Mountin’ Biking
by Mudak
part 2
Chapter 6
The blizzard subsided late that night, and the grounds crews on campus worked until the following dawn to make the paths that snaked through and around the university safe and clear for the students the following morning.
Jenny woke up and felt full of energy. She gazed out her window at the near-pristine appearance of the snow on the ground, and heaved a heavy sigh. Feeling somewhat indecisive, she paced the apartment slowly: should she go for a jog? Go back up to the gym? Find Tony? The options were limitless.
She turned to face the clock that hung over the entranceway into the kitchen. It wasn’t even 8 o’clock yet. She sighed and decided to go to the gym for a short workout. That new exercise bike really added a new dimension to exercise anyway, so...
Careful not to wake up either Becky or Olivia, Jenny went outside, locked the door, and jogged towards the gym.
When she reached the gym, she scowled when she saw that the doors were still locked, so she kicked the door in anger. She made a mental note about how she needed to get Tony’s phone number so she wouldn’t have to worry about getting in. Of course, getting Tony to consent to allowing her to call at all hours just so she could get into the gym, that was going to need some special ... persuading, she thought.
She looked down over her body, the curves and shapes of which were effectively obscured enough by her heavy winter coat. Smiling broadly, she thought about how her body seemed quite well-equipped for the kind of persuasion she felt she could give to Tony. She couldn’t suppress her low giggle at these thoughts.
After pacing around in front of the entrance to the gym, she decided it was time to take a little bit more ownership of her own actions. She would go to Tony’s apartment and use any means necessary to get him to come down to the gym and unlock it.
She took a deep breath and started walking down the path and into the direction of Tony’s apartment like she had planned.
The anticipation of seeing Tony and getting him to come back to the gym excited Jenny. She felt some of this excitement between her legs as she thought of the possibility that Tony might need ... a lot of persuading. She quickened her pace.
As she thought about the fun, silly, maybe even sensual acts she would commit to and with Tony, her brisk walk quickly turned into a jog, which, in turn, accelerated to more of a trot before she finally ran full force towards her goal.
When she had nearly reached his apartment, she couldn’t suppress the smile of recognition that he was walking towards her. She waved excitedly at him.
“Oh, good morning, Jenny!” he said, smiling broadly.
“Morning!”
“I hope you didn’t get too bored yesterday, if you were stuck in your apartment all day.”
She wanted to tell him that she spent most of the time fingering herself and thinking of him, but she decided against it. At least for now. Instead, she just shrugged her shoulders and said, with a forced casual tone, “Well, you know....”
“Yeah. I guess I do.” He snickered. “So what’re you up to?”
“I was looking for you, actually. I was hoping you might open up the gym for me.”
“I was heading up there right now. Would you care to join me?”
She let out a slight squeal and responded enthusiastically. “Oh, yes!”
The two of them jogged slowly up the hill towards the gym. Occasionally, Jenny would turn her head to admire Tony’s body as they jogged.
He pretended he didn’t notice her stolen glances and wondered if she heard him snickering under his breath. If she did, she didn’t draw attention to it.
The two of them reached the gym and Tony opened up the front desk, whereupon Jenny promptly handed him her student ID card.
He ran her card through the computer and handed it back to her, saying, “You know the drill.”
“Thanks. Hey. Could you, um, do me a favor?”
“That depends on what it is.” He raised his eyebrow to her at this request.
“While I’m putting my stuff away and stretching, could you set up that exercise bike for me? If you could set it so that it feels like I’m biking down the Grand Canyon, I’d really appreciate it.”
He smiled broadly. “I ... I’ll see what I can do.”
“Thanks, Tony. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”
“Take your time.”
Tony watched her walk towards the locker rooms, and he quickly booted up the computer that powered the exercise bike. He tapped a few images on the touch screen and whispered to the bike, “I hope this works.”
The bike beeped twice in response to the commands he input into its computer.
Chapter 7
Jenny had changed into a very revealing halter top and a pair of shorts for her exercise. “All ready?”
