Prologue
I stand in my pose, a smile on my face and dream.
I remember in my dreams. How I got here, and what led me to this. A warm feeling of fulfillment and bliss drifts through me, and I cannot imagine now how I lived before I found this. Before my eyes I can vaguely see the room before me, a study, with sunlight streaming in through the windows and occasionally shapes of movement blurring past me. I cannot move, even should I desire too, because after all, plastic dolls don’t move. Around me I sense the other girls, my new friends, posed as well. Some are clothed like me, in a variety of fashions as they chose, while some a nude or practically so. Some are plastic like me; others are ceramic, stone, ivory and even metal. We all stand on our little display stands, my name, Paula, displayed in little gold letters on the base, while I know that the other girl’s names are on theirs as well.
We can sense each other, feel each other’s dreams while we are posed, and we share a warm friendship and bond. The others feel the bliss I feel, and I feel theirs. We all dream of different things, and sometimes we even see the dreams of our friends. In our dreams, we share our stories, and sometimes more. Occasionally, we are all awake, and then we are a close family, like sisters almost. More often some of us are dreaming, while the others go about their new life here.
How we got here varies, but I remember how I did. It seems like yesterday, and long ago… but actually began early last summer…….
Chapter 1 Unanswered Questions
I had different dreams last summer. Strange dreams of a strange bald man with a false bland smile and cold eyes kept coming to me in my sleep. He had a pleasant, almost diffident manner, but what he could do was frightening. I had the same dream, over and over. He would appear in my office at the detective agency, point a magic wand at me, and suddenly I couldn’t move. The dream would go on with me posed like a mannequin in a storefront, wearing a blank smile and in the dream I realized that I was a plastic mannequin, and the worst of it was that I liked it.
After a few nights of this, I went back to the shrink, figuring that maybe I was having some kind of post-traumatic stress from the kidnapping. Now that had been a real nightmare, and the worst time of my life. All of my years in the Army and LAPD had not prepared me for the helpless feeling during all of that. I had been working, and some men had come into our office and kidnapped me, my partner Joe, our secretary Tina, and our boss Pam. We were held for a couple of weeks, and poor Joe died of a heart attack. Then, for some reason, the kidnappers left and never returned, and we managed to get a phone message out and were rescued.
The shrink figured it had to have something to do with that, especially the helplessness I was having in the dreams. His explanation for the other dream I was having never seemed to make sense though. The other dream was stranger, although much more pleasant.
This dream involved a beautiful red-haired woman, with kind eyes, and a soft sweet voice. She was talking to me, and beside her, was a man about my age with deep brown eyes that could be kind, but showed that he was far older than he looked. They talked to me, although I could never remember what they said, and I always felt better when the dreams ended. But I remembered every detail of their faces, and that her name was Cheryl.
My shrink said that those two must be imaginary rescuers, something my mind created to help me deal with the kidnapping. I knew his answer was bullshit, but I never could come up with why I knew that.
The strangest thing of all I never felt I could talk about. I was pretty secure about my looks, and I figured I was in great shape for 35. A few lines and wrinkles, but I worked out hard and kept fit. Since the kidnapping, my body is different somehow. I didn’t have any wrinkles, lines, moles, or even acne scars. A scar on my knee from the Army, and a gunshot wound scar from LAPD were suddenly gone. Not a trace of them. My tits, not the largest with a B cup, and starting to sag a little with age, were suddenly a C cup, and perky as could be. It was like my body was 20 again, and that made no sense at all. Other things bothered me too. I no longer had body hair either, not even pubes, and although it was kind of nice not to have to shave my legs or pits anymore, how could I not have body hair? I had always had at least some
I was suddenly dressing differently, more power suit and mini skirts, and fewer jeans and sweatshirts. I didn’t know why, but I just felt I needed to change how I dressed. I also had the strangest compulsion from time to time to stand in front of my mirror and pose. It made no sense and was too embarrassing to talk about.
I noticed that Tina looked better too. Her chest was a little larger too, while her teeth, previously a little crooked, were suddenly perfect and she looked a lot less mousy and a lot prettier now. We never discussed it though. I just couldn’t bring myself to and I don’t think she ever could either. In fact, she didn’t seem to notice that she had changed at all.
I tried talking to Pam and Tina about the dreams, but they always looked at me blankly. We discussed every detail of the kidnapping, hoping to figure out why it ended the way it did, but the answers we came up with never made since. All we knew is that the reason behind had something to do with the man Joe and I had investigated for Pam’s friend Tom. We knew that Tom got killed in San Luis Obispo when his house exploded, while Baldwin’s house burned down the same day and he disappeared shortly after.
Eventually, a few weeks after all of that, I decided that I had to find out what really happened. Emily, Tom’s widow, had paid us a lot more money than usual for the case. She said she felt bad about what happened to us, and Tom would have wanted it that way. So I had a fat bank account, and I decided I needed to take some time off.
I quit the agency, although Pam and the guys tried to talk me out of it. Pam said to come back when I was ready, and I promised I would. I put a few of my things in storage, sold the condo and most of my other stuff and gave the rest away. I got into my 66 Mustang convertible, and drove off to find out what I could. I needed to know so I could find some peace.
I was free to do what I wanted, at least for a while. My parents were long dead, and I never talked to my brother. My friends were at the agency, or scattered across the country and I didn’t keep in touch much. I left Palm Springs and headed for Malibu.
Chapter 2 Searching for Answers
I had a few things to work
with when I started my search. I had read the police reports about Tom’s death,
the fire at Baldwin’s and a couple of other things that seemed connected.
A secretary from a temp agency had disappeared the day Baldwin’s house blew
up, and the temp agency was close to Tom’s summer house in San Luis Obispo.
Emily had ended up with all of Tom’s money, and apparently Tom had managed a hostile takeover just before he was killed of Baldwin’s company. An investment group in Morro Bay, which it seemed was very close to the temp agency, was an interesting coincidence too. And I had my dreams, which I was beginning to think, along with the strange changes in me, were something more than what the Shrink said were coping mechanisms.
I was driving through Los Angeles, and was passing a mall near Venice Beach when I felt this strange feeling that I had been here before. I didn’t remember ever having been there, it’s a long way from Palm Springs after all, and when I worked for LAPD I never worked this part of town. It was strange, but I decided maybe I should see what was up.
So I pulled into the parking lot, and walked inside.
I wandered around for a while, and even though I really didn’t have a clear destination in mind, I looked around. After about an hour, I stopped in front of a shop. I felt a cold wave of almost fear run through me as I looked around. Suddenly, the dream I had of standing in a storefront swept through my head and I realized that this was the very place. The store was a high-priced women’s store that sold dressy business clothes, and it had a couple of very detailed and beautiful mannequins in the front of the store. I recognized them from the dream, and suddenly I was walking away, quickly, and tears were running down my face. I have never felt so panicked before, and it felt so wrong.
