A Dish Best Served Cold - NaNoWriMo 2025 Challenge

[Shocker]

What an absolutely charming family, just out of curiosity had you defined the Reverend Daniels name before? Because I had to chuckle, as I read it and fiddles went of in my mind.

[LtBroccoli]

What an absolutely charming family, just out of curiosity had you defined the Reverend Daniels name before? Because I had to chuckle, as I read it and fiddles went of in my mind.

Yep. Used it for the first time in Bob and the Mean Girls when Stacy was talking about her past, with a few jokes from the guys later on. There was also a scene in Vinny and the Crew where they busted out singing Devil Went Down to Georgia. George talks about it in Lake Hiawatha, that Charlie used it for name recognition at first to bring in the rubes, and it worked.

[LtBroccoli]

Chapter Tags: Nosex, setup
Content Warnings: Art Deco styling
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The family make their way to the Concordia, and Natalie puts her plans into motion...
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The Concordia





The Concordia Hotel was an old hotel that screamed of old money. Built in the 1920’s, its marble facade looked dated in the mid nineties and a product of a bygone era that was longed for by the richest of the city. The gold inlaid marble floors and granite columns showed off an age of craftsmanship that had been abandoned after World War Two in favor of efficiency and standardization. The Concordia stands apart in a world where there’s a Hyatt in every city and they all look and feel the same.

And as is tradition, the Daniels Family set forth for their Thanksgiving celebration to the Concordia Hotel the Saturday before the actual holiday. Thanksgiving is one of the most performative holidays of the year for those in the church life. It’s expected that the family will spend the day volunteering with local shelters and food banks for the week leading up, and host families and the less fortunate at the church’s kitchen on Thanksgiving Day. This means that they do not get any chance to have their own Thanksgiving dinner. Instead of spending it at home with the staff, they go out for a feast at the Concordia, where some of the best chefs in the city make whatever their hearts desire. It is a meal of opulence and decadence followed by a night of relaxation and reflection.

And debauchery. Don’t forget the debauchery.

It’s a little known secret that the reason that the Concordia is so popular with the rich and famous of the city is that they specialize in keeping secrets of their own. They don’t ask questions when an actor comes to town and asks for enough cocaine to kill a horse or a mobster winds up dead a couple miles away after last being seen in the Grand Ballroom, or if the Mayor stays overnight and three call girls visit his room. It is not unheard of for famous people to mingle and make connections in the bar, just to end up connected down the line.

It was this level of confidentiality that Natalie counted on. The staff would look the other way when her ‘surprise’ arrived and would leave the family alone, no matter what noises they made.

The family arrived shortly after 2PM for an early afternoon check-in and lunch at the Copper Bar & Grill. Jason ranted about how he could “fucking kill for their cheeseburgers” while Mother told him to watch his language. Natalie shook her head in disbelief. ‘After everything they did to me last night, they still pretend to be polite and genteel.’ Check-in was quick and painless as Father confirmed the details. They had 4 suites on the Concordia Club Floor, as usual. It was a semi-private floor with its own concierge who lived by discretion. Natalie and Wendy would share two adjoining rooms, Harmony and Unity. The twins would have Regal, a two-bedroom suite while Mother and Father would have the Sovereign Suite. The details were ironed out and the keys exchanged.

Natalie took in her surroundings as they crossed the marble floors to the elevator. The elevator operator waited for them while a bellhop helped with their luggage. He saw how tight of a fit it would be to get the 8 suitcases into the elevator with 7 other people and decided to take the next car. As she peered out from the elevator, she saw some familiar faces. Tony and Alex were in the lobby, milling about.

Natalie brought two suitcases herself while everyone else brought one big one for the night they were staying. Because they planned this long enough ahead of time, one of the junior pastors would lead services tomorrow in their stead. That gave Natalie more time to enact her plans. It is hard to blackmail an entire family when they have places to be.

They arrived at their rooms, and Wendy was thrilled with hers. The tween was already bouncing around the room named Unity while Natalie stood in Harmony, waiting for her little sister to get lost in whatever she could find in the writing desk.

“Remember, we have to be ready to go downstairs in ten minutes.”

“I know, I know.” Wendy said before closing the door that separated the suites.

As soon as the door latched closed, Natalie tore open her suitcase searching for her secret pager. She started carrying one recently since it was less conspicuous than a cellphone and was easy to conceal. She used it mainly to contact her people when email wasn’t an option. She wished for the day that she could email from her pager. It was set to silent so no one would hear it, and buried in her underwear. No one should go in there, but just in case she put it somewhere no one has a reason to go. If she carried it around in her purse or book bag, she’d have too many questions to answer.

There were four pages. The first was from early in the morning from Tony. It was a series of numbers that she didn’t understand at first until she looked at the room phone. 213456383. 21 was Tony’s code. She worked through the letters associated to each number to get FILMGTG. 383 was his shorthand for good to go. That told her that they were good with the film from the night before. The second message was from Alex. 068#2145557879. Alex used 068 as his code because he wore that number in high school football. The rest was the phone number he would be at for the time being. Third message was again from Tony, 212783383. Drug good to go. Final message was one she didn’t expect to see. It was her dorm room phone number. Suzy. She gave the pager number to Suzy in case she needed it for an emergency.

Natalie called the number Alex left. The phone rang once before a man answered it for the Copper Bar & Grill. Natalie asked for Alex, and a moment later he was on the phone. She would meet them soon but they should make themselves scarce since her family was coming down there soon. Alex mentioned that he was with Tony and they would meet her around 4PM.

She then called her dorm room. Suzy answered it and sounded chipper.

“You paged. Everything okay?” Natalie asked.

“Yeah, it’s good. Just wanted to make sure you were okay.” Suzy said over the phone. It took all of Natalie’s strength to not break down and cry right there. For the first time in who knows how long, someone reached out of the blue to ask her how she was.

Natalie cracked a little, sniffling as she held back tears. “It’s fine. Brothers are jerks, parents are, well, my parents, and the only one not being a pain in the butt is Wendy. How about you?”

Suzy went on to talk about her day, getting written up for smoking twice and skipping chapel again. “My next step is to watch an R-rated movie while you’re out. I rented Pulp Fiction, heard it was pretty vulgar. I’ll tell you how it goes or I can show you when you get back. I’ve got it for 5 days.”

Natalie laughed as she heard a knock on the door. “I’ve got to go, talk to you later. Bye.” She hung up as Suzy said goodbye and wished her a good night. She straightened herself up before opening the door to the adjoining room.

“Ready?” Wendy asked. Natalie nodded, grabbing a tissue from a box near the door. “You okay? That time?”

“Maybe. Let’s go.” Natalie said, bringing some tissues with her.




——




The Copper Bar & Grill was about as high class as a bar can get and still have traditional bar food. It filled the category of “pretentious dive bar” to a T. It was dark and dingy, but in a fancy way. It looked like a traditional bar, but was well-kept with the best whiskey shelf in town.

The family sat at two tables in the back pushed together. Father had a French Dip with kettle chips and an iced tea, along with a side of glares from Mother. Speaking of Mother, she had a Cobb Salad and hot tea. She couldn’t say enjoyed it because that would imply she’s capable of joy. Jason did get his cheeseburger and fries with a coke. Jacob scarfed down a blackened chicken sandwich and fries with a lemonade while Wendy had a fancy grilled cheese and tomato, fruit cup, and chocolate shake. Natalie decided to have a piece of Quiche Lorraine and an unsweetened iced coffee. She kept an eye out for Tony and Alex, but was satisfied that they made themselves scarce.



——



Back in her room, Natalie took inventory of the last couple days and how things were to proceed that night. She sat in a rich leather chair thinking about the hundred ways things could go wrong tonight when there was a knock at the hallway door.

“Yes?” Natalie said as she stood and walked across the room.

“Visitors ma’am.” The voice on the other side said. Natalie opened the door to see the concierge, Stephen, standing before her in his hotel uniform. “Ma’am, you have two visitors. They said they have appointments with you. Alex and Tony.”

“Thank you. Tell them I’ll be with them in a moment, in the, what is that library called?”

“The Gentleman’s Library.”

“Yes, that. Also, I require access to a computer. I need to check my email. It needs to have AOL either installed or ready to be installed.” Natalie said.

“That can be arranged ma’am. I believe there is a PC in the library. Anything else for you?”

Natalie was about to say something when she heard the unmistakable bark of Sir Marshmallow of Sussex come from down the hall. “Yes. Some chocolate bars.”

“Right away ma’am.”


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To Be Continued...

[LtBroccoli]

Chapter Tags: Nosex, setup
Content Warnings: Scents of mahogany and spy photos
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Natalie meets Alex and Tony at the hotel...
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The Gentleman’s Library





After about 10 minutes, Natalie met Alex and Tony in the Gentleman’s Library. She had changed into a slightly tighter silk blouse, a navy skirt that was two inches shorter, and matching heels. Her flesh colored stockings were visible from knee level. She knew that both men were interested in her and that she would get more from them if they see some curves or a hint of cleavage. The top two buttons were left open just for this reason.

“Gentlemen, welcome.” Natalie said as she checked that the door was closed behind her. She saw the two men waiting for her in a pair of wingback chairs off along the side of the room. They picked seats that had a complete view of the room, the exit, and the only windows. They stood as she approached.

“We’re alone.” Alex said, a slight Russian accent coming through.

“It’s safe to talk, we checked for bugs.” Tony said with no hint of accent.

Natalie checked out the two men.

Tony stood to her right, standing a shade under six foot with a complexion that seemed like it was permanently tanned. She figured he was easily in his thirties because of that. He wore a grey suit and blue tie, thought it didn’t look natural on his skinny frame. Tony had a short beard and mustache. His brown hair was a tad longer than most men, like he hadn’t had a proper shave and trim in a month. He carried a black leather briefcase with him.

Alex stood a shade over six feet tall and was thick, easily over 250 pounds. He was younger, 21 years old and was clean shaven. His short brown hair already belied a receding hairline and slight bald spot that would leave him completely bald by the time he’s 30. He wore a matching suit and blue tie, but seemed more comfortable in it than his older counterpart. The suit fit Alex better, proving that a good tailor can work wonders.

Natalie stepped closer for a handshake but Alex moved in for a hug instead, engulfing the young woman. They broke the hug, and Tony followed suit but only used one arm, holding the briefcase with his left hand.

“Please, let’s sit.” Natalie said as she walked to the writing desk that had a PC on it. The two men pulled up matching leather wingback chairs next to her as she logged in to the public computer and found AOL. “What do we have?”

“Most things in place, some problems.” Alex said through his rough accent.

“Explain.” Natalie said.

“Our man is on staff, can drug food or drink, but dinner is, um, buffet style for many. Not just your family tonight. Plus, no one has same tastes.”

“So they can’t add anything to the food out of view?” Natalie asked as she launched AOL, the modem sound filling the room.

“No.”

“What about their glassware or silverware?”

“Look dirty. Taken back.” Alex said.

“What are our options?”

“Well ma’am, I think we have three options. Dessert, coffee, and after dinner drinks.” Tony said, leaning forward a bit. “We could spike the coffee or tea, but you drink coffee so you not drinking will raise their cackles. Dessert will be too wide open of a choice. That leaves after dinner drinks. Best chance at success and the one time that they can be certain to be away from view. We’ll have to pay to make sure that our guy isn’t interfered with.”