“Just about!” Tony tapped a few more buttons on the screen that controls the uses of the bike, and the machine beeped several times. “There you go!”
Jenny let out a squeal of delight before she hastily and clumsily climbed onto the seat of the exercise bike, almost knocking Tony over to get to it.
By the time Tony stood up, he saw that she was already pedaling frantically on the bike, biting her lip and letting out a low moan of pleasure.
He backed away from Jenny, crossed his arms, and nodded, making a mental note that it seemed like the machine was working its magic on her nether regions with a greater intensity this time. He started to think about how much more powerful it would be the next time.
Jenny interrupted his train of thought when she cried out, “Oh, yes! Mmmmmmmm! Ooooooohhhh! God, yes!”
He looked up and watched her ripping off her top to reveal no bra and two very rigid nipples. When she returned her hands to the handlebars, she squeezed the machine with her hands so tightly, her knuckles started to turn white.
“That’s it, Jenny. Give in to the power and the pleasure of this bike.”
She started to breathe harder, moaning louder, with a rapidly increasing intensity. He wasn’t sure if this was the result of something he said, or if it was just a natural result of the way she was feeling.
Her eyes rolled up into the back of her head. A moment later, she was arching her back and screaming in pleasure.
“Very good, Jenny.”
Soon, she calmed down and gazed blankly forward. He waved his hand in front of her face and she didn’t flinch.
“Can you hear me, Jenny?”
“Yes....”
“I want you to learn how to program this bike so that you can have your friends come under my command.”
“Please show me how, master.”
He reached into his pocket and pulled out the instruction manual for the exercise bike. He unfolded it and held it in front of her face. Her hands slowly moved upwards to take the paper out of his hands. She lifted the paper to her face and her eyes slowly darted across the instructions on the paper.
“Let me know when you understand the way this bike works.”
She nodded at this instruction. Tony laughed as he watched her mouth moving soundlessly as she read.
After a short while, Jenny turned her head and said, “I understand, master.”
“Very good, Jenny. I want you to deactivate the arousal and mind control settings.”
She leaned forward and tapped a few buttons on the touch screen of the bike. It beeped and then went blank.
“Excellent. Now why don’t you come with me into the men’s locker room and we’ll take a shower together and fuck like a couple of crazed weasels?”
“That sounds amazing, Master!”
“Are you horny, Jenny?”
“Very much so, master!”
“Good. Very good. Before we head to the locker rooms, I want you to get hornier and hornier with each step you take. Do you understand?”
“Yes.”
“Good. Then let’s go.”
Tony placed his right hand on her right shoulder and walked slightly behind her, watching her hips sway as she walked. With each step, she gasped slightly.
After a few steps, Jenny was breathing quite heavily and had picked up the pace of her walking. When she saw that he had started to lag further behind, she turned to face him, a plaintive look on her face. “Is everything all right, master?”
“Oh, it’s fine. I just ...” His voice trailed off as he lost his train of thought.
Tony’s eyes lingered on Jenny’s bare breasts, her nipples so stiff, they looked almost painful and certainly tight enough to poke his eyes out if he wasn’t careful.
The two of them walked into the men’s locker room. Tony walked down an aisle and opened a locker. Jenny followed him and opened the locker next to his. She peeled off her shorts and hung them on a hook inside the locker.
Tony turned to face her and smiled, admiring her naked body. He quickly got undressed himself and stored his clothes in his locker.
“So,” he said. “Should we get dirty then get clean, or should we get dirty while we get clean?”
“Whatever you’d prefer, master. I’m easy.”
He looked at her and thought about how she wasn’t that easy a couple of months ago. At least, not with Steve.
She looked up into his eyes and pouted, wordlessly imploring him to make a decision.
With a slight snicker, he said, “Let’s get dirty while we get clean.”
“Oh, yes!” She jumped out and sprinted towards the showers.
By the time Tony caught up with her, she had already turned on the water, her hair soaking wet and her smooth skin glistening under the cascade of the water. He moved closer to her and brushed her hair back and over her shoulders.
