Lottery
Chapter 28
By Mark J. Silva Jr
Lily looked over the weekly expense spread sheets her grandma had printed out for her. She read it over a dozen times and still couldn't believe the cost of Mark's care. There was clothing, medical costs, and even his food was expensive.
“Is this what it cost to keep all males?” Lily asked Di.
Di moved a few more spread sheets across the table and said, “This is the cost of caring for Paul for the same time period.”
Lily looked it over. The numbers were a hundredth of what Marks were, “Why is there such a difference?”
“A lot of it is the differences between the two, Paul is an average healthy male teen. Paul is five foot six, hundred and fifteen pound with black curly hair and a dark complexion and brown eyes while Mark before his changes was a glamor boy, he was five foot and ninety seven pounds with lily white skin and the bluest eyes I have ever seen. On looks alone, Mark is worth millions of credits. Then you have to add in the factor that he a gifted savant,” explained Di.
“So they're different, but why is the cost so much more?”
“First off, is Mark's size, then and now. Mark is tiny and everything he wears has to be fitted, no one makes such little sizes. There are just too few customers around to justify a maker producing clothing in his size. But now that he back in his thirteen year old body it has further complicated things,” Di explained as she dug through the pile of spread sheets.
Di passed a more recent clothing sales sheet to Lily, “While he fits into kids clothing with no problems, if I want a certain dress or under garment, they have to be 'costume' ordered, now. This is one of the reasons he's so expensive to keep. The other, is dietary needs. Mark has always had issues with keeping his weight on, and before you ask; yes, it's because he's so hyper. He's always bouncing around and dancing, so he has to have food that gives him the energy he needs. That's why feeding him a balanced diet is costly. Then there the medical costs of his injuries, and now the maintenance of his nanobots that hold him at the physical age of thirteen.”
“How do you afford all of this grandma?” Lily asked.
Sliding over a new spread sheet, “Besides my retirement, and the money Lisa left, I also have gotten several grants and funding from companies like Vital-Collection. But the fact is, as with any male, the cost of owning them is outweighed by how much we love them.”
“That's bullshit! Love them? They suck the life out of you and cost way too much to keep,” Riley said as she walked into Lisa old private office.
“MOM!” Lily said in shock.
“What are you doing here, Riley?” Di asked.
Riley peeked down at a few of the spread sheets, “I got released, last night. Now I need some place to stay, until I get back on my feet, Mom.”
“I know you were released from jail, but why are you here?”
Riley gave her mom a hurt look.
“It's a 'Demon Summer,' Mom. I needed someplace cool to stay, until I can get back on my feet.”
Cyres three in the Eckart system has binary suns, Only large red giant and one tiny super hot blue what star. Every five years the two suns would align so that Cyres three would end up with a super hot summer with day time temperature ranging from 100f to 130f. While the worlds native fauna and flora is well adjusted to these ranges humans have to seek shelter and stay out of the hottest parts of the days.
This is Called a Demon Summer on Cyres three.
Riley uncovered Mark's account statements and added, “But, if you give me five hundred thousand credits, I can find someplace else to stay.”
“Five hundred thousand credits!” Lily spit out in surprise.
Riley gave Lily a dirty look.
“I don't have that kind of money, Riley! Even if I did, I wouldn't give you any of it,” Di said.
Di grabbed up the flimsies, but Riley snatched out the one flimsy that Di wished Riley had never seen.
“Mark has thirty-seven billion credits! Just take it from him, and I will be out of your hair.”
Di pinched the bridge of her nose, trying to relieve the stress of dealing with her daughter.
“You know we can't touch his money. We would have MCPA crawling up our asses faster than you'd get burnt in the Demon sun.”
“Damnit, Mom, he doesn't own us! Lily owns his ass, and in so doing, also owns his accounts!” Riley said in a huff.
“You still haven’t learned! Slaves have rights, just as you do,” Di answered.
Then they heard a door slide open, and Mark's voice drifted down the hall. Riley was out of the office before anyone could stop her.
“Hey, you prick! Give me five hundred thousand credits, or I will whip your ass!” Riley yelled down the hallway.
Mark froze, Tina and Penny grabbed him, and shoved him back, where Sasha grabbed him up and moved quickly back into the bedroom.