I didn’t stop until I got to my car. I had felt another sensation while I was there, a strong urge to just step up beside the mannequins and take a pose with them. The panic had swept through me like a cold wave, and I found myself sweating and choking back sobs when I finally got in the car. What could possibly be causing this?
I sat there a couple of hours before I finally was able to turn the key and drive on. I was a wreck emotionally, but at least something had been learned. I wasn’t sure what, but something had.
I finally got to Malibu, and I pulled up to the street where Baldwin used to live. I got out of the car, and walked around a bit, letting my instincts sort through what I saw. The house was just a slab now, the wreckage and other evidence of the fire having been cleared away. The strange feeling that had troubled me at the Mall was here again, and I knew, for some reason, that I had been here before too. I sat down on the hood of my car and read through the police report again.
It still didn’t make sense. Why had the police and arson investigators ruled out so quickly criminal activity? I mean come on! How can this fire and one just like it to his business rival on the same day not be connected?
I remembered talking to a couple of the people in the report when I first got back, they seemed convinced that it was an accident, but they never seemed to be able to name why they knew it was not criminal. I thought at first that maybe a payoff was involved, but unless they were the worlds best liars, they didn’t act the way people do when they not saying what they believe.
Standing there, looking at the empty concrete slab that used to be a house, I realized that I had found another answer, of a sort. I had been here, so it seemed, but again, how was that important?
I left Malibu as it got later in the afternoon and I found a room for the night at a resort hotel in Santa Barbara. I needed a rest, it had been a long and emotionally rough day. I
I sat a little while later on the terrace adjoining my room, sipping wine and eating my dinner, watching the sunset. I was tired, but I wasn’t sure I wanted to sleep. I wondered what dreams would come to me tonight.
Chapter 3 A Revealing Dream
That night, I finally fell asleep after finishing a couple bottles of wine. I was afraid to sleep, and hoped that enough wine would knock me out and keep the dreams away.
But they came anyway.
I was standing in the storefront again, and I could see the man with the baldhead and cold eyes looking at me, a false smile on his face. It came to me that his name was Jones, and he didn’t need more name than that. He was talking to me, and for the first time I could really hear what he said.
“Well Paula, I hope you like you new life. It’s not as adventurous as your previous one, but you must admit you are well dressed and look better than ever.” He paused for a moment, and then looked to my side. I could sense that something was different, but I couldn’t turn to look, that not being something mannequins are generally able to do.
“Sorry you can’t look at what I am seeing, but you would be impressed with how wonderful you look now, especially with your new companion.”
His eyes actually lit up a little, and I could actually see real emotion now, a terrible joy. “You see, occasionally I need to refresh my energy, and I came up with an idea of what to do with the shells of the people I use for that after I transformed you. You made such a beautiful mannequin, and now you are hidden away in plain sight. Why not do the same with the husks of those I use as well?” I could feel cold terror and a horror surge through me as he spoke. What had he done?
“So when I am done feeding, I simply transform them like I have you. I leave them perfect in their beauty, just like you, although for them it is not something they will ever know. Too bad the young lady next to you will never appreciate the eternal beauty I gave her, but I am sure she will be glad to know at least her remains will be admired for many years to come.”
The dream ended abruptly as I woke up, sweaty and my tears running down my face. I got up and shaking and crying, walked to the bathroom and washed my face. I felt weak and faint, but after sitting on the dark terrace, watching the surf roll in for a while I was finally able to calm down and I fell asleep again sitting on a chair outside.
Another dream came, this one at least was comforting. Cheryl, the red headed girl, was talking to me, and for the first time I could hear her to.
“Paula” she said, her voice sweet, almost gentle, but quietly strong as well, “you will forget about all of this. Jones is gone, and you are safe now. You will remember what you are, a strong, tough and smart woman, and you will return to your life. You will not need to be a decoration anymore, and you will remember that you are so much more.”
She said it several times, and I could feel something, pleasant, but strange, surging through me as she did. I could see her and move normally, and looking over her shoulder, I could see Tina, now asleep in a bed, and Pam, lying limp on the floor.
Pam was staring up at the ceiling, a blank smile on her lips, and her eyes were unfocused, and I suddenly realized that she was not made of flesh, but appeared to be plastic. A man, with brown hair and good shoulders, medium height and weight (my observation skills were working at least), stood over her, and he had what could only be described as a magic wand in his hand. Two other women were in the room as well, another petite young woman with brown hair and eyes, and a taller woman with long red hair. I somehow knew their names too, Sarah and Beth.
Then something amazing happened. Pam glowed as a golden light came from the wand and surrounded her, and I could see her body lose its lifeless plastic look, and gradually shift back into flesh. She gasped for a moment, reached out with her hands, and tried to grab the man. I could see her eyes, and they practically glowed with a look I could only put down to sexual hunger, a powerful need that was almost scorching. But then the other two women gently restrained her with their hands, then talked to her soothingly for a while as the man stepped back, shaking his head in what I believed was relief and sadness.
This dream ended suddenly too, as I woke up with a start as my wake up call came through. I sat up, shaking again, and I wondered what those dreams could mean. They couldn’t be memories, because what was happening in the dreams was clearly impossible. But I did remember reading something about a Mr. Jones who worked for Baldwin, although what he did was unclear. Was it the same man?
I got up, and stretched. I was cold, the cool air off the Pacific and the mist caused me to shiver. I walked over to the phone, answered it so it would stop ringing, and decided I needed a shower and some coffee.
A couple hours later, feeling a little more human, and vaguely better, I had my breakfast, packed and checked out of the hotel. It was time to head north to my next stop.
Chapter 4 A strange puzzle
I drove for hours up the coast, hoping the mountains and the sea would relax me, and after a while, they did. I was heading up to San Luis Obispo, and then over to Morro Bay. The coastal fog had burned off early today, and it was a nice drive. The dreams played over and over in my head, and I knew that I was going to find some answers soon.
The women in the last dream, they were the key. I just knew it. Sarah, Beth and Cheryl, they knew something and I somehow knew I would find them soon. After stopping for lunch in Pismo Beach and having some clam chowder to warm me up (did I mention it gets really cool on the coast? Even in August.), I finally reach San Luis Obispo that afternoon. It was early, just after lunchtime, and the sub division were my former client had lived was pretty empty. I drove by the house where he had died. It had been torn down since the explosion, and someone new had bought the property.
I stopped, and looked for a few minutes, thinking over the police reports that I had read. All traces were gone now, so I didn’t see anything that helped me any. After a bit, I drove on, headed for Morro Bay, a few miles away.
I pulled into Morro Bay, a sleep little down this time of the week, with the tourists gone until the weekend. I had never been here before, so I drove around to get a feel for the place for about an hour, and in that time, covered practically every street, it being that small a town after all. I pulled into the park by the harbor, and pulled out my laptop. I wanted to go over some of the research I had found before I went to the Temp Agency.
