Chapter 7

"Maya," said Marigold, trying to keep her voice calm. She wanted to pull away from her old friend's embrace, but was afraid to.

Maya's chuckle was as cold and dead as her voice, "I bet you didn't expect to see me tonight. How are you, my dearest friend?"

Marigold was saved from answering by Thule closing the door behind her. She turned to watch him. He was very careful not to meet her eyes, his face blank and unreadable. He walked past the two of them, unbuttoning his jacket and throwing it on one of the high chairs by the kitchen counter.

Maya stepped back, still gripping Marigold gently by the wrists. As she looked Marigold over, her face settled into a frown. When she spoke, there was an air of menace in her voice, "Aren't you all dressed up? You both are. Were you on a date?" The last was directed at Thule and sounded like an accusation.

"I delivered her..." said Thule, his back to them, "like I promised. Where we were doesn't matter." He walked over to the couch and sat down. "I did what I promised to do."

Maya turned her attention back to Marigold, "You did. Didn't you? And all this time, I thought this was some elaborate hoax to get back into my pants." She reached up and stroked Marigold's long, blonde hair. Her touch was feather-light, but sent a shiver through Marigold like electricity.

Thule didn't answer her. Instead, he said, "Both of you, come over here. We need to talk."

Maya walked over to where he was sitting, pulling Marigold by the wrist. Marigold didn't want to go, didn't want to have the talk she knew was coming. But, she had no doubt that Maya would drag her if tried to fight. Maya wasn't tall, no more than five foot four, but she was still bigger than Marigold. More significantly, her arms were lean and well-muscled, something that had not been the case when Marigold had last seen her.

In fact, walking behind Maya, even for a few steps, Marigold realized she could have followed her one-time friend through a crowd and not recognized her. Besides being leaner and more muscular, Maya had cut her hair short. She walked like a big cat, all pent-up energy and predation. She wore a leather skirt that went beyond tight, matching black leather boots, and a starched, white blouse that wouldn't have looked out of place on the old Maya. What had happened to the shy, quiet Catholic girl Marigold had known?

Of course, Marigold knew exactly what had happened to that girl. She'd just spent the last three years pretending as hard as she could that she didn't.

Maya sat down on the couch next to Thule, letting go of Marigold's hand. Marigold was about to go and sit in the easy chair on the other side of the living room table, but Thule shifted, making a space between them. Marigold considered sitting in the chair anyway. Then, she saw the glare Maya gave Thule and decided to take the proffered spot. As she sat, she leaned into Thule, his body a line of warmth and comfort against her side.

"Sit up straight, Marigold," he said. The tone of command was back in his voice. Marigold did as she was told.

"I see you remember Maya," he said.

Marigold looked at him, surprised, "Of course I remember Maya. We're... we were friends... best friends... not that long ago..." She let her voice trail off.

"You're not my friend any more?" Maya asked. When Marigold turned to face her, she was pouting.

For a moment, Marigold thought she was being given an opening. She said, "Of course I'm still your friend, Maya... I just haven't seen you in a while."

"And why is that, Florita?" Maya reached up and stroked Marigold's hair.

Marigold turned to Thule, looking for guidance. His eyes weren't on her. They were on Maya, watching her like a mongoose watches a snake.

Marigold lowered her head. When she spoke, her voice was very small, "You went away."

Maya stroked Marigold's hair more deeply. Her fingertip traced Marigold's jaw. Marigold closed her eyes and trembled at the touch. She wanted to cry. But, she knew where this conversation was going. If she started crying now, this would be a very long evening. She wished Maya would ask the next question. She was going to have to answer it eventually. And talking was better than crying.

Behind her, Thule asked, "Why did she go away, Marigold?"

"She was pregnant," Marigold said. "She was going to get rid of it. Her father found out... He sent her away... to her grandmother's... to have the baby."

"And because he couldn't stand to look at his whore of a daughter," added Maya. Usually, when she spoke, it was in plain, unaccented English. But, Marigold could hear her Argentinian patrician heritage now. Maya's voice might be calm, but she was losing control of her accent. "He told me I was a whore and he never wanted to see me again. So, he sent me away." Now, a note of anger crept into her voice, "Who told him I was a whore, Mari?"

