The Kingdom: Chapter 7 - The Auction

[southrook]

CHAPTER 7 – THE AUCTION

 

I woke up to the sound of the phone ringing loudly in my ear. I ignored it until the ringing finally stopped. Moments later, the phone rang again. Barely awake, I groggily reached over to the nightstand, lifted the phone into the air and slammed it back down onto the receiver. I exhaled in relief as the incessant ringing stopped once more. Rolling onto my side, I felt oddly disoriented. Despite the plush mattress beneath me, my back ached as if I had slept the night on a concrete slab. My eyes opened just wide enough for me to see the red lights of the LED clock next to me. The time read 2:49pm. Opening my eyes wider, I could see that I was back in my suite. I laid in silence contemplating how I had gotten here. The last thing I remembered was… shit… What was the last thing I remembered?

 

Every muscle in my body ached simultaneous as I used my arms to push myself upright into a seated position. I was completely naked. I groaned as I delicately shifted my legs to hang over the edge of the bed. I felt as if I’d been hit by a bus. Staring blankly at the wall in front of me, I continued wracking my brain to find my bearings. Why on earth did I feel so horrible?

 

Suddenly, everything came flooding back. The kennel, Brandy, Annabelle, Katie, the extractor… The day prior had been both a physical and emotional hell. From Brandy enslaving me, to Katie planting *** in the suite, to all three of us being thrown into the kennel, to me having my pussy vibrated to oblivion while I was trapped in a strict hogtie. Fuck, it really had been an awful day. No wonder I felt so sore. But how did I get back here?

 

Still staring blankly at the wall in front of me, I vaguely recalled being driven by security guards back to my suite in a golf-cart. It was dark outside, so it must have been sometime late last night. Or early this morning. I remember him saying something to me as I was carried into the suite, but I couldn’t remember what… After he laid on the bed, everything went blank.

 

I stood to my feet, clenching the down comforter to help me maintain my balance. I walked gingerly to the bathroom and sat down on the toilet to take a ***. Damn, even my crotch ached! The extractor had really done a number on me! Standing up to wash my hands, my heart skipped a beat as I saw my reflection in the mirror. Dark circles encompassed my eyes and my hair resembled a disheveled bird’s nest. But as beastly as I may have looked, my appearance was not the cause of the pit that had suddenly formed in my stomach. It was the bright red collar around my neck… My heart momentarily stopped beating. I was wearing a collar again! My hands shot to my neck in terror.

 

What the hell?! I ran my fingers frantically around the collar, searching for a buckle or clasp to unlock. But the collar appeared to be mechanically locked, just as my previous collar had been. “What the fuck?!” I said out loud. Taking a deep breath, I ***d myself to focus… Think, Aly. How did this happen? Who did this? Why was this collar red? After nearly a minute of staring at my reflection, the phone rang again, ping me out of my contemplative state. I spun around in frustration and stormed back into the bedroom.

 

“What?!” I said loudly into the phone. “What is it?!”

 

I heard a click on the other line followed by a cheerful recording of a woman’s voice, “Hello. This is a prerecorded message reminding you about your disciplinary hearing at… 3 o’clock PM… at the Administration Bureau. Please arrive 10 minutes prior to your appointment. Thank you.”

 

My heartbeat continued to race as I processed the words. Disciplinary hearing? What the fuck did that mean?

 

“If you would like to hear this message again, please press 1.”

 

I hung up the phone, and merely stared at it. I was still too disoriented to grasp what was going on. Disciplinary hearing??? Had the security guard explained this to me last night? Shit, it really did seem like I was living one nightmare after another.

 

I kept replaying the words “Disciplinary hearing at 3 o’clock PM” over and over in my head, desperate to trigger some sort of memory. Just then, I glanced back at the LED clock that read 2:56pm. Shit. Wherever the Administration Bureau was, I was supposed to be there in exactly 4 minutes. Technically, I should have been there 6 minutes ago, if I was abiding by the instructions to arrive 10 minutes early.

 

I quickly turned and walked back into the foyer where I’d left my shopping bags from the day prior. But to my surprise, nothing was there. I spun around, frantically scanning the suite. C’mon, Alison, I thought. Where the fuck did you put them? I walked back into the bedroom and opened the door to the walk-in closet. Nothing… Storming back into the foyer, my eye caught a piece of paper on the entry hall table that I’d missed earlier. It was a hand-written note…

 

Dear Jodie,

In the event that your addled state of mind caused you to forget, please note that your disciplinary hearing is set for 3:00pm at the Corrections Office. Please arrive 10 minutes early dressed ONLY in your probation collar. Once you have signed over custody of Ms. Michaels, your belongings will be returned to you and you will be free to go. See you soon,

 

Mistress Annabelle

 

Beneath her signature was a brochure map. A red circle had been drawn around the old wine distillery on the opposite side of the castle. While we knew it as the “catacombs”, a dot at the entrance now read Corrections Bureau. The catacombs did seem uniquely fitting for a location that dealt with “corrections”. It was basically an underground dungeon. Of course Annabelle would have her office in a dungeon. Fucking vampire.

 

I reread the letter quickly, flipping it over to make sure I didn’t miss anything on the backside. Dressed only in my probation collar? She expected me to go there naked?! Dammit, this woman really was a bitch! With a deep sigh, I snatched the lanyard with my keycard off of the table and marched angrily out the door.

 

It was raining outside. Not too hard, but hard enough to *** me off that I was ***d to experience it without any clothes on. Not wanting to know what would happen if I arrived late, I jogged down the stone staircase of the castle. To my relief, the square was relatively empty of guests. Likely, due to the rain. You could almost smell all the sex that was going on while everyone was staying dry in their rooms.

 

After a short jog around the castle, I reached the cobblestone ramp that descended beneath the castle bridge to the catacombs. A sign hanging above the door read “Corrections Bureau”. I walked through the door and shivered as a gust of cold air met my wet skin. An entry bell jingled as the door closed behind me. The air felt dingy and dank down here. Stone lined the floors, walls, and hanging wrought iron lamps gave the long entry hall an eerie orange glow. In the middle of the hallway sat a woman at a semi-circled desk. Behind her at the end of the hall stood two security guards on either side of the large wooden door.

 

Despite my nakedness, I took a deep breath and confidently approached the woman sitting behind the counter. She was dressed just as Katie had been dressed when I first met her- White blouse, grey vest, and a burgundy ***r. Her hands were handcuffed in front of her as she typed on a keyboard.

 

“Hi, how may I help you?” She asked pleasantly.

 

“Yeah,” I replied slightly out of breath, “I’m here for a hearing or something.”

 

“A disciplinary hearing?” the receptionist asked.

 

“Sure,” I answered, rolling my eyes. Were there really other kinds?

 

“Very good. Please take a seat and Mistress Annabelle will be with you shortly,” she replied, gesturing both cuffed hands towards the benches that ran along the entire length of the wall.

 

I walked over to the nearest bench seat and sat down, still shivering from the cold dank air. The receptionist returned to typing feverishly on her keyboard. I crossed my legs, attempting to cover myself as much as possible.

 

Less than a minute later, a loud buzzer sounded, causing the guards in the back of the room to enter the office. Moments later, they reappeared through the doorway dragging a naked bald guy in a red collar. He shouted into a large ball-gag, twisting and tugging to escape their grip, but the guards seemed relatively unfazed. Behind them followed Annabelle, dressed in a tight-fitting purple pantsuit.

 

“Don’t fight it, Mr. Leland. Be a good boy and you’ll find that a week in the kennel will go rather quickly,” Annabelle said patronizingly. She followed them as they walked past the front desk and exited the building. Leaning out the doorway, she shouted after him- “I’ll stop by in a few hours to make sure you’re settled in properly.”

 

With a satisfied grin, Annabelle let the door close and walked back to the semi-circled desk.

 

“Mistress,” the receptionist greeted her quietly, bowing her head.

 

Annabelle ignored her picking up the clipboard. “Who’s next?” She asked.

 

“Me,” I replied, standing to my feet. My face was expressionless and I attempted to look as tough as possible.

 

Turning toward me, Annabelle’s face suddenly lit up. “Miss O’Connell!” she replied. “Long time no see!”

 

 “What’s the deal with this?” I challenged, pointing to my collar.

 

“It’s only temporary, dear,” she replied. “I’ll remove it once you’ve signed our agreement.”

 

“Was it really necessary to *** me to come here naked?” I asked.

 

Annabelle paused and looked back at the clipboard in her hand. “Hannah, Is there a reason that Miss O’Connell’s name isn’t on the sign-in sheet?” She asked the receptionist, placing it in front of her.

 

“I’m… sorry, Mistress. I forgot to ask her to sign in,” the girl replied sheepishly.

 

Annabelle leaned forward, placing both hands on the desk. “You forgot?” she asked.

 

“Yes, Mistress,” the girl replied.

 

“What do you suppose might help you not forget in the future?” Annabelle asked, leaning forward and placing her hands on the desk.

 

The girl hesitated. “I don’t know, Mistress,” she answered quietly.