“You don't belong here,” Tina snarled.
“Shut the fuck up, you bunny bitch! Get that prick back out here!”
“No,” Tina snarled as Penny started moving closer to Riley while baring her fangs.
“Tina! Penny! Back down,” Lily order as she stepped into the hallway with Di close behind her.
“She doesn't belong here,” answered Tina.
“Where is Mark, now?” Di asked Tina.
“Sasha took him back into his room, Mistress,” said Tina as she and Penny backed away from Riley.
“What is wrong with you people? She a fucking pet,” Riley said as she headed for Mark's bedroom door.
But when she got to the door it wouldn't open, even after placing her palm on the manual entry panel and Tina snickered at her.
“Bitch, open the fucking door!” Riley screamed.
Tina crossed her arms and stood silent.
Riley lifted her hand to smack Tina when Di warned her, “Do that and I will not stop them from tearing you apart, Riley.”
Riley looked at Tina and notice her claws extending, and then she peeked at Penny who had moved to the side and she saw the fangs in Penny's muzzle and how sharp they looked.
“And you let these things watch over your precious boytoy?”
Di walked up to her daughter and placed her hand on Riley's shoulder.
“Their purpose is his protection, Riley. You would never stand a chance, facing them. Now go to the living room, and wait.”
Di and Lisa watched as Riley sulked, and stomped off to the living room. Then Di touched the entry pad and stepped into the bedroom, finding Mark pouting on the bed.
“Are you okay?”
Mark looked at Lily and Di, “I'm hungry, and Sasha says I can't go eat yet.”
Lily walked around her grandmother and over to Mark, she could see the bruising on his arms and the dark circles under his eyes. Then she noticed a dark bruise just below the collar of his shirt, and she reached out to touch it.
Sasha stopped her by saying, “They're painful, Mistress.”
“How are you feeling, Mark,” Di asked as she walked over to the bed where he was sitting.
Mark looked up with tears in his eyes, “It hurts.”
Di wanted to grab Mark and hold him close, but after what Sasha had just said, she feared it would only cause him more pain.
“Sasha why don't you take Mark to the kitchen and make him something to eat.”
Sasha offered Mark her hand, helping him up off the bed. As Mark and Sasha left the room Lily's eyes found more bruising on the backs of his legs.
“There are even more under the robe,” Di said to Lily.
“He must hate me for doing that to him,” Lily said in a low voice.
“No, my dear. Mark isn't stupid. He knows why it had to be done. It's what we do now, that matters the most,” Di said as she headed out of the room behind Mark, who was moving very slowly.
“There you are,” Riley said, as Mark stepped into the living room on his way to the kitchen.
“Leave him alone, Riley, or you'll find yourself outside,” Di said as she stepped out of the hallway.
Riley paused and looked out the front window. It was reaching noontime and had to be at lest 120 °F outside.
Then she watched as Mark and Sasha entered the kitchen, “So I can stay?”
After the kitchen door closed behind Sasha Di turned to Riley, “If you weren't my own daughter you would be right out that damn door, on your ass! You stay away from Mark! You do not talk to him! You do not try to enter his room! You leave him alone, or God save you, because I will not run interference between you and his pets, again, Riley! Do you understand me?” Di said in a raised voice surprising both Riley and Lily.
Riley looked at her mother and sighed, “Okay, Mom. But can you get the money I need from him?”
Di raises her hands in disbelief and frustration, “No, NO, and NO! Go find yourself a damned job, Riley!”
Di turned and walked into the kitchen, with Lily following close behind her.
The smell of frying bacon and sausage had filled the room. It reminded Lily that she hadn't had anything to eat since early in the morning.
“Sasha can you make me some, also?”
Sasha smiled as she looked over at Lily and said, “Of course, Mistress.”
A few minutes later Sasha placed a plate down in front of Lily and Mark. For Lily it was the first time she really paid attention to what Mark was getting to eat and it was a lot. It was even more than she would consider eating. Two big patties of sausage, nine thick strips of bacon, four pieces of toasted cracked-grain whole wheat bread, four large eggs, and a half a grapefruit.
“Is this what he gets every day?” Lily asked as she looked at her grandmother.
