“And what of the cannibals? Are they a lie?”
Mortimer’s eyes grew wide.
Mother Lola nodded, chuckled softly. “You think I don’t know? I don’t need to make up fairy stories to keep my girls in line. The truth is devil enough.”
“It’s still a lie,” Mortimer said. “Acting as if they have no choice is a lie.”
“They are children and need leadership. But all of this…” She shook her head and tsked. “All this talk is of no concern to you. Your function here is biological, not philosophical.”
“It might be a little easier to make with the semen if the first one up to bat wasn’t some slobbering hog.”
“Yes, I’d forgotten how important arousal is to the process for you men. It’s not enough to know you’re creating a new life. It’s all about getting your rocks off, isn’t it? Fine. If that’s what it takes.” Mother Lola slipped the black dress slowly off one shoulder, then the other.
Ohhhhhhhh no no no…
Mother Lola let the dress drop, stood naked, arching her back in an unfortunate pose.
“Uh, listen,” Mortimer said, a slight tremor of panic in his voice. “You don’t want the other girls to think you’re getting special privileges, remember?”
“They don’t need to know. It’ll be our special moment.”
Mortimer tried to stop himself, but he couldn’t help it. He looked. What he saw made his stomach churn.
Mother Lola was not a transvestite. The oversize breasts were obscenely tight and perky compared to the sagging flesh on the rest of the body. Clearly the work of a surgeon with more ambition than skill. A hairy crater like some abomination against anatomy itself sat where there should have been balls and a schlong.
Mother Lola moved closer, her sweat and musk filling the operating theater.
He/she put a loving hand on Mortimer’s flat stomach, caressed downward.
“Listen,” Mortimer said, his nerves making his voice an embarrassingly high squeak. “I’ve been thinking. Why don’t you bring the other woman back? I’m pretty sure I can fill her up with seed. Seriously, let’s get her back in here.”
“Don’t be shy,” Mother Lola said. “I know you want it.” She brought her fingers to rest in Mortimer’s pubic hair, curled it playfully around her pinkie. She bent in low for a kiss, her breath like greasy meat.
Mortimer convulsed and vomited.
Mother Lola screeched and flung herself backward, the puke barely missing her as it splattered the operating table and floor, running down Mortimer’s chin and chest.
“Asshole,” spat Mother Lola. “You wouldn’t know true beauty if it bit you on the ass. I would have rocked your world.” She grabbed her dress, shimmied back into it, thrust her arms into the sleeves. “Ruth!” she yelled.
Fast footfalls in the hall, the door pushed open quickly. “Mother?”
“Ruth, clean this animal up.” She bent over him, brought her face to within an inch of Mortimer’s. “And you’d better be ready to perform this time,” she growled. “Otherwise you’re no good to anybody.” She turned back to Ruth. “He’s got an hour to rest.” She stalked out of the theater.
Mortimer felt a cool, wet towel on his forehead, looked up into Ruth’s concerned eyes. She dabbed at the puke on his chin, wiped his chest.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “Mother Lola is only trying to keep the society safe and strong.”
“Mother Lola is insane. She’s not even a she.”
“She-Mother Lola-she says if you finish with Mona-”
“Who’s Mona?”
“The woman who tried to-she was on top of you before-”
“Oh, Jesus.”
“Mother Lola says if you finish with Mona, that I could be, maybe after, I mean…” She wouldn’t meet Mortimer’s eyes, went pink in the cheeks. “I’ve read a book from the hospital library on how to pleasure a man.” The pink went to deep red.
“You’ve got to listen to me, Ruth. This isn’t right. You have to see that keeping me like this is wrong. Unshackle me. Please. You’ve got to show me the way out of here.”
“I don’t think…If Mother Lola…” She bit her bottom lip, shook her head.
Mortimer sighed, leaned his head back and closed his eyes. “How old were you when you came to Saint Sebastian’s, Ruth?”
“Nine.”
“Why?”
“I wouldn’t talk to anyone. I was withdrawn.”
“What happened?”
“I saw my parents burn to death in a fire.”
“You’re talking now. You seem okay.”
She shrugged.
