HOSTEL
Chapter Two — Check-In
The cold air tickled her skin. It felt raw and rough going down her windpipe—an unexpected and unwelcome change from the warm and humid comfort of Club Trabant. She needed a coat. She’d had a coat, at some point anyway, before… whatever was happening happened to her. And to Emily. She kept her eyes locked on her friend’s cute, sexy butt, swaying ever so slightly in those tight jeans. Where are you taking me now, Em? I’m so tired…
They turned left, through a doorway, and began climbing a steep flight of stairs. Rebecca’s feet moved of their own accord, up and up and up. Her hand dutifully grabbed and released the handrail as she climbed. Tired.
Someone passed them on the stairs, a man and a woman, pressed together to make room for the upstream traffic. Rebecca struggled to look at them, to catch their faces, to catch their attention. Am I okay? I feel weird. I have to… keep walking. Is that normal? But her eyes remained fixated on Emily’s ass, and the sound of her footsteps on the old wooden stairs soon took over her full attention. Up. Up. Up.
Emily made it to the top of the stairs and began moving forward, and for an instant, it seemed as if Rebecca would soar into the sky over her friend, up up and up, never stopping until she drifted off into outer space. Instead, she reached the landing and locked her eyes onto Emily’s flame-red hair. She let it pull her forward, unresisting, down a short hallway and through a huge old doorframe.
“Now, dearies. Turn and face me. Listen and obey.”
Rebecca turned as commanded. The back of Emily’s head vanished, replaced by the face of a pretty dark-haired woman with striking blue eyes. Hypnotic blue eyes. Hypnotic eyes. Hypnotic. Hypnotized.
The striking blue eyes stared into hers. “Sleep, Rebecca.”
Snap.
Rebecca looked around. She was standing in a kitchen, facing a sink and a tidy collection of plates drying on a wooden dish rack. The air felt cool against her skin, and she looked down to find herself in her pajamas. A warm coffee mug pressed against the palm of her right hand. It felt and smelled good, and she took a sip. Cream and no sugar, just as she always liked it best.
A familiar, musical Irish voice spoke from behind her. “Good morning, Rebecca! I trust you slept well?”
She turned to find a pair of lovely blue eyes staring back into hers. “Oh, hello Alice! I… um… yeah, I slept well. It’s just…”
A look of concern crossed the older woman’s face. “It’s just what, dearie?”
“Oh, just feeling a little weird, that’s all.” She took another sip. The coffee was amazing. The smell, the way it tingled all the way down to her warm belly, the feel of the warm cup in her hands, the tickle of the steam hitting her nose. “Just… I mean…”
“You’re wondering what you’re doing in my hostel’s kitchen instead of in that dreary two-star you found on the Internet? An easy choice, really. I think you’ll find my place much more comfortable. Are you sure that you had a good night’s rest? You look awfully tired.”
Rebecca down looked at her bare feet. They felt good. Every muscle in her body felt good, as if she’d never spent a single hour crammed into the midsection of a 777. “I was out light a light! I guess I was really exhausted. I don’t even remember getting back from the… where’s Emily, still asleep?”
“Of course not, Rebecca. Remember? Emily’s off to see the castles while you stay here and explore Berlin. That was your travel plan from the beginning, wasn’t it?”
Her eyes narrowed. That wasn’t true at all. Emily was her best friend. They did everything together, from bars to museums to adventures in Thailand and now here, in Berlin. They’d planned for ten solid days of… of…
…castles and little towns, all up and down the valley. It’s going to be amazing! I wish you would come with me, Rebecca!
Wait… no. Emily wanted to see Berlin… she practically dragged me here with her… I wanted to go to Peru…
She stared into the depths of the coffee mug, half expecting the answer to come floating up to the surface like an old Magic Eight-Ball. Yes. No. Ask again later, Rebecca. Suddenly the cup was pulled from her unresisting hands.
“That’s all right, dearie. You’re quite confused. We’ll clear up this little mystery for you.” Alice gently set the mug on a nearby table and turned to face her. “You’re so very sleepy right now, aren’t you? Listen to my voice, and sleep.”
“But I just had coffee…” she protested.
“Sleep, Rebecca.”
She returned to the blackness.
Snap.
Rebecca looked around. She was sitting on the edge of a comfortable twin bed, a soft white blanket draped over her shoulders and wrapped around her midsection. Sunlight streamed, low and dull, through a nearby window. Is it morning? Afternoon? Did I oversleep?