"Jonas told your father you were pregnant..." said Marigold. She saw Maya open her mouth to ask the next question and cut her off, "And I told Jonas."

She did cry now. Two fat tears rolled down her cheeks. She looked up just in time to see Maya's face in front of hers, close enough to kiss. Then, she felt the other girl's tongue on her cheek, licking one of the tears away. Marigold flinched away.

Thule caught her shoulders. He spoke calmly, but firmly, "Marigold, you're to obey Maya as if she were me tonight. She's the one you need to make peace with, not me." He squeezed her shoulders together a little, as if he could hug her with just the palms of his hands. "I believe you're genuinely contrite. If you are, you might get absolution out of this."

Maya's eyes flickered to Thule again, "I'm not offering absolution. I'm only here to punish her."

Marigold had her back to Thule and couldn't see his reaction. Whatever it was, Maya didn't look satisfied with it. She focused on Marigold again, "Hold still. I want to taste your tears. I'm something of a connoisseur. I want to see if they're as bitter as mine were."

Marigold held still. When Maya leaned in again, Marigold closed her eyes. Maya's tongue flickered to the hollow of her throat. A tear had pooled there. Her old friend licked her in three quick strokes. The first was up her neck; The second went from neck to chin; The third traced its way from chin to eye, catching the edge of her mouth on the way.

Marigold gasped, her mouth opening involuntarily, lips parted slightly. Maya's chuckled was right in her ear. Her eyes flew open.

In her ear, Maya purred, "Keep your eyes closed until I tell you to open them."

Marigold closed her eyes again. She felt Maya's finger pressed against her lips, urging them to part again. When they did, her tongue darted out, licking Maya's fingertip.

Maya laughed, but didn't pull her finger away, "My god, Thule. What did you do to this girl?"

"I told you what I did to her."

"I know," said Maya, pushing Marigold's lips apart a little further. "But, what did you do to her? This is not the girl I remember and certainly not the girl you described in your e-mail."

Again, Marigold was limited by having her back to Thule and her eyes closed. Neither Thule nor Maya spoke. After a few agonizing seconds, the finger came away from her lips. Before she could close her mouth, Maya's own lips were there, kissing hers. The kiss was hard, punishing, and invasive. When Maya's tongue slipped into her mouth, Marigold moaned. All of the frustration and tension that had built up during the day flared up inside of her. Marigold had thought they would be gone. Instead, they were as intense as they had ever been.

She leapt up off the couch, almost falling over the low coffee table. Catching her balance, she spun around and backed away. Her lips seemed to be vibrating from the kiss, her whole body trembling, "I can't do this. I give up. Thule, you win. I don't care about our deal any more. Get me kicked out of school. I don't care. This is too hard."

A look of relief flicked across Thule's face so quickly that it might have been a figment of Marigold's imagination. By the time he turned to face Maya, it was already gone, "We tried. I told you. I won't force her. I can't go to jail yet. I still have a lot of revenge to get yet."

Maya looked like she was going to object. Instead, she got a crafty look in her eyes. Going up on her knees, she draped herself across Thule, arms around his neck, "All right, Florita. Why don't you go and get some sleep. Thule and I will take the other room. He can drive you home tomorrow." Taking Thule's chin in her hand, she turned his face to her, tilted it upward, and kissed him full on the mouth. After a moment, Thule's arms went around her, pulling her body against his.

Marigold wanted to scream. She was down on her knees on the carpet, "Stop," she whispered. When they didn't respond, she said it again, louder, "Stop."

Maya looked up at her, not detaching from Thule, the question clear in her eye.

"Are you two going to kill me?" Marigold asked, not sure if she cared.

"That was the plan," said Maya. Marigold's head shot up in surprise.

"That was originally the plan," said Thule. "That last night, before Maya had to go away. We planned to kill you and Brianne and Randy. But then, you would just be dead. What we really wanted to do was punish you, to make you hurt like we hurt."

"What's going to happen to me, then?" Marigold asked.

"First," said Thule. "We're going to talk. Maya's going to ask you about what happened that year. You are going to answer her fully and candidly. Then, I'm going to let her punish you." He shot a warning look at Maya, "within certain constraints. After that, your punishment is done. You get to go on to Harvard and John Hopkins and all the rest."

