Clockwork Butterfly, A (15 page)

Chapter 25

Angelo and Mae watched the butterfly stutter and flap in the direction of the concrete building and shared a look of excitement before climbing back on the horses.

“Well, here we go.” They each took up their reins and nudged the beasts into a canter. The drumming of the hooves over the moorland they’d now started to cross matched that of Mae’s heart. Her head was pounding due to lack of sleep and adrenalin. Her body was sore, and her pussy and ass were tender from riding and being ridden so hard. She was suddenly an emotional and physical wreck. With only a few hundred yards to the gate, she pulled her horse to a halt and slumped over its mane in exhaustion.

“I can’t do it,” she whispered as Angelo came over, confused.

“What are you talking about? We’re here!” He swept his arm dramatically to the gates and high wall that surrounded their destination. But Mae was consumed with doubt and guilt. Lena was his now. She had no business being here.

“What if Lena rejects me?” she whispered staring at the horse’s thick tangle of hair.

Angelo grabbed her chin and roughly pulled her to meet his gaze. “That’s not going to happen and you know it,” he growled, anger showing in the glint in his eye. “Enough of this, we’re not stopping now.”

Reluctantly, yet feeling a little empowered by Angelo’s words, she sat up and gathered the reins. Angelo and his horse strode purposefully toward the gate, slowing as a guard came to meet him. Mae panicked and kicked her mare into a trot, catching up with Angelo before he had a chance to open his mouth. She looked over to check the scarf was in place and the hood did as much as it could to hide his manly features. She glared at him in an “I’ll do the talking” kind of way just as the guard spoke.

“Good day, ma’am.” She curtseyed low and dipped her head, addressing each of them. “Ma’am.”

“Good day. We’re visiting from the manor not far from here and require refreshment.” Mae had once heard that an Archmatria is welcome at any manor throughout the country and entitled to hospitality without question. She wasn’t sure if this rule applied to correction facilities, but decided to act as if it did and hopefully intimidate the guard into making it so. She’d been so used to making up lies, being cheeky, manipulating everything to get her own way at the manor. She knew she had the skills and confidence, it just hadn’t mattered before. It had all been a game. It felt so different when the freedom of someone she loved was on the line. Every fiber of her being was tense as she waited for the guard’s response.

“Which manor did you say you were from, ma’am?” The guard was smiling, but it didn’t reach her eyes. Angelo began to cough and hung limply over the side of his horse.

“I didn’t,” said Mae briskly. “Now can’t you see we are in need of refreshment? It’s a hot day and we’ve had a long ride.” She hopped off her horse and went to Angelo. “Sister Lucara? Are you all right?”

She patted Angelo briskly on the back and helped him down to the ground. The coughing fit meant that he could hunch over and almost halve his height and obscure all of his face.

“Water… please,” he mumbled in a high, husky tone that could have just been a groan to the guard’s ears.

Mae struggled to hold in a nervous titter. She motioned to the guard once more to let them through and this time, she yielded, unlocking the huge metal gates and pushing them open.

“Thank you.” They made it through into a large, barren courtyard and Mae spied something glinting in one of the many small windows that lined the building. The window was open and after a few attempts, a little golden butterfly flapped its way through and over to them. Mae held her breath, hoping it would land out of sight of the guard who still looked to be contemplating what to do.

She placed her hands on her hips and regarded the hunched figure of Angelo.

“Do you need a doctor?” the guard asked as the coughing continued.

“No, no, just a drink,” said Mae, placing a hand on his back and watching the butterfly flutter about behind the guard.

“If you say so.”

Mae watched in disbelief as the guard turned to leave them just as the butterfly came up behind her. It was in line with her forehead and Mae wanted to shut her eyes but kept watching. Just as Mae was sure the guard was about to be hit right between the eyes, she dipped down to pick up something off the ground. The butterfly swooped in to land on Angelo’s shoulder and Mae grabbed it, quickly concealing it in her robe.

“Damn weeds,” the guard declared, holding up a tiny seedling in disgust. She shook her head and discarded it. “Follow me. You can tether your horses at the entrance here. Someone will come and water them.”

