Chapter 2

Chapter Two

Start over? What does he mean by that?

I lift my gaze to take in his expression. He looks kind and patient.

"Tell Daddy why your tummy hurts, and I want the truth. I don't want you to make something up about falling and hitting your tummy on the way down to land on your hand."

I'm so nervous. "Are you going to spank me?" I ask in a very soft voice.

He frowns. "Do you need me to spank you, Lacey?"

I shake my head quickly. "No, Sir."

"How about if you tell me the truth, and then it will be a moot issue, huh?" He lifts a brow.

"I don't want to."

He frowns for a moment and then inhales deeply before glancing at my left arm. "I'm going to look at your arm, Little one," he says, changing the subject. "Let's get this sweater off." He reaches for the end of the sleeve and gently eases my white sweater down my arm.

I bite my lip while he does so, hoping he won't be able to tell what might have happened to my wrist. I don't want to lie to him. It makes me feel like I might be sick, but I can't tell him the truth either. It's too humiliating.

I'm wearing a pale blue dress under my sweater and white tights with white flats. Every part of my outfit came from a secondhand store, so the shoes are scuffed, the tights are dingy, the dress is worn, and the sweater has a few spots I repaired with my mom's sewing kit.

I only have a few outfits to wear to the Dungeon, and I keep them hidden in the bottom of my drawers at home so my father won't find them.

After Brian whisks my sweater away and sets it on the counter, he picks up my arm so gently at the elbow and looks closely, turning it over and back a few times. He glides a finger over the nasty bruising. It's slightly swollen but not as bad as other times.

I should have stayed home tonight, but I hate it when I miss an opportunity to go to the Dungeon. Now I'm probably in over my head. I'm going to have to lie.

"These are fingerprints, Lacey," Brian says softly as he points to the obvious outline of my father's fingers on my wrist.

My father grabbed my arm and yanked it so hard last night that my shoulder hurts, too. He squeezed my wrist until I winced, and then got great pleasure in slowly twisting it until I cried.

Brian sets my hand on my thigh. "Lie back for me, Baby girl." He doesn't wait for me to agree. He simply sets a hand between my shoulder blades and guides me onto my back.

Without a word, he lifts my dress up over my stomach and pulls my tights down a few inches.

I stare at the ceiling. My heart is beating so hard I can feel it in my ears.

Brian says nothing while he leans over my tummy and carefully touches it in a few places.

When I wince, he glances at my face. He's all business. I feel like I'm in a real doctor's office. It's hard to remember this is the club because the room looks exactly like a clinic, and Brian really is a nurse.

I hold my breath as he pulls my tights down another few inches. My emotions are all over the place. I'm trying to ignore the obvious and disassociate, but all I can do when I separate myself from my problems is think about the fact that I'm in the exact position I've dreamed about so many times.

There's an ache between my legs that has nothing to do with any injury. It's an ache that only a Daddy can fix. This Daddy. Brian. I really wish we were in here doing a planned scene instead of him examining me for real.

"I'm going to press on your tummy in a few places, sweet girl. I need to make sure you're not badly injured inside."

I hold my breath as he presses against my tummy. It hurts, but I don't cry.

"Such a brave Little girl," he praises. "What about here?" He presses in another place and then another before saying, "I don't think the bruising is very deep, but I'm not a doctor, and even if I were, you would still need some tests to make sure there's no damage to your kidneys or your liver."

I shake my head. "It doesn't hurt too bad. I don't need tests."

He ignores me as his fingers reach for my tights again. "I'm going to pull your tights down, Lacey. I'll be careful to leave your panties in place."

I don't want him to pull my tights down, but when I reach for them to stop him, I cry out because my arm hurts.

Brian comes to my side and sets a hand on the top of my head before looking me in the eyes. His expression is unwavering and firm, his eyes narrowed and piercing. "Who do you live with, Lacey?"

"My father," I whisper.

"No one else?"

I shake my head.

"Where's your mother?"

"She died when I was ten."

"Does anyone else come to the house?"

"No," I murmur. I'm trembling badly again. I feel lightheaded. I didn't eat dinner, so that's not helping. I should have eaten something before I came.

He rubs my head gently as he continues asking me questions. "Do you have a job, Little one?"

"No, Sir," I murmur.

"Do you go to school?"

I purse my lips and shake my head.

"What do you do during the day, Little one?"

"I take care of the house," I tell him.

"Do you go out with friends?"

"No." I don't have any except the people I've met here.

"Is your father at home now?"

I shake my head.

"Where is he?"

"Hunting," I murmur.

"Hunting? Did he go hunting for the weekend?"

"Yes, Sir."

"Does he do that a lot?"

I nod slowly.

