Posted by Sawney Beane on June 29, 2006 at 21:14:09:
The Collected Works of Sawney Beane: Volume #29
THE FOURTH OF JULY PARTY
by Sawney Beane
5, 10, 12 December 1995; 16, 18 January 1996
9,314 words
DISTRIBUTION NOTICE and DISCLAIMER: Sawney Beane requests that any distribution of this work of fiction remain within the realm of social responsibility. This story is suitable neither for minors nor for the seeming majority of adults who have difficulty distinguishing fantasy from reality. It is pure fantasy, which means that, for whatever reason, someone has found it interesting to think about the events depicted herein. It does not in any way mean that the author would like to see this fantasy become reality, so if you are the type of person who might be swayed into doing something irrational by reading a work of fiction, the author respectfully requests that you decline to read further.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Sawney Beane, originally a native of Edinburgh, lived for twenty-five years in a cave on the coast of County Galloway, subsisting on the flesh of unfortunate travellers, roughly a thousand of them all told. He and his wife raised a large family of eight sons, six daughters, eighteen grandsons, and fourteen granddaughters. Eventually, the family was captured, and the whole lot was brutally and unjustifiably tortured and executed without trial. Since his death in the early 17th century, Beane has reformed his ways and now confines his atrocities to his literary endeavours.
WARNING: This story contains scenes of consensual snuff and gynophagia. If you find such things offensive, please steer clear; you have been warned.
AUTHOR'S NOTES: This story is a somewhat Dolcett influenced, look at the roasting of a volunteer girl by a group of covert cannibals. I quite liked it in the end even though it didn't turn out quite the way I had intended.
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I
The girl stood in stark contrast to the dank salvage yard office around her. The single unshaded light bulb threw peculiar shadows over her bare shoulders and down the sides of her thin red dress. Despite her considerable natural beauty, she had the awkward manner of a person attempting with little previous experience to look alluring. Rick did his best to take little notice of the new arrival in his humble domain.
Without looking up from his typewriter, Rick addressed her as casually as possible, "What can I do for you Miss? You looking for some parts?"
"Not exactly." Her voice was light and melodious with a distinct nervous oscillation. "Are you Rick Hennings?"
"Yeah, that's me. What do you need?" He still refrained from looking directly at her.
"Um...I don't know how to say this exactly...but...well...I would like you to eat me."
Rick was not as surprised as one might expect. "Yeah, that's what all the girls say, but I like to get to know a woman better before we jump into that."
"No, not like that. I mean really."
"Well, that's real nice but you see I have a lot of cars to take apart, and I just don't have time for fun and games."
"But...aren't you the guy from the TV?"
"Perhaps, but you don't suppose that just because some TV tabloid show does a report on someone being a cannibal he really is one do you?"
"Well, I don't know."
"I mean, if I were really a cannibal, don't you think the police would have something to say to me? Do you think I'd be out here going on happily if all they said was true?"
"I guess not, but they must have had some reason to report on you?"
"Hm...baseless suspicions don't count for much, but they can get your phone to ringin' off the hook and strange suicidal tarts popping by for a late lunch."
The girl's pretty face sagged into a frown, and her alluring act drifted away leaving something much more attractive. "I'm sorry, sir, I have made a terrible mistake. Please forgive me and have a nice afternoon."
Something struck Rick's mind as the woman turned to depart from his life. "Wait!" She turned and adopted the expression of a deer in the headlights as Rick looked her up and down searchingly. He chewed his lower lip and narrowed his eyes into a suspicious squint. He stared deep into her blue eyes and searched her soul. Softly, he said, almost to himself, "You're serious."
The woman was not sure if this was a statement or a question. She settled on a solemn nod as the appropriate response.
Rick's brow furrowed, and he entered an interrogative mode. "Will you do anything I tell you?"
She thought it over. "Yes, but I would like it to be as painless as possible."
"Fair enough; follow me," he said as he turned to enter his inner office. "Ben! Come and mind the desk for a while; I have to have a conference with this young lady." The girl had been unaware that there was anyone else in the shop and was surprised to see a grimy man emerge through a cloth-draped doorway behind the counter. The newcomer had a strange smile on his face that made the girl nervous. She hurriedly followed Rick into his office.
Once they were inside with the door closed, Rick gave an order. "Take off your clothes."
The girl was a bit taken aback at first, but she soon saw the reasonableness of his request: he wanted to see what he was getting into. She complied silently, and tried with even less success than before to enter her alluring act as she unzipped the back of her sun dress and slipped it down her lithe torso.
To the pile formed by her outer garment, she added her bra and panties as well as her high-heeled shoes. She stood naked and a bit cold and prepared for the man's examination of her wares, but to her surprise, he barely glanced at her stunning nudity and picked her dress up off the floor and began to scrutinize it minutely. He did take enough notice of her to say, "Take everything off...jewellery and all."
The girl dropped her earrings, watch, necklace, a pair of bracelets, and an opal ring on the pile. She stood more than a little confused and hugged herself for warmth as she watched Rick complete his examination. He scrutinized each piece of her attire, tossing each aside with an approving sniff. When he was done, he finally addressed his nervous guest. "Well, you're not wired. Not a cop, I suppose, and you're too intense to be a practical joker. I get a lot of both, so you'll have to excuse my suspicions. But you're the real thing."
Again, it was not quite identifiable as a question, so the woman nodded a second time.