“Agreed. What are we using?” Natalie asked, realizing the “You’ve Got Mail” chime was actively muted from this computer.

“It’s a little something I’ve worked on over the years called Mexican Panty Remover. Makes whoever takes it horny as hell, susceptible to suggestion, and messes with their memory. This new batch has an extra side effect where it keeps men hard for longer, so who knows how long they’ll go for.”

“And Wendy?”

Tony continued. “She’ll get a minor sedative and will pass out within an hour. By the time that’s happening, the rest of the family will be ready to fuck anything that moves. Enter the next part of the plan. Our VIP’s have the suites down the hall, will come over and look to party. They’ll be dressed like rock stars and groupies, next thing you know you’ll have all the footage you need.”

“How so? Thought this place prided itself on discretion.”

“It does ma’am. What we’re gonna do is set up shop up here during dinner. The Boardroom will make a great backdrop to a porno. You tell the concierge to let us stay up and we’ll take it from there. You packed the cameras in your luggage?”

“Yes. I’ll let you into my room and you get what you need.” Natalie looked at her mail. Nothing new today, which was expected. She then looked at the case in Tony’s hand. “Is that…”

“Yes ma’am. Photos from last night. Developed them as soon as I got home. I hate to say it, but they came out well.” Tony spun the case around to unlock and open it. A moment later he withdrew a folder and handed it to Natalie. She picked it up, steeling herself for what she was about to see.

They were all black and white. The first photo was one of her in her room, changing into her sleep gown. She had just opened the curtains. The next couple established that it was her room. After that the lights went out. The picture zoomed in some more to show Natalie walking through her room. The next one showed Father coming in, lights behind him. Then he undressed, mounted the bed, and assaulted her. He left. After that were her brothers, Jacob and Jason. Same thing as Father. They each came in, got naked, fucked her, and left. In a couple of the shots the reflection shows her tied up and with something in her mouth. After that was Mother and her toys of pain. Once Mother was done, she untied Natalie and left her on the bed.

She was on the verge of tears as she finished flipping through the folder when Tony spoke up. “I arrived at the designated spot at 21:45. By 22:15, you were in bed. 22:45, the elder Reverend Daniels appeared and stayed until approximately 23:30. By midnight, one of the twins showed up, followed by the other shortly after midnight, 00:05. They stayed until
00:57. At 01:09, Mrs. Daniels showed up and stayed until approximately 01:48. I left the spot at 01:57 and the premises by 02:05. I arrived home and developed the photos until 05:00 in my darkroom. After that, I caught some Z’s and picked up Mr. Petrovsky here and we arrived at the Concordia. We made one stop prior, to visit the Collegetown branch of Bank of America, where you bank and have a safety deposit box. One copy of these photos and my report were deposited in your box. I used black and white film because of the greater clarity in low light environments and ease of processing. I attest to the chain of custody as a licensed private investigator who is bonded to work in this state.”

The mood was dour. Natalie held the proof in her hand of each of her adult family members raping her. She could use it to destroy their lives right now. But they also had footage of their own. They had video of her murdering that girl a few weeks back. It was mutually assured destruction. But she had ammunition now.

“Thank you, Tony. Is the contingency plan in place?”

“Yea ma’am. Like I said, we visited your bank and deposited copies of these photos. If anything happens to you, the contents of this box are to be sent to the local paper where the reporter designated in the introduction letter is to publish their findings. We are also to go to the FBI, county, and state police to report anything that happens to you.”

“Perfect.” Natalie typed on an email she composed to her accountant. “You know that if they find out that you’re working with me, they will make your life a miserable hell?”

“Yes ma’am.”

“Da.” Alex added.

“Well then, we mustn’t keep them waiting.” Natalie pressed send on the instructions she sent to her accountant and proceeded to log off. The trio left the well-decorated library after a few minutes of idle chitchat, wondering how well their plan would work, or if some outside forces would derail her desire for revenge.
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To Be Continued...

[LtBroccoli]

Chapter Tags: Nosex, setup
Content Warnings: Fancy Dining and Expensive Scotch
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The family enjoy a great meal while Natalie waits to see if her plan is happening...
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Dinner Service





Even with as much planning for her revenge as she’s done, Natalie couldn’t help but be excited about dinner. This would be a decadent feast in one of the most opulent places in Harbor City. The chefs crafted the menu from locally sourced products, and the meal is served by the finest staff in the hotel. The Concordia’s Marchioness Dining Room is the stuff of legends, where everyone from foreign dignitaries to celebrities have dined here. The famous and infamous alike have broken bread here. Heads of state and mob bosses alike have dined here, and now it was her families’ turn to enjoy a holiday meal.

Because of how resplendent the Marchioness is, they have a strict dress code. Men must wear a jacket and collared shirt, where ties are strongly encouraged. Women must be in similar wear, either in a dress, skirt, or tailored pants with an elegant top. Children must follow suit but some exceptions are made for small kids. Though, most children love the chance to dress up fancy for dinner. Shoes must be professional and closed toe. There are even restrictions on what fragrances guests can wear. As one patron once described, “if ya smell like a whorehouse, they’ll kick yer arse out.”

Natalie was dressed for the occasion. She wore the same navy skirt and elegant blouse she wore to meet with Tony and Alex, though she decided to button the top two buttons, covering any chance of her ample bosom showing even the slightest bit of cleavage. She added a pair of diamond earrings she was gifted from Grandma Emma, along with a simple crucifix necklace. A silver heirloom watch, also from her favorite granny, adorned her left wrist. She decided not to wear any jewelry, save for an emerald promise ring which was now meaningless. At this point she wore it only for show, or on special occasions like tonight. To those on the outside, that promise ring is supposed to show her dedication to her faith by being a symbol of her chastity.

Now, her promise ring meant something else. It was a promise to herself to right the wrongs done to her. And tonight, she’d start with her family.

The family waited outside for their appointed reservation time of 7:30PM. This was very late for them to have dinner, but asked to push things back due to their late arrival at the Concordia and late lunch. As they waited, she replayed the plan over and over in her head. She was well aware of how bad a plan can go, but also knew that proper planning was the key to handling the unknown. For example, she knew the plan was to drug the family with after dinner drinks, but what if Mother didn’t want…

Natalie scoffed at the thought. The thought that Mother would even be satiated without drawing some piece of torment from anyone made her laugh a little. Mother would be on her best behavior because of how much she enjoys this place. Father takes her here for their anniversary every year they’re in town. They come for Thanksgiving and their pre-Christmas meal. They come two weeks ahead of Easter. She likes this place so much she does the one thing she refuses to do at any other restaurant: Mother tips.

There was the chance that the twins might not have a drink after dinner, but that fell by the wayside when she pointed out that this was one of the only times where the adults could openly drink alcohol. Being the scions of a megachurch had some drawbacks. One of them was having to pretend to be sober all of the time. Jacob loved his beer, and Jason his whiskey. They liked the other, but if given the chance of a glass from a 25-year-old bottle of Macallan, Jason might sell one of Jacob’s kidneys for it. Even if by some chance they passed on the alcohol, they would still have coffee or tea.

Then she thought about Father. What about him? He was the easiest to predict, to be honest. Outside of the outward charm, he was a creature of habit. Every time he came here, he’d order a Concordia Old Gold after dinner to go with his decaf coffee. It was a Macallan 18, with a honey cordial, served with an obnoxiously large ice cube. The problem is that it was made tableside, so no opportunity to drug him with that, unless the glasses were molested in some way.

She wondered about her backup plan, just in case none of those worked. She had a bottle of champagne ready to go, spiked with enough Mexican Panty Remover to turn Mother Teresa into the town whore. Problem was she didn’t know if she’d need to use it until after dinner. She was told the signal from Alex and Tony. Their man on the staff would bring both her and Wendy Shirley Temple’s if he had managed to slip the family their cocktail of drugs, but give her a sparkling juice if not. If that happened, then she’d have to improvise. If there’s one thing she hated, it was improvising in front of Mother. Any activity that was different than normal was frowned upon.

“Daniels family, right this way.” The maitre’d called for them, and the six well-dressed family members followed into the restaurant proper and to their table. They made their way through the tables to one of the round tables near the back. The place was filled with about 70 people dressed in their best. A couple people stood out as they walked past. One was a black man she recognized from television wearing a loaner jacket. Ice something or other, he rapped or something like that. The other that was out of place was a punk rocker with spiked hair standing at least a foot above his head. He didn’t have a jacket but did wear a tie. Perhaps he made the argument that his leather jacket counted. Still, he at least wore slacks and leather boots instead of jeans and tennis shoes.

“Here you go.” The maitre’d sat the family at their table, helping the women get settled into their seats. Wendy wore a cute earth tone dress that seemed to fit the Thanksgiving feel while still making her look and feel like a million bucks. Mother dressed very conservatively as normal, but splurged on the jewelry tonight. Father dressed like he was getting ready to lead a sermon for a television taping, except he didn’t have his sunglasses on. His hair was quaffed high and tight, his rings were on every finger, his tailored brown suit went with his cream colored shirt and vibrant tie. The twins wore similar grey suits with white shirts underneath, both from Father’s favorite tailor downtown. The only difference between them was that Jason wore a silver tie while Jacob wore a coral blue one.

Dinner began with the first course, a choice of one of three dishes. Mother chose a Butternut Squash Velouté, everyone else went with the Shrimp Cocktail Concordia while Natalie settled on a Roasted Chestnut and Apple Salad. As tempting as the soup was, Natalie wanted something a little lighter to start with. Plus, she knew the second course was Pumpkin Ravioli, which two squash dishes back to back would feel a little too similar. There was also the ingrained fear that spilling soup on her blouse would lead to retaliation from Mother later on for being “such a pig.”

After indulging in a small plate of the pumpkin ravioli served with brown butter, sage chiffonade, and aged parmesan, there was a brief moment where everyone sat at the table in complete silence. There’s two types of silence at dinner. The first was the silence she grew up with where no one was ever allowed to speak. That silence was stifling, suppressive, and toxic to all involved. Then there was the silence that they currently experienced. The silence of satisfaction. The silence of anticipation.

They didn’t have to wait long. The main course arrived, Heritage Turkey Two Ways. One of the servers carved the turkey by the table for everyone, giving everyone their choice of Roasted Breast with Thyme Jus and Confit Leg with Crisp Skin. Natalie had a little of both as the sides were served family-style. She had stopped caring what and how everyone else ate as she enjoyed her meal her way. Mother was too focused on her dinner to be a bitch about anything, and Natalie took advantage by, as Mother would so indelicately say “pigging out like the piggy you are.” She filled her plate with stuffing, whipped potatoes, sweet potatoes, green bean amandine, roasted root veggies, rolls, two types of gravy, and some cranberry-orange relish to finish it off. For once, everyone enjoyed the same course and there was no bickering about what to eat.

As she went through carb overload, Natalie wondered if this is what a family meal is supposed to be like? Out of all of the conversations she’s had with Suzy, not once has she mentioned strict rules or her parents calling her names or being forced to sit at the table for over an hour because her mom was on a power trip. Even when they’d eat at The Table, her view of eating must’ve been skewed from the other students. She’d hear them complain about how strict the rules were, meanwhile they were nothing compared to what she dealt with at home. Seeing how everyone else responded made her question how crazy her family really was.

