Chapter Sixteen

The bear cartoon had a maddening number of episodes. Story after story of ridiculous talking bears, all the while either Faith or Lila inflicted minor pains on her. She wondered if she looked as pathetic as she felt when Kinsley came back over and gently took the remote from Lila's grasp.

"Okay kids." The television went dark as all eyes went to Kinsley. "Little time is over. Faith, go shower and get dressed. Lila, come with me to your room, you're going to get dressed too. Angie's coming over."

"But I don't wanna!" Lila whined. "You told me I'm cutest like this!"

"And you are, sugar, you are. But Angie's coming over, and I said no. I'll dress you back up soon soon, okay? Who's Mama's little doll? Yes, you are. Now come on, you've been such a good girl." Grumpily, Lila rose. She offered her hand to Kinsley and was led toward the stairs, her diaper sagging below the hem of the skirtall. Sabrina couldn't understand how she could stand to be wearing such a thing - any diaper at all, let alone such an obviously wet diaper. It was becoming more and more obvious how complete Kinsley's control was. "Bree, go get dressed. You're a person again for the rest of the night, you may talk but understand that if you misbehave while Angie is here, there will be severe consequences. Do you understand?"

Sabrina only nodded, which brought a smile to Kinsley's lips. She watched as the pair disappeared down the stairs but remained there, laying on the floor for a long moment, simply recovering. Below, there were sounds of doors closing and after drawing in a deep, cleansing breath, Sabrina rose to her feet and enjoyed the simple act of standing and walking.

Her room was blessedly unlocked, and after a quick trip to the bathroom, she discarded her pajamas in favor of jeans and a brightly colored t-shirt that read, "My Favorite Color is Rainbows." It obviously belonged to Lila at one point, certainly not Faith - regardless, it felt nice to be out of pajamas. Reluctantly, she closed her door behind her as she left her room, dreading being locked out of her safe space again. An entirely too-shaggy haired version of herself greeted her in the bathroom mirror. A deep sigh passed her lips as she ran her fingers through the ever-lengthening hair. Only the very tips had any color now, the rest was close to a half inch long and irritatingly blonde.

The collar was heavy and bright against her neck, drawing her eyes away from her hair. With a frown, she glanced out of the bathroom... but everything was quiet. Faith was still getting changed out of her absurd outfit, and Kinsley was dressing Lila. Quietly, Sabrina pushed the bathroom door closed, an idea occurring to her. Standing on the toilet, she opened the window and peered out. It was a long way to the ground, and it looked like the dolls stored lawn equipment on this side of the house - directly under the window.

The window in her room was too awkward to climb out of, it was a simple, squat rectangle and too high up to escape through - she had already tried that one enough times.

But she was terrified of trying the front door again.

Her mind turned again to Angie. They were hiding their strange ways, putting back on the semblance of normal they had used to fool her. She hoped Angie would be able to help her. She fantasized of taking the newcomer aside and explaining her situation, begging her to call the police, to get her out of there... she wasn't sure exactly what she'd say, but she was sure she'd think of something when the time came. The squeaky door of Lila's room alerted her that her time alone was at an end. Kinsley exited first with a much calmer Lila behind, in a simple calf-length white sundress with a smattering of blue flowers about it.

"We're watching a movie until Angie gets here." Lila's declaration was so assured, so confident - as Sabrina moved into step behind her, she listened for the crinkling of a diaper, but heard nothing. Not that she had noticed before, but now she at least knew what to listen for. A movie sounded awful to her right then after so much time spent watching animated bears, but one thing she had learned well was not to argue when Lila wanted to do something. If Faith or Kinsley objected, it was one thing, if she objected herself it was entirely different, and generally didn't end well for her.

They settled into their places on the couch, Sabrina took a seat on the floor at their feet without even thinking about it.

Unsurprisingly, it was another children's movie. One of the newer, computer animated movies - Sabrina wasn't sure which one, they started it in the middle of the film, obviously resuming from some earlier viewing. Her attention drifted quickly, however, as Kinsley's fingers brushed their way through her hair, stroking her cheek, running along the tender spot behind her ear. Without thinking, she relaxed, barely hearing the whispered "good girl" praise from the leader of the dolls. Her eyes drifted closed as she enjoyed the simple affection of the touch. No demands, nothing was required of her but to enjoy it. After hours of Lila's probing pinches and fingernails digging into her flesh, it was incredibly soothing.

She startled, jolting upright at the knock at the door.

"Coming honey!" Faith struggled to extricate herself from the tangle of limbs on the couch as she hurried for the front door. Kinsley, in the meantime, slipped her hands under Sabrina's armpits and slid down the couch in one fluid motion, plopping Sabrina in the newly vacated spot.

The room looked weird from a spot on the couch, rather than a place on the floor.

Sabrina watched Faith's face light up as she held the door wide open, her beaming face and flaming hair disappearing behind a flurry of vibrant blue locks as a slender woman rushed through the doorway.

"Honey! I missed you!"

Angie was just slightly taller than Faith, her hair falling below her shoulders and just as bright blue as Faith's was red. The two together were a riot of color, to the point that it was a little tiring on the eyes. Their kiss was sweet and tender as they embraced, Faith pushing the door closed with a foot, never interrupting their lip lock.

