Howard grinned as the tiny woman shouted at no one underneath the glass. For an instant he thought she could see him somehow, but of course that was impossible. As long as the miniature lamps were on, and the basement illumination was dimmed, the only thing she could possibly see was her own reflection.
He thought about speaking to her then. What would his voice sound like to someone that small? Like the word of God, probably. Now that would be hilarious, he thought. He could pretend to be God and tell her this was Hell. Perhaps she might even believe him. For someone like her, it might very well be true.
Nah, he told himself, it wouldn't be right to lie to Kayla that way. Besides, he was having more fun just watching her for now. She obviously knew he was there, but she had no idea who or what he was. The moment he spoke, she'd know something more than she did before. The longer he kept her in suspense, the better.
Kayla sighed and hung her head in frustration. The chamber in which she was trapped shook again, slightly, and she could hear the sounds of motion beyond the nearby wall. Someone was out there. Possibly several people. She couldn't be sure, but she knew she wasn't alone. It was more obvious than ever that she was being watched.
The noises she had heard sounded ordinary, but incredibly loud and deep. The scrape was much like a chair grinding across a hard floor, and she was quite certain the rumbling was a chuckle or laugh. Perhaps whoever was out there had a microphone nearby, and speakers were set into the walls all around her, above the level of her vision. That might make sense. This could be the interior of a sports arena or shopping mall, with walls built around it. Was that what was going on? Some kind of bizarre practical joke? Was she in some kind of exhibit?
That just didn't make any sense, she thought as she dejectedly made her way back to the living room. What could anyone possibly have to gain by doing this to her? Why build a fake environment for someone, trap them inside, and then just sit back and watch? Wouldn't that be boring after a while? Unless there was some secret purpose behind it that she had yet to learn. The "Twilight Zone" theory was starting to get more and more likely, she thought resignedly.
Well, if there was one thing she was sure of, she wasn't going to allow anyone to get the better of her like this. If this really turned out to be a joke or prank, they were probably waiting for her to freak out or go nuts, and she wasn't going to do that. No, she'd wait them out, whoever they were, and get to the bottom of this sooner or later. After all, as she always reminded herself, Kayla Robertson could take just about anything!
Howard shifted in the seat again, still uncomfortable. Earlier, he added a pillow to the hard wooden surface, but it was still painful to sit in the same location like that for extended periods. He was going to have to do something about this little problem, he thought.
Actually, after several hours of watching Kayla, he had started to create a list of things he wanted to change about this setup. The chair was only the first item. Another was some kind of sound muffling around her enclosure. Every time he made the slightest noise, she perked up her ears and looked around, trying to find its source. Even something as simple as writing another item down on his notepad drew her attention. She could actually hear the scratching of his pencil across the paper! Of course, her ears were one-sixteenth their normal size, so it stood to reason that they'd be more sensitive to sound waves, but that was something he hadn't anticipated.
He also decided he wanted to be able to hear what she was doing inside the room. Several times, she muttered something under her breath, and once, she even stood in front of a mirror and gave a short speech, probably to convince herself how great she was. On several occasions she called out towards the ceiling, perhaps even yelling or shouting, but he couldn't hear even the barest suggestion of a sound through the thick Plexiglas walls. Sooner or later he'd want to communicate with her, and how could he do that if he couldn't make out her voice?
While he watched her put the dry dishes away, Howard considered how to manage the modifications. Microphones atop the corners of each of the buildings, and in amongst the trees, should do the trick. A couple more along the edge of the running track would suffice if she decided to start talking while working out. He could pick up some wireless ones at Radio Shack tomorrow. What would she do if she found them, though? Perhaps nothing, or she might destroy them in a fit of anger. Of course, if she did something like that, he could always find ways to punish her. There were plenty of possibilities for that, after all.
There was another problem, too. Putting the mikes in would require the removal of the roof, and significant time with his hands inside the compartment. He couldn't risk doing it while she was asleep, for fear of her awakening and seeing his massive hands hovering over her. He needed some way to keep her out of the way while he made the changes. Perhaps he could knock her out for a while, maybe with a sleeping pill or something. Oh, well, he'd figure that out later. After all, he was in no hurry.
Kayla finished cleaning up the kitchen and switched off the television. Stretching, she yawned and moved towards the bathroom again. Howard leaned over to watch as she slipped off her shorts and sat down on the toilet, carefully covering herself as she did so. She made no move to look up at the ceiling, however, as though pretending he wasn't there. He smiled as she finished her business, wiped off, and managed to pull on her clothes again without managing to afford him a view of anything other than the gentle curve of her trim behind.
She paused, though, apparently considering the shower, and Howard licked his lips in anticipation. This was what he'd been waiting for all night. The very thought of watching her wash that finely toned and tanned body was already turning him on, and almost unconsciously he began to loosen the zipper on his pants.