She shuddered as he began to suck on her nipples, the beads of water streaming down both of their bodies.
She bit her lip and let out a low moan.
He knelt lower and began to kiss his way down her body. She giggled as he tickled her stomach with his lips. He moved lower and breathed in her musky scent. He stuck his tongue out and licked all along her pussy, penetrating it for the briefest of moments with his tongue. She gasped as he pulled away.
“Yeah, I’d say you’re ready for me.”
“Always, master. Always ready for you.”
He stood up and grabbed her ass. She lifted her legs off of the floor and wrapped them around his waist. Using the wall for balance, he thrust directly into her and began to bounce on his knees. She reached up and grabbed the shower head to steady herself as she was hit with an unexpectedly fast and violent orgasm. She arched her back and almost fell to the floor, but he adjusted his hands to prevent her from falling or hurting herself.
The rapidly falling water streamed down both of their faces, collecting at the spot where his body came in contact with hers. She pulled herself up and felt the water pool between her tits as well. He lowered his head and began to slurp up some of the water.
She let out a squeal of pleasure and said, “Oh, master! Yes! Thank you!”
“Thank you, Jenny.”
He kept bouncing her up and down on his legs, and Jenny kept cumming and cumming. Finally, her pussy had gotten so wet and so much of her own juices had pushed their way into the tip of his cock, that he couldn’t hold it in any longer himself. To him, the sensation was an explosion of pleasure, radiating out from his cock throughout his body, as he couldn’t restrain himself any longer and released his own cream into her body.
He started to tremble as she moaned her approval. When it felt almost as though his knees were about to give way under the two of them, she lowered her feet to the floor, turned around, and let the soothing hot water run down her chest, stomach, and pussy. She played with herself for a moment before her breathing finally restored itself to her usual, calm demeanor.
“I think we’re about done here,” he said to Jenny. “Why don’t we get dressed and we’ll head out of here together. I have a job for you.”
She looked up at him, wide-eyed and appreciative. “A job?”
“Yeah. And for you, it shouldn’t be too hard to do, either.”
“Thank you, master. Do you mind if I take my stuff over to the women’s locker rooms? That’s where I’d left all of my street clothes.”
“Go ahead. Meet me in the main lobby in five minutes, and I’ll tell you what I need from you.”
She gazed fixedly into his eyes, hoping against hope that she could figure out what her master had in store for her. Finally, upon deciding that she couldn’t read his expression, she jogged off to the women’s locker rooms, safe in the understanding that she’d know soon enough.
He watched her leave, her body every bit as hot and athletic as it had ever been.
He loved that invention, the exercise bike.
Chapter 8
Tony walked Jenny back to her apartment in silence. Every time Jenny would broach the topic of what he had in store for her, he’d simply respond, “You’ll see.”
Unable to get more information out of him, she walked briskly in his wake, struggling to conceal her eagerness to know more.
When they reached her door, he looked her squarely in the eye. In a low voice, just louder than a whisper, he said, “I think you should tell your roommates about that exercise bike. Maybe bring them down to the gym so they can try it out themselves. Of course, you would program the bike before they get on it. What do you think?”
“That sounds like a great idea!” said Jenny, bouncing excitedly on the balls of her feet.
“I’ll hang back and you can go in and talk to your roommates. I’ll knock on the door in about five minutes and ask if you want to go to the gym. With any luck, you’ll have convinced someone to come with you.”
“Sounds like a plan. Let’s see what happens.”
Tony walked away. She blew him a light kiss and turned to her front door, unlocking it and stepping inside.
Olivia stepped out of the kitchen upon hearing the sound of the door closing. She smiled at Jenny. “You were up early.”
“Yeah. I was getting cabin fever so I ... I went for a walk.”
“I hear you. What’s it like out there?”
“Not too bad, at least, not if you stay on the sidewalks on campus.”
Olivia chuckled. “I take it you went to the gym?”
