16th November, the day of the banquet.

My anxiety grew with every new face that arrived at the party, but every time I heard those doors open I couldn’t help look up and see who it was.

Sometimes it was someone I knew. Claudia’s lackeys were all here. Violet and Russel came together, while Nell showed up off the clock. Though the only big ones I was familiar with aside from Lilith and her slave were her son and his slave.

Cyrus had brought his wife Elizabeth, while Aria was here as Lilith’s nurse. Most of Cyrus’ lackeys were also here. Anthony Schmitt was curiously absent, but Rebecca Larkin, Phil Burke, Jane Colton, and Naomi Carlisle were all here. They mostly came alone, the one exception being Rebecca Larkin and her slave, a boy named Grey Dobbs. Tonight was my first time meeting a male slave as well, but Grey wasn’t alone in that. Violet herself had brought two men Jean and Jake, twins by the look of it.

And then there were the people I just didn’t know. Many of them were older, clearly Lilith’s friends and associates, but there were a few younger faces, some of which I recognized. Cyrus hadn’t been kidding when he said that the family showed vetted customers preference when selling slaves, because I could spot five faces in particular that made me shiver.

All of the people who’d made appointments to come see me on the sale floor were here tonight, mostly chatting amongst each other. Apparently each of them were close enough with Lilith and her son to get themselves invited to her party tonight, along with their spouses and a couple stray slaves, including that last man. The one that had raped me.

Obviously, the hosts were all home. Claudia was holding the party for her mother so that Lilith didn’t have to, and Josephine was in charge of taking care of Lilian all night. Zenna was taking a break from nannying to serve with Darcey and Autumn, not to talk about the potential new baby the family might be having.

I, meanwhile, had a different role tonight. I was to stay next to Claudia, shut the hell up, don’t touch anything- and I fucking hated it.

“No more chances. Leave my sight for a second and I will hunt you down and beat you into a paste, you got that?”

Claudia was taking no risks tonight, and she was smart to make that decision for once. I couldn’t be trusted on my own, and we both knew that. The one thing she didn’t know, though, was just how right she was.

I had my own plan for tonight. A mission to accomplish. A quest to complete. A game to play. All I needed to do was sneak away just long enough to get into her office and collect a certain little bracelet of mine. My last key to success, the controller to my collar. Once I finally had it, I was home free. There was no going back for me, not without a miracle.

Tonight I ran away, and I either escaped this hell at long last or died trying.

“Claudia, darling. Come sit down with us!!” Lilith was looking much better than just this morning after having a good night’s rest. From the look of her you wouldn’t even know that she had been coughing up blood fifteen hours ago, and her friends didn’t need to know either. “Pull up a seat. I want you to meet some of my most and least trusted colleagues.”

The whole table got a chuckle out of that one, it was funny because it was true. They knew exactly what kinds of people they were, and they were awfully proud of themselves.

“I would love to, Mother.” Claudia smiled, kicking me in the shin and gesturing towards the chair. She had an image to maintain, and she couldn’t let me soil it for her, so I pulled out her seat for her.

“Slaves sit on the floor, obviously.” There he was, that guy from the facility. In fact, they were all here at the same table. It just had to be him to say something first.

“Xander.” Claudia wore a polite smile as she greeted him, snapping her fingers for me to kneel on the floor next to her. “I trust you’ve been well.”

“I have, in fact. I hope Bella was an appropriate personal assistant.” He chuckled under his breath, and within an instant I understood what he was getting at. This guy, Xander, was Bella’s former master. “I’m so sorry to hear that she attacked you like she did.”

“After you stole from me like you did, you mean?” Claudia added, clearly not very friendly towards the guy. “I’m still not over that, you know.”

“Con work is but the name of the game.” He kicked the girl at his feet, prompting a thin but bottom heavy white girl to stand up and go get him a drink. “It’s not my fault your slaves don’t like you.”

They all giggled at her for that, joining in on Xander’s jokes, but Claudia didn’t find it funny. She was as bad with being laughed at as her little sister, and it showed. But she put up with it for now, the mutual understanding between herself and her mother being that the man would be promptly taken care of.

“Speaking of your slaves, Claudia. Isn’t that the cute redhead your mom tried to sell us just a little bit ago?” Even after a month, the young and peppy brunette girl I liked the best of the bunch still thought I was cute. “I didn’t realize you took in used slaves.”

“Yes, actually. I buy most unsold slaves off the zed list for the plantation. They’re more agreeable when they know we saved their lives just to bring them there. Even if some of them fall through the cracks.” Claudia promptly responded, looking down at me out of the corner of her eye. “This one actually used to belong to my little sister, Candace. She was that rival who beat her at the championship for that game she likes to play. Her name’s Chloe.”

Giggling quickly quieted at that point, since they were all frankly pretty surprised by that. The pretty brunette woman who’d forgone buying me since I was used actually dropped her spoon into her dish, her eyes going wide with surprise.

“She belonged to Candace St. Clair.” In quite the opposite fashion from our last encounter, she almost seemed impressed. “None of us knew that.”

“Speak for yourself.” Xander quickly interrupted, taking a drink from his slave’s hand as she returned to his side. “Her new name can’t fool me. That’s Sophia Cavalier.”

The other girl was somewhere between annoyed and offended. “And you didn’t tell us?”

“Because you can all outbid me if you wanted to. I didn’t want to miss the opportunity.” He forced his slave to the floor at his side, kneeling between him and I. “The only reason I didn’t get her is because of Claudia here.”

And that was when I caught something very curious out of the corner of my eye. Xander’s slave was glum and hanging her head, but around her neck hung a familiar little cross. It was the same one that Candace usually wore, literally. That was her cross, I had no doubt about it. Something was wrong here.

Apparently I wasn’t very subtle about the way I was staring at it, because she quickly noticed. The girl looked me up and down, delivering a pretty fierce glare as we made eye contact. The silent irritation didn’t last long however, as her gaze landed on the spiral I wore around my neck.

The other half of the shared locket glowed slightly as she pulled it from her pocket, matching it to the one I’d been so graciously allowed. I saw her silently mouth ‘Sophia Cavalier’ as she looked up, trying to match my name with the conversation at hand. Unfortunately her owner quickly noticed, and before she could do much with the locket he had her by the wrist. She must have locked eyes with his stern gaze because as soon as he reasserted himself, her grip tightened.

This guy, Xander, forced the other half of the necklace back into the pocket of his slave’s hoodie before turning his sights onto me. He was definitely the one I remembered from the facility, my least favorite choice at the time, but he had a little bit more than a fleeting interest in me. Smiling, he thudded his slave in the back of the head with his open hand, and then slowly began to stand up from his chair.

“If you’ll excuse us, I think I need a smoke.” Strong fingers curled around the young woman’s bushy ponytail, yanking her to her feet, forcing the girl to follow in her master’s wake.

A few moments of mostly pure silence passed before anyone thought to say something, but the atmosphere was quickly lighter once he was out of the building. Something told me that nobody here particularly liked the guy.

“Unbelievable.” Claudia scoffed openly, angry at Xander’s mere presence.

“Oh but what is a night like this without a little bit of fun and chaos?” Lilith giggled, taking an almost mocking tone.

“I get the concept. You can’t have game night without some game to hunt, but did it have to be tonight?” The lady of the house was nothing short of impatient.

“You know how we do things, honey. It will be fun.”

It took me a few more moments, and the input of that other cute brunette girl, before I really understood what was going on. Even I had to say, I was a little bit impressed by their willingness to drag a man’s torment out just for fun.

“I take it we’re not friends with Xander anymore.” The woman mocked. “What’s the plan and what’d the dirtbag do to deserve it?”

“Stealing money from me and my father, obviously. Mother thought it would be fun to watch the guy either get thoroughly humiliated or shot.” Claudia provided. “I’m sorry. I’m not sure we’ve met before, Miss?”

“Pyra Nouveau, PA.” The cute one, chocolate hair and caramel brown eyes responded with an outstretched hand, which Claudia shook. “It’s nice to meet you.”