That, and the rapes after finding out she was no longer a virgin. And the drugs. And don’t forget running a child porn trafficking ring. Okay, maybe there were a few other signs that her family was messed up.

Natalie enjoyed the feast, even going in for seconds of the turkey. She stopped focusing on what everyone else was eating or how they behaved. The only thing outside of the family she paid attention to was trying to figure out which member of the staff was Alex’s man on the inside. Instead of just one waiter, they were served by half a dozen men, each wearing a fine uniform and white gloves. They were so well groomed that it was difficult to tell them apart. She figured it could be any one of them, but two men were the most likely suspects. The first was one she called Bill, because he looked like a Bill to her. Bill was around the family for the entire meal and didn’t seem to be in charge. She called the other one Zach, because he looked a little like Zach from Saved by the Bell. He flew around the table like a spirit, not staying in one place for too long. There were a few others, like one skinny guy whose hair was a shade too long working from the bar, but she had no clue nor any idea what she was looking for.

Dessert came, and most of the family enjoyed Pumpkin Pie with Chantilly Cream. As they ate their pie, she thought about what her plan would be if they couldn’t drug her family. She came up with a few different ideas as the after dinner coffee service started, but it seemed like her ideas were all for naught as Bill and Zach delivered the after dinner drinks.

A pot of decaf coffee sat in the middle of the table as Zach delivered a “gift” to the table from the hotel for years of loyal patronage, and from a friend that wished for this to be a surprise. Zach delivered a box wrapped in the finest red wrapping paper, the maitre’d arrived to assist. “A gift for the family tonight.” Father opened the box and was visibly surprised.

It was a bottle of Macallan 25-year-old single malt scotch whiskey.

Father handed the bottle to Zach and the maitre’d who deftly poured a drink for each of the adults at the table. Even Mother wouldn’t pass this up. As they had their first round of drinks, Natalie and Wendy were each given a drink of their own: matching Shirley Temple’s.

The plan was on, and the drugs delivered. It was just a matter of time.
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To Be Continued...

[Shocker]

And now Shirley Temple has entered the rape revenge business. Well done.

[LtBroccoli]

Chapter Tags: Nosex, setup
Content Warnings: A Discussion on Intimacy and Revenge
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Natalie and her men wait as her family has fun...
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Hurry Up and Wait




Dinner wrapped up with the family definitely feeling the effects of the scotch. Father settled the bill and dropped a very, very generous tip on top of everything as they left. The family made their way to the elevator, more boisterous than usual. They gave the elevator operator a tip then made the family made their way to the concierge located outside of their suite area when they heard a bit of a ruckus coming from inside.

“What’s going on?” Father asked, shaking off the effects of the scotch.

“Your neighbors have just arrived. They have the Astra and Orbit suites for the next few days. I believe they may be actors or musicians of some kind. They are gathering in the boardroom for a nightcap if you would wish to join them.”

Normally, Father would not even pretend to consider this, but something was different. Several somethings actually. First, he was feeling great, a little buzzed and a little excited. Second, Mother was especially close to him on the elevator ride up. Third, he saw over the concierge’s shoulder a young couple who looked like they just stepped out of a movie.

“You know, let’s be neighborly. C’mon.” Father waved the family towards the boardroom.

“I just want to go to bed.” Wendy said, yawning.

“I’ll take Wendy and help her get ready for bed. I’ll catch up with you later.” Natalie said, knowing very well that if she showed up, by that time it would be to one of the craziest situations she’d ever seen.

“Thank you hunny bunny. You’ve always been a good kid.” Father was gentle and chipper in front of Mother, and she didn’t admonish him. That’s how she knew they were drunk.

Natalie guided Wendy back to their adjoining rooms while the rest of the family made their way to the boardroom on the 8th floor between the remaining suites and near the Gentleman’s Library. She helped Wendy get into her room with her room key, which Wendy insisted on using her own because it made her feel like a grown-up, and pointed her to the bathroom. As Wendy went through her nighttime routine, Natalie entered her room through the adjoining door. She wasn’t expecting to see anyone, but having two men waiting in her room caused her to jump out of her skin. Only a quick reaction from one of them kept her from screaming and drawing attention.

She recognized the hand over her mouth immediately. Alex. She calmed herself down before motioning for him to let her go. She now saw that the other man was Tony. They had both changed out of their suits and into jeans and t-shirts with band names on them.

“What the hell are you thinking?” Natalie said in an angry whisper. “And what’s up with that?” She waved at the clothes.

“Waited for you, waiting for call.” Alex said quietly before Tony joined in. Natalie closed the door behind her to Wendy’s room as Tony stood and approached.

“Next phase is in motion. Your family is now hanging out with a group of thespians who are on tour. A couple of them are actually actors, but all of them are really porno actors or prostitutes. Or both. They’ll have a drink or two laced with enough drugs that they’ll do anything and everything. Once the action really gets going, we get some good photos and videos.”

“So that’s why you’re dressed like bums?” Natalie said sternly.

“More like road crew, but we had to do something. Alex works with your parents and family, they’d recognize him in a heartbeat. Me, not so much. You hired me from my PI firm, remember.”

“I know. It’s… you’re doing what you have to do.” Natalie wanted to say something else, but held back.

“They stick you on babysit duty while they party with rock stars.” Alex said, resting his hand on her shoulder. She grabbed it and squeezed it quickly before letting go. He let the hand rest for a minute before taking the hint to move it.

“Yeah. I know they’re about to have a rude awakening, but I was purposely left out again. They get a bottle of thousand dollar scotch delivered to the table, and I don’t even get a sip. But they’ll gladly share it with strangers. Instead, I get to take Wendy to her bed to make sure she doesn’t have to go through what I went through last night and Father is actually kind and loving for once. And Mother didn’t even flinch. Which means they’re pretty drunk already. The only way they can show any emotion whatsoever is that they have to be drunk to do so, but they rarely drink. So the only time Father ever says he loves me or is proud of me is either right after he drinks or rapes me. And if this works, the latter will never happen again.”

Natalie fought back the urge to cry for a moment as she composed herself again. Alex tried to give her a hug, but she brushed it off. Tony gave the younger man a look that said ‘not now.’ She moved to position herself so that she was facing both men and kept her back to the closed door.

“So what’s the plan now?” She asked, crossing her arms under her breasts, which subconsciously caused her to lift them just a bit.

“Now, we wait.” Tony said.

“How long?”

“However long it takes.”

“And that is…”

Tony shrugged. “Could be a few minutes or a couple hours. Depends on how things go.”

“Video rolling in suites, Tony does photos when called.” Alex said.

Tony continued. “While you were at dinner, we set up a couple hidden cams the Astra and Orbit suites. Even have one in the boardroom, too. Stephen the concierge doesn’t mind what we do in the private rooms but the only reason he didn’t call the goon squad was we’re with you and we had to promise to clean up everything, and I mean everything that happens in there. I’m hoping they take it to the suites before shit gets out of hand. Also, Stephen required a rather large donation to the ‘Look the other way’ fund.”

“How much is this costing us?” Natalie asked as Tony did some rough calculations in his head and on his hands.

“A dozen professional whore actors, both men and women, two fancy suites at the finest hotel in town, a shitload of drugs, a bottle of thousand dollar scotch, several bribes, overnight photo and video processing, equipment usage, hourly fees for me, Alex’s salary, and parking. Can’t forget parking. Mid five figures so far. I’ll have a detailed invoice next week or week after.”

“Could be worse.” Natalie said. She took the estimate better than Tony thought. “So we’re going to sit around for the next while waiting for what exactly?”

“Either a call or a knock from Stephen. Those are the messages telling us to go to the next phase. We clean up the boardroom, get the footage from there and duplicate it with that.” Tony points to an open suitcase with wires connected to the TV. “Then a few photos taken without their knowledge from my camera while our people bust out the Polaroid and you have enough to move forward tomorrow morning. IF you need better stills, I got a guy in Veneto that can develop the film overnight for a price, but I can do it at home, too. Depends on when you want to confront them. You should have enough to go after them tomorrow morning, but if you wait until later this week you can hit them with both barrels. Your call.”

Natalie thought for a long moment before she heard Khan’s voice in the back of her mind.

“Patience, patience.”

She rubbed her chin in thought and looked around the room before settling her gaze on Tony and Alex.

“I want to move quick, but something tells me I should hold back. What do you think?”

“Не беги впереди паровоза!” Alex said, then stopped and repeated himself in English. “Don’t run in front of the train.”

“I think he means don’t go off half-cocked.”

“Huh?” Natalie said.

“You’re not ready, and if you move too fast you’ll make a mistake. Back in the day, guns were really complicated and getting ready to fire was an ordeal. Part of that was loading the primer and pulling the hammer to a half-cocked position. Anyways, you couldn’t fire from there even thought it looked like it was ready. If you try to rush it, you’ll just hurt yourself.”

Natalie thought for a moment on Tony’s words. She started walking around the hotel room. “What happens if I go fast versus if I wait?”

“Well, you’re not ready tonight and by the morning, you’ll only have the Polaroids, last night’s photos, and whatever we get from the videos. You’ll be tired, sleep deprived, and they’ll know you were behind everything. They might just say ‘fuck her’ and hurt you before you can get this added to the contingency plan. Wait until after I can get your pictures and video, copies safely stored, and you can show them everything all at once and have your plans ready to go.”

Natalie stood for a moment longer. She muttered something under her breath.

“Shto?” Alex asked.

“Something I heard a few weeks back. Revenge is a dish that is best served cold.” Natalie said as she paused near the dresser. “It’s a line from a movie I saw, character was based off of Captain Ahab, but much more well-read. He wants revenge and realizes he must keep control of his feelings. But in the end he lets those take over, and it costs him everything.”

She looked at the two men in the room with her, gauging their reactions. They both seemed to want to force her to stay her hand until she had her ducks in a row.

“Okay. I’ll take my time. Let’s gather everything up tonight and catch up tomorrow or Monday, depending on how long processing takes. I’ll hit them this week, probably on Thanksgiving morning or Friday after, give them something they’ll never forget. That work with you two?”

“Da.”

“Perfect. Not gonna lie, I pulled an all-nighter last night and I am dragging ass right now. I might fuck up the development. Sorry, language.” Tony said.

Natalie shook it off. “It’s fine. Besides, I’m tired too. I’m going to check on Wendy, then change out of this into something else better suited for this… type of work.” She turned for the adjoining door, aware that the two men were definitely checking out her ass as she walked. She put a little extra swish in her step as she crossed the threshold.

She returned a few minutes later, closing the door behind her. “Wendy’s asleep. Passed out almost as soon as she got under the covers. Any word yet?”

“Nyet.” Alex said. He turned to the mini fridge in the room and grabbed the handle. “You mind?”

“No, help yourself to a soda pop or water.” She went to her luggage and picked up a small bag of clothes before heading to the bathroom.

The bathroom was large and luxurious. There was a large marble bath that she would love to soak in for a couple hours, but she didn’t have time. A minute spent carefully removing her jewelry was followed with taking off her heels, blouse, and skirt. The stockings were next, leaving her in just her matching white underwear set. It was frilly with some lace trim. Not the most comfy yet she felt very confident in them. She thought about changing out of that set into something more comfortable, but realized she didn’t grab any from her luggage.