I was reading through some files on the missing women from the area, and looked up briefly as a child cried at the playground. And right in front of me, were three statues of beautiful women, a few feet away.
I suddenly knew that two of the statues were of the missing women from this area. Although the statues were of women clearly much younger, the facial features were exact. I had always had an excellent memory for faces, and I glanced down at their pictures from the files, and then up again at the statues and I knew it was them. Or at least statues of them.
I wondered who the other woman was? She was not in any of the files that I had, but maybe an Internet search would pull something up. I got out of the car, took a couple of pictures with my digital camera, and resolved to do some Internet searching this evening.
Once again, I had found answers to questions I didn’t even know I had. Answers that made no sense.
I pulled out of the park and drove over to the Tourist center and went inside. A tall young woman sat at the desk, her name, Vanessa, on a nametag affixed her dark blue blazer. Having worked with Pam all these years, a world-class beauty, I was not as impressed as some might be by the stunning beauty of this young woman. But only because I was used to seeing it.
Taking a moment to gather my thoughts, I stood for a moment. The young woman stood up and looked at me, a friendly smile on her face, and asked if she could help me.
“I was wondering about the statues at the park, they are beautifully done, and I was wondering if you had information on the artist?” I asked. Not really expecting anything but the standard tourist bureau response, I almost missed a guarded look that crept into her eyes, then left again as quickly. This immediately piqued my interest.
“Well, we have a little brochure that will tell you all about them.” she said, her friendly smile still on her face but a now appraising look in her eyes. “A local resident donated them to the city not too long ago.”
She reached over and pulled a brochure from a shelf next to her desk, “Everyone just loves them so we wrote this up.”
It suddenly occurred to me, that for some reason, this woman recognized me. I could tell by her eyes. They had widened, just briefly but definitely so, when I had come inside. How did she know me? Surely I would have remembered her. Looking over the brochure, my mind raced as I tried to get a fix on her. She was tall, had a perfect completion, big brown eyes, long dark wavy hair, Latino looks, perfect lips, perfect figure, and well dressed.... who was this woman and why did she know me?
Then I remembered. Joe, my old partner, had told me about a woman he had seen with Tom a couple of times. She was looked exactly like Vanessa based on what he told me. Joe had been fairly sure that she was someone Tom was messing around with, but was never absolutely certain. Was it possible that it was her? Was Vanessa Tom’s girlfriend? Well, if so, it would explain her surprise at seeing me. I wonder where she had been when Tom got killed.
I looked over, and Vanessa was on the phone, dealing with some tourist type call regarding hotel recommendations. Maybe she would have some answers for me I decided.
When she finished the call, I decided to ask her some questions. I watched carefully as I asked her if she used to know a man named Tom. She lied and said no, but I knew for sure now. I could see it in her eyes, and she blushed very faintly, but it was there to see.
“Well, you see, I used to work as a detective. We were working for this nice man named Tom when he got killed. A terrible tragedy.” I continued to watch her. She was good I thought, definitely some actress.
“How sad” she said, looking interested but I could see her struggle to hid other emotions. “Was he from around here? I remember seeing on the news about a house fire that killed a man by that name a couple of months ago.”
“Well, not entirely from around here, he had a weekend house in San Luis Obispo.” Looking at her directly in the eyes now, “the thing is, he had a girlfriend that looked amazingly like you.”
She was struggling harder now to keep her real emotions under wraps now. I could see that I was right.
It WAS Her!.
“Really?” She said. “Well it certainly wasn’t me, I have never been with anybody named Tom.” Then she smiled, and I could see she had recovered, “now my sister on the other hand, you never know with her.”
Then she looked pensive for a moment, “Nope couldn’t be her, she is only 20, way too young for the guy you are talking about.”
Just then the phone rang again, and I could see her relief as she turned to answer it.
“Well, thanks Vanessa for the brochure.”
She turned, waved and smiled, “have a nice visit.”
I left that tourist bureau, and got back in my car. I could see her clearly through the window, talking on the phone. Vanessa, Tom’s girlfriend, here in Morro Bay. I had another piece of the puzzle. Although the puzzle still made absolutely no sense at all.
It was time to go to the temp agency. I wondered if Vanessa knew them, and would be on the phone to warn them. The way the puzzle was developing, it seemed almost certain at this point.
Chapter 5 Even more puzzling
I drove a few blocks to the temp agency. It was in a strip center at the base of a hill, and shared space with a woman’s boutique (which I suddenly really wanted to check out), a hair salon, a women’s health clinic, and a nice little restaurant (at least it looked nice from the outside). I decided I was hungry, and I wanted to look at those brochures first. It was only early afternoon, and I still had time to catch them at the Temp agency before 5.
I parked and went inside, taking my laptop with me, and after I ordered some coffee and a big salad, and I read through the brochures. They were typical stuff, but the important part was that the company that owned the strip mall, the temp agency, and had worked with Emily in settling Tom’s affairs after his death had donated the statues. Not to mention had taken over Baldwin’s company and a few others along the way. Even more interesting, the company address would place it in that big house just up the hill from the strip mall.
I downloaded the pictures I took earlier and compared them with the file pictures I had of the two missing women. I was right, they were almost an exact match, just idealized a bit in the statues. I used my wireless modem, and used a program I had to do a search with the picture I had of the other one, after modifying it a bit with a photo-editing program I had. After a bit, I found a match.
The third girl was named Kristi. She had been a waitress in the Houston area, and had disappeared, along with several others, about two years ago. Both the owner and the manager of the strip club she worked at had disappeared at the same time, along with a great deal of money, and it was always suspected that they were responsible. But here she was, immortalized in stone, in a park on the California Central Coast. At least her face was anyway.
“Hmm” I thought to myself. “How is this connected?”
I ate my lunch and pondered what I had learned. The pieces of the puzzle still didn’t make sense, but there were starting to be a lot of pieces. I looked over the pictures of the other woman who disappeared with her. There were several; Janice, Shannon, Melissa, Vivian, Michelle, Jennifer, Brandi, April, and VANESSA!
“Oh shit” I thought, “what do we have here?”
I was shocked. What had I found? Missing girls from a strip club, one whose face adorned a statue, and another who was the mistress of a dead corporate millionaire and worked at the tourist bureau next to the park where the statue was. Statues with the faces of two missing women, one of whom worked at the Temp Agency I was about to visit. I began to wonder if my dreams where really dreams, or something else. Where they memories? But that was impossible, right? I wasn’t sure anymore. A pattern was beginning to emerge.
It was a strange pattern, but as the saying goes, if you eliminate the impossible, whatever the answer is, however unlikely, must be the truth. I hadn’t eliminated the impossible, in fact, it was beginning to look like the impossible may be merely unlikely.