“And you.” Claudia said semi sarcastically. “I see you haven’t brought a plus one, spouse or slave, tonight. “Don’t tell me it’s because your husband or wife are running late.”

“No, actually-”

“It’s because she doesn’t have one.” One of the men at the table I did recognize, the younger of the pair, interrupted her. “Spouse or slave.”

Everyone quickly giggled at that, as Lilith provided an introduction. “Claudia, this is Dr. Evan Johanson.”

“And my wife, Gretchen.” The man gestured to the woman beside him, the couple must have been in their early forties. “Say hello, Gretchen.”

“It’s nice to meet you.” The woman just rolled her eyes, shaking their host’s enthusiastic hand. “Evan here has a mouth, make sure to watch him.”

“Gretchen Johanson?” Claudia seemed more than just a little bit impressed. “The junior senator, Gretchen Johanson?”

“The one and only.” She smiled, rolling her hands. “But that’s all thanks to my husband here, wouldn’t have quite made it without him.”

“This lovely pair here are Melissa and Kevin Rockwell, they own a string of packing plants just a little bit upstate.” Lilith moved on, gesturing to the progressively older pairs of couples as she went on. “This is Mr. Brandon March and his wife, Brunhilde. They’re major investment brokers. And of course, Pyra’s already introduced herself.”

“And for the record, no. I am proudly unmarried, and I haven’t found a slave that’s caught my eye. Those others from that last round were sold to a couple of associates in the riff raff.” Pyra scoffed through her breath. “The only reason I didn’t buy those other girls is because they just weren’t suitable wife material. I have high standards.”

“Fuck off, Pyra.” Evan chuckled, and everyone laughed with him. “You’re just upset that you couldn’t afford them.”

“I am not!!” She protested vigorously. “I am more than capable of affording a slave.”

“Yeah, a used one maybe.” He continued, confirming some sort of stigma about buying pre-owned people off of the black market when the meat can be fresh. “That’s why you went last. If any of us put in a bid, you wouldn’t be able to match.”

“I could too.” She snarled under her breath, more than a bit flustered. “Xander has less than me, and he could afford Barbie.”

“No he couldn’t.” Mrs. Rockwell snickered. “That boy is in the red.”

“And that’s why he’s tonight’s unlucky victim.” Lilith wasn’t even in the grave and she was already rolling with laughter. “Soon, Mrs. Watts will be here, and either he pays up or it will be over for him. Trust me, it’s great fun to watch a debtor flail so desperately.”

It was at that point that I watched the humiliated, and honestly quite upset Pyra stand up from her seat and storm off, earning herself the same sort of chuckle as the other man had gotten.

“That girl has potential.” The oldest man, Mr. March, said of her as she walked off. “But with frail skin like that she’ll definitely be next.”

“Honestly.” Lilith couldn’t help but agree. “Her or my ex-husband’s newly glorified little receptionist.”

“Leah’s flying too close to the sun for her own good. She’ll never beat the system, it’s just not possible.” Claudia took distinct joy in badmouthing her once best friend behind her back. “Just watch, if she doesn’t end up shot she’ll find herself in a marriage even worse than the last one, and if she’s lucky she’ll end up being a concubine raising some other woman’s child.”

“Or worse.” Her mother added on to the already growing pile of jinxes and bad omens. “She’ll end up dead like Charlotte.”

I tuned out after that, too put off by their snobby high class gossip and behavior to find much joy in listening to whatever they had to say. The thought of anybody suffering a fate like Candace’s mother was a step too far in the direction of hopeless despair. Because I had very nearly succumbed to just that the night prior.

“Psst.” Finally, an out. Aria whispered to me from the other side of my own master’s seat, gesturing towards the other end of the ballroom for me to accompany her. “Drinks?”

Without hesitation I jumped onto the opportunity to get up and walk away. I didn’t wait for permission, but it wasn’t like I cared about getting in trouble. Claudia would just have to deal with my absence until I did or did not come back with a drink for her.

“It was getting too stuffy over there.” Aria said as she followed me towards the kitchen. “The way they talk about other people is like nails on a chalkboard, right?”

“Right.” I giggled under my breath, making sure not to look back for even just a peek. “Honestly. If I had to hear them say one more thing about Leah, I probably would have gotten myself killed.”

“Don’t bother. They look at lower class citizens like her the same way they look at us. They’re just more potential for profit, slave or otherwise. Besides, Leah gossip is always good.” Aria actually managed to be bored enough to yawn. “Did you know she’s still a virgin?”

“What the fuck?” I didn’t believe that for a moment. “Bullshit. Leah was married.”

“Yeah, until he ended up cheating on her with a whore and earning himself a bullet in the head. That’s why she’s working his job now.” Aria’s confidence aside, she certainly didn’t sound like she was lying. “Leah was so paranoid about accidentally getting pregnant before her father’s debts were paid that the two of them never fucked. Why do you think he cheated on her with a whore?”

“I guess I didn’t think about that.” I sighed, leading the two of us through the doors into the kitchen at long last. “She could have just used contraceptives. If she didn’t want kids, why didn’t she just get herself spayed?”

“Because she does want kids. That’s her whole deal. She just doesn’t want to leave a shit ton of debt on her children like her father did to her and her sister.” Aria was a little bit hushed about this next bit. “It ended up getting her sister killed.”

I couldn’t help but feel worse and worse for her as time went on. “Oh yeah. How did that happen?”

“The young man of the family.” Aria smirked, checking to make sure the coast was clear before continuing. “She was one of the girls Cyrus raped and killed before Liz.”

I stopped, shuddering at the thought of it. “How do you know all of this?”

“I’ve worked for Lilith for years now. I know too much for my own good.” Aria held up a silver platter, allowing me to fill glasses of wine for her to deliver. “But I know Leah’s a virgin because I had to teach her how to masturbate.”

“You’re kidding-”

“I swear this is for real.”

There was a brief silence between us as I finished filling as many glasses that could fit on the tray with wine, carrying the rest of the bottle with me as the two of us headed back out of the kitchen and dining room back towards the ballroom.

“Aria.” I stopped her just before we stepped back out into the rest of the mansion. “I’m sorry about yelling at you when I did. I shouldn’t have said the things I said.”

“But you were right, though. I should have known better than to think that you could escape all of this even if you wanted to, because I certainly couldn’t.” Aria sighed, slowly stepping through the doorway. “Look at me. I was a free woman, and my meddling just got me clasped into a collar serving drinks for the one dying hag nice enough to treat me well. I have a family that I’m never going to see again.”

“I wish I knew how that felt.” I froze inside of the dining room, not wanting to take another step. “If it’s any consolation, I don’t blame you for any of this. You were right to speak your mind and let me make my decision, and honestly- I don’t regret the decision I made. Even now I still don’t want to go back to her. You helped me realize that.”

“I still don’t forgive myself for pushing you in that direction. I could have guessed that you wouldn’t have been able to find a better home than the one you had. You had fans, but the fans that would buy you are still people sick enough to think owning a person is an okay thing to do, but I guess we’re not really allowed an opinion on that.” Aria turned around one last time to face me, getting nervous by the second. “I don’t blame you for hating me.”

“I don’t hate you, Aria.” I gave her a nervous look to ensure she knew I wasn’t joking. “I promise.”

“I guess that both leaves us hating ourselves then.” Aria smiled, blushing ever so slightly. “Look. If you get to the end of the night without dancing with someone, and you’re okay with it, I’d be okay with dancing.”

I couldn’t help but return the same blushing smile to her as she said that, giving her my nod of approval. “Sure thing.”

“Cool.” Aria winked. “See you then.”

It was more than a little bittersweet that I was only now making friends. It would have been cool to get to know her sooner, but now I would never really get that chance.

Even worse, I knew I was in for something fierce as soon as I got back to my owner’s side, just for making a new friend. Aria slowly made her way back to the table where Claudia and her mother awaited, but I was left frozen in place.

My reflection showed back to me in the sheen of the wine bottle, nervously swaying back and forth with the liquid inside. I was already in over my head before I got here, but now I was worried sick about Candace’s well being too.

