As I sat in the dark, all I could do was worry about Hannah. Was she being released? I didn"t know. I simply had to give my trust that Faeri would follow through with what she said.The night continued on as I listened for any indication of someone coming to the cells. I heard nothing.
After considering what I had seen so far, I figured out that I was locked up in some sort of abandoned factory. The current cell I was locked in was perhaps where valuable items were locked up during the night.
I couldn"t really understand the specifics. How did manufacturing work in a world with magic? So far, I had yet to see much in the ways of magic. Perhaps Faeri"s voice box was magic? I had no clue. I still didn"t know enough about this world.
Perhaps I never should have given myself to the Primrose. However, if I hadn"t, then Hannah would have been in a worst situation. Perhaps she would have been raped by that Matty woman already. Thus, I didn"t regret my decision. I had done everything I could for Hannah. If she was truly gone, now I simply needed to worry about myself.
With those comforting thoughts, I drifted off to sleep. My dreams were filled with as much frustration and uncertainty as I had when I was awake. Suffice it to say, I had no clue how much time pa.s.sed by as I slept.
"Brother… Brother… wake up!" I murmured a few times as a visage of Hannah floated in front of me.
I felt hands on my face, and that"s when my eyes shot open the rest of the way. Hannah"s voice wasn"t just coming from another room, Hannah was literally hovering in the bed over me.
"Hannah!" I let out a cry and grabbed the girl into an embrace, causing her to make a surprised noise.
"Brother! Ahhh… not the time!" She turned her cheek as I tried to kiss her.
I gave a pout, and Hannah responded with a guilty look, turning back and giving me a quick peck on the lips.
"I love you, Hannah." I smiled. "I was so worried…"
"Brother… when you look at me that way my chest feels like it"s going to burst…" Hannah had a slightly pained look. "Please, we need to escape…"
"Escape?" I immediately stopped teasing Hannah, sitting up instantly.
My memories of where we were came crashing home. For a brief moment, just seeing Hannah had caused me to forget. However, now wasn"t the time to play.
My change in att.i.tude caused Hannah to puff out of her cheeks and look at me stubbornly. "Brother is a big meanie for teasing me."
I reached along the bed and pinched her b.u.t.t, eliciting another yelp. "Come on, if we"re escaping, let"s escape already. How did you get away?"
Hannah stood while rubbing her b.u.t.t and still pouting, "I just did. They took me away in a blindfold, but I remembered every turn and came back."
"You shouldn"t have come back." I winced.
"I love you, I"ll always come back," Hannah explained simply, looking away with a blush.
"Then let"s get going…"
Hannah nodded, heading to the cell and looking out both directions before heading the opposite way of the path where we had gone the day before. I followed after her, keeping low and trying to make my footsteps light. I didn"t know anything about sneaking. I adjusted where my feet landed from my heel, to my toes, to my instep several times, still not satisfied with deciding which direction produced the least sound.
Meanwhile, Hannah moved in front of me, still holding my hand as if she was guiding me naturally. She didn"t slouch or hide. Rather, she moved with confidence as if she had memorized the route. Well, she came in through this route and didn"t run into anyone, so it should be safe, right? It"d still be nice if my sister showed a little more caution. The expression on her face wasn"t that of a woman who was raped yesterday, and now she was trying desperately to escape with her brother. Rather, she seemed oddly casual, as if this was just a stroll through the park.
I couldn"t decide if her behavior made me more worried or less. All I could do was hold onto my sister, keep a lookout, and follow as quietly as possible. I could hear my own heart thrumming in my ears. For some reason, I felt nauseous too. I had been captured for nearly a week in the Primrose, yet I felt more nervous trying to escape than I did living there.
I was so focused on my own thoughts that I walked out ahead of Hannah before realizing she had stopped. I immediately froze when my eyes landed on Faeri standing in front of me with two other guards. Or would calling her Tinya be a better word? She wasn"t wearing the mask right now. Instead, she held a very displeased look on her face as she glared at Hannah and me.
The girls she brought with her looked tough, and one of them was holding a bat while the other looked to have a pair of bra.s.s knuckles on. Either way, I didn"t think I could take the girls. I might be a little stronger than a girl my same age, but I hardly had the body to make up for girls three or four years older than me, let alone with weapons.
Just when I thought Hannah might have to lead me there deliberately, I saw the frustrated expression on her face.
"What are you doing here?" Hannah demanded angrily.
She tried to push forward, but I instantly protected her with my body. If the women started punching, I"d take the brunt of it. Hannah had come back for me. Now, we were both trapped again. I had wished Hannah had just left without me. I"d deal with the crazy Faeri on my own.
"I was waiting to see what you"d do… it was… him… after all." Tinya"s voice sounded sad like she had hoped Hannah had done something different.