Needless to say, I was a little shook, but I still wanted to find out the truth. After eating, I packed up the laptop and my briefcase, dropped it in my car, and walked over to the Temp Agency.
I walked inside. It was the typical layout, a few desks with cubicles, and a receptionist area in the front. It was close to 4 now, and only the receptionist was at the front.
“Can I speak to Sarah Hoffman please?” I asked.
An older woman, about in her 50s was at the front. She asked my name, and I handed her a business card She looked at it, looked at me with the curious look I always get when I introduce myself as a private investigator, then walked to the back.
She went around the divider near a water cooler, than came back out a moment later. “Ms. Hoffman asks that you come on back” she said pleasantly.
I walked to the office, it was separated was at the back of the room, and had its own door. I walked inside, and looked right into the eyes of one of the women from my dream. I was completely stunned, and unable to hide my surprise. Sarah, a young woman with long brown hair in a bun, brown eyes, and petite, greeted me with a smile and shook my hand.
“What can I do for you?” she asked. It took me a minute to recover, but I was able to ask her questions. About the woman who disappeared after working here, and I watched her reactions. She acted normally, seemed sad about the disappearance, explained all the details of what she knew. It matched perfectly the police report, but I could see something else. She was hiding something. So after she finished her story, I asked her if she knew Vanessa and Kristi. I watched her eyes, and I could see her surprise. She also blushed lightly for a moment, but then she regained control and answered that she didn’t. And I knew she was lying.
“Should I know them detective?” She asked.
“Well, it’s a small town, and I figured you probably knew Vanessa. Young woman, gorgeous, works at the Tourist Bureau.” I replied.
“Hmm, well, don’t usually need to go there, after all, I live here.” she replied with a smile. I suddenly realized something. She had the same flawless skin, perfect teeth, and perfect beauty that Vanessa had. And that Tina and I had for some reason. Her skin, like mine, wasn’t marred by a single line, freckle, blemish or acne scar. There was an answer there, but I didn’t think a direct question was going to get an answer to that puzzle.
In spite of the fact she was lying, I liked her. Her smile was infectious, and she had a very pleasant voice. Men would be helpless in dealing with her, and I was having a little trouble myself.
“Well, its closing time. Unless you have some more questions for me?” She asked.
I did, but I knew I wasn’t going to get any answers. “No, thanks for your help though.”
“What brings you to this detective?” She asked, pleasantly, but I heard a little bit of an edge to the question.
“Well, I was working on another case, and her name came up.” I said. I deliberately didn’t say which name, and waited to see if she would take the bait.
But she didn’t, she merely nodded, and replied “well, if you have any more questions, give me a call. She wrote down her phone number on her business card, smiled, and then walked with me to the front door. She waved by to the receptionist, who was closing up the office, and she walked out with me.
“It was nice meeting you Paula, call if you have any more questions. I will help if I can.”
I watched her walk to her car, then drive off. I watched with interest as she turned uphill, instead of to the road, and she drove up the hill. The only thing up there was that big house, and apparently, the offices of the company that owned the company. Does she live there too? I wondered.
I got back to my car and sat there for a few minutes. Much to my surprise, I watched a petite red - haired woman walk out of the medical clinic. IT WAS CHERYL FROM MY DREAM!
I took her picture and then sat there and watched her get into her car, drive out of the parking lot, and up the hill as well. Another woman, a few minutes later, left the beauty salon, and got in her car and did the same thing. She was another beauty, just like Sarah, Cheryl and Vanessa, and she drove up the hill. I took her picture with my digital camera before she left, and waited for a bit longer.
I decided it was time to visit that house. Tonight, and covertly. I had the equipment I needed, and I was good.
“Lets see what’s going on up there” I decided.
As I drove off, I saw Vanessa behind the wheel of her car. She pulled into the drive, and clearly recognizing me, waved and continued on up the drive.
Four woman who look like that, and they all going to that house.
Definitely, I was making a visit tonight.
I took a nap until 10, then showered and ate a light meal of some fruit and lunchmeat I had picked up earlier. After checking everything, a put everything in a gym bag that would be suspicious, then a dressed for cool weather, trusting my light jacket and sweat pants would hide anything odd. It was chilly outside, the evening cool off the Pacific making it very cool and damp.
I walked to the base of the hill on the side opposite of the strip mall and looked at the house. I saw just a couple of lights, and I ducked into some trees to get my gear together and for a final check. Satisfied, I began moving up the hill, using trees, brush and large rocks for cover. I was glad to see I still had my moves, and it was starting to get easier after a few minutes. It took almost an hour, but moving stealthily is never fast. I reached a good position in a grove near the house. It was a little unusual, this grove, because there were four square stones of white marble in each corner of the grove, with a fifth stone with a black round stone atop it in the center. I walked around it, a gut feeling telling me I should, and I reached a position that gave me a good view of the drive coming up, and the strip mall parking lot, and looking up, a view of the front of the house. Satisfied that this was a good observation spot, I pulled out some surveillance gear and set it up so I could hear anything outside of the house, as well as see what was going on in some of the rooms. My thermal imaging equipment gave me a view after a few minutes, of where everyone was.
After a few minutes, I had identified five people. One was sitting at what was probably a desk, another was sitting in another room, another was apparently showering, and two were sitting across from one another. I watched them for an hour, and eventually, three of them moved into individual rooms, and laid down, while the two at the table separated and one moved into a room that appeared to be a kitchen, while the other moved into a room, and sat down. After a bit, I decided both were busy enough that I could move closer.
I crept up to the house, opposite of where the two awake people were, and reached a doorway to what looked like a garage. I looked it over carefully, and was satisfied that there were no alarm systems and I easily picked the lock. I crept inside, and stepped over another spherical black stone, which oddly, was placed just inside the door. I looked around, concerned that it might be some kind of weird alarm, but noticed that the garage was cluttered with all kinds of junk, and decided it was probably just poor organization.
Checking with my cell phone, I checked my computer, which had the thermal sight slaved to it. Everyone was exactly were they had been, except the one in the kitchen, who was now lying down. The one watching television was lying prone now too, and I figured she had fallen asleep on the couch.
It was time to go inside the house. I slowly walked across the garage, careful not to trip over anything. It took ten minutes, but I reached the door to the house without a sound. I then pulled out a bug, and placed it against the door. I listened for a while, but all I heard was David Letterman. All was quiet, so I figured I was in business. Again, no sign of an alarm system, and the door wasn’t even locked. Perfect.
I turned the knob and as I stepped inside, a bright flash of green light enveloped me. The dazzle overwhelmed my goggles, and they went black, and I bit back a curse. I pulled them off, and looked into the darkened hall. I hadn’t heard a sound though, and no one was coming, put what had happened?