It was terrifying to think what might have happened to her to get her jewelry stolen, and I could only imagine how bad it was in comparison to the images in my head. At the end of the day, I’d sacrificed myself to save her, and I couldn’t handle the thought that it had all been for nothing.

I didn’t want to think about it, but no matter how hard I tried I couldn’t exactly get it out of my mind, let alone keep it from affecting my performance. Almost immediately, I’d accidentally walked straight into and spilled half a bottle of wine down the dress of a guest upon stepping back into the ballroom.

“Hey!!” The woman just looked flabbergasted, immediately leaning her entire weight into the slightly taller woman whose arm hers had already been locked with, particularly ashamed to find herself soaked from the waist down. “Watch it!!”

“I am so sorry, Ma’am.” I scrambled backwards, trying to save face by bowing to her, which only seemed to worsen the matter. “It was an accident, I swear. If you give me a moment I can help you clean up.”

“No. Not you, thanks. If anyone’s going to clean her up again, it’s me.” Responded the other woman, clearly more than a little bit intoxicated, and doing a bad job of trying not to show it. “I’ll ask that you keep your hands off of her and go get your owner if you’d really like to help.”

“Mistress please, I can clean myself up for you on my own.” The first girl, now wet from hip to toe, turned to the other woman with a look of worry. She had olive skin and gorgeous green eyes, and was almost exactly my height standing up straight, which she wasn’t quite able to. “Can we please just go home?”

“Let’s not make a public spectacle, Grace. The night is only just starting.” The other woman spoke down to the girl whose dinner dress I’d poured red wine down. She was just a few inches taller, a couple shy of Candace’s height, but close. She had the same olive skin and green eyes, just with a head of black hair instead of brown. “Besides, you can barely stand up on your own without my help.”

“I’m not the one who’s been drinking, Mistress.” The other girl, Grace, dared to speak back to her like that. I’d clearly caused more than just a little bit of a scene, judging by the look she was getting from her inebriated better’s face. And in seeing that face, Grace quickly seemed to backpedal. “I’m sorry. That was out of line to say.”

“That much is obvious.” Grace’s mistress had just a bit of a drunken smirk on her face as she thought about what she was going to do to the girl. “Be glad we’re not at home.”

The other slave just swallowed nervously. “Yes, Mistress.”

The two of them looked so similar that if I hadn’t identified them as mistress and slave, I’d think they were related. Honestly, I couldn’t even rule out that much at this point, but I could feel bad about the trouble I’d caused them.

I’d have realized she was a slave if I’d seen the collar around her neck just a little bit sooner, but the fancy dinner dress had really thrown me off, and this was the first time I was seeing a collar like hers. It definitely wasn’t the kind of collar I’d seen before, which meant that she probably didn’t come through the facility, but where else she could have come from definitely eluded me.

“I’m so sorry about all of this, Ma’am.” I bowed again, this time making sure it was to the free woman. “I’ll go get my master-”

“Don’t bother.” She smirked, her eyes flicking over me. “Looks like he’s already here.”

And just then, before I had the chance to turn around and see who she was looking at, I felt myself being forcibly grabbed from behind and shoved face first into a wall. The two of them just watched as it happened of course, and even the slave woman couldn’t help but smirk at my instant karma.

“She’s my sister’s, but I’ll take care of her.” Who else but Cyrus would shove me face first into a wall before I could run off and find a place to hide. “You’ll have to excuse her. Candace isn’t here, and Claudia is busy at the moment.”

“Cyrus, me boy!! It be good to see you!!” The woman excitedly responded, in a pirate voice of all things. Yeah, she was more than tipsy, but the voice definitely tipped me off to something. I had definitely heard her before. “Tis a shame Candace isn’t here yet, I need to get her out for another photoshoot soon.”

“Mistress.” The girl at her arm lowered her head, almost indignantly. “Not in public, it might get back to Mama and your parents.”

“Oh hush.” She was just drunk enough to swat the other girl on the ass, which quieted her up real nicely. “I should have brought my husband to be my plus one, at least he’d be having some fun.”

“Trust me, Constance. Your sister is honestly still a cut above Rupert.” Cyrus snickered at them both, which pleased Grace more than it did her mistress. “I’m glad to hear he loves that blonde we sold him as much as he does, I’m surprised anyone would be nice enough to buy a pregnant girl, let alone keep the baby.”

Grace just seemed to grumble at the mention of all of that, but otherwise kept quiet save for practically pleading with her owner to just walk away, the wine drying into her dress. “Mistress?”

“Alright, I’d love to stay and chat, but Grace is getting fussy again. Which means she’s probably in for more than just a change of clothes.” This Constance woman said, causing her slave to light up with frustration. “We’ll get together soon I’m sure, so give your sisters my regards for me.”

“Will do.” Cyrus replied in monotone as he watched the two women disappear towards the restroom, keeping me pressed up against the wall until they were out of sight. “Enjoy the party, you two.”

“What the hell, Sir?” I replied in the most compromising tone I could. “I’m sorry for causing trouble, but that hurt. Claudia’s already going to punish me for getting up without permission, I’m not trying to make more problems. If I’m in trouble, please just send me back to your sister.”

“You’re not. But drop the attitude” He slowly let go, allowing me to move again. “Those two just get increasingly accident prone the more she’s had to drink. Just be more careful.”

“Who were those two?” I said, nervously fixing my hair as I made sure they’d gone. “Was that Roxanne le Grand?”

“Yes. But don’t tell her mother, she’d lose it.” Cyrus joked, knowing I hadn’t the faintest idea who that woman was past recognizing her as a model and porn star, let alone her mother. “Those were the Cooley sisters.”

“So they are sisters.” I shuddered at the thought of it. One sister owning another was exactly what I’d risked my life to try and avoid for this family. “What the hell is up with that?”

“Fuck if I know why, but their family has apparently done that for generations. They’re half-sisters, their mothers are half-sisters, and their mothers’ mothers are half-sisters. You get the picture.”

“Sounds like a disturbingly incestuous arrangement, the likes of which I always just assumed were nothing but a southern stereotype.” I joked back, helping myself to a little bit of teasing. “And she just let her sister enslave her?”

“She didn’t have a lot of agency in that. Unlike Candace, her father didn’t free her from being a slave like her mother.” Cyrus grabbed me by the wrist without warning and turned away from the ballroom in favor of the stairs, getting us out of the way of oncoming guests. “Grace is houseborn, so she just gets uppity, like she’s slave royalty or something.”

My eyes went wide at the implications of that. “Houseborn?”

“Imagine having a master who gets you pregnant, but then forces your kid to be a slave once they’re born, that’s a houseborn.” Cyrus just rolled his eyes. “These ones in particular think they’re better and more dignified than normal slaves, and like they are, but they don’t need to act like it. I’d prefer a girl to be broken than whatever she and her entire line are.”

“So her sister’s a porn star whose family owns an ancestral plantation, got it. Where did you even meet people like that?”

“Constance’s grandmother used to be governor. Apparently she and grandma Cherry used to be drinking buddies.”

“Your grandmother is named Cherry?”

“She’s named Cheryl, but we’ve always called her Cherry.”

“I hope she’s as sweet as the name would imply.”

“She is. Trust me, you’d love her.”

“I think maybe we’re getting a little side tracked. I should probably get back to my master.”

“Eh. Claudia’s gotten more side tracked in some comments sections, you’ll be fine.”

“I would rather not get into any more trouble than I’m already in, thank you.”

“So you’ll just tell her you’ve been with me, it’ll be okay. Now shut up and move.”

Cyrus quickly put an end to my descent towards the ballroom, yanking me by the wrist up the stairs with him. The main event was busy enough to keep Claudia’s view obstructed, which was just going to make matters worse.

“Cyrus.” I ducked around the corner as we got upstairs, shaking my wrist free of his grasp. “What’s going on? Where are you taking me?”

“To the cool kids table to watch the show. Now come on, we’re gonna miss it.”

I wasn’t sure what show he was talking about, but I didn’t want to get into trouble with the person responsible for my immediate safety. I narrowly avoided the view from the balcony and followed him through the open doors of the upstairs conservatory. Normally the balcony did little more than create a hole from the second floor to the ballroom below, but tonight it actually served another purpose.

