16th October, 31 Days until the banquet.

“Happy Anniversary, dear.”

“Happy Anniversary…”

Claudia and her beloved wife sat alone in their bedroom together, for once out of earshot from both of Josephine’s concubines, their daughter and her nanny, and Claudia’s shiny new prop- still fresh from the sale floor.

And the air had never been quite so tense between them.

Claudia fumbled for something to say, her cane still in hand. “So what have you done today… while I was at work?”

“I slept a while, talked with Autumn for a bit, more of the same…” Josephine sat on the edge of the bed, facing away from her wife, head storming with guilt. “How was work?”

“Awful as always. A few new slaves to deal with-” Claudia did the same, facing away from her wife of five years now. “How’d you like your gifts?”

“The corset was nice, and the heels fit perfectly~” Josephine smiled for a moment, nervously tapping her own hands on the mattress. “But I haven’t tried the crop yet…”

“Did you want to?” Claudia turned, glancing over at her with a smile on her face, holding the riding crop in her lap. “I’d love to see you all pretty and red~”

“Not really… but maybe some other time?” Josephine sighed, refusing to return her wife’s gaze. “I’m sorry for not getting you anything-”

“It’s alright, dear. I’m just surprised.” Eyes like dagger and brows furling in annoyance, Claudia snarled under her breath. “You usually always have something for me~”

“I wasn’t sure what to get you this year-”

“Because I already got myself a new slave, you mean?” Her grip tightened onto the handle of her cane. “You can get me other things, Josie.”

“I know, I just-”

“You just weren’t sure what you wanted, right?”

“Claudia…”

“I just figured this year would be different, Josephine.” Claudia sighed, tapping the tip of her cane on the floor below. “After four years of the same-”

Her voice raised with worry, Josie protested. “The same what?”

“You’ve done the same thing every year since we’ve been married, Josephine.” Claudia bit her lip- she did her best not to bring it up, she hated bringing it up. “I thought you would have learned after we got Zenna, but you did it again with Bella- a new slave every year.”

“You say that like it’s a bad thing!!” She swiveled, now facing her wife on the bed. “They’re all amazing slaves, and I did learn from Bella, I swear.”

“What kind of anniversary gift is a slave, Josie?” Claudia groaned, regretting even trying to talk about this with her. “Especially when you only buy them for yourself?”

“They weren’t for me!!” She frowned, now sitting criss cross on top of their bed. “They were for you-”

“I thought you wanted to be a housewife, isn’t that what you said?”

“Well yeah, but…”

“You get five days alone at home with our four slaves and our daughter while I work so that you don’t have to- I took charge of your family’s business because you didn’t want to… and what do you do instead?”

Thump. Claudia smacked the tip of her cane on the floor beside their bed, just a little bit of sorrow welling up in her heart as she watched Josie recoil from it.

“You lounge around all day, leaving our daughter with Zenna while you either have sex with Darcey and Autumn, or masturbate- and now you’ve started having sex with Chloe too?”

“What’s wrong with that?” Josephine fought, like she always seemed to do with her wife when they had a moment alone together. “What’s wrong with any of that?”

“What kind of housewife sits around and does nothing all day, Josie?” Claudia’s voice trembled with ire. “You don’t like cleaning the house, so you buy a slave to do it for you. You don’t like cooking for the extra mouths, so you buy a slave to do it for you. You don’t like watching our toddler as she gets older, so you buy a slave to do it for you.”

“But that’s what slaves are for.” Josie fumed quietly, trying to defend herself. “Besides, I didn’t need Bella, I bought her for you-”

“And look how well that turned out, Josie- Bella is dead.”

“She was on the Zed list!! Bella would have been killed either way-” Josephine pouted, stewing in place. “You killed Charlotte Zed, didn’t you?”

“That was an accident and you know it!!”

Thump. She slammed her cane down onto the floor again, hauling herself up to her feet.

“Do you really think I enjoyed being the one to put Bella down?!” Claudia was now shouting, berating her wife, something distinctly different than the type of scolding she gave her slaves, tears burning in her eyes as she spoke. “Do you think I liked killing a girl who looked so much like… like-”

“Like your mother… Like Lilith you mean?” Josie lowered her head, distinctly shameful but blisteringly honest. “Yeah…” She frowned, her eyes pointed upwards as her head hung low. “Yeah, I think you did…”

“Josephine…” Claudia felt that one. “Why would you even say that?”

“Because why else, Claudia-” Josephine nervously stood up from bed, again facing away from her wife. “Why else would you buy Chloe… why else would you buy a girl who looks so much like me?”

“Is that… what this is about?” Her grip around the serpentine headpiece of her cane turned shackle tight with anger. “You think I’m replacing you?”

“I didn’t say that-”

“But you definitely thought it.”

“I… I know I surprised you with the others, but this is different… you could have at least talked to me about it-”

“I tried talking to you about it, Josie. Don’t you remember? You were high out of your mind and you couldn’t even remember what day it was- when were we going to talk about it? After she was already dead?”

“I don’t know, Claudia… but this just feels like a slap in the face-”

“What, like having my high school bully hunted down and put through the facility under my name, without my knowledge or permission?”

“You love Zenna-”

“I love my drone .” Claudia fumed, tossing the riding crop down on top of the now empty mattress. “I will never be able to forgive Zenna for what she did to me, but that Zenna is gone- our Zenna, my Zenna, isn’t the same girl… she’s a drone. That’s why I forgave her, because I made her my drone.”

“They’re not all drones, Claudia-”

“Yes they are, Josie… and Chloe will soon be one too. That’s the only way our family can forgive her for what she did~”

“But what did she do?” Josie protested. “If it’s so important, why won’t you tell me who she is?”

“Because you don’t need to know, Josephine…” Claudia sighed, trying her best to keep the girl’s identity tucked close to her chest. “Stay away from her, and stay away from Candace-”

“What, so I’m not supposed to ask… like I’m not supposed to ask about Charlotte Zed?” Claudia’s wife took just a few steps towards her, back still turned to Josephine. “You have the tape back now, and you’re really not going to let me watch it?”

“No.” Claudia groaned, on the back foot now, stepping away from Josie as she approached, the knuckles of one hand pressed to her lips. “That one’s special to me… She was special to me…”

“Special how?”

“She was my Zenna…”

“Your Zenna… Zenna was your Zenna?”

“No. Not like… not like that- she was like… My Leah.”

“But you had both Zenna and Leah, you three were best friends- I remember the stories-”

Claudia fumed angrily. “She was to me what Leah is to Candace, alright?”

“I don’t know what that means, Claudia…” Josephine swallowed nervously, gently picking the riding crop her wife had gifted her up off of the bed beside her, clutching it to her own chest. “What does Candace have to do with any of this?”

