A Serpent in Paradise Ch. 02

Author's note: This story is primarily a continuation of "Paradise Obtained", but also includes characters from "The New Neighbours/The Good Master" and "The Friday Night Games Club".

This is the culmination of my 'Haller universe' stories, so is not the best place to begin. I would recommend reading the other stories first; doing so will add depth of character background and make various things clearer.

All characters are over 18.

A Serpent in Paradise: Chapter 02

Geoff Mills' decision to have the people he had enslaved at the Swiss research centre cover his escape had paid dividends. By the time that Albrecht Haller became aware he had gone, considered what Geoff might do next and contacted those who believed could help, Mills had already moved on.

He slid through the chaos of countries and governments trying to work out what do about the coronavirus pandemic with ease. Far from borders representing an additional problem, he was able to use the confusion to his advantage, employing his genuine scientific qualifications, as well as an array of fake identifies, to claim to be travelling as part of the reaction to the crisis.

So it was that he and Ilse Hoffman had travelled from Italy to Austria, then on through Hungary until arriving in Romania. Geoff Mills knew exactly where he was going and why. He had already secured one member of Matthew Mitchell's harem and he was confident he was about to bag two more -- and one of those was Mitchell's fiancée. Mills assumed she should prove a valuable bargaining chip.

*****

When Albrecht Haller told Matthew Mitchell that Geoff Mills was loose and might be targeting his women, Matt's first reaction had been bewilderment. He had never heard of Mills and had no idea why this man had anything to do with him. Haller had briefly explained that Geoff Mills was another who had researched mind control techniques and worked for him, but also that he was rogue and dangerous. Haller suggested his interest in Mitchell and his harem would come from wishing to understand more about Matt's min control methodology.

Matt's immediate thought had been to set off at once for Italy; if Ilse was in danger, he must go to her. Matt hadn't realised until that moment how much pain the thought that one of his girls might at risk would cause him. He found that he cherished them all, in ways he had not quite previously grasped, and was desperate to protect them. However, Haller counselled against this.

"You need to know more about your enemy before you confront him," Haller had said. "You should talk to some people with first-hand experience of Mr Mills and his ways. They may be able to give you valuable insights. I'll give you the address of Michael Roberts. Go and see him and his ... associates. I'll tell him you're coming; also, I'll send my special representative. She will meet you there tomorrow."

On that cryptic note Haller had rung off. Not for the first time, Matthew Mitchell cursed the day he had got involved with Albrecht Haller. It was true that he owed him a lot but Matt also suspected that this situation was, in some way or another, Haller's fault. He pledged that one day he would find out exactly what it was that the mysterious German was actually planning and determine for himself whether or not he agreed with it.

While Matt had been speaking to Haller, Georgia had been busy. Presented with a crisis she immediately started trying to organise a way to control it and, as so often, Matt was grateful for her calm intelligence. She had managed to contact Delilah -- never an easy task if she didn't want to be found -- and asked her to join them at the hotel. Once she had understood her harem sisters were at risk Delilah had immediately agreed.

Georgia had also spoken to all the other girls -- regardless of whether it was day or night where they were -- and with one exception told them to be wary but stay put; she had no way of knowing that in Svetlana and Nicoleta's case this advice would put them in danger. The exception was Millie. The Australian former soldier was currently in western Germany, near enough to be summoned to London to join them. Matt recalled once thinking that Georgia, Millie and Delilah would be his first-choice team if ever a problem presented itself and, by good fortune, they were all near at hand.

In between, Georgia had made repeated efforts to contact Ilse without success. Even phoning the villa achieved nothing; no one was answering. She tried the Italian police but they had no information. Finally, she managed to get through to the local newspaper and from them learnt that Ilse had suddenly left two days off, shutting up the Villa and laying off the local staff. The redundancies were the reason the paper was aware of this.

Matt realised that Millie wouldn't be able to reach them tomorrow -- this whole coronavirus business was disrupting travel -- so it would just be him, Georgia and Delilah to visit Michael Roberts. Who Roberts was and how he knew about Mills, Matt couldn't guess; Haller had told him nothing useful in that regard. And who Haller's 'special representative' might be was another mystery.