Marigold lowered her head, "Thule, I can't answer those questions. Please..."

Thule rose, sliding away from Maya as he did. He strode over to Marigold, took her chin in his hand and said, "You can, Little Flower. You have to. You've been living with this a long time. It's time for you to let go of it. I can't promise that Maya will absolve you, but you need a chance to absolve yourself. You're not the person you were at fourteen. You need to let her go."

Marigold nuzzled his hand with her cheek before taking it in her own hands and gently pushing it away. When she spoke, she wasn't crying anymore.

"One condition."

"No conditions," said Maya.

"Hear her out," said Thule. "It may be something we've already agreed on."

Marigold looked up at him, "Thule, will you stay with me and protect me?"

Thule glanced at Maya, who laughed abruptly. She looked at Marigold, "You have a very funny definition of 'protect, ' Mari. Keep in mind that it was Thule who dressed you up and delivered you into my hands in the first place."

Marigold didn't say anything. She couldn't argue with the point. She just knew that Thule would protect her.

Maya shrugged, rising from the couch, "Fine, then. Come in the bedroom. And bring your protector with you."

-=-

The three of them sat in tableau on the bed. Maya sat cross-legged against the headboard. Marigold sat at the other end of the bed, facing her. Her legs were curled to one side so that her skirt didn't ride up. She leaned back against Thule, whose broad chest was like a brick wall. His hands rested lightly on her outer thighs.

Maya questioned her like she was a prosecutor that had Marigold under cross-examination. She started with easy questions, letting Marigold ease into the process.

Back and forth they went, filling in the backstory both of them already knew well. When Marigold's father had died near the beginning of the sixth grade, she had taken it so badly that she needed to be taken out of school to deal with it. Ultimately, she'd gone back the next year, still a sixth grader, now a year behind her peers.

During the summer before Marigold's second year of sixth grade, Maya's family had moved from Argentina to Mannsborough with very little notice. When they moved, Maya spoke only a few halting words of English. She and Marigold had met halfway through the summer and wound up spending nearly every day together.

When school had started, Maya was ostracized for her lack of English (even though it had gotten much better.) Marigold's friends were all a year ahead of her and many now avoided her after the "crazy incidents."

For the next three years, they had practically been each others' only friends. As Maya's English had improved, she'd made a few new friends, but her bond to Marigold had kept her social circle small.

It had all changed when they'd gone to Mannsborough High in the ninth grade. MHS was fed by seven local middle schools of which Marigold and Maya's had been one of the smaller. Very few people knew about Marigold's breakdown. She wasn't the crazy girl anymore. She was Jonas Tarr's stepdaughter. Suddenly, she was being courted by the popular girls.

"And you told them lies about me," said Maya. Her voice was still calm, but her accent was heavy.

Marigold shook her head, "No. I only told Brianne--and only the truth."

"Which truth?" asked Maya.

"That you were kind of wild at camp that summer..." Marigold said. "All the boys you'd fooled around with."

Maya arched an eyebrow, "Not the girls?"

Marigold shook her head, "I didn't think of that as fooling around. We were just... experimenting."

"Experimenting?" Maya's eyes flashed with anger. "Florita, I told you I loved you."

Marigold nodded, feeling miserable again, "And that scared the hell out of me."

"So, you went back to school and told Brianne lies about me."

Marigold shook her head again, "No. Everything I told her was the truth. The fabrications were Brianne's. I... never made anything up."

"Do you think that makes it better?" Maya asked.

Marigold shook her head, tears falling again, "No. Not now. I did then. That's what I told myself."

"I never fit in at Mannsborough," said Maya. It didn't take long for you to be my only friend. You started putting conditions on our friendship, so I wouldn't embarrass you with your wonderful new friends. And, like an attention-starved dog, I agreed. I continued to tell you all my secrets. And you continued to tell Brianne."

Marigold nodded. Her voice was almost a whisper now, "Yes."

"I told you the hateful things people said to me and how boys would grope me in the hallway because they thought they could get away with it."

Marigold closed her eyes, "Yes."

"I told you how they pulled me into the boys' bathroom and laughed at me and how much worse it could have been."

