Southwest Shipping - Part 18
Posted: Thu Oct 28, 2021 4:25 pm
I'm a real fan of the big reveal in the movie, Tootsie.
Southwest Shipping
Natalie woke the next morning, knowing she might have spent her last night on the thin jail mattress. She might either be going to an even thinner crate pad, or worse, a hard floor, or she might be going to a nice, soft bed in California. She'd thought of possibly retiring to Malibu someday, hardly suspecting that her first day in the upscale community would be spent naked and in a collar. Slavery was rare in abolitionist California; she would probably have to stay at Miranda's home as a virtual prisoner for a few weeks if that was the way things went.
The morning started out exactly as the previous one; breakfast, enema, shower, butt inspection and dressing change, but then she was returned to her cell. Sometime later in the morning, an officer came by and steered her, naked and cuffed, down to a tunnel that emerged as a skyway over a bayou, then plunged into the opposite bank and to an elevator. Then up and across another skyway over a busy street into a large tower that must be the courthouse, and up some back elevator to a holding cell. She knelt, silently, the only slave in the cell, until her lip tattoo was checked and her implant scanned by another officer, who took her into a courtroom, made her kneel on a mat to the side, and connected her leash to a ring in the floor.
"All rise, court is now in session, Judge Harmon presiding."
Once again the irony of her situation struck her, she was the only human being in the court apart from the judge who would not be punished for failing to rise. Indeed, she kept her eyes down, only sneaking a quick peek at Her Honor as the rest of those present sat.
Judge Harmon was a shapely black woman who appeared impossibly young for her position and bearing. Her hair was straightened, but her half updo was far more stylish than that of the DA, who ignored Natalie from the table at the far side of the room. Will and Carmen sat at the table near her, Will wearing a stylish navy-blue suit instead of a slave collar.
The judge seemed relaxed as she bore through the stack of papers at the bench. "So, two seven four two eight three eight oh ten ten, Ms. Anderson, you had a motion?"
At the far side of the room, Natalie could see DA Anderson as she rose to make her motion. "Your Honor, the state moves to dismiss." There was a gasp in the courtroom. Natalie dared raise her eyes enough to see that Will seemed quite pleased at this turn of events, as did Carmen.
The judge stared at her screen. "No probable cause. Without prejudice. Any objections?"
Carmen rose to answer. "No, your Honor."
Judge Harmon typed something, muttering, "Two eight three eight...good. Dismissed. And I see you don't have to go back to the jail. Ms. Anderson?"
"No, your Honor. He's free to go. And Attorney Bowman would like to retrieve Ms. Midlothian's property."
"Is she in the courtroom...ah, are you Ms. Bowman?"
Lindsey made her way from a visibly agitated Miranda, who had been sitting with her in the gallery. "Yes, I am, your Honor."
The judge gestured to a bailiff. "Officer Grummond, would you retrieve the slave for Ms. Bowman?"
Natalie kept her eyes on the snap ring in the floor as the bailiff released it and tugged her up.
"Heel, slave."
She heard the judge as she was led to Lindsey, waiting just outside the gate that separated the gallery from the rest of the court. "All righty, two seven four two eight four three oh ten ten, oh...this wasn't assigned randomly, it's connected with the last case?"
DA Anderson replied. "Yes, your Honor. You'll see that I'm counsel for the state on this one as well."
"Very well. And there's a motion to...interesting. Is the defendant here with counsel?"
A bearded man with black glasses in a gray suit let himself out of the gallery. "Your Honor, counsel for the defense. I'm Attorney Stephenson."
Lindsey took Natalie's leash and ordered her to heel, leading her to Miranda, seated at the far end of a row, dressed in a stylish suit that draped over her without buttoning in front. The jacket front and pants were black, but back and sleeves were made of horizontal stripes of different colored materials, green and white and black, likely hand-tailored for Miranda by one of the big fashion houses. Natalie looked more closely at her new owner than she had in the past, and was struck by the resemblance. Save for the California woman's slightly more square face, they could be cousins, although Natalie had never worn the oversize hipster glasses that Miranda was famous for. When she'd been free, Natalie wore many expensive clothes and accessories, but Miranda's concept of fashion took luxury to a level that only a few of the John Pierpont women could afford. Miranda took the leash, but Natalie noticed something wrong with her smile, as if it was forced.
Miranda whispered to her. "So you're my latest acquisition." She giggled. "You're going to love my hotel room, but we won't be in it long. Let's go." She stood and faced Natalie awkwardly, unsure of how to make her way past.
Lindsey whispered to her. "Ms. Midlothian, just tell her to 'Heel'. She'll move out of the way."
The judge ordered in a loud voice, "Bring out the defendant" just as Miranda blurted out, "Heel!"
Thwack! Judge Harmon brought the gavel down sharply. "I'll have order in my court, or you can leave!"
Miranda cringed and emitted a "Sorry!"
Just then the bailiff emerged from a room to the side just behind where Natalie had knelt, waiting to give testimony that wasn't needed, leading a naked and handcuffed Kate Kelsey, wearing a neon-green collar.
Miranda noticed the nude flesh from the corner of her eye, and halted in her tracks when she realized who it was. She stood, transfixed for a moment, before moving with haste to the door.
DA Anderson stood facing Kate and Attorney Stephenson, speaking to Judge Harmon without so much as glancing in her direction. "Your Honor, may we have the doors to the courtroom locked? Nobody in or out until this hearing is resolved."
"Bailiff!" The Judge gestured for it to be so. "I presume this is connected with the second motion you wished to present?"
"That's correct, your Honor."
Miranda had one hand on the courtroom door, Natalie and Carmen in tow, when a bailiff charged through the gallery and ordered her to stop. She opened the door anyway, and had one foot in the hall beyond when the bailiff seized her arm and growled.
"You heard the judge, get back in there unless you'd like to spend the night in a collar for contempt!"
"But I was just..."
"In!"
The judge was having none of it. "Young lady, since you seem to be hard of hearing, come back into my courtroom and sit. down. You, your slave, and everyone with you. Now!"
Miranda turned and made a show of resisting the tug on her arm, as if it had been her own idea to return to her seat. The bailiff merely glared at her as she yanked on the heiress's arm as if she was a child disobeying her parents.
The judge continued. "Kathryn Rose Kelsey, you stand accused of...several things, plea of not guilty, and this is a probable cause hearing. That 's correct?"
"Yes, your Honor." Kate's long blond locks looked disheveled, and her eyes were puffy from crying.
"And a probable cause hearing is something your attorney requested, so that we can look at the charges against you and see if there's enough substance to them to even bother with going to trial."
Miranda angrily whispered to Lindsey, barely concealing their conversation from the rest of the court. "Why wasn't I informed of this? This is probably why that thief got off!"
Lindsey answered, "Ms. Midlothian, I represent you in the matter of the slave formerly known as Natalie Mortellaro. I can't possibly do that and simultaneously check arrest records for everyone who might be connected to your affairs every hour."
The hearing was moving along at the insistence of Judge Harmon. "So, I'm going to ask the DA to read some of the facts of the case, and we'll go from there. Ms. Anderson, whenever you're ready."
"The complainant first interviewed the defendant at 12:55 pm on the 6th, that would be last Wednesday. Nine one one had relayed her call to the non-emergency number, who relayed it to him so that she could make a criminal complaint."