Rick smiled and gave a little sniff in lieu of a laugh. "I guess this is my lucky day. I'm sure you're the best looking chick that ever came in here with that request; actually you're the only one. Let me look at you."
She was a bit less confused now, so gave a faint smile in approval of the improved prospects of her plans. She dropped her arms to her sides and stepped to within five feet of her examiner. He looked her over and ran a hand or two along a soft belly here and a firm thigh there. She was too good to be true.
"Well, my dear, you know my name, but I don't know yours."
"Kim...Kimberly Green."
"Nice to meet you; how old are you, Kim?"
"Twenty-seven."
"Hm..that's a pretty good age; you should be very good, especially considering that you've kept yourself in such good shape."
Kim blushed at the compliment, the valley between her medium-sized breasts reddening as well.
"I suppose it's impolite of me to keep you standing here stark naked. You can put your clothes back on. But I'm wondering, why would a pretty girl like you want to become steak?"
"Well, I've always had that fantasy about being devoured. It's strange, I know."
"Yes, but I know at least nine other people who have had it; eight of them have actually lived it."
"Yes, and when I decided that things would never be right until I was dead and after I saw you on television, I decided that I could kill two birds with one stone so to speak."
"What won't be right? But why do you actually want to go through with it? Why are you suicidal?"
"Are you trying to talk me out of it?"
"Maybe; if you aren't really committed to this path, it does my conscience bad to lead you down it. But you're avoiding the question."
"Yes, well, I'd prefer not to talk about it. It's rather personal."
"Think about this: you're asking me to eat you. That's about as intimate as we could get, and I think I have a vested interest in knowing what drove you to my door. Boyfriend left you? Can't pay the rent? Failed out of school?"
"No, all of that is fine. It's not that I don't trust you, but you'll say it's silly if I tell you."
"Tell me anyway."
"OK," she said with a resigned sigh, "I have headaches."
"Headaches?"
"Yes, really nasty headaches that you'd never believe unless you had one yourself. I just can't go on with them. When I have them I want to pull my brain out and dash it on the floor, and the worst thing is the knowledge that sometime I'll have another headache. If I could believe that it was my last headache, I could endure it no problem, but it will go on as long as I live, and I'd really rather be dead. But I told you that you'd think it was a silly thing to die over."
"Well, you were right. Have you tried aspirin?"
"Yes, and about a million other medicines. Will you still do it for me?"
"It's not my place to tell a person what is and is not worth killing oneself over. I wouldn't do it if I were in your position, but I'll help you if that's really what you want to do."
"Thank you very much." She was dressed again and sitting on the battered sofa adjacent to the desk on which Rick sat. He still looked at her in a quizzical way, as if he was still trying to decide what she was all about.
"I just want you to be absolutely sure about this before you commit yourself. Suicide might be a viable option for solving your problems, but it is an irreversible option, so you have to think about it quite a lot."
"I have," she replied shyly. "Actually, I've been trying to kill myself for a year or so now."
"But you're still alive?"
"Yes, well, I could never go through with it."
"You had second thoughts?"
"No, I didn't lose my commitment to dying, but I just couldn't do it myself. I need to get someone else to do it for me."
"Hm...so that's where I come in?"
"Yes, and also the thing that stopped me was the idea of my corpse lying on the ground waiting for someone to find and clean up. I just imagined myself lying there, and I couldn't do it. But if I give myself to you, my death will be not only an end in itself for me but also a means to an end for you. It's comforting to know that my remains will be useful for someone rather than just an obstacle."
"A neat freak, eh? Well, we can help you if you're absolutely sure about this."
"You're awfully kind-hearted for a cannibal, aren't you?"
Rick laughed good-naturedly. "Have you ever met a nasty cannibal? Besides, I certainly don't want to have murder on my conscience. You know, after we started eating people occasionally, I became a strict vegetarian. Now the only meat I eat is human, because I can never convince myself that the animals gave their lives voluntarily."
Kim laughed at this, but she had to admit that it made sense.
"So, when did you intend for this little banquet to occur?"
"Anytime you're willing."
"Well, we've had our parties on the fourth of July for the last few years, but since the TV feature we've had to keep a low profile and I hadn't intended to have one this year. But I suppose we can get away with it if we're careful. Let's see...it's June 6th today. Will you be ready on the 4th?"
"I'm ready today, but the fourth will do. By the way, who's this 'we' you keep talking about?"
"Oh, I never eat alone. I hope you don't mind, but I've got a group of about two dozen friends who will find you much to their taste. It will be fine...I'll fetch you the night before, and you can stay over and meet everyone in the morning before we do the deed."
Something tingled within Kim as she heard this, and she nodded her assent. "That sounds good to me."
"Great. So, we need to go over the preparations you need to make before I can get you back here."
"OK."
"First of all, did anyone know you were coming here today?"
"No, I live alone, and I didn't tell anyone."
"Good. Don't mention this to anyone and I really mean anyone."
"Of course."
"OK, between now and Wednesday the 3rd, you'll have to do a few things. You have to write up a suicide note. Don't mention us, of course, but give your reasons for dying. You can blame your headaches if you want. Make it convincing. Also, don't start giving away your prized possessions; that's a dead giveaway for suicidal people. If you want your friends to have anything special of your stuff, write it in your suicide note. Until the night you leave, don't let anyone see that there's anything out of the ordinary."
"All right, I can do that. I've done it several times before."
"Good. Do you have your own car?"
"Yes."
