Still tall, slender and gorgeous, he no longer had violet skin, and his eyes weren’t silvery any longer, but clear crystalline blue. Gone were the thick streaks of purple in his hair. It was now long, wavy, and black, with no signs of the tendrils of deadly nightshade that once framed his face, and encircled his arms.
He was as normal as she.
Princess opened her mouth to speak, to tell him she missed him, and was so happy he came to her. Still words would come forth, even in this state they were in.
She noticed that his feet, too, hovered above the floor, and she gestured to it.
He rolled his eyes in response.
Perhaps he was impatient with her, but this was all so new. Then a troubling thought entered her brain. What if Valentina walked in and caught them together?
Her eyes widened with just the thought of being discovered, and pointed to the closed door.
Erich’s head turned back toward the door, and then returned to her. “No one will come in, Princess. Don’t worry.” He held out his arms to her. “Now come to me. Hurry! We don’t have much time!”
Princess did not hesitate, and immediately flung herself into his waiting arms, which then encircled her tight and pulled her close, his lips crushed down onto hers. By instinct, her eyes closed. She wound her arms around his neck, her breasts pressed against his hard chest, her nipples tingled beneath the thin fabric of the nightgown she wore, and she could feel what she soon realized was his fully erect cock pressed against her belly.
The tip of his tongue pried open her lips, and passed into her mouth. Princess never experienced such a jolt. Never had she known these wonderful secrets shared between men and women in the privacy of their bedroom. His tongue found hers, and together began an intimate dance.
Then nothing.
Princess’s eyes flew open to nothing but darkness. Her arms clutched at emptiness. No longer was she in Erich’s arms, lost in his deep kiss, but back in her little cloistered cell.
He was gone.
And Princess began to silently cry.
Chapter Four
Days passed uneventfully, and turned into weeks. Princess settled into a routine. Every evening she left her little cell to work in the kitchen of the Swan Club. Sometimes Noreen would visit, but it was difficult to hold a conversation when only one person could speak.
As often as she could, she secretly ventured out of the cell, and tip-toed through the endless hallways and corridors, hoping to catch glimpse of her brothers, but never found them.
Every night when she went to bed, she longed for Erich to return to her in the secret dream-like state they shared; to feel his arms around her, to taste his mouth. Yet she woke again every morning without experiencing his touch.
The loneliness now grated on her. Yet Princess knew with each day and night that passed, she was closer to the six-week period when not only her beloved brothers would return to themselves, but once again she would be able to speak. Maybe someday she would feel like singing.
It was a day like any other since she’d arrived at the Swan Club. She lay in bed staring at a tiny spider that crept slowly across the cracked, pitted ceiling. Sometimes she would indulge in an hour or two of studying the sex manual Tinsel left behind, and daydreamed of her next meeting with Erich, imagined his touch on her skin, his lips upon hers, of what he would do to her body. How it would feel. How she would eagerly please him in return.
The door to her cell suddenly swung open, and Princess startled. Shock turned to dismay when she saw Valentina enter, and close the door behind her. Valentina, dressed in her usual dark red satin, carried with her a compact of silver, bejeweled with ruby gemstones. Valentina liked expensive things, and most likely, Princess knew her father financed such luxuries.
Princess leapt to her feet, and did a little bow. Yes, she learned all the right protocol when it came to Madam Valentina.
“Sit, Bella,” Valentina commanded.
Immediately, she dropped to the bed, and folded her hands demurely in her lap.
Valentina opened the compact, and a palette of shimmering colors appeared inside, along with a delicate pearl brush.
At once, Valentina began to brush the rainbow of colors onto Princess’s eyes, and puffed white powder on to her cheeks. She remained very still, eyes forward, and hoped the woman didn’t realize her repulsion towards her.
What was Valentina up to?
When she finished with the colors, Valentina reached for a hairbrush and began to brush and plait her hair, pulling, tugging and twisting the entire time. Princess knew not to shed a tear. Instead, she squeezed her pain into a tight fist, until her nails pierced her palm.
Valentina rummaged around in the bottom drawer of the bureau that held all of the feathery costumes that once belonged to the former tenant of the cell, Tinsel. Removing a gold hair comb elaborately decorated with white feathers and jewels, she slid the comb into Princess’s hair, and then held the hand mirror.
Princess stared at herself. The reflection did not appear to be herself—at least not who she knew. Her hair was plaited into many intricate swirls pinned to her head. Tendrils of hair fell in wisps, framing her face. The colored powders took her skin from pale to alive and shimmering. Her lips were full and pink.
Finally, Valentina held one of the feathery costumes. “Strip, Bella.”
Princess obeyed, but a sense of red hot shame flamed across her body, as she fumbled to remove her black uniform. It wasn’t so long ago that she emerged before Erich fully nude from the creek, believing it was a natural act.
Her body trembled as Valentina went about stuffing her into the tiny costume.
Did she not understand that Tinsel was a much smaller girl?
“The smaller it is, the more appealing you look and that is all that matters,” Valentina commented,