Miranda seemed to ignore the proceedings. "You're supposed to be one of the best lawyers in Houston! Why didn't you have your staff follow the cops?"
Lindsey exhibited patience beyond her years. "Ma'am, you would need criminal counsel for that. And that would be unusual even for a large criminal defense firm. And I know you want to see Mr. Stoudemire punished, but you're not the DA, she is."
Anderson continued. "Ms. Kelsey claimed that several hours earlier that day, she had witnessed a slave, seven one three five four six three two eight, whom she knew by her former name, Natalie Johanna Mortellaro, as one of the co-owners of the firm where the defendant was employed, Southwest Shipping. Defendant claimed that she had confronted another one of the co-owners and the manager of the business, William Jesse Stoudemire, as to why one of the co-owners was nude, collared, and acting as a slave. Defendant claimed that Mr. Stoudemire confided to her that he had preyed on the slave's ignorance of slavery to convince her to sign a power of attorney allowing him to enslave her, and then to convert the slave's considerable slave estate by defrauding the probate courts."
Miranda continued to fume. "I can't believe this. I'm surrounded by idiots and fools. If you'd done your job, she wouldn't be showing her bare ass to the world and that con man would be getting his butt branded."
Lindsey let the abuse roll over her. "Ms. Midlothian, you'll want to keep your voice down. I've seen judges put people in collars for contempt, and my advice is that she's about to do that."
There was more from the DA. "Shortly after noon on the 6th, Marianne Plummer, another Southwest Shipping employee, discovered Mr. Stoudemire unconscious at his desk, and called nine one one. He was taken to a hospital in Kingwood, which was the nearest level two trauma facility and located just over the line in Montgomery County. Within the hour, the defendant called to make her criminal complaint, also speculating that Mr. Stoudemire's hospitalization was due to a suicide attempt after she'd informed him that she was considering contacting the police. H C S D began an investigation and dispatched officers to Southwest Shipping, arriving at 6 pm on the 6th. Simultaneously, a warrant was obtained for Mr. Stoudemire's arrest and and served by Montgomery County Sheriffs at MDA Hospital Kingwood."
The heiress pouted. "I should be at the Four Seasons packing for the trip home, and preparing to take this little cutie back where it's safe and comfortable. Not listening to how these idiots let that man slip through their fingers."
If Anderson heard anything in the gallery, she didn't let on. "The defendant identified seven one three five four six three two eight for the sheriffs, who took that property into custody at 6:50 pm as a material witness and transported it to the Harris County Jail for questioning. Mr. Stoudemire was subsequently released by hospital to the custody of the M C S D, who transported him to the jail in Conroe, Texas. Mr. Stoudemire refused to cooperate, but waived extradition through his attorney and was transported to the Harris County Jail at 6 am on the 7th, the following day." She paused. "This, your Honor, is where the defendant's story fell apart."
Natalie could tell that Miranda was only feigning disinterest at the next part of the proceeding.
The DA resumed reading. "Defense counsel moved discovery of the contents of Mr. Stoudemire's personal tablet. This office did not find said device in inventory, and issued a search warrant to recover the device. At 11:45 am on the 7th, sheriff's deputies reported that a search of the Southwest Shipping premises had failed to locate the device. This office received account information from Mr. Stoudemire's counsel that allowed sheriff's deputies to locate the device by geotracking at 1:40 pm on the 7th in a trash dumpster outside the Southwest Services building. A subsequent forensic scan of the device revealed that Mr. Stoudemire had drawn up a slave trust dated on the first of the month that would place all of Ms. Mortellaro's property into a trust for safekeeping at the moment of her conversion and sale, said document could be filed any time within ten days of enslavement and taking effect retroactively."
Natalie calculated the days, counting back to the first. So, back on...Friday, the day she had gone down on Andrea, he had drawn up a legal instrument that would protect all her property...her interest in Southwest, her entire portfolio, her real estate, everything she owned. It would all be waiting for her whenever she was freed, so long as he got his ass online to the electronic courthouse and filed it by...next Thursday. Which would embarrass her if it was filed, since that's when the trust holder would have to start going around to everyone who held her investments for her, asserting the right to manage them. So, he had her covered...he likely expected her to be free by Thursday, or if she wasn't, she'd have to suffer a little more embarrassment but her millions would be safe.
She saw two other possibilities. First, that it was some sort of ruse, and that he never meant to file it. But it would only help him if he planned to steal from her, and drew it up as insurance in case he got caught. But it was a lot of work that would only protect him for the first ten days...he couldn't really enjoy her stolen property unless he failed to file it, which meant it could no longer excuse him.
There was also the possibility that he might get hit by a bus before he could file it. Or get enslaved by someone who was scheming against him. She wanted to be able to glare daggers at Kate, but only felt sorrow for the woman. If what they were saying about her was true, she was about to endure years of misery...well earned misery, to be sure, but after experiencing slavery firsthand, Natalie thought it shouldn't be inflicted lightly.
The case against Kate went on. "The scan also revealed an unsigned order of manumission for seven one three five four six three two eight, and the power of attorney signed by Ms. Mortellaro that gave Mr. Stoudemire the power to sell her into slavery. All these documents were the subject of the discovery motion as they went to Mr. Stoudemire's state of mind at the time of seven one three five four six three two eight's enslavement. Mr. Stoudemire claimed through his attorney that he had displayed these documents to the defendant when she came to him complaining about the status of the slave on the morning of the 6th, in an attempt to convince her that seven one three five four six three two eight would be manumitted before harm could come to Southwest Services. However, the defendant gave a different version of this conversation, one in which she denied that Mr. Stoudemire displayed or even mentioned the existence of any document other than the power of attorney document that was used to enslave seven one three five four six three two eight." Anderson looked up. "Your Honor, this next part explains rather conclusively why we could find no probable cause against Mr. Stoudemire."
Miranda had sat motionless through that last part, but she nudged Lindsey. "Is there anything you can do to get us out of here? Some legal thing or other?"
"If this drags on long enough, I can file a habeas motion. But I can tell you that we'd have to be here for several hours before that would be entertained."
"Dammit!"
By now, Natalie was absorbed in the DA's tale. "The toxicology report came back from the hospital, and showed that the reason for Mr. Stoudemire's condition was a drug, flunitrazepam, one of the few recreational drugs that is still banned for personal use. That's because it has been known for many, many years to cause both unconsciousness and amnesia of the events just prior to loss of consciousness. It has all but disappeared from recreational use as it has always been known as a knock-out drug, useful in perpetrating criminal activity such as sexual assault or robbery of the unconscious victim. It was sometimes known by its street name, 'roofies'".
"Are you sure there's nothing we can do to get out of here?"
Lindsey ignored her.
"A warrant was also obtained for any security video available at Southwest Shipping. Michael Cuttings of Southwest Shipping facilitated this request. A review of the video showed a female dressed as the defendant leaving the facility at 10:50 am on the 6th, meeting an autonomous rideshare car in the Southwest Shipping parking lot, and returning to the interior of the building. Note that this was subsequent to her conversation with Mr. Stoudemire and prior to his incapacitation and hospitalization. There is also video of the same female at 11:30 am traveling from the front door of Southwest out to the dumpster where the tablet was found and then returning to the front door. This would be approximately 40 minutes after the defendant met the rideshare car, enough time for drugs to be administered to Mr. Stoudemire and for them to take effect."