"Good. On Friday night at eleven thirty, you will need to drive to the 15th Street bridge and park in the little clearing on the west end. No one drives by there that time of night, but make sure no one sees you. Don't bring anything that you don't want lost, but you should bring a few things...jewellery or the like...and leave them on the ledge in the middle of the bridge. Pick things that can be identified as yours."
"OK."
"Then walk across the bridge, and leave these things near the middle. When you get that far, you shouldn't have any jewellery or any identification at all with you. Except for your body, we want everything you bring along to be easy to disposed of. Your clothing can be burned easily, but leave the jewellery behind."
"OK, that's easy enough."
"Yes, just don't forget. Other than that, all you need to know is that I'll be waiting for you at the east end of the bridge. You can spend the night here, and you can meet everyone Thursday morning before we get started. We'll allow you some freedom in deciding exactly how we do it, but we can discuss the specifics when you get here. Any questions?"
"Won't the police be alarmed when they can't find my body?"
"No, at least ten people a year jump off that bridge, and at least 80% of the bodies are never found. The river is very deep, and the current is strong. You'll be our ninth in ten years, so we don't contribute enough to the bridge's suicide rate to raise much suspicion."
"Will it hurt?"
Rick smiled amicably. "Well, that's entirely up to you. We usually prepare our meals by roasting on a spit, but we've done it other ways if you have a preference. Some people want to experience the pain for some reason, so we just strap them onto the spit and let them roast. Others don't want any part of that, so they choose to die beforehand. We can put you out of your misery in several ways. We hanged one girl, and we cut another's throat. Your other option is to remain alive during the roasting but to use enough anaesthetics to render your whole body insensitive to most of the pain. One of our group is a doctor and can get us what we need. You can think about how you want us to prepare you, and we're always open to suggestions if you have a different idea."
"OK, I'll think about what I want to do. I guess I'll see you next month."
"Before you go, I just want to ask you to consider again what you're doing and make sure you're absolutely positive that this is really what you want to do. You're free to back out at any time...at least until we've injured you beyond repair. But if you are unsure, I'd rather have you let me know now, because it will be inconvenient for me if I make all the preparations for you and you don't go through with it."
"This is what I want to do."
II
Wednesday was a rainy day. Rick met Kim on the bridge in a grove of trees near the east end. She wore a thin white T-shirt, sandals, and very short cut-off jeans. Rick could see that she didn't have a bra on, and smiled at the gorgeous creature that had placed herself entirely in his hands. She looked more relaxed today than she had at their previous meeting. As she stepped into Rick's car, Kim tossed the sandals into the river, an action that Rick had been meaning to suggest.
"You came back," said Rick with a relieved smile. He'd hoped she'd return to him.
"Of course I did. Yesterday I had a phenomenal headache, and I was able to console myself with the knowledge that it would probably be the last one I'll have to endure. I almost enjoyed that."
Rick started the car and began the long drive to his wrecking yard. "I must admit, I still can't see why you'd want to give up your life just because of a headache."
"Not just a headache; headaches four times a week or more and terribly painful."
"Yes, but do they hurt that much?"
"Well, the thing is, unlike a pain in one's leg or a broken arm, a headache is pain right at the core of your existence. A leg is just an appendage more or less and not an integral part of you, but your brain is you, and when it hurts, your whole being is wrecked for a time. It's not an experience I can recommend."
"Well, I hope you're making the right choice."
"I am, Mr. compassionate cannibal. Come on, don't deny that you wanted to sink your teeth into me the first time you saw me and that your mouth is watering even now!"
"I won't. I do want very much to eat you. I'm sure you'll be delicious, but I don't necessarily want to see you die, and I don't want your death on my conscience. But all of that is not a problem if I'm convinced that it is what you really want, so I'm sorry if I get annoying, but I just have to make absolutely sure."
"It's OK, I'd rather have you this way than the opposite, but I've considered this deeply, and I'm convinced that it's the only solution."
"OK, I won't bother you about it again."
Her smile was fantastic to behold. "I don't believe you."
"Well, anyway, have you decided how you'd like us to do it?"
"Yes, I want to be a part of as much as I can, but I don't want to feel too much pain."
"So the roasted alive with anaesthetic option is for you?"
"Yes, I think so."
"It's a good way; we've done three of those so far."
The pair drove on in silence for a time before embarking on a conversation that had little or nothing to do with cannibalism and death. Eventually, they arrived at the small house on the edge of Rick's salvage yard.
"It's late, and you have to get up early tomorrow morning to get ready for your big day, so you'd better go right to bed," said Rick as they entered and shook the rain out of their hair.
"OK, I'm very tired anyway."
"Good. You can sleep in my bed, and I'll sleep either on the couch or in bed with you--your option."
"You can sleep with me."
"I was hoping you'd say that."
The two slept nude together in bed but did not have sex. Rick had left that option up to her as well and was slightly disappointed by the result, but holding her soft naked body in his arms all night was nice enough. Rick had mixed feelings about the upcoming holiday picnic. On the one hand, these parties were the greatest thing in Rick's world, but on the other hand it did seem a shame. He wanted to have his cake and eat it too.
III
Rick woke up at 6:00 and prepared pancakes for breakfast before waking up Kim. She was sleeping curled up with a smile on her face and awoke easily but maintained a dreamy look.
"Pleasant dreams?" asked Rick.
"Yes, very," murmured Kim.
"What did you dream about?"
"Dying."
"That's pleasant?"
"It can be."
"Well, I hope so, but we'll get to that later. Now I have breakfast for you."
