Page 16 of Cruel Master
Even with all my preparation and work, a large part of me had been sure she’d see straight through the disguise. That she’d raise a brow, say, “Knock it off, Hadrian. You can’t be serious with this shit,” and everything would come crashing down.
But it worked. It actually worked.
I unfasten the mask and let my eyes readjust to natural light. I only thought to add the night vision at the last second, and I’m so glad I did. Watching Juliet creep around thinking she could hide from me was exhilarating. She was always a little bit scared of the dark. I wonder if she ever told anyone else about it.
Once my body settles enough to think, I head straight to the monitors and turn the sound up high so I can hear every delicious little moan that comes out of Juliet’s mouth. Strands of her beautiful hair stick to her clammy face, and she wriggleson the altar, but there’s nothing she can do. The timer ticks down, and when it hits twenty-five, she speaks.
“Please. Can you hear me? I can’t stand it. Take it out.”
It’s what she thinks she wants, but I know better.
I’ve studied every piece of media she’s consumed since I discovered her obsession. I have spreadsheets detailing the books and films she returned to again and again, and which she never bothered to finish. I’ve studied them all, and the reason she gave up on some is as clear as day.
If the man shows any softness, she loses interest.
She values cruelty, harsh punishments, and a total lack of compromise. She wants the female character forced into submission. Juliet doesn’t want a master who shows mercy, and she’s not going to get one. How long will it take before she admits it’s what she’s always craved?
Even now, when she was panicked and terrified, I caught a couple of moments when her body seemed to react to me. I’ll experiment more with that later on and see what sort of responses I can get.
A hot-red thrill pulses along my veins, and I breathe through it. I have to stay calm and logical to make this work. If Juliet gets a hint of how much I’m enjoying this, it’ll shatter the character I’m creating. But, God, it’s difficult.
Spending so much time immersed in Juliet’s fantasies changed me. They became my fantasies, too. I used to think hurting women was the lowest thing a man could do. I didn’t understand that some people crave a certain type of pain. Sometimes, they need it. Now, all I can think about is how far to push Juliet. What will it take to break her?
On the monitor, she kicks her legs the little she can and lets out a sad whimper. From what I’ve read, this particular punishment gets worse until around the thirty-minute mark, then thepain begins to ease off. If a longer period is required, I’d have to remove the plug and reapply the special lube. If she’s suffering now, she’ll be desperate when I go back in.
My cock is screaming for attention, but I ignore it. I’m very good at denying my own impulses if I have to, and soon, I’ll never have to again. I’ll have Juliet perfectly trained to serve my every need. Still, I turn away from the monitor. No need to torture myself.
Twenty minutes.
If the time’s going slowly for me, it must be crawling for Juliet. A satisfying thought. To distract myself, I pull out my phone. I’ve already given Kendrick and Jacob access to the cloning program, but I haven’t looked at it myself since Juliet arrived in the Compound.
I open it and attack the flood of messages. Word of Juliet’s disappearance has spread to all her friends and acquaintances. So many people who care about Juliet have sent worried messages. It threatens to make me feel guilty, so I scroll past until I find the name I want.
Alex: I don’t appreciate lateness, Juliet. I’ll punish you for it later.
Alex: Are you on your way?
Alex: Is something wrong, Juliet?
Then the Brotherhood responded from Juliet’s phone.
Juliet: I’m sorry. I’m not going to make it tonight. Cold feet. Sorry I wasted your time.
Silence for a few hours, and then:
Alex: I’m coming for you.
Then nothing.
I’m coming for you.
An odd phrase. In creating Candice and the other CIs, I had to become an expert on language as well as facial movement.The most basic iteration of the Turing test involves creating a chat bot that can talk with enough nuance to fool a human. Even though all they can see is the text, it’s surprisingly difficult.
I’m coming for you.
At first glance, it seems as though he’s coming to see if she’s okay, but I’m not convinced. There’s something threatening about the tone, and Juliet never gave him her address.
And I’d have to check with Jacob, but the timing is off, too. They said she was reported missing an hour after her disappearance. If this guy reported her, why would he be messaging her phone, especially once she already told him she wasn’t coming?