I still figuring out what I was going to do next when I realized something. I couldn’t move my feet, or my legs. Then, all of a sudden, I couldn’t move my arms. A creeping warm feeling was washing over me now, starting in my toes, then my feet, the gradually up my legs. When it reached my sex, I almost cried out, but biting my tongue I was able to keep it to a low groan. But my god, the feeling, it was like someone just reached down and massaged by clit, and it was continuing. Within a couple of moments, I couldn’t move at all, couldn’t even blink, and I was helpless. The feeling of sexual desire washed over me completely now, and after a few minutes, I didn’t even care. I came, and came, and ached to be able to scream, to move, to react.
And then it stopped, and I stood there, motionless as those statues I saw in the park earlier today. By the time that I was aware of my surroundings again, I noticed the light was on, and standing before me were all four of the women I saw earlier, plus another I remembered from the missing strippers who was named Michelle. “Well shit” I thought, “I am truly thoroughly busted now.”
“Hi Paula, good to see you” Sarah said with a smile. “We were wondering how long you would sit down there in the grove.”
Cheryl, who I recognized from my dream, nudged her a little, but smiled warmly at me. “Paula, I guess we should introduce ourselves. I am Cheryl, and this is Michelle, Kim and of course, you know Vanessa and Sarah.”
“You are probably wondering what has happened to you” said Michelle. She was another perfect beauty, just like the other girls, with dark blue eyes, and honey-colored brown hair. “Well, those stones you have been carefully stepping over this evening are our version of an alarm system, and that flash, well, its what we call a glyph. Wes doesn’t believe in clumsy electronic alarm and security systems.”
Kim and Vanessa were stripping me at this point, carefully removing every piece of equipment, then my clothes. They muttered something I couldn’t make out, and I suddenly realized that all of the fastenings and knots holding my outfit together were undone. The girls lifted me up, holding me like a board actually, as I was completely stiff and still unable to move. Cheryl finished stripping me, while the others held me, and I was down to my panties.
“Well, looks like that is everything” she said. “We should take her to a bedroom and let her rest now I think.”
“When will Wes get here?” Asked Kim.
“He should get here from Hawaii tomorrow he said, but April is staying another couple of days.” Sarah said as she looked over at the other girls. “Are Vivian and Brandi picking him up at LAX?” Asked Michelle.
“Yep, and he said we should wake up Beth for this, but to let Cindy rest.”
They took me into another room, and laid me on a couch. Kim, Michelle and Vanessa left, while Sarah covered me with a blanket and Cheryl sat down next to me.
“Sorry to leave you like this Paula, but it takes awhile for it to wear off. “ She smiled at me, “you will be fine though, nothing permanent has happened to you, and I bet you enjoyed a part of it.”
I heard Sarah giggle behind me, and I felt myself blush.
Michelle came back into the room. She was holding a statuette of some kind, and from what I could see, it was a very detailed doll of plastic, about 18 inches tall. She set it down in the center of the room, and then she mumbled a chant, which I couldn’t understand. The statuette glowed a bright green for a moment, and suddenly it was a full sized statue of a woman. I recognized her too, from the company web site, she was the president of the company, Beth Hutcheson, and her Dad had died over a year ago in what I always thought were very suspicious circumstances. Michelle mumbled another chant, and touched her cheek with her hand.
The situation had moved beyond surreal to me at this point, so I wasn’t really surprised when the statue exhaled sharply, then Beth reached over and hugged Michelle. She didn’t seem bothered that all she was wearing was a rather revealing teddy, but after the other girls hugged her, she asked what was going on.
“Well, Wes wanted you awake for this,” replied Sarah. “It seems Paula, you remember her?” Beth nodded, and then looked around and stopped when she saw me, “Well, Paula seems to have found her way back to us. She just tripped the security glyph at the back door after going through the grove and the garage.”
“Did she do a good job getting up here?” Beth asked.
Sarah and Vanessa smiled, “Yep, we watched her all the way up. She is good, didn’t hardly make a sound. She would have avoided most of the security setups that I know of,” replied Vanessa.
“Oh yes, Wes is definitely going to want to talk to her” Sarah said, grinning.
“Well, we should let her sleep now I suppose.” Cheryl said, still holding my hand. “Sound good?”.
Sarah and Beth looked at each other, nodded, and then looked over to Cheryl. “Yep, time for a rest, and you too Michelle, you know you need to rest of doing spells like this.”
Michelle grinned, and looking tired, she left the room.
I was wondering what the hell was going to happen next. My mind was still trying to deal with all this. And then, Cheryl reached over, mumbled something I didn’t understand, and kissed me on the cheek.
“Sleep well Paula, we will talk later.”
A weariness swept through me, and I began to drift off. Cheryl reached over and closed my eyes, and I felt her move my arms and legs into a more comfortable position. And then I was asleep.
Chapter 6 Awakening
I slept and I dreamed. I had always trusted my dreams, which is why the dreams I had been having had disturbed me so much. Pieces of puzzles when I was working as a detective would swirl about in my mind all day, and then, when I dreamed, I would frequently wake up and the pattern would become clean. This was no different, at least, as far as that went. The strange things I had been dreaming and learning suddenly began to come into a pattern.
I had been paralyzed, seemingly by what I could only call magic. By women who I had remembered from dreams. I was a prisoner, captured by women who look just as perfect as I had become. Which clearly indicated to me that somehow, as impossible as this seemed, that they must have some kind of magical power, and maybe I really HAD been a mannequin.
I woke up then, and I found myself in a bed, and I was wearing just an oversized tee shirt and my panties. It was a comfortable bed though, and I felt better than I had in some time. I looked around the strange room and saw that Cheryl was sitting in a chair by the door, watching me. Checking around, I saw a large window with nice curtains on the wall by her, and she was also next to the door to the room. I saw another door, that was partially open, but it clearly led to the bathroom. The room reminded me of a hotel room, but much more comfortable and the decorations had personal touches that indicated that it was actually someone’s bedroom, and I wasn’t at the local hotel.
I looked at her, and she stood up and walked to me.
She touched my hand and gripped it warmly but firmly. “I am sorry about all this. You see, you weren’t supposed to come back here. We had hoped that helping you to forget would make things easier for you. Well, I guess we underestimated you. Are you hungry or thirsty? I know you have lots of questions, but surely a drink or some food would be nice about now. After all, you have been asleep for almost two days.”
Come to think of it, I realized, I REALLY had to go to the bathroom. I sat up, then got to my feet. “Mind if I use the restroom first, I really have to go.” Then I realized that I could move again, but decided that was fine, I would deal with that wonder after I got to pee.
She smiled and said “Absolutely, its right through there. Do you want something though?”