She looked up at the figure perched on the bed next to hers. “Emily, did you turn off my clock again? Just because you want to sleep in doesn’t mean that I want to… oh, sorry Alice! I didn’t… where’s Emily?”
The dark-haired beauty smiled. “Sleep, Rebecca.”
This time she could almost feel herself slide into the darkness. Then, nothing.
Snap.
“Where…”
“Sleep, Rebecca.”
Nnnnnnn
Snap.
Rebecca looked around. She was standing in a kitchen, facing a sink and a precarious-looking pile of pans and dishes stacked on top of a wooden drying rack. A little metal stove in the corner threw out an impressive amount of heat, and she took a moment to enjoy the feel of the warm air on her bare skin. A warm coffee mug pressed against the palm of her right hand. It felt and smelled good, and she took a sip. Black, just as she always liked it best.
A familiar, musical Irish voice spoke from behind her. “Good morning, Rebecca! I trust you slept well?”
She turned to find those amazing, beautiful blue eyes staring back into hers. “Oh, hello Alice! I slept great! Like I was on a cloud floating through the air!” She carefully held the mug away from her as she stretched her arms and legs, groaning pleasantly as she did so. “Mmmm… honestly, I don’t even sleep this well at home.”
“Oh, that’s wonderful! I love it when my guests are satisfied!” Alice held up a fuzzy white bathrobe. “Robe? I’m afraid you’ll catch your death of cold otherwise. Window replacements are on my list of things to do, I promise.”
Rebecca looked down. To her mild surprise, she was completely naked, tits and ass on display for the world to see. Luckily, she was alone in the room with Alice, and that was perfectly okay, because I trust Alice with all my heart and soul. She set the mug onto a nearby table and slipped her arms into the soft, comfortable robe. “You’re the best, Alice. Thank you again for everything. This is so much better than that crappy hotel I found on the Internet!”
“Every new customer is a repeat customer in the making! Bit of advice from my uncle Patrick. I’ve never forgotten it.” Alice moved to the sink and began to dismantle the mountain of cookware on the drying rack, deftly placing each one into its assigned cabinet with practiced ease. “Also, keep a clean place, which is a saying of my own. I simply hate messes. Makes me good for the job, I suppose.” She freed the last skillet from the pile, silverware and plates clattering loudly as they slapped against it. “Have you heard from Emily at all?”
Rebecca took a long, refreshing sip from her mug. The coffee was amazing. “No, not yet, but it’s only been two days and she said that she’d have spotty coverage in the mountains. I can’t wait to see what she posts on Instagram! That girl loves her castles!”
Alice slid the last plate onto a shelf below the kitchen cabinets and dried her hands on the dish towel. “All done, nice and cheerful! Now Rebecca, can I ask you a very important question?”
Rebecca settled into one of the kitchen’s many wooden chairs and looked up. “Shoot.”
A wide grin. “Are you deeply hypnotized right now?”
“Yes, Alice. I am very deeply hypnotized.”
“That doesn’t bother you at all, dearie?”
She let her shoulders rise a bit, a tiny shrug. “Of course not. I love being hypnotized. Especially by you. It’s… hey, you want to know a little secret I haven’t told anybody, not even Em?”
Alice joined her at the little table. “I love secrets, Rebecca! I promise I won’t tell Emily.” They shared a round of conspiratorial giggles. “No, please! Tell me.”
Rebecca lowered her voice. “I will always go deep into trance whenever you ask me to, Alice.”
“NO! Really?” The Irish woman’s eyes widened. “You’d do that for me, Rebecca? Would you, really? That would be… I could never thank you enough! That’s so wonderful!”
“I will, I promise,” she said proudly. “Any time, any place.”
Alice leaned over. “What if I asked you to go deep into trance for me right now?”
Rebecca sighed. Musssssst… Her eyes closed as her head fell to her chest. Her arms dangled at her sides until Alice gently lifted them onto the table.
“Good girl, Rebecca. Now sit tight.”
The screen filled with pictures of a pretty manor house nestled in the mountains. Two empty brown eyes dutifully took them all in.
A man’s voice, cold and clinical, crackled through her headset. “Wernigerode Castle. Repeat.”
Her dry, cracked lips parted. “Wernigerode Castle.”
A huge stone fortification, perched high on a hill, with round towers peeking above the walls. “Falkenstein Castle. Repeat.”
“Falkenstein Castle.”
A cute little red-tiled cafe, festooned with bunting. “Langelsheim. So cute. Good food. Repeat.”
“Langelsheim.” The memory settled into its proper place in her mind. “So cute. Good food.”