Kim ate her breakfast ravenously and maintained a blissful smile throughout. Rick informed her that Cindy would arrive at 8:00 to help prepare Kim for her big day. In the meantime, Rick led Kim to the basement to show her his trophy case.
Kim was curious, and especially intrigued as she watched Rick slide aside a hidden panel in the wall of his basement workshop. The case thus revealed was divided into about fifteen sections, the leftmost nine of these contained interesting objects.
"It's really stupid to keep all of this stuff, but we sort of like the nostalgia," said Rick. "There's a compartment for each year since we started this."
Kim stepped closer and discovered that the first section was labelled "1987" and contained less than the other sections. There were a few Polaroid snapshots of a redheaded woman and others of the same woman, now bald, tied to a spit over a raging fire. Then there was a large bundle of long red hair, and a small bundle of curly red hair that was clearly the redhead's pubic hair.
"That's Cindy's case," said Rick. "You'll meet her later. She was my girlfriend and first person we tried to eat. She insisted on arranging it but got cold feet at the last possible moment, so we never got to taste her."
The next case contained similar articles, but the hair here was dark brown. In addition, the 1988 case contained a human skull, pelvis, spine, a rib, and assorted other bones. There were also pictures of a banquet with anthropomorphic cuts of meat proudly displayed on people's plates.
"The tradition we have for distributing souvenirs is quite involved. Everyone gets a portion of head and pubic hair as well as a rib. The person who brings the main course is awarded the skull, which I have four of in my collection. The host of the party gets the pelvis, so I have all eight of those. Anyone who has had sex with the entree gets a share of the spine. The oldest and youngest participants each get thigh bones. I won't bore you with the rest. Miss 1988 was named Teresa. I picked her up in an S&M bar and we brought her back here and roasted her alive without anaesthetic. She loved every minute of it. It was strange, but she is special since she was the first we actually ate."
"Why doesn't she have any teeth?" asked Kim, referring to the skull's missing dentition.
"We destroy the teeth because I think they're too easy to trace. If anyone ever did find our souvenirs, it would be best if no one knew where these bones came from."
The 1989 case contained the same sort of things except it lacked the skull and only contained half of the spine. "I'm not too sure what Wendy's story was. I think Ron found her somewhere. She pretty much just wanted to die, so we cut her throat and roasted her as she requested. She was a sweet little thing and very pathetic. I always felt sorry for her for some reason."
Kim noticed that the 1990 section also lacked a skull and lacked a spine as well. The person roasting in the photographs was a middle-aged man. Rick reminisced, "Nick was one of our group for the first three years. But then he got sick of life and made all the women in the group very happy. He was a very good friend of mine, but he was always depressed since the first day I met him, and I think his imagination really got away with him over those three years. It was a shame to see him go. He wanted to be roasted alive without anaesthetic like Teresa was. He was tastier than he looks."
The 1991 section contained the hair, rib, and pelvis as well as a small section of spine and photographs of a large-breasted blonde. "Now Veronica was also a member of our group. But she got so excited after Nick that she sold her boutique, fucked every last one of us, and had us roast her. She was the first to use anaesthetic. Nothing like a suicidal nymphomaniac."
The section marked 1992 was similar to the 1988 section. It contained more bones than any other including the skull and full spine. "If I ever loved any of these people, Melissa was the one. She was my girlfriend for two years, and I'd asked her to marry me. I shouldn't have told her about Veronica. I generally don't try to date suicidal women, but somehow it just happens. So Melissa insisted that we eat her the next year. She wanted to be hanged first--she'd been into noose play for a long time, but this was more drastic than I wanted to go through with. You think I tried to talk you out of it; that's nothing to what I said to Melissa. It was the first meal I cried at."
Section 1993 was much like the one for 1990. It was another male, but this one was younger, in his mid-twenties. "Phil was Carina's boyfriend, and she brought him to Melissa's last meal. Carina is a terrible dominant, and Phil was a pathetic submissive, but they had planned to give themselves to the fire together one fine day. Well, Carina got sick of him and tried to break up with him, but he just wouldn't let her go. Finally, he decided that dying for her and her friends was a nice compromise. I've never seen anything like this one. It was the only feast we didn't roast on the spit. He actually stood on a stool in the middle of the yard and stared straight ahead as Carina sliced off his genitals with a big knife. It made every male in the place wince. Then he laid down on the picnic table, and we all took knives and hacked pieces off of him until he was quite dead. It was gory, and I don't ever want to do it that way again."
The 1994 section contained the usual bones as well as a skull and a third of a spine. The photos were of a small brunette. "Another of my girlfriends...what can I say? I didn't mean to drive her to the fire pit. She'd been a member of our group since before we roasted Melissa, but then we started dating, and she decided it was time. She took the anaesthetic and smiled all the way to my plate. She always was a bit odd."
The last occupied case was marked "1995" and contained the remains of a black-haired girl. She left about a third of her spine but not her skull in Rick's case. "Ah, yes, last year's entree. Felicia was a great gal. I knew her since she was in elementary school with me. But she met Bob and before you know it she's all doped up and roasting over an open fire. I feel somewhat guilty about this one. I'm sure she wasn't coerced into it, but I think maybe Bob subtly pushed her in that direction. I mean she had an incredible zest for life, was a star athlete, a great businesswoman, and a fabulous lover. Then suddenly she's suicidal and lusting after the fire pit. It just didn't make sense, but we went through with it because we couldn't talk her out of it."