 

“I think I know just the thing that will help,” Annabelle answered. She reached forward and pressed a button on Hannah’s office phone. “Security, this is Annabelle. Please send a replacement for Hannah at reception.”

 

“Yes ma’am,” a male voice on the other end answered. “Do you have a preference for her replacement?”

 

“Uh, yes, actually. Shannon if she’s available.”

 

“Yes, ma’am,” the male voice replied.

 

“And please send a guard to escort Hannah to the kennel,” Annabelle added. “She’ll be spending the rest of her shift in corrections-“

 

“Oh good grief,” I said, storming over to the desk. Annabelle’s eyebrows raised in surprise as I grabbed a pen and scribbled my fake name on the sign-in sheet. “She didn’t forget to ask me. I refused.”

 

Annabelle stared at me for a moment, contemplating her next words. “Is this true, Hannah?” She asked.

 

The girl named Hannah hesitated, her eyes glancing nervously back and forth from me to Annabelle. Then she gave a slight nod. “Yes, Mistress,” she whispered.

 

Annabelle and I continued staring at each other until the male voice on the phone interrupted us, “Um, is that all ma’am?”

 

After a pause, a sinister smile came across Annabelle’s face. “Yes,” she answered. “In fact, please inform Shannon that she will be my new acting secretary. Hannah has been reassigned.”

 

“Yes ma’am,” the voice replied, followed by a click and dial tone.

 

“Oh come on,” I interjected. “I just told you that it was my fault. You don’t have to be a bitch.”

 

“Hannah, repeat after me,” Annabelle said coldly, still staring at me. “Miss O’Connell-“

 

The girl stared down at the desk and softly replied, “Miss O’Connell-”

 

“Thanks to your insubordination-” Annabelle continued.

 

“Thanks to your insubordination-” Hannah repeated.

 

“I have lost a coveted desk job that I worked very hard for.”

 

“I have lost a coveted desk job that I worked very hard for.”

 

“You may have thought that you were helping me by lying on my behalf-”

 

“You may have thought that you were helping me by lying on my behalf-”

 

“-but you have actually made my circumstances much… much worse.”

 

“-but you have actually made my circumstances much much worse.”

 

The girl’s voice was now shaky and it sounded as if she was now on the verge of tears. I glared silently into Annabelle’s eyes, feeling my face flush with anger.

 

“What was originally set to be a mere two hours of corrections-” Annabelle continued.

 

“What was originally set to be a mere two hours of corrections-” the girl echoed.

 

“-has now become 24 hours in the kennel.”

 

“Please, Mistress- I didn’t mean to-” Hannah interjected softly.

 

“-has now become 48 hours in the kennel,” Annabelle corrected herself.

 

Hannah took a deep sigh and continued, “-has now become 48 hours in the kennel.”

 

“Followed by a permanent reassignment as…” Annabelle tilted her head, staring off into the distance in thought, “resident at the Laughing Place”.

 

Hannah began to whimper. “Please no,” she begged in a whisper.

 

“Finish it,” Annabelle ordered ***fully.

 

Hannah continued, now in tears, “Followed by a permanent reassignment as resident at the Laughing Place.” Hannah sobbed and hung her head in misery.

 

From behind me, I heard the wooden door creak open. A security guard escorted a young petite Indian woman to stand next to us.

 

“Guard, please see that Hannah finds her way to the kennel,” Annabelle said. “I’ll be along shortly to see that she’s processed and settled in.”

 

“This isn’t necessary,” I said ***fully, “She didn’t do anything wrong!”

 

Annabelle’s finger suddenly shot up to my face. “Another word and her kennel visit turns into a week.”

 

I could do nothing but grit my teeth and scowl. I couldn’t ever remember hating someone so much. She was torturing this poor girl just to hurt me. After witnessing me vouch for Katie last night, she had obviously realized that I was an empathetic person. And now, she was using that against me…

 

The guard grabbed Hannah by the arm and pulled her to her feet.

 

“I’m sorry, Mistress,” she said through tears as she was tugged away to the door. Annabelle ignored her as she walked past

 

A few moments later, both Hannah and the guard disappeared through the door and into the rain. The girl named Shannon sat down in the empty seat behind the desk without saying anything.

 

“If I remember correctly, poor Hannah had only one request listed on her application. Please no tickling.” Annabelle gave an exaggerated shudder. “She’s not going to enjoy the Laughing Place.” Then, Annabelle turned her gaze back to me. “Okay!” she said, cheerfully, as if nothing had happened. “Follow me to my office.”

 

She promptly turned and walked toward the office door. I followed slowly, shocked at how someone could turn such cruelty on and off with such ease. This woman had to be the closest thing I’d ever witnessed to downright evil.

 

We made our way to the end of the hallway where Annabelle opened the door and motioned me inside. Trying my best to appear confident, I walked in without hesitation. Annabelle closed the door behind me and crossed to the tall leather chair behind her desk.

 

I had no choice but to stand facing opposite her, seeing as how there was no chair for me to sit in. I imagine this was intentional to *** her guests to stand in her presence.

 

 “You’re an enigma, Miss O’Connell,” Annabelle continued, lifting her spectacles to her face and looking at her computer screen. “Looking at your records from last year, I see that your previous owner graded you highly submissive. ‘A natural-born subbie,’ he writes. ‘Never resists, never talks back, never objects. A true slave at heart.’” Annabelle looked up from her computer and studied me. “It almost as if he’s describing an entirely different person…”

 

My heart skipped beat as I felt a pit form in my stomach. Did she know that I wasn’t actually Jodie? I held my breath, attempting to appear as expressionless as humanly possible. “People change,” I replied.

 

Annabelle stared back at me and said nothing for several seconds. I could feel my heart pounding in my chest. My mind raced, suspecting the worst.

 

“Clearly,” she finally replied, breaking her stare with me. “Well, whatever the reason is behind your new misguided sense of self-worth, I’m thoroughly looking forward to being done with it.” She picked up a folder on her desk and slid it toward me. I stepped forward and picked it up.

 

“Inside are transfer documents for Ms. Brandy Michaels,” she said. “Once you’ve signed on the last page, she’ll be transferred into my custody.”

 

“And Katie?” I replied as I opened the folder.

 

“Yes,” Annabelle said, removing her spectacles and leaning back in her desk chair, “Katie Huff… After several hours of research and legal consultation, I’m afraid that there is… no mechanism in place for directly transferring Miss Hoff into your custody.”

 

“What?” I challenged, blinking dumbfounded at her. “We had an agreement-”

 

“I’m aware of what we agreed to, but I misspoke,” Annabelle replied, almost sounding exhausting. “I’ve looked into every possible option and believe me when I say-”

 

“That’s just it. I don’t believe you,” I cut her off. “Look, it’s a simple trade. Brandy for Katie. It’s what you agreed to.”

 

“The problem…” she began, taking a breath to seemingly compose her impatience, “-is that she is not mine to trade. She is not anybody’s to trade.”

 

“Oh for fuck’s sake,” I replied. “Then, don’t trade her to me. Just let her come stay with me. I don’t give a shit about custody.”

 

“That’s not possible,” Annabelle answered.

 

“Why?” I challenged.

 

“Because she has already been tried, convicted, and sentenced for being in possession of illicit ***,” she explained. “She pleaded guilty in front of our magistrate and was sentenced to 21 days in corrections.”

 

I stared at her with my jaw open. This was all so absurd! “So, you’re telling me that there’s no way to commute her sentence? She’s just stuck in the kennel for the next month?” I asked.

 

“There is a way,” Annabelle answered. “But it would require her officially change her status from a staff member to contestant.

 

“So, what’s the problem?” I asked.

 

“The problem is that she did not participate in the hunt,” Annabelle fired back in an aggressive voice. “She wasn’t a contestant during the hunt. Therefore, having never been captured, she cannot be treated as property. If she were a contestant who’d been caught, she could be traded. If she’d been collected by a gamesman, we’d have been happy to trade her to you. But she doesn’t belong to us. And even if she became a contestant at this point, she still wouldn’t be ours to trade.”

 

“This is so fucked up,” I muttered, stroking my hair out of my face and staring at the ceiling.

 

“Believe it or not, these rules were put in place to shield employees from unwilling enslavement by their superiors. They protect the staff from being traded or gifted against their will,” Annabelle explained.

 

I simply stood there in silence, staring at the ceiling in disbelief.

 

Annabelle finally broke the silence. “According to our attorneys, there’s only one solution to this predicament.”

 

I looked back at her, waiting for her to explain. “Which is…”

 

“Katie would need to officially become a contestant…” Annabelle paused before finishing with, “And submit herself into the auction this evening. At that point, you would have the opportunity to her.”

 

“What?” I spat incredulously. Annabelle simply stared back at me with her hands crossed on the desk in front of her. “No way! Are you serious? I’m not gonna let Katie be auctioned off. Are you crazy? What happens if I lose?!”

