Reginald was in the lounge when his phone beeped. The old man reached into the jacket pocket of his formal black suit and pulled a small phone out. Handling it like someone without much experience, he unfolded it and held the device up to his head. “Yes?” he said in a posh, public school accent.

“Charles here.” A man on the other end said. “There is a small, unmarked black van at the rear gate. I believe it is the mistress’ special delivery, sir.”

“Thank you Charles.” Reginald replied. Charles was in charge of the security systems around the mistress’ estate. “Have the rest of the staff been given their instructions?”

“Yes sir.” Charles told him. “From what I can see, all of the staff presently on the grounds, except for you and I of course, have retired to their quarters for the evening.”

“Very good. Please inform me if anything changes.” Reginald said and hung up. The less people who knew about the mistress’ ‘collection’ the better. He couldn’t be sure which of the staff could be relied upon to maintain the proper ‘discretion’ about things like the Mistress’ collection.

Reginald stuck the cellphone back in his inside jacket pocket. As he withdrew his hand, he felt for the familiar presence of the Webley in its usual place in the shoulder harness underneath his left arm. Though it had been years since his service, Reginald still knew how to use it. Though the fellows the Mistress had employed for this had proved reliable in the past, one could never take chances assuming loyalty among such people. Best to be prepared should things become violent. “At least the Mistress will not be here tonight.” Reginald thought to himself. He knew she had wanted to be here tonight, when they delivered her newest toy and had been sorely disappointed when she had had to change her plans, but Reginald was glad business had forced her to be away tonight.

Maintaining an even, measured pace, Reginald walked through the large house. It was oddly empty with all of the staff away for the evening. He made his way to the back of the mansion, where the servants’ entrance was. Near the house was a small garage, for some of the staff to park their cars and a paved roadway connected it and the house to a metal gate, set in the brick wall that ran around the grounds to allow for deliveries.

There was a small panel, beside the door, with several switches on it. Reginald flipped one of the switches and across the way, an electric motor slowly swung the gate inward. When it was all the way open, a black van pulled through it. It rolled up the driveway and stopped in front of the house.

Reginald stepped outside as two men got out of the van. They were wearing long brown jackets and, despite the late hour, tinted sunglasses, to obscure their features. The driver was tall and broad shouldered, with sandy-brown hair. The other was short, dark haired, with a thin, pinched face and a thin mustache. He was the one who addressed Reginald, in a higher pitched voice.

“We’re here making a...err…”special delivery” for the lady of the house. Where is she?” he asked.

“I am afraid the Mistress is currently preoccupied with some pressing matters that require her personal attention. I am the Mistress’ butler and head of staff and I am permitted to act in her stead in this matter and in others.” Reginald replied, nodding his head.

The short man shrugged. “None of our concern...just so long as you give us the money we were promised.”

“Of course.” Reginald said, keeping a straight face, even as his body tensed. This would be the most dangerous moment. “Once I have inspected the delivery and verified it is in good condition.” The short man frowned, though his partner kept a straight face, showing nothing. Reginald fought the urge to reach for the revolver in its shoulder holster. If the men insisted on payment up front it might come to violence. Neither of the men looked armed...but then again, neither did he. Looks could be deceiving.

After a moment, the short man seemed to relax. “Fine.” He said, turning back to the van. “We can show you her first...but then we want our money.”

“Certainly.” Reginald said, walking over to the van. The short man nodded to his partner. The taller man produced a key and inserted it into the lock on the side door. He turned it and slid the door open.

“mmmm…” A soft moan came from inside the dark interior of the van. Reginald stepped forward, keeping a watch on the two men, in case they jumped him. After a moment, his eyes adjusted and he could make out a figure, lying on the floor of the van. She was a young woman, just turned 18 last month, he remembered from the meeting with these two...gentleman, when the Mistress had selected her from the other potential candidates and they made the arrangements.

The girl moved, rolling over. As she did, Reginald could see her wrists and ankles were wrapped with tape. She was dressed for bed, in a loose, purple thin strapped top and a pair of skimpy white panties.

A black cloth bag was pulled over the girl’s head, obscuring her features. Reginald reached down, into the van and pulled the sack off. A pretty face looked up at him, blinking in the light from the house, streaming into the van through the open door, staring up at the three figures, black outlines against the light, looking down at her. Her eyes were wide with terror. Reginald suspected only a few hours ago, she’d been in bed, warm and comfortable, unaware of the plans people she didn’t know, had never even met, had made for her…

“mmmppphhh…” the girl grunted softly. Her lips were covered with several strips of the same tape that bound her hands and feet, to keep her quiet. Underneath the tape gag, the girl’s cheeks bulged. Something had been stuffed inside her mouth first, to further muffle her frightened cries.

The last thing Reginald noted was the teenage girl’s hair. In the dim light it was hard to make out the color, but he already knew it was a lovely shade of dark brown. Her hair was shoulder length and fell on either side of her face in full, combed locks.

