Free Frost Moon by Anthony Francis

with her platforms, I still towered over her, which ruined whatever effect she’d been aiming for.
    She glared up at me, silent beneath her mask; then imperiously— and it’s quite a trick to do that wearing a fetish maid’s outfit—she held up her two black-mitted hands like a surgeon. Without a word “the Lady Darkrose” and the dog-boy got up. Darkrose’s boots clacked against the floor; the dog-boy was silent except for the rattling of his leash chain. They stepped to either side of Savannah and quickly unlaced the white lacings on her mitts; then, when she snapped her freed fingers, the dog-boy began unlacing the mask from the back. Within a few moments, he was peeling it off Savannah, and I could briefly see her long, sharp canines release the chewed black ballgag, glistening with saliva, that had kept her silent.
    That didn’t last for long.
    “Ptheh,” Savannah said, wiping her mouth. “Why the hell are you here, Dakota? And it’s the Lady Saffron now. Our receptionist should have explained that we were busy—”
    “Whatever happened to you as ‘the vampire queen of Little Five Points’?” I asked.
    “I still am,” Savannah said, sulkily, turning away, eyes flicking sideways to the black dominatrix figure before strolling back to the throne, the chain between her thighs continuing to rattle with each step. “This is the Lady Darkrose, who came here from Africa to contest the appointment of such a junior vampire to this post—”
    “So you folded?” I said. “You let her move in and take over—”
    “Move in, yes, but take over, no. I am still the Lady Saffron,” Savannah said, seating herself in the throne straightly, stiffly, as if she was afraid she’d sit on a tack. “And this is my domain. Make no mistake— I am queen of the vampires in the Little Five Points district.”
    She snapped her fingers, and both the Lady Darkrose and the dog-boy knelt by the side of her ‘throne’ and stared at the floor. I stared at Darkrose; the black dominatrix’ face was controlled—no, composed. Her eyes flicked up at me, and I arched an eyebrow, as if to say, is this for real? Darkrose briefly nodded; then looked back down. I saw no resentment…in fact, she seemed completely comfortable in her role.
    “Then what the hell is this show?” I asked.
    “I am the queen of the vampires in Little Five Points,” she said, “and if I want to be the bondage queen in my own court, then I shall have it.”
    I touched my hand to my forehead. “Darkrose is your domme,” I said.
    “That she is,” ‘Saffron’ said, smiling down at her. “And my second in command.”
    “Both roles I am happy to play, my Lady Saffron,” Darkrose said, staring at the floor, still perfectly composed. Clearly she had some BDSM training beyond just picking out her wardrobe, as she was as comfortable kneeling on the floor as she had been on the throne.
    “Sorry,” I said at last. I felt so stupid. They’d warned me to expect a show in the outer office, and I still came in here and took everything so damn seriously. “I am such an idiot.”
    “That you are,” Savannah said, still smiling.
    “Who’s the lucky dog?” I asked.
    “Ah, Doug,” she said, patting his head. “Friend of a friend. I’m training Doug for a show. But you know all about training, don’t you, Dakota?”
    I said nothing.
    There was a long pause, and Savannah just seemed to look at me, drinking me in. Finally, she leaned forward in her chair, clanking a bit as she did so, still smiling with the slightest wince. “Now. Tell me why you’re here.”
    “I need some help,” I admitted. “I’m doing a new kind of magical tattoo—”
    “I cannot believe you still do that… Satanist stuff,” Savannah said.
    Oh, Lord, not this again. “Excuse me, the lesbian bondage queen is going to lecture me about Satanic?”
    “There’s nothing Satanic about bondage—”
    “There’s nothing wrong with bondage,” I said, “but when you play the