Chapter #49Shuffling Faces by: Seuzz   Temporize, you tell yourself. If the girls find out there's other fakes in play, they'll become unmanageable.
"He's not gay," you tell her firmly. "It's just a joke that got out of hand."
"But how do you--?"
"Because I'm over at Maddy Caron's right now, and he's here with her and some of her friends. That's what he's telling them."
"Oh, but with them he'd say anything," she moans. A sniffle comes into her voice. "I really want it to be us, Frank, that was the whole point of--"
"And it will be you and him. Trust me, Sarah. We're getting it all straightened out. Maddy will see to that. You know Maddy." You look down wryly at the still-unconscious Maddy. "She's your friend. She'll take care of things."
"If you say so, Frank." Her tone is still doubtful. "But--"
"I have to go now. I told you I was in the middle of something, and that something is helping you out. We'll talk later."
You hang up, and crouch next to Maddy, gently nudging her awake. "Come on, Maddy, your friends are waiting for you," you say, and draw her to her feet. She blinks stupidly. "Get the sand out of your eyes."
"Did you--? Oh, I'm woozy."
"Yeah, the girls always get faint when I hold them."
She gives you a muzzy smile. "You know, Frank, all the girls like your brother because he's so flirty, but you're the one they--"
"You want to be my girlfriend, Maddy? Or does Tina want to be my girlfriend? Maybe it's Natalie?"
"No, I want-- Oh! You mean--"
"That's right. You pick which one you want to go out with me. It could be any of them, after we--"
"Maybe you could be all flirty, like Joe?" She puts her hand on your chest. "Maybe me and my friends--" She giggles. "We could take turns with you?"
"Let's get the chicks hatched before we count them. Go tell Joe where I am. He'll know what to do."
She grimaces and withdraws, leaving you alone in the linen closet. You check the golem sealant--the small fire has gone out, and you close the lid so no more smoke will drift out. You pull a blank mask from the rucksack and tuck it between some sheets. Then you pull it out and set it on the sheets. You frown and fidget and wonder what the hell is keeping Joe.
He gives you a long time to wait.
Finally, there's a soft tap at the door, and it opens just enough for Joe to stick his dopey face in. "I thought Johnson was the closet case," he says. "Frank, I never suspe--"
You haul him in by the shirt. He's got Tina by the wrist, and he wrenches her along too, banging her face against the edge of the door. You grasp her and apologize profusely as you pull her in.
She pats her nose tenderly. "Yeah, well, what are we doin' in here?" Her soft, Southern accent has a vexed edge.
"Gosh, I hope I didn't bruise you," you say. "You've got such a pretty nose, and-- Lemme see it." You touch it tenderly, and as you stroke it, she closes her eyes. In that vulnerable state, you take down the mask and put it to her face. She sags against Joe, and he envelops her in an embrace.
"How long is she going to be out," Joe asks.
"Ten minutes, probably."
"Good. Lots of time to--" He cups her prodigious breasts.
"Don't get too excited, Joe."
"Define 'too excited'. I'm supposed to follow your orders, Frank, but some are easier to interpret than others."
Time passes in a tense and yet boring way, with nothing to do while you wait for the mask; you hush Joe when he tries to speak. Tina's perfume fills the air, and you find yourself eyeing her openly. She's blonde, and stacked, and has a pert mouth. You fully sympathize with Joe's desire to play with her. She'll be one of Carrie's "homes", and Carrie has all but offered to--
You shake your head free of the temptation, and fight down your boner.
Finally, the mask comes out of her, and you quickly seal it up. But you don't put it on her. Instead, you hand it to Joe. "Where are you going?" he asks.
"To get Maddy. Tina's her slave now, and she needs to be here to give first orders. Which I'm going to give to her.
There's an acrid atmosphere in the den. At first, in your anxiety, you worry it's the stench from the fire you set, but from the various expressions you decide it must be frustration at the conversation they've been having. You gesture Maddy out with the words "Tina wants to talk to you." Natalie and Mandy look back as Maddy rises; plainly, they'd like an excuse for a break too.
"How long is this going to take?" Maddy whispers. "God, we're all dying in there!"
"Not long. After you go back in, get rid of one of your friends--Natalie or Mandy--but keep the other. You know, the one you want for--"
"I want both of them!" She stops short just outside the linen closet door.
