August 21st

“You alright, doc?”

Dr. Navathe caught herself staring at the beige door before turning to find Katie standing a few feet behind her on the walk. The light summer breeze billowed Katie’s sun dress, a soft blue mottled with colors meant to mimic in abstract a pattern of peace lilies. Katie gave her a smile, and Dr. Navathe couldn’t help but feel her heart warm at such an image of purity.

“Yes, Katie. I’m relieved, is all.” She wanted to relish these moments, the ones she lived for. This door was the ribbon at the end of a marathon, signifying the completion of an ordeal that encompassed a not-insignificant portion of her life. Passing through, perhaps for the last time, meant the end of one chapter, their struggles over.

But that didn’t mean she could stand there forever to bask in the accomplishment. The hardest parts were overcome, but there was still work to do. And then it would be off to the next project, with its own challenges for her to overcome.

But that was for another time, and with the closing of this chapter, a small interlude held a certain appeal.The weather seemed to agree with that sentiment, the first showing of sun after a week’s overcast.

“Are you ready?” Dr. Navathe asked. When Katie gave her a nod, Dr. Navathe opened the door and stepped through, breaking the metaphorical ribbon.

On the other side, they found Hans in the same spot as ever, guarding the entrance. Only now Victoria was standing next to him, chatting away.

Before Dr. Navathe could greet either of them, Katie forced herself through. Two suitcases clattered on the hall floor as Katie ran up to her sister, leaving Dr. Navathe to only chuckle. “You two go on ahead, I’ll meet you by the couch in just a moment.” They made no acknowledgment that they heard her, but wandered off all the same, Katie all but dragging Victoria away.

“Doctor,” Hans greeted with a nod of his head. He stood up out of courtesy, only to now have Dr. Navathe looking up at him.

“Hello, Mr. Godunov. I do hope Victoria wasn’t giving you too much trouble these past few days.” She imagined it had been Victoria that did most of the talking. Not that Dr. Navathe put much effort into prying, but Mr. Godunov guarded his personal affairs even better than he did his professional. Despite their months together, she knew nothing more of him than she did at the beginning.

“She has been more sociable the past week. Should I?” He gestured with his hands, but Dr. Navathe shook her head.

“I don’t think that will be necessary anymore. In fact, if you have somewhere else you’d rather be, you are welcome to take the rest of the day off. The powers that be believe any threats to Victoria are gone.”

Hans cleared his throat. “If it’s all the same to you, Doctor, I would like to finish my shift.”

As stoic as ever. Dr. Navathe was not surprised by his response. “You’re a good man, Mr. Godunov. I can’t thank you enough for all that you’ve done. I’m sure those two are very appreciative as well.” She paused before adding, “Even Katie.”

Perhaps it was just hopeful imagination, but Dr. Navathe could have sworn she saw the slightest of smirks appear on Hans’s lips. Instead, he sat down with a grunt matched by the groan of the chair. “Just doing my job, Ma’am.”

“Now, if you don’t mind . . .” Dr. Navathe reached down to pick up the suitcases that had tumbled to the floor before she made her way down the hall.

“Don’t be ridiculous. It’s just one week. Two, max!”

Katie’s voice carried down the hallway, clear as day before Dr. Navathe even entered the room. She found Katie standing over a seated Victoria, her arms folded over her chest. When Victoria looked over, Dr. Navathe could see the relief on her face, the look of someone happy for a distraction.

“Well, if it isn’t the woman of the hour,” Victoria said.

“Good,” Katie said as she dragged Dr. Navathe over. “You can settle this little debate.”

Before Dr. Navathe could inquire on what was going on, Victoria sighed. “There’s no debate to be had! I have a lot to catch up on. I should have graduated by now, but I’ll be lucky if I can restart my second year without any difficulties. I’m thinking about my future, Katie, just as you should about yours. Have you even applied to any schools yet?”

Katie turned to Dr. Navathe, in part to avoid having to look at her sister. “She clearly needs more of your counseling. No sane person would say no to a trip around Europe. Especially after what happened to her. Tell her to take that stick out of her ass and have fun for once!”

“That’s enough for now, Katie. Calm down, okay?” Dr. Navathe gestured to the nearby chair. Katie plopped onto it with a huff and a roll of her eyes, staring out the window as an air of protest. “What Victoria chooses to do is up to her, but only after she is cleared by me. However long that may take.”