Natalie realized with a start that this was about the time she had returned from fucking Will (the bastard who had left her hanging...) and spotted Kate coming in the front door. No wonder she had looked like a ghost! She'd just met her contact (possibly a robotic contact) in the parking lot, and had the drugs on her person that she used to knock Will out just a few minutes after passing by Natalie in the lobby.
"We were able to get the registration of the rideshare car, and found it had been ordered through a burner phone, and had just come from an address suspected of being the location of a criminal enterprise. That address was subsequently raided. The occupants had fled, but there was considerable evidence of criminal activity including traces of flunitrazepam, and an investigation is ongoing. However..." The DA paused and chuckled.
"This office sought and received a warrant for the arrest of the defendant, who was taken into custody at 5:05 pm on the 7th. A warrant was also issued for a pen trace on her phone, which revealed outgoing phone calls on the 6th at 8:41 am and at 9 am prior to meeting the car in the parking lot, and then at 12:45 pm, 6:10 pm, and 8:52 pm, all to Ms. Miranda Midlothian of California. There were also an incoming call to that phone on the 6th at 10:03 am from Ms. Midlothian to the defendant, prior to the parking lot meeting. Now, all that could be explained as Ms. Midlothian is the single largest shareholder in Southwest Shipping. Two things, though. First, this office received notification from the National Slave Registry at 11 am on the 7th that Southwest Shipping had sold seven one three five four six three two eight to Ms. Midlothian." The DA looked up. "Recall at that time, the slave so described was already in custody as a material witness, and Mr. Stoudemire was in custody as a suspect in the theft of her slave estate."
Returning to the screen, she continued reading. "But we also obtained a search warrant for a pen trace on Ms. Midlothian's phone, and found that on the 6th at 10:11 am, just eight minutes after Ms. Midlothian's phone was used to call the defendant, a call was placed from that same phone to the burner phone associated with the rideshare car that then visited the Southwest Shipping parking lot at 10:50 am. And that is what sustains the complaint of conspiracy against the defendant."
Miranda dropped Natalie's leash, squeezed past into the outer aisle, and made a dash to the doors in the center of the back wall. She never made it. Several steps from the door, she was tackled by a waiting bailiff, who was joined by another who wrestled the young woman's hands behind her back, and cuffed them as Miranda yelled and cried.
"No! No! It's not fair, it's not..."
At a sign from the judge, the bailiffs had stuffed a ball gag into the unsuspecting woman's mouth. She still leaked little squeaks and squeals, but nothing recognizable as speech.
"Would you like me to finish, your Honor?"
"Yes, Ms. Anderson, by all means. The Court apologizes for that interruption, it will be dealt with by and by."
"Let's see...So with the defendant in custody, she invoked counsel, but after meeting with counsel agreed to cooperate with the investigation in exchange for consideration from this office for her role in bringing co-conspirators to justice."
That provoked an unusually loud scream from the prone woman at the back of the courtroom, despite the gag.
"At this point, defendant has admitted engaging in a conspiracy with Ms. Midlothian to seize control of the Southwest Shipping through a combination of false criminal accusations against Mr. Stoudemire, combined with extending seven one three five four six three two eight's term to the full eight years stipulated at sale, despite assurances to the slave that it would soon be freed."
Lindsey leaned over to Natalie, and whispered, "If it's not obvious by now that I no longer work for her, let me tell you, I've just fired her as a client. I expect you to keep that confidential."
Natalie whispered back, "Of course, Mistress."
"So, your Honor, the state asks that the charges be sustained, although it is possible that we will offer the defendant a plea offer that drops prosecution for some of those charges in return for her cooperation."
Judge Harmon straightened in her seat, looking ageless, wise, regal. "The court finds probable cause in the case against Kathryn Rose Kelsey. Anything to add, Mr. Stephenson?"
The man rose, relaxed. "No, your Honor. We have been working with both the state and the victim to see if a plea arrangement can be reached, and are confident that all parties can come to terms."
Kate sobbed.
Judge Harmon nodded, then turned back to the DA. "Ms. Anderson, since she's currently detained, do you want to address the other matter now?"
"Yes, your Honor. We would like to unseal the indictment against Ms. Midlothian, and thanks to the court agreeing with our earlier motion, we won't have to extradite her from California. It is just a formality, but could the court issue a warrant for her arrest?"
"Done. And the Court would like to order 20 lashes for that outburst since she'll already be spending the night with us. The first of many, I suspect." She saw Lindsey stand with Natalie's leash, waving with her other hand beside the still-kneeling slave.
"Oh, yes, bailiff, please take that back into custody. The court will have to find a new home for it, I suppose that might come out in the plea negotiations." She turned to Stephenson. "Counsel, would you like to schedule for Monday? The court would like to sentence your client and Ms. Midlothian together, if possible, and two days will probably be enough for our out-of-state defendant to see reason."
"Two more days would be fine, your Honor. That gives us another day or so to prepare our client for her new life."
Kate sobbed again.
Lindsey led Natalie down to the rail again, and handed her off to one of the bailiffs. "Good luck, kid. This one really threw even me for a loop, but I think this is the best outcome for you."
"Mistress, what is the outcome?"
"I'll offer to see if Mr. Stoudemire will hire me to represent his property rights in you." She wished Natalie luck again as the bailiff led her off.
She was back inside the holding cell, before the next case even began. Not long after that, she took the long walk both high and low from the courthouse back to the jail. Along the way, one thought came through more than all the others.
What the hell had just happened?
————————————————————
Natalie settled into the routine, going to breakfast with the other slaves, and then back to her cell. Kate and Miranda were not among them, still being held in some other part of the jail as free women. Back in her cell, there was little to do but think or masturbate. She began to crave some human contact, even a harsh word from a jailer to break up the monotony, but none was forthcoming. Then, sometime after lunch, she heard a key in her door, and raced to the mat to drop to her knees.
"Back Hands" and "Heel" led her to another interview room some floors away. She didn't really know what floor anything was on, they always made her face the back of the elevator whenever she was transported on one. She knelt, her collar chained to the floor, waiting.
The door opened to admit a man. Casual slacks, shoes...
Will! He stood, towering over her.
"Fuck this noise." He pulled the desk to the far wall, and placed the chair in front of her.
"You can look at me and talk to me as an equal. No 'Master this' and 'Master that'. You've earned it."
She gazed up at him, her face blank. Was this a negotiation, a command, an apology? Part of her wanted to hug him, glad that he was alive and healthy, and part of her wanted to kick him. Mostly, she wanted answers.
"Natalie, do you hate me?" He searched for the answer in her eyes. "This didn't turn out at all like I'd planned."
"What did you plan?" She was cool, it was time for the facts. Judgment could come later.
He sighed. "I wanted you to understand it, maybe better than even I did. If you still wanted to do it after that, I was ok with it. But there were so many ways I could have taken advantage of you, and I wanted you to see that, too. I think it got out of control."
"You're talking about the FINO?"
"Yeah." His expression seemed earnest.
"I've had a lot of time to think about that. Would I have to suck and fuck Southwest staff?"
"That would be something we would write in or out of the contract, something you would decide. But even if the answer was no, they would still see you forced to perform on other people during the tests."
"That's my only reservation. I'm leaning toward a yes. For serving the staff, not the FINO. I really want to do that."
He gave a half smile. "God, you're still in? I really put you through the wringer."
She lifted her chin to display her neck. "Am still putting me through. I still have this thing on."