Marigold nodded. Her tears were flowing freely now. "Maya, I am so sorry."

Maya's smile seemed to have no emotion behind it at all. She didn't seem to notice that Marigold had spoken, "And then, I met Thule. I was happy. I told you how happy I was."

Marigold drew a deep, ragged breath, "That made Brianne angry. I never understood why. She became obsessed with making you miserable again."

"Thule wouldn't let that happen," said Maya. "The girls still talked, but he was my constant champion. Any boy who laid a finger on me, he made sorry. He beat Stanislov Pokov so badly that he was out of school for a month."

"I lost control," said Thule, interjecting himself for the first time in the conversation. "I didn't mean to hurt him so badly."

"I wish you had killed him," said Maya. There was no inflection in her voice. Marigold shivered.

"After that, I was left alone for a while," said Maya. "But, you found a way to betray me again, didn't you, Florita?"

Marigold shook her head, not in denial, but desperation, "Please, Maya. We both know what happened. I admit it. Please. Punish me." She lowered her head in shame and submission.

Maya slid forward until she could reach Marigold. Grasping her by the chin, she held her old friend's head up. When Marigold opened her eyes, Maya's face was still angry, but Marigold saw a glimpse of the old fondness, too.

"Have you ever told anyone this story, Marigold?" she asked.

Marigold shook her head in the negative.

"It's time, then."

Marigold nodded. Shifting her body, she leaned back against Thule, pressing her back against his chest as if she could borrow his strength. Thule's hands went up from her thighs to her arms, pressing her in a comforting way for a moment before resting on her elbows.

"What happened next?" asked Maya.

"You got pregnant," said Marigold.

"I got pregnant," said Maya. "I told you I was going to get rid of it. You told Brianne. When that wasn't enough, you told your stepfather."

Marigold nodded, "I told Jonas I didn't want you to kill your baby. Thule, I didn't want her to kill your baby."

"Was that the only reason?" Maya asked.

A sob was wrenched from Marigold's lips. She'd hoped that, by telling the rest of it, she could keep this last secret. As awful as her actions had been, her motivations were much worse. Miserably, she shook her head no.

"Why else?" asked Maya.

Marigold's head came up, "I wanted you to go away. I was afraid you were going to tell someone else you were in love with me. I hated you for letting me betray you. I didn't want to keep seeing you and being reminded of it. As long as you were there, I had to keep betraying you. If you went away..." She started crying again, unable to continue.

Maya leaned in, licking away her tears again, then closed her eyes and smiled as if savoring the taste. When she opened her eyes, she said, "But, you..."

"I also wanted you to go away so I could be valedictorian." said Marigold, speaking quietly as if she could keep anyone from hearing.

Maya and Thule both stiffened. Thule's hands dropped off her arms.

"You did?" asked Maya, obviously surprised.

Marigold nodded, "I wanted to go to Harvard so badly, I lost track of everything else. All I could think was that you and Thule were going to be perfect all through school. You would be valedictorian and salutatorian. All I had to do was screw up once and I would be nothing."

"Were you really that petty? Did you really want me gone because of grades?"

Marigold nodded, unable to speak again. She'd confessed everything now, even what they hadn't known. She'd thought she would feel better to get it all out, but she was as miserable as she'd ever been. She'd spent the last three years trying to pretend that none of this had happened, that she wasn't the sort of person who could do something like that.

Now, it was all true. She was that sort of person. Not talking about it had made it less real. By talking about it, she now felt like it was all happening again but without the benefit of self-delusion.

"And now, you're going to get what you want," said Maya. "Valedictorian, on your way to Harvard. Was it worth it?"

Marigold shook her head, "No. None of it was. I would give it all back if it would undo what I did."

Maya leaned forward, taking Marigold's chin in her hand. Marigold didn't have the will to resist. Her lips parted under Maya's kiss.

"It's good to hear you say that, Florita," she said. Her accent was gone again. Marigold opened her eyes to meet Maya's dark, liquid eyes.

Maya was even smiling at her a little. It was the saddest smile Marigold had ever seen, but at least it was a smile.

"It's too bad you didn't know that at the time," Maya said quietly. It didn't sound like an accusation, but like genuine regret that it had come to this. "If regrets were horses, we would all be trampled in the stampede."

