Nowhere Man

Chapter 5

To the outside world, Agatha Bernadotte was a rich heiress of 46 years, a philanthropist and patron of the arts. Seen in a photo she was a natural beauty: A tall, slender woman of mediterranean descent, olive-skinned, dark-eyed and charismatic.

That is, if the outside world took notice of her at all: You might occasionally meet Agatha on important vernissages, at the opening weekends of exhibitions or similar events. But the chance was that no one would recognize her, since she liked keeping a low profile. And those who knew her would describe her as reclusive, introverted and modest. The most impressive thing about Agatha, I had found, was that she never appeared in the tabloids. She always managed to evade the center of the spotlight. Even when her longtime-assistant Bianca Obutu had been killed in a car crash, eight years ago, there had not been a single report about it.

Of course, the truth was that Bianca had not really been killed. She had simply annoyed her boss by falling in love with another woman. She had informed Agatha that she was planning to get married, move away to Denver, find a less unpleasant employer. Agatha had not taken those news so well. She had hired me to make sure Bianca would not leave her.

I still remember vividly the day I took Bianca: The disbelief in the beautifuls' womans eyes, when the taser hit her and brought her down hard. The fear in her eyes, as she got 'packaged', bound and gagged and trussed up in a way that must have felt hellishly surreal. The panicking struggles as I let her watch while I tinkered with her car and then sent it down a small canyon. It would be found only months later, and the cops would rule that Bianca Obutu was dead, her mortal remains most likely having been scattered in the area by wild animals.

In truth, I had assisted Agatha in training Bianca as her personal slave. Agatha had wished for her former assistant (and, I should add, former lover) to become a faceless, helpless creature, completely at her mercy. I had arranged the equipment, prepared a training regimen and provided the other necessary means for that vision to come true.

Agatha and I had become attracted to one another as the training when on, and for some time it had been a sexy arrangement. For Miss Obutu, it must have been pure madness to suffer the two only people who knew that she was still alive not only training her in the most sadistic ways, but at the same time becoming infatuated with one another. I will never forget her moaning and sobbing through the padded hood, her pleading eyes or her warm, wet mouth, opened wide by a massive ring gag. Agatha, Bianca and I spent some wonderful months.

But Agatha was a demanding, cruel woman, and after a while our arrangement had soured. That was okay, I had simply moved on. There had been other jobs, other employers, other tasks. But I suspected that Agatha still had feelings about me, and I could only guess if those feelings were good or bad.

By now I had been driving for another two days, with short stops at small motels and inns, to shower and get some rest. I had fucked Ivy twice because she was just too tempting, and both times she had struggled a bit, complained and groaned in protest. But she had also become quite moist as I used her, and she had shuddered in a way that was quite open to interpretation. She still fascinated me a lot. This girl had her own darkness, her own demons to fight. I guessed it was harder for her to fight them with her arms constantly tied.

Now we were arriving at Agatha's compound. Not her real house, not the mansion she would present as her home to normal guests. This house was more a secluded hideout. It was far from civilization and well-hidden, and I had not even known it existed in this area. I suspected it had to be one of several of its kind, that Agatha maintained.

There was a heavy but inconspicuous gate, half hidden by vegetation. I did not have to announce my arrival, because it already opened for us as we approached. I steered the cascade onto the compound and could see that the small road continued up ahead, disappearing between hills and trees. I stopped the vehicle and got Ivy out of the compartment. I was pretty damn sure that this meeting would take place very privately. If there would be any place where I did not have to worry about people being shocked that I had a tied, gagged, collared woman with me, it was this place right here.

Ivy had coped pretty well with the constant bondage. In the self-made harness she seemed at least a bit more comfortable than in the tape: I had, after all, designed the harness to tie her and keep her under control, but allow her just enough slack so that she would not take lasting damage.

The belts and straps lay tightly around her naked body, criss-crossing between her tits and securing her helpless arms that were strapped to her back with leather belts. Maybe she would have liked to fumble around, searching for a buckle or lock to open, but I had made sure that this was not an option: Her hands were each kept in separate leather pouches that made her fingers useless too.

The collar around her neck was high, heavy and quite tight, locked with a device I had constructed myself. It would not come off easily. And of course Ivy was still gagged, the straps of the head-harness running across her face, between her head and under her chin, securing a thick rubber mouthpiece that contorted her sweet mouth in a beautiful way.

I took the blindfold off her eyes and saw she still had dark rings beneath them. But her pretty green eyes themselves were quite bright, darting around curiously, taking the surroundings in.

"Hrgmmgh...?"

"Yes Ivy, we are nearly there. Remember what I told you: Behave, present yourself as a good slave and give the impression that you are just a kinky girl who enjoys being trussed up like this. If she finds out you have been forced, I will be in trouble. And that will mean I'll be very fucking angry, and I will let you feel what that means."

