Rule of Thumb Ch. 17

The slapper looked like a miniature ferris wheel with little metal arms sticking out sideways where the gondolas would have been hanging down. In the center was a small electric motor and a set of large knobs.

"I kinda stole it from Hoberman, but since I'm not going commercial with it, I don't think it will matter."

I had no idea what he was talking about, but he turned one of the knobs and the whole contraption suddenly got bigger. All of the arms moved out at the same time, the outer circle just seemed to scissor out smoothly.

"To get the force you want, you just need to widen the circle – the pads will come down much harder, but slower, so if you want them to hit at the same rate, you'll have to turn up the speed."

I watched as the thing began to spin, the little arms moving behind Loren's upturned ass. She could feel the breeze and opened her eyes to try and see what was going on.

Jamison turned it off and it came to a halt almost immediately. "I have a few alternatives for the actual slappers." He reached into a box and pulled out several table tennis paddles, a few small whips, a set of black leather rectangles and what appeared to be chamois cloths. "Really it will take anything – the hardware is simple to use." He motioned for me to get closer and demonstrated how the clamps worked on the small arms. "Now to get these paddles to work, you'll have to rotate the arms out a little. They won't ever hit directly on her ass – you'll have to do that yourself, bro', but they'll make a very nice glancing blow."

She shivered and tried to twist to see what was happening, but it was impossible.

"And of course, there are dozens of ways to mix and match – one on one side, something else on the other...I tried this combo on Christine. She didn't know what hit her." He laughed a little stepping back.

There were six pairs of arms – he had put the black leather on every other one on each side, with a paddle in between a couple, a couple of chamois and a crop in between the others. "What's with the cloths?"

"Infuckingcredible. I dreamt it up one night. Literally. Feel them."

As expected the leather was extraordinarily soft, but they were heavy. Far heavier than I would have expected. As I lifted one, I realized he'd sown weights into the ends.

He nodded, smiling. "When those things get going, it makes a very satisfying effect." He positioned the wheel right between her spread legs and handed me a control tethered to the motor. "Would you like to do the honors?"

I studied the box – a single dial reading '0' to '10' and a small switch. I left the dial at 0 and flipped the switch. I heard a small hum, but no motion, as I'd expected. I turned the dial to 1 and the thing started moving, pretty fast. The leather hit her ass, along with the crop and a chamois or two before I'd had a chance to even look up.

Loren cried out as the slappers hit her at a varying pace. She couldn't get the pattern down as the paddles and leather came at odd times and on either side, the crops coming immediately afterward and the chamois brushing against her, but at a strange rhythm.

"OHGOD, OH FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK!" She cried out with each slap, barely taking a breath before the next slap.

"You got a beer?" Jamison looked at me.

I nodded to the kitchen, unable to take my eyes off her ass jumping and wriggling. I sat down on the couch, as much to appreciate the thing as to make sure she was safe.

"So, you can change the speed while it's on, but don't try and change the diameter when it's moving."

I jumped, not realizing he was back. "Okay." I licked my lips.

"The angular momentum is too much – you'll either lose it, and it will just expand to its largest diameter, worst case, or you'll strip the knob. Besides, you'd need to reposition it anyway. Let me show you." He took the control and flipped the switch, the wheel stopping abruptly.

Loren was weeping and trying to catch her breath, her back heaving. Her ass was a bright red in several different places, pale white in others.

"Take a look." Jamison showed me the expansion knob, and then pointed to how the wheel could be swung back on a clever armature without having to move the base.

"Shit, Jamison, this is way different...better!...than I was expecting." I shook my head as he started it up again. It moved a little slower, and the rhythm had changed with the new diameter.

"Hours of entertainment." He took a swig of beer and sat down.

Loren cried out almost continuously until I told her she'd be gagged if she couldn't keep her mouth shut. It was obvious she wouldn't be able to comply, adding to her list of punishments.

"You really are asking for it, aren't you?" I said with enough malice in my voice to make her stop for a couple of moments and then she couldn't help herself. I knelt down and told her to open her mouth. I shoved a ball gag in, tying it around her head. She was drenched with tears, but I was hoping she would appreciate having something she could bite down on. I pushed plugs in her ears; I wanted to chat with him and didn't feel comfortable leaving her alone with the machine.

