Brenda Sinclair sat at the airport terminal hoping for some good news to finally come her way. Her flight back home had been delayed for a couple of hours because of extreme weather circumstances and if things didn’t clear up soon, a cancelation was imminent. As much as she loved the state, she didn’t want to spend another day in Florida unless she really had to, so the board above her head had better show her what she wanted to see. She looked up and saw that the information remained unchanged. There was still hope but it waned with every passing second.
The late-thirties businesswoman was not in a good mood. Her once carefree life had been hit by many devastating setbacks in the last couple of years and now even the smallest of things was enough to make her lose her composure. While bottling up her emotions was something she refused to do, her outbursts were still dangerous to anyone around her. She clicked her heels against the reflective surface of the terminal floor and reached for a small bottle of whisky inside her bag. After waiting inside that stuffed environment for so long, the promise of alcohol was the only thing keeping her sane.
As she sat there, sipping the cool liquid, she thought of how things had gone horribly wrong. The pandemic had largely contributed to her declining state of mind but even before that threat, she was already feeling down and depressed. It was easy to blame the people that surrounded her but that didn’t make it true. Brenda was in a hell of her own design and it all boiled down to a silly game she had created more than a decade earlier.
The game was called Hypnowheel of Fortune. Brenda had first designed it as a way to get people she found somewhat interesting under her control. The study of hypnosis and brainwashing techniques had always been a kink of hers for as long as she remembered and using simple covert means to achieve her goals made perfect sense in her selfish and entitled view of the world. She was far from being a completely evil bitch, but she was still quite manipulative and loved to do things other people didn’t expect. The result was a handful of years of fetish satisfaction that ultimately led to the creation of a multi-million-dollar company and an app that soon found its way to the phones of a third of America’s population. The game was addictive and captured more and more people with each spin and yet the more that happened the less enjoyable it became. She wanted a fresh start and would do anything to get including selling the company if she had to, but first, she had to leave the sunshine state behind.
Brenda emptied the bottle and sighed when the board refused to budge. Could things get any better for once? The answer was a resounding yes and came in the form of a man.
He stood next to her looking down as if he had seen a ghost. He was six foot one, about her age, and was dressed in a slick and expensive navy blue Armani suit. He had piercing blue eyes, a square jaw, and a small scar near the upper-left corner of his lips. Brenda glanced his way and recognized him almost immediately. She was no good at games but she never forget a face, especially one that had been entranced for her so many times before.
“Brenda?” he gasped. “Brenda Sinclair, is that really you?”
Reluctantly, she nodded, as she remembered everything about him she was supposed to. His name was Joe Matthews, a former co-worker at an import/export company she used to work for when she lived in the D.C. area. He hadn’t been the first to have fallen under her spell but he had done so more than any other that came to mind until the day she got bored and called everything off.
“Hello, Joe,” she replied, crossing her legs. “Yes, it’s me.”
“Oh, my God!” he exclaimed, taking a seat next to her. “I never expected to see you again! How have you been doing?”
“Frankly, I’ve been better. My flight is delayed and I’m tired of sitting here waiting for something to happen. How about you?”
“I’m in the same boat as you and it’s not the first time this has happened, either. It’s fucking annoying, isn’t it?”
“It sure is. You’re looking quite sharp since the last time I saw you. What are you doing here?”
“I came on business but I’m trying to get back home. A lot has changed since we used to share an office. I have my own company now.”
“Do you? That makes two of us then. Are you in the transportation business? Because I seem to recall that was your greatest passion.”
