Chapter 54

Gina stood at the end of the deserted road watching the snow drift down through the calm. The silence was near absolute; she imagined she could hear the snowflakes falling against the collar of her coat.

The oddity of the heavier clothing against her body had all but vanished. The virgin snow cover across the ground stretched unblemished until it was lost into the soft haze. She let her eyes become lost there as well, ground and sky merging into the whirling white.

A hand on her shoulder brought her back, and it became little more than a snowy, abandoned road once more.

"This is what you wanted, Gina?" Victor asked.

Gina looked up at him. He was dressed in a dark, nearly black trench coat, like a monolith set against the snowy backdrop. "I used to do this all the time, Master," she said. She looked ahead of her again. Yes, she had wanted this, though the reason escaped her at the moment.

"Then let us not dally here."

He nudged her as he took a step forward. He left behind dark footprints, the snow barely a half-inch thick. Gina walked with him, her feet wobbly at first. He had produced a set of boots for her with three-inch heels. The heels were wider than her other shoes, but the ground was softer here. It would still be another few weeks before the ground would freeze.

Her gaze swept across the scene, first following the bare branches of the aspens to the sky, then watching the flakes flurry down. Her eyes tracked across the snow, back to the edge of the trees and stopped. A few seconds later, she stopped as well.

Victor's footsteps fell silent. Gina did not notice, nor did she even acknowledge his presence.

In her head, it was a year ago. She had taken her first snowy walk of the season, long before her mother had started to act strange, before she even knew of Victor and her purpose. She had not thought much about the future back then except times like this, when there were no other distractions and she could hear her own thoughts.

And her thoughts had been strange.

What if she had not done what her mother had wanted her to do?

What if she did not do well in school?

What if she did not agree with her mother on everything?

They were little more than thought experiments. Of course she would do what was expected of her. It was right and normal.

Yet a year ago, she stood in that same spot, watching something prance in the snow at the edge of the trees. It had been a squirrel, and those thoughts came to her again as she watched the carefree antics of the creature in her memories.

"Gina."

Gina blinked and the creature vanished from her mind's eye. "Yes, Master?"

"Something interesting in the trees?"

Gina shook her head.

Victor took a step forward, his head turning slowly as his gaze swept the aspens.

"I think I'd like to continue onward, Master," said Gina.

Victor pulled himself back. He gestured ahead of them with a small bow of his head.

Gina began to walk once more. She again gazed at the pure white blanket before her, and soon it was clear that something was not quite right. For all her desire to do this walk again, she felt out of place, like a stranger that only now had arrived in this part of town and was seeing the road for the first time.

Her steps grew hesitant. She looked behind her, at the dark, wet footprints she left behind and felt a twinge of guilt. The strange sense of displacement was growing.

"You seem a bit preoccupied, Gina," said Victor, his eyes searching ahead of him. "Do you care to tell me what is on your mind?"

Gina did not know how to answer him. She did not have anything on her mind per se. What she felt was alien to her, as if the Gina strolling along this road was illusionary, and the real one was still inside the house, naked and wanting.

"Nothing, Master," she answered in complete honesty.

Victor looked at her. She looked back and had the sense of being scrutinized. He shifted his gaze ahead of him again. "Perhaps you are no longer as enamored of this sort of thing as you believe."

Gina again could not answer, as she was not sure herself. Something was missing, like looking at a painting of a snowy scene and realizing that a few brush strokes were missing.

She stopped again, staring straight ahead.

Victor stopped and turned towards her. He looked back behind him for a moment, scanned the road ahead one last time, then stepped in front of Gina's sight. "Is that it?" he said, a gentle smile coming to his lips. "Is this something that is just no longer part of your life?"

Gina stared for another moment, as if she had not noticed that Victor was standing before her, and said, "I don't belong here."

Victor stepped forward and placed a hand on her shoulder. She blinked and looked up, her eyes refocusing. "That's right, Gina. You don't belong out here. Not anymore."

Gina nodded, though her eyes still seemed distant.

"It is good, then, that we came out here. It sometimes takes confronting the past to let go of it."

Gina said nothing. She stared at him, eyes fixed and unblinking.