Looming over the party beneath us was the biggest chandelier I’d ever seen. It hung from the ceiling of the second floor by a cable that stretched clear through the open space created by the balcony, decorating two spaces at once as it dangled just above the ballroom below.

I remembered having to clean the chandelier in Candace’s parlor the day before her father had come to tear me away from her, and to date it was still the most difficult thing I’d ever been made to do. I had the process of cleaning the damn thing memorized by this point, and wouldn’t you know it, Claudia had almost exactly the same chandelier. Only this one was much bigger.

They’d already gone through the most difficult part by lowering the chandelier from the ceiling, to which comparatively the cleaning was easy. The hardest part for them now was going to be raising it back to the ceiling.

Of course only I would get amazed by the chandelier from above while getting dragged into the conservatory, in which more than a few familiar faces were loitering. The most notable of which being my master’s wife.

She was busy chatting with a pair of slightly older women, of which only one was even more than mildly paying attention. Beside them however were a pair of actual friends, who I quickly caught the attention of. Autumn smiled as she saw me, turning to Darcey beside her and giving her a slight nudge. I wasn’t exactly trying to be seen right now, but once she saw me it was over.

“Mistress, look. Chloe’s here.” Darcey spoke in a much quieter voice than normal, but she was more than excited to see me. “Shall I bring her over here?”

Josie’s conversation came to an abrupt end as all five of the women turned towards me, and she just sighed, excusing herself from the conversation. “This will just be a moment.”

Seeing few other options, I straightened up and made my way to her, meeting her halfway across the room and bowing. “Mistress.”

Josephine put a hand on her hip and rolled her eyes, motioning me to my knees before her. “What are you doing up here, Chloe?”

“It wasn’t my idea, Ma’am. I promise.” I said from my knees, lowering my gaze to her feet. “I accidentally spilled wine onto one of our guest’s slaves, and then Mr. Griffin instructed me to follow him upstairs.”

“Holy shit, you aren’t seriously that clumsy are you?”

“It was an accident, Miss.”

“I don’t care to hear excuses, Chloe. You should be with Claudia.”

“He grabbed my by the wrist-”

“What did I just say about excuses?”

“Give me a break here, Ma’am. He’s a really scary guy.”

“I don’t care, Chloe.” Josephine groaned, pinching the bridge of her forehead between her fingers to rub in just how exasperated with me she really was. “You. Me. My bedroom. Now.”

She snapped her fingers and pointed back towards the way I had just come, to which I quickly scurried. Josephine led us into the master bedroom alone, away from where other guests could hear us for the time being. As soon as the two of us were behind closed doors of course, I got a taste of exactly why she’d brought me there in the first place.

“Here.” Josie slid open one of the drawers to her vanity, retrieving an outfit of hers that I’d picked out for myself once upon a time, and tossed them at me. “Put these on.”

I stared blankly at them for a few moments, unsure of what to do with them. “What are these for, Ma’am?”

“If you can’t serve without making a mess, take the servant’s uniform off and wear that instead.” Josie sighed, closing her drawers. “I don’t want you making a scene, so just go have fun or something. Leave it to the girls, okay?”

“I don’t understand.” Words left my lips as nervous stutters. “Why are you doing this for me?”

“Because I feel bad now. You’ve done a lot of good around here for Claudia and I, and I wish I could let you stay.”

“It’s alright, Ma’am. I don’t blame you.” I sighed quietly, squeezing the bundle of clothes to my chest. “You guys don’t need me anymore.”

She frowned, sitting down at her vanity and raising an eyebrow at me in the mirror. “What do you mean?”

“Everything is fixed now. You and Claudia are stronger than ever.”

“Yeah, and that’s thanks to you, Chloe. I don’t want to just cast you aside after everything you’ve done for us.”

“But I haven’t done anything for you.” I protested. “You and Claudia were the ones who sat down and patched things up, not me.”

“You were the one that helped us see what we were missing. Without you, we never would have figured out what was wrong, let alone fix it. You showed me what was really going on and helped me learn to stand up for myself.”

“I didn’t do any of that on purpose, though.” I stumbled, very briefly losing hope for myself at this point. “I’ve just been blindly stumbling into walls. All I’m good at is destroying things.”

“What makes you say that, hon?”

“Because it’s true. I didn’t do anything. All I did was make things worse until you had no choice but to fix them yourself. The only way I’ve helped is by destroying everything you had and forcing you to rebuild. That’s not helping. That’s not anything. That’s me burning things down all over again.”

Josie frowned, her heart clearly weighing on her. “Chloe.”

“You guys have had cracks in the wall you’ve needed to fix for a long time, I’ve just been the storm you needed to help them. Nothing more, nothing less. Deep down I know I would love to stay, but now that you’ve fixed the cracks, you don’t need me anymore.”

“That’s not a healthy way of looking at it, Chloe. We all love you, and we all want you here.”

“Claudia doesn’t.” My gaze slowly fell, unable to look up any longer. “But I can’t really blame her, though. I’m still a storm after all. All I’m good for now is causing more destruction, and I think you guys deserve a day in the sunshine again.”

“Please don’t hurt yourself, Chloe.” She stood up and made her way to me, lifting my chin up to look at her. “Be good and I’ll bring the girls to come visit you at the plantation sometime, okay?”

“Yes, Ma’am. I’ll do my best.” I smiled, bowing for her one last time. “Are you sure I can wear these?”

“You can keep them.” She giggled, shaking her head at me. “As if I’d ever put on a pair of clothes that I know have been worn by a slave.”

“Fair point, Mistress.” I giggled back, making my way towards the vanity to get dressed. “I hope you enjoy the party.”

“Thank you, Chloe. I’m sure I will. Just don’t be too long, you’re still a slave, and you’re still my wife’s. Make Claudia any angrier and I won’t be too happy myself.”

“I’ll keep my head down and behave.” I blushed ever so slightly. “Thanks for standing up for me.”

“Thanks for helping save this family.” Like a reflection, Josie blushed back. “I’m sorry she doesn’t want to keep you. But I think it’s for the best at this point. She’s my wife, I don’t have the heart to keep you around against her will.”

“I understand. You’ve done more than enough, but thank you for trying.”

“Take care, Chloe. I’ll see you once the party’s over.”

“Of course, Ma’am. Take care.”

I made sure to smile as she made her way out, gently taking a seat at her vanity. Deep down I knew I was lying, but even though I really was thankful for all of her help, I didn’t have the heart to tell her what I was planning.

Because now I had a plan, and that put me one step closer to escaping.

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“Where the fuck did you take my slave?”

Claudia paced back and forth inside of her otherwise empty office, only accompanied by her mother and the old hag’s nurse.

“I’m not quite sure, Mistress.” Aria swallowed nervously, doing her best to try and hide behind her owner to avoid the woman’s wrath. “I must have lost her.”

“You lost her?!” Claudia was stunned, and not in a good way. “How could you lose her?!”

At this point Claudia was talking at a level that Aria couldn’t help but be nervous with, knowing that at any moment she could snap and try to kill her. “I don’t know, Ma’am. She was right next to me, I swear.”

“You dirty little trash fag.” She growled, pounding her fist on the desk. “I never should have trusted that filthy menial to do a noble’s job, I should have taken you to the plantation myself.”

“Please don’t call her that, Ma’am.” Aria nervously tried to protest. “I begged Leah to take me to the facility myself.”

“It’s a wonder she listened.” She scoffed back. “That bitch doesn’t usually obey anyone but her boss.”

“I’m her friend. She trusts me.”

“And she was supposed to be my friend too. But that backstabbing virgin cocktail of an alcoholic betrayed me to side with my little sister when I needed her most.”

“Because Candace’s mom had just died.” The mouse girl snapped, having to put her tiny little foot down for the sake of her friends. “Leah is more family to Candace than you’ve ever been, and the two of them needed each other.”

Thump . Claudia’s beloved cane smacked into the ground with a loud thud, for once from within the hands of her mother.

