While Jack remained silent, Nora leaned closer and lowered her voice slightly, "My apologies for frightening you. I meant no offense."
Smiling warmly, she added, "I'll explain myself once we get to your suite, okay?"
Feeling uncomfortable, Jack replied, "Sure."
Inwardly relieved that she accepted his explanation, he allowed Nora to lead the conversation onward, steering clear of the topic of age. They rode the elevator up to the sixth floor together, passing other guests heading in both directions. Each of them gave each other curious glances, but neither spoke.
At long last, the doors opened onto his private foyer and they stepped inside. He led her straight ahead into his living room and closed the double French doors firmly behind them. Turning toward her, he asked, "Would you care for a glass of wine before dinner?"
Sitting on the couch opposite him, she crossed her ankles delicately beneath her dress and responded, "That sounds nice."
Jack poured two glasses of red wine and handed one to her, saying, "There's cheese and crackers on the coffee table in front of us."
Leaning forward slightly, she studied his face carefully before speaking, "Is there something wrong? Did I frighten you somehow?"
Jack swallowed nervously, trying to find the right answer. His heart pounded furiously as he struggled to decide what to say next. Finally, deciding on honesty, he admitted, "Yeah, actually I guess you did scare me a little bit. It's just that you seem so familiar… I don't know how to put it into words, but I've seen you somewhere before."
She smiled sweetly, "Really?"
"Well, yeah, but I can't place where or when."
Shaking her head, she replied, "You're probably thinking of someone else then. Maybe somebody from television. Have you ever watched any of the Twilight Zone episodes?"
With a puzzled frown, he replied, "Why do you ask?"
"Because that's where I first encountered your image. That show aired from 1959 until 1964."
Forcing his eyes away from hers, he thought back to the episode entitled To Serve Man. In it, aliens disguised themselves as humans and were invited aboard a spaceship by the crew. When confronted with alien cuisine, one of the passengers consumed an unknown substance prepared by the extraterrestrials, which caused him to lose control of his bowels uncontrollably. Unable to stop laughing hysterically, he became convinced that he had eaten human feces instead of food. The scene reminded him of Nora's laugh; it was soft, gentle, and musical—like a lullaby sung by a child. Intrigued, he glanced across at her to see if she had heard his thoughts, but her gaze remained focused elsewhere. Then suddenly, he recalled that she had mentioned watching Twilight Zone episodes on her laptop computer.
"Did you watch To Serve Man, Nora?"
Without answering directly, she replied, "We can talk about it later. Right now, let's enjoy our wine and relax."
Reluctantly nodding in agreement, he sipped his wine and stared vacuously into space as they waited for the elevator.
Upon reaching his penthouse, he escorted her through the connecting hallways to the bedroom, where she stripped naked and lay down on top of the bed sheets. With her arms stretched above her head and legs spread wide apart, she seemed entranced by sleep. Smiling fondly at her beauty, he removed his shirt and trousers and crawled under the covers beside her. Feeling awkward, he hesitated briefly over whether or not he should kiss her goodnight but eventually decided against doing anything untoward. Instead, he kissed the top of her hand gently. After lying motionless for nearly half an hour, he finally drifted off to dreamland.
Later that evening, Nora awoke to find herself floating amidst a sea of stars and planets glowing brightly overhead. Her vision was enhanced beyond normal sight, allowing her to make out individual constellations in perfect detail even though the sky appeared empty of any celestial bodies. Above and around her floated thousands upon tens of thousands of tiny silver spheres that glowed softly in every shade imaginable. Their luminescent glow revealed hidden patterns within the swirling shapes that resembled nothing less than a kaleidoscope made entirely of diamonds. Disturbed by their presence, she quickly moved deeper into the darkness searching for an escape. But once again, the shimmering lights surrounded her, and began following her movements with great precision. Soon, she found herself trapped between two enormous walls of ivory, as she awoke from her dream in a lavish bed of silks and furs.