"So, Jamison," I began, sitting near him, Loren's sobs muted to grunts. "Something occurred to me the other day. Actually, while I was at Jason's, downtown. He said to say hello, by the way."

Just then we all jumped from a loud knock at the front door; loud enough for Loren to hear...or feel. She tried to move her head to see what was happening, a look of panic in her eyes. Jamison looked at me and I shrugged, getting up, motioning to him to shut off the slapper and the vibrator. I closed the door to the living room behind me.

Looking through the sidelights, I saw a guy in a uniform – not military or police, but some kind of trade. "Hello?" I asked opening the door.

"Richard Conner?" He paused waiting. "You called for a pest control inspection?" He held up a pre-printed sign that said simply: 'Nod, yes and act normally."

"Oh, wow. Yeah. I didn't expect you on a Sunday. Fantastic!" I looked around, not sure what to do.

"Pete Holmes, Universal Pest Control. This a good time?"

I nodded and thanked him again.

"Let's start outside and then move in, if that's alright with you."

"Sure, I'll be right there." I let him go and stuck my head in the living room. "I'll be back in a minute, just have a guy here." I could hear Loren protesting through the gag before I closed the door.

"So," he started as soon as we were near his truck. "Gordy says you need to check for bugs?"

I just nodded, not believing what I was seeing. "Seriously," I couldn't help myself. "This is your cover?"

He smiled grimly, taking a few duffels out of the back. "Seems appropriate." He stood and looked at me. "I've already scanned around out here – nothing I can find that looks unusual. Let's do a quick walk around the outside, and you can tell me where you think I should concentrate."

As we walked he took out a long wand, pointing it at the base of the siding. I noticed he had ear buds in, his eyes unfocused. It didn't take us long to get all the way around – he had stopped only a couple of times at the living room before continuing.

"Looks clean out here. I picked up something inside the walls there – but it could be anything. I'll know once I get in. Tell me – do you have a wireless intercom, router or other broadcasting devices?"

He stopped me before going inside. "Uhhhh, a router, no wireless intercom." I racked my memory.

"It's okay. Just needed to eliminate the obvious. Okay, when I'm in, we'll be talking about insects, pests, until I'm pretty certain you're clean." We started through the front door. "Oh," he pulled me back a few steps, "one more thing...you think the person who might be listening...is he from a foreign government, industrial espionage or extortion?"

I stared at him, trying to fit Anna Wilson into any of those categories. "Hmmm...personal blackmail?"

He wrinkled his mouth, thinking. "Okay, that makes it a lot simpler. Let's go."

He pulled out a small walkie-talkie looking thing as soon as I closed the front door, leaving the other equipment in the duffel. As we walked through the entry he kept up a patter. "...most likely in the kitchen. That's the most common place." He pointed to his mouth and then raised an eyebrow, asking where we should go. The kitchen seemed as likely as anywhere.

"So," he said, kneeling down and opening the sink cabinets, "it all looks clean in here. There's a faint reading in one of the upper frequencies I saw when we were near the front door. But we can talk safely here. Where do you think the most likely place is they would have placed a bug?"

"My office," I thought for a second, "and probably the living room." I hesitated at the thought of him seeing Loren and Jamison but then that rush came up my spine and I actually started to look forward to it. "Maybe my bedroom – it's upstairs."

"Alright, here's the routine. I'll do a frequency scan of the office, then a physical survey. If they're using your phone line, we'll do a quick check of that, and they may have attached something to your computer or router, so we'll want to check that."

"Do you need my help?" I was thinking how long this was going to take.

"Nope. Not unless I need you to sign on or make a call. I'll call you when I need you. I can do the same thing throughout the house, but I'll start in the hot spots."

"Great. Sounds great. Hey, I'll be in the living room – I've got some company – feel free to interrupt...in fact, would you mind starting there? I'd like to know I can talk without being listened to..."

He followed me to through living room door and saw Jamison kneeling behind Loren, his hands rubbing her ass.

"Oh." Pete stopped for a moment, unsure how to proceed. "If this isn't a convenient time..."

"What? Oh, that?" I pointed to the scene on the rug. "That's just my slave getting a little training."

He held his finger to his mouth. "No problem – let me take a look at the fireplace."

