Shameful Reckonings (21 page)

“It would be very entertaining to see you like that. I could record it and show it to your friend. But that would be so crude and brutal, and you really don’t need more physical abuse, do you?”

“N-no, mistress,” Sigrid agreed.

“Mmmm… perhaps we could do it to your friend, and make you watch? Would that make you more pliable?”

Sigrid sobbed.

“Yes, that would probably work, but it’s not very creative, and you might decide to bite instead of suck out of a desire for revenge. What shall we do? That’s a rhetorical question, Sigrid. You don’t have to answer.”

“Thank you, mistress.” Sigrid wasn’t sure if she should have thanked her tormentor or not. It had seemed safest to do so.

“I was thinking of threatening your friend to make you more cooperative, but I don’t think that would be very effective either.” The woman tweaked Sigrid’s nipples lightly. Her ministrations had been skillful and effective. Those nipples were achingly sensitive now. Sigrid fought back a cry and tried to ignore the fact that her breasts now felt warm and heavy and tingling.

“No,” the woman continued. She released Sigrid’s teats and stood up. “I thought of many things, but I’m afraid most of them would only be wasted effort. It’s not as if I was asking you to
enjoy
it, Sigrid. Just obey. Would that be so hard, really?”

Sigrid gulped. “Yes, mistress,” she replied. She tensed in anticipation of more punishment. Instead, the woman laughed again.

“So very brave of you, to give me an honest answer,” she said as she stooped in front of Sigrid. She put a hand under Sigrid’s chin and lifted her head so that they were eye-to-eye again. There was an unholy glee in those dark eyes.

“Let me show you what I finally decided to do,” she smiled. Sigrid felt a cold terror growing in her belly. The woman stood up and clapped her hands twice. Sigrid kept her head up. Whatever horror the woman had in mind, she would face it.

Two dark forms approached. They were large and bulky and walked on four legs. Sigrid heard nails clacking against the flagstones. They were dogs, huge black and tan dogs with long, drooping ears. Their tongues were lolling out of their mouths. They came up to the little Eurasian woman and halted, their eyes on Sigrid.

“These are my special pets,” the woman smiled. “They are excellent guard dogs, and they’re absolutely devoted to me.” She stroked their shaggy heads. Neither dog moved or looked away from Sigrid. Both of them were male. Terrible thoughts began crowding their way through Sigrid’s imagination. She tried to shrink away, but the chain around her neck would not permit it.

“Please, mistress,” she begged. “Please, no!”

“’No’ what?” the woman acted genuinely puzzled. “Aren’t they beautiful animals? They’ve been very well trained, but left to themselves they’re as playful as a couple of puppies.”

They did not look like puppies to Sigrid. One of them yawned, showing a mouthful of big, sharp teeth.

“Please, mistress!” Sigrid was crying now. “Please, let me go. I’ll give you money!”

“I’m disappointed in you, Sigrid,” the woman shook her head sadly. “Don’t you think I’ve heard that before?” She came over and retrieved her riding crop from its resting place on Sigrid’s back.

“A
lot
of money, mistress!” Sigrid was frantic now.

“Really, Sigrid, you’re carrying this much too far,” the woman said. “There
is
no way out of here for you. The sooner you come to accept that, the sooner we can continue with your training. Do you think I
like
having to mete out discipline to foolish women?”

Sigrid thought that she probably liked it very much. This woman was stark, raving mad, and a sadist to boot. She shuddered violently, seized by dry heaves. Had there been anything in her stomach, she would have vomited it up.

“I’ll give you a moment to gather yourself, Sigrid,” the woman said. “Then I’m afraid we must proceed with your discipline.”

“No…” Sigrid moaned between heaves. “No, mistress… I’ll… obey.” She was down on her elbows and knees now, gasping for breath. She couldn’t bring herself to look up at the woman or her terrible dogs.

“What was that?” the woman asked.

“I’ll obey, mistress!” Sigrid wailed. “Please,
please
, I’ll
obey
!”

“Well, now, was that really so hard?” The woman sounded pleased. “You were bound to do it sooner or later.”

“Yes, mistress,” Sigrid sobbed out. She felt utterly broken and empty, devoid of hope.

“Wait here,” the woman said. She walked off into the darkness. She returned a moment later carrying a small folding chair. She placed it on the floor in front of Sigrid.