“Candace has everything to do with this, okay?” Tears rolled down Claudia’s cheeks, slowly wetting her skin with shame. “It was an accident…”

“Just like us, you mean… An accident?” Josephine’s hands trembled as she stared down at the crop doing her best not to cry. “An accident… like Lilian.”

Furious with her wife’s insolence, Claudia snapped around to face her. “That’s not what this is, Josephine-”

“What is it that you want me to do with myself, honey… when the only reason we’re still together- the only reason we got married in the first place- is because of her…” She sobbed, letting the first of her tears run down her cheeks. “I’m sorry about the slaves, Claudia… I know I’m bad at this, I just… wanted to find someone who can be what you want- a better housewife than me…”

“You could have stepped up at any point, but instead you’ve buried us further and further and further into this, and you left me to pick up the pieces- you left me to train, house, and discipline the slaves. I had to give them a bedroom, I had to hire an enforcer, I had to be the one to explain to our daughter why these people are what they are… I had to be the one to explain to Lilian why she wasn’t going to get to play with Bella anymore…” Claudia shut her tears down, rubbing them out of her eyes as she firmly grasped a hold of the riding crop, tearing it from her wife’s hands. “I can’t do this for another five years, Josie.”

Josie couldn’t do anything but sniffle and sob. “I’m sorry-”

“I don’t do sorry, Josephine. My sister might, but I don’t- I never forgive.” Claudia just stared her down, eyes filled with venom. “I don’t care who it is, but I don’t forgive, not even you- not my sister, not my mother, not my father, not my brother, not Zenna, not Bella, not Ale-” Claudia stopped, her eyes briefly going wide at her own mention of that name. “And most importantly… not myself.”

“So what then-” Josephine sobbed desperately. “What am I supposed to do…”

“I don’t know, honey.” Claudia turned her back to the other woman, refusing to let her tears now show to the only woman she ever thought she could forgive. “I want this more than anything else in the world. I want this to work, Josephine. But if it doesn’t… I have other candidates waiting to play your role…”

“But… what about Lilian?”

“Lilian’s not even six yet, Josephine… and with how little time you spend with her… she wouldn’t even know the difference.”

“I love you, Claudia…”

“And I love you, Josephine…” Claudia choked back her anger, pointing at the door behind her with the riding crop. “Now please… sleep in the guest room again…”

“Y-yes, dear.” Claudia’s wife nervously stumbled to her feet, used to this routine by now, if anything- she’d spent more nights in the guest room than in bed with her own wife as of recent, and for good reason… this simply wasn’t working. For as strong and in control as Claudia liked to seem, the truth of the matter still shone through. “Happy Anniversary, Claudia…”

Their marriage was in shambles. “Happy Anniversary, my love…”

Slam. The door shut tight behind her as Josephine made her way out, leaving Claudia alone in her own bedroom for the umpteenth night in a row. Not once this week had Josephine slept in her own bed with her wife- not even tonight.

Not even on their anniversary.

She listened to the dial tone on her mobile as she picked up her phone, making an impromptu phone call. Sure, it was Friday night, maybe she was jumping the gun just a bit- but tonight had simply been the most atrocious for her in recent memory.

“Come over early- tonight- and I’ll make it worth your time.”

There was a long silence from the other end, as Claudia didn’t even lead with hello, and then- “When do you want me over?”

“Right now.” And- Click, that was it.

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“I know I should ask what’s up, but-” Candace quietly closed the door behind her, a lot softer than her sister-in-law had. “Do we have to do this in your bedroom?”

“Josephine is in the guest room, so yes.”

“The guest room?” Candace scoffed at the thought. “Why’s she in the guest room?”

Claudia just glared at her. “I’m not paying you to ask questions, hon.”

“You’re not paying me at all-”

“Not with money, maybe.” Claudia sighed, still sitting in bed as her younger sister arrived. “But unless you want to stay top dog’s tail for the rest of your life, you’ll need my help convincing Daddy that your Esports career is anything worth investing in~”

“Right… fine…”

Ah yes, Candace’s Esports career- which her father had so unceremoniously shut down on her.

That was the surface level agreement that the two of them had come up with- Candace was to play house- like her mother- and be her sister’s servant at the party.

As some sick way to show to her mother that she could patch her relationship with Candace on her own terms.

And in preparation for that, Candace would go through four weekends of extensive training- and in return, Claudia would convince her father, their father, to continue allowing Candace to play her favorite Esport as a living, even after everything that had happened between her and her rival- who was now one of Claudia’s possessions.

As well as promising to keep the girl safe, not just from Candace, but from their father.

And that’s the part that sold her on the deal, the idea that Chloe would finally be safe. She didn’t care whether she would ever play the game again- well, she did care, but not as much as she cared about protecting the girl that she loved.

That was the deal, Candace would play some stupid part in her sister’s party, Leah would headhunt the target her boss had given them, Claudia would convince her father to let her sister go back to playing Esports, Candace would never actually have to work as a debt collector, and Chloe would finally be safe.

Sophia Cavalier would finally be safe.

Unless, of course… Candace decided to keep playing house~

And Claudia was going to use those four week to convince her that playing house was the right thing to do.

“Imagine it, Candace~” Claudia sat behind her sister on the bed, rubbing her shoulders as she hummed sweet lies into the girl’s ears. “You could be with her again, if you stayed here with us~”

“No.” Candace shook her head, vehemently rejecting the idea of it all. “She doesn’t want to be with me again, you know that.”

"And since when did what she wants matter?" Claudia stopped, relaxing into her bed next to her sister now. "She didn't want to be with you the first time, but that didn't stop you~"

"You don't even know the story, sis."

"Is there more to it than what you've already told me?"

"Of course there is."

"Then by all means, tell me~"

"We were friends before we were ever rivals. I had a thing for Sophia long before she actually won the title." Candace sighed, idly staring at her phone while talking, as Claudia fiddled with her cane beside her. “But after it happened, father just… lost it.”

And so Candace explained the story to her.

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“So letting her go really wasn’t your idea.” Claudia sat on the side of her bed, staring off at the dumbwaiter at the end of the room. “You never wanted that.”

“Claudia… can we please not talk about it like that- she’s yours, you already have her?”

“And at no small cost to me either. You got her for free, she cost me five hundred thousand dollars.”

“That much, huh…” Candace wasn’t surprised by the number, but it did say something that Claudia was willing to put up that much money for a slave who she didn’t even know. “Why did you buy her?”

Claudia paused to think about that. “She looks like Josephine.”

“So if she didn’t look like Josephine-”

“I wouldn’t dwell on that.”

“And you and Josephine are having… issues?”

“To say the least, yes.”

“What’s happening there?”