“Oh, food,” Riley said as she grabbed a slice of toast from Mark's plate.
Riley's eyes went super wide when Sasha grabbed her by the larynx and squeezed, cutting off her airway.
“Never, ever take anything from Master's plate! Do you understand me?”
Lily and Di watched as Riley nodded quickly, and Sasha released her.
Riley coughed for a few minutes and when she was able to breathe once more, she looked at her mother.
“She was going to kill me! Why didn't you stop her?”
Di watched as Mark slowly chewed on a piece of bacon, “Because you were the one dumb enough to grab something off of his plate. Now, if your hungry, go make yourself something to eat.”
“Why doesn't she make me something?” Riley asked?
Di looked at Riley and then over to Sasha who was pouring Mark a glass of milk, “Sasha could you please make Riley a sandwich?”
Sasha looked at Mark who gave her a nod 'okay,' because he was chewing on some egged dipped toast,
“Of course, Mistress.”
As Sasha worked Riley checked her out. Riley was tall and thin and at thirty-eight quite out of shape. Sasha on the other hand was a good six inches taller, much wider of shoulder, and well built. There was no doubt that if pushed, Sasha could snap her neck like a twig.
* * * *
Mark slid into the hot tub, and let out a sigh of relief as the hot water soothed his sore body. After breakfast, Mark had originally sat down in the living room to relax and maybe read an e-novel. But Riley kept staring at him, and complaining about how hard her life was.
“Can you believe her, Tina? She thinks her life is hard! Let someone shove a slugball bat up her ass, and run a good hefty charge through her,” Mark said absently minded.
“Mom can't help how she is,” Lily said from Marks bedroom.
Mark turned a little too fast, and a pain shot through his neck.
“Maybe not. But she doesn't have to be so mean.”
Lily walked over to the side of the hot tub and frowned when she noticed all the bruising on his body, “My mom has had it hard, Mark. She's been in and out of juvenile jail, and adult jail, most of her life.”
Mark leaned back and closed his eyes.
“Your mom complains a lot about how males cost so much and how it's our fault she's so broke.”
“I don't know the whole story just what grandma has told me, but when she brought Paul's semen package she expected a girl but the package was missed labeled girl and when she filed a complaint with Stork-Gifts they congratulated her on having a baby boy. The problem is having a boy has a lot of extra costs, from registering him to the mandatory check up every three months. It took what little money she had, and then some,” Lily said as she dipped a toe in the hot water.
“If she was so broke, then how did she have you?”
Lily stood there and for the first time ever she thought about the stories she was told and one fact Mark just pointed out, if her mom was so broke how did she get the money for her? Lily looked back into the bedroom where she notice Di with a worried look on her face.
Di walked into the yard area and gave Lily a sullen look, “You my dear were a gift from Nana and I. Riley had sworn up and down that she could care for a girl much better than a boy. After much debate, we brought your package and for a few years your mom did a great job. But old habits are hard to change and your mom thought she found a fool proof way to make money.”
“Fool proof, my ass,” Mark said under his breath.
“Maybe, Mark, but Riley has always taken the risk and sadly, also, the fall,” Di said as she looked at the bruising on Mark.
“But grandma, why does she seem to hate Mark so much?” Lily asked.
Di sat down on a recliner, “When Paul was born Riley was so happy, even with the extra cost she was walking on water, but after Paul's sixth month check-up she received devastating news. It was news that made Paul go from being a possible good male, to one that will never bring much to his owner.”
Lily gave Di an odd look, and noticed how she looked down at Mark, “What was the news?”
Di kept looking at Mark, “Maybe Mark can tell you?”
Lily looked down at Mark, who sank deeper into the hot tub, “What is it, Mark?”
Mark looked at Di and Lily and then lowered his eyes, “The reason Paul lives with Tessa still, at the age of seventeen, is because he is sterile. The one thing that makes having a boy worthwhile, he was born without.”
Lily eyes widen, “But, but he… He never told me.”
“Why would he, dear, he is your brother,” said Di.
Then Lily looked at Mark once more, “What did you mean he was born without?”
Mark looked up at Lily and Di, “Paul was born without testicles. He a natural born eunuch.”
Lily's jaw dropped as she couldn't believe what she was just told.
