The idea came to Eleanor while she watched Elise at the bar throwing back shots of tequila. The bitch was dressed like a complete slut in a blood red Victorian corset and latex mini skirt inspired by a fetishist's wet dream, complete with four inch fuck-me heels -- a tramp on the town for Halloween, although in this case the function was a company masquerade ball. Eleanor didn't remember actually deciding to really carry her plan out; it matured as an erotic day dream, fed by Jack and Cokes, then suddenly she was in action. It all started with a single thought, that if Elise had worn something a bit less overtly slutty she and Eleanor might be indistinguishable behind their masks. Despite their obvious differences in class and their equally apparent contrast in coloring -- Elise's hair was raven black, her flawless skin pale as cream, while Eleanor was a freckled brunette with a hint of African blood -- the two women were a similar size at a couple inches over five feet and under 120 pounds. On the heels of that notion came another realization: Eleanor knew her rival wouldn't weather a drinking binge any better than she would herself. This coupled in her mind with the wicked thought of Kevin, who she had abandoned at work with a pile of month-end backlog, the sort of boring nonsense Eleanor would thrown herself at a few weeks ago just for the chance to spend a night in the dark office with the new CPA. He'd be late to the party; maybe in time for desert, but even that was doubtful.
Then again, if things went to plan, Eleanor was going to give him a whole different sort of desert tonight.
The office party was an upscale affair. Other companies would settle for paper hats and a quick trip to Display and Costume, but the partnership took pride in going to extremes for the annual ball, providing live music, catering, and an open bar. Fortunately for Eleanor, it was also downtown in the WAC penthouse, twenty three floors over the glittering Sound and the neon heart of the emerald city. There were rooms to be had in the hotel and Eleanor took the liberty of booking two of them under a false name; it cost a fortune, but she intended to make sure tonight would be worth the expense. The rest of what she needed was available within walking distance, most of it from a dim, windowless store seven blocks away. The pills were already in her car.
They were prescribed for her insomnia and even half a dose normally did the trick. Her doctor insisted her main problem was just refusing to lie down; well, she intended to have her share of that tonight. She grinned wickedly at the thought as she crushed three of the blue tablets into a fine powder, sifting them into a little baggie. It wouldn't kill Elise, even combined with the alcohol -- Eleanor had done her homework when she first received the prescription, fearful of the things she'd heard on KIRO news -- but it would be lights out for the night. There might even be hallucinations or sleep walking; that's why she'd bought the rope. It was tempting to mix in a bit of cocaine -- she'd noticed a couple managers doing lines in a dark corner - but she didn't know how Elise would react to that and wasn't cruel enough to find out. Quite.
Once she'd stowed a few things in each room, Eleanor brushed off her costume and returned to the party. Unlike Elise, whose small breasts were at risk of being ejected from her corset while her black panties flashed beneath her short latex skirt, Eleanor was clothed conservatively in a long, flowing silk dress. It was sexy but sumptuous, and even included a cape and hood. Her mask, a gargoyle in jet black, covered her entire face. The disguise was intentional; she'd planned on being anonymous tonight. Ironically, it was because she originally didn't want to be trapped in small talk with Kevin -- or worse, the skank who'd stolen him away shortly after his first date with Eleanor but still taunted her with sycophantic friendship. Instead, tonight it allowed her to sit next to Elise and her several empty glasses, introduce herself as Helen, an associate from another firm out of town, and hasten the binge along.