Valerie Ch. 06

"Date. You take the bed tonight. I'm going to be up a while. I need to E-mail Master and check for new orders before I go to bed. Let me help you into bed."

Valerie helped Francine into bed. She gathered her alarm and closed the door on the woman as she softly cried, these being tears of gratitude and love. Seeing that it was almost 7:30, she sat down at her computer and called up her E-mail. With nothing new from her Master, she called up the old message and hit reply. First, she described her masturbation experience. She took pains to make it vivid and explicit, suspecting that Master would want her to go beyond her comfort zone. That accomplished, she steeled herself for reporting her failure.

After several false starts, she wrote, "Master. I failed to obey your first command. I neglected to check my E-mail before I went to bed and hence did not sleep bound last night. Master, I am mortified to have failed you in such a basic way. I will strive to do much better in the future. Please forgive your submissive and punish me for my failure. Please don't hold back or show mercy, I want to suffer for the suffering I have put you through by my failure." She realized as she read it over that she truly felt what she wrote. She did feel like she had let Charles down and it hurt her. She wanted to be punished to clear the stain of failure from her.

She continued in the E-mail about the other important development in her day, her growing relationship with Lilly. She made sure to include her thoughts and feelings about why she was allowing Lilly to hold her accountable for what she submitted to. She expressed her hopes that this step wasn't out of line or unacceptable. "Master, I think it's important for me to have this independent check on my submission. We've spoken several times about my tendency to ignore my limits to please my dominant. As an outsider, uncomfortable with the lifestyle in general, Lilly would be an excellent check on my tendencies. She's promised to call a spade a spade and tell me when she thinks I've gone too far. I think it'll help her as well. She finds herself worrying about me even out of the house. Being able to see me safe and sound on a regular basis, happy in my submission, will reassure her that she can accept my decisions and hers."

Sending the message, she put her computer asleep and fixed herself some dinner. She made enough for Francine as well, expecting that she would awaken in the night, in hunger, if not in terror. She left a note on the inside of her door, noting that Francine had already fallen asleep. "Not surprising. That much emotional roller coasting will knock anyone out," she thought to herself.

Enjoying her dinner, Valerie relaxed with a night of TV, including CSI: Miami. At 11:00, she reopened her E-mail and saw that master had responded. She opened it with some trepidation.

"Valerie, I am pleased with your obedience in masturbation, both in an appropriate place and in not cumming. I'm especially pleased at the closeness you took yourself to a climax. The willingness to push your limits is a good thing. Tomorrow, you're to masturbate three times outside of the house, again, to the verge of orgasm, but not cumming at all. It would be especially pleasing if at least one of these took place at your firm, but do not endanger your job.

"As to your failure, I am disappointed that you would fail me so soon. I will not punish you. This failure is so basic, that your punishment will include denial of contact with me. Tomorrow night, you'll be at The Mephisto Club at 7:00. You will be naked, hands bound behind you and collar on. One of your fellow submissives will find you and punish you for me. You'll accept whatever s/he inflicts upon you. You're not to cum no matter what s/he does. If you do, you will be punished even more."

Valerie's heart caught in her throat. She thought she could take anything he might do to punish her, but to be denied him? Tears rolled down her cheeks as she grasped the magnitude of her punishment. Valerie promised herself that she would strive to be even more obedient than she could imagine. She never wanted to fail him in such a devastating way again. She read on.

"About your plans with Lilly. I approve. It's rare to have someone outside the scene that you can trust as a mirror on your choices. I feel fortunate to have Victor and I am pleased that Lilly cares enough to be a mirror for you. Be careful about crossing her boundaries. It's ironic that the young woman who provoked you into a confrontation with your Master over being forced to participate in the play is now choosing to participate to some extent. Don't be surprised at where this might go.

"All further orders you receive from me will come through one of your fellow submissives. You're not to respond or contact me until you show up at the mansion on Friday. At that time, if you bear your punishment obediently, you'll be restored, your failure forgiven. As you recognized in your confession, your failure was great and the harsh and merciless punishment you asked for is appropriate. Bear it well and do your Master proud."