You had a boy for a few reasons, but at the core of them was to be able to stud or sell him. Paul was worthless. He could never sire a child, and he could never perform.
“Is this what it cost to keep all males?” Lily asked Di.
Di moved a few more spread sheets across the table and said, “This is the cost of caring for Paul for the same time period.”
Lily looked it over. The numbers were a hundredth of what Marks were, “Why is there such a difference?”
“A lot of it is the differences between the two, Paul is an average healthy male teen. Paul is five foot six, hundred and fifteen pound with black curly hair and a dark complexion and brown eyes while Mark before his changes was a glamor boy, he was five foot and ninety seven pounds with lily white skin and the bluest eyes I have ever seen. On looks alone, Mark is worth millions of credits. Then you have to add in the factor that he a gifted savant,” explained Di.
“So they're different, but why is the cost so much more?”
“First off, is Mark's size, then and now. Mark is tiny and everything he wears has to be fitted, no one makes such little sizes. There are just too few customers around to justify a maker producing clothing in his size. But now that he back in his thirteen year old body it has further complicated things,” Di explained as she dug through the pile of spread sheets.
Di passed a more recent clothing sales sheet to Lily, “While he fits into kids clothing with no problems, if I want a certain dress or under garment, they have to be 'costume' ordered, now. This is one of the reasons he's so expensive to keep. The other, is dietary needs. Mark has always had issues with keeping his weight on, and before you ask; yes, it's because he's so hyper. He's always bouncing around and dancing, so he has to have food that gives him the energy he needs. That's why feeding him a balanced diet is costly. Then there the medical costs of his injuries, and now the maintenance of his nanobots that hold him at the physical age of thirteen.”
“How do you afford all of this grandma?” Lily asked.
Sliding over a new spread sheet, “Besides my retirement, and the money Lisa left, I also have gotten several grants and funding from companies like Vital-Collection. But the fact is, as with any male, the cost of owning them is outweighed by how much we love them.”
“That's bullshit! Love them? They suck the life out of you and cost way too much to keep,” Riley said as she walked into Lisa old private office.
“MOM!” Lily said in shock.
“What are you doing here, Riley?” Di asked.
Riley peeked down at a few of the spread sheets, “I got released, last night. Now I need some place to stay, until I get back on my feet, Mom.”
“I know you were released from jail, but why are you here?”
Riley gave her mom a hurt look.
“It's a 'Demon Summer,' Mom. I needed someplace cool to stay, until I can get back on my feet.”
Cyres three in the Eckart system has binary suns, Only large red giant and one tiny super hot blue what star. Every five years the two suns would align so that Cyres three would end up with a super hot summer with day time temperature ranging from 100f to 130f. While the worlds native fauna and flora is well adjusted to these ranges humans have to seek shelter and stay out of the hottest parts of the days.
This is Called a Demon Summer on Cyres three.
Riley uncovered Mark's account statements and added, “But, if you give me five hundred thousand credits, I can find someplace else to stay.”
“Five hundred thousand credits!” Lily spit out in surprise.
Riley gave Lily a dirty look.
“I don't have that kind of money, Riley! Even if I did, I wouldn't give you any of it,” Di said.
Di grabbed up the flimsies, but Riley snatched out the one flimsy that Di wished Riley had never seen.
“Mark has thirty-seven billion credits! Just take it from him, and I will be out of your hair.”
Di pinched the bridge of her nose, trying to relieve the stress of dealing with her daughter.
“You know we can't touch his money. We would have MCPA crawling up our asses faster than you'd get burnt in the Demon sun.”
“Damnit, Mom, he doesn't own us! Lily owns his ass, and in so doing, also owns his accounts!” Riley said in a huff.
“You still haven’t learned! Slaves have rights, just as you do,” Di answered.
Then they heard a door slide open, and Mark's voice drifted down the hall. Riley was out of the office before anyone could stop her.
“Hey, you prick! Give me five hundred thousand credits, or I will whip your ass!” Riley yelled down the hallway.
Mark froze, Tina and Penny grabbed him, and shoved him back, where Sasha grabbed him up and moved quickly back into the bedroom.
“You don't belong here,” Tina snarled.
“Shut the fuck up, you bunny bitch! Get that prick back out here!”
