Take Two

  Holt broke the embrace with Sadie and pointed sternly at the couch. “Sit down,” he commanded.

  “My pleasure, Master,” Sadie replied in a low, husky tone and sat primly on the edge of the antique sofa to their right.

  “Well?” Holt and Blakely looked at Van Heusen expectantly. Personally, Blakely thought they had made an excellent pitch; he almost believed it himself.

  Van Heusen puffed on his pipe thoughtfully for a moment. Finally he said, “You make a convincing argument, gentlemen, I must say. But, speaking purely hypothetically, how could I be sure your processes would work with my equipment? Assuming I have equipment, of course.”

  “Nothing could be easier,” Holt said, and Blakely felt his partner’s cautious elation through the T-link. It was the opportunity for which they had been waiting. “It would only take me a minute to ascertain the suitability of any equipment you might happen to have. I would, of course, have to see it to make the assessment.”

  “We’d have to ask for a tour anyway,” Blakely pointed out when Van Heusen seemed to be wavering. “Mr. Day and I don’t do business with anyone until we’re sure they have the means to back up their end of the agreement. No offense intended to you, Mr. Van Heusen.”

  “None taken,” Van Heusen said, setting down the pipe. “So, you want a tour of the tanks, eh?” He smiled the thin-lipped smile again. “I think it can be arranged. On one condition, of course.”

  “Name it,” Holt said confidently and Blakely knew his tall blond partner was thinking that they had this bust in the bag. Van Heusen had just admitted to having illegal flesh tanks; now all they had to do was see them and they were home free.

  “Well, your prototype there,” Van Heusen gestured with a long, thin finger at Sadie who was still sitting quietly on the couch. “The hair, the wonderfully touchable skin—she seems perfect in every respect, but forgive me if I’m cautious. I’m just wondering how your conditioning process affects the life span and durability of the prostie. It wouldn’t do to sell a million credit toy and have it break on the first, ah, usage…Not if you expected to do your advertising through word of mouth.”

  “I assure you, Mr. Van Heusen…” Holt began but Van Heusen cut him off.

  “Forgive me, Mr. Day but I don’t want reassurances. I haven’t gotten to where I am today by listening to reassurances. No—what I want is a demonstration.” The firelight glinted in his gray eyes, which had suddenly gone steely in the webbing of fine wrinkles surrounding them.

  “You mean you want to…” Blakely felt a surge of jealous protectiveness climb up his spine and prickle the hair on the back of his neck. How dare this old bastard even think of Sadie that way? She belonged to him and Holt! It was a stupid, possessive thought and Blakely knew it wasn’t true, but he couldn’t shake it all the same.

  “Me? Oh no, my dear boy.” Van Heusen was laughing pleasantly as though Blakely had made a very fine joke. “No, I’m quite beyond that, I’m afraid. The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak, as they say. Sadly, the infirmity of old age has turned me into something of a voyeur. I’d much prefer to watch you and Mr. Day demonstrate your very fine product.”

  “Is that right,” Holt said blandly. Blakely struggled to make his face as blank as his partner’s. Van Heusen didn’t look that frail and sickly to him. Old pervert has probably always gotten off on watching, he thought.

  “We came here to discuss business, not put on a show for you, Van Heusen,” he said darkly.

  The old man’s hand twitched to the inside pocket of his satin jacket and suddenly they were staring down the bore of a lethal-looking, snub-nosed needler.

  “Indulge me,” Van Heusen said mildly. “Speaking of new and better drugs as we were, have I mentioned that the needles in my weapon are tipped with the very latest nerve-destruction agent? One little scratch will induce a lengthy, painful, and completely fatal demylinization process for which there is no cure.” He shook the needler warningly. “Consider it a test of good faith between us. You show me your product in action and I will personally give you a guided tour of my tanks.” He gestured to Sadie with the evil-looking silver snout of the needler. “There’s a lovely bearskin rug in front of the fireplace; it cost me a fortune. You can enact your little demonstration there.”