“Crap.” She didn’t pack any undies in her comfy clothes bag, but did in her main luggage.

She had two options. The first was just get dressed, go out to the bedroom, grab her everyday underwear and come back in. The second was hop out there and grab what she needed in full view of the men.

In a bold move, she opened the door and announced before she stepped out “no peeking.” Before the men could register what happened, Natalie emerged from the bathroom in a set of sexy white matching underwear. The bra held her firm tits up, showing off more cleavage than they had ever seen on her. Her legs were silky smooth and tight without any unsightly bugles or blemishes. Her butt was shaped just right, with the perfect amount of wiggle for her body. Her figure was amazing, giving a great hourglass shape without being too over the top. Her long blonde hair hung down to just above her bra clasp. She rooted through her bag for a second before looking at the shocked men.

“I said no peeking.”

That shook them out of their stupor enough to turn away, though she could still see Alex trying to catch a glimpse out of the corner of his eye. Tony, meanwhile, pretended to be more of a gentleman but that was only because he saw Natalie’s reflection in the TV.

She grabbed what she needed and returned to the bathroom, smirking about how she was able to control these men just by walking into a room.

A few minutes later, she returned in a pair of sweatpants, a sweatshirt, and tennis shoes that had seen more than a few afternoon runs. Her hair was now pulled back into a ponytail.

“Okay, you can peek now.” She said playfully as she was back in comfortable clothes. After catching up with the men that there was still no update, she grabbed a can of Diet Coke from the fridge and sat on the bed. She motioned for the other two to sit next to her, one on either side.

“Ты самая красивая женщина, которую я когда-либо видел.” Alex said. When she looked at him in confusion, he wasn’t sure what language he said that in until she spoke.

“What does that mean?”

“Um, uh, it’s uhm, old greeting. Da, old greeting.”

Natalie smiled. “Thanks, I think.” She could see how flustered he was and whatever he said, it must’ve been a little embarrassing. Knowing him it was either how he’d like to screw her brains out or he was confessing his undying love. Either way was just as plausible.

“So, we have time to kill. Might as well do something to pass the time. Maybe a chance to learn a little about each other. Any questions?” Natalie asked, looking between the two men. When neither started, she went ahead. “Okay, Alex, how long have you been in the states? What’s the story behind that?”

“Um, 10 years. Parents left Russia via Moldova to West Germany, then to here. Papa, he worked with serious men, and left Leningrad before being sent to Siberia. When Soviet Union fell, we had good life here, we stayed. Though Uncles visit a lot. Works with your papa, now I work with you.” Alex said, trying to find the best words along the way.

“When you say serious men, you saying what I think you’re saying?” Tony asked.

Alex nodded. “Da. Papa is… Captain in Bratva. Made good life here but still gets visits from Uncles.”

“Also in the Bratva?”

“Da.”

“What’s the Bratva?” Natalie asked. She already knew it was the Russian Mafia, but wanted to keep the conversation going.

“Brotherhood. Like how Italians have… how you say… La Cosa Nostra.”

“Got it.” Natalie said. “And how did you end up here?”

“Side job during college. Hurt knee in football, lost scholarship to play.” Alex said.

“What position did you play?” Tony queried.

“Left Guard. Is funny, played football by accident at first. Mama signed me up for football thinking it was how you say… soccer and not your football. Then found out soccer cost twice as much. By time of high school, soccer coach said I was too fat to play. Joined high school team, was good at hitting and kicking, earned full ride but blew out knee in practice. Grades not great, got work through friend of friend. Now work for you.” Alex smiled at the last sentence, looking straight into Natalie’s eyes.

She smiled softly at that. “That’s why your pager code is 68?”

“Da. 68 was jersey number through high school and college. Was being moved to Will Linebacker but hurt during move.” He said, thinking wistfully about his playing days.

Natalie turned towards Tony. “And you, how did you become a PI?”

Tony sat for a moment before Natalie continued. “You know the stuff that goes on in my family. Alex is part of the Russian mob. What’s your tragic backstory?”

“Well, probably not as exciting as his, but I became a PI because I hated being a cop. I went to the army for a couple years, got injured on a training accident so I qualified for a medical discharge. Like Alex, I fucked my knee six ways from Sunday. Went to school on Uncle Sam’s dime, graduated HCU with a Bachelor’s degree in Criminology. I got hired on to Hillside PD pretty quickly since my uncle was the Deputy Chief, but hated every minute of it.”

“Why?” Natalie asked, sipping her Diet Coke.

“Pay sucked, hours sucked, and the people sucked. Then one day I have a run-in with this guy named Ted. Tells me he’s a former cop looking for some help on a case. It’s real easy work. I sit in a car on my day off while he takes photos of this real hot piece of a… she was really cute. Turns out her husband suspected her of cheating, and she was. Well, she was sleeping with some guy with drug ties to get her fix so her hubby wouldn’t find her stash. While we’re working together, he tells me how much he makes and what he does. Bastard made more in a month than I did in a year, and most of it was tailing cheating spouses. Once I’m eligible I take my PI exam, which the timing was good since I had a… problem at work. Some piece of shit says I was a little too rough with him and tried to start something off-duty. I put 6 holes in his chest. Everything was dismissed as self-defense, but I don’t get paid enough for that shit. Worst I’ve had so far as a PI was a target chased after me with a golf club, and some crazy shit hunting down cars for repo.”

“Repo?” Alex asked.

“Repossession. When someone doesn’t pay their car note, the bank comes and takes their car back. Sometimes the car is hidden, usually in a friend’s garage or moved out of town or something like that. If the car is worth a lot to the bank, they’ll hire us to track it down. There’s a lot of gray area there, like if I see my target car in a garage, I’m not supposed to break in, but if they happened to have a problem with the garage door, I can open it and take the car. Plus, if they have stuff in the car we’re supposed to empty it or let them take it, but they usually try some shit like run off.” Tony said.

“Interesting. So you’ve been at this a long time?” Natalie asked, looking at him as he talked.

“Not really. Couple years now.”

“How old are you?” Natalie asked, seeing that the math wasn’t lining up in her head.

“How old do you think I am?” Tony asked. Natalie studied the lines on his face and rough skin.

“Thirty…five?”

Tony laughed. “35? I’m 28.”

“Really? You look a little… older.”

Tony sighed. “I get that. I spent a lot of time outdoors as a kid, constantly tanned. Plus smoked a bunch before and after the Army. Only quit a year ago. Graduated in 1985, joined the Army straight away, blew my knee out during a drill at Fort Bragg. 82nd Airborne. Landed bad on a jump, tore my ACL to shreds. Couple months later I’m out, and rehabbing my knee while starting college across town. Graduated 1990, passed my PI exam a little over 2 years ago and quit the day I got an offer to join Ted. Then you came to me for this thing you’re working on, and that’s how I’m here.” Tony smiled as he saw Natalie’s head tilt slightly at him mentioning his age. “You thought I was like some middle aged man? Not yet.”

“Well, you carry yourself so… maturely. Like you know how to handle herself.” She mindlessly pushed the hair back over her ear as she said that. He smiled back as he put his right hand on her left hand sitting on her lap.

“So how know drugs so well?” Alex asked, trying to piece together the words while trying to derail the flirting.

“Not everyone I work with is on the up-and-up, and sometimes I meet a guy who can do a favor. I got different people for different stuff in different places. Sometimes the other guys use it for personal use, but I try to stick to professional reasons to have and carry that many drugs on me at once. It’s how I got the stuff for tonight, and the people. Had a favor that needed called in, so I called it in. That and a little cash made it easy to work. Now that you’ve asked some questions, what about you ma’am? What’s your plan once this is all over?”

Natalie thought for a second. These men were already most of the way in. They knew what her family really did and what they were up to behind the scenes. What did she truly want, beyond revenge? How much could she tell them?

She thought about intimacy for a brief moment. ‘What is intimacy?’ Is it just letting someone seeing you naked? Was it baring her soul? Was it sharing pieces of herself that she refused to let others take? So far 8 people had forced her to have sex against her will, but she never gave anything of herself. Bob, Angie, Stacy and Jen up at the camp, and Mother, Father, Jacob and Jason here. She committed heinous acts against her will for survival, but that wasn’t opening herself up to anyone. She showed off her body to these two men while wearing lingerie, but that was a tease, a show of power. She felt more vulnerable wearing sweatpants and a sweatshirt than she did in bra and panties. She’s opened up a little to Suzy, but she’s in a completely different world. Sharing requires trust and trust requires vulnerability. How far was she willing to be vulnerable with these men? How far would she go if they violated that trust?

A second later, she opened her mouth. Nothing came out at first. She tried again, then took a sip of her drink to cover up the little goof.

“What’s my plan? I’m not really sure. I want to watch the world burn around those who hurt me, but some hurt me more than others. Putting my family under heel is just the first, biggest step. There’s some days I want to watch their world crumble for everything they’ve done, and others I want to run it myself since I know I can do better. I want to grow the church so large that it doesn’t need to make pornos or run drugs. I want to have real power, walking through the hallways where the rich and powerful dwell and have them cower. I want to rip Father’s legacy from his hands and use him as a puppet, a trained monkey to do my bidding. I want to make Mother watch as the only life she’s ever had falls around her as she’s relegated to the bench, and the daughter she blames for ruining her life creates an empire out of the kingdom she tried to build. I want to watch as my brothers and cousins jump at my beck and call, glorified foot soldiers in this church as they spread a gospel they barely believe in to crowds who line up to listen to their message, all the while knowing that if they get out of line they will suffer a fate worse than death. I want to publicly shame and mock and ruin Chad Swanson for thinking he was too good to end up with me as his whore of a bride Melissa Crawford watches her dreams of being a woman of the world disappear as she’s known as nothing more than a gold digging slut who got knocked up to take his money. I want to take my pound of flesh from Michelle Bartlett for not being there when I needed her the most. I want to watch Angie Lewis get the shit kicked out of her and beaten to within an inch of her life while her friends suffer. I want to kill that dyke whore Jen Tibault with my own hands in front of that slut cousin of mine Stacy, then frame Stacy for the murder. I want Stacy’s last moment of freedom being that of seeing the woman she loves more than herself die painfully. I want her last moments to be so filled with pain and regret that she begs for death. And then there’s Bob. Bob Kuntzmann. Thanks for getting that info, by the way. I want to burn his world to the ground. I want his family dead. His girlfriend dead. His grandmother dead. His friends dead or in jail, then dead. I want to take everything from him, leave him a withered husk of his former self. I want to make him suffer for years before he finally dies, only to know that an eternity of hellfire awaits, and I want to be the one to send him there. So yeah, I guess that’s my plan.”

Natalie felt exposed to the world sitting between these two men. She was angry, afraid, hurt, and excited all at once. She felt a tingling in her belly, a stiffness under her bra, and a moistness in her panties that she’s never felt before. She realized that the most intimate thing possible is laying her soul bare for others to see.

She waited for a moment to see their reactions. Neither man said anything. Alex said something along the lines of what he said earlier, and leaned in to kiss her. She was not expecting that kiss, nor did she turn it away. It was a soft, sensual kiss. Tony squeezed her hand and when she turned to look at the older man, he did the same. In a matter of moments, two men kissed her and she, she liked it.