“No,” Tina snarled as Penny started moving closer to Riley while baring her fangs.
“Tina! Penny! Back down,” Lily order as she stepped into the hallway with Di close behind her.
“She doesn't belong here,” answered Tina.
“Where is Mark, now?” Di asked Tina.
“Sasha took him back into his room, Mistress,” said Tina as she and Penny backed away from Riley.
“What is wrong with you people? She a fucking pet,” Riley said as she headed for Mark's bedroom door.
But when she got to the door it wouldn't open, even after placing her palm on the manual entry panel and Tina snickered at her.
“Bitch, open the fucking door!” Riley screamed.
Tina crossed her arms and stood silent.
Riley lifted her hand to smack Tina when Di warned her, “Do that and I will not stop them from tearing you apart, Riley.”
Riley looked at Tina and notice her claws extending, and then she peeked at Penny who had moved to the side and she saw the fangs in Penny's muzzle and how sharp they looked.
“And you let these things watch over your precious boytoy?”
Di walked up to her daughter and placed her hand on Riley's shoulder.
“Their purpose is his protection, Riley. You would never stand a chance, facing them. Now go to the living room, and wait.”
Di and Lisa watched as Riley sulked, and stomped off to the living room. Then Di touched the entry pad and stepped into the bedroom, finding Mark pouting on the bed.
“Are you okay?”
Mark looked at Lily and Di, “I'm hungry, and Sasha says I can't go eat yet.”
Lily walked around her grandmother and over to Mark, she could see the bruising on his arms and the dark circles under his eyes. Then she noticed a dark bruise just below the collar of his shirt, and she reached out to touch it.
Sasha stopped her by saying, “They're painful, Mistress.”
“How are you feeling, Mark,” Di asked as she walked over to the bed where he was sitting.
Mark looked up with tears in his eyes, “It hurts.”
Di wanted to grab Mark and hold him close, but after what Sasha had just said, she feared it would only cause him more pain.
“Sasha why don't you take Mark to the kitchen and make him something to eat.”
Sasha offered Mark her hand, helping him up off the bed. As Mark and Sasha left the room Lily's eyes found more bruising on the backs of his legs.
“There are even more under the robe,” Di said to Lily.
“He must hate me for doing that to him,” Lily said in a low voice.
“No, my dear. Mark isn't stupid. He knows why it had to be done. It's what we do now, that matters the most,” Di said as she headed out of the room behind Mark, who was moving very slowly.
“There you are,” Riley said, as Mark stepped into the living room on his way to the kitchen.
“Leave him alone, Riley, or you'll find yourself outside,” Di said as she stepped out of the hallway.
Riley paused and looked out the front window. It was reaching noontime and had to be at lest 120 °F outside.
Then she watched as Mark and Sasha entered the kitchen, “So I can stay?”
After the kitchen door closed behind Sasha Di turned to Riley, “If you weren't my own daughter you would be right out that damn door, on your ass! You stay away from Mark! You do not talk to him! You do not try to enter his room! You leave him alone, or God save you, because I will not run interference between you and his pets, again, Riley! Do you understand me?” Di said in a raised voice surprising both Riley and Lily.
Riley looked at her mother and sighed, “Okay, Mom. But can you get the money I need from him?”
Di raises her hands in disbelief and frustration, “No, NO, and NO! Go find yourself a damned job, Riley!”
Di turned and walked into the kitchen, with Lily following close behind her.
The smell of frying bacon and sausage had filled the room. It reminded Lily that she hadn't had anything to eat since early in the morning.
“Sasha can you make me some, also?”
Sasha smiled as she looked over at Lily and said, “Of course, Mistress.”
A few minutes later Sasha placed a plate down in front of Lily and Mark. For Lily it was the first time she really paid attention to what Mark was getting to eat and it was a lot. It was even more than she would consider eating. Two big patties of sausage, nine thick strips of bacon, four pieces of toasted cracked-grain whole wheat bread, four large eggs, and a half a grapefruit.
“Is this what he gets every day?” Lily asked as she looked at her grandmother.
“Oh, food,” Riley said as she grabbed a slice of toast from Mark's plate.
Riley's eyes went super wide when Sasha grabbed her by the larynx and squeezed, cutting off her airway.