"Yeah, about that. Technically, you're still property of Miranda, although it's a given that she'll be turning you over to Southwest. We had another shareholder meeting, and guess what the vote was on that."
"Four votes in favor and two abstentions."
He looked at her, puzzled, then his face cleared. "Oh, that's right, Miranda abstained, too. I'm already thinking of her as property instead of a person."
"What happens next?"
"For you? For her? I'll tell you both." He sat back a little bit. "You become Southwest property at the moment of her sentencing. The other shareholders delegated possession and responsibility to me. So far as I'm concerned, you can be manumitted later that day. They've all approved it."
"I didn't finish the labors."
He shrugged. "I don't think you have to. I mean, do you get it? If you do, you don't need more."
"What were the other labors, and why did you have me do them?"
"Uh, it's a sort of condensed obedience school routine. 30 days cooked down into a few, you'd have finished by now if we hadn't been so rudely interrupted. You were at cocksucking, there was fucking, pussy licking, ass licking, and anal yet to go. And I would have made you do staff, after blowing Mike, I'd have let the other guys have a crack at you. Then you'd have to service Danielle, you know, 77 two, and let a couple of girls fuck you, then suck me off for the final exam. Then the other labors."
"You called her by her name. Danielle."
He smiled as if recalling an old memory. "Yeah, you have to be careful with names sometimes. I know all their names. I wasn't sure if we'd keep them after the ULD tests, and I didn't want to get too attached to them. I had a friend, we were in 4H together. She raised steers, she wanted to give them names. 6YGH5, you can send to market for slaughter. It's lot harder sending Ferdinand to be butchered. So, she compromised. She named her steers Hamburger and Cheeseburger. It got to be a joke. We'd go over to her house for dinner, and ask what was for dinner. She'd say, 'Hamburger'. And yeah, sometimes, she meant it literally."
"We keep them. We don't have to replace them when their term is over, but we keep them."
"I'm ok with that."
"And we call them by their names."
He nodded. "If we keep them, that's reasonable. Good practice. Most people call their house slaves by their former name."
"That wasn't the only reason for the labors, was it? I mean, I didn't have to lick Justina's pussy and ass to know how to Heel properly."
"You were going to be riding around in them, going to foreign countries." He corrected himself. "Are going to do that. What does a slave fear even more than going to auction?"
"Getting sold overseas."
"What do you think the dynamic would be if they knew someone who had the power to sell them by just whispering to one of the staff members, even if she was still in a collar, was watching them and listening to them every minute she was with them?"
"I had to be one of them."
"And we both know that you can still lick someone's ass and then turn around and stab them in the back, but just the same, your tongue on their hole is a powerful symbol, isn't it?"
"I have to go back and finish the labors."
"I wasn't going to make you do that. I think you have enough cred..."
"No. I have to do it. I feel like I owe it to them even if they do think I'm one of them."
He offered no resistance. "Ok, you'll be owned a little longer. And, no mercy. If you balk and it takes an extra week, I'm not letting you change your mind."
"That's the point, isn't it? It's not the sex acts that make them slaves, it's the collar. It's not having a choice. That's how I got cred with them...they heard my story and saw that I didn't have a choice. I hear some women flaunt their Big D brands. I was naive enough to be afraid of mine. They saw that. We bonded. I want to finish that."
"I think you'll be a good slaver someday. If you ever want to pursue that."
"I think I need to be whipped, too. Problem is that I'm too damn well behaved, and I feel self conscious about behaving badly on purpose just to learn what punishment is like. Does it leave marks?"
"Not if done properly. It's a poor slaver who damages the merchandise. And don't worry about getting punished, if you're in a FINO, you'll fuck up sooner or later. I'll make sure that all the other slaves watch when you pay for it."
"Will, I'm not leaving Southwest. I want to stay with this project, I don't want to leave for the next thing after the second or third round of fundraising. First, it has tremendous growth potential. I think I can make more money staying. And second, I feel like I have a home here."
"Good enterprises are like families. If you don't die a little bit on the inside when you have to fire someone, you're not doing it right." He paused. "Be glad to have you, however long you want to stay."
"What happens to them? Miranda and..." She trailed off.
"The negotiations went all over the place, as you might imagine. Kim...that's the DA, she has friends who work for the feds. Miranda saw that she was facing a minimum of 20 years judicial enslavement if we turned her over to the feds, and that broke her. I'm worried that we went too far the other way. So, her money goes into trust, and we manage it for her. Of course, if we fuck her over, it's our asses in judicial collars, but we won't do that because we get to use her money to build the business in the interim. It's a good deal for her, because if Southwest takes off, she'll be a gazillionaire if and when she gets manumitted. They both get circle star brands and I'm listed as a victim for atonement. I really want to forgive Kate for what she did, but betrayal leaves a bitter taste, and I think I'm going to have to work out my anger during those sessions. After that, we can get to treating each other as humans again, even if she's going to be on her knees working on my tool. Miranda...if she doesn't break during her 30 days, we send her someplace where she does. Bitch was going to...Kate told us, it wasn't about me, it was about you. She blamed you for her not having control of the company, and everything she did to me, the drugging and everything, was just to get to you. According to Kate, she was going to take you to California and torture the shit out of you for the full eight years. I don't know how she would have gotten away with it, but I understand the Slave Welfare division up there is crap, since hardly anyone there owns slaves."
Natalie found that she couldn't hate Miranda. She was just a...thing, not even worthy of her hate.
"As a slave, you have no right to atonement from your abuser. But I can certainly take you in as my property, and direct you in assisting me. And since they're both going to be sold to us, you'll have plenty of chances to have your way with them whenever you take your FINO collar off."
"How long?"
"That's the part I'm worried about. We're looking at five years for Kate and eight for Miranda. I mean, you get eight for manslaughter these days..."
"Double."
"What?"
"Whatever Kate gets, Miranda gets double. If she does five, Miranda gets ten. If Miranda gets eight, Kate only gets four."
Will shook his head. "Probably not going to happen. Every time her lawyer brought that up, Ms. Anderson just brought out the video of her picking up the drugs. She's not a patsy, no matter how much Miranda put her up to it, she got her hands dirty, too. But..."
"Yes?"
"You can make her time go easy or hard. I mean, if the other slaves see remorse, they can forgive someone for a pretty horrible crime. And I suspect Kate will show more of that than Miranda will, at least at first." He shrugged. "We all live in heaven or hell as we choose."
"When do I get out of here?"
"Sentencing is Monday. We're preparing a little surprise for you. You'll know it when you see it, just don't panic and go with it." He grinned.
She grinned back. "Asshole!"
"Seriously. Anything else you want to know? Anything else I can do for you before I go?"
She looked at the floor. "Can you unclip that thing?"
He looked puzzled. "Yeah. I mean, it's not against the rules or anything. I can't take your cuffs off, though."
"Master, please release your slave from the floor and use her. This slave wants to feel you inside her, massage your cock with her pussy, give you the gift of her orgasms. This slave wants you to come inside her, fill her up with your hot, juicy cum. Please use me, master. This slave wants to be used."
He reached to unclip the lead from the ring on the floor. The mat was thin, the room was cold and bare, and bending over the table wasn't much better.
She wept uncontrollably after her first orgasm. It was unfair, life was too good. No matter how roughly he used her, he was still a human being who cared for her, and that made all the difference. He tried to console her afterward, thinking something was wrong.