Kim examined everything with great interest, and wondered what of her own body would end up in the 1996 section. And where would the rest of her end up? By now she was riding along without a care in the world. There was nothing for her to worry about but to follow Rick down any path he led her. It would all be over before nightfall, so the burden of long-range planning was entirely lifted from her shoulders.
The doorbell rang just as they reached the top of the stairs, and Cindy entered without waiting for Rick to answer the door. She looked at the pair of them and started in mock shock at their nudity. "Rick, darling, have you been playing with your food again! I can understand a fine young morsel like this wanting to show off her body, but, Rick, a man your age should be more discreet!"
Rick walked by her and smacked her butt. "Oh, hush, Cindy or I'll have them roast you instead."
"I'm waiting."
"Yeah, you had your chance, baby, so don't whine. Kim, meet Cindy, the chick who started this whole thing. And, Cindy, this is that eager young lass I told you about. I don't think Kim is going to yield her place, so you'll have to wait until next year or next century."
"Nice to meet you, sweet thing," said Cindy to Kim. "You look delicious. It'll be a breeze getting you ready."
"Thank you. What do we have to do?"
"Just a moment, hon. Rick, for God's sake, go get some clothes on and get that fire started."
"Always bossy weren't you?" said Rick with a taunting smile. "I should have roasted you when I had the chance. You treat my girl well."
Rick went to the bedroom to dress and then went outside to make preparations, while Cindy led Kim into the upstairs bathroom.
Kim leaned back in the bath and closed her eyes and drifted into a dreamy mood. Cindy watched her closely and scrubbed her sudsy belly diligently. After a moment of contemplative silence, Kim remarked out loud in a soft tone halfway between a question and a statement, "I'm really going to be food." She seemed to be struggling to believe this statement.
"Yep, not too long now," answered Cindy with an appraising smile.
"And you'll be one of the people that will feast on my flesh."
"Hope so," said Cindy, "looks real tasty, darling."
Kim lapsed into silence for a moment more then suddenly opened her eyes and stared straight at Cindy. "What part of me will you eat first?"
"Well, if I can get a hand or foot, I'll take that; but I'll probably have to settle for a thigh or calf steak to begin with."
This peculiar talk sent an excited tingling down Kim's spine. She could almost see herself roasted and laid out on the table being divvied up. It was hard to believe that this was real.
"What will Rick eat?"
"Quite a lot of you, I'm sure. He usually claims the lion's share of the leftovers, so you'll last a long time in his freezer. But today, he'll surely demand your heart. The other guys'll fight over your breasts, ass, and cunt, and Rick might want to taste those things too, but he really goes for the heart. He told me he would eat my heart, and he will...someday."
"Really? But I thought you decided not to be eaten."
"I did...for the time being, and it was the worst decision I ever made. I was all ready to go, and I actually got tied to the spit and roasted for about fifteen minutes. But I got to thinking about all the life I was giving up, and I didn't have any terminal illnesses or anything like Melissa did. I was only twenty-one. So I called it off, and Rick was very kind and let me go and ordered out chicken that evening instead. Some of the others were in favour of just roasting me anyway. After all, what was I going to do about it. But what Rick says goes, and I'm here today. But I vowed after we ate Wendy that I would never live through a 4th of July again without eating someone.
"I decided that I would insist on a second chance if we couldn't find someone else to roast some year. Every year till this one we've had somebody. And I was begging Rick to take me this year since we didn't have another entree. But he decided that we should not cook anyone this year since the TV show was giving us undue publicity that might get us in trouble. You must have knocked his socks off because he was adamant that we weren't going to have a party this year. He must have thought you were one tasty looking bird, and I have to admit that you're by far the best looking person we've had so far."
"Thank you, I think," said Kim with a shy smile. "Rick seems like a very nice person."
"Oh, he is, and you don't know the half of it. He's my darling. Aside from letting me go back on my decision, he's always doing everything he can to make our meals' departures as pleasant as possible. He's figured out ways to make the roasting as painless as possible, and he'll always make sure that everything is consensual and not the kind of consent gotten under duress. Could you roll over, please."
Kim rolled over onto her belly so that Cindy could scrub her back. "Yes, Rick has been very careful about pleasing me."
"Oh, yeah, that's his way. Ron and Bob and Stan aren't always so kind. Actually, Rick makes a point of never suggesting the roasting pit to a girl. He always waits for an offer, and the offers just seem to come out of the woodwork. There was only one time when Rick initiated a catering agreement, and it's been eating into his conscience these eight years. It was the first one--Teresa. Ron took Rick to some sort of S&M bar downtown. I've never been there, but apparently it's real weird. There's a place where you can stick pins in people's butts, and you can pay them to put you in stocks for an hour or two. Well, Ron paid five bucks to rent a whip for fifteen minutes, and he gave it to Rick because Rick was too shy to do it himself--he's not really a Sadist at all, but Ron sure is. Anyway, Rick goes up to this wall where there are the exposed naked backs of about ten men and women who have paid their fees to get chained to the wall and gagged and blindfolded for an hour. Could you roll over again."