Crying softly, grateful at the chance to atone for her failure, yet devastated at the price she had to pay, Valerie set her alarm and went to bed. In her grief, she neglected to turn her computer off, leaving Charles' message on the screen. Yet, in spite of the pain she felt, she also felt curiously fulfilled. "He cared. He cared enough to punish me swiftly and harshly when I failed. He believes in me and wants me to be my best. I'll be the best submissive in the whole world," she thought as she fell into a restless slumber.

*********

Valerie was beginning to hate her alarm clock. Five is such a horribly early time to get up in the morning. As she shut it off and opened her eyes, Francine was sitting at the table. "How are you holding up?" the two asked each other simultaneously.

Francine answered first. "I'm not doing great. I hurt. I feel ugly for dreaming about you the way I did. I wanted to kill myself when I woke up with yet another nightmare." At Valerie's horrified expression, she raised a hand, "I won't. I promise you, Val, I'll call you before I take such an action. I don't want to die, but when they come, the nightmares, death seems easier than bearing the pain. At work, I can lose myself in the work. Here with you, I draw so much on your love. You don't know how much it helps to know how much you care and trust me. If I was living alone…I don't know if I could bear it."

"Francine, you'll never have to bear this pain alone. Please don't leave me. We can move into your place while we look for a place in town to share, if you want."

"I'd like that. You'll have to get up earlier for work."

"Four, five, once it's before seven, it's all the same, too fucking early."

"How about you? I bumped the table in the dark and your computer woke up. You left it on his message. I remember what you told me about the questions. This is close to that ultimate nightmare for you. Can you handle it?"

"Francine, it hurts so much that I let him down this badly. I want this level of punishment. I can do it because I know that at the end; he'll have me back, forgiven. We'll have to postpone the house hunt for a day."

"Not a problem. I'm taking you to work today. No…no arguments. I'll pick you up at 5:00; we'll have a light dinner. Too much is bad before a punishment as harsh as what I expect this will be. We'll go to Mephisto's together and then I'll bring you home. Just a word of warning, the first time Charles took me to Mephisto's to be punished, it was in public with the offense announced to the entire club."

"Oh. Denial, humiliation, and pain. This will be very harsh."

"On the upside, the players are usually very supportive afterwards. You'll be surrounded by submissives that have been there and understand what you're going through and why you accept it. Now, we both have to get ready so get in the shower, little slave, and don't use all the hot water."

"Yes, ma'am."

Valerie packed her nipple clamps in her purse, wanting to push more limits while she masturbated her three times. Her marks were fading and she thought they would be gone by tomorrow, except that she was going to get more tonight. At this rate she would be wearing long sleeves and dresses for the entire spring and summer.

In the car, Valerie looked at her friend and asked, "Do you mind if I begin my obedience here in the car?"

"No. In fact, I would be honored to observe your suffering."

Opening her blouse and flipping the cups on her bra down, she took the clamps out and put them on her nipples after getting them wet with spit from her fingers. She let the pain course through her as she flicked the clamps, not letting her breasts get used to the sensations. Pulling her skirt up, aware that she was potentially visible to the traffic around her, she used one hand to caress her pussy, lightly at first, teasing herself. As she became aroused, her nipples trying to harden within the clamps and her pussy juicing up, she became more aggressive in her ministrations, sticking two fingers into her slit, moaning at the sensations she was causing.

Francine spoke up, "Val, I know you're not submitting to me, but try to keep it up until we park."

"Twenty minutes?" Val asked incredulously.

"Yes, twenty minutes."

Valerie, unprepared for such a suggestion, gasped as the thought of 20 minutes of climax-less masturbation drove her arousal even higher. She squirmed in her seat, playing with her cunt non-stop, tensing over and over again to keep her orgasm at bay. She avoided her clit like the plague, knowing she would be even more hard pressed to hold off the explosion if she went there.

Three minutes out, Francine said, "Play with your clit until we park."