 

“Then she’d belong to someone else,” Annabelle replied matter-of-factly. “But that’s unlikely, given your newly acquired fortune. The most any contestant has ever been auctioned for is 800 grand. And let’s just say that she was significantly more endowed than Miss Huff.”

 

“This is so fuckin’ ridiculous,” I said, rubbing my forehead in thought. “There has to be another way.”

 

“There’s not,” Annabelle replied bluntly. “If you want Katie, this is your only option.” I shook my head in disbelief.

 

Annabelle waited patiently as her words sunk in. “So, what’s it gonna be?” she asked.

 

“Hold up-” I replied suddenly, stepping toward her and placing my hands on the desk. “If you’re telling me that I’m going to need to essentially Katie at the auction, why would I ever sign Brandy over to you? What kind of deal is that?”

 

“You’ll sign over Brandy to me because if you don’t, I won’t authorize Katie’s status change. You won’t be able to bid on her tonight because she won’t be eligible to be auctioned off. She’ll be ***d to serve out the entirety of her 21-day sentence in the kennel and you’ll remain on probation for the next 42 hours.”

 

I scowled at her and opened my mouth to object.

 

“Careful-” Annabelle interrupted before I could utter a word. “Your mouth has gotten you into trouble at every turn. Contrary to what you might believe, I’ve bent over backwards to make this deal for you. It’s not the solution you dreamt of, but it’s all you’ve got if you want your girl.”

 

She was right. My impulses to mouth off really hadn’t benefited me up to this point. In fact, they’d mostly managed to cause more trouble for everyone… As much as I hated to admit it, my smart-assery wasn’t helping anyone. I needed to start choosing my battles more wisely.

 

“Sign the paper, Jodie,” Annabelle pressed, holding out a pen. I hesitated, studying the pen in her outstretched hand.

 

“Can I at least talk to Katie?” I asked. “So I can tell her what’s happening?”

 

“I’m afraid not,” Annabelle replied. “But I give you my word that I’ll explain everything to her.”

 

This was all so backwards. Nothing had panned out the way I’d hoped it would. I was essentially giving Brandy to her for free! Had I taken Annabelle up on her offer two days ago, I could’ve made out like a bandit. Now, I was getting nothing. Nothing except for turning Katie into an auction item. I felt sick.

 

Annabelle sighed, visually growing impatient. “Yes or no, Jodie. I’ve got a busy day and simply cannot spend any more time on this.”

 

Holding my breath, I grabbed the paper and signed my fake signature on the back page of the document. My hand shook as I handed the paper back to her.

 

“Alright,” Annabelle replied with a smile on her face. “While I can’t say it was a pleasure doing business with you, it’s certainly been memorable.” She stood to her feet and held out her smartphone toward my neck. I flinched, untrustingly.

 

“I’m removing your collar, silly,” Annabelle cooed. “Relax.”

 

I leaned forward slightly so Annabelle’s phone could reach. As soon as contact was made with my collar, I felt the mechanisms release and the straps loosen around my neck. I quickly pulled it free and placed it on the table in front of her.

 

“Here’s hoping our paths needn’t cross anymore,” Annabelle said, grabbing the discarded collar.

 

“Agreed,” I muttered as I turned my head to leave.

 

“Ah, one more thing,” Annabelle interjected. “I actually have a favor to ask.”

 

A favor? This woman had to be delusional if she thought that I had any interest in doing anything for her. I turned toward her with one eyebrow cocked.

 

“Well, it’s more of a quid pro quo, really,” Annabelle replied, sitting back down in her chair. If you agree, I’d be willing to schedule Katie for an auction slot toward the end of the night. Slaves in the third group tend to go for significantly less *** than the others. You could save thousands.”

 

“What d’you want me to do?” I interjected bluntly.

 

Annabelle leaned back, crossing her legs confidently. “Seeing as you’re the first champion we’ve ever had, a lot of this is unchartered territory. Some in the events committee thought it would be a nice if you came onstage to accept an award as champion and answered a few questions.”

 

“No,” I replied instantly, chuckling in disbelief. “Not a chance.”

 

“That’s fine,” Annabelle replied loftily. “Just know that there’s no guarantee that you’ll win Katie if she’s auctioned in the first group. Big spenders like to early in the evening.” My eyes narrowed as I stared at her.

 

“You told me I had nothing to worry about,” I countered. “I thought nobody’s ever gone for more than 800 thousand.”

 

“That’s true,” Annabelle said, casually inspecting her fingernails. “I just wanted to point out that Katie would be considerably safer in group three as opposed to group one. And you’d also save some ***. I’d hate for Katie to go home tonight with some sex-craved pervert because you had a bit of stage fright.” Annabelle shrugged and turned toward her computer screen. “But it’s up to you. It was just a thought.”

 

I stared at her, my mind reeling. Dammit! I hated how this woman always managed to have the upper hand! The last thing I wanted to do was go up onstage and be interviewed in front of god-only-knows how many people.

 

“What kinds of questions would I be asked?” I asked begrudgingly, rolling my eyes.

 

“I have no clue,” Annabelle replied, tapping away on her keyboard as if she’d already lost interest. “Shouldn’t be more than a few minutes worth, I’m guessing. Like I said, this would be the first time it’s been done. You’re kind of the guinea pig.”

 

After a brief pause, I spat “Fine,” and looked away, both irritated at my acquiescence as well as my likening to a fucking rodent.

 

Annabelle stopped typing and looked back at me pleasantly from her computer. “Delightful,” she replied. “I’ll have your belongings returned to your suite asap. Be at the stadium no later than 5:00 for pre-show set-up, and I’ll make sure that Katie’s placed in auction group three. This’ll be fun!”

 

“Loads,” I muttered, turning and walking away.

 

Pulling open the door, Annabelle called after me, “Oh- and use your Irish accent tonight. Your American’s good but it sounds a bit ***d. Your Irish tongue is much more natural. The guests’ll love it.”

 

Shit, my Irish accent. I hadn’t thought to use my accent in days. Luckily, my cover appeared to have remained intact. So much, in fact, that my American accent sounded ***d.

 

Without saying another word, I exited her office, walking briskly past the new receptionist and into the pouring rain. I took a moment to gather my thoughts. Stark naked, I stood there, allowing the rain to wash over me. I felt dirty after all the concessions I’d made. Nothing so far had turned out the way I’d hoped it would. I needed to get back to the suite. Take a shower. Clear my head. Be rid of the insanity for a while.

 

I was ped out of my pity party by wolf-whistles from the castle cross-bridge above me. I craned my head up to see two men in ponchos leaning over the handrail, staring down at me. Willing myself to honor my new vow to choose my battles more wisely, I merely turned and walked away. They continued whistling and taunting me as I climbed the ramp and disappeared behind the castle wall.

 

A few minutes later, I was climbing the steps of my suite. I was so lost in thought that I didn’t even notice Eric and June standing at the landing, staying dry beneath the stoop of my front door.

 

“There she is!” Eric said cheerfully. June bowed her head as I approached. “Aaand she’s naked,” he added.

 

“Very astute of you,” I said dryly as I brushed by him.

 

“I’ll bet there’s an interesting story behind that,” Eric said chuckling.

 

“You’d win that bet,” I answered, swiping my key card through the pad on the door. “What can I do for you, Eric?”

 

“We were actually wondering if we could entice you with a Philly cheesesteak,” he began before taking a pause. “-in exchange for the use of your pool?” He waived a long paper-wrapped sandwich in the air. “They closed the lake because of the thunder.”

 

“Ugh, that sounds delicious… but not today,” I replied, opening the door. “You seriously wouldn’t believe what I’ve been through over the last 24 hours.”

 

Eric laughed, “This is the kingdom. I can imagine.”

 

Stepping inside, I turned to face the two of them. “I’m sorry, I just have to be alone for a bit.”

 

 “No worries, I understand” He said, holding up his free hand. “Here-” he offered forward the cheesesteak. “Consider it a rain-check.”

 

Giving a weak smile, I took the rolled up sandwich from him. “Thanks.” I hadn’t eaten anything all day and I really was starving.

 

“Make sure you share with the blonde,” Eric said as he turned to leave.

 

“Yeah… that won’t be possible,” I replied. “Brandy’s gone.”

 

Spinning back around, Eric raised his eyebrows. “Seriously? What happened?”

 

“I’ll explain it all to you later,” I answered. Eric stared at me, clearly unwilling to leave without the details. “I promise.”

 

“You better,” Eric said, pointing his finger at me before turning back around to descend the staircase.

 

As he and June walked away, I noticed they’d left a large black suitcase on the stoop.

 

“You left your bag,” I called to them.

 

“That’s not ours,” Eric replied. “It was sitting there when we got here.”

 

I stepped toward the suitcase, studying it suspiciously. It was a hard suitcase with wheels on the bottom, roughly 3 feet in height. I guessed that it probably contained my stuff that was taken from the suite last night.

 

“Stay out of trouble!” Eric called from the bottom of the stairs. I playfully flashed him a middle finger before grabbing the handle of the suitcase and dragging it over the threshold of the door.