“Nothing I really want to talk about right now…” Claudia sighed, stretching as she stood up from bed. “You know I always knew that mouse friend of yours was no good.”

“I should have known she was just jealous-”

“Well then I hope she is having fun working her little ass off as a slave at my plantation~”

“Your plantation ?”

“You know what would be fun?” Claudia leapt to her feet, twirling her cane in hand. “Before we get into this, we should pay our dear brother a visit, don’t you think?”

“And ignore my question?”

“One hundred and ten percent~”

“You can’t hide things from me forever you know~”

“I can-” Claudia giggled. “And I will.”

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“Oh please don’t tell me this is some weird sex thing you two are trying out-” An exhausted Cyrus Griffin answered his receptionist’s call to the front desk, to answer his sisters, both of them. “Because if it is, I’m busy.”

“Busy until when?” Claudia leaned over the counter, running the tip of her index finger along her little brother’s jawline.

“She would bite your finger off if she saw you doing this, you know that right?”

“Who, little Lizzie~?”

“ Little Lizzie tackled Candace to the ground first time they met~”

“Your slave is leaps and bounds weaker than I am and you know that, Cyrus.” Candace interjected. “You let her maul me like a wild animal, I bet even Chloe could pin that rat of yours down.”

Cyrus sighed, rolling his eyes at that. “Yeah… Liz is still a little bit salty about that one.”

“Salty about what?”

“Right, you wouldn’t have heard of that.” Cyrus smirked, leaning back in his chair. “Chloe topped Liz~”

“Oh… did she now?” Candace forced a smile from her nervous lips, taken fairly aback by that knowledge. “When… did that happen?”

“Don’t worry about it-” Cyrus frowned, absorbing the discomfort on his little sister’s face. “So… I take it you’ve found her then?”

“You knew about it all along, didn’t you?” Candace swallowed a mouthful of anger, trying not to spit it in her brother’s face. “You sold Chloe to our older sister and-”

“Your older sister is standing about two feet away, Candace.”

Claudia stepped towards them both, her hand curled tight around the head of her cane, tapping it against the ground impatiently. Candace and her eldest sibling shared a prolonged stare at each other, the air simmering with nervous heat.

Candace blinked first, her eyes flitted to the floor beneath her sister’s cane, wanting to get out as soon as she could. “I’m going to go check up on Liz…”

And Cyrus enabled that. “Down the hall and to the left, first door on your right… C. Griffin.”

“Thanks…”

Candace stepped past the counter, heading down the hall towards her brother’s office. She tried the locked handle once before knocking on the door, and then knocking again a couple more times after she didn’t get an answer.

“Hey… Liz?”

“Go away, Candace.” Came Liz’s voice from the other side of the door. “I can hear you there, yeah. Please-”

“Open the door, Liz.” Candace sighed, knocking on the door again. “That’s an order.”

There were a few moments of silence, followed by movement from within the room, before Candace’s sister-in-law finally opened the door.

“Good evening, Candace…” To say that Liz was a bit of a wreck was kind of an understatement, but her brother’s slave recognized that she ought to be respectful in the face of someone powerful enough to order her around.

“Are you alright?” Candace smiled, standing in the doorway to keep Liz from slamming the door. “New haircut?”

“Master sheared my hair off in the shower the other night, Ma’am.” Elizabeth sighed, blowing her brown locks from her face. “He’s been on edge.”

“Have you met your husband?”

“He’s always on edge, I know…”

“Liz.” Candace frowned, trying to comfort the girl. “What’s wrong?”

“It’s his mom, Candace.” Liz sighed, slowly backing up into the room. “It’s Lilith…”

“Right, Lilith…” Candace sighed, deciding it best to just let her be for the time. “Well, just… take good care of him for me, okay?”

“Yeah, sure…” Liz smiled, setting herself back down at her husband’s desk. “I’ll do my best~”

“What do you mean mother has a new slave?” Claudia seemed almost shocked to be hearing this from her brother. “Our mother- Lilith Mariam- has a slave?”

“And what’s so surprising about that?” Cyrus snorted, his chair precariously balanced on two legs. “She did create the facility, remember?”

“Our mother may have founded this place- but she’s never once had a slave of her own in our entire lives, remember?”

“Well that’s not true- I know you remember Alecia~”

Claudia growled at the mention of her, thumping her cane on the floor beside her. “She was our father’s slave and you know that-”

“Clauds.” Cyrus frowned, seeing Candace stepping back inside. “Cat’s back.”

“Is there something you two don’t feel like you can talk about around me?” Candace replied, slowly closing the door behind her. “Because if so, spill it already. What are you hiding?”

“I just don’t like talking about your mom, okay?” Claudia snapped back at her, swiveling in place and stepping towards the door. “Come on, let’s get going?”

Cyrus rolled his eyes. “Leaving already?”

“If you must know-” Claudia grinned. “I think we may just go pay mother a visit~”

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“I just really wish she wouldn’t blow smoke all over the sitting room you know???”

“Where else is she supposed to blow smoke though… the kitchen?”

“She could take it outside~!!!”

“Yeah but that’d be inconveniencing them…”

“I know, I know, but… I have to clean the sitting room!!! And you know how hard it is for me with the smoke and all???”

“We all remember your asthma, Darcey…”

Chloe held her head in both hands as she listened to her fellow slaves fuss. Of course for Chloe, having been here for a grand total of barely two weeks, she had plenty of time to know how this was going to go already.

Darcey would start mindlessly complaining about something, thoughtlessly fussing without thinking of the logical implications of whatever it was she was saying. Autumn would respond with some heartless excuse for dismissing whatever problem the other girl was having, carelessly shrugging her off without considering how it would make her feel. Finally, Zenna would nervously mumble from across the room, trying to get the two of them to get along again-

And then the three of them would have sex. Zenna would sheepishly give into peer pressure and climb into Autumn and Darcey’s bed with them, despite really wanting to play in her own bed for a change, and Chloe would be able to round the corner and climb into her normally shared bed alone.

This was how it went, every night, without fail.

“Chloe, come over here!!!”

“You have to join us eventually…”

“Chloe come on~”

Even down to the girl’s energetic insistence that Chloe come and join their orgy, as the fourth person in a bed that struggled to support three, normally held two, and was built to house one.

Chloe gave them a friendly smile, shaking her head at the girls. “No thanks, but maybe tomorrow night?”

“Awe, okay fine!!!”

“Whatever…”

“Alright, but you have to play tomorrow~”

“Sure thing, remind me tomorrow.” Yeah, Zenna never held to that. She didn’t really have the confidence to, but it only took Chloe pretending like she would join in on their fun to get them to leave her to herself for the night.

They would have their sex, they’d all get exhausted, and they’d fall asleep in bed together- letting Chloe have the other mattress all to herself. She just had to sit there and idly flip through one of the magazines Mistress Josephine gave her and wait until she was tired enough to fall asleep.