"And you'll get both of them, but not today. We only had two masks with us. And get rid of David, too."
"Gladly," she snorts. "I didn't even invite him over, he just barged in with-- Tina!" She gasps as the girl half-falls out of the closet.
You bundle everyone back in and shut the door. It's very close, and stinks of burning plastic. "I'm going to put this mask on Tina now," you tell Maddy. "She's going to wake up. But it's not going to be Tina. It's going to be a fake. It'll act just like her, but she's going to be your slave."
"Really?" Maddy's eyebrows go up. "Like, she'll do my homework or--"
"If you tell her to," you reply. "But don't. Treat her exactly as if she were the real girl." You raise a warning finger. "No one can suspect what's going on. She has to be totally normal." Maddy nods.
Tina groans softly, and you put the mask on her. Her eyes instantly open. "Maddy," you say, "tell Tina that she is your slave, and she has to do exactly what you say."
Maddy turns on Tina with a slightly ashen expression, and repeats your words practically verbatim. Tina looks slightly alarmed, then nods her head.
"Now tell her that David Johnson isn't gay. It was just a joke that--"
"Oh, but he's--!" Maddy gasps.
"I said, tell her he isn't gay. It was a joke that got out of hand."
Maddy looks unhappy, but accedes. Tina looks very puzzled, but nods.
"Now tell her to act totally normal." Again, Maddy passes along your instructions. That done, you send Tina and Joe out, but you catch Maddy by the elbow. "Now, what has David been saying?"
"He says that he is gay, but that he doesn't want to be."
You pinch the bridge of your nose. "Great. Then if he doesn't want to be, the thing to do is tell everyone he's not."
"But that's not healthy, Frank," Maddy insists. "I know Sarah wants David for a boyfriend, but--"
"It's a joke that got out of hand," you say through gritted teeth. "That's what you and Tina and-- Who are you going to send back here?"
"Natalie. I think. Do you think--?"
"Whoever. That's what you three have decided. Tell that to Alyssa, and force it on Mandy."
"What about Lisa?"
You blink as though you've been punched in the forehead. "Who?"
"Lisa Rickover. She's--"
"Everyone, Carrie. Tell it to everyone." You sigh deeply as you force her from the closet.
* * * * *
Joe returns a little later with Natalie, and you do the same thing with her. After that, you gather back in the den with Maddy and her two new slaves for a little talking, after David and Mandy have left. With Carrie's programming, they are quite willing to follow the party line, but they do express mystification about how to square this strong belief in David's heterosexuality with what he's told them. It irritates you that Maddy also seems to goad their doubts. "David's a joker," you insist. "He's yanking your chain."
"David isn't--"
"He's a joker," you repeat, and glower at Maddy.
She firmly falls into line, gets the golems to accept it, and then you and Joe can go home. You take an aspirin and crawl onto the couch.
But at nine o'clock Joe's phone rings. After a little banter, he passes it to you. "The fuck's going on out there?" Patterson demands.
"I had to switch places," you say. "That was a--"
"I know where you are, Prescott," he says. "Lynch told me. He also told me there's some fucked up things going on out there."
Fucking pansy, running crying to mamma. "It's all under control, man. Why's Lynch got a thistle up his asshole?"
"He says you're doing things to masks. Making lots of golems. That's not the plan, Prescott. Masks only. Copies, not replacements."
"Well, Lynch is the reason I'm having to do that. Fucker's going around telling people that the person he's pretending to be is queer. I'm having to stop the rumor for his own sake, and that means making golems of some key people."
There's a pause, and Patterson guffaws. "So the little faggot finally confessed. But don't do him any favors, Prescott. If he wants to suck Eastman cock--"
"Fine, but it's for the sake of the guy he's replaced. You won't want him, so we're gonna have to let him go when it's done. He won't appreciate--"
"I don't care about that! You're fucking things up, Prescott! You got enough masks to do the job?"
"Yeah, I picked up supplies. But it's complicated, man. These girls--"
"Then gimme that book back. You don't need it now, and I let you have it too long."
Fuck you, you think. I got Frank and Joe Durras on my team. I should fuck you up and start running things myself.  indicates the next chapter needs to be written. |
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