“You have a good memory. Yes, I own a fleet of trucks that transports prime necessity goods all across the country,” he produced a business card with an energetic logo in shades of blue and yellow. “You’ve probably seen one of my vehicles before.”
“Hmm, can’t say for sure if I did or not but good for you. You hated that desk job anyway.”
“Yes, you’re right. That shit drove me crazy but it wasn’t all bad, especially what happened after hours...” he said.
“I see. Do you remember that fondly?”
“How could I not? It was always fun to be in your apartment, watching the wheel spin round and round. I know this may seem a little strange after so long but do you still...?”
“Hypnotize people for fun and profit? You could say that but things have changed for me as well. Those little games I used to play are all digital now.”
“Digital? How so?”
“That’s my business. I created an app that’s been a hit since day one,” she showed him her phone. “See? This is all me.”
“Well, I’ll be damned! I knew you had plans, Brenda, but I never expected them to take off like that.”
“I could say the same about your business. You weren’t exactly swimming in cash back then so how did you get the money to get your company started?”
“Honestly? I took a chance. I sold my place and moved to a smaller one, secured a loan from the bank to cover the rest of my initial expenses, and then got things done. Covid almost destroyed my business before it started but I never faltered and now things are looking better than ever. I’m surprised this is the first time I’m hearing about your app, though.”
“Me too, to be honest.”
“Is it free?”
“The basic package is but you can pay a one-time fee to unlock all the extras including additional game modes and some cosmetics or you can purchase each piece of content separately if you wish. Why do you ask? Are you interested in having a go right now?”
“That thought has crossed my mind, yes. It looks like I’ll be stuck here for a while, so do you mind?”
“Knock yourself out,” Brenda yawned.
Joe grabbed his phone and downloaded the app. Upon activating it for the first time, he was asked to create a public profile and a private one. The latter would be used only to keep track of his highest scores on that account while the former’s data would be uploaded to online leaderboards. He immediately unlocked the premium version and stared longingly at the rainbow-like background on his screen.
“Well, this certainly brings back memories,” he said. “Now what?”
“Do you really need an explanation?”
“Well, not really, but since you’re here and all, I thought it could be fun if you showed me the ropes again.”
“In public?”
“Why not? I do love to live dangerously.”
“Since when?”
An excellent question. During the time they had spent together, Joe had always been quite reserved even when going under but his recent business venture had proven he had finally left his comfort zone to seek happiness through his own means. If he could do that, chances were there was a lot more going on for him now than ever before and wasn’t that worth exploring at least?
“Please, Brenda...” he begged. “Just one trip down memory lane?”
“Oh, fine,” she snatched the phone from his hands and gave him a basic rundown of all the modes and what he could expect from them. The built-in randomizer option was her favorite with the puzzle solution changing with every turn but he was looking for something with a more classic feel.
“Can you create your own puzzles on the fly?” he asked.
“Sure. Do you want me to set up one?”
“Yes, please, and make it juicy just for the fun of it.”
“Okay, Joe, but don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
Brenda hid the screen from his prying eyes and tapped a simple yet irresistible riddle to seduce his mind. Dormant triggers can often be reawakened and she hoped that would be the case. When she finished the setup, she asked,
“One more thing. Do you want to play with the phone’s keyboard or use voice controls?”
“Voice will do fine,” Joe rubbed his hands. Hypnowheel of Fortune had played a significant role in his life and reliving those moments even for a little was already a great victory. She handed him the phone again whose display had now been divided into two sections. The lower one depicted the virtual wheel he was to spin and up top rested a green board against a black background with six hidden words in the following pattern.