Cindy lathered up Kim's legs and began shaving the long muscular limbs. "So, anyway, Rick finds this cute little brunette chained in the first part of the wall, and he sort of taps her back a few times with the whip and tries to give the whip back to Ron, but Ron's got his own and is whaling the shit out of a big blonde down the line. So Rick hits Teresa a few more times and starts to walk away after only about five minutes. But--and this is fate if anything is--Teresa's time is up, and the attendants are taking her down as Rick is walking away. But he turns because he wants to see her face. And she's complaining to the attendants that hardly anyone even tapped her, but they brush her off. Then she notices Rick and comes up to him and asks if he's the one that's hitting her like a sissy, and he of course admits to it.
"So this chick introduces herself and gets herself invited to come home with him. But she's still a bigtime masochist, so she makes him do all these things to hurt her like you wouldn't believe. It was real weird--like she was a dominant masochist. So they're together for like a week, and Rick can't believe the pain she can take. And he asks her--I'm sure he was just kidding around--'just how much can you take' and she says 'anything you can give me, baby.' So he names a few things he could do to her, and it gets her all excited. But then he says, 'would you like me to kill you?' and she says orgasmic-like 'only if you make it really painful.' So they start talking about the roasting we tried to do the year before, and she gets real excited and all and won't let him drop it. So eventually we did her, and she loved every minute of it, and she tasted great to boot. And that's enough to plague little Ricky's conscience for eight years."
"Sounds like she got what she wanted," observed Kim with her eyes once again closed dreamily.
"Yeah, it was a bargain all around."
"You really like Rick don't you?"
"Of course; I never loved anyone else."
"But you're not together anymore."
"No, it all fell apart after the roasting fiasco. It took Rick a long time to get used to the idea of being without me when I finally badgered him into staging the barbecue for me. Then when it was all over, he was prepared to be without me even though he was actually with me, and you know how it is. But I really miss him, and we're great friends still. But he's great in bed--I miss that--but I'm sure he showed you all that last night." Cindy gave Kim a knowing wink and started rubbing shampoo into her long blonde hair.
"Actually, he didn't," said Kim without opening her eyes.
"You're kidding!" said Cindy. "You intend to die without having experienced Rick's lovemaking? Bad idea."
"No, I haven't experienced that at all."
"What do you mean 'at all'?"
"At all."
"At all?"
"Yes."
"A virgin?"
Kim nodded her soapy head and seemed a bit distracted.
"Well, I'll be damned. I've never eaten a virgin before. But the guys'll cure you of that soon enough."
Kim opened her eyes in alarm. "I hope not!"
"Don't worry, Rick will hold them back if you aren't willing, but why on earth wouldn't you be."
"I'm saving myself for marriage."
"Be serious."
"I don't know. I just don't want to do that."
"You're a strange chick, Kim, but we'll respect your wishes. Let's see, now you're as clean as you've ever been in your life. Stand up and dry off so we can do the next little thing we have to do."
Kim complied and asked "What's next?"
"Well, did Rick show you his trophy case?"
"Yes."
"Do you remember that there was a pubic hair sample from each of our past entrees?"
"Oh, so we need to do that."
"Yes, don't worry, it won't hurt at all."
Cindy used the beard trimmer on Rick's electric razor to trim the bulk of Kim's pubic hair and divided the harvest evenly into twenty-four plastic sandwich bags. Kim was left with quarter-inch stubble. "So, shall we shave you smooth or do you want to just leave it like that?" asked Cindy.
"Will it get in the way when you're ready to eat?"
"Nah, it'll singe off over the fire if you leave it."
"OK, let's leave it then."
"Fine. There's not much else to do now. Just a little makeup and you'll look good enough to eat. The guests should be here around ten o'clock."
"Are you going to shave my head? There was head hair in the cases too."
"Yeah, we have to do that, but we'll wait until you've been introduced to everyone. They kind of like to see you with hair at first."
Kim smiled and felt genuinely good all over.
IV
Rick entered the house at 10:15 and found Kim and Cindy watching television in the living room. He walked in and kissed both women after smiling contentedly upon the still nude and now perfectly groomed form of Kimberly Green. Cindy had donned her bikini in the hopes of getting in some sunbathing while dinner was being prepared.
"Everyone's here, and they're hungry," announced Rick.
"That was quick," observed Kim.
"There are some events people don't like to be late for," said Cindy with a wry smile.
"Ready, love?" asked Rick.
"Ready."
"Nervous?"
"Terrified."
"But you're going through with it?"
"Certainly."
Kim accepted the white silk robe Rick brought her as well as the sandals. Cindy had a few more things to do in the house, so she remained behind as Rick led Kim through the winding maze of junked cars to a small clearing near the centre of the salvage yard. There amid a ring of cars piled four high was a small pit in which a fire roared. Kim shivered as she saw for the first time the spit hanging over the fire. Scattered about the clearing in small conversational groups were twenty-two men and women in every state of attire. As the guest of honour appeared on the scene, everyone abandoned their friends and flocked to get a closer look at the bill of fare.
"Everybody, let me introduce the lovely Kimberly Green who has donated the materials for our evening meal tonight. You owe her a lot, so be nice to her."
