Chapter 13

[ Sorry for the very long delay in finishing this. Life gets complicated personally, and now life is complicated for all of us around the world. Tell the people you love how you feel about them. Be as kind as you can. Stay safe. Take care of yourself and others.]

It was almost 8pm when my phone lit up with Kristen’s name on it so I eagerly answered it. “Kristen, how did everything go today?”

“Ashley’s exhausted after all the tests. She wants to stay in town tonight and Stephanie asked her to stay with them. I’m picking up their dinner. I’ll come home later, after we eat.”

“Do you think I should go to see her?”

“Well ... no. Of course if you want to, you can, but I would advise against it. She needs to rest.”

“Ok, I can understand that. Do you want to stay with her?”

“No, I’ll have dinner with them and then probably head back.”

“Ok, I’ll see you when you get here.”

“Love you.”

“I love you too Kristen.” As I put my phone in my pocket, I was going through my possible choices again. I’m pretty sure I knew what I needed to do.

Kristen

As we finished dinner, I looked around the table at my three fellow slaves. Without Master in the room and without any specific instructions, it almost looked like a normal dinner at someone’s house. Rob and Stephanie leaned in towards each other, touching frequently. Ashley was a bit reserved, but was part of the conversation. We spoke about everything but what we needed to. My mind was racing about what I should do.

Rob and Stephenie began to clear the table, I had been about to tell them to. I pondered the lesson there for a second. They had to obey me, but left to themselves, they would do the right thing. They really were good people, all of them. Even Sheila who had bad intentions when we met her was quite sweet after we had removed some of the bad circumstances which had shaped her. Nature vs Nurture vs the Device.

When we all sat back at the table, I knew it was time for me to try to get to the bottom of this. I considered asking Rob and Stephanie to stay, but they did not know about my special situation. It had never really occurred to me, but none of them actually knew, not even Ashley. When we had been planning Loyalty and then progressed to freeing a slave, we thought it would actually work.

The surprise I felt when the Device finished and I was still a slave was quickly replaced by my mind working through what I had been asked to do and how Master had phrased it. He wanted me to have the illusion of freedom. I could tell him it did not work, but that wasn’t actually what he wanted. He wanted me to keep the Secret safe and to make him feel like I was free. I had realized that I could work with that to accomplish both.

“Rob, Stephanie, say good night and go to your room. Do not listen to us. Do not leave the room until morning unless you have a medical emergency. Other than that I’d suggest you enjoy yourselves, but as you wish.”

“Yes Mistress,” they both said as they stood up. Rob hugged Ashley while saying “Good Night”. Stephanie held me while whispering, “Good Luck Mistress” They passed each other before Rob wrapped his arms around me and said, “Come get us if we can help Mistress.” I watched as they left the room and went upstairs.

Ashley looked at me without emotion, without that spark I had come to love. “Come on, let’s go to the living room and talk.” She got up without saying anything and followed me to the couch. We settled in next to each other. I realized I wanted her closer so I reached out and pulled her into a hug. She felt a little stiff, but didn’t resist otherwise.

“Ashley, now that it’s just the two of us, can you tell me how you’re feeling?”

“I’m scared Mistress. I’ve been scared since I started to feel strange. I thought it was just the pregnancy, but it’s something else.”

“Ashley, stop calling me Mistress. I never want that between us. David and I are very worried about you. What can we do to help?”

“I don’t know, I’m not sure what is wrong, let alone what to change.”

“Do you still love your Master?”

“Of course! But something has changed. I just can’t tell you what.”

“I’d like you to think about what you were asked to do. Protect the family, protect the secret. Your unborn child is part of the family. David loves you and the baby as much as he does me, even more than himself. He wants you and the baby to be healthy. Do you believe that?”

“Yes, I do believe the Master loves me and our baby and wants it to be healthy.”

“So, if David or I ask you to do something that you think would be bad for either you or the baby, what will you do.” I could feel her trembling, I think Master was right. I was very close to the problem.

“Ashley, let me try saying this a different way. At times, David is not as careful in how he says something as he should be.” I considered what to tell her next. Should I confess my biggest secret that I was still as much a slave as she was? How I had carefully listened to what Master had said and understood what he really wanted? What he dared not say out loud? I continued, “Sometimes you need to to understand what he’s really asking for and achieve it in a way that he won’t necessarily know about.”

“I’m not sure I understand Kristen.”

“Well, for example, he hates that we’re all slaves. Even now, it’s not what he’d prefer for any of us, which is why he freed me. However, he’s never stopped me from enslaving anyone I needed to to protect the secret. He just asked me to take care of it. So for you, he wants you to be happy and healthy, and you’re not. I believe it’s because you are starting to adjust your priorities as your pregnancy advances. The baby is becoming more important to you than yourself. So where is Master in that? But what if we slightly adjusted your priorities?”

“In what way?”

“For example, if you realize David wants you to put the baby and your health first, then maybe anything he asks you to do comes after that. If David or I ask you to do something that you think would be bad for either you or the baby, you could say, ‘I have a concern’. If you’re in public, you could find a way to speak with us in private. Do you understand that this effectively becomes the most important thing for you to obey? Even if David doesn’t quite understand that directly? You know he would agree to it if we asked, but the asking would make him unhappy. He wants to avoid knowing all the details and as slaves, it is best for you to let him stay unconcerned about this. It’s just a detail he doesn’t need to worry about, as long as you’re doing what he asked and what he actually wants.”