Then, Maya sat up straight, "You would give it all up?" Marigold nodded.

"You would give up Harvard?" Maya asked. Marigold nodded.

"You would give up being valedictorian?" Maya asked. Marigold nodded again.

"Would you give up Thule?"

Marigold's eyes widened. No one moved or spoke for a few long seconds. When she spoke, she was surprised by how calm and controlled her voice was.

"No," said Marigold. "I wouldn't."

Maya's smile turned feral. She wasn't looking at Marigold now, but at Thule.

"Thule, what did you do to this girl?"

Marigold felt Thule's shrug in the muscles of her back, "I told you what I've done to her. I've been awful to her since day one. I blackmailed her. I got her ostracized. I turned her into a whore. I ordered her around. I violated her. I made her beg. Her reaction is as much a mystery to me as to anyone."

Maya's eyes went back to Marigold, "Florita, do you love Thule?"

Marigold wanted to say no. She could see the dangerous look in her old friend's eyes, hear the barely-contained rage. But, she couldn't. Thule was there at her request, listening.

She nodded, "I think so."

"So, for all the tears you cry, you really did wind up with everything, didn't you?" Her accent was so strong now, the "you"s came out as "joo."

Marigold opened her mouth to answer, but Maya was still ranting, "You got my popularity, my good grades, my future, even my boyfriend."

"Maya," said Thule sharply. "I'm not your boyfriend anymore. I haven't been for a long time. That has nothing to do with Marigold."

Maya took Marigold's chin, squeezing it in her hand. Her touch was not gentle this time. She held Marigold's head up so that she couldn't look away.

"You choose your protectors well, Florita," she hissed. Maya was no long bothering to control her voice.

Without releasing Marigold's chin, Maya said, "Florita, do you remember how you told me you didn't want me to kill Thule's baby?"

Marigold tried to nod, but discovered that Maya's hands were very strong. Instead, she said, "Yes."

"It was not Thule's baby."

"Maya," Thule growled a warning. "We agreed..."

Maya took her hand off Marigold's chin, reached over her shoulder, and put it on Thule's lips to hush him. With her other hand, she stroked Marigold's hair, "This is not part of the punishment. This is just two old friends talking about old times. Is that all right with you, Florita?"

Marigold nodded, "All right."

Thule took Maya's wrist and pushed it away from himself. Marigold, having half-turned, saw anger in his eyes, but he didn't speak.

"Do you remember the party at Randy Vandevoort's house, the one Thule invited me to?"

Marigold nodded.

"Thule didn't want to go. He may have been on the track team, but he was never part of that culture. I begged hin to take me to that one. I knew you would be there. I thought that, if I could get to just one on my own, you would see that I was an acceptable friend, again."

"Thule gave me what I wanted. He took me to that party. You avoided me. When I saw you, I abandoned Thule and followed you. You led me on a merry chase around the estate."

Suddenly, she looked up again, "Thule, go sit in the chair for a bit."

Thule's voice was even, "You don't get to order me around any more, Maya."

"Please," said Maya. "You have made her feel like a whore, like I asked. Now, I want to make her feel as naked and alone as I did."

Thule opened his mouth to argue. Marigold shook her head.

"Go ahead, Thule. I need to do this."

Thule hugged her to his chest, eliciting another glare from Maya.

"If you need me, I'll be right over here."

Marigold nodded, not taking her eyes off of Maya.

"That's a beautiful dress," said Maya. "Did Thule put it on you?"

Marigold nodded.

Maya smiled, "He always liked to dress me up, too. He called me his beautiful, little doll."

Marigold smiled too.

"Take it off," said Maya, harshness creeping into her voice.

Marigold slid off of the bed onto her feet. She turned her back to Maya, lifting her hair. Maya untied it in the back, letting it fall to the floor and leaving Marigold naked. As Marigold resumed her place on the bed, she could feel Maya's eyes on her, appraising her.

"Do you know whose son I was forced to have because of you?" Maya asked.

Marigold shook her head, "I thought it was Thule's."

"I followed you through the house at that party," said Maya. "You lost me in a maze of rooms. I wound up getting lost. I wound up alone in a room with Brianne and Randy Vandevoort."

