Page 124 of Claiming Vanessa

Slayer opens the crate door and slaps his thigh. “Come on out, girl.”

I look at him through tear-filled eyes. Now that I have a chance to leave the crate, I don’t want to, but that’s not quite accurate. I’d just rather stay in there than go meet hisguest. Giulio or Damien, most likely — probably the former, because Slayer and Damien don’t get along. And Slayer had saidguest, so it probably wasn’t both.

I guess I have to be thankful for small mercies.

I slowly crawl out of the cage, my limbs shaking a little as I finally get to stretch them out. I don’t know how long I’ve been in the dog crate, but it was long enough to make my muscles cramp.

Slayer hooks the leash onto the collar, then ruffles my hair, careful not to jostle the dog ears. “Good girl. Heel, now.” He doesn’t even look to see if I’m going to obey, immediately walking toward the door—and tugging on the leash.

If I don’t follow, I choke.

I wish I wasn’t so familiar with this routine, but Slayer’s kept me here for the past few days, “training” me. He’d said something about giving Giulio more time to calm down, but I don’t believe him. He just wants to break me.

We walk through his apartment—which is smaller than Giulio’s—and stop in front of the door.

Blushing furiously, I try to pull back, but Slayer puts more pressure on the leash, which puts more pressure on my throat. I gag, then reluctantly edge forward. He opens the door with a wide grin, opening it in full — and we’re in a goddamn apartment complex, where anyone could look through the door and see me. With my luck, it’s a pizza delivery person, and Slayer’s just screwing with my head.

I’m almost confused and borderline panicked when the first thing I see is, in fact, a pizza box—but Giulio’s carrying it.

“Took you long enough,” Giulio says, stepping inside. “I almost thought you’d gone out.”

“Yeah, yeah. I was in the other room.” Slayer closes the door and locks it. “Please tell me that’s a normal pizza.”

“It’s a perfectly normal pizza, with white sauce, pesto, grilled chicken, sun-dried tomatoes, and spinach.” Giulio goes to put the pizza on the kitchen counter, completely ignoring me.

I’m not sure if I should be grateful or hurt.

“That’s notperfectly normal, man,” Slayer protests. “That’s some bullshit artisan pizza.Normalwould be pepperoni, maybe some sausage. We both know you like some sausage.” He leers at Giulio, and I feel strange, like I’m witnessing something I shouldn’t be.

Giulio grabs a slice and starts eating it, meeting Slayer’s eyes. “I told you. If you want me to… partake of your sausage, you gotta return the favor. Until then, I’m sticking with the artisanal stuff. Like Damien’s cock.”

“Damien does not return the favor,” Slayer huffs, but he grabs a piece of pizza despite his protests. “Damn, I’m hungry. “ Despite his protests about the fancy pizza, he eats it anyway, for all that he makes a face.

I feel weirdly alone. The two of them are ignoring me, and only the tight pull of the leash against my collar reminds me that Slayer is even aware of my presence. Giulio still gives me no such consideration, chatting with Slayer like I’m not even there.

“Damien absolutely reciprocates when you aren’t there.” Giulio reaches for his second slice. “Fuck, this pizza is good though. I’m glad I stopped when I saw the sign. And it’s on your way to my place, so you could…”

“Nope, I’m not going to buy your fancy-ass pizzas ever.” Slayer motions toward the couch. “We gonna watch the game or what?”

“Sure. Which game? Is it one of the ones where the guys are in short shorts?” Still ignoring me, Giulio goes to sit on the living room couch. “Oh, water polo! That’s a good game to watch. Guys in tiny speedos.”

Slayer rolls his eyes, grabbing a second slice before following me. He tugs at the leash, and I follow without a word, my eyes staying focused on the floor beneath me. At least it’s carpeted, so it isn’t hell on my knees. “I was planning on watching some football, but sure, we can watch the water polo so you can leer at their asses.”

“There might be a lady version of water polo? I don’t keep up with this shit.” Giulio waits until Slayer is seated next to him before leaning in close. “Tell you what, we can watch beach volleyball if you get my cock hard.”

Slayer makes a face at him. “I’m still not sucking you off, Jules,” he says. “But I’ve got a perfectly capable little pet right here who can get the job done even better than I can.”

He means me, obviously, and I blink back tears.

“You can just use its face,” Slayer continues cruelly. “It’s been so good lately, it deserves a treat like your cock. Whatcha think?” He jerks at my collar, pulling me up until I’m kneeling.

Giulio finally looks at me, and there’s a hint of a smile, enough to relax part of me. His indifference was more of his roleplay. He isn’t actually still upset with me.

I wish that wasn't such a relief.

“I dunno, man. A dog? Can’t even unhinge its jaw for a proper blowjob like a snake could.”

Slayer makes a disgusted face. “You fucking Antonia now? I knew you were a kinky fucker, but I didn’t think you’d go that far.” He lets go of me, letting me sit back down again — as much as I can with the tail butt plug in place, at least. “Man, you don’t deserve a proper pet.”