Hannah grabbed onto my arm, hugging me. "Just leave us alone! We"re done!"
"You may be done with Primrose, but we"re not done with you." Tinya sneered.
"Tinya, look, we can work this out…" I held up my hand, trying to use the goodwill I thought I"d built over the last week as her f.u.c.k buddy.
"Shut up! You… you… man!" Tinya"s eyes flashed with hatred.
"Stop it…" Hannah shook her head, her body shaking in agitation.
"You"re going back into your cage!" Tinya moved her hand from me and then pointed at Hannah. "You"re going back to where you belong."
"Stop it!"
"Don"t let him come between us!" Tinya shouted, agitated by Hannah"s demeanor. "You"ve had your fun with him. We gave you a week to play, now come back to us. Come back to me."
"Shut up!" Hannah screamed, putting her hands over her ears.
"I love you! I love you more than he ever will!" Tinya insisted.
"Huh?" at this point, I took a step away, looking between Tinya and my sister, who was shaking her head, her eyes seeming to lose some cohesion.
What was going on? Tinya was in love with Hannah? What? Tinya had been sleeping with me for the last week. Tinya was jealous because my love for Hannah was greater than my love for her. I didn"t understand what they were talking about now. Did I miss something?
"See… don"t you see I love-"
"f.u.c.k you!" Hannah screeched. "You"re ruining everything!"
Tinya"s lip peeled back into a snarl. "You"re the one trying to throw it all away… for this… man."
"I don"t understand." I shook my head, my mind trying to work through this sudden change, "What does Hannah have to do with you?"
"See? This idiot doesn"t even know. He doesn"t know who you are," Tinya snapped, looking at Hannah desperately.
"Know…" My eyes focused on Hannah as everything clicked into place.
My hand moved without thought. I reached out towards Hannah, who had her head lowered as if she had been frozen by Tinya"s accusations. She didn"t react as my hand grabbed the collar of her shirt and pulled. Right there, on her neck, was a yellow bruise with teeth marks. It was a familiar bite.
"Faeri…" The words came out in a whisper.
Hannah slapped my hands away. Her lips slowly curling upwards. She peeled back her head and laughed, her arms falling to her side. It was a familiar laugh, although it was clearer now without the voice modulator.
"It"s a joke… a joke. I was just playing a joke. I"m your Faeri, Tinya, I"ve always been," Hannah responded darkly before turning to me. "Hahahaha… Brother, you"re so stupid, not knowing it was me!"
"I had my suspicions." I shook my head in disbelief. "You acted differently. Looked different. You didn"t bleed when we… of course you wouldn"t because I"d already taken your virginity a week ago!"
Hannah nodded, jumping up and kissing me on the nose before I could react and then moving over to Tinya. "And Brother was so rough too. You didn"t give your big sister any mercy! You just took me and f.u.c.ked me like an animal!"
"Hannah…" my mouth grimaced, and I just could not figure out how to respond.
My mind felt numb with shock, and this sudden development was too much to stomach. In a lot of ways, it seemed so obvious now that I thought about it. Hannah kept things dark so I didn"t notice the differences between the two women, but she was Faeri every time she came in and f.u.c.ked me. The cell across from mine? Who knows, it probably had another entrance in it. She"d just pull off her mask, tie her hair up, and then pretend to be Hannah. As to Tinya"s role in this, she was probably some second in command, and possibly Hannah"s lover. It was so obvious, but I found myself unable to put the pieces together until they were shoved in my face.
"Don"t look at me that way, Brother." Hannah pulled the familiar mask out from a pocket behind her and put it on. "It"s just business. We needed a c.u.m dispenser and you just happened to be dumb enough to walk right into my little trap."
Her words hurt, but they would have hurt a lot more had I truly been a fourteen-year-old boy. I might have been too fl.u.s.tered and hurt by her words to truly think if I didn"t have my other memories. I wouldn"t have seen how fl.u.s.tered she was. I wouldn"t have recalled how she was just helping me try to escape. Her behavior now was because she hit a dead end. She was both figuratively and literally hiding behind a mask. She switched sides and now was trying to distance herself from me because she felt like she had no other choice. I wouldn"t stand for it.
"Hannah… I told you before. You"re mine. I"m not giving up on your so easily," I said.
Hannah straightened for a second, but then laughed again. "Hahaha… Brother, you don"t get it. I played you. I"ve been Faeri for a long time. I"ve been plotting to get you out of the house for over a year now. This was my plan, all of it! I even picked up Tinya after Mom discarded her. Why else would you think I recruited my sweet Tinya?"
Faeri, my sister, ran her hand through Tinya"s hair like she was petting an animal. Tinya closed her eyes and had a pleased look on her face like she enjoyed the affection.
