Chapter 16

Day 100

Today we're going to see Joasia and June, their bodies have finally been released. It took Sasha a long time to get the police to admit that they no longer required the bodies, and that they hadn't needed them for the last six weeks. We are going to sue.

Sasha drove us to the funeral home where a dark-suited man, with an incongruously ruddy face showed us into a room with two coffins.

Karolina gasped and then cried when she saw her mother. Joasia was dressed in a quite sombre grey suit; a paler grey high necked blouse completed her ensemble. I held Karolina as I examined Joasia, her clothes were totally inappropriate for our Joasia; they were thirty years too old for her. June was dressed in a cheerful summer dress more suited to a teenager. While these clothes were a reasonable fit and fair quality they were wrong for the people they clothed.

"Momma be slave all life. Wanted die you slave. Proud be good girl to Master. This not Momma way dress."

"Then my dearest," I hugged Karolina, "we will get her ready ourselves." I turned to Sasha, "Could you get the funeral director back in here please, Sasha?" She nodded and left.

The ruddy faced man returned and I asked him, "Who provided these clothes please?"

"Why, we did of course, the deceased did not have any clothing when they were delivered here."

"Did they have anything on them at all?" I had a horrible feeling I knew what he was going to say.

"Well, yes ... They were both wearing an ... unusual item." He was obviously uncertain how he should describe their collars.

"They were wearing thick leather collars."

"Well, yes."

"Where are they?"

He went to a concealed cupboard and took out the two collars. Both had been cut to take them off their wearer.

Sasha stepped up now, "Mr. Bowles, do you remember the instructions that you received when you accepted these ladies into your care?"

"Oh yes, it was quite simple we didn't have to do anything until you arrived and then we would take instructions from you."

"Yes, Mr. Bowles," Sasha was quiet and totally pissed off now, "those were my instructions. Now tell me why you have disregarded them so blatantly."

"But we couldn't just leave them naked!"

"Mr. Bowles you and your company have desecrated the bodies of my clients' loved ones. I shall be issuing a writ for damages. Now my clients are going to return their loved ones to the state that they were originally in."

Mr. Bowles spluttered ineffectually for a few moments and then fled. Sasha turned to us and nodded, "You can start now."

Karolina, Ela and I started with Joasia while Elastic stood by the door, looking a little green. With difficulty we took her jacket off. We'd just started unbuttoning her blouse when an elderly man entered the room.

"I have come to apologise on behalf of Bowles and Son for this inexcusable intrusion on your grief. My name is David Bowles and I am the majority owner of this company. He produced a large pair of seamstress' scissors, "It is much easier to cut the clothing off. Please let me help. I do have a little experience in these things you know." And he smiled a kindly helpful smile.

"I would like to warn you though that autopsies do leave your loved ones looking quite shocking. If you would like I can prepare your ladies while you wait in the chapel of rest."

Karolina shook her head, "No, me see badder in Poland, I do Mamma 'n' June. Thank for help." Elastic though, almost ran out of the room.

Karolina took the scissors from Mr. Bowles and quickly cut Joasia's clothing up the outside of each sleeve. She lifted her mother's arms above her head then cut from the skirt's hem to the armpit finishing with a quick cut to separate the front and back at the sleeve.

Karolina then lifted off the front of Joasia's clothing. The smell and the huge Y shaped incision looked horrific, I gagged at the smell and sight but I knew Karolina needed me by her side. I lifted Joasia's body while Karolina pulled the remaining clothing away.

Mr. Bowles had brought a basin of hot water and we washed Joasia down. She needed shaving though and Mr. Bowles gave us a disposable razor and shaving cream. With quick sure strokes Karolina removed the major body hair from Joasia's armpits and pubic region. We wiped and dried her again and then Sasha passed Karolina a collar she had taken from her briefcase.

Karolina took the collar without comment but I started to ask "How..."

Sasha just shook her head, "Sometimes you just know that they're going to ignore your orders." I nodded, that was just too true.

Karolina knelt before me, "Momma not can ask so me ask. Please my Master, collar your slave." And she handed me the collar.

I took the collar and wrapped it round Joasia's neck then buckled it tight, so she would always know that she wore the symbol of her servitude, and then placed a padlock through the next buckle hole thus preventing the collar from being removed. Finally I placed another thinner strap around Joasia's left wrist and attached the padlock key to that.

