Struck By Lightning: Slow Satisfaction Part 28

"Great! I actually already booked your plane tickets. A driver will meet you at the airport here."

"Fantastic! Karina, it will be so great to see you! And I'll finally get to meet your mystery man!"

She sounded so happy and so unquestioning of the situation that I didn't say anything more. I figured all explanations would be better done in person.

I didn't hear how James convinced his mother to come. Rehearsals became even more intense for me, Annika, Ben, and Pascual. Everyone was working like crazy, but we had more to learn than most. We were so busy that my mother had already been in Las Vegas for several hours before I saw her. It looked to me like she had already been to the spa and the salon when I met her for dinner. I wasn't looking anywhere near so fresh, after rehearsing all day and then throwing some clothes on before hurrying down to the hotel restaurant.

The first thing she said was, "Karina, this is quite a nice hotel."

"Is it?" I fussed with my napkin, deciding to wait to put it in my lap when something to eat arrived.

"Oh, yes. The last time I came to Las Vegas all I remember is seedy, tacky places. But, well, I suppose your James counts as a high roller."

"I think he wanted somewhere quiet, away from the tourists," I said. "And with good security."

"His staff have certainly been taking good care of me," she said with a happy sigh.

We ordered then, me without looking at the menu since I had long since memorized it. "So, Mom, there are some things I have to tell you. They might sound kind of weird."

"What kind of weird, dear?"

"Well, there's something we've been keeping from you because we were afraid you wouldn't give James a chance."

"Don't be silly. Why wouldn't I like James?"

"Well, you know, sometimes people get funny ideas."

"They certainly do."

Come on, Karina, I thought, get to the point. "So, the thing is, he's an internationally famous rock star and performer."

"Oh, is that all?" She made a motion like she was throwing an imaginary napkin into a basket. "Karina, why would I care about that?"

For half a second I couldn't remember why we'd kept it a secret from her. "Well..."

"I mean, seriously. I was a teenager when Janis Joplin and the Beatles were doing LSD."

Right. "Okay, cool, but the thing is that we didn't just keep it a secret from you. It's a secret from everyone."

"Ohhh. I get it. You mean he's like Bruce Wayne and Batman. All right. Well, that's nice, dear. Doesn't that rather complicate things?"

My mother, queen of the understatement. "Yes, it does. But the whole point of the concerts we're doing here is that he's retiring. These are his good-bye concerts."

"And then what? Ride off into the sunset?"

"Oh, well, he has other pursuits. It's just the rock star thing will be over."

"I see." She nodded much more knowingly than I expected. "And will I be allowed to see these concerts?"

"Of course!"

And on the conversation went. She seemed perfectly happy with me and with the situation. Only when we finished dinner and I was eager to get upstairs and find out if James had returned from music rehearsal did I finally bring up the last difficult topic. "Mom, there's one more thing you should know."

She folded her napkin carefully as she placed it on the table. "And what's that, dear?"

"The show. It's a little... risque."

"Are you topless in it?"

"What? No!"

She made the dismissive motion again. "Karina. It's Las Vegas. If you're not showing your b.o.o.bs, you're fine. You shouldn't worry about it. Dancing is perfectly respectable."

"I'm not worried for myself! I just didn't want you to be shocked!"

"Honestly, Karina, you're acting like it's a stripper bar you're taking me to. James sounds like a very tasteful individual. Very artistic. I'm sure you're in good hands. Now, seriously, when can I meet him?"

"I'll have to ask about that. Rehearsals are crazy right now. But I know he's been looking forward-"

d.a.m.n that James, though, for having impeccable timing. He swept up to the table, took my mother's hand in his before she was aware of what has happening, and kissed it.

"Mrs. Casper. I am so sorry I could not greet you before this moment," he said, dropping to one knee so he didn't loom over us at the table. "I do hope my staff took excellent care of you during my absence. I'm James."

My mother blushed like it was Cary Grant or Richard Gere looking her right in the eye. "Oh, well, yes, very good care. Nice to meet you, James. You can call me Charlotte."

"A beautiful name for the beautiful mother of a beautiful daughter." He kissed me on the cheek and pulled up a chair. Almost instantly a waiter appeared, then disappeared with the mandate to bring us coffee and dessert. "Is it your first time in Las Vegas, Charlotte?"

"My first in a very long time. I was just telling Karina that either the place has cleaned up a lot or this must be a better cla.s.s of establishment than I stayed in before."

"The town has upscaled quite a bit," James said. "I do hope you'll have a chance to see some of it while Karina and I are ensconced in rehearsals. My own mother is flying in this week as well, all the way from London. Dare I suggest the two of you might take in some sights together?"