Jamison looked over at me, eyebrows raised. I'd caught him fingering my slave, but we'd already agreed he could use her. She was moaning, oblivious to Pete's presence.

As he walked around, trying unsuccessfully to ignore Loren – who could? A naked women, trussed with her ass raised, a guy with his fingers in her cunt, her mouth sealed with a gag. It would be almost impossible to ignore. Anyway, we both watched him as he went around the room, his eyes on his meter. He shook his head. "Looks clean. Any phones in here?"

I shook my head.

"Any other electronics?"

Jamison and I looked at each other and then around the room.

"A ton..." I swept my arm around.

"Any you don't trust?"

I looked at Jamison and he smiled. "Give it a shot, bro', tain't nothing there."

He had moved the slapper away to get access to Loren's ass; I fired it up.

Pete jumped at the sight and watched his meter. "Looks fine...just noise up and down the usual frequencies."

Then Jamison and I seemed to have the same thought, we both stared at the vibrator.

"Hold on, Pete. Let's try this."

I flicked it on and Loren jumped as it did its magic on her clit. He watched her struggle, licking his lips but staying focused on his meter. "So, it looks like there may be a few droppings over here," he said, suggesting we talk a little.

"Shit. Really? Where? Over by the fireplace...crap."

He nodded and asked me a few more questions – whether I'd heard anything, saw wood shavings. As we made light conversation, he motioned for me to turn the vibrator off and then on again – with each switch, Loren would moan and jump, wriggling her pelvis as best she could.

Pete had us turn it off. "There's definitely something more than noise coming from that thing. It's not at a common frequency, but that doesn't mean anything really. There are so many devices these days. The thing is, it's not at a frequency that can go very far – like about 30 feet, maximum. Let me do a scan of the rest of the house – you keep that thing on and I'll see if I can find a booster somewhere."

He left the room and Jamison and I looked at each other, smiling.

"Okay, in the name of science, I guess we'll have to do this thing." I turned it back on, watching as she moaned in frustration.

"So, I mentioned Jason..."

He nodded a little, confirming he knew who I was referring to.

"We'll be piercing the cunt over at Mistress Anna's this weekend." I stopped as he looked up, his face studying mine. "Yeah, she," I pointed to Loren, "wants to be my everlasting slave." I said it a little sarcastically, but he picked up on my unease.

He nodded, not saying anything. He took his last swig and set his bottle on the table, thought twice about it, stood up and looking at me, he peeled her lips open and shoved it into her wet cunt. "Don't let that out, cunt, you hear?" He shouted it and came back.

I watched the bottle vibrating and remembered we'd attached the trainer to her. I grabbed it and fiddled with a few dials, watching as she jumped and screamed through the gag, the bottle squeezing straight out onto the floor.

"Man, she practically begs for it, doesn't she?" He smiled, picking it up and shoving it in a little further. "It'll be in your ass next time, CUNT!" He slapped her ass, making her jump.

An idea occurred to me. I bent down, took the plugs out of Loren's ears and whispered to her. "I want you to beg us to make this stop, cunt. Do you understand?"

She nodded, looking at me, tears welling up.

"I'm going to put this up a notch, and I want to hear you screaming for my mercy, do you understand?"

She cried out a yes.

"I've been disappointed in your behavior, cunt. Ever since last night, when you committed to being my slave, you've disappointed me. Do you understand?" I was talking louder now. "Tell me you understand, cunt!"

"Yes, Master OHHHH...Rick! Yes! YES! Shit! Shit! OHHHHhhhhh gddddd...." She arched her back as a particularly powerful pulse moved through her. "I've been...fucckkkkk!...trying...soooo...fuckkk.....hard, Master Rick." The last came out with her exhale, her body coming down from whatever the trainer was doing to her.

"Beg me, and mean it, you disobedient cunt, or it'll only get worse. You've already earned enough punishment to last until next Friday. You understand that, don't you?" I slapped her ass, hard, aiming for a part that hadn't gotten much attention and she yelped in surprise.

"Please! PLEASE Master RICK! Please make this stop!" She cried out as loud as she could, her voice could easily be heard across the house.

"C'mon, Jamison, let's leave this disappointment of a cunt and grab another beer." We left the doors open between the living room and the intervening dining room as we left for the kitchen. We could hear her perfectly, screaming with what sounded like sincerity to be released. She would stop to catch her breath, her sobs mixed into her voice.