“Yes, some coffee would be nice, and I am starving.” I replied as I raced to the restroom. After I took care of that, I looked around the bathroom. It was clearly a woman’s bathroom, with all the usual things you would find there. It had a nice shower and tub, and a large vanity mirror and lots of shelves for everything, as well as large number of drawers. But there was no other exit, so it looked like I couldn’t just sneak out if I wanted too. Although at this point, I wanted answers more than safety.
I washed my face and looked at myself in the mirror. I was wearing my own sleep clothes, so apparently my luggage was around here somewhere. And I did look more rested, the circles under my eyes were gone, and that haunted look that had been a constant over the last few weeks seemed to be gone as well. “I guess maybe at least the rest did me some good.” I thought to myself
I went back into the other room and sat down in a chair across from Cheryl, who had just got off the phone when I walked in.
“Some food and coffee will be here in a few minutes” she said, smiling again. “Sit down Paula, this is going to be complicated.”
“No Doubt” I said. But I sat down, what the hell, she was a tiny woman, but she could clearly do magic, so I was a little inclined to listen to her.
“Well, I suppose the first thing you want to know is how you got here.” She said, looking at me directly, her deep blue eyes cool and concerned. She frowned for a moment, then went on. “Well, you see, your showing up was a hell of a surprise to Vanessa. We had all thought that after the kidnapping, you wouldn’t remember anything that happened. I guess we forgot that you would have known something even before Jones snatched you. Well, Vanessa practically freaked when she realized you recognized her, especially when you started talking about Tom and you obviously connected her to him. So she called Sarah, and Sarah called us.”
“So you were waiting for me?” I asked. I decided it was pretty obvious, but thought I would ask anyway.
“Yes we were.” She replied. Cheryl looked at me, squeezed my hand and then stood up and continued to talk.
“We were a bit shocked to see you, but yes, we were waiting for you. Sarah knew you would show up there, because after all, you had called before and she figured you would ask questions about Barbara.
So when you showed up, Kim was watching for you at her shop, and Sarah had already arranged for you to see her and I leave for home when the time was right. She knew you were bound to want to investigate that, after all, you had come this far.”
I thought about it, and yes, it did seem like I was pretty predicable before they captured me. But it did lead me to the truth, so what the hell.
“After you saw us, Sarah figured you would try to sneak up here. She wasn’t positive, but she talked to Wes and he figured the same. Well, we have had a problem before with uninvited guests, so there are some pretty powerful protections here. We weren’t sure exactly when you would come, but we knew you would. So the five of us took turns watching until we saw you coming. And the rest, well, you know that part.”
“So what has happened since I got here.” I asked, curious about what they had been up too.
“Well, we checked you out of the hotel, moved your stuff and your car up here. You see, a couple of us can mimic people extremely well, so Sarah was you checking out, and she was you calling Pam to explain what you have been up too. As far as Pam knows, you have decided to just relax for a few weeks here on the Central Coast and you will call occasionally to say hi.”
I felt a bit of concern about that. They have effectively made me disappear if they wanted. But, if they wanted me dead or something else, they had plenty of time to handle that the last couple of days.
At that moment, the door opened, and another beautiful woman walked in, carrying a tray with a coffee pot, two cups, and a covered dish. The smell of eggs, ham, toast and butter filled the room, along with the aroma of coffee. “Hi Cheryl, my name is Jennifer,” she said with a warm smile. “It’s nice to see you awake.” She winked at Cheryl, set down the tray, and then with another smile at me, she left.
I was still trying to deal with everything when Cheryl poured some coffee, pulled over a small table to me, and handed me some flatware and lifted up the tray. The food smelled great, and without even realizing it, I was eating. I wondered just how many people lived here. I only saw six people the last time I checked, but then I remembered Beth transforming from a little doll to a full living woman, and realized I had no idea.
“Oh good, Jennifer always
loves it when people dig in to her food. It’s a good thing our bodies are
changed, or we would all turn into blimps the way she cooks.” Cheryl said.
Chapter 7 Answers
“Our bodies have changed?!” I thought, with some alarm and dawning realization. Then I remembered, my body had changed too. I had noticed that no matter what I ate lately, I never seemed to gain any weight. Which was kind of weird, because I hadn’t been keeping my workout regime up to its usual intensity since the kidnapping. But the puzzle of the changes in my body were gradually beginning to lead me somewhere. And just maybe, what I dreamed and what came to me when I woke up weren’t impossible after all.
“Well, let me get back to why you are here.” Cheryl said, serious again. “You see, when Vanessa saw you, they immediately knew who you were, and she figured I needed to see you. You weren’t supposed to show up here again, but I suppose Wes still hasn’t figured out women here yet completely after all.”
I looked at her quizzically, “Who is Wes exactly?”
“That’s a bit complicated, but I will try to explain as I go.” She looked a little embarrassed for a moment, then continued. “Wes is not from around here you might say, in fact, he has magic powers. And he gave some of those powers to us. You and your friends were kidnapped by someone like him, from the same place. A man named Jones. Now comes the really strange part.” She said, sipped from her coffee for a moment, then looked at me again. I waited, wondering after hearing what I had so far, what the really strange part could be. Wes and Jones had magic powers? And apparently so did Cheryl and Beth? But what else explained what I saw before I went to sleep.
“Jones walked into your office” she said with a rush, “and he transformed you into a mannequin, your friends Tina and Pam into dolls, and he killed your friend Joe. He was working for Baldwin, the guy you were investigating, and Baldwin wanted you and yours friends out of the way.” I sat there, stunned, wondering at this point if I was dreaming again. “Then he placed you in a store window, and your friend Tina in another, and he took Pam, who he made into a sex doll, you know, like the ones from sex shops, to Baldwin as a trophy.” I looked at her, disbelief showing in my eyes I am sure, but she went on.
“Well, Baldwin tried to intimidate Tom with this information, the surveillance tapes showed the whole thing you see. I have the tapes downloaded onto a DVD over there if you want to see it.”
I looked at her, nodded, and she reached over and turned on the television. And I watched, stunned as everything she said and everything that happened that day showed on the television. Someone came in the door, but you couldn’t see him and Tina, who was clearly talking to someone, suddenly transformed before my eyes into a rag doll, a life size rag doll. Then in Joe’s office, poor Joe transformed into a cat, then became a lifeless plush toy. Tears were running down my face at this point, and I was holding back sobs. The camera was in my office, and I watched myself become a mannequin. I was stunned, and panic was beginning to slip into me. I watched further as the next tape showed Pam’s office, and as she tried to scream, she transformed into a sex doll.
I got up, and walked to the window. I looked out, not really seeing, the images rushing through me, and the sensations flooded back through me as well. I remembered the emptiness, the helplessness I had felt, the absolute terror followed by numbness that made me an object, with only a basic awareness. And just as alarming to me, I remembered how turned on I had felt, the sexual energy washing through me the entire time, the NEED to be admired and how that need still came to me at times.
