Page 9

9

Ryder

As usual, all of the options sucked.

The fact that I already knew I’d be putting that stupid fucking collar on by the end of the day — or night, whatever it was — was even worse. I wouldn’t be able to hold out for long, but I was going to hold out as long as I could.

Then I’d have to bark.

Then I’d have to put the collar around my neck.

Then I’d have to padlock it closed.

It made my gorge rise. I glanced over at the shelf where the inevitable waited, shuddering. Why was I even putting this off?

That was a dangerous thought, one I didn’t enjoy having. But part of me wanted to get it over with. It would mean seeing this part done and moving on to the next insane demand, which I wasn’t ready to do. I was having a hard enough time comprehending the collar.

It wasn’t even the worst thing he’d made me do — to myself — but it felt like it was .

Time passed, my dry mouth getting drier and drier. I braced myself, knowing I was going to be giving up yet another piece of myself and handing it over to him.

And I barked.

Shame shot through me like fire down my spine, and I fought not to cry. It wouldn’t help, and he’d probably just get off on it.

I barked again, hoping he was looking at the creepy-ass cameras so I didn’t have to keep sporadically letting out doggie sounds to try to get his attention.

Either he hadn’t heard me, or he’d chosen to take his time because it seemed to take an eternity before I heard him at the top of the stairs.

When I did, I resigned myself to the fact that I’d given in and that snarking off to him wasn’t going to help.

“Ready for your collar?” he asked, tone as mild as if I hadn’t insulted him and pissed him off the last time we’d spoken.

I couldn’t say the words. No, I wasn’t ready for it, and I’d never be ready for it. But I’d decided to do it, and that was… something.

For once, he took pity on me — or something — and he crossed over to get the strip of leather. He coiled it in one hand before heading over to the cage with it in one hand and the padlock in the other. It was simple enough, just like the other had been. There was an O-ring on either side, and they’d be joined by the lock.

Then it wasn’t going anywhere.

I got up, angling my body so my limp cock wasn’t directly facing him, and I went to the side of it. I took the collar from him, fumbling with it a little before taking the lock too. I hesitated then slowly hooked it between the two rings .

“Close it,” he told me after a long moment of us standing there, looking at each other.

I didn’t know if I could.

“Close it,” he repeated.

Mutely, I turned the little lock… then slowly pressed it closed. The click of it latching made me cringe, and I tugged at it, already regretting my obedience.

“Good boy,” he said, nodding in approval. He reached out like he was going to try to touch me, but I jerked back. His smile faded.

“You said I could get food and water if I put the fucking collar on,” I told him. “Did you mean it?”

He had the gall to look a little offended. “Of course,” he said. But he didn’t turn for the water bowl or even the hose on the wall. He walked to the back, where I could vaguely see some packages, and started rummaging through the boxes.

Oh, this wasn’t good.

He finally stood, holding something in his hand. I couldn’t see what it was, not through the dark and at that distance, but his words were ominous enough. “But you’re going to have to be punished for biting me, so…” He shrugged.

The bastard shrugged, like it was just another thing . For him, it obviously was, but for me, it was so much more than that. It was fucking with my head hardcore, and I didn’t know if I could stand to find out what he was getting at.

When he returned to the light, I saw a dildo in his hand.

I gaped at the realistic-looking penis, seeing its ridges and veins first before noticing it had some kind of weird cap at the top. In his other hand, he had a few cable ties.

What the fuck even?

“This is your waterer,” he said, as though that would make perfect sense. He unscrewed the cap and went over to the sink, filling it up before tightening the cap again.

“That’s a penis,” I said flatly.

“It’s a waterer shaped like a penis,” he corrected me. Cable ties between his teeth, he started to attach the thing to the cell bar right over the water bowl. Only when he was finished pulling the last tie taut did he look back at me.

I was still staring, horrified, at the dildo.

“You need to learn how to suck cock eventually anyway,” he said, straightening. He met my eyes, but I averted mine after a heartbeat. “So that’s like… training wheels.”

“Training wheels,” I repeated, unable to wrap my mind around the prospect. How would this even work?

He gestured to it. “You suck on the tip, you get a little. The more you take into your mouth, the faster the water flows. Suck on it and it’ll squirt out more.” He smirked a little. “You’ll have to get used to that too.”

“Asshole,” I snarled. “You didn’t say anything about this. I put your fucking collar on!”

“I told you I’d give you food and water if you did,” he reminded me. “I didn’t say how I’d give it to you.”

“Well, I still don’t see any food,” I said, sitting back down on the dog bed. I was not going to suck on that thing, not with him watching.

“At this rate, you’re going to get dog food instead of people food.” He didn’t sound like he was joking. “Don’t get spoiled, Toby.”

