Page 11 of Hollow House
I pushed onward, following the others. Each stopped at the entrance to a small room to the side, and I realized it was a coat check. I hadn’t worn one and went to turn away, but a huge mass stopped me, hands on my shoulders spinning me back around.
“That needs to stay,” he ordered.
I followed his gaze down to my purse.“It’s just my purse,” I answered.
“It’s the rules,” he answered firmly. His arms crossed over his chest, letting go of me and letting me decide. “If you want to stay, it needs to remain here for tonight.”
I glanced back at the door, wondering if I should just take this out. It would be easy enough to leave and call a car home. This was my last chance.
But I’d only just begun. I would never escape the small town life if I didn’t take this chance.
I took the bag off my shoulder and passed it over to a petite woman wearing the same mask as the woman at the door. She took the bag and disappeared. When she came back, she nodded to the next attendee.
“No ticket?” I asked, confused.
She shook her head and continued to reach around me to the next person. How would I grab my items later? I was pushed to the back by others filing in after. I tried to regain my focus and spun to follow others into the party. They moved quickly, and many passed by me, my feet moving far slower.
A couple already enjoyed themselves, making out against the wall of the hallway. The woman’s moan met my ears, and I tried to keep my eyes forward as I passed. I wasn’t used to such open displays of affection. Every rumor that floated around about this event all agreed on one detail: Hollow House was a pleasure house, one that held your deepest desires and encouraged you to let go.
I couldn’t blame them for doing just that.
Maybe that was what I needed to do. Let go a little. Get laid.
Certainly the second one.
The moment I stepped foot into the main room, I felt watched. The chilling feeling washed over me, even in the sea of people. Where did they all come from if not from town? There wasn’t a single person I’d met who had been fortunate enough to be invited.
Performers were placed on slight platforms throughout the room. Some did routines with poles. I watched in awe, completely impressed by their strength and flexibility. I wentto pull out my phone but realized it was in the purse they confiscated.
I would have to remember all my notes for the article without writing them down.
No problem.I could still do this.
I watched mesmerized as women in tiny gold bodysuits danced around the poles, walking on air and spinning around them. Their core strength held them up, and I could barely tear my eyes away.
“Appetizer?” a man in the same mask as the other workers asked.
Their clothing all differed, other than the black color scheme, but the masks were unmistakably the same. I guessed that was how they differentiated themselves from attendees. Each attendee wore a mask covering their eyes, whereas these masks covered their mouths. It muffled their voices, but I still managed to hear the question.
“Thank you,” I said, grabbing a small skewer off the platter.
The food was divine, and I licked the sauce off my lips as I finished the last bite. Before I could even search for a trash, a waiter appeared to grab it. They came out of nowhere and disappeared before I could even question it. I spotted a few here and there throughout the crowd, but otherwise, they were completely ghosts.
There weren’t signs to direct attendees toward other portions of the house, but I watched a few couples slip from the room, assuming the true party happened behind closed doors.
Further into the room, I spotted a DJ in a similar mask to the workers standing behind a table and playing the music that blasted through the room. The space was dimly lit, with only colored lights along the walls providing the majority of the light, color changing with the music.
A body knocked into me, and I was brushed to the side. People carried on without noticing me, and the overwhelming feeling that I didn’t belong slammed into me. Some people chatted in corners, catching up, the masks not a barrier. I had no idea who anyone was, and the masks made it impossible to recognize anyone. I knew it was for privacy, especially in a place with such a reputation, but it was irking me.
I took the last sip of the drink in my hands, glancing around for one of the waiters to hand the glass off to. Instead, I found a table in the corner, where I spotted a few more abandoned glasses waiting to be taken.
I walked over and plopped the skeleton hand glass down.Then, I glanced around the room, trying to calculate where to head next. If I wanted to write a comprehensive article, one that would shock and delight people, I needed to see everything this place had to offer. All of it, the more shocking the better, needed to be covered.
My eyes landed on a man standing across the room. The only reason I spotted him was because the chair he sat in was raised above the crowd, on a dais of sorts.
I almost laughed, the chair resembling a throne. Who the fuck did this guy think he was? Royalty?
The picture was comical. This was a house of pleasures, a mansion filled with sins and desires that could make even the most adventurous blush…