Just as Natalie felt like she wanted to surrender to some lustful feeling, there was a knock at the door.

“Ms. Daniels, it’s time.” Stephen the concierge said through the door.

She kissed each of them one last time before they all stood, the men readjusting their pants as they stood and walked to the door.

They had a lot to clean up from the sounds of it, and a lot to do in the next few days.
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To Be Continued...

[LtBroccoli]

Chapter Tags: FSolo
Content Warnings: Bath bombs and Pop Music
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Natalie thinks about the night before and lets her mind, and hands, wander...
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Bubble Bath (FSolo)





Natalie was the only one who woke up on Sunday morning without a headache, hangover, or soreness. Even Wendy complained about a headache when she woke up. Since the other adults slept in, Natalie took Wendy downstairs for breakfast.

Wendy talked about some pop music like a couple Mariah Carey songs as Natalie slammed her first coffee and grabbed a second cup. She was up until 4AM working with Tony and Alex to clean up after her family. The boardroom looked like a party took place, and she didn’t want to know whose undies were whose. There was some powder residue on the tables and what could best be described as lube or grease on the chairs. Things got crazier as Tony snuck into the suites to snap pics of the debauchery. He was able to get in, get some photos, and get out without being seen. Not that anyone from her family was in a state to pay attention to anything outside of their bodies. Tony said his new friends had given her family a little hallucinogen on top of the Mexican Panty Remover. They were so horny and high they had no idea who or what they fucked.

Natalie sipped her coffee again as Wendy made some offhanded comment about how cute some members of some boy band was when she saw Alex walk in to the restaurant for breakfast. She saw him nod at her as he walked past, not saying anything since she was with her sister. She lost herself in memories of the night before as Wendy droned on about that band, Streetback Boys or whatever.

The flirting kicked up a notch as the three of them cleaned things up in the boardroom. It was tough to focus with the occasional jokes, brushes up against each other, and random reaches meant to get closer to each other. She loved the attention she received from both men, finally understanding why some women are so flirty. When Tony left her and Alex alone to snap some spy pics, the two took advantage of the situation and kissed a few times. She enjoyed how safe she felt in his strong, muscular arms and how his tongue felt in her mouth. He was the first boy she kissed of her own choice, and really liked everything about it. But at the same time, it felt like something was slightly off. Part of her wanted to surrender to her feelings right there and jump his bones, while her inner critic kept calling her a slut and a whore for making out with this man.

What made things even more messed up was when Tony came back, he interrupted the two of them in a little make-out session and looked hurt. Natalie, not sure exactly how to handle two men liking her and being friends with each other, told Tony to come over and sit next to her. Next thing she knows, she’s making out with Tony, too. She put a stop to things before any clothes came off, but for a moment seriously contemplated seeing what they would do to satisfy her.

Out of the two, she liked Tony’s experience but enjoyed Alex’s enthusiasm more. He’d probably get good with practice. Then again, maybe Tony was holding back because there were three of them in the room and he strikes her as the kind of man who doesn’t take no for an answer too often, but held back out of respect. Whether that respect was for her or Alex remains to be seen.

Natalie shook herself back to the conversation with Wendy when her younger sister asked her about boys and such. Natalie gave her some cookie-cutter excuse that she doesn’t know much, but to keep herself and God first, if a boy pressures her to do something she’s not comfortable with, then he’s not worth keeping around.

After breakfast, the two girls checked in on their family. Mother and Father were just getting up and the twins were still passed out in their room. Checkout wasn’t until 4PM, so they still had a few hours to kill. Natalie arranged for Wendy to have a spa treatment while she went back to her room for a long soad in the marble tub. She ran a long, hot bubble bath and had the concierge get some lilac scented candles and a velvet mask.

It felt great to relax in a secluded, darkened, and locked bathroom. The hot water beckoned her to the edge, and a bath bomb later the tub filled with suds. Natalie lit the candles and let the scent of lilacs fill the room before stripping down and getting in the tub.

One of the main differences between a bath and a shower for her was that a shower was about cleaning herself while a bath was about relaxing. She showered to wash off the dirt and grime of the day, to remove the filth of the world, and to groom herself to make her presentable to the world at large. She used a bath to lose herself in the moment and focus on herself.

As she rested in the tub, she thought back to the events of the prior night. All of her planning was coming along, and according to Tony she would have enough evidence to destroy her family and put herself in charge from now on. Even a cursory look at the Polaroids the ‘actors’ took were enough to sink everything they’ve built, but once she had copies of the videos she would hammer the coffin closed on any dreams that she doesn’t approve. She was also thankful to her men for not letting her rush in before she had everything ready to go. She’ll get one chance at this, and if things are not perfect, she would never get another shot. She knew her worth now. Her family viewed her as just another warm hole, an expendable mistake that could be easily forgotten. She knew they were perfectly capable of murder, and wouldn’t put it past them to kill her. That’s why she needed her contingencies and emergency plans in place before she brought everything to light.

‘When’s a good time to break their spirits?’ Natalie went through the upcoming week in her head. As soon as they arrived back at the mansion, she would head off to school and spend the week until Wednesday night there. She knew that Mother and Father were expecting to be on camera Thursday so they couldn’t risk anything going wrong the night before, so she should be safe. Still, she planned on not giving them an opportunity to rape her again. All day Thursday would be spent at the First Union Food Bank, helping the poor people feed the even poorer people. They would make a show of how much they were helping and donating back to the community. Nothing like performative charity to get the money flowing in. A couple successful holidays and they reduce their roles to photo ops and have staff and volunteers do the dirty work. If there’s one thing Christians like more than helping others, it’s pretending to help others. Why spend their holiday at a soup kitchen giving out poorly cooked meals to the poor when they could pay someone to do it for them? And her family will take credit for this like they always do. She needed her parents and brothers in tip-top shape for this act of charitable masturbation, and couldn’t do anything to them before that. Everyone will be exhausted Thursday night, though she didn’t rule out that they’d be too exhausted to try anything to her. She had a plan for that, though. She’d drug all of them during dessert to where they’d be too tired to do anything while she slept. It wouldn’t take much, just a little of her new allergy medicine sprinkled into their drinks or on their pie or ice cream. The help has the day off, so it wouldn’t even be weird if she served everything.

Friday. She’d destroy them on Friday. She’ll send Wendy out of the house for the day while she confronted everyone else with their sins. That would give her enough time to get everything ready. She’d have copies of the videos, photos, and any other evidence locked away safe from their grasp and ready to roll out the moment they get out of hand.

Her thoughts drifted to Alex and Tony as she teased them, walking out of the bathroom only in her lingerie. She felt a thrill as their eyes lingered over her body, filled with first shock then lust and desire as she played with them. She loved the power she held over them, just moving around in a state of undress. The way they were aroused by her form, the way she saw them peek as she grabbed her clothes from the bag. Her right hand slid down her chest, feeling her nipples as they rose to an erected excitement under her thumb and finger. She gently stroked her left nipple in a circle as she thought about how Alex’s eyes filled with something close to a loving desire while Tony was more passionate, lustful. She remembered their smells as she sat between them, her right hand sliding down her toned belly and to the top of her blonde bush. Her left hand took over playing with her nipples as her right hand felt through her folds to search for her special button, her clit. The water in the tub swished and swirled as she moved her hand back and forth over her womanhood to find and caress her most sensitive parts. She remembered how the men tasted on her lips, the way their tongues danced in her mouth. Alex was much gentler at first, while Tony was more forceful. She imagined what it would feel like to make love to them, to be caressed in their strong arms while they slid their manhood into her over and over. She now had two fingers in her love tunnel while her thumb stroked her clit. She pinched and pulled on her nipple as her breathing became erratic. She imagined Tony, then Alex, then both of them at once worshipping her body.

Then a thought she didn’t expect crawled in just as she came. She remembered Suzy’s errant kisses on her cheek, how she felt a warmth she hadn’t felt before. She imagined it was Suzy rubbing her clit now. She imagined the lilac smell wasn’t the candle, but Suzy’s perfume. Was that why she picked lilacs?

Her orgasm hit her like a tidal wave, as she shook beneath the tub water and some splashed out on the floor. It took her a moment to settle down and catch her breath.

She felt something different come over her. Instead of the normal shame that she’d feel after touching herself, the shame that came from a lifetime of piety, she felt relieved. She lost herself in the moment and licked her fingers, wondering if Suzy would taste like her? Would Suzy have a similar scent and feel?

For the first time in forever, she felt comfortable and at peace. Of course that would only last for a short time. She had work to do. She had two men that were obviously attracted to her that she could use and have some fun of her own, and a woman who…

‘It’s just a quick fantasy, right? It doesn’t mean anything.’
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To Be Continued...

[LtBroccoli]

Chapter Tags: Nosex, setup
Content Warnings: Plotting and Breadsticks
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Natalie meets Suzy's parents and goes on some impromptu dates...
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The Next Few Days




The next few days played out much like Natalie anticipated. School was winding down for finals and Thanksgiving break and cleaning crews were hard to schedule so she spent more time than she’d care to admit online. She heard about this new search engine called Yahoo and would dive down the rabbit hole of various topics, just looking for things to read or learn about. Nothing was off-limits. One day she started researching recipes and next thing she knows she found a copy of the Anarchists Cookbook as a text file. She saved that for future use.

Her roommate Suzy was having a beast of a time that week. Her attempts to get in trouble were finally catching up with her, but not quick enough to get expelled. She was written up for smoking, breaking curfew, and watching an R rated movie in the dorms. She watched Pulp Fiction and Clerks several times over the weekend, only leaving the room for food or a cigarette break. She purposely violated curfew by stepping out for a smoke after midnight on Saturday. She had a meeting with her advisor regarding her behavior, and since it looks like everything is relatively “minor” so far, she’s only looking at suspension of privileges like leadership positions, which she had no desire to ever serve in. Suzy told her advisor she doesn’t want to stay at this school anymore, that a degree from here is useless for anything outside of working in a church, and even that is overkill. Nothing the school provides as a degree is even remotely interesting to her, and no schools she would want to go to even recognize this school’s credits. She would have to start over from scratch, and just wants to get that process over with. While her advisor agreed that this school wasn’t a good fit at this point, he focused more on trying to correct her behavior instead of making it easier to leave. She had another call with her mother who was adamant that as long as she was still welcome back to Redstone, she was going to Redstone.

On the landlord front, Natalie worked with her attorney and drafted a simple lease agreement for the apartments. It was pretty much standard boilerplate with common restrictions like no pets and no smoking in common areas. After smelling how bad Suzy smelled after a smoke, she didn’t want that in the hallways. After a little back and forth with the lawyer, she could rent to women only as long as she lived there and didn’t use a broker. It was something called the Mrs. Murphy exemption to the Fair Housing Act, but it meant that she could not hire a broker or manager. A little back and forth and she decided to drop that restriction and would enforce it a different way by just not being available if a man called. Same thing for religion as well. Legally she couldn’t say ‘Christian Only’ but could dance around the subject. If 10 people applied for an apartment and 5 of them were obviously not Christian, they go to the bottom of the pile for other reasons that she would make up at that time.