“My slave will silence herself before I have to bend her over my knee and spank her in front of the entire body.” Lilith clearly didn’t like to raise her voice when she didn’t need to, and it showed in the way she had to stop and catch her breath. “And unless she would like to find out what sort of thing the collar around her neck has in store for her, my daughter will do the same.”

Claudia was taken aback for a moment, but only for a moment. Her eyes locked onto the eyes of her own cane in her mother’s hands, nervous for a single split second before flashing with determination.

“Do not threaten me, mother.” She snarled under her breath, refusing to back down like the slave girl beside her. “You know how much I have done for you. My brother and I have spent the last month putting together this birthday party for you, so you had better not take my efforts for granted, and you had better not treat me like a child.”

Before Lilith could open her mouth again, her daughter had the cane in her grasp. Even at her best she couldn’t hope to overpower the giantess, but Claudia wasn’t gentle with Lilith even in her old age.

“Take my mother back to her party, slave.” She pointed the cane straight at Aria. “Make sure she’s safe and has a nice night, and leave everything else to me. You’ve done enough, I’ll find Chloe and take care of her before she makes a scene.”

The furious head of household spun around and stormed straight to her desk, glaring angrily into her mom’s eyes as they made brief contact.

“You know how to find her, Claudia.” Lilith snickered, actually smiling at the new arrival. “Use the tools I’ve given you.”

“I know what I am doing, mom. Thank you.”

Claudia waited for her mother to leave before sitting down at her desk and opening the drawers, retrieving the dazzling little bracelet from inside. The controller fit nicely into her hand as she turned it on, for once feeling confident in herself seeing the reflection in the chrome.

“Here goes nothing, I suppose. You’d better be worth it.”

She was about to turn it on too, but just then there was a knock on the door to her office. And almost immediately, she slid the controller away and sprung to her feet.

“Claudia, honey.” Called the voice of her wonderful wife. “Can you come out here, please?”

The sigh that came from Claudia was a happy one, but it was a sigh nonetheless. “Yes, my love?”

“Come and see the sky, starlight.” Josie had a great big smile on her face as she grabbed her woman by both hands. “I haven’t even gotten a dance yet.”

Claudia couldn’t help but share in that wild enthusiasm of hers. “You should be watching my girl.”

“Your girl is still napping.” Josie took the effort of spinning herself into her wife’s arms. “Your woman would like your attention.”

“My woman has my attention.” Claudia tucked Josie into her arms and spun them both around. “What is she going to do with it, I wonder.”

“Wonder not.” Josie draped her arms over her wife’s shoulders. “Let her show you.”

Their lips met, hearts pulsing with a passion they hadn’t felt in years. They hung tight to each other like fire. Spinning. Twirling. Dancing in the glow.

“Awww.” Coos from an enthusiastic concubine rang happily in their ears. “Get it, white girl.”

“Zenna.” Claudia’s jaw dropped as she saw her. “Oh my god, you look amazing.”

“Thanks.” She blushed ever so slightly. “Mistress took me to the salon to get a weave after we left the clinic.”

“That was today.” Claudia’s heart squeezed. “How did it go?”

“Well. It’s official.” Zenna couldn’t hold back that smile of hers. “Doc says I’m one hundred percent, without a doubt, pregnant. Like for real this time.”

The excitement in Claudia’s chest came bubbling to the surface like a storm, and within moments Claudia had the girl in her arms, spinning Zenna just as enthusiastically as she’d done with Josie.

“Zenna, honey, that’s wonderful.” Claudia pressed her lips to Zenna’s, sweeping the poor girl off of her feet. “We’re having another baby.”

“Yeah.” She blushed, tracing the outline of the clover in her hair like she usually did when nervous. “I guess the baby belongs to all three of us?”

“No. The baby belongs to my wife and I. Just like you do.” Claudia said with a quickly shattering pokerface. “And we’re going to love just like we love Lilian.”

“Yes, Ma’am.” Zenna smiled, blushing like a light. “Thank you for letting me have this.”

“We wouldn’t miss it for the world, Zen.” Josie beamed proudly. “Though this does mean that we’re going to have a pretty awkward conversation with the grandparents. Having another kid is probably a big enough deal that they’re going to fuss about it.”

Claudia’s eyes went wide at the thought of that, quickly figuring out what Josie was saying. “Wait. You mean right now, don’t you?”

“They are all here, I don’t know when we’ll get a better time.” Josie shrugged awkwardly. “Everyone except Janine.”

“Janine?” Zenna nervously asked.

“James’ mother.” Josie responded, which didn’t clear anything up for her.

“The slave with which Josie’s father had sex with to produce her little brother.” Claudia sighed. “She’s a little bit like you, and hopefully that will mean that they’ll a little bit like you, hopefully more.”

“Okay.” Zenna whined nervously. “It’s not like I have a choice.”

“Exactly.” Claudia had one hand on Zenna’s ass as she leaned in and kissed her cheek. “Don’t worry, we’ll let you sit between us.”

With a slight smile on her lips, Zenna nodded. “Thank you, Master.”

Josephine’s family was quite honestly a lot less scary than her wife’s, and a little bit smaller of a presence. There were four of them in total, including her little brother and his wife.

“Johnathan. Dixie. James. Alondra.” Claudia smiled as she waited for Zenna to pull her chair out for her. “Pleasure to see you all.”

“Mom. Dad.” Josie held the girl’s hand as they both sat down. “You remember Zenna, don’t you?”

“The slave who accidentally spent Christmas with milk stains on her shirt a couple years ago, yes.” Josie’s mom giggled. “We remember her.”

“Yep. That was me.” Zenna smiled awkwardly, hanging her head in shame. “My apologies for making a fool of myself like that. It was my first time nursing.”

“And it might have to be her last time nursing.” Claudia sneered, joining in on the fun. “You wouldn’t believe how hard it was to get her to wean our daughter.”

“No, actually. I can believe it.” Johnathan chuckled along with his wife. “Janine was that way with both of them.”

“Dad.” The younger man, James, got all up in arms. “That’s my mother you’re talking about.”

“One of your mothers, you mean.” His wife nudged him, gesturing towards a slightly off put Dixie on the other side of the table.

“I guess Lilian must take a little bit after me.” Josie grinned, just as awkward now as ever. “Which hopefully means she’ll have her own someday.”

“Zenna.” Claudia held her hand under the table. “Would you like to tell them?”

“If that’s okay, Master?” Zenna asked, receiving a nod. “I know that this is probably really sudden, because you all barely know me, but I have nothing but respect for you and nothing but love for your daughter.”

“Awwww.” Dixie cooed at her, already knowing where this was going. “I was wondering when I’d get another grandchild, I just didn’t expect it to be from the help.”

“She doesn’t mean that.” James cut in. “She’s just trying to rib me for not having kids yet.”

Zenna didn’t seem to mind, or she did and the huge relief was just too strong for that to show through. “Thank you, Mrs. Jacquel. I’m very excited to have one of my own after so long. It feels like a dream come true.”

“Congratulations, sweetheart.” Jonathan smiled, mostly towards Zenna. “Do you know yet what my daughter is planning on doing with her?”

“Doing with her?” Zenna swallowed nervously. “What do you mean, Sir?”

“I think that is a conversation for another day.” Claudia squeezed Zenna’s hand, kicking her in the ankle to get her to stop. “We’re just too excited right now to make any big decisions.”

“Y-yes. What my Master says. Thank you.” Zenna smiled, nodding her head. “I should go get Lilian ready for dinner.”

“I think we should all get Lilian ready for dinner.” Josie stood up first, pushing her chair in. “We still have to tell her the news.”

“And have you told your parents yet, Claudia?” Dixie made sure to pester her. “Oh won’t you stay for just a moment, my husband and I would love to talk to you privately for a moment.”

“Wow, rude.” Josie remarked, helping Zenna to her feet. “It’s been nice seeing you guys. Love you to bits.”

Claudia nervously eyed her wife as Josie stood up and walked away with her slave, leaving Claudia alone with the in-laws. “Right. She can be kind of awkward.”