“Wait, what?” Katie’s head whipped back around. “I thought she was coming home today. You even told me to bring the suitcases yourself!” She pointed at them as if they would defend her.

“And if you listened on the ride over, you would have heard me tell you this was just for a change in environment. The sessions will continue at your house until I deem her fit to be released.” She smiled over at Victoria and said, “Though given your track record, I don’t expect it to take long at all.”

After being scolded, Katie pulled her legs up and laid her arms across her knees. She glared at her sister, the rest of her face obscured by her limbs.

Ignoring Katie’s childish reaction, Victoria nodded at Dr. Navathe. “Perhaps a concession?”

“What do you have in mind?” Dr. Navathe asked. Even Katie poked her head out of her self-made burrow in response to the offering.

“Well, it has been quite the ordeal. Everything that has happened, all the stress with the trial . . . I suppose a small celebration wouldn’t be out of the question.” She glanced over at Katie to emphasize, “A small celebration.”

Katie clapped her hands. “Yeah! That bitch is finally in jail where she belongs! We have to do something!”

Victoria bit her lip. “I can’t believe that S-”

“Ah ah, we don’t dwell on the past, but rather focus on the future,” Dr. Navathe said, her finger held up towards Victoria. Both girls stared at her in anticipation. Even if she could come up with an excuse not to, she couldn’t bring herself to disappoint either of them. She dropped her shoulders, relenting to peer pressure. “Celebrate away.”

Katie jumped up. “Woo, party! But . . . How are we going to celebrate? Nothing I brought over is alcoholic. I guess I can run out and get some-” Her suggestion was cut short by Dr. Navathe shaking her head.

Victoria got up and walked to the kitchen. She began pulling things out of cupboards and cabinets, placing each in turn on the counter. “Katie has this preconceived notion that just because I take my studies seriously, that I never know how to loosen up and have fun.” Ice cubes clinked into the glasses, followed by an assortment of clear and colored liquids. “That all I know to do involves taking notes and acing tests. She thinks I have never experienced college life the way she views it.” She placed the filled glasses on a tray and carried them into the other room. “I experience the same stress that everyone else does, and have learned a thing or two on how to deal with it.”

Victoria grabbed one of the glasses for herself. “But unlike Katie, I’m aware that this isn’t the only way to deal with things.” She swirled the glass, the purple liquid painting the sides as it sloshed around. “To freedom!”

Victoria raised the glass to her lips and downed the entire thing in one smooth motion.

“Hell yeah!” Katie said as she reached for her own. “To Dr. Navathe!” She raised her glass toward the doctor before attempting to down it herself. She sputtered a bit and then threw a death glare at Victoria for the chuckle that followed.

“Dr. Navathe?”

The doctor turned to find Victoria standing over her, holding the last of the drinks in her outstretched hand. She tried to wave Victoria off. “I was never much of a drinker.”

“It’s just a combination of fruit juices and soda. Completely non-alcoholic, unless one of them went bad.”

With some hesitation, Dr. Navathe took the cup from Victoria. It didn’t take long for the pressuring glare from the others to win out as she brought it to her lips and took a sip. “Oh my, that is sweet . . .” She stared at the liquid as if it had tried to bite her.

“Yeah, sorry. The alcohol would help with that, but we work with what we got.” Victoria reached out to encourage Dr. Navathe to continue.

“Join the team, doc,” Katie said with a laugh. “Consider it a trust exercise or whatever psychiatry mumbo-jumbo you’d call it.” She winced at the glare thrown her way from both Victoria and the doctor, but was glad to see the doctor take the suggestion to heart. Within a moment, the third empty glass joined the others, Dr. Navathe licking what remnants from her lips she could find.

The doctor cleared her throat as Victoria cleaned up. “I guess we should get to it. I don’t expect today’s session to take very long. I just want to make sure that after these past events, Victoria is stable enough to go home. Are you sure your home is ready for her to move in, Katie?”

Katie grimaced a bit, her guilt evident in her shrug. “It’s . . . livable.” She offered a tenuous smile in response to the look Dr. Navathe gave her.