Val was oblivious to the sight she had given several drivers by now. Crying in frustration, she obeyed Francine and thumbed her clit. Biting her lower lip, she raised up her ass and tensed every muscle in her body, fighting the climax that was racing for the edge of the cliff like a runaway locomotive. It seemed that nothing could stop it and she cried out loud as Francine turned the car off, reached over and pulled her hand away from herself.

Crying, she pled, "No! Please, let me finish, let me cum. I can't take it."

"No, Valerie. You can't disobey this time. We're at the garage and you have to get to work."

"Oh, God. I thought I was close yesterday. I don't know how I avoided it," she said as her breath slowed down and her mind climbed into focus. She removed the clamps, inhaling sharply at the pain. Buttoning her blouse back up, she stepped out of the car, aware that she smelled of sex and had juices dripping down her legs. Francine handed her a wad of Kleenex and she was able to sop up most of it.

"See you at 5:00. I want to hear about the other two over dinner, okay?"

"Okay. Thanks, Francine, for stopping me."

"My pleasure."

She stopped at the restroom long enough to freshen up and reached her office only five minutes late. June was there as usual and looked up. "The background check on Brad is on your desk. The courier said it was hot stuff, possibly breaking the case. Also, there's a report on the snack company from financial."

"Thanks, June. Anything over the grapevine on Lilly's application?"

"According to a steno girl, she impressed Clive with her enthusiasm and honesty. Seems she was up front about only wanting a long term temporary position. She's on the short list for covering Natalie's maternity leave."

"Good for her! Can you keep your ear to the wall for me?"

"Certainly, ma'am. May I ask the reason for the interest?"

"She was kind to me when she didn't have to be. I'm helping her get out of a troubling position."

Inside, she went over the background check and saw why this was so hot. It seems Brad had married the daughter of the CEO of the snack food company a year ago. So when he took the assignment, he had a conflict of interest. Even better, the company was near bankruptcy. Their losses in the debacle were far more than generally acknowledged. The firm was $27 million in debt and bleeding like an Argentinean bank. The law suit was the only way they had to get back into the black.

She buzzed her secretary, "June, get me a meeting with the VP in an hour. Tell him there's good news."

Minutes later, June replied, "Ms. Burbon, he says he can see you at 10:00."

"Good. Make sure that someone from legal is there as well. The ball's about to go into their corner and they'll need to run with it. Forward them a copy of these two reports."

June made copies and Val spent the next hour and a half making sure she was completely familiar with the information. Then she went up and presented the findings to the VP. Legal was smiling in glee, having enough information to nail the company to the wall. From there it was an emergency meeting with the president. The short session took the case out of her hands (finally!) and into legal's. The president thanked her for the good work and told her to take some time off to celebrate. She indicated a need for a personal day or two and said she would take the rest of the week off, if that was okay with him. He approved, with the caveat to call in and check for anything pressing.

Back down at her office, she was ecstatic. "We got them, June. They're over a barrel and have no place to go. Fraud, conflict of interest, and maybe stock fraud charges if they've tried to profit from the uncertainty at all. I've been told to take some time off, so I'll be taking the next three days off for some personal time. I may be moving soon."

"That's fantastic, Ms. Burbon. I assume you'll want to put things in order for the rest of the day?"

"Yes. Unless anything comes up suddenly, I won't be in. You should take at least one of those days off yourself."

"I might do that. Charlie has a field trip on Friday and it would give me a chance to be one of the chaperones."

"Where are they going?"

"The Natural History Museum. They're starting a unit on prehistoric creatures. The trip is supposed to give them ideas about creatures to give a report on. I think the teacher is trying to avoid 30 reports on the T-rex. Charlie's in 2^nd grade. His teacher is Marcia Walters. She is so enthusiastic that even Charlie, a lackluster student at best in 1^st grade, is excited about learning."

"Marcia Walters? Could it be?" she thought to herself. "It sounds exciting. You do that and have fun. Thirty 2^nd graders in a museum? She's going to need all the help she can get."

Valerie spent the rest of the day making sure that nothing would be left undone by her absence. She finished her obedience to Master at lunch, in the same bathroom as before and in her office itself, at 4:30, just before leaving. Francine showed up at 5:00 exactly, dragging Valerie away from the office. June promised to tidy up the last few details and see her on Monday.

