Doctor Stewart smiled nervously at the zombified police officer who was monitoring his progress from several paces away. He turned away and pushed the buzzer by the main entrance to the club. The lock inside the door clicked.
"Well, I'll go in first then," he said to the woman who definitely could not hear anything he was saying. He reached for the handle and turned it. He held it there for a few moments of hesitation, but he already knew that he was committed to this now. He passed through the threshold and heard Jada following him from behind.
The inside of the club was a ghost town. Only a handful lights were switched on. Improvised cardboard signs had been erected with badly drawn arrows beckoning him to move towards the private rooms. One of them read "This way, Doc". It had been written in bright green spray paint. The overall visual impression was that of an underground lair where a clown-themed villain would be awaiting him.
He stopped. Jada stopped. He took a step forward, and Jada took a step forward. He took a step to the side, to see if he could get her to do an impromptu dance, but she failed to react. He sighed.
Well, time to get on with it
.
The signposts took him to the largest of the private rooms, where he came face to face with Isabella. He supposed that it seemed fitting that his greatest enemy was forged by his own hand.
She had undergone a transformation since the last time he'd seen her body. Mia would never have approved of dyeing her hair black, nor of the tight leather corset, nor of the heavy, almost theatrical makeup she'd chosen to emphasise that she was now thoroughly in charge of things around here. It really brought out her pale blue eyes, which was probably for the best if they were to have any hope of competing with the cleavage for attention.
"Fiiiiinally, I was starting to think you wouldn't come. And you really wouldn't want me to think that, Doc."
"Traffic was bad," he replied.
"Well you're here now, that's what matters," she said, then gestured to Jada. "Now take a seat, and please don't try to struggle."
He put his satchel bag down, sat in the chair and held his hands behind his back. Jada clicked her handcuffs around him. They weren't soft, fuzzy handcuffs, they were cold, uncomfortable, metallic ones.
Jada began silently searching his bag, retrieving a collapsible umbrella, the bell, the metronome, and a stick of deodorant.
"Cute," said Bella.
"Today certainly hasn't gone the way I was hoping."
"Yeah well, all good things, eh?"
"I don't suppose it'll end well if I put you to sleep right now."
"No, I'm afraid it won't. But I do want you to shut up and listen for once, so I brought this in." She presented a ball gag for his inspection.
"Well, this is quite a reversal."
"I think it's important to always be open to trying new things. Who knows, you might enjoy it," she said with a wink. "Now say 'ah'".
The feeling was strange and slightly uncomfortable, but after a moment of relaxing, his mouth adjusted to not being able to shut itself. It felt like he was halfway through eating something that was a little too big. He wondered if there were different sized gags for different people.
"I'll be right back, I've got some people here who are eager to see you."
She sped out the door and he was left with his thoughts. He glanced around to confirm that Jada was still standing motionless in the corner. She'd always been obsessed with authority, and installing "robot mode" was much easier than he expected. She barely resisted. There was a novel sexual thrill to it, but he'd become bored with her very quickly. There was simply no challenge, and he preferred a passionate lover to a slavish one. Still, he liked having her inside the police department slowly climbing ranks. It was an insurance policy; it gave him peace of mind.
For all the good it's done me now
.
The unnerving near-complete absence of noise was replaced by the sound of footsteps. They were originating from at least three distinct types of footwear by his ear. This was quickly confirmed as a procession of women strode in, all of whom he was uncomfortably familiar with.
"Doctor Nicholas J. Stewart, may I present: Your patients," said Isabella with a booming voice. "Well, some of them anyway. I'm sorry that Mia couldn't make it today, but you know how she is, such a bore."
He scanned the group as a fleck of of drool fell out of his mouth. Doctor Stewart was not a cartoon wolf, and this drooling in no way related to the crowd of gorgeous women shuffling around into position before him. It was strictly because there was a rubber ball forcing his mouth open.
The whole gang was here - at least the people who still lived locally. Grace appeared to be in a similar predicament to his own, on the end of a leash with her hands together. She'd been stripped of her clothes, everything except her stockings.
"I'm so sorry Doctor, I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry," she said. She tried to move towards Doctor Stewart until Bella pulled firmly and the collar started choking her.
"Be quiet or I'll tape your mouth shut," said Bella. "She tried to do a little breakout earlier, but I think she's now learned how futile that would be."
Flanking Bella and Grace were Fiona and Anna on one side, and the twins on the other. The sisters awkwardly fidgeted with their crucifix necklaces, framed beautifully by their cleavage and low cut, bright blue dresses. He was suddenly very grateful that he'd decided to take a "catch and release" approach to some of his other clients over the years, as he wasn't sure how many additional people could fit in this room.
The group were all dressed well, but then, when were they not? He'd had no small part in shaping every person present. He had gravitated towards them for a variety of reasons, but they were all beautiful. And now, it was becoming clear that his reach had exceeded his grasp.
Bella beckoned Jada over. The human drone obeyed. She removed Jada's hearing protection and whispered more commands to her. With the headphones removed, a slight hum of music could be heard emanating from them.
"Acknowledged," said the officer, who then pulled the headphones down again and stood behind Bella.
"You've abused your position of power for too long, Doctor," said Isabella. "And we aren't going to allow this to continue."
The group murmured an affirmative sound, except for Grace who was staring intently at a spot on the floor.
"We've got a member of the police force right here, and she's ready to take action at a moment's notice. You'll have the whole state coming down onto you. And frankly, you'll deserve it."
He wondered why they weren't taking action now. Did they just want to vent, first, or were they planning some kind of ritual murder?
"I've been such a fool," said Fiona, "to think that all this time you'd been faithful to me."
Oh shit, here it comes,
he thought. "But Isabella here taught me how things really were. How you'd had all these little
sluts
at your beck and call. Um, no offence to you all, I know it mostly wasn't your faults. But it just makes me sick thinking about it."