Victor swept his arm down the road. "Notice how you cannot quite see to the end through the snow. It hides the way beyond. It might as well not be snowing, Gina, for that way indeed leads nowhere." He gestured the way they had come. "That way leads to the rest of your life. You understand this now?"

Gina nodded again. "Yes, Master," she said in a low voice.

Victor squeezed her shoulder and nudged her. She turned and started back. Victor fell into step beside her, walking with a more relaxed gait. "When we get back inside, you will put on the leather outfit again and come down to the living room. There are techniques of more intimate presentation I need to explore with you."

Gina said nothing. She glanced back behind her as they came to the end of the road.

Victor was right. She did not belong here anymore. But she wanted to belong here. The further she retreated from it, the more she ached to belong again.

And the more she wanted to return to those thought experiments again.

And the more she wanted her own thoughts and ideas again.

She blinked rapidly as she reached the front porch of her house and climbed the stairs to the front door. The silent rebellion had retreated from her conscious mind. She no longer entertained such disloyal notions.

And yet, as she entered the house, she looked at the road once more with a longing in her eyes.

Diane believed she was content for the first time since she had joined the Harbingers.

The thought came to her as Richie slid himself into her pussy from behind, her body trembling with pleasure. She felt a light slap on her ass, and she obeyed the unspoken command by curving her back and thrusting more of her rear towards him. She was rewarded with a slow, deep thrust into her tight cunt.

Only part the pleasure she felt was from the sex act. It was almost inconsequential compared to the euphoria that came with her usefulness to the others.

Diane panted as Richie's body slapped against her ass, his cock sliding with ease in her slick pussy. She closed her eyes, trying to remember how she got this way, how she went from being useless to useful. It should not matter, but the question had begun to nag her soon after the Harbingers' first attempt to execute the spell.

Through her eyelids, she saw a shadow pass before her. She opened her eyes to see Ned present his cock before her face. She took it into her eager mouth, waves of warm obedient bliss flooding her whole body. She savored the taste as it slid over her tongue. Her cheeks dimpled as she sucked, knowing exactly what to do despite having had only two day's experience at this particular activity.

Diane hoped this would work. She wanted so much to lick Heather's pussy again, or suck on her tits. She wanted to feel Heather's hot cum on her face again. She hoped Melinda got over her shock soon as well. Her pussy tasted almost as good as Heather's. Maybe Cassie wanted hers licked as well, or perhaps Jason...

What was wrong with Jason?

The question came into her head unbidden. Why would there be anything wrong with him? It couldn't be that he didn't like her. What was there not to like about an obedient slave?

Diane shuddered and moaned around Ned's cock as her pussy throbbed. She felt a surge in her head and sensed something similar from Richie and Ned as well, like a weakened dam straining to contain the water behind it.

She was sure this would help Heather. She would continue to be useful to the Harbingers and stop worrying about Jason.

"Jason?"

Jason did not seem to hear Cassie at first, his eyes fixed on the naked figure of Diane rocking between the two boys. After a few more seconds, he finally turned his head towards Cassie. "I'm sorry?"

"Did you tell Mrs. Radson about Diane?"

"Uh, no. Was I supposed to?"

"I think she should know that one of our group is a slave," Cassie said with a slight strain to her voice. She glanced at Ned while she waited for Jason to speak. Her hips squirmed.

Jason stared at Diane again. "But she's supposed to be," he said, the hollow sound to his voice undermining its conviction.

"I know that, Jason, but ... but Mrs. Radson might not understand. And I'm a bit puzzled about something."

"What's that?"

"Why didn't we tell her about this before?"

Jason gave Cassie a confused look. "I don't understand what you mean."

"Well ... Diane is supposed to be our slave. So why--?"

"No, she's ... it was Victor that..."

Now Cassie looked bewildered as well. "Victor? What are you--?" She paused, her eyes widening. "That's weird, Jason. It's like I should have known that, but ... but it still won't make sense in my head. Are you sure you're not wrong about that?"

Jason could not respond. He was not sure himself anymore. He could not hold both thoughts in his head at the same time: Victor as perpetrator, Diane as slave.