 

Kicking the door closed behind me, I rolled the suitcase into the foyer and left it upright next to the entry table. I then proceeded to unwrap and devour my cheesesteak.

 

I couldn’t remember ever eating something so delicious. Thinking back, I really hadn’t eaten anything in 24 hours…

 

Breathing heavily through my nose as I chewed, I suddenly realized how badly I smelled. I guess that’ll happen when you’re held prisoner in a humid holding cell and ***d to have endless orgasms… Even after the rain had rinsed me off, I could still feel the layer of sweat that had coated my body hours earlier.

 

Within minutes, I’d scarfed down my sandwich and was stepping eagerly into the walk-in shower. I cranked the water to near scalding and sat down on the tiled floor. It felt amazing. I don’t think I moved from that position for over 20 minutes.

 

When I could no longer justify the excess waste of water, I exited the shower, wrapped my hair in a towel, and climbed back into bed for a power nap. The LED clock on the nightstand now read 4:23pm. Not trusting myself to wake up on my own in time for pre-show set-up, or whatever that meant, I set the alarm for 4:45pm.

 

Rolling over, I pulled the covers over me and curled into fetal position. Not surprisingly, my fondest moments over the past several days had all been found in the solitude of my bed. After tonight, I silently vowed to stay refined to the suite for a solid week. No good had come of venturing outside.

 

My peace and quiet lasted approximately 10 seconds until I suddenly heard a knock at the door. Groaning, I rolled over onto my stomach and slammed the pillow over my head. To my frustration, however, the knocking didn’t cease. Nearly a minute later, whoever was at the door still hadn’t gotten the clue.

 

“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me!” I said out loud, kicking the covers off of me and scrambling furiously to my feet. I stormed to the front door and yanked it wide open, unapologetically nude with one hand on my hip. “What?!” I shouted.

 

Standing in the doorway was a security guard holding several garment bags.

 

“I was ordered to drop off your clothes,” he answered awkwardly, holding them out to me. “Everything’s been washed and dry-cleaned,” I grabbed them from him.

 

“Also, you’ve been requested to wear this for your appearance on stage this evening,” he added, nodding to the see-through garment bag on top. I fought the urge to cuss as I laid eyes on a skimpy purple dress and black wedge heels dangling from the hanger.

 

“And I’m guessing that request isn’t actually a request,” I asked dryly.

 

“I couldn’t tell you, ma’am,” the guard answered shortly.

 

“Of course not. Thank you,” I added sarcastically before abruptly closing the door in his face. I knew I was acting like a bitch, but I sincerely felt that I had every reason to do so. Not only was I basically being blackmailed into going on stage tonight, but now was being made to dress up.

 

As I turned to walk back toward the bedroom, my eyes suddenly caught the large black suitcase that I’d pulled inside earlier. Then, it dawned on me- if I was holding my clothes, what was in the suitcase?

 

Tossing the garment bags on the entry table, I knelt to the ground and laid the suitcase down long-ways. Pressing on the latch buttons on either side did nothing. I guessed that it had something to do with the 3-digit combination lock next to each latch. Both locks were set to 000. My curiosity ended up getting the better of me and I spent the next 10 minutes testing out random number combinations.  

 

To my frustration, I suddenly realized that I’d blown my opportunity to get a power nap. Glancing toward the kitchen, I could just make out 4:36 on the microwave’s clock. “Dammit!” I said out loud, pushing the suitcase away with my feet. After a deep sigh, I decided to bite the bullet and just get myself ready for the auction. The thought of attending, let along speaking at this thing made my skin crawl.

 

I stood up and removed the purple dress and heels from the garment bag. Pulling the towel from my head, I begrudgingly stepped into the dress. It felt very expensive. Walking into the bathroom, I zipped it up from the back and gave a small twirl. To my pleasant surprise, it didn’t look completely ridiculous. It was flowier than I thought and the shade of purple even complimented my red hair (which was rare for me). Not that I cared about looking good for any of these assholes, but it was a confidence booster to feel classy for a change.

 

I slipped on the wedge heels, gurgled some mouthwash, and tossed my hair over my shoulder. And with that, I was ready to go. With my key card and phone in hand, I headed out the front door.

 

To my relief, it had stopped raining and the setting sun was now peaking through the clouds. The square was now filled with people. As I looked around, I suddenly didn’t feel so out of place. Most of the men wore black suits and sports jackets and the women accompanying them were dressed similarly to how I was. With exception to the collars, leashes, gags, and restraints, of course. The entire street leading down to the stadium was decked out in lights and Gatsby-style decorations. A string-quartet was playing in the circle and waitresses in black mingled throughout the crowd delivering glasses of Champagne. Clearly, they were trying to offset the creepiness of hosting a slave auction by branding it as a classy affair.

 

I could feel people staring up at me as I descended the stairs of the castle. I avoided eye contact with anyone and pulled out my phone to give me an excuse to keep my head down. Even though none of these people were Renn Faire regulars, I couldn’t help ***ing that at any moment, someone might pop out of the crowd and say, ‘Ally?! Oh my gosh, what are you doing here?!’

 

Weaving through the crowd, I s***d-walked down Centre-street, finding it difficult to maintain my balance on the cobblestone street in my wedge heels. At the first opportunity, I snagged a Champagne glass from one of the waitresses holding a tray. I downed it in a single gulp and returned it to the tray. Another four of those, and the night might actually be semi-tolerable, I thought…

 

Eventually, I arrived at the front of the stadium where several lines had formed behind the turnstile gates. They weren’t letting people in yet. I walked up towards the front of the line to speak to the security guards that stood at attention.

 

“Excuse me, I’m speaking or… presenting or something tonight. Do you know where I’m supposed to go?” I asked in my Irish accent. I figured now was as good a time as any to get into character.

 

“Do you have your key card?” the closest guard asked in reply.

 

I held it out to him and he scanned it with his cell-phone.

 

“Okay Miss O’Connell, right this way please,” he said, stepping in front of the first guest and gesturing for me to enter through the turnstile. “You’ll be headed to Green Room A. Once you head up the stairs, you’ll want to turn right and continue-”

 

“I know where it is, thanks,” I cut him off as I walked through the turnstile. The green rooms were places on either side of the stage where performers hung out and prepped prior to a performance.

 

The Gatsby-style decorations from Centre Street continued into the stadium. Throughout the lobby and down the side wings were lavish tables covered with desserts and hor d’oeuvres. Other than a few waitresses that were arranging the tables, the stadium was empty. The wooden Renaissance-style chandeliers had been replaced with golden and crystal ones. I hated admitting it to myself, but the transformation really was magnificent. Walking down the stretch of hallway, I grabbed several hor d’oeuvres as I passed them. As good as the cheesesteak was, I was still pretty hungry. At the end of the hallway, I grabbed another glass of Champagne from a table. So long as I kept hydrated, things were gonna be just fine, I told myself.

 

When I reached Green Room A, I walked in to find about a dozen men dressed in black jeans and t-shirts wearing headsets. Most were standing around chatting while others were sitting on the couches playing on their phones. Several men in tuxedos sat in the swivel chairs facing the mirror and had women assisting them, either by fixing their hair or applying make-up.

 

One of the men wearing a headset called over to me. “Jodie O’Connell?”

 

“Present,” I answered, raising my glass in the air. To my surprise, everyone in the room turned to look at me and began applauding.

 

Already feeling the satisfying effects of the alcohol, I responded by giving a little curtsy. The man who called my name walked up to me. He to be in his early 30’s and had wavy, bleach-blond hair. He also appeared to be wearing eyeliner.

 

“Welcome!” He said effeminately. “We’re so excited that you agreed to do this!”

 

“That makes one of us,” I said sarcastically with a fake smile.

 

“Oh, I promise it’ll be ***less,” he said quickly, placing his hand on my arm. “We’ll get you on stage, hand you a trophy, ask you a few questions, and then you’ll be on your way. Sound good?”

 

“Yay,” I answered, taking another drink of Champagne. I could definitely feel the alcohol having its effect on me. This was good.

 

“Follow me over to our beauty station,” he said, pulling me by the hand towards one of the unoccupied swivel chairs on the opposite sides of the room. If it weren’t for the fact that this guy was almost certainly gay, I’d have yanked my hand away from him immediately. But I always did have a soft spot for gay and trans guys.

 

“Go ahead and have a seat,” he said. I sat down, facing the mirror, tossing my phone and key card on the counter in front of me. “Once Tina’s done with Mr. Aims, she’ll fix up your hair and make- You know what…” he turned and called across the room to where the men in tuxedos were getting made up. “Tina, take your time. I’ll take over for Jodie here.” He turned back to me. “This hair is just too stunning to pass off to Tina. Are you a natural ginger?”

 

“Yep,” I replied.

 

“Me too!” he replied. “Obviously, I bleach, but I used to look perm it out like Annie straight through high school. I’m Angelo, by the way.”

 

Angelo? Yep, I thought. Definitely gay. “Nice to meet you, Angelo,” I replied.

 

“The pleasure’s mine,” he answered, running his hands through my hair.