Ivy looked at my slightly afraid, and nodded. But I knew her well by now and smiled to myself, because it was obvious what she was thinking about. She would use the first opportunity to rat me out. My sweet prisoner was far too rebelious for her own good.

I drove the Cascade down the road, past a high hedge and past another fence, until a building came in sight. It was the kind of weekend getaway only a rich person could afford: At first it seemed humble, until you realized that only its clever architecture hid how sprawling it actually was. Behind it, the lake shimmered in the sun.

There was a massive man standing in front of the building. He was a few years younger than me, very muscular, with a thick neck and a mop of blonde hair on his head. His eyes were more grey than blue and his airy smile made me despise him from the first moment of our acquaintance.

"You must be Ben." He mustered me, asssessed me. "I am Pascal. You should be aware that I am Agathas' partner." I did not care. To me, Pascal was just a pompous little shithead - one that tried to be extra consescending by not even offering me a handshake."Agatha is inside. She asked me to welcome you."

"Sure, why not." I pullled Ivy's leash and the restrained girl stumbled closer. For the first time since I had taken her, someone other than myself could see her, and the excitement showed in her eyes: They were positively flowing over with emotions, her mouth working helplessly around the massive gag.

"Your slave looks tired", Pascal said dismissively. If Ivy had hoped for him to be shocked by her looks or empathic for her plight then she had oped in vain: He communicated with every fiber of his being, that he did not give a shit about her.

"She's new to this and we have been traveling for days", I shrugged. "We are both looking forward to rest. Which, by the way, means that Im very thankful to Agatha for acommodating us."

"You should be more than just thankful", a cool female voice hissed. I was surprised only for a moment. Then I noticed the well-disguised camera next to the house's door and the microphone beneath it.

I smiled. "Hello Agatha. I was thrilled by your invitation. I have often been thinking about you, and about the time we spent together. It's been too long, and I hope we can..."

"Stop trying to flatter me! Get inside. But Pascal will search you first, and I would be very annoyed if you tried in any way to trick or betray me. I know what you are capable of, but look at Pascal: you would not stand a chance. "

"I have no reason to make any trouble, as long as I can trust you." I raised my arms and made the most harmless face possible. Pascal immediately began to search me. He had a stupid grin on his face while he did it, and it took him longer than would have been necessary.

Once he was satisfied, Pascal nodded towards the camera. A buzzer was activated and the door sprung open.

"Come in." Agatha sounded quite frosty. "And let's talk about your future."

I pulled Ivy's leash and entered, with Pascal following behind us. I could only hope that my gambit would pay off.

The inside of Agatha's weekend getaway was something to behold. I admitted to myself that she new very well what she was doing. It reminded me of why I had admired her brand of dominance and control so much in the first place.

Expensive woods and thick carpets gave the place a warm atmosphere. On the oher hand, luxurious furniture and a few expensive pieces of art communicated Agathas wealth. The way the rooms and corridors were arranged and the occasional transparent wall made it all look quite modern and spacious.

A normal person could be a guest in this house without ever noticing the details: How the glass was of a kind that could be polarized by command, in order to turn intransparent. How the windows could not be opened and were reinforced. How the system of rooms and corridors would make it very hard for anyone to get out of this place fast. If you did not know exactly which way to do, you would quickly be lost in a semi-transparent labyrinth.

If you were Agatha's prisoner, you might sometimes see the exit, but you still had to circle around this wall and stumble towards that door and get across this other room, and by then someone would have caught up with you and dragged you back to your cell.

Agatha waited for us quite in the large meeting room in the middle of the house, dominated by an impressive library and an even more impressive media station. She was as beautiful as I remembered her: If anything, the olive-skinned woman was in even better shape these days. Tight dark pants acentuated her slender, long legs and the blouse-and-vest-combo she wore gave her simultaneously a very conservative and yet sexy look. Her arms were bare, and though they were slim and feminine, there were also muscles visible beneath Agatha's silken skin. I could not help myself, I imagined what she would look like, wearing Ivys' restraints.

Agathas dark eyes mustered me and Ivy with a lot of curiosity, but without any kindness.

"There you are. You look tired. And it seems you need a shower."

I was aware that Agatha despised submissive men. I was even more aware that she saw too confident people as a challenge. So my fate hinged on staying right in the middle between those two poles. I smiled, warmly and as rogueishly charming as I could.

"I always loved showering with you, Agatha. But you are correct, I'm foremost very tired. I can not thank you enough for offering me shelter."

The risk I had taken paid off: She looked nearly furious, but her cheeks flushed. She smiled, looking like a young girl just for a second.

"You obnoxious little trucker", Pascal hissed. "How dare you to insinuate..."

Agatha raised a hand and it became immediately clear how little backbone her toyboy had: He immediately fell silent. His mistress instead chuckled, came towards me and hugged me. The smell of her expensive perfume was delicious and her warmth reminded me of our past.