Kayla stood in front of the shower, alternately looking at it and glancing upward at the reflective sky. Since awakening in this strange place, she'd become aware of occasional low-level sounds coming from nearby. These were not the loud, obvious ones, but more like the sort of ambient background noises that everyone hears all the time but just ignores. For Kayla, though, they were different somehow, deeper and more sonorous. Scratchings, creaks, thumps, and patters that were all normal and yet abnormal, too. Kayla couldn't put a finger on exactly what was wrong with them, except that they were the sort of things that should have been close, but instead seemed strangely distant.
She was by now used to the constant and oppressive feeling that one or more people were watching her through the ceiling. She was getting tired and intended to go to bed soon, but before that she wanted to take a shower. The thought of having her invisible observers watching made her shudder, though. Unless she wanted to shower in her underwear, which sort of defeated the purpose, someone up above was going to be treated to a nice view.
The shower sat in the back of the third and smallest building and was one of the enclosed cubicle types, with a sliding door and everything. The chamber looked to be quite spacious and comfortable, but Kayla couldn't get her mind past that open roof that hung above. What could she possibly do about that?
After a moment's thought she had an idea. Turning on her heels, she hurried back to the larger building and started yanking the pillows off the bed.
Howard's eyebrows went up. What was she up to now? He had no idea, but she certainly seemed to be moving with a purpose, didn't she?
He watched with interest as the industrious Kayla swiftly pulled the top sheet off the bed and rolled the fabric up into a ball. Then she walked over to the dresser and took out the silk nightgown he left there for her. He smiled as he thought of what she would look like wearing it. In fact, he was looking forward to seeing her in just about every one of the little outfits he collapsed and placed in the dresser drawers.
Kayla took the nightgown and crumpled bedsheet back to the bathroom and turned on the shower, adjusting the controls to the temperature she liked. Howard nodded slightly, glad to see the water heater was functioning properly. Hooking up the plumbing underneath the table took quite a bit of precision work, but after all, working with miniatures and models had been his hobby for years. The task really wasn't difficult, just time-consuming. He hoped Kayla appreciated his efforts, though if she learned the truth of what had been done to her, somehow he doubted she would.
That didn't matter now, though. This was the moment he'd been waiting for. Tentatively, almost suggestively, she reached up and unzipped the front of her halter top, casting it aside into the corner. After that, she followed with the Spandex shorts, standing there clad only in a black sports bra and underwear. Howard smiled and reached down underneath the table, and his heart began to beat quickly with excitement.
That was when she showed him what the bedsheet was for. With a flourish, she whipped it up and tossed it out over the top of the shower cubicle, letting it expand to its full size while holding onto one end. The white cloth fluttered down to cover the entire top of the enclosed area, totally blocking Howard's view of the shower. While he stared at this in surprise, frowning, Kayla stepped under her makeshift tent and disappeared, and a moment later the brassiere and panties flew out to land in the middle of the floor.
Howard's eyes narrowed, and though he couldn't hear a thing within the glass cage below, he was sure she was laughing at him.
Kayla was indeed laughing. She stepped underneath the warm water, enjoying the first bit of mirth she had since waking up in this bizarre place. She felt good to thwart whoever the mysterious watchers were and put one over on them for a change. They probably wouldn't be happy, but at least she'd have some privacy for a short while. Besides, maybe this would draw them out so she could finally see who she was dealing with.
The hot spray felt good on her back. Whoever built this hadn't skimped on the design, either. This was one of the more expensive showers she'd seen, and the flow wasn't cut down by those stupid water savers that seemed to be everywhere nowadays. The water was soft, too, not the hard stuff that would normally indicate an industrial or prison type environment. Wherever she was, her captors obviously wanted her to be comfortable.
She took the soap in her hand and started to lather up. Getting clean felt wonderful, and the warmth and humidity were making her delightfully drowsy. Earlier, when the shock of being in a strange place was still fresh, she wondered if she could ever get used to being here. Now, though, she felt more at ease. The fact that she hadn't been abused or set upon was comforting, and since she was pretty sure this was some kind of joke or test, she felt confident she could outlast it. Maybe this was the way the Board of Directors weeded out those people who didn't deserve to be counted among their number, she thought suddenly. Of course, that had to be it! This was one of their little games, like those ridiculous offsite team-building exercises they always seemed to be doing. Any minute now the walls would slide open and they'd come in to tell her she passed their final exam.
She finished lathering up and started to rinse her arms when suddenly she caught movement out of the corner of her eye. She glanced up in fear as without warning the bedsheet whipped away and vanished behind one of the walls. Involuntarily, Kayla screamed, covering herself and staring up at the sky. To her shock, the roof was moving! The shiny surface was no longer parallel to the ground, allowing her a view of her own reflection, but instead, was tilted at an angle. In that instant she saw the rounded, pinkish edge of what looked for all the world like a gigantic finger.
A few seconds later, the glass ceiling lowered itself back into place as Kayla collapsed on the floor of the shower, eyes wide and mouth hanging open in shock.