All the color drained from Marigold's face. She whispered, "No."

Maya nodded, "Brianne whispered something in Randy's ear. He smiled and laughed as if it must be some great joke. Then, he offered to take me back to Thule. Instead, he took me out onto the back lawn and raped me."

Marigold shook her head as if the act of denial could undo what had happened.

"You told Brianne I was a hot, little whore. Brianne told the one boy Thule couldn't thrash into submission. He raped me. He raped a lot of girls at our school. But, I was the first."

"No," cried Marigold. "God, Maya. I didn't know. I swear, I didn't know."

"Randy Vandevoort raped me because of what you told Brianne."

Marigold didn't answer. She sat alone on the bed, naked and weeping. She felt like the worst person in the world. Once, she had convinced herself that, by becoming a Christian, she had been forgiven by God and that was all that mattered. Now, with her malfeasance laid out in front of her, she knew that what she had done had left a stain that would never be washed clean.

Maya let her cry for a long time. Marigold didn't turn to see what Thule was doing. He couldn't protect her from this.

Finally, Maya said, "So, Florita. Do you still expect absolution?"

"I don't expect anything," said Marigold, sounding raw and numb even to herself. "Punish me if it will help ameliorate your pain. Please. I am lost."

Maya rose, "Lie flat on your stomach, head by the headboard, arms extended over your head. I will be right back."

Maya stepped out of the room. Marigold looked at Thule, sitting in the chair in the corner. His face was unreadable. When Maya came back, she was carrying a heavy, black duffel bag. Reaching in, she pulled out a long, black silk scarf. She folded it over itself and secured it around Marigold's head as a blindfold.

Next, Marigold felt cold steel on her wrists as Maya cuffed her to the bedframe. Once Marigold was secured, she felt Maya give an experimental tug to make sure they were secure. Marigold was blind and bound, completely at Maya's mercy.

"Christ, Maya," Thule said. "Put that away. I told you that you wouldn't be allowed to use those."

"Relax, mi corazon," purred Maya. "I didn't repack my bag after my last... play session. Everything is mixed up in here. I'm just looking for these..."

Marigold felt something place on the bedspread next to her.

"... and these..."

Something else was laid on the bedspread.

"... and, of course, these."

"You still use those?" Thule asked.

"You can't go wrong with the classics," Maya said.

Thule sounded bored when he answered, "Just don't set off the sprinklers."

"Would you like to help?" Maya's voice sounded hopeful.

"No," said Thule. "I never needed these things to torture her."

"And a good job you did," said Maya, her voice rich with sarcasm. "Just think, you made her fall in love with you with no assistance at all. With my bag of toys, you could probably make her into a mindless sex slave. Come here, mi corazon."

Marigold heard Thule's heavy treads on the carpet. Then, for a long time, she heard nothing. She started to wonder what they were doing. She imagined Maya giving herself to Thule. He'd loved her once. Would be able to resist her if she offered herself to him again?

Marigold knew they couldn't be doing that. It was too quiet. Still, her imagination went wild over what they could be doing so quietly. Were they even still in the room?

When the strap stung across her ass, Marigold let out a sob that was a mixture of pain, surprise, and relief.

"Not so loud, Little Flower," Thule said. His voice was coming from the chair in the corner again. "We can't have the neighbors complaining."

The next lash was harder. The third, harder still. Marigold stifled her cries as well as she could. But, if Maya kept hitting her harder, she wasn't going to be able to much longer.

Fortunately, Maya settled into a rhythm. Marigold could hear her cursing in Spanish in a low voice. She'd learned a lot of Spanish while they'd been friends, but knew very few of the words. The ones she did recognize, she doubted Maya had known before she'd moved away.

As the rhythm continued, Marigold started to feel like she was acclimating to the beating. The strap continued to sting, but not to hurt. She was even able to unclench her teeth, which she had not been aware that she'd been grinding.

Then, to her horror, all of the lust and sensitivity that had built up during the day started to trickle back into her awareness. She would have sworn that the ordeal she'd been through would have killed any prurient thoughts, but it hadn't. She started to make noise again in response to the strap, but they were mewls of pleasure. The more she fought the pleasure, the better it felt.