NOVEL WEB Chapter 43: 43rd entry
Season: Autumn
Weather: Partly cloudy
Day of the week: Saturday, Easter weekend
Date: 30th March, 2024
Yesterday, I got a phone call from one of my old workplaces in a nightclub, asking if I could help out with the night shift over the long Easter weekend. I agreed without thinking too much.
Deaglan was out during the day and so I didn't tell him. I didn't have his mobile number yet. Funny that after all that talking list night, we completely forgot about exchanging numbers.
I got dressed and went to the nightclub where I was briefed on the new rules and costume theme for the night. There was going to be a different costume theme for every night over this Easter weekend.
They were going with a vampire theme tonight, and so, I was dressed up in a skimpy outfit as a blood slave. Why vampires during Easter, I'm not sure. Don't ask me. Maybe the stakes would be more effective when we staked the vampires and there would be lucky stakes?
One of the other girls helped me with my makeup and helped stick the armband around my upper arm that was a subtle sign to say that I was not available for sale or for hire for any of that kind of activity.
"You know, you'd earn a lot more of you weren't such a prude," she told me.
"I can't help it," I shrugged. "I just can't bring myself to do anything like that."
"It'd be wicked fun to see what you look like when you let your hair down one day," she grinned while I shuddered.
"God forbid," I replied with a face.
I didn't understand why people thought it would be amusing to see another person being embarrassed or humiliated or in a vulnerable position. I felt such people were malicious, no matter how they framed it as 'fun' or a 'joke'. The truth was that they just wanted to see other people look bad so that they felt better about themselves and could tell themselves that they were the same or better than the other person.
It was much better to stay away from such immaturity in case something careened out of control and put me in a compromised position. Because if anything happened, those types of people were unlikely to help if there was trouble. They'd more likely gloat and shame the victim, saying it was their own fault for being overpowered. Their own fault for not being careful. Those people would conveniently forget how they forced, pressured or set the victim up into such a situation in the first place.
Malicious.
Danger.
Stay away.
"People appreciate your type of persona too though, so perhaps you'll get a few tips. I hear it might get wild this weekend, so look out for yourself."
"You too."
It got busy fast.
I don't know why, but the nightclub got crazy busy before the sun had even finished setting. Alcohol was selling even faster than hotcakes. All the wait staff were getting rushed about, running so much that the sandals given to us for our outfits were literally falling apart. That just showed how cheap they were.
One of the upstairs girls that helped wait on some of the private rooms got caught up in a drunken accident. She fell and was hit hard in the head with a broken glass bottle, and was carried away to a staffroom to wait for the ambulance. Security and the manager went to deal with that room, but they still needed someone to replace her up there.
Seeing me passing by, the manager grabbed me. I handed off my tray to another waiting staff member and the manager took me upstairs to introduce me to all the private rooms.
Everything was going well until the last room.
"She's staying with me. Go find another girl to work. This girl is going to keep me company," said a familiar lazy voice.
Looking up and peering through the dim light, I recognized Umbrey, the dark shadow lord. He stood up and swept me into his arms.
The manager stammered while I tried to break myself free.
"But sir, she's not trained for that type of work. She's only a waitress," the manager pointed at my armband.
"I know," the dark shadow lord frowned. "Janey, stop struggling. You just got out of hospital and now I find you working in a place like this on a night like this when all the demons of hell are out to play. Those armbands don't mean anything to the depraved and there are some people you don't want to meet today. Do you want to be hurt and end back up in hospital again? You're a good girl. What are you doing here?"
Noisy. Wordy.
"I came here to earn money," I hissed. "I'm just being a waitress. It's busy tonight. What's it to you?"
"You didn't have enough the other day when my people came onto you? Anyone working tonight is probably going to get it, did you know? There's going to be fighting later too. Do you want to get hurt? It's the innocent people who always get hurt in things like this, you know."
"Sir?"
The manager had gone completely pale.