“Thank you,” said Mae, leading Angelo up the bleak, concrete steps before quickly going back to tie them.

When they were seated at the reception area and the guard had gone to get them some food and drink, Mae pulled out the butterfly and showed it to Angelo excitedly. He studied it carefully and held it under one of the vast tubular bulbs which laminated the whole windowless area.

“She’s written on it, look.” He showed Mae who squinted hard to make out the tiny starches. “I think it’s a number.”

“Her cell.” They held it together and tried to decipher the digits.

“Seven, one, two,” Angelo said decisively. “Would you agree?”

Mae looked hard again and nodded. “I think so.”

The guard came back with two mugs and a plate of cookies. “We haven’t had visiting Archmatrias for a long time,” she said in a tone that warned Mae to be wary. “A very long time.”

“Well,” said Mae breezily, “I think it’s important to explore more than just your local world. Don’t you?” She smiled innocently, dipping her cookie into her mug of tea. “Looks delicious!” she said, popping the whole thing into her mouth.

“And what about you?” The guard looked at Angelo who shuffled his large feet further back under the sofa. “What do you think about broadening your horizons?”

“Sister Lucara’s mute,” Mae quickly explained, patting Angelo’s thigh. “And quite sick. It was her last wish before she lost the power of speech to see the countryside before it was too late. Wasn’t it, Sister?” She patted his leg again in a rather patronizing way, and Angelo gave her a warning look from under his hood. “Anyway, we’re here now. So why don’t we take a look around the facility? See how our baddies are being corrected.”

The guard looked surprised. It was clear guided tours weren’t really part of her job description, but Mae was pleased to see her expression soften.

“All right then.” She even smiled. “We have got a couple of real bad ones here. We are the only correction unit with the facilities required to house such criminals. Most of the unit is low security otherwise. It’s a good mix.”

Mae felt a pang for Lena. Criminal. What a word. A lump rose in her throat and she forced it down by speaking. “I’m sure it is,” she said quickly before the crack in her voice had a chance to break open. “Actually, I thought it would be fun to meet one of these… criminals.” Mae had regained her composure with steely determination. “How about we pick a cell at random? What do you think, Sister?” She leaned down to look in Angelo’s robes. “How about seven, one, two?” She winked and he winked back.

“Whatever you say, ma’am. I’m on all afternoon and evening and there’s not much to do, apart from make sure dinner gets served at some point and keeping outsiders from coming in and insiders from getting out.” She gave a laugh.

“Do you get people coming in very often?”

“Hardly ever. You’re the first people I’ve seen apart from staff since they brought the last prisoners in.” She tapped the key on her temple. “Which, coincidentally enough, one of them is the inmate of the cell you want to look in.”

Surely she must be suspicious
, thought Mae, bracing herself for the attack as the trio walked the along the long corridors lined with rows of identical cells. None came.

At last they came to a halt at the door numbered seven, one, two. The guard wrestled with the bundle of keys, trying to find the right one, while heat and electricity built inside Mae and Angelo’s robes. Mae felt his fingertips fumble under her layers and she grabbed at them, squeezing tight. They took a breath in unison as the guard slid the key into the lock and turned it.

* * * *

Lena gazed around the lovely room. If they went through with their plan today, tonight, she’d be sleeping outside in the cold, possibly on the moors, depending on how far they got on foot. Who knows, they may be lucky and find a vehicle, but Lena wasn’t convinced any of them knew how to drive or even start one.

“Would it be all right if I lay on your bed, just for a little while?” Lena suddenly felt emotional and wished she could be back home at her mother’s house, before all this began.

The Wasp nodded and swept her hand to show her the way.

Lena padded in her bare feet over to the four-poster bed and ran her hand down one of the thick columns. It was cool and she pressed her cheek against it, closing her eyes and wishing that when she opened them, everything would be back to normal. Her body drew her in a trance-like state to the silks, velvets, and furs that filled the vast bed. She crawled onto it and buried herself amongst the finery. Every nerve ending tingled as each fabric teased her in a new and different way. Her mouth watered as she raked her fingernails though all lengths of succulent furs and velvets.