Meanwhile Georgia, who had been thinking hard about how Ilse could have fallen under Mills command so easily and apparently without the use of force, offered the theory she had formed to her Master. "Matt, how do you suppose this Mills character could have won Ilse round?" she asked.

"Well, Haller said he had a mind control method. I suppose he used it on her," Matt replied.

"Maybe, but there is another possibility. Haller implanted trigger phrases in all of us girls. Perhaps Mills has gained access to them." Georgia looked at him steadily; what she had just mentioned carried bad memories for her.

"Oh my god," said Matt in dawning realisation of the implications of Georgia's suggestion. "Then you would all be vulnerable to instant and complete control"

"No, not all of us. For one thing, I broke that programming as you may recall, so I think I'm safe. And after it was revealed and you talked to Haller about it, he stopped doing it, so Megan, Tasha and Svetlana never received the trigger programs," Georgia noted.

"As far as we know," agreed Matt, "although we can't be sure. Still, you're probably right, but that still leaves Delilah, Kanako, Millie and Nikki vulnerable."

"We should ask Haller if the programming can be removed, whether by him or you," Georgia said. "Also, given I managed to break it, perhaps Delilah could do the same. If that works, then maybe it would be possible for the others too. But I'll warn you, it wasn't easy; trying nearly broke me."

"How did you manage it?" asked Matt, his professional curiosity aroused.

Georgia didn't answer for several moments, her eyes downcast. Then she looked at Matt and he saw the emotion in her expression, "What I felt for my Master just about gave me enough strength. It was love, Matt -- my love for you."

*****

Geoff Mills was no fool. He suspected that his capture of Ilse Hoffman would have been reported to the rest of Matthew Mitchell's harem, so when he arrived at Hawk Castle in the Carpathians, he told her initially to stay out of sight. Below the castle on its hill was a small village, not large enough to boast any sort of governmental or police presence, but it had a shop and a small hotel and Mills stopped off at both to make certain 'preparations' -- after his experience in the England, he was leaving nothing to chance.

On arriving at the castle itself, the first part of his takeover went smoothly, even smoother than in Tuscany as on this occasion he didn't need to deal with a servant. Nicoleta Paulescu opened the door. Mills was expecting this and recognised her from the photographs in Haller's records. He also knew the trigger phrase to control her. Looking Nikki in the eye he said, "Zeta 223803".

"Da ... umm ... maestru nou. I am your servant and will obey your orders."

Mills was interested that she had started to reply in her native tongue. Presumably the confusion of him not being Haller had caused to revert to what she knew best. Although he spoke no Romanian, even he recognised 'Yes, new Master.' The girl was even prettier in person that her pictures, with a sort of languid, dreamy beauty. She had very long wavy brunette hair and unusual grey eyes. She was dressed in loose fitting silky clothes with a floral print, which was not at all to his taste, but that didn't matter, as now he could change anything he wished about his new slave.

Geoff summoned Ilse from where she was waiting in the car, then said to Nicoleta, "Take me to Svetlana Bondarenko at once." His greatest fear was that she might not be present, so Nikki's answer of "Yes Master" was much to his liking.

However, this part of this operation did not go according to plan. As Geoff, Ilse and Nikki crossed the wood panelled and beweaponed hallway of the castle, Svetlana appeared onto the balcony from a room on the floor above them. She immediately registered the presence of Ilse and a man she had not seen before and, having been warned by Georgia, realised the significance of this. Turning on her heel she fled, but not back into the room she had come from, running instead along a corridor.

Cursing, Mills gave chase but this proved futile. The old building was a maze of corridors, rooms and stairs, with which Svetlana was familiar while Geoff was not. He finally caught up with her but only in time to see a massive oak door reinforced with iron slam shut and hear the drawing of heavy bolts to seal it. Svetlana had locked herself in the old stone tower of the castle.

Ilse and Nikki arrived behind him. Cursing again, Mills turned and asked: "Is there any other way out of that place?"

"No, Master," Nikki replied. "That's the only entrance."

"In that case, we'll block it from this side and starve the bitch out. Get servants to put some heavy furniture across the doors. And while you're at it, tell everyone that Mitchell has sent me to run the place and from now on they are to take orders from me." Geoff made a mental note to use mind control to enslave at least the key staff later. Based on prior experience, it was better to be safe than sorry.