"You have made enemies", she purred. "There is a lively discussion about what you did down in Florida."

"I did nothing wrong", I sighed. "My employer was sloppy. You would never have made the same mistakes."

"I guess not. I tend to be a lot more thorough with my preparations, and I would never allow anyone to uncover the secrets of my... little hobby."

Agatha smiled a wicked smile, and I could not help but respect the woman. But that did not mean that I trusted her even a little more than before. "I trust you", I said with a smile that was as naive as I could manage. "And if you just let me stay here for a few days, then I'll be very thankful. Just a few days to recover, to hide my trail. I'll keep driving after that, and no one will ever know I was here."

"That's good." Agathas eyes were cold. "No one must ever know, indeed." She then looked at Ivy. My sweet little slave had been standing a step behind me all the time, with wide eyes and and a fast-beating heart. Now, as Agathas looked directly at her, I could easily see what Ivy would do.

"And who is this?" Agatha gestured for me to present Ivy to her. I pulled the leash, but that would not have been necessary: Ivy already stumbled towards Agatha, groaning into her gag, struggling against the harness.

"My new slave, Ivy." I shrugged. "I collected her along the way. She's a special girl, she'll be wonderful once trained."

Agatha hesitated a moment. Then she approached Ivy, studied her more thoroughly. "Her outfit is improvised, her behaviour completely unpolished. Take the gag out of her mouth."

That was a demand one slave owner would usually not make to another. But Agatha did not see me as a member of her society, she just saw me as a freelancer having gone rogue. Obviously, she did not think the rules of courtesy applied to me like they would to others.

I did not unbuckle the gag, but I loosened it enough so that the mouthpiece popped out of Ivy's mouth.

"Tell me my dear, who are you?" Agathas' eyes were gleaming with curiosity.

Ivy lost no time. She answered in a frantic speed, her voice coarse and despaired. "I'm not... not a fucking slave! This guy kidnapped me, I did not agree to this. I'm not kinky! I just recognized him on tv and he decided to abduct me. Please don't trust him, don't believe him, just help me..." Ivy looked from Agatha to Pascal, her face filled with anger as much as with pleading helplessness. "What are you waiting for.... get me out of this fucking bondage, take it off, I think I may be going insane!"

Agatha stroked Ivys cheek and pulled the girls face closer to her. She made a calming sound, then kissed Ivys ear. When she whispered something, I could not understand what she said. But I saw Ivys mouth open, a sorrowful cry escaping her throat. Then Agatha grabbed Ivys gag and stuffed it back into her mouth, pulling it a lot tighter than it had been before.

"Really, very unpolished." She laughed, while Ivy stared at her with glassy eyes and quivering lips. "Ben, you chose a strange moment to take your own slave. But what's done is done, right?"

"It's true. I wager it could also be a fresh start for me", I nodded.

"Well, you are invited to dinner. But before we dine you should get some rest. Follow that corridor, turn left at the end, and you'll find your apartment."

"Thank you Agatha." I nodded respectfully. "I'll make sure that Ivy gets some refreshments too."

"Oh, no." Agatha shook her head and nodded to Pascal. The leash was taken out of my hand. Now, funnily enough, Ivy protested loudly, struggling and pulling on the leash, because the thought of being seperated from me seemed to scare her. "I will take care of your slave", Agatha said. "It can stay with Bianca while dinner is being prepared. We'll get her a proper outfit. I am thinking of a very special role for her, during our dinner."

So Bianca Obutu was still here. I admit that the thought immediately gave me a hardon. I had kidnapped Bianca for Agatha years ago. What might have become of the beautiful, talented young woman after such a long time as a prisoner?

As to Ivy, there was nothing I could say or do to help her. Agatha would not allow me to talk her out of this. I had no leverage.

"That is absolutely fine", I said, smiling at Ivy and ignoring her pleading. "I will be glad if you take good care of her. I love your creations, you know that. And I am sure I do not need to remind you of the fact that collared her. I am sure you'll respect the collar. Even though it's handmade."

I could see that Agatha was divided on the topic. Sure, she saw me as a maverick, not a real member of the society. On the other hand, the collar of another Dom needed to be respected under all circumstances. It was one of the foundations of this whole, wicked subculture.

To my relief, she finally nodded. "I will not touch her collar, and neither will Pascal. For now."

That was the best outcome I could have hoped for.

"Thank you Agatha. Whatever you decide to do with me, I'm looking forward to dinner. It will be just like old times."

I winked at Pascal and turned around. I walked down the corridor, like Agatha had told me to. Behind me, a panel of reinforced glass hissed shut. I was locked in now, and the person who controlled the houses security system controlled the labyrinth and thus controlled where I could and could not go. Another door opened in front of me, allowed me to enter the small apartment, shut behind me again. There was a soft bed, a large bathroom, everything I could ask for. But there were no windows. I knew that I, too, was Agathas' prisoner now.