She pressed up against him and begged to be used again.
Southwest Shipping
Natalie woke the next morning, knowing she might have spent her last night on the thin jail mattress. She might either be going to an even thinner crate pad, or worse, a hard floor, or she might be going to a nice, soft bed in California. She'd thought of possibly retiring to Malibu someday, hardly suspecting that her first day in the upscale community would be spent naked and in a collar. Slavery was rare in abolitionist California; she would probably have to stay at Miranda's home as a virtual prisoner for a few weeks if that was the way things went.
The morning started out exactly as the previous one; breakfast, enema, shower, butt inspection and dressing change, but then she was returned to her cell. Sometime later in the morning, an officer came by and steered her, naked and cuffed, down to a tunnel that emerged as a skyway over a bayou, then plunged into the opposite bank and to an elevator. Then up and across another skyway over a busy street into a large tower that must be the courthouse, and up some back elevator to a holding cell. She knelt, silently, the only slave in the cell, until her lip tattoo was checked and her implant scanned by another officer, who took her into a courtroom, made her kneel on a mat to the side, and connected her leash to a ring in the floor.
"All rise, court is now in session, Judge Harmon presiding."
Once again the irony of her situation struck her, she was the only human being in the court apart from the judge who would not be punished for failing to rise. Indeed, she kept her eyes down, only sneaking a quick peek at Her Honor as the rest of those present sat.
Judge Harmon was a shapely black woman who appeared impossibly young for her position and bearing. Her hair was straightened, but her half updo was far more stylish than that of the DA, who ignored Natalie from the table at the far side of the room. Will and Carmen sat at the table near her, Will wearing a stylish navy-blue suit instead of a slave collar.
The judge seemed relaxed as she bore through the stack of papers at the bench. "So, two seven four two eight three eight oh ten ten, Ms. Anderson, you had a motion?"
At the far side of the room, Natalie could see DA Anderson as she rose to make her motion. "Your Honor, the state moves to dismiss." There was a gasp in the courtroom. Natalie dared raise her eyes enough to see that Will seemed quite pleased at this turn of events, as did Carmen.
The judge stared at her screen. "No probable cause. Without prejudice. Any objections?"
Carmen rose to answer. "No, your Honor."
Judge Harmon typed something, muttering, "Two eight three eight...good. Dismissed. And I see you don't have to go back to the jail. Ms. Anderson?"
"No, your Honor. He's free to go. And Attorney Bowman would like to retrieve Ms. Midlothian's property."
"Is she in the courtroom...ah, are you Ms. Bowman?"
Lindsey made her way from a visibly agitated Miranda, who had been sitting with her in the gallery. "Yes, I am, your Honor."
The judge gestured to a bailiff. "Officer Grummond, would you retrieve the slave for Ms. Bowman?"
Natalie kept her eyes on the snap ring in the floor as the bailiff released it and tugged her up.
"Heel, slave."
She heard the judge as she was led to Lindsey, waiting just outside the gate that separated the gallery from the rest of the court. "All righty, two seven four two eight four three oh ten ten, oh...this wasn't assigned randomly, it's connected with the last case?"
DA Anderson replied. "Yes, your Honor. You'll see that I'm counsel for the state on this one as well."
"Very well. And there's a motion to...interesting. Is the defendant here with counsel?"
A bearded man with black glasses in a gray suit let himself out of the gallery. "Your Honor, counsel for the defense. I'm Attorney Stephenson."
Lindsey took Natalie's leash and ordered her to heel, leading her to Miranda, seated at the far end of a row, dressed in a stylish suit that draped over her without buttoning in front. The jacket front and pants were black, but back and sleeves were made of horizontal stripes of different colored materials, green and white and black, likely hand-tailored for Miranda by one of the big fashion houses. Natalie looked more closely at her new owner than she had in the past, and was struck by the resemblance. Save for the California woman's slightly more square face, they could be cousins, although Natalie had never worn the oversize hipster glasses that Miranda was famous for. When she'd been free, Natalie wore many expensive clothes and accessories, but Miranda's concept of fashion took luxury to a level that only a few of the John Pierpont women could afford. Miranda took the leash, but Natalie noticed something wrong with her smile, as if it was forced.
Miranda whispered to her. "So you're my latest acquisition." She giggled. "You're going to love my hotel room, but we won't be in it long. Let's go." She stood and faced Natalie awkwardly, unsure of how to make her way past.
Lindsey whispered to her. "Ms. Midlothian, just tell her to 'Heel'. She'll move out of the way."
The judge ordered in a loud voice, "Bring out the defendant" just as Miranda blurted out, "Heel!"
Thwack! Judge Harmon brought the gavel down sharply. "I'll have order in my court, or you can leave!"
Miranda cringed and emitted a "Sorry!"
Just then the bailiff emerged from a room to the side just behind where Natalie had knelt, waiting to give testimony that wasn't needed, leading a naked and handcuffed Kate Kelsey, wearing a neon-green collar.
Miranda noticed the nude flesh from the corner of her eye, and halted in her tracks when she realized who it was. She stood, transfixed for a moment, before moving with haste to the door.
DA Anderson stood facing Kate and Attorney Stephenson, speaking to Judge Harmon without so much as glancing in her direction. "Your Honor, may we have the doors to the courtroom locked? Nobody in or out until this hearing is resolved."
"Bailiff!" The Judge gestured for it to be so. "I presume this is connected with the second motion you wished to present?"
"That's correct, your Honor."
Miranda had one hand on the courtroom door, Natalie and Carmen in tow, when a bailiff charged through the gallery and ordered her to stop. She opened the door anyway, and had one foot in the hall beyond when the bailiff seized her arm and growled.
"You heard the judge, get back in there unless you'd like to spend the night in a collar for contempt!"
"But I was just..."
"In!"
The judge was having none of it. "Young lady, since you seem to be hard of hearing, come back into my courtroom and sit. down. You, your slave, and everyone with you. Now!"
Miranda turned and made a show of resisting the tug on her arm, as if it had been her own idea to return to her seat. The bailiff merely glared at her as she yanked on the heiress's arm as if she was a child disobeying her parents.
The judge continued. "Kathryn Rose Kelsey, you stand accused of...several things, plea of not guilty, and this is a probable cause hearing. That 's correct?"
"Yes, your Honor." Kate's long blond locks looked disheveled, and her eyes were puffy from crying.
"And a probable cause hearing is something your attorney requested, so that we can look at the charges against you and see if there's enough substance to them to even bother with going to trial."
Miranda angrily whispered to Lindsey, barely concealing their conversation from the rest of the court. "Why wasn't I informed of this? This is probably why that thief got off!"
Lindsey answered, "Ms. Midlothian, I represent you in the matter of the slave formerly known as Natalie Mortellaro. I can't possibly do that and simultaneously check arrest records for everyone who might be connected to your affairs every hour."
The hearing was moving along at the insistence of Judge Harmon. "So, I'm going to ask the DA to read some of the facts of the case, and we'll go from there. Ms. Anderson, whenever you're ready."
"The complainant first interviewed the defendant at 12:55 pm on the 6th, that would be last Wednesday. Nine one one had relayed her call to the non-emergency number, who relayed it to him so that she could make a criminal complaint."
Miranda seemed to ignore the proceedings. "You're supposed to be one of the best lawyers in Houston! Why didn't you have your staff follow the cops?"
