Chapter 13

Maddie came to. She laid quietly, eyes closed, as she tried to make sense of her surroundings. She was on a bed or at least something soft. She couldn’t remember going to bed, but she was under a sheet and blanket. Her mouth felt and tasted like an old sock. When she tried to move her eyelids, they felt stuck and gummy. What the hell had happened?

She clawed back through her memory. The last thing she could remember was Jason leaving after their delightful, and should never be repeated, cum-spewing romp in the shower. He’d left to order lunch while she rinsed the conditioner out of her hair. She had toweled off and minimally dried her hair, trusting that it would be fully ready to go by the time she had to drive Jason back to the mall.

She had left the bathroom and crossed the bedroom, picking up her discarded clothing from the floor. When she reached the door to the room-sized closet, movement caught her eye. A man in a Riddick Inn worker’s uniform was standing in the doorway ten feet away. She was nude and he was very much aware of it. His jaw dropped and he gawked at her for a long moment.

“Excuse me; I’ll be right with you.” Maddie said. She didn’t bother to try and cover her nakedness. She was secretly amused that she had shocked the man. She moved to step into the closet to dress. She had taken a step when she heard a pop and something stung her chest. She looked down to see two slim darts sunk into the flesh above the swell of her left breast. Coils of wire trailed back to something in the man’s hand. She understood what was happening a split second before the electricity hit her body and she began to shiver.

Her legs gave way and she went to the rug covered floor on her hands and knees. Her body shook horribly, but she thought that if she could concentrate enough, she might be able to lift her hand and pull the darts free. She couldn’t tilt her head to look at the guy, but she could see his black work shoes. They weren’t all that far away. If she could manage to get so much as her pinky finger on that asshole, she’d turn him into her sexual zombie and find out what the fuck was going on.

A second pair of shoes joined the first one. This guy said, “Wow.”

The asshole said, “Yeah, wow. Now hurry ... she’s about to fight this thing off.”

“That’s impossible,” said the second guy.

I’ll show you fucking impossible, Maddie thought. Her right hand lifted toward the darts in a series of spastic starts and stops. She was almost there when she saw the second pair of shoes hurry by. There was another pop and something whacked her hip. Her next memory was of waking up in the bed ... thirty seconds ago.

She pried open her eyes and looked around. Through a door, she saw what looked to be a really nice hotel room. Not the Riddick Inn though, this place looked much newer. Another door led to a bathroom. Maddie suddenly had an overwhelming urge to pee. She sat up on the edge of the bed and waited for the room to stop spinning. She was relieved to see that she was wearing the oversized jersey she used as a sleepshirt, although she had to wonder who had dressed her.

After peeing until she thought she was going to drain all the fluid from her body, she went to the bathroom basin. Her toiletries and her few cosmetics were laid out in orderly rows. She rinsed her toothbrush in hot water for a full minute and then thoroughly brushed her teeth. She examined herself in the mirror as she brushed. She looked as if she’d been in the bed with the flu for a week. Her eyes were puffy and red. Her hair was a rat’s nest, and her complexion was pasty.

She rinsed her mouth and ran her fingers through her hair. At least her teeth had lost their fuzzy slippers and her breath no longer made her want to gag. She wandered through the bedroom and into the main area of the hotel room. There was a sitting area complete with couch, chairs and a flat-screen TV. Next were a built-in business desk and then a mini-kitchen. All the furnishings looked new and expensive. Most importantly, here was the room’s outer door. She tried the handle and it turned easily, but the deadbolt was still engaged. She tried to turn the handle for it, but the lock wouldn’t budge. She carefully placed her fingers to muster all the leverage she could and tried again. It was a no go. That made sense. Obviously she’d been kidnapped. Her captors would make sure she was locked in.

She went back to the kitchen and opened the refrigerator under the counter. It was filled with small plastic bottles of water, juice and sodas. She opened one of the waters, gulped it down and tossed the empty in the trash. She was halfway through another bottle when she heard a feminine voice say, “Hello?” from the room behind her.

Maddie’s hand shook causing water to dribble down her chin. She wiped it with the back of her hand. She knew there wasn’t actually anyone in the room; the voice was tinny as if from small speakers. She stepped out of the kitchen area and looked to her left. There was a small laptop on the desk. She hadn’t noticed it on her way by.

There was a woman’s face on the screen. Or at least the computer generated image of a woman’s face. She looked faintly Asian, her eyes blinked at random intervals and her hair swayed in a computer generated breeze. In the corner of the screen she could see the chair that was sitting across from the desk in the room. So it was a video chat. She walked to the desk and stood. Her jersey filled the corner spot of the screen meaning that was what the person on the other end could see. She wasn’t going to sit and give that person the satisfaction of seeing her face.

“Where’s the young man who was with me?” Maddie demanded without preamble.

“Your brother, Jason, is perfectly healthy and at home,” the avatar said. Its mouth moved not quite in time with the words.

Relief washed through Maddie. Jason was safe, at least according to this woman. “Okay ... then where the fuck am I, who the fuck are you and what the fuck do you want?” Maddie said. She crossed her arms under breasts and cocked her hip in anger.

“If you’ll give me a few moments of your time, I think I can short circuit most of your questions,” the woman said.

“Tell me,” Maddie snapped.

“Thank you,” the woman said. “Please call me Susan. I represent a group of people who are very interested in you. We know that you have been in possession of a medallion, or charm. You know what I’m talking about. It’s about the size of a dime, lenticular in shape, and its effects, as you well know, are remarkable. You’ve seen the changes in your body. You know what you can do to a man. The owner and manager of the Riddick Inn are in mourning that you left, by the way. Yes ... yes I know you think you were kidnaped from the inn, but actually you were rescued.”

“Rescued?” Maddie barked incredulously. “From what ... lunch with my brother?”

“A little more explanation is necessary,” said Susan. “The charm’s previous owner, a woman named Marie Smathers developed a cult-like following of women. How? I’m sure you’ve noticed the cock that appears between your legs every now and then. By having oral or vaginal sex with women, Queen Marie, as she was known, could pass along some of her abilities. Her followers became beautiful, seductive women. At first, many years ago, Queen Marie sent them out into a man’s world to marry and become the greatest influence in their husbands’ lives. As time went on, her girls became movers and shakers on their own. Over the years, her women made Marie incredibly wealthy. The women were fiercely loyal to their Queen. Not only did they genuinely feel loyal, they also needed intercourse with her from time to time to maintain their looks and abilities.