Tonight ended up being just a little bit different however- the three slaves had their sex and knocked themselves out doing it, and Chloe was right on the edge of falling asleep too, before her attentive pointed ears were alerted to a soft knock at the door.

“Ummm… hello?” Chloe whispered, careful not to wake the other girls up, and got a knock at the door in response, still too quiet to shake the other girls awake from their rest. “Is… is somebody there?”

Knock… knock…

Chloe sighed, leaving her magazine sprawled open on the pillow beside her as she climbed out of bed and headed to the door-

Knock knock knock.

As Chloe reached the door, she was finally beginning to piece together the picture. The knocks were soft, not purposefully, but coincidentally- and they were coming from below the door handle.

Chloe knelt at the door, pressing her hand against it. “Hey, who’s there?”

“Ummm…” A soft, hushed, child’s voice spoke from the other side of the door. “I-is my m-mommy in there?”

Chloe sighed, rolling her eyes at the girl. “Your mommy is upstairs, Lilian-”

“N-n-no she’s n-not…” Lilian was crying, her voice cracking as she spoke. “I c-can’t find her-”

“I…” Chloe frowned, her hand resting on the locked door handle. “I’m sorry, honey. Your mommy’s not-”

“Lilian?” Nothing woke a slumbery Zenna up from a catnap, but apparently the sound of Lilian crying was enough to jolt the normally heavy sleeper awake. “Lilian what’s wrong?”

“M-mommy’s not!!” Lilian called out to Zenna from the other side of the door. “I can’t find her!!”

“It’s okay sweetie, I’m right here-” Zenna aggressively forced her way to the floor, awaking no fewer than the two girls in bed with her as she clawed to the door, practically shoving Chloe aside as she got there. “Move.”

Chloe quickly hurried out of the way, normally she knew her way around her other slaves, but for the first time this intimidated her just a little bit.

“What’s…”

“Happening???”

Darcey and Autumn both sat up in bed, seemingly fully recovered from whatever argument they were having as Darcey clung onto Autumn for support.

“Shhhh!” Zenna turned and hissed at them both, trying to quiet them down before turning back to the scared little girl on the other side of the door. “What’s wrong, Lilian?”

“I- I- I- want my-”

“I’m right here, sweetie. It’s okay~” Zenna cooed, and you could hear the effect it was having on Lilian even without looking at her, her sobs quickly quieting down.

Lilian violently struggled with the door handle, at least as violently as a five year old could. “M-m-mommy…”

“I’m right here, Lilian… do you remember that key I gave you-” Zenna kept a firm grasp on the handle to the door, unable to open or unlock it from the inside, keeping Lilian from messing with it any further. “I gave you a key just in case you ever needed to come get me, do you remember that?”

The fussing at the door quickly ceased. “Uh… uh-huh…”

Zenna smiled, pressing a hand to the door. “Did you bring it?”

“Y-yeah…” Lilian also pressed her hand to the door. “It’s right here…”

“I can’t open the door from in here so I need you to listen to me, okay?”

Chloe watched in awe from the bed as this unfolded in front of her- the normally apprehensive Zenna doing her best with what little she had to try and comfort the girl.

“I need you to put the key in the door handle here-” Zenna rustled the handle from inside the room. “And then turn the key… can you do that for me?”

“Ummm… I think so…” At this point Lilian’s voice wasn’t even stuttering. “Like… this?”

Click. The moment it was unlocked, Zenna forced the door open with the force of a billion lions, causing poor little Lilian who was still holding onto the handle, to fall tumbling straight into the woman’s arms.

“I’m right here, Lilian. I’ve got you-” Zenna’s strong tan arms wrapped themselves around the girl, catching her before she fell. “It’s alright… I’m right here-”

“Bwah!!” Like a little cub, Lilian grabbed a hold of Zenna with her own paws, a safety blanket draped over her shoulders. “M-mommy?”

“I’m right here, sweetie…” Zenna smiled, pulling Lilian into her lap, breathing heavy sighs of relief now that she knew the girl was safe. “Mommy’s right here…”

“Lilian!!!”

“Lilian…”

“Lilian.” Chloe swallowed nervously, staring at her fellow slave, master’s daughter safely tucked into Zenna’s arms. “What’s Lilian doing here-”

“What happened, sweetie?” Zenna smiled, tugging the girl upright as she gently wiped the tears from Lilian’s eyes. “Are you okay?”

“I… I… I had a nightmare where Mommy- Mommy, she- she-” Lilian squeezed Zenna’s hands with hers, beginning to sob again. “And then I w-w-woke up, a-and there was yelling! And loud door slamming! A-and Mommy wouldn't answer me!”

Zenna frowned, wrapping the blanket around the girl. “What’s Mommy doing?”

Lilian sniffled, wiping away her own tears with the blanket now. “C-c-crying…”

“Josie…”

“Josie???”

Both Darcey and Autumn were very alarmed by this, neither girl wanting to hear their master crying on her own.

“And what about your other mommy?” Zenna smiled, rustling Lilian’s hair. “Did you check on her?”

“Nuh-uh…” Lilian shook her head slightly.

“Oh honey…” Zenna frowned, sighing under her breath. “I know you wanted to see me, but you really should have gone to her first-”

“Nuh-uh!!!” Lilian shook her head vigorously, tears pouring down her cheek now.

“It’s okay, it’s okay…” Zenna sighed, wrapping her arms around the girl again, letting her sob into her nanny’s chest as she picked her up off the floor. “She’s scary, I know… but I’ve got you now- it’s gonna be okay…”

Lilian buried her face into Zenna’s very much still naked chest, tears now soaking the woman’s skin. “M-mommy!!”

Zenna smiled, humming softly to her. “Do you want Mommy to sleep with you tonight?”

“Mmmm… Mhmm…”

“Okay…” Zenna nervously shot a couple of glances back towards her fellow slaves. “Let’s go to your room, okay?”

“Wait, what-” Chloe’s eyes went wide, protesting this. “Master won’t allow this-”

“I don’t care if this gets me in trouble, so just save it!!!” Zenna snapped, growling angrily at her. “Lilian’s safety is more important than mine.”

Chloe scoffed. “But you can’t just-”

Slam!! Zenna quickly cut her off by slamming the door from the other side, leaving Chloe alone with Darcey and Autumn, both fully awake now.

“You can’t just-” Chloe frowned, slowly closing the magazine as she sat there, still staring at the door. “Leave…”

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Knock knock.

Claudia stood behind her sister as Candace knocked on the door, patiently waiting, looming over her as they anticipated Lilith’s arrival.

“A new slave…” Claudia scoffed, arms crossed at her chest. “Mother got a new slave, what even is this?”