"I'd like that. London, you say? I was there before Karina was born! On my honeymoon."

And off they went, talking about London. She was completely and utterly charmed by him, I could tell. He asked her questions about me and Jill, and listened to her answers and laughed in the right places, while encouraging her to tell more. She deftly avoided actually talking about my father, which she had years of practice doing, and she told some stories about me that had previously mortified me when she'd brought them up to boyfriends.

Maybe once you've had your a.s.s beaten in front of someone, that story about the time you fell in the lake didn't seem all that exposing anymore.

No, that wasn't it exactly. It was because with James I wasn't pretending to be someone else. He insisted on me being myself and he already knew me far better than I thought my mother did. There was no silly story she could tell that would make him think any differently of me.

I said very little, enjoying my coffee and dessert. I didn't have to. My mother loves to talk, and she loves to have an audience. James kept me saying just enough that I stayed a part of the conversation without having to carry it.

It was an odd opportunity to watch James at work. I'd had a glimpse that night at the gallery, but this was different. I watched him charm my mother and convince her he was the greatest thing since sliced bread without really telling her anything about himself. I suppose that was the point. The important thing about him was that he was the man in my life. The rest was just details. And I should have known that next to Dancer James and Artist James and Rock Star James, "Someday I Could Be Your Son-in-Law" James would be a piece of cake for him to pull off. My mother loved being treated like a queen, and that was one thing James was very good at.

The day the publicity gala arrived, I wondered if my mother would remember that she had called him artistic and tasteful when I mentioned the content of the show might be somewhat risque. The crew had taken over an entire restaurant inside one of the casino hotels, catered it to the nines, and invited all manner of celebrities, as I guess one does. Becky and Michel were wielding their cell phones as cameras, live-streaming some to the Lord Lightning Internet channel, as well as recording interviews and asking people what they thought the new show would be like. James had kept the information to the public about the actual show very minimal, but nearly everyone there had either seen the "publicity" videos or seen the news about them. I definitely heard the opinion multiple times that the videos must be fake and the difference was whether the people felt fake videos that were made to seem real for the sake of going sensationally viral was a terrible or wonderful publicity tactic.

I got to hear a lot of opinions at the party, because I was in bondage for it, suspended above the crowd. James had rigged me himself, of course, starting my preparations with a remote-controlled bullet vibe, then a spandex bodysuit, and then the flying harness. The vibrator inside me buzzed while he added ropes and a blindfold.

The preparations took place in a room high above the main floor of the restaurant where I was hooked to a motorized track and then flown slowly over the crowd. I was comfortable, with all my limbs supported by ropes, but I guess from the reactions of the people I pa.s.sed over that I made a striking image.

James wasn't out there, though. He stayed in the prep room, and each time I came through, he would check on me, kiss me, fondle me a little, and make the vibrator go on and off.

"Don't you have to go out there?" I asked, on one of my trips through the room.

"Don't be silly," he said. "My public appearances are rare and fleeting."

"Ah, right. Of course."

"Ben and Pascual will each appear at moments, along with some of the band. Chandra, Alicia, and some of the others are there to actually speak about the production. But this is mostly about unveiling the cover of the alb.u.m."

I had a sudden thought. "Am I on the cover?"

He chuckled. "You might be." Then there was no more time to talk as I reached the trapdoor that swung open and let the sound of the crowd wash over me. As I glided away from him, I felt the vibrator click on.

I wondered if he meant for me to come while flying over all these people. It had been nearly an hour of the vibe going on and off and I was edging closer.

As I pa.s.sed over the crowd, though, I thought I heard a familiar voice. An unwelcome voice. A slightly nasal tw.a.n.g and an oily manner, that sure sounded like Phil Betancourt. I tried to see, but no matter how I moved my head there was no seeing past the blindfold, and my wiggling intensified the sensation of the vibe inside me. Then I heard people making comments about my movements so I stopped. The vibe stopped when James must have seen me squirming. Long agonizing minutes pa.s.sed before I reached him again.

"Are you here?"

"Yes, I'm here," he said, running a hand down my side. "Are you all right? Do you need to come down?"

"No no, it's not that. It's just... I thought I heard Betancourt's voice, schmoozing someone. I mean, maybe it's how smarmy people sound, but can you look? Can you see?"

"I will look once you're out the trapdoor. From up here I can see almost everyone in the room. As you go over, listen again and see if you can figure out where he is."

He didn't turn the vibrator on this time, I guess so I could concentrate on listening. Most of the voices weren't familiar at all, and I couldn't make out much other than the general buzz. The room seemed to have gotten more crowded, as if antic.i.p.ating something. Perhaps they were waiting for the cover reveal.