Lindsey exhibited patience beyond her years. "Ma'am, you would need criminal counsel for that. And that would be unusual even for a large criminal defense firm. And I know you want to see Mr. Stoudemire punished, but you're not the DA, she is."
Anderson continued. "Ms. Kelsey claimed that several hours earlier that day, she had witnessed a slave, seven one three five four six three two eight, whom she knew by her former name, Natalie Johanna Mortellaro, as one of the co-owners of the firm where the defendant was employed, Southwest Shipping. Defendant claimed that she had confronted another one of the co-owners and the manager of the business, William Jesse Stoudemire, as to why one of the co-owners was nude, collared, and acting as a slave. Defendant claimed that Mr. Stoudemire confided to her that he had preyed on the slave's ignorance of slavery to convince her to sign a power of attorney allowing him to enslave her, and then to convert the slave's considerable slave estate by defrauding the probate courts."
Miranda continued to fume. "I can't believe this. I'm surrounded by idiots and fools. If you'd done your job, she wouldn't be showing her bare ass to the world and that con man would be getting his butt branded."
Lindsey let the abuse roll over her. "Ms. Midlothian, you'll want to keep your voice down. I've seen judges put people in collars for contempt, and my advice is that she's about to do that."
There was more from the DA. "Shortly after noon on the 6th, Marianne Plummer, another Southwest Shipping employee, discovered Mr. Stoudemire unconscious at his desk, and called nine one one. He was taken to a hospital in Kingwood, which was the nearest level two trauma facility and located just over the line in Montgomery County. Within the hour, the defendant called to make her criminal complaint, also speculating that Mr. Stoudemire's hospitalization was due to a suicide attempt after she'd informed him that she was considering contacting the police. H C S D began an investigation and dispatched officers to Southwest Shipping, arriving at 6 pm on the 6th. Simultaneously, a warrant was obtained for Mr. Stoudemire's arrest and and served by Montgomery County Sheriffs at MDA Hospital Kingwood."
The heiress pouted. "I should be at the Four Seasons packing for the trip home, and preparing to take this little cutie back where it's safe and comfortable. Not listening to how these idiots let that man slip through their fingers."
If Anderson heard anything in the gallery, she didn't let on. "The defendant identified seven one three five four six three two eight for the sheriffs, who took that property into custody at 6:50 pm as a material witness and transported it to the Harris County Jail for questioning. Mr. Stoudemire was subsequently released by hospital to the custody of the M C S D, who transported him to the jail in Conroe, Texas. Mr. Stoudemire refused to cooperate, but waived extradition through his attorney and was transported to the Harris County Jail at 6 am on the 7th, the following day." She paused. "This, your Honor, is where the defendant's story fell apart."
Natalie could tell that Miranda was only feigning disinterest at the next part of the proceeding.
The DA resumed reading. "Defense counsel moved discovery of the contents of Mr. Stoudemire's personal tablet. This office did not find said device in inventory, and issued a search warrant to recover the device. At 11:45 am on the 7th, sheriff's deputies reported that a search of the Southwest Shipping premises had failed to locate the device. This office received account information from Mr. Stoudemire's counsel that allowed sheriff's deputies to locate the device by geotracking at 1:40 pm on the 7th in a trash dumpster outside the Southwest Services building. A subsequent forensic scan of the device revealed that Mr. Stoudemire had drawn up a slave trust dated on the first of the month that would place all of Ms. Mortellaro's property into a trust for safekeeping at the moment of her conversion and sale, said document could be filed any time within ten days of enslavement and taking effect retroactively."
Natalie calculated the days, counting back to the first. So, back on...Friday, the day she had gone down on Andrea, he had drawn up a legal instrument that would protect all her property...her interest in Southwest, her entire portfolio, her real estate, everything she owned. It would all be waiting for her whenever she was freed, so long as he got his ass online to the electronic courthouse and filed it by...next Thursday. Which would embarrass her if it was filed, since that's when the trust holder would have to start going around to everyone who held her investments for her, asserting the right to manage them. So, he had her covered...he likely expected her to be free by Thursday, or if she wasn't, she'd have to suffer a little more embarrassment but her millions would be safe.
She saw two other possibilities. First, that it was some sort of ruse, and that he never meant to file it. But it would only help him if he planned to steal from her, and drew it up as insurance in case he got caught. But it was a lot of work that would only protect him for the first ten days...he couldn't really enjoy her stolen property unless he failed to file it, which meant it could no longer excuse him.
There was also the possibility that he might get hit by a bus before he could file it. Or get enslaved by someone who was scheming against him. She wanted to be able to glare daggers at Kate, but only felt sorrow for the woman. If what they were saying about her was true, she was about to endure years of misery...well earned misery, to be sure, but after experiencing slavery firsthand, Natalie thought it shouldn't be inflicted lightly.
The case against Kate went on. "The scan also revealed an unsigned order of manumission for seven one three five four six three two eight, and the power of attorney signed by Ms. Mortellaro that gave Mr. Stoudemire the power to sell her into slavery. All these documents were the subject of the discovery motion as they went to Mr. Stoudemire's state of mind at the time of seven one three five four six three two eight's enslavement. Mr. Stoudemire claimed through his attorney that he had displayed these documents to the defendant when she came to him complaining about the status of the slave on the morning of the 6th, in an attempt to convince her that seven one three five four six three two eight would be manumitted before harm could come to Southwest Services. However, the defendant gave a different version of this conversation, one in which she denied that Mr. Stoudemire displayed or even mentioned the existence of any document other than the power of attorney document that was used to enslave seven one three five four six three two eight." Anderson looked up. "Your Honor, this next part explains rather conclusively why we could find no probable cause against Mr. Stoudemire."
Miranda had sat motionless through that last part, but she nudged Lindsey. "Is there anything you can do to get us out of here? Some legal thing or other?"
"If this drags on long enough, I can file a habeas motion. But I can tell you that we'd have to be here for several hours before that would be entertained."
"Dammit!"
By now, Natalie was absorbed in the DA's tale. "The toxicology report came back from the hospital, and showed that the reason for Mr. Stoudemire's condition was a drug, flunitrazepam, one of the few recreational drugs that is still banned for personal use. That's because it has been known for many, many years to cause both unconsciousness and amnesia of the events just prior to loss of consciousness. It has all but disappeared from recreational use as it has always been known as a knock-out drug, useful in perpetrating criminal activity such as sexual assault or robbery of the unconscious victim. It was sometimes known by its street name, 'roofies'".
"Are you sure there's nothing we can do to get out of here?"
Lindsey ignored her.
"A warrant was also obtained for any security video available at Southwest Shipping. Michael Cuttings of Southwest Shipping facilitated this request. A review of the video showed a female dressed as the defendant leaving the facility at 10:50 am on the 6th, meeting an autonomous rideshare car in the Southwest Shipping parking lot, and returning to the interior of the building. Note that this was subsequent to her conversation with Mr. Stoudemire and prior to his incapacitation and hospitalization. There is also video of the same female at 11:30 am traveling from the front door of Southwest out to the dumpster where the tablet was found and then returning to the front door. This would be approximately 40 minutes after the defendant met the rideshare car, enough time for drugs to be administered to Mr. Stoudemire and for them to take effect."