  Blakely looked at Sadie who sat frozen, a blank look on her face. He exchanged a meaningful glance with Holt, a look that said, what can we do? The blond man seemed to be on the edge of violence, but they were unarmed. Even if he’d had a blaster in his pocket, Van Heusen had the drop on them plain and simple. They couldn’t even call in the back-up. Van Heusen would shoot them where they stood before the crawler filled with federal agents could get anywhere near the atmosphere dome where his home was located. Even if he didn’t shoot them the bust would be, well, a bust. Blakely knew enough about Van Heusen to know that they would never find the hidden flesh tanks without him. They would have to play along.

  The set of Holt’s shoulders was rigid with tension as he stalked to the plush bearskin rug the old man had indicated. Jerking his head at Sadie he said, “Come,” in a strangled voice. Blakely held his breath—would she?

  16

  Sadie sat rigidly on the couch, unable to believe her ears. It was something she had never considered when she came up with the prototype prostie story and the idea of passing herself off as the prototype—that Van Heusen might want to see the merchandise in action before he committed himself to the deal. She supposed she should have expected this eventuality, but she had been so excited about being right in the middle of the bust, of getting the story first hand that she just hadn’t thought. Stupid, Sadie, really stupid, she told herself. Yet another mess you had gotten yourself into by not looking before you leapt.

  The snub-nosed bore of Van Heusen’s needler looked as big around as a tube-station tunnel when he gestured at her and Sadie felt like her heart was right up in her mouth, beating against her clenched teeth. Her nipples were hard with fear. She struggled to keep her face utterly calm and emotionless—to look like the perfect prostie in every way. Now more than ever it was vitally important not to give the game away.

  From the looks on Holt and Blakely’s faces she could tell she was going to have to go through with it. Despite their promise not to touch her there was no way around this situation, but would Holt be able to do this without his partner? Sadie realized she didn’t know the exact limitations of their T-link, but she remembered Holt saying that sharing women was a “necessity.” Maybe he could perform but not come to orgasm if Blakely wasn’t involved? She was about to find out.

  “Come here,” Holt said to her again and she realized that all their lives might depend on the performance she was about to give. Van Heusen had the air of a man who killed casually and without remorse.

  “Yes, Master,” she murmured. Stiffly, she rose to her feet and walked to the brown bearskin rug to stand before Holt. Looking up into his eyes gone ice-blue with anger and remorse, Sadie wished she could tell him that the situation wasn’t his fault, that she wasn’t going to hold it against him, but all she could do was stare vacantly, a vacuous smile pasted on her face. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see that Van Heusen was getting impatient, but it was obvious that Holt was having a hard time forcing himself to do what he had promised he wouldn’t.

  “What would Master have me do?” she asked softly, trying to give him a cue that it was all right, that she would play along. She didn’t want to strengthen the bond between them, but she had an idea that as long as only one of the partners was involved it would be all right. Blakely was still standing safely to one side, a scowl on his dark face.

  Holt gave her one last, apologetic look. “On your knees.” His deep voice sounded husky and strangled. Sadie shivered as she knelt before him, feeling the coarse scratch of the rug against her bare knees. The heavy bulge of his cock was very evident in the tight, synthi-silk trousers he wore. Unbidden, the memory of sucking that long, hard shaft flashed through Sadie’s mind.
Was that what Holt was thinking about as well? She looked up at him again, waiting for further instructions.

  Roughly, Holt unzipped his pants and took out his sizable erection. “Suck me,” he commanded. “Make it good.”

  Sadie leaned forward, mesmerized by the play of firelight along the hardened club of his sex. Holt was achingly hard and a silvery drop of pre-cum was already shimmering at the slit of the large, mushroom-shaped head. She darted out her tongue and lapped it gently away, causing a harsh sigh to come from the man above her. Holt’s clean, sharp scent and slightly bitter taste filled her senses as she teased along the length of his shaft with her lips, loving the sound of his half-stifled groans as she did so. I’m enjoying this, Sadie realized with a twinge of shame as she sucked the broad head into her mouth, relishing the feel of Holt’s large hands buried in her hair, urging her on. What’s wrong with me?