“I feel so good about your change of heart, Sigrid,” she said. Sigrid looked up at her through teary eyes. The woman was unbuttoning her dress, starting at the high collar.

“In fact,” the woman went on, still unbuttoning, “I feel like celebrating, just you and I.” In a very short while, the dress was unbuttoned from neck to hip. She flung it open. Under it, she was as naked as Sigrid. Her breasts were small, with prominent brown nipples. Her hips were fuller than her slender build would suggest. Her glossy black pubic hair had been trimmed to a strip no more than an inch and a half wide. She sat down on the folding chair, her legs apart.

“Come, Sigrid,” she cooed. “Help me celebrate.”

There was no point in playing dumb. Sigrid knew exactly what this woman was expecting. She crawled forward, crying silently now. When she was close enough, the woman put her heels on Sigrid’s back. Up close, Sigrid could smell that her mistress was already aroused. The woman reached down with both hands and spread her pussy lips with her fingers. Sigrid leaned closer and licked tentatively at the exposed pinkness. Mistress made a purring noise. Sigrid closed her eyes and continued licking. She was no stranger to this. It had always been a good way to bring Amanda around whenever she became too nervous about one of their scams. But Mistress smelled different, and she
tasted
different. Sigrid began licking more vigorously, and was rewarded with a tiny moan from Mistress. She sought out the spot that always gave Amanda the most intense pleasure and closed her lips around it, sucking and licking. Mistress shivered violently and clamped her thighs around Sigrid’s head, squealing and moaning with delight. Her heels dug into Sigrid’s back. Sigrid tasted saltiness mixed with sweetness. Some of the saltiness was from her tears.

***

“That was wonderful!” Mistress smiled as she buttoned up her dress. “Do you prefer women, Sigrid?”

“No, Mistress,” Sigrid answered, her head hanging low. Her lips and chin felt sticky, and her nostrils were still full of Mistress’ scent.

“Well, it wouldn’t make much difference if you did,” Mistress went on. “We get very few women buyers, and after one look at you men would bid almost anything to get their hands on you. You did very,
very
well, Sigrid. I’ll be sure you’re rewarded for your efforts.”

“Thank you, Mistress.”

Chapter Eight

Sigrid sank into the deep tub. The water was almost, but not quite, hot enough to be uncomfortable. It felt wonderful. She let herself slide completely under for a moment and came up again with a sigh. There was soap and shampoo at hand, brushes and washcloths and a loofa available. Thick, fluffy towels were on a rack nearby. If it weren’t for the heavy length of chain padlocked around her neck, she could almost pretend she was in a very good hotel.

She reached down with one hand to gingerly explore her newly bared loins. They had shaved her very closely down there. She had kept very still while the old woman had done the job with an old-fashioned straight razor, painfully aware of Paul and Mistress watching the procedure with avid interest. She felt her cheeks growing hot as she recalled that. At least Mistress had kept her promise of a reward. It felt very good to lie in the tub and let the warmth of the water soothe her battered body. The moment would not last. She tried not to think about what would follow it. She tried not to think about what might be happening to Amanda. She tried not to think of anything.

She was in another of those circular underground rooms. There were two other tubs set along the wall; both almost flush with the paved stone floor, as was the one she occupied. There was a large tiled area marked off from the rest of the room by a knee-high tiled wall. There were four showerheads poking out of the wall there. This room was apparently used for communal bathing. Sigrid could imagine it full of naked women trying to wash themselves clean after being used to satisfy the lusts of their captors. At the moment, she had it all to herself. There were no other women present, nor any men, ski-masked or otherwise, keeping a watch on her. There were probably hidden cameras, though. Even now, someone was probably watching her on a television monitor.

She banished the thought and turned to the bar of soap. It was unused and unmarked, plain white. It smelled faintly of flowers. She took it into the tub with her and began working up a lather. She washed herself with care, wincing whenever she struck a spot that was especially sore to the touch. There were an awful lot of those spots. She was very thorough in washing her cunt, even though it was the sorest part of her body. Mistress had promised that she would be spared any further beating or rape for the time being, but the thought of what she would have to do until she had healed and her bruises had faded made her shudder. It also made her feel sick to her stomach, and for a moment she had the dry heaves again as she leaned over the rim of the tub. When they stopped, she felt weak, shaky and lightheaded. They had not fed her much, and while the tasteless gruel she’d shared with Lara and Glory had been filling, that feeling did not last. She took a moment to recover, and then set about cleaning herself thoroughly, even when it hurt.