Natalie realized with a start that this was about the time she had returned from fucking Will (the bastard who had left her hanging...) and spotted Kate coming in the front door. No wonder she had looked like a ghost! She'd just met her contact (possibly a robotic contact) in the parking lot, and had the drugs on her person that she used to knock Will out just a few minutes after passing by Natalie in the lobby.
"We were able to get the registration of the rideshare car, and found it had been ordered through a burner phone, and had just come from an address suspected of being the location of a criminal enterprise. That address was subsequently raided. The occupants had fled, but there was considerable evidence of criminal activity including traces of flunitrazepam, and an investigation is ongoing. However..." The DA paused and chuckled.
"This office sought and received a warrant for the arrest of the defendant, who was taken into custody at 5:05 pm on the 7th. A warrant was also issued for a pen trace on her phone, which revealed outgoing phone calls on the 6th at 8:41 am and at 9 am prior to meeting the car in the parking lot, and then at 12:45 pm, 6:10 pm, and 8:52 pm, all to Ms. Miranda Midlothian of California. There were also an incoming call to that phone on the 6th at 10:03 am from Ms. Midlothian to the defendant, prior to the parking lot meeting. Now, all that could be explained as Ms. Midlothian is the single largest shareholder in Southwest Shipping. Two things, though. First, this office received notification from the National Slave Registry at 11 am on the 7th that Southwest Shipping had sold seven one three five four six three two eight to Ms. Midlothian." The DA looked up. "Recall at that time, the slave so described was already in custody as a material witness, and Mr. Stoudemire was in custody as a suspect in the theft of her slave estate."
Returning to the screen, she continued reading. "But we also obtained a search warrant for a pen trace on Ms. Midlothian's phone, and found that on the 6th at 10:11 am, just eight minutes after Ms. Midlothian's phone was used to call the defendant, a call was placed from that same phone to the burner phone associated with the rideshare car that then visited the Southwest Shipping parking lot at 10:50 am. And that is what sustains the complaint of conspiracy against the defendant."
Miranda dropped Natalie's leash, squeezed past into the outer aisle, and made a dash to the doors in the center of the back wall. She never made it. Several steps from the door, she was tackled by a waiting bailiff, who was joined by another who wrestled the young woman's hands behind her back, and cuffed them as Miranda yelled and cried.
"No! No! It's not fair, it's not..."
At a sign from the judge, the bailiffs had stuffed a ball gag into the unsuspecting woman's mouth. She still leaked little squeaks and squeals, but nothing recognizable as speech.
"Would you like me to finish, your Honor?"
"Yes, Ms. Anderson, by all means. The Court apologizes for that interruption, it will be dealt with by and by."
"Let's see...So with the defendant in custody, she invoked counsel, but after meeting with counsel agreed to cooperate with the investigation in exchange for consideration from this office for her role in bringing co-conspirators to justice."
That provoked an unusually loud scream from the prone woman at the back of the courtroom, despite the gag.
"At this point, defendant has admitted engaging in a conspiracy with Ms. Midlothian to seize control of the Southwest Shipping through a combination of false criminal accusations against Mr. Stoudemire, combined with extending seven one three five four six three two eight's term to the full eight years stipulated at sale, despite assurances to the slave that it would soon be freed."
Lindsey leaned over to Natalie, and whispered, "If it's not obvious by now that I no longer work for her, let me tell you, I've just fired her as a client. I expect you to keep that confidential."
Natalie whispered back, "Of course, Mistress."
"So, your Honor, the state asks that the charges be sustained, although it is possible that we will offer the defendant a plea offer that drops prosecution for some of those charges in return for her cooperation."
Judge Harmon straightened in her seat, looking ageless, wise, regal. "The court finds probable cause in the case against Kathryn Rose Kelsey. Anything to add, Mr. Stephenson?"
The man rose, relaxed. "No, your Honor. We have been working with both the state and the victim to see if a plea arrangement can be reached, and are confident that all parties can come to terms."
Kate sobbed.
Judge Harmon nodded, then turned back to the DA. "Ms. Anderson, since she's currently detained, do you want to address the other matter now?"
"Yes, your Honor. We would like to unseal the indictment against Ms. Midlothian, and thanks to the court agreeing with our earlier motion, we won't have to extradite her from California. It is just a formality, but could the court issue a warrant for her arrest?"
"Done. And the Court would like to order 20 lashes for that outburst since she'll already be spending the night with us. The first of many, I suspect." She saw Lindsey stand with Natalie's leash, waving with her other hand beside the still-kneeling slave.
"Oh, yes, bailiff, please take that back into custody. The court will have to find a new home for it, I suppose that might come out in the plea negotiations." She turned to Stephenson. "Counsel, would you like to schedule for Monday? The court would like to sentence your client and Ms. Midlothian together, if possible, and two days will probably be enough for our out-of-state defendant to see reason."
"Two more days would be fine, your Honor. That gives us another day or so to prepare our client for her new life."
Kate sobbed again.
Lindsey led Natalie down to the rail again, and handed her off to one of the bailiffs. "Good luck, kid. This one really threw even me for a loop, but I think this is the best outcome for you."
"Mistress, what is the outcome?"
"I'll offer to see if Mr. Stoudemire will hire me to represent his property rights in you." She wished Natalie luck again as the bailiff led her off.
She was back inside the holding cell, before the next case even began. Not long after that, she took the long walk both high and low from the courthouse back to the jail. Along the way, one thought came through more than all the others.
What the hell had just happened?
————————————————————
Natalie settled into the routine, going to breakfast with the other slaves, and then back to her cell. Kate and Miranda were not among them, still being held in some other part of the jail as free women. Back in her cell, there was little to do but think or masturbate. She began to crave some human contact, even a harsh word from a jailer to break up the monotony, but none was forthcoming. Then, sometime after lunch, she heard a key in her door, and raced to the mat to drop to her knees.
"Back Hands" and "Heel" led her to another interview room some floors away. She didn't really know what floor anything was on, they always made her face the back of the elevator whenever she was transported on one. She knelt, her collar chained to the floor, waiting.
The door opened to admit a man. Casual slacks, shoes...
Will! He stood, towering over her.
"Fuck this noise." He pulled the desk to the far wall, and placed the chair in front of her.
"You can look at me and talk to me as an equal. No 'Master this' and 'Master that'. You've earned it."
She gazed up at him, her face blank. Was this a negotiation, a command, an apology? Part of her wanted to hug him, glad that he was alive and healthy, and part of her wanted to kick him. Mostly, she wanted answers.
"Natalie, do you hate me?" He searched for the answer in her eyes. "This didn't turn out at all like I'd planned."
"What did you plan?" She was cool, it was time for the facts. Judgment could come later.
He sighed. "I wanted you to understand it, maybe better than even I did. If you still wanted to do it after that, I was ok with it. But there were so many ways I could have taken advantage of you, and I wanted you to see that, too. I think it got out of control."
"You're talking about the FINO?"
"Yeah." His expression seemed earnest.
"I've had a lot of time to think about that. Would I have to suck and fuck Southwest staff?"
"That would be something we would write in or out of the contract, something you would decide. But even if the answer was no, they would still see you forced to perform on other people during the tests."
"That's my only reservation. I'm leaning toward a yes. For serving the staff, not the FINO. I really want to do that."
He gave a half smile. "God, you're still in? I really put you through the wringer."
She lifted her chin to display her neck. "Am still putting me through. I still have this thing on."
