I woke at dusk, the sun just dipping below the horizon. Alex wasn't beside me. But when I sat up, I saw him sitting on the couch facing the window, a book in his hand, staring unseeing out over the city. I laid back down in the bed, still drained and seeing no reason to get up.

The sun had disappeared completely and darkness shrouded the room when Remy returned. When I heard the door unlock, I was on my feet in an instant, crouched into a fighting stance. Remy entered with an arrogant smile.

"You fucking bastard! I'll be dead before I ever let that motherfucker breed me to his whores!"

Remy chuckled and my fury increased tenfold. I flew at him and was hit with a wave of desire so powerful I never reached him. I saw Alex rise up off the couch for a moment, as if to come to my aid, but then he sat back down, waiting, unsure.

"I grow tired of your defiance, cher," Remy said, his voice laced with warning. "You'll do as you're told. Now go back to bed."

Weak from the intensity of his power, I made my way back to the bed and crawled under the covers, shaking with need. I watched Remy as he bent to kiss my brother. I watched him as he sat on the couch while the servants brought him food. Watched him with lust and hunger as he ate, occasionally feeding Alex scraps from his plate. Then I watched with envy as he sat back, pulling Alex down onto his lap, savoring a no doubt expensive red wine while he stroked my brother's hair, murmuring soft questions and listening with a nod or a smile to the answers Alex gave. Once in a while he'd dip his finger into the wine and then place it against Alex's lip for him to suckle like a babe in his mother's arms. I shuddered every time.

My lids were heavy, my cock swollen with desire. But I could barely move, unable to even stroke my cock. My limbs felt heavy and useless. The sensations within me held me still. I was like a puppet and Remy pulled the strings. It was the strongest control Remy had ever had on me and I could now seriously believe how Alex hadn't been able to plunge the knife into him that one night when he had the chance.

When he left Alex, ordering him to remain on the couch, and came over to me, he played my body like a master, bringing me to the point of orgasm over and over, then backing off at just the right moment to keep me from going over the edge. Touching, tasting, scenting. His hands were everywhere, ghosting across my flesh. His tongue dipped into passages he'd never explored before. For hours he kept me heightened with arousal, never finding release until I was begging, pleading with him to fuck me by the time he finally thrust into me. I came screaming his name, riding him hard in the afterglow, gasping out words of love, of ownership.

And when he finished, he held my gaze, nodding his head with a smile. Then he rolled off of me, calling Alex over and telling him to clean me off. Without hesitation my brother bathed my chest and groin with his tongue, lapping up my seed as I lay there spineless, unable to move. When Remy left to shower, he rolled me onto my stomach and cleaned the semen from my ass, dipping his tongue in deep to get every drop. Remy returned shortly after and pulled me into his arms. I was asleep in minutes, as if he'd planted the suggestion in my brain.

Late in the night Remy, Alex and I were awoken by a guard. A problem had arisen in the city and several council members were at the door of the palace demanding to see Remy. He waved at the guard and rubbed his eyes.

"I'll be dere shortly."

Then he was up, dressing quickly and was gone in moments. I lay back down, still groggy, my mind fuzzy from the residual effects of Remy's power. But the longer he stayed away, the clearer my thoughts became. Here was my opportunity. With Remy distracted by the councilors and with the guards hopefully called away to contain whatever crisis was occurring in the city, I might not be missed for hours.

Carefully, I turned to look at Alex. He'd fallen back to sleep. I prodded him a few times, each time just a bit harder than the one before. He never stirred. I could feel my heart speeding up and my stomach churning into knots. The time was now. I couldn't hesitate.

I slipped out of the bed as quietly as I could and moved to the door of the bedroom. It was unlocked And when I opened it, there were no guards standing watch. My eyes lit up with excitement and fear. I left the door partly opened and went over to Remy's armoire. Thankfully it made no sound when I opened it.