“A messy home leads to a messy mind, Katie,” Dr. Navathe said. She shifted in her seat. “Anyways, once Katie cleans up, and Victoria is all settled in, we’ll need to resume sessions right away. I think a couple sessions a week will be needed, but I’m sure we can lessen that within a- Oh!”

Dr. Navathe was startled to find another glass thrust into her face. By instinct, she took it out of Victoria’s hands. “I thought that was, um . . . We were done with that.”

“Just one more. For me?”

Victoria’s smile pacified any objections Dr. Navathe might otherwise have made. She stared at the cup, the thick liquid inside seeming even darker than before. She could smell the pungent aroma, the link in her memory allowing her to almost taste the drink already. Part of her still wanted to decline, but there was an overwhelming sense that she would regret it if she did.

“That’s it,” Victoria said.

The dark liquid poured over her tongue, and Dr. Navathe closed her eyes in response. It was just as sweet as before, yet somehow even more intoxicating. Her entire focus was on how wonderful it felt to have the liquid slide down her throat, she didn’t even notice that the others had not joined her in this second toast.

But then a thought occurred to her, and Dr. Navathe wrinkled her brow. “What’s in this? Are you sure it’s not alcoholic?” She couldn’t taste any hint of liquor, but there was no denying the effect the drink was having on her body. Her thoughts felt more distant, her body more sluggish. Her skin began to tingle and flush as the warmth radiated from within.

Hans wouldn’t have allowed such a drink to be brought in, leading her to believe they managed to smuggle it past him. It was not a matter she felt should be taken lightly, and was greatly disappointed in the lack of respect for her authority.

“It’s as I said, no alcohol. Just a mixture of fruit juices. Though . . . I guess the sap isn’t technically a fruit. Do you like it?”

“Yes,” Dr. Navathe said without intending to, the words spilling out before her thoughts could process the full question. She had heard something about a sap before, long ago. Even if her thoughts weren’t muddled, she wasn’t sure if she could recall what it was at this point. “S . . . sap?”

Victoria leaned over and brushed a hand along the side of the doctor’s face. Dr. Navathe couldn’t help but press against it, Victoria’s fingers leaving a trail of delight in their wake. Victoria then spoke into her ear, her words soft and sensual. “It’s wonderful, isn’t it? I’m sure you’re dying to know how it works. Nabi’s little drug.”

Dr. Navathe’s eyes shot open. She remembered now. The drug Sherri mentioned, the one Nabi had used to brainwash Victoria and the others. Her mind spun trying to piece it all together, how Victoria got the drug, why she had used it on her . . . But the ability to make sense of it was growing in difficulty. Each connection took more effort than the last, draining her energy as her body began to burn up. “But Nabi is . . . Is . . .”

She had to get it out of her system. The longer she was exposed to such poison, the worse off she would be. Her glass tumbled to the floor, the remnants of the drug staining into the carpet. She brought her hand up, ready to empty her stomach, but it was restrained. Even without her strength being undermined, she had no hope of overpowering Victoria.

Victoria cooed in her ear. “Shh, don’t struggle, just concentrate on how you feel.”

The sense of dread ebbed away with those words. A jolt of pleasure raced through her chest as one hand grabbed her, then another. She relished in the sensations, amplified beyond anything she had experienced before. Two more hands joined in, caressing her thighs before reaching up to try and undo her pants.

“No!” With what energy remained, what few thoughts she could rally, Dr. Navathe pushed Victoria away. She got to her feet, nearly stumbling in the process. To her surprise, neither of the girls seemed keen on chasing her down. She backed away, step by step, each a sense of victory against the overwhelming desire she felt to crawl right back to them.

Only to bump into something solid as two strong arms, thick as tree trunks, wrapped around her, immobilizing her. She didn’t even need to look back to know who it was. Instead, she watched on in terror as the two girls stalked towards her, their intentions clear as day even to Dr. Navathe’s addled mind.

“Don’t worry, doc,” Katie said. “You’ll learn to love it.”

* * *

The chair was cold. The hard metal pressed against her ass, but she ignored the discomfort. She waited, as long as it would take. When someone sat down on the other side of the reinforced glass, she reached up and grabbed the phone, pressing it against her ear.

“Hello, Sherri.”

A familiar voice to accompany the familiar face. There was a hint of contempt to the words, but Sherri didn’t notice such details. All that mattered was what the voice said.

“Doing well, are we?”