"Does he know you're here, Baby girl?"

I shake my head vigorously. A bit too vigorously I realize.

"Does he know you've ever been here?"

"No, Sir," I whisper. I'm scared out of my mind. Is Brian going to take me home and make me tell my father where I go? I don't think he would do that, but what's the point of his questions?

Brian thinks for a minute and then starts again, "Do you go other places, Little one? The grocery store or shopping?"

"Not very often, Sir." I sometimes go to the thrift store on Saturday mornings when he's out of town and get some used clothes, but that's the only place I dare go. I don't have much money. I steal it from my father when he empties his pockets onto the counter. I never take more than a dollar or so until I have enough to buy used clothes.

"So the only place you regularly go is here when your father is not home?"

I nod.

"How did you find out about the Dungeon?"

"I found it on his computer," I tell Brian. That's how I also learned about Littles and Daddies, and I've been very fortunate because someone anonymously pays my membership.

He smiles. "Resourceful. Have you taken any college classes?"

"No…"

"How old are you, sweet girl?"

"Twenty."

"So you graduated from high school two years ago?"

I want him to stop asking me questions. He's getting too close to the truth. I'm sure he already knows it, but he's tricky with his questioning. This question I don't answer at all. I just stare at him.

He draws in a deep breath as if trying to calm himself again. He's very good at that. I'm glad because if he starts yelling about my situation it will scare me more.

"Lacey, how much education have you had?"

I bite my lip.

"I'm not mad, Baby girl. I promise. I just need to understand."

"I went through the eighth grade."

"And then you just didn't go to high school?" His brow is furrowed.

I shake my head. "My father told them we were moving. He needed me to help out more around the house. After my mother died, it was hard for him to keep up." I don't know why I'm defending him. I hate him, but I don't want to say or do anything to make my situation worse.

Brian lifts my good hand and holds it in his, stroking my knuckles. "Do you make mistakes sometimes, Little one?"

I slowly nod, feeling the tears coming back.

He lifts my hand to his cheek and holds it there for a long time while he closes his eyes and breathes in and out through his nose.

Finally, he lowers my hand but he lifts it above my head as he does so. His expression is serious again. "I'm going to lift your dress higher, Little one."

My lip quivers. "Please don't do that," I beg.

"I want to see what other booboos you have, Baby girl."

"I…I don't have on a bra," I murmur. I've never owned one. Luckily I'm small enough that it doesn't matter, but the reason I've never owned a bra is because my father has never acknowledged me even going through puberty. He never spoke to me about becoming a woman or even getting my period.

Luckily, I heard girls talking about starting their periods in the bathroom at school in eighth grade. I hid in the stall a few times and listened to them until I knew what to expect. I even took some of the pads from the school bathroom so I would be prepared.

Brian thinks for a moment. "Okay, listen to me. I don't want to make you more embarrassed than you already are here in the club. We're going to leave now, but I'm not going to let you go back to that house, Lacey."

I shudder. "I have to go home, Sir."

"No. You don't. Not ever," he insists. "You will go with me, and I'll help you come up with a plan."

I shake my head. "I can't do that. He'll…" My voice trails off. What am I going to say?

"You said he's not home now, right?"

"No," I whisper as he helps me sit upright.

"And you're sure he won't come home tonight?"

"No. He won't. He'll be back on Sunday."

"I will take you to your house so you can get some things. Then we're leaving."

I stare at him. "When he gets back, he'll…"

"He'll what, Baby girl? You won't be there. He'll never find you. You are not going to see him again. Not ever, Lacey."

The thought of that makes me feel a sudden lightness before I realize it's not practical. I don't have anywhere to go or anyone to go to. I don't have a job or an education or any skills. I can't just leave.

Brian lifts my chin now that I'm sitting on the end of the exam table again. "Lacey, I'm going to help you. You're not going back."

"You don't even live here, do you? Don't you live on the island where Littleworld is?"

"I do." He smiles. "Maybe you'll agree to go back with me," he suggests.

I gasp. He can't be serious. "Sir…"

He taps my nose. "You don't need to worry about that right now. One thing at a time. First, we're going to go get your things. Then, I'll take you to my friend's apartment."

My breath hitches. "Your friend's apartment?"

He nods. "He's not there this weekend, Little one. He lives on the island, too. He keeps a place here for when he visits the mainland. I stay in his place when I come."

"Oh."

"His name is Noah. You've probably met him here."

I nod. I know who he is, but I don't know him well.

Brian lifts me gently off the table and sets me on my feet before helping me into my sweater. He's so very careful to make sure he doesn't hurt my arm. He's such a good person. I wish he were my Daddy. I'd die and go to heaven if Brian were my Daddy.