"Urgh," the dark shadow lord looked up at the ceiling, tucking me back under his arm. "I wasn't going to get involved, but for her... Fine. Your boss ought to be informed so that he can charge those involved exorbitant amounts of compensation. There's going to be a clash of titans later. Forget the fight going on a few doors away. They're small fry. Let them make a mess and then charge the heck out of them for the damages. What you should do instead is subtly invite anyone innocent to leave tonight. There will be no escape once the big guys with the guns arrive. I'm only here to watch the show and to make sure nobody goes too overboard."
"Should-should I call the police?"
"Police? Oh heck yes. Why not? The more the merrier. It'll be great to see those guys' reaction when the cops turn up and they find out I'm the one who ordered it. What are they going to do? Beat me up?"
The dark shadow lord pulled me deeper into the room, leaving the flustered manager standing there for a moment. And then the manager rushed away.
The rest of the room fell silent, all eyes falling on me and the dark shadow lord. The music was turned off.
"Since my innocent little white bunny has turned up here, I'll play nice tonight. No deaths tonight. No over the top violence. No 'accidental' violations. Nothing anyone can use against us. I don't want anything dirtying my little - oh, she's really not dressed as a bunny today. Blood slave then. I don't want her eyes or ears dirtied. Keep things clean as clean can be. Patrol nicely and throw people out on their heads if needed be. Crystal clear?"
"Yes sir."
"Go."
The other people in the room got up and left, murmuring quietly, leaving me alone in the dim room with only the dark shadow lord. He sat me on his lap despite my disagreement and protests. He seemed to enjoy play fighting with me, laughing even more when I noticed something hard starting to rise up and stick into me from below. I wasn't playing. I was desperate to escape.
"Remember what I told you before about stirring me up and taking responsibility?" he whispered in my ear and I froze. He chuckled. "Good girl. Stay nice and still. I don't normally have to control myself or my urges. In fact, I can't be bothered doing so most of the time. So be good and stay good while I can still be bothered making the effort to be nice to you. Hmm?"
His lips nibbled my ears and I shuddered.
"You should thank me, you know. For last time and again for tonight. Otherwise it's almost certain you'd be caught in the crossfires of a gang war. But because of you, I've decided to intervene. Why don't you toast me a drink?"
"I can't - I don't drink," I made a face at him. "You can drink it."
"I'll drink anything you offer me," the dark shadow lord hugged me tight and his lips nibbled at my ear. "I know you can't drink. That's what's going to make this all the more interesting. Let me help you vent tonight, little girl. Let me help you grow up and become a woman."
"No way!"
"How are you going to thank me then?"
"By living a good life?"
The man seemed stunned at my reply and then he threw his head back and laughed. He smothered me with kisses while I cringed and struggled in his far stronger arms. Although I had a feeling he was just messing with me and playing around, there was a dark undertone of seriousness.
"One drink," he told me. "You toast me one drink in thanks and you have to empty the cup. I won't demand anything else of you anymore after that."
He grabbed a clean glass and poured drinks for both of us.
"There's no way you can repay me for being so awesome," he told me, "but I'm letting you go with just this one glass. This is a great deal, you know. Otherwise you'll be stuck owing me favours."
"I didn't ask you to help," I pushed his face away with disgust, scrubbing my face with my barely existent torn sleeve that was a part of my costume.
"But I did, so you have to thank me. Thank me and you're even. Otherwise, imagine if I call on my favour and make you sleep with me? Become my slave? Become my hidden lover? Sell you?"
"You wouldn't!" I gasped.
I knew he was a bad man, but I didn't know he was that bad a man.
"I would. I've done it before. I could do it again, so accept this little bit of mercy from me, little recorder, while I'm still in a good mood."
Making another face at him, I raised the glass.
"Thank you," I said with all sincerity and took a sip.
It burned and made me choke. It tasted awful. Like pain stripper or something - not that I've tried drinking that stuff before.
"Little liquor virgin," the man teased, taking his cup and sipping it. "Come on. Let's see you drink it all down. The whole lot," he encouraged. "You can do it."
It took me the better part of twenty minutes to down the glass of who-knew-what. It burned in my nose and mouth. It burned on the way down. It burned as it sat in my stomach. I could barely stop coughing.
My vision had gone blurry and I was seeing two of things. I could barely sit straight. At the same time, I felt hot and flushed. I couldn't think straight and my mind flew away to a land all of its own.