The lights in the room brightened enough to wash out the screen, but she continued to stare at it, quietly waiting for the next slide. Had she been awake, she would have noted that the next one would have made an even one-hundred, but numbers and thoughts were as foreign to her now as the German place names being beamed into her sleepy brain.
“You look so pretty sitting there, lost in my slide show. Have you been leaning things, I wonder? Let’s find out. Stand up, Emily.”
She rose from the chair, tilting from side to side on weak, unsteady legs. A hand reached out and took hold of her shoulder, pinning her in place. She offered no resistance.
Alice steadied the mesmerized redhead with both hands, staring directly into her glazed, dull eyes. “Now, dearie, in a moment you’re going to tell me all about your lovely little trip. But first, what happened to Rebecca?”
“She stayed in Berlin while I went to explore the castles,” said Emily, her voice soft and dreamy. “Rebecca likes big cities, not the small towns.”
“Very good, Emily. You may pleasure yourself now.”
Two small hands plunged into the front of her jeans, and she moaned softly. “Mmmmm… yesssss… obedience is… pleas… pleassssurrrre… Nnnnnnnnn yesssss….”
“What happens when I say the words ‘look at the pretty spiral, Emily?’”
The hands moved faster. “I will… mmmmm… sleep and… oh yessssssss… obey. Sleep and… obey… sleep and obey… sleepandobey…”
“When you come, you will fall ten times deeper into trance.”
“Mmmmmm… I… mussssst… havvve… oh… ohhh…bey!” Her breathing increased as she closed her eyes and threw her head back. Her right hand pulled out of her jeans and landed on her sweat-drenched breasts, clutching and rubbing them eagerly. “Ohh… bey… oh… bey… yes… obey… mmmmmmhnnnnnnnyessssss…” She scrunched her face and shuddered. “Mmmmmmmnnnnnnnnnnn…”
“Ten times deeper, dearie. Stand at attention.”
Emily’s right hand fell to her side. She drew the left one, wet and slick, from her jeans. At once, she stiffened, locking her head in place as she stared directly at the washed-out screen.
Alice circled her once, nodding approvingly. “Tell me, Emily, what will you remember doing this week?”
Emily beamed. “Oh, I went on an amazing trip into the country to see the little towns and the castles. I love castles! Don’t you just find them fascinating? I stopped in this little place called Langelsheim”— her pronunciation was slightly imperfect, just as Alice intended—“and they had the coolest little cafe! Oh, and there was this lovely village church that had this—“
“Stop.”
Her mouth hung open, and Alice gently closed it for her.
“That’s very good, Emily. You’re quite the attentive student! But your legs are feeling so wobbly right now, aren’t they?”
“Yes.”
“So tired. Why don’t you have a seat while I get the next presentation up and running?”
Emily sank bonelessly into the chair as Alice wandered out of view. Without anything to look at or listen to, she let her mind drift, and a piece of her normal self slowly worked itself free from the shadows. Why am I sitting? I should… run? Just need to think… just move a leg… move-
The screen blazed to life in a whirlpool of colors and swirls. Her eyes opened wide, and the little part of her mind that was still self-aware was soon just as deeply hypnotized as the rest of her.
Alice stood by her side and gently stroked her hair. “Now, let’s talk about what you’re going to do for me…”
Rebecca approached the girl on the bed, feeling very much like a snake curling up to a helpless field mouse. The crystal dropped from her hand with practiced ease. She’d long ago discovered just how to make it spin and sway the way she wanted, the slight combination of wrist and finger movements that made a simple piece of costume jewelry into a mind-robbing superweapon. Her beautiful victim, naked and alone, was already starting to follow its motion.
“Wha… what are you…” the girl stammered, her voice quickly fading away as the crystal captured more and more of her attention. “It’s… beautiful.”
“Yes, Jessica, it’s so pretty to look at, isn’t it? So pretty, like the sound of my voice, pretty to listen to, pretty to watch. Back and forth. My voice, and the crystal. My pretty voice, and the pretty crystal.”
The girl’s gorgeous blue eyes locked onto the target. Her head began swaying gently in time to the crystal. Her shoulders sagged, and her knees curled towards each other until they were touching. “Pretty…” she managed. Her eyelids were already sinking.
“Back and forth, Jessica. Watch. Watch and listen. Watch, and listen. See only the crystal, and hear only my voice. You’ve seen this pretty crystal before. You know how easy it is to be hypnotized. How susceptible you are. How easily you sink into a lovely hypnotic trance, so dark and deep for me, deeper and deeper.”