He stayed long enough to watch the door being blocked and to ensure Svetlana was sealed in the tower, then he told Nikki to take him to Matthew Mitchell's bedroom. The other girl's escape -- albeit temporary -- had irritated him, and the perfect antidote seemed to be fucking the two of Mitchell's women that he had, in Mitchell's own bed.

So much for that man's 'mastery', Mills thought. He would use Mitchell's girls like the sluts they were; the notion cheered him. And once that was done, he would speak to Albrecht Haller, but no longer as supplicant. This time he would be the one making setting the terms of their future relationship.

*****

The place to which Matthew Mitchell had been sent had once been a rural part of Surrey but was now merging into the suburbs of London, and the specific road, Park Drive, was flanked by a very ordinary set of modern commuter belt 'executive homes'. However, as he approached the end of the road, Park Manor loomed before him and it was a very different proposition. An eighteenth century manor house, it had stood there long before the surrounding houses were built on what had once been its grounds.

It was large and rather beautiful and in this part of the world it would certainly have a seven figure price tag. In short, it looked exactly the sort of place Albrecht Haller might have told Matt to buy if he had been looking for a base in the United Kingdom. Matt guessed that someone had been acting on Haller's instructions when it was purchased.

Matt drew up his hired car on the spacious driveway. He was glad Georgia and Delilah were with him, as he felt nervous. Mind control had always been his big secret, even back at Oxford when he had just been researching it. Now he would have to discuss it openly with someone else, something he had only ever done with Herr Haller and, to a lesser degree, Georgia. Somewhat reluctantly, he climbed out of the car. His blonde PA, sensing his nervousness, gave him an encouraging smile. Delilah, in contrast, as always maintained an air of insouciant disinterest, although Matt knew her well enough to realise that underneath she was worried.

Matt was wearing a business suit and Georgia likewise, but Delilah was clad all in leather -- thigh boots, skirt, basque style waistcoat and a long coat. Whatever the occasion, her sexual challenge to those around her was on display; the woman was incorrigible, but that was what Matt loved about her.

Matt walked up to the door, but before he could ring the bell, it was opened by a smart and bright looking young Asian lady who smiled at them, gave the smallest of bows and said, "Mr Mitchell, ladies, we were told you were coming. Welcome; my name is Sakura Tanaka. My Master is awaiting you in his study. Please come with me."

Matt was reminded immediately of his own Japanese concubine, Kanako Yoshida. Not that the two looked all that similar, more that they shared the same air of well brought-up, polite 'niceness'. In light of that, he made a point of giving her an equally polite response, as did Georgia, while Delilah eyed her trim form with considerable interest. Sakura's use of the word 'Master' had excited her curiosity.

Sakura ushered them through the front entrance, closed the door and then led them a short distance down a hallway, passing stairs upward on the right. She soon stopped at a door to the left, opened it and said, "Mr Mitchell and his friends are here," then waved them inside and departed, closing the door behind them.

The room Matt, Georgia and Delilah entered was a sort of home office or study. Dominating it was a large desk, with a man seated behind it; presumably this was Michael Roberts. He did not rise to greet them, nor show any sign of welcoming their presence. He looked around thirty-years-old, so similar to Matt in age, and was a rather handsome man, with a regular features and light brown hair, but his demeanour was currently spoilt by a grumpily stern expression. It was clear he was unhappy.

"Mitchell," their host said, "I suppose you'd better sit down."

Matt looked around and saw that, intentionally or not, Mike Roberts had given himself a considerable advantage. He was sat behind an imposing mahogany desk. In contrast his visitors had nothing to sit on but a long sofa, off to one side. Lacking anything better, Matt sat on it. Georgia sat by his side, attentive, supporting her man. Delilah, who hated to be put upon by anyone, instead wandered off and sat on a windowsill, directing her gaze moodily outside.

Before Matt could say anything, Mike Roberts spoke. "Look, I'm going to be honest with you. I'm not happy you're here and if you want to go, please do. As far as I can tell you are just another one of these mind-controlling freaks; a bastard who enslaves women for his own selfish pleasure, just like Geoff Mills. In short, a rapist with a gimmick. I have every reason to hate people like you. Geoff Mills mind-controlled me, my wife and the other women here and used us horribly. I just want you to understand that."