Rick introduced the group one by one but too quickly for Kim to get a good idea of who was who. There was a nice-looking brunette in a teeny bikini named Liz and her new husband Ted, who was experiencing his first human barbecue today. Then there was Ron, a seedy looking forty-year-old and the seemingly shameless blonde on his arm named Vicki. The latter was about twenty-five years old and unabashedly topless, Ron having been in the process of feeling her up when Rick and Kim arrived. There was Reverend Bill in a white suit that looked very uncomfortable on this scorching summer day. Carina was about thirty, black haired, wearing cutoffs and a T-shirt that barely covered her large braless breasts, and in the company of a shrewish man of the same age named Nelson. Bob was alone, having not yet replaced Felicia with someone that could be trusted with the group's dark secret. Stan, the medical doctor of the group, brought his sister Barbara, both of them old friends of Rick's and in their late forties. Melanie was a brunette about Kim's age and wearing jeans and T-shirt. She was unaccompanied because she was an old girlfriend of Rick's and he didn't trust any of her new boyfriends. Janet and Brad were a couple in their early thirties, both dressed in unrevealing swimsuits. Mike and Steve were together, as were Tina and Sally. Rico and Molly were a young couple in conservative dress. Kelly and Willy were a pair of fraternal twins who came together along with Willy's wife Sheila. Everyone fought to get a closer look at Kim. The later had never felt so popular in all her short life.
The whirlwind introductions having ended, Rick whispered to Kim what she was to do next. She obediently climbed on top of one of the several picnic tables scattered around the clearing and dropped her robe. Everyone's eyes widened as the group gazed upon Kim's unveiled splendour. After a momentary pause, everyone flocked closer to grasp the opportunity to touch Kim's soft flesh. After enduring with a smile several minutes of discomfort, Rick led Kim off the picnic table and slightly away from the crowd.
Rick told Kim that she would now be given the opportunity to select a man or men with whom she would be allowed to spend an hour in sexual relations. Kim hesitated a moment before replying and then asked in a timid way, "Rick, will they be very disappointed if I don't choose anyone?"
"Well, yes, but since we don't have time for you to do us all, there's sure to be some disappointed people, so you can do what you want. Everyone will be happy again once dinner is served."
"OK, I think I'll respectfully decline the offer."
"Um...would you like to have some time with one of the women? Only a few of them are actually lesbians, but most I think would be willing to make an exception under the circumstances."
"No, thank you. I'm fine without."
"OK, whatever you want, but that will give us a bit more time before lunch. Why don't you walk around and get to know everyone a little bit better."
Reluctantly at first but with growing interest as the first few people treated her courteously, Kim began to mingle in the crowd. It was strange being the only naked one in a crowd of clothed people (Vicki had found her bikini top), but she got used to it. Everyone asked her why she was doing this and how she was going to have it done. She gave vague answers to everything and just kept smiling until she got to Ron.
Ron leered at her and asked, "Mind if I have an appetizer?" He started to lunge for her left breast without waiting for a reply.
Kim was unsure what to do about this, as she did not want him to do this but was uncertain whether or not she had a choice.
Rick answered her question. "Ron, get away from her this second! You know the rules; no one wants you slobbering all over their dinner."
"But I drew the left breast in the lottery. It's mine anyway. I just want a preview."
"Forget it Ron. Back off and be nice to her or you'll get nothing but viscera until doomsday."
Ron retreated sullenly. Rick was always in charge at these events, and everyone was eager to support his leadership. Going against Rick was a losing battle.
For her part, Kim was relieved at this resolution, but it made her a bit uncomfortable. It was the first time Rick had spoken of her as food, and it made her insides jiggle around unnaturally.
Rick dragged her away a bit early at eleven thirty. As they left, everyone opened their bag lunches and started to attack the less spectacular meal of the day.
On the way back to the house, Kim remarked, "I wish I could know how I will taste."
Rick smiled enigmatically, "You read my mind. We can come pretty close."
Cindy served lunch to Kim while Rick watched. Kim looked at the steak on her plate, and her eyes widened in realization. The piece of meat was nearly an inch thick, about six inches in diameter, and almost perfectly round except that it has a small circular hole in the centre and a slice through one side, apparently where the bone had been removed.
"Kim, meet Felicia," said Rick with a smile.
Kim was speechless for a moment. Then looked with wide eyes at her last meal. She could make out the separate muscles that had once been contained within Felicia's thigh. "You still have this?"
"Yes," replied Rick, "I try to keep one or two thigh steaks each year so that the next entree can taste the last if he or she desires. I know it's a bit weird, but eat up if you want it. Most people taste pretty much the same, although leanness does play a role. You'll be at least as good as Felicia, and you'll be fresh as well."
Kim placed a small bite of the tender meat on her tongue and chewed with her eyes closed. It was delicious, and Kim suddenly wondered why cannibalism was so rare. She ate the rest of her meal with relish, allowing Rick and Cindy to take small tastes. Kim wondered who would be tasting her thigh with Rick and Cindy a year hence.
When she was finished eating, Rick looked at his watch and became suddenly urgent, "I hope you're ready, my darling, because your big moment is at hand. We'd better get cooking; you have to be well underway by 2:00.
Kim marched with Rick and Cindy on either side of her back to the clearing where the guests eagerly awaited her arrival. A great applause emanated from the clearing as the trio approached. The threesome stopped at a slightly raised spot just in front of the fire pit and faced the crowd. Kim felt the overpowering heat of the fire on her bare back and wondered how she would be able to stand the actual roasting.
Kim discovered that the next step was for her to lose her hair, so she knelt on a cushion and allowed Rick to shave her head with the electric shears. She felt a vague sadness as she watched her long blonde tresses thus dislodged. It had taken her a long time to grow hair like that. Cindy rapidly collected the hair and formed it into twenty-four nearly evenly sized bundles.
Everyone lined up and filed past Kim to bid their last farewell and give thanks. Kim handed out a bundle of her head hair and a sandwich bag of pubic hair to each participant and received their thanks in return. She smiled sincerely the whole time. When everyone had made their personal expressions of gratitude, they crowded in front of the show and watched intently.