Tuesday came with a few guests visiting the dorm. Suzy’s parents came to pick her up for break and were not thrilled with her recent attitude shift. Natalie made herself scarce when the stern lecture turned into a screaming match. Her parents apologized to both the young women afterward and offered to take them out to a late lunch. At first Natalie declined, but relented after Suzy insisted. They went off campus to a little place she’d heard of called Olive Garden and enjoyed some soup, salad, and breadsticks. Suzy’s parents were shocked to find out that Natalie had never been to an Olive Garden before, given how common they now were. Natalie explained that Mother did not like chain restaurants and any time they went out it was almost exclusively to a place requiring reservations and a jacket. “Even road trips were spent looking for fine dining.” She explained that they rarely took road trips. Most of their vacations were usually mission trips where she worked most of the time.

The awkwardness kicked up a notch when Suzy’s parents asked Natalie how they felt Suzy was adapting to college life, and she was rather blunt. “Suzy wants to study courses not offered by this school, and doesn’t want to be here. She likes a lot of Redstone, but doesn’t feel that a degree from here is worth the paper it’s printed on. She still wants to keep God in her heart, but can do better and more elsewhere.” Natalie felt like the truth would be better than a lie meant to help people save face. Suzy’s mother, Helen, seemed to agree while Ron, Suzy’s father, insisted that Redstone was still a great option. Natalie asked a few more questions, digging to the truth that Ron was an alum from 20 years prior. He wanted to be a pastor but didn’t have the charisma to gather anyone to his church. He soon started in insurance and made a comfortable living from that. He felt that Suzy would meet a good young boy here and that was more important to him it seemed than her happiness or finding a career. Suzy wasn’t having any of that and it took all she could muster to not scream at him. He said as long as he was paying, she was coming back. That’s when Suzy’s mom asked an important question.

“What if they don’t want her back?”

Helen knew that Suzy had racked up a dozen or so smaller honor code violations in the past month. It wasn’t enough to warrant expulsion or suspension yet, but she was certainly on her way there. Helen also knew that Suzy had been accepted to HCU starting in January and was ready to leave Redstone after the semester. In her mind it was no longer about Suzy staying at Redstone, it was about cushioning the blow to her husband’s ego. This inevitably led to a bunch of what-if’s that Suzy and Natalie had worked out. Ron refused to pay for another dining hall meal plan and dorm life. That’s when Natalie dropped the bomb that she had an apartment in mind over on Marwick Street. Ron scoffed at the mention of the place, but when Natalie said they could visit it right now if they wanted, that’s when things felt a little suspicious.

After settling the bill, the four of them made their way to Natalie’s building and she gave them the quick tour. Helen seemed sold on Suzy living there after Natalie mentioned the plans to make it women’s only. Ron was still skeptical, citing price and location and every other excuse on the planet. But he at least budged from never to “if she’s not allowed back.” Natalie already saw the plans going through Suzy’s mind to make expulsion a reality.

As they wrapped up at the building, Natalie’s pager went off. It was Tony, and he wanted to meet to go over what they found. She called him after getting to her dorm. They should meet somewhere neutral since he didn’t want her followed to his office and she wasn’t allowed guests in the dorms. She told him to meet her at the building, but he would need to bring whatever extra he needs, like a TV or power or chairs. He said “no problem” and told her he’d see her in about an hour.

She met her PI friend at her new building, parking in the lot behind the building. Her Lexus stood out against his Ford Escort, but his car was supposed to blend in to the background. They carried in a TV, VCR, a couple folding chairs, and a briefcase. They set everything up in the office, the only room with any furniture left in it.

The pair spent the next few hours huddled together in her store’s office watching the most depraved behavior her family has been caught on camera doing outside of their lair. It was her first night in the office so she didn’t have a clue how cold it would get. Tony grabbed a couple blankets from his car and they ordered pizza from the shop across the street. Once they got through the weirdness of watching her family fuck like rabbits, they moved closer to each other, laughing and flirting the whole time. After a couple hours they’d gone through the footage, but by that point they were making out under the blankets. It was after 9 when the chair they sat in bent then collapsed under their weight. The two laughed before calling it a night.

Wednesday morning meant a trip to the bank where Natalie deposited copies of the videos and pictures into her safety deposit box, along with instructions on whom to deliver it to among the media and law enforcement. She called Alex and they met up for coffee at her office and a walk around HCU’s campus to discuss the plan. They figured that going back to Redstone would draw too much attention and no one would think twice about the two of them walking around HCU, especially with his Russian accent. Any passersby would just assume he was on a student visa.

She laid out the plan. Friday morning she would ready the Library and invite everyone in to watch something. At that point, she would play the ‘Best Of’ tape Tony put together, along with showing them the photos. She wanted Alex there in case anyone got aggressive. He joked that he had no problem “clubbing Mother like baby seal.” She grabbed onto his arm as they walked through the campus, turning this work meeting into a coffee date. Before she returned to her office, Alex leaned in to kiss her. She reciprocated, and the two made out for a solid minute before she had to go. She was excited as he hugged her before they left, his hardon poking her in her belly. She felt a twinge of power, knowing she caused that.

When this week was over, she knew she’d be in charge of things going forward, and there was nothing her family could do to stop her now. Now, she just had to bide her time until Friday.
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To Be Continued...

[LtBroccoli]

Chapter Tags: Nosex, setup
Content Warnings: Competency Porn and Threatening a dog
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Natalie takes over the charity dinner and shows that she can and will lead...
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A Thanksgiving to Forget




Though the dorms at Redstone College were officially closed for Thanksgiving break, that didn’t stop Natalie from staying there Wednesday night. She just had to sign a waiver stating that she was responsible for herself and her room for the night and would be out by noon Thursday or she would be staying on campus until Monday. Considering she was up and moving by 5AM, leaving by noon wasn’t a problem for her.

Natalie called home the night before and said that she had work to do and would be home early in the morning, then meet them at the food bank. The plan was the same they’ve done for years. Someone would open the food bank and church kitchen early in the morning, usually one of the other pastors if Father wasn’t available and greet the staff. But this year it was supposed to be Jacob’s job to open everything up. Jason screwed it up last year so Mother assigned the task to Jacob, as though he’s any more responsible. Natalie knew he’d screw it up, and instead planned on going straight to the church. She would sit in the parking lot across the street from the church until 6:33. When the staff arrived and couldn’t get in, she’d swoop in and save the day.

So, as she sat in her Lexus drinking a coffee and eating a protein bar waiting for the clock to move, she thought about what her plan was for the day. She would show up, do her work, show up her family, and work them to the bone. The volunteers did the bulk of everything, but since a few different news channels, papers, and CBN were coming, they had to look busy. And she knew just how to do it.

Father would work the crowd and give interviews. This was where he excelled and would do the most good. He might try to help in the kitchen, but is next to useless back there. He will try to help serve once the photo ops come, and that is something he can do without messing things up. She’ll make sure he stays in his lane.

Mother thinks she’s good at logistics, but she panics too easily when things are not perfect. Natalie knew how to throw just enough chaos into the mix to throw her off her game and take over. And as much as she hates it, there was a small part of her that hoped she brought Marshy. She’d use that to kick her out of anything with responsibility.

Jason and Jacob are morons, but very charismatic morons. There isn’t a job they couldn’t screw up, but they make a great show of talking to people, connecting with them. Mother tries to put them in the kitchen, and think that because they’re Daniels’s, they know better than everyone else. This inevitably leads to a fight and a couple volunteers getting pissed or quitting. Natalie would give the twins just enough rope to hang themselves, then leave them to twist in the wind.

Wendy, there wasn’t much for her to do. She was still young enough that expecting her to work in the kitchen was a non-starter, but she was old enough to want to do more than look cute for the cameras. Mother would try to have her on some stupid cleanup job but Natalie would put her on drinks and plates. Everyone would help with cleanup this year. No one was above it and that sends a powerful message.

Plus, it would tire everyone else out for later on at home.

The clock turned over to 6:33. She still hadn’t seen Jacob’s car pull up, and several cars were already in the lot. Natalie put the car in drive and made her way to the church’s kitchen entrance. She stopped, exiting the car looking nonchalantly at the small crowd as she walked over with her coffee.

“Why’s everyone outside? Where’s Jacob?”

“Good question. He’s not here.” Martha Henderson said. She was an older woman, probably in her 60’s but with an attitude gained after a lifetime of not taking any shit. She stood by the door, smoking a cigarette as she shivered in her coat.

“One sec.” Natalie went back to her car to get the church keys. She had to make it look like it wasn’t part of the plan for Jacob to flake, but more that she was always prepared. A moment later, she was back at the door and unlocking it.

The small crowd rushed inside to warm up. There were 9 women and 2 men, and the youngest was maybe 50. She knew them from service. These were some of the most devoted to the church, volunteers who wanted to give back and help those that couldn’t. Most everyone here this early were either widows or parents with adult children that moved away or couldn’t travel for the holiday. One pair was a married couple and one woman never “found time to get married.” Her roommate of 28 years also never married, but would stop by after she fed the cats.

Martha seemed to take control. “Carol, let’s get those ovens going, we’re running late. Mike, I’m gonna need a hand getting those birds out of the fridge. Tammy, check the warmers, we’ll need those ASAP.” Martha paused for a moment and looked at Natalie, who stood there confused at the break in the action.

“What?”

“You’re not going to give orders? Countermand anything I said?” Martha asked bluntly.

“Why would I? You know what you’re doing. I assume you know more than I do.” Natalie said.

Martha cocked her head at an angle real quick. “So you’re not going to act like the boys and tell everyone what to do when it’s obvious they’ve never been in a kitchen before?”

“No. That sounds stupid.” Natalie said, sipping her coffee. She waited for the lights to come on and stabilize as one of the women turned everything on.

“Really? You heard what happened last year?”

“That my brother’s an idiot?”

“Which one?” One of the men asked as he walked past looking for somewhere to hang his coat.

“Yes.” Natalie said. “They got into a fight with each other in front of the staff after Jason was late and they knocked over a stack of trays holding food. Look, if Jacob wants to act like he should be responsible and respected, he needs to earn it. He’s late, he’s not here. I’m not going to pretend that I know the first thing about running a kitchen. My job is to help you do your job. What do you need me to do?”

Martha stood there for a moment. “With all due respect, stay out of my kitchen until I call for you. There’s a checklist from last year in the office that was supposed to be here but isn’t. If you can grab that, go through it and tackle what you can, that would be great. And get a coffee urn going after that. We’re gonna need it.”

“On it.” Natalie went upstairs to the office while Martha went back to the kitchen, barking out orders. Again, something that took Natalie a few minutes would’ve taken Jacob half a day to figure out. The checklist was what she worked on last year to make sure that everything ran smoothly. It had been computerized and just needed to be printed out. Jacob is as good with computers as Natalie is with breakdancing so he wouldn’t be able to find it to save his life. In just two minutes she had it printed out and ready to go. A few seconds to find a clipboard and pencil and she made her way back down to the kitchen.

When Natalie returned to the kitchen, she saw Martha coordinating all of the other volunteers. She spent a few minutes setting up the first coffee urn so that they would have some go-go juice in a few minutes. The older woman seemed like she was comfortable in a kitchen, and the only moments of hesitation came when she’d make an order, expecting it to be questioned or countermanded by the young woman with the clipboard. Natalie only nodded and checked the checklist as she watched.