“She always has been.” Josie’s brother said as he did much the same thing. “But Alondra and I are going to head home, congrats on the baby.”

“Thank you, James.” Claudia smiled. “It’s been nice seeing you.”

“Take care, son.” Jonathan gave his boy a pat on the back as he got up to leave. “As for you.”

“Yes, Sir?” Claudia wasn’t sure why she was calling him that, but she was. “Is something the matter?”

“How has our Lilian been?” Dixie launched straight to interrogating her daughter’s wife. “This Zenna girl’s a fine mother, yes?”

“Absolutely. I feel like that goes without question.”

“And what would you do with Lilian’s little sibling if it was up to you?”

“If it was up to me?” Claudia pondered it for a moment. “I would probably leave it up to Zenna.”

Dixie had a feeling that would be the answer. “A word to the wise, don’t.”

Claudia was taken aback by that. “What?”

“Don’t let it be her choice.” Dixie smiled smugly. “Leave it up to Lilian. That’s what we had wished we’d done with James.”

“With James?” Claudia continued to fall down a rabbit hole of confusion. “You mean you wished you’d have left it up to Josie?”

“Indeed.” Josie’s father finally added. “It would have taught her some much needed responsibility, introspection, and self-confidence when it comes to handling slaves.”

She actually gasped. “That’s a lot to pile on a kid, don’t you think?”

“We’re just giving you some advice we’d wished we had at your age.” He smiled back. “We’d like to get the plantation back into Jacquel hands, and that means we’d like for it to be Lilian.”

“The sooner you start on teaching her responsibility around slaves, the better.” Dixie winked. “Give her a little sister she loves and she’ll learn to treat all slaves like that. Helps to build character, not just for her, but for the little one too.”

“The opportunity to have a slave trained from birth doesn’t come around very often.” Jonathan helped himself to his feet, beginning to do the same for his wife. “You might want to consider that opportunity, not for you, but for Lilian.”

“Will do, Sir.” Claudia stood, shaking his hand. “It was nice seeing you both.”

“Thank you for inviting us, dear.” Dixie did the same. “I do hope your parents react as well as we have.”

“I hope so too. I’m not sure how my mother will take it, considering how she ditched us before Candace was even born.” Claudia thought on it for a moment. “But Zenna has been a mother to Lilian just like Alecia was a mother to me, and I’m going to be a mother to this new baby. Not because her mother belongs to me, but because I’m going to be there to take care of her.”

Dixie had a warm grin on her face. “Just like you’ve been there for Lilian.”

“Yeah.” Claudia frowned, her heart swelling inside of her. “Like I’ve been there for Lilian…”

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I couldn’t help but admire myself in the mirror by the time I was done with my makeup. I’d gotten dressed of course, and I’d even picked out a few new pieces of clothes, like a scarf to help hide my collar. Didn’t want people to see me and assume I’m a slave, after all. I looked good, and even though I only did it to help calm my nerves and kill time, part of me wishes I could be seen in this.

Like look at those eyeliner wings, that’s something I’d expect from Malcolm.

“Alright, Chloe.” I smiled, winking at myself in the vanity. “Let’s knock 'em dead.”

And by that I meant run away, like a smart person who knows she can’t win.

“Mommy?” I was sure I had locked the door, but it seemed like the little one didn’t have any trouble coming in anyways. “Is that you?”

“Lilian?” I nervously made my way over to her. “How’d you get in here?”

The five year old looked at me like I was asking her a really weird question. “I used the key?”

Lilian opened her palm, and in it sat a single key, the very same she’d used to open the key to the slave quarters downstairs. And that signaled only one thing.

“You mean that key opens any door in the house?”

Lilian looked at me with a worryingly confused look on her face, rubbing her eyes with her other hand. “I think so?”

“Lilian.” I frowned, unsure of how to approach things with her. “What are you doing in here?”

“I don’t know.” She let out a yawn that I’m sure would have been cute if I liked kids, which I kind of don’t. “I just woke up.”

I just sighed at her over the top adorableness. “Shouldn’t you be in your room waiting for Zenna?”

“I don’t know.” She repeated, like it was one of the few things she knew. “Mom, can you come help me?”

Right. Lilian was still little. She had trouble identifying people, which meant she couldn’t really tell the difference between Josie and I, at least not while my collar was hidden.

“Lilian, honey. I’m not-” I paused, looking her in the eyes and thinking it over for a moment. “What do you need my help with, sweetheart?”

Lilian thinks I’m her mother. Oh yeah, I can take advantage of this.

“Loud.” She gestured towards the rest of the world around her. “Don’t like it.”

I crouched beside her, putting one hand on her shoulder and holding out my hand. “Would you feel better if you were with Nanny?”

She silently nodded, before placing the key in my hand and letting me tuck it away in my shirt. And now that I had it between my breasts, hopefully I could get into any room in the house. I just felt bad that I had to trick her into thinking I’m someone I’m not, but as long as I was pretending to be her mother, I might as well act like her mother.

“Let’s get you back to your room, okay?” I smiled, letting her lock her little fingers with mine. “Lead the way.”

Of course since Lilian was five, she wanted me to lead the way, which was fortunate. See the second floor has this huge gap, which we have to walk around to get to the other side, but it is a complete square.

Being a prisoner on an escape attempt, I didn’t exactly want to be seen by any large number of people, so to avoid the conservatory we walked the opposite way. It was pretty from up here, usually I didn’t get to see from this angle, but I could actually see inside of the dining room from here. Which meant they could see me.

Oh, fish.

Her incessant pacing paused the moment she saw me, her stormy eyes piercing the veil below. Nothing about that look on her face was happy, and that ire in her eyes bled into her jagged movements. Darcey was helping with dinner, and Autumn was helping set the table, but neither of that mattered all of a sudden. It was like she threw family needs to the wind the second she saw me.

Except that wasn’t exactly it. The anger with which she grabbed her wife by the arm and yanked her to attention was palpable, but the longer I stood there the more unreasonably antsy Claudia seemed to get. After a few moments I felt a tug at my hand by a confused little girl who just wanted up, and almost out of instinct I did just that.

I wasn’t the best with kids, but Lilian was small and she weighed virtually nothing, so I picked her up. I didn’t think much about it, but Claudia did. The imposingly grand chandelier dangling just below the underside of the interior balcony did much to obscure the view. Yet it wasn’t quite enough to hide the image of an escaping slave standing beside a full story drop holding a five year old girl just over the railing so that she could see her mother below, and she didn’t even recognize Claudia from this distance. But Claudia most certainly recognized her.

This family was big on films. Zenna was into crime dramas, Darcey liked over the top action flicks, and Autumn preferred romantic comedies. But by far and away the household’s favorite genre was musicals. They were a passion of Josie’s that she’d passed along to her daughter, and even though Claudia’s favorite type of film wasn't suitable for children, Lilian did inherit a love of the Wizard of Oz from her mother.

Sparingly little talk happened with Lilian. She stayed with her nanny, usually in her room, often watching her favorite movie. Leaving that space was uncomfortable for her, which left her anchored to it. Seeing her little girl in my arms clearly sent Claudia into a little bit of a shock, spiraling at the thought of what I might do to her.

Now obviously they didn’t just leave a gaping hole in the floor for their daughter to fall into. Usually there was a clear glass panel that helped keep her safe from that possibility, but by necessity that safety net had been lifted for the night. The chandelier hung from the height of the house, through the balcony, and over the ballroom. Which left that possibility wide open.

Lilian ran her fingers through my hair as we walked, feeling through it like she was trying to get used to the texture. “Mom?”

She questioned me like she wasn’t quite sure who I was all of a sudden, and I didn’t have the heart to lie to her directly. “Mom will be up soon, don’t worry.”

I was really beginning to get what she meant when she said that Lilian couldn’t tell the difference between Josie and I. We had similar hair, close complexion, comparable physique, and Lilian had trouble with faces.

She tugged at the scarf as we stepped into her room, pawing at the collar around my neck with her fingers. “You’re not mom.”

“Busted.” I smiled, setting her down in bed. “It’s me, Chloe. Do you remember?”