  She told herself she was being forced to perform a degrading act and enjoying it should be the last thing on her mind, but her body wasn’t listening. She was taking Holt as far down her throat as she could, humming with pleasure, enjoying his low cries as he fucked her mouth and nothing else mattered. Not the shameless way she was behaving or the deadly needler pointed at her head. Her nipples were hard as she pressed against his legs, and there was a growing warm wetness between her thighs. She could feel a tiny stir of the warm, electrical fire she felt when Holt and Blakely pinned her between them, but it was barely there, a faint echo of the sensation she craved. She knew it was wrong, but she couldn’t stop herself from wishing that Blakely could join them on the rug in front of the crackling fire.

  “Stop!” It took a moment for the word to penetrate her brain, but finally Sadie realized that Holt was pulling her off his still erect organ. Her lips felt swollen from sucking and licking him so long and thoroughly, but she was well aware that he hadn’t come, probably couldn’t come because Blakely wasn’t involved. She looked up at him questioningly, feeling a dazed expression on her face. There was a look almost of pain on Holt’s finely chiseled features and she realized that it must be a kind of torture for him, being endlessly pleasured without reaching completion.

  “Mr. Night,” the voice belonged to Van Heusen, whom she had completely forgotten about. Now Sadie turned her head to look at him. He was still holding the needler on them, a dark shape sunk so far back in the plush brocade of his chair that only the barrel of his weapon and his coldly glittering gray eyes were visible in the shadows cast by the fire. “Mr. Night,” Van Heusen continued, gesturing with the needler. “I don’t believe you’re enjoying this show quite as much as I am.”

  “Fuck you, Van Heusen,” growled Blakely, the scowl on his dark face deepening. Even from where she knelt on the rug, Sadie could see the look of pain in his indigo eyes, nearly purple in the firelight, and the hardened bulge of his cock straining angrily against his tight trousers. It’s hurting them, she realized. Doing this separately, not being together is painful, physically painful for them. Unconsciously she reached inside herself for the bond they had created with her; she could feel an echo of that pain in her soul.

  “Now, Mr. Night, is that any way to speak to a future business associate?” Van Heusen tsked disapprovingly. “Besides, I think you would find fucking your sweet little prototype prostie much more satisfying.” He gestured menacingly with the silver barrel of his weapon to Sadie and Holt. “Join them.”

  Although it was the very thing Sadie had been wishing for she found herself nearly in a panic. No…no! If they touched her together the bond would get stronger and she’d never be free. It was a frightening thought.

  “What if I won’t?” Blakely asked defiantly, eyes flashing.

  “Then I’ll shoot her,” Van Heusen said calmly, directing the barrel of the needler straight at Sadie’s head. Immediately, Holt pushed her behind him, but Sadie could still hear Van Heusen’s chilling words and see his sharklike grin. “The demylinization process works on tank-grown flesh just as well as on humans. It’s quite interesting to watch, actually. The entire nervous system begins to unravel, shredding itself, losing the protective myelin sheath that surrounds each nerve and keeps it intact. The victim feels like every inch of his or her body is on fire. I’m sure you can imagine the results.” He grinned again, a predatory baring of teeth. “What do you say, Mr. Night?” he asked. “Want to join the party?”

  Scowling, Blakely walked stiffly over to them and stood shoulder to shoulder with Holt, adding his body to the protective shield his partner had formed in front of her.

  “You’ll regret this, Van Heusen,” he said evenly. “Mr. Day and I won’t forget being forced to perform like trained monkeys for you.”

  “I find that most people can forget anything when enough money is involved,” Van Heusen said airily. “Now,” he gestured with the needler. “On your knees, the three of you. I think Mr. Day had had quite enough oral attention for the moment so Mr. Night may take his place by that luscious mouth.” He nodded in Sadie’s direction. “And you, Mr. Day, how did you think up such fitting nom de plumes? You may take your position behind that lovely rounded ass. I assume you know what to do.”

  Sadie felt cold all over as they arranged themselves in the positions Van Heusen had described. She forced herself to get on her hands and knees and tried hard not to let the terror and dread she was feeling show on her face. And yet, there was another emotion mixed in as well…desire. She could already feel the familiar, warm electric current beginning to flow between the three of them. Holt and Blakely hadn’t even touched her yet. Just being between them was enough.

