Bo and the Beast (Book #1) (Completed)

11. Yellow Gown

"Good job, Bo. That was an adequate cleaning job," the robot said, its voice masculine but mellow, one that would have been perfect for singing if it was not warped by the speaker it spoke through.

Despite Chan's encouraging words, Madame still clamped Bo's wrist. Bo scowled at this, but knew better than to struggle anymore. The skin around her wrists was rubbed raw and stinging from all the attempts to escape her robotic guards, and she didn't feel like ripping it up any more than it was already.

Madame pulled Bo toward the vanity near the large four-poster bed, and Bo had a moment of panic as she imagined the robot styling her hair, before their progress was halted by the door to the bedroom swinging open.

The Beast stood on the other side, staring at them. Bo nearly choked on her own spit at the sight of him suddenly in front of her, and she had to fight to control her features in a neutral expression. He still wore the soldier's uniform, and now Bo could see a large scar that ran along his collarbone and halfway up his neck. Likely he was covered in the scars. They'd be the parting gift of dying humans as he slaughtered them.

The Beast looked her up and down, noting that she was clean.

"Madame, please see to the human's wounds. Afterward, I would like her dressed in what we discussed and sent down to meet me in the study," it said. "You and Chan are to take your free time, and then I would like you to report back to me." It said all this while looking at the robot, but as it said the last words it glanced at Bo almost as an afterthought. She stiffened and glared at it.

"Of course, Master," Madame replied. The Beast nodded, and then silently closed her bedroom door once again.

The smallest robot, the one called Fil, floated toward Bo. "We were supposed to show you how to clean the mansion, but now you get to spend time with the Master." Its voice was high and youthful, like a child's. Bo thought of it as a little boy. He seemed very childlike, with his small, rounder metallic body. If he had a face, Bo could imagine it smiling. She had no idea why he seemed so excited about the aspect of being in the Beast's company. He was acting as if this was a big treat, but in reality was just about the worst thing Bo could imagine.

"She's here to pay off a debt, Fil," Dent replied, all condescension and exasperation.

Madame ignored the other two as she pulled Bo to the bed and forced her to sit on the mattress. Before Bo could process what was going on, Madame straightened out her knee with little warning. Bo yelped in pain, but the robot gave her no sympathy.

"What are you doing?" Bo demanded, trying to pull her knee back. Madame felt a firm grip, but her light flashed yellow.

"Please stay still, or else this will not be done properly," was all she said, as Chan hovered up to her side. A compartment in his torso popped open to reveal a little stash of first-aid supplies as well as household items. Madame reached into his chest and drew out a length of snowy white bandages and a tube of some sort of chalky paste. Bo watched warily as Madame maneuvered her clamp hands to squeeze a dollop of the paste onto Bo's knee. Not a second later, a jolting sting burned through Bo's knee and she bit down on her tongue to stop from yelping. Madame deftly wrapped the bandage around Bo's knee, tight enough that the pain became a pulse.

"See if that is good," Madame said.

Bo got to her feet to test her newly bandaged knee, and was surprised to find that she could put all her weight on it. It still burned a bit, but the medicine and tight bandaging had made it useful again. She grinned a bit as she walked to the door and then back to where Madame waited by the bed. Finally, she felt more like herself.

"We will change the bandages for you when they need it," Madame said, replacing the supplies in Chan's chest. "If you would now put on the appropriate clothing, we can proceed down to the Master's study."

Bo frowned, her eyes following Fil as his little body floated forward with a gown clenched in his clamps. She saw only that it was a bright sunshine-yellow before he dropped it in her hands. Curious, she let it tumble down to kiss the toes of her boots. It was fitted in the bodice, with no sleeves, and a full and ruffled skirt. The fabric had to be silk, or something like it, as it felt like a rain shower as it flowed against her with every movement she made.

So this was what the Beast wanted her dressed in? Ha! As if she'd ever be even caught dead in something so unsuited to the kind of physical movement she needed to defend herself. It was a gorgeous gown, something she would have been knocked breathless to see if this was back at the camp, but now it only represented the control the Beast had over her. He wanted her dressed nicely as his little slave, and not only that but he would choose exactly what she was going to wear. Well, he could pick out an outfit for her, but that didn't mean she had to wear it.

She let the gown cascade to the floor, and then kicked it under the bed. It only gave her a small pang to see such luxurious fabric disappearing into the black depths, but she hated the idea of the alternative.

"Miss Bo!" Chan gasped, clearly scandalized by the treatment of such a valuable piece of clothing.

"Of course she would!" Dent protested to himself. "No respect at all!"

Madame's light flashed yellow and she zoomed forward to pull the gown out from under the bed. "Don't be difficult, Bo. The sooner you are dressed, the sooner you can get on with your day."

"Forget it," Bo said, crossing her arms. "I'm not wearing that."

If robots could throw up their arms in frustration, Bo was sure Dent would have. He hovered to her side and made a grab from her wrist. Bo sat down on the bed and tried to roll out of his reach. However, she was too busy dodging Dent's grasp to notice Chan coming from her blindside until she felt the cold metal around her ankle. Gasping, she tried twisting away, but he held her firmly. And now that she was pinned, Fil grabbed a huge clamp-full of her shirt and yanked it upward. The black fabric obscured her vision, and as she struggled to pull it back down, she felt Chan yanking at her boots with its free clamp.

Yelping, she snatched her shirt away with a ripping sound from Fil and kicked hard enough to stop Chan taking her boot for a few seconds.

"Stop! I'll do it myself!" she shouted. The robots hummed quietly, and then slowly released her. She knew they wouldn't stay idle for long if she didn't actually do what she said she would, so she slid from the bed and held out her hand for Madame to place the gown in. It didn't look too worse for wear and only had a few wrinkles in the skirt. Unfortunately. It would've been easier to give in and wear it if it was covered in dust and looked like a wreck.

Once again thinking about the possibility that the Beast could see through the glass lenses of the robots, Bo inched toward a slatted door near the row of floor-to-ceiling windows at the back of the room. She didn't know for sure what was on the other side, but it seemed safe to assume it was a closet of some kind. It would be a cramped experience, but she'd dress in a coffin if it meant escaping the eye of her captor.