_   _ _ _ _   _ _ _ _   _ _ _ _ _ _   _ _ _ _ _ _ _   _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

“Knock yourself out then”
“Okay, let’s do this.”
He spun the wheel and watched as it stopped on the $200 space. 
“It could have been better but it could have also been worse,” Brenda shrugged. “What’s your first guess?”
“I want a T, please.”
“Not bad. There are four in this puzzle.”
The board lit up, rearranging the tiles like this,

_   _ _ _ T   _ _ _ _   _ _ _ _ _ _   _ _ T _ _ _ T   _ _ _ _ T _ _ _

“Any guess so far?”
“No, not yet.”
“Keep going then but remember what you signed up for. You may not like how it ends.”
“Oh, I seriously doubt that. Let’s see...”
He spun the electronic wheel, this time landing on the $700 space. 
“I want a vowel this time, please.”
“Which one?”
“Let’s go with E.”
“Good choice. Here’s what you got.”
The board changed once again, with more spaces lighting up. Behind the board, animated spirals exploded like fireworks as he got closer to the solution.

_   _ _ _ T   _ _ E _   _ _ E _ _ _   _ _ T _ _ _ T   _ _ E _ T _ _ _

“Hmm, still nothing,” he said.
“Are you sure?”
“Yes. Let’s go for another round, please.”
“Have as many as you like. Next?”
The wheel spun a third time, but the reward was a paltry $50. Still, he tried his best shot by choosing the letter...
“S.”
“Talk about diminishing returns,” Brenda chuckled. “I’m sorry, but you only get two of them this time around."

_   _ _ S T   _ _ E _   _ _ E _ _ _   _ _ T _ _ _ T   _ _ E S T _ _ _

“Ah well, you can’t win them all.”
“You sure can’t, but are you sure you can solve it?”
“I’m positive I’ll get it done sooner or later.”
“And will you agree with it no matter what?”
“Of course.”
“Then I guess this may prove fun after all. Keep going.”
All around them, people were starting to notice what was going on, curious eyes gawking at the strange spectacle. Most onlookers were women but there were also a handful of men and while they seemed somewhat confused, the ladies were definitely enjoying themselves.
Joe nodded silently, the colors on the screen dulling his senses. The more he played the more he remembered being in her apartment, and how good it felt to succumb to her mesmerizing spell time and time again. When everything in life was going awry, losing himself for her was always the highlight of his days and his newfound success hadn’t changed that. As he headed into the fourth round, he knew he had to spice things up and got an additional spin for the price of one. 
“I want a B and an R, please.”
“Ah, now we’re talking, Joe. Have fun.”
Even more spirals filled his eyes, going from red to blue, green to yellow, and every other color on the spectrum. His thoughts spun with the wheel and the board as his consciousness melted in the spaces between the letters. The puzzle now read like this,

_   _ _ S T   _ B E _   B R E _ _ _   _ _ T _ _ _ T   _ _ E S T _ _ _

“I have to say you really upped your game with this background,” he mumbled.
“Did I? So you like what you see then?”
“I like everything about this.”
“Absolutely everything?”
“Yes.”
“Aww, you’re just saying that because you’re getting entranced. Then again, it’s what you want to be, isn’t it?”
“I... yes.”
“Then your mind has already solved the riddle even if you don’t know it yet. I would still like to hear you say it out loud, though. Do you already have an answer for me?”
“I don’t think so..”
“Spin the wheel again then and go deeper and deeper for me.”
Joe blinked heavily, his arms and legs turning into jelly. Anyone looking at him at that moment would assume he was drunk and for good reason. Barely remaining on his seat, he bought another vowel, which turned out to be an
“I.”
“Here you go, Joe.”

I   _ _ S T   _ B E _   B R E _ _ _   _ I T _ _ _ T   _ _ E S T I _ _

“What’s the answer?” she insisted. “Every fiber in your being knows it but if you don’t say it, it won’t come true. This is your chance. Give in like you so desperately crave.”
“I...”
“Yes, slave?”
“I... I MUST...”
“Say it. Better yet, scream it since you insisted on doing this here.”
“I MUST OBEY BRENDA WITHOUT QUESTION,” he shouted, and everyone in the terminal stopped what they were doing to look at them. Jaws dropped, mischievous smiles lit up the floor and cameras started shooting even before his knees hit the floor. Joe’s wish had finally been granted in the most dramatic way.
“You know it, I know it, and now so does everyone else,” Brenda pocketed his phone and directed him to lick her shoes clean. “And now that you can’t resist me, why don’t you make yourself useful while we wait?”
“It will be my pleasure... Mistress.”
Brenda smiled from cheek to cheek when he mindlessly followed her lead, his tongue already out as the number of camera flashes doubled. For the first time in a while, she felt alive again and while airport security was bound to intervene soon to make her fun go away, she would enjoy it for as long as she could without a care in the world. 
Sell her company? Nah! Not until she had the chance to see if this ecstatic realization was real or not. One more spin was on the horizon, a new game to win them all. When she finally got home, everyone she knew would fall for her again.

The End