Becky looked away from Olivia, realizing how things would sound if she said she was there, and then said she wanted to go right back. “Yeah. But it was closed.”
“Any idea when they’re going to open again?”
“Dunno.” She knew she could rely on Tony for the invitation to go to the gym. “Whenever they do open, would you like to come with me? They’ve got this awesome new exercise bike that can make it feel like you’re biking all sorts of terrains and monuments. I biked the Grand Canyon ... when I tried it. I think it’s even got a setting for the Himalayas.”
“Sounds ... interesting.” Olivia glanced at her watch. “Ya know, I think I’ll come with you if they open in the next hour or so. I haven’t gotten there anywhere near enough and, well, what you did yesterday got me to thinking and all...” There was a slight lull in conversation before Olivia added, “When d’you think they’ll open the gym?”
“Well, since it’s easy enough to get around campus now, I’ve got to assume it’s going to be soon.”
“D’you think you could call or something?”
“Sure. I need to look up the number, but why not?”
Jenny walked into the kitchen and retrieved a thin booklet that had the phone numbers of all of the campus organizations and offices and began to leaf through it in hopes of finding the phone number for the gym. Just as Jenny called out “Found it!” there was a knock on the door. “Could you get that, Olivia?”
“Sure.”
Tony smiled broadly to Olivia. “Is, uh, Jenny around?”
Jenny walked out of the kitchen, campus directory still in hand. “Oh, hi, Tony! What’s up?”
“I was just going down to open up the gym after yesterday’s storm and I, um.. Well, I was, you see...”
Jenny smiled at his stammering. Her master was so cute when he pretended to be nervous.
“Well, would you like to go up to the gym and, um...”
“Sure!” Jenny looked to Olivia. “Did you want to come with?”
Olivia looked down. “I, um...”
Tony seemed to muster up his courage. “It’d be good if you came, too, Olivia. Would you please grace us with your presence?”
“Oh. Well, I, um... If you insist. Um... Let me just go get my stuff.”
Olivia walked towards her bedroom.
Tony whispered to Jenny. “Nice job.”
“Thank you!” she whispered back.
Olivia came back with a small duffel bag and said, “I’m ready.”
“Me too,” added Jenny.
The three of them walked together to the gym, Olivia pestering Tony for more information about this “amazing new bike” they’ve got at the gym now. Although he didn’t tell her everything about it, he did tell her everything she wanted or needed to know.
When they arrived at the gym, Tony unlocked it, scanned both of their ID’s and watched as they strode to the women’s locker rooms. He figured this would be as good test of both the information he gave to Jenny, and how well she follows orders.
He paced around behind the front desk for a while, occasionally glancing at the closed circuit televisions whose cameras were focussed on the area where the exercise bike was located. Soon, the two girls were standing around the bike.
Jenny tapped the screen in a few places and Olivia got on and started pedaling. Olivia reacted with caution in very much the same way that Jenny had when she first got on the bike.
From what he could see on the monitors, and the sounds echoing around the gym itself, it appeared to be working. Olivia began pedaling with an increasing sense of urgency or panic, and Jenny clapped her hands and nodded her approval at everything that was happening.
Chapter 9
Soon, Jenny had escorted Olivia to the front desk. Both girls had a wild, yet unfocussed look in their eyes, but they also both had the presence of mind to retrieve their belongings from the locker room. Tony smiled broadly when he saw that the bike had worked as well on Olivia as it had on Jenny. “How’d you like that new bike?”
“Great!” Olivia’s voice sounded strange to Tony’s ears: it was simultaneously monotone and enthusiastic. Tony leaned forward and placed his hands on the counter.
Jenny stepped forward and placed her hands down on top of his own. “How’d you like to come back with us to our place?”
Olivia enthusiastically nodded her agreement with this invitation.
“Unfortunately, girls, I’ve got to stay here until someone comes to take over here at the front desk. Why don’t you two go back to your apartment and eat each other out until I come by?”
Jenny responded immediately, “Yes, master!”