“Nnnnn. Nnno. Can’t…” The sleepy eyes tightened into a squint. “Can’t… sleep.”
Rebecca smiled. This was sometime she’d seen a dozen times. The subjects who decide at the last moment that hypnosis isn’t such a great idea after all. The ones who, to their horror, find themselves actually starting to drift off into dreamland, on their way to becoming her playthings. But it was always too late for them to escape, and it was too late now. “That’s right, Jessica. You can’t sleep. You’re so very tired, so, so tired. But you can’t sleep. You’re still watching the pretty, pretty crystal. You need to focus on the pretty crystal, eyes open, watching it swing back and forth. It’s so hard, I know. You’re so tired. But you have to keep watching. Watch, and listen. Watch, and listen.”
“Uh…”
“Not thinking about how tired you are. Not thinking at all. Not thinking about how heavy your eyes are right now, how relaxed and tired you feel, sinking into the warm, soft bed. So heavy, hearing only my voice, watching, back and forth. So sleepy. Back and forth. Tired. Rest. Don’t think. Rest.”
You’re mine, just like I knew you’d be, Jessica. “Your pretty eyes are so heavy, Jessica. So, so heavy. When you’re ready, you’ll let them close, still hearing my voice, sinking deeper and deeper, more and more relaxed. So, so heavy. Your arms and legs are so, so heavy. Deeper.”
Jessica’s eyes slid closed as she leaned forwards against the edge of the bed, her dark hair covering her face and her wonderful breasts. Rebecca leaned out to steady her, and gently pushed her back into a sitting position.
“Deeper and deeper, Jessica. Counting backwards from one hundred, deeper and deeper with every number. Hearing my voice say the numbers, deeper and deeper with each one. One hundred. Ninety nine. Repeat them with me, Jessica. Ninety eight.”
“Nnninety… eight.”
“Deeper. So much deeper. Ninety seven.”
“Nine… sevv…”
“Deeper. Dark and deep. Sleep. Sleep, Jessica. Ninety six.”
“Nnniii…”
“One. Completely asleep. Completely hypnotized. As deep as you can go. Totally hypnotized. Deeply hypnotized. What are you?”
“Hypnotized.”
“What happens when you’re completely hypnotized, Jessica?” Rebecca let the crystal fall onto the mattress. She pressed a hand against her soaking wet panties. “What will you do when you’re deep in this hypnotic trance?”
“Anything… you say.”
“What’s my name, Jessica?”
“Rebbbecca…”
She hooked a finger under her underwear and dragged it down to her ankles. The cool air felt incredible against her body. “Yes, Jessica. My name is Rebecca. You will call me Mistress from now on. Do it now.”
“Yes, Mistress.”
Rebecca let her hands wander everywhere—over the girl’s shoulders, down her back, over her firm, round tits, down to her waist and then back up again for another round. She pressed Jessica’s unresisting body against her own and slowly made her way forward, planting kisses along the way, until she was staring into those glazed, empty eyes. She’d already blown through two wonderful orgasms, but the sight of those eyes… completely in my power, Jessica… nearly sent her over the edge again. She kissed the girl square on the lips, taking in her scent, enjoying the sweet mix of sweat and arousal and perfume.
“Do you love me, Jessica?”
“Yes, Mistress,” was the dull reply. “I love you more than anyone in the world.”
“Say it as if you mean it.”
Jessica’s lips curled into a sexy smile. She raised her head and responded with a deep, passionate, lingering kiss that lasted forever. Their lips parted with a wet smick. Rebecca had just enough time to suck in a quick breath before Jessica kissed her again, this time for longer, until they were both left gasping for air.
“I thought you were new at this?” It was a weird thing to say, and she began to apologize before remembering that independent thoughts and feelings were beyond Jessica’s reach.
“I exist only for you, Mistress.”
Oh God ohgodohgodohhhhgodohhhhnnnnnnmmmmmm The voice, the submission, the eyes…. it was just too much, and Rebecca’s eyes rolled into her head as her body rocked from side to side. “Oh… ohhhkay… Ohhhh… I need…” She paused to recover, waiting for her ragged breaths to smooth out while Jessica waited patiently beneath her. “I need… a break. Just for a little while. Oh God, you’re incredible. I knew I had to find you again. After that night at the club, I had to make you mine.”
“I’m yours,” Jessica agreed. “I belong to you. But Rebecca?”
She leaned down to give Jessica a quick kiss on the lips. “Yes?”
The blue eyes narrowed. “You will sleep and obey.”
“Of course.”
