Chapter 7

I woke up on the cold, granite, floor at the bottom of the grand staircase, still in that damned maid's uniform.

"Ugh…." I moaned, sitting up and looking around. I saw no trace of Megan or Master, just a slip of paper tucked down the front of my dress.

"What the hell?" I asked aloud, confused. I looked down and saw that it was the chore paper. I rolled my eyes at his audacity.

The first chore on the list was to clean the kitchen, so I got up and walked into the kitchen. I spotted cleaning supplies on the counter.

I just grabbed a rag when I realized that I still had the uniform and the pumps on. I dropped the rag and dashed up the stairs to change.

I managed to pull out a pair of black yoga pants and a dark green tank top. I walked out of my room to complete the chores.

I saved the library for last, so there I was, holding the cleaning supplies and gazing up at the giant oak doors with gold trimming and door handles.

I breathed a deep breath and pushed one of the doors open. My eyes immediately fell upon the floor to ceiling bookcases covering the walls. This room had to have been the size of the football field.

In the far corner of the room was a large wooden desk with roses craved into the legs. In the middle of the room was a black rug on the hardwood floors, and black bean-bag chairs pushed up against the far wall's windows.

I honestly had no idea how to clean in there, so I just polished the desk.

After I was done, I walked out the magnificent room to deposit the cleaning supplies.

When I returned, I browsed the shelves and used the rolling ladders to look higher up. I noticed that there were newer books along with older ones. The books were also alphabetized by the author's last name.

After about thirty minutes of looking, I decided on Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck. I sat in one of the bean-bag chairs, and for the first time since my capture, I was truly happy.

I had managed to plow through Of Mice and Men when I realized that I hadn't eaten anything in a long time.

I got up with the book I was reading, Pride and Prejudice, and stuck the chore paper in it to save my place. I left the library and walked to my room to drop of the book, and walked to the kitchen.

I glanced at the microwave when I walked in and it read 12:47. Since it was lunchtime, I made a ham and cheese sandwich. I sat at the counter with my sandwich and a can of soda. I scarfed down my lunch and chugged my soda.

I was making my way back to my room when I heard the front door open and close.

"Slave!" Master called. I rushed to him, not wanting to anger him.

"Yes?" I asked when I reached him.

"I'm having a ball this Saturday night, and I need your help to get ready," he said

I counted off the dates on my fingers.

"Saturday? But that's tomorrow," I questioned.

"Yes, I am well aware of that fact. That is why I need you to help me prepare for it. Have you eaten lunch yet?" he asked impatiently.

"Yeah, I just finished," I responded.

"Good. Come with me. We are going to clean the ball room. I haven't used it in decades," he said, ushering me to follow him.

"Okay," I said as I began following him to a set of double doors just off the living room.

When we reached them, he pushed the doors open to reveal a large ballroom. The ceiling was painted with cherubs in the sky, the clouds outlined in gold. The floor was also outlined in a pattern of gold diamonds.

"Wow, it's beautiful," I breathed.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know. It's amazing. Here's a mop. Start mopping the floor," he said, handing me a mop.

As I took the mop from him, our fingers brushed together, and I noticed for the first time how cold his skin was.

He jerked away from my touch and turned his back to me. I stood there, dazed by his touch.

"Well, why the hell are you just standing there for? You have work to do, so do it," Master growled.

I sighed and started cleaning the floor.

Five grueling hours later, the ballroom was cleaned and decorated in a red, black , and silver color scheme.

"Slave, you are to serve the guests tomorrow. Do whatever they tell you to do. I bought you a dress to wear, so wear it. Understood?" Master asked when we were done.

"All but one thing. Why are you even having this ball?" I inquired.

"Because my parents thought it was time to make use of my ballroom," he clarified.

"Oh. Okay, then," I said.

"You are dismissed," he said suddenly.

I left the ballroom and went in the kitchen to make some dinner.

I just finished making spaghetti when Master walked in with Megan.

"Is that spaghetti? Can I have some? I love spaghetti!" she exclaimed, sounding slightly childish.

"Yeah. There's some left over on the fridge," I answered.

"Thanks," she said, walking over to the refrigerator.

"Sure," I mumbled, digging into my food.

When Megan fished out the spaghetti, her and Master left the room, leaving me alone at last. I sat there thinking for a while and one question kept popping up in my mind: Why doesn't Master ever ask me to make food for him?

I pondered that question while I ate, and when I finished I put the dishes in the dishwasher. I headed up to my room, the question now forgotten.

The first thing I saw when I entered my room was a beautiful black, strapless ball gown. I ran over to it and picked it up. It felt like silk.

I walked into the bathroom to try it on. It fit perfectly. The dress was long enough to hide my feet, so I didn't have to wear heels. I could just wear my combat boots.

I slipped out of the dress and hung it up in the closet. I grabbed a pair of pajamas while I was in there, and walked to the bathroom to take a shower.

When I was done, I changed into the PJ's and grabbed the growing pile of dirty clothes on the bathroom floor. I took them to the closet and dumped them in the clothes hamper. I walked out and grabbed Pride and Prejudice.

I read till I could barely keep my eyes open. I put the book and set it on the nightstand. Two minutes after I shut my eyes, I fell asleep.