“Ryder,” I reminded him.

He ignored me, just like he always did.

“I’m not eating like I did last time,” I said. The humiliation of sticking my head in the bowl and trying to chase the food around the bottom of it was still stark in my mind .

“We’ll see,” he said ominously.

“What do you mean, we’ll see ?” I demanded. “It’s not like I can go anywhere. You can tell me some of your plans.”

He looked at me, meeting my eyes again. “It’s less fun that way.”

“Bastard,” I muttered, not caring if he heard me or not.

“Your attitude isn’t going to do you any favors,” he said, shoving his hands into his pockets.

I could still see the trail of scars down his arm, disappearing beneath the fabric of his jeans along with his hand. I made a face.

“What do you expect me to do? Roll over and show you my belly?”

“You’ll be doing that before long.” The certainty in his voice had me worried, damn near squirming from it.

I swallowed hard, not sure what else to say. His confidence — arrogance — was so disconcerting that I wasn’t sure how to handle it any more than I knew how to handle the rest of the situation. He seemed to know exactly what he was doing, which meant I was at a severe disadvantage.

Well, that and the fact that I was behind bars and he held the key on the other side. That made a difference too.

“I’m hungry,” I told him, sullen and annoyed by the exchange and the fact that he’d gotten the last word again.

“Drink, and I’ll go get your food,” he said, still standing there, still staring at me.

I sputtered. “Um, fuck no? That wasn’t part of our deal.”

“Who’s calling the shots here?” His eyes narrowed.

Was he really going to be an arrogant prick here, too?

Stupid question. Of course he was.

“I’m not going to do that with you watching,” I told him stubbornly, shaking my head .

“You’re lucky I promised you food and drink if you cooperated,” he replied. “Otherwise, you’d be waiting.”

At least that was one thing I’d noticed about him. He kept his word once he gave it, but it wasn’t like it helped me any… until now. How long that would carry over, I didn’t know.

“You’ll get a treat if you drink while I watch,” he said.

“Oh, we’re going with real bribery instead of threats now?” I retorted.

“I’m going with whatever’s going to make you do what I want,” he said bluntly.

It surprised me a little, but then, it wasn’t like it was news. He’d already shown that he was willing to bribe and blackmail me into cooperating. This wasn’t much different, only something extra instead of a means to an end.

“Nope. Not happening.” I could be stubborn about this, at least. I’d drink when he left, before he could get to the creepy cameras and watch.

Then again, he was probably recording all of this too… which was just more evidence. When I was rescued — ha — they’d see the sort of shit he’d done. He hadn’t laid a hand on me, but…

But nothing.

I swallowed hard, realizing how it would look. I had done everything to myself. Maybe it had been because of things he’d said and done, but I’d still done it. I couldn’t imagine video footage of me shoving the enema nozzle into my ass, or…

I looked at the phallic waterer thing when he started walking away.

That would be on the video too, the sight of me drinking from it… because I was going to have to. I was thirsty enough to try it, and once he’d disappeared up the stairs, I bolted for it.

It was awkward, tasting off in my mouth, but when I sucked on it, I got the fresh water. I tried to get more of it into my mouth, humiliated beyond belief but desperate to finish drinking before he returned.

When I was done, I retreated to my little bed, curling back up in the blanket. It was already becoming a safe haven, even though it wasn’t really safe at all. It was just the only place I had to go to.

I’d started to doze off when he returned, but I perked up. He was carrying another dog bowl — of fucking course — and I couldn’t tell what this was. It wasn’t like the last time, when it had smelled fantastic. This didn’t really have much of a smell.

He pushed the bowl into the cell’s food slot, and I slowly moved closer. I stared dubiously down at its contents, gravy over some brown sludge.

“It’s stew,” he told me, his voice a little dry, “not dog food. Tempting as that might’ve been.”

I glared at him.

“And it’s warm. It’s better than you could’ve asked for, considering your behavior.”

“My behavior?” I asked, sputtering. “Hey, I’ve been doing what you tell me to!” Not because I wanted to, but that didn’t change the fact that I had.

He gave me a look. “Eat,” he ordered. “No hands.”

Oh, fuck that shit.

I dipped my hand into the bowl of the warm, disgusting looking mess, grimacing, and brought it to my mouth.

“What did I just tell you?” he asked, his voice a low, menacing growl. “No hands, Toby.”

“Then you’ll have to come here and stop me,” I taunted him, stupid as I knew it was. “Coward.” I deliberately put the bite in my mouth and licked my fingers.

He stared hard at me, then my heart plummeted into my stomach as he unlocked the cell door.

Well, fuck. That wasn’t what was supposed to happen.