"Joasia, you have given me the gift of your servitude, I give you the means to open your collar if you should ever want to." I know it was a stupid meaningless gesture to a corpse, but it meant a lot to me. I had another slim strap for June.

Karolina and I copied our actions with June, Karolina cut the clothing then I lifted June's body while Karolina removed the remnants of the dress. We washed, shaved and dried June's body and then Karolina repeated her request.

Kneeling Karolina asked, "June not can ask so me ask. Please my Master, collar your slave." And she handed me the second collar.

I placed the collar around June's neck, buckled it tight and locked it in place with the padlock. I slipped the thin strap around June's left wrist and attached the padlock key to it. Again I said my piece, "June, you have given me the gift of your servitude, I give you the means to open your collar if you should ever want to."

Meaningless, possibly even trite but, as I have already said, it meant a lot to me.

I kissed June, holding her for the last time, feeling this body which would never again express its joy and happiness, would never again hug or be hugged. Tears ran freely as I turned to Joasia. Poor Joasia, why had this been done to you, hasn't your life been difficult enough already? I kissed and hugged her. There was nothing else I could do for her now.

We left Sasha at the funeral home and I flagged a taxi down to take us back to the Crynos. Sasha was going to make the initial arrangements for a burial or cremation early next week. Currently a cremation, which was Joasia's preference, was prevented by an injunction. The police didn't want any possible 'evidence' to be destroyed by cremation. Sasha had arranged an appeal against this injunction which will be heard tomorrow.

I got into my office and almost fell into my chair. I rested for a minute or two, doing nothing but thinking about my four girls, the two that were gone and the two that were left. How could I know, I mean really KNOW that they wanted to stay with me? I had caused the death of two out of four, which are pretty poor odds for the survivors. So why would they want to stay with me.

There was a knock on the door; that was extremely unusual as I now had a small team of people who prevented me from being disturbed by trivia, and those who could get to my door usually had my permission to come in without knocking. "Come in" I called.

Karolina, naked, crawled in and Ela followed her. Karolina came and knelt by my side, knees wide, her arms tight behind her back and head thrown as far back as she could. This was her total slave pose. One she used rarely but always when she wanted to show that she was a total slave to me. Ela stood across the desk from me, ignoring the chair she was stood by. This too was unusual; Ela seemed to be showing her respect for me as well.

"What can I do for you ladies?"

"My Master, how this slave thank Master for do Momma 'n' June. Master already have this girl body. Master already have this girl heart. Got nothing give Master, Master got all this girl. Only got me say thank you." Tears were running freely down her cheeks.

I opened a desk drawer and pulled out a large envelope with 'Karolina' written in large marker pen letters. I pulled out a plastic bag and showed its contents to Karolina. They were a collar, a large padlock with one of its keys sawn in half, and a slim strap. "Karolina my darling, if you should die before me then I have your collar, padlock and this strap, already waiting for you." I held her hands, "But dearest Karolina I beg that you don't leave me. I don't know what I would do without you."

Karolina was actually indignant, "I you slave, I not go no where. Yours 'til you die, me die!" I leant forward and cupped her cheek, I kissed her, my tears mingling with hers. "I love you dearest Karolina."

She looked up at me, "not love slave, like slave, love freewoman."

"Well I love you, would you like to be a freewoman?"

"NO!" Karolina glared at me, "This girl is slave you. Want be slave you always; not know how be freewoman. Happy be slave if me slave you."

"Then can I love my slave?"

"This girl is you girl, love if want. This girl just want Master be happy this girl."

"I am very happy with my girl."

Karolina smiled at me and went back into her 'total slave' position. I knew that there was more to come.

"Uhm..." Ela cleared her throat. I looked at her. "Boss, Karolina has been talking to me and the others." I raised my eyebrows at this. "Yes Boss, she's been talking to all of us. And ... err ... we all agree."

I was truly puzzled by now. "Errr ... Boss, Karolina wants to buy something for you."

"Of course she can." I interrupted, Karolina had often brought things for me and she never seemed concerned about the purchase until now.

"Err ... Boss, I don't think that you're gonna like this one."

Now I was curious. "Oh..."

"Boss ... I don't think you're gonna like it, but I think that you need this, I really do."

I looked at Ela and she held my gaze without flinching.