 

“So, what brought you into the sex-slavery business?” I asked flippantly, not wanting to give him a complete pass just because of my affinity for gays.

 

“That, I’m afraid,” he replied lowering his voice, “-is a long story for another time. Ugh, I’m so jealous of this thick head of hair!” he continued. “You must get compliments constantly.”

 

“Only when I cosplay,” I said jokingly.

 

“I bet you do,” Angelo shot back. “Okay, I’m envisioning a sleek updo to show off that neck line of yours. What do you think?”

 

“Sure, knock yourself out,” I replied, finishing the last gulp of my Champagne. I had no idea what a sleek updo was, but more importantly, I didn’t care.

 

“Excellent,” Angelo replied as he attacked my hair with a large round brush. “And once we’re all done, I’m sure we can find you some jewelry to complete the ensemble. I’m guessing that accessories were the last thing you imagined you’d be needing at the Kingdom.”

 

“I’ve never been a jewelry kind of girl,” I replied.

 

“Of course you’re not. The pretty girls never need the same kind of glitz that we lessers do,” he answered, playfully hitting my shoulder. Okay, I officially liked Angelo. I could easily see myself having a girls’ night out with him.

 

Angelo continued chitchatting away while he worked on my hair. He was very good. I hadn’t gotten my hair professionally done since my senior prom. I couldn’t help but feel my confidence swell with each passing minute. After a solid 25 minutes of ironing, curling, bobby pinning, and hair spraying, my new do was complete. And it looked pretty fantastic. The make-up portion took considerably less time because I insisted on minimal application. I’d never been a big fan of make-up.

 

Angelo and I continued talking even after he’d finished. I was surprised by how starved I was for a bit of normal human interaction. I really hadn’t spoken casually to anyone in days.

 

“Miss O’Connell,” said a deep voice from behind Angelo. Angelo bowed slightly toward the voice and stepped away, giving me the impression that whoever this was, it must have been someone important. A suave looking man in a tuxedo stepped forward. He looked to be about 40 and had slicked back hair. “I’m Theo Collins. I’ll be the one presenting your award tonight.”

 

“Good to know,” I said with a fake smile.

 

Sitting down in the swivel chair next to me, he turned to face me. I continued facing straight-ahead, looking only at him through his reflection in the mirror. Noticing that I was not going to pay him the courtesy of looking at him directly, he swiveled his chair to face the mirror as well.

 

“So, basically, I wanted to give you a run-down of how this is going to work,” he began. “In a few minutes, I’ll welcome the guests over the loudspeaker. That’ll be your 15-minute call to places. At 6 o’clock, I’ll announce the start of the show. Dancers will perform a number and then I’ll take the stage to say a few words. After that, I’ll introduce you as our guest of honor. When you hear your name, you’ll come out from side-stage left and accept your award. From there, I’ll motion you to take a seat in opposite me-”

 

“Yeah,” I interrupted him. “I know how to walk across a stage and sit down. All I really need to know is what questions you’ll be asking me.”

 

The man named Theo blinked, clearly surprised by my tone. “Sure,” he replied awkwardly. “Well, for starters, I’ll ask you where you’re from, and what prompted you to visit the Kingdom for a second year. I’ll also ask you about your experiences during the hunt. What you were feeling. What was going through your mind. Those kinds of things.”

 

“Got it,” I replied, standing to my feet.

 

“And after that, we’ll both stand up and you’ll ex-” Theo continued

 

“If you mansplain to me how to walk off a stage, I’m gonna slap you,” I said to him.

 

Theo looked away, placing both hands up in the air defensively.

 

“I’ll just see you out there,” he said, clearly perturbed.

 

Leaving my belongings on the counter, I turned and walked back toward the door I’d entered through. I needed another glass of Champagne. When I reached the door, I heard Angelo call after me.

 

“Hold it, ginger spice!” Angelo was jogging up to me holding a gold necklace and earrings. “Try these on.”

 

“Beautiful,” I replied. “Love the necklace, but I’m gonna pass on the earrings.”

 

Angelo sighed dramatically, pocketing the earrings. “Not a makeup girl, not an earring girl, you’re killing me, you know that?” He stepped behind me and wrapped the necklace over my chest. “Now, don’t you go pawning this off. It’s was my mom’s.”

 

“Woah… really?” I asked, suddenly feeling both touched and uncomfortable to be wearing a family heirloom.

 

“Oh, she’s not dead or anything. It was my mom’s, as in, before I took it from her jewelry box when I was 9,” he added, making me snort with laughter. I felt him lock the clasp in the back. “Where are you off to, by the way?” he asked.

 

“Getting more Champagne,” I replied with a grin. “Want some?”

 

“Yes please,” he whispered, squeezing my arm. “Just don’t wander off too far. You’ve only got about 15 minutes til you need to get mic’d and preset.”

 

“20 minutes, got it,” I said playfully with a wink.

 

“You’re bad!” he clapped back as I exited into the stadium wing.

 

The wide hallway was now filled with people and jazz music piped loudly through the speakers. Like the scene on Centre Street, waitresses meandered through the masses with trays of Champagne.

 

I wasted no time making my way to the nearest Champagne waitress and grabbing another glass. With one hand, I sipped away at my liquid confidence and with the other hand, I filled a plate with several mini cheesecake squares. The biggest plus about my flowy dress was it’s forgiving qualities. I didn’t have to worry about starving myself in order to hide my stomach.

 

I walked around for the next 10 minutes, trying out as many different desserts as I could and drinking my Champagne. I was officially tipsy at this point.

 

After the man named Theo had given an announcement from the stage, people had begun to filter into the arena towards their seats. The program was getting close to starting. Grabbing two more glasses, one for me and another for Angelo, I decided to head back to the green room.

 

Reentering the green room, I walked back over to my hair and makeup station to grab my phone. Then, I heard Angelo’s voice call out to me.

 

“There she is, right on time! Jodie, this way please!” Angelo was standing by the stage door and was waving his hand for me to join him. I joined him next to a cart filled with electronics and batteries. “Stage left, copy,” Angelo said into his headset.

 

“This is for you,” I said, handing him the glass of Champagne.

 

“Oh my god, you’re amazing,” he whispered, grabbing the glass and downing it quickly. “Fuuuck, that’s good. Okay,” he added, changing gears, “-let's get you mic’d up. Turn around for me please?”

 

Everything Angelo did felt needlessly rushed. If it weren’t for the fact that he was so likeable, he’d really be stressing me out. I turned and felt him attaching a mic pack to the back of my dress. Next, I felt him running a cord up my neck and over my ear.

 

After applying a few strips of tape to my neck and temple, he spoke into his headset, “Mic check ready for guest 1.” And then he gave me a nod. “Say a few words please.”

 

“Um… fuck fuckity fuck. Fuckity fuck-fuck.” I replied.

 

“Perfect,” Angelo said, taking me by the arm and leading me through the stage door. “You are aaall fucking set.”

 

We entered the wing of the stage and stopped just short of the closed red curtains. Dozens of scantily clad women dolled up in feathers could be seen stretching and warming up on the stage. On the other side of the curtain, I could hear the murmur of the crowd filling the arena.

 

“Okay,” Angelo said, breaking the silence. “You can hang out here until I give you your cue to enter. But we’ve still got like 6, 7 minutes yet. How are you feeling? Nervous?”

 

I shrugged, taking the last swig of Champagne in my glass.

 

“Of course you’re not. You’re gonna slay,” he said, taking my empty glass from me. “Okay, wait here, I’ll be back before your entrance. Have any questions, just ask anyone who’s wearing Wal-Mart.” He said, motioning to his black t-shirt. Then, he turned and walked away.

 

I chuckled as I watched him s***d-walk back to the green room. What a quirky guy. Turning back around, I could see the man named Theo talking to stagehands and pointing to what looked to be a script. I decided to pull out my phone to pass the time.

 

A few minutes later, Angelo reappeared by my side. “Okay, you ready?” he asked.

 

“Yep,” I replied.

 

“Fantastic,” he said, lifting his hand up to his headset. “Guest 1 is go for places… Copy.” Then he gave two loud claps and called out, “Places everybody!!”

 

The women dressed in feathers quickly lined up across the stage, carrying a wooden chair with them and posing behind it. A few seconds later, the back stage lights dimmed and music began to play.

 

Theo Collins’ announcer-style voice suddenly echoed through the arena. “Gentlemen and ladies, we welcome you to an evening of fortune and prosperity. An evening where fantasies manifest and dreams come true. I give you… the 3rd annual Kingdom Slaaaave Auction!!”

 

The curtains suddenly opened and the dancers sprang into action. I could hear the crowd cheering as the women danced suggestively with their chair props. After two minutes of leaps and high-kicks, the song finally ended and the performers left the stage, leaving two chairs in the center.

 

“Okay,” Angelo said, turning to me and grabbing my phone. “I’ll hold this for you. Just be yourself and you’ll do great.” I flashed him a thumbs up, suddenly feeling a bit nervous. It was hardly the first time I’d appeared on this stage before, but the circumstances had certainly changed.