Lila rolled her eyes, drawing a glare from Kinsley. Sabrina merely shifted uncomfortably in her seat. The new woman was dressed in black jeans and an obviously well-loved red flannel shirt, matching the color of Faith's hair. Her platform boots were one part elegant and one part punk, it was somewhat impressive. She carried no purse and without ever taking her lips from her girlfriend's, she dropped her keys on the small table beside the door.

When they finally came up for air, Sabrina was blushing and trying not to stare.

Faith led Angie to the couch, hand in hand, using the other to gesture to Sabrina. From this distance, it was easy to make out the color of Angie's eyes, a rich brown that was pretty close to Faith's. Her skin was pale and smooth, delicate. Her fingers were long and lithe, and when she walked there was confidence in her step.

"Angie hun, this is Bree."

"Sabrina." The correction came instantaneously, automatically, and entirely without thought. She winced, looking to Kinsley, but there was no irritation there, just a welcoming smile. "I uh, I've heard a lot about you."

"I've heard some about you as well, I'm sorry you've had such a hard time. I hope Faith has been taking good care of you." Angie reached up with her free hand and ran her fingers through Faith's hair. "You've been here what, a couple of months? It's depressing that I've been so busy that I haven't met you until now."

It felt beyond strange to be having a normal, casual conversation after everything that had happened the past few days. Emotions clashed, jarring, as her brain reminded her that she had been chained to the stove mere feet from where they were standing, that she had been beaten until she bled, that she had begged, cried, and tried to escape.

Kinsley's hand on her shoulder suddenly didn't feel quite as comforting, quite as soothing. She could feel Kinsley's rings digging into her flesh. A warning.

Behave.

"How's the seamstress business?"

Sabrina knew instantly that she had made a misstep. Angie's smile never faltered, but one eye narrowed ever so slightly and the warm glow that had been there a moment ago was gone, her smile hiding a hard edge.

"I'm not a seamstress, dear." Angie leaned into Faith, her blue hair cascading over her girlfriend's shoulder. "I'm a dressmaker, a costumer. I design things, I make things, I sell things. I don't simply mend things."

"I'm so sorry." Apologizing seemed to come very quickly and easily to Sabrina lately. "I didn't mean to offend- "

"Forget it." Angie's laugh was quick and sharp. Sabrina got the impression that it was far from forgotten. "It was nice to meet you, Bree. I'm going to take Faith to her room for a bit and give her a million kisses."

"Honey!" Faith blushed furiously, seeming to shrink next to the smiling woman who was winding herself around her.

"I believe we're all going to have dinner together tonight." Angie's fingers dragged across Faith's shoulder and up her neck, a very sensual motion. "So we'll see you soon. Oh, and Bree - that's a lovely necklace. Very unconventional."

Sabrina's fingers were on the steel ring around her neck before she realized that her hand had moved.

"Thank you... " Her reply was weak, quiet. Angie might not have even heard it, her back already turned and headed down the hallway with Faith in her arms.

"You messed up!" Lila laughed, slapping a hand against the back of Sabrina's head. "You big dummy!"

"I didn't know she didn't like that!"

"That's because you're dumb." Lila laughed sharply, reaching forward and grabbing her video game controller. "Come on, you're playing with me until dinner."

Playing a game with the brat was among the last things she wanted to do then. Normally, she wouldn't have said anything, but she felt empowered by Angie being in the house.

"No thank you." Lila stared, unblinking at the refusal. "Unless you want to ask me nicely?"

Without an outsider there, she would not have dared to challenge Lila this way, especially not with Kinsley sitting right next to them. If she had done this very same thing even ten minutes prior, she knew that she would have been sprawled across the ground from the force of Kinsley slapping her.

But they couldn't hit her without tipping off Angie.

"Bree. You're being a bad girl." Ice. The words were pure ice, hanging in the air between them. Sabrina shivered, her resolve shaking. She could feel Kinsley's eyes on her, on the back of her neck. She was terrified to look.

"I... I'm going to go for a walk."

Her original plan had been to find Angie and plead for the woman to get her help - the police, anyone. But if they couldn't stop her from leaving, it might be just as well to go immediately. Before she could stand, Kinsley's hand fell on her thigh.

"Bree. I want you to think long and hard about the choice that you're making right now. Are you really going to walk outside?" Kinsley leaned in close, adding a whisper to the question. "Where she can't hear you at all? We could just take this to the car."

Sabrina swallowed hard, her mouth suddenly feeling disturbingly dry.

"Mama says that I don't have to ask nicely." Lila sneered, pressing a controller into Sabrina's hands. "You do what I want, when I want. That's all there is to it. Don't make me ever explain it to you again, Bree. You're at the bottom. Say it."

Sabrina clenched her eyes shut, deeply regretting that she hadn't just picked up the controller and played. She should have known it wouldn't be that easy.

"I'm at the bottom." She nearly choked on the words.

"And you're going to do whatever I want."

"And I'll do whatever you want."

"Good girl, Bree." Lila patted her on the head, drawing another blush. "Kinsley's gonna cook a special dinner. We're gonna have a great night." She delivered the words with sweetness, her smile never faltered.

Kinsley rose, taking two steps toward the kitchen before turning around and adding quietly: "Or we'll make you hurt as soon as she's gone."

She paused for a moment, unblinking.

"A lot."