Olivia, upon hearing Jenny’s response, echoed her roommate, “Yes, master.”
“This way, when I stop by your place, you’ll both be really hot and wet for me.”
The two girls said, “Yes, master!” in unison.
He nodded his approval. “The only thing is, you should only call me master when you’re with me or with each other, but not when anyone else is around. Do you understand?”
“Yes, master,” giggled Olivia.
“Of course, master!” added Jenny.
“Very good! Go!”
The two girls left the gym, giggling loudly with each other.
Chapter 10
Jenny and Olivia returned to their apartment and almost immediately took off their clothes and began grappling together in a burlesque of lust.
Thinking about what his two slaves might be doing at any given moment was an occasional distraction to Tony as he monitored the students entering and exiting the gym over the course of the next two hours, occasionally making a note of which female students might be well-positioned for a future ride on the bike.
Finally, his shift ended. He returned to his locker and retrieved his stored items. Once outside of the building itself, he placed a phone call to his roommate, Steve.
“Hey, Steve. How’d you like to meet me at Jenny’s apartment?”
“When? Now?”
“Well, in about ten minutes.”
Steve sounded suspicious. “Why?”
“Oh, nothing. I just thought you might like something that’s going on there.”
“What do you mean?”
“You’ll see.”
“Listen. You know Jenny and I broke up, right? A couple of weeks ago.”
“Yup. You wanted more sex than she was giving up and she wanted more time to go to the gym, right?”
“Pretty much. But I’ve got to say that I was getting pretty tired of her attitude. I probably would’ve broken it off eventually if she hadn’t.”
“Well, I, um... I’m not sure you ever got the closure you need, so...”
“So what’s happened to Jenny?” Steve’s voice betrayed the fact that he cared more about her than he might’ve otherwise felt comfortable letting people think.
“Well, why don’t you come over to her apartment in about ten minutes? I’ll explain everything...”
“Is Jenny all right?”
“Yes. I’d say she’s never been better. No offense to you, bud.”
“None taken.”
“So will you meet me there?”
Steve paused. “You’re not there right now?”
“I’m on my way over there from the gym. Jenny asked me to come by after my shift was over. So whaddaya say?”
After a longer pause, Steve sighed and said, “All right.”
When Tony arrived at the entrance to Jenny’s apartment, Steve was already waiting for him, sitting on a bench in the quadrangle from which he could see the apartment.
“You been waiting long?”
“Not too long. So what’s going on? You gonna tell me already or what?”
Tony smiled broadly. “Let’s just say that Jenny told me that she didn’t like the way you two broke up. And she asked me if there was anything she could do to ... smooth things out with you.”
Steve rolled his eyes. “Ya know, I find that really hard to believe. After we broke up, I think her exact words to me was that she thought I was a lying, worthless scumbag, and that she needed me the way she needed a used tampon.”
“Yeah, well... She was... um... upset at the time. But you still care about her, don’t you?”
Steve laughed and chided his friend. “Yeah, of course I do. But she and I were never really meant to be together, ya know? So let’s get this over with before someone gets hurt again.”
“Like you?”
“Yeah. Like me.”
Tony walked up the steps that led to Jenny’s apartment door, and knocked.
Jenny’s voice called out, “Tony, is that you?”
“Yup! And Steve’s here, too.”
“Come on in! The door’s not locked!”
Tony opened the door and stepped inside; Steve followed close behind.
Steve scowled at Tony. “Something sounded off about her voice. You sure she’s all right?”
“I’m sure she is,” responded Tony.
Before Tony or Steve could say anything else, Jenny called out, “I’ll be right there!”
Steve crossed his arms over his chest and looked at Tony, as if trying to read his mind.
Jenny came bounding into the living room. “Hi, guys! Glad you could be here!”
Steve turned and stared at her, shaking his head as though this act could correct whatever in his field of vision wasn’t working right.
Jenny smiled as she saw her ex-boyfriend. “Hi, Steve. I’ve ... missed you.”