  Oh, Goddess, I can’t believe what I’m turning into. Can’t believe this is actually turning me on. But it was. Sadie squeezed her thighs together tightly. Soon Holt would part her legs and push the black satin panties aside. Just the thought was almost more than she could bear.

  She could feel the little voice getting ready to criticize some more and she ruthlessly switched it off. The only way to get through this experience, she understood instinctively, was to just go with it. Guilt and shame and fear couldn’t help her now. She was supposed to be the perfect prostie-borg and she had to act the part—had to be the part. If Van Heusen found out what was really going on none of them would have a chance in hell of getting out of here alive. Anyway, she thought, trying to soothe herself, though the act they were about to engage in would strengthen the bond she had wanted to let die, it wouldn’t bond them completely according to what Holt had told her. Wouldn’t create a Life-bond.

  She knelt on the rug between them, the heat from the fire licking along one side of her body, and felt the hesitance of both men to touch her. Holt was hovering over her arched back and uptilted ass without laying a hand on her. Blakely had released the thick, dark shaft of his cock from the tight pants he wore, but he made no move to bring it near her mouth. She could feel the longing, the need and desire coming off both of them in waves. They wanted to touch her, but didn’t want to break their word. Sadie realized she would have to take the initiative and act like the prostie-borg Van Heusen thought she was.

  “Master,” she whispered, leaning forward to nuzzle her cheek along the hard length of Blakely’s thick cock. The texture was like rose petals laid over hot iron. His spicy, musky scent, half sandalwood and half just aroused man rose to meet her and Sadie breathed him in. Remembering the difficulty she’d had in taking that wide cock in her mouth before, she decided to lick along the length first, tracing the pulsing vein that ran along the underside with her tongue until Blakely moaned with the intense sensation.

  Deliberately, Sadie looked up at him, watching him watch her in the shifting shadows, the firelight turning his indigo eyes purple as she sucked the plum-shaped head between her lips. Blakely’s hand, warm and large, came down to caress her cheek as she worked on him and she felt his thumb rubbing lightly along her bottom lip, feeling the place where he entered her. The place where they were joined.

  “Your mouth is so hot, baby. So sweet,” he m
urmured lovingly, heat shadowing his dark face.

  Then she felt another pair of large hands resting on her hips and Holt was cupping the globes of her ass, his thumbs tracing very lightly over the satin panties where Sadie could feel her swollen cunt lips parting in need and desire. Sucking Blakely harder, exploring the weeping slit of his cock with her tongue, Sadie arched her back, thrusting her ass up in a mute invitation she knew Holt could not refuse.

  With a low groan, he twisted the crotch of her satin panties in his hand and ripped the flimsy fabric away, throwing the shreds carelessly into the fire. Sadie cried out as well as she could at the urgency of his gesture. Holt needed to be inside her, filling her up, sharing her with his partner until they both came, Blakely in her willing mouth and Holt in her sweet, slippery sex. Sadie could feel their need in the warm, pulsing current that bound them into one and in the bond that was growing every instant they touched her together. She understood their need because it was her need as well.

  She wanted to gasp and moan and cry, to beg Holt to take her, to complete the connection between the three of them like plugging the last conductor into an electrical circuit, but she couldn’t spare any breath and Blakely’s thick cock was filling her mouth completely.

  She twisted with sensation as Holt parted her thighs and braced herself for the feeling of that long, hard cock driving into her. Instead, she felt a hot breath on her bare ass and then Holt was pressing his mouth between her legs, lapping hungrily at her honeyed slit, spreading the lips of her pussy wide so that he could shove his hot tongue into her tight entrance. Sadie closed her eyes and moaned around the pulsing shaft in her mouth. Holt’s tongue was replaced with two long, strong fingers and she realized he was going to make her come before he took her. She was close already, the current of hot need that flowed over and around and through all three of them had her on the brink and the thrust of Holt’s fingers into her tight sex as his tongue went back to lapping her sensitive flesh pushed her over the edge.