her knees.
Plaint and eager to do whatever Sky asked, Wendy moved into position. When she was finished, Wendy was kneeling between Sky’s legs, smiling avidly up into her sombre face.
‘Are we friends now, Wendy?’
Wendy nodded, a heartfelt sigh shuddering from her chest. ‘We’re friends,’ she agreed.
Patiently, Sky asked, ‘Are we friends who help one another?’
Wendy nodded again, unable to suppress her eagerness to agree. ‘Of course we are,’ she said enthusiastically.
‘Of course,’ Sky repeated. ‘I just helped you enjoy yourself, didn’t I? Now, I’m going to help you to a drink of water. Then you’re going to help me.’
Wendy did not hear the last five words of Sky’s sentence. Her attention was caught by the mention of a drink. She stared past Sky, gazing at the pitcher of ice-cold water with a dreamy smile.
Holding Wendy’s face steady with her hands, Sky started into her eyes. ‘Are you going to help me when we’ve finished?’
Wendy swallowed dryly, then tried to look beyond Sky’s shoulder at the pitcher of water and the fluffy pink towel. ‘Of course,’ she whispered. ‘Of course I will.’
Sky smiled to herself. ‘Of course,’ she repeated happily. ‘You’re going to run Elysian Fields for me and do exactly as I say?’
Wendy was so desperate to enjoy a taste of the chilled water she would have agreed to any demand that Sky made. Simply promising to look after the health farm and do Sky’s bidding hardly seemed a difficult task. It was almost as though the Black Widow was being charitable and, for that, Wendy felt grateful. She had forgotten about the cruel treatment John and suffered and her morning’s imprisonment in the sauna. Her earlier antipathy was now replaced by a growing respect.
‘You do understand that I’m now in control of Elysian Fields, don’t you?’
Wendy swallowed and whispered, ‘Yes.’
‘And do I take it that you’ll answer to me, above anyone else?’ Sky pressed.
Wendy nodded again, eager to agree to anything Sky asked. Her gazed kept switching to the pitcher of water and she tried to stop herself from being distracted.
‘You’ll even accept my instructions over those that Faye Meadows gives you?’ Sky asked suddenly. There was a harshness to her voice as she asked the question and Wendy blinded twice before answering.
‘I don’t know,’ she began. Seeing the frown cross Sky’s brow, she realised she had given the wrong answer. Wendy shook her head, cursed herself, then nodded, suddenly confused by the difficult task of supplying a yes-or-no answer. ‘Of course,’ she gasped quickly. She knew she had spoken the words too hastily and too late but once they were said there was nothing she could do. It was not that she wanted to disobey the Black Widow. Right now, she was more than happy to do anything the woman commanded. The furious pulse of her arousal would not have allowed her to respond any differently.
But the idea of following Sky’s instruction over Faye’s was something different. Agreeing to that would be a violation of the trust that the owner had invested in her and Wendy felt uncomfortable with that prospect. She had agreed only to appease the Black Widow but she had down so in such a way that they both knew it was a lie. For an instant, Wendy was touched by the fear of Sky’s retribution. The thought sent an icy chill through her and she stared miserably into the woman’s eyes.
Sky smiled warmly into Wendy’s weary face. ‘You look ready for that drink,’ she observed. Her voice was overly rich with kindness. Her soft smile and gentle tone seemed so sincere that Wendy wondered if her lie had been accepted. Sky seemed to have moved on from her list of demands and Wendy felt her fears ease.
Wendy nodded, her eyes widening as she watched Sky lift the pitcher of water from the tray beside her. ‘I’m more than ready,’ she agreed. ‘I’m desperate.’
Still grinning, Sky brought the pitcher of water
C. J. Cherryh
Learning to Kill: Stories
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