 

Theo Collins walked to center stage, thanking the performers and welcoming the crowd once again. “While I look around and see many familiar faces in this audience,” he began, “-this year also happens to be a year of firsts,” Theo explained. “One of the most exciting firsts, however, was the doing of a very special woman. A woman who overcame adversity with both bravery and cunning. I’d like to welcome to the stage, the Kingdom’s very first champion of the hunt- Jodie O’Connell!”

 

I stepped out from behind the curtain and was met with whistles and thunderous applause. The arena was packed. Not only were almost all of the seats filled, but the field level had been decked out with what looked like several hundred more chairs. I’d never seen so many people crammed in there before. I attempted a fake smile and gave a small wave.

 

But just then, as my shitty luck would have it, I felt my ankle roll to the side and I tumbled onto the stage. An audible gasp filled the area as I collided with the ground. Fuck!

 

“I’m okay!” I said, sticking my hand up in the ai9r. To my surprise, my voice echoed loudly throughout the arena, indicating that my mic was now hot. The audience laughed and cheered as I jumped quickly to my feet.

 

“And she’s up!” said Theo, laughing. “What a woman! Come take a seat. Quickly, before the stage attacks again!”

 

I walked over to the chair across from Theo, laughing politely at his lame-ass joke. We both took our seats.

 

“Jodie, thank you so much for joining us. You look lovely, by the way.” Theo said.

 

“Thank you,” I replied.

 

“How are you tonight? Besides any minor scs and bruises you got on your way in?” Theo asked.

 

“A bit tipsy,” I said. “As you might have guessed.”

 

“Look around. I think you’re in good company tonight,” he replied, garnering cheers from all the drunks in the audience. “Well, I’d like to first start by saying congratulations!”  

 

“Thanks,” I said politely.

 

“Nobody’s ever won the hunt before. You’re the very first! Tell me- how does it feel?” He asked.

 

“Good,” I replied shortly.

 

Theo paused, waiting awkwardly for me to collaborate, before replying. “Good. Well, there you have it, folks. It feels good. Thank you for coming tonight, Jodie. It was lovely to meet you. Please watch your step on the way out.”

 

I stood up and pretended to turn and leave.

 

“I’m kidding! I’m kidding,” Theo chided. “Sit down.” I took my seat again and crossed my legs. Theo leaned forward and continued, “So, I understand that this is your second year at the Kingdom, which means that you’ve experienced the hunt before. What was different about this time?”

 

“Um…” I replied. What was different? “Well, for one thing, I was in better shape this year. Actually made it to the gym a few times.” The audience’s laughter told me they bought my lie. “And I just really didn’t want to be someone’s bitch for the next three months,” I added.

 

Theo laughed. “I imagine that’s one hell of a motivator,” he replied. “Were you scared at all while you were out there? You strike me as a very confident woman. Did *** drive any of your decisions?”

 

“Adrenaline, sure,” I replied. “Not so much *** though.”

 

Theo nodded courteously. “Did you have any encounters while you were out there? Any run-ins with other contestants or hunters?”

 

“No, not really,” I lied. I wanted this interview to be over. “Just kept moving until I found two unlocking stations. It was pretty uneventful, actually.”

 

“Wow,” Theo replied. “A record number of hunters and contestants this year and you managed to make it through unnoticed. Remarkable.”

 

“I’m basically a ninja,” I said with a smile.

 

“Apparently!” Theo answered, laughing. “Now, tell me about your lovely accent. Where are you from?”

 

“I’m from Ireland,” I lied. “Born and raised.”

 

“Ireland! Quite a long way from home,” he replied. “What prompted you to visit the Kingdom?”

 

I lifted my hand and made the universal sign for rubbing *** together, which met the laughter of the crowd.

 

“***?!” Theo asked, leaning forward. “It wasn’t the sex?”

 

I shook my head no.

 

“The kink?” he asked

 

I shook my head no.

 

“The satisfaction of serving a male master?” He pressed, followed by cheers from the audience.

 

“Nope,” I answered. “Just the ***. There aren’t a whole lot of jobs that allow you to work 3 months out of the year and still be able to afford Gucci.” The audience roared with laughter.

 

“I would guess not!” Theo replied. “Very resourceful of you. Well, before we move on with the program, I have one more question for you.”

 

“What’s that?” I asked.

 

“Perhaps one of the best known perks of being champion of the hunt is having the privilege of staying at the luxurious castle suite.” To my surprise, this last statement was met with thunderous boos and hisses throughout the arena. I looked around in shock. I wasn’t expecting any boos tonight. “As you can see,” Theo continued, “-many are having difficulty being happy for you. Returning guests are aware that the castle suite is auctioned off each year. Last year, I believe it went for what- 2.7 million? So, my question for you is- when can we all come over for a pool party?” The boo’s suddenly changed from boos to cheers. “It seems rude for you to keep such an amenity all to yourself! Am I right, gang?” He asked the audience. More cheers filled the air.

 

Laughing politely, I replied, “Tell you what- if any you ladies out there would like come over for a bit of cock-free pool time, I’d be happy to give you refuge.” A mixture of laughter and groans filled the arena.

 

“Jodie O’Connell, everyone!” Theo said loudly, standing to his feet. The audience erupted into applause. Theo stepped over to me, presumably to give me a hug, but I stood and walked away before he had the chance. “Champion of the hunt!” he called after me. I waived politely to the audience as I exited the stage. Angelo was right where I’d left him, clapping and bouncing up and down like a kid.

 

“You were fucking amazing,” he said, wrapping his arm around me as if we’d known each other for years. “And the snub at the end was brilliant,” he added in a lower voice. “Theo’s a total dick.”

 

We walked over the green room entrance and he held the door open for me. “I’ve gotta stay backstage,” he said, handing me back my phone. “But you’re welcome to hang out here for as long as you’d like. Reji here will help you get out of your microphone.”

 

Suddenly, I jumped as I felt hands on my back.

 

“Sorry, just me,” I heard a man’s voice say. I turned my head to see a shorter guy in black undoing my mic pack.

 

“Jodie, Reji, Reji, Jodie,” Angelo introduced us. “Now you’re friends too. I’ve gotta run. If you’re around afterwards, we could go grab a drink. Totally up to you!”

 

“Maybe,” I replied. “Thanks for everything.”

 

“You bet,” he said, turning to leave. “And don’t lose my necklace!” The door shut behind him, leaving me alone with Reji. I’d almost forgot about the necklace. Oh well, I’d find a way to get it back to him.

 

“And, you’re set,” Reji said as he pulled the last bit of tape from my mic cord.

 

“Thanks,” I replied. “Sooo, I kind of promised someone that I’d bid on her tonight. How do I do that?”

 

“Oh,” Reji replied. “Um… I’m honestly not sure the bidding works. I think you use your keycard or something? I’d just ask an usher. They’ll know.”

 

“Right,” I replied. “Thanks.”

 

Grabbing my keycard from my hair and makeup station where I left it, I headed out into the stadium wing. Other than a few stragglers eating hor d’oeuvres, most guests appeared to have made their way into the arena. Walking toward the front entrance, I saw several female ushers standing along the wall.

 

“Great job up there,” one of them said upon seeing me.

 

“Oh, thanks,” I replied sheepishly. “Other than wiping out, you mean.”

“Nonsense,” she replied. “You did great. Can I help you find a seat?”

 

“Um, sure,” I answered. “I’m... actually clueless as to how this works? How do I bid?”

 

The woman explained, “So, once you’re seated, you’ll insert your keycard into the armrest of your chair which will activate a touchpad. That will allow you to place your bids.”

 

“Oh,” I replied. “That’s easy enough. How long does this typically go?”

 

“Well, the bidding just started, so I’d say about 3 hours,” the woman replied.

 

“Ugh, if that’s the case, I might wait out here for a bit. I was told that a friend of mine would be in the third group,” I explained. “Do you know when that’ll start?”

 

The woman cocked her head in confusion. “Third group?” she asked.

 

“Yeah,” I replied. “I was told that there’d be three groups? Third group candidates tend to go for less ***?”

 

“I’m sorry,” she said courteously. “I’m afraid I don’t know anything about that.”

 

It suddenly crossed my mind that Annabelle may have hustled me. Either this girl was clueless or I’d just been conned me into giving an onstage interview. Not wanting to risk missing Katie when she went up for auction, I decided not to wait outside.

 

“Never mind, I’ll grab a seat now,” I said, now finding myself in a terrible mood. Dammit I hated Annabelle!

 

“Okay, follow me please,” the woman said. I followed her through the large tunnel main that lead into the arena.

 

An auctioneer with a handlebar mustache now stood onstage behind a podium, speaking rapidly in monotone. Next to him was a naked brunette wearing only a collar, ballgag, armbinder, and a pair of silver high heels. There were giant projection screens on either side of the stage that displayed scoreboards of sorts. Each time someone placed a bit, the bidder’s name would appear on the screen along with a dollar amount next to it. The bids for the brunette were currently up to $47,000.