Candace gave her a weird look out of the corner of her eye. “Has she really never had a slave before?”

“Not that I can remember, no-” Claudia tapped her cane against the bottom of the door impatiently. “She hasn’t.”

“Maybe she had a slave at one point and just…” Candace sighed, her eyes drifting downwards to the tip of her half-sister’s cane. “Never got a new one-”

Thump. Claudia brought her cane up and then back down, quicker than Candace’s eyes could follow, thwacking her little sister directly upside the head.

“Don’t go projecting yourself onto my mother, Candace… You and her are nothing alike.”

“Alright fine, you don’t have to hit me for it!!” Candace groaned, rubbing the now sore spot on her head.

“Slave’s get reprimanded when they do something wrong.” Claudia set the cane back down on the ground. “Consider it good practice.”

“Okay… I’m sorry…” Candace sighed, trying her best not to be unnerved by what her sister just said. “And do slaves answer the door when there’s a knock?”

“Odds are about even on that, I’m afraid.”

“Wanna make a bet real quick?”

“Bet on what, dear~”

Candace smirked, fingers tapping against the handle. “If her slave opens the door, you have to let me make a stop on the way home~”

“And if she doesn’t-” Claudia snorted at her sister’s arrogance. “You have to suck it up and accompany me to see father this weekend~”

“Deal-”

“As my servant.”

Candace frowned, swallowing nervously at her sister’s demands. “Deal…” But Candace wasn’t about to back down.

Claudia taunted her, licking her lips. “Quiet now, I hear someone coming~”

And Candace did too, taking her hand off of the door handle- only to feel it being grasped in her sister’s hand.

“There…” Claudia grinned, shaking the other girl’s hand. “Now it’s official~”

“What are you, some devil?”

“I just think that if we’re going to be making wagers, we ought to shake on them.” Claudia stood upright, letting her sister’s hand go. “Kind of like a devil, yes~”

“Nerd.” Candace rolled her eyes. “Is that why you point your slaves ears, you’re a nerd?”

“No, actually-” Claudia’s voice quickly grew cold. “It’s to help beat into their thick little skulls just how… inhuman they really are… helps remind them and my daughter that they aren’t people.”

“They aren’t… people?” Candace stuck her hand in her hoodie pocket, quickly regretting any deal she had made with her sister. “Is that how you think of them?”

“We can talk about this later, St. Clair… for now let’s just… see how the cards fall~”

Candace grinned as she heard a pair of soft footsteps, quick and light, unlike her sister’s mother’s heavy cane. She could see a brief twitch of the door handle, putting just a little bit of pressure before suddenly there was a quiet gasp from the other side, followed by a quick pitter patter away from the door.

And her eyes went wide hearing that. “W-wait, was that-”

“Odd.” Claudia snickered, sighing at the strange sounds. “I guess her slave doesn’t plan on answering for her…”

“I guess not…” Candace sighed, her eyebrows furling- losing a bet against her sister was the least of her problems right now.

“Why hello girls~” Lilith’s cane signalled her approach from long before she reached the door, pleasantly surprised to see both of her girls getting along so well, coming to pay her a visit. “I wasn’t expecting you!!”

“Might we come in mother?” Claudia smiled, taking the first step towards the door. “We hear you have… something new you might want to show us~”

“Yes, of course.” Lilith stumbled back inside. “Do come in, both of you!!”

And so Claudia did so, stepping inside ahead of her sister. “Is it true then?”

“Is what true, dear?” Lilith smiled, closing the door behind Candace.

“You have a new slave…” Candace’s once smile had now turned into a frown, her eyes scanning the interior of Lilith’s house, searching for other signs of life. “I could hear it at the door.”

“Why yes actually-” Lilith put her hand on Candace’s shoulder. “She’s just a bit shy, that’s all.”

“And what’s her name-”

“Patience.” Lilith’s grip tightened on Candace’s shoulder, and for a moment Candace was a bit hopeful that it was actually her name, and not an instruction. “Have patience… she’ll introduce herself soon.”

“Of course-” Candace smiled, taking a deep breath before correcting herself, emulating the one source than she knew. “Yes, Ma’am.”

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“What do you think that was about???” Darcey nervously bounced, alone in bed, trying to calm herself. “Do you think Miss Josephine’s alright???”

“I don’t know, but…” Autumn jerked on the handle, once again unable to open the door. “Zenna locked the door behind her…”

“Well that’s just great!!!” Darcey pouted loudly, grabbing her own blanket for support. “What about Lilian??? Is she alright???”

“She’s with Zenna, so I’m sure she’s fine, but… Zenna might not be…” Autumn turned away from the door, leaving it alone and turning her cold ire onto the other fellow slave here with her. “You’ve been awfully quiet though…”

“I don’t know anything more than you do.” Chloe frowned, covering her body with her pillow. “She just got up and left.”

“I’m not talking about Zenna…”

“Then what are you talking about?”

“From the sounds of it… Our Mistresses got into a fight…” Autumn scoffed at the redhead. “And you’re the only new addition to our little broadway cast here… so what do you think that fight might have been over…”

“Come on-” Chloe felt a twinge of anger building up inside of her. “You don’t seriously think I’m to blame for this, do you?”

“I don’t know guys~!!!” Darcey piped in, her eyes locked on the door. “But maybe we can ask???”

Slam. The door swung open, and in stepped… Josephine.

“Mistress…”

“Mistress!!!”

Both girls leapt to their feet to meet her at the door, but Josie seemed to have her sights set on someone else. “Move.” She forced them aside, pushing her way past both Darcey and Autumn, instead making her way to Chloe- a mostly empty bottle of booze in hand.

“Good evening, Miss Josephine.” Chloe forced a respectful smile onto her lips, trying to be the best slave she could be in the face of her master’s wife. She might not have liked the woman very well, but she was better than Claudia thus far, and Chloe knew to give her superior’s the respect they demanded from her. “How are you doing-”

“Fuck you.” Josephine stood directly over her, a bizarre reflection of herself as she watched the woman shotgun the remainder of her drink, roughly wiping the foam from her lips. “I don’t know who you are… but fuck you.”

“I’m… sorry, Mistress…” Chloe’s confidence faded just a little bit, but she pushed forward. “I’m Chloe… I’m Miss Claudia’s new slave… remember?”

Josephine just stared at her, eyes beading angrily, emanating a fierce aura as she gripped tight around the bottle in her hand- and Chloe knew very well what was about to happen, seeing the other woman telegraph her intentions, but forcing herself to endure it.

Smash!! The now empty glass bottle shattered against the back of Chloe’s head as she flinched to protect her face, her ears now ringing. It was a familiar feeling, one that wasn’t nice to have to put herself through again, but one that she had most certainly felt before.