Reginald turned to the two kidnappers. He nodded. “This is the girl we agreed upon and I she seems to have been delivered unharmed and in healthy condition…” From the glazed look in her eyes and her slow reactions, Reginald guessed she’d been drugged at some point during her kidnapping, but he knew that would soon wear off. “If you will excuse me for a moment, I will get you your agreed upon payment.”

Reginald turned and walked back to the house. A small briefcase was set on the counter in the room, near the door. Grabbing it, he stepped outside again and returned to the van and its occupants. “Here you are, sirs.” He said, handing over the briefcase. The leader of the two opened the case and quickly scanned over the stacks of crisp banknotes. Selecting one of the stacks at random, he quickly flipped through the bills, ensuring all of them were genuine.

“It seems we are done here.” He said, closing the briefcase. “She belongs to you and your mistress now.” Inside the van, the teenage girl groaned into her gag, dimly aware through the drugged haze that something had just happened. She hadn’t realized yet, though she would know soon enough, she had just been sold by these two men. “Where would you like us to leave her?” He nodded to his partner. The tall kidnapper turned and reached into the van. The captive girl kicked and struggled feebly as he bent over and picked her up. He casually tossed the helpless teen over his shoulder, as if she weighed nothing.

“This way, if you please…” Reginald replied. He turned and walked back towards the house, the two kidnappers and their prisoner following after him. There were two entrances into the chambers underneath the manor. One was in the Mistress’ bedchambers, though Reginald would be hanged before he led two ruffians such as these into his Mistress’ private rooms. The other entrance was carefully hidden in the back of the store room, near the kitchen, not far from the rear entrance, to facilitate food deliveries. Reginald used this entrance most often, when tending to his Mistress’ extensive collection.

“Through here, Gentleman.” Reginald said, his hand finding the secret switch, located underneath one of the shelves. That section of shelving shifted back and slid to one side on rails. On the other side was a stairwell, going down, underneath the house. He started down the stairs, listening as the two kidnappers followed after him.

By the time he reached the bottom, Reginald’s knees were aching. He shuddered to think of the climb back up. One of these days, he knew, he would have to find someone else to take over the care of the Mistress’ collection. Someone who could be trusted and relied upon…

At the bottom, the stairs ended in a four way intersection, the stairs forming one path with hallways heading in the other three directions. The walls, floor and ceiling were of poured concrete, built secretly into the foundation when the house was built by one of the Mistress’ family decades ago. Each of the hallways were lined with metal doors and caged light fixtures at regular lengths.

“This way.” He said, walking forward into the middle hallway. The men’s’ shoes echoed through the stone passages with every step. Every twenty feet or so was a door, marked with a number. “The Mistress likes to keep her collection well organized.” Reginald explained, nodded as they passed each door. “Blonde...Redhead...Asian...African...Indian...ah here we are!” He stopped in front of a door marked with a number ‘6’. There was a note posted on the door, a list of names and a reminder about the upcoming new arrival.

The handles on the door was locked with a combination bike lock. Reginald turned the dials to the correction combination and it popped open. Leaving it hanging from one of the handles, Reginald slid the other door open. The occupants stirred, moaning softly, as they were awoken by the sudden light from the hallway, but none of them spoke. It had been a while since the last time the Mistress had acquired a brunette for her collection. These girls had all been here for some time. They knew their place now.

The inside of the ‘guest room’ as the Mistress sometimes liked to call it, was a wide, shallow room, little bigger than a closet, with bare walls and floor. A metal bar ran along the top of the room, a few inches from the ceiling. Standing in the room were three young women, ranging in age from late teens to early twenties. All of them were brunette and all very pretty. Their hands were raised above their heads and chained to the bar with handcuffs. The girls were stretched out onto their toes, leaving their bodies well displayed for the gentleman.

Reginald gestured for the taller kidnapper to set his charge down. The girl whimpered into her gag as she spotted the closet and its occupants, knowing she was going to join them soon. Reginald rolled her over. From his pocket, the old man pulled out a small switchblade, which he used to cut the tape binding her hands and then her feet. Before she could struggle, Reginald locked a pair of cuffs onto her ankles and onto one of her wrists. The metal cuffs were lined with soft rubber, to make them easier on the girls’ skin during ‘long term storage’.

Lifting her to her feet, Reginald forced the new girl into the ‘guest room’. She was shaking with fright as he raised her hands up, looping the cuffs over the bar and locking the free end around her other wrist, trapping her. Though she attempted to struggle, she was too weak to put up any resistance. The other girls watched the new arrival with interest.

The last thing he did was remove the tape covering the girl’s lips. He reached into her mouth and pulled out several pairs of sodden panties that had been stuffed inside. She groaned, working her sore jaw.

“Please…” she whispered, her voice soft and weak. “Where am I? What are you going to do to me?”

“You’re in the Mistress’ Guest Room.” Reginald told her. “I know this must be frightening to you, but you have nothing to fear. Try and get some sleep. Tomorrow you will meet your new Mistress and you will learn how to serve her.”

With that, Reginald stepped back and closed the door, ignoring the girl’s frightened cry. As he locked it shut again, he could faintly hear her calling out. He shrugged. She would learn, soon enough. He turned, nodding to the two men. “I shall lead you gentleman out. This way please…”