Warning: this story contains a lot of cruelty, sadism, a tremendously homophobic dystopian society and other content that may disturb the reader. If you are very sensitive, it is better not to read it.
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The next morning Joe explained to me over breakfast:
-As I told you you are going to work in the supermarket in the housing estate. The manager has been a good friend of mine for years and I had warned him that I was looking for a job for you. On Saturday night he wrote to me and told me that a position as a stock boy in the supermarket had just become vacant. Until now it was occupied by a slave, who apparently made his master angry and the master beat him so badly that he was completely crippled. He has been taken to the hospital and will most likely be put down.
That was indeed the case. When a slave was no longer useful because of old age or illness, he was put to death unceremoniously, as horses were in the old days when they broke a leg. The State did not want burdens. I shuddered to hear it, and Joe noticed it:
- I'm not telling you this for the sake of it, but so that you may see and appreciate how lucky you are to have a fair and protective master.
"Yes, how lucky I am with you!", I thought, remembering the previous evening. Joe continued:
-During the day yesterday I settled with the director all the paperwork by email. You are going to work part-time, until 3 o'clock, strictly the time I spend in the office. I want you available to me whenever I am at home -Joe would only go to the office in the mornings, have lunch there and then go home and work from there, if necessary, in the afternoon-. They will pay you minimum wage, plus some bonuses. Well, that's a figure of speech -he corrected himself-, your paycheck will go directly to my account, of course -he finished his breakfast and got up. When he stood up he noticed me and put a finger on my face, swollen and reddened still from his slaps the day before: -the truth is that I would have liked you to be more presentable but, well, nobody cares anything about the appearance of a slave. So, let's go! Cover up and go to the car. You could very well walk, it's only 15 minutes from here, but you know that's not allowed, so I'll take you in the car and pick you up every day.
I put on my loincloth and left the house, followed by Joe. When we got to the car I opened the back door to get in, but then Joe stopped me with a gesture and said:
-The car seats are only for people. Things go somewhere else, don't they?
Understanding, I closed the door with a gesture of annoyance that I could not disguise and headed towards the back. Then I felt a strong shock from the collar, which made me fall to my knees on the hard asphalt of the entrance.
-Slave, mind your manners with your master and watch the faces you make at me. Your attitude is starting to exasperate me and if you continue like this I will stop being so tolerant with you -Joe told me harshly.
"Tolerant with me?", I thought. I was sure, in fact, that instead of using the collar he would have willingly slapped my face, if it hadn't been because he didn't want to destroy my poor face any more. When I was able to get up -Joe, this time, did not lift a finger to help me-, I opened the trunk and lay down inside. Joe closed it and left me in the dark, immersed in my thoughts. Sometimes I didn't know what made me more indignant, the humiliations and beatings or Joe's constant refrain of telling me how good he was to me and how grateful I should be to him.
Joe's car was big and so was his trunk, so I was not overly uncomfortable. However, I began to feel quite claustrophobic lying there and cowering in the dark as I felt the car move. Fortunately, the ride was very short. The distance was minimal and, as Joe had said, I could have walked perfectly well, but, indeed, slaves were not allowed to walk alone outside without someone to watch them. There had been cases of slaves who had escaped under those circumstances, as their collars had a security flaw. There had also been kidnappings and even lynchings of slaves walking alone. And that, although no one was charged with any crime for it, could result in uncomfortable videos posted on social networks, which annoyed the government, not very interested in atrocities like that transcending to other countries.
The light dazzled me when Joe opened the trunk. Again he didn't lift a finger to help me and I had to manage to get out on my own. We were in the supermarket parking lot. It was still deserted at that hour. Joe spoke to me:
-I have overridden the program in your collar that prevented you from speaking. I don't want to deprive you of the use of speech in your work. It may be necessary. However, I hope you will remember that a slave never speaks unless he is asked and always does so with the utmost respect for his superiors. And for you, don't forget, any free man is a superior and you will always carry out any order he gives you, whatever it may be.
-Yes, Sir -I managed to articulate, finding my voice again. Joe continued:
-I still expect you to behave yourself and your work here to be impeccable. If not, the manager can punish you, I'm going to hand over the control of your collar to him. But woe betide you if, in spite of that, I receive any complaints about your behavior or your performance! If you make me look bad, I assure you that what happened yesterday will seem like caresses compared to what you will suffer at my hands!
That's what my life was like now. A succession of humiliations and frightening threats from someone I thought was a friend. I looked down, dejected. Joe then seemed to take pity a little and putting a finger under my chin made me look him in the eyes and said smiling and in a warmer tone:
-I trust you. I know you will do well.
-So I will, Sir -I stammered. And without further ado we headed for the supermarket door. They had just opened and there were still no customers. Joe came in and told me to wait at the door. Immediately a man, I assumed the manager, walked towards him. He was a guy a little younger than me, about 27 years old with pleasant features. He was talking for a couple of minutes with Joe, who handed him the electronic control of the collar and then motioned me to come closer.
-This is Roger and as of this moment you are under his command. He has my authorization to punish you if necessary, but I hope for your sake that he doesn't have to do it. -He asked impatiently when he saw that I didn't move: -How does a slave greet his superior?