"You saved her because I f.u.c.ked her," I growled, causing Tinya to shoot me a hateful glare. "She took my virginity, so you wanted to possess it."
"Hahahahaha… you"re so funny, Brother!" Faeri"s hand tightened and pulled Tinya"s hair before she turned away. "Aren"t you being really conceded?"
"I don"t believe it. Last night…"
"An act… I was just playing with your emotions…" Faeri"s eyes flashed for a second. "Don"t you get it, Brother? I never… never l-loved you…"
"I don"t believe you." I narrowed my eyes, looking darkly at the girl who hid her expressions behind a mask.
"Well, it"s not like we believe her either," Tinya sighed, turning an eye to Faeri.
"What?" Faeri spun towards the woman with a surprised glance.
"We all saw you last night…"
"It was a joke, I was just putting on a show!" Faeri insisted, glancing at the other two women who didn"t show her any support.
Tinya shook her head sadly. "You requested to step down as the Faeri. You wanted to leave Primrose."
"We had an agreement!" Faeri shouted. "You become the next Faeri and I leave! This would have gone perfectly, you traitor!"
Realizing her rouse was crumbling, Hannah turned hostile towards Tinya once again. She didn"t show any love or affection for Tinya that she showed for me. Whatever they had, it looked to me like it was one-sided.
"The Primrose are nothing without their Faeri, and you tried to leave us. We won"t allow it."
"b.i.t.c.hes! All of you!" Faeri shouted, backing away.
As they spoke, the nearby boxes were pushed aside and more and more Primrose came out. This was a complete ambush, or perhaps an intervention. All of the girls were looking at Faeri like she owed them something. In a few short seconds, the small warehouse was filled, and Hannah had nowhere to run.
"Don"t make this harder than it needs to be…" Tinya said, sadness cupping her facial features.
"You think I"ll just play nicely now? You think your Faeri will keep you going?" Faeri cursed. "You were nothing without me! You"re nothing! You"re-"
As Faeri shouted, Matty walked up behind her. With a single strike on the head, Faeri was cut off mid-sentence. As she collapsed in Matty"s arm, Matty pulled off her mask and tossed it to Tinya.
I glared up at Tinya, who was standing their hesitantly while holding on to the mask.
"Is this what it was all about? Being in charge?"
Tinya"s lips twisted. "You wouldn"t understand, you"re just a man."
I frowned slightly. "What"s to not understand? Your brother was an a.s.shole. You grew desperate and tried to **** me. Mom kicked you out, and Hannah was the only thing you could cling on to. Of course, now that you learned your time with Hannah was a lie, you"re upset."
"Upset?" Tinya shot me a hateful look. "You and your Mom took everything from me! You destroyed my life. You threw me on the street. Now you want to take my Hannah."
"You ruined your own life," I shot back, "You know, my mom planned to have you be my first lover. I was going to give you a baby. When you turned on the family, she was hurt."
Tinya took a step back. "Lies… your Mother just wanted you to herself."
I shrugged, crouching down and touching Hannah lying unconscious on the floor. "Believe what you want, but if you had come back, I would have taken you in. I never forgot about us."
"Us… there is no us…" Tinya gave a look of disgust. "There is only Hannah and me!"
"Tinya, it"s not too late…"
Tinya bared her teeth angrily. "I told you once before. Tinya is dead. I am the new Faeri. Hannah gave up that right yesterday. You"re now my prisoner, and so is she!"
"You don"t have to do this…" I stood up, taking a step toward her.
"You…" she stepped back and put on the mask. "You"re just like the rest. You"re a man!"
A few of the women nodded, like simply saying that was enough to explain herself. Clyburn couldn"t keep the irritation from flashing across his face.
"Hannah isn"t yours. She never will be."
Tinya"s eyes, now outlined by Faeri"s mask, darkened. "You"ll pay for taking everything from me… you, and your Mother."
She nodded and a bunch of girls grabbed me. I didn"t even try to fight back. I only felt sad that I couldn"t save her. The girls grabbed Hannah and dragged her along with me. We didn"t return to the cell, but rather the familiar room I had started out in. They chained me back to the pipe, and then chained the still unconscious Hannah to another pipe.
The light flickered off, and the pair of us were in the cold. I wanted to move over to Hannah, but the chains didn"t allow me to get any closer. Instead, I could only watch her unconscious form. I shook my head and sighed.
We sat in the dark for several hours. I laid with my head against the wall. I"d like to say I was coming up with ways to escape, but I mostly felt numb and confused.
When did Hannah join this gang? It must have been around the same time she was molested by a lipstick lesbian. Was being molested what got her into the gang or was it part of her play? I didn"t know. Either way, the Hannah I thought I knew was gone.