Georgia instantly leapt to Matt's defence. "No, that's not fair. Matt is good and kind and ... and he treats us well. He's nothing like this man Mills. I love my Master and I'm glad I'm with him!"

"But he didn't give you a lot of choice in the matter, did he?" Mike responded.

"Yes he did," replied Georgia stoutly. "Ok, maybe not at the beginning, but later he gave me the choice and I chose to stay with him."

"But did you?" persisted Mike, "I mean, if someone messes with your mind, how would you know which are really your thoughts and which are the ones he put there?"

It was, of course, a good point and one that Matt himself had wondered about. He had tweaked the programming of his harem so many times even he wasn't sure of what was real anymore. He believed he had given them back a degree of free will, but had he really? Whatever the answer, Matt felt it was time he said something and tried to get a grip on the situation.

"Look, Mr Roberts, I'm genuinely sorry for what happened to you, your wife and Mills' other victims. But I didn't do it, he did. I understand from Herr Haller that Mills is abusive, that he forces people to do horrible things ..."

"Too true," said Mike bitterly, "For example, I believe he made the women have sex with other men for his gain. In short, he turned my wife and the others into whores ..."

"There's nothing wrong with adults paying each other for a little private pleasure," put in Delilah from her seat on the window sill, a note of anger in her voice. She had not cared for the word Mike had used or the tone he had said it in.

"Well, maybe not if people have chosen to do so of their own free will," conceded Mike, more gently, "but this was forced, and that's very different."

"I've never done anything like that," said Matt vehemently, "and I never would. I want to protect my women. I want them to be safe and happy ..."

"It's true," cut in Georgia, "Matt cares for us and we love him in return, which is exactly why we are here. Are you going to help us against this man Mills or not? I understand he hurt you and I'm genuinely sorry for you, but now it seems he intends to do the same to us. Won't you help?"

"If you want my help, then one final question," said Mike. "Like you I have a harem, but I look after them because it's the right thing to do. I can't free the girls and they have a psychological need for a Master. You, Mr Mitchell, could return the liberty of your women at any time. That's my question, Mitchell: Why don't you? I challenge you -- free them and see if they truly love you or not."

There could be no arguing but this was a difficult question for Matt. In truth, he was not even sure he could reverse what he had done; in fact he suspected he couldn't. But that didn't change the fact that he had never tried and knew that he didn't want to. But then another thought struck him. Matt was getting a little tired of being lectured by Mike Roberts and he realised he had just been given an opportunity to strike back in kind.

"Mr Roberts," Matt said carefully, "you say that you carry the terrible burden of looking after a harem of attractive young women, because you have no choice and you wish it were not so. I believe I could solve your problem. I think it would be possible for me to use my methods to break Mill's conditioning, make them loyal to me instead and then afterward release them. Their free will would be restored, they could make their own choices and you would no longer need to be concerned with them. Just say the word and we can start."

With some delight, Matt realised he had got Mike Roberts. The look on Mike's face was a mixture of surprise and alarm. 'Hypocrite', Matt thought, 'you might not have created this harem, but now you've got it, you're no keener to give it up than I am mine.'

"Ah, yes, well ..." Mike flapped, "it's not as easy as that. For one thing, three of them are pregnant with my children, so I have responsibilities. And ... and, they need each other as well as me. I mean, on balance I think it's best to keep things as they are. We've built a sort of family, your see ..."

"Well, so have we," said Georgia firmly, "and a member of our family is in danger. So, getting back to the point, will you help us?"

"Oh, very well," said Mike somewhat grumpily, "I'll tell you what I know about Mills. But after that I want you all gone."

However, Mike was not destined to get his wish in that regard. The cause, as usual, was the women of his harem, who had their own thoughts on matters concerning their little community. Even as he spoke, the door to the study opened and three of them walked in. There was Jessica, his wife, with baby Leo in her arms, Spanish beauty Maria, baby bump visible beneath her dress, and Becky Langton, a smartly attractive blonde very much like Jess, but with her own distinct charm.