I was dressed in minutes. Black leggings, a long black coat that I could draw up to hide the inhibitor collar from the back, a high collared shirt to hide it in the front, and black boots. The clothes were snug. Wouldn't fit quite right in certain places And the boots were loose on my feet. Just the sensation of wearing clothes after so many months caused me a great deal of
irritation. Though the leggings were a smooth cotton and the shirt silk, they made my skin itch and tingle uncomfortably. And I felt hot. Sweat started to bead up along my spine after only a few minutes in the clothing. But I ignored the discomfort, letting the excitement of escape overcome it. The clothes would do until I'd made it home.

With a last look at Alex, who hadn't even turned in his sleep, I slipped out the door and down the hall. The palace was quiet. Almost too quiet I feared. For a time paranoia set in. I saw no one and began to worry that perhaps this was a trap. But I squelched my fear. The guards could easily take me. One push of the button on the box that controlled my collar and they'd have me.

Finding the 'playroom' was fairly easy. I made a few wrong turns, but eventually I found myself standing before its familiar door. By that time I'd had to avoid a few of the guards. Oddly enough I found this reassuring. I could tell by their manner that no one seemed to be looking for me yet.

In front of the 'playroom' door I turned slowly around thinking back to that day I'd been captured. I'd been dragged into the room from the right. Backtracking the way I'd come, I found the last set of stairs the guards had yanked me down. I went up slowly, carefully, my hearing and sight on full alert. There was no one at the top of the stairs. But at the end of the hall two guards stood talking. I ducked into a darkened doorway, studying the corridor, trying to remember which way I'd come down. After a moment I had the direction. It led passed the two guards. Cursing softly, I took several slow deep breathes, waiting and hoping they'd move on.

It took a while, precious moments I couldn't afford to spare, but finally the guards separated. One walked right by me. But the shadows of the doorway concealed me from view. I moved on.

On through the dark halls, up dimly lit staircases, until I realized in frustration I was lost. And that frustration almost got me caught. I was high up in the citadel again. Nothing looked familiar. If I'd been here before it had only been that one time. And I'd been dazed from the jaunt and in pain from the penile device.

I started moving faster through the corridors, trying to keep to the shadows and doorways. But as I rounded a corner, the early morning sunlight streaming through a tall narrow window distracted me and I came face to face with one of the servants of the palace. I turned slightly, ready to run back the other way when he bowed, saying, "Milord? Are you lost?"

I whirled back to face him and came to my full height. The servant was looking at me carefully as if hoping he hadn't offended me. I immediately adopted a haughty look, trying to intimidate, praying that he hadn't looked too carefully, and seen the collar hidden beneath the neck of the silk shirt I wore. I stalled for a moment, trying to decide what tale I could weave that
might get me directions to the portal room. Finally, figuring I had nothing to lose at this point, I used the direct approach.

"I'm looking for the portal room," I said in a sneering tone.

The servant blinked for a moment, waiting for an explanation. I kept my eyes on him, although I desperately wanted to look around to make sure no one was coming. When I continued to stare, saying nothing else, he became nervous. Mentally I crossed my fingers, hoping he was only anxious because he felt he was questioning a nobleman. Whatever went through his mind, though, caused him to help me out.

"It's two floors down, Milord. Directly beneath us on the right."

I gave him a curt nod and strode confidently back down the way I'd come to the staircase, three corridors away. By then I was breathing hard and sweating profusely. It was early morning and I'd been gone for hours. It was only a matter of time before I was missed. If I wasn't already. Alex could be awake by now. And although he had said once that he wouldn't hinder my
escape, now I wasn't so sure I could trust him not to betray me.

Reaching the stairway, I flew down the stairs, taking them two and three at a time. I was running now with a growing sense of dread.

But then the portal room was there. The door was unlocked and standing open. I should have been suspicious, but my focus lay solely on the portal across the room. A large stone circle stood on a dais, four steps from the floor. The stone was a foot wide and framing a swirling oily substance that changed colors as it moved. A panel stood to the right of the circle, red digital
numbers glowing in the dark room.

I sprinted the distance from the door to the steps of the dais and was up on it in one leap when a wave of nausea hit me like an out of control train and I crumpled to the floor like a rag doll. My collar had been activated.