parts from the morgue, grave robbing, even murder, but never in his wildest imagination did he ever think Victor’s dream of creating life would ever be realized. He did what he did for several reasons; mainly because Victor gave him a home and food, but also to get back at the village that shunned him. He enjoyed taking their loved ones from their graves. It was retribution. And then there was the delight of watching Elizabeth; that was a recent and very enjoyable perk.

Now he had no idea what was going to happen. This ... this creature was alive. Did that mean Victor would have no further need of his services? Would he be thrown out in the cold with winter approaching? Suddenly he had a bigger problem than how to get into Elizabeth’s pants. In spite of the chilly air in his room, he was sweating.

He sat and thought. There was only one obvious answer, he had to get rid of that thing in the dungeon. It was too big to move but as long as it was still strapped down it was helpless. He’d have to kill it but how. He couldn’t just stab it or cut its throat. Victor would obviously know who did it. He had to figure out a way to do it so his master didn’t know what he’d done. An accident of some kind, he told himself. Yeah, but this was going to take some thought.

Never in her twenty-three years had Elizabeth been racked with so many emotions. She was furious with Victor for leaving her in danger. Ygor had made her more frightened than she could ever remember. She no longer felt safe to even leave her room and yet she knew she had to return to the dungeon. It was like a magnet pulling her in. He needed her.