“Uh-huh.” She giggled, not seemingly particularly distraught by the realization. “You’re my auntie, right?”

Flattered yes, but not exactly wanting to correct a five year old, I chuckled. “Not quite, but almost.”

“You’re Dorothy!!” She giggled, making great big motions with her hands. “You have Toto and everything!!”

“Toto? You mean Poppy?”

“Uh-huh!!” Lilian spun around in bed, rooting through her own stuffed animals. “And I’m one of the monkeys, see!!”

“One of the monkeys?”

“The flying ones.” Lilian turned to be quite the chatterbox when it came to this, pulling out her favorite stuffed doll, a monkey with wings stitched on. “Mommy made this for me. Cause she’s the wicked witch and I’m one of her monkeys.”

“Your mom’s the wicked witch? Do you know which mom?”

“Scary mom. Stay at home mom looks like Dorothy too, but she’s actually the wizard.”

“Oh, is she now?”

“She’s magic!!”

“Magic?”

“She got me a scarecrow, and then she got me a tin man, and then she got me a lion!!”

“Aww. That’s cute. But what about scary mom, how is she a witch?”

“Because she’s really big and really scary, but she says someday I get to rule the world just like her.”

“And do you want to rule the world?”

Lilian hesitated. A five year old girl doesn’t usually know what she wants for lunch, let alone what she wants to be someday. “I don’t know.”

“Well, it sounds to me like you’re not really a flying monkey.”

“But I like the monkeys.”

“Everyone likes the monkeys, but do you know who I like more?”

“Who?”

“Dorothy.” I smiled, whispering it to her. “I think you’d make a great Dorothy.”

She had a great big grin on her face. “Really?”

“Really.”

I held a pinky towards her, which she quickly grabbed with her own, grinning happily. “Does this mean I get a Toto?”

Despite everything swirling around me, this was nice. Sitting here and enjoying the childhood innocence of another was nice, if only just for a few moments. I wasn’t a phenomenal caretaker by any means, but my hand did wonder what it would be like to have one of my own.

“Dinnertime.” Zenna’s voice called out to us, also charmed by Lilian’s fantastical little world. “The wicked witch is looking for you both.”

Lilian actually began to shrink away from her nanny as she stepped into the room, and it quickly became apparent why. But Zenna knew exactly how to handle it.

“It’s me, sweetie.” She smiled, taking my spot in the bed next to Lilian, running her fingers through her own hair. “See?”

Lilian’s touch was led to one side of Zenna’s head, still shaved down while the rest of her hair had been done up for her new weave. Precious little fingers traced over the distinct four leaf clover shaved into the side of her caretaker’s head, instantly recognizing her by the marking alone.

“Mommy?” Lilian’s cheeks glowed red as she climbed into Zenna’s lap. “When you have your baby can she be my Toto?”

Eyes went wide hearing her daughter say that, before giggling along with her. “We’ll have to see about that.”

I hated to interrupt such a tender moment, but my time was short. “Master is looking for me, isn’t she?”

“Yes.” She said with an anxious hum. “It’s not pretty.”

“Think I’d be better off running away?”

“Chloe.” Zenna frowned at me, shaking her head. “Not with Lilian here, please.”

“Okay.” I said as I awkwardly backed out of the room. “Be good for your nanny, Lilian.”

“Be good for your master, Chloe!!” Lilian giggled right back at me, waving me off. “I wanna play later!!”

My heart left just a little bit warmer as she said that, and just a touch less intact. The entrance to her room closed with a click, leaving me on my own outside. And I had everything to show for my efforts. I honestly would have loved to come back to play with her, but I knew I wasn’t going to be able to.

I had the key, and that was what was important. I felt bad for taking it from a five year old, but knowing I helped make her day just a touch brighter made it feel earned. I was one step closer to getting out of here. It wasn’t all that mattered, but it was what was important.

“Don’t you dare put your filthy poorbred hands on my daughter ever again.” Lilian’s mother was steaming by the time I turned to face her. “Telling my secrets to my sister was one thing, and running away was another, but I will not stand to let you put my daughter in danger.”

“I’m sorry, Master.” Was all I could really say. “I never wanted to hurt her.”

“I don’t care. I don’t want her to have to sit through the same storm that hit me.”

“Claudia.” I bit my lip, lowering my gaze to her feet. “Do you really hate me like you say?”

“That’s a stupid question that you and I both already know the answer to.”

I hoped what she was saying was true, because if the answer really was what I thought it was, I couldn’t help but smile.

“Did you sew that monkey for Lilian?”

“Yes.” She replied without a moment’s hesitation. “My step-mother taught me to sew, why?”

“My foster mom did the same thing for me.” I stalled, trying to delay my fate. “She made me a stuffed dog when I ran away from home.”

“Chloe.” I could hear in her voice how hard this was for her to do, but she was going to try. “This is your last chance. Come along quietly or I won’t have a choice but to execute you.”

“Yes, Ma’am. Thank you.” My lips burned as I said the words. “I forfeit.”

“Good. Now come on.” She didn’t even reach towards me, trusting that I’d follow her of my own accord. “The loser’s circle is this way.”

Giving me the illusion of being at a noble dinner party, she held her arm out for me to take rather than allowing me a hand to hold. So I grabbed her arm with mine, taking ahold of her left forearm with my comparatively weak hands. She looked beautiful. Fantastical green two piece suit. An emerald wedding ring lovingly cared for on one hand. No bracelets to speak of.

Claudia was more than capable of defeating me. She didn’t even need her cane anymore.

“I left it in my office if that’s what you’re wondering.” She said, wiping her hands clean and popping her knuckles. “And that enforcer’s key you’ve been questing after. Forget it. I no longer have need for an enforcer around here.”

I glanced at it and lowered my head in disappointment. “You’ve thought of everything, haven’t you?”

“I would like to think so.” She said, walking with a perfect stride down the stairs. “But somehow I’m still scared that something I’m not expecting is going to ruin the night.”

“Oh please, you’re not scared of me, Ma’am. You’re excited by the thrill of fighting me, just like Candace.”

“As right as you are, I don’t think it’s you that I’m scared of.”

The single key slid into the locked cell door, turning it open with a loud clunk. No exits were to be found on the inside, save for the dumbwaiter behind me. But even with a key, the door could only be unlocked from the exterior.

“Don’t bother trying to escape. You’ll be better off here than out there anyways. Even if you could hear the ballroom from here, I promise you the music won’t be worth facing.”

A light push was all that it took to get me into the sight and sound proofed cell, and nothing much more. Just a whole Chloe’s worth of broken resilience and defeated submission.

Claudia hardly needed to lock me in at all, I was already locking the rest of the world out. But the door was locked nonetheless, because the only woman Claudia could trust to take care of me now was herself.

“There’s no one out there to empathize with you. Stay in here where it’s safe. This is what’s best.”

“Yes, Master.” I knelt, facing the door just in case there was anyone left out there to see me. “I can’t promise anything, but I hope you’ve won.”

“Good girl.” Claudia’s words rang in my ears one last time, but even that wasn’t enough to make me smile. “I’m sorry that it has to be this way.”

“Please don’t do this, Claudia…”

I broke under the crushing weight of my world falling apart, finally accepting just my chances. I was hopeless. There was no way out of here, and I knew that. I didn’t have the strength to do what I needed to do. It was time to give up.

“Please don’t hurt me like she did.” I pressed one hand to the door. “Please don’t play pretend any longer.”

“I’m sorry, Chloe.” The motionless silence rang loud through the cold steel. “In a world like mine, playing pretend is the only way to win.”

And then Claudia left me. Crying. Broken. Alone.

“No.” My hand held still against the invincible wall before me. “You’re wrong.”

✶ ✦ ✧ ✦ ✧ ✦ ✧ ✦ ✧ ✦ ✧ ✦ ✧ ✶ ✧ ✦ ✧ ✦ ✧ ✦ ✧ ✦ ✧ ✦ ✧ ✦ ✶

Claudia stepped with a heavy heart back out into the ballroom, her eyes drifting upwards towards the massive portrait of her mother on the opposite wall, not daring to make contact with that of her father across from it.