“Um, Jenny... Uh, how come you’re ... you know... Where’re all your clothes?”
“Oh, I did some exercises over at the gym, but then I came home and I was still hot and sweaty, so I took a shower and, well...”
Olivia joined her roommate in the living room. Like her roommate, she had no shame about standing completely naked in front of the two men. She finished Jenny’s sentence. “It just seemed more natural that she and I might want to be naked, especially after Jenny told me you’d come over after work, Tony.”
Steve turned to stare at Tony.
Before Steve could say anything, Jenny spoke again. “You know, it’s a lot more fun to play with guys than it is with girls. No offense, Olivia.”
“That’s all right.”
“So, which one of you wants to play with me now?”
“Steve will,” volunteered Tony.
“Great!” Jenny stepped forward and took Steve’s hand. “I’m ready for you to come to my bedroom now. I’m sorry I never let you in there before...”
Steve reluctantly followed his ex-girlfriend into her bedroom. He quickly looked back at Tony, who merely smiled and gave him a “thumbs up” sign.
Within minutes, Tony and Olivia were smiling and laughing at the sounds of Jenny moaning in pleasure and calling out lines like “That’s it! Yeah! Right there! More!”
Olivia turned to Tony and said, “Does that give you any ideas?”
“What do you have in mind?” He chuckled.
Olivia jumped up on Tony and began to kiss him, pushing him back until he fell onto the couch. Once he was on the couch, she began to unfasten his pants, revealing his rock-hard porksword. The moment she saw it, she jumped on it and started moaning and yelping.
Jenny and Olivia seemed to have entered into some unspoken, yet agreed-upon contest to see who could be the loudest, wildest, uninhibited person in the house. The squealing, moaning, and screaming echoed throughout the small apartment as the two friends and roommates wordlessly goaded each other into a higher state of bliss and pleasure.
When Olivia paused to catch her breath, Tony grabbed onto her ass and stood up, carrying her into Jenny’s bedroom. Tony whispered, “her bed’s big enough for the four of us,” to Olivia, who nodded enthusiastically in response.
Tony carried Olivia over to the bed and knelt down so that she was sitting on the edge, his cock still buried deep inside of her. She lay back on Jenny’s bed and Tony climbed on top of her.
Jenny moaned and howled in pleasure as Olivia joined her friend in ecstasy.
Olivia began groping wildly and finally caught hold of Jenny’s breast, pinching the nipple tightly and making Jenny yelp even louder.
“That’s it, girls,” said Tony. “You know what you like.”
“I know what I like,” said Olivia, who was parroted in a deadpan voice by Jenny.
Steve couldn’t restrain himself any longer and he came violently inside of her before collapsing in exhaustion on top of her.
Jenny slowed down her breathing and began running her fingers through Steve’s hair.
Tony looked at Olivia and asked, “Are you ready for me to cum?”
“Oh, yes!”
Tony screwed up his eyes as he finally released what he had been holding back for at least as long as he’d been in Jenny’s bedroom. Olivia squealed in delight as her pussy sucked all of the juice out of his dick.
Pausing for a moment to catch his breath, Tony looked over at Steve and Jenny, asking, “That’s a much better way to break up with someone, isn’t it?
“Oh, yes!” exclaimed Jenny, more loudly than the situation warranted.
Everyone laughed.
Jenny looked at Steve. “I hope you’re not mad about all the things I said to and about you.”
Steve wasn’t sure what he felt, but he wrapped his arms around Jenny all the same.
The four of them fell asleep on Jenny’s bed, a happy silence washing over everyone.
Chapter 11
Over the course of the next few weeks, Jenny had shown the bicycle to several other people and was spending a fair amount of time with her legs spread wide open for whomever Tony felt she should be fucking at the moment.
Jenny had attempted to convince Desiree to join her and a passing acquaintance whose name Jenny had forgotten, but the attempt was cut short when Desiree’s disbelief bubbled over into anger.
“What’s wrong with you, Jenny?” screamed Desiree.