"You… must hate me."
My eyes snapped open as I heard Hannah"s voice. She was still lying in the same position she was left by the Primrose, but her eyes were opened now. I had no clue how long she had been awake.
"You"re my sister," I responded simply.
"I… betrayed you," she spoke hesitantly. "I led a double life and then as soon as I got the opportunity, I imprisoned you here."
"… I know…" I said, not knowing how to respond.
"I wanted to take you away from Mom," Hannah sighed. "Away from Madison too. I just wanted you all to myself."
"That"s impossible." I grimaced. "Not in this world."
We sat in silence for a few moments before Hannah continued. "In your other world, did you have a sister?"
I had already guessed I had been misunderstanding what Hannah said before when she said she came from another world. She might have been talking about the fact she was wearing a mask. Or perhaps just being in a gang in general. I had told my little sister something I never should have told her. No, worse, I had told a complete stranger a secret I never should have spoken. I was so desperate to find someone like me, I had ended up hearing what I wanted to hear.
I gave a wry chuckle. "Why, you jealous?"
"Maybe… if you slept with her…"
I broke into a cough. "Ah… ahem… actually, in my world, men are plentiful. Sleeping with your sister would be completely inappropriate. Even half-sisters and adopted sisters would be taboo."
"… oh…" Hannah responded simply.
"No… in both my lives, you"re my only sister…" I paused for a second. "I"m sorry… for everything."
Hannah raised her head. "Why are you sorry?"
I gave a wry smile. "You had an entire hidden life. You kidnapped me and you committed crimes just to get back at this world that focuses on men. To get back at me…"
"Ah!" Hannah held out a hand, but after a moment realized she couldn"t argue that point.
"Well, for the last year I"ve hidden my real self. I threw myself at Mom, you, and Madison just to alleviate my frustration and isolation. This world is frustrating for both s.e.xes. The men who are handed everything but treated like objects, and the women who must work tooth and nail for the chance to have a baby."
"Then let"s change it." Hannah"s voice reverberated in the dark room with a surprising amount of strength.
"How?"
"We escape… we run away…"
"I"m not going to do that!" I grimaced. "I"m not going to leave Mom…"
"Mom? Mom again…" Hannah said that like a curse. "That woman is always in the way."
The hatred in Hannah"s voice wasn"t any lighter now. I hesitated for a moment. I had to fix things between mother and daughter. There was no way to move forward without that.
"Hannah, I…"
The door opened, interrupting the pair of us. Tinya, still wearing the mask, glared at us.
"Get them."
A couple of girls moved into the room and surrounded the both of us. Hannah tried to struggle for a moment, but when it was clear they wouldn"t yield, she sighed and let them lead her with me right behind. The pair of us were unchained and moved out into the room with two women on either side of each of us. We ended up where Hannah and I had been forced to perform her exiting ceremony, although the bed had been removed.
It made more sense to me now than it did the previous night. Hannah must have decided to let me go after our conversation. She wanted to step down as Faeri, which seemed to be less an actual person and more a name for whoever the group leader was. Leaving the group required being s.e.xed out… a process similar to what was necessary for some girls to join gangs in my old world. She probably made some kind of deal with Tinya where I became her s.e.x out partner and then she"d sneak out with me while Tinya took over the Primrose. What Hannah didn"t realize was how furious Tinya would be over the thought of Hannah leaving.
"Tinya, quit this already," I sighed, trying to end the situation. "Let us go and I"ll give you some s.e.m.e.n. It doesn"t have to-"
"You think this is about s.e.m.e.n?" Tinya sneered, spinning around as we were brought to a stop. "Half the girls in Primrose are lipsticks. Hannah never resented men like the rest of us. She never truly spoke for the Primrose. Her plans for you were never our plans for you! This goes beyond what I feel for her. A lot of the girls have been unhappy with Hannah using us so she can play at being a house wife."
Hannah frowned as Tinya spoke. Many of the Primrose, who were now standing around us, nodded or made noises of affirmation. Naturally, when Hannah was in charge, no one argued with her. Hearing about their discontent now made her feel a bit affronted. As soon as she gave up the mask, she lost all of their respect and admiration.
"If this isn"t about s.e.m.e.n, what is it about?" I demanded.
Tinya, the new Faeri, made a malicious grin. A second later she snapped her fingers. A woman was dragged into the room. They struggled slightly, but they seemed to stumble a bit. There was a bag over their head. As soon as I saw them, something about their body caused my heart to rise to my throat.
Tinya let out a laugh. "I finally realized the perfect way to satisfy my anger and save the Primrose.
She grabbed the bag and pulled it off, revealing the person underneath. That person was none other than our Mother, Morgan!