"We took her home. She wants you to stay with us for a while. I wanted to discuss your options."
"Options?" I didn't understand.
"Yes. Tell me what exactly you're hiding about Priest Duvall. Why do children in costumes trigger you enough to black out?"
I shook my head. "I don't know. I'm not hiding anything."
He clicked his tongue. "Your aunt seemed interested in one of our treatments for people with trauma. It's fairly new to our facility, but people have been doing it for decades. You would be our first patient to undergo the procedure here."
A jolt of fear hit me and slid down my spine. "Don't I have a say?"
"You are sixteen, so no. However, I wanted to explain what it is and what it will do." He pulled papers off his clipboard, handing them to me. I stared at the paper.
Electroconvulsive Therapy
"What?" I quickly scanned the text underneath the title.
"We've tried other treatments. You've been seen by a dozenother doctors, and nothing has worked. Delaney, your aunt is out of money and ideas. This is your last chance before she sends you to a permanent facility."
"She can’t force me to go anywhere." I tossed the papers back at him and started to get out of bed. "I'll be homeless before I agree to let you zap my brain."
"Brian." The doctor's calm, kind demeanor shifted in an instant. He stormed out and an orderly in a Michael Myers mask came and grabbed me, tossing me back on the bed. I let out a shriek and fought as hard as I could.
"Get away from me!" I screamed and kicked him square in the face.Why was he wearing that mask?
"Stop kicking, little girl!" Suddenly, his hand was at my throat squeezing. I gasped and my eyes went wide as he kept tightening his grip. My vision developed black spots and I was out again.I awoke later, completely strapped down, and a large white light above me, blinding me.
"You hurt one of our staff, Delaney," the doctor said from somewhere I couldn't see. "I will give you one last chance. Tell us what Priest did, and why you can't handle seeing the mask."
"What?" Michael Myers stepped into my vision. Memories of Priest flashed in my mind. The fight we had on Valentine's Day... over what?I couldn’t remember! I screamed and they shoved something in my mouth and jerked my chin up. I fought against my restraints as they explained that because I misbehaved, they'd be foregoing the anesthesia.
"I'm sorry it's come to this, Delaney, but it's time to fix you."
I screamed and burst into tears. My hands clawed at my head neck and hips. They had belted me down as they shocked me into unconsciousness. I remembered now. All of it. Shock after shock. Treatment after treatment, until I could hardly remember anything about Priest’s past middle school. Everything about our lives together when I was fifteen had been shocked into oblivion. They wanted me to be 'normal’ and forgetting Priest had done that. But I remembered now.My masked lover, grabbing my throat helped me to remember.
I was in danger.
Rule 28 - Priest
Do a test run with your mask.
It felt so... invigorating. I stood naked in my locked room, staring at my reflection in the tall mirror. Blood covered my cock, evidence that I had taken Laney's virginity. Not Moth, not Marco Brandis,me.
The mask lay on the bed in a deflated heap. She'd been so into it. With her wrists tied to the bed and my hand around her neck, she'd had such a powerful orgasm. I'd never taken a girl's virginity, but even I knew it was rare for it to be pleasurable enough for them to come. I admired my cock, already stirring. The dried blood was a badge of honor. I'd done that to her.
And I'd do it again. I was sure of that. She liked the mask and what that meant. It could be anyone under it, and it was. She'd been texting Moth's phone, expecting him to come to her room. Right now, she thinks she fucked Moth, but that wasn't the truth.With great reluctance, I grabbed a towel and wrapped it around my waist to shower. Despite the sick fascination with her blood, I had to wash off the evidence of what I'd done.
As I was passing through the shared living room, I heardcrying coming from Laney's room. I paused. Did she regret losing her virginity to Moth? Or was she in pain? I considered going to her. I could be the hero. The man in the mask had abandoned her, but I would never do that. Not her big brother. I was here for her.
Realizing just how fucked up the thought was, I hurried to the bathroom to wash and decided that if she was still crying when I was clean, I'd go to comfort her. Much to my relief, when I returned to my room, she'd stopped sobbing. However, the guilt of knowing she was upset drew me to her. I dressed and went to her door. I tried the knob but it was locked.
"Laney?"There was no response. Either she was asleep or didn't want me to see her crying. I left her alone and returned to my room. I was too excited from this evening's activities to simply go to bed. I glanced at my phone. It was midnight. Most of the guests would have gone to their rooms already, but I wanted a drink and conversation. I didn't care with who. Just... someone.
Grabbing my wallet, I walked to my door and hesitated. I turned and went back for the mask, sliding it over my head. I knew I looked ridiculous. A long-sleeved flannel and jeans with a Michael Myers mask, but I was curious to see how long it would take for someone to realize it was me.
I took the stairs slowly, silently, as if truly embodying the famous slasher villain. I followed the piano music back to the bar and was surprised at how full it still was. I looked around, searching for the other writers, but found none. Carson sat at a table with two women. Skipping the invite, I went right over to them and sat.They greeted me warmly.
"Hello." A blonde offered me her hand. "I'm Steph. This is Polina, she's from Russia."