"Yeah, about that. Technically, you're still property of Miranda, although it's a given that she'll be turning you over to Southwest. We had another shareholder meeting, and guess what the vote was on that."
"Four votes in favor and two abstentions."
He looked at her, puzzled, then his face cleared. "Oh, that's right, Miranda abstained, too. I'm already thinking of her as property instead of a person."
"What happens next?"
"For you? For her? I'll tell you both." He sat back a little bit. "You become Southwest property at the moment of her sentencing. The other shareholders delegated possession and responsibility to me. So far as I'm concerned, you can be manumitted later that day. They've all approved it."
"I didn't finish the labors."
He shrugged. "I don't think you have to. I mean, do you get it? If you do, you don't need more."
"What were the other labors, and why did you have me do them?"
"Uh, it's a sort of condensed obedience school routine. 30 days cooked down into a few, you'd have finished by now if we hadn't been so rudely interrupted. You were at cocksucking, there was fucking, pussy licking, ass licking, and anal yet to go. And I would have made you do staff, after blowing Mike, I'd have let the other guys have a crack at you. Then you'd have to service Danielle, you know, 77 two, and let a couple of girls fuck you, then suck me off for the final exam. Then the other labors."
"You called her by her name. Danielle."
He smiled as if recalling an old memory. "Yeah, you have to be careful with names sometimes. I know all their names. I wasn't sure if we'd keep them after the ULD tests, and I didn't want to get too attached to them. I had a friend, we were in 4H together. She raised steers, she wanted to give them names. 6YGH5, you can send to market for slaughter. It's lot harder sending Ferdinand to be butchered. So, she compromised. She named her steers Hamburger and Cheeseburger. It got to be a joke. We'd go over to her house for dinner, and ask what was for dinner. She'd say, 'Hamburger'. And yeah, sometimes, she meant it literally."
"We keep them. We don't have to replace them when their term is over, but we keep them."
"I'm ok with that."
"And we call them by their names."
He nodded. "If we keep them, that's reasonable. Good practice. Most people call their house slaves by their former name."
"That wasn't the only reason for the labors, was it? I mean, I didn't have to lick Justina's pussy and ass to know how to Heel properly."
"You were going to be riding around in them, going to foreign countries." He corrected himself. "Are going to do that. What does a slave fear even more than going to auction?"
"Getting sold overseas."
"What do you think the dynamic would be if they knew someone who had the power to sell them by just whispering to one of the staff members, even if she was still in a collar, was watching them and listening to them every minute she was with them?"
"I had to be one of them."
"And we both know that you can still lick someone's ass and then turn around and stab them in the back, but just the same, your tongue on their hole is a powerful symbol, isn't it?"
"I have to go back and finish the labors."
"I wasn't going to make you do that. I think you have enough cred..."
"No. I have to do it. I feel like I owe it to them even if they do think I'm one of them."
He offered no resistance. "Ok, you'll be owned a little longer. And, no mercy. If you balk and it takes an extra week, I'm not letting you change your mind."
"That's the point, isn't it? It's not the sex acts that make them slaves, it's the collar. It's not having a choice. That's how I got cred with them...they heard my story and saw that I didn't have a choice. I hear some women flaunt their Big D brands. I was naive enough to be afraid of mine. They saw that. We bonded. I want to finish that."
"I think you'll be a good slaver someday. If you ever want to pursue that."
"I think I need to be whipped, too. Problem is that I'm too damn well behaved, and I feel self conscious about behaving badly on purpose just to learn what punishment is like. Does it leave marks?"
"Not if done properly. It's a poor slaver who damages the merchandise. And don't worry about getting punished, if you're in a FINO, you'll fuck up sooner or later. I'll make sure that all the other slaves watch when you pay for it."
"Will, I'm not leaving Southwest. I want to stay with this project, I don't want to leave for the next thing after the second or third round of fundraising. First, it has tremendous growth potential. I think I can make more money staying. And second, I feel like I have a home here."
"Good enterprises are like families. If you don't die a little bit on the inside when you have to fire someone, you're not doing it right." He paused. "Be glad to have you, however long you want to stay."
"What happens to them? Miranda and..." She trailed off.
"The negotiations went all over the place, as you might imagine. Kim...that's the DA, she has friends who work for the feds. Miranda saw that she was facing a minimum of 20 years judicial enslavement if we turned her over to the feds, and that broke her. I'm worried that we went too far the other way. So, her money goes into trust, and we manage it for her. Of course, if we fuck her over, it's our asses in judicial collars, but we won't do that because we get to use her money to build the business in the interim. It's a good deal for her, because if Southwest takes off, she'll be a gazillionaire if and when she gets manumitted. They both get circle star brands and I'm listed as a victim for atonement. I really want to forgive Kate for what she did, but betrayal leaves a bitter taste, and I think I'm going to have to work out my anger during those sessions. After that, we can get to treating each other as humans again, even if she's going to be on her knees working on my tool. Miranda...if she doesn't break during her 30 days, we send her someplace where she does. Bitch was going to...Kate told us, it wasn't about me, it was about you. She blamed you for her not having control of the company, and everything she did to me, the drugging and everything, was just to get to you. According to Kate, she was going to take you to California and torture the shit out of you for the full eight years. I don't know how she would have gotten away with it, but I understand the Slave Welfare division up there is crap, since hardly anyone there owns slaves."
Natalie found that she couldn't hate Miranda. She was just a...thing, not even worthy of her hate.
"As a slave, you have no right to atonement from your abuser. But I can certainly take you in as my property, and direct you in assisting me. And since they're both going to be sold to us, you'll have plenty of chances to have your way with them whenever you take your FINO collar off."
"How long?"
"That's the part I'm worried about. We're looking at five years for Kate and eight for Miranda. I mean, you get eight for manslaughter these days..."
"Double."
"What?"
"Whatever Kate gets, Miranda gets double. If she does five, Miranda gets ten. If Miranda gets eight, Kate only gets four."
Will shook his head. "Probably not going to happen. Every time her lawyer brought that up, Ms. Anderson just brought out the video of her picking up the drugs. She's not a patsy, no matter how much Miranda put her up to it, she got her hands dirty, too. But..."
"Yes?"
"You can make her time go easy or hard. I mean, if the other slaves see remorse, they can forgive someone for a pretty horrible crime. And I suspect Kate will show more of that than Miranda will, at least at first." He shrugged. "We all live in heaven or hell as we choose."
"When do I get out of here?"
"Sentencing is Monday. We're preparing a little surprise for you. You'll know it when you see it, just don't panic and go with it." He grinned.
She grinned back. "Asshole!"
"Seriously. Anything else you want to know? Anything else I can do for you before I go?"
She looked at the floor. "Can you unclip that thing?"
He looked puzzled. "Yeah. I mean, it's not against the rules or anything. I can't take your cuffs off, though."
"Master, please release your slave from the floor and use her. This slave wants to feel you inside her, massage your cock with her pussy, give you the gift of her orgasms. This slave wants you to come inside her, fill her up with your hot, juicy cum. Please use me, master. This slave wants to be used."
He reached to unclip the lead from the ring on the floor. The mat was thin, the room was cold and bare, and bending over the table wasn't much better.
She wept uncontrollably after her first orgasm. It was unfair, life was too good. No matter how roughly he used her, he was still a human being who cared for her, and that made all the difference. He tried to console her afterward, thinking something was wrong.
She pressed up against him and begged to be used again.