Cheryl walked up behind me, and with surprising strength, turned me to her. I grabbed her close, and sobbed.
Eventually, she managed to sooth me, and I felt a little better. “So how come I am still not in that Mall?” I was finally able to ask.
“Tom came to Wes, and Wes decided to do something about it. Wes, along with Beth and Kristi, went to LA, and he found you and Tina. He brought you here, and we put you away somewhere safe until Jones was dealt with. Well, along the way, Jones apparently had killed a number of women, including a pair that you probably remember seeing in the Mall, plus a couple of women from around here. A sales clerk at a hotel, and Barbara who was working for Sarah’s temp agency.”
She looked out the window for a moment, than back toward me. It suddenly dawned on me that Cheryl was a lot stronger in many ways than I. She looked me in the eyes, and I could see the wetness in hers, tears barely in check. “Wes and Kristi tracked him down, and stole away Pam and Tom’s wife who had been transformed into a statue, and their daughter who had been made into a sex doll. We managed to get Tom’s wife back before Tom got killed, but Tom was killed later at Baldwin’s order. After that, we got back Tom’s daughter, but it was too late for the sales clerk and secretary, not to mention the ones in the Mall.”
She was absolutely truthful, I could see, and I could also see that she was deeply saddened by what had happened. And that she had more to tell.
“Well, Wes and Kristi tracked Jones down in San Luis Obispo. There was a fight, and Kristi got killed. Then Wes came here for a final showdown, and he killed Jones, and Jones almost killed me and Brandi. But Wes got him, and he got Baldwin too.” She drank some more coffee, and I squeezed her hand. I wondered what the details about that were, but I guessed I would know soon enough.
“After that, Wes restored Brandi and I, and after a few days rest, we brought you, Tina, Pam, and Tom’s daughter back. We altered your memories so you wouldn’t remember, and gave you a story that made reasonable sense, then arranged for your rescue. Tom’s wife took care of some of that, and I handled most of the rest, while Sarah and Beth made sure Baldwin would pay for the rest of his life for what he did.”
She looked at me, then went over to the chair and sat down. “I guess that brings us back to you.”
Cheryl put her arm around my shoulder, and waited for me to talk.
So I told her everything. About the dreams, and the visits to the shrink, and not being able to tell people about the changes in me. I told her, shaking and tearfully, about the trip to LA, the mall, and then driving to Malibu before finally getting her.
She listened, occasionally squeezing my hand, and I realized, finally, that I felt better and at peace in the first time since this all happened. I walked over to the window, needing to collect myself for a moment.
I stood at the window, and looked out. The beautiful view of Morro Bay and the sun setting over the Pacific was lost on me today. I turned and looked at her.
“Those statues down there, in the park, those are really the women Jones killed?”
Cheryl looked at me levelly, and replied. “Yes, they are. Wes transformed them into stone when we recovered them. They were dead, their life force stolen away and used up, and it seemed fitting that we remember them. We couldn’t very well have them found, because, Jones completely transformed the two local women into what they looked like when they were much younger, and how could the local authorities deal with that? For that matter, how could Kristi be explained, she disappeared from Texas two years ago, and finding her would open up a can of worms Wes couldn’t allow. So at least this way, we remember them, and people still admire their beauty. It’s all we could do. The other two in the mall, well, we are trying to identify them still, but apparently he grabbed them of the street as they aren’t even reported as missing. For now, we are leaving them were they are, but we will bring them here eventually.”
“What is Wes, some kind of alien?” I asked, afraid she would answer yes.
“He is human, but he is not from this world.” She replied, “But I think you will like him. All of us love him, for what he has done for us, and for who he is. Sarah thinks, and I agree, we just have to work on him some more is all.”
“Ok, so when do I meet all of these people you are telling me about. I remember Sarah and Beth, and you, from my dreams. I remember Wes and Jones. I know where some of the others come from, but how did you guys get with Wes to begin with?”
Cheryl’s eyes sparkled, and she smiled.
Chapter 8 The Weird Part
“Ok, this is going to sound weird too.”
I looked at her levelly, “Ok, how at this point can it get weirder.”
“Well, you see, Wes stole all of us. He used his magic to make us love him, transformed us into statues and dolls, and that process changed our bodies. We age very slowly, our bodies work at keeping us in perfect shape and health, and along the way, we have become as beautiful as we are capable of being.”
“HE STOLE YOU?”
“At first, but you see, the magic that charmed us faded after a while. We can leave if we want, whenever we want. Some of us even have. But those of us who stay, we like our life with him for now. And we learned to love him, not just for the gifts he gave us, but because, well, he seems to treasure us and even worship us.” She grinned, and blushed, “it’s a pretty heady feeling really. Most of us have never had anything like it before, and for now, it definitely more than makes up for how we got here.”
She was blushing, but she was telling me the truth I could see. “What are you guys, his harem?”
“More than that, although that’s part of it, we also work with him. We can do magic now too, and sometimes, we help him in ways he doesn’t expect.” Se said, a grin on her face and her eyes sparkling again. “While you were asleep, and finally resting for a change it seems, we girls talked about you. We want you to join us, and so does Wes. Don’t answer now, because I have more to show you.” She stood up, and walked over to a closet, and pulled open the curtain. I saw my clothes hanging on hangers, as well as clothes that belonged to someone else. “Whose are those?” I asked.
“We are in Vivian’s old room. She and Brandi decided to go to school and they are at UCLA right now. Vivian, well, she REALLY likes to shop, so she didn’t have room for everything in her apartment in LA, so she left a few things. Why don’t you change, I want to show you around, then you can meet Wes. I know you want to talk to him.”
She was right, I really wanted to talk to Wes. He intrigued me, and to my surprise, I realized I missed him. I remembered his eyes, and how much I had wanted him when I had returned to human form after he saved me. I realized, and my body was definitely sending me the signals, that I wanted not just to meet him, but I WANTED him.
Cheryl turned away for a moment, pouring herself more coffee, while I felt my face flush, and I hurried over to the closet. I grabbed a short skirt, and my best silk blouse, along with some panty hose and heels.
“Why don’t you take a few minutes, we have plenty of time.” Cheryl said.
Oddly, I felt like I was getting ready for a big date. I was a little nervous, and excited, and I wanted to look my best. So I took my time, showered, made an extra effort with my face and hair, and when I was done, Cheryl smiled and told me I looked great. I saw that the tray was gone, and figured Jennifer must have come while I had showered.
Chapter 9
Cheryl led me from the room, and we came into a hallway. I could see several other doors that must lead to bedrooms like this one. We walked through the house, a mansion really, into a large living room. It was empty at the moment, then we walked through another door into another part of the house. This hall led to what looked like offices, and I saw a tall blonde woman, another beauty, typing away on her computer looking pensive.
“Hi Cindy, this is Paula.”