“Never, ever take anything from Master's plate! Do you understand me?”
Lily and Di watched as Riley nodded quickly, and Sasha released her.
Riley coughed for a few minutes and when she was able to breathe once more, she looked at her mother.
“She was going to kill me! Why didn't you stop her?”
Di watched as Mark slowly chewed on a piece of bacon, “Because you were the one dumb enough to grab something off of his plate. Now, if your hungry, go make yourself something to eat.”
“Why doesn't she make me something?” Riley asked?
Di looked at Riley and then over to Sasha who was pouring Mark a glass of milk, “Sasha could you please make Riley a sandwich?”
Sasha looked at Mark who gave her a nod 'okay,' because he was chewing on some egged dipped toast,
“Of course, Mistress.”
As Sasha worked Riley checked her out. Riley was tall and thin and at thirty-eight quite out of shape. Sasha on the other hand was a good six inches taller, much wider of shoulder, and well built. There was no doubt that if pushed, Sasha could snap her neck like a twig.
* * * *
Mark slid into the hot tub, and let out a sigh of relief as the hot water soothed his sore body. After breakfast, Mark had originally sat down in the living room to relax and maybe read an e-novel. But Riley kept staring at him, and complaining about how hard her life was.
“Can you believe her, Tina? She thinks her life is hard! Let someone shove a slugball bat up her ass, and run a good hefty charge through her,” Mark said absently minded.
“Mom can't help how she is,” Lily said from Marks bedroom.
Mark turned a little too fast, and a pain shot through his neck.
“Maybe not. But she doesn't have to be so mean.”
Lily walked over to the side of the hot tub and frowned when she noticed all the bruising on his body, “My mom has had it hard, Mark. She's been in and out of juvenile jail, and adult jail, most of her life.”
Mark leaned back and closed his eyes.
“Your mom complains a lot about how males cost so much and how it's our fault she's so broke.”
“I don't know the whole story just what grandma has told me, but when she brought Paul's semen package she expected a girl but the package was missed labeled girl and when she filed a complaint with Stork-Gifts they congratulated her on having a baby boy. The problem is having a boy has a lot of extra costs, from registering him to the mandatory check up every three months. It took what little money she had, and then some,” Lily said as she dipped a toe in the hot water.
“If she was so broke, then how did she have you?”
Lily stood there and for the first time ever she thought about the stories she was told and one fact Mark just pointed out, if her mom was so broke how did she get the money for her? Lily looked back into the bedroom where she notice Di with a worried look on her face.
Di walked into the yard area and gave Lily a sullen look, “You my dear were a gift from Nana and I. Riley had sworn up and down that she could care for a girl much better than a boy. After much debate, we brought your package and for a few years your mom did a great job. But old habits are hard to change and your mom thought she found a fool proof way to make money.”
“Fool proof, my ass,” Mark said under his breath.
“Maybe, Mark, but Riley has always taken the risk and sadly, also, the fall,” Di said as she looked at the bruising on Mark.
“But grandma, why does she seem to hate Mark so much?” Lily asked.
Di sat down on a recliner, “When Paul was born Riley was so happy, even with the extra cost she was walking on water, but after Paul's sixth month check-up she received devastating news. It was news that made Paul go from being a possible good male, to one that will never bring much to his owner.”
Lily gave Di an odd look, and noticed how she looked down at Mark, “What was the news?”
Di kept looking at Mark, “Maybe Mark can tell you?”
Lily looked down at Mark, who sank deeper into the hot tub, “What is it, Mark?”
Mark looked at Di and Lily and then lowered his eyes, “The reason Paul lives with Tessa still, at the age of seventeen, is because he is sterile. The one thing that makes having a boy worthwhile, he was born without.”
Lily eyes widen, “But, but he… He never told me.”
“Why would he, dear, he is your brother,” said Di.
Then Lily looked at Mark once more, “What did you mean he was born without?”
Mark looked up at Lily and Di, “Paul was born without testicles. He a natural born eunuch.”
Lily's jaw dropped as she couldn't believe what she was just told.
You had a boy for a few reasons, but at the core of them was to be able to stud or sell him. Paul was worthless. He could never sire a child, and he could never perform.