As her eyes adjusted to the dim light, Nora noticed that she wore a simple white gown that clung to her figure tightly without revealing much flesh. Embarrassingly aware that she must have slept nude beneath the heavy silk sheet, she turned slowly to search for Jack but couldn't locate him anywhere nearby. Confused, she rose unsteadily to stand up and walked around the perimeter of the massive bed.
After several minutes of roaming aimlessly in circles, she spotted an antique wooden wardrobe standing in the corner of the room. Climbing up onto its highest shelf, she peered inside and observed rows of dresses hanging neatly along either side of the interior. On impulse, she selected one of the garments and slipped it over her head, adjusting the fabric so it wouldn't fall open when she sat down on the edge of the mattress.
As soon as she pulled the zipper halfway up, a pair of slender hands reached inside the garment and drew it further upward. A moment later, another set of fingers slid underneath and tugged gently at the hemline. Releasing her breath in surprise, she looked up to discover that Jack had joined her in the closet. Looking past his shoulder, she could see the silhouette of yet another man hovering in the doorway, staring curiously at the sight of her bare breasts exposed beneath the sheer material. Before she realized what was happening, she was pressed against the wall with nowhere left to go except backward. Holding fast to the sides of the wardrobe with her elbows, she desperately searched for an alternative way to exit, but none presented itself. Panting heavily, she strained to listen for footsteps approaching from outside, but the silence was deafening.
The man turned away and wore a formal suit, and stood with his arms at his sides, white gloves on his hands. he must have been the help, a butler employed by Jack.
A few moments passed as Nora listened intently for signs of movement from downstairs. No sound came to warn her, and fearing that Jack might return home unexpectedly while she was still in such close proximity to the servant, she hurriedly climbed down from the high shelf and headed for the door. Just as she approached it, however, a small hand reached in and grabbed her wrist, preventing her from opening it. Nora cried out in alarm, struggling frantically to break free, but it proved useless. Within seconds, the entire room filled with the smell of roses, causing her nostrils to flare involuntarily. At the same time, she felt a sharp pain shoot through her chest and abdomen. Instinctively, she cringed and tried to cover her breasts instinctively with one arm. Her Corset was being laced by a maid, wondering how someone could wear such a disgusting thing, she let in a deep breath, allowing her body to get used to the tightness on her large and supple breasts.
When she recovered sufficiently, Nora recognized that the painful sensation was due to the corset's tightening straps pulling painfully at her rib cage. She was forced to lean forward slightly as the maid worked diligently to finish lacing the garment, making sure that it didn't slip lower than halfway up her torso. Once finished, she released her grip on her captive's wrist and allowed her to pull the gown off the hanger and step into it. Nora was surprised by how comfortable it was despite having a tendency to restrict circulation and cause sweating during exercise.
Then the maid bent over and whispered in her ear, "It would be best if you keep the curtains drawn tonight, Miss Nora."
Nora nodded silently as she followed her through the connecting hallway to the sitting room. Jack was at the end of the hallway within a room that stood two chairs and a fireplace, reading a book, glasses down his nose. He jumped to his feet as soon as he saw her enter, rushing across the room toward her.
He took hold of her shoulders and spun her around, studying her closely with concern etched deeply into his features. His eyes widened as he surveyed her body, noting that her skin was pale and smooth like porcelain. He ran his finger lightly along her jawline and cheekbone, admiring her flawless complexion. His expression softened as he gazed lovingly into her eyes, asking, "How are you feeling?"
Trying hard not to reveal too much emotion, she shrugged helplessly and replied, "Okay, I think."
They shared a brief embrace before separating to sit facing each other on opposite ends of the sofa. Nora chose to take a seat closer to the window and lit a cigarette, inhaling the smoke deeply. Jack leaned forward to speak quietly into her ear, saying, "I'm sorry I wasn't here earlier today."
"Don't worry," she said calmly, "it doesn't bother me anymore."
Turning to look at him more fully, she added, "Besides, I prefer not to spend my evenings cooped up indoors anyway."
His lips curved into a slight smile, "Are you ready to tell me everything? Everything you remember about this afternoon?"
Nodding gravely, she replied, "Yes, I am."