"We have to tell her," Cassie said. "Especially if we intend to use that spell again tomorrow."

"There's something else," Jason said. "I didn't want to bring it up before everyone and risk getting sidetracked, but, well, Mrs. Radson said that what we're going to do might affect her. It might make her want to join in."

"Oh, goodness!"

"Wait, what was that?" Melinda suddenly said. She avoided looking at Diane, facing Jason and Cassie so that her back was to the carnal scene.

"Mrs. Radson said that when any of us have sex, it can affect others around us," Jason explained. "She's more sensitive than most to that sort of thing, so it might affect her enough to draw her in."

"Would she get linked to us?" Cassie asked.

"She might. I think I would prefer that. I'm always going to her for advice, so it would be nice if I didn't have to explain everything each time I see her. She can sense things for herself over the link." Jason sighed. "She's terribly conflicted about this."

"I would imagine! She's more than double the age of even the oldest of us."

Jason sighed and nodded, his gaze shifting to Melinda. "I'm sorry about that, Melinda, I can guess how you must feel about ... um ... an older person, well..."

He trailed off. Melinda had not reacted. Her eyes seemed unfocused and her cheeks flushed.

"Melinda?" Cassie prompted.

Melinda blinked. "Huh? What? I didn't say anything."

"I know, Jason just thought you might have problems with Mrs. Radson--"

Melinda wrapped her arms around herself. Her breasts were pushed up, and her hard nipples poked against her shirt. "No, I'm fine. Mrs. Radson can get boinked all she wants. Whatever."

"It's not like you specifically have to do anything with her," Jason offered.

Melinda stared at him for a few seconds, then finally uttered a weak snort. "Like we ever get the chance to decide who we want to boink anymore. I mean, yeah, okay. I'm sure the MILF-happy perv Richie will want to boink her anyway."

She turned and stepped away before Jason or Cassie could respond. Cassie gave Jason a questioning look, but Jason could only shake his head. Concern clouded Cassie's eyes, and she gave Melinda a lingering, worried look.

Jason avoided looking at Melinda. He did not want to acknowledge his fear, that he was going to be walking on eggshells around her for some time. "I hope we can time things well enough to have the necessary power to overwhelm Ms. Hollis," Jason said.

"I don't have to tell you how much I don't like this," Cassie said in a subdued voice.

"No, you don't. But if Victor decides to throw the full power of his cult at us, we have to be prepared."

Cassie nodded. "I don't intend to argue against it, not after what I learned. I know this is the only way we can do it, and it has to be done. I'm actually afraid it might not be enough. I ... I almost want to confront Victor today. I just wish I was further along with Gina."

"Today?"

"Yes, Jason, before Halloween. My ability is getting stronger the closer we get to Halloween. I think it did that every year, which is why I was able to connect with her for that week leading up to the day. Victor must be the same way." Cassie paused. "That could be another reason why he just doesn't go after all of us. He's waiting until he has maximum power."

"Ned thought the reason was that Victor has some sort of warped code of honor."

"Yes, I imagine that's true, too. But this makes sense as well. It would explain why he waits until Halloween to take his intended victim each year."

Jason sighed through his nose. "If we can figure that out, Victor knows it, too. He won't let us confront him until then."

"It's just as well, Jason. I'm not sure Gina is ready to break away from him yet. It--"

She stopped when a low, deep moan rose from the vicinity of Diane. Ned was panting hard, his cock throbbing inside Diane's mouth. She sucked down his cum in a frenzy, a few drops leaking down her chin. She licked him clean even as she whimpered in orgasm, Richie slamming his hips against her ass.

Cassie let out a tremulous sigh and covered her eyes with her hand, wrapping the other arm around her torso. She turned towards Jason and lowered her hand, then licked her lips as Diane did the same. She shivered and moaned.

Jason thought to ask Cassie if she were all right, but the words did not make it to his mouth. He knew what was wrong, and it would sound disingenuous (not to mention clueless) to ask.

Cassie stared at Jason, her eyes still cloudy, but dark with growing desire as well. She played with the buttons on her blouse. "Jason, would you ... I mean..." Her eyes slid sideways. "If Melinda didn't mind..."