 

“This way, ma’am,” the usher said to me, ping me out of my gaze. I followed her up the stairs to an empty seat on the mezzanine level. I could feel people staring as I passed by. Clearly, people were recognizing me as the champion who’d just appeared on stage. Taking my seat, I proceeded to inspect my armrest.

 

Just as the usher had explained, the armrest of every chair now sported a card-slot and touchpad. How they’d installed new armrests in every seat since Nott’s Fair closed, I had no earthly idea. But upon closer inspection, I saw long grooves in the side where a cap must have once rested.

 

“No way,” I muttered in amazement, realizing that these contraptions must have been enclosed in a plastic casing the entire time. Ever since the new stadium had been built 5 years ago! How could I have been operations manager while so much was happening right under my nose?!

 

After I was finished marveling at my own stupidity, I inserted my keycard as the usher had explained. The touchpad screen beneath suddenly lit up with the words “Welcome to the Kingdom”. From there, the screen changed to my (Jodie’s) picture, along with her name.

 

“IS THIS YOU?” The screen read.

 

I pressed the “YES” button beneath.

 

From there, the screen changed to an image of the brunette on the stage. Beneath her picture was her name and statistics. I scrolled down on the touchpad, reading all about Erica Arbor. She was 27, 123 lbs, C-cup, brunette, hazel eyes, yada yada. Above her picture was a button that read “PLACE BID”. I straightened my finger, all-the-sudden paranoid that I’d accidentally press it.

 

But moments later, the button suddenly greyed out. I glanced up at the stage to see the word “SOLD” appear across both screens in big red letters.

 

“And soooold!” The auctioneer announced in his nasal monotone voice, pounding his gavel on the podium in front of him. “Sold to Larry Boyd for seventy-one thousand dollars. Congratulations, Larry.” There were some applause in the audience, but most just remained still, staring ahead at the stage.

 

Just then, I watched in confusion as the brunette began gliding across of the stage. She literally glided. Her legs weren’t moving, but she was moving toward the stage wing… I leaned forward in my seat, squinting to make sense of what I was looking at. A moment later, I understood. The woman name Erica was standing atop a circular metal platform no wider than three feet in diameter. Through the gap between her ankles, I could see a single metal pole protruding from the center of the platform.

 

My mouth dropped as I suddenly understood why the woman appeared to have such good balance as the platform glided quickly across the stage floor. The pipe extended upward from the platform all the way into her pussy. She was impaled! As I continued to stare, I could see that her silver high heels weren’t high heels at all. But they were, rather, steel boots attached to the platform that kept her on her tiptoes and unable to lift herself free. She was essentially locked in a standing position by a stationary dildo pole!

 

I was so busy ogling at Erica’s dildo contraption that I completely missed the next woman gliding to center stage. My touchpad suddenly changed from Erica’s information to stats for a blonde named Brooke Ganes’. Brooke was positioned on a dildo platform just as Erica had been.

 

“Aaand next, we’ve got Brooke Ganes. We’ll start the bidding at ten thousand. Ten thousand. Do I hear ten thousand. Do I hear fif*** thousand? Fif***? Fif***, fif*** thousand? Twenty thousand, twenty-five thousand-”

 

Names appeared on the mega-screens one below the other as the price tag climbed. I couldn’t help but stare at the gagged and restrained girl standing tiptoed atop her dildo prison.

 

Less than a minute later, Brooke had sold for $34,000. As twisted and fucked up as this all was, I couldn’t help but be impressed by the organization and execution of it all. Everything seemed so legit and sophisticated. Whoever was the brainchild behind this whole operation really had thought of everything.

 

I sat patiently as woman after woman was sold. Some went for as little as $17,000 while others sold for over 500,000. As the night went on, the crowd began to thin and more and more people began to leave the arena. This was good, I thought. By the time Katie came on the auction block, maybe there’d only be a handful of people left.

 

After all of those glasses of Champagne earlier, I suddenly realized how badly I had to take a ***. I crossed my legs and shifted in my seat, trying to relieve the pressure on my bladder. I could have gone to the restroom at any point during the last two and a half hours, but no. That would’ve made too much fucking sense. Now, I had to be miserable holding it until Katie came up.

 

Suddenly, the auctioneer broke from his routine to clear his throat and address the audience. “Gentlemen, please be advised that we have now reached our final 10 contestants. I repeat, there will only be 10 more contestants auctioned off this evening.”

 

I leaned forward, preparing myself for Katie’s entrance. I was suddenly extremely nervous. This was it. Looking around the arena, I could see that only about a third of the audience was still present.

 

As the bidding began for the first of the remaining 10 women, my heart suddenly dropped in my chest. The bids were high. Abnormally high, it seemed. The first woman was sold for $540,000. The second woman sold for $470,000. I was now all but certain that Annabelle had screwed me over. The higher spenders hadn’t favored the beginning of the evening as she claimed they would. Once the next woman sold for $615,000, it was now abundantly clear that the wealthiest bidders had waited until the very end to make their purchases. My face flushed with rage as I processed Annabelle’s con.

 

Of the last 9 contestants, the lowest bid had been $410,000. Some of these women weren’t even all that pretty! I was angry enough to spit nails. How could I have been foolish enough to take Annabelle at her word?!

 

But in a split second, my outrage ceased to be a priority. Because, suddenly gliding across the stage on a dildo-platform was the naked form of Katie. Her curly brown hair had been pulled back into a bun and she was no longer wearing her glasses. The poor girl looked genuinely terrified. My heart rate quickened as her smiling mug shot and name appeared on my touch screen.

 

“And for our final auction item of the evening, we have Katie Huff,” the auctioneer said. “We’ll begin the bidding at fifty thousand. Do I have fifty? Fifty? Sixty? Seventy? I see seventy, do I have eighty?” My heart was now racing. Less than 10 seconds in, and the bid was already to $100,000! Annabelle was such a BITCH for putting Katie last!

 

My hand trembled as I steadied my finger over the PLACE BID button. Suddenly terrified that my touchpad might not work, I tested out the button. The name JODIE O’CONNELL suddenly appeared on the board next to the numbers 110,000.

 

“One hundred ten!” the auctioneer said. “Do I have one-twenty? One-twenty? One-thirty! One-forty!”

 

Katie had her face craned up toward the screen on her right and was squinting to see the results. Half a minute later, the price had risen to $240,000. Another half minute later, it was at $320,000. Every so often, I placed another bid to remind Katie that I was still here. Although, given her squinting expression, I had no clue if she could even see my name up there.

 

As the number climbed higher, more and more people stood to their feet and made their way towards the exits of the arena. Eventually, the bidding slowed at around $670,000. I placed my bid at $680,000. I couldn’t believe the price had gotten so high! That’s not to say that Katie wasn’t attractive. To the contrary, I personally thought Katie was one of the prettier women I’d seen tonight. But she was also very petite and was considerably less curvy than some of the women with supermodel physiques that had sold earlier for half that amount.

 

“Six-ninety, six-ninety. Do I have six-ninety?” the auctioneer prodded. “Six-ninety going once… going twice…”

 

Suddenly, the numbers 690,000 appeared across the screen. The name next to it suddenly made me feel sick to my stomach. The name read Tom Murphy. Tom Murphy was the fucking machine guy who I’d publicly humiliated in Cedar Square only a few days earlier.

 

“Six-eighty to new bidder! Do I hear six-ninety?” I hesitated, unsure of how to proceed. Should I wait a few seconds? Did he know he was bidding against me? After about 5 seconds, I held my breath and pressed the button again.

 

“Six-ninety!” the auctioneer said. “Do I hear seven hundred?” Almost instantly, Tom Murphy’s name appeared on the screen again next to the number 710,000. “Seven hundred, do I have seven-ten?” I pressed the button again.

 

This back and forth continued for the next minute. Eventually, the auctioneer didn’t even have enough time to speak my bid out loud before Murphy had placed his counter-offer. I couldn’t believe what was happening. The bid was now up to $900,000! Murphy was clearly exacting his revenge on me. I was now sure of it. I was angry enough to scream. What made the whole situation unbearable was the fact that I’d indirectly brought this on myself. Had I just walked away from Murphy’s demonstration without incident, none of this might be happening. I silently cursed myself. I’d clearly ***ed off the wrong wealthy businessman…

 

I pressed the button again, raising my bid to $910,000. I contemplated what would happen if I reached a million. A million dollars was all I had! Less than that actually, after my clothing purchases. Was Murphy really vindictive enough to pay $1,000,000 for Katie in order to *** me off? Or was he just running up the price I’d pay out of spite?

 

I pressed the button again, raising my bid to $930,000. Murphy instantly countered to $940,000. The audience members that remained in the arena were now cheering. The loudest cheers seemed to be coming from the front left of the field level, seemingly where Murphy was seated. Looking closer, I could make out the back of Murphy’s bald head on the front row. Bastard!