“No, Nabi.” Sherri was miserable. Not because of where she was, she was exactly where she belonged. No, she was miserable because of what she had done. This prison was just one of many steps for her to atone.

Nabi smiled. Sherri would get no praise for her response, but Nabi was happy to hear it all the same. She leaned back in her plush chair, crossing one leg over the other. “I have some bad news for you, Sherri. This is going to be the last time I visit.”

Sherri’s heart sank. She needed Nabi. Deserved or not, every moment without her was difficult.

“Despite all you’ve done, I can’t stay too mad at you. It was only a matter of time before I started drawing too much attention. You just happened to bring that attention to my front door before I could make plans. And well . . . so much unpleasantness followed.

“But it all works out in the end, Sherri. Thanks to you, I’m free. There’s just one more loose end for me to tidy up. Would you like to help me with that, Sherri?”

Perhaps there was hope for her after all! She could still serve Nabi again. “Yes, Nabi. Anything!”

Nabi purred into the phone, the delightful sound tickling Sherri’s ears. “It’s such a shame that you’re locked in here, Sherri. You see, all those thoughts running through your head, my thoughts, they won’t stay that way forever. I don’t know how long it will be—a year, five years—but one day your conditioning will start to wear off. One day you’ll start thinking the wrong things, you’ll try to betray me once again.”

Sherri shook her head. “No, never!” She wished she could break the glass so that she could crawl to Nabi and grovel at her feet. She wouldn’t dream of betraying her.

“Shh, it’s okay, Sherri. Just listen.”

It was a struggle. She needed Nabi to believe her. But if Nabi wanted her to listen, she could do nothing else.

“I could always keep visiting you, or even send someone in my place. Make sure you keep the right thoughts in your head. But really . . . is it worth the hassle? After all, you did run away from me. You left our family. You left me. I could never accept you as one of my own after that. No, listen to me when I tell you. There is purpose in obedience.”

Sherri didn’t even care about the pleasure anymore. Hearing those words, all that mattered was knowing that Nabi was going to change her for the better. The pleasure was secondary to her desire to become whatever Nabi needed her to be. Within an instant, the trance took over her mind, and she opened herself even more to Nabi.

“Good girl, Sherri. Listen to me now, listen very carefully. You felt so bad for what you’ve done. The guilt was eating at you. You couldn’t take it anymore. You tried to deceive them by framing me, Sherri. You even brainwashed poor innocent Victoria into corroborating your awful lie, and they almost bought it.

“But then you realized you wouldn’t be able to live with yourself knowing what would happen to me. Ruining an innocent woman’s life for your own selfish gain. You had to confess, you had to tell them that you were the real leader. You had to make it right.

“But it wasn’t enough. No, no, it wasn’t enough. Even in here, the guilt grows, festering within you. You may have come clean, made things right, but you still feel gutted about your past misdeeds. And with every day that goes by, it only gets worse. You can’t eat, you can’t sleep. You will never again know solace, never feel reprieve. Two months from now, your sins will be too much to bear. You will know what to do then, Sherri.”

Nabi let the words sink in. When she was satisfied, she raised the receiver to her mouth one last time. “Wake up, Sherri.”

Sherri opened her eyes. When she saw Nabi, she quickly averted them. She couldn’t face what she had done like this. “I’m sorry, Nabi . . .”

“Our time is up, Sherri. You have to go now.”

“Y . . . yes. I have to . . . go.” Sherri rose from her seat. The phone fell from her hands. It clattered on the table, only to fall towards the floor, stopped by the attached cord. She shuffled out of the room, her head downcast. “I’m sorry . . .” she kept saying, but Nabi could no longer hear her.

Once Sherri moved out of sight, Nabi hung her phone up with care. As she left, she stopped by the only guard watching over. She reached a hand up to caress the woman’s cheek. “Be a dear and destroy any evidence that I was here, will you?”

The guard straightened further as she closed her eyes, nuzzling against Nabi’s hand. “Yes, Nabi.” The guard shuddered at the praise that Nabi gave her in response.

* * *

“So how’d they get you?” Katie asked. It was the first time since the aftermath that they had a moment together. “Not too sure I actually want to know, but . . . You know, I’m curious.” She picked at the carpet fibers in front of where she was sitting with one hand, glancing up at Victoria after a moment’s silence. “Did they kidnap you or something?”