She turned towards the dining room, looking up. Claudia. Josephine. Lilian. All there on that wall. And she’d almost lost all of it falling into her own desires.

“Mommy?” Lilian recognized her up close, happily tucked into Zenna’s arms as she reached out to play with Claudia’s hair. “Why are you crying?”

The eyes of genuine surprise were all that could be seen of her in that moment, reaching up to wipe her own tears away. “I don’t know, sweetie. Mommy didn’t know she was crying.”

“Mistress?” Zenna giggled, bouncing the girl in her arms. “Is Chloe coming to dinner?”

“No.” She shook her head, giving them both a smile. “I’m afraid not.”

“It’s okay, Ma’am.” Zenna smiled slightly. “I’m still proud of you for saving her.”

“Don’t be.” Claudia protested. “You and I both know why I’m doing it.”

“I don’t think we do, Ma’am.” The slave responded, her smile unwavering. “I think you’d be surprised.”

“You’d be wise not to talk back to your master in front of our daughter, slave.” Claudia frowned, reaching out and taking the girl from her nanny’s arms. “I don’t want Lilian to end up learning the wrong lessons from you or I. She should grow up to be sensible with slaves, so show her that she shouldn’t expect slaves to talk back to her when she becomes the master someday.”

Zenna had a disappointed frown on her face as she bowed, holding herself bent over for a good few seconds before righting herself. “Yes, Master. You’re right. A slave shouldn’t speak back to her master. I apologize.”

“Good girl.” Claudia nodded, gesturing for Zenna to join the other slaves. “Go on. We’ve given you time with Lilian. Remember your place and act like a proper slave again.”

The mistress and her daughter watched wordlessly as Zenna turned around and headed to dinner. Claudia didn’t particularly have things together right now, but Lilian was probably worse.

“But Mommy?” She whispered into Claudia’s ears. “I don’t wanna be one of the monkeys anymore. I wanna be Dorothy.”

“You wanna be Dorothy?” Claudia raised one eyebrow. “What makes you wanna be Dorothy all of a sudden?”

Lilian giggled happily. “Aunt Chloe told me I could be Dorothy!!”

“Did she now?” Claudia smiled faintly. “I guess if you want to be Dorothy, you can be Dorothy.”

Claudia thought to herself and sighed, gently lowering Lilian to the floor at her feet, a move which brought much confusion to the little girl. She shuffled back and forth for a few moments, not used to walking without holding someone’s hand.

“But if you want to be Dorothy, you have to be able to walk on the yellow brick road all by yourself, can you do that?”

It was about time that they both learned to walk unassisted.

“Uh-huh!!”

“Then go find the wizard, okay?”

“Okay!!”

Lilian spun around on her heel and ran off around the corner, excitedly hurrying to the dinner table with her family, and Claudia couldn’t help but smile seeing that. Her daughter thought of her as the wicked witch, and that was fine. There was no harm in playing the villain. She was born to be the villain.

Her fingers curled around the head of her collar, squeezing the unbreakable bond as tightly as she could manage. Again, she couldn’t even tell she was crying until it was too late. There was no sense in trying to be a good girl like Candace’s mother had been.

Being a bad role model was all she was good for.

“Claudia, honey.” Her mother took her by the arm, helping wipe the girl’s tears for her with a clean handkerchief. “Could we talk outside for a bit?”

“Of course.” Claudia smiled, helping Lilith walk with every step. “Dinner can wait for us. It’s your birthday after all.”

“Damn right it is.”

The pair of women chuckled to themselves as they crossed the hallway, stepping through the vestibule and out of the sitting room door.

“Need a smoke, mom?”

“Is that really something you should be offering me, sweetheart?”

“It’s not that kind of smoke.”

“Well in that case.”

Claudia slipped her dying mother the blunt, lighting it for her to help ease her pain. “There. How’s that?”

“Much better.” Lilith exhaled, feeling better just knowing what she was smoking. “Thank you, sweetie.”

“Mom.” Claudia quickly launched into the next topic. “Why did you make me bring Chloe to this?”

“Because I knew how badly you wanted her here.”

“I don’t want her here, mother. I want her at the plantation where she belongs.”

“You don’t know what you want, Claudia.”

“Yes I do.” She gritted her teeth, stomping her foot in protest. “Why do you keep treating me like a child?”

“Because you’re acting like a child.” Lilith snickered, pulling the cigarette away for just a second. “And by that I mean, you’re acting like your father.”

Claudia’s heart ached for a moment, unable to keep her head up. “I’m not my father.”

“Oh please.” Lilith snorted. “I know your father and I know you, Claudia. The resemblance is uncanny.”

“Yeah?” Claudia leaned back against the wall, glancing towards her mother out of the corner of her eye. “Is that why you’ve always loved Candace more than your own daughter?”

The night air around them went silent as Lilith exhaled, refusing to even look Claudia in the eyes after that question. “You’re not my daughter, Claudia. Not after what you did to her.”

“That’s why you tried to cover it all up for me.” Claudia’s voice broke into angry giggling. “Because you didn’t want people to know that you gave birth to such a monster.”

“I’m sorry that this is so hard for you to hear, Claudia.” Lilith dropped the cigarette onto the ground, putting it out with her foot. “But you are a monster.”

“I should have known.” Her eyes followed it as it blew away in the wind. “All those times you said you loved me.”

“I meant them.” Lilith snapped, angrily glaring the girl down. “I’ve tried with you for so long, Claudia. We all have. I just didn’t want you to grow up to become your father.”

“My father is not the problem here, mom.” Claudia put her foot down. “Don’t you think that maybe the reason Candace didn’t come out as fucked up as Cyrus and I is because she didn’t have to contend with you?!”

“Why I never-”

“Candace had a real mother growing up. One that was always there to love and support her no matter what. Alecia was a better mother to me, but she’s gone now, and I’m sorry. You shouldn’t be the one disowning me. I should be the one disowning you.” Claudia fumed, her hands curling into fists as she stared her mother in the eyes and screamed. “I didn’t grow up to become my father. I grew up to become you. When all I wanted was to be like my real mother.”

Lilith stood in shocked silence for a minute or so before even having the inclination to move, let alone speak. “I’m sorry, Claudia. I just don’t want him to hurt her like he hurt you.”

“I know you loved Alecia, mom. I did too.” Claudia sniffled back tears. “But that doesn’t make Candace your daughter. I’m your daughter, but when I needed you the most, you weren’t there.”

The silence grew louder and louder until neither of them could take it much longer, and the conversation ended with two grown women smoking their problems away outside of their own party until someone came out to find them.

“Umm, Mistress.” Aria’s voice called out to them both from the vestibule just inside. “There’s a problem.”

Claudia just groaned, shaking her head in annoyance. Great, another problem. “This had better be good, Aria.”

Aria couldn’t help but fail to hide a smug little grin as she popped outside, motioning towards the front of the house. “Cheers, love.”

It took her a good few seconds, but Claudia knew exactly what that meant. And she really didn’t like it.

“Son of a bitch.” Claudia darted around the corner towards the front of the house, just in time to see that yellow eyesore of a car pulling up. “Son of a bitch!!”

Lilith paused, squinting at the strange little thing. “Am I missing something here, or?”

“It’s her.” Claudia spat like her name was poison. “It’s Candace.”

The first person out of the car was all Claudia needed to know that whatever this was, it spelt doom for not just her, but the whole party. Leah smiled as she climbed out of the driver seat, turning to the door behind her and opening it up. And sure enough.

“Candace.” Claudia said as she saw her, pretending to be polite. “I wasn’t expecting you.”

And Candace just fucking stared at her with that smug grin of hers. “Then you’re going to love this.”

As Leah opened the door to the passenger seat, Candace snapped her fingers, and everything got worse.

Claudia could hardly believe what she was seeing, even when it was staring her right in the face. “Father.”

“That’s Daddy to you.”

Cardinal looked his daughter up and down and winked, before doing the same with his ex-wife.

“Happy Birthday.”