Rolling on to her back, she looked up at the ceiling to see herself reflected back. A disheveled, wild-haired woman stared back at her, thin and gaunt beneath her thick dayshirt. She pulled it roughly apart and watched as the buttons flew off, exposing her breasts. She liked the way they looked, so large and heaving, like a real woman’s bosom on her small frame. She pushed them together and released, watching the two domes flop and quiver on to her chest. It was painful, but pleasantly so, and she did it again, making sure to tweak her aching nipples with her thumbs as she did. She watched as if she were viewing a stranger. It was odd, yet comforting. The sensation in her breasts began to travel to her abdomen and her hands followed, ripping apart the dayshirt as they went. Lena suddenly craved affection and looked over to The Wasp and Cheryl who were staring at her.

“It might be our last chance,” pleaded Lena, and the two women walked over and stood on either side of the bed. Two sets of hands snaked in through cushions and throws until they found Lena’s shirt and ripped it completely off in unison. Lena stared at the ceiling, intoxicated by her own writhing reflection. Her body rose as her hands joined the others now running up and down her skin, raising tiny hairs in each of the thirty fingertips’ wake.

Some found the dips and folds of her pussy lips, some teased her nipples, others slid between her toes, making her point her feet and wriggle until her calves ached. Lena let her head relax and fall back into the pillows, giving herself over to the probing as her need to orgasm intensified.

* * * *

Mae gasped as the guard swung the door open to reveal a room in utter disarray, as if it had been burgled.

“What’s happened?” She pushed past and lifted the upturned mattress, hoping to find her other lover. Nothing. Angelo joined her in the search and frantically tore at the tiny room. Mae had no idea what she was looking for, perhaps some familiar evidence to show that this was actually Lena’s cell. Spinning around, she flew at the guard. “Where the fuck is she?” she snarled, and Angelo grabbed her by the shoulders.

“You’re going to blow our cover,” he whispered forcefully while the guard looked on incredulously.

“I knew something was odd about you two,” she said, squinting and poking her index finger into each of their chests in turn.

“I don’t care.” Mae was crying now. “Fucking grab her!” The guard struggled as Angelo pounced, wrapping his arms around her from behind. She dropped the keys and Mae grabbed them from the floor just beyond her kicking feet. “Let’s go, come on!”

“Shouldn’t we tie her up or something?” he said as the guard’s squirming body contorted to be free of his arms which pinned her around her waist and mouth, muffling her screams.

“It’s a cell, Angelo, I’m sure she’ll be confined enough.”

He threw her onto the bed and darted through the door to Mae who pulled it shut behind him.

“Hold it tight while I find the right key.” Time slowed and beads of sweat formed as the keys shook and jangled in her fumbling fingers. Angelo held the door fast against the feral banging and pulling on the other side.

“Hurry up!” he said through clenched teeth, and she glared at him.

At last a key slipped past the first notch and she wriggled it home. She turned it once then bent it, snapping it off in the lock.

“Go!” They ran fast down the corridor and into a huge, deserted dining hall. The squeal of their rubber sandals echoed and bounced off every wall and they halted, breathing hard and holding each other. They started moving again slowly, senses pricked, trying to silence their soles. A large figure appeared in the doorway at the other end of the dining room.

“What’s going on in here?” the figure demanded and strode angrily toward them.

Angelo and Mae froze as she came closer. Angelo’s hood was down and his manly features, albeit framed by dusky curls, were clearly on display. He quickly hunched over, coughing, and yanked the hood over his head.

The woman slowed and put a hand to her mouth. “Oh, I’m sorry, ma’ams. I didn’t realize…” She curtseyed and pulled a chair out from under one of the tables. “Here, sit down, ma’am.” She placed her hand on Angelo’s back and he did as he was bid. “Can I get you a drink or something?”

“No, she’s fine,” said Mae, trying to pull the focus away from Angelo. “We are here from the manor that Lena Lee was sent from. I trust you know who we are talking about.”

The guard looked from one Archmatria to the other. “You mean prisoner 216?”

“Yes, prisoner 216,” Mae said through gritted teeth. She hated to think of her lover as a number.

“She’s with The Mistress, and The Mistress doesn’t like to be disturbed,” the guard said with a hint of satisfaction that annoyed Mae.