“A little more pressure,” Victoria said as she pondered the question, her feet dangling over the edge of the couch. Only when Katie grunted some form of acknowledgment did Victoria give her answer. “You want the gruesome details? Like, I was some innocent girl just walking along the street, only to be yanked into a windowless van with a cloth pressed on her mouth?”

Katie could picture it in her head. She hoped Victoria put up a good fight. “If that’s what happened. For all I know they offered you some cheesecake and you jumped right in.”

Victoria furrowed her brow. “What’s cheesecake? Not sure I remember that.”

Katie pointed a finger at her. “Not cool. That’s crossing a line.” Victoria’s amnesia was too fresh on her mind, had caused her too much worry.

“I’m serious, what kind of ingredient for a cake is cheese? Sounds awful.” She savored Katie’s grumpy face for a moment, but as she thought about what happened, the smile left hers, and she had to look away again. “Ease up. Focus on the breathing, let it be the cue.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know what I’m doing. Get back to the question.”

The words struggled to make it past her throat. Only when she sensed that Katie was growing impatient did Victoria give voice to what she knew Katie didn’t want to hear. “I asked to join them.”

Katie stopped picking.

“Her name was Summer, my recruiter,” Victoria said to the ceiling. “Friendly girl, easy to get along with. She approached me one day, and we got to chatting about this and that. Never really saw her outside of campus, but I enjoyed her company. Then one day she tells me about the . . . the cult. The way she talked about them . . .”

Victoria sat up and faced Katie, her voice resolute. “Do you have any idea how stressful it was trying to be a role model for you?”

Katie’s mouth fell open. “You can’t be blaming me for this. Are you serious right now?”

“This isn’t about blame, it’s not your fault what happened to mom. But you have to understand that it fell on me to step up and help raise you, to give up my own childhood in order to make sure you could have yours. I don’t hold that against you, but you can’t expect it to not take a toll on me. When I met Summer . . . She offered me a place where I felt like I didn’t have any responsibilities. I could just be myself without worrying about someone depending on me for everything.”

The silence that followed was anxiety inducing.

Victoria took a deep breath. “Obviously I didn’t realize what they were going to do. But when I woke up after the initiation that I thought was just a harmless ceremony, I was no longer myself. I didn’t care about my past life anymore, because I couldn’t remember my past life. I was someone else for the last few years, until . . .”

There was so much Katie wanted to say. She was screaming at her sister in her mind, hurling insults and accusations and insinuating questions. Her face showed it regardless. To know that everything she and her dad went through was because of Victoria’s own choice was beyond comprehension to her.

But Katie deflated. She couldn’t muster the energy to raise her voice. Only one thing popped in her mind for a response, a desperate need to wound Victoria in turn. “I slept with Isaac.”

Katie waited for the outburst. She needed Victoria to yell at her, knowing full well it would instigate her own aggressive reaction. Only Victoria didn’t launch into a verbal tirade, or react much at all, just that same disappointed glare.

If anything, it infuriated Katie even more. “You were gone, and I was left with nothing but questions! And then you tell me you did it on purpose?!”

“Ease up, Katie.”

“Stop telling me what to do!” She threw a pair of panties at Victoria, the only object in reach, but Victoria swatted them away, her concern held with the owner. “Do you have any idea what you put me through?! He was the only person I had to talk to. He was there for me and one thing led to another, and-”

“I said ease up!”

Victoria rolled off the couch towards Katie, but it was too late. Katie had left the vibrator going for too long, pushing Dr. Navathe over the edge. The doctor let out a shrill cry, her body shuddering as much as it could against the makeshift restraints tying her to the chair.

“Damnit, Katie. Timing is important here, you’re not supposed to let her orgasm!”

“I know what I’m doing.”

“Clearly not!” Victoria grabbed the vibrator from Katie’s hands and threw it to the floor. “Now we have to start over.” She paced the room a few times, trying to let her frustrations die down. She never should have offered to let Katie help break Dr. Navathe in. If she had done it herself, Dr. Navathe would likely be on stage two by now. “I have to use the bathroom. Just . . . Don’t do anything until I get back.” She disappeared down the hallway, leaving Katie alone with the panting doctor.