***

As she dried herself off with the towels, it occurred to Sigrid that she had never bathed so meticulously before, and yet she didn’t
feel
clean. It would take her a long, long time to feel clean again, assuming that she could somehow escape from this place. She hoped that she would, but she realized that she didn’t know enough about this strange and terrible place to even begin to make plans. If she played the part of a cowed and submissive woman she might find an opening. It was a faint but just plausible hope.

The only entrance to this chamber was another pair of heavy wooden double doors. They flew open just as Sigrid finished drying herself off.

“Sigrid!” Mistress called out cheerfully as she entered. She was dressed all in khaki now: Khaki shirt, khaki shorts and desert boots. If she’d been wearing a pith helmet as well she would have looked like she was going on safari. Two large, muscular and hooded men entered with her. Sigrid barely noticed them. Her attention was drawn to the big dog that Mistress had on a leash. It was one of the two she had encountered earlier. Another leash dangled from Mistress’ left hand. Sigrid knew what it was for. She shuddered.

“Come here, Sigrid,” Mistress ordered. Sigrid got on her hands and knees and slowly crawled over, keeping her head down. She stopped just short of Mistress’ booted feet.

“My, you do seem to be learning quickly,” Mistress observed. Sigrid flinched as the two men began buckling leather cuffs around her wrists. That done, they put matching cuffs on her ankles.

“One would almost think that you’re a natural,” Mistress went on. “But we know better, don’t we? You hate this, don’t you, Sigrid?”

“Yes, Mistress,” Sigrid answered. Denying it seemed foolish and risky. She already knew that Mistress liked to hurt.

“But you’re putting on an act, all the same. Here, bitch, put this on.” A thick and wide black leather collar landed on the floor right in front of Sigrid. She hesitated, and heard the dog growl. It was a low, rumbling noise, deep and threatening. Sigrid knelt and picked up the collar. It had four shiny metal D-rings equally spaced around it. She put the collar around her neck, moving her hair out of the way. She buckled it into place and got back on her hands and knees.

“Very good, Sigrid,” Mistress sounded pleased.
She
was probably putting on her own act
, Sigrid thought. Mistress looked small and fragile, but something about the woman scared Sigrid badly. She waited patiently as Mistress clipped the leash to her collar. Then the woman fondled Sigrid’s breasts, slowly, gently and lovingly, as if she couldn’t get enough of them. Sigrid tried not to shudder.

“Come, now.” Mistress stood up and pulled on Sigrid’s leash. Sigrid crawled along behind her. The hard stone floor hurt her knees if she wasn’t careful. The dog fell in alongside of her, close enough for her to feel the warmth of its body.

They went down the hallway slowly. Mistress seemed content with the pace Sigrid was making, though the dog seemed to be mildly annoyed. It whined once. Mistress did not even turn around. All she did was say: “Hush”, and the dog fell silent.

They came to a four-way intersection in the hallway. Mistress turned left, and Sigrid was compelled to follow. She could hear the sounds of women crying, wailing and protesting hopelessly coming from somewhere up ahead. She could also feel the eyes of Mistress’ two bodyguards crawling all over her ass as they trailed behind. She bit her lower lip. There wasn’t anything she could do about it. She felt shamed, degraded, debased, and treated like an animal, useful only for fucking. She bit her lip harder, almost hard enough to draw blood. She could see the cell doors on either side of the hallway. They would take her into one of them, she knew, and she would be made to suck cock. She would have balked right then and there, but for the dog still close to her side. It was a furry reminder of the implied threat that Mistress had made, and Sigrid had no doubt that Mistress would carry out that threat… or worse. So, she crawled along meekly. Inside, she was becoming consumed by rage and shame. Her stomach was a tight knot, and she could taste bile at the back of her throat.

“Stop,” Mistress ordered. Both Sigrid and the dog stopped immediately. They were opposite one of the cell doors. Sigrid thought at first that this was the cage where she would be ‘trained’.