Rick said to Kim, "Now we usually give our entrees the opportunity to say a prayer or whatever. You can go over to the other side of the fire if you want a little privacy. We'll have to strap you onto the spit after that."
"I'm ready, Rick; I don't have a prayer to say."
"All right then, my dear, we'll get you started."
Kim was instructed to lie on her belly on the sheet that was spread out in front of the fire. Bob and Ron helped Rick bring the specially designed spit over to Kim's nervously waiting form. A tremor passed through her body as the metal pole touched her spine. The men laid the bar on top of Kim, and Cindy clipped each of Kim's ankles into the shackles attached to the crossbar welded to the lower end of the spit. Ron pulled Kim's arms up over her head and clipped her wrists into the shackles attached to another crossbar at the other end of the spit. Then the three men and Cindy rolled Kim over and Rick buckled the metal band around Kim's waist.
Kim was effectively immobilized. Her arms were pulled far above her head and parallel to the spit, as were her legs. This forced Kim to arch her back in a way that was slightly painful but not unbearably so. The arrangement was designed to roast the thin parts of Kim's body, the arms and legs over the ends of the fire pit where the flames were less concentrated. The brunt of the roasting would be afforded to Kim's torso and thighs.
Several of the men helped lift the spit into the air, and Kim felt the peculiar floating feeling as she hung at the men's shoulder height. To Kim's surprise, the men did not hang her on the brackets over the fire but dropped the foot end of her spit into a steel-lined hole in the ground that she hadn't noticed before. At this point, Dr. Stan stepped forward with several hypodermic needles, which reminded Kim of the anaesthetic that she'd completely forgotten. She watched as the doctor injected something into her body in several places.
Kim hung before the crowd as if crucified and felt first her toes and fingers and progressively more and more of her body begin to tingle and lose sensation. Kim's situation was becoming less and less real to her. She felt everything in an abstract way, which denied the fact that she was about to be roasted alive.
At this point everyone knelt before her, and Reverend Bill stepped forward to lead a group prayer: "Oh, Heavenly Father, bless this group of people who come together annually for good food and good friendship; bless this meal and make her flesh tender and pleasing to the palate; and above all, O Lord, bless this woman who is making the ultimate sacrifice for our unusual banquet. Guide her on her way as she comes to see you later today. Help her to have everlasting life at your side for she truly deserves it if anyone does. In Jesus' name we pray, Amen." Kim watched this proceeding and noticed that halfway through many of the people opened their eyes and started mocking Reverend Bill. But Bill himself took this ceremony with extreme seriousness.
Rick whispered in Kim's ear, "We can't stop him from doing this. I suppose it can't hurt."
Meanwhile, Rick probed Kim's back and buttocks with a long needle and discovered that the anaesthetic had taken effect. "It's just about time, Kim; I can't tell you how much we appreciate what you're doing for us."
"I'm doing it for me, remember? But I don't mind giving you and your friends pleasure. Thank you for being so kind to me through all of this. I hope everyone enjoys their dinner."
Rick produced an odd little contraption that was a thin tube about four inches long. One end was a sharp metal point, but the other end seemed to comprise a small red bulb. "OK, Kim, we're about to do some damage, although not irreparable damage, but if you're having second thoughts, now's the time to speak up."
"No, proceed. What is that thing?"
"I made it myself. It's a larger version of those things that come with turkeys to tell you when the centre is cooked. The little red bulb will pop up when you're cooked through."
Kim smiled in recognition and watched dispassionately as Rick inserted his device into her navel. There was a little bit of blood but no pain. Kim thought the red plastic bulb sticking out of her belly button looked rather odd.
"OK, baby, here you go."
Rick and several men lifted Kim and her spit into the air again. After a moment of flying, Kim came down gently on the brackets on either end of the fire pit. She could see the flames licking her body as the heat enveloped her. Sweat began to gather on her forehead. Cindy attached a handle to the head end of the spit, and immediately began to rotate Kim slowly over the fire. Tina, Sally, Lisa, and Melanie broke out the buckets of barbecue sauce and began to apply it to Kim's sizzling skin with long-handled brushes. Everyone applauded loudly as Kim began her long slow roasting. She felt warm and happy and scared all at the same time. Tina's brush tickled Kim's forehead and left barbecue sauce running down the side of her face.
Kim began to have trouble seeing beyond the flames, which were rapidly blinding her, but she could see the silent form of Rick standing attentively at the side of the fire pit watching his protégé's conversion from girl to meat. Kim felt warm thoughts of friendship and love for Rick.
Kim had a lot of time to think there on the spit slowly rotating over the fire pit. She saw everyone watching her demise and thought about how their mouths must be watering just for a taste of her body. She thought about her decision and wondered if it was right, but couldn't come up with a better strategy. She thought about Cindy and how she had gotten this far before turning back and living at least nine more years. She thought about death and wondered how long a person could live in her position. It didn't matter how long she lasted because she had no sense of time once the roasting began. She could have lasted an hour, ten minutes, or a day. But she could almost feel herself as she began to slip away. It wasn't a sudden end. She felt as if her thoughts were slowing down. And her brain moved slower and slower. Then her sight and hearing faded gradually. The smell of burning wood even faded from her consciousness. Finally, she faded all together, and darkness overtook her. Kim's last thought was used in wondering how much longer it would take for that red bulb to pop out of her belly button.