“Bitch,” Katie said once Victoria was too far to hear. She sat down to hug her knees. She knew how to do this, she did just fine when she had to seduce Hans. If anything, this was on Victoria for distracting her during the task. She wouldn’t let it happen next time. She’d train Dr. Navathe to be Nabi’s slave better than anyone, even Victoria. Then she’d have Nabi’s approval, and could shove it in her sister’s face for years to come.

She smiled at the thought, being Nabi’s favorite. To stand at her side above everyone else. She picked up the vibrator and let it dance between her own legs as she let the image run wild. Her serving Nabi and getting the respect and adoration she was owed. She’d still allow Victoria to be second best. They were family, after all.

“K . . . Katie . . .”

The soft voice broke through Katie’s daydream. She looked up towards the doctor to find listless eyes staring back.

“Lis . . . words, Ka . . .” Dr. Navathe’s eyes clenched shut, and she shook her head, trying to push her way through towards clarity.

Katie bit her lip. She glanced down the hall towards the bathroom, wondering how long Victoria was going to be. She would know what to do in this situation.

And then Victoria would just nag her some more.

No. Fuck Victoria. Katie didn’t need her help. If she was going to be Nabi’s best, she would need to handle these sorts of things on her own. If Dr. Navathe was becoming more active, it meant that the sap must be wearing off, or something. She just needed to get some more. The container she had on hand may be empty, but she could fill it up in the kitchen.

“Listen to . . . word . . .”

“It’s okay, Dr. Navathe. There’s nothing to be afraid of. I just need to get more of the purple goop, and then you’ll feel better. I would know. I was in a chair like that not too long ago myself. Just sit tight, I’ll be right back.”

Katie began to whistle as she carried the stained cup into the kitchen, a cheerful tune that matched the rhythm of her steps. The thermos she filled the cup with was hefty, plenty full to last the next few days. Enough that she could sneak a taste every now and then, when Victoria wasn’t looking. Just a tiny dip of her finger was what she’d limit herself to. She brought it to her hungry mouth as Dr. Navathe continued to mumble to herself.

She closed her eyes and shuddered at the bliss that kissed her tongue, yet lamented the restraint that was imposed on her. Perhaps once they finished showing Dr. Navathe why it was so wonderful to serve Nabi, she would be allowed to do as she pleased. Katie envisioned herself in a shower, the sap sprinkling down over her face and chest, purple rivulets winding their way down to her crotch. She’d finger herself to orgasm until her legs gave out and she collapsed into the tub, now full enough to submerge her entire body in. She wondered how long she could hold her breath under the surface, how many orgasms she could endure before she needed to come back up for air. She wondered if she would ever want to come back up.

The sap spiraled down the drain as Dr. Navathe’s pleas broke her out of the illusion. The bath could wait. She had a task to do, as appointed by Nabi herself, and she would see it done.

Katie returned to Dr. Navathe, cup in hand. With a smile on her face, she raised the cup up to the doctor’s lips as Dr. Navathe spoke, her voice finding more strength. “Listen to my words . . . Katie . . .”

The request resonated in Katie’s head, wrapping itself around every thought, suffocating them.

She collapsed to her knees. Whatever Dr. Navathe had done to her, Katie knew she needed help. She just had to get her sister’s attention by any means. But before she could even call out, her worry dissipated. Whatever was happening no longer seemed urgent or important. There was no rush for anything, she could just sit here and listen. Dr. Navathe was here to tell her what to do.

Katie trusted her.

Dr. Navathe kept shaking her head, hoping to bring some clarity to her thoughts. Every now and then her eyes would drift up towards the screen, encouraged by the words spoken earlier. The spiral still spun, and she could feel it draining her, removing any sense of urgency over her predicament.

If only that innocent woman would reappear, maybe then she could feel bliss once more. Just imagining those divine purple eyes was enough to send her heart racing, her hips craning towards the device that was now on the floor.

She shook her head again. The face on the screen was no innocent woman. Nabi, the real Nabi . . . Dr. Navathe tried not to think about her, lest she end up lost in the spiral once more, hoping to be graced by her beauty. She clenched her eyes, her every thought focused now on escape.

“Katie, are you there? Are you listening to me?”

If she had risked opening her eyes, she could have turned her head to find Katie kneeling next to her, her arms slack and head lowered. The cup had slipped from her limp fingers, its contents now soaking into the carpet fibers, the second stain of the day. “Yes . . . I am listening . . .”