 

My heart raced as I raised the bid to $950,000. Then $970,000. Then $990,000. I had bid nearly a million dollars! A million dollars! The thought of me spending that much *** on anything was unthinkable, let alone on a slave…

 

Suddenly, my worst ***s became realized as I watched Tom Murphy’s name appear next to the numbers 1,000,000. The remaining audience went crazy.

“ONE MILLION DOLLARS!” the auctioneer yelled. “The first time in Kingdom history, a slave has broken the one million dollar barrier!”

 

Katie looked terrified as she squinted up at the screen on her right. I took a deep breath as my mind raced. Now what?!

 

“Do I have a million-ten?!” the auctioneer asked excitedly. “A million-ten?”

 

I felt like I was gonna throw up. I had to keep going. I had no idea how I’d ever pay back the ***, but I couldn’t allow Katie to leave with this monster! I had no choice but to keep bidding. I held my breath and pressed the button.

 

Nothing happened. I pressed it again. Nothing... Glancing down at the touchpad, my heart suddenly sank as I saw that the PLACE BID button had greyed out. Beneath the button was now a pop-up notice that read “INSUFFICIENT FUNDS”. The audience was now chanting “Million-ten! Million-ten!” egging me on to raise the bid. I glanced back up at the stage in ***.

 

“Do I have a million-ten?” the auctioneer repeated.

 

“Wait-” I yelled, standing to my feet. I had to raise the bid somehow.

 

“Going once…” he said, either ignoring or not hearing my outburst.

 

“Wait! I’m out of funds!” I pleaded.

 

“Going twice,” the auctioneer continued.

 

“Hold-up!! How do I add more funds?!!” I screamed.

 

“Aaaand SOLD!!!” the auctioneer yelled, landing his gavel on the podium in front of him. “Sold to Tom Murphy for the low price of one Million dollars!! Congratulations, Tom!”

 

Katie’s expression, as she glided across the stage, was one of horror. She glanced frantically between the mega-screen and the auctioneer, pleading desperately into her ball-gag. But nobody seemed to notice or care.

 

“I’d like to thank everyone for joining us tonight,” the auctioneer said. “Congratulations to all item winners! Once again, purchased slaves will be delivered between the hours of 11pm and midnight tonight. So please be present at your residence during that time.”

 

The auctioneer continued talking, but I’d tuned him out. Unable to divert my attention elsewhere, I watched a smiling Murphy stand to his feet. Several men around him shook his hand in congratulations.

 

Without thinking, I suddenly found myself storming down the staircase and onto the field level. I couldn’t let Murphy get away with this. I ran toward the front section where Murphy was, fists clenched.

 

“Hey!” I screamed from about 50 yards away. Several people, including Murphy turned to look at me. “What the hell is wrong with you?!!” I shouted at him. Despite the fact that my attitude and temper had landed me in all sorts of trouble up to this point, I wasn’t able to contain myself this time. I also felt that he needed to know just how livid I was.

 

“Miss O’Connell!” Murphy said to me, as I stormed over to him. A wide grin had spread across his face. “How unexpected of you to come over here.” This was met with chuckles from those around him.

 

It wasn’t until that moment that I noticed Tasha kneeling on the ground next to him. She was leashed and wore a skin-tight outfit that resembled the red female body armor from the movie, Black Panther. Murphy was still clearly pushing the race card and using it against her. Tasha was ring-gagged and her arms were secured over her head with her tied wrists attached to the back of her collar. As her eyes met mine, I saw a flash of resentment streak across her face. Yep, she definitely recognized me from the hunt...

 

“I said-” I repeated, directing my focus back to Murphy, “-What the hell is wrong-”

 

“With me,” Murphy finished. “Yeah, I heard the question. Well, you’re gonna have to be more specific,” he continued. “I’m afraid my answer would take all night to explain to you. That’s actually an invitation, by the way,” he added. “Come spend the night and I’ll tell you everything.” Some of the men remaining in the area laughed supportively at his crass attempt at humor.

 

“You’re really willing to blow a million bucks on a girl just to *** me off?!” I challenged.

 

“To *** you off?” he asked pretentiously. “What do you mean *** you- oh wait... Were you the one who I was bidding against just now?”

 

“Cut the shit,” I spat at him, inching closer. “You bid on Katie to spite me. I screwed up your little demonstration the other day and now you’re getting payback. Leave Katie out of it. She’s done nothing to you.”

 

“Katie, huh?” Murphy deflected. “So you two are on a first name basis? What’s so special about this Katie, might I ask? You sweet on her or something?”

 

“Give her to me,” I said, ignoring his provocations. “I’ll give you your million dollars. Don’t punish her just because you have a grudge with me.”

 

“That’s an interesting proposition,” Murphy said, rubbing his chin. “But I’m afraid I just can’t spare her. Sanura here has been flagged a bit too many times on account of her vitals. I can’t rely on her as my sole assistant anymore.” He turned to leave, pulling Tasha up to her feet by her leash. “Your friend Katie will be sharing her work-load from now on. I’ll let her know that you said hi-”

 

“No,” I countered, stepping in front of him. He looked surprised by my persistence. “I won’t let you take her. I owe her,” I added. He stared at me silently, appearing to weigh his options. I could tell that he was studying me. “So, what’s it gonna take?” I pressed. “What do you want for her?”

 

Murphy crossed his arms and paused for a few seconds. He, Tasha, and I were now the only people left on the field level of the arena. I silently hoped that the lack of an audience would make him more reasonable. With nobody to impress, Murphy had less pressure to look like the alpha. “Alright,” he said after a long pause. “I want the castle suite.” I stared at him without saying anything. “Sign over the suite and I’ll let you have the girl.”

 

I paused for several seconds, attempting to play my cards close to my chest. As willing as I may have been to make that trade, I couldn’t allow myself to seem too eager. This was most likely his strategy all along. To extort me for the castle suite… I had to appear as if I was prepared to walk away from the deal.

 

“The suite went for 2 point something million last year,” I challenged. “I’m gonna need more. What else are you gonna throw in?”

 

“Nothing,” Murphy said, matter-of-factly. “Since I’m in a forgiving mood tonight, I’m willing to wipe our slate clean and keep things simple. The suite for the girl. No negotiating, no haggling. One for the other.” Murphy’s smug expression made my skin crawl. Murphy was clearly relishing his position in the driver’s seat. A few seconds passed where neither of us said anything. “And I’m gonna need a yes or no right now.” he added. “So, what’s it gonna be?” He had me by the short hairs and he fucking knew it…

 

“Fine,” I conceded, trying to keep my face stoic.

 

“Great,” Murphy said, clapping his hands together. “Then it’s a deal.” He began to walk passed me, Tasha in tow. “Since the trading post is closed until morning, I’ll be taking the girl home with me tonight.”

 

“Bullshit you are,” I replied, stopping him with my hand. “Katie’s coming with me.”

 

“The girl legally belongs to me,” Murphy explained coldly. “And there’s no way to transfer her into your custody until the trading post reopens in the morning.”

 

“I don’t think you understand me,” I said, leaning in closer to him. “I’m not letting her go home with you so you can her and do whatever other shit you people do. She either comes with me or the deal’s off.”

 

“You’re naive,” Murphy replied, chuckling. “I’ve already told you- I need another assistant. Not a companion.” I remained glaring at him with my hand still pressed against his chest. “So, as long as you’re cleared out of the suite and ready to sign it over tomorrow at 8 o’clock sharp when the Trading Post opens, your Katie friend won’t be touched.”

 

My eyes narrowed to slits. “Not a finger gets laid on her,” I said in a low voice. “Understand?”

 

Murphy pushed past me, ignoring my question. “Enjoy your last night in the castle,” he said arrogantly. “8 o’clock tomorrow. Don’t be late.” And with that, he walked away, pulling Tasha by the leash behind him.

 

I stared after him, processing the deal that I’d just agreed to. I hated the thought of Katie staying at Murphy’s tonight. The image of her terrified face was still etched in my memory. I wanted so badly to speak with her and assure her that everything was going to be alright. That I hadn’t abandoned her to this monster. But explanations would regrettably have to wait until morning. That decision had regrettably been made for me.

 

And while it was certainly a relief to know that Katie would be safe, it was thoroughly heartbreaking to be forfeiting the castle suite to an asshole like Tom Murphy. The thought of downgrading from the suite to a motel room for the next three months was devastating to say the least.

 

Bending over to remove my heels, I began making my way slowly back to my suite for the last time. Once again, I was finishing the day both physically and mentally exhausted. A lot had transpired over the last 24 hours. From waking up in a probation collar, to ridding myself of Brandy, to being manipulated into to speaking at the annual slave auction, and finally- trading away my living accommodations, it had certainly been one of the shittier days in recent memory.

 

I shivered as I stepped outside into the cool night air. Spotting a half-empty bottle of Champagne on a nearby table, I picked it up and began to chug it. If there was ever a night to get wasted, it might as well have been tonight. Unfortunately, I ***ed that no amount of alcohol would change one simple fact. My future was about to be become much more uncertain. And that, more than just about anything else I’d faced so far, scared the holy hell out me…