The Collaring of Chloe

Chapter 27: The Other Side of the Looking Glass

Entering into Mistress Victoria's house, Chloe briefly thought back to her first time entering Master's house. As now, she'd been naked and damp from cleaning herself outside, unsure what to expect on the other side of a door. However, any similarities to that day and this one lasted only until she crossed the threshold. Back then, she had been encountering his house for the first time, every sight a new one. Here, she was already familiar with what lay within from the play party she'd attended. Even beyond that, the feel of the parlor she walked into was very removed from that of Master's solarium. His home had felt soft and inviting, Mistress Victoria's felt hard and dangerous.

While the house's décor and furnishings had not changed, it looked very different to Chloe now, empty of the teeming crowd of sexually charged party-goers. It made the already large parlor room, that had served as a sort of foyer and social room, seem all the more enormous. The kitchenette off to one side of it had seemed almost cramped before, full of trestle-tables loaded with snacks and drinks. Now it seemed broad and spacious, an empty space that seemed a little too bright against the dimmer lighting of the rest of the house.

The large central staircase leading to the upper floors also seemed oversized and exaggerated in comparison to what she remembered. She could still picture the constant flow of people ascending and descending from it during the party, remembering going up and down it herself to visit some of the upper rooms. She could have sworn it had been smaller, if not any less grand. In fact, it seemed almost too grand to her, odd in a way.

In fact, for the first time, as she began walking down the hall ahead of her, looking into the many rooms in search for Mistress, Chloe began to fully recognize the strange layout and size of the house. Full of mostly naked people all cavorting from room to room, she'd not fully considered the house itself, as its own structure. It had simply been a palace of delights and debauchery. Her focus had been on so many other wonderful things that she'd taken any details of the house for granted.

Now, it all struck her as strange, standing out distinctly as an anomaly, though she couldn't quite say how. Perhaps, it was how each room she looked into was not just set up for fetish play and activities, but most had permanent installations, beautifully menacing constructions of gleaming steel, firm oak, and dark leather. Or perhaps it was the general feel of the place, a bit overly sterile and impersonal, despite most rooms appearing to have some sort of theme of decoration. More though, the layout of the whole house just felt odd, somehow different from what she thought it should be.

It felt like it was on the tip of her mind, a revelation just out of reach, but teasingly tickling at her the more she tried to get a hold of it. Eventually, she forced the questions from her mind; there would be plenty of time to figure out such mysteries later. She needed to stay focused and disciplined. When she found Mistress Victoria, she wanted to put forth only the image of the obedient slave.

Continuing her search with a narrower purpose of simply seeking out her Mistress, Chloe quickly walked the length of the main hall full of rooms all the way to the vaulted, actual, foyer at the other end, complete with its own massive set of stairs leading upwards. The space had been turned into general storage, boxes stacked up between cheap plastic shelving full of cleaning supplies, sanitizers, basic medical items, and other general staples for play parties. There were also plenty of shelves and crates that had items for the play itself, such as spare rope, general toys, replacement parts for installations, and more than a few things set aside to be repaired.

It seemed unlikely that Mistress would be waiting somewhere amid all the shelves and piles, hiding from her. There were a few other doors here, leading to areas that Chloe didn't know, but she doubted she'd be behind any of these either. Most likely, she was on a different floor. Just before entering, she'd passed the door leading down into the basement area, where she'd watched Grandfather Clock's mesmerizing scene. While she might be there, Chloe decided it more likely she was up, not down.