Dr. Navathe breathed out a silent prayer. “I need you to remember who you are, Katie. This isn’t you, Nabi has done this to you. She brainwashed you and your sister. You know this because you trust me.”

“Trust you . . . Yes . . .”

“You have to help me, Katie. To help us. We can still stop her, Katie, but you have to untie me first.” Dr. Navathe wasn’t sure where her things were, but if she could get to her phone, she could warn someone. Anyone. Just as soon as she was freed.

She could feel Katie begin to fiddle with the rope binding her left arm. One by one the loops began to loosen until they all fell away, allowing Dr. Navathe to shake her cramped hand.

“What the hell is going on? Katie!”

Victoria’s voice rang loud through the small room, startling the doctor. To her dismay, the commotion had roused Katie from her shallow trance.

Katie sat back on her haunches. “Wh . . . What happened?” She looked from Dr. Navathe over to Victoria, now standing in the hallway, a scowl on her face.

“Don’t listen to her, Katie. That’s not your sister right now!” Dr. Navathe could no longer count on Katie to release her, but hoped Katie’s confusion could buy enough time as she moved to free her other hand.

“Of course I’m still her sister, nothing can change that. But I’d like to know what you did to my sister.” Not that it mattered, Victoria would resolve any problems the doctor was trying to stir up. Then she’d ensure that her brainwashing was done correctly, herself. She began to approach the two.

“Stop!” Katie held her hand up towards Victoria, her body shaking from its spot on the floor, her face a mix of emotions. It was enough to halt Victoria in her tracks, surprised by the outburst.

War raged in her mind, one side telling her to trust the doctor, that she needed to get away from her sister. The other side told her to finish her tasks, a seductive voice whispering words of obedience into her ear. “I . . . I don’t know what to do!” She clutched at her head, her fingers snaking through her short hair.

“It’s okay, Katie. Just listen to my voice. You trust me, right?” Dr. Navathe’s voice was hoarse, but it was a familiar comfort for Katie. She had depended on the doctor for so long, her trust running so deep . . .

“I . . . I do, but . . .” Katie wanted to help her, but it was so hard to deny the shivers that ran down her spine at the thought of forcing her to watch the screen once more.

“Then trust me when I say that we need to get out of here. We will save your sister later, just please listen to-”

“That’s pretty rich,” Victoria said with a chuckle, “coming from someone that’s pleasuring themselves.”

Awareness came crashing in as Dr. Navathe found her right arm still held tight to the chair. The hand she thought had been working at the knots had instead been slipping in and out of her pussy. She cursed at herself, and this time made sure her free hand was doing what she needed of it.

“You could give up now, doctor. Continue to pleasure yourself as you stare at the screen.” Victoria laughed, seeing the doctor struggle to not let her head drift away from its focus on the ropes. “Maybe if you do, I won’t even tell Nabi of this little scheme of yours. She really doesn’t take kindly to problems, after all.”

Victoria turned to Katie, her eyes cold and narrow. “But if you don’t, I assure you you will never see me again. Nabi and I will disappear forever. I do not know what she may do to me for such a failure, but I will accept any punishment she deems necessary.”

Almost there. She could make quick work of the knots binding her feet once she had both of her hands at her disposal. One more tug at the rope and she could slide her hand from under the loops.

But then something pressed against her mouth, that all too familiar, sickly sweet flavor sliding past her lips, wafting up into her nose. She moaned into the hand, her tongue already betraying her as it sought out more of that taste. Her eyes followed the arm up to find Katie standing over her, a tear dripping down her cheek. She tried to push the hand away, but her arms felt like jelly, and were easily brushed to the side.

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I know it’s wrong. I know what Nabi is doing to us, but . . . I-I don’t want to lose my sister again. I’m not strong enough. I hope . . . I hope you can forgive me.” Katie looked away, unable to watch the pain in Dr. Navathe’s eyes be washed over with pleasure. She felt hands caress her shoulders, and let herself lean into her sister.

“Good girl, Katie. You made the right choice,” Victoria said as she held her sister’s whimpering head against her stomach.

For a moment, Katie wasn’t sure she did. But she knew that with a few words from Victoria, and a small taste of purple, she soon wouldn’t care.