I heard the doors swing open as I sailed slowly into the prep room again. "James?"

The doors swung shut behind me and I could hear the whirring of the motor that kept the track moving. I sensed as he stepped close to me.

The whirring suddenly slowed and stopped. "James?"

Someone's hand ran along my side, but no one answered me.

I s.h.i.+vered. Was he doing it to freak me out? The vibe came on suddenly and I relaxed, thinking that meant he was giving me the silent treatment but it was all another game he was playing.

A rough hand ma.s.saged between my legs, where I was getting quite wet under the spandex. Gus.h.i.+ng it around like that was surely creating an obvious wet stain. I moaned into the touch.

The next thing I felt, though, was the cool fabric being pulled away from my skin, the pocket of air forming, and then I heard the unmistakable sound of scissors, snip-snip-snip.

My p.u.s.s.y was now bare to the air. A finger traced the edges of my lips and I jumped. That wasn't James. That was someone with long fingernails. "Who is that? Who's there?"

"Just me," came Ferrara's voice. The vibrator clicked off and I heard her put the controller on the ledge.

"Ferrara, what the f.u.c.k? Where is James?"

"I'm here to tell you the bad news, Karina. It's all been a setup. I tried to warn you, didn't I?"

"What the h.e.l.l are you talking about?"

"James is about to come back in and f.u.c.k you like the little f.u.c.k toy you are. And you have a choice. You can either shut up and take it like a good girl, or you can scream and cry and protest. Either way works for me. When the video hits the Internet, you won't be able to deny it. Everyone at this party saw you in bondage flying overhead. They'll all know it's real."

"Ferrara, don't be stupid. You're going to film this? This is rape. You'll go to jail."

"Will I? Karina, don't be naive. Judges and juries blame women for their own rapes simply for wearing a skirt. You've been displayed to everyone as a s.e.x object. Are you going to convince the judge that you were coerced into this? Hmm, let me see. You've been on the payroll for months. That harness was specially fitted for you. You were even in one of the earlier rape tapes that came out. Oh, weren't those faked? Well, obviously this is faked, too."

"You're crazy!"

"I'm driven. There's a difference. Here's what's going to happen. James is going to come in and f.u.c.k you now, and the entire thing is going to be on the Internet."

"That doesn't make any sense!"

"Doesn't it? Think about it." She flicked her nail across my c.l.i.t and I tried to squeeze my legs together to no avail. "It doesn't matter if you fight, because afterward we're going to fly you over the audience with your ravaged c.u.n.t hanging out, just at the moment we unveil the alb.u.m cover, which happens to be a painting James did of you in rope bondage. If you fight though, you'll see I was so right about him, that that's what he really wants. That'll work better with the theme of the publicity videos we've been releasing. Haven't they been brilliant? The whole campaign is brilliant. The whole Internet is on fire about it."

She was lying. She had to be. That old fear fluttered in my stomach, that maybe there was one more layer to James, one more layer of deception.

"If you don't fight, well, it'll still be a good show. I love a good, hard a.s.sf.u.c.king. Especially of an a.n.a.l virgin. But that's why I think you'll fight."

Was that why he kept winding me up about a.n.a.l s.e.x? Because it was all a setup for this?

"Now, stay where you are. Don't move." As if I could. She laughed at her own joke as she went to open the door to let someone in from the hallway.

I heard the shuffling of feet. It sounded like more than one person came in. One of them squeaked in distress. Becky?

I swung in the suspension, unable to move my arms or free myself. I couldn't even kick my legs. I felt large hands ma.s.saging my b.u.t.tocks.

"Get the camera closer," Ferrara hissed. "Film his thing."

I could hear the wet, rhythmic sound of a p.e.n.i.s being stroked. Then hands on my thighs as someone positioned themselves between my legs.

"You don't want to do this," I said.

A hard erection rubbed my thigh.

"I'm telling you right now to stop. I didn't consent to this." That couldn't be James. It couldn't.

Ferrara egged him on, though. "Go on, James. Her a.s.s is ripe for the taking. Why are you going so slowly?"

His hands pulled my b.u.t.tocks apart, ma.s.saging my flesh. For a moment I felt a flicker of fear, but his touch felt unfamiliar. "You're not my James!" I cried out. "I don't know who you are, but this is rape!"

I heard Becky sob.

"Becks! Tell me who that is! That's not him, is it?"

"No, Karina, it's not! I don't know who that is!"

I heard a scuffle then, and Ferrara's voice. "Of course it is! You don't know what he looks like!"