Rough Play by Christina Crooks

Your phone call to Charlotte failed. She was the only person looking out for you, wasn’t she?”
    She tried to hide her dismay. “How do you know her? Anyway, no, she’s not the only one. As a matter of fact, I have a number of people who will miss me very shortly. My . . . I was supposed to meet my friend for drinks later tonight. She’ll call the police.”
    He smiled more widely. “You’re lying. Lying is punished severely.”
    Gail edged away from him until the wall of metal pressed against her back. “Punished?” She hated feeling so intimidated. She’d thought herself insulated from such unpleasantness as this. Through the ugly fear and the pressure in her bladder, she found the strength to push her body straight and tilt her head up at Kartane with what she hoped was coolness. “Charlotte got my call before you disconnected it. She’ll look for me, it’s her job. And you, if you’re not completely stupid, you’ll realize I don’t belong here.”
    Kartane ticked off another finger. “Disrespect. Another punishment.” He tilted his head, and the wavy blond hair caught the dim light. “You have spirit. It’ll be a pleasure to break you.”
    Before she could ask what he meant, he continued. “Did Charlotte tell you we were once married? Earth-style, legally and all? I didn’t think so. We were meant to be together from the moment I hired her at the magazine.” He twisted his fingers together, then turned his interlaced hands so one set of fingers lay on the bottom, crushed by the top. “She was my secretary. Like in the movie? No, of course you haven’t seen that one. But I knew when I spanked her she wouldn’t quit or sue. She knew when I tied her up and took a whip to that sweet ass I’d never let her go. But then, ultimately, I did,” he mused. “I’m beginning to regret letting her go.”
    “You let her go because she needed something different?” Gail guessed. “She got tired of playing games?” She couldn’t imagine Charlotte enjoying being whipped and dominated. Not for very long, not even to stay married to this handsome man. What woman would?
    Kartane laughed with abandon. “Tired of playing games? Quite the opposite. I wasn’t playful enough for her.” His laughter faded. “Not nearly enough.”
    His gorgeous blue eyes, bright white teeth, and his profile when he angled his head back to check on something outside her cell, astonished her anew. Such a handsome man. He could be a model. He’d sire beautiful children. He’d told her he was politically progressive and that he liked kids and wanted a large family. He couldn’t be all bad. Or be that good of a liar. Could he?
    She supposed he could. She still had to pee.
    She recalled one other thing he’d said. “You’d told me you were a switch!” Switches didn’t have to be in charge, they could be the submissive and obedient ones in BDSM. She’d read about it online.
    Maybe all she needed to do to get out of this horrible place was show a little assertiveness.
    Not a difficulty for her. “You, worm!” She assumed a pose she’d practiced early tonight before her mirror, widening her stance, throwing her shoulders out, and putting her hands on her hips. She knew she looked stern and impressive. “I don’t belong in a cage. Get your ass over here, kneel, and beg my forgiveness. Maybe I won’t punish you too hard.”
    Her heart leapt with sudden hope as he immediately moved forward.
    His fist crashing against her cheek knocked her sideways. She clutched at the smooth metal walls to control her slide to the dirt floor. She saw stars as she shook her head, trying to focus. Her cheek flared with pain.
    She fingered her face experimentally. “You son of a bitch!”
    “Disrespect will be punished. You’ll learn. Or you’ll die.” He was as impassive as a cruel master training a puppy. Worse. Puppies were too cute and fragile to hit that hard. She wasn’t cute.
    Horror began to sink its poison talons into her.