Francine took her to Olive Garden where they had soup and salad (and bread sticks of course). Valerie was feeling increasingly nervous. With breaks in the conversation for when the waiter was nearby refilling their bowls, they talked. Val told Francine about the other two masturbation sessions, a little sheepish since she didn't push herself hard on those two.

"Val, after this morning, I can understand. You want to be obedient in the denial. You have enough on your mind with tonight looming ahead without worrying about failing again. I'm sure you'll have other chances to push yourself. I mean, come on now. You exposed yourself in the car! If that is not pushing limits, I don't now what is."

"Thanks, Francine. Oh, and I have great news. I've got the next three days off, barring emergencies. We can get some moving and house hunting in."

"Great. I can work from home easily enough, maximizing our time. Now enough small talk. You're nervous; I can see it all over your face. Talk to me."

"I'm so scared. It's the first time I've been truly punished for failing. There were punishments over the weekend, but they were for playful little things we did to have an excuse to play. This time I really failed Master. I feel so guilty, I'll take anything. Francine, I don't know if I can bring myself to use my safe word if it goes farther than I can handle."

"Val, remember that you consent to everything that happens, even the punishments. You owe it to whomever shows up to honor your safe words. They'll be counting on you. Suppose it's Surmi. Has anyone told you about Surmi and her pain tolerance?"

"Sally mentioned that she would take a bull whip in punishment if Master let her."

"Exactly. Surmi knows she has a difficult time judging others' pain tolerances. She relies on subs using safe words reliably. If you go in with no effective safe word, Surmi will hurt you and never know until it's too late. Do you want to do that to her?"

"God, no! I could never do that to her."

"Then keep it in the forefront of your mind, you have a safe word and punishment doesn't relieve you of the ability nor the responsibility to use it. In fact, when Surmi punished me, she punished me until my safe word."

"When Surmi played immobility with me, she said that no one else had ever been able to take ten swats on her pussy before. She wanted to be able to match me stroke for stroke someday."

"Dear, I'm impressed. That is one side-by-side I'd pay money to see. But you get my point, right?"

"Yes. No matter what I feel I deserve, my safe word is as much for them as it is for me. I'll still push myself; I won't be able to help it."

"Pushing yourself is good. Ignoring your limits is bad. Are you feeling less frightened?"

"A little. It's still there, but it's more, 'I'm afraid of what will happen and what people will think,' than a fear of being truly hurt. It's something I can handle, I think."

"Good, it's time to go. We should arrive about 15 minutes early, just enough time to strip and bind you."

The drive to the club was short and uneventful. The two didn't talk, each thinking about what was to come. Francine had not been in Mephisto's for several months, having grown unsatisfied with the random pick ups she'd been getting. They had been fun, but basically unsatisfying. Valerie was trying, unsuccessfully; to find that zone she had entered several times over the weekend. She hoped it would come upon her before the night was over.

Mephisto's had a changing area in the outer lobby for people who couldn't get into (or out of) costume before arriving (or leaving). Valerie stripped naked there and Francine helped her into her collar and cuffs, snapping the cuffs together behind her back. On the main floor, Val was pleasantly surprised that no one approached her and put a dominant move on her. She was nervous enough that she did not notice the three who started but were held back by another, whispers setting them straight.

She looked around the floor, trying to find a familiar face, but none appeared. Displayed and helpless, her emotions played a fast-paced jig, galloping all over the place. Francine had moved away from her, as the instructions made it clear that Valerie was to be unescorted on the floor. Fear, nervousness, arousal, even pride at being worth looking at, danced through her heart and mind. She wandered about for 15 minutes, watching a scene being played out on the stage where the auctions would be held in just over two weeks. A man was being waxed by a woman in a mask, the drops falling from a distance of six inches, his body jerking as each hit. A gag kept him silent beyond some moaning.

Her hands were grabbed from behind and she yelped. A woman spoke, whom she recognized as Marcia. "Slave, are you ready for your punishment?"