Snap.
“That was fun! You are quite the sexy little minx, aren’t you?”
Rebecca blinked. She was still in the same bedroom as before, but the shades were drawn and the overhead lights were on. She shivered, and reached for a blanket. The room was awfully cold without Jessica’s body to keep her warm. A dim memory came to mind about Alice promising to replace all of the windows.
Jessica.
She glanced at the bed next to hers. A naked, olive-skinned brunette was lying there, eyes open, staring intently at the ceiling. Alice sat nearby, in a chair that she’d apparently dragged in from the kitchen. The Irish woman nodded, and leaned over to touch the naked girl’s foot.
“Listen to me. You’re no longer Jessica. You will remember that your name is Olivia, and has always been Olivia. In a moment you’re going to slip back into a deep, deep sleep. You will remember only that you were very tired after a long day, so you came back to your room and immediately fell asleep. You will awaken tomorrow feeling refreshed and relaxed. Do you understand?”
“Yes, Alice.”
“Close your eyes, and sleep.”
The girl did as she was told, and Alice released her foot. She turned to Rebecca. “Olivia is an excellent hypnotic subject. It’s rare to see a mind that easy and eager to fill whatever mold I make for her. Of course, you’re no slouch yourself. Quite a show! I rather enjoyed it!”
“You… hypnotized… was I dreaming just now?”
“Oh no! That was all very real. Well, most of it.” Alice stood, and walked to the closet. She pulled out a large comforter and spread it over the sleeping girl’s body. “Don’t worry, she’s out like a light. Won’t remember a thing. They never do.” She tucked the comforter under Olivia’s chin. “Except for you, of course.”
A million thoughts swirled through Rebecca’s mind. Why she was in this room, why Olivia was naked and hypnotized, why she’d just hypnotized a total stranger into sleeping with her, why Alice seemed to be behind all of it. Instead, she blurted out the first thought that fought its way through the crowds and to the front of her mouth. “Why?”
“Because this was a job interview, Rebecca. And you passed.”
Marcel was trapped in amber.
At least that’s how the world felt to him at that precise moment, stuck in a crowd of morning commuters, waiting for the light to change. The redhead he’d been following was getting further and further down the street with every passing moment, and he had no idea where she was headed. If he lost her, there was no getting her back. Any of it back, for that matter. She vanished from view, blocked by a trio of black-suited businessmen, and he glanced angrily at the traffic light. Beeile dich!
Agonizing seconds passed, until the little green Ampelmann finally gave him permission to cross. Taking care not to run, he instead chose a purposeful gait to propel him down the block. He soon fell behind an older man whose pace matched his, and together they zipped around the slower traffic.
The redhead came into view. To his relief, she hadn’t strayed from the block, instead taking the time to stop and admire a clothing store’s elaborate display. He dropped out of the older man’s wake and let himself slow to a casual pace, eyes taking in the girl’s cute leather skirt and lovely toned legs.
Das ist blöd, he thought to himself. There was no way this was going to work. He’d never been good at approaching women, especially not women as beautiful as this. She was exactly his type, although by this point in his lonely life, just about anything with legs and a pulse technically counted as his type. He felt his wallet, now much lighter than it had been just an hour ago, and repeated the mantra he’d long since memorized. “It’s a lovely day for a roll in the hay. It’s a lovely day for a roll in the hay. It’s…”
He stopped abruptly. She was still outside the shop window, trying to decide whether to go inside. Everything was supposed to happen quickly, in a way that wouldn’t attract attention. He eased into it, casually stepping up to the window himself, as if he were suddenly interested in evening gowns and elegant hats. The words stuck in his throat. It’s a lovely day for a roll in the hay. It’s a love-
She turned to look at him and gave him a quick smile. “They’re so pretty, aren’t they? I wish I had the room in my suitcase for one of them. And the cash, obviously!” She laughed. She had a pretty laugh, as light and sunny as the rest of her. “I… oh shit, um… sprichst du English? Ich bin American?”
“Ein bisschen. A little. My name is Marcel.”
Another winning smile. “Hi, Marcel, I’m Emily. Nice to meet you. Hey, do you know if there’s a place nearby that sells—“
“It’s a lovely day for a roll in the hay.”
Her eyes fluttered and slid closed. “Yes, master. I hear and obey.” She licked her lips and purred, as if the very sound of those words had awakened something very ancient and primal within her. Suddenly she was only inches away from him, lustful eyes staring straight into his. “I await your command, master.”
They walked arm-in-arm to the nearest U-Bahn station.