It was nearly 8AM by the time other volunteers showed up to help. There were a couple men that looked like they were in good enough shape to set up the tables in the Fellowship Hall. Still, Natalie went with Martha’s decision and let her choose what she needed for the kitchen before Natalie had the two men get to work on moving and setting up furniture.

Jacob showed up at 9:37, almost 4 hours late, and dressed more for a photo op than for actual work. Jason followed, dressed the same way in a white button-up shirt and khakis. As soon as they arrived, Martha shook her head and ignored everything they said. Natalie waited for a minute until the twins raised their voices at the older woman before she stepped in.

“What time is it?” Natalie asked. When neither man answered right away, she asked again. “I asked you two a question, what time is it?”

“It’s-“ Jacob started before Jason cut off his twin.

“It’s not-“

This time Natalie cut off Jason. “It is 9:40 in the morning. What time were you supposed to be here? 5:45. What time were the volunteers outside? 5:45. Where were you two? Know what, nevermind. It doesn’t matter where you were, you weren’t where you were supposed to be. Did you check to see if Martha had keys to the kitchen? No. Did you check to see when the absolute latest was they needed to be in the kitchen working to meet dinner time? No. You didn’t. Neither of you did because if you did you would’ve known that the latest they could guarantee getting dinner ready for 2PM would be a 6AM start time. Instead, you’re both four hours late and if I didn’t happen to be here early, we’d be ordering pizza for 300 people instead of the Thanksgiving dinners we’ve had sitting in the freezers.” In the middle of the dressing down, Natalie clocked some movement out of the corner of her eye.

Father. He stood in the doorway watching the dressing down she gave her older brothers.

Jacob opened his mouth but nothing came out at first. Then Jason put his foot in his.

“Yeah, why were you here so early, huh?”

Natalie looked at him with disdain. “Seriously? Why did I, the woman who has had to clean up your messes for years, show up early to a major event knowing that you two nincompoops were responsible for something important? Why would I, the college student on her day off wake up at 5AM knowing you would be too lazy or too stupid to set an alarm clock? Why was I here? Because you two were involved, and you’d fuck up a wet dream.”

Father cleared his throat from the doorway. “Language.”

Natalie barely acknowledged his presence and continued. “You two want to act like you’re special because of who your father is, whoop dee do. I’ve got the same father, and you don’t see me traipsing around like the world owes me anything. Why? Because I have to work twice as hard in this church to get half the recognition. I’m not going to let your incompetence cost this family any more. We have a lot that needs done, not enough time to do it in, and we have to be ready to roll when the camera crews show up. And here you two are, dressed like you’re running for Congress doing a bad photo op of how you relate to the working man. How about you relate to them by actually working today? You go ask Martha if she wants you in the kitchen, and you do what she tells you if she wants you there. If not, we need hands in the Fellowship Hall setting tables and chairs. And take off the white shirts before you do it. You two never pack spare shirts and Father’s spares will look ridiculous on you.”

Jason looked at Jacob, then over at Father in the doorway.

“Why are you looking at me? Listen to your sister.”

“But she’s-“

“She seems to be doing what you should’ve done 4 hours ago, Jacob. Arrive, get a grasp on the situation, consult your staff, put them in the best position to do their jobs, and let them do what they’re best at while you don’t give them any problems. Natalie’s here early because this is important. Natalie, what time did you wake up to get here?”

“4:55 in the morning.” Natalie said, staring daggers at Jacob.

“She was up before 5, and drove in from Collegetown to be here. You weren’t up before 7. The only reason this isn’t an unmitigated disaster is because of her.” Reverend Charlie said as he walked over to his adult children, his voice getting softer as he approached, until it was barely a whisper as he stood over them. “We have multiple news crews arriving for dinner. The Mayor is coming to stop by. CBN is sending a correspondent. This is a big deal, this could make or break us for going national, and you couldn’t even be bothered to set an alarm. How can I expect you to take any of this seriously if you can’t do the one thing we entrusted you to do? Now you two go ask where you can help, and stay out from under foot. If Martha doesn’t want you in the kitchen, go the hall and help set things up there. Go.”

Jacob and Jason slinked off towards the kitchen, giving dirty looks to Natalie as they moved. Charlie turned to his daughter.

“Thanks for getting here early. Did you…”

“Mess with their alarms? No. I just assumed their incompetence knows no bounds.” Natalie said.

Father shook his head. “No, I’m… Thanks. How are we looking?”

Natalie checked her clipboard. “We were about an hour behind schedule because of them. Took longer to get the first batch of birds in the oven, but those should be coming out any moment. There’s also some ham leftovers from Easter in deep freeze that were still good that we’re putting out as an extra main. Two guys are up in the hall, I’ll send the twins up to help.”

“Is that because a man’s work isn’t in the kitchen?” Charlie asked, like he was seeing where her head was.

“It’s where they can do the least harm. If they’re in the kitchen for more than 10 minutes, we’ll have a disaster. Food poisoning, dropped food, one of them pees in the gravy or bleeds on the stuffing, who knows. Worst they can do up there is break a bone. Down here Martha might cut them. Then we have to explain why someone has a finger in their stuffing.” Natalie looked over the checklist again. “Hall setup doesn’t really need to start for another hour, but Martha has the kitchen under control for now and we’ll need to get things staged up there for when food’s ready to transport. Still have a couple hours, but that just gives more time to make it look pretty.”

“So they’ll work on decorations while you run the kitchen?” Charlie asked, looking over the barely organized chaos around him. People moved to and fro with a purpose, aside from his sons who were shooed out of the kitchen area.

“Go help in the hall, stow those shirts, unless you want to go home and get spare clothes or bring workclothes. Better yet, don’t. Stow the shirts with your suit jackets. Scuffing your pants with some dirt from moving tables makes you look more like men who care about the work than how you appear. They expect Father to look pristine, you two just come off as pretentious pretty boys. Go.” Natalie barked the orders at the twins, and they just stood there for a moment. Jason gave a quick look to Father who was similarly shocked. The twins left the kitchen area for the Fellowship Hall.

“When you said make it look pretty, what were you thinking?” Charlie queried.

“Mother’s tastes are usually spot-on for that. I was thinking something inviting yet austere. We’re not celebrating our charity, we’re reaching out to those in need, those down on their luck. A bunch of over-the-top decorations is too much but putting out some of the flowers from the worship hall or some of the Christmas decorations.” Natalie checked the checklist. Decorations weren’t on the list, so she wrote in a couple notes about adding that for next time.

“I like it. Would you want to do a trip to get anything?”

“No. Even if a store is open today, spending money on decorations is a bad look. But using what’s on hand makes us look more caring and responsible.”

Charlie leaned over and kissed Natalie on the head. “That's my girl.” She recoiled for a moment, then realized this might be the most affectionate he’ll be all day. “What’s my part?”

“You do what you do best. Preach, help, talk, listen, schmooze. Help out where you can, but remember to play up your bad back.”

“I don’t have a bad back.” Charlie said.

“You do now. Nothing too bad, just pulled a muscle or something, in case anyone gives you any guff for not doing heavy lifting. Blame it on the dog.” Natalie smiled at the last part, and Charlie grinned in response.

“I’ll think of something. But why not have me join in? I want to know what you’re thinking and why.”

Natalie sighed. “You’re the Patriarch and head of the Church. While it sends a great message for you to be hands on, you either need to be more hands-on than everyone beneath your position or delegate properly. If you’re hands on, they’ll see that Jason and Jacob aren’t doing their jobs and that they aren’t ready to lead. But by doing only a little and making them work for and with you, they look more competent than… well, they look capable. They won’t accept Mother or I ever leading for, well, obvious reasons, but those that know will know. You direct traffic, the boys learn more about charity and hard work, and the masses eat it up. Everyone can relate to an injury, and a dumb one around the house strikes a chord. I mean, who hasn’t done a really dumb thing and hurt themselves? But you’re struggling through the pain for this. You go from a preening and pretentious preacher to a caring and devoted pastor. And you use your resources in the best positions. That includes us.” She stood there for a moment, gauging Father’s expression. He smiled and nodded.

“Perfect. What’s next? Is that the list from last year?”

Natalie checked her list. “Two years ago, made some updates last year. Keep cooking, tray up the first batch of turkeys, get the sides finished, desserts prepped and covered. We’ll move everything in stages once upstairs is further along.”

Father nodded in approval. “I’ll leave you be. Call me if you need anything.” Charlie walked off, taking in a scene he didn’t expect to see this morning. Everything was running smoothly, no one had quit, and things were moving at a decent pace for once.

Natalie watched as he left, then stepped outside for a brief moment to catch her breath from getting out of control. “Slow. Slow. Slow.” She repeated her mantra until her breathing was under control as she staved off a potential panic attack. Handling the staff is one thing, but being that close to Father, especially after what he’s done to her in the past few months, made her skin crawl. She made him realize that all of this would fall apart without her. Mother and he put too much faith in ‘their boys’ to see that it was the woman running things each time something worked right. Now he had undeniable proof that she was better than them, and that without her today, this would already be a disaster.

She only had to be the doting, respectful daughter for another day. Come tomorrow, she had other plans to execute.

As Natalie stood out in the cold, she saw a new Lexus SUV pull into the parking lot, and out jumped Wendy. Her younger sister ran over to Natalie, big puffy pink coat bouncing the whole way.

“Hey sis!” Wendy came in for a hug. Natalie accepted it, but broke it when she saw Mother get out of the vehicle, carrying Marshy. She froze for a moment before snapping into action.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Natalie said, walking towards Mother. Before Mother could even say anything, Marshy barked a pathetic little bark. “Where do you think you’re going with that?”

“Excuse me young lady-“ Mother started before Natalie snapped at her.

“EXCUSE YOU?! WE’RE COOKING FOR 300 PEOPLE, AND YOU WANT TO BRING A DOG INTO THE KITCHEN?! ARE YOU INSANE?! ARE YOU TRYING TO GET US IN TROUBLE? THAT DOG DOESN’T COME ANYWHERE NEAR THE KITCHEN!”

“DON’T YOU DARE RAISE YOUR VOICE TO ME, I’M YOUR MOTHER!”

“THEN ACT LIKE IT! PUT YOUR DAUGHTER AND YOUR CHURCH ABOVE YOUR STUPID DOG FOR ONCE!”

The screaming match had drawn a few looks from inside, and a moment later Father arrived as the two women were in each other’s faces yelling. It was impossible to discern what was being said towards the end, but a few choice words like ‘heartless’, ‘cold’, and ‘stupid fucking bitch’ were tossed around. Charlie stood between his wife and oldest daughter while his youngest stood off to the side on the verge of tears.

“What is going on?” He said, pulling them apart.

“She started-“ Mother started, but Natalie cut her off.

“LOOK AT WHAT SHE’S CARRYING INTO THE KITCHEN! LOOK!” Natalie pointed at Marshy, and Charlie saw red.

“Samantha, are you kidding me? No. No. Take that dog home and come back. We’re not dealing with this today.”

“You’re taking her side, Charles?” Mother was pissed and surprised.

“I’m taking the side of the 300 people we have to feed who will lose their minds if they find dog hair in their mashed potatoes because you love your dog more than your actual children. You have no clue what’s happened so far, so let me explain. Jacob slept in, no one had keys to get in, and he didn’t get here until a minute before I arrived about 15 minutes ago. Natalie has been here since 6:30 running the kitchen. The first batch is already done. She has this running smooth, and you want to bring that dog in here? You know how I feel about that dog, you know Natalie’s allergic, yet you bring him with you everywhere. He can’t come in here.”