Chloe’s ears were ringing much too loudly to hear what happened next aside from a fair few gasps of surprise before Josephine snatched the magazines off of the bed next to Chloe and drunkenly pushed past the door.

“Clean that!! A-and fix her up or whatever!!” Chloe looked up just in time to see tears in the woman’s eyes as she very nervously spouted the words, more unsure of herself than ever before. “And d-don’t follow me!!”

The door slammed shut, and the silence was punctuated by the echoes of their master’s footsteps quickly darting up the stairs-

“…I’ll clean that up then~!!!”

“And I’ll get the first aid kit…”

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“Out with it then, mother-” Claudia did her best not to aid herself with her cane while in her mother’s presence, trying to seem more capable than she was. “What’s been going on? How are you feeling? Are you feeling any better?”

“If the question is whether or not I’m going to recover, the answer is no…” Lilith smiled, taking a seat on a small loveseat, a chair that looked like it fit about one and a half people in total. “Doctor Renee assured me of that-”

“Doctor Renee?” Candace found her own seat, alone, within view of the rest of the single story home. “Julienne Renee?”

“The very same~”

Candace was shocked. “Isn’t she like… famous?”

“Indeed she is.” Lilith was almost bragging at this point. “She very graciously worked on helping me with building and attaching my experimental leg prosthesis~”

“How’d you get her to do that?”

“Her and I go back a ways, professionally… she’s been my primary physician for years now.”

“Primary physician?” Even Claudia was impressed. “She’s a top dollar surgeon, not a biannual check-up type of physician.”

“Well I suppose I’m one of the lucky ones then~” Lilith grinned, sighing as she gently set her cane aside. “She’s the only reason I survived my cancer the first time around.”

Candace was at least glad that her pseudo-stepmother was getting the care she needed. “So she does all of your medical work then?”

“Pretty much.” Lilith dug around inside of her purse for a moment, pulling out a small clip full of business cards before extending one of them out towards Candace. “Here.”

“Her contact information?” Candace, near enough to be able to reach, didn’t even stand up to retrieve it. “What’s this for?”

“I just thought you might need it, some things just can’t be trusted in the hands of the doctors at my facility- not after your brother took over.” Lilith smiled, happily pushing it into Candace’s hands. “In case you decide you want any… surgeries~”

Candace took a moment before realizing what she meant, her cheeks blushing bright pink as she tucked the card away in her own purse. “Th-thank you…”

“Right- those pills of yours must drain you… iced tea, correct?” Lilith clapped her hands together, strangely loudly, the sound echoing through the entire living space. “That one was always your father’s favorite.”

Candace smiled, nodding her head. “I guess he and I just have the same tastes sometimes?”

“You can say that again.” Lilith chuckled, before shouting down the hall. “Drinks, dear… you know what she likes~”

There was a pair of small soft footsteps reentering the living space as Lilith’s shiny new slave responded to her owner’s call, a loud clap of her hands, voice nervous as she spoke. “Y-yes, Miss…”

Candace, very briefly distracted from her vigilant watch, quickly turned to look at her, mismatched eyes going wide with shock at the sight of the girl. “I thought those footsteps sounded familiar…”

Claudia simply scoffed with anger, almost hissing at the sight of it. “I guess this snake smelled a mouse about after all.”

“H-hello again… Miss Mariam…” She blushed, averting her gaze towards the ground, gagging nervously. “Candace…”

Lilith smiled warmly, gently encouraging the girl. “Go ahead and introduce yourself dear~”

It was a little bit reminiscent of just the other night, when Claudia had made Chloe introduce herself to the other pair of women, both of whom already knew exactly who she was… and it was happening again.

“I’m Aria.” The girl paused, but nodded, doing just as she was told. “Aria Fairmont, UN#0006… Ms. Lilith Mariam has graciously taken me on as both her personal assistant… and her nurse.”

This would be where the younger Mariam would shoot to her feet in anger, but this time she relaxed, scanning her little sister’s expression- and after seeing the smile on Candace’s face, deciding it better to let it go. To wait on the off chance of striking later.

Candace told her big sister the story. If anyone here had a right to hate the little vermin, it was Candace… and if she wasn’t bothered by this, neither was Claudia.

“I was expecting much more violent a reaction from you both.” Lilith, always one to gossip, giggled at them. “But I guess I’ll get one of those in a minute or so~”

“Why would I react with violence, mother?” Claudia scoffed, her eyes not leaving Candace as she spoke. “We saw what that got us the other night… I’ve calmed down a fair bit.”

“I’m glad to hear you haven’t any problems with this then~”

“Oh I have problems with this, I assure you.” Claudia locked eyes with her mother. “But those problems are both largely tangential and quite personal to me, and not about the identity of the girl you’ve decided to make your slave.”

“She’s hardly my slave I must say.” Lilith brushed her daughter’s cold gaze off. “I’ll only have her for three more months-”

“And then what happens to her?” Candace cut in, listening while still watching the girl fetch drinks for them all. “What happens to Aria when you… you know?”

“What happens to all possessions when their owner passes away, dear?” Lilith grinned, taunting them both. “You’ll have to consult the will~”

“And can we see the will?”

“And ruin the suspense?” Lilith shook her head. “I think not.”

“My money’s on giving it all to Cyrus… he’s always been your favorite, hasn’t he- mother?” Claudia put on a fake smile as she looked over at her mother, staring her up and down with ire. “But who knows… maybe she’ll have a few surprises in there for you, Candace.”

“You say that as if you expect me to skip you over entirely, Claudia.”

“Hope for the best and expect the worst. Cyrus is your favorite. Candace is father’s.”

“Hey.” Candace took offense at that. “Just because I’m father’s heiress doesn’t mean I’m his favorite…”

“Sure it doesn’t. Just like our momma’s boy of a brother being my mother’s heir doesn’t mean he’s her favorite… oh wait.”

Lilith frowned. “I love you and your brother very much, Claudia.”

“And I love you too…” Claudia sighed, her face flickering between emotions. “I’m… not ready to lose you…”

“And I’m not ready to lose you, either…” Lilith glanced over at Candace to make sure she knew that she was included in that. “Any of you…”

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“So…” Autumn stood over her fellow slave, her hands firmly planted on her hips. “…What did you do?”

Chloe blinked incredulously, still holding an ice pack to her aching head. “What did I do?”

“Don’t play dumb because you’re not…” Autumn frowned, taking an immovable stance on this. “…What did you do to our mistress?”

“Your mistress?” Chloe scoffed, pinching her eyes shut and shaking her head. “I didn’t do anything to her!! She’s just drunk!!”

“Our mistress doesn’t drink like that…” Autumn was seething. “What did you do to her?”

“I-” Chloe whined. “I don’t know!!”