"Cassie, you don't need to check with me, okay?" Melinda said. "Just don't expect me to watch."

"You want to take this upstairs?" Jason began, but Cassie was already shaking her head.

"I need to get used to this," Cassie said in a husky voice as she unbuttoned her blouse. She paused, glancing at Diane in time to witness Richie cum and bury his cock deep inside Diane's pussy. Cassie drew close to Jason. "Just let me do what Diane did for Ned. Then ... then p-please do me like that."

Jason grinned. He never bragged about his sexual prowess, but he had an ego like any other male his age. He was rather proud of the fact that he happened to be a bit talented in that area. He had almost hoped that Melinda would look a little jealous.

He looked at Heather to remind himself why they were doing this. She was seated in a chair, squirming and panting. The patterns in her Aura were losing cohesion. When he noticed she was staring at Diane, he understood that the source of her arousal was not the Darkness.

"Jason?" Cassie said, placing a trembling hand against his chest. Jason turned his head and saw she had removed her blouse and bra. He stared at her petite but pert breasts before lifting his gaze to her lusty eyes. "You could help by taking your own clothes off."

"Oh, um, yeah," he said with a shaky smile as he reached for the top button on his shirt.

"Everything went smoothly when we returned the girl, Victor."

"Unlike the pickup," Victor said. He let out a small sigh through his nose. Control was key. He had to remain in command of his emotional responses. He could not let that fail him now, not so close to his goal.

"Please, let's move past that," said Charles.

Victor turned towards the window, cell phone held to his ear. "Was there any other reaction from Jason?"

"We did not stick around long enough for that. I thought it best not to linger. We did not have time to prepare the neighborhood to ignore what we were doing."

"No matter. I am sure that the Harbingers will wish time to verify for themselves what Melinda had endured."

Victor heard a despondent sigh. "I truly hope I am not asked to do this again," said Charles.

"If anything more needs to be done past this point, Charles, I will handle it myself. You need not concern yourself."

A pause. "Victor, are you planning anything else?"

Victor hesitated a second in his reply as he peered out the window into the trees behind the house. "Only if I do not get what I want from Jason." He turned away from the window. "Has there been anything to report of Lydia?"

"She had a brief episode towards morning."

Victor's fingers tightened around the phone, and his voice turned sharp. "When?"

"Not long after we had taken the girl. I had her promptly sedated as you ordered."

Victor went over the events of the day before, syncing them in his head to Charles' actions. "Nothing of note had happened with Gina at that time."

"I am thankful to hear that," said Charles. "She must simply be reacting to the approach of Halloween. Your cultists claimed Melinda was still linked to someone, so perhaps Lydia reacted to the proximity of that link."

To Victor, it was all speculation; none of it could be proven. He had to assume that an outside chance existed that Lydia -- or, rather, the part of her that was still Stephanie -- was still trying to reach out to Gina. Yet his avatar noticed nothing unusual. For the past two days there had been no disturbance in Gina's mind.

Yet he dared not become complacent. As long as there was a chance that the "ghost" of Stephanie could interfere, he had to be on guard. "If there is any further disturbance, Charles, keep her sedated through tomorrow."

"I cannot do that! In her mind's permanently fractured state, that could push her into a coma!"

Victor could have accused Charles of baseless speculation, but he did not allow himself such an emotional retort. He paused the few seconds it took to reapply everything that had served him well to this point: logic, reasoning, and patience.

And above all, calm.

"Use your best judgment," said Victor. "If it is sufficiently close to midnight tomorrow night to maintain a safety factor, then do not take chances and keep her under."

"Yes, of course," said Charles, sounding less agitated.

"You have done far more for me this year than I have ever asked of you. I will remember this."

"I will be happy if you take the time to fill me in on exactly what new venture you appear to have embarked upon, and you are willing to listen to my recent misgivings about the cult."

"Yes, Charles, I will set aside an entire day before I am to leave Haven again for another year."

"Thank you. Is there anything else you wish of me?"

"Not at the moment, Charles. Just commence with the normal preparations tomorrow beneath the old church."

Charles sighed. "Now that this sordid ordeal with the girl is done, I find myself looking forward to the ceremony once more."