“Nothing! What’s wrong with you, Desiree?” Jenny attempted, but failed, to remain calm at this question.
With her eyes barely able to focus on anything due to the wellspring of tears, Desiree poked Jenny hard under the shoulder blade and said, in a tone that sounded calmer than she really felt, “This isn’t like you. You’re not a slut or a whore. And neither am I. Call me when you wake up and realize what you’re doing.”
Desiree turned on her heels and walked away, sobbing.
Jenny tried to get Desiree to come back, but she refused.
Desiree had managed to stop crying when she reached her dorm, but as she reached for the front door to open it, she heard someone call her name.
She paused and turned around to find the voice. With a smile intended to disarm her, Steve jogged closer to her and said, “I think I can guess what’s got you so upset.”
“Wh- who’s upset? N-not me!” Desiree was somewhat indignant at being confronted like this by Jenny’s former boyfriend.
He put his hands on his hips and gave her a mock scowl. “You can’t con the con artist, Desiree. Besides, you should see your makeup.”
Desiree sniffed heavily and looked down. She mumbled, “So what if I’ve been crying?”
“You had an argument with Jenny, didn’t you?”
“She ... she hasn’t been herself lately.”
Steve made a fist and gently placed it under her chin, so that he could raise her head. She widened her eyes and looked straight at him.
“No. She hasn’t,” agreed Steve. “And I don’t know about you, but I don’t like this change in her.”
“Really? She was telling me about how she’d loved fucking you and regretted not doing it more when you two were going out... Well, I really didn’t want to hear about it, but... Well, isn’t that what you wanted?”
“When we were dating, yeah.” Steve hoped he didn’t sound too casual about this response, but he saw no benefit in dishonesty here. “But you know something? It felt empty at the time, and knowing what she’s been doing—or maybe I should say ‘who she’s been doing’ since then—it feels even worse.”
“You saying you didn’t enjoy it?”
“Let’s just say that it wasn’t the stuff of my fantasies.”
“All right, I guess. So what d’you want?”
“I... I think we should try to figure out how to help Jenny.”
“B... but how?”
“Well, it’s clear that something about her’s changed and ... well, I’m thinking that it’s not something she really has any control over, if you know what I mean.”
Desiree didn’t immediately respond, but didn’t want to sound ignorant, so she nodded her head slightly.
“So,” continued Steve, “Let’s try to figure out what we should do, where we should get started. I have an idea or two, but I thought I’d try to get your thoughts.”
Desiree cocked her head to one side and scratched the top of her head. “She started changing, um, I guess about a month or so ago...”
“Yes, I agree. D’you think we can get a little more specific?”
“Ummmmm...”
Steve chuckled. “I think it was the day of that blizzard.”
“But she was locked up in her apartment all day.”
“Not all day. She went to the gym that morning.”
“So did I, Steve. I didn’t see her there.”
“I think you left before she got there.”
“So, what about the gym?”
“I think Tony did something to her at the gym. When you were there, what was he doing?”
“I, um...” She paused to think of what was going on that day. “It was empty. I think it was just Tony and I, and Tony was ... He was putting something together. What was it? A treadmill?”
“Um, I think it might’ve been an ...”
“An exercise bike! Yeah! Jenny was telling me about it. The pedals and this video screen kind of make you feel like you’re riding through wherever. I think it’s got like settings to bike across, like, major mountain ranges without the thin air and cold weather. And she’s been trying to get me to try it out but I’ve...”
“You’ve kind of put it off, haven’t you?”
“Yeah. I’m more of a stairmaster kind of girl, ya know?”
Steve laughed. “So we’ve got to figure out if it’s that bike that gives Tony some kind of influence over Jenny. If it is, we need to figure out how to undo it.”
“How do we do that?”
“Is it safe to assume the security cameras in the gym won’t show us anything?”
“Probably.”
“Then I guess we need to keep watch over things. Next time Jenny says she wants to go to the gym, tell me when she’s going and I’ll go up to case her.”
“I, um... I guess I can do that.”