Darcey frowned, staring over at the clearly still distraught Chloe. “Then what happened???”

“I don’t know!! ” Chloe tossed the ice pack to the floor between them in frustration. “ I don’t understand either!!”

“Sure you don’t…” Autumn scoffed at her, angrily picking the object back up with her nearly robotic grasp. “You come here looking just like her… and then she suddenly gets upset-”

“I said I don’t know!!” Chloe shouted one last time, her energy quickly leaving her. “I said I don’t know…”

“But that doesn’t fix anything-”

“Cut her some slack, Autumn.” Darcey grasped Autumn’s wrist, holding her steady to keep from hurling the ice pack straight at Chloe’s head. “Look at her.”

Chloe was trembling as she curled up in bed, pulling her knees to her naked chest, clutching a pillow in her arms as tears welled up in her eyes, trying not to let them spill out of her. Trying to stay strong.

“I don’t… I don’t know… I’m sorry…” Chloe let out a pained gasp, burying her face in the pillow and mumbling to them. “I know you don’t know me, but… I’m scared, you guys…”

Autumn was beginning to calm down, frowning as she stared at her fellow slave, letting Darcey take the potential projectile from her grasp.

“I’m not trying to upset anybody, I swear.” Chloe wiped away her tears, her voice still cracking under the weight of her words. “I don’t want Miss Josephine getting drunk and throwing glass bottles at me… and I don’t want Miss Claudia getting angry and throwing me into walls either…”

Autumn paused, slowly making her way to Chloe, Darcey in tow. “What do you want?”

“I want what anyone in my position would want… I want to be free.” Chloe nervously glanced back and forth at either girl as they settled in bed next to her. “And failing that… a master who’ll love and protect me.”

“Like Miss Josie does for us~” Darcey smiled, placing a hand on Chloe’s shoulder. “You want to be one of us~?”

“If you want to be one of us-” Autumn did the same, setting her hand on the opposite shoulder. “Then why do you keep pushing us away?”

Chloe blushed, shaking the tears out of her eyes as she sat sandwiched between two naked women. “Because I’m nervous and scared, okay?”

She sighed, squeezing the pillow to her chest as she sat up, trying to make room for the other girls to get close.

“I pretend like I’m all strong and smart and have myself figured out, but I’m really anxious and… I feel like I’m choking… I don’t understand-” Chloe blushed, whimpering under her breath, her knees twitching nervously. “I don’t understand girls, okay?”

“That’s it???” Darcey giggled. “You don’t understand girls???”

“I…” Autumn blinked, almost unable to process what she was saying. “What…”

“Alright, come on… don’t make fun of me.” Chloe scoffed loudly, almost too ashamed to even elaborate further. “You guys want to add me to your little polycule or whatever, and sometimes I really do want to join you all, but I just… I don’t know how… I don’t know how to talk to girls.”

“But you got out of the facility just fine…”

“Yeah, and Miss Claudia seems to really like you~!!!”

“Yeah, but that’s different. She’s my… she’s my master.” Chloe groaned loudly, her cheeks frustratingly red with embarrassment. “I can function under a master, but this is different… for the last six months I haven’t had… I haven’t had-”

“You haven’t had what???”

“You haven’t had what…”

“I haven’t had any equals.” Chloe sighed, forcing herself to say it. “I don’t know how to talk to girls like me… I don’t know how to talk to equals…”

“Six months…” Autumn almost tilted her head, ashamed of herself. “You were in the facility for six months?”

Chloe shook her head. “No… I-”

“Then where have you been???” Darcey literally tilted her head, unsure of whether she understood- she didn’t. “Like- where???”

“I know this is going to sound bad, but… I used to have… another master.”

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“Here you all are.” Aria smiled, handing off the tray of drinks to each of the women in the room, before settling onto the arm of the chair her new owner was sitting on, trying to avoid eye contact with either of the sisters. “Enjoy~”

“Last I remember, I instructed Leah to send Aria to the plantation.” Claudia frowned, sighing at her mother. “I take it Cyrus plucked her from under my nose at your specific request.”

“Well of course, when I decided on buying myself a slave, there was really only ever one option I considered~”

“Just one?” Candace slowly sipped her tea, puzzled. “Why was she the only consideration?”

“In essence, a slave is kind of like an employee, they work for their owners.” Lilith smiled, gently patting Aria’s back. “And Aria here has worked for me for years, it just made sense~”

“Excuse me?” Claudia was taken aback by this. “She’s worked for you… for years?”

“She has indeed~”

“Doing what, exactly?”

“Come now, dear.” Lilith gave her a coy grin. “You know that’s classified~”

Candace glanced over at Aria, watching the girl give her a nervous smile before mouthing the words “I’m sorry.”

“Aria never told me she worked for you.” Candace frowned, furling her eyebrows in a mixture of confusion and disappointment. “Why?”

“Because I instructed her not to-” Lilith tried to ease Candace’s fears. “Your father does the same thing, has people who you think work for you… but really work for him~”

Claudia snarled. “You’re lying.”

“I’m not lying.” Lilith clapped her hands, before quietly whispering into Aria’s ears, sending the girl off. “How else would she have known about the tape?”

“The tape…” Claudia frowned, swallowing nervously. “Why would that matter?”

“Because I told her to steal it and bring it back to me.”

“To you?” Candace was just as confused as her sister was. “But… she told me she stole information to give to the FBI?”

“She did.” Lilith smiled, reaching towards Aria as she returned, taking a folder from her hands and tossing it onto the ottoman in front of her. “After I divorced your father, I spied on him for the FBI~”

Silence. Shocked silence.

Lilith very possibly wanted a violent reaction from either of them with that one, but instead- Claudia gently picked the folder up off of the ottoman, her eyes going wide at the sight of it. “Candace-”

Candace’s eyes darted back and forth between her sister, her sister’s mother, and her sister’s mother’s new slave- her former best friend. “Claudia?”

“We’ll talk more about this later.” Claudia gently closed the folder, holding it out towards her little sister. “We’re leaving.”

“Right…” Candace took the folder, tucking it to her chest. “I think I’d like that too.”

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Chloe gently shut the door to her room behind her, careful not to wake the now sleeping Autumn and Darcey.

The two of them had very obediently followed their mistress’ directions- cleaning, tending to their fellow slave, and not following their master back upstairs.

But Chloe didn’t belong to Josephine, she didn’t feel obligated to stay in her room at her orders, especially when she left the door unlocked, either accidentally or on purpose.

She knocked on the door to her master’s room, a lot more forcefully than Lilian was capable of, hopefully she could get their attention.

And she did, just not Claudia’s attention- and not from their room either.