Cindy jumped, startled. Apparently she had been a little wrapped up in what she was doing. “Oh, Hi Cheryl.” She stood up and walked over to me. She was my height, and seemed nice enough, in an absent minded techie kind of way. “Hi Paula, nice to meet you. Good to see you up and about.” She said.
“I was showing her around” Cheryl said, “Is Beth awake?”
“No, she is in the study.” Cindy replied.
“Ok, we will see you later. Don’t forget to go to bed Cindy.” Cheryl said, sounding a bit motherly.
Cindy blushed a little, “I will try.”
“I will remind you.” Cheryl said with a grin.
We walked further, and passed through the kitchen and a large dining room. On a sideboard, I saw some covered plates, but no one was in the kitchen. But the food smelled good, although I wasn’t really hungry at the moment.
“Oh good, Jennifer left dinner out for us.” Cheryl said,
Then we came to the large living room were I had seen Beth become human a couple of nights ago. Beth was sitting on the couch, watching CNN, while working away on a laptop.
“Hi Paula, nice to meet you again.”
She was dressed professionally today, and she smiled at me and Cheryl. Then she surprised me, she got up and walked over and gave me a hug.
“It is really good to see you, even if you were a surprise. Can we talk later?”
I nodded, a little surprised and overwhelmed, but Cheryl touched my arm, and we said by to Beth and walked on.
Another door, and then we came into a large study. A pentagram was on the floor, a large one. All around the room there were statues. I recognized Michelle, Kim, and Vanessa. Michelle was posed like a mannequin, and the light reflected off her in the way it would plastic. She was dressed in a long formal evening dress, with a demure smile on her face. Kim was posed nude, and appeared to be made of white marble. She stood, with her arms outstretched above her head, as if she had been caught stretching after she had gotten out of bed. Vanessa was also in plastic, another mannequin, dressed in a long green nightgown, with her left leg forward, and the slit in the gown showing her long leg.
I walked over to Vanessa and touched her. She was indeed plastic, just like a mannequin, and I knew that it was really her. Her eyes stared blankly out, unfocused, but she was clearly happy, as she had a naughty smile on her face. I touched the others, and realized I was not dreaming, they were real.
Cheryl waited for me to finish, then led me over to a cabinet. Inside, I could see Sarah. She was on a doll stand, her perfect features with her dimpled smile drawing me to her face. She was only about 18 inches tall now, but I knew from what I had seen the other night that it was really her.
The door across the room opened, and I recognized Wes as he walked into the room. He kissed Cheryl on the lips, and then turned to me and to my surprise, gave me a hug.
“Well, you surprised us Paula,” he said, “But it I am glad you are here.” He looked around the room, and then at me. “I wanted to show you a few things before you decided if you wanted to stay.”
I looked at him, and I realized that I already wanted to stay. I liked him, and although I wasn’t dewy eyed like the other girls, I wanted him too.
“Can they hear us” looking around at the frozen girls.
“Well I used to not think so, but Cheryl tells me that they are aware of us. Apparently my magic works a little differently here on your world. Lets wake up a Sarah and Vanessa, and they can tell you.”
He walked over to Vanessa, and stroked her cheek, then waved a wand he pulled from a pocket (which didn’t look nearly big enough to hold it, but never mind that for now.) A green light surrounded her, then as it faded, he kissed her on the lips, and in a moment, she was kissing him back.
It was starting to get a little heated, then Vanessa suddenly seemed to realize they weren’t alone, and she turned towards us, looking a bit flushed.
“Hi Cheryl, Paula, ummm, its good to see you again Paula.” She recovered for a moment, then gave each of us a hug.
“Paula has some questions Vanessa, do you mind answering?’ We s said.
“Again” she said with teasing tone, “She ALWAYS has questions.” But she said it with a smile, and I knew she was kidding me. Cheryl giggled a little, and then went over and got Sarah out of the case. She brought her to the center of the room, while Wes seemed to take a moment.
Moments later, Sarah was with us too, and after kissing Wes and hugging the rest of us, she joined in the discussion.
They told me how it felt, and explained that it was different from what Jones did to me. It was much more relaxing, or it could be much more erotic. I could see a DEFINITE enthusiasm in the girls eyes as they talked, and a certain amount of bemusement in his eyes.
Then Wes and Cheryl whispered for a moment, and she walked to the center of the room. She stripped off her clothes, and after winking at us, knelt down on her knees, with her perfect ass sitting on her feet. She placed her hands in her hair, tousled it, and waited expectantly for Wes to come over.
Wes stroked her for several moments, and along the way, I saw him touch her with a piece of ice. She stopped moving, but I could see her flush and could tell she was becoming massively aroused. The other girls giggled a little, then as I stared in fascination (and the other girls watched me with grins) I saw Wes touch her with a little piece of marble. Instantly, a green glow surrounded her, and I watched as her color faded away. Her skin and hair faded to a pale white color, then began to reflect the light in the room. She had changed to marble as I watched, and I knew she enjoyed every minute of it. Then he touched her again with his wand, and she shrank down to 14 inches tall, a beautiful and perfect little statuette.
I was stunned.
“Want to try it Paula?” asked Sarah. I looked at her, and then at Wes. I nodded. I was unbelievably curious, and aroused, and excited, and scared, and I knew that it would deal with the nightmares of Jones once and for all.
Vanessa picked up Cheryl carefully, and placed her in the cabinet, while Wes shrank down Kim and did the same. Sarah held my hand, then gave me a big hug and stepped back as Vanessa moved to her side. They both smiled, then watched as Wes touched my arm with a little plastic doll.
Suddenly, I couldn’t move, just like the other night, and that feeling of arousal and building tension was sweeping through me. The world faded into vagueness, and as it did, I climaxed. I would have screamed if I could, but the orgasm such seemed to stretch into infinite. And then I realized something else. I could feel Cheryl and Kim thoughts. It was a little vague, and non-verbal but as the time progressed I could feel and almost see their thoughts, and they could mine.
WOW! This was amazing! And at that moment, I knew I would stay.
Epilogue
The weeks went by, and I became part of the family. I finally got to make love to Wes later that day, and it was indeed sweet and warm and wonderful. I had found something I didn’t even know I wanted.
Wes was surprised and the girls more so about what happened. It seems that my dreams are more powerful than I realized. I can link all the girls together when I am posed with them, and they all were enchanted with the potential of that. Apparently I have some kind of power, at least that’s what Wes said, and more importantly, the more I share my dreams, the more of that power the other girls are getting.
Needless to say, I still haven’t gotten around to going back to Palm Springs. I have learned from the girls and from Wes, and they tell me that I can do even more the Kristi could after only a few months. I have found a new life, and wonderful one, and even an adventurous one.
So here I stand, posed and dreaming with my friends, waiting to be awakened.
THE END