Mother gave him a dirty look of anger and disgust as she hugged Marshy a little tighter. “How dare you say that.”

“Honey, I am trying here, okay? This is a bad look right now. The dog can’t come in the kitchen. He can’t be near the food at all today. And we can’t-“

“OH, DON’T YOU DARE-“ The screaming match now turned between Mother and Father as Natalie stepped back for a moment. She then put her fingers in her mouth and whistled a loud, screeching noise to get their attention.

“That dog can’t come in the kitchen. It either goes home, stays in the car where it’ll freeze to death, or has to stay upstairs away from the food, the trays, the open flames, all of it. And it stays away from me, or so help me I swear to God I will feed it a chocolate bar. And we know what that will do to him. Now, do you want to listen to how this can help, or are you going to continue throwing a tantrum, Mother? Good. If that dog is here during the dinner, a lot of kids will want to play with it. They’ll want to pet and squeeze precious little Sir Marshmallow of Sussex. If they have a dog, it’s probably a big dog and not a little show dog like this. But there will be people with asthma, with allergies. If they don’t want to be near the dog, they can’t be near the dog, end of discussion. We can’t handle a lawsuit because your dog killed some old lady who’s allergic and just wanted a hot meal on Thanksgiving. So is Marshy a mascot dog, or does he go home or stay in your office all day? And none of the volunteers are cleaning up after him. They’re too busy with everything else to worry about mopping up a pee spill because you don’t pay attention when he needs a walk.” Natalie finished, holding her clipboard and wondering if she’d have to use it in a fight.

Mother looked around at everyone. Father was upset, Natalie was cold, and Wendy was crying. Meanwhile Marshy squirmed in her arms. She had what some addicts would call a moment of clarity.

“So Marshy’s not allowed near the food?”

“To start.” Father began, but then paused and motioned to Natalie.

“Marshy has to be on his leash at all times. He likes it, you just don’t like using it, but as Martha said earlier, tough titties. Dog on the leash at all times. Keeps everyone safe. Dog stays upstairs or outside. He comes in the kitchen, we’re in trouble and have to throw out a literal ton of food. You are responsible for him at all times. Wendy can help, but that’s it. Jason and Jacob will be busy setting things up and working. You have to use the commands with him. He’s smart enough to know them, you just don’t like to. If people want to pet him, he’s in public, so if they’re gentle let them. He bites anyone or shows aggression or bad behavior, he goes. Like I said, there’s a lot of dangerous things around that he can get hurt or hurt others with. If he needs a break, use your office. And don’t give us this guff about not having a leash, you keep a spare in the glove box along with poop bags. If this doesn’t work, you can take him and crate him like he’s supposed to be.” Natalie held her breath, waiting for an eruption from Mt. Mother. But it didn’t come. Instead Mother sniffled once and went to the car to grab the leash and bags.

“Come Marshy.” Mother walked off with her dog, still carrying him like a little baby.

Father shook his head, then turned to Natalie. “Really? Swearing to God? Taking the Lord’s name in vain?”

“I’m sorry. I had to get the point across about how serious this is.” Natalie said. Wendy was crying next to her.

“You wouldn’t really poison Marshy?” Natalie leaned over and hugged her little sister. She comforted her for a moment.

“Why don’t you go inside and hang up your coat. I’ve got some important work for you.”

The younger girl looked up, wiping tears out of her eyes. “Really?”

“Really. I need help setting up the drinks, getting plates and silverware ready, and Mother will need help with decorating too. Think you can do that?”

“Yeah. Yeah.” Wendy’s mood lightened as she went inside. Father stood next to her as the younger girl left.

“I noticed you didn’t deny that you would feed Marshy chocolate.”

Natalie thought for a moment. Matthew 5:37 went through her mind. ‘Let my yes be yes.’ She would do so in a heartbeat, and Father sensed that. But this was about what was in her heart.

“I’m reminded of Proverbs. ‘Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord, but those who act faithfully are his delight.’” She turned to Father as she said those words. They both knew a dozen other verses she could’ve pulled out of her ass, but this was more about moral honesty than telling a white lie to make someone feel better. Though, not lying about wanting to kill the family dog is one interesting hill to claim.



——




The rest of the prep work seemed to go off without too many things blowing up in her face. After she kicked her family out of the kitchen except for Wendy, things ran relatively smoothly. Apparently the chaos of a kitchen is an acquired taste, and it was not one Natalie had yet truly acclimated to. Even for a church kitchen, there was a good deal of yelling and swearing as Martha would bark out orders to Carol, Mike, and the others. But for the most part, no one took any offense to being called out or yelled at, as long as the work got done. For example, when Martha demanded to know where the celery was for the stuffing, she didn’t bat an eye when Carol said they’d be “up her ass in a minute if you don’t back off.” Slightly later on as the final cooking push took place, Carol threatened to “cut a bitch” if Martha didn’t get the next wave of potatoes and other sides ready to go right away.

During some of the slow times, Natalie got to know a little bit about the volunteers. Martha Henderson has worked for 35 years as a catering chef and her kids were all grown and moved out of the city. Mike Collins was in his fifties and his wife passed from cancer a couple years earlier and his daughter was a paramedic working all day. The cat ladies were Sara Bailey and Tammy Carr. They’ve been roommates for about 30 years and have 5 cats between the two of them. They both have nieces and nephews that refer to the other as Aunt Tammy or Aunt Sara. Natalie thought that sounded a little suspicious, but no one seemed to care as long they didn’t do anything in front of others. Seemed like as long as no one asked, they wouldn’t tell.

She eventually made her way upstairs to the Fellowship Hall. Jason and Jacob couldn’t screw this job up too badly, but still found ways to make mistakes. They put too many tables out without taking into account the lines and flow. Then they put the serving tables, which are longer and stronger, in with the crowd. They had to repeat their work a few times, but they eventually figured things out. Wendy had worked on the drink station like Natalie asked, then moved over to help Mother with decorations. Wendy did a lot more work than she expected since Mother was preoccupied with Marshy. The place looked great and after the furniture was set up, the four of them worked on any displays and whatnot.

Meanwhile, Father had jumped into Pastor Mode. He made the rounds chatting with the volunteers on how their lives were going, then greeted everyone as they came in. Some people showed up as early as noon and Father did his best to make them feel comfortable and welcome. He played up the bad back angle perfectly, even getting some of the early guests to help set up chairs when he groaned getting up. Father spun a quick yarn about almost tripping over the dog and when he jerked out of the way his back twinged on him, and that opened up so many opportunities for stories about pain, which then led to several promises of new families showing up to the next Sunday service.

As more people arrived, the more he poured on the charm. By the time the food was moved upstairs, the Fellowship Hall was filling up, several local dignitaries had arrived, several members of the local media, and the Christian Broadcasting Network showed up to document the dinner. The twins were on full ham-it-up mode along with Father while Mother and Wendy made small talk with some of the kids and families. The kids in the crowd ate up seeing the little puffball and Mother even had help from one of guests in training Marshy. Turns out he was a professional dog trainer who was down on his luck and Mother was taken by his ability to get Marshy to sit on command within a minute. Mother made sure to get the man’s phone number, for further lessons.

The only snafu’s that happened were one of the TV crews knocked over a coffee urn and someone tripped and spilled the salad bowl. But to be honest, those were easy to clean up and no one outwardly missed the salad. Who eats salad on Thanksgiving?

As meal time started, Father gave the benediction to open the meal. He talked about the importance of charity and family, how everyone is welcome not just today but every day of the year, and how community can help everyone. He thanked the Mayor and his team for showing up and helping out on the serving line today, and then went through each team of the volunteers for everything they did. He congratulated Martha and the kitchen staff for the delicious food they made. “I’m not gonna lie, I snuck a few bites when she wasn’t looking. Feel you’re in for a good time.” Father received a few chuckles for that. He then thanked his family, starting with Mother for ‘organizing’ things, Wendy for helping out more as she grows, and the twins for something that sounded like praising their work at preaching but came off more as a back-handed compliment to those in the know. He saved Natalie for last. “Last but not least, I would like to give thanks and congratulations to my daughter Natalie. She took time off of her college coursework to come here this morning, arriving early and helping where she could. She managed so many parts of today and basically handled the logistics of everything you see here this afternoon. She stepped up without being asked, and learned the most valuable lesson of leadership today. Trust your people that know more than you, and listen to their advice. Too many times we see in the world where someone has a rank or a name or a title, they think that it gives them the right to boss others around, but the real strength comes in being humble enough to recognize greatness in others and help them achieve it. This might be the first time in 15 years where we’re not scrambling at the last minute or running late, and it’s not a coincidence that it’s the first time she was managing things. Which I am so glad about, because as you may have noticed I haven’t been as hands-on this year. Long story short, hurt my back at home recently. I was apprehensive about coming in today, trying to force through the pain. But when I saw my daughter handle one emergency after another with the calmness of ordering takeout, I knew we were in good hands. She’s growing into a beautiful, smart, and capable young woman, and I admit to the sin of pride when I see how well you’ve done and how much you’ve done here. Thank you, and to everyone that worked to make today a success.” There was a round of applause for Natalie, who had changed from sweats into a white blouse, navy skirt, and short heels. She smiled and acknowledged the crowd. After that, everyone joined hands for prayer as Father led them through it.

Outwardly, Natalie smiled at the praise came from Father and the crowd. Inwardly, Natalie grinned in satisfaction and excitement. Satisfaction for how the first part of her plan for this weekend had come to fruition. Not only did she make herself look important and irreplaceable, but she did so while making everyone else look incompetent. Mother was more interested in her dog than running the dinner and it showed. Jacob and Jason came off as nothing more than charismatic morons who couldn’t be trusted as far as they could be thrown. And Wendy, well Wendy is just a kid still and already showed more of an initiative and sense of responsibility than both of the twins combined. And Father… Father had known for years that the boys were too immature to run the church when he was gone, but had no idea it was this bad. Mother usually covered for them with their school issues like their bad grades and honor code violations. To the public world, the twins were only good at being the smiling and welcoming faces of the church, but couldn’t lead ants to a picnic. Natalie only made their incompetence more and more apparent every time she succeeded at a task they failed at. College? It took them 4 years of cheating, lying, bribery, and stealing to graduate with more honor code violations than anyone would care to count. Natalie would graduate in 2 weeks after one semester on campus and years of correspondence courses. Running events? Natalie ran the best holiday dinner in 15 years, and made them look like morons while doing so. Her first time was smooth and efficient. Last year they had a fist fight that knocked over sides for 100 people. Business? Jacob and Jason tried to open up a small restaurant but it failed since they’d have to spend effort and time making it successful. Meanwhile, Natalie just closed on an apartment building with her allowance money she squirreled away for years. The only thing that she hasn’t shown that she’s more capable at than the twins was their underworld activities, but that’s what tomorrow is for.

Natalie knew that she had her family in a tough spot. They had to acknowledge how good she was for the church and the family business. Tomorrow, she’d show them what would happen if they didn’t give her control.

As Father said “In Jesus’ name we pray”, Natalie followed it up with “Amen.”

Elevating herself and hurting her family. That’s what she was thankful for this year.
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To Be Continued...