“Sh-she’s not in there…” Josephine stood in the doorway to the guest bedroom, across the top floor from where Chloe stood. “Claudia’s out w-with her sister…”

Chloe sighed, turning around to face her. She was expecting to have to go through Claudia first, but this was fine, after all- it wasn’t Claudia’s attention she wanted. “Is that what that was about then… Candace?”

“Candace?” Josephine’s reaction told her everything she needed to know. “What does Candace have to do with you?”

“Okay… if it’s not that, then why did you smash a bottle over my head, Miss?” Chloe sighed, turning and beginning to step towards her. “If there’s something-”

“Don’t come any closer.” Josephine stood very defensively, urging the other girl to stay where she was.

“Miss?” Chloe stopped, not because she was told to, but to keep Josephine from freaking out any further. “What’s wrong-”

An all too familiar rush of electricity pulsed into Chloe’s body, dragging her down to her knees as Josephine activated the controller to her shock collar.

“P-please, stay over there.” Josephine pleaded, nervously sliding back into the door. “She can’t… she can’t see you with me.”

Chloe took a few moments to regain her composure. It certainly wasn’t the harshest shock she received. Josephine not only seemed too scared to interact with her after smashing her head in, but also too scared to do anything too harsh to her.

For fear of what would happen if she found out.

Thump .

“Josephine, honey.” Both women flinched at the sound of her cane clacking against the floor. “What is Chloe doing up here at this time of night?”

“Master?!” Chloe jumped to her feet, quickly trying to make herself look presentable for Claudia. “I was just-” Before making eye contact with Claudia’s sister. “Checking up on Miss Josephine…”

“And what exactly did Miss Josephine do that possessed you to check up on her?”

“I hit her with a glass bottle…” Josephine lowered her gaze, too nervous to even look up at her wife. “I’m… sorry.”

Candace scoffed, and that scoff annoyed Chloe- as if Candace cared about Chloe getting hurt.

“Did you now?” Claudia seemed not to care at least. “Maybe there is some hope for you after all~”

Josephine smiled at that, her eyes lighting up. “R-really?”

“Don’t touch my slave, Josephine.” Claudia reached down, and without making eye contact with either her wife or her slave, yanked Chloe to her feet. “We didn’t exactly sign a prenup you know, don’t break my things.”

And that made Josephine’s heart break all over again. “Right. I’m sorry, love…”

Chloe certainly didn’t like Josephine very much, especially right now, but it hurt to see the light so quickly leave her eyes- especially hearing the words that came out of her lips next.

“Happy anniversary, my love~”

“Happy anniversary, Josephine.”

Slam. As quickly as she could, Josephine shielded herself away in the guest bedroom- hidden from anyone and everyone else.

Before anyone else could speak or act, Candace was practically hounding Chloe. “What happened, are you alright?” She frowned, brushing the hair from Chloe’s face, checking for injuries. “Did she hurt you-”

“Get your hands off of me!!” Chloe growled, shoving Candace away with what force she had left in her. “Back off, Saint Clair…”

“Hey…” Candace tried to reach out to her, just concerned for her safety above all else. “I just want to make sure you’re okay-”

“Yeah, sure.” Chloe snapped, quickly swiveling away from her. “Like when I dared not call you a sweetheart, and Aria did the same fucking thing- you just wanted to make sure I was okay.”

Just like Chloe wanted, that annoyed Candace. “I’m no sweetheart, Sophia.”

Chloe just snapped right back at her. “That’s what I said.”

“And I agreed with you…” Candace frowned, folding her arms in front of her chest. “Even back then…”

“Whatever…” Chloe just bit her lip, frowning. She swallowed nervously, staring at the now closed door to the guest bedroom in disbelief. “It’s your anniversary, Ma’am?”

“I’d urge you to keep your head where it belongs, slave.” Claudia grabbed Chloe by her hair, pressing the head of her cane to the girl’s throat. “Now return to your quarters, I don’t want to see your face again tonight.”

Chloe whimpered, nodding to indicate her obedience, flashing Candace her gaze one last time before bowing and heading back downstairs to the slave’s quarters.

She gently shut the door behind her before pressing her forehead to the door, on the edge of breaking down.

“Candace… a sweetheart…” Chloe bit back her tears, forcing herself away from the door. “A girl can only hope.”

Great… Josephine took my magazines too… Chloe sighed, pushing her bedsheets aside. She didn’t like Josephine very much, but she knew very well that the woman likely needed some help- and more importantly, some company.

“Hey… girls?” Chloe shook Darcey and Autumn awake, waiting to see any semblance of consciousness in them before speaking. “Miss Josephine wants you two to sleep with her upstairs… i-in the guest bedroom.”

It was a lie, sure. But it was one that was in Josie’s best interest- and it was one that worked, getting both Darcey and Autumn to climb out of bed and shamble upstairs to see their mistress, leaving Chloe in the slave’s quarters- alone.

Or at least she was- until she heard one final knock at the door.

Chloe frowned, her cheeks bright red with surprise as she saw her. “Candace…”

“Hey.” She stepped inside past Chloe, yawning under her breath. “Josie’s in the guest bedroom tonight, and I heard the girls were with her so… I was wondering if there was an empty bed down here~”

“You.” Chloe swallowed her emotions, closing the door behind the other girl. “You want to sleep in here tonight… in the slave’s quarters?”

“I don’t see why not~” She smiled, gently taking Chloe’s lack of ire as an answer, and climbing into Darcey and Autumn’s vacant bed. “Is that a problem, Sophia?”

“No. Not at all…” She frowned, climbing into the bed opposite Candace, alone. “Just don’t expect me to treat you with any more respect than you treated me while we’re in here together…”

“For the night, I think that’s just fine- anything to get out of sleeping in my sister’s bed with her~” Candace smiled, yawning loudly, clearly quite tired. “For now, you can consider us… equals.”

Chloe snarled at that. “What, now we’re suddenly equals again?”

“You don’t need to get so nasty you know…” Candace frowned. “I’m trying to be friendly.”

“We’re not friends, Candace.” Chloe rolled over in bed, facing away from her. “We never were…”

“Yes we were.” Candace frowned, doing similar. “I know we aren’t anymore… but please don’t pretend like we never were…”

Chloe paused for a good few moments, her cheeks burning red hot as she remembered the nearly two years leading up to that fateful night almost a year ago, where she slowly but surely did become friends with Candace- maybe not very close friends- but friends nonetheless.

“Goodnight, asshole…”

She didn’t really mean what she said, but she couldn’t stop herself from saying it, and luckily for her, her former rival didn’t seem to be too bothered to hear her saying it.

“Goodnight, Sophia.”

They were equals then, and after so long, it really did feel that way again, like they were equals now.

But Chloe had no idea how to talk to Candace as equals-

She didn’t know how to do it then, and she didn’t know how to do it now.