"That's one whacked out bitch, Rick."

At first I thought he was referring to Loren, but figured out he meant Anna. I twisted my mouth and nodded. "So, how well do you know her? You mentioned you'd met her..."

"Know her? Fuck, I built most of the equipment she's using. I was apprenticing when her husband came in to the workshop. He was fucking evil, but I learned a lot from him. One night let me tell you about their bedroom." He opened a beer, took a swig and shook his head, waiting for me to continue.

"Yeah, well, that's the thing. This weekend is going to be it. We're going to do the piercing, have Loren swear her undying fealty to me and we're outta there. Done. Finito." I took a beer from the fridge and sat at the counter.

"Yeah...so...the thing is...we're not really ready to do this thing. At least, I know I'm not ready. I don't know what it means to be her Master or her be my slave. I mean what the fuck is that about really?" I felt about 20 years younger than I was and realized I must have sounded foolish. I took a long draw.

He shrugged at what I'd been saying, as if he didn't understand what any of it had to do with him, and then he shook his head, looking at the living room, listening to her. "You've got it made, bro'. Seriously. That is one sweet piece of ass. She really agreed to be pierced? One of J's?"

I nodded.

"So, you looking for some guidance? Coaching? Is that it?" He emptied the bottle and went for another one.

We sat listening to her beg and struggle, her voice rising and falling with the shocks. "So, you think there's a possible arrangement here?"

"Fuck, yes, Rick. I'd love to introduce you to some real training." He tossed his head back, drinking. "But I have to say, buddy, you two don't really need much in that department." He jerked his thumb over his shoulder to the living room. "Maybe a few pointers here and there, a little polish, but you two are naturals. Shit, listen to her! She's working hard, buddy. How're you holding up?" He looked down at my crotch, where I was working pretty hard too.

I smiled. "I'm doin' fine, J. Just fine. In a few minutes, though, I'll feel better when that spook is out of here."

"So what the fuck is that about?"

"Yeah, so Gordy didn't think my theory about her bugging me was too out of line. I have to admit, she's either immensely empathetic, psychic, or she had her little cunt plant some bugs here that night they entertained us."

"She's a fucking witch, man. I had no idea you were getting involved with her until I saw her that night, and I thanked the devil she didn't recognize me. She didn't say anything, did she?"

I shook my head, thinking about when she could have planted a bug. Would she have gone so far as to break into the house and plant it before the party? I shook my head, not believing she'd go to those lengths...eveniftherewasa bug.

"If there's not a bug, then she's just witchy..." I hoped. But Pete's initial reaction to the trainer wasn't a good sign.

And, speak of the devil, he walked into the kitchen, a thin smile indicating he had found something.

"Okay, two things," he looked down at his meter and put it on the counter. Loren's gasps and cries for mercy stopped him for a moment. "That square thing you've got plastered to her pussy? It's likely got a microphone on it, and as I mentioned it's transmitting. But since it's such a short range, I figured there had to be a repeater somewhere."

He stopped and looked at our beers. "You want one?" I motioned to the fridge.

"Yeah," he continued, taking a pull, "and I found it. Nice little parasite sitting on your router. Can't tell what else it's transmitting, but it for sure is catching and sending whatever's coming off that thing." He looked at the living room and licked his lips.

"What. The. Fuck!?" This was getting completely out of hand. "What the fuck should I do now?" I wanted nothing more than to tie a rope around her fucking neck, but a part of my brain, the small remaining rational part only smiled at my reaction.

"Well, there's a couple of ways to proceed here." He set down his bottle and pointed to his index finger. "One, you could disable the devices, and assuming you know who's doing it, you can just prevent him from entering your premises. I assume he must have given you that thing..." Again he pointed his eyes to the living room.

"Two," he lifted his middle finger, "you can keep them live and offer mis-information. I'm not sure how it works, but one thing's for certain, it doesn't transmit when it's off, but that doesn't mean it isn't recording still. I've seen devices that store and send when they're back on line. Quite possible that's what's going on here. Anyway, it's a way to proceed, but that assumes you have some desired end-date or outcome around which you can misdirect your blackmailer."

"There's a third, way," Jamison piped up. "You could just pretend you don't know it's there and go about your day as if it isn't."