Page 90 of Cruel Legacy

When I come out of the last room, a guy with a jester mask approaches me. “Have you selected your entertainment for the evening?” I’m not sure how to answer that, so I give him a blank look.

“You don’t have to say it. I’m good at guessing.” He takes in my mask and my outfit. “Belt?”

“Excuse me?”

“You’re going for brat, right? Daddy’s gonna punish you with a belt.”

“I’m not participating. I just came to check things out. But you enjoy your evening.”

He cocks his head to the side. “There is no ‘just came to see’. This place has one rule. And tonight, we test your limits and ability to follow rules.”

“Like I said, I’m not participating.”

He chuckles. “Refusing to participate isn’t an option,pledge.”

He hands me an envelope and walks out the door, pulling it closed behind him. I follow him to the door, but when I turn the handle, nothing happens. It’s locked from the outside. I pull the notecard from the envelope to see just what kind of bullshit I can expect to go down tonight.

* * *

A lady of Zeta Nu Theta is distinguished. An upstanding woman of moral superiority. An ethereal beauty beyond reproach. Her asset is her wit, intelligence, compassion, and body. A Zeta Nu knows when and how to correctly wield each one. As part of the transition from the old life into the new, a Zeta Nu Pledge is honored to publicly declare a vow of chastity that extends through the end of the second semester after they cross over. We look forward to celebrating you.

Strong of mind, kind of heart, pure of body.

I read the words again. Seriously? A vow of chastity? There’s no date when thiscelebrationis supposed to take place. If I’m supposed to turn down dick just because they say so, they should at least provide a countdown clock or something, so I know how many days I have left to get my kitty licked.

I have to laugh at myself. Even if I had a date, I don’t have any prospects I can use to help me get off. I’ve been hesitant about going out and picking someone up after the last guy turned out to be my teacher. With my luck, the odds of that happening again are like seventy percent.

I look around the room, trying to figure out why they had this delivered to me tonight. Here. I already knew the pledges were being watched, but this is a little too much.

I blink, and rub my eyes, which are suddenly feeling irritated for no reason. I look down and see smoke swirling around the floor. A look towards the ceiling shows it’s coming from the vents up there too.

I’m familiar with the sensation I’m feeling. The weird taste in my mouth. They’re filling this room with whatever gas they used to knock us out the night of the meet and greet. This time, I lower myself to the floor. I’d rather not do the whole falling down on my face thing again.

My ears are ringing. I lift my hands to plug my ears and find them chained together in front of me. What the fuck?

My breath fans back at me. I reach up and find they’ve placed another silk bag over my head. I focus on the static that I know is external to the pounding in my head.

The pledge master’s voice plays from a recording. “A Zeta Nu’s journey from their old life to the new symbolizes an awakening to the true strength of woman kind. There is no greater or more important choice than to accept a vow of purity, but the journey to the decision is a personal one. Tonight, you will decide. You must freely and willingly choose to leave behind the dark and enticing delights that men seek to enslave us in. Your vow to be a true lady means bringing them into the light. A Zeta Nu does not engage in carnal pleasures for pleasure’s sake. The secrets of her enticements remain behind closed bedroom doors. A lady always, in and out of the public eye.”

I mull over what she’s saying, and it sounds an awful lot like the opposite of a lady in the streets, a freak in the sheets. I’d have to play Pious Pam for three more months,afterI cross over. I wanna say fuck no, but I’m doing this for LJ. She needs my support and if intentionally swearing off dick makes me a good friend, I’ll do it. I’m not getting any action anyway, so I can deal with it.

“Do you accept this most solemn vow? Pure of mind, pure of heart, pure of body. Speak now, pledge, verbally making your intentions clear.”

I wait to see if anyone else speaks. I don’t hear anything, so I assume I’m the only person in this room. I take a deep breath and say, “I accept, Sovereign Sister.”

A gong sounds, and the voice says, “Let the test begin.”

Test? Before I can work through that, the slack in the chain tightens. I’m hoisted off my feet, then yanked hard enough to pull my arms out of their sockets. I walk across the room to keep that from happening, praying I’m not about to run into anything.

The ambient temperature in the room changes, and I can make out a glow. That’s the only reason I can tell I’m in a different room. Someone grabs the chains, yanking my hands over my head. They pull hard enough that I’m wrenched off my feet. Someone else grabs my legs, and together they carry me forward.

My back hits something cold. The chains are readjusted, and something’s cuffed around my ankles. I’m spread eagled on a flat surface.

A voice on my left says, “I wouldn’t get too close until she’s compliant. She likes to hit.”

I remember that voice. It’s the guy that slapped my ass the night I was dropped on the side of the road. “You’re not still pissed about that little tiny tap, are you?”

The person who answers makes my stomach flip, a wave of unease crawling up my